13 April 2008

Oh Dear

13 April 2008
This post is for those of you back in the states who are concerned about the economic situation - I'm here to tell you it could be worse!

We just found out that Saipan has less than a week's supply of fuel left. The utilities corp. couldn't pay $2 MILLION (of the $3.5 million) to Mobil. So, apparently we have 11,000 barrels to last us the month v. the normal 25,000, and the ship has left the island!

Power outages are a pretty normal occurrence here - sometimes once a week, sometimes even once a day (during the rolling blackouts), but this fuel crisis could mean close to two weeks straight without power. 2 weeks in 85 degree weather without a shower?! That's not going to be pretty.

I had a mini freak out today when the power was out for over 2 hours. I thought our days of glorious light and air conditioning were already up, and I wasn't ready. Eric and I had just gotten back from a sweaty hike and both were in desperate need of a shower, the kitchen sink was filled with dirty dishes, we're down to our last 5 gallons of water, and I really needed to use the bathroom. Poor Eric had to throw on his suit and go to priesthood session without a shower. Thankfully, the power did come back on ... for now.

I'm not sure how we're going to manage if/when "darkness falls", but I'm sure we'll survive. Who knows, we may even like it and decide to join an Amish community.

Click here & here to read more about the fuel shortage...

3 comments:

Heather said...

Wow, that's crazy. I was telling Paul about it and he was like "So, I guess that's the drawback to living in a tropical paradise." Well, hopefully there is enough power to finish our Scrabble game, I'm pretty addicted to it if you couldn't tell!

Cassandra said...

Oh yeah, Saipan definitely has it's quirks (if you can call them that). One of these days I'll publish a post devoted entirely to the 'other' side of Saipan. Maybe I'll title it, "Saipan - quirky, corrupt & beautiful"

No worries about our Scrabble game, when the power goes out, I'll probably be living at Java Joes (they have wireless internet & a generator)

staci baker said...

Wow! I remember that scared feeling in Cayman when there were hurricanes in Florida that prevented the ships from coming to the island to bring food. The grocery stores were empty for a week until the storms calmed down and the ships could come! Your situation sounds scary, too! I would hate having so many power outages. I need it too much!