Tuesday July 21st 2020

Today began with heavy cloud cover and a short rain shower during breakfast. Eventually the clouds broke up and the temperature increased. By late in the day it was in the low nineties, but the humidity made it feel much warmer.

While I was waiting around for the weather to figure out if it was going to be an outside day or something else, more strange things started to happen. The cable TV and the internet went out. I went outside to investigate. My neighbors in the next row were checking their power connections. All of the campground was without cable and internet. Half the campground was without power. A delivery truck resupplying the campground with ice took out one power line and the cable.

The campground staff got busy blocking off the downed live wire. A few minutes later the police arrived followed by the power company a little while later. The power company killed the power to the line so the truck could get out. A bucket truck arrived a half an hour later to reattach the wire from the transformer to the office building. The power came back on to the other half of the campground. They are still waiting for the cable company.

The impact on me is minimal. I was using the cable because my satellite dish is blocked by trees. I’m down to nineteen channels of broadcast TV and I’m using my cellular data connection for internet. The campground passed out ice cream tonight to placate people for what they are missing.

All of the activity at the campground kept me entertained during the day. I stayed home and did more travel research. After Arkansas I don’t have any reservations going further east. Based on COVID outbreaks and restrictions it looks like I’ll be continuing east through Tennessee. The alternative through Mississippi looks a little more risky. Mississippi seems slightly more likely to do something drastic like another “stay at home” order. I fear imposed restrictions more than exposure to the virus. Places where I could catch the virus are avoidable. Government imposed restrictions are more unpredictable and random.