R.I.P.

This P.O.S is R.I.P. I can't even get it to turn on anymore. For some reason, the dock will no longer even charge the so called "rechargeable" battery. I've been wanting to get something more updated and portable for some time, so this may be a blessing in disguise. I really don't want to lug my SLR around wherever I go, so something that can slip into my pocket would be ideal. Any suggestions?

Repaired

I got my truck back today! 36 hours and $81 later, I have comfort in knowing my truck won't suddenly die while traveling 70 mph down the highway. The mechanic connected it to their diagnostic computer, and it seems the only problem was some very corroded battery cables. It's a relief to know that's it's something so simple. With electrical problems, it can be anything from a random sensor to a complete computer failure. We're talking big bucks most of the time. I was really fortunate is wasn't a more serious problem.

Breakdown

My truck died today. Well, maybe "died" isn't the right word. I'm getting it fixed, and there's pretty much no fixing death. Okay, my truck crapped out today.

I decided after work that I'd go into Rockford to get an oil change and have a leaky tire patched. I also really needed new shoes for work, so after the maintence was completed, I headed over to Kohl's. After leaving the store, my truck wouldn't start. Not only would it not start, there was no power. At all. Everything was dark. No headlights, no interior lights, no starter, nada. At this point, it was about 10:00, and I was incredibly tired. Somehow I managed to get it started again, so I drove it to a nearby mechanic. As soon as I got it there it died again. Long story short, it's now sitting in Rockford, waiting on repair. I'm hoping that it's nothing major and it won't cost much to fix. After dumping around $2,000 into it in the last year, I'm really ready to move on to something new.

Devil Cat

Punkin, who we appropriately call "Punk" for short, has a very unique... personality. He likes to play, and he plays rough. It's not uncommon to see him chasing another cat through the house, tackling him when he catches up, or knocking random things off of tables. When we saw this collar while visiting a pet store in San Luis Obispo, CA, we knew immediately we had to buy it. It's soooo fitting.

Lost and Found, Soaking Wet

I had a hell of a morning. First off, in case you're not from around here, the northern Illinois area was hit really hards early this morning by some massive thunderstorms, which resulted in terrible flooding all over Rockford and the surrounding cities. My home town, which is to the South, wasn't hit nearly as hard. The town I work in, however, was nailed.

At about 3:00am, the Chrysler plant, which the company just spent about $400 million to refurbish, was leaking water all inside through the roof. The assembly area was completely shut down at about 3:30, and I have no idea what time they started up again. As a result, we were sent home around 5:15. I left the gate, ran to my truck, and drove home. As I got out of my truck at home, I realized that my wallet was not in my pocket. My ID badge is in my wallet, so in order to even get out of the gates, I had to have it with me. I frantically began searching my truck, the ground outside the truck, and in every pocket, but to no avail. I decided I must have dropped it in my haste to reach the shelter of my truck through the driving rain. Panicked, I called the security booth at work, asking them to drive to the lot and look for it. Unfortunately for me, their security vehicle was stuck in waist deep water. I decided I'd have drive the 20 minutes back to work, and look for myself. I got back to the plant, searched the lot, but found nothing.

At this point I really started to panic. I was going through my mental inventory of all my credit cards, debit cards, and personal info that I'd have to try to protect, preparing to make the appropriate calls. I was going to take the back roads home instead of the highway, but was blocked almost immediately by some fast moving water across the road. I turned around, and decided I'd call security and leave them my phone number hoping that someone actually would return my wallet. Lo and behold, someone had just turned in a brown wallet. It was mine! I raced to the security shack and retrieved my soaked, sodden wallet. It was completely destroyed, but everything was there, including all my cards and the $9 in cash.

The end result of all this was obviously happy, but since I had to go all the way back to work, I then got stuck in a major traffic jam leaving the plant. It took me well over an hour to get home. I don't know who it was that returned my wallet, but I'll be eternally grateful. This could've been a disaster.

Installation

Well, I've finished using Boot Camp to install Windows XP on my Mac, and everything is working wonderfully. Boot Camp creates a separate partition on the hard drive, since Mac OSX and Windows don't get along well together. I created a 5GB partition, and installed Windows without a hitch. I've been installing the games I want running on the external 120GB hard drive I bought, and they're running like they're right on the internal drive: Absolutely beautifully. I must admit, after running the Mac OS for the last few months, it feels a little odd going back to Windows. I guess I'll get used to it. Now I have these stacks of PC games I'm able to play again!

You Got XP in my Mac!

Well, I decided to start the process of installing Windows XP on my Mac. Thanks to the new Intel processors standard in all Macintosh computers, it can now run Windows software like any other PC. Apple provides this great software called Boot Camp that makes it really simple to set up a seperate Windows partition and burns a cd for the drivers for all the hardware. I get it up and running now, so with my newly purchased 120 GB external, I should have plenty of room for multiple games for the upcoming LAN parties!