7 Days and 7 Nights

Posted on June 28, 2008 at 21:39 Down the Drain

For <insert title here, no capitalization>, I survived without electricity…

I woke up Saturday morning and noticed a cold and dull atmosphere. I jumped into the conclusion that there’s a brownout and it was confirmed when I reached my UPS and it didn’t turn on after one switch. Frank, a typhoon at around 140 kph (according to one SMS I received that day), was devastating the island of Panay — the island where I’m in. Together with the absence of power was the absence of water. Usually, when there’s no electricity, there’s still water (that goes up to the second floor). But it was not the case. We had to struggle to acquire water because it was scheduled. Apparently the generator for it might have been under repair or something. I even experienced bathing in the rain in the inner court of our dormitory. It was a rather cool experience. The tandem of the two was not easy, especially the water that is a daily necessity. And the electricity you say? Argh!

Frank did not only cause the loss of electricity, for it drowned most of the below-sea-level Iloilo. I never thought that almost all places in this province are flooded when rain pushes itself too far. Many houses were reported to have been destroyed, roofs blown away, and people staying on top pf their houses. Aklan was also greatly inflicted. I wonder whether Boracay got hit too or it still remains as “beautiful” as what people perceive it to be. Then there’s this vessel that got turned upside down by the strong waves near Sibuyan Island in Romblon. The news says that the captain’s announcement to abandon ship came too late that only 56 among the more than 700 passengers survived. Such a disaster. I read in the newspaper today about a girl calling out for help because her parents and 5 siblings were aboard that ship and seemed to have not survived. Can you imagine that?

So what did we do the entire time? Well, everyone was playing “Killer’s Game” where you form a circle and look into each other’s eyes and one of you happens to be a killer and if he/she winks at you, you’re dead. I did not join because I thought that playing it without any proper consequence is lame. Then there was also this game “Seven, Seven, Bang!”. It’s actually fun, but still, I didn’t manage to join. And of course, there’s Tennis and Badminton every afternoon. People did everything they could do that can possibly entertain. Yesterday Zeny, our previous dorm president, was talking about the conspiracies of Filipino showbiz. It was surprisingly worth listening to. At night we went to Omp’s Corner and drank six bottles (liters) of Red Horse. Today two of my dormmates played BINGO. Yep, you read it right, only two of them. Nonetheless, it was amusing watching them. It was only past 2:00 this afternoon when the power was finally restored. No more dark and early nights, at last.