Bob Kuhn retired from the hi tech Industry after having started in the power grid tube industry moving to the new semiconductor industry before the name Silicon Valley first evolved. He is now retired with his wife Sue in Calistoga Ca.
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Free Electricity and Water
Just Add Imagination
Free Electricity and Water
Just Add Imagination
One of the best inventions I ever came up with brought endless laughter to our camping trips. It was simple, ridiculous, and—at least from a distance—completely believable.
I started with a 4×4 about two and a half feet tall. I bolted two metal ground stakes to one end so it could be planted firmly in the earth. On one side, I attached a two-foot piece of conduit with a plug-in box at the end. On the other, a two-foot piece of PVC pipe capped with an old spigot.
Just like that, I had what looked like “instant electricity and water”—a backcountry miracle on a stick. All I had to do was jam it into the dirt, and voilà: a fully equipped utility pole for any campsite.
Our first field test was at a national park campground off Highway 88 near Silver Lake. My wife Sue and I picked a great site and set up camp. Friends from Fair Oaks joined us, and we placed the “utility pole” right beside the table, stove, and chairs. Sue’s little battery-powered radio added the finishing touch—I even plugged it into the fake outlet for realism.
It looked so official, I half expected the park ranger to check the meter.
A couple camping nearby couldn’t take their eyes off our setup. The wife—big personality, thick German accent, pure command presence—kept bossing her poor husband around while giving our “amenities” some serious side-eye.
When it came time to pack up, I pulled the pole out of the ground and tossed it into the truck. As we drove off, our friends told me the woman made a beeline for our old site—cooler in hand—ready to plug in. I’ve always wondered how long she looked for that outlet.
My mother used to say I was born laughing, and my sister Inky swore I’d live a long life because of my humor. On her deathbed, she even warned me that when she got to heaven, she’d sit on the door to keep me out—“They’re not used to practical jokers up here,” she said.
The “utility pole” made several encore appearances, including at an unimproved ocean campground near Dillon Beach—no electricity, no running water, just us and the gulls. My brother Don and his wife Gerry came, along with my sister Inky, her husband Leonard—nicknamed “Sookie”—and my wife Sue.
Sookie was Portuguese, cheerful, and the easiest guy in the world to tease. The night before the others arrived, I planted the pole by some bushes, just far enough away to look like a missed campground feature.
The next morning, we were all relaxing when my nephew Ken and his wife Karen showed up. Before long, Don spotted the pole. He looked at me, I looked at him—no words needed. Then my sister noticed. Same look. Still, everyone stayed quiet.
A little later, Sookie’s dachshund, Winny, started panting in the sun. “Poor girl’s thirsty,” Sookie said. Then he noticed the pole. His face lit up.
“Hey! There’s a faucet and an electric plug!”
We all nodded solemnly.
Sookie filled Winny’s bowl, turned the handle, and frowned. “No water’s coming out,” he said.
Without missing a beat, Inky said, “Oh, Bobby told me that’s an English faucet. It won’t work in Portuguese.”
Sookie grinned. “Dammit all, Bobby—you got me again!”
I eventually gave that post to my best buddy. He still uses it, continuing the tradition of high-quality campground confusion.
Those trips are long gone now, but the laughter still echoes. Out of seven kids in my family, only Sue and I remain—and she misses every one of them. But we have the memories, the stories, and one legendary wooden post that still delivers free electricity, running water, and a lifetime of joy.
~ Bob Kuhn
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