KALONA

The ice storm that kept most of us home on Saturday, Dec. 14 was ill-timed, falling precisely at a moment where many had holiday events to attend and shopping to do. It might have been an opportunity to get some baking or crafting done, but then the power went out and stores and restaurants closed, leaving us to fend for ourselves for meals and entertainment.

Power outages are a risk for those of us who live on the grid; for our Amish neighbors who don’t, life went on mostly uninterrupted.

What did folks do during their hours without power? We asked this question on Facebook, and responses fell into three basic categories: those who left home for places that had power, those who turned on backup power sources like generators, and those who adapted in creative ways.

For those who navigated in the dark, flashlights, camping lanterns and candles provided light. Fireplaces and space heaters staved off the cold, as did hot showers.

Preparing food became an adventure. Some enjoyed the hospitality of neighbors, while others used gas or camping stoves to make hot cocoa, popcorn, and soup. Still others settled for eating food cold and in unusual combinations.

As for activities, board and card games were a popular choice, as were reading, talking, and napping.

Here are some of our favorite stories:

“Grabbed battery-operated under cabinet lights to use for flashlights. Dove into pantry to make a makeshift meal with tortilla chips and applesauce. Went to a movie in the theater to keep busy and woke up to all the house and holiday lights on at 2 a.m.,” Susan Bailey wrote.

“Changed all the batteries in the flashlights and filled the kerosene lamps. Organized a couple of clothes drawers, and since some of the branches were hanging low, I got out my pruner with the extension pole and did some pruning,” Marcus Miller wrote. “Also went for a walk and discovered that it seemed most people in Wellman on the north side of Hwy 22 had electricity. Ours, unfortunately, didn’t come back on until around 9:30 p.m.”

“We had a family Xmas gathering here in Washington with no electricity for four hours,” Linda Drish wrote. “We cooked and baked on the grill but ate cold green beans. We had stick-up lights that were Scotch taped to the ceiling fans. To use the toilets, we had to fetch five-gallon buckets of water from someone with electricity to pour down the toilets to flush them. It was a great afternoon full of memories.”

Julie Riggan “took a couple naps [and] watched vehicles go up and down our street.”

Interestingly, Christina Yotty Brenneman “spied on my neighbor while she was watching vehicles go up and down our street.”

For Ruth Bontrager Hershberger, “Sunday morning our side of 12th street was still cold and dark, with no way of making coffee. Our kind neighbors across the street, Mike and Deb, invited us over for coffee and rolls, with more neighbors coming and going, which turned into a fun morning playing Skipbo and Uno, followed by a delicious impromptu lunch.

“At 1 p.m. on Sunday, after 23 hours, our power was finally restored,” she wrote. “Good neighbors make the best of an inconvenient ice storm.”