October 13, 2005
Dear Everyone:
As I mentioned last week, my trusty Palm Pilot died a week ago. For anyone not familiar with PDA’s (Personal Digital Assistant), the Pilot was one of the first. It was, in effect, a tiny computer that fit in your hand. You could use it to keep a list of Tasks, make appointments in your Calendar, track expenses and about a half-dozen other things that I never paid any attention to. The one I bought had just gone on half-price because a newer version had entered the market.
That was in 2000. Each new generation added more bells and whistles. But I was happy with the one I had. I mostly used it for the Calendar, which kept personal appointments separate from work appointments; and the Address Book, again to keep my stuff away from work; and Expenses.
Expenses was the only function that I also used for work. That’s because I could assign a category, like “Schenectady”. When I went on a business trip, I would use the Pilot to record any out-of-pocket expenses, like tips and lunches and such. When I got home, I would upload from the Pilot to my PC. Then I could generate a list of all the “Schenectady” expenses for my Travel and Expense Accounting (TEA) at work. So much easier than trying to keep track of all those little receipts.
I also used Expenses to record whenever I went to the movies (category: “Movies”). This is how I always knew who had paid for the last movie, “Jeannie” or I. When “Jeannie” paid, the cost was $0.00.
So, last Saturday, “Jeannie” and I went to see Serenity. I knew it was “Jeannie’s” turn because the last movie we had seen together (War of the Worlds) had cost me $13.00, plus $14.50 for snacks. Movies are getting expensive. After the movie, “Jeannie” said, “Be sure to write down that I paid for everything.”
I replied: “Write it down where?”
It was already driving me crazy that I couldn’t record everything the way I always did. So, after dropping “Jeannie” off at her place, I went to my favorite office supply warehouse and began looking at PDA’s. There were a lot to choose from with many bells and whistles that I don’t need. I just want Address Book, Calendar, and Expenses. I don’t need to “surf the Web” anywhere I go. And the last thing I want is to get email on the PDA; I get that at work with the BlackBerry (which doesn’t do expenses and is Company-issued.)
I picked a medium-priced model, which turned out to still be a Palm Pilot (HP and others are all in there now, too.) When I told the salesman how long I’d had the old one, he said, “Wow. Black and white.” (Actually black and gray, but all the new ones are in color now.)
Then he said, “I guess there’s not much point in asking if you want our extended warranty option.” Not when the old one lasted over five years.
As for all the information in the old one, I generally uploaded to the PC every few weeks. But in the month of September, I was rather busy and didn’t get around to doing that. So I lost all the information recorded in September. But I was able to export everything else from the old PC and import it into the new laptop PC, so all I really lost was the September (and early October) expenses. And since none of them were business-related, it’s a small loss.
“Marshall” has pointed out in the past that this is information I collect to collect, not to use. Not entirely true. I can do trend analysis to see how much more money I’ve been spending on breakfast and lunch since we moved to the Park in March. That cafeteria is just too convenient.
In other news…
Back to the movie, Serenity. In 1992, a screenwriter named Joss Whedon sold a movie called, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Naturally, “Jeannie” and I went to see it. It was cute, but hardly stellar. Later we found out that the studio had made some substantial changes to Joss’s original vision. Five years later, he took his idea to television. Buffy the Vampire Slayer became a hit and even produced a spin-off, Angel.
With two hits to his credit, Joss went to the Fox network and pitched a new TV show, Firefly. It was set 400 years in the future and featured a small spaceship and its motley crew of eccentrics. This show was not an immediate hit and Fox pulled the plug before the season even finished.
Fast forward to TV shows on DVD. Firefly was flying off the shelves. Having gone from the big screen to the little screen with his first effort, Joss has now reversed direction and taken Firefly to a feature length film. “Firefly” was the type of spaceship. “Serenity” was the ship’s name.
However, it was abundantly clear that you did not have to know anything about the original series to enjoy the film. Most of the people in the theater were not familiar with the TV show, judging from their reaction to things that “Jeannie” and I already knew from the series. Nevertheless, a good time was had by all.
So, if you want to enjoy a couple of hours on the weekend, you could do worse than go and see Serenity.
Love, as always,
Pete
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