Truth, Justice, and All That Is Pre-Shrunk & Cottony….

Day off today. So, I went to Worst Buy. Perusing the Blu-Ray aisle, I decided upon a suerhero movie. Didn’t go for the Marvel Comics Universe stuff. Nor did I go for that DC Comics crap. No, I got a superhero movie that all can enjoy: Captain Underpants.

So, about last week…

So, if you may remember the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update came out last week, and I went to try it. Used the Media Creation tool to download and configured a USB drive. I even made sure I had my hardware drivers on it, so I could be ready to go from the start. And then I decided to do a clean install. So, I nuked my perfectly working Windows 8.1 install, and then installed it. And it turns out that I had downloaded the previous version (the Spring Creators Update).  So, I did what any responsible computer owner would do (besides redownload the update): I nuked the computer again, this time going with Windows 7. Tonight, I’ve just brought my computer back to the way it was when I last nuked it…

Though, I’m going to miss the spell-checker in Open Live Writer.

BTW, I haven’t even touched my laptop, yet.

Drat!

Just when I get moved into Windows 8.1, and I get it configured into something I like, Microsoft goes and releases the Fall Creators Update for Windows 10. All this work on my past two days off is going down the tube because I have to try it…

Better get started, I have a couple of hours before I go to bed, and I have my laptop to update, too…

Got called into personnel recently…

So, last Friday, I was minding my own business at work. I go to clock in, and I’m greeted by a message to see personnel regarding my future employment. It turns out that I was hired as a part-time employee, but I had been scheduled for (and working) a fulltime schedule. So, they offered fulltime. Yes, please, and thank you….

Long story short: I’m full-time again. Right at the start of my company’s open enrollment period, too.

It’s a day off today….

Got home late last night. Went to bed. And then woke up 4 hours later coughing up a fit. Yes, it’s my day off, and I had plans. And I got sick. Hopefully I’ll be over it by the time I have to return to work (I’m still new to the job, and I haven’t accrued any sick time yet). But this means no Taco Tuesday today, and no visit with Dad.

Today (and probably tomorrow), the order of the day is to stay home, and drink some tea. BTW, work on the computer, too….

Ok, so a couple of weeks ago…

I decided to go with Windows 8.1 a couple of weeks ago. Ok, pulled out the system restore DVD set and set about restoring my system (it came with Windows 8.1). Then came time to set it up. Right out of the box, Windows 8.1 normally sets up your Microsoft account, but in this case it didn’t. Ok, so I set up a local account, then fired up the laptop and googled it. And it turns out that it was a Windows Update patch that went terribly wrong. Microsoft was blaming this on the September Cumulative Update, but my computer was having issues without that update (I think it was Microsoft’s server). After about a week, I went with Windows 10 on my tower until Patch Tuesday this week, when I saw that this matter had been addressed.

And after installing Windows 8.1 (and patching it), I can see that the Microsoft Account issue with Windows 8.1 issues have been addressed. And I’ve also properly sized my hard drive partitions for a Linux installation, down the road….

Another day off today….

My laundry is currently in the wash. The football game is on the TV. I did a little bit of bicycle maintenance today. Nothing big, just lowered my seat & the cargo rack. And I tightened the seat. Also went up to Mrs Fields, and bought the owner a slice of pizza. Bought a pair of headphones from Worst Buy for my phone, only to realize that my existing headphones already have the feature that I was looking for….

Oh, and I wiped my tower for Windows 8.1 this time….

Finally…

HR at my previous job had me spoiled rotten. A fixed schedule. Even more so during football season since it meant that I had Sunday and Monday off, so I can watch the games. And then I was let go. I’ve since found work, but here at the new employer, it’s pretty much up to the fates as to when my days off are. And so far, I’ve been working Thursday through Monday. So, I’m missing every game so far.

And then this week came. I was scheduled for Monday Night off. So I can watch a Football game. And a Star Wars trailer, too (spoiler alert: Luke Skywalker still gets recruited by the Star League to defend the Frontier from Xur and the Ko-Dan Armada…).

BTW, it looks like I’ll be able to catch the Thursday night game, too….

Maintenance, Maintenance, Maintenance….

About a month ago, I noticed that one of my Yahoo! accounts was having password issues in Thunderbird. Due to security issues, I use a unique password for each login, so I generated a new password, and that was the end of it. However, that login was on my Tower, and the Mozilla Thunderbird profile in my laptop was a copy of it, and it was going to have the same issue (not really that big of a problem since the laptop runs Windows 10, and Windows 10 mail supports Yahoo!’s latest 2 factor authentication.

Tonight, when it came to install Thunderbird and Firefox in the Tower (as part of the rebuild I started Monday night), I took a few minutes and rebuilt all of my accounts in Thunderbird, and then recopied that profile into my laptop.

And for some reason Worst Buy keeps wanting me to reset my password. Their new password requirement are extremely onerous, and as soon as I get my passwords set on the tower & and I go to update the logins on my laptop, I have to reset my password again. I guess I should think twice before I shop there again…..

A couple of tricks here and there…

My very first tower (the Gateway PIII 866mHz running Windows ME) came with Microsoft Works Suite 2001. The computer eventually went to The Beer Volcano & Stripper Factory, but I held on to the Works Suite. And also right after I upgraded to Windows XP, I also got Encarta Reference Library 2002, Picture It! Platinum 2002, Money 2002, and Streets and Trips 2002. And I held on to the CD’s when the computer failed.

So, last week, I wiped my tower. I was trying to go with Windows 8.1, but Microsoft screwed it to the point that I couldn’t even sign into my Microsoft account. So yesterday, I went with Windows 10. And I realized that while even Microsoft says that these programs aren’t compatible with Window's 10, I had never tried it myself. So I started plugging the CD’s in. I got the programs installed, and with judicial application with compatibility mode, I got them to work. I’m not going to use them, since they’ve been obsolete for over 10 years, but I can get them to work….

Saw dad yesterday….

Well, in addition to it being Taco Tuesday yesterday, I also went to my sisters to visit Dad. He’s still improving. His mind is still there. He’s regaining the control of his right side (when I saw him in the hospital, he was eating with his left hand). I think the longest lasting effect from his stroke will be his speech. I can see this from his use of circumlocution. But you’re not going to get it back if you don’t use it, I guess I can help him by just conversing with him.

Rehabbing from a stroke is very hard work. And I can see the effort he has put into it to come this far. I will never call my dad lazy again (although to be honest, I never did to begin with)….

Does it really matter?

There was a shooting in Las Vegas Sunday night. My only comment on that is that I will not comment on it. Other than to say violence in all forms is evil. It doesn’t matter if your pro-gun, anti-gun, democrat, republican, white, black, yellow, red, or even purple. Your life matters. Everybody’s life matters. Tell those around you that you love them tonight before it’s too late…

iPhone 8 is out…

Normally I wouldn’t write about this, but the new iPhone 8 is now out. And the iPhone X will be out in a couple of months. And my brother (the iPhone user in the house) was up for renewal on his lease. He chose the iPhone 8. He has his reasons, and so I ordered it. Arrived Friday, but due to work schedules, I couldn’t activate it until yesterday. And today I dropped the old one off at the Sprint store so the UPS man could pick it up (as I wrote about yesterday UPS isn’t the most reliable at my apartment)….

So my brother has a new iPhone. Since this was simply replacing the previous one, I don’t have to take his Man-Card…

My new ride home….

Got a new bicycle last week. Unlike the first one, this one actually works. Assembly was pretty straightforward. Took it work Saturday, and rode it home that night. Where I normally don’t get home till after 2 am, I was home by 1 am. But there was a drawback. I’m even more out of shape than I thought I was. And my legs were Jello. So Sunday night, I left the bike at home and walked. And then I realized that that’s the last time I was walking.

So occasionally I still get winded, and there are stretches were I can’t pedal (I really don’t like inclines). In those cases, I’ll just get off my bike and walk it. And when I catch my breath again and/or I reach the top of the hill, I’ll get back on it…

On the NFL protests….

Before someone else goes on about ‘respect for the flag’, think of this. It is only a flag. It represents values and freedom. And can think of no greater respect for those values and freedom by non-violently protesting your cause. Seriously, most of those up in arms about the players taking knees and/or sitting down during the national anthem are probably the ones who were buying beer and/or using the can during the nation anthem itself.

Think about it, without protest we wouldn’t have most civil rights legislation. India wouldn’t be independent. And quite frankly, we wouldn’t have an America either. They have a right to protest. Just as you, too.

America has become so divisive of late. Every Monday, I used to be able to discuss the previous days’ football games. Now, I won’t mention them in accordance with my pledge to keep work non-partisan. America is too divided, and I can no longer enjoy football…

He gets out tomorrow….

My father has spent the past 4 weeks in the hospital. First in Madigan, then in Good Sam in Puyallup with a stroke (possibly two). For those of you who are following such things, it was his left posterior cerebral artery. Could’ve been worse, but this was still a major stroke.  There are still long lasting effects (namely aphasia, and difficulty counting money), but he has come a long way. He can now walk without a walker. He can go up and down stairs. Even there is aphasia, he can still talk, and his snarkiness is still there.

For safety reasons, he’ll need to be supervised 24/7 so he’ll be staying at my younger sisters for now. When the time is right, he’ll go back home to Grandma.

Things may never be the same again, but they’ll be alright.

So, it’s been awhile….

So, it’s been awhile since I used the laptop. I can tell that. It took over four hours to bring it up to date. First there was the Windows Update. There was at least one big update that didn’t get installed the last time I used it. And then there were the usual various and sundry other updates that needed to be installed. Then there were the Microsoft Store apps that were installed. And while those were running, I had to update Firefox (and the extensions, too). And then Steam and Origin (actually those were more mainly installing the two games that I had purchased since I last turned it on)….

But it’s all good. The laptop is up-to-date…

Fired up the laptop today

So today I came down with another flare-up of my chronic operating system wanderlust. So after backing everything up yesterday (backing up my Steam gashes took the longest), I pulled out my Windows 8.1 📀 set and started to wipe my tower.

But while I'm doing this, I still have a working computer. I haven't touched it in a while, but my laptop still works. So, I've pulled out of and turned it on. Though I'm worrying this from my phone since it needs to install two months' worth of updates first...

Don’t ship Brown!

Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve ordered a few items from Worst Buy. Nothing really big. Just a couple of pairs of headphones and a watch. Ordered them online. And they were promptly shipped. That’s where my problems began. They were shipped via UPS. Normally when I’m not home, they leave a notice, and I can sign it, and they leave on my doorstep the next day. I’ve never had a package stolen (I trust my neighbors). But these last three shipments were not the case. There was just a simple notive on my door that they were being delivered to the UPS access point. After the first two items were delivered there (two different orders showed up on the same day), I went to pick them up. Big mistake. They require photo ID. My ID (Washington State ID card) was apparently not accepted. There was another option to use an SMS to verify my phone number. Nope. So I left without my packages. I had to go to work the next day, and due to bus routes and my work schedule, nothing could be done until today….

And there was a third order that was shipped brown. It was supposed to be delivered today. It was my day off. I decided to stay home today and wait for it. I could’ve gone to the hospital and visited my father today, but I decided to wait. I waited. And in the afternoon, I noticed that another notice had been left on my door. The driver never knocked! I did sign up for UPS MyChoice, and there was an option to reschedule delivery for $8.00 per package! I guess that’s why the driver didn’t bother knocking. UPS is trying to double-dip and collect on shipping from both ends. I contacted UPS, and after the standard we can reship it/we can return it hollow non-apology response, I told them to return all three items, and I’ll just eat my losses. They did offer to schedule a redelivery free of charge, but the trust is gone. I’ve also let Best Buy know what is going on. Perhaps their legal team will be more vigorous in recovering shipping losses than UPS is in bothering to deliver them.

I spent about $75.00 on these three items, and I didn’t get them. And I really don’t know if I’ll get my money back. UPS not only owes me an apology, but they also owe one to Best Buy. But we both know that’s not going to happen. Had UPS actually given a shit to begin with, I’d have my items. Instead, I have excuses, empty promises, and pretend apologies from incomptent clods who never really cared to begin with.

Just don’t ship brown people. UPS just doesn’t care.

So sometime last year….

So apparently sometime last year, I had set the X1 box to record Monday Night Football. Which it still did. Sunday, I set up a recording for the Monday Night game, knowing I would be at work. And today, being my day off, I went to watch the game, and realized that I had last week’s doubleheader recorded, too.

So I guess, I have three football games to watch today…