In the 1986 movie Short Circuit, a robot, Number 5, comes alive as the result of being electrocuted. He winds up in the home of Stephanie, who immediately tries to educate him (give him "input", in his words) about the world. At one point, she tries to explain to him what "dead" means and says, "Disassemble." His reaction: "Disassemble . . . dead?!"
This is what I feared I had done to my computer yesterday.
It all started when I got fed up with my computer overheating. I had used compressed air to blow out the dust from the air vents, and it was still overheating.
Two days ago, I took the computer apart, with the help of a YouTube video, but I was unable to figure out how to take off the motherboard.
Yesterday, I tried again. I first got a set of precision screws. My BFF Laura says it's because I'm smart. It's more like, our garage is in chaos and I can't find the screwdriver I need!
Then I used the precision screws to take the back off the computer, pry off the keyboard, unscrew the top, take OFF the top, and finally remove the motherboard to get to the fan.
I cleaned the fan and other portions of the computer. I will just say that it desperately needed the cleaning.
Then came putting the computer back together.
The first main problem was, trying to figure out where two certain wires went. I replayed the YouTube video that showed how to take apart the computer and couldn't figure out the location of the wires.
Finally, in frustration, I Googled, how to reassemble a HP Pavilion g6 series computer . . . and found a YouTube video showing how to put the thing back together!
After watching the video, and putting the screws back in, I realized there was a portion of the motherboard that I had not reinstalled.
So, I disassembled the computer, put in that portion of the motherboard, and put the computer back together.
Then I pushed the power button.
Nothing happened.
Had I, in the words of Number 5, disassembled my computer so it was dead?
I took apart the computer, again, and discovered that there was a ribbon cable unplugged. I plugged it in.
Computer reassembled, I pushed the power button.
Success!!
Until I tried to move the mouse.
No mouse.
Back to disassembling the computer, where I found another ribbon cable unplugged. I plugged it in and put the computer back together, again.
This time the mouse worked!
Then, I went to get on the Internet, and was greeted by the following message: can't find proxy server.
Aaarggghhh!!!
This time, I did NOT have to disassemble the computer. I DID, however, have to play around with the proxy settings and turn the computer off and on.
Finally . . . computer turned on, mouse maneuvered the cursor, and Microsoft Edge got me on the information superhighway. (Not only had I disassembled and assembled my computer, I also upgraded to Windows 10 yesterday!)
My husband went to bed knowing that I couldn't turn the computer on. He got up and went to work this morning before I could tell him that I had fixed the problem. Today he wanted to know if I threw in the towel and called the Geek Squad. I said no. :-)
I can't tell you what on a motherboard makes a computer work, and I can't tell you what the red wire does or the black wire does . . . but I found out yesterday that, with proper instruction, I CAN take a computer apart and put it back together again.
Contrary to Number 5's assertion, "disassemble", in this case, does not mean "dead"!
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
Statcounter
Friday, July 31, 2015
Thursday, June 25, 2015
A cartoon that sums it up perfectly . . .
After recent current events, this cartoon sums up my feelings perfectly:
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
Friday, June 19, 2015
"Hate won't win."
At the bond hearing for Dylann Roof, the man who has confessed to shooting nine people in a Charleston, SC church, family members, one by one, spoke and said they forgave, said they had no room for hate.
Tonight, if you feel the need to gather in groups, demonstrate, and/or march, let this be your chant:
Hate won't win.
Hate won't win.
Hate won't win.
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
Tonight, if you feel the need to gather in groups, demonstrate, and/or march, let this be your chant:
Hate won't win.
Hate won't win.
Hate won't win.
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
I am just weary . . .
I don't know what to say about the massacre in Charleston, South Carolina that left nine people dead at the hands of a racist bigot.
Except that I am weary.
I am weary of the violence in this country.
I am weary of the lack of progress in race relations.
I am weary of the constant charges of "racism" and the actual practice of racism.
I am weary of the bickering and fighting among people that changes nothing.
I am weary of my own impotence and inability to do anything about the problems facing us as a nation.
Right now, I am also physically weary, and that isn't helping me any.
But right now, I am just weary.
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
Except that I am weary.
I am weary of the violence in this country.
I am weary of the lack of progress in race relations.
I am weary of the constant charges of "racism" and the actual practice of racism.
I am weary of the bickering and fighting among people that changes nothing.
I am weary of my own impotence and inability to do anything about the problems facing us as a nation.
Right now, I am also physically weary, and that isn't helping me any.
But right now, I am just weary.
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
Saturday, June 6, 2015
Triple Crown, at last!
The last time it happened, I was 14. I was between my freshman and sophomore years of high school.
In August, my sister would celebrate her 18th birthday with a week-long trip to Disney World.
"Hashtag" was not a household word, and "twitter" was used to refer to the sounds birds made.
You didn't use "social" and "media" in the same sentence.
CNN was two years away from fruition.
Jimmy Carter was President.
The words "inflation" and "stagflation" were being bandied about, and economic pundits were busily writing the latest bad news on the implosion of the American economy. (Some things don't necessarily change.)
And a horse named Affirmed, ridden by young jockey Steve Cauthen, nicknamed "The Kid", roared down the final stretch of the track at Belmont Park, defeated a horse named Alydar, and won the Belmont Stakes.
He would be the last Triple Crown winner for 37 years.
Thirty-six other horses tried.
Thirteen of them won the Derby and Preakness, but not the Belmont:
Spectacular Bid in 1979
Pleasant Colony in 1981
Alysheba in 1987
Sunday Silence in 1989
Silver Charm in 1997
Real Quiet in 1998
Charismatic in 1999
War Emblem in 2002
Funny Cide in 2003
Smarty Jones in 2004
Big Brown in 2008
I'll Have Another in 2012
California Chrome in 2014
Number thirty-seven, American Pharoah (and the misspelling is intentional), did it today.
He won the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness, and the Belmont Stakes.
The drought of 37 years is now over.
Congratulations.
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
In August, my sister would celebrate her 18th birthday with a week-long trip to Disney World.
"Hashtag" was not a household word, and "twitter" was used to refer to the sounds birds made.
You didn't use "social" and "media" in the same sentence.
CNN was two years away from fruition.
Jimmy Carter was President.
The words "inflation" and "stagflation" were being bandied about, and economic pundits were busily writing the latest bad news on the implosion of the American economy. (Some things don't necessarily change.)
And a horse named Affirmed, ridden by young jockey Steve Cauthen, nicknamed "The Kid", roared down the final stretch of the track at Belmont Park, defeated a horse named Alydar, and won the Belmont Stakes.
He would be the last Triple Crown winner for 37 years.
Thirty-six other horses tried.
Thirteen of them won the Derby and Preakness, but not the Belmont:
Spectacular Bid in 1979
Pleasant Colony in 1981
Alysheba in 1987
Sunday Silence in 1989
Silver Charm in 1997
Real Quiet in 1998
Charismatic in 1999
War Emblem in 2002
Funny Cide in 2003
Smarty Jones in 2004
Big Brown in 2008
I'll Have Another in 2012
California Chrome in 2014
Number thirty-seven, American Pharoah (and the misspelling is intentional), did it today.
He won the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness, and the Belmont Stakes.
The drought of 37 years is now over.
Congratulations.
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
Monday, May 25, 2015
For those who gave all, on Memorial Day . . .
In Flanders Fields
By: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918)
Canadian Army
In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
In memory of the nearly 3 million Americans who, from the Revolutionary War on, gave their lives in battle.
And in memory of the uncounted others around the world who also did so.
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
By: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918)
Canadian Army
In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
In memory of the nearly 3 million Americans who, from the Revolutionary War on, gave their lives in battle.
And in memory of the uncounted others around the world who also did so.
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
Saturday, May 23, 2015
Christianese culture--I'm done!
After this week, I am officially done with Christianese culture.
I am not done with Christianity. There is a difference between Christianity and Christianese culture.
The tipping point for me? The report that Josh Duggar, of the reality show 19 Kids and Counting, confessed to the sexual abuse of five girls when he was 14. Four of them were his sisters. Given the amount of publicity surrounding this family, and the amount of public information about them, just about anyone can do the math and come close to figuring out who the sisters were that were abused.
I am reading where Josh should be forgiven, where we shouldn't bring up something that happened so long ago (he is now married with three children and one on the way). I am reading where he was a stupid kid who messed up and it shouldn't be held against him. I have read where Josh apologized (which he did in a public statement this week) and I have read where his sisters have forgiven him.
But let me see if I can detail my problems with this whole event:
1. This was not a one-time deal. This happened several times before the behavior was discovered.
2. The father waited for a YEAR before reporting it to the police.
3. Neither Josh, nor his victims--to the best of my knowledge--received ANY kind of professional, impartial counseling to help them deal with the event.
4. As another blogger pointed out, "kids who molest have often been molested themselves". Is it possible that Josh himself was a victim of molestation? (I'm speculating here. I have no proof that Josh was ever a victim.)
5. Josh was sent away for four months to do hard labor at a family friend's place. When he came back, he was given a "stern talking to" by a state trooper--another family friend--who has since been arrested and imprisoned for possession and distribution of child pornography.
6. He came back and continued to live in the same house as his victims.
7. There is a question as to whether or not TLC knew of these events, and yet went ahead anyway with the 19 Kids and Counting show.
In this blog entry, the writer examines parts of the specific Christian culture that the Duggars come from. They use homeschooling materials put out by the Advanced Training Institute, founded by Bill Gothard. Gothard is a well-known name in religious homeschooling circles. He founded the Institute in Basic Youth Conflicts in the 1960's (later known as Institute in Basic Life Principles). (Click here for the Wikipedia article.) Later, he developed the curriculum for the Advanced Training Institute.
He has also been accused of inappropriate behavior with young females--and this website has done an excellent job of documenting stories of that inappropriate behavior.
What I resent about Christianese culture is its emphasis on, "If you just do what we do the way we do it, you, too can have the happy life/happy family that we have!"
I came out of a group that taught just that. If you just "did it" the way the group taught, you, too, could be spiritual and close to God. If you just had your "quiet time" daily, confessed your sins weekly to a prayer partner, attended every gathering of the body, dated only Christian men within your group, and invited everyone you knew to church, Bible study, etc., then you, too, would be "spiritual".
Well, that didn't work. In the group I left, we had plenty of examples of power struggles, shunning, and sexual misconduct. I have never been a victim of sexual abuse, thankfully; but I was the victim of spiritual abuse, as were many, many others who came out of the group I was part of.
We Christians in the US are very prone to worship at the altar of the Christian celebrity. We want the "5 steps to", "3 ways to", etc. Our faith is a mile wide and an inch deep. We bicker and fight about how many days it took for the world to be created, about what "modest" dress is, about whether or not we should have prayer in schools, whether or not the 10 Commandments should be posted on public property . . .and where has it gotten us? Where?
Last week the Pew Research center published a study where it showed that the percentage of the population that identifies as "Christian" has declined to 70%. Personally, I think that our emphasis on "majoring in minors", and our refusal to take a good, hard look at some of our unhealthy teachings on certain subjects goes a long way towards why people--especially our young people--are leaving Christianity.
Our Christianese culture is leading people to abandon Christianity.
I, for one, have had enough.
I am done.
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
I am not done with Christianity. There is a difference between Christianity and Christianese culture.
The tipping point for me? The report that Josh Duggar, of the reality show 19 Kids and Counting, confessed to the sexual abuse of five girls when he was 14. Four of them were his sisters. Given the amount of publicity surrounding this family, and the amount of public information about them, just about anyone can do the math and come close to figuring out who the sisters were that were abused.
I am reading where Josh should be forgiven, where we shouldn't bring up something that happened so long ago (he is now married with three children and one on the way). I am reading where he was a stupid kid who messed up and it shouldn't be held against him. I have read where Josh apologized (which he did in a public statement this week) and I have read where his sisters have forgiven him.
But let me see if I can detail my problems with this whole event:
1. This was not a one-time deal. This happened several times before the behavior was discovered.
2. The father waited for a YEAR before reporting it to the police.
3. Neither Josh, nor his victims--to the best of my knowledge--received ANY kind of professional, impartial counseling to help them deal with the event.
4. As another blogger pointed out, "kids who molest have often been molested themselves". Is it possible that Josh himself was a victim of molestation? (I'm speculating here. I have no proof that Josh was ever a victim.)
5. Josh was sent away for four months to do hard labor at a family friend's place. When he came back, he was given a "stern talking to" by a state trooper--another family friend--who has since been arrested and imprisoned for possession and distribution of child pornography.
6. He came back and continued to live in the same house as his victims.
7. There is a question as to whether or not TLC knew of these events, and yet went ahead anyway with the 19 Kids and Counting show.
In this blog entry, the writer examines parts of the specific Christian culture that the Duggars come from. They use homeschooling materials put out by the Advanced Training Institute, founded by Bill Gothard. Gothard is a well-known name in religious homeschooling circles. He founded the Institute in Basic Youth Conflicts in the 1960's (later known as Institute in Basic Life Principles). (Click here for the Wikipedia article.) Later, he developed the curriculum for the Advanced Training Institute.
He has also been accused of inappropriate behavior with young females--and this website has done an excellent job of documenting stories of that inappropriate behavior.
What I resent about Christianese culture is its emphasis on, "If you just do what we do the way we do it, you, too can have the happy life/happy family that we have!"
I came out of a group that taught just that. If you just "did it" the way the group taught, you, too, could be spiritual and close to God. If you just had your "quiet time" daily, confessed your sins weekly to a prayer partner, attended every gathering of the body, dated only Christian men within your group, and invited everyone you knew to church, Bible study, etc., then you, too, would be "spiritual".
Well, that didn't work. In the group I left, we had plenty of examples of power struggles, shunning, and sexual misconduct. I have never been a victim of sexual abuse, thankfully; but I was the victim of spiritual abuse, as were many, many others who came out of the group I was part of.
We Christians in the US are very prone to worship at the altar of the Christian celebrity. We want the "5 steps to", "3 ways to", etc. Our faith is a mile wide and an inch deep. We bicker and fight about how many days it took for the world to be created, about what "modest" dress is, about whether or not we should have prayer in schools, whether or not the 10 Commandments should be posted on public property . . .and where has it gotten us? Where?
Last week the Pew Research center published a study where it showed that the percentage of the population that identifies as "Christian" has declined to 70%. Personally, I think that our emphasis on "majoring in minors", and our refusal to take a good, hard look at some of our unhealthy teachings on certain subjects goes a long way towards why people--especially our young people--are leaving Christianity.
Our Christianese culture is leading people to abandon Christianity.
I, for one, have had enough.
I am done.
Just my .04, adjusted for inflation.
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