The fallen giant in front of my house
by Trailerman Sam (tapessam@gmail.com)
A supermoon occurs when a full moon coincides with the moon’s closest approach to Earth in its elliptical orbit, also known as perigee.
On both Sept 17 and 18 (remember that lovely Mooncake Festival?), the full moon was a supermoon. It was also the Harvest Moon and a partial lunar eclipse, making it quite a spectacle for those who could step outside and observe it.
The supermoon happens a few times annually, typically when the full moon is within 90 per cent of its closest point to Earth.
But it wasn’t all blue skies and everything nice for certain parts of Malaysia on those two days, I assure you. The Malaysian Meteorological Department (Met Malaysia) had already warned that thunderstorms with heavy rains and strong winds would hit certain states that week.
Never in my wildest dreams or beyond the scope of my imagination would I go through the scary experience of having a huge falling tree that missed me by a few feet as well as my trusty car and the front portion of my house!
As the saying goes bad luck usually comes in buckets, the fallen tree did inflict more damage to my surroundings. First, it brought down TNB’s power cables to less than two feet above ground.
Luckily, they didn’t snap or else God knows what might have happened: like a major disaster on me (being the closest) or someone else equally unlucky getting electrocuted, toasted, roasted or fried.
As it continued to rain cats and dogs, I sensed that something would not be right as the day wore on. I was right: I noticed that my TM broadband fibre optic cable was missing. Oh no!
Without the Internet cable, I would be “incapacitated”. Indeed, I was! When disaster struck, I was grounded at home and still recovering from a week-old surgery.
Imagine the only thing – that precious Internet connection – that makes me last through the day and night has gone blank.
With the many fallen trees and damaged power and Internet cables, the employees of both TM and TNB had their hands full. It wasn’t an uplifting sight in Lunas, my hometown in Kedah.
Workers from the local government authority worked round-the-clock with their contractors to clear blocked roads first with the help of Bomba (full name — the Fire and Rescue Department because it doesn’t just put out fires but does so much rescuing, too!) and local Bomba volunteers.
And for the strangest reason, the TM 100 helpline was also not working during those precious moments. And I couldn’t rely on my mobile network provider to lodge a report.
But my world just didn’t end there as a few good neighbours came to my rescue. One managed to lodge a report with TM while another, who was away on holiday, even called to check on how things were and offered the use her wi-fi. The only snag was that she couldn’t remember her password!
Life at times can be very cold when you need to deploy passwords for almost everything — shopping online, paying bills, watching pay tv, listening to songs streaming, emails, etc. Thanking her, I felt that it was the thought that mattered.
To add to my burning rage, TM said its technicians could only come five days later. What?#@&*@$!
When misfortune came on Tuesday, I reckoned I had to last it out through Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday! How I wished the earth would open up and swallow me.
No more surfing the Internet as I sip my espresso. It’s gone! Why? It’s like this: my best friend, buddy, heart and soul is my desktop with a 27-inch monitor. And the Internet is my information freeway or autostrada.
I could still use my smartphone but no way, Jose. I like big screens because I don’t want to have bulging eyeballs from having to squint at a tiny screen for hours.
For me, Sept 17 (super moon or not) must have been one of the unluckiest days. I decided that a hot shower would get me to face the challenges of a harsh day or week.
Halfway through sloshing with the warm feeling of relief, the water abruptly turned from warm to lukewarm, then to cool, and then it was cold as ice (being a rainy day). It turned out that my water heater decided to serve the quit notice on me that very day. It was like the straw that broke the camel’s back.
Over the years, no amount of bad luck could ever break my strong back or will despite living a solitary life. I had mastered the art of come-what-may but I am ever ready. But not on that frustrating day!
After the long haul to Sunday, TM fixed the Internet line as promised. The fallen tree was cleared. And I now have a spanking new water heater. The only permanent damage was a small hole in my pocket!
The next full moon is the Hunter’s Moon, which will peak on Thursday, October 17, 2024. It’s another supermoon!
But this time around, I hope the tide will change. I’m banking on some fortune-hunting to help me mend that hole in my pocket. Wish me luck, folks!