January 2, 2003
Dear Everyone:
Happy New Year, everyone.
Christmas was very quiet this (last) year.
Mother had medical issues stemming from the
With Mother not coming, and looking at an 8-hour
drive (round-trip from
That left “Jeannie” and me. She came down to my place on Christmas Eve, we watched rental movies and shared a nice bottle of Chardonnay. Opening presents on Christmas Day didn’t take long. I had had the foresight to buy my gift from Mother earlier, at the same time that I picked up Santa’s gift to me, which was the DVD player. I also had a stocking-stuffer for “Jeannie”, so she got a gift as well.
Then we watched more movies, courtesy of “Elaine” in “Livermore”, who had filled a small shopping bag with “adventure and/or comedy” DVD’s from her considerable video library. Rather than slave away in the kitchen on a big meal, we opted for the traditional French Dip sandwiches and chips.
And that was that. For the remainder of my vacation, I watched TV and movies and hardly stirred from my big, comfy chair in the living room. A very restful time indeed.
In other news…
“Jeannie” realized that if she bought a new
computer before December 31st, she could take the cost off on
her taxes for this year. So,
on Monday, we went to the big
A salesperson found us a component computer that had been put together at the store out of parts off the shelf. It was $30 cheaper than anything else and came without the pesky monitor. We got it back to “Jeannie’s” place and agreed that I would set it up on New Year’s Day (yesterday).
We got everything hooked up together and it looked like things were going great until the Windows XP operating system asked for a 25-digit product key that we couldn’t find. Disconnected everything and hauled the CPU back to the store. Found the original salesperson (on New Year’s Day!), who thought the documentation and CD’s should have been in the box. Nevertheless, she found the product key for us and promised to order the rest.
Back at “Jeannie’s” place, we realized that the plastic-wrapped bundle inside the box marked “Motherboard” was the actual aforementioned documentation and the product key. So we spent the rest of the day installing and configuring software. “Jeannie” now has her own account with AOL, which means I won’t get those “another screen name from your account is currently logged on” messages, which prevent me from logging one when she’s on eBay. We can even send each other instant messages if we’re both logged in at the same time.
And “Jeannie” is delighted with how much faster the new computer runs compared to the antique (my last hand-me-down) one she was using. The time it took to get it set up yesterday is one reason this week’s Letter is dated today. However, it may work out that the Letter will move to Thursdays, except for the third Thursday of the month (ARMA Dinner Meetings). We’ll see how it goes.
In the meantime…
There have been comments about the size and weight of my purse. Actually, it’s not a purse; it’s a “letter-size brief” intended to be used as a laptop case. But it has two large compartments, each with a nice variety of pockets to hold everything. So I use it as a purse.
As for its heft, I weighed it this evening. It only weighs seven pounds, which makes it lighter than “Jeannie’s” Big White Kitty. (And it doesn’t shed.) And I only usually carry it from the house to the car, from the car to the office, and so on. In fact, going to and from work, I don’t carry it at all. It perfectly matches my rolling computer case, sitting on top, with the straps wrapped around the handle.
And everything in the purse is there because I’ve needed it at one time or another. Just a couple of weeks ago, “Jeannie” and I were getting ready to leave the theater after a movie when a young boy and his mother came rushing back in to the row behind us. The boy, on the verge of tears, kept saying, “They were right here! They were right here!”
The mother assured him that they would look for “them” but would have to wait for the house lights to come on. Seven-Pound Purse to the Rescue! Opening the rear compartment of my purse, I reached into exactly the right pocket and extracted a medium-sized flashlight, turned it on and held it out. “They” turned out to be trading cards that had slipped off the seat onto the floor.
The mother: “You’re just lucky that lady had a flashlight.”
Luck had nothing to do with it.
As for the movie: Star Trek: Nemesis. All the usual suspects, looking a bit long in the tooth these days. Especially the android which, really, shouldn’t look a day older than when he first rolled off the assembly line. A rather incongruous story line about a clone made of Captain Picard, a younger version. But he doesn’t look anything like the person he’s supposed to be a copy of. Talk about blurring the lines.
Still, plenty of spectacular and exciting special effects. You will believe that a starship can crash, and then reverse.
Next up:
Maid
in
They’re made for each other. Or so the script says. But she has to jump through all kinds of hoops, including getting dressed for the big social event, helped by all “the little people” who also work at the hotel (not unlike Disney’s mice and birds). Nevertheless, it might have worked if Fiennes had bothered to show up. He appears in all the right scenes, but his performance is “phoned in”. There’s not a scrap of chemistry between him and Lopez, which is certainly not her fault. Maybe Fiennes just isn’t cut out for light romantic comedy.
Hugh Grant, on the other hand, can do it in his sleep, which is not to say that he sleeps through Two Weeks Notice. But he does play his signature self-deprecating, self-effacing, self-absorbed character. He’s a rich man (again!), but this one’s up against a liberal, highly conscientious lawyer, played by Sandra Bullock, who wants to stop him from tearing down a landmark to build another skyscraper. Bullock is charming without having to play the klutz that she has in some earlier films.
Since he needs a lawyer, he hires her on the spot with the lure of corporate largesse in charitable contributions which she will dispense to worthy causes. Before long, he can’t make a decision without her, which drives her crazy. Before much longer, they’re driving each other crazy. Enter the lovely redhead (Alicia Witt, who played the daughter in the TV show Cybil). Much silliness ensues.
Of the three, I recommend the last.
And so, a new year begins.
Love, as always,
Pete
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