Contraband

Contraband

I love a challenge. Anything that I’m told is too hard to figure out, chances are, I’ll gravitate towards it and excel at it. I was 8, my brother was 12 and we went to sleep to a relatively empty clean apt on Christmas eve that year. Woke up to my brother shaking me awake at 6 AM screaming that Santa had come and “OH BOY, were we on the NICE LIST!!!” I bolted out of bed into the living room and there they stood. 2 HUGE boxes in the middle of the floor, white… with a rainbow apple in the middle of the box. “A computer?????” I squealed. Tore the box open, assembled whatever pieces needed to be put together and Voila. Victoria’s entry into computer-dom. And my brand new Apple IIc was my conduit. If you know anything about computers, it was really just a fancy word processor that we could also play games on. But it was a computer (complete with dot matrix printer, to later upgrade to the daisy wheel printer — oooooh… so advanced back then). We had it for a long while and then I got to 7th grade. And subsequently to the world of PCs. I stared at the behemoths like “ewwww, what are these?” longing for my sleek and quiet IIc. And one of the nastier kids in class said, “Apple Computers are for pussies. If you really know computers, you know PCs.” I glared at him. NO ONE TELLS ME I’M TAKING THE EASY WAY. Almost immediately I immersed myself in PC studies. BASIC language, DOS, C, then Windows 3.1, Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows ME (uck)… and NEVER looked back at Apple. Well, maybe only to scoff at them and how the most basic, feeble minded, short bus riding folks must love Apple because they lay everything out for you and don’t make you think. HMPH. I LIKE TO THINK. I LIKE TO THINK HARD. I LIKE TO TRY TO SOLVE A PROBLEM AND 4 HOURS LATER BE NO CLOSER TO AN ANSWER THAN WHEN I STARTED. PUSSIES!!! I’M A PC GIRL!!! WE LOVE A REAL CHALLENGE!!!

Okay… so I’m older now. And Apple has basically streamlined EVERYTHING. Not only does it sound like it RUNS like a dream… but they are SUPER aesthetically pleasing (as they’ve always been). But I’m an old dog, set in my ways. And I refuse to budge. Till today.

I had to set up the podcasting feature for the websites I manage. So after setting them up and creating the feeds for them… I was like…. hmmmmm… how do I test it and make sure it works? I don’t have an ipod. (Or any MP3 player, for that matter because if the iPod is the industry standard and no PC based models are not ready to come with something better… then I just won’t get one. If I get an iPod… it’s only because I didn’t spend money on it). So I put the outrageous challenge out to my boss that since we podcast now… it is justifiable to have all members of the promotions team have iPods to test and support our product. Only makes sense. And I ended the email with “keeping a straight face in case you think it’s a good idea”. He writes back, “I have a gift for you. Royce will bring it over shortly. Great work on the podcasting stuff!”

ERR??? *tilts head like RCA Dog*

It worked??? No sooner did I get the email than was it sitting there. A little slim green and white box… no bigger than a CD case (just thcker) and it read “iPod Shuffle” on the side of it. Well… how was I going to expect the full on iPod joint… if I didn’t even really want it? Seemed unreasonable. So… I now have an iPod shuffle. Which I just loaded up with 72 of my favorite songs. It’s fully charged and ready to go for my ride into work tomorrow. I almost feel.. excited at the prospect of having music on the ride in. The soundtrack of my commute. I MUST rid myself of those God aweful white earphones, though. 1) because i REFUSE to be assimilated (all the way) and 2) my ears (unlike anything else on my body) are soooo small that the damned things pop out all the time.

Resistance is futile… *sigh* But this is only because it was free… okay? I’m not putting ANY of my money towards the dumbing down of the human race….

*sigh* I’ll just participate.

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I am having trouble finding enough peace tonight to sleep. I’m really troubled, but I don’t know with what… and suddenly… I feel REALLY sad. Funny that I always offer to friends that I’m available for them even in the wee hours of the morning. Maybe I do that because I know how many times I wish I had the liberties to call someone at 3 AM and know they’d not be angr at me for it. No one ever really takes me up on it, though. I’m assuming mostly because … they are asleep. Unlike me — despite the fact that I have to be at work early tomorrow… so this being up even later is compromising my attempt to look like a good little worker.

I had a really decent night though. Hung out with my brother. He fed me at Olive Garden (mmmm… the biscotti….) we got home, watched SFU (cause he doesnt’ have HBO), then caught a showing The Best Man – one of my all time favorite all black cast movies of the 90′s. Laughed… talked… joked… enjoyed. Brother went home. Talked on IM at length with many IM buddies. Then… it was like a mass exodus. Everyone signed off (quite possibly because it was like… midnight already). And here I am… 2 hours later. Daddy’s still awake. And so am I. I’m trying to burn my snazzy aroma therapy oil essence burner… but I hope this oil isn’t for rejeuvenation and energy… cause then I’ll NEVER get to sleep.

2:00 AM.

I should try again. Wish me luck.

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