Snap, crackle, POP

As Raven and I were walking today we came upon an unusual sight/sound. About 100 feet ahead of us, I head a crackling sound and saw some sparks flying. I looked up, and the pole with electric wires coming out of it was sparking. This only happened for a couple of seconds, and then I heard a loud BOOM down the line, as if a transmitter blew. No wires came down in that immediate area--the weather is overcast and cool, but not stormy at all.

I continued on my walk, and didn't notice any power outages along the way. People were leaving for work, using their electric garage door openers, and I could see lights on in houses, since as I said, it was overcast.

As Raven and I came up to a gas station, I saw our neighbor and assistant fire chief. I flagged him down before he left, and told him about the incident. It just so happens that the owner of the station is the fire chief, and he recalled (as I did) that this section of road had been closed a couple of months ago for a similar incident (although I think at that time the wires were down, too). Both men said they would drive by to check it out.

When I got home, the power was on, but I decided to call the electric company to report the incident anyway. Even though it was an 800 number I called, they answered my call promptly and seemed competent to take care of it.

It's nice to live in a small town where you know the fire chief and assistant fire chief, and can just happen upon them on a daily walk. But, aside from neighborhood friendliness, I like to think God's hand was in my "chance" encounter with the firemen. Hopefully a more serious problem can be averted because of our meeting in the parking lot of the Robbinsdale Sinclair station.

Till next time,


Suzi