If you guys are bemoaning the weather, we got one more reason to be twice as cranky:
rotational brownouts!
We Davaoenos get really smug whenever we're asked about our beloved city. I know I'm guilty. In our defense, mapagmamayabang nga naman ang Davao City. Security, tourism, traffic, cleanliness, shopping destinations - you name it, we have it! It's truly close to perfect. Chos!
Seriously, though, I love living in my city. However, these past months, in sync with the extremely hot weather are, what else, rotational brownouts! Gah, just perfect!
It began as once-a-week 1-hour long brownouts. Then it became twice a week. Then it became 2-hours. Now it's 2 hours and 30 minutes of beautiful power interruption
several times a week.
I work from home full-time so this is actually terrifying. It came as a double blow to me because my laptop's battery recently died on me, and I've been told my laptop's model has been already phased out, so chances of buying a new battery is close to zero. Ayayay!
Worse, we don't know when exactly our power would go off. We're given blocked scheduling, but we don't know the exact time of brownouts. There are even times when our power goes off beyond schedule. So basically, I'm like a mad woman saving her files every single minute.
But we do need to cope, right? I mean, we don't know until when this would last but we can't proclaim our hatred toward Davao Light on Facebook every single day (though I love reading funny rants - a nice breather from The Legal Wife reactions!).
So how do you cope? Let me tell you what I do to stay sane during the brownouts:
1. To-Do List: Brownout Edition
Since brownouts are bound to happen (in Mindanao anyway), prepare a list of things you
need to do during one. For me, these are the household stuff that gets thrown to Priority: Low. Since my laptop completely turns off and I can't work at all, I have no choice but to tackle the chores during power interruption.
Just this morning, for example, we experienced a 3-hour brownout, so I
finally got to do the laundry. So the next time you experience brownout, spend just a minute moaning over your unfinished work and get productive right away!
2. Smoothies, fruit juices, and ice cream are your friends.
Unlike the lucky ones, I cannot just eat ice cream whenever I want to. I need to watch my calorie intake. However, I can't survive this intense weather - tapos brownout pa - without a cold treat. That's why in my spare time, pag may kuryente, I make smoothies etc. so I'm ready for power interruption!
Papaya-prune-rolled oats smoothie in my new mason jar ;-)
At least I can fight the heat
and my hot head. And it's yummy.
3. If money allows it, buy a rechargeable electric fan - and a TV-phone if you must.
We already have a couple of emergency lights but light is not much of an issue for me. I can tolerate darkness. However, humidity is another thing! It's a terrible foe when you're alone so just imagine how it feels when you're sleeping with a pawisin toddler who absolutely hates humidity? Help me, Lord!
Thank goodness for rechargeable fans! I spotted a few people buying those USB electric fans, but they simply aren't fit for a toddler-mom like me. I need something like this:
Firefly rechargeable fan, Php 1700
The funny thing is that before, people here would just snub these stuff kasi walang panggagamitan. Brownouts used to be rare then. Malls would put them on sale at 50% off or buy 1-take 1, but dedma lang. Now, they're in demand! Nagkakaubusan ng stock!
