The above is how I saw the day and week -- beautifully. It continued throughout the day as I went about actually changing out the old computer for the new AND INSTALLING A NEW ROUTER . . .
Physically I had to piece by piece disconnect both computers and then re-position each one so that the new computer would be where I usually work and the old one on the edge of the desk until I am sure that I have everything from it. I was able to accomplish that eventually and both were up and running, though I could not get the old computer connected to the net -- but I felt that was okay since I did not need that to be connected.
Enter the next phase of Monday:
I read the reviews which for the most part told of relative ease with which they installed the router and how well it worked.
I have had 5 routers in the last 5 or 6 years -- none of them were easy -- mostly taking about two days of hassling to get them to work right -- I would gladly now accept the two days -- but instead this router took 4 days to work right.
Monday night after I installed the router, all worked well and I was connected to our wi-fi and so were some of the other devices . . . Tuesday morning came, a beautiful sunny day, none of the devices or computers would connect to the internet even though the symbol on the computer said it was connected both locally and to the internet.
Jumping forward it took until Thursday evening to get things up and running. (I missed two webinars) this included speaking with maybe 10 different techs (mostly from India, the politest people ever) and finally after crawling between our desks, connecting and reconnecting cables and wires, the router worked as it was designed to work . . . and all is well so far.
As usual, each party involved -- the Computer Manufacturer (Dell), the router people (Netgear) and the internet provider (Comcast) all pointed fingers at the others. Why has it been so hard to install a router and have it work . . . I hope NEVER to have to do it again.
Some Progress in Other Areas
While I mess around with the computers, Gail continues working on getting things organized in the house and the garage. The many boxes that populated our living quarters have been put away -- mostly. There are a few stragglers that should be taken care of this week:
This is one area of progress and it looks better than the backrooms of some grocery stores that I have worked in -- this is our "Costco" backup area and it gives us a glance at things as we use them.
I did have a few minutes of genealogy time in-between the router mess. I was able to document some vitals connected to another Gillett -- this one a Great Grand Uncle of mine (ours):
I actually visited this cemetery about 8 years ago -- but I was so excited about finding our HILES line there that I did not look for others, like William. Now when I visit a cemetery I am sure to look for other possible names that are from our tree. I hope to visit that cemetery again at some point to make sure that I visit all the possible markers or spaces . . .
I also pulled the information on who was born on this date and who was married on this date:
So on the 4th of May there were 5 people from our tree born on that day and one couple married on this day. If you wonder maybe as to who some of these folks are -- you can always visit the HILES website and delve into that a bit: HILES WEBSITE there is a lot to see and explore.
An Attempt to Unwind after the Tech Mess . . .
So on Friday, Gail and I both were looking for some respite from the router mess. We decided on a lower tech project and to do that on the back deck starting when the sun was in the front (it did get close to 90 at some point this week).
We had ordered two chairs that arrived on Thursday in two large flat containers -- that meant only one thing, "some" assembly was required:
We struggled with the pieces and then started but nothing said where to actually begin -- there was a step one (on the left above) and a step two (on the right). We pushed around the parts and then started working on the inside and pieced together parts towards the outer edges . . . that seemed to work but was very slow going and we had to break several times to go inside for coolness.
We eventually were able to assemble the first chair and after all was done we had one bolt leftover -- and we felt that that was better than one short . . .
After lunch we tackled the second chair. Now feeling vastly capable after our success with the first chair. However, we did have to remove pieces a few times and reverse them but got down to one of the last connections AND found that we were "one washer short" . . . how bad could that be -- we'll just go into the garage and pour through the many jars of miscellaneous nuts, bolts and washers and we did and found one that might work -- however it did not.
We made a run to the hardware store and looked through numerous drawers of washers and even got the assistance of two clerks and eventually decided on two possibles which we purchased for 30 cents . . .
We were elated that the washer worked and we now had two chairs that we could sit in and GLIDE:
Gliding to me has always had a nice connotation as my Grandparents had a porch glider that we always loved gliding on whenever we had the chance. In the days of the late 40s and 50s porch gliders and wicker furniture played a big role in the social lives of folks (especially screen-in porches) in the Midwest.
We plan to glide a bit each day this summer to get away from the tech part of the day. I sure enjoyed the sensation. However, while gliding I did spy the missing washer on one of our wicker chairs . . .
Speaking of the late 40s here is an ad for gasoline from 1949 -- Wow!
Apparently it was a good price then and it would be a sell out today for sure -- my Father always pulled up to the pump and ordered $2 ethyl . . . that lasted awhile too in those days and that was full service too, don't forget those tires and windows . . .
Happy Cinco de Mayo
Tomorrow is the day that is celebrated in pretty big way here in California, but a little of me feels like the web post below:
It is often mis-represented as Mexican Independence Day -- but we are on our way out to buy some avocados . . . when I first came to California I rented a small house that was shaded by a few beautiful trees. However, often we would hear thumps on the roof and they would annoy us and we would go out and throw away those "ugly" looking fruit . . . I would love to have those thumping ugly fruit now -- they are usually around a dollar each at the store . . . we love avocados now . . .
And Lastly
We live a few blocks from the Russian River here in town. One of the big attractions is to rent a canoe and take a trip on the river and that has already started in a big way this season -- we have only one big piece of advice:
So that was bit of our week -- see you in a few!
No comments:
Post a Comment