Power Outages: Water

When the morning thunderstorm hit, I was sitting in the recliner, in the almost-dark room, contemplating how to keep two horses, two dozen sheep, two dozen hens, dogs and cats hydrated.

We'd lost power the previous afternoon, and when the power goes, so does the well pump.

Thunder rumbled, and three Border collies leaped into my lap to join me in my thoughts.

A pond about a half-mile away could provide water. It's a slow, sweat-inducing process, filling and lifting buckets of water, one by one, from the pond, to a tub in the back of a pickup truck. But, being that the power outage was widespread, it seemed like the easiest solution.

Rains came, and the border collies snuggled closer.

Rain!

I shoved the Border collies outside and gathered buckets. Then, placing one underneath the downspout, I began collecting rainwater.

The storm was short-lived. But in those 15 minutes, I was able to collect enough water for animal use for a day.