Posts Tagged ‘Favorite Entries’

Customer Support Options

// June 28th, 2004 // 3 Comments » // tagged: > >

When you call customer support for computers, I think the very first options should be:
Do you think your CD drive is a cup-holder? Press 1. Do you think the term hard-drive is referring to a long, tiring journey? Press 2. Could you add memory to your computer? (the easiest hardware upgrade ever) Press 3. Do you have a server at your house? Press 4. Could you build a computer with your bare hands and some aluminum foil? Press 5.
This way, you don't have to go through the typical questions customer support first asks: Have you rebooted? Is the monitor on? Is the computer plugged in? If I'm calling customer support -- it's because I have exhausted all of my, my husbands, and the internet's knowledge of fixing and repairing computers. The customer support phone call is the LAST RESORT. And when I do call ... it never ceases to annoy me to have to go through the stupid questions they ask right off the bat. Yes, sir ... the computer is plugged in.

Marking Your Territory

// June 25th, 2004 // 1 Comment » // tagged: >

Behind our house, we have approximately 1.5 acres of our property surrounded by a nice sturdy fenceline. When we first brought MacGyver home two weeks ago, and let him loose in our back-yard, he went insane with joy. Then he proceeded to pee on every single tree in the yard. It was a systematic and thorough process. We had recently planted some leyland cyprus trees - and they are only 2 feet tall - but he didn't miss those. Every single tree. We have LOTS of trees. When we take him on walks, he tries to mark all the trees along the way. Does he have an un-ending supply with which to mark his territory? He seems to never run out! On Monday, I had picked up a large Yucca Cane plant from the Home Depot Nursery. I unloaded it from the car, set it down on the driveway, turned around to close the car door - and by the time I turned around to pick up the plant and take it around to the front porch, MacGyver had already peed on it. I'm talking less than 30 seconds here, people.

I had a package delivered today

// April 16th, 2004 // 2 Comments » // tagged: > >

I arrived at work today, and found a box on my desk delivered by UPS. I have the best husband ever. :heartbeat: Look what he got me:
It's Galaxy Chocolate. The. Yummiest. Chocolate. In. The. World. He had them shipped from England. Sigh. It's a wonderful thing when your husband knows exactly what will put a smile on your face. :cloud9: (On an unrelated note ... I took this picture with my phone! Pretty good quality, isn't it? I love everything about my Treo 600! I've had it for about 2 months now and I have to say its the best pda/phone/camera/everything I've ever used or seen. It basically does everything you'd ever need. :thumbsup: I especially love that I got $400 off in rebates!!)

Memories

// March 9th, 2004 // 7 Comments » // tagged: >

Today is the 5 year anniversary of the death of one of my close friends. On pretty much every other day other than today, when I think of Amber I think about all of the hilarious fun times we had together -- of how we laughed and cried together so many times. She was a ... bright light in my life! An exuberant spirit ... a kind-hearted girl with such a witty sense of humor. I am so thankful that I was able to be a part of her life. I treasure our friendship and the many many memories that I will always have of her. But on this day, the day she died ... I tend to remember the last year of her life ... and how all of us around her lived and breathed everything to do with her diagnosis, her chemo treatments, the bone marrow transplant, remissions, the re-emergence of the cancer, and the eventual realization that she wasn't going to beat it. It all started with what seemed to be a cold .... and then suddenly it wasn't a cold. It was leukemia. Acute Myelogenous Leukemia. I can still remember being shocked to the bone hearing her say those three words. For 11 months, we spent weekends at Vanderbilt while she was going through treatment. When she went into remission, we all went to Six Flags in Georgia and she wore a cool blue cap to cover her beautiful bald head. The cancer came back ... and back to Vanderbilt we all went. We held bone-marrow match donor rallies ... and a donor was found! She got the transplant ... and it didn't work. And she died March 9, 1999. I think that was the biggest shock of all ... not for one moment did I ever think that she would actually die. I mean ... that happens to other people. Not my friend. She's only 22 years old. She just got married! She's going to go through chemo, have a bone marrow transplant, and then we can get on with living our lives. I believed it! Through two rounds of chemo, we all still believed it! How could it be any other way? And so that was my first real up close and personal experience with cancer ... it took a wonderful woman from all our lives. A woman I loved, respected, and cherished as a friend.

Chip Butties

// February 5th, 2004 // 4 Comments » // tagged: > >

Anyone else out there know what a chip buttie is? If not ... let me tell you about it. It's a weekly meal at our house. I remember the first time my husband made them for me. We were dating and I was over at his place and he asked if I wanted a chip buttie. I was like -- suuuuure! I'll try it. (For those of you who don't know ... my husband is English. Apparently chip butties are a common thing there). First ... you make french fries. And for Steve, they have to be made from scratch french fries. So we peel our potatoes, cut them with our Pampered Chef Crinkle Cutter and then pop them into our deep fryer. Takes about 8 minutes and the nice hot french fries are ready. Next step .... take your bread of choice (regular bread, sub sandwich bread, etc) and slather with butter or if you're Steve, London Pub Sauce (we literally have atleast 8 bottles of this in the cupboard at all times. Steve puts it on everything.). Then you put the french fries inside the bread. That's a chip buttie. I know it doesn't sound all that appetizing ... but surprisingly enough ... it does taste pretty good. Steve laughs at me beacuse my chip butties are always put together so precisely with all my french fries lined up in a neat row on the bread -- whereas he just shoves them in. The "butties" don't stop here. Steve also likes Bacon Butties (yes, you've got it -- bacon inside of bread slathered with London Pub Sauce). Basically he likes Anything Butties. If we're having fish, beans and cauliflower .... it all ends up in a sandwich. It's kind of bizarre. I'm one of those people who eats everything one at a time. I eat all my fish. Then I eat the beans. Then I eat the cauliflower. The only foods I mix up on a regular basis are corn and beans. I got that habit from my grandfather -- they taste much better mixed together :) Still trying to decide what to give your loved one for Valentines Day? I have the answer .... a VD Card! I've found some really interesting blogs here lately ... check them out: Dooce SimpleBits LoobyLu BrainSluice In Passing

It should have been simple

// January 20th, 2004 // 2 Comments » // tagged: > >

When we bought our house, the only thing in the house that needed to be replaced were the attic stairs. It was a wooden set, and whoever had installed them hadn't done it correctly and our inspector told us not to use those stairs, that they must be replaced with a new set. We haven't really needed the attic space yet and therefore it wasn't really high on our priority list, so the fact that the stairs couldn't be used wasn't really an issue. But now we're finally getting around to cleaning out one of the guest bedrooms upstairs -- and we have 14 gajillion computer, tv, stereo, tivo, and christmas tree boxes that we want to move up into the attic. So we need to be able to get up there safely. So this weekend, we trot out to our friendly Lowe's and purchase a nice sturdy aluminum attic ladder. It looks fairly straight-forward in it's installation and we figure we can get it done in a night. How wrong could we possibly have been? First, we had to get Steve up into the attic without using the old stairs. Here was the first problem. We own a 6-foot ladder and a 28-foot ladder. The 28 foot ladder certainly wasn't coming inside the house, and the 6 foot ladder was about 5 feet too short. Still, he managed to get up in the attic by using the top stair on our step ladder and then lightly using the existing stairs to kind of springboard himself into the attic. Then he started removing some of the lag-bolts that were holding the existing stairs in place. Then we realized that the hinge and side supports were fastened to the joists with RIVETS. You can't "unscrew" rivets. So ... that meant we had to pry the ladder off of the joists with a crow bar. It took us at least two hours to get the existing attic stairs removed. During this time, one of the springs on the existing ladder came off and knocked Steve back on his butt, and the other one flew down and almost hit me in the chest. It wasn't a pretty sight. Not really thinking clearly, we lowered the existing stairs down using a rope -- with Steve slowly lowering it down from the attic and me manuevering it against a wall. Can anyone now guess what our problem was? Steve is now stuck in the attic. :uhh: He managed to get IN the attic by using the existing stairs as a "gripping" point -- but now those are gone. After trying a few exit strategies, he settles on swinging his legs down, while he puts his arms on either side of the opening in the ceiling. I pull his foot down to touch the very tip of the top of our step ladder and he jumps down from there. All that was going through my head was how the obituary would read "And he died from a fall while trying to install a new attic ladder while his wife stood holding his foot". :worried: Thankfully, he got down with only a bruise on his elbow from the springs popping off and knocking him down. We give up for the night -- and last night we finished the project. We spend about an hour trying to get the NEW stairs aluminum frame installed .... and whoever said on the box that one person could do this was on crack. :dizzy: We had the two of us, both of us with quite a bit of experience in carpentry & building projects, and yet we are stumbling through getting this thing installed. So, we finally manage to get the frame installed, and then we're supposed to lift the 60 pound ladder up above our heads and hook it on the frame we've just installed. Let me remind you that, according to the directions, this ladder can be installed by ONE person. So that ONE person is supposed to lift the ladder above their head AND be able to see to attach two little slots over two little protruding hangers. Yeah Right. :banghead: So once we get the ladder hung, it takes a little over an hour to screw in lag bolts, get the gas struts to work properly for lowering and raising the ladder (no more springs, yippee!), and get it all flush and level with the ceiling. We still have to paint it white and reattach the molding around it ... but it's up, Steve isn't stuck in the attic anymore, and we can cart all our boxes up there with ease. Success, even if we did curse :censor: that ladder and the company who made it about 200 times in the process!

Window to My World

// January 5th, 2004 // 2 Comments » // tagged: >

Got a phone call the other day from another Known Clueless UserTM in the office. Me: Hey. KCUTM: I'm down here trying to log on to my computer, and I can't seem to get my password right. Do you know what it is? Me: It's your daughters name. You called me yesterday about this, remember? KCUTM: Oh, yeah. Me: No problem. Note to Self: Why did I bother changing his password status to static instead of keeping it like everyone elses (who has to change their password every 90 days)? It wouldn't matter what the password was, he wouldn't remember it. Silly of me to think he could remember his daughters name. Silly Silly Lacy.

2003: A Year in Review

// December 31st, 2003 // No Comments » // tagged: >

Courtesy of the talented Christie .... here is a year in review! List Style! FIVE GOOD THINGS THAT HAPPENED IN 2003 1. My niece Sarah was born. 2. We bought our very first house. 3. My paternal grandmother and maternal grandfather are both recovering well from cancer treatments and the outlook is positive. 4. I learned how to be a network administrator. 5. Steve got to start on the English garden he's always wanted in the states! FIVE MOVIES I REALLY ENJOYED IN 2003 1. The Last Samurai 2. Lord of the Rings: Return of the King 3. Pirates of the Caribbean 4. Pride and Prejudice (Read the books too!) 5. Bruce Almighty FIVE BOOKS I READ IN 2003 (AND SUGGEST YOU READ, TOO) 1. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (Mark Haddon) 2. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (J.K. Rowling) 3. Lucky (Alice Sebold) 4. The Purpose Driven Life (Rick Warren) 5. Outlander Series (Diana Gabaldon) FIVE TELEVISION SHOWS I WATCHED ON A REGULAR BASIS IN 2003 1. The West Wing 2. Gilmore Girls 3. Alias 4. E.R. 5. C.S.I. FIVE SONGS ON MY PLAYLIST IN 2003 1. Sparks (Coldplay) 2. It's My Life (No Doubt) 3. Only Happy When It Rains (Garbage) 4. Serenity (Godsmack) 5. Hurt (Johnny Cash)

It’s Christmastime at Silverberry

// December 1st, 2003 // 2 Comments » // tagged: >

A new color scheme and a few new header graphics mark the beginning of the season here at the good ol' blog. For many of us, Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving) heralded the beginning of the 2003 Christmas Season. We were are my parents over Thanksgiving, and therefore went to all the sales in my hometown instead of Nashville. I think we probably fared better going shopping in a smaller town -- not as many people as there would have been here in Nashville. In honor of that great day, I composed a semi-original poem :sarcastic: Twas the Night Before Black Friday, when all through the house Not a creature was sleeping, not even my ipaq; The turkey was eaten, the pumpkin pie was all gone; My husband and I were nestled snug in our beds, With sale papers from stores lay spread on our laps. And me in my glasses and Steve with his highlighter, We'd just settled in for a long planning session, When out in the hallway there arose such a clatter, I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter! Away to the door I flew like a flash, and there was my mother with a Sale Paper Stash! What to my wondering eyes should appear, but a sale paper from Walmart with a christmas tree deal! I knew in a moment it would be a great day, my husband quickly exclaimed, 'Now Best Buy! Now Staples! Now Wal-Mart and Target! Now Sears! Now Circuit City! Now KMart and OfficeMax! To the front of the line, with our rebates in hand We'll dash away, dash away, with great deals in our grasp! A bundle of sales were there for the taking, The CF card how it twinkled! The SDRAM was so merry! The tree was so sparkly and the CDRs were so shiny! With a wink of my eye and a twist of my head, I spoke many words and went straight to my work, and planned out our shopping like a good little girl. We awoke the next morning, so happy to whistle, and away we flew like the down of a thistle. To Walmart, to Staples, to Officemax and More! Shopping and Deals and More in our Sight! Happy Black Friday to all, and to all a good night !!

The Wedding in Bean Town

// October 22nd, 2003 // 1 Comment » // tagged: >

This past weekend was a Wedding Comedy of Errors. It all began the night before the wedding, when the bridal party was driving from the rehearsal to the restaurant where we were all going to have dinner. None of us are from Boston, and two of the cars got lost. My group got back with no trouble, but unfortunately, the others didn't realize they weren't going the right direction for about half an hour. So our dinner started much later than originally planned .... but we finally all got there and had a great time catching up. It was great to see everyone again. The real comedy started the next day though. When the wedding ceremony starts, all the bridesmaids are supposed to walk from the club house at the country club to the grassy area where the wedding is being held and then walk down the aisle. It's about 50 yards or so to the beginning of the aisle where the wedding guests are seated. (The wedding was outside. In Boston. In October. It was a bit CHILLY.) We get about 3/4 of the way to the aisle - and suddenly the maid of honor, an extremely intelligient and normally very calm person, stops and says "holy :censor:, I forgot the wedding ring". (While we are shocked that she forgot the ring, we are in more shock because of the expletive that just popped out of our friends mouth. This is a girl who's probably never even said crap!) Moving on ... Does she decide that we'll just fake it and pretend we have the ring? Unfortunately, No. She immediately turns and runs back to the clubhouse to go get the ring. The rest of us are standing there like :uhh: - trying to keep the smiles on our faces (Thankfully most of the "audience" hasn't realized we're back there yet and only 20 +/- people saw her run back inside). So I'm trying to decide if we should just wait for her, or if we should start walking down the aisle. The wedding coordinator walks over hurriedly trying to ascertain what the problem is -- and she tells us to just walk even slower down the aisle - and that hopefully the maid of honor will be back by the time its her turn to walk down. By this time, everyone has turned around and is looking at us. I start walking down the aisle, and everyone is mouthing to me "what happened?" -- I get down to the front and Shawn, the groom, is like "What's the deal?". I tell him she forgot the ring and now all the groomsmen and the groom are trying their hardest to not laugh. About this time, the maid of honor is running, again, back to take her walk down the aisle. When she finally gets up front with the rest of us, the entire bridal party is having trouble keeping a straight face. Then we all see our friend, the beautiful bride, come out of the clubhouse and from that point on the ceremony went perfectly. (Although we did have a chuckle when the minister asked for the rings! :wink: ) The grooms ring had already been the subject of much laughter: the night before when we saw his ring, I quipped "One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them, one ring to bring them all .... ". During the rehearsal and at the wedding reception, we were all whispering "my precious" to the ring. (All you non LOTR fans aren't going to get this, so just move along .... ) The fun didn't stop there. Unfortunately for me. During the reception, I was dancing with the bride and my shoe caught in her train. And I slipped. My feet literally flew up, like you see in the cartoons, and I landed on my butt. It was mortifying. Just call me Graceful. Steve ran over and helped me up, he was laughing and saying "this would only happen to you ... ". Everybody at the reception was in a circle around the dance floor when I fell , we were doing some wierd game ... my "fall from grace" was a crowd pleaser and also signaled the end of that particular game :wacko: Needless to say it was an entertaining weekend ... and it was great to finally see these two get married (after 8+ years of dating!). We spent the next two days in Martha's Vineyard & Hyannis ... I'll have to blog about that later!
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