In the morning after his coffee, Floyd went out to the mass to energy convertor shed. It was quiet and hot, there was a slight hum hardly audible over the noise that the cooling fan made.
“Good. I can connect the power to the house tomorrow. I will get a freezer and a fridge.”
After feeding the fish and turning on the turbine he went inside and turned on the TV.
The internet and the media were full of the story.
Who, what, where, when, how and why were the questions on everyone’s lips.
He sat there flicking through the channels. Every station in the world carried the news.
Some of the headlines read.
“Goodbye nuclear.”
“Another late Aprils Fool?”
“Another revolution!”
The environmentalists were ecstatic.
“Another brilliant idea and has released it for free.
There have been far too many accidents with nuclear power stations, Sellafield, Chernobyl, Three-mile Island, Fukushima. These accidents resulted in the release of radiation. Nuclear plants will now have to be decommissioned. There is no justification for their continued operation now. The coal fired generating plants and the gas fired plants can be closed. They have put a massive amount of pollution between them into the atmosphere for many decades.
The world should celebrate.”
Again, the question was asked “Why has this been released for free?”
When an analyst was asked the question he replied,
“I think that the individual or individuals involved knew the importance of this.
Whoever it was had the welfare of the planet and its life in mind.
The release of radiation into the atmosphere following accidents poisoned the air and the ground. After many years there are still areas too dangerous for people to go into. This device is of tremendous importance, of that there is no doubt. However, the question of what to do with the radioactive waste still remains. Here in America, there are over 80,000 tons of nuclear waste at various sites all around the country. Other countries have the same problem. The global total is massive.”
Electricity generator manufacturers were in a quandary. If they developed a larger version of the convertor would anyone buy it?
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The one that had been released could power a whole neighbourhood. People could build or buy one for their own use.
They would surely think “Why pay a bill for electricity?
The owners of the nuclear generating stations were distraught.
They would face massive costs for decommissioning. Construction of new plants would have to be halted.
The owners of hydroelectric dams were concerned. Would anyone buy the electricity that they produced?
The turbines and the dams needed maintenance.
The owners of coal and gas fired generation stations knew that their time was up. It was the same for the owners and operators of the coal mines and the gas fields. The mining of uranium would come to a halt.
Manufacturers of marine and train engines began to investigate running on electric motors.
Governments were also worried. How would they replace the revenue from the taxes levied on electricity which they had been collecting? On the other hand, the worry of nuclear leaks would disappear. Also new storage sites for nuclear waste would not be needed.
Floyd listened and watched.
He laughed and played Bob Dylan again “For the times they are a-changin.'”
Oddball arrived that evening.
“Boy oh boy! We sure as hell stirred up another hornet’s nest.” he said.
“Yes, same as before, keep your head down and your mouth closed.”
“Sure thing bro.”
They went out onto the back veranda and sat down with a beer and a cigar
“What next?” asked Oddball.
“I will connect the house up tomorrow. Probably get a freezer and a fridge. I didn’t think there would be enough water for the turbine to run a freezer. Then I wait and see if anything else comes along. We just carry on being a couple of ordinary Joes.”
“Roger that bro,” Oddball replied.
The next morning Floyd went outside. He was greeted by the sight of a pile of cardboard boxes. “What on earth is that lot?”
The smaller boxes contained cables and electrical switching equipment. “I guess I can wire up the house today.”
There were two larger boxes. One was about 7 feet tall.
It contained a 2-door fridge. The other box contained a large chest freezer. “I guess I don’t go shopping when the house is connected.”
Floyd set about wiring the convertors output to the house. That took him most of the day. He managed to move the freezer into the house by himself and put it in position. When he opened the freezer there was a sheet of paper inside. On it was typed “Thank you.”
“You are very welcome,” he said.
He would need help to move the fridge. That could wait until Oddball called out. He left the fridge where it was and went back inside to watch TV.
Oddball arrived the next evening.
“Nice” he said looking at the fridge on the back veranda. “Where did you get that lot from?”
“From my acquaintance” Floyd replied.
Floyd took out ten $100 bills and handed them to Oddball.
“Thats left over from the project. You might as well have it. I don’t think my acquaintance will mind. Don’t spend it all at once. We don’t want any unwelcome attention.”
“Cheers bud. My lips are sealed. Let’s get this monster inside.”
With plenty of electricity available now Floyd bought brewing equipment and he began to brew his own beer much to Oddball’s delight. He would make beer in 5-gallon batches.
He had several recipes, it just depended on what he felt like drinking the next week. He got Henry at the store to order the ingredients for him.
Floyd went back to work in the garden and the woods.
He had thought about putting in electric heating but he had decided against it. He preferred looking at an open fire.
He began work on an Inglenook fireplace for the small fireplace.
Floyd had seen photos in a book he had read about old English public houses. The Inglenook was a partially enclosed hearth area, on the side of a room. The hearth had been used for cooking, and because it was surrounded on two sides it became a gathering place for people looking for somewhere warm to sit. He would light the fire in the Inglenook and sit there with his pipe if he wanted to read on a night.
