ThisIsNotCool: "In nationwide deepfreeze—fossil fuel vulnerability revealed." The map is from PowerOutage.us on Saturday, January 13. Michigan stands out, because hundreds of thousands of utility customers suffered blacckout during a severe winter cyclone. And the state generates over 85% of its power from “reliable” gas, coal, and nuclear. "Meanwhile, Iowa, with more than 62 percent renewable generation, under the same weather conditions, [was] lights-on and toasty." But on the West Coast, Washington + Oregon are prominently not faring well with their electricity + gas supply. In Seattle, the "14th largest natural gas storage facility in the United States went offline earlier [yesterday] in the middle of a cold snap hitting the Pacific Northwest, causing a flurry of messages to customers urging them to reduce natural gas usage." Puget Sound Energy, our utility, is a co-owner of the Jackson Prairie Underground Natural Gas Storage Facility. Yesterday an emergency alert was sent out across the gas network, warning that the pressure in the pipeline connecting Washington and Oregon was dropping “at a rapid rate.” While service from the storage facility has since been restored, it is still in recovery mode. Our home has a solar array + backup batteries. We don't use propane or methane gas for any purpose. However, we experienced an unprecedented 3 brief grid outages over the last wk, the longest lasting about 5 hrs. With our batteries, we were able to pump from our well, have hot water + space heating, entertain ourselves with television + follow the progress of our own 3 outages on our computers. So, individual self-sufficiency enhances community resilience.