HP, You are so Fired!

Sometimes loyalty does not pay off.

A year ago, we needed to buy a new laptop.  Mine conked out after 3 years of service and Heikki's did as well.  We decided that since we have been using HP, we should stick to the brand and buy a newer model.

When we were buying we were thinking whether we should buy a lower end version (which costed around 500e) or a mid-range one (with an estimate cost of 800e).  We bought the more expensive one because we thought it would last longer.

Since we were barely using the laptop, we didn't want to buy anything fancy.  We use the laptop to surf, check our emails and sometimes work on it.  I say sometimes because I actually prefer walking to school and using the computers there when I need to write a paper.  (I don't know why but working in school makes me work faster.)

Lately, I have not even been using the laptop to surf. I have been using my phone. It has been just as efficient.

Anyway, a few months back our "new laptop" broke down.  It went kaput.  The warranty covered the repairs. Unfortunately, with the repair all the files disappeared.  It was no biggie since we had a back-up.

I thought we would not need to worry about this laptop for a while but I was wrong!  Today, the laptop is still working but it is physically broken. I figure it won't take long before it officially says goodbye.

Argh.  I am so annoyed.  H was actually suggesting we buy a Mac but we resisted because of all the reasons we said above.  We do not use the laptop so often so why buy one which is more expensive? Sure it has a lot of cool features (or so they say) but would we even know those features? Seriously, we are  illiterate with all the iStuff.

However, given the recent developments, I am very tempted to just buy an iLaptop (whatever the term is).  Since I have no time to really research on quality vs price vs whatever, I just have to go with the herd and moo with them.

Gah! I hate you HP! You're fired.

Scandi Crime

I have been reading a lot of Scandinavian crime fiction lately.

I like the melancholy, quietness and slowness of the books. The books feel very Finnish, which is of course no surprise although technically Finland is not part of Scandinavia.  Ah, semantics.

The need to read slow and quiet books also bring me to my next point: I do not like spring as much as I like fall. Shoot me.  

Photo Source: http://kimbofo.typepad.com/readingmatters/2009/05/the-preacher-by-camilla-l%C3%A4ckberg.html

Nice, Slow and Tea

I blogged a couple of months back that I have been cutting off coffee from my diet slowly and surely. At of this writing, I have only been needing one cup a day.  Whenever I try to drink the second, my body rejects it.  I think my "slow and sure strategy" has worked.  

It is nice not to rush things especially when personal development is concerned.  I think being in Finland has taught me that.  Life here is not as rushed as in Manila. I think it is in the Finnish nature to be more patient and deliberate.  I imbibed some of that attitude.  There is no need to be an "overnight success." Things can take their time and it is okay to be "slow" sometimes. Of course, some situations require fast action but some things can and must take their time.

I have also been eating healthier. I have less and less desire to eat chips, candies and junk.  This change in diet cravings took years to cultivate.  I eat the occasional chip every now and then but I find eating it more disgusting than ever.  Like the coffee change, this change came slowly. The change took its time.  Actually, it is still taking time.

Also, I have been drinking a lot of tea lately.  I have chosen to replace my need for warm drinks with tea. Sometimes I drink green tea but mostly I have gone for decaf kinds.  There are loads of good tea flavors out there.  It is fun to buy and try them out.

Tea has actually an indescribable "comfort factor."  I have blogged cryptically that I am going through some health issues and one of the things I have been doing to make me feel better is keeping myself warm via tea.  Tea with the right amount of flavor and warmth makes a bleak day seem happier (albeit temporarily). 

Photo Source: http://besttocoffeeteabook.blogspot.com/2012/03/tea-for-you-blending-custom-teas-to.html

Distractions

Disclaimer: This post will be vague.

It has been a horribly absurd couple of weeks.  I have been sick. I have been in pain.  I have been in the hospital many times.

I cannot wait for this experience to be over.

I have been thankful for little distractions though. For example, I have become a huge fan of Filipino-Mexican American Idol contestant, Jessica Sanchez.  Stalking her online has taken many hours from my brain.  I have been thankful for that.

I have also been buying stuff for my DVD collection. I bought season 1 of  Glee. This show is probably the cheesiest, campiest show I have seen in a while. It's perfect.

Re-doing the interior design of our tiny flat has also been helpful. "Creative ideas" are vomited by my brain and I become excited.

Books, particularly crime fiction, has helped. Senseless magazines about fashion has been good. Both these reading materials I picked because they don't require too much investment brain-wise.  You can be numb and still understand what is going on. 

Distractions have been good.

I just pray that one day soon, I won't need any more of them.

Watch? No. Move!

The holidays allowed me to catch up on the movies I have read so much about but have not had the chance to see - Smurfs, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Hangover 2 and My Week with Marilyn (which I saw on an advance screening).

I miss watching movies.

I have not been watching much movies because I need to be careful what I do with Bibi. I do not want her to grow up needing to watch TV a lot.  I would rather she reads books or play.  Basing on her behavior, she seems to be enjoying both more.

Of course, I am not a purist either.  I do turn on the TV sometimes. But I turn it off when she starts begging for attention.  I do not want her to see that TV is an important part of my life.

Hmm. But I do have to admit now that I really miss watching movies. Maybe it is a holiday thing. Holidays are supposed to be for pigging out in front of the TV! However, this holiday season has been not like that for me. In fact, my body is so tired from walking and exercising too much over the last week.  I should have known this when I married an athlete!

Oh humbug.

Thirty and One

I am 31.

I feel that my 30th year has been a year of growth.  I believe I have improved as a person.  I have realized what I should prioritize and what I should put on the "later" list.

On the later list is my career.  I have not been working because we chose as a family that I stay at home to nurture our kid.  I thought I would go crazy at home. At times, I was.  However, I have relishing being at home.

I am still going to school though.  Studying, learning and anything related to making my brain function is something I have given top priority to.  I want to grow and to continue learning (whether formally or informally).

I guess what I learned last year is to not hurry.  I have been living Ecclesiastes 2's lessons.  There is a season for everything and 30 was a season to realize that everything has a season. In this freakishly fluid, fast and push-yourself-to-the-limit world, I think realizing that was a feat.

Now, the main question is, what will 31 bring?

See you next year for the answer. :)

Correction: I meant Ecclesiastes 3 not 2 though chapter 2 is also a very good one.  That book has been a very good read lately.  :-)

Like Not

Has social media made us careless?

I read a blog recently where a Filipino grade school computer teacher in A PRIVATE SCHOOL asked her students to open a Facebook account.  The reason? So they can "like" her daughter in a very local, small and totally not worth her job beauty pageant.

This is just one of the many reasons why I am starting to dislike Facebook, Twitter and other micro-blogging sites more and more. We, and yes I include myself, tend to abuse the platform given us every now and then. We also easily let go of ourselves online.  Sometimes, we create a different online alter-ego on the internet.

For example, some people tend to blabber away online but clam up offline. What is up with that?

One good measure I use whenever I want to posting something on Facebook or on this blog is whether a certain post is a good representation of what I really believe in.  What I mean is, if I post something inflammatory against, say, the marshals of Planet Venus, would I be able to hold up to that opinion no matter what? Am I willing to be ridiculed, judged or sued for that opinion?

Sometimes, we tend to just go with the flow without really understanding where the flow is headed.

Anyway, the here is the original blog post.  As an aside, I condone the assignment the teacher gave, though I think she should not be fired.  Suspended, perhaps?  May do her well to hide from her colleagues and re-assess herself for a while.