You don't know what you've got til it's gone

Our power was out for most of the day today.  It sucked.

In these situations I'm supposed to say how great it was to focus on the simple things in life. To rediscover the joy of a good book or simple conversation. To discover how technology can interfere with really living.

Nope. I whined almost the whole time. I tried reading, but books just aren't as enjoyable when you have to read them. I was bored, my shower was ice cold and I was so paranoid about food going bad that I only allowed us to open the fridge once so the cold air could stay in better. While it was a little unerving to hear our appliances slowly lurch back to life when they finally got things up and running again, mostly I was too distracted by lunging towards my computer and reconnecting the life line.

You know why they invented things like electricity, computers and water heaters? Because they're usually better in some way than whatever they had before. Being able to flip a switch and have light appear like magic is better than worrying about whether the dozen or so tealights are going to burn your apartment down (not this time, but those suckers will singe your hair if your silly and forget that bending over a candle when your hair is loose is stupid). The internet is better than whatever people did before the internet (I have vague memories of playing outside, but I can't be certain).

Now sure, some if it is an issue of dependency. I don't have an ice box, because I depend on my refrigerator to keep my food from spoiling. I am overly addicted to my computer. I don't care. I like that most of the time these wonderful things are thoroughly interwoven with my life. If there ever is some sort of electricity ending apocalypse, I hope I'm eaten by zombies towards the beginning.