So, Dad introduced me to Pandora, and I'm in love. (And isn't it sad that it's my father who's introducing me to new tech?) I mean, the channels I've set up so far are very repetitive within the channel, but I think I know what to do to broaden them some. We'll see.

Also, I just realized that weekend I'd been intending to spend doing the jd_ficathon match-ups is the same weekend I'll be helping move my bro into his dorm. *facepalm* Move-in is on Saturday, but we may not drive home until Sunday morning. I edited the existing info to say that the assignments will be going out either 31 Aug or 1 Sept, which means that, if I don't have time to do the match-ups over the weekend, I'll have Monday night and Tuesday to finish. And if I'm working those days? Heh, I'm fucked. :(

Is there some system (a client, maybe?) that would enable me to simultaneously post to LJ and DW? I know they have an import thing (which seems to dislike me) but once I'm caught up I'd love some way to post to both places at the same time, rather than having to do a post in each place. Thoughts?

(I still need a "Mel Hates Technology" icon...)

So, of course, I got back from the ultrasound (talk about that later), decided I'd lay down for an hour-and-a-half nap...and slept for seven hours. Shit fuck and damn it all to hell.

In unrelated news, we've got someone coming to see the place in about 15 minutes. I'm planning to camp out in my room and pretend I have a cold. S's behind this plan. :)

In equally unrelated news, I now have a Dreamwidth account. I'm probably going to back up this journal (and the writing one) over there, and set up cross-posting eventually, but I don't intend to leave LJ unless the majority of the fan community heads that way.

(For those not in the know, Dreamwidth is another journaling service, currently in closed beta, that is based on the LJ model but is hopefully going to be run with a little more sense. I know it's a lot of fannish people right now, but the plan is to be a general service, not just the fan community. They have more info on their site; I jumped in kind of late.)

New hard drive has been purchased and installed, so I get to spend yet more time reconstructing my computer, but at least it works now.

However, the new hard drive is about 7 times bigger than the old one, so everything's running really slowly. I might have to invest in more RAM. Ugh.

Recipes tomorrow.

Spent much of the day cooking (there will be recipes up tomorrow), but I did manage to get a little writing in. Tomorrow Dad and I are going to the nearest computer store (that's left...) and asking some questions, but we're probably going to be coming home with a new hard drive for my poor laptop. It seems like portions of it are corrupted, which is why Windows keeps crashing or "shutting down to prevent damage". Bleh.



I'm so behind...*cries*

When Dad put Microsoft Office back on my computer (after the slash and burn of last weekend), I didn't realize that he used the Microsoft Office Small Business 2007 version. I hadn't used it before now, and now I want to rip my hair out.

I am notorious for not liking upgrades of software that I am used to using. Despite the fact that I have Vista Home (Basic), to look at my computer you would think I was running '98 (I've done this since I was forcibly "upgraded" to XP). I was perfectly happy with the version of Office (I think it's 2003...) that I was running before the slash and burn.

I do not have the energy to completely relearn my goddamned word processor. I want to be able to type. In Times New Roman 12 pt font. No extra lines between paragraphs, no cutesy bouncing icons telling me that I have typos, no having to search for five minutes to figure out how to change some of these things and not being able to figure out how to change others.

Call me a troglodyte. Call me low-tech. Call me anti-Mac (because we all know that everyone wants to look like the fucking Mac interface). I just want my old programs back.

(And to not have to replace my hard drive [almost certainly] or my entire computer [distinct possibility]. Do Not Want.)

So, today I start the Brand New Volunteer Job at Dad's library (yay, nepotism), which is basically just an excuse to get me out of the house and doing something until I feel confident that I can go to a paying job on a regular basis, and then can get said paying job. I'm not sure what I'm going to be doing (the part of the library Dad works in is a special collection of an already specialized library, so it's not like I'm going to just be a public library page or something), but he's said that there are three people he's going to tell that I'm available to be put to work, "and then they can fight over you". So I guess there's something useful I can do?

Mathematically, most of my programs have been reinstalled. However, I've saved the hard ones for last. I'm installing iTunes right now (rather, it's installed, but now I'm syncing it to my music library), but I'm going to be a chicken and wait until tonight to see what happens when I plug in the iPod. Anyone know if it will recognize this as the computer it knows, or if I'll have to reassign it?

(I'm also waiting to install WoW until I have a lot of time to devote to it. I'm not looking forward to that one; I know it takes for-bloody-ever.)

Think tummy is sufficiently awake now that I can grab a bowl of cereal. And then I get to brush my teeth sans running water. Joy. Good news is that the plumber is supposed to arrive today between 8a and 10a. The bad news is that Landlady is going to be the one here to deal with him. Other bad news is that I suspect he's going to cut up our ceiling to get to the damaged pipe(s), rather than go through the hardwood upstairs. I don't like having holes in my walls/ceilings. *sigh* Whoever ran the original pipes in this place was an idiot (the house isn't that old, and two major pipe bursts in six months is a very bad sign).

Alright, clothes, then brekkie, then creative toothbrushing, then train for 45 minutes (at least the website is actually listing delays, for once). 9-to-5, here we go!

- lost my job
- had the production of A Memory, a Monologue, a Rant, and a Prayer
- gotten a new job (sort of; it's volunteering rather than paid)
- started a new medication
- had to restore my computer to system defaults, and now have to rebuild from the ground up (though I was able to save my non-program files)
- had another leak occur at my apartment, so we currently have the water off

Why can't my life be boring?

(I would use the "unafraid of the future" icon, but I'm terrified.)

For once, I actually accomplished almost everything I set out to do today. No cooking, but today's actor and are actually friends, so we rehearsed for like half an hour and then went out for dinner and an extended bookstore romp. It was fun. I was reminded of all the books I would like to own if I had the money to buy them. *sad face*

Also, I just finished watching the original Brotherhood 2.0 (2007, the first year they did it). It was really, really awesome. theemdash, you were totally right.

I still don't have an answer to my desktops and icons folders question, which saddens me. I had been planning on uploading some new icons, but now they are all gone. *very sad face*

There is a distinct disadvantage to living in a basement. It is the eight-legged horrors I occasionally share it with. I'm not phobic about creepy-crawlies or anything, but it is not cool to suddenly turn around to find a spider the size of a nickel sitting between you and...well, getting off your chair. I definitely said "Ack! Spider!" before leaping from chair to bed (bypassing spider) so I could get a tissue and destroy the arachnid menace between me and food, bathroom, etc.

Admittedly, centipedes are a million gazillion times worse. There's just something wrong about the way they move. *shudders*

In unrelated news, let us play Stump the Geek:

I attempted to move My Pictures from my C: drive to F:, an external harddrive. When I did so, the first subfolder and its contents in My Pictures disappeared into the aether. Foolishly, I attempted to move My Pictures back from F: to C:, and the second subfolder (which had become the first subfolder) disappeared as well. Any idea where they went? (I searched C:, F:, and G:, another external, with no success.) Is it possible to get them back?

(I already asked ibneko, who is my go-to neko for most tech questions, and he didn't know. I am terrified by this turn of events.)

( tl;dr, but slowly getting shorter )