When the lights go out...

"That was the night the lights went out in Georgia" - song lyrics

Yesterday our neighborhood lost power while we were cooking dinner. It was after sunset so the room was instantly pitch black. My first thought was, "I wonder where my wife keeps the flashlights?" We have several around the house but at the very moment I needed one, I had no clue where to find one.

Then I remembered that I keep a flashlight in my pocket. (Old joke: Is that a flashlight in your pocket or are you happy to see me?) I have a key chain light that is the size of a quarter and at most a 1/2 inch thick. It puts out a very bright light and has proved to be very useful. I'm on my third key light over many years as they do eventually burn out or break. They can be found for under $10 at many stores and make a nice gift. Here's a variety of them on Amazon.com, http://www.amazon.com/b?ie=UTF8&node=3180301

Bottom Line

If I had practiced a power outage drill I might have remembered where we keep the flashlights in the house. Fortunately I used my key light to go to our living room and light a candle that we keep on our coffee table.

A word of caution about candles. The Red Cross discourages them - many house fires are started by candles. We use a long burning candle in a glass jar so there is little chance of tipping over or of the flame spreading. Never leave a candle unattended!