Loose Connections

Hello, dear reader!

It’s a brave new world.

Take me back a few years, not that many really, and I doubt an electric car would have been high on my list of things I might own.

No, back then, the infrastructure seemed too sparse and the risk of running out of juice too real. It’s a threat that has diminished in the last few years, becoming less and less of a problem as time continues its inexorable march to the future.

And of course one of the things that has made a huge difference is home-charging.

Cover Charge
By the time I get my hands on my brand new Hyundai Kona I’ll be wired for motoring. In fact the charging unit is already in place, and has been for a few weeks, all connected to the household ‘leccy supply and ready to juice up the motor at the drop of a hat.

Which makes yesterday's visit by Northern Powergrid a little bit confounding.

To put you in the picture, the visit was to establish that the local network was capable of providing enough power, in a safe and efficient way, to supply power through the charger without overloading the system.

It didn’t take long. A matter of a few minutes, really, but, unfortunately that was just the start of it.

Crossroads
For some unknown reason, our electricity supply seems to be coupled with next door’s (being a semi-detached bungalow, this would be the adjoining property), and this, seemingly, causes an issue. The solution? Well, that’s to uncouple the properties and establish each one their own connection to the local power grid.

Which is located the other side of the road.

So, a five minute job, something I was promised would be quick and easy, grew into a digging up of the road, the laying down of some cable (not like that) quite a lot of disruption not only for us, but also for next door. It made me wonder if electric, with all its cost efficiencies and sparkly newness was the way to go after all.

A decision I might (might) have revisited if the charger hadn’t already been fitted.

Horse Power
It’s somewhat reminiscent of the initial advent of electric vehicles as an option. From an outsider’s point of view it seemed as if things were getting done backwards. The cars were in the showrooms before the infrastructure to support them properly had been fully rolled out and optimised, meaning charging units were few, far between, and painfully slow. These days they are plentiful and a charge can be obtained in the time it takes to have a coffee and a wee, but the cart seemed to be in place before the horse had laced its shoes.

And, as I say, this carries similar echoes. It seems to me that the effect on the local network should have been worked out long before the charger was installed. At that point a decision could have been made as to whether the disruption and the impact on neighbourhood reputation was worth it.

Back To The Future
Of course, the blokey from Northern Powergrid did point out that the work was always going to happen, eventually, so maybe this is just a matter of biting the bullet. It still seems, as we say in these parts, backardsway rahnd, and something that should have been discussed when buying the car

But who am I to sit in the way of progress, eh?


Until next time.

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Hey, there! If you enjoyed reading any of the above, why not take a look at some of my published work? Below you’ll find links to a number of short stories I’m lucky enough to have included in anthologies. I’d love to know what you think.



New Tales Of Old



Death Ship



Pestilence: Drabbles 1



Reaperman: Drabbles 3



The Musketeers Vs Cthulhu



Eldritch Investigations