Its so good when things work like they're supposed to.....

My computer is up and running and is so fast. The programs that I use on a regular basis have installed flawlessly. My bookmarks and passwords have imported into the browser just like they are supposed to and they actually all work! I just can't help bragging even if I may jinx the whole thing. I really NEEDED things to work right.

I still have a few things to incorporate and I need to set up my backup system yet.....but so far, so good. Even the online brain teaser games I play work.

I reinstalled the little weather program that I've used for quite a while and my virus program jerked itself up out of the system tray, stood on a box and literally screamed NO at me. It says there's a trojan in there and I'm disappointed because I like the program, but I'm not taking any chances. Recently the program had to be redone, according to the author, because of changes the weather channel made to its site. Maybe he did something odd...or maybe my virus scanner is having hot flashes....not sure but I'm listening to it. I don't need any more problems.

This afternoon the power went out at work. We have a huge generator which immediately kicked on so we barely knew the difference but having all the offices open and working is a drain on the system, which has to be up and running because of the police department that is in the same building. The traffic on the 5-lane highway out front was bumper to bumper because the traffic signals were no longer working. Then we found out that the outage was extremely wide-spread....at least an 8 mile stretch of the highway and areas surrounding it. Something to do with a transformer that had a domino affect and other transformers went out too. After an hour of being on the generator we found out that service would not be restored until after 11 pm this evening. We were all told to shut down our workstations and go home. It was only an hour and a half early....but great that it happened on a Friday night! To avoid the traffic mess, I took the back way home...which is all gravel roads through the farm route. I take this route frequently when I just need to unwind....no traffic lights and plenty of horses and rolling pastures as well as some areas of deep, thick woods. Very pretty. The rain even stopped for my commute home. Anyway, I was glad to pull into my driveway tonight.

Today is cold and rainy. Its only 60 right now and I swear it feels like Fall already. Its a good night to cuddle with a book.......or maybe play a computer game now that I can.

One step forward 2 steps back.....

I'm done. I concede. Its gotten the best of me. UNCLE. I just get one thing to work and then two more don't work So I'm getting my computer guy back out here.....he can't come until Thursday....and we will reformat the hard drive and I'll start clean. I will have to reinstall everything, but the end result will be that I'll have a system in which everything will WORK.

Lesson learned. If something sounds too good to be true.....be vewy vewy careful...to quote a certain little guy that had problems with a wascally wabbit. PC Mover, I think, is great for moving data files, photos and music....but NOT programs....at least not from one operating system to another. And with a flashdrive, you can move those files yourself without much trouble at all. So I'm saving all my bookmarks and passwords and hopefully my new system will be able to import them into the new installation of my browser. If not....I have them all written down and will just have to put them in manually. Arghhhhh. its never easy.

Hope your weekend was a good one. I'm gonna love this computer when I get it customized to my liking. Hope it gives me as good of service as my last one has....and is still doing....bless its little hard drive heart.

I can't believe that in the third week of August....our high yesterday was the middle 60's with periods of rain. Today is a repeat. Its 64 right now. All this coming week is going to be chilly. I still say that summer forgot about us in Michigan this year. She got stuck up in the Pacific Northwest. My SIL just hated all that heat, which they aren't used to.

I feel like I'm in a maze.....

....just wandering aimlessly, bumping into walls. I think my computer guy felt compassion for me....maybe because of the sorrowful look on my face....but he did come back on Wednesday to fine tune things. He spent quite a bit of time and when he left everything worked. I was at least intelligent enough to log on and pay my bills that will be coming due the first part of next week. I also got my bank statement so I can do my mid-month balance. I don't think it was more than a couple hours later I uninstalled a program using Add/Remove Programs and when it asked for a reboot....the computer did the same DANG thing. I just laid my head down on the desk and went to my happy place for a while.

I once more used my old trusty workhorse in the den and emailed him. He said he will be back on Saturday. I'm beginning to think that its not such a good idea to move all the programs and so we are not going to do that this time. I am only moving the ones that I use every day, which should only take 30 minutes or so.....this would include my camera and printer settings, not to mention all my bookmarks and passwords. No wonder computers intimidate me so much....they just decide to act up for no apparent reason that we can see. Even my computer guy couldn't figure out why its doing this.....but moving the programs may have something to do with it. I will let you know and I may have to retract my earlier recommendation.

Microsoft should hire me.....

They should hire me to test out their programs to see how much abuse they will take before crashing. If I can't crash them, then they must be pretty darn stable. I don't think I had my new computer for more than 6 hours when I crashed it. Yep....you read right. I was going through various programs to see what would work and what wouldn't on the new system and one little game on there just went NUTS. I got the BSOD (blue screen of death), which chilled me to the bone cause that never means anything good. Sure enough I .... or should I say that evil little game..... corrupted enough files that everything had to be done over. It wouldn't even boot up. My computer guy came back on Monday and started the whole process over again (its a 2-day ordeal). So now I have to wait for him to come back to fine tune it again and he can't make it back until Saturday. All I can say is thank goodness I still have my old trusty workhorse in the den. Sigh....it's never easy.

I LOVE my computer.....

Well, today was the big day. Today my computer guy arrived with my new computer. I was really nervous about this whole thing because we were going to attempt to transfer everything on my old computer to the new one. (about 28 gb worth) I always clone my entire system on an external hard drive and thought at first that I could use that.....but alas....the program I use to clone it will not restore it to a computer with a different operating system from which it was originally copied. Rats!!

So I researched and researched and came up with a program called PC Mover. This is not a paid ad by any means but I'm just telling you that if you get a new upgraded system and want to copy programs from your old computer.....THIS is the program to get. You can copy the whole machine or just a few programs and files.....its up to you. Needless to say, the less you transfer over takes the least amount of time. I was skeptical but it took about 3 hours to do my whole system over a network and after it was done.....I can say that as far as I know now.....95% of my programs are working. I've only had to reinstall my firewall and virus scanner, which they said I may have to do. Oh and my printer had to be reinstalled....but so far everything seems to be working. Of course I haven't been through the whole computer yet, but as time goes on, I will come across more that either work or they don't. I found this program on eBay a lot cheaper than what it was selling for in the stores. I think I paid $25 for it and it was worth every penny. So remember this if you're going to upgrade. This is a time saver like you wouldn't believe.

This is the weekend of the "cruise". All week long we've been listening to the music from the 60's....when I was in my prime. They have this every year and its nice. Its gotten bigger and bigger each year. Seeing all the old cars....fixed up to be in mint condition is a treat as well. So thousands of people are cruising Woodward Avenue tonight and tomorrow. The weather is gorgeous, but HOT.....and for one brief weekend, we can close our eyes and dream that we're 16 again, slow-dancin' with our heart-throb. Sigh ~ how fast time flies. Enjoy the weekend!!

My morning takes a different path.....

Usually I get up, have my fruit juice and my meds, then make a pot of coffee, freshly grinding the coffee beans. I simply LOVE good coffee. After the coffee is finished brewing I make some cinnamon toast and then log onto the computer to read the news and my favorite blogs while I'm enjoying the coffee and toast. The news is always a downer and I only read it so I won't have that DUHHHH expression on my face when someone starts talking about a current event. I have to put up the facade of being at least halfway intelligent, you know. This morning was different. When I logged on to read the news I was drawn to an article about a lost, then found, dog. With tears in my eyes I read this most up-lifting article and it has started my morning off on an entirely different path. Matter of fact, I don't even think I'm going to read the rest of the news.....I really like this path that I'm on. I'm feeling good about people right now. So, for your enjoyment, I have linked this great article. Please read it and afterward you, too, will wonder if guardian angels do, indeed, come in the form of animals. I think they do.

Take some time and enjoy

In my ventures I have come across this and it affected me deeply....not only for the obvious talent this young lady has, but for her poignant story and the passionate flair in which she depicts it. If you can spare about 9 minutes, please settle back and enjoy this. You won't be sorry. And...if anyone can translate what she has written at the end.....please tell me. One more thing....my friend Sue is having a giveaway to celebrate having 100 followers! If you'd like to enter a drawing to receive a pretty bracelet she's giving away in honor of that, go here. Sue's beautiful home is a reflection of the beauty within her.
UPDATE: I have found out that the words she writes at the end of her sand art is "You are always near."

All day rain.....

Today is a relaxing day. Its very dark and the rain is gently and continuously coming down. We need it so I'm not complaining. We did have a picnic planned but its been moved inside....we may end up postponing it until tomorrow, I'm not sure yet. Either way we'll have a good time and good food.

Not a lot has happened and I still say that's good. I need these down times to recharge my batteries. Its been extra busy at work with a lot of people gone on vacations. I had to have another condenser put in my car because the AC kept giving me warm air even though I would go have more freon added. So far its ok but its only been a few days. I still don't have my new computer in my possession, although my guy is working on it. This is a busy time of year for him and since I'm not totally without a computer, he is not hurrying with the new one. He does have all the parts....its just when he gets around to putting them all together. Hopefully before the end of this month I'll be all set.

I have met the love of my grandson's life. I was ok until I saw the piercing just under her bottom lip. WHY would anyone think that adds to their charm? I know.....I know....I'm an old fuddy duddy....my thinking is not progressive....I'm not up with the times. Humph....sorry but I can't see where putting holes in your face is progressive. And yes....I have pierced ears and have had them since I was a youngster myself....but somehow it just seems different. Sigh...maybe its not. Maybe its ME. Maybe I should just shut my mouth. HA!

So, I guess I will go refill my coffee mug and settle back with my book. I have about 400 pages to go and then I can start on the next one in my huge stack of books to be read. I think I have 26 books in that stack so I can safely say that I have fallen behind in my reading. The other ones in the stack are not so hefty as the one I'm reading now (1,000 pages) so it should go faster.

Oh....yes I wanted to tell you. I found another dead squirrel in my yard but this one was not next to the transformer nor did it cause me any electrical problems. I don't know what happened to the little guy. So I left him there until I could get out to the garage and find a shovel to bury him with...about 2 days. Yeah, I know...that's yucky, but I was putting it off, hoping that I could con someone else into doing that for me. Anyway when I went out there, armed with shovel, he was gone! Distasteful as it sounds....I'm wondering if the hawk took him. What do you think? If so, I guess that's a good point about having them nearby.....they make a good clean-up crew.

Enjoy your weekend. We have rain forecast for tomorrow too so its likely to be a quiet one for me.

Oh my aching......

back!! I've been semi-out of commission for the past six days due to lower back pain. Woo hoo.....it was something else! I woke up with it so I don't know if I slept wrong or what.....but it sure has hurt. I even missed a day of work over it.

You know when you're in pain, you just don't feel like doing anything. Hopefully I will be back to my old self in a couple more days. In the meantime I'm seriously behind in everything. Sigh....oh well, its not like my social agenda is bursting at the seams!

You know the older you get, the longer it takes for you to get over something. I just wish I knew what I did to cause this.....I sure don't want it ever again! Take care, I'll be back in a couple days or so.