Loadshedding aik naimat hia

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Code_Red June 9, 2007, 11:10am 1

Loadshedding is a blessing,

Cross atlantic confused desis who are not familiar with the term, the phenomena may sound exciting to you as you can have candle light dinner regularly and watch clear sky, stars and moonlight at night.

In my view, it is purely a blessing and help us realise how blessed we are while living in third world still have the luxury of electricity and clean drinking water.

In the sizzling summer when the temprature sees no boundries, when A/c desert cooler, fans keep us alive, suddenly electricity supply is discontinued for half an hour ( this happens from 6-12 times in 24 hours depending on your locality) after a few minutes it feels like breathing is a job itself now, you need no exercise for sweating like an animal. and after half hour your body is wet, the power is restored and you see all the appliances working and the breeze from fans cools down your body temprature.

We realise the importance of this ‘naimat’ known as electricity, and thank our load for being blessd… without loadshedding we would have taken it for granted just like developed world.

Code_Red June 9, 2007, 11:19am 2

Re: Loadshedding aik naimat hia

Some of the novel and fascinating views about loadshedding come from young generation. you can also share your perspective.

…
As I said, students are busy using their noggins to prepare for the exams, and the extra energy driven to the brain allows them to come up with cockamamie theories, some of which they think can help mankind. One such theory, which is my personal favourite, comes from a first year student Shahid:
‘Since we are being billed as much (if not more) despite the power outages, why don’t we use our generator to make energy and sell it to our neighbours for a fee? In this way we could afford to pay our electricity bill along with doing the neighbourly thing of easing our neighbours’ pains. And maybe save enough for a vacation in the northern areas.’

Another student, Sabah says: ‘I am happy that the power goes at night, it has helped me further in my study on the stars. It has always been my dream to sit under the starlit skies and watch the universe unfold in front of me. But the city lights reflected into the skies have always barred me from pursuing this. I am so happy that the power companies are helping me follow my passion by switching the power off at night. Who knows, I may be Pakistan’s answer to Galileo and Halley, and may end up inventing a special telescope or discovering a few comets named after myself?’ Her mother tells me that Sabah spends most of her time gazing at the skies, ignoring her books and getting scolded for this. So Ms Galileo/Halley please pass this exam, and then focus on other passions, or my dear girl your mother has promised to show you stars and they will not be in the skies.

Abid was studying about electricity and how Benjamin Franklin in 1752 harnessed electricity from lightening while flying a kite. To the horror of his mother who heard him explain this part of history to a friend on the phone: 'Yaar, the best way to remember this is by remembering the ‘Dark Ages’ before electricity was discovered. Yeah, in those times there WAS no electricity and all ages were dark. Just like now, we are going through the Dark Ages. Benjamin Franklin was a scientist…" It took her a lot of research and work to explain to her son and his friends that the Dark Ages were not those years without electricity (although they should be), but in fact ‘most commonly refers to the European Early Middle Ages, the period encompassing (roughly) 476 to 1000 BC’. And that this was in reference to literature and not electricity, which wasn’t discovered until more than 700 years later adding to more confusion.

Fatima, a student of Class 2, thinks she is developing psychic powers because twice she summoned the power to come back on and it did. Now she is trying to prefect this ability by spending the period of the load shedding concentrating on bulbs; she actually tries to light them! Despite many failures to do this, she is persistent and is sure that she will become an expert energiser.

Mohammad Ali, a-three-year-old, is delighted every time the electricity goes; he thinks it is his birthday party. He tries to blow out the candles every time they are lighted. This results in a dangerous and ridiculous game of ‘put the candle higher and higher, out of the reach of children’. And then Ali plays games with his shadow and is often frightened by the shapes he makes. The boy surely has a career in shadow puppeteering, if nothing else.

One four year child, B, thinks her father runs on electricity since every time the power goes her father flops off to sleep. She told her mother to get her father’s batteries recharged (like she sees the UPS recharged). But the father can’t seem to keep his eyes open even when there is electricity (he is probably suffering from sleeping sickness).

Saad, who has unfortunately come from the States to spend his summer with his grandparents, finds these power breakdowns fascinating. Having not seen such a thing in the US, he thinks it is a lot fun, especially when they have to light candles and lanterns when the UPS hasn’t been recharged. He finds it awesome that they can have candle light dinner almost every day. And he is also fascinated and awestruck that people can generate their ‘private’ electricity, something that he had never thought was possible in Pakistan, especially since he always thought Pakistan was an underdeveloped third world country. He had envisioned it akin to the pictures shown on TV of scenes from Africa, where people live in mud huts and have to carry water in pots on their heads.
…

source

C00l-m_nded June 9, 2007, 1:23pm 3

Re: Loadshedding aik naimat hia

I've gone through only the first post, what I realize after a session of load-shedding is that ACs, Fridges, and fans etc are blessings, not the loadshedding in itself:|, but yeah, all these electrical appliances need electricity to work, but load-shedding, a blessing? Not at all! :|

Gosh! My today's nap has just been disturbed by load-shedding...:( Cant call it a blessing! :+|

ashtray June 9, 2007, 2:18pm 4

Re: Loadshedding aik naimat hia

When we were very young it brought us closer as a family, all of us would sit together and play kasoti.

When I got a little older, mid to late teens, it brought me closer, ahem much closer, with mohallay ki larkiyaN.

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Sehar June 9, 2007, 2:47pm 5

Re: Loadshedding aik naimat hia

lol codey, some of the stories are funny

A couple of summers ago when I was in southern Pakistan, the light would promptly be off right before fajar time…and suddenly the humming of the AC would be silent and we’d wake up to the uncomfortably humidity…i don’t know if it was a local tactic to get people up for namaz, though the azaan through the loudspeakers is enough, but it was highly annoying!!! It does make you appreciative though.

_Namkeen June 9, 2007, 4:05pm 6

Re: Loadshedding aik naimat hia

and if u have an electric raquet, load shedding is a great time for exacting revenge against those blood sucking mossies.... ur own personal firecrackers!

Code_Red June 10, 2007, 4:53pm 7

Re: Loadshedding aik naimat hia

Loadshedding gives us the realtime experience of how the life would be without electricity ! and all the fancy appliance we use to relieve our miseries in this unbearable summer heat.

If there is no power outage would we everthank our God for this blessing ? and realise how it makes our life comfortable ?

Without water outage in summer we would never be thankful to GoD for bestowing his bounties on us in shape of clean drinking water. About 1/3rd of this world is not so lucky.

Remember when the light goes we curse Wapda/KESC but when it comes back we thank God, unconsciously :)

Let_Uz_Chat June 11, 2007, 3:34am 8

Re: Loadshedding aik naimat hia

I'm sure Lahoris yesterday didn't think of It as a blessing.

boota June 14, 2007, 1:31pm 9

Re: Loadshedding aik naimat hia

loadshedding naimat hai ya nahin
its a blessing when u r on computer in ur office :-p
not a blessing when u r at home watching tv.

but i have read quite a few old guppies long and funny articles well dug out by Code_Red..
and reli enjoyed those..
thanx code_red

:)

Rukhsarbibi June 14, 2007, 1:55pm 10

Re: Loadshedding aik naimat hia

thanks for the stories Codey :D

Electricity is such a blessing - I can work, sleep, cook and clean without any interruption. Thank you God for giving us electricity and not the never ending load shedding.

~ Glowing Brides ~

Sara516 June 14, 2007, 4:48pm 11

Re: Loadshedding aik naimat hia

Code_Red:

Loadshedding is a blessing,

Cross atlantic confused desis who are not familiar with the term, the phenomena may sound exciting to you as you can have candle light dinner regularly and watch clear sky, stars and moonlight at night.

In my view, it is purely a blessing and help us realise how blessed we are while living in third world still have the luxury of electricity and clean drinking water.

In the sizzling summer when the temprature sees no boundries, when A/c desert cooler, fans keep us alive, suddenly electricity supply is discontinued for half an hour ( this happens from 6-12 times in 24 hours depending on your locality) after a few minutes it feels like breathing is a job itself now, you need no exercise for sweating like an animal. and after half hour your body is wet, the power is restored and you see all the appliances working and the breeze from fans cools down your body temprature.

We realise the importance of this 'naimat' known as electricity, and thank our load for being blessd... without loadshedding we would have taken it for granted just like developed world.

So it only goes out for a half hour at a time? I've heard it goes out for 6-12 hours a day, some ppl have no power for 24 hrs, some ppl dont even have running water.. :(

hsap June 14, 2007, 11:19pm 12

Re: Loadshedding aik naimat hia

u heard right ..............it's happening atleast in karachi