Breakdown

I heard somewhere along the way that bad things come in threes. You get to the third bad thing, and you're done. Sometimes I wondered with that statement whether they have to come in threes, or if sometimes, you get through the first one and you can be done.  Like, maybe...you get a reprieve every once in a while. I've never paid close attention, I guess, to the groupings of bad things in my life...the focus has always kind of been to get through the one that is most pressing at the moment.  I'm sure there have been times where I've skimmed by with just one.  Maybe two.

Not this time.

My computer has an unidentifiable virus. It locks up in safe mode.

My phone makes phone calls when it feels like it. Oh, if I go to speaker, it might connect. But. It might not.

My printer will not print.  Oh, homeschooling moms, you feel my pain with this one, don't you?? 

Do you realize how much you depend upon things like your computer, your phone, and your printer?  I didn't. What I suddenly realized, however, was that when one, or two, or three of them malfunction, everything else goes by the wayside while you try to figure out what has caused the problem(s). Hours, people.  Hours.  And the thing is, it's not that I don't have access to another computer.  Obviously I do. But...I have 3 years of pictures on my laptop. All of the documentation for schooling.  So many pieces of my life are on that computer.  Additionally, it's my connection to people throughout the day (I don't talk to my girlfriends on the phone like my mom talked to her friend Jill everyday when I was a kid...I facebook chat with them!), my source of all information, whether relevant or trivial, my find-a-cake-design-because-my-brain-doesn't-invent-these-things, it-copies-them resource, my respite in the evenings when I don't want to watch one more second of fox news with my dad...I just can't handle the ranting after a while, and I'd much rather watch something mindless like House in my room.  The point is...without my computer...ugh.  Even with a netbook...hehe...they're little, folks. And persnickety. If you are a netbook user who loves it...more power to you. I miss my 15" screen and a keyboard where my fingers fit and buttons in the "right" places and a touchpad I don't smack with  my left thumb all the time and wind up with my screen zoomed out to like 10%.  Am I grateful that there are other computers I can use while mine is down? Absolutely. Am I whining? Maybe a little. 

The phone...I never use it to make calls. Ok, not never, but rarely. The thing is...when I need to make calls, hello...it's my only phone. No land line here. No intentions of getting one when we move. And if one of my kids is dying and I need an ambulance, I better not have to wonder if my phone is going to make a call.  If you have the desire to purchase a palm pre plus...maybe run in the opposite direction. This is my second (and since I typed the draft of this post, they've decided to send me another new one) one in less than a year with the same problem, and my brother had the same issue with his, and I think also had it replaced once. Someday, I will upgrade to an iPhone. Someday.

As for the printer...sigh. It's just a printer, right? It's been an inconvenience this week not to be able to print off practice sheets and a new spelling list and copy the pages out of the Body Book like I needed to for science.   I can replace it for practically nothing. It's just the principle of the thing. Computer, Phone, Printer, all in ONE DAY???

Here's the thing: realistically, the computer will get reformatted (because my dad is awesome). The phone will be replaced.  The printer...who knows. It might work today.  If it doesn't, there's a Walmart less than 3 miles away that carries this exact model (and...maybe it's time to shop for a better model anyway?) for under $80.  I just didn't realize how all-encompassing the technology in my life really was. How significant it would be to deal with these three silly things all at once. And you know what I watched? I watched myself snap at or ignore what my kids were doing (or were supposed to be doing) because I couldn't make it work. I forgot my schedule and to-do list while I tried to get them back under control. I got to the end of at least two days and realized I had accomplished virtually nothing in an attempt to save information and find viruses and upgrade protection and troubleshoot with my phone company. And I wound up no better off, really, than when I started.  I had to pass off responsibility for the computer to my dad--I'm just not knowledgable enough about this kind of thing. I wasted 2 hours with the verizon store last night, only to have it not work again this morning...and now they're sending me a new phone.  I had to just give up fighting with the printer and accept the fact that I would have to replace it.  I'm sure there is some huge life lesson here...too much reliance upon technology? Too much worry, not enough asking for help (until much, much later)? Or maybe...who cares?  I'm making too much of it all.

I maybe tend to do that a little bit.  It's been one of those weeks.

How was your week?