Vox’s posts tagged computer

Mars Monkey Fashion Accessories at Zazzle.com

nobody@vox.com(Mari) — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 23:22:25 +0000

It was only a matter of time before Maribel Made, made its way into the diy web printing services out there, and Zazzle came to be easy and fast for publishing the new Mars Monkey illustrations I created based on the Mars Sock Monkeys soft toy product line (see my post, Sock monkeys + knitted sweaters = Mars Sock Monkeys).

If you’re already a fan of the lovable monkeys, then you’re really going to like the products I’ve lined up for my summer offering on my new Zazzle store at, http://www.zazzle.com/maribelmade. I’ve listed Mars Monkey Beach Totes, Buttons, T-shirts (in many sizes), and Mousepads! It’s a Mars Monkey craze!

The great thing about Zazzle is that as a purchasing customer, you’re able to customize each item to your liking, following a bit of the creators guidelines; like if the the design should be printed on a light or dark t-shirt. Other than that, it’s really up to the buyer, but if you’d rather not do the customization yourself, I’d be very glad to personalize whatever item you’d like for you…just let me know.

icon_smile.gif

These are some of the products available for sale…check them out! =D

b.gif?host=maribelmade.com&blog=2920419&post=34&subd=maribela&ref=&feed=1

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don't you hate it when...

nobody@vox.com(mathilde) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 10:12:28 +0000

... you've been staring at a computer screen so long that your eyes feel like they've been peeled? kthxbye!

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Boycotting Tech Free Wednesday

nobody@vox.com(jacolily) — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 19:50:48 +0000

I know. I'm not supposed to be here. However, its been raining all day (up to 2 inches with minor flooding) and we're running out of things to keep ourselves occupied! So, I'll share the good news that upon approval of the church personnel committee, I will officially be the permanent director of the AWE group (praise team). I am very excited! The pastor said he'd even like to send me to some workshops which would be awesome since I really don't have a lot of experience in leading or selecting music for services.

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Consumer Electronics Purchasing Woes

nobody@vox.com(Tuesday Creative) — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 19:24:04 +0000

Old Computer Monitor

I recently purchased a new monitor for my home office and boy was it frustrating. The thought of buying something new is fun and exciting and I'm envious when I see others getting boxes of goodies at work. Of course I couldn't just buy the first monitor I saw, I had to do tons of research to avoid buyer's remorse. I started my exploration for the right monitor with high spirits. By the end of one week, my spirits were crushed. Not only was I drowning in conflicting reviews from "experts" and users, but the manufacturers seem to number their products with the goal of confusing consumers. Why can't they just number their models intuitively and make it very clear what the differences are?

Especially with electronics, consumers can have dozens of products with dozens of features to choose from. Having to choose can get overwhelming and confusing. It would seem like making the buying process easy would benefit everybody. I had an easier time buying a new car than buying a new monitor. It came down to asking some very tech savvy friends for recommendations to narrow things down. My buying adventure ended a few weeks later on a weekend trip to Costco. I saw what I thought was one of the recommended models. It's wasn't even on the Samsung website at the time yet it's an update to a previous model. See what I'm saying? After all the frustration there was a happy ending, I'm very pleased with my choice.

- S. Osako

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Jewel Quest Solitaire : The ultimate jewel matching adventure!

nobody@vox.com(Loretta) — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 12:48:48 +0000

Jewel Quest Solitaire (21 MB download)

Join Professor Pack on the ultimate jewel-matching adventure across the world's richest continent! The dangers of the safari, the history of the Zimbabwe ruins, and the majesty of Victoria Falls await your discovery. Filled with puzzles of skill and twists while surrounded by gorgeous dynamic backdrops, this game will sweep you away. Play against others or be matched with a computer opponent. Embark on a thrilling journey in a story filled with adventure, love, and betrayal that changes with every replay!

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Why I don't have kids...

nobody@vox.com(Anyonebutmeplease) — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 16:50:14 +0000

I'm exhausted.
The alarm went off for about 40 mins before I could actually function enough to move.
It's only day 2 though.
I think I'll get into the swing of things after awhile at least that's what I've found when I worked two jobs in the past. Not that this is exactly a job.*

Yesterday was a good day. We hung out, played some video games, watched some Tv. (By Tv I mean some kid shows on the Internet... very boring but he seems to love them.) There was some mild boundary pushing yesterday but it's all good because I can push back. I've watched kids enough to know how they act and though in the past (mainly with my nephews) I was a bit of a softie... I've lost that aspect. Plus, I know his dad doesn't take any crap so why should I?

Today, not so much of an easy day. Granted, it's early, and the day could still change but it's a whiny day for sure. That's alright. I feel kind of bad though, I can't imagine hanging out with an adult all day makes for a great summer vacation. I was thinking about going to the park today but it's looking kind of cruddy out so maybe we'll nix that idea but maybe not. Possibly the library too. He's a big reader, books would be good, I could use some books too. I've gotta find some non-tv/computer things for us to do.

I need coffee.
I have tomorrow off. That's awesome. Granted, the T has some court thing tomorrow night so I'm gonna be watching Little T tomorrow night, at least I don't need to go to work, and I can go to bed early and get more than 5 hours of sleep. YAY!

I'm getting the urge to roam again. Hardcore. Roam or Run? I'm not sure which. It doesn't matter 'cause I'm going to ignore it but I think (hope) that by acknowledging it will make it dissipate.

*It is a job, and I mean no offense to any single parents out there but sitting and blogging or watching movies or going to the park with the kid are all things that I would do without the kid. I have a point here but I'm loosing it somewhere in the muddle.

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Gazillionaire III: Prepare for the wildest simulation game you've ever played!

nobody@vox.com(Iris69) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 21:02:19 +0000

Gazillionaire III (28 MB download)

Gazillionaire III is the wildest simulation game you've ever played! Explore new worlds, shop for bizarre things like moon ferns, babel seeds and kryptoons, and make your fortune. Gazillionaire is full of memorable characters and tons of unique and exotic places to visit. Play against the computer or with up to 5 friends to see who can earn the most! You'll choose you own ship, build your company, manage a feisty crew, and, if you're clever enough, make billions of kubars!

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July 13-19: Computer, Cats, and Cranky Nights

nobody@vox.com(stevie) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 23:22:03 +0000

Computer

My new Lenovo Thinkpad arrived on Monday and I love love love love love it! Makes me wonder how I survived on a Dell for so long. The keypad alone on this baby makes it worth it. So easy to type. There are quite a few differences for me since this one came loaded with Vista, so I've been poking around learning this new OS and getting adjusted to a new hardware setup.

I ended up getting a bundle offered through the Penn State bookstore because when I priced the computer configured the same way, it was more by itself than the whole bundle together. Seeing as I'm no dummy, I've now got myself quite a few new playthings. Gotta love the student discount.

the box

the 'puter, matte black, purty

computer bag full of stuff

the stuff: cables, cords, surge strip, thumb drive, USB hub

and a new printer/scanner/copier

Cats

What a week with my furry friends. Isabel has been to the vet twice and Dunkin once. Isabel had a bad respiratory thing going on that left her doing this weird sneezing/dry heaving thing that was hard to listen to and actually woke her up several times a night. Poor pookie. She had to take antibiotics which led to five hilarious battles that had me chasing her around and trying to get her to swallow her pill which she repeatedly gagged back up. Heh heh. Neither of us suffered much, but it was quite funny. She eventually got wise to me and took off to hide as soon as I picked up the envelope her pills came in.

Belle Belle looking Rubenesque

As the vet was checking her out she noticed Isabel needed to get several teeth pulled because of a degenerative gum condition called Resorptive Lesions. When they put her under for the surgery her mouth/throat/etc filled with saliva so fast they thought she was going to drown on the table so they intubated and woke her up. They told me later it was scary moment for them. So I had to take her back after the antibiotic had worked its magic and this time the extractions went fine but now the sneezing/dry heaving thing is coming back. Dang it. Poor little Belle Belle. She's going to have to go through the whole antibiotic thing AGAIN.

Resorptive lesion

The other very bad news is that they did blood work and learned that Isabel is getting close to pre-diabetic. She eats the same food Dunkin does - the prescription food for his blockage issue. It's great for Dunkin but is making Izzy blow up like a balloon. The problem is I can't switch foods for fear of Dunkin getting blocked again but I can't keep things going like this because it's affecting Isabel's health. Catch-22, dang it!

This past week I've cut the amount of food they get by almost half in an effort to get them both to lose weight. Dunkin has a decent sized spare tire, so he can afford a weight loss plan too. Izzy lost one tenth of a pound last week which isn't much but it's something. I'm going to keep going like this to see if I can get her to lost 2-3 pounds and get into a healthy weight range without switching foods.

Belle Belle looking light and trim

Dunkin went to the vet because he had a big swollen spot above one eye. It went away by itself, I figure it was just a bug bite, but I took him in just in case. He's fine, got a clean bill of health. Yippee!

Chilling out, Maxin, Relaxin

As a result of all these medical situations in a row, I decided to transition the cats to being indoor-only now rather than wait until the move which has led to a lot of...

Cranky Nights

Zzzzz... Huh? Wha? Whoizzit? Ok, ok, I'm awake. Not that I want to be, mind you, but I suppose actually sleeping is a thing of the past for a while.

Between the stress of trying to sell the house, to stress about money, to stress about leaving JMU and my friends, to all the rest of the stress just in general in my life surrounding this incredibly gingantic change in life, I haven't been sleeping well anyway. But now I've got a couple of nocturnal animals who used to do all their noctural prowling outside, doing their nocturnal prowling inside. That, actually, is not that bad. The worst part is Isabel just won't give up on the cat door miraculously starting to work again. She sits in front of it and pokes and pokes and pokes and scratches and scratches and scratches just sure that one of those efforts will make the magic door open again.

So I barricaded the wall in front of the cat door hoping that "out of sight, out of mind" was true. Ummmmm... no. Now she pokes and pokes and pokes and scratches and scratches and scratches at all the stuff piled up. Sigh... For the past week I have been up several times a night trying to lure or distract her away from the door because she is so darn noisy and never stops! It goes on and on and on for 30-45 minute stretches until I finally get up. Last night I had an epiphany and remembered that I had trained her from scratching furniture and wood railings by putting double sided tape on the surfaces. She won't scratch it because she doesn't like the stickiness on her paws.

It seems to be working. I still had to get up three times to add more tape until I finally got it in the right spots, but once I did she only poked at it for a minute or two before stopping. Fingers crossed... Maybe I'll actually get to sleep all night tonight! Here's the barricaded door and tape boobytrap for your viewing pleasure. Ha ha

Barricaded Tape Boobytrap

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Another Vista Breakdown....

nobody@vox.com(Strive2Be) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 12:07:19 +0000

Frustration

Okay, I've gotten a number of minor issues taken care of concerning the wonderful world of Vista learning. But would someone please help me with something that should be relatively simple?? Pretty please?

I have a 22 inch flat screen monitor. The optimum resolution, according to Dell, is 1680 x 1050. Yeah, right! Oh, it's beautiful! The text is so clear and the quality is great, but........it's made for teeny tiny people with teeny tiny eyes!! I would be blind in two weeks tops....not something I'm particularly looking forward to since I rather enjoy having sight.

I've checked around a lot of places, and it appears that people using Vista have two main resolutions: 1024 x 768 and 1280 x 1024. The latter one makes for small print, and also leaves about 2.5 inches of blank space on each side of the web page. What's the point of having a nice big monitor if it doesn't use it well? Lol. And the former leaves everything at a nice size (no eye strain), with about 1 inch remaining on each side of the web page. But the photos and the text are not SHARP and clear.

I have tried every resolution for a 22 inch monitor with 32-bit color, and the 1024 x 768 seems to be the best. But why isn't it sharp and clear? Boo hoo. The photos are a little on the grainy side, and the text is a little on the pale, fuzzy side.

What resolution do you use? And what other settings do you use for the colors, etc? I've been trying, but I just can't get my mind wrapped around it.

Thank you, guys. Sorry for bothering you so much. I know I'm a pain.

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ET, iPhone home

nobody@vox.com(Dale) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 02:41:24 +0000

Just over a week since we waited in line to order them, Jess and I finally got our iPhone 3Gs. Or rather, I went and got them while she got her hair cut as I was so impatient.

Within the space of half an hour, the sales assistant at the AT&T store had set up our account, transfered our numbers from T-Mobile and activated the phones, then I was out the door and shuffling home as fast as I could to play with mine.

I think I was playing for like five hours, before taking a nap.

For all the hype, for all the waiting, I am actually impressed. It effectively renders FOUR of my existing devices obsolete. It plays music every bit as well as my iPod (being, essentially, the latest generation). It can make calls, send text messages, take photos and do almost everything a phone can (MMS remains oddly absent). I can play games that look better than anything on my Nintendo DS, albeit with more limited control options. And, oddly, I feel it's going to reduce my time on my laptop, too - between the built-in apps and those you can already download from the new app store, I can surf, email, blog, manage photos, watch YouTube videos and generally piddle away time.

And in case you want to know, the applications downloaded so far...

- AIM
- Aqua Forest
- De Blob
- Facebook
- Last.fm
- MySpace Mobile
- NetNewsWire
- Remote
- Super Monkey Ball

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I just finished setting up my server.

nobody@vox.com(CantStrafeRight) — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 19:50:38 +0000

My new server

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What's on your C drive?

nobody@vox.com(Kimura) — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 12:57:51 +0000

I was reading this horror story about a guy whose hard drive suddenly broke down, and how hard it was for him to try to get his computing environment back on. He would bitch a lot about not having backed up his emails and stuff.

Then it occured to me; I don't even have a single e-mail on my local hard drive. They are all on my Hotmail/ Yahoo/ Gmail account. Instead of burning my writing files and stuff to a CD-R or copying them to another hard drive, I simply attach stuff I want to back up and send it to my Gmail address. As for as my correspondence is concerned, I won't lose a thing if my hard drive goes FUBAR right this moment. And with service like Flickr and SkyDrive, you have many options to keep your stuff anywhere other than your local hard drive.

So for non-gaming people, I guess the biggest thing to lose in a crisis like that may be their music collection. (though if you use iPod, I think you can transfer the songs from it to a new PC? is there any restriction doing that??) And if Google Office keeps evloving, I may not even need MS Office sitting on my local drive. Real-time spell checking is a must feature for me and Google Office doesn't seem to have it. Once they do, I would probably go that way. And with frightening speed with which hard drives are getting cheaper and its capacitiy getting ever bigger, the day may come when all you music would end up online, from where you could stream your stuff to your PC or transfer to your portable device.

This trend will change a lot of things; first it spells trouble for Microsoft- MS Office and Windows OS will lose its relevance, as you can do more stuff online and all you need is whatever can get you online (yes, I know all about browser difference when reading HTML/CSS code and all, but you get the basic idea). Also, the notion of privacy will change dramatically, as it's already been happening. I don't think the term completely lose its significance like some nerds claim, but people of the future will certainly see what's private and what's public. It may be a great news for criminals as well- you bust a suspected drug dealer or a yakuza hitman and confiscate his computer, but you can't find a single e-mail to back up your case; he may have an online account he only uses from various netcafes, whose existence he conveniently forgets to mention to the cops. And if you do find out where his e-mails are, you're gonna have to spend some time to secure a warrant if the server exists on a different country (which means his pals have time to erase said e-mails don't you think)...

Primary function of my C drive is to keep my music and games, which it will keep doing for any forseeable future, but it's interesting how SaaS explosion will change the way people work, play and save stuff. I wonder what the "average" computing life will be in ten years.

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Need Computer Wisdom Because I Don't Have Any!

nobody@vox.com(Strive2Be) — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 06:55:43 +0000

Dell Inspiron 530 Desktop

Okay, I just had this brand new system built for me by Dell....all the goodies you could ever possibly want in it and more (my son helped me with all the components)....plus a 22 inch flat screen monitor....and it was delivered yesterday. Guess what? Everything is still in the boxes. Boo hoo. I admit it. I've failed you all. I'm not a genius. I don't know what the heck to do with it. There are so many items on the Dell computer I'm using now that I want to place on the new system (like folders of photos, documents), and I don't even know how to format a CD to copy those folders, and then I could install them somehow onto the new system. They are family photos and documents I use for work, etc. And it came with Vista (hate the idea already), and I'm an XP gal. So I'm going to be looking at something that is totally new to me, and I won't know where to go. And how do I get my Favorites copied over?? Ugh. Oh, and of course, my 5-in-1 (printer, copier, fax, scanner, and photo thingy) doesn't operate with Vista. What?!? So I have to find some sort of converter, right?? I dunno. What the heck do I do? Well, I guess the first thing is to format a CD, right? HELP!!!!

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Need a little assistance here !!!

nobody@vox.com(Vox populi) — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 17:57:42 +0000

Help,I find I am unable to comment on other peoples blogs using firefox,am using ff3 with all the usual plug-ins(all up to date) yet can comment from IE.....that is definitely a first ff doesn't work and ie does.
Any ideas would be gratefully recieved ?
Posted by K

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Which button?

nobody@vox.com(Vapid Ramblings of a 40 something) — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 16:36:35 +0000

Ok I pride myself on my technical skills, Im pretty good with the 'puter and frequently help out my neighbour with his numerous questions - the latest issue is that the fan is making a noise at night thus keeping him awake, I suggested that turning it off would be a good idea, then later Ill pop round and clean it "I cant do that what will happen to all my emails?" Ive tried to explain but he isnt convinced that they wont disappear into cyber space for good if his pc isnt turned on....

so why is it the Sky box totally baffles me when it fails? its a box with buttons but when it fails I cannot fathom how to make it behave, I suspect it's age has something to do with the frequent problems, last week it kept saying no signal being received, today the screen was blank, I tried everything, turned it off and on again several times, rang Sky and got their lovely helpful "may I call you by your first name" technical bod, who guided me through the process.. unplug the TV and unplug the skart cable......wtf why does that make a difference?

Now ok Ill admit to once telling my mother to unplug the printer cable and shake it to get rid of any data that might be caught in it..... but it did work! but I still havent figured why unplugging cables and switching the ends round could possibly make a difference? I have visions of a roomful of technicalbods laughing their wee socks off "you wont beleive what I got a client doing today?"

I used to work for a well known computer company on the engineering desk, Id take calls from clients whose machine was 'broked' - we would have a set proceedure to take them through, step one is the machine turned on? yes? are you sure are the lights on? what is on the screen? and on and on, just once and only the once did I make a booboo of mega proportions, I sent an engineer 200 miles to look at a computer with total failure, nothing was working, the engineer eventually returned somewhat sooner than I had expected and certainly not the happiest bunny in the hutch.

Id gone through the entire check with the woman and she had answered correctly - Id asked if the machine was plugged in, yes it was, but Id failed todo because Id assumed she would have checked automatically that the socket was actually switched on! It's not rocket science, it's not hard, but it helps considerably.

Another client who lacked a few brain cells I think, who daily rang for help, finally in frustration I asked if she had windows, yes I do, well pick up the computer and hurl it through one, fortunately she didn't.

I digress as usual, my Sky box now works, but the sound is very dodgy, well more the speech is out of synch on the film Im watching, other channels seem fine, now do I ring the technicalbods and ask for help? do I unplug the thing switch a few cables around, or do I just assume that its their fault, give up and watch something else?

yeah yeah Ill go watch something else.

better yet Ill go cook something for the kids, it's the school holidays - week three is looming, do you know how long a week is?

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iPhone: The New Personal Computer - techmeme.com

nobody@vox.com(Atlanta iPhone Blog) — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 11:49:09 +0000

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/iphone_personal_computer.php

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Weekly Update: July 6-12

nobody@vox.com(stevie) — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 15:56:19 +0000

Welcome to the first addition of the possible new format for my bloggage. Why a new format? Let me explain...

Vox Habit
Simply put, I am trying to ween myself of my Vox habit. Vox is addicting. Your lives are addicting. And fascinating.

Patch

And I got sucked in involved until I was spending 2-3 hours at a time reading and commenting on everyone's posts plus trying to think of something worthwhile to say on mine.

Truthfully, I enjoyed it and have come to respect and care for my neighbors in Vox-land a lot, but have come to the conclusion that I just can't keep it up at that level. My goal and plan is to write on my own blog at least once a week or so because it will be the primary way to keep in touch with my friends and family once I start my doc program next month. I fully expect that posting once a week might be all I can manage. So, to my favorite Vox neighbors, I will do my best to at least check in once in a while to keep up with your lives and adventures, but I don't think I will be as active a participant as I have been.

Polka Dot Patty

This is not me but it looks just like this.

The big excitement this week came from a lovely bought of hives that covered me from chin to ankles in polka dots. Woohoo! It appeared after I started taking an herbal supplement. Nothing else in my life had changed so I'm 99% sure it was connected.

At first I thought it was an allergic reaction to one of the ingredients, but antihistamines and Cortisone cream didn't do anything to make it better so now I think it was the supplement working on something internally and trying to push it out through my skin. Lovely. My very intelligent and well-informed health enthusiast brother and mother first clued me in to this idea. Thank you!

But if that's the case, I'm all for it. If it's some nasty toxin and this supplement will get it out of my body, I'll put up with looking like a cheetah for a while. That being said, I'm starting back on it today, just at a lower dosage. My greatest hope is that it might get at the root of whatever weird malaise has made my life sucky for the past several years. This supplement is an all-natural antibiotic, antibacterial, anti-fungal, anti-everything basically, and has actually been called a miracle-worker by people who have taken it. I am hopeful. Let's leave it at that.

Getting Sad
This week I started really feeling sad about leaving JMU and all the wonderful people there. Till now it's been like an

Sad smiley

intellectual exercise / problem to solve / list of to-do's. But a couple times this week I found myself at my desk with tears in my eyes. I don't think it has fully sunk in yet so I'm sure I'll be full-on bawling by the end of the month.

I'm not going to say much about this right now because it will be its own post later on. I need to let it simmer for a while to make sure I can honestly get my feelings on paper. I'm hoping it will be cathartic for me and represent the impact the JMU community has had on my life and development.

New 'Puter

R61

This week I bit the bullet and finally made up my mind about what kind of computer to get for grad school. It was a tough decision since I love technology and all the finalists seemed exciting. In the end I went with a Lenovo ThinkPad R61. It gets great ratings on CNET.com and comes with lots of fun bells and whistles. It also comes with Vista, which I'm not thrilled about, but I figure it's going to become the standard OS for PC's whether I want it to or not. Darn Microsoft. It should have been delivered Friday but I have to be present to sign for it. Which I am equally glad about and frustrated by. Now, I will have to leave work early on Monday to be here to receive it. Next week, between 2:00 and 5:00 be listening for an ear-splitting SQUEEEEEEEEE as I tear open the box.

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dreams of makeup, irish jumping, and guilt

nobody@vox.com(cérebro eletrônico) — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 09:01:02 +0000

i was on the computer--the old PC--in what used to be the "family room" and is now altica's room, then harry and alfredo came. i had to shower, so i left and took a while showering and deciding what to wear. i rummaged through my white drawers and couldn't decide what to put on. then i prank called charlene with an old phone (read: a big hunk of a cell-phone) and she picked up and we decided to go to the mall. i felt really bad about making the boys wait, but then i left. my non-dream self is confused as to why the fuck i did that, but anyway. charlene and i went to get makeup. the scene sort of changed and we were suddenly in a skyscraper (apparently, it was the mall), on a crazy-high floor, with girls from The Bachelor. there were a bunch of girls crying and one cried on my shoulder. they got makeup--there were lots of glass tables/cases like at a high-end jewelry shop, but they just had lots of makeup on top of the counters--and left. there was a case of bonne bell and something about an old salmon colored camera. robert smith iii wanted to give it to me for some reason, but i think i wanted the bonne bell lip-products instead.

a lady called charlene at the mall. we were on a 40th floor or something, and the woman was named Nilda and she wanted charlene to house-sit and charlene had said it was 65 a day or something, and the lady called on an old cellphone and i picked it up and she told me to tell charlene about it and while i was taking the call i was looking out the window and seeing a bum looking old man on the sidewalk with an easel and watercolors painting what he saw or something. it was raining, or at least it looked like it to me.

we walked back and it began to pooooour. we ran home. home was at brown. we passed by a cottage/field called FishCo. and saw, before that, francisco marcano in a car. he didn't offer us a ride, though, that bitch. it was raining, but no, no ride for us. we kept running and i jumped over a crack on the sidewalk "like an irishman" (I just remember that phrase popping in my head as i jumped...no idea why the fuck). we finally reached the house and went in, crazyfast, and i went into the family room, that was like it looked before (with the TV, the little white wicker chair, the big chair, and the couch), and only found alfredo there. i apologized to him profusely. he looked cute, like younger and different than normal. more attractive. but anyway, i apologized and he was super calm about it and super nice. i hugged him and was like "omg, how can you be so calm and nice about this when i left you waiting and stood you up, basically?" he was fine. i asked for harry. he said he left but that he left me his number. it was scribbled in 3 different places on a blackboard on the couch and somewhere else. but apparently he left me a note or something somewhere that made me SOOOO SAD. he was all like "is this how you treat your guests? you keep 'em waiting forever while you get ready and then 'te escapas' to go to the mall with someone else?" yada yada and i was SO sad and felt SO guilty. (why are most of my dreams that involve harry so fucking stressful and sad?!)

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I can use a computer mouse

nobody@vox.com(Alessandro) — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 21:37:37 +0000

Tiny Mouse New

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Cats and Computers Don't Mix

nobody@vox.com(Carissa) — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 03:25:01 +0000

My kitty, Graebe aka Tika, is getting old. She's spending most of her days curled up on warm surfaces - like the bed when the sun is shining or my UPS (the big battery backup for my desktop computer), or sometimes on a computer itself, especially a laptop when left open. So today she apparently curled up on my Father's laptop, not in and of itself a big deal, but then she had a massive hairball on the keyboard while the system was up and running. Of course, no one was around at the time but upon discovery we quickly shut the system down and made progress on cleaning up the mess. First with papertowels, then a vacuum, and finally compressed air to blow out the remaining pieces. When we tried to boot the computer up... and it sat at the boot screen and beeped, keyboard errors galore.

So we got online with HP and through a two hour chat session managed to find out that gee, it was a hardware error not a software issue - this was a no brainer, but the computer is no longer under warrenty. Grrr, crap. That means no sending it in for repairs. So we start trying to find ways to fix the problem, pulling off keys and cleaning underneath, using a hair dryer to dry out the remaining liquids, eventually disassembling the system and pulling the keyboard out and cleaning it further, and still no luck. At the moment the laptop can boot with an external USB keyboard attached, but the onboard keyboard is kaput. So I get to play tag and try to find the ever elusive spare part online and see if it can't be repaired -- assuming that it's just the keyboard and not the keyboard controller, otherwise we could be looking at a couple hundred easy to get it up and working again. Gah!

For her part, Graebe still isn't feeling too well, after a talk with the Vet it sounds like it could be thousands to get her seen and tested and figure out what's going on. With my medical flaring up again, I just don't have the money to spare. The best I can do is keep an eye on her and keep her comfortable and hope that it's going to get better. I hope so.

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