First, let me set this up for you. Our house is in the mountains, and we all have about 2-3 acres of land around us, so we have neighbors, but they're not close enough to hear them unless they're yelling, which they thankfully don't. It's VERY quiet out here.
Our MBR has a door wall that faces the back "yard" and the mountain behind us. Most of the year we sleep with the patio door wide open and it's screen door is only about 6 feet from our bed . . . on my side.
Anyhoo, yesterday morning at 4:25AM, DH jumps out of bed with a leg cramp. Of course, I end up waking up as well, hearing him jump all over trying to make it go away. It does in just a minute or so and just as he's climbing back into bed, there is this extremely loud bang right outside and the backyard lights up like it's noon!
After we peeled ourselves off the ceiling (LOL), we stood there for a moment, trying to figure out what had just happened. DH said it sounded like a shotgun going off in our backyard. It was totally dark again, though, and we couldn't see or hear a thing out there. I grabbed the phone and ran to DD's room to get her out of there, as her room is right next to ours and has huge windows facing the back, too. She was scared out of her wits, poor thing, and so were both our dogs. We huddled together in the hallway, which is one of the few rooms with no windows, while I dialed 911. But, the phone was dead! I tried the light switch and the electricity was out. Thank goodness for cell phones, but finding them ~and a flashlight~ in our dark house was maddeningly time-consuming! I finally got through to 911 and the police arrived about 5 minutes later. He couldn't find anything, took off with gun loaded looking around and then drove off to look further. Ten minutes later he shows back up again, just walking around the back of the house with his gun drawn and scared the bejeebers out of us, as we didn't hear him drive back in! Our neighbors behind us (several acres)came out, seeing the flashlights. They'd heard the bang, too, but had been hesitant to come out and look around, thinking someone had shot off a gun or a small bomb between our homes and might still be close by.
So there we are, everybody in their pj's (except the police officer) traipsing through the tall grass looking for whatever . . . and then we looked up. And there up on the top of the utility pole between our two properties was a lot of something that shouldn't be there, hanging down in shreds. Apparently some animal or big bird had climbed/flew up there, perhaps to get at the birds nest at the top. Whatever it was, caused a couple of the transformers to blow, which is why we lost our electricity and land line phones. The police officer called our utility company, which was out soon afterwards, just as the sun was coming up. They start working on it, and pulled out a tall pole to poke whatever was up there in shreds. But, it hits another one of the transformers and THAT one blows up! Talk about loud! Now half the village is awake and wondering what the heck is going on! The 911 lines must have been jammed.
But, it all ended well( except for whatever got blown up on the utility pole) and we had our phones, electricity and water (our pump house's main circuit breaker was thrown when the electricity blew) back on by 8AM. I think half the neighbors, including us, walked around in a daze most of yesterday, but today we're all laughing about it.

Anyhoo, I hope you've enjoyed my story. I'm still chuckling about it all!
Lynn

Amazing on the timing of your DH leg cramp and that transformer blowing. If it would of happen a minute sooner it could of been far worse for DH.

Your story made me laugh out loud as soon as I read it was electrical and not a gun. Thanks for the title or I may have ____ myself. What a way to bring neighbors together.

Punk

jane

Great that the officer responded so quickly and was quite brave searching around out there in the dark. That critter sure caused everyone a scare by climbing that pole!

My DH is so paranoid about keeping doors locked--but I'm a country girl who loves all the doors and windows open--we compromise with having the bedroom window open at night and it's about four or five feet off the ground so fairly safe I think--so I totally understand why you like having the door open at night--especially when you are out where you have plenty of privacy.

Glad all is well and hope you got to take a nap. Loved hearing your story.

Luvs

That is a very funny story now that it's over! I went through a transformer blowing like that when I lived in California but it was during the daytime and far enough away that it gave me quite a start but didn't scare me. Lynn is right, it is so bright when that happens that it seems like it would light up the whole neighborhood.

Kudos to you ladies who live out in the sticks. I had my chances but knew I would be paranoid (my Southern California city upbringing--I think Jane can identify with that) so we built in the suburbs. We have only a little over a third of an acre but we're in foothills and separated from other houses--a very nice development that way. LUVS, you think your DH is paranoid--our bedroom is on the THIRD floor and I still won't let DH keep the windows open at night (LOL).

Lynn, you'll probably remember that night forever!

- Magpie

p.s. thank Heavens for our underground utilities...

Glad it was just a crazy thing and not serious.