My Quirky Boy

Today my planets were not just unaligned, they were forcibly knocked senseless by the subzero winds blowing through the northeast.

I have been chastised at work for my work hours, and told that I can’t just come and go as I please. It took every ounce of effort to tell them, “Actually, it is a free country and I CAN come and go as I please”. But I refrained when I thought about the big fat daycare, and medical bills sitting on my dining room table. Though, the weight scales were almost even. In my efforts to be a semi-acceptable corporate drone, I got up and headed out unreasonably early to work. Dropped off the baby g, and on to the office. I unwrap myself from the multiple layers protecting me from the elements. Set down my laptop and fire her up.

Now this laptop and I have been through many things together. She has been strong, durable, and a travel worthy friend. Until today. I sit down and watch the screen waiting for the desktop to appear so I can expose the 50 or so plus emails waiting diligently for my attention. Nothing happens. Black screen. I see the little battery light, green as can be, so I know the juice is flowing. Then suddenly words start typing as if a ghost is at work, across the pitch black darkness.

“WARNING system failure”

next line

“Insert system CD-ROM for reinstall of system software”

“Hit ‘r’ for initiation of repair”

OH MY GOD. I grab the phone I call the Help(less) Desk. I repeat verbatim in a frantic tone the situation at hand. The person at the other end says, of course, “Try to re-boot”. I know this is a futile effort, but I humor her. Same result.

“Hold please.”

After some undetermined amount of time that seemed like forever she returns. “Ma’am, you need to send it to us, the hard drive probably needs to be remapped”.

“OK”, I say, panicked, and desperate, “your in New York, it’s only a 3 or so hour drive for me. What if I get in my car, drive there now, can I wait while you fix it?”

“You can, but the cost of staying in a hotel in New York for a week is quite expensive”.

No joke.

“A WEEK!?!?!”

“Yes, and that is barring that it is just a simple re-mapping, and not that the thing is totally fried. In which case you will need to order another one. That takes about 3 weeks.”

” I am unable to perform the requirements of my job with out it. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?”

“Yes Ma’am. Here is your ticket number: XXXXXX, and let me give you the address to send it to….”.

I call every big title person I know sitting at my desk clutching my laptop to my chest with tears in my eyes. No luck. I bundle up in subzero temps, head out to UPS with my pal to have her wrapped up for shipment. I took out my post it pad before I left and stuck yellow stickies on the top reading,

“I am Meg SXXXX’s laptop.”

“She needs me.”

“Please fix me, and send me back as soon as you can.”

“I MISS HER.”

I stayed and watched the UPS desk clerk wrap her up. It felt like a coffin was closing and being lowered into the ground. I have an ominous feeling that will be the last time I ever see her.

*sigh* I feel naked, and incapable. Please say a prayer for my laptop. A new one has been ordered in the event she was fried. And it is a race to see which one gets to me first, a repaired, or brand new one. I want back my old friend with all her contents intact. Damn you IBM, DAMN you MicroSoft. If it were a Mac this would never had happened in a 2 year old computer.

I am having a drink I hope NOT in her memory. Both to her memory (Hard drive), and mine of her.