Every single one of our computers shut off. I was in journalism, and ten minutes after class started, I found myself watching every single computer, one after the other, succumb to the black-screen plague.
Our entire campus and part of Grand Rapids had lost power.
Why?
A squirrel thought the main electricity/power source would be the prime spot for storing his acorns for the winter--after all, it didn't look like any other squirrels seemed to be using it.
High voltage + squirrel = well, in the words of Quiznos, mmm, toasty.
Events like this are so fun for me. I love things that mix it up a bit... and this power outage mixed the day up better than martha stewart could mix up a batch of cookie batter.
Even more fun than the actual event is seeing how people react to it.
Do you realize that all it takes to mak the US shutdown is a squirrel in a power box? well, figuratively speaking, of course, cause that would be one big squirrel and one big power box if all of america were plugged into it... and naturally, Hawai'i would have to be connected wirelessly.
So the power went out... causing the internet to go out... leaving thousands of college students sitting on the floor of their dark dorm room, rocking back and forth in the fetal position because their entire life has been suspended in the amount of time it takes a squirrel to short out a power box--which i hear isn't much time at all.
Classes got cancelled because teachers couldn't remember how to teach like they did, say, oh, seven years ago, before they used power point to flash information in front of our eyes at high speeds. No electricity? No power point, and no class.
Students flocked back to their rooms excited for classes to be cancelled. And just as they were about to jump on the computer and check their email or facebook...
oh ya, internet is out.
well, i can just pass some time watching a bit of TV... wait, TVs need electricity. and by the time you've already thought of five other electronically dependent activities that you can't do, it dawns on you the crisis you are in.
That brings us to the college students in the fetal position rocking back and forth on the floor of their lightless dorm room.
And that's where I found myself... minus the fetal position and floor. Instead, i sat on the futon with absolutely no idea of what to do with my time.
There was this time, you know, like a hundred years ago... ya, it reminded me of that.
With cell phones being the only working technology, I found myself calling people and leaving messages for entertainment.
On my way to speech class i walked over the Belt Line on Calvin Crossing... the traffic light on the belt line was out... not blinking like it was out of order... completely out, lacking any luminary properties... leaving cars parked bumper to bumper further than i could see.
Yes, I still had class because all we had to do was speak, and last time i checked, we don't really require electricity to do that.
The power did eventually turn back on after about three hours.
But I must say that I got a kick out of watching all of Calvin College stop dead in its tracks because of a squirrels capability to conduct electricity.
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