Saturday, March 24, 2012
New Computer, Pt.II
Well, that didn't work! I was all set to install Ubuntu again, but am giving Mint one more try, following these instructions. If THIS doesn't work, I'll have to just install Ubuntu 10.04 instead. (I had 11.04 on Nellie but hated it and was sorry I'd upgraded.) Seriously do NOT want to be running windows....
New Computer, Pt.I
I had to do it. Didn't want to, couldn't really afford to, but had to. Usually a new computer is cause for celebration and excitement, this is the first time it isn't, although I'm not hating it or anything, just not ideal circumstances. It's a very basic machine, cheap from Walmart - far from my ideal situation when acquiring a new computer!
I have been using Nellie (my 10.1" Acer netbook) continually for 2 years, especially for my seasonal job, and she has performed admirably. But she's getting old - I guess one of our years is about 40 netbook years - and losing functions. First she lost the use of her lower left corner keys (Ctrl, Fn, Alt); the the W started acting up like rheumatism in a rainstorm. Then the display started blanking out on occasion...then on more occasions...then many times a day. Then the mic and speaker jacks - which were a thing of beauty, aurally speaking, with their lovely Dolby 5.1 sound - got as crackly as a 90-year-old with laryngitis.
To do my job I need to have a computer that is reliable and stable, that has a screen that stays on, and especially one with which I can use my headset! And Nellie couldn't do it any more. It was time to put her out to pasture.
So yesterday I picked up an Acer 11.6" netbook. I call her MintyFresh, since I will be using Linux Mint on her. (I haven't used Windows in a few years, have been running Ubuntu on Nellie and on the computer before that.) In fact, I'm downloading the ISO right now. Thing is, netbooks don't have visual drives. So I'm following some instructions that I found online. Right now I'm just waiting for the ISO (chose KDE 64-bit) to download, then I'll install the Universal USB Installer, then get on with things. I'll check back when that much is accomplished. Hopefully all will go smoothly and the next time I boot up MintyFresh she'll be running linux!
I have been using Nellie (my 10.1" Acer netbook) continually for 2 years, especially for my seasonal job, and she has performed admirably. But she's getting old - I guess one of our years is about 40 netbook years - and losing functions. First she lost the use of her lower left corner keys (Ctrl, Fn, Alt); the the W started acting up like rheumatism in a rainstorm. Then the display started blanking out on occasion...then on more occasions...then many times a day. Then the mic and speaker jacks - which were a thing of beauty, aurally speaking, with their lovely Dolby 5.1 sound - got as crackly as a 90-year-old with laryngitis.
To do my job I need to have a computer that is reliable and stable, that has a screen that stays on, and especially one with which I can use my headset! And Nellie couldn't do it any more. It was time to put her out to pasture.
So yesterday I picked up an Acer 11.6" netbook. I call her MintyFresh, since I will be using Linux Mint on her. (I haven't used Windows in a few years, have been running Ubuntu on Nellie and on the computer before that.) In fact, I'm downloading the ISO right now. Thing is, netbooks don't have visual drives. So I'm following some instructions that I found online. Right now I'm just waiting for the ISO (chose KDE 64-bit) to download, then I'll install the Universal USB Installer, then get on with things. I'll check back when that much is accomplished. Hopefully all will go smoothly and the next time I boot up MintyFresh she'll be running linux!
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Today Hubby & I Had a Date!
We drove down to Flint to an RV Show. This is my new FUN! Ever since we decided we want to become full-timers I have been obsessed with all things RVing. I spend whatever leisure time I have perusing website and videos, and reading blogs written by full-timers and other RV enthusiasts. I am planning in mind what we will do with all of our belongings, and studying travel sites to find a list of places to go when the time comes.
When the time comes is the new catch phrase around here. I foresee it happening when Pete retires in about 4 years. However, if we can make it happen sooner, we will...but I write about all of that in my Vita In Via (Life on the Road) blog...
It was a beautiful May day today, except that it is only mid-March. Unseasonably warm weather. I will get my complaints out of the way early :). It was too warm - no secret that I love cold temps and snow, and that I feel totally gypped out of winter this year; we didn't get our first snow until the end of January, and it was already melting away the first part of March! And now it is May in March. And of course from the walking and climbing in and out of RVs by the time we left the show I needed my walker and pain drugs as my arthritis (spine, hips, right knee) was painfully stiffening me right up...and that's all the bad stuff for the day which isn't all that much, just the usual really :).
But the RV show was really lovely, and it was great to see "real life" models of the units I've seen online, They are quite different walking through than just watching!
After the RV show we went to Best Buy. This netbook that I bought 2 years ago has been performing like a trooper! Even though they weren't really made for heavy work, this has been my main computer for the entire time I've had it, on duty for all of my waking hours (whether I'm actually using it or not, it's running, usually playing music at the very least). But it's been developing some issues: the headphone jack works sporadically, and the mic jack makes my voice static-y - these things make Skype use impossible, and it is Skype that I use for my seasonal job. The lower left part of the keyboard has quit working. The display periodically goes all white, for no reason that I can find, and I have to reboot, which doesn't always fix it. One of my 3 USB ports doesn't work anymore. And a few more annoying issues. But when I'm taking calls on a busy day, one on top of the other, I don't have time to be rebooting or retyping. And I certainly can't afford to pay for all of the minutes I use on my cell phone plan!
So I wanted to see the different sized laptops. This has a 10.1" display and an 87% of full size keyboard. Now there are 11.6" keyboards out there, so I wanted to see them, see how heavy they are, feel the keyboard. There are also 13.3" keyboards. That's really the biggest that I want to go, but when I have the $ saved up for my computer replacement it will all come down to the best machine for the price, and the size of it won't be as important to me as the features in the end.
We saw a Good Will on the way to Best Buy, so we then stopped in there. I got some cooler clothes for Leelan (all he has here now are sweats and heavier winter clothing). There were a couple of other things that I could have purchased, but really didn't want to spend the money. And finally we got Halo Burgers for supper! They are so wonderful...and we hadn't have them in years, so it was fun to have one again! I really REALLY wanted a boston cooler but am afraid to try one since my surgery - can't have any carbonated beverages, and even though the mixing process gets rid of a lot of carbonation in the Vernors, I didn't want to be in pain all the way back up here if it didn't sit well in my belly. So I had an iced tea instead.
It was an exhausting day, and I don't know if/how I'll be able to move tomorrow, but it was so worth it to spend time with my Petey, doing things together that we love, no distractions...just he and I :).
When the time comes is the new catch phrase around here. I foresee it happening when Pete retires in about 4 years. However, if we can make it happen sooner, we will...but I write about all of that in my Vita In Via (Life on the Road) blog...
It was a beautiful May day today, except that it is only mid-March. Unseasonably warm weather. I will get my complaints out of the way early :). It was too warm - no secret that I love cold temps and snow, and that I feel totally gypped out of winter this year; we didn't get our first snow until the end of January, and it was already melting away the first part of March! And now it is May in March. And of course from the walking and climbing in and out of RVs by the time we left the show I needed my walker and pain drugs as my arthritis (spine, hips, right knee) was painfully stiffening me right up...and that's all the bad stuff for the day which isn't all that much, just the usual really :).
But the RV show was really lovely, and it was great to see "real life" models of the units I've seen online, They are quite different walking through than just watching!
After the RV show we went to Best Buy. This netbook that I bought 2 years ago has been performing like a trooper! Even though they weren't really made for heavy work, this has been my main computer for the entire time I've had it, on duty for all of my waking hours (whether I'm actually using it or not, it's running, usually playing music at the very least). But it's been developing some issues: the headphone jack works sporadically, and the mic jack makes my voice static-y - these things make Skype use impossible, and it is Skype that I use for my seasonal job. The lower left part of the keyboard has quit working. The display periodically goes all white, for no reason that I can find, and I have to reboot, which doesn't always fix it. One of my 3 USB ports doesn't work anymore. And a few more annoying issues. But when I'm taking calls on a busy day, one on top of the other, I don't have time to be rebooting or retyping. And I certainly can't afford to pay for all of the minutes I use on my cell phone plan!
So I wanted to see the different sized laptops. This has a 10.1" display and an 87% of full size keyboard. Now there are 11.6" keyboards out there, so I wanted to see them, see how heavy they are, feel the keyboard. There are also 13.3" keyboards. That's really the biggest that I want to go, but when I have the $ saved up for my computer replacement it will all come down to the best machine for the price, and the size of it won't be as important to me as the features in the end.
We saw a Good Will on the way to Best Buy, so we then stopped in there. I got some cooler clothes for Leelan (all he has here now are sweats and heavier winter clothing). There were a couple of other things that I could have purchased, but really didn't want to spend the money. And finally we got Halo Burgers for supper! They are so wonderful...and we hadn't have them in years, so it was fun to have one again! I really REALLY wanted a boston cooler but am afraid to try one since my surgery - can't have any carbonated beverages, and even though the mixing process gets rid of a lot of carbonation in the Vernors, I didn't want to be in pain all the way back up here if it didn't sit well in my belly. So I had an iced tea instead.
It was an exhausting day, and I don't know if/how I'll be able to move tomorrow, but it was so worth it to spend time with my Petey, doing things together that we love, no distractions...just he and I :).
Thursday, March 8, 2012
35 Years Old Yesterday!
OK, that's 35 years since I was born of the Spirit. I had planned to write about this last night after Leelan went to sleep but had computer issues so I'm a day late...but in the scope of eternity, a few hours is less than a blink.
It was 35 years ago that a friend from high school and I sat in his car talking, and he told me that we aren't guaranteed even the next breath, and if I didn't have one, what my eternity would be like without Christ. This was the culmination of a lot of prayer and sharing by others, though. It didn't hit me that night. Others spent years prior telling me about Jesus and hearing me reject His message over and over again. Yet they persisted, gently at times, not-so-gently at others.
I know my sister dedicated her life to serving Christ several years before, and tried to tell me about Him, but I wouldn't listen. It had no meaning to me. And I'm sure she was praying for me during that time...
My friend Alona never gave up either. We'd hang out, play games, listen to music - CHRISTIAN music (remember the album Love Peace Joy? I knew every word to every song, I heard it so often at her house!) - and talk. And she patiently listened to every argument against Christianity that I could muster, and remained my friend, and didn't give up on me, and continued to share Him with me.
So my heart was ready that night that Jim forced me to make a choice. Forced is a strong word, but he told me I had to either accept the salvation that God was offering to me, or flat-out reject Him. And he informed me clearly what my eternity would be like if I rejected Him. So that night, Jim's Bible there between us and the Word that he and others had shared filling my heart, I prayed with him...
Then I went home, feeling so different, so light, so open, not hard anymore, thinking and seeing everything differently than I had just an hour earlier, I was a changed person, in those minutes my life was changed. Gwen came into my room and asked me what was wrong with me, it was so noticeable. I remember clearly, as if it were yesterday, I asked her, "Can you get saved in a CAR?"
God had called me. His Spirit was working in those around me, whom He'd put into my path. And in His timing and plan, He brought me Home.
I think of this a lot. I think of all the people - hopefully me included! - who make a difference in the lives and hearts of people around us when we're obedient to the Spirit. We may not see them make a choice to accept Christ's offer and live a life of joyful service to Him, we may not know where they will choose to spend their eternity, but we can know that - like Gwen and Alona - we are allowing the Spirit to reach them through us, and He will see it through.
Jesus tell us, "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." (Jn.14:1-3)
Where He is, there I may be also...that is what it is all about! Thank you Gwen, Alona, and Jim...thanks for making sure that we all will be where He is!
It was 35 years ago that a friend from high school and I sat in his car talking, and he told me that we aren't guaranteed even the next breath, and if I didn't have one, what my eternity would be like without Christ. This was the culmination of a lot of prayer and sharing by others, though. It didn't hit me that night. Others spent years prior telling me about Jesus and hearing me reject His message over and over again. Yet they persisted, gently at times, not-so-gently at others.
I know my sister dedicated her life to serving Christ several years before, and tried to tell me about Him, but I wouldn't listen. It had no meaning to me. And I'm sure she was praying for me during that time...
My friend Alona never gave up either. We'd hang out, play games, listen to music - CHRISTIAN music (remember the album Love Peace Joy? I knew every word to every song, I heard it so often at her house!) - and talk. And she patiently listened to every argument against Christianity that I could muster, and remained my friend, and didn't give up on me, and continued to share Him with me.
So my heart was ready that night that Jim forced me to make a choice. Forced is a strong word, but he told me I had to either accept the salvation that God was offering to me, or flat-out reject Him. And he informed me clearly what my eternity would be like if I rejected Him. So that night, Jim's Bible there between us and the Word that he and others had shared filling my heart, I prayed with him...
Then I went home, feeling so different, so light, so open, not hard anymore, thinking and seeing everything differently than I had just an hour earlier, I was a changed person, in those minutes my life was changed. Gwen came into my room and asked me what was wrong with me, it was so noticeable. I remember clearly, as if it were yesterday, I asked her, "Can you get saved in a CAR?"
God had called me. His Spirit was working in those around me, whom He'd put into my path. And in His timing and plan, He brought me Home.
I think of this a lot. I think of all the people - hopefully me included! - who make a difference in the lives and hearts of people around us when we're obedient to the Spirit. We may not see them make a choice to accept Christ's offer and live a life of joyful service to Him, we may not know where they will choose to spend their eternity, but we can know that - like Gwen and Alona - we are allowing the Spirit to reach them through us, and He will see it through.
Jesus tell us, "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." (Jn.14:1-3)
Where He is, there I may be also...that is what it is all about! Thank you Gwen, Alona, and Jim...thanks for making sure that we all will be where He is!
Monday, January 23, 2012
Thinking About The Future
Of course, none of us knows what the future holds, and nobody knows that better than a Christian! Personally I'm just waiting for the day of Christ's return, or for the day He takes me home...but in the meantime, I've got to do His work here wherever and whenever I can.
So we've been thinking about retirement. Pete doesn't retire for another 4 years (if there will be a retirement at all for those of us who will be depending on social security), but we've been talking about what we will do, where we will go, how we will minister after that. And until recently we had wanted to move to Marquette, Michigan for a variety of reasons. We both love Marquette, but are now thinking that maybe living there full-time may not be the best thing for us anymore.
Several months ago we started discussing the possibility of fulltime RVing. We had brought it up many times in conversation over the years, but never seriously considered it. Now, however, it really is seeming more like a calling than a dream. So I started researching it, and the more we learned and talked about it, the more it felt like the right fit in our hearts for our future.
We're not sure where all this is going, but we know we want to be free to go where we are called to go, we've learned how economical RV living can be, how many ways there are to do it, and most of all that it really IS feasible!
By the time Pete retires, the number of our pets will have naturally declined to a manageable quantity, and we will have this goal in mind as time goes on and we are tempted to rescue more, since there will be space and cost considerations as well as time (especially for the parrots) and energy to devote. We will also use these next few years to lighten our load. We don't have a LOT of "stuff", living in <1000 sq ft mobile home, but we have too much. We will need to pare that down to only enough for immediate needs, and nothing more. For example we won't need service for 16, a houseful of knick-knacks, tools for every possible situation, dozens of clothes for each and every season and situation, 7 rooms of furniture, etc.
There is something very liberating even in the planning and working toward such a goal. And it is an exciting prospect to be knowing we'll have unencumbered ourselves to the point that "Where He leads me, I will follow" can be a reality!
So that's where we're headed now, with this goal in mind, to hopefully someday be our new lives!
So we've been thinking about retirement. Pete doesn't retire for another 4 years (if there will be a retirement at all for those of us who will be depending on social security), but we've been talking about what we will do, where we will go, how we will minister after that. And until recently we had wanted to move to Marquette, Michigan for a variety of reasons. We both love Marquette, but are now thinking that maybe living there full-time may not be the best thing for us anymore.
Several months ago we started discussing the possibility of fulltime RVing. We had brought it up many times in conversation over the years, but never seriously considered it. Now, however, it really is seeming more like a calling than a dream. So I started researching it, and the more we learned and talked about it, the more it felt like the right fit in our hearts for our future.
We're not sure where all this is going, but we know we want to be free to go where we are called to go, we've learned how economical RV living can be, how many ways there are to do it, and most of all that it really IS feasible!
By the time Pete retires, the number of our pets will have naturally declined to a manageable quantity, and we will have this goal in mind as time goes on and we are tempted to rescue more, since there will be space and cost considerations as well as time (especially for the parrots) and energy to devote. We will also use these next few years to lighten our load. We don't have a LOT of "stuff", living in <1000 sq ft mobile home, but we have too much. We will need to pare that down to only enough for immediate needs, and nothing more. For example we won't need service for 16, a houseful of knick-knacks, tools for every possible situation, dozens of clothes for each and every season and situation, 7 rooms of furniture, etc.
There is something very liberating even in the planning and working toward such a goal. And it is an exciting prospect to be knowing we'll have unencumbered ourselves to the point that "Where He leads me, I will follow" can be a reality!
So that's where we're headed now, with this goal in mind, to hopefully someday be our new lives!
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Christmas 2011
I know I haven't been blogging much lately...I have been busy living my life rather than blogging about it I guess :)...and happy about it!
Today was Christmas - at least as I write this, at 11:58 p.m. at the moment. And although I had no gifts to open, it was one of the best Christmases I can remember! My husband and I had bought a new TV as our Christmas gift to each other, we've had it for a couple of months, and are enjoying it a lot. My daughter and grandson are out of town, visiting relatives on her dad's side of the family - that has been the only damper on my day, but even so I have been blessed with joy!
Starting the day with church is always great, I wish I could start EVERY day with church! The song leader, Mary, and I sang a duet. It is the first time I have sung in church although I play the keyboard for every service, and I got off to a bit of a rough start vocally...but then was ok after that. Mary, of course, did a great job from start to finish, she's a real pro up there :). The message was excellent as it always is.
Afterward we picked my mom up from the nursing home. She is in a big of a cognitive slump today (Lewy Body Dementia involves lots of cognitive peaks and valleys - "fluctuating cognition" they call it.), but I was excited for her to open her Christmas gift from my sister and I and our husbands - a digital photo frame. I had loaded it with lots of family pictures from past and present, and she watched it for a couple of hours, really was thrilled with it!
I made our traditional Christmas dinner of homemade tomato soup (lots of ricotta and cream!) and very rich cheese sandwiches on English muffin bread with 5 kinds of cheeses, spread with real butter and fried on the skillet until crispy. This has been our Christmas dinner ever since my mom requested it when she was in the early stages of the disease. And I believe it always will be our Christmas dinner, even when...well, after...
My mom stayed and visited for about 3 hours total. As her disease progresses she wants to spend less and less time away from her nursing home - it is small, family-like, everybody knows everybody, she thrives on her friendships and the routine there. She likes it here at my home also, loves playing with my dogs especially, but starts getting anxious after a while...lately it's been about an hour, maybe 90 minutes, before she wants to go back. So today was wonderful, having her here for 3 hours!
After we took my mom back, I had a rare Christmas treat: a nap with my husband! Usually our sleeping schedules are so different, and many Sundays my 31MO grandson is here, so a Sunday afternoon nap isn't possible, but today it was just us, and I slept like a rock for 2 hours, at the same time as hubby! That was a real Christmas gift right there!
After I got up, as he continued to sleep, I took care of my birds and made his lunch and had a couple of hours to myself which is always nice.
This year I have had great peace and joy about Christmas that I haven't experienced in a long time. Part of it are the blessings I receive from twitter, believe it or not - so many lovely Christians, it is like a worship celebration whenever I log on! Part of it is that Jesus has been drawing me so much closer this year, and His Word has been really in my heart. He's been giving me a thirst for it, and even though I don't remember what I've read afterward, the feeling is there, and I know that it is in my heart - the Holy Spirit will be - has been, and is! - able to bring it to my mind as needed, even if my mind doesn't recall it all the time. And the Word has been working in my heart, which sets my mind on things above rather than loving the world...how uplifting is that!
So this year I have had joy and peace in spite of circumstances, my eyes on Jesus and my heart centered on His Word and His promises. What a perfect day!
Today was Christmas - at least as I write this, at 11:58 p.m. at the moment. And although I had no gifts to open, it was one of the best Christmases I can remember! My husband and I had bought a new TV as our Christmas gift to each other, we've had it for a couple of months, and are enjoying it a lot. My daughter and grandson are out of town, visiting relatives on her dad's side of the family - that has been the only damper on my day, but even so I have been blessed with joy!
Starting the day with church is always great, I wish I could start EVERY day with church! The song leader, Mary, and I sang a duet. It is the first time I have sung in church although I play the keyboard for every service, and I got off to a bit of a rough start vocally...but then was ok after that. Mary, of course, did a great job from start to finish, she's a real pro up there :). The message was excellent as it always is.
Afterward we picked my mom up from the nursing home. She is in a big of a cognitive slump today (Lewy Body Dementia involves lots of cognitive peaks and valleys - "fluctuating cognition" they call it.), but I was excited for her to open her Christmas gift from my sister and I and our husbands - a digital photo frame. I had loaded it with lots of family pictures from past and present, and she watched it for a couple of hours, really was thrilled with it!
I made our traditional Christmas dinner of homemade tomato soup (lots of ricotta and cream!) and very rich cheese sandwiches on English muffin bread with 5 kinds of cheeses, spread with real butter and fried on the skillet until crispy. This has been our Christmas dinner ever since my mom requested it when she was in the early stages of the disease. And I believe it always will be our Christmas dinner, even when...well, after...
My mom stayed and visited for about 3 hours total. As her disease progresses she wants to spend less and less time away from her nursing home - it is small, family-like, everybody knows everybody, she thrives on her friendships and the routine there. She likes it here at my home also, loves playing with my dogs especially, but starts getting anxious after a while...lately it's been about an hour, maybe 90 minutes, before she wants to go back. So today was wonderful, having her here for 3 hours!
After we took my mom back, I had a rare Christmas treat: a nap with my husband! Usually our sleeping schedules are so different, and many Sundays my 31MO grandson is here, so a Sunday afternoon nap isn't possible, but today it was just us, and I slept like a rock for 2 hours, at the same time as hubby! That was a real Christmas gift right there!
After I got up, as he continued to sleep, I took care of my birds and made his lunch and had a couple of hours to myself which is always nice.
This year I have had great peace and joy about Christmas that I haven't experienced in a long time. Part of it are the blessings I receive from twitter, believe it or not - so many lovely Christians, it is like a worship celebration whenever I log on! Part of it is that Jesus has been drawing me so much closer this year, and His Word has been really in my heart. He's been giving me a thirst for it, and even though I don't remember what I've read afterward, the feeling is there, and I know that it is in my heart - the Holy Spirit will be - has been, and is! - able to bring it to my mind as needed, even if my mind doesn't recall it all the time. And the Word has been working in my heart, which sets my mind on things above rather than loving the world...how uplifting is that!
So this year I have had joy and peace in spite of circumstances, my eyes on Jesus and my heart centered on His Word and His promises. What a perfect day!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
