This afternoon after work I went to the grocery store only to find it and all surrounding buildings eerily dark. Then I remembered the lights at work flickering about half an hour earlier and realized that while my lights had complained, the lights in half the town had simply given up and gone out.

I got out of the car and approached the grocery store employee who was standing in the doorway thinking that she could at least answer my question (“I bought this chicken here and it tasted awful. Can I return the rest of the it and get my money back?”) even if she couldn’t do anything about it until the power came back.

“The power’s out,” she mentioned, helpfully, as I walked up.

“I see that.” I still didn’t feel close enough to actually ask a question so I continued forward.

“I can’t let anyone in,” she warned, stepping protectively into the doorway and spreading herself slightly so as to fill as much of the gap as possible.

“I understand that, but I was wondering…”

“You can’t come in.”

“Right. I just have a question.”

Just then another worker came out, possibly to help fend off this problem customer. Recognizing her as one of the managers, I asked her my question, but she only answered that I’d have to contact the Deli, which is “all the way back in the corner of the store, that way…. but you can’t go in there.”

Right… Sorry I asked….. Maybe I’ll try again tomorrow.