Actually, the electricity may be slipping.
In all seriousness, the first potentially really bad news about living in Uruguay was published by La Prensa this week. It is reproduced unedited and in total.
The Uruguayan government decided
Tuesday to apply restrictions regarding use of electricity and to
punish those breaking established regulations with suspension of
service, official sources announced.
The energy crisis affecting this nation is mainly
caused by lack of rain, which has forced Uruguay to purchase electric
energy from Brazil and Argentina and, according to official reports,
has used up the 150 million dollar annual budget of UTE energy
enterprise.
Some of the measures implemented by the
Uruguayan executive to complement the April 28 Energy Saving Plan
include that public and private entities may only use half their
elevators and escalators during working hours, while neon advertising
is only authorized for health and police centers.
As well, businesses may not illuminate their
sales cases and buildings will turn off lighting in lobbies, gardens,
and other decorative areas.
This doesn't sound too bad, but I will keep you posted. Frankly, when I first heard about this I had flashbacks of the power being turned off island-wide in Nevis whenever the Four Seasons Resort needed it, or the rotating 4 hour power outages that we endured during the winter in Montenegro.
If the worse result is a little less neon and having to take a flashlight when one goes shopping, it ought to be easy to endure.
Electricity – Lack of water and reduced eltricity was part of life while growing up in Central California. Not only did we have to cut out lawn watering, car washing, etc., but the electricity was also reduced such as our clocks ran slowly, light bulbs gave off less light, etc. It’s always sad to have water problems, and coping with it is difficult. I hope rain returns to Uruguay. Dan
Left by Dan on June 4th, 2006
Would you mind giving me your email address so I can contact you personally? I am coming to Uruguay in October. I am also using a wheelchair and would like to have a private conversation with you about accessibility, etc. Thank you for all your helpful postings.Debbie
Left by Debbie on June 4th, 2006
Hi David, I’ve been trying to track u down since 2/23/06, Sue sent me http://www.finzer.name/ that was fantastic, i really enjoyed that, it really sums Bill up, amazing how he changed and didn’t change over the years. Bill was a straight shooter, he said it like it was, and i always respected him for that. He was humble, accepting himself as he was, never looking back, but always looking for the better life he deserved, for himself & his family, he always said poverty sucks and he was right, it sucks. He worked hard, changed careers several times, and after many years hard work the tide was changing for him. I miss him dearly, and think of him often. He’s right around the corner from me know – less than 2 miles. I visit often. May god bless you. Bill’s friend from FloridaSteve Krieger Steve
Left by Steve Krieger on June 7th, 2006