Sandy aftermath resurrects ancient communication forms...

[AE1PT]

Seems the lack of electronic gizmo's to wrap oneself up into has caused city dwellers (and some country mice) to actually look each other in the eye and engage each other in conversation. Social archaeologists have been excavating older interaction tools from secret chambers--decks of cards, board games, photo albums--and using this forgotten 'conversation' mode to interact with each other whilst gathered around them.

This article states that people are actually coming from "powered" parts of the city to take part in what is occurring. This trend will be short lived I fear. As soon as services become widespread again, life can go on with people texting each other about nothing--whilst ignoring those around them... :quiet:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/02/new-york-blackout_n_2067462.html

[ki4itv]

Simply barbaric and otherworldly.

[WØTKX]

Words with friends in person instead of via smartphones? Wow.

[N8YX]

Jump Teams are standing by.

[NQ6U]

A similar thing happened here during the twelve-hour power failure in 2011. The usually dead night time streets of this dull suburban burg were filled with people moving around, having long conversations with neighbors, meeting people one has lived near for years and never spoken to before. It was pretty cool. The lights came back around 2 am the next morning and the following evening, everything returned to normal.

[K7SGJ]

A similar thing happened here during the twelve-hour power failure in 2011. The usually dead night time streets of this dull suburban burg were filled with people moving around, having long conversations with neighbors, meeting people one has lived near for years and never spoken to before. It was pretty cool. The lights came back around 2 am the next morning and the following evening, everything returned to normal.

I think that's called the "cockroach effect".

[n2ize]

A similar thing happened here during the twelve-hour power failure in 2011. The usually dead night time streets of this dull suburban burg were filled with people moving around, having long conversations with neighbors, meeting people one has lived near for years and never spoken to before. It was pretty cool. The lights came back around 2 am the next morning and the following evening, everything returned to normal.

I was out for 5 days but not too many people were hanging out outside because the weather was cold and rough. Two days later we were still feeling the effects of the storm... cold dreary overcast skies, scattered showers, and a few left over wind gusts....although not nearly as strong as during Monday. Then right after that a cold front came through so it was not the kind of weather that people other than myself like to be out in. But I'd imagine if it were milder more people would have come outside and the situation would be like the one you described.

I was outside grilling steaks on the barbecue the next night right after the storm and then a few days later. Reason being we had these really good steaks in the fridge and freezer and we didn't want them to spoil. It was kind of fun grilling outside in the dark.

[W9WLS]

Will be interesting to wait and see if the birth rate takes a spike in 9 months !

[KK4AMI]

I remember when the leading form of neighborhood communication was the front porch and a refrigerator full of drinks. After work, my father would sit on the front porch with a paper and beer. Neighbors would stop by to talk and he would tell them to go in and grab a beer. Soon the wives and kids came out with food. Pretty soon we had a gathering of families on somebodies front porch until dark.

[n2ize]

I remember when the leading form of neighborhood communication was the front porch and a refrigerator full of drinks. After work, my father would sit on the front porch with a paper and beer. Neighbors would stop by to talk and he would tell them to go in and grab a beer. Soon the wives and kids came out with food. Pretty soon we had a gathering of families on somebodies front porch until dark.

Yep, that's how it was at my Grandfather's house in the Bronx in the old days. Everyone used to gather in the kitchen and on Sunday's in the summer the front door would be open and old friends, acquaintances, and neighbors would just walk in, have a little wine, some bread and cheese, and they would sit and talk. Don;t see that way of life that much anymore.

[n2ize]

I was playing around with an old 1920's-30's style regenerative receiver while the power was out here. It was amazing how great and noise free was the reception with none of the computers, networking, and consumer electronic junk running. I was picking up all sorts of stations on the MW and HF freqs. Now that the power is back the noise floor is back to normal and the reception is loaded with the usual birdies and noise.

[WØTKX]

I'd like to play with a regen receiver at the new QTH. Noise floor on 75 without thunderstorms is less than 1 S unit. :omg:

[kb2vxa]

Twice and a half I had plenty of noise free DX when the power went out, the twice were the two New York blackouts when all FM and TV went out and most of the AM stations except for a few transmitters on the Jersey side that lost studio feed and transmitter control. No big deal, only a few dead carriers blocking DX but no splatter on adjacent frequencies. I lived in a dead quiet area because light dimmers and electronic noisemakers weren't invented yet. By the time of the great northeast blackout I was a ham and with such a wide area gone radio dark as well as literally all I had to contend with was that infernal in house buzzing I never figured out, the radio landscape sure looked different. BTW what saved us from that massive cascade failure were the engineers at Oyster Creek Nuclear who had enough sense to take us off the grid before the plant went down. Yup, this is KB2VXA, station powered by atomic energy, operator powered by natural gas. (Oldies tend to fart a lot.)

[KC2UGV]

Twice and a half I had plenty of noise free DX when the power went out, the twice were the two New York blackouts when all FM and TV went out and most of the AM stations except for a few transmitters on the Jersey side that lost studio feed and transmitter control. No big deal, only a few dead carriers blocking DX but no splatter on adjacent frequencies. I lived in a dead quiet area because light dimmers and electronic noisemakers weren't invented yet. By the time of the great northeast blackout I was a ham and with such a wide area gone radio dark as well as literally all I had to contend with was that infernal in house buzzing I never figured out, the radio landscape sure looked different. BTW what saved us from that massive cascade failure were the engineers at Oyster Creek Nuclear who had enough sense to take us off the grid before the plant went down. Yup, this is KB2VXA, station powered by atomic energy, operator powered by natural gas. (Oldies tend to fart a lot.)

Glad to hear you're ok.

[N2NH]

This makes me want to go out and buy a QRP rig, a key and a gel cell.

[ki4itv]

Good to see ya' Warren!
Heard from our "Sodium Free Ham" ???