Oh Technology (Revisited)

[We've been dealing with internet woes again, and hopefully it is resolved. Hopefully. The following was posted about a year ago. Sorry for the rerun, but it fits and besides, I was a "virtual" unknown anyway. ~cn]

So, technology has finally come through. After years of achingly long wait times with dial-up, we finally were given access to DSL. I think our little family felt like our predecessors when electricity came. Wow--we are finally in the 21st century. Until nature decided to have the upper hand.

It's been over a month since our DSL, unbeknownst to us, was struck by lightning. Apparently, it didn't quite completely fry the cable, but just singed it enough to make us all slightly crazy. There was no rhyme nor reason to our internet connection. I'd be working on something online, just about ready to send my attachments along their merry little virtual way, when, as if some devious little gremlin flipped a switch, the connection would go down. After weeks of threatening, cajoling, and coaxing I'd had enough. Deadlines were fast approaching, so the phone tech was summoned, and I awaited anxiously for the ominous diagnosis. As it turned out, it was not a fatal wound, but open-cable surgery was required. Five hours and a trenched yard and driveway later, the ailing internet line was pronounced healed. I quickly sent out my images (and barely met my deadlines), and then leisurely caught up on some emails and blog surfing. Life was good again--until the next day. As I was checking emails, suddenly, it was as if the roto-rooter job had never occurred. I tried to convince myself that it would jumpstart soon enough. Finally after another week of dealing with the on-again, off-again misery, Dr. Phone Tech was summoned a second time. After several hours they found the real problem, which had been in the line up the street! And, as of today, it appears finally cured. I hope they took that little gremlin too.