a small "hu-" can make a big difference.

Last week we went to the City and ate pizza and caught a movie. Between the pizza parlor and the movie theater, the storm happened, the storm that had been threatening to happen on the drive to the City and all through dinner. We stood under a green awning and the wind rhythmically whipped water at us and the thunder shook our bones. Half of the block lost power.

When branches stopped hitting the ground on either side of us and the rain let up a bit, we booked it over to the theater. I had to kind of swerve upon reaching the door of the theater to avoid running into a man with a gigantic umbrella, a briefcase, and a formidable mustache. As we went in one door, he crossed right behind us and went in the other door, opening it so hard that it hit the door I was going through and almost knocked me over. As I was trying to figure out how I'd just been jolted forward three feet, guy marches up to the counter and demands to know what's going on with the power over at Luciano's Restaurant. Uh, says teen working at the local indie movie theater, the power went out a few minutes ago. They're closed then? guy asks. Uh, yeah, I guess. They don't have any power, teen says. Well! the mustache huffs. I had reservations! They could've called me! And he slams his briefcase down on their counter, slams the umbrella on top, and says, You can watch this for me, can't you? and marches off.

Uhm. I'm sure that the second the power went off, three waiters and the hostess all lunged for the phone at once, knocked heads, and slumped to the floor in a black-and-white clad unconscious pile.