If I hear one more news reporter say "where were you when the lights went out?" I'm going to...hit the mute button or turn the radio station. I know - it's nothing radical but I'm too tired to be outraged. And I see from today's Newsday headline (the print edition) that Gov. Pataki is outraged enough for both of us.

But I really have no right to be tired. One of my freelance clients is based in Stamford, CT and I was there when it hit. I live on Long Island - more than 50 miles from Stamford. I was on my laptop - the lights flickered twice - on the third flicker everything went dead. I thought briefly about trying to make it home but several things stopped me: 1) we really didn't know what had happened for the first 20-30 minutes and by that time the roads were a mess 2) it takes me about two hours to drive home in a normal commute so five or six wouldn't have been out of the realm of possiblity 3) Long Island drivers are scarey enough regularly - give them pitch black and no traffic lights and you are without question taking your life in your hands and last but not least 4) a little voice inside my head said "go get a drink - run don't walk to the nearest bar." And so you don't have to ask, that's what I did. I went to a waterside bar, had a couple of margaritas with my co-workers and then headed over to the Stamford Westin. The room was pitch black - but after a couple of margaritas (they were strong and there was no food) I really didn't want to see anything anyway.

Fell asleep - kept waking up to look out the window - at some point between midnight and 7 am the power came back on in Stamford. I woke up, ordered breakfast, watched the news in Westin's chenille robe and figured it was safe to head back to the island. The scenes of people sleeping on curbs or the steps of the 8th Avenue post office and scenes of the previous night's traffic jams convinced me I'd done the right thing. So as things go, it was a pretty great way to spend the Blackout of 2003. And I kept the robe as a reminder.

While power was restored for many by mid-morning, I didn't have power at my house until 5:45 - I think my neighborhood was one of the last to be restored. So now everything's back to normal - but I can't help but feel we're missing something fundamental.