Author Archives: Sans Souci

538. The Nine Lives Times: Little Arnold Update 11/5/10: 1+1=3

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Here’s the Kitty Litter Scoop Weekend Edition For quite a while Arnold has been hanging out with an orange buddy, Sorbet. I’ve noted a lot of kitty hollering outside probably due to territory issues. Little did I know… The cat that I had been calling “Sorbet” had a brother, uncle or cousin. It looks like there are two orange buddies visiting the feeding station now. Who knew?? I now refer to the smaller orange guy as Sorbet and the bigger guy as Sorbetto. Both are very sweet. Pretty soon I’ll have every feral cat in the borough eating at my … Continue reading →

224.CreARTive Sunday: 5/3/08: part 2 Etruscan-style Treasures

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Something so simple can bring people together…   This is the second CreARTive Sunday post in a series. As usual, you can click to enlarge.   The series begins here: Part 1.  Now you know the story of why I became impassioned with these charms, you know about my friend Irma. And now, I’ll tell you about my friend, Cynthia. I met her when I returned to work after I had my son. She was a teacher in one of the schools I was assigned to.  As I greeted her, I saw that she had an “Irma Bracelet.”  The universe … Continue reading →

232. CreARTive Sunday: 5/11/08: Part 3: Etruscan-style treasures

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This is the 3rd of a series. As usual you can click to enlarge. Previous posts are here: First Second     The bracelet above was purchased on ebay. It’s got a wonderful chain and some great stones. The view of underside with stones and details. Coral. citrine, chrysophrase, possibly onyx.              Handmade antique silver chain with Etruscan stations; I sometimes wear it with another necklace My “Irma” ring with a Tiger-eye Etruscan-style “poison” ring from Mexico. The lid opens to hold a secret.     A collection from ebay with the charms separate from the … Continue reading →

375. Tuesday Tech Tips 101: the wonky laptop

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The continuing saga of my wonky laptop that developed a language of its own… If you remember when I last let out a screech in a “note,” (that’s probably what those notes are designed for, a primal scream when computers go awry), I was typing and the keyboard would freeze and then resume, but place word parts on other lines, embedded in other words. I think this could possibly have been my computer’s attempt to speak in pigtech. It wasn’t cute. Oddly, it seemed to be resolved the next day, after a few reboots and clean outs. But I wasn’t … Continue reading →

373. Tuesday Tech Tips 101: No solutions, just bugs and a phone pal

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This from the “why me?” department of my life with computers. You might call it a rant. I am not a formally trained hack, but I am pretty darned good at troubleshooting and problem solving when it comes to technology. I love technology, I really do, but I hate frustration and in this anecdote you’ll see how technology and frustration often go hand in hand. I have 4 Dell computers in various states of functioning. My old Inspiron 8200 was purchased in 2002 and would work properly if I decided to wipe the hard drive clean and start over again. … Continue reading →

575. Tuesday Tech Tips 101: Part 6: Ding Dong Dell, I think I’m in the well

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Dear friends- More than a week has gone by since I last wrote about my computer issues. Whenever I think things are fine, or will be, I am surprised by how much more can go wrong. Remember, I am talking about two NEW REPLACEMENT computers that had similar issues as their predecessors… Another technician came to the house on Monday the 20th to install a new pre-loaded hard drive but by this time neither computer was working and he took it upon himself to work on both. He had to reinstall the Operating System and drivers of the computer (Inspiron … Continue reading →

574. Tuesday Tech Tips 101: Part 5: Ding Dong Dell, computer’s still in the well

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Dear Friends, It is Sunday night, the 19th of February, 2012. I am continuing to write about my ding-dong-Dell journey; I thought that by now my computer life would be in order, but alas, it seems to be stuck in a technology wasteland. Let me fill you in on what happened on Friday, the 17th. I received a call in the afternoon from a Dell technician. He had received the hard drive that was to replace the one in the 14″ computer. This is the first of two that I received to replace the previous duds and it was unclear … Continue reading →

573. Tuesday Tech Tips 101: Part 4: Ding Dong Dell, computer’s still in the well

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Thursday, Feb. 16, 2012 Today is not my day. I began this blog and hit a key and the whole thing disappeared. Here we go again. I am journaling my experience for several reasons: It is too unreal; It might be a great 20 hour bedtime story for my future grandchildren; If I ever decide to jump off a roof it will be the note I leave behind. So. Let me tell you. My story continues where it left off yesterday. I have had a run of Dell laptops with bad luck. Replacements and more replacements. I finally got the … Continue reading →

572. Tuesday Tech Tips 101: Part 3: Ding Dong Dell, computer’s still in the well

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Dear friends, I last told you that the replacement computer that arrived two days ago has strange issues with the volume keys not working and making the screen jump. It is still not resolved after hours on the phone with a technician. That’s a total of four hours on the phone with tech support for a NEW computer. And more to come: now she wants to reinstall the operating system and the computer wasn’t shipped with an operating system restore disc. Now we play the waiting game and draw the saga out a bit more. The second of two replacement … Continue reading →

570. Tuesday Tech Tips 101: Part 2: Ding Dong Dell, computer’s in the well

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Dear Friends who have been following my story, I offer you an update on my incomprehensible technological journey. Here is a link to the history of my tale of woe. You may sift through the gruesome details at your leisure. Then you can scratch your head in wonder along with me. Here is an email I just wrote to Dell: Dear Lorna, I received the replacement computer for the mini yesterday: svc tag xxxxx replacement – order # xxxxx Inspiron 14 Notebook I spent 3 hours last night installing my browser, AOL, and Trend Micro. And then I noticed the … Continue reading →

569. Tuesday Tech Tips 101: Ding Dong Dell, Computer’s in the Well…

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My story about Dell is so long, so complex, so unbelievable, it is stranger than fiction. That’s why this journey has to be followed. I am going to post the links to most of my story;I have linked to past posts and brought the story up-to-date. I am doing this for me, to get a record of events in order. I don’t expect you to read it, but one never knows who will and what might happen. I twittered these blogs before and got corporate intervention, let’s see what happens now. Somewhere in my posts it says I have six … Continue reading →

568. Technology 101: On Relationships: Should I divorce Dell and date Mac?

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Friends, since the beginning of computer time over at my house, there has been a PC. Or several PC’s. And since the beginning of time I can remember having one catastrophe after another. Dell and I have had our ups and downs. It’s been a relationship filled with passion, angst, hatred, loathing, making up, relief. We have, however, never separated. I got my first Dell, a laptop in 2002, then moved on to a desktop, my work horse, in 2007. I was the first kid on the block to spring for Vista and there were months of angst and the … Continue reading →

468. Tuesday Tech Tips 101: it pays to complain: Dell Computer story continues

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For those of you who have been following my never ending story about my experiences with Dell support, I have some heartening information. (More links to old stuff) Briefly, I have six (count ’em) running Dells and one old one that I have put away. Over the years I have noticed a decline in service and quality. I’d say things were fine until about 2007 when I bought my workhorse desktop. My son’s computer, purchased on 2004 before he left for college, runs day and night and he’s never had a problem with it until recently when the e key … Continue reading →

461. Computer update…

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Computer update: I received an automated call alerting me that my new replacement computer was shipped yesterday; in about an hour Fed-Ex was at the door, good thing I didn’t go out, never expected it to arrive so fast. Gorgeous upgraded machine, albeit some parts refurbished. High gloss red, leather trim, top of the line, backlit keyboard, face recognition, upgraded battery, Studio XPS 1645. Much better speakers, higher res screen, bigger screen–now 16″. So high res that I can’t adjust it so that I can see. Everything looks minute. Ctrl+scroll mouse wheel helps on some pages. It’s funny because when … Continue reading →

460. Why I Haven’t Written Poetry In Months or…Social Security was the last straw

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In case you were wondering where all the creativity has gone, the muse has left and in its place there is an ogre that shleps along, exhausted, trying to make the world a better place. Sometimes I wish that I had become a consumer advocate. I have ongoing aggravation with Dell; I have anxiety about Toyota; I have growing disgust with the publisher I have chosen, iUniverse: after reading through tweets and following links I am finding other writers who are expressing anger and resentment toward the company which is appearing more and more inept. One wrote that she never … Continue reading →

459. A Letter to Michael Dell, Dell Computers

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Dell Headquarters 1 Dell way Round Rock Texas 78682 Att: Mr. Michael Dell March 15, 2010 Dear Mr. Dell: I have just called the telephone number associated with your corporate office in hopes of speaking to a customer service representative in America, but my call was routed as all my calls have been over the last year, to India. This reinforces my feeling that Dell prefers to be disconnected from its customer base. That’s too bad. I started purchasing Dell computers in 2002 when I chose an Inspiron 8200. In 2004, when my son went off to Brown University, I … Continue reading →

458. Is It Too Much to Ask For Things to Work? Blame It On The Computer.

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My on-going rant continues, and will be twittered and fed through Facebook. My hope is that eventually one of Dell’s people will read my blast. I’ll call this one: Who’s Minding the Store? Excuse me while I open my briefcase filled with righteous indignation and let it fly. I wonder what people who lived during the incredible time of the Industrial Revolution would think of this blog. Their lives were changed by the advent of processing and manufacturing, machines, and mass production. Long hours. Moving away from farms and into cities. The world has been spinning out of control. From … Continue reading →

457. Tuesday Tech Tips 101: When your computer needs an exorcist: No tips, another rant!

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For those of you who have been following along my technology state of affairs, you will recall that I was having the strangest of situations with my less than a year old Dell computer. I am going to Twitter this blog AGAIN in hopes that someone in the upper Dell stratosphere hears my call–which I understand might happen as corporations seem to have planted Twitter ears. So hear you have it: The computer is less than a year old; At some point in its life it became a remote test computer because Trend Micro couldn’t get its act together for … Continue reading →

456. Another Rant: Coming Up For Air

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I suppose the connotation of coming up for air is that one must have been under water first. I have been drowning in stuff, but want you to know I am still here but not functioning on all cylinders. 1. I am still editing the book. My son is almost done doing a read-through. 1a. I serendipitously met my friend’s cousin who is an author and editor. He did a quick read through and loves it, especially the graphics, illustrations and photography. he calls my project a labor of love. He is going to go over everything before I submit, … Continue reading →

377. NYC Photo Journal: A visit to Katz’s: Send a salami to your boy in the army OR I’ll have what she’s having

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After our visit to the new High Line park last week, we ended the day perfectly; got back in the car and went from the Lower West Side of Manhattan to the Lower East Side of Manhattan. This was the area where many immigrants (Jews, Irish, Italians) began their life in America. They found themselves living in cramped railroad-flat tenements with little air or light, but lots of street life. They shopped form pushcarts below, children played in the streets. When they had the money they moved “uptown” or left Manhattan for The Bronx or Brooklyn. [photos can be viewed … Continue reading →