View from the Thousand Oaks Apple Store

Not that I was a vigorous blogger last fall and winter, but the December 2012 purchase of my iPad pretty much hastened the end of my will to blog. My night time ritual, for many years, was to take my laptop into bed with me so I could surf and shop and doodle around. It was easy to blog, as I had a fully robust computer with all the software I needed, right at my fingertips.

The iPad only runs iOS which is far from robust. I thought I could make it a sort-of computer but this does generally not work well — most of the app versions of the programs I regularly use are weak, weak, weak.

Exceptions: great for videoconferencing, great for updating work database on the fly, great for being able to store (and share, if I have wifi) files and photos.

But for blogging? No. Nope. And my laptop finally fried its final fry a couple months ago. I do have a work MacBook, but it’s shared by several employees and I don’t really want to commandeer it as my personal computer.

And, though I gripe much, I think ultimately it’s a good thing I don’t take so much technology with me to bed. I do less ergo-unfriendly writing/surfing/etc-ing and more passive watching/listening.

And that’s about it. I will try to write a bit about what I’ve been up to, though the malaise of the world in general — and the blog-malaise of myself, my friends and my readers in particular — makes me move slow, so slowly. It doesn’t help that I have not been creative in a long time, nor have been doing much of interest — just taking care of Elderly Relative (boo, broken hip) and tediously getting this tedious, tedious house ready for the new owners (yay, house sold).

SPEAKING OF IPAD I took it to the Apple Store yesterday to try to have a puzzling charging question answered. What a mistake. STILL people lined up outside to get the iPhone 5S, a million anxious humans in the store, plus the bonus dude who snapped and screamed “you’re discriminating against BROWN PEOPLE!”

My trip to Thousand Oaks* (a city on the other side of the county) fortunately was less about the Apple Store** (and the non-diagnosis of the iPad problem), and more about redeeming a framing store coupon*** and to have an outing with the Boyf to Umami Burger. Best burger in the world!

* I am normally a good driver, but yesterday these things happened: backed into the side of a truck (gently), rammed into the washer and dryer (somewhat less gently), and the garage door scraped my bumper. I don’t know. I don’t know why.

** I was helped by an Apple employee with the most wonderful, most dense, Scottish accent I haven’t heard since I was in Glasgow in the 80s. Every fiber of my being wanted to acknowledge that accent, but I did not, as I am sure he gets that all day, every day. You’re welcome, Gareth.

*** I splurged on some ultra-fancy framing for a new print I acquired, as a treat to myself and my new imaginary home. Even with two high-powered coupons, it was still surreally expensive. Why are frame stores still allowed to con people? It’s a racket, plain and simple. But OMG this print is gonna look good!