Life in 19th century Ardèche

That’s how it felt yesterday. Snow must have fallen on a few branches or trees which managed to bring down the power lines somewhere in our region.

And it took out the village and this side of the mountain.

I thought it was just our house. But when I went up to feed the horses I checked at our neighbours.  It’s always a silly relief when I know it’s just not our dodgy electricity that is forcing me to live a 19th century life.

And the census taker came by after lunch and confirmed the village had also lost power.

So I had a strange day. No power, just the fire to keep me warm. And luckily we have a large window facing south, so as long as there was daylight I could read and work.

Luckily I had some absorbing literature; the history of our village during the Second World War.

But I had cabin fever by around 4pm. Thank goodness the power came back on (minus a quarter of the circuit which supplies the vital things like the modem, internet, lights in my office, deep freezer and wine fridge) so I felt like I was creeping back into the correct century.

I called our wonderful electrician but he wasn’t moving from his village. He too was snowed in.  So with extension chords snaking all over the house to make sure I didn’t lose the essentials, I had another night of watching the snow in the dark and hoping it would, by some miracle, melt.