Category: Computer

If It Isn’t One Thing, It’s Another

On By Michel McDonaldIn ComputerLeave a comment

So I bought a new video card this month and even though it started out bad, I found a solution to keep it turned on and working right.  As long as I didn’t turn the computer off completely but instead put it to sleep when I’m not using it then all would be ok.

We got a notice on the door from PG&E on Wednesday that our electricity would be shut off Friday for an unspecified amount of time.  Well, I knew that this would cause my computer to turn off all the way.  When I got my computer to work before it didn’t take more than a few minutes for it to turn on so I never thought in a million years that it would be a huge issue for my computer to be without power even for a few hours.

Our power got shut off as I was expecting but when it finally came back on, my computer didn’t want to turn back on.  It eventually did come on but it said something about the CMOS.  I was given 2 choices.  F1 to enter the setup or F2 to choose optimal settings.  I chose F1 and in there I chose optimal settings and it turned on and went into Windows just fine.  It all got frozen so I rebooted.  I didn’t have any rebooting issues before so I didn’t think anything of it.

When it turned back on I got another blank screen.  Nothing was happening and I was back at square 1.  Dammit!  Why did I have to reboot?  Well, I’m glad I did because it told me that I wasn’t finished, also, I shouldn’t live in fear of turning my computer off.  That’s certainly no way to live.  So I opened the side panel and clear the CMOS (pulling the jumper from 1-2, putting it on 2-3 waiting 5 seconds then putting it back on 1-2).

Turned the computer back on and nothing.  Eventually it did show me the same issue and I chose F2 and for some reason it did start to load but then it rebooted.  I got the screen you see when you first turn the computer on but then the monitor went dead again and it never turned on again.

I’ve opened the case, reseated everything.  Pulled all the power supply plugs then put them all back in their place and turned it on and still nothing.  The only light that turns on is the green light.  At one point the red light would flash 3 times in a row then pause then 3 times over and over.  Then another point it would flash 2 then pause then 1 then pause then 2 then 1 etc.  Then no lights flashing at all.  I don’t understand.

I opened it up again and with my bicycle light I inspected everything and I did find this little issue which would explain why I wasn’t hearing any beeping sounds.

The red wire on my speaker wasn’t connected.  I tried soldering it back on but it still doesn’t beep.  Although, I’m not exactly sure I did it right.  They are inexpensive and I tried to buy another one at the computer store and they looked at me like I was an alien from outer space when I asked for it.  I went to Radio Shack next door and the guy I asked said they didn’t sell those.

I was looking at the video card box and it shows the system requirements on the side of the box.  One of those requirements is power supply and it shows a link to the list of power supplies that are compatible and my new power supply isn’t anywhere on that list.  Probably because it was the cheapest power supply they sold.

The reason I bought a cheap power supply is because I didn’t even think that it would affect any of the hardware.  I always thought that as long as it gave power to the computer that it didn’t matter how cheap it was.  How wrong was I!  So, now I have to buy a new power supply and it could cost me as much as $100-$250.  I am too poor to spend $250 just for a power supply so I have to go through the list on the Best Buy website to get prices so I know I’m getting a good power supply but in the $100 range.

I looked at websites like NewEgg.com and TigerDirect.com and they did have a couple that were on the list but what if I did order one and I had to wait a week for it to come and it still didn’t work?  I’d have to send it back, buy another one, wait another week.  Forget it!

I was looking at the Best Buy website last night and I narrowed down my search to the $50-$99 price range then looked at all of the power supplies they sell and compared them to the list and the least expensive one on the list is the Cooler Master GX 650 for $99.  It’s a bit expensive but considering I wouldn’t have to wait for it to come to me in the mail I’m willing to pay for the convenience of getting my computer working immediately.

It took a week for my video card to arrive and even though it wasn’t too late to send it back, once I got it working and cut the proof of purchase off the box to send the rebate in, it was too late to send it back.  I would much rather buy something in a store so I can return it for a new one of it doesn’t work right.  I should have done that with my video card, then again I still have a crappy power supply so now I know why my video card doesn’t work.

Unfortunately I won’t be able to do this until next week when I get my next check because I am so broke right now.  But I really don’t need to have my computer right away so it can wait.  As long as I have my Chromebook I’m fine.  I can spend my week reading books like I did before I got my new video card.  It’s not a huge crisis but still, I want my computer to work.

Solution To My Video Card Issues

On By Michel McDonaldIn Computer2 Comments

I got my new video card yesterday and was freaking out about how it doesn’t turn on right away.  I was afraid that I would be stuck with it because I had already cut off the proof of purchase from the box to send in to get my $15 rebate.

Last night when I went to bed, instead of turning it off I just put it in sleep mode.  At least if it’s in sleep mode the whole night I can see in the morning if it wakes up fast, slow or at all.  Well, it woke up fast so I don’t have to freak out that my computer isn’t coming back on.  I’ve heard that it’s better for your computer if you put it in sleep mode rather than turning it off so this is what I will have to do from now on.  When I reboot the computer, it comes on right away, it’s just when I turn it off completely that it doesn’t seem to want to come back on for a few minutes.

Also, I learned that when I have Lord of the Rings Online loaded without my TV cloned it runs perfectly fine.  It’s when my TV is cloned that I have issues where the screen resolution changes from 1280×768 down to 848×480.  When I have the tv extended so it’s the tv on the left and monitor on the right and I try to load LOTRO, nothing happens.  The game doesn’t even try to load.  When the tv is extended so it’s the tv on the right still, nothing happens.  So, I guess I can never use the tv to play my game.  I think if I had a secondary monitor it might work but I don’t have one so I will never find out.

Another thing that I learned is that I have a program on my computer called Boxee.  I guess I forgot about that.  I can clone my tv with the computer and watch Boxee on my tv.  Boxee is very similar to the Roku box, it has all the same apps, give or take, and the software is free for my computer.  So, that’s awesome.

I don’t have to worry about returning my card or feeling like I’m stuck with it anymore because I have made it work for me.  As long as I never turn it off, with the exception of the occasional reboot that is, then I am fine.  Just put it to sleep when I’m not using it and it turns on just as quick as my Chromebook comes on.  So that’s actually even better that I don’t have to wait but a few seconds to start working on my computer.

YAY ME!

My New Video Card Arrived

On By Michel McDonaldIn Computer2 Comments

Last month the video card in my computer went bad.  I started getting the blue screen of death (BSOD) saying the issue was video hardware.  I had no money to buy a new video card so I had to wait until August when I got some money to buy a new one.

I finally got the money and bought a new video card and HDMI cable (pictured above).  It has taken 7 days from the day that I bought it until the day it arrived.  It was supposed to come this Friday but luckily it came today.

I immediately install the darn thing and plug everything back in and turn it on.  Nothing.  I don’t understand why it’s not turning on so my instinct is that I must have installed it improperly so I unplugged everything, opened it up and looked to see that it was properly seated into the motherboard, which it was.  I plugged everything back in, turn it on and still nothing.

I stood there with my hands on my head thinking “oh crap, this card is incompatible with my motherboard and I have to return it.  I’m going to have to bring it to the computer store and pay $60 to have them diagnose the problem and buy another video card.  But I don’t have any more money to do that, what am I going to do?”  Then suddenly it turned on.  At this point I’m very happy but confused at the same time.  I don’t understand what happened, why it won’t turn on.

Since I bought an HDMI cable for it, which by the way wasn’t long enough.  I mean it’s just long enough but it is more visible behind the tv than I thought it would be.  I thought it would be long enough that it would be laying down on the floor but it’s not.  But I had it plugged in and cloned on the tv.  I loaded Lord of the Rings Online and the resolution on my desktop shrunk down for some odd reason.  I didn’t turn the tv to HDMI 1 to find out what it looked like there but that doesn’t matter as much as it matters how it is on my monitor.

I shut the computer down because I really didn’t have anything else to do on it for the night and I figured since it is starting up normal now it’d be ok.  I rebooted a couple of times and it started up right away.  No problem.

Problem!  I went to the store and came back with a receipt which has to be entered into the Microsoft Money program.  I turned the computer back on and it won’t turn on.  It wasn’t like before where it was only a minute or 2.  It was 5 minutes before it even turned on.  Again, I’m thinking “CRAP!  What am I going to do now?”.  Then it turned on…

So I’m not sure what I have to do now.  Should I leave it on 24/7 with the occasional reboots to refresh everything?  Should I try sleep mode then in 20 minutes try to turn it back on to see if it works?  Should I throw the tower out the window?  At this point I have no more money to spend and I have already cut the proof of purchase off the box because I have to send that in to receive my $15 rebate gift card.  So, I can’t return it at all.  I screwed that up for myself.  All I can do is just deal with it I guess.

Just when you think it’s all good it turns out to be crap.  I guess I have to live with a slow booting computer.  It really sucks that I couldn’t just afford to buy a brand new computer instead.  Oh well, not much I can do about it now, I have to live with it.

I Bought My Video Card

On By Michel McDonaldIn Computer6 Comments

 

Today is an awesome day because I was finally able to buy my new video card.  I was going to buy it from Tiger Direct but bought it from Amazon instead because of the free shipping.  I was going to buy a cheaper card from Tiger but I went with this one because I’d rather pay a few dollars more and get a better quality video card that might last.

This video card is Sapphire Radeon HD4650 1 GB DDR2 VGA/DVI/HDMI PCI-Express Video Card 100254HDMI and it was $46.99 (from $82, saving me $35.01) with free shipping.  What I didn’t realize when I bought it was that it has a $15 rebate which I am trying to get now online.  I filled out the forms but it brings me to the final page which I have to print but if I can’t turn on my desktop then I can’t print anything so it will have to wait until I get the video card.  They need me to send them a copy of my receipt anyway to prove that I actually bought the video card.  But once I get the rebate (in 2 months time) the video card will have only cost me $31.99 so that’s actually not too bad.  I mean, I have to wait a long time and when I do get it I’ll get a debit card instead of a check but that’s ok I guess.

I chose free shipping which means it will take longer for my order to get to me, the email said that it would take 6-8 days, my estimate delivery dates are August 9th – 13th 2011 so it will be awhile.  The rebate offer is for if I bought the card between 7/18 – 8/15 so I should get it in time to be able to print it out and send it in.

I also bought a 6 foot HDMI cable so that I can hook up my computer to my HDTV.  That way I can watch my web shows on TV full screen the way they were meant to be seen.  Heck, I can even play my game using the TV.  Not that I would but I have the option now.  The HDMI cable was only $5.50.  The reason I wanted to buy it with my order is because if I had bought this from Sears or any other place, I would’ve paid $20-$40 easily.  This  cable even had free shipping with orders $25 and over and since my order was over $25, everything was free to ship.

So, I am very happy about my purchase.  I wanted to stay loyal to Tiger but I also need to get what I need at the price I can afford and not spend that money on shipping fees.  See, I could have paid $29.99 for a video card then $8 to ship it to me.  What would be the point in spending that much money to ship it when I could spend that $8 on a better video card?

I could have gone to the computer store here in town on my bicycle but they are really expensive there.  We bought Darrin a new video card a few months ago and his only has 256mb of DDR memory (not DDR2) and his is an AGP video card.  His was $49.  That was a few months ago.  If a 256 DDR AGP video card is $50 then how much would a 1GB DDR2 PCIe card cost?  Probably $80 or more.  So that’s why I wanted to buy it online.  I’d rather wait a week for it to arrive than have to overspend getting the same or less quality.

The video card that is still in my desktop cost me over $100 from that same computer store.  In fact, I believe it was $125.  That was a Gigabyte Technologies GeForce 7600GS 512MB DDR2 PCIe Dual Link DVI HDTV.  I looked that up online and if I were to buy a new one it would cost $113 but the website I found it on has discontinued it so I can’t even buy a replacement (from that particular site).  I wouldn’t want to though because that dual link DVI thing bugged me every time I booted.  It would tell me it didn’t detect another video card or the dual link or whatever.  Every time I booted…  I didn’t have a 2nd card so naturally it didn’t detect anything.  Why would I have 2 video cards in when I only need 1?

So, it will take about a week to get it.  I’ve gone about 3 weeks without my desktop so I’m pretty sure I can wait another week.  As long as I have my netbook I’m pretty set.  And actually, not having my desktop to keep me busy playing Lord of the Rings Online has gotten me to start reading again so at least something good came out of this video card crashing like it did.

New Video Card

On By Michel McDonaldIn ComputerLeave a comment

In 2006 or 2007, now I’m not quite sure when, I got money for helping Darrin and his brother refurbish a house that was left to them by their mother when she past away.  I did a lot of work and didn’t get paid until the house sold.  I believe I got $2000.

When you get $2000 and you have an old computer what do you think you do with that money?  You buy a new computer!  Well, since I build computers I didn’t buy a computer, I bought all of the guts to build a new one.

Well, first I bought the hard drive from Tiger Direct but then when I went to turn my computer on nothing happened.  I think the mother board was too old for that hard drive.  The computer I was trying to install the new hard drive to was one that I built in 2004.  So I figured it was only a few years old, it should work.  But it didn’t because technology had already surpassed that computer.

So, I was forced to buy all new stuff so I just put the old hard drive back in there and gave it to Darrin.  I bought myself a new case, motherboard, cpu (w/heatsink), dvd burner and video card.  New computer!

A week ago we went to San Diego to visit Chips brother for his 50th anniversary party.  My computer did an update (which I could only assume was a Windows update) and suddenly I’m getting these strange blue screens (of death aka BSOD).  I didn’t worry about it because I didn’t want to stress on anything while we were gone so I put it in the back of my mind.  When we came home I was having the same problems.

Someone told me that I might have gotten a virus but I’m not convinced that is true.  I don’t visit websites on my desktop, I only visit websites on my Chromebook, I use the desktop for my Microsoft Money program and playing Lord of the Rings Online.  So there is no way I could have gotten a virus from visiting websites because it never happens.  I don’t even read emails on that computer.  My desktop is strictly for video games and Microsoft money, that’s it.

I got a couple of BSOD and accidentally allowed Microsoft to report the issue.  I have a jerk reaction to click no but for some odd reason I clicked yes.  When the report was sent a browser window popped up explaining to me that the issue was with my video card software or hardware.  Then suddenly another BSOD.

After that last blue screen I was done with being in regular mode so I went into safe mode.  I figure if I could download the driver update I might be ok.  How wrong I was.  I downloaded and installed the update and my monitor didn’t come on.  I plugged my monitor into the chromebook and everything I look at on the chromebook showed up on my monitor.  Ok so it’s not the monitor.  I plugged it back into the desktop and it turned on.  BSOD.  I turned it on again and the monitor wouldn’t even turn on.

So that is where I am at now.  I haven’t had a desktop in a week and I’m starting to go through LOTRO withdrawals lol.

This is my current configuration.  Well, I can’t turn it on so I can’t tell you the full details now can I?  This I do know.  I have:

  • MSI K9N4 Ultra motherboard – AM2, Nforce4 Ultra, 2*DDR2, Gb Lan, 5.1ch Audio, 1.
  • Gigabyte Tech GeForce 7600 GS 512MB DDR2 PCIexpress video card (I dug the boxes out of my closet)
  • Windows XP
  • I’m not sure about my CPU but I think it’s an AMD Sempron, don’t know the speed.
  • 1GB DDR2 memory

So this is what I’m looking for.  Any brand video card with 1GB DDR2 memory, PCIe.  I’m looking at Tiger Direct again for this new card and this is the one I have chosen.

Visiontek Radeon HD 4650 Video Card – 1GB DDR2, PCI Express 2.0, CrossFireX, (2) Dual-Link DVI, S-Video (Refurbished) – it’s $36.99 which is what I can afford.  My other video card was over $100 in 2007 and I just can’t afford to spend that kind of money right now.  I’m going to be paying for shipping which means I really can’t afford to spend any more on it.  So… is it a good one?  I won’t have the money to buy it until August so hopefully it will be on sale by then and they will hopefully still be in stock lol.

I think it’s a good video card but I’m no expert so I would love some feedback.  I’m choosing 1GB because I play Lord of the Rings Online and sometimes I get a lot of lag and I’m hoping that more memory will help that but you tell me, will it?  I would love some feedback on this.

So… until August lol.  By the way, I am not hung up on Tiger Direct so much that I want to wait 7 to 21 days for it to ship to me.  If I have to go to the computer store and pay a few extra $’s then I will.  As long as it’s not over $50 that is.

Acer and Samsung Chrome Netbooks Announced

On By Michel McDonaldIn Computer, CR-48, Google Chrome3 Comments


I saw the news this morning on Twitter from Editor for PC Magazine Lance Ulanoff:

Google: ACER introing netbook-sized ChromeBook #$349. Samsung’s ChromeBook: $429 for Wi-Fi Avail June 15. #io2011

I was way off on the price.  I figured that since the Google Chrome OS is a browser-based only computer that they would sell a Google Chrome OS Netbook for $150-$200.  I never thought they would sell as high as they are.

Chrome OS Site also reports the specs for the Samsung netbook along with other pictures of the netbook from different angles.  The Samsung Chrome OS netbook will sell in WiFi only for $429 and 3G for $499.

I have been using my CR-48 Google Chrome OS netbook since mid December when they first started shipping and I love it.  I still use my desktop computer but only for things that I can’t use my CR-48 for like photo editing with Gimp, balancing my checkbook via Microsoft Money and playing Lord of the Rings Online.  My CR-48 has basically become my default computer for everything else, as it was supposed to be for the pilot program.

I cannot say that I agree with those prices because you can get a netbook for the same price with Windows installed and be able to install software that you want on it to do everything my desktop computer can do.  The Google Chrome OS is internet only.  You can get the internet on a Windows netbook so why pay that much money?

It’s a great operating system, I just don’t think it’s that great that you would pay $500 for it.  I think that they will go down in price eventually so I would wait until they are a more reasonable price.

My Desktop Computer Blew Up

On By Michel McDonaldIn ComputerLeave a comment

I never thought this would ever happen to me but the power supply in my desktop computer blew up today.  The last couple of times I had it turned on, it shut off without any warning.  When I had my previous computer that would happen while I was playing EverQuest but it would reboot.  I was told that was a memory issue so I assumed this time it could either be memory or power supply but I wasn’t sure.

My computer has been off all day yesterday and today and I figured today I would look in the back and see if the light was on for the internet wire and it was turned on so I started thinking, if the power supply was bad then why is there power going to that light?  So I flipped the switch off then on then off then on again and the light was still on.  I pushed the power button and the computer turned on.

I was playing Lord of the Rings Online for at least 2 hours and all of a sudden it just made a popping sound, the computer screen went black and my brain went into panic mode.  I pushed my chair out of the way, fell to the floor and rushed to unplug the power cable.

Now, I have a bad back and I’m overweight which means I don’t get around too easily.  It takes a lot for me to get back up off the floor but I was up instantly.  It must have been adrenaline that got me back up on my feet.  I mean, I’m not that fat, I’m only 100lbs overweight but still, it is hard for me to get back up.

I called Darrin to tell him not to worry about getting me a new power supply then like 10 minutes later this happens so I called him back saying never mind, I do need a power supply.  He mentioned that it might have blown out the motherboard which I had already been thinking about but didn’t want to admit it because that’s how much more money?  About, what $150-$200?  As it is the power supply is $45.

Ok so if it’s also the motherboard then who knows what else might have been affected that was plugged into the motherboard like the memory, video card, cpu, heck even the hard drive and dvd burner.  This could have fried my entire computer.  Or maybe not, we’ll have to find out when I get a new power supply.

I have a Win XP laptop but the screen doesn’t work but even if it did I don’t have enough hard drive space for Lord of the Rings Online and it doesn’t work with my monitor.  So for now I have my CR-48 to keep me in touch with the world via email, websites, Twitter, Facebook and my blog.  Thanks once again Google.

If I get a new power supply and it works but my computer doesn’t come on then I will know it’s because I fried the motherboard.  If so then I will be screwed.  I will have to get a new computer if that is the case.  It’s not going to be easy to save the money for a new computer, that’s why I’m still using an old computer.  It’s funny I say old because I built it in 2007.  Holy crap!  Technology sure doesn’t last very long does it?

Update: Good news, when Darrin came home from work yesterday, he picked me up at the house and we went and got a new power supply, actually a better power supply with 2 fans on it.  We asked about the motherboard and the guy said that the power supplies have a safety built in so that if something happens to it and it surges like it did then it won’t fry the motherboard or anything that is plugged into the power supply like the dvd burner, floppy disc drive and hard drive.  So all is good.

Blow The Dust Out Of Your Computer (PSA)

On By Michel McDonaldIn ComputerLeave a comment

I don’t know if many people are aware of this or not but if you have a computer that is at least a year old, it has dust inside of it.  Not just on top of the parts but inside of them as well.

It’s a good idea to buy a can of compressed air, that is unless you have an actual air compressor.  Either way, just unplug everything from the back of it and bring it outside.  Open the side door of it by unscrewing the 2 screws in the back then start blowing things.

You will be surprised when all of a sudden you see a dust cloud forming right in front of you as all of the dust starts shooting out of places you didn’t even know dust could exist.  This may not help your computer perform faster or efficiently but I’m sure it can’t be good for the fans or your CPU’s heat sink to be that dusty.

We don’t have an air compressor anymore so I went to Walgreen’s and bought a can of compressed air for $7.99 (WOW $8 for air!) and came home and opened both computers and just started blowing all the dust out.  I was shocked at how much dust came out of them.  The CPU’s heat sink had a lot of dust and so did the power supply fan and case fan.  I was actually shocked at how much dust was in the case fan compared to the rest of the computer.

The reason I did this is because Chips power supply died, he couldn’t even turn his computer on anymore and when I opened his computer up to take it out I could see all this dust in there.  I figured it was that time again but I was out of canned air so I figured now is as good as any to buy another can.

So that is my tip for the day.  You can buy a little car tire air compressor that plugs into your cars lighter socket for around $20 and it will work just as good as a $8 can of compressed air and it will last you a lot longer than the cans do.  It’s worth it knowing your computer isn’t going to have all that dust inside of it.  I blow the dust out of both computers at least 2 or 3 times a year and you should too.

My LinkSys Nightmares

On By Michel McDonaldIn Computer, TechLeave a comment

I don’t know if anyone else has the same issues with LinkSys routers that I do but maybe I’m not alone. Here is my problem. All of a sudden out of nowhere I get signed out of whatever IM service or website that I’m on and my router tells me that I’m not online. This happens on a monthly basis.

I have to load my router software which is the LinkSys EasyLink Advisor and it tells me that it doesn’t recognize my router and I have to run the setup. Yes, monthly basis… So I run the setup and what I end up having to do is turning off my DSL modem and unplugging my router. Turn my modem back on after 10 seconds then wait 60 seconds before I can plug the router back in then wait 30 seconds to click next.

Once I have it all set up again I’m good for at least another few weeks or month but should I have to go through that so often?

Well, that pales in comparison to what happened to me yesterday. First on Saturday I went to pay my phone bill and for some odd reason I put the wrong password in the website and I went into a full-blown panic when I couldn’t pay my bill so I emailed AT&T and I got a call yesterday. The guy told me I must be using the wrong login and password and I swore up and down that I’ve been using that same password all these years and have never had any trouble. Well, I was using the wrong user and password and due to too many failed attempts, my account was locked. Apparently, my AT&T bill, my AT&T login and my AT&T router login are all different passwords. I don’t know why but I totally forgot and thought I had the same for everything.

So here is what happened last night. When my router insisted on doing its setup, I put in the wrong password and when it was finished setting up it automatically brings up the AT&T website on Internet Explorer which is not my default browser. It’s telling me that I used the wrong password but don’t panic, we can help you change it. I went through the steps in changing it but for some reason the boxes that I type my info in weren’t working so it kept saying that I’m entering the wrong information.

Finally at 3am I figured it all out. I got my password straightened out but just couldn’t get it to login to the internet. I decided I was too sleepy to do anything else, I mean literally I couldn’t keep my eyes open at that point.

This morning when I woke up, before I did anything I turned my monitor on to get us back online. It didn’t take too long but my LinkSys EasyLink Advisor kept saying I wasn’t online despite the fact that I was online. UGH!

I don’t know how I found it but I found the new LinkSys EasyLink Advisor. They have a free version which comes with all new routers and they also have 3 different ones that cost money. Naturally I can’t afford to buy it so I downloaded the free one and installed it and it’s totally different.

I love it. It’s so much cooler than the one I had before and it actually says I’m online unlike the other one. So I’m going to burn this program to a CD and keep it with the other CD that came with my wi-fi router so that if something happens and I need to reinstall it (like if I reformat again) then I won’t have to search the internet for it, or when my internet isn’t working.

I love this new router software, I keep loading it and looking at it… oooohhhh shiny…

I’m just glad to be back online. I was really sweating over using the wrong password twice in one weekend for AT&T lol. I don’t know what I’ve been thinking to do that. I just hope that this new LinkSys EasyLink Advisor program will keep me online all month and not make me do the setup to get me back online so often.

Denny’s, Harry Potter, Sack Boy and DQ

On By Michel McDonaldIn Computer, Food, PSP, TechLeave a comment

I’m writing this late at night, past midnight so when you read this it will probably be Friday. Oh who am I kidding, you’ll probably be reading it 6 months down the road. At any rate, we had a pretty good and long day. It all started with going to Denny’s for breakfast. I had the Grand Slam Slugger for $8 which was 2 pancakes, 2 sausage, 2 bacon, 2 scrambled eggs, hash browns and it came with coffee or juice, I chose coffee.

The scrambled eggs were the best thing about that meal. Normally I’m saying how wonderful the pancakes and hash browns are but I gotta give huge props to the eggs. They were smooth as silk. I don’t know what their secret is but I haven’t had scrambled eggs that felt that good on my tongue in my entire life. And I’m an egg lover too so it’s strange to hear me say that I’ve never had eggs that tasted that good before. They were just so awesome.

After breakfast we came home and were just going to go about our day but Darrin decided he wanted to go to the movies so I printed the schedule from Fandango. I kept telling him the only movie that was playing was Harry Potter but he just didn’t believe me. I showed him the list and he agreed that we could go see Harry Potter. YAY for me!

So we got in the car and drove to the mall, got tickets and a soda then went in. The movie was about 2 hours and 27 minutes. I really don’t like buying drinks when you go see a movie that lasts longer than 90 minute but we got one anyway. I held it for as long as I could and when a scene came up where I assumed it wouldn’t be too dramatic I shot out of my chair and ran to the mens room. I was able to enjoy the rest of the movie pain-free which is how it should be.

I think they should install a bathroom in every theater right near the stairs with tv’s above the urinals or above the toilets for the ladies so you don’t miss a thing, especially when movies are 2.5 – 3 hours long or longer. It’s not fair to sell so much drink and then make us miss a few minutes of our movie or suffer the pain.

I thought it was a pretty good movie considering they usually don’t match the movies with the books. I was just expecting some of the basics but they were pretty good with this one. I loved the movie but I don’t think my movie companion wasn’t into it. He didn’t read the books so he doesn’t really care. It’s a futile effort to have to explain it to him when he probably isn’t listening anyway.

I really wanted to see it and knew I wouldn’t get another chance until it came out on DVD and I hate being the last one to see a Harry Potter movie.

When we left the movies we went into the mall and I bought a new PSP game with my $25 gift card for Game Stop from doing surveys at E-Rewards. They moved all of the PSP games so it took me several minutes to find them. Considering that store is about the size of our living room, you’d think that I would’ve found them right away but I didn’t. I did eventually find them right near the cash registers.

They had them on a display instead of on the wall and so I had to crouch carefully so I didn’t fall and also so I could let people look at the video games on the wall behind me. It’s not an easy thing to do in such small spaces but I managed to find a game that I wanted which was Little Big Planet.

I’ve actually wanted Little Big Planet since it came out but it was too expensive and I didn’t have a gift card for it so I went without. Poor me lol. I did download the demo and thought it was fun. A friend of mine brags to me every chance that she gets that she has it for her PS3 because she knew I didn’t have it for my PSP. I have it now Sue so what are you gonna say now? Nyah nyah nyah nyah nyah :p.

I played it for a few hours on my HDTV instead of the tiny PSP screen only because my eyes are getting worse every day. I had a little trouble adjusting to the way the game is played but once you figure things out it becomes easy.

I went to look in the online section and it said I needed a system update first before I could access anything online and they added something new to the PSP but they haven’t really given us the ability to use it yet. It’s called Qriocity in the music section. All it says is coming soon. I looked at the video section (on their website) for it and I think that will only work on the PS3 but it appears to be a streaming video rental service like Netflix. So I can only assume the music one is the same thing but… you know… music. Meh, if that’s a monthly service then I’m not interested. I can just as easily turn my radio on to listen to new music.

When we left Game Stop we went to the Dairy Queen and got 2 medium Blizzards because I had an anniversary BOGO coupon. I ordered the new peppermint one but then changed my mind because I figured if it has hard candy in it I might not enjoy it as much so I got Pumpkin Pie. Darrin got the same but after a few bites he realized he didn’t really like it that much. I loved it so I ate his lol. I had 2 blizzards. No wonder I can’t lose weight LOL.

I think that we had a wonderful day, although at times boring for him but fun for me. Tomorrow (or today if you are reading this on Friday, or in 6 months then 6 months ago) I will start putting the tree up. My back has been really killing me but I really want to do it. Christmas is my favorite time of year even though I’m not a Christian. People have told me I have no right celebrating it but you know what I say to those people. Shush and mind your own beeswax.

I’m not celebrating the birth of Jesus, I’m celebrating the giving and receiving of presents. Mainly giving because I’m embroidering those Christmas stockings as a gift for the children. Plus I like the look of the trees and the lights and the ornaments on the tree. I celebrated Christmas my entire life since I was a baby so I think I have every right to continue celebrating it until the day I die if I wish to do so. Just because my religious beliefs change doesn’t mean I have to change my mind about the holidays. So to those who say I have no right to celebrate it, you can suck it because it’s a free country, I can celebrate it any way I want to. When you pay my bills then you can tell me what I can and can’t do with my life. Until then, shush.

Wow is it after 3am? Ok well I gotta get up at like 8 so goodnight all or if you are just waking up then Good morning. And if this is 6 months into the future and you are reading it with your brain implants well, I don’t know what greetings you future cyborg people so good 0101011010100101101 to you.