Devastation.

The worst has happened.

Andrew - the man previously thought of as my (and my lap top's) hero - called from the computer place. My hard drive is toast; all files on it are irretrievable.

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!! (Cue thunder crashes, and perhaps a strike of lightning for dramatic effect.)

Farewell to hours of library time and thousands of words (aka my university research/papers/projects).

Seyonara to background melodies, pump-up tunes and the wannabe soundtrack of my life (aka my entire music library).

And a final, tender goodbye to hundreds of happy and wondrous moments collected in close to 10 different countries and on who knows how many celebratory occasions (aka all of my photos from the past 4-5 years).

What a colossal loss. (Which I say without an ounce of sarcasm or bravado). Back in the good old days I would have mix tapes, handwritten first drafts, and negatives to console myself - but not in our fantastically modern digital age! Oh no... instead I have facebook photo albums and a selection of graded papers buried in a box in my basement. Small consolation indeed.

However a lesson was learned today: one must BACK UP ONE'S WORK. A seeming nuisance, like paying insurance premiums, but like insurance, sure as hell comes in handy when the unthinkable happens.