I was typing at a furious pace, hurtling towards a deadline when suddenly, there was a *tick* and everything went black. A unified gasp of horror reverberated around the office. I leapt up from my seat. At the same time, everyone else had stood up, craning their heads over the pod partitions. We looked like dozens of prarie dogs peering out of our holes.

People’s confused expressions were soon replaced with looks of distress and anger. Wails of despair could be heard as engineers, scientists, planners and architects realized that their last hour of work had been snatched away by the blackout.

“What can we do? We can’t write reports, we can’t make calls!” they cried. Some consoled each other, while others went to the tea point to drown their sorrows in coffee and biscuits.

After a pause of worry, I brightened. Finally! Here was the perfect opportunity for me to tidy my desk! Over the past two weeks, I have been so busy doing charegeable work for clients that I couldn’t file the mounds of paper building up on my desk. The untidiness and disorganisation gnawed at me.

Hooray!