HORROR OF ALL HORRORS!

Saturday evening, I had no internet! I fooled around and tried all I knew to do. Finally, exasperated, I called the Verizon Fios hot line. I got a nice friendly tech named Larry in Texas!! We walked through all kinds of protocol. First thing Larry told me was that he could see that my back up battery on my FIOS box was depleted. It's freaky how they can know that all the way in Texas! My next thought was: "What else does he see?" It took a good 15 minutes of following his instructions on the phone. This included a trip to the garage to check if the Verizon box was plugged in. It was, but the battery light was lit. I reset the safety outlet. Things looked fine. I breathed a sigh of relief. Too early! The tech, on the other end of the line told me to get on line. I clicked my Internet Explorer icon and nada! When I told the tech it was a no-go, his voice told of his disappointment! It was decided he would send a real live tech to my home on Sunday. He thought I may need a new, updated router. What was a good time? I told him around 1:30 p.m. That would give us plenty of time to return from church. So it was set up! I went to bed soon afterwards with dreams of sugar plums and internet access in my head!

I awakened Sunday morning around 7 a.m. to take Agustin to work so I would have the car for church. I had a long day and had been on my feet quite a bit Saturday. I had come home from our Mother & Daughter Luncheon and taken care of some things around the house, so I was pretty swollen and over tired. (For those new to my blog, I have Rheumatoid Arthritis which has been causing me quite a bit of pain lately). I went hobbling out to the driveway with my husband. I was stiff but willing to try and drive. We noticed a steady stream of water coming from under the grass at our curb and out to the street. Then we heard our Culligan water system making a weird, loud noise! It sounded like water and air whooshing through the pump, but not into the house - rather into the street! PANIC! Agustin told me to get on the phone and take care of it, he had to get on to work! So I take my crippled self to the tanks and try to push the "bypass" button. It didn't budge. It's not a little, ol' bitty button, mind you. It's a big, fat, honking button! I ran in the garage and unplugged it. I noticed none of the lights were on for my Verizon Fios box on the garage wall, but yet it was plugged in. The light bulb went off in my head! I think I knew why I didn't have internet! Back outside I went, shucks, I still could hear the whooshing! Back inside, I went to the garage and hit the reset button for the outlet. Wa-la, all appropriate lights came on to show my wonderful FIOS was in operating condition. I was right! My light bulb moment earlier was spot on! The stupid water purification system was malfunctioning, causing my outlet to trip the safety thingy!! I just knew in my heart of hearts, I was about to have my internet back! Who cares about fresh tasting, purified water?? I was dying of internet withdrawal, not of thirst! I turned on my computer and while waiting for it to boot up, I dug into the file cabinet and found all the info about my Culligan system. I called the office, which was NOT opened at 7:30 a.m. on Sunday morning, but yes, there was an emergency message system. I left my message then came to get on line while I waited for a tech to call me back.

What sweet splendor! There it was, just like I remembered it! The internet, my blog! Joy, joy, joy! I was hurting and exhausted. It felt good to get off my feet now and sit in my leather executive chair! I started checking my emails and blog comments. OOPS! It then hit me, I had to call Verizon and cancel the order for a service tech to come out at 1:30 p.m. After the call to them, I had to find a neighbor who was awake and willing to come over and bang that big button in, so as to bypass the water on the Culligan system. After that, I debated what to do. I didn't have the car to get to church and it was getting late. I was also experiencing excruciating pain in my shoulders, left side of neck, wrists, and feet. I debated what to do. It's during these times that I realize I do have somewhat of a handicap with this chronic disease. I really wanted to get to church, but did not have the energy to shower and dress and think of who to call for a ride, and this I would have to do in a rush. It hurts me to have to tell this part of the story. I felt spent! I had pushed myself Saturday and now Sunday morning had been hectic. I started shutting down. It's as if my brain and entire body shuts off. Thankfully I had taken my medications, vitamins and herbs earlier. They would kick in soon. All I could do was crawl into my bed. I fell asleep for several hours and awoke with much less pain.

It hurts me and embarrasses me sometimes that I tire so easily. I fear I give the impression as though it doesn't take much to stop me. It hasn't always been this way, believe me! I'm not a lazy person at all. I have learned over the past 17 years with this chronic disease, what my body can or cannot do. My husband is constantly reminding me to pace myself, but in emergency's, that can't be done! I just have to turn it over to my Heavenly Father when I feel down about not being the old Pam. (Or should I say the YOUNG PAM?) I'm so happy HE is always there for me to turn to. I also have many wonderful friends who encourage me and support me in many ways.

Now, to close on a positive note! I must say that Larry, the Verizon tech, was so kind and patient with me on the phone Saturday night. Another great blessing was how quickly the nice man on emergency call for Culligan called me within 15 minutes of my leaving a message with the answering service. That was quite impressive on a Sunday morning!

God bless you my friends. I trust you will have a beautiful rest of the week.