No Laughing Matter
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Last weekend all was right with the world or so it seemed. Tennessee’s Tax-free holiday was in full swing. We knew better to attempt to shop in retail stores and malls. Our experience taught us the only way to survive the weekend hassles was to shop online. This is what we did, precisely in a peacefully…unhurried..from the comfort of our home shopped!
By Saturday evening, we nearly bought everything we wanted ‘tax-free’. We adjourned to the living room to watch a movie with that all is right with the world sense. Before long our relaxation gave way to bedtime. DH was putting some things away in our junk room make-shift home-office when I came into the room.
“Why is it doing that?” he wanted to know.
“Why is what doing that?” I looked around.
“The computer,” he pointed.
“Oh,” I exclaimed, “it looks like it rebooted itself. There must have been a power glitch….no, that can’t be it. We have the computer on battery back up. Let me get over there.”
The black screen revealed the scary words, NO BOOT MEDIA….SELECT PROPER BOOT DEVICE. My first reaction was that it was some sort of helpful update that came through changing the boot sequence. I restarted the computer, once the Dell logo appear I selected F2. All I needed to do was to select the hard drive as my start-up priority device, but why isn’t my hard drive listed?
That’s when it struck me like a …
that we had some sort of system failure and more than likely a major hardware flop. There is a slight possibility it could be software related with our desktop being only 2.3 years old. This shouldn’t happen! There is no clear reason why we should face such a disaster this soon. In the past, our hard drives have always demonstrated their intentions with fore-warnings omitting weird sounds. This was a definite sign something is ready for the big electronic graveyard in the sky. The thing is, our system can’t see the hard drive and that’s no laughing matter!
On Monday, I spent several hours on the phone with Dell Tech support. They basically instructed me to do what I already knew to do before leaving me with the final option to remove the hard drive to perform a test to see if the problem is the hard drive or faulty cable. Both options are easy to fix or God forbid a bad motherboard! There’s no fixing that!
Replacing the hard drive or motherboard will be expensive fixes for sure, but it doesn’t put my mind at ease. What else is on its way out? At this point, all I want to do is a data recovery and then worry with the crisis at hand. This will be a project for DH and I to tackle hopefully this weekend, as I just can not move that heavy tower to take the panel off. sigh
This isn’t the first time I’ve danced this tune. Every time I swear, “If I can only get my data off and our system going again, then I promise, promise, promise to make routine copies of all of my important files!” Sadly, each time I make a liar out of myself. Oh sure, in the beginning my priorities are on track, and then all of my good intentions go out the door after a few months. The truth of the matter is I don’t think I’ve backed off any of our files in over a year.
My computer upset has left me nearly paralyzed. This is why I haven’t been visiting Blogville much this week. First off, I’ve been too tied up to do anything other than figuring out our options and second, we are now down to one computer for DH & I to share. “Oh, NO! A one-computer family!” Remember the day when that’s all most of us had?
Time on the net is a bit of crunch, but I’m confident things will be back to normal before too long and I swear, “If I can only get my data off and our system going again, then I promise, promise, promise to make routine copies of all of my important files!”
What’s the joke? Oh, I see you’ve heard that one before. I get that, really I do, but this is NO Laughing Matter! This brings me to my T2Q.
- Do you have a backup schedule for your important files or do you do a complete system backup?
- Where do you store your data – external hard drive or on cloud storage?
Now that you’ve had your laughs, why not visit Miss Jenny and the rest of the Alphabe-Thursday classroom for more homework assignments of the letter ‘L’ and while you’re hopping around, be sure to play along with Miss Amanda in her latest edition of Thursday Two Questions.
This week’s writing prompts had me just a bit stumped leaving me with the sense of, Which do I choose? rolling around in my brain all for about 30 seconds before settling on this one….
What’s for dinner Mom? Describe a meal your Mom cooked that you dreaded eating growing up.
Growing up in southern West Virginia, I lived in poverty. I wouldn’t say we were in a dirt poor poverty situation. Things were financially tight, but that was normal for many hard-working families in the 60s and 70s in rural coal mining communities.
There was one time, though which was particularly rough for us. Daddy was a coal miner. Now, I don’t know if he was out of work or if the union was on strike or what the problem was. The only thing I do remember is the limited dinner options my mom could make at no great expense to feed a family of six, which seemed to consist of pinto beans and corn bread or fried bread. Sometimes, she made fried potatoes to go with the meal.
Night after night after night, we ate this. I was never one to complain and I don’t believe I actually uttered a single word of disapproval for what we were having because in fact, I was really grateful. The only option other than having the pintos was to do without, but even young I knew to appreciate what the Lord provided and for the blessings of my mother to make do with what little we had.
From those early years, I secretly vowed, “When I’m all grown up, I’ll NEVER eat pinto beans again!” What a foolish to thing to declare, but that’s part of being human. It’s funny how your perspective changes on things, especially things which you didn’t like about your childhood. In truth, many of find comfort in these very things, like I do now with pinto beans and cornbread. This is one of my favorite country-style dinners to fix from time-to-time, and on the occasions I fix this then a warm feeling washes over me, as if I’m remembering a simpler time or a time that’s forgotten.
Thinking about the one meal I most dreaded eating as a child reminded me of a post I pulled together about a year and a half ago called: Three Cheers for Pintos! Perhaps, you’ll what to read it as it sorta falls into line of Mama Kat’s writing prompt and summarizes these sentiments I shared with you today.
Are you in a writing slump? Can’t think of where your next post is going to come from? Looking for new direction? If these questions are floating around in your head, then let me point you toward a fun, creative meme to help get your writing mojo back into groove. Join Mama Kat! Each week, you’ll get 5 writing prompts to build one fun and creative post from each Thursday. So, what are you waiting for? Get over there and join the fun now!
Don’t fret, I promise to see you soon despite my computer problems. That being said, please don’t shy away from leaving a comment. I won’t let my technical difficulties get in the way of visiting you!
20 Comments
anitamombanita
It’s definitely a love-hate relationship in our house with technology. Love it when it works and Loathe it when it doesn’t!
Andy David
Hello.
We’ve already had one computer from 2007 whose motherboard just stopped working altogether, so we’re down to sharing one computer. 🙁
The main thing on our computer that would make me sad if anything happened are our photos and my poetry. We’ve not backed up our computer, but my wife does store my poetry on an additional USB thumb-drive. I’m not in the least bit tech savvy, so I guess I should get my wife-Assistant to look into doing regular backups. Hope everything works out for you soon. Thanks for sharing.
L is for: Diary Of Love
zongrik
the ton of brinks was really funny
lamb’s wool
JamericanSpice
I’d get a full on panic!!
I hope you get sorted out soon love.
And I do that lie to myself too. OOoh I’m going to find a disk NOW!!!
storybeader
oh Cathy! Many hugs. I’d be a maniac by now. We had a computer problem last weekend too. Not too bad – I just spent the morning on the phone with tech support. I don’t like paying the $9.95 but every time I need help, I’m glad they’re there. We have an external hard drive that backs up everything once a month. And I try to backup my Quicken files to a flash drive, but I’m lazy about that. Hope all the troubles get repaired without too much trouble and you are 2 computers strong again. {:-Deb
Naperville Now
nothing drives me crazier than computer problems I can’t fix! hope you are up and running soon. (external drive backs up our stuff. at least it better be.)
Debra
I hate computer problems / not very technical here
DID backup awhile ago before getting a new computer and I need to now I know…it’s been months!
Self Sagacity
I have both, cloud and external drive and briefcase, and hard copies. haha, it is all over the place, I need to hire somebody to get them all updated on one file. gees.
I don’t back-up often enough. I do though have at least a couple of copies.
Jim
I won’t laugh, Cathy. Good “L” word too! BTW, there are two “L’s” in the second word of, “O, He**.” It could also have one “CK” phrase if you’d rather that.
Questions/Answers:
1. I have no back-up schedule. Norton has one but it isn’t set up for one of our computers.
2. We store on a back-up hard drive (haven’t done that for a while) and on a cloud that Norton rents. Unfortunately it missed my last year’s income tax work. But then I have a hard copy of the finished product for last year.
Texans like to have beans and bread for breakfast. So I am told and that has been verified by more than one Texan personally to me. I haven’t tried it yet, I may if granola bars ever become taxed.
Food, medicine, over-the-counter stuff, and medical supplies never are taxed here. We also have had our preschool tax free days already.
..
RoryBore
It’s a conspiracy, I swear!! we have had non-stop computer/modem/network problems all summer long. each time I get in a blog groove, something else seems to go wrong. And our computer is only 1 year old. we have an ancient laptop for emergencies – usually I just draft posts on it because it is to slow to actually do any surfing. hope everything works out for soon!
We had BBQ ribs tonight and I am thinking cornbread would have been perfect with them!
VBR
i learned this the hard way. i lost an entire computer filled with graphics, photos, files and artwork that i had accumulated for several years. after i lay down on the floor and cried hysterically i went out and got one of those little memory stick things, actually 3 or 4 and every time i saved something i put it on there. but, oh, the memory of all that work gone in a pffft!!!
regarding the meals that i dreaded – well, i don’t think i ever met a meal i didn’t like but i seem to remember not being overly happy when she made egg salad – it still gags me to this day.
SquirrelQueen
You did what I would have done and checked the boot record first, not finding your hard drive there would have caused a moment of distress. I tend to be rough on hard drives and we have replaced several. Usually I just order a new one and copy the old to the new. Either way it’s a pain.
I have some things stored in the cloud but I also have an external hard drive to back up my photos. I really don’t have a schedule but usually backup after a new batch or two of photos.
I grew up on pinto beans and cornbread too. Once in awhile I will make both for dinner although my hubs loves the cornbread he is not fond of the pintos.
Lmkazmierczak
Thanks for the reminder♫
Claudia Willison
Yeah, these computer problems do unfortunately happen. I am now backing up everything on an external harddrive + my photos in the clouds, too. I guess one needs to learn the hard way. But as photographer I am almost paranoid about 1) loosing my raw data, but also 2) them getting stolen in the cloud – sigh – nothing is perfect!
Sue
This has happened with my computer far too many times, so I finally purchased a thing that hooks up to my computer and does automatic backups every day. Thankfully, it saved me a few months ago when the whole thing crashed and they couldn’t recover the data.
Hope yours is salvageable!
=)
Monica
Thank goodness for my husband! He takes care of all our computer issues!!!
Esther Joy
So you’re a real coal miner’s daughter! …Just thinking of Loretta Lynn’s song… My husband and I both grew up rather poor – him on pinto beans and cornbread. My mom was a Northerner, and although a great cook, never learned the hang of Southern cooking.
May
I need to take this as a cautionary tale. I need to back things up.
I am #9 of 10 and I too am familiar with beans and corn bread. Yuck
Pam Lofton
I hope you get everything straightened out! It’s such an annoyance when this happens- to say the least. I store and back up on an external hard drive and I learned the hard way. As usual!
SouthMainMuse
Well, first I hope your computer problems are better. I had that happen once and I was in the middle of a project with a deadline and I hadn’t saved a day’s worth of changes. Talk about freak out. And wow, pinto beans and corn bread. See to me that sounds delicious – but every meal day after day. Bless your poor mom and you for not complaining.