into the light

We had no power for eight hours this morning.

I never thought my dependence upon electricity could possibly upset my morning routine as much as I let it this morning. After all, I have lived in countries where we would have either no running water or no electricity--and a couple of times, both issues simultaneously--for days on end up to almost a week.

Yes, I could have lit the stove with a match and toasted bread on the grill instead of using a toaster. Yes, I could have opened the fridge only twice--once thinking well about all I wanted to remove from it, take it out and, when completely finished with everything that had to be returned to the fridge, open it again and stick everything in their places. Yes, I could have washed up with a cold shower (ugh--can do it but really, really hate cold showers when not in the Third World...at least there I feel like there is an excuse for the water being cold...).

But this was Monday morning. The day after Mother's Day, during which I didn't get to do anything I wanted to do because of torrential downpours and nobody else being willing to take the children for the day. So much for "custody" arrangements...

I got a broom for Mother's Day...

I call it my new transport...for a reason. (a-hem)

Don't worry. I *did* ask for it. (insert wicked cackle here)

Okay...back to the power. So at midnight-thirty I heard what sounded like balloons popping all up my street. I looked out the window--usually the transformers just go in one big BOOM but, with the heavy winds we were having I thought that perhaps something was blowing loudly down the street.

Then came the BOOM

and the silence.

I honestly expected the power to be back on by this morning, but it was not. It was still pouring down rain, so the only way to see if the elementary school around the corner had power was to drive by, as the office was still closed and not taking calls until 8:00 a.m. and I had no Internet access by which to check on anything.

How dependent I have become on energy.

So what did we end up doing? Packing up early and hitting the local 24 hour diner at 7:30 this morning for breakfast. The little monkeys loved it. Power was back on by 8:30, by the time we would have already had to have left the house, anyway. So I got home, got my hot shower, got the dishwasher running, started laundry and checked my e-mail.

All energy-dependent activities, of course. Ugh.