seriously? i could have been in cleveland by now.

Left work 3-ish when university closed. ellen_fremedon came with me.

Went the long way home to stop at Barnes & Noble where I had an errand. Got there sort of 3:45, slushy snow was falling and making the brick sidewalk v. slick. Went in, spent a few minutes finding Stuff and a few more (a) waiting for an irate customer ahead of us to finish and (b) ordering the Shaw recording of the Missa Solemnis, since they didn't have it in the store.

Decided since we were there to get Chinese food and cupcakes.

Back in the car about 4:15. Stuff is getting pretty snowy and slushy by now. Assume we won't get home by 6pm.

By 7:30, we have gone abooout five blocks.

I'll spare you the long and tragic story of our trip home, and just tell you that it began to end at about 10pm with my car parked in the driveway of a synagogue a mile or so from my house, helping push a couple more wheel-spinny vehicles on the walk up home (including one whose spinning rear wheel kicked snow all up my legs as far as my hips), wordplay coming to meet us and walk about halfway with us, heading home (finally, @10:20) for dry jeans and socks and shoes and packing up a change and coming over to sack out on Ellen's couch, because of course - of course! - the power is out. (No ETR yet. My money's on Sunday, but not a lot of money, you understand.) Out at wordplay's, too, or I'd be in her basement, because no cats live there, but needs must and I'm glad to have more than one option. Yay friends.

And then in trying to get me onto Ellen's wireless network we managed to fuck it up pretty comprehensively - Ellen can't get back in now, and we're not sure what it is I'm connected to - and managed to wake up poor pocketmouse by texting to ask her advice.



All in all, a completely successful evening.



Isn't this the kind of thing that can be cured by tripping Kathie Lee Gifford and causing her to fall into a plate of tapioca?

this morning

Well. I e-mailed pocketmouse with an abject apology last night, and she e-mailed back this morning with a solution, which was so simple it will make ellen_fremedon say "Well ..." when she wakes up.

There is no chance the power is back on at my place, and wordplay isn't answering her phone so my guess is it's not back on at hers either. But soon I'm going to have to wake E because I don't think it's a good idea to go alone back to where I left my car. (neotoma, I appreciate your invitation, but until and unless things get really bad here, I'ma stick with places I can walk to.)

Things: looking ever so slightly up?

and there was much rejoicing.

Dudes.

In a stunning turn of events that I am not equipped to adequately explain, the power is back on at my house a mere something-like-eighteen hours after it went out. I'm not lying when I say I am shocked. I wasn't exaggerating before when I guessed Sunday. This is nothing short of miraculous.

This morning, wordplay and chromodynamics and the kids came and took me to where I'd left my car, helped me dig out a bit and pushed me over the pack ice, followed me home (per the odo: 1.5 miles, y'all), and let me back in their car to come with them to brunch. Then there were various films - I went to see The King's Speech, and I knew I'd be glad I did, and I am (I loved them all, and the whole thing was marvelous, and when Princess Margaret called her father "Your Majesty" I literally burst into tears, which I found pretty startling). And then C and the fam fetched me home again, and C said she'd seen that the traffic light on my corner is back on and so were the external lights on the outside of my buildings? So I figured I'd have 110 but not 220, but when I went inside I could hear the TV in the apartment downstairs and across the hall, and my heart did a little leap. And up inside my refrigerator is running (... yes) and everything is working and I went and got my overnight stuff from ellen_fremedon's and I am hooome, and everyone whose power is still out has every bit of my sympathy, because dudes, I have been exactly where you are and I know exactly how much it sucks.

But listen, Pepco, don't think because you got me back online within a day this time means you're forgiven - not for everyone else, nor for all the other times you've left me in the dark for days on end. I remain unimpressed.