My bean pot needs replacing. The drug war is stupid. I miss my computer.

The last post until I go crazy enough without my computer to fire up my old one or beg some time off Lin on his, and I find I have nothing to say. Too tired and grumpy, and I need to get this computer in its box.

Just a reminder to the people who read my babbling on my web site, I have a Livejournal where I sometimes make audio posts from time to time. I may make one later today. Or not. I’m grumpy, and we have friends coming over later, and did I mention I am grumpy?

So, anyway, in case I don’t get a chance to say it later:

Happy New Year!

And here’s hoping My Precious isn’t away for too long!

Sigh. Whine. Moan.

I have all my Apple papers together. I have my Genius Bar time slot reserved for tomorrow at 11 am. I have cleaned off my desktop. I have attempted burning a DVD with any software that can do so and logged the error messages. I have the iMac box sitting by my desk. The only thing left to do in the morning is wipe down the computer itself, pack it up, and go see the Genius.

Then comes the part I have been dreading: being without my computer. Sniffle … wah … sniffle.

I have no idea how long it might take to get it fixed. I do know there is an Apple repair center in Austin, and I am hoping that means that parts will be readily available nearby and techs to put them in quickly. Just so I am not too disappointed, I am preparing myself mentally for it being two weeks. That seems too long just to replace a CD/DVD drive. It probably is too long for a guess at how long it might take, but then when it doesn’t take that long, I’ll be oh so very happy!

I’m going to be utterly miserable every second my computer is not sitting on my desk, no matter what. I am already so miserable about the idea of my computer not sitting on my desk, I have hooked my old computer back up to the internet. I haven’t turned it on yet, because I am not looking forward to that, but … just in case I want to be on line while Lin is using his computer, I should be able to (even though it will drive me insane).

Of course, I have considered just taking a break from computers and the internet while My Precious is being repaired. I usually do take a week or so once a year completely away from it all. I didn’t this year. Maybe the beginning of the new year would be a good time to do so. Consider that a warning, I guess, that if I am not making any posts for a while, it’s because I decided to just take a break until My Precious is home again. Might do me some good. Might also drive me nuts.

There will probably be one more post in the morning before I box my pretty iMac up to go see the doctor for repairs, but then … maybe silence for a while. Or, a whole bunch of audio and text message posts.

Waaaaaaaaah!

Now is the time for all good geeks to test their newly cleaned keyboards to see if they are operating within acceptable limits. So far, so good. Wow. It’s so clean! Well, I couldn’t very well take in my computer tomorrow with a completely gross keyboard.

Alas, while all the keys are white and shining again, and it’s much more quiet like it was before, the volume keys and eject button are still non-functioning. I’m hoping to be able to whine and get a new keyboard as well as the new Super Drive. If not, oh well. I can live with those keys not working if I must. The rest of the keyboard is just fine.

So yes, tomorrow we are going to go see an Apple Genius, and then I will probably be without my computer for a bit of time. No idea how long it will take to replace the drive, but I can’t imagine it taking too long. At least I hope it doesn’t take too long. At least Lin has a reasonable computer I can sit at during the day now, if I need to get on line.

And then … as soon as I get it back … the movie making and DVD burning shall begin. Mostly though, I just want to back my stuff up on something that holds more than a CD does. I am drowning in CDs already.

That’s what I accomplished today. I cleaned my keyboard. Lin is currently outside with all manner of chopping and cutting power tools with the intention of pruning trees, chopping down some trees, and whacking all the bamboo down. I guess he is going to get a lot more accomplished today than I am!

Still want junk food for dinner, and I mean to get it. KFC for me!!!

Speaking of the bratty cats, here’s a cute photo I snapped of them yesterday afternoon.

Why look … they do love each other!

Did you know yesterday was Saturday? I didn’t until the day was almost over. This sucks, because I had bunch of things I wanted to do before Sunday. Oops. That’s what happens when the man in on vacation and my trash pick-up day is pushed over to Friday. I lose all track of what day of the week it is.

Also, Lin has finally learned what total brats our cats are! There is no sleeping past 10 am. It is not possible. The cats demand human attention beginning at 10 am … or at least human intervention. Oh how troublesome they can be. This morning Lin started playing with them while we were still in bed and said “I’m hoping to wear them out.” Yeah, like one year old cats can be worn out. This is also not possible.

Additionally, I have decided I either want to go out to eat dinner tonight or I want junk food in the form of Kentucky Fried Chicken. All the meats in the house require entirely too much work, and it’s Sunday. I think we all know I get absolutely nothing of worth done on Sunday. Sundays are for being lazy, which is what I am going to go do right now, since I played with the cats and may have a 30 minute window of opportunity to not have to keep both eyes on them. A nap would be nice.

Mom got home from visiting with the relatives today and found herself driving around looking for a place to park close to her own house. First off, the neighbor with whom she shares a double-wide paved driveway had her side and part of my mom’s side torn up to replace some plumbing, and all the dirt, pavement, and whatnot were piled on my mom’s driveway. How very nice. Thanks for the warning. Then, because it’s the holiday season and a Friday, there were a jillion tourists in town, so no parking available on the street either. She drove back and forth down the street until she saw someone pull out of the off-street parking lot for the bookstore next door to her house and slipped in a parked there. They said they didn’t mind at all. Good thing, otherwise, I don’t know where she would have had to park!

She was pretty livid when she called me. I don’t blame her. Pretty crappy to start a major plumbing project that is going to mess with your neighbor’s driveway when they are out of town and you know when exactly they are coming back. Mom asked her why she hadn’t called to let her know what was going on, since that neighbor has all the phone numbers. Had she known, she could have just stayed at the relatives’ houses for another day or two. Well, Helen didn’t call because it would have cost her money. Good grief! What? Fifteen or twenty cents?! None of her family members with cell phones could call just for a minute to let her know? Crappy, crappy neighbor. Always has been.

Then, because it gets even better, Helen wants my mom to split the cost of repaving the driveway. Uh huh. The answer to that is a resounding NO, and if they leave my mom’s side a mess, I will be talking to a lawyer. Additionally, Mom said it looked like they chopped into the thick roots of her very old pine tree while they were digging everything up and making a mess. If that tree dies, there will be hell to pay, let me tell you!

Next she started telling me how it was great with the family for about a day, and then they were crappy too. Well, they always are. I hear this every year, and every year Mom gets mad and doesn’t want to go back the next year. Then, she forgets all about it, and we go through the same damn sad tale again. I’m getting tired of hearing about it, I can’t believe she isn’t tired of living it.

So … Mom had a fairly crappy week that ended with an extraordinarily crappy day. I gave her the only advice I can and ever do: stay mad, confront the people who have made you mad, and don’t let them off the hook because you think you will be alone and lonely. It is far better to be alone than to continue to be around people who treat you like shit. Took me a while to learn that lesson too, but it was one of the more important ones.

I think next year we’ll just kidnap Mom and all go somewhere for Xmas. It would be SO much better than the status quo.