Monday Morning Panic

After a week with the team, I’m back at my computer working on the Nehemiah Center book. I decide to move four interview files to the appropriate electronic folder. I hit Ctrl+ X to remove them, move to the appropriate folder, and hit Ctrl+V to paste them.

My computer launches a frenzy of activity, telling me Teracopy is working with multi-gigabytes of material. I hit “Cancel” with no effect. I hit cancel two more times. Still no effect.

Several moments later, the electronic frenzy ends. I look in my folders for the past two years’ work, and, except for the new four folders I wanted to move,  there is nothing. Nada.

I search  book folder after book folder and all are empty. No photos, no notes. . . Nada. Marlo says something to me from his adjacent chair. I don’t hear a word.

I look up JD’s PCs Pella phone number and call Jonathan Dykstra on SKYPE. I explain. He answers in his calm technician-therapist voice and takes control of my computer from Pella. He searches the recycle bin. Nada.  I show him the empty folders, where half an hour ago there was a mountain of data and photos.

I show him the four files I moved—and then I spy an extra folder, “Nehemiah Center Book” where it does not belong.

“Wait a minute,” I say. “There’s an extra folder here.”

We look. The entire Nehemiah Center book folder has simply moved to a different location--along with the four files I intended to move.

Midwestern Calvinist introvert that I am, my next words do not belong to me.

As easily as from a Nicaraguan Pentecostal, they speak themselves. And I mean them.

“Praise the Lord!”

I revert immediately to my efficient and goal-oriented self, telling Jonathan. “Email the bill to Gail as a CVK services invoice, not a Write Place item.”

Post-adrenaline-rush, I wonder.

Have I, this morning, used the best of both worlds?
............
PS to my computer-expert friends who are shaking their heads:

Yes, yes, I do have an online back-up (Carbonite). So I would have been able to retrieve data, although probably not the most recent data because my internet access has been intermittent in Nicaragua and I've taken lots of photos.

If you're still looking for an opportunity to shake your heads and cluck and smile, here's one: I would have needed technical assistance from JDs PCs to retrieve the online data. I've never had to do it.