5 years ago...
Was the major blackout of the East Coast.
Can you remember what you were doing then?
I was at home with Andrew when all the lights went out. After discussing with my mom over the phone, Andrew and I decided to go out to Ray's to get pizza instead of opening the fridge. All the traffic lights were out, so everyone was being super nice and letting everyone go at the stops (which was a bit of a problem because there was a lot of hesitation, no you go first moments). Surprisingly, most of the food businesses were still in action (I guess you don't really need electricity to make pizzas...), and everything was pretty normal. I sat outside on the front doorstep, just soaking it all in and writing in my journal. And then sometime in the evening, the power started again and that was it. We didn't even have to light the candles.
Of course, we only learned later that the blackout had been immense, with some places not getting power back for days. New York City didn't get power back until sometime in the night, and there are great stories of impromptu apartment barbeques and meeting neighbors for the first time. But in the suburbs not much changed; it was just another night, albeit one without light or air conditioning.
Can you remember what you were doing then?
I was at home with Andrew when all the lights went out. After discussing with my mom over the phone, Andrew and I decided to go out to Ray's to get pizza instead of opening the fridge. All the traffic lights were out, so everyone was being super nice and letting everyone go at the stops (which was a bit of a problem because there was a lot of hesitation, no you go first moments). Surprisingly, most of the food businesses were still in action (I guess you don't really need electricity to make pizzas...), and everything was pretty normal. I sat outside on the front doorstep, just soaking it all in and writing in my journal. And then sometime in the evening, the power started again and that was it. We didn't even have to light the candles.
Of course, we only learned later that the blackout had been immense, with some places not getting power back for days. New York City didn't get power back until sometime in the night, and there are great stories of impromptu apartment barbeques and meeting neighbors for the first time. But in the suburbs not much changed; it was just another night, albeit one without light or air conditioning.