Living in the desert, rain is a pretty big deal here for many people. Having lived all but three years of my life in Midwestern/Northeastern climates, the rain actually is a nice reprieve from the many days of hot (and some times blistering) sun. This is not a jab at you northerners in the dead of winter. This is pointing out the fact that things just aren’t built to handle the rain here like anywhere else. I just woke up this morning to more pouring rain (it rarely sprinkles, it’s either on or off). It poured all evening yesterday, all night and all day Monday and Tuesday. I figured this could be a rather low-key day since I worked 14 hours yesterday. Obviously, Mother Nature thought I needed some time off too, since I went to go awaken my computer and nothing happened. I had just replaced the batteries in my mouse, so I knew they couldn’t be dead already. I shook it around again. Nothing. Turned it over and it was off. “Hmmm, I wondered.” I pressed the "on" switch to my keyboard and lights! “Okay, we’re in business.” Clicked the mouse again. Nothing. Tried to restart my computer, nothing. Tried to turn on my lights. Nothing. Ah, no power. Fantastic. I have no way to use my electric stove, dry my wet clothes in my electric dryer, shower in warm water heated by my electric hot water heater or heat my home with my electric heat pump. Luckily, I have my iPhone and the 3G network to check e-mails which is pretty much fully charged and an old laptop I had charging over night to at least type documents.
“So, how could I maintain a sense of power over my life with no power?” I began to wonder. First, I would write about it, which I’m doing now. Then, I would devise a plan for how I want to spend my day. I could take the, “this f#*king sucks, boo hoo for me” approach and try to get as much sympathy as possible from other people or I could take the, “how interesting can I make this day?” perspective. The first way seemed rather selfish, unproductive and very much like someone who’s just broken up with someone and can’t seem to get over it. Pitty party is not my style. I’d find a way to make this day interesting, yet still productive.
It’s 7:30 a.m. right now. This could be a long one if the power isn’t restored today. I began to wonder how many of my neighbors are without power, too. I posted my situation on Facebook. Surely, a friend will offer us to meet out or even come over for a visit. I’ve been wanting to book a massage, so maybe today is the day I hit the spa and just ride it out. If they have a fitness center, I could use the gym, book my massage and take to a mineral bath in one swoop. That will kill half of the day, easily! So, that was my plan. Rather than waste phone battery surfing the web, I broke out the trusty Yellow Pages to find a few spas to call. Figuring they don’t open until 8:00, I’d give myself 20 minutes to eat a little something and then start calling around. Well, it’s 8:13 and I have myself booked for a massage and mineral bath at 9:00. I was just packing up my things to take to the spa and boom, the power came on and the rain has stopped. I’ve been putting off a massage for months and I guess you could say Mother Nature was telling me to just do it.
How you handle times without power shouldn't change once the power comes back on. I'll continue to make this an interesting day. It's starting off great already!
No comments:
Post a Comment