Poking the Tiger

Well. I've done something truly asinine. My mail system indicated that it was in need of updating. So blithely I hopped on the bandwagon without backing up my W.I.P.s on a thumb drive. STUPID! It's a wonder I can walk and breathe at the same time. Thinking is apparently on the level of blue mold.

But the failure to back up wasn't the only idiocy. If it had been, I'd be happily slaving away so as to be ready to pitch the thing at our ANWA (American Night Writers Association) conference on the 23rd. ACK! I was in a race as it was.

My Knight-in-shining-armor (better known as the Hubs) rode to my aid and instituted not one but two overhauls. The first one worked with only a few minor calamities. But the second has been the Perfect Storm. 

And it's all my fault (or so the said K.I.S.A. says). 

The downloads were going long (as in past the 1am bedtime) so the hubs went to bed and left the little critter working away like a beaver. That might have been alright if it weren't for the morning visit of Queen of the Dolts. I found that the monitor was black. So instead of listening to that little voice which said, "DON'T touch anything on pain of (my) death," I picked up the stick and poked the sleeping tiger right in the eyeball.

I have no idea what possessed me to do that. Heaven knows I've seen Time Bandits. We even have a family catch-phrase from that movie that we say all the time: "Don't touch it! It's EVIL!" But I did. Big time. I wiggled the mouse, hit F1, then since the monitor was still not responding, I hit control-alt-delete. You ask what the heck happened to my mental acuity? No clue. I must have hit control-alt-delete on that too. Then I felt so incredibly stupid that I didn't tell said Knight-in-shining-armor right up front what I did to my poor baby.

So the upshot of the matter is that I have jacked up my computer and caused my K.I.S.A. a whole lot of aggravation. My computer is still not back to full health (it thinks it has no hard drive or something) and I am worried that I won't be able to retrieve the whole last part of my three W.I.P.s. (That would, of course, be so cataclysmic that I'd have to bury myself in bed and bawl for a few weeks.) I am, however, concentrating on praying for my poor computer-without-a-brain and being positive that it will emerge from the ashes of my idiocy with a whole new outlook on life.

So I've learned three lessons here:

1. Back it up, you idiot!!!

2. Don't poke the tiger!!!

3. Pray like it's all your fault but you know Heavenly Father can fix it--since he knows it ALL.

Here's KNOWING the Hubs will win the day and bring my baby back to life. 

Addendum: My K.I.S.A. RULES! Not only is my baby back up and running, but it's wearing a whole new set of clothes. I'm learning my way around and about the second minute I was on, I backed up all my books. I am over the moon grateful for my husband's unstinting dedication and willingness to be lead by the Spirit.

I think I broke God's ear battering it with my frequent prayers. It worked!