It was getting late into the night…but the project had to be completed soon. Eyes burned; shoulders ached. The computer screen flashed reds, yellows, greens, then black with white letters.  Then white with black letters. Clicking sounds of keys and buttons, a type of music that begs a response.  A siren voice calling through fiber optics and lunar transporters. A crescendo of energy flashing from the screen through the eyes into the brain. Feel the force within!  Feel it!

Alex leaned back in an ergo-dynamic chair, trying to stay human in a demanding world of machines and corporate aspirations.

The project had to be completed soon. A giga-byte box of data fluttered through A-I, spinning, merging, separating as if by magic into a reality that could be sent around the globe, but never held in the palms of your hands.

A loud noise erupted from the speaker. A flash of light then sudden darkness. Something had gone seriously wrong.

Alex did press the keys: Control, Alt, Delete. Save me oh God of Technology! What just happened?

The computer was unresponsive.

Turn it off and wait five minutes. Then turn it back on. Alex remembered this. It gave a sense of hope.

The computer returned to what a machine calls “life.”  A quick scan through the yellow file folders (an icon design from the distant past) allowed Alex to assess the situation.  What had happened? The project had to be completed soon.

The data was gone.

Alex leaned over the keyboard and cried. One may as well be dead.