Friday, June 22, 2012

A Tale of Two Computers

For about three years now I've owned and loved and possibly abused a 17-inch Dell PC.  I've spent many (too many) hours surfing the internet, watching dvds, and streaming videos.  I have no issue with the fact that it is a PC, even though I've had several people proselytize on behalf of Apple.  Macs are pretty, but I didn't need one, and only lusted after them occasionally.

Sometime in the past couple of years I started working a lot more than I had before.  I needed to work from a laptop now an then and would drag mine to work.  I suppose I never quite realized that it weighs about as much as a human baby.  I would take a trip home to New Mexico, or visit friends in L.A.,  and have to create a pros and cons list to decide whether or not to take the laptop along.  I started contemplating whether or not I should get/needed a netbook.  I started daydreaming about MacBooks.  The regular MacBook was nice, but oh, that MacBook pro...now that was something.

Much time passed.  But I would think often about the work I could get done had I a second computer!  I often debate whether I should watch a show on Netflix, or do some work, write a blog, write anything at all, maybe compose a letter to someone.  Ninety-nine times out of one-hundred, the movie won out.

Just a few days ago I was chatting online with my technical coach & guru about computers.  Maybe I had complained about the weight of my laptop -- whether I should bother taking it home or not.  Next you know, link after link to used or refurbished MacBooks appear in the chat window.  I'm not always one for quick decisions -- I often mull things over until it's too late to make a decision.  However, sometimes I make the toughest decisions (like those involving risk or big ticket items) in a snap.  I decided to jump out of a plane over chicken wings and beer, and fell out of the plane the very next weekend -- no looking back.  I decided to run my first Ragnar Relay with very little knowledge about the race (btw, it's a 200-ish mile, 12-person relay that takes place over two days).  Next thing you know I'm stuffed in a van with six sweaty runners on little sleep, fueled by Cheez-its and Fig Newtons.  And, I made my decision to purchase a refurbed MacBook Air in about 30 minutes.

The day I purchased it a friend asked me why I needed two computers.  What would I do on my MacBook that I don't do on my PC?  I couldn't come up with very many good ideas!  Activities involved looking at pictures of baby animals on the internet, working while being able to watch a program on the ol' Dell, writing perhaps, surfing the net...I suppose nothing very productive.

It arrived today!  I wasn't expecting the MacBook Air until Monday, but UPS delivered this afternoon.  I was so excited!!! The entire package weighed less than six pounds -- the box, cushioning, accessories, and computer!  It was like a dream.  I opened it up, logged on, registered my Mac...and here I am!!! After getting caught in an amazing down pour, praying I wasn't already ruining my new little toy, I made it home.  While a Masterpiece Classic BBC program plays on the desktop of laptops, I get to blog away on the Mac.  After this, I might peruse Jezebel, look at photos on The Berry, and learn a little bit more about what this puppy can do.

So, it was the best of times, it was the worst of times, and I can handle it and deal with it all using the tools I have: My Dell PC and my MacBook Air.

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