Two days without WiFi

The Drawing Board, just now

It feels as though I've been living without a limb for two days. Actually, it's more like a sensory organ is missing. I have been living without WiFi for two whole days.

A massive electrical storm woke me very suddenly in the early hours of Sunday morning. I imagine there was a bang or a crack from very close by, perhaps inside the house. I listened to the thunder and watched the windows light up - it was probably the loudest storm I've every experienced. It passed. I went back to sleep.

On Sunday morning I couldn't make the radio turn on. This sometimes happens - it's an early DAB model and it sometimes gets confused. As for so many things nowadays, the remedy is to turn it off and on again. At that point I noticed that there was no power to the radio. Nor to the bedside light.

OK, adding two and two together, I bumbled down to the fuse box. I'm so glad that the old one was replaced (three and a half years ago already!) because three or four of the switches were tripped. This usually happens when light bulbs blow and it's just a matter of switching it all back on, but the kitchen circuits didn't return. Then I remembered that they'd installed a subsidiary fuse box in the new kitchen extension, and that had tripped as well, but unlike the main board it wouldn't reset itself. With everything turned off I could reset it, and switching things on one at a time it became clear that the problem was with the washing machine.

At that point I was simply relieved that the fridge freezer was working and that I could still boil the kettle and cook breakfast. I haven't yet got round to pulling the washing machine out to try and trace the fault, because after breakfast it became clear that there was no Internet. I can replace the three blown light bulbs and go to the launderette if necessary, but no Internet! Looking at the router it appeared dead, no lights coming on at all. No Internet! I couldn't find an alternative power supply to try, but I found an old router - I just wasn't sure it would be compatible with the new ISP and couldn't face the effort of trying it out. I could still get online via the data plan on my phone, and I had planned to spend the day at an event at the Birmingham Buddhist Centre, so that's what I did.

It turns out that I can manage for about two days without WiFi. Considering I've only just started using the new TV I was surprised to miss the facilities it provides, particularly BBC iPlayer for TV and Spotify for music (but I've got films on DVD and the old hifi for CDs so it's been fine). I didn't need the Internet for dressmaking so at last I've made a start on Lola's dress, although very soon afterwards I managed to break the fancy needle that I need for stretch fabric so that has to wait until the shops open again.

I listened to audio books, did a bit of work in the garden, replaced all the blown light bulbs, and went out to look at new lawn mowers. I inherited the mower from the previous owners of Lola Towers which makes it at least 15 years old, and although the motor seems fine, I don't think the blade has been replaced in all that time. Then I realised that I could just replace the blade - I don't know why I hadn't thought of it before. I turned the mower over to have a look at the blade. It is held on by a large bolt, and I don't have any spanners. Perhaps there's a tool? If there is, where would it be?

I'm not sure I can convey how astonished I was firstly to find within seconds the very tool I was looking for, and then actually managing to undo the bolt with it. I took the old blade down to the local DIY store but they didn't have anything that matched it. Using the magic of the Internet (thank you phone data plan) I have now ordered the exact part. I can hardly believe how well this is going so far and feel certain that there will be some insurmountable barrier to success when the new blade arrives. We'll see.

So  buoyed by success, I finally felt mentally tough enough to phone the ISP about the dead router. And it was fine! The nice man working in the call centre on a Bank Holiday immediately identified the moment when it died on Sunday morning, and asked me about the storm, but didn't raise any issues. He not only arranged for a new router to be sent out, but also encouraged me to contact them when it arrives so my days without Internet can be reimbursed.

That's when I decided it was time to seek out some WiFi. So I went to Pub Next Door and asked for a half of Saddleback and the WiFi password. Which was when I discovered that their Internet had been destroyed at the same time as mine. The beer was very tasty but my quest continued, and I have now been settled for a couple of hours at the second best pub in Leamington. They expressed the right amount of horror at my plight and have been very hospitable. I have bonded with the bar staff over an obscure track by The Cat Empire and with other customers over the Blue Peter annuals on the pub bookshelves.

So despite the WiFi calamity it's been quite a good weekend so far. I've got tomorrow off as well so still time to replace the fancy sewing machine needle and do a bit more dressmaking before going back to work.