Sure is dark at 6:45 p.m.I woke up to no water. Didn't find out until after I flushed the toilet, which means that all the gunky black water was sucked up into the pipes upstairs, the one bathroom I usually don't have to deal with the after effects of no-water days. I looked for an article that explains why it is important not to flush when there is no water. I found a zillion articles (some listed below) but none that get right to the point.
The no water situation was probably as a result of the nearby construction. It came back on after a few hours but meanwhile I turned faucets on about 45 times and tried to flush toilets 3 or 4 times. I told El Jefe that I need to make some "Don't flush!" signs to hang on the toilet handle. That is one hard habit to break!
The internet connection was iffy. The last time we had a problem they gave us a new modem. Oh, yeah, this one is much better. All the lights stay on even when there is no connection. Frustrating! I'd rather have the bad news up front than to continually try to send an email when there is no connection.
Tried to get some sewing done and the power went down to about 25%. That is a 100 watt bulb in that lamp and that is my dining room table, confiscated for a messy sewing table. Rushed around the house turning everything off so it wouldn't burn up in the brown-out. Stumbled around in the dark to light some candles. Darn! Burned my fingers. When am I going to remember to buy more of those long lighters! The temperature inside the house immediately climbed to unbearably hot and humid since there were no fans to move the air around and many of the windows were closed from the earlier tropical storm. Thinking I would take a clue from my intelligent dogs, I took my clothes off and laid down on the bed.
No, that won't work. I'm just not the napping kind. Tried this − reading by candlelight, but even though there was no breeze to cool me off, the candles were flickering terribly. I kept reading the same sentence over and over again. Oh, then remembering that I have my new laptop computer − battery operated! − I pulled that out. I honestly never even thought about that advantage when I decided to buy a laptop. My main reason was that I want to blog while laying in that hammock that you see in my profile.
It was too dark to see the keyboard, which apparently is VERY different than the one I usually use. Don't let this flash photo fool you. It took me − no exaggeration! − 10 minutes to fill out my name and email address on one of the registration forms and then, of course, it told me to try again later because I have no internet connection. 
While I should have been setting it up (which seems an overwhelming task) and learning about the new computer, while exploring, my eyes spied the games section. Wonder what's there? It was only a trial version which expired after an hour, but I think Maven would have beat me. I have a knack for setting up those triple letter and word squares for the opponent, i.e. I got 'jeweler'. Maven got more points for 'is.' Need to work on my strategy.The power came back on, again at about the 25% level. Man, I worry about the appliances when that happens. Even though nothing is turned on, there are all those LED lights and electronic components that might be affected.
Then it went off again. Then it came back normally. Did some sewing for awhile. Went to bed early (for me) to catch back up with that book...and BAM! The power went off again.
I'm not complaining, just reporting. It actually makes me feel pretty clever when I can find something to do in the dark. On the other hand, it makes a great excuse for not doing anything!
Here are a few related articles:
Ah! The luxuries of life!
No power again
La Gringa has a frustrating day
Day 5: No water
Blogging by candlelight
You just have to get used to it!
Welcome to my Blogicito — 
