Twas the Night before A-100

N. and I had gone to the nearby Eden Center to check it out and perhaps get our toes done (my good friend had taught me the importance of having fabulous toes) in honor of our first days at
our new school and job.

I got a call from K. letting me know that they were all right, but that the sirens we were hearing were because our building had had a small explosion in the electrical room (?) causing a nearby car to catch fire and the entire building to lose power.  The entire building had been evacuated while they worked to determine the problem.

K. and O. joined us in the Eden Center and we got some snacks while we waited to see what happened.  When we returned, we found that we were able to enter the building, but there was no power.  So - we got dressed and went off to the great welcoming reception hosted by the 158th class.

At the reception we got to meet lots of members of the 160th.  It's such a great group.  People from all over with such varied experiences.  There are a bunch of us and everyone is so interesting.  I'm glad I've got 6 weeks to get to know them better.

When we returned, we found that there was still no power - and that this meant also no water or heat.  Now being a good Californian, I always have my emergency flashlight and candles.  But with the pack out and weight allowances, they hadn't made it into our luggage!  So we headed off to the nearby Safeway to find that they had sold out of candles and flashlights!  Luckily Target was also nearby (life in the suburbs!) and we were able to get items there.

The Virginia Power Company worked all night (jack hammers and all) and finally got the power back on around 10 AM the next morning - a bit late for the early risers, but nice to come home to.

Getting dressed the next morning was a bit of a challenge.  I was in a new place (so much more difficult to navigate in the dark).  Luckily I had showered late the day prior so I could get a way with a sponge bath using the big bottled water we had bought.  And I had steamed out my suits and organized my papers the morning before.  Putting on makeup in the dark was a challenge (it's quite hard to hold a flashlight so that it doesn't cause shadows).

But I got it together and was out the door while it was still dark and early.  Our first day of A-100 was fascinating and that's all I can really say because you don't have a "need to know".  Suffice it to say that I'm enjoying it all very much!