Haiku Lighten the Mood in Dark Times Brought on by Power Shutoffs

Updated on Monday, Nov. 4, at 2:15 p.m.

Up in California's Gold Country, PG&E's power shutoffs in October hit residents hard: Schools closed, businesses shuttered, cellphone communications faltered, medical services were impacted and food rotted in powerless refrigerators — all while freezing temperatures set in.

Jeffrey Beemer, a massage therapist from Camino in El Dorado County, said the power blackouts were interrupting — or rather coming to dominate — people's lives, and he wanted to give them a humor-filled way to vent: haiku.

"There were a lot of people expressing themselves in negative ways — like they're shaking their fists at the air, sometimes," he said. "So I thought, why not just express ourselves and have some fun with it. I've always liked haiku. ... I just pictured it more like people blowing off steam with a smile."

And boy, people did.

After Beemer posted his haiku idea to the EDCW Chat page, a group on Facebook, he got dozens of replies, many capturing a slice of life without power.

Here are the ones who said their haiku could be shared:

Where is my husband?
Sitting in car in driveway.
Checking his Facebook.
— Alison Smith Loeprich

Cold and dark no light
Children don't open the fridge
Beans and Franks again
— Laura Waugh

Broken-heartedly
I check my phone battery
Damn, 12% charge...
— Tony Guglielmone

Generator's making too much noise
I am tired of getting up cold
When will this be over
— Lori Lumactod

Baking and laundry
And watching TV at night
Gone when the lights died
— Liz Hamilton Graff

I freeze in the night
Food rots in the warmth of day
Plight of the watt-less
— Kirstine Bowers

Charging tent visit
We all bring dead devices
Plug in and make friends.
— Patti Farrington

Walking through the house
Darkness. My flashlight is dim.
What did I step in?
— Teresa Hawkins Haselmann

Generator fumes
Power loss consumes the brain
Coffee would be good
— Nancy Maggitti Leonti

Dark is the night sky
A million stars I now see
Oh, how I love thee
— Stacie Derencin

It’s missing the mark
While trying to do its part
I’m still in the dark
— Bree Lawrence

PG&E bites.
Propane water heater though.
At least I won’t stink.
— Gary Navratil

Short bursts of power
Generator on four hours —
Then darkness again.
— Carol Sikes

Here are a few more, from Gold Country authors who will remain anonymous, for now:

Kids no school today
Lost my marbles yesterday
Shower pretty please

Fuck PG&E,
Really fuck PG&E
Fuck PG&E

And finally, there was a message of gratitude — in haiku, naturally — to Beemer.

Sitting in the dark...
Now lights shining ON at home.
Thank you for haiku
— Christine Gaul

Have a haiku of your own? Email the reporter with it: mleitsinger@kqed.org