Alternating flashing lights - power (green) &

Reasonably sure this means your printer is requesting a service (ie: waste pads need replacing).

You can get this resolved by taking it to an Epson service center/tech or you can deal with the problem yourself by taking the printer apart to wash out/replace the pads yourself...

A simpler option that many people prefer is to fit an external waste ink tank. This resource is constantly updated with any 1280/1290 related info on the subject so you should be able to get yourself back up and running from there:
http://www.continuousink.info/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4139

The only thing I would say is that using a bottle as shown in the Ink Republic guide is perhaps a no-no as it can promote backflow (due to the height the tube reaches) as well as being rather easy to fall/knock over.

Hope that helps...