Ok, I know I look like a real derelict but I have an excuse, probably not a good one, but an excuse none the less. Yesterday, I'm trying to work on the computer printing out my manuscript to get it off to the editor and the printer keeps stopping and refusing to start up. I gave up and went downstairs.

Next, I decided to watch the last fifteen minutes of "Pirates of the Caribbean" that I missed the night before when I fell asleep. I could only get the DVD player to go for about ten minutes and it kept turning off. Wondering about the gremlins in my electronics, I gave up and decided to read.

Laying across the bed, under the ceiling fan, I fell asleep with the book on my face. I woke about ten minutes later sweating and wondering how it had gotten so hot, when I noticed the ceiling fan was no longer turning. I came upstairs and noted that their was no power, the clock on the stove was off, no lights and no fans, but then I opened the refrigerator and the light was on. I checked the dryer and it started up. Creepy.

I went out on the deck and noticed that the generator was not running. Came back in and tried to call the condo office. Their phones are not back working yet, due to the storm. I had walked down to the office once already, so I just hung out on the deck until someone came out of the office and hollered down to them about my shortage of current.

That is when I found out that a "shortage of current" is exactly what I had. It seems the power company got the power back up. Once the generators sense this somehow they automatically switch back onto the grid. Unfortunately the power company is not putting out enough current, so we were experiencing and effect similar to "brown outs" all day and then it just quit, except for one or maybe two lines running into each unit, hence my fridge and dryer were working, although not a full efficiency. Apparently, the building never anticipated this and they have no way to override and turn the generators back on. A repairman is supposedly on his way to do just that. Lovely.

I was so frustrated I could have screamed. Thinking I would be better off to go down to the pool and work off my frustrations I headed downstairs to change when a squall moved in and it started raining. Perfect.

I was feeling pretty sorry for myself when a friend called to give Rick a message. He asked me how my day was going and I started complaining abut the current situation. He said, "Yes, I know how it is. We have had no current at my house since five o'clock on Sunday (that was only 48 hours at that point)." that kind of put things in perspective for me.

Perspective~it's that funny little things about feeling bad because you have no shoes and seeing the smiling man who has no feet. One man's ceiling is another man's floor and all that. Glass half full vs. glass half empty. Need I say more.

Rick came home from work today to tell me that the part of the island he works on still has no power. That's only 72 hours after a minor Tropical Storm. Hold onto your hats New York, your looking at a Cat 3. We are back on the generators.

Pray for all those who are still in harm's way.

This is an awful lot of thinking at a place where thinking is always optional.