Sometimes . . .

             Sometimes things just work out . . ..

 

            I was awakened by a loud bang outside. I went back to an uneasy sleep, got up about 6:30, and Kim came out of the bathroom saying we had a power failure, so don’t flush the toilets. Right. We lit candles and I took the flashlight outside to see if a tree had fallen on the house. Nope – all clear. After about a half hour of candles, we decided to go back to bed (yes, we put them out first). Kim went to sleep, but I was awake, listening to the wind. Then I heard a truck go by, heading down to the uninhabited end of our road. I got up and looked out the window to see a second truck. They parked about a hundred yards down the road, and I just knew it was the power company, fixing what was broken. About an hour later, everything came on, and I was overjoyed. I almost went out to thank the guys as they drove away.

 

            But here is the bonus: For two days I had been unable to watch regular television channels, probably because of some button I pushed on the remote. Probably something to do with the modem or router. But when the power came on, everything worked fine. Sometimes things just work out.

 

            Later this week, after I had my snow tires installed, a small light in my car’s dashboard was on, indicating low pressure in a tire. And sometimes the sensor was blinking. I took my car to the local auto mechanic, and he checked everything with some fancy electronic instruments and said there was a faulty sensor, and he would replace it with no charge for labor. We made an appointment for the next day. That day came, and the little light was off. The mechanic said it had fixed itself – as sometimes happens.

 

            I also learned that the cardboard snowflake decorations that I ordered from Amazon could not be returned, but I was given a refund anyway. I guess the $10 refund was less than it would cost to ship it back. We will give the snowflakes to a lucky member of our family.

 

            Also this week: I ordered a new credit card from our local Meijer store where we buy most of our groceries. We were to get a $40 credit the first time we used the card. There was, of course a deadline, and the card had not arrived in time, but there were instructions (“It’s as easy as 1-2-3”) about what the store could do to verify my identity and open the account. Except it didn’t work. A very helpful lady at the Help Desk spent about an hour on the phone, computer and cash register getting the issue straightened out. Somehow, we ended up with a $50 discount. We still have not received the credit card in the mail.

 

            Last week my wristwatch stopped working, no doubt because of a dead battery, which happens about once a year. I am waiting for it to fix itself, which will save me a long winter drive to the jeweler who sells and installs watch batteries. Meanwhile, I’m slowly getting used to not knowing what time it is, which isn’t all bad. UPDATE: Gave in and bought a battery. Got tired of looking at my empty wrist.

 

UPDATE: My tire pressure warning light went on again. Back to Lakeview Auto Repair . . ..

 

. . . and sometimes you have to make them work.

 

            So – how well does this “sometimes things just work out” function in the larger world of human relationships?