Comment Moderation

I have turned it on officially for everyone--hate these smart spammers. Sorry about the inconvenience, but I promise to try and be on top of the comments so they show up pretty quickly!

FYI

I don't know what is going on with my various blog rolls. Sometimes I'm on my blog and they're working, sometimes they aren't working. I went to "Help" but didn't really see much of anything about the issue. Bramble River Baby was updated today. Other than that, I can't tell you much!

Tragedy and the Learning Curve

Tragedy struck today when the motherboard of my computer downstairs shot itself in the butt and died a painful death. I was chatting with Jacalyn (blog linked to the right) and all of a sudden, my computer froze. Ok, so I restart the thing, and it runs for 2 minutes and then the mouse quits. So the General gets in on the act and says we should restart, back everything up, and then we'll rebuild it.

But we can't do it until the mouse works. So, I restart. And then, I am confronted with...THE BLACK SCREEN OF DEATH. So The General comes over and starts jiggling some wires, he gets it to come back on, but the mouse still won't work. So we restart and get...THE BLACK SCREEN OF DEATH. And this time, it won't budge.

I called Jacalyn to let her know that I was not dissing her on AIM but that in fact my machine was totally dead and she said, "No problem, I build computers, is that why you're calling!?" Um, no, I didn't even know that you were a computer builder, but now that you mention it...

So she and her boys came by and while the boys were playing on the Wii, she and Mike and I were in the basement dissecting computer parts. When all was said and done, my stuff got transferred over to the old box that Michael had stashed in the closet and the evil Jacalyn MADE ME DO IT! Yes folks, today I learned the ins and outs of installing computer hardware. And I have to say, it didn't seem that scary after all.

So tomorrow Jacalyn's hubby is coming over to help the General with reinstalling Windows and all that rot while Jacalyn and I are at book club.

So, the boys were busy playing Wii and one of them who is raising his own funds for a Wii was hitting us up for cash in exchange for performing my 2 least favorite tasks (cleaning the bunny room and vacuuming), and Jacalyn's hubby suggested we all have dinner together at THE MELTING POT. Uh, heck yeah!?

So this evening we spent time at The Melting Pot, eating Melting Pot food, and I'll add another Melting Pot for good measure.

It was a wonderful time at the Melting Pot. (Ok, I'll stop now, I promise.) The four of us really spent time together, kidless, other people-less, getting to know each other, chatting, and having fun. It went by so quickly, it's amazing how quick 3 hours can go by. I'm so happy to have met such wonderful people here in town and be able to call them friends.

Ok, if I keep going, I'll get all wishy-washy. But it sure is nice to have some friends.

Super Freak Out

So, this weekend, Judy came down and we had a nice time. Most importantly, perhaps, I got 3 new games for the Wii. One of those was Super Mario Galaxy, which has been generating the most buzz since I got the Wii, at least among people I speak to about such things.

Well, it definitely lives up to the hype. Lucas and I played it all weekend. It was a blast.

Monday afternoon, Judy is cooking, we're all sitting around gabbing and there was a little flash in the power. We were all like, "Huh, that's kind of weird" but then we had to eat and leave.

I come home on Tuesday, and I'm thinking, "Yea! I can play some Mario!" and I go in and the light on the Wii is off. "Ok, that's a little weird." It won't turn on. So I get under the table and unplug it from the surge protector, reset the surge protector. Nothing. Hmmm. Even stranger, the TV the Wii is attached to is turning on just fine and dandy.

So now, I'm starting to freak out just a little bit. I go downstairs and check the breakers. Everything is fine. So I go upstairs to the computer and read through the troubleshooting stuff on the Nintendo site. I follow through on all steps and nothing happens. Then, I happen to turn around and see my laptop sitting there, the screen completely black, despite the fact that it was on and plugged into the wall. So now, I'm really starting to wonder. I go over to it, hit the power button, and nothing. It won't turn on. Holy crap!

Ok, so I do the only thing I can possibly do: I call my dad. Unfortunately for my current crisis, he's at my mom's and he and my mom are very busy with company. Since everyone is so distracted, I start to cry. My father finds this a bit sobering. He suggests that I take everything into the kitchen and plug it in there, to see if it's working or not. I start with the laptop. By some miracle it turns on. Feeling emboldened, I take in the Wii and plug it in. Nothing. Dead as a doornail. So now, I'm really bawling, "Michael's going to hate me, I blew up the Wii, the NICEST thing I've EVER owned!" (a little flair for the dramatic never hurts) and my dad is trying the old, "Calm down, it's not like you crashed the car or anything, you're not hurt, you can get another one.." Finally he says, "Leave it unplugged for a half hour and I'll call you back."

So I go upstairs and I go on the Wii site again and submit a ticket. I can't bear calling them until Michael gets home, since I figure I better give him the bad news, and we'll see what he has to say and I don't want to call him and tell him while he's stuck on I95 in a van.

So I'm talking to Jacalyn on AIM and 20 minutes goes by, and I'm like, "Start praying, I'm going in." I go downstairs, plug the Wii in, and it comes on. It was like a freakin' miracle. Jacalyn so happens to be writing a zombie romance, so we decided I own the Zombie Wii.

I played Mario last night and it's working just fine and dandy. Go figure!!!! That is the craziest thing I've ever seen or heard of. Technology, huh?

The Nicest Email

I got the nicest email last night from a total stranger. I am currently addicted to GoodReads.com and am busy putting my library and book reads together on there. I've posted all of my book reviews from last year and have been busy adding my books and so forth. I used to use LibraryThing, but they limit your free account to 200 books, and I'm up over 600 now on GoodReads, plus I was just given librarian status, which is cool.

But I digress.

So, last night I got a friend request and here is what the woman wrote:

Dear Kate I truly love your reviews. I used to be an avid reader and your reviews inspire my love of books. Mostly I would like to add you to my list so I can always read your reviews. It may be awhile before I get a chance to read and review a new book, but I promise to contribute when I can. I am a 37 year old mom of a 5 year old and almost 4 year old, with another baby due in April. (Surprise! :-) Happy but still a surprise.) So I am working on adding the pleasure of reading anything more than Sandra Bointon, Dr. Suess, a baby magazine or family fun magazine at this point. I appreciate your writing and the glimpse you provide back into the adult world of novels.
- Beth

That is pretty stinking fantastic.

Lame New Look

Ok, yes, this new layout is L-A-M-E, but I'm trying to get some stuff on here and the templates keep on messing up. This leads me to conclude that I have no idea what the hell I'm doing in customizing my blog, so for now I'm going to leave it be and come back when I'm less frustrated. Sometimes tech sucks.

It's Official: Wii is Awesome

So, my wonderful husband bought me a Nintendo Wii for Christmas, and it's officially the greatest gaming system I've ever used. I gave up on video gaming after the original Nintendo because I couldn't figure out the controls on them. There were ten million buttons and arrows and it was all too much to remember.

However, the new Wii looked like it was right up my alley. Point, click, move around and it moves with you. So I asked my dad for one for Christmas, but he wasn't able to find one. Through a coincidence, Michael knew a guy at work who turned out to be selling a Wii and Michael bought it on the spot.

We now have Wii Sports, M&M Go Kart Racing, Dancing With the Stars, and Cooking Mama, and I'm addicted to all of them. Even cooler is that Michael can play the bowling game on it, so we can have some fun (and once we get another controller in a week or so, we can compete, which will be a blast!). I mean any system that allows a blind guy to play video games is more than alright by me.

The day after Christmas we went out and bought a new TV for the Wii and the games. We had a go kart tournament right in the living room, and my dad, Lucas, Judy, and I were screaming and yelling like we'd won the lottery when we finally broke the 1 minute mark. We were jumping around so much, the angel fell off the top of the Christmas tree. It was hilarious.

I've been playing Dancing With the Stars full out for 2 days now, and it is hard, but in a good way. Every time I score a 29, I get so pissed off, I keep pushing it to see if I can hit a 30. And Michael loves it because there's a lot of audio for the scoring, so he can tell what's going on.

Wii are lovin' it. What fun!

Huh.

The archives seem kind of screwed up with this new layout. Some of the labels work and some of them don't. If I can't figure it out, I'll probably have to dump this new layout. Darn, and I really like it too!

A Tale of 4 Cell Phones

Taking a page from Tal Gleck's infinitely more readable blog (seriously, he could write a history of every pencil he's ever used in his entire life and I'd find it riveting), and leaning heavily on the fact that I'm about to get yet another new cell phone, I've been ruminating on my cell phone history this morning, and decided to put theoretical pen to paper. Lucky reader!

I remember when the first family member got a car phone--my dad's sister. It was the old model with the big thing you had to lug around and plug in. Everyone thought she was crazy.

In 2000, after I moved back to Boston, the General's company got him a cell phone, so he gave me his old Verizon phone. Dubbed "The Brick", this sucker was about 2 inches thick, and looked about like my current cordless phone in the house did. Eventually the antenna holder thingy cracked, and quite honestly, I never used the thing. We paid for it throughout Michael's unemployment until the contract was up, then shut it off, and I swore I'd never use one again... (Famous last words, right?)

Then we moved to DC. And I had a huge territory to cover, and we thought it would be a good idea to get a phone so I could use it if I got lost or stuck somewhere.

So I looked at my options, and my sister wanted in, so we looked at the family plans out there, and decided on Cingular.

My bad. Cingular sucks singularly well.

I would be driving down I-66 right past Fair Lakes Shopping Center, and the reception would go out. My sister always knew where I was driving based on where I was heading and when the phone cut out. Reporting it to Cingular resulted in "We don't show any reception issues in your area." DUH! I live in the Nation's Capitol! I shouldn't be having these problems!

So, we moved to Fredericksburg. And I started talking with people here who had Cingular. And they were experiencing the same problems. Weird outages while driving I95. Crappy customer service. Basically, Cingular sucks.

So, my contract ended with a bang, as my sister went way over our allotted minutes, and I called Cingular to cancel the phones after the bill was paid. Of course, they don't want to hear that you are cancelling, so when I explained to them that we were getting zillions of dropped calls and it wasn't making any sense to keep the phones, they decided the problem was the phones and offered me new phones which would solve the problem. We would have 30 days to accept them and then the service would be renewed for another 2 years.

So, I figured, "Ok, maybe it's really better." It is to laugh. Within 20 days, I was telling my sister to start CellPhoneAHolics Anonymous, the phones were going back. So I called Cingular, told them to expect the phones, was told "make sure you send them with delivery confirmation" and sent the phones back.

Lo and behold, I get a bill for $350 for cancelling my contract too soon. I send them the delivery receipt and sheepishly, Cingular asks for approximately $8, which I sent just to be rid of them. Then I get a check from them for ONE PENNY because I overpaid them by a cent. I threw it in the garbage.

So, doesn't it figure, within about 2 weeks of not having a phone (which I must say, made my life a hell of a lot quieter and simpler), I needed a cell phone 3 times. So, as Judy's birthday was upcoming, I decided I would buy us both pre-paid wireless phones, and we went off to WalMart and bought Virgin Mobile pre-paid phones.

I have to say, I've had pretty good luck with them. Granted, I'm basically paying them not to use any minutes--I use about half of my minutes per month--but they've never once dropped a call on me, the rate is nice and cheap (combined, Judy and I are paying less than we paid for Cingular and we've got twice the minutes), and I'm happy with the little flip phone.

Enter Mom.

My mom is changing all her contact information now that she has a) moved and b) dropped about 250 pounds of dead weight in the form of her ex. So, she wanted to switch cell phone providers, and asked if Judy and I would like to get a family plan again.

Intriguing, but I explained that I was not paying more than $35 per month, which is what I am currently paying with Virgin. Mom said not a problem, Verizon had a nice little family plan where the 3 of us could share 400 minutes and it'd be nice and cheap. Well, 400 is the exact number of minutes Judy and I were sharing when Judy ran up a nearly $800 phone bill (to be fair, where she was working at the time didn't have a phone for her and she had to use the phone for work purposes--they were supposed to reimburse her for it, but I don't know if that ever happened or not. Still, it was not all personal calls, but a good part of it was.)

So I said, "No way."

Mom was persistent. She went to the Verizon store the other day, since as a state employee down yonder she gets a discount. She came up with a plan that will cost each of us about $35, and we'll have 700 minutes each, for a total of 2100 minutes.

She has threatened my sister with death and dismemberment if she goes over her 700 minutes.

I like this arrangement for a couple of reasons.

Number one, I get a new Razor camera phone. And while I don't give two damns about using the phone, I like the idea of a cool gadget.

Secondly, The General is on Verizon, my mom will be on Verizon, and my sister, so basically free calling all the way around.

Thirdly, Mom arranged an ass-kickin' deal.

What don't I like about it?

I have to learn and program another phone.

I think I was born with a stupid gene when it comes to cell phones. It takes me forever to figure out how to program speed dial, and then I can't remember who I've put on which number. The good thing about my current phone is that I can push a number (say 5) and the memory associated with that number pops up without dialing it. My Cingular phone didn't do that. Or at least, I don't think it did. Who knows? So typically, I will hold down the button I *think* I want to dial, it'll start dialing someone else's number, and I have to hurry up and hang up or whatever. My brain isn't wired for memory.

So, I am hopeful that this is my final cell plan, my final cell phone for a while, and that it all works out well. Otherwise, UNCLE!!!