O, Pioneer!

Yesterday sometime between 4 and 5 p.m., the power went out here in my little piece of the heaven we call the South Valley. Among the things this meant, because I don't think you can fathom this for yourself, my readers:

1. no wireless, and hence, no internet (because all wireless is, ultimately, wired, isn't it? well, it is at the megastore, anyway)
2. no lights
3. no electricity--obvious, I know, but from this point follows
4. no cooking
5. no heat
6. impeded reading, and worst of all,
7. no television

I would have been a horrible pioneer, it's clear. We went to the dog park in the rain (oh, yes, there was not only no power but there was also rain), came home to still no power. A little whining later took us out for Mexican food. When we came back, the neighborhood streetlights were on, but still . . . no power! So not only could I not kid myself about the grading I still needed (and, as it turns out, still need!) to do, I couldn't blur my conscience with back-to-back episodes of Law and Order: Criminal Intent, which almost always helps me ease from Sunday into Monday.

More whining ensued. We found piles of candles and lit them, which made it so we were less likely to stumble, but unable to do much else. I called my folks and had a nice conversation (another reason that a cell phone is good--you can call even when the power's out). The historian located a couple of flashlights. I got into my pajamas at 9:30 p.m., dear readers, which is like saying, "I gave up on life," climbed into bed with a flashlight and Foucault 2.0, and read for awhile. I fell asleep by 10, probably, and slept that kind of sleep where you're sort of between worlds--sleep is using you to think about your real life, in other words. I'm pretty sure I had good ideas about where to take our vacation, why so many people misread Foucault, what to cook for dinner if my stove ever worked again. Also, I had a nightmare about going to a conference but not being fully prepared with all the travel details (wait, I'm pretty sure I lived that nightmare once, but never mind).

The power finally came back on after midnight. The historian was extremely industrious during this darkness, organizing stuff, ignoring my intermittent whining, etc. The upside of this pioneering is that I got a massive amount of sleep yesterday. Also, the house has a lingering scent of candlewax.