11:43 a.m. Already I miss the camera. It's digital. It's borrowed. It's gone.

1:59 p.m. I'm very fragmented and I can't seem to get a grip on the day. The house across the street is empty now, and they've tented it to spray for termites. No life form will survive the circus o' death that will ensue in a few hours -- and now you'll just have to imagine the gaily striped navy blue and red zipped-up sheath covering the entire two-story house, peak and all.

Sigh. Every time the camera cycles back to its rightful owners, I think I will never see it again. I really have to research and study and figure out what sort of camera I would want, if I have, in fact, seen the last of the Olympus whatever-it-was.

It has a three-times zoom. Zooms are very important, I now realize. You don't want to get too close to snakes and bikers when you're out taking the stray picture. Sigh. I will have to research.

7:26 p.m. Hooray! The camera's back! I ran out and snapped a few of the tent, for your edification and perusal.

9:34 p.m. Well, it's been a totally weird day, and now I have the proof: no picture. I took the picture -- hell, I took two pictures for good measure. But now we're mysteriously missing the all-important plug. Which is a good reason not to replace the Olly, but to get another type when the time comes, and come it will.

This camera is made for the PC world. If you want to connect it to a Mac you need a special doohickey. Of course, now that the camera's back and I can clearly read on its body its name: (Olympus D-500L) a lot of good it does me.

There's a missing dongle between me and true happiness.

10:21 p.m. You know what? I'm going to call it quits. Declare defeat. Maybe it's the worry about the hurricane bearing down that's got me so jumpy.

Maybe the guy who was here to help us try to move a desk upstairs where I knew it belonged, but which wouldn't go around a tight corner even though he scraped his knuckles in the attempt -- maybe he knocked the weird computer part off the table or something when we were all standing around scratching our heads.

Have you ever just seen something and you just know -- it's got to go there? It's got to fit? I saw the desk upstairs. I really did. We finally got it up an hour ago by unscrewing the huge lid of the thing and really sort of bending the frame of it around the curve. Now the desk is exactly where I pictured it should be and at least that part of the world is feeling right again.

But I really saw the picture of the tent on this piece. And some days are so tossed and scrambled about that you really just have to fold your tent and move on.

Tomorrow! Thank you Lord!