On a Personal Note: Locked In

Today was an unforgettable day.  It must have seemed a disaster but overall I'm just happy to have survived it with grace.  It all started with a crashed server with no internet connection in the office in the middle of a deadline due today. All the files I needed were not accessible  The connection arrived an hour before 5 pm so while everyone started packing their bags to leave, I was just beginning my work day.

At past 8pm, I managed to submit my deadlines and finally told my superior who is currently overseas that I'm leaving the office.  To my surprise, I was stranded in the office alone. Locked inside the building just like in the movies. Empty dark hall, no one around, dead silence.  The magnetic latch was stuck. The switch to release it wasn't working. I have worked a lot of late nights alone in the office for years but it never happened to me.   I guess there's a first time for everything.

I was relieved that my colleague picked up my call.  Several missed calls and finally our building manager picked up.  I had to wait and started feeling hungry. There was no food (except for some most probably spoiled leftovers in the staff lounge's fridge).  I'm glad there's Facebook. I had some communication to the outside world.  In this regard, I'm thankful for technology.

To my amazement, I didn't feel scared nor angry.  I was laughing inside at the situation.  I guess, when I tried to reconcile myself with the worst possible scenario that I had to sleep on the carpet and perhaps wake up without showering and going straight to work tomorrow, it felt liberating.

Finally, our building engineer arrived and fixed the problem. I'm grateful, he drove about 30-40km away to open the door.  I managed to leave the building safe and sound and I'm now happy typing away here with you while I'm savoring my home delivered Indian meal.

Happy Wednesday!