Saturday, September 19th

7:39 PM
Just after I wrote the above note, I went to work on the problem. I got about 15 minutes of work done, when suddenly the power went out, and simultaneously the dogs started barking furiously. I shut down the computer and the uninterruptible power supplies, then went out to see what the dogs were barking about. I followed them to the power pole where electricity enters our house. With considerable trepidation, they approached, barking all the while, something hidden in the weeds. Looking closely, I found a dead squirrel, still rather hot, directly underneath the transformer mounted on the power pole.
The power company guy came out, fixed it, and left 15 minutes ago. I think I'll call it a day.