For the past two days, I have been in New Hampshire. An early snow storm a few days ago knocked out power in many parts of the state, including the town where we were staying. Ironically, the places that were hardest hit by the wintry weather were the places that were the furthest south. The reason for that is that not only did not much snow make it all the way north – I drove home to Vermont today and arrived to find almost no snow in our yard – the snow that did fall was heavy and wet. That heavy, wet snow fell in places where the leaves had not yet fallen off of the trees. The leaves trapped the snow and weighed down the branches, causing many large limbs and even entire trees to fall down. Many of the trees and branches landed on power lines, causing a major power outage.
The storm certainly ruined many people’s weekends, and everywhere we went it seemed as though people were looking for somewhere, anywhere to hang out for a while so that they could spend some time in a warm place instead of in their cold, dark homes. For home based professionals and other folks who had intended to get some work done over the weekend, it was time to find somewhere that had not only heat and food, but also electrical outlets and internet access. I am not sure whether there were any other places in the areas that still had electricity that fit that description, but I do know that people flocked to area Panera Bread restaurants in search of those amenities.
My son and I found ourselves inside one of the Panera Bread stores yesterday because we wanted something good to eat and a nice, warm place to sit for a little while. The store was jam packed, and finding a table was nearly impossible. People were not just coming in for a quick lunch; they were camping out for the afternoon. It was very interesting to observe all of the people in there who were trying to find tables located near electrical outlets so that the tools of their trades – laptops and cell phones – could stay fully charged. As soon as one person packed up their laptop to leave, another would quickly take their place. While I was not there to get any work done during the day since I had my son with me, it was nice to see other professionals getting their work done despite the lack of electricity at their homes. I was able to do my work later on, with my laptop plugged into the cigarette lighter of my car. It was warm enough, but not all that comfortable and I thought about how grateful the people sitting in Panera Bread must have felt to have somewhere to enjoy a good meal, get warm, and stay productive.
If you live in an area where you sometimes lose electricity, it may be a good idea to familiarize yourself with the selection of coffee shops and other places in your area that have internet access and electrical outlets. When a storm hits, if it is safe to get out of the house to try and get some work done, you will know where to go – if you can get there before everyone else does. Of course, I must not forget to mention that I am not affiliated with Panera Bread and they did not compensate me in any way for mentioning them here.
Photo by jdurham on morguefile.com.