I Feel Electrically Helpless

I Feel Electrically Helpless
Lome, Togo West Africa
Thursday, March 15, 2007

I turned on the air conditioning, just long enough to cool down the room and to give myself a cool easy feeling.

Then the electricity drops to an unbelievably low level, I can feel it as the air conditioner comes almost to a complete stop, I can feel the compressor, the fan, the movements inside the air conditioner. I know it is hurting, there is a continually edging away at its ability to function. How long can this air conditioner tolerate the abuse?

It causes me great inner frustration as I know I am helpless to help the air conditioner, I can only leave and go to another city, where maybe the electric workers do a better job, the is nothing almost ok in this small quadrant of the city of Lome, there is a need to fire some workers for negligence. I am in places where the electricity goes off, and on, but not where the voltage is so radically variant in nature.

I do not know the theories why exactly, I will slowly endeavor to learn why, however my astronomically mechanical mind knows there is problems being caused.

I know the small black box in the computer electrical line is also squealing a complaint, and my portable cell phone is already damaged, small, continues to regroup and try again to function, and is presently ok, yet I know just a few more straws and the smallish camel inside the cell phone will breaks its back, it will go over the edge.

The enjoyment or bright side of this, I now can go into the depths of the Encyclopedia Encarta and learn about things like Generators, Power Stations, Resisters, Volts, Voltage regulator and try to learn what those big masses of glass, wire and purple looking glass mounds surrounded by a fence outside my home town is doing?

I am in a place where what is supposed to happen, does not happen and I can see the why-it-is-needed, but that does not mean I understand.

Now with GPRS Cell Phone connection, when the Encyclopedia drops the ball and can tell me no more, I go to the internet and it will take me on to step two for learning. I normally need to quiz a professional to go to step three.

I have never heard of this before, however, there appears to be a need to buy a large voltage regulator for the Hotel complex.

Time to make instant coffee water with my one-cup cooker before I need to use alcohol to cook. Addictions require maintenance.

I Feel Electrically Helpless