Blackout

Huge storms rolled through Chicago this afternoon and rocked our world. In the matter of just 15 minutes the power went out, trees went down and patio furniture went flying.

A few things to remember immediately following your power going out:
- find the candles, matches and flashlights now, rather than starting to look when it's pitch black in the house
- the light switches aren't going to work, no matter how many times you try
- when a cell phone is dead, it's really dead. and by the way, so is the house phone, the laptop, and the garage door so you can't call for help or drive to it (in this case 'pizza' was the help I was seeking)
- baby monitors don't run on batteries, neither does the AC

Five hours later, after having read an entire US Weekly by candlelight and moments before surrendering to bed at 9:30, the power is back on and I am so happy I'm actually embarrassed. Phew, I was really roughing it there for awhile.

What do you miss most when your power goes out?