Lights Out

At Mercado Global I am currently working on a document that will explain, step-by-step, the process of credit. We need to present the function of the program, Mercado Global Credit, to the Board of Directors and receive the “Go for launch” before moving forward. Last night as my boat approached the launch at San Pedro I noticed that the power was out.
In America when the power goes out and I am driving home there is still hope that electricity is alive in my neighborhood. I figure that in America power comes from many sources and boxes in different regions. But in San Pedro, when the power goes out, it’s OUT!
In America when the power goes out, every activity is affected as everything we do seems to be connected with electricity. I was amazed sitting in my house last night to see that my usual activities were not affected. I understood this as since San Pedro has not made themselves as dependent on electricity and do not have the many amenities that require this resource then no major changes were needed. Sure we did not have light, but I think the kitchen/living room (we only have one room other then the bedrooms, which I would call the “living kitchen”) was more lit now with candles then with the single bulb that normally serves as the light source. I had to use my flashlight to go to the bathroom, but I always have to use a flashlight to go to the bathroom. We did not need to worry about our food getting rotten in the refrigerator, because we do not have a refrigerator. We have a gas stove, and I was worried that without power we were not going to be able to eat. However, the gas stove is one of those little Coleman cookers running on propane, so Teresa, my host mom, was able to cook our traditional beans, eggs, cheese, and tortilla dinner. My conclusion is that when the power goes out nobody is that affected. Now the question is when will the lights turn back on? The power went out yesterday at 1:30pm, and it is still out today at 10:00am. In America I rest assure that I will go to sleep and an electrician is at work, so when I wake up I can look at my clock and it is flashing 12:00 (my signal that the power is back on). But I am not sure if anybody is working to get the power back on in San Pedro. And if I have to take a few cold showers that is fine because we do not get hot water anyway.