SoCal in the dark

Rick,
Here in the UK, unbeknown to most we get some serious flooding, luckily we are out of the flood zone (or so we think), but we do lose power sometimes. I fitted a 3kw inverter into one of our vehicles. I can quickly hook it up to the house and run lights, cooker, Internet, Tv and heating. Works like a dream. I always make sure the van us full of fuel during suspect times.
Cost if the one was only around $200, well worth it.

Been through everything.   Ice storm 1998 far worse.  This one was not even a drop in the bucket.  The scale is just ridiculous however.  NOT verified human error, but that comes from a utility company spokesperson, so taken with a double grain of salt.
Me being a BIT cynical on this one think it may be human INTENTION...but you know me, think too much or explore other side always...
Something smells rotten and not just in Denmark...  This was unnatural.   
Would've really sucked if Joe was in town although maybe we could've had a repeat JB birthdate party performance! 

Martin, smart man.  We do that sort of thing a lot US of A rural areas, although internet or tv services might be unattainable, the food prep, general comforts for heating (or cooling) are most needed and available...and unplanned turn of events can often bring out some unexpectedly very good times with family and / or friends....or even sometimes strangers (who probably live next door  ) out here.   

Given the title of the topic, won't matter if the grid was bulletproof, would still be much truth-common sense lacks so much at times like this here and even much lesser

"He still doesn't charge for mistakes! "
http://jbonamassa.com/tour-dates/
"Everybody wants ta get inta the act!"
“Now, this isn’t your ordinary party crowd, here.  I mean, there are professionals in here.”

Probably the only time I'll ever be able to say this...Thank God I'm on SoCal Edison.  No power interruptions.  Although as the football game turned out, maybe I wished that I was in the dark

We just went four days without power, annoying, but not the end of the world.  We have a generator that we use when camping ( we do a lot of "dry" camping-places with no elec/water hookups) so we were able to plug in our fridge in the house (which quickly got filled with the food from our two tenants), the neighbors fridge and the fridge in the camper.  The most annoying thing was not being able to get any reliable communication about how long it would take for the juice to come back.  Smartphones do have some limits, and on mine it could not download the info map from the power company (not that there was any truthful or accurate info on it anyways).  Sort of "camped" for the week - spent a lot of time outside visiting with others in the same boat, cooking on the grill.  No bid deal in the long run.  On the other hand....

Spider, I hope you guys are ok - you have had a very rough time lately, and so many of your neighbors, too.  And parts of Vermont and NH are a total mess.  Makes a nine-hour power interruption look like a walk in the park.  Mother Nature needs to cut the northeast a break for awhile.

Sandy

As I read your last words, I'm thinking of a saying we have here, "What the country provides, the city takes". And then Robin Trowers "Too Rolling Stoned" comes on the radio.."The takers get the Honey, The Givers sing the Blues". Ironic. 

There's another saying we have here. "Flush your toilets. New York City needs the water".        

Watched Arizona St. vs. Missouri last night and ASU debuted a new all black uniform and encouraged their fans to wear black to create a "blackout" theme in the stands. Gotta wonder if that tech that triggered the grid failure over in Tucson is an ASU alumni???????

                                                                                                                  Think Green,

                                                                                                                  J Dawg

Yeah, I been wondering 'bout that.  You guys aren't used to (or ready for) that.  You yourself have had exposure to hurricanes with your FL time but wow...My brother called me to say NH is closed this week...   StrangeDaysIndeed.

MuchLove sent up to you & yours
FDOL

As the evening progressed with no word of why it happened, or how long it would last, thoughts of 9/11 were hard to dispel, especially after an erroneous rumor came in on the emergency radio station of power stations on fire in the desert, and the official request to cease cell phone use to conserve bandwidth for emergency services. I've not noticed an increase in bicycle traffic, it is still a death wish with our drivers on the road. It gives one pause to think of owning an electric car though.... Even those who have installed solar power to cut down on the electric bills were dark. It turns out the electric co. controls the switch, and most don't have installed battery reserve. There were a lot of impromptu neighborhood candlelight bbq's as everyone began to cook up the stuff in the fridge that would soon spoil  if power wasn't restored. It was nice to see young people out and socializing instead of being glued to their portable inet devices. Some walked about in a daze with no clue of what to do on thier own in the real world.