I Almost Lost Internet Access

Most of you who read my posts know I have been without TV since mid-day Saturday (see this post).

Then, Monday night something weird happened with my PC and I thought it was fried. I had gone into the bedroom around 8 p.m. to sit for an hour or two, checking email, Facebook, and so on. I hit the power switch, went to the kitchen to do something while it loaded, and came back to - a gray screen with the words "Starting Windows". 

It stayed like that and stayed like that. It was frozen. Then I heard a small crackling/sizzling sound, and a trace scent that yelled to me, PULL THE PLUG, STUPID!

After a quick sniffing expedition, it seemed, with my limited knowledge, that it was the power/surge strip and not the laptop I'm currently using. I miss a full tower setup and this one was a blessing back when my last PC went belly up and even though it was used, it was a gift, free. That was almost two years ago.

At this point, I'm thinking that I'm here in an old mobile home with my cat and am I safe for the night? I did have enough sense to look at the outlet's wall plate. No dark smudges indicating a "short" and that was a blessing. Then I felt the plate and it was cool and that was a blessing.

So, I heaved a big sigh, said some BIG prayers for safety through the night, and a few more aimed at a PC that was not fried. And I went to bed.

Tuesday morning, I called a friend who used to live in our park/community and made sure that if I needed to, I could go visit her and access my email and put up an "I'm away" notice there, and access my Etsy shop with a "Closed for a While" notice there.

I had to wait until today for my SS to hit so I could go get a new surge protector strip. I was still praying about the computer. I have not just my own stuff on it, but I depend on it for our monthly park newsletter, and for my Etsy shop, and some other things. And I knew I had no way to pay for another PC, even just a tower. A dear couple I know had given me a nice monitor and a keyboard, so I'm halfway there.

When I got to Walmart this morning, I was amazed at the changes in these power strips. I had talked to my brother last night and he told me that these days, they have all kinds of protection built in. I had expected that. I had hoped to just pay $15 or so. But then I saw one that not only had all this extra protection but also two USB ports! How great is that? I kept thinking how neat it would be, since this laptop only has two, to not have to yank out a printer thingie just to plug in my camera thingie and then reverse them. To me, it was a wise and reasonable investment so I put out the $29.97 and tax.

The next half hour was the hardest. All the way home, I prayed that it was only the power strip and not the PC. When I plugged in the new one, and turned on the PC, it told me that since I didn't shut down properly, it suggested I do a diagnostic/repair run on it, and I agreed. Then it suggested I consider a "restore" but that terrified me because I couldn't remember how far back that would go and meant I might have to re-load some programs. Still, I figured, if all of this would get it back up and running, I was for it.

It did. 

Get up and running. 

As you can see!

We tackle the TV tomorrow - I now have a telephone number from RCA for a support tech who will walk me through a re-set of my converter box.

Father in heaven, and all the angels and saints, thank you, thank you, thank you! I suspect I should learn something from this, and maybe I'll eventually figure it out, but in the meantime, thank you for helping me hold it all together and to not panic. Sometimes we humans get into a "situation" and we let it overwhelm us. You have blessed me, many times, my Father, and I am so grateful. I know I don't deserve it, but I truly do appreciate it.