Things Happen For a Reason

I was in the basement this evening, playing on the computer. It's my hobby. My wife calls it my mistress. In a way, she's right. Everyone has their thing, and mine just happens to be computers and surfing the Internet. Tonight was no different. I wasn't doing anything important, just putzing, trying to download the latest political cartoon from our local senate campaign.

While surfing, I heard a loud buzz, then immediately began to smell something burning. Being surrounded by 2 computers, 2 monitors, 2 printers, a scanner, 2 TVs, a VCR, and a stereo, I didn't know which electrical component to check first. I smelled each one, but couldn't find the offending unit. I then looked up at the fluorescent lights overhead. I had a 4' tube light installed above the desk, and thought maybe it had popped. No, it was fine. I checked the other fluorescent lights, and sure enough, one of the 15 watt CF bulbs had burned out. It's kind of scary really, the transformer was incredibly hot, and the plastic around the glass was literally melting. Yikes. I quickly turned off the circuit, and unplugged the bulb. Crisis prevented.

I wonder what would have happened had I not been sitting here in the basement to catch that? Would the house have caught fire? Would the plastic have melted to a sticky pile of goo and that would have been it? Thankfully, we'll never know. But, I've come to learn over the previous few years that everything happens for a reason. I don't really attribute that to a higher power, but just that a particular course of events can all be tied to a single moment in time. Was I supposed to be in the basement to avert a potential disaster? Perhaps.