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things to people. Anyway, I'm sure that whatever was behind what he did

will be considered in court."

"But be didn't need to; that's the tragic thing. Oh, I've enjoyed the

extra things my parents have made possible with money, including

Humperdinck. But I could have managed without."

Nim didn't feel like telling Karen that obviously her father had seen a

way to expiate some of his guilt feelings, and had taken it. That was

something a psychologist or the courts, or maybe both, would have to

unravel and pass judgment on. Instead, Nim asked, "You still have

Humperdinck?"

"Yes. Whatever else is happening, Humperdinck hasn't been repossessed

yet."

"I'm glad," he said, "because you'll need the van next week."

He went on to tell her about the new schedule of rolling blackouts

beginning Wednesday. "In your area, power will go off at 3 P-MWednesday

and stay off for at least three hours. So, to be safe, you should go to

Redwood Grove Hospital sometime during the morning."

"Josie will take me," Karen said.

"If there's any change," Nim told her, "I'll call you. Also we'll talk

about other blackouts later. Oh, by the way, I checked on the Redwood

Grove emergency generator. It's in good shape and the fuel tank is full."

"It's truly wonderful," Karen said, with a flash of her normal

brightness, "to be cared about so much."

15

"I really do believe," Ruth Goldman observed, turning pages of the

Chronicle-West Sunday edition, "that people are beginning to face re-

ality about an electrical crisis."

"If they'd listened to Dad," Benjy asserted, "they would have done it

sooner."

The other three-Ruth, Nim and Leah-all laughed.

"Thank you," Nim said. "I appreciate the loyalty."

Leah added, "Especially now it means you're vindicated."

"Hey!" Ruth told her, "that vocabulary class of yours is paying off."

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Leah flushed with pleasure.

It was Sunday morning and the family had gathered in Nim's and Ruth's

bedroom. Ruth was still in bed, having recently finished breakfast, brought

to her on a tray. Nim had got up early to cook poached eggs on corned beef

hash, a family favorite, for everyone.

Two days ago Ruth had flown back from New York following her second visit

there for treatments at the Sloan-Kettering Institute. She had appeared

pale on her return, and still did, and there were dark circles under her

eyes. She admitted to having experienced some pain as a side effect, as had

happened on the previous occasion, and was obviously tired.

It was still too early to know the effect of the treatments, and she would

go back to New York in another three weeks. Ruth reported cheerfully,

though, that the doctors she had talked with were "very hopeful."

Nim informed her about the impending "rolling blackouts" and that their own

home would be affected, beginning Wednesday.

Characteristically, Ruth had said, "No problem. We'll plan ahead, and

manage."

For a while, Ruth's mother, Rachel, would be coming in several days a week

to help with the house and allow Ruth to rest.

"Listen to this." Ruth had turned to the Chronicle-West editorial page and

began reading aloud.

THE POWER STRUGGLE

This newspaper, which tries to be honest and forthright in its opinions,

admits to having second thoughts about some stands we have taken in the

past.

We have, like many others, opposed increased development of nuclear

electric power. We have, because of concern about pollution, aligned

ourselves with opposition to coal-burning electric generating plants. We

have supported wildlife preservation groups who opposed building

additional dams for hydroelectric projects on the grounds that wildlife,

especially fish populations, might be diminished. We expressed doubt

about permitting more geothermal electric plants, fearing they would

upset the economies of established tourist areas.

We do not apologize for any of these stands. They represented, and still

do, our convictions in specific areas.

But, viewed as a whole, we are forced-in fairness-to agree with the

electric power companies of California which argue that their hands have

been tied while we have demanded of them what they cannot now deliver.

Instead of compromising here and there, as a give-and-take society

should, we have said "no" to almost everything.

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Let us remember that when the lights go out next Wednesday.

Perhaps we deserve what we are getting. Whether we do or not, the

time has come for serious reappraisal of some longheld views-our own

and others'.

"There!" Ruth declared, putting down the newspaper. "What do you all

think of that?"

Benj*y said, "I think they should have mentioned Dad."

Ruth reached out and mussed his hair affectionately.

"It's a smooth piece of writing," Nim said. "Unfortunately, that's all

it is. Oh yes, and it's five years late."

"I don't care," Ruth said. "I suppose I should care, but I don't. All I

care about right now is being home, and loving you all."

In the afternoon, despite it being Sunday, Nim went to GSP&L headquarters

and his office. There was plenty of activity, and decisions needing to

be made. In a way, with regular blackouts only three days away, the

utility was entering new and uncharted territory. As the chief dispatcher

put it when Nim dropped into the Energy Control Center, "We assume

everything will go smoothly and, as much as we can, we've all made sure

it will. But there's always factor 'u'-for the unexpected, Mr. Goldman.

I've seen that devil V bollix things too many times to believe it won't

happen anywhere at any moment."

"We've had quite a few unexpected things already," Nim pointed out.

"Always room for one more, sir; sometimes two," the dispatcher said

cheerfully. "Anyhow, that's the way I see it."

On his way home later, Nim wondered about the week to come, and the

dispatcher's factor "u."

An hour or two after Nim went home, Georgos Arcbambault ventured out from

his North Castle apartment. Now that his day for action-Tuesday-was so

near, Georgos was more edgy and nervous than at any time since going into

hiding. He sensed an observer or pursuer around each corner and in every

shadow. But it proved to be imagination only. He obtained food, without

incident, at a delicatessen, buying enough to last him until his

departure for La Mission on Tuesday evening.

He also bought the Sunday newspapers and, on his way back to the

apartment, mailed the envelope which contained that stupid Consumer

Survey from Golden State Piss & Lickspittle. Briefly, Georgos hesitated

at the mailbox, wondering if he should mail the letter after all. But,

observing that the box had already bad its single Sunday collection, and

would not be cleared again until midmorning Monday, be dropped the

envelope in.

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16

Nlondav, relatively speaking, passed uneventfully. Tuesday, in the early

morning hours, did not.

Nature, as if conspiring to embarrass GSP&L at a troublous time, mounted

its own onslaught at the utility's geothermal field in the mountains of

Sevilla County.

Deep in the earth beneath "Old Desperado," the wellhead which had once

blown out of control and was never capped entirely, a subsidence of rock

and subsoil released new geothermal steam under enormous pressure. The

steam rushed to the surface with the force of twenty locomotives. Then,

in a spectacular display which rivaled Dante's Inferno, hot mud, stones

and rock were hurled high into the air with apocalyptic force.

Obeying another natural phenomenon, namely, "what goes up must come

down," the tons of muck splattered widely over other portions of the

geothermal field.

By sheer good luck, the blowout occurred at 2 A.M. when only a handful

of workers was on duty, and all were under cover. Consequently, there

were neither deaths nor injuries, which would have been inevi6_ ble if

the blow had happened in the daytime.

But the geothermal field's switching and transformer yard was less

fortunate. It was deeply covered in wet muck, as were transmission lines

nearby. The muck was a conductor of electricity. As a result, everytbing

shorted out and the flow of power from all geothermal-driven generators;

to the GSP & L transmission system was instantly cut off.

No great or lasting damage was done. All that was needed was a massive

cleanup job which would take two days. As for Old Desperado, its bout of

mischief over, it settled back to sporadic, harmless steaming like a

simmering kettle.

But for forty-eight hours, until the cleaning was complete, GSP & L would

be deprived of seven hundred thousand kilowatts from its normally

reliable geothermal source, and would need to find an equivalent amount

of power elsewhere. The only way it could be done was by bringing more

oil-powered generators on line, and thus the utility's precious reserve

of oil was further, and unexpectedly, depleted.

One other question mark hung over Tuesday's operations.

Because of the time of year, out of the company's more than two

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hundred generating units, an unusually large number were removed from

service and undergoing maintenance in preparation for the summer peak-load

period. Thus, with the abrupt loss of Big Lil four days earlier, and now all

geothermals, GSP&L's total generating capacitvirrespective of the oil

shortage-would be stretched thin for the next two days.

Nim learned of the geothermal failure and the potential capacity shortage

on coming in to work on Tuesday morning.

His first thought was: How uncanny that the chief dispatcher's factor

"u"-the unexpected-had intruded, precisely as the dispatcher said it might.

His second was that until geothermal was back on line, GSP & L could not

withstand and absorb another factor "u" episode.

The realization made him decide, before he started work, to telephone Karen

Sloan.

"Karen," Nim said when she came on the line, "You've arranged to go to

Redwood Grove Hospital tomorrow. Right?"

"Yes," she answered, "I'll be there in plenty of time before the afternoon

blackout."

"I'd prefer it if you went today," he told her. "Could you do that?"

"Yes, of course, Nimrod. But why?"

"We're having a few problems-some we weren't expecting-and it's possible

there could be a non-scheduled power cut. It may not happen, in fact it

probably won't, but I'd feel easier if you were at the hospital and close

to that standby generator."

"You mean I should go now?"

"Well, fairly soon. It's just a long-shot precaution."

"All right," Karen said. "Josic's here and we'll get ready. And, Nimrod."

"Yes?"

"You sound tired."

"I am," he admitted. "I guess we all are over here. It hasn't been the best

of times, not lately."

"Take care of yourself," she told him. "And Nimrod, dear . bless you!"