Cover photo

When Electricity stops flowing on Memorial Day

A Story and Thoughts: Reflecting and Reading

David T Phung

David T Phung

I. The Unexpected Blackout

The electricity went out about 35 minutes ago, and I’m staying there for Memorial Day.

Chapters:

I: The Unexpected Blackout

II: Density Lesson from Smil

III: Going Analog for the Moment

IV: Revealing Thoughts

V: References

I was not able to upload a video on Paragraph. See the video on the Substack post. https://open.substack.com/pub/davidtphung/p/when-electricity-stops-flowing-on?r=cxk1s&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Figure 1 - Video of the American flag outside where I’m staying

It’s a small complex—less than 500 residents—but now you’d think we were hosting an impromptu gathering. Families stepped outside. Dog owners lingered longer on their walks. Conversations began to ripple between balconies and sidewalks.

One family was already mid-barbecue when the power cut out, and they just kept going. Although their unit lost electricity, they stayed outside, music playing softly from a battery-powered speaker, passing food around as if nothing had changed.

Another neighbor, passing me during a walk, said hopefully, “I just hope the power comes back before bedtime.”

No panic. Just curiosity, improvised plans, and a reminder: we overlook infrastructure until it disappears.

Luckily, I still had mobile service to post this. It made me think:

If a local outage creates this uncertainty, how would we even know if something bigger happened, like an EMP?

Update: Our neighbor contacted SoCal Edison, and the ETA to have electricity again is 01:00 AM PST on 05/27/2025. Electricity stopped flowing at about 06:24 PM PST on 05/26/2025.

Update: Electricity started flowing again around 08:50 PM PST on 05/26/2025 (Confirmed by my parents) I drove around town for a bit to enjoy the night lights.

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II. Density Lesson from Smil

With the power out, I grabbed a book that doesn’t need charging: Power Density by Vaclav Smil.

Reading it in the quiet, something clicked:

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Figure 2 - Power Density by Vaclav Smil

  • First: Civilization runs on concentrated energy per square meter. That’s power density. Without it, our pace of life collapses.

  • Second: When energy gets too dispersed, fragility creeps in. It takes more land, more time, and more labor to do what used to happen instantly.

Smil doesn’t write like he’s trying to be poetic. But he is.

He reveals the physics behind the fabric of our daily life—and what frays when it breaks.

III. Going Analog for the Moment

With no power, Wi-Fi, or distractions, I wondered: What else is there to do that doesn’t require a device?

I read. I walked. I observed.

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Figure 3 - Community complex walk

The absence of electricity wasn’t just a constraint but a filter. The day slowed down. I saw families talking. A kid kicked a soccer ball with his dad in the courtyard. A woman played an acoustic guitar quietly on her steps.

There was something profoundly human about rediscovering life without a constant current. The power cut also removed a layer of noise.

Sometimes disconnection is where presence hides.

IV. Revealing Thoughts

“You only find out who is swimming naked when the tide goes out.” Warren Buffett

When the lights go out, we don’t just see what fails—we notice what endures.

The electric tide went out tonight. What stayed afloat was conversation, curiosity, and candle-lit clarity. Luckily, the summer heat wave hasn’t hit Palm Springs, so stay hydrated!

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Figure 4 - A beautiful day in Palm Springs, CA, USA

A reminder that every day, invisible things become visible when you’re not able to do something anymore. This is why my mission is to build abundant and reliable electricity at scale. If you’re on this mission, please reach out, I’d love to connect and chat.

Thank you for reading, and please share with the people you love.

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V. References

  1. Vaclav Smil, Power Density: A Key to Understanding Energy Sources and Uses (MIT Press, 2015).

  2. Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholder Letter (2001).

  3. Congressional Research Service. Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) and Its Impact on the U.S. Power Grid.

  4. U.S. Department of Homeland Security. National Risk Management Center – EMP Protection Guidelines.

Presented by David T Phung

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Reid DeRamusFarcaster
Reid DeRamus
Commented 4 weeks ago

We're back with the 43rd edition of Paragraph Picks, highlighting a few hand-selected pieces from the past couple of weeks. I loved the number 43 growing up bc it was the channel number for MTV. Check out the posts below & let us know which is your favorite!

Reid DeRamusFarcaster
Reid DeRamus
Commented 4 weeks ago

@miromiro reflects on the ethical, legal, and personal challenges of photographing strangers in public spaces, sharing candid experiences from around the world. "There is a theory among some street photographers that the more social risks you take in your street photography, the better you will become." https://paragraph.com/@miromiro/unsettling-moments-in-street-photography

Reid DeRamusFarcaster
Reid DeRamus
Commented 4 weeks ago

@kaufman breaks down the sweeping & controversial actions aimed at jumpstarting a new nuclear era in the U.S., from deregulation to waste recycling and reactor expansion. "Depending on whom you ask, Trump’s actions either dramatically change the existing system or slapped the president’s imprimatur on reforms that were already in the pipeline." https://paragraph.com/@kaufman/13-takeaways-from-trumps-executive-orders-on-nuclear-power

Reid DeRamusFarcaster
Reid DeRamus
Commented 4 weeks ago

@anaroth explores how risk-taking grows stronger with practice, arguing that confidence in navigating ambiguity — not just experience or agency — is key to building a life of freedom and purpose. "The older I get, the more willing I am to try, to take risks, or even explore without a clear plan." https://paragraph.com/@0xc578958dd1880cf00bffbb7feb9c28cbbbcad3bf/risk-is-a-muscle

David T Phung ⚛️⚡️🚀Farcaster
David T Phung ⚛️⚡️🚀
Commented 4 weeks ago

a quick story and thoughts: memorial day in palm springs: the electricity stopped flowing, neighbors wandered out, grills kept sizzling, and energy’s hidden fragility showed itself. two lessons from vaclav smil on power density & resilience in the post ⚡️ https://paragraph.com/@davidtphung/when-electricity-stops-flowing-on-memorial-day

JeffFarcaster
Jeff
Commented 4 weeks ago

Good read!!

When Electricity stops flowing on Memorial Day