TiBook DeathWatch
Well, a month or so ago my laptop, the computer I use 90% of the time, starting acting up. The only real problem besides the seeming sluggishness is that upon opening it up, I often have to fiddle with the screen's position before it will light up. I have this nagging suspicion that it's only a matter of time before the day comes and there is no light at all. I guess I need to check to see if I have a S-Video cable that would at least connect it to my monitor should I find the disaster needing recovery. Of course I have done a back up (before the move) and it's not terribly easy since I have to back it up to my XP machine but at least all the really important stuff, well calendar and address book, are on my Palm.
I find myself thinking more and more about getting a Windows based laptop. Of course my main decision other than how to pay for it is should the machine be cool enough to play games? Well, since my favorite games are SimCity 4 and The Sims, the machine would have to be pretty damn cool to be able to be enjoyable. To that end, I managed to find a Mac software graveyard this past week were I downloaded some of the games that I really enjoyed 10 - 15 years ago. All are low in terms of minimum requirements and I have more problems with getting them to run (and not crash) under Classic 9.2, but I kind of think that I can keep myself minimally entertained with simpler games most of the time and when I have the energy I can enjoy them on the big time on my desktop machine.
The other really annoying thing is the Internet. Simply put, between a dial up connection and all the crap being posted on the 'Net, it seems to take forever to accomplish many simple tasks. I swear I can't do a search for a book from the Washington County Library and make a request in less than 30 minutes. Of course some of that is their somewhat limited web catalog but the other part is that it takes so long to load and reload pages. It also seems like the connection is dropping much more often now.
Speaking of DeathWatch, I've cut way back on my meds. I dropped 3 outright and put another two on hold for a month. That means I'm actually only taking 5 Rx's right now and I have to say I feel GREAT! I cannot believe the difference though my sleep is still horrible and nothing seems to help there. I thought we were on the right track but the HMO that handles my OHP plan rejected the latest attempt to deal with the sleep issue. I called them up, a bit hot under the collar since I didn't really like the idea that some hack sitting in front of a computer somewhere was actually prescribing my meds for me, but was pleasant and the woman kindly explained that the provider needs to consult their formulary before writing the prescription. Since this drug isn't on their formulary, there is, can you believe it, PAPERWORK to do. Yes, that's right, more PAPERWORK, but at least it is the doc's responsibility for once, not mine. I'll see what happens with this next week - but gee, by then maybe I won't need to sleep any more.
And on the subject of paperwork, DHS required that I take mine for OHP and Food Stamps to their office this week so that a human could see I was in fact still alive. She then bundled it all up and sent it to the same place I would have sent it. I wonder how much time that ended up wasting? I will say that the visit to the Hillsboro office was only made tolerable by Tiersa's driving and delivery. The place was packed wall-to-wall with people and of course, their children were there too running amok. The noise drove me crazy and it was all I could do to not roll up into a tight little ball and wait for it to be over. Still I think everything should be okay and I should hear soon that the benes will continue for another 6 months - famous last words, right?
I find myself thinking more and more about getting a Windows based laptop. Of course my main decision other than how to pay for it is should the machine be cool enough to play games? Well, since my favorite games are SimCity 4 and The Sims, the machine would have to be pretty damn cool to be able to be enjoyable. To that end, I managed to find a Mac software graveyard this past week were I downloaded some of the games that I really enjoyed 10 - 15 years ago. All are low in terms of minimum requirements and I have more problems with getting them to run (and not crash) under Classic 9.2, but I kind of think that I can keep myself minimally entertained with simpler games most of the time and when I have the energy I can enjoy them on the big time on my desktop machine.
The other really annoying thing is the Internet. Simply put, between a dial up connection and all the crap being posted on the 'Net, it seems to take forever to accomplish many simple tasks. I swear I can't do a search for a book from the Washington County Library and make a request in less than 30 minutes. Of course some of that is their somewhat limited web catalog but the other part is that it takes so long to load and reload pages. It also seems like the connection is dropping much more often now.
Speaking of DeathWatch, I've cut way back on my meds. I dropped 3 outright and put another two on hold for a month. That means I'm actually only taking 5 Rx's right now and I have to say I feel GREAT! I cannot believe the difference though my sleep is still horrible and nothing seems to help there. I thought we were on the right track but the HMO that handles my OHP plan rejected the latest attempt to deal with the sleep issue. I called them up, a bit hot under the collar since I didn't really like the idea that some hack sitting in front of a computer somewhere was actually prescribing my meds for me, but was pleasant and the woman kindly explained that the provider needs to consult their formulary before writing the prescription. Since this drug isn't on their formulary, there is, can you believe it, PAPERWORK to do. Yes, that's right, more PAPERWORK, but at least it is the doc's responsibility for once, not mine. I'll see what happens with this next week - but gee, by then maybe I won't need to sleep any more.
And on the subject of paperwork, DHS required that I take mine for OHP and Food Stamps to their office this week so that a human could see I was in fact still alive. She then bundled it all up and sent it to the same place I would have sent it. I wonder how much time that ended up wasting? I will say that the visit to the Hillsboro office was only made tolerable by Tiersa's driving and delivery. The place was packed wall-to-wall with people and of course, their children were there too running amok. The noise drove me crazy and it was all I could do to not roll up into a tight little ball and wait for it to be over. Still I think everything should be okay and I should hear soon that the benes will continue for another 6 months - famous last words, right?
posted by xj at 4:12 PM
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