It’s little more than 36 hours until take off and I’m a tad frantic. The string on the tether ball marking the departure time is very short and my 'yet ToDo' list is very long. I've been very good and certainly much more thorough than in years past, yet the accumulation of scribbled post-it notes, scrawled lists and neat entries in the official travel prep booklet does not seem to be diminishing as planned. This was supposed to be the most organised departure ever. This was supposed to be the least stressful departure ever. And up until Saturday it was. But then the power went out!
The service interruption alarm on the household Internet router announced the loss of electricity at 4:30am, and it kept at it with a triplet of chirps every 30 seconds for a full hour until choked to death by loss of battery power. At first Hydro One told us the power would be restored by 7:30am. We went back sleep and awoke at 9am to no lights, no heat, no water. Worst of all NO COFFEE!But the folks at Hydro One said all would be back by 11am and thanked us for our patience. Well it wasn't. The entire afternoon was clocked by missed then revised estimates for power restoration. The sun set. And within minutes back came the lights and the heat and water. But the day had been lost; a day that was stuffed full of things to do - laundry, vacuuming, cleaning and preparing two writing submissions.
I've done the laundry and I’ve tidied the house - sort of. There remains a slim chance of the vacuuming being done, but the window of opportunity for the writing work has slammed shut. Can I get a note from Hydro One, excusing my failure to complete the submissions?
To Whom it may concern;
Please excuse April's inability to complete your writing requirements. Spring runoff of salt laden snow (fault of the Roads Department, not us!) corroded our equipment. The resulting pole fires and a few exploding transformers interrupted electrical service for fifteen hours.
We are sorry for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience.
I'm disappointed, but not devastated - there's no time to wallow in missed opportunities this week. The house-sitters move in tomorrow and will have to be fully briefed, not just by me but also by Sophie the resident canine. She will want them to know the 'correct' meal and treat schedule, which is not the one mommy wrote out. I know that she will pine for us just a little; mope around for a week or so but then motor on. I will miss her morning greeting, a cold wet nose nudging my cheek accompanied by a little whine, “Mommy, are you in there?”
My love and I will be far away on another adventure, where it will be warm and wonderful. I will not be posting on this blog, no “Monday Moanings” or “Thursday, or Thereabouts”, until sometime after April 8. Look for me then.
In the mean time, hold the fort while I'm gone, and take care of each other.
©2015 April Hoeller
