The Besttechie Cafe'

[robroy]

Feel for you rv. Washed my car and it rained overnite I know you can barbeque in winter but its much more fun in good weather

Mac i have to clean the carpets same way that you do, keep saying no more dogs, but no one listens

[thesidekickcat]

rv56, I feel sorry about your snow event after all that work, but take heart that the lawn is mowed so it wont be to high when the snow melts off. My hubby is mowing right now trying to catch up on 3 places, and it is still damp, and is quite high since he couldn't mow last weekend due to rain.

As for the barbecue, even one of the local weather men was barbecuing fish the other night and the thunderstorm and rain finished that outdoor event off. He said it is not fun rescuing stuff in a thunderstorm. Ha!

Liz, keep trying all the secondhand stores for the kirby part. Was that a soft kind of pliable plastic medium brown round thing with plastic "teeth"? I have one for my Rainbow, either it's theirs, or else I added Kirby one to my Rainbow tools and don't remember??? Just checked my Kirby booklet (I told you folks I have trouble throwing stuff away, besides I need the booklet to remember how to set up the shampooer part which is all I use it for nowadays), and it is called a "massage cup" believe it or not. Kirby tried to sell their products as doing all things including scalp massage with this thing. I never used it for scalp but it works very well on cat posts, couches etc for cat hair, and for dog hair for our long ago dogs (I even used it directly on the last dog and she loved it). Keep looking in various vac stores too, if it is what I have from my over 35 year old oldtimer Kirby (no longer used, except shampoo part). There was also something called a shag rake (yes for those awful shag rugs that things got buried and lost in) that my girlfriend's vac had that works very well for pet hair.

On another subject, our new mailman who is just starting out on probation (which I hope he either shapes up fast or loses out on job fast), is driving all the people on this street, probably whole route too, nuts! I think one neighbor is close to starting a revolution against him, and that was two days ago. The mail carrier sweats all over the mail, mine especially since I am last on this section of street, I couldn't figure out why mail was soaked with no rain those days, second day I asked him and he says no big deal it is only sweat from carrying it on his sweaty arm...YUCK!!!! So I called post office to complain, finally got local P.O. number from automated phone number up in Seattle, Wa, and complained. The supervisor agreed that was not right. So a few minutes after that call, there was a new neighbor several houses down the block, that I have only seen once before, with a package of mine. Misdelivered mail. He said several of the neighbors near him are fed up with having to redeliver mail. I was sure glad the letters I got that day were not wrongly delivered, as there were statements from two different banks, and some new IRA cd paperwork that bank was supposed to call when it was ready to be signed not mail it with all hubby's numbers, SS and account # from one cd to another and other info etc on it. SIGH! Thank God that mail didn't go astray. Well today, I checked as soon as mail guy left, and there was alot of our mail, plus 2 outgoing pieces of mail from someone way way down the street, one was a utitlly bill probably with a check inside. Yikes!!! I bet they will join the revolution against the mail guy when they find out.

Some in neighborhood are, how should I put this? less than trustworthy I guess is the polite way to put it. I want that guy fired now, before the wrong someone gets anyones private info and does id theft.

Has anyone had any mail carrier this bad? Oh he uses peoples porches to sort the mail in his bag, is always using text messaging on cell phone, is sloppy and rude, reads catalogs and magazines in truck etccccc. I want him fired now! forget rest of probation period, this guy just doesn't get it!!!

Sorry for the rant folks, but I have seen bad carriers before and the occasional misdelivered mail, but nothing to the magnitude this guy has elevated the art of mishandling mail. They could use him as a poster guy for how not to do the job.

Otherwise things are going good here this weekend, and I hope for you folks too.

God bless everyone.

Edited April 30, 2005 by thesidekickcat

[tenmm]

thesidekickcat

We had a mail "person" here for about a month that could give yours a good run for "boob" of the year award.

After the second week a bunch of us went to the postoffice and signed a complaint,by the end of the third week we had a new carrier,no idea where the old one went,only glad we got a new(much better)one.

It whould grieve me to find out you got stuck with the old one we had.

tenmm

[thesidekickcat]

Was he deaf too? Mine is deaf (reads lips but cant seem to read addresses), so I am sure will get special treatment.

I didn't know there was a formal complaint we can sign, thanks for the info.

Might be what we need to do, will check it out with neighbors. I guess it would be better than burning him in effigy at a block party in his honor.

God bless everyone.

[blim]

Liz, keep trying all the secondhand stores for the kirby part. Was that a soft kind of pliable plastic medium brown round thing with plastic "teeth"? I have one for my Rainbow, either it's theirs, or else I added Kirby one to my Rainbow tools and don't remember??? Just checked my Kirby booklet (I told you folks I have trouble throwing stuff away, besides I need the booklet to remember how to set up the shampooer part which is all I use it for nowadays), and it is called a "massage cup" believe it or not.

God bless everyone.

Sidekickcat, that is exactly the gadget!!! And if my memory is right on vacuums, Rainbow parts are brown, Kirby are black, so that tells me both manufacturers make them , which doubles my chances at Goodwill Hunting!!! Glad for the info--and now that I know what it is called, perhaps the Vac Center can order just that part (and for the rest of you, try to get your hands on one, it really does work)

As for the mailman---ewwwwyuck! Maybe poke around Google to see if you can contact your Postmaster General, I think he or she's called? I wonder if you can threaten to call the BBB? Being a Government Facility they may be exempt, though. I'd say to insist on a PO Box (for FREE till he's Gone!), but going to the post office to pick up your mail could be a pain in the patoot unless you live in a tiny town like I do.

I hope you all know that I am not the least bit prejudiced in any way, but this will sound prejudiced anyway I put it--sigh--but with him having a disability, it will be tougher to get him fired. The disability laws are GREAT for those who DESERVE a job, but seem to protect those who don't really want a job or those with no work ethics--that's a lousy "catch 22" and this guy obviously doesn't deserve his job. Like Tenmm said, perhaps if you all 'band together' he will at least get moved??

Liz

[tenmm]

It worked out well for those of use who went there,we even took a present

Told the postmaster it was one size fit's all,and we did not care who got it.

[blim]

Rofling!

[macmarauder]

this postman reminds me of the one in Funny Farm.

VRROOOOOOM!

[thesidekickcat]

It worked out well for those of use who went there,we even took a present

Told the postmaster it was one size fit's all,and we did not care who got it.

Well when I originally posted about it, I thought about saying I'm considering a hanging party. But thought better of it, being the 'guvrmint' and all not having a sense of humor.

I am sure this does sound funny, until you experience something like it yourself. I have such a bad feeling about this whole thing, from the very beginning of it. We will see what we can do Monday.

The person whose outgoing mail we received, isn't home yet.

I feel wierd having someone elses mail here. Don't want to leave it unattended at their box, considering it is a weekend and they might have gone to the beach, or mountains, or something. Don't want to go down to P.O. and mail it, until we talk to the people and show it to them.

Can you tell I am upset over the whole mess?

I know I would want people to show it to me and let me take it to P.O. if it was reversed, but don't know the people at all.

God bless everyone.

[robroy]

Hey thesidekickcat I feel for you. Our mailcarrier is great, she arrives at the same time every morning, always has a smile and hello. The problem is whenever she is off the stand ins always seem to mess it up. Three times in two moths he left the neighbors mail at our house

[blim]

Hi All!

Well all day we dealt with the Possessed Gateway and it sure was true to form! Did the "nice" thing and ran Spyware Stuff--found 296 "bugs" (is that a record??....) and it is now an expensive gaming machine--no internet! We did everything "right", even googling the baddies before deletion, but hoo boy we really broke it this time--made another post on Windows Support with the "short story" Send over the missles, Macmarauder, Holy Water ain't gonna cure it !

My brain hurts!!! Too much time decifering Tech Language (why, oh why can't geeks write instructions in simple English?) and arguing with Son on the best method to try to fix the thing, which between the two of us, we made situations worse, I'm sure. It'll be worse yet when the kids start fighting over the Dell which still has internet . I already warned Son that he will just have to take turns. It'll be like when they were little with a favored toy--I'll have to set the kitchen timer for turns

And tomorrow I take my 80 year old "Nut with a walker" (HER phrase not mine!) out shopping all day. Her mind is just starting to go, so that's a pretty good description of her. At the end of her day I'm totally exhausted! Oi Vey, I think I need a martini if only I liked the stuff.....

And how was your day?!?!?

Liz

[robroy]

Fresh coffee and donuts everyone

Sounds like you are having lots of fun Liz. I posted a reply to you about the gateway.

Just keep with it and we'll get you back up and running

[Vile_DR]

OMG, i would love to have some donuts this morning...I can already tell that the "end users" are going to draining the cell phone battery...

"Why oh why?" "All I did was turned on the light...then they scattered"

[macmarauder]

hey Dr.Vile maybe your slogan should be "you break it and i fix it"

Hi All!

Well all day we dealt with the Possessed Gateway and it sure was true to form!  Did the "nice" thing and ran Spyware Stuff--found 296 "bugs" (is that a record??....) and it is now an expensive gaming machine--no internet!  We did everything "right", even googling the baddies before deletion, but hoo boy we really broke it this time--made another post on Windows Support with the "short story"  Send over the missles, Macmarauder, Holy Water ain't gonna cure it !

My brain hurts!!!  Too much time decifering Tech Language (why, oh why can't geeks write instructions in simple English?) and arguing with Son on the best method to try to fix the thing, which between the two of us, we made situations worse, I'm sure.  It'll be worse yet when the kids start fighting over the Dell which still has internet .  I already warned Son that he will just have to take turns.  It'll be like when they were little with a favored toy--I'll have to set the kitchen timer for turns

And tomorrow I take my 80 year old "Nut with a walker" (HER phrase not mine!) out shopping all day.  Her mind is just starting to go, so that's a pretty good description of her. At the end of her day I'm totally exhausted!  Oi Vey, I think I need a martini if only I liked the stuff.....

And how was your day?!?!?

Liz

i see

(picks up the red phone with no buttons on the desk) (a voice answers)

Secretary of Defense

"yes president macmarauder"

President

"send me all the launch codes macmarauder, it's a matter on National Defense"

Secretary of Defense

"yes, right away sir"

(hangs up phone and whistles the presidential theme music)

(in the next room the Secretary of Defense fills out some paper work and hands it to a clerk)

Secretary of Defense

"get this to the base right away, your country is counting on you macmarauder"

(the clerk salutes the Secretary of Defense and then turns around and opens the door.)

(he runs across the hall through the next door.)

Commander

"what's the meaning of this!!!"

Clerk

"aaAAAAHHHHOOoooo. the president. aaAAAAHHHHOOoooo. Secre of Defen. aaAAAAHHHHOOoooo. National Defense. aaAAAAHHHHOOoooo."

Commander

"i see. Lieutenaaaaaant macmarauder!!!!"

"take these handcuffs and retrieve the launch codes for the President ASAP "

"remember your country is counting on you, millions of lives could be at stake"

(the Lieutenant salutes and hope into a mini military jeep and drives across the hall through another door)

Lieutenant

"reporting to retrieve launch codes for the President"

(the Scientist looks around for a minute)

"lets see here ..... hmmmm ..... where did i? .............. ohhh there it is."

(the Scientist pulls something out from under the desk leg and hands it the Lieutenant)

(the Lieutenant cuff the briefcase to himself and walks through a door into the next room.

"reporting with launch codes Mr. President"

(he uncuffs the case and hands it to the president)

"it has been and honor to serve you sir."

(the President opens the case and pulls out a big donut)

Lieutenant

"what about the launch codes sir? what about National Defense?

President

"Ohhh yeah right, that's just my secret code for jelly filled."

Lieutenant

"what about the missiles for blims computer sir?"

President

"Huhh, ohh yea."

(the President pushes a big red button on his desk)

the role of the Scientist was played by the robotic mouse. mann that took me a while to create that little story. sometimes when i'm typing my jokes i act them out as i make them up, i think i need a nap.

[Vile_DR]

I have actually thought about chaging the Sign outside of my office from "IT Dept." to "Out of Service"and turn off my phone, just to see if anyone would spaz out...

Atleast you have done your duty for today Mac. It seems that your well earned rank serving the President his donut is more than just a job, but an honor knowing you helped your country...LOL...what else could a President ask for??? More Tax Payer Money...LOL...

[rv56]

Mac....that was so good!!!

You had me at the edge of my seat....the suspense...

Love it.....waiting for Act 2....

[thesidekickcat]

Hello everyone.

Liz I am so sorry you are having so much trouble with the Gateway. Good luck with redoing it with board people's help. Maybe when you do the clean install, and get it all set up with antivirus, firewall, and all the antispyware programs, it will start feeling appreciative of all your good efforts to clean it and protect it, so it will serve you well from now on. Once you get it all done, give it a nice positive image name to encourage it to do well for you all. Maybe it feels unappreciated for all it's service, while it was in such bad computer health/shape?

Mac, that was a very good screen play act. You have such a great imagination.

As for an update on the mailman from outer space. We finally gave the utility bill etc. back to the neighbor Sunday morning while he was washing his car. Several double takes later, and even then it took quite a bit of explaining to get him to understand what happened. He was furious, was going to call P.O today. Also said he lost a mortgage payment a month ago, would be strange if that same mailman was on as a trainee with supervisor that day? I only know for sure that he's been around a week now. Talked to another neighbor late this afternoon. Didn't get the whole story, but they had the postal inspector out for an hour today. I will have to get the rest of the story from his wife tomorrow. We had warned her the other day, and she poopoohed the problems then because he was deaf. Yes he is deaf, but not blind!!!! Deafness shouldn't affect him reading addresses!!!! Only problem we had today, was he buried our little postcard of a garbage bill in the junk mail ads. Luckily I go through all the junk to make sure nothing is in it, like credit applications or whatever, so found the bill. Sigh. I will do another call to P.O. tomorrow. Havn't found any neighbors willing to sign a complaint yet, but the week is early yet, give it time.

As for the rest of the day, many errands including banking business, made hubby's eye exam appointment, stopped at Kaiser pharmacy to check on their blood pressure machines, since we still need to keep track of bps. And that is one sure way to raise your blood pressure, try to figure out which size BP machine to buy with an inept, uncaring clerk. She convinced us we should get the large, even though the tape measure showed we were on the top end of medium and we are losing weight. She finally found a demo, as I was concerned the display might not be big enough for my nearsighted eyes. That turned out ok. Then we thought we bought the medium, hours later found out it was large. Took bp, lower than it has been lately, so back to Kaiser at 3:30, after all the dozen or so errands plus grocery shopping, (hungry as we hadn't eaten since 9 am), to have our bps checked by the nurse treatment center. I was alot higher than home, then she did it on our machine, nearly same, but said cuff will be to big if I continue to lose. Hubby had more of a gap between two readings yet his arm is slightly bigger. So it is either take it back or order an a medium cuff at whatever cost. So to long a line at pharmacy, so on home to finally eat and will try solve it next week, when my blood pressure should be back down from stressing out over buying BP machine. Ha! Got alot done today, but still a tiring long day.

Gotta go, time for cat's medicine, and so I will see you folks tomorrow.

God bless everyone.

[Vile_DR]

Sounds like you have so much to do SideKickCat, but it also looks like you have your ducks in a line (I know it is Row, but I saw the movie "A Lot Like Love", it kinda took it from there, because if you say it the right way and in the right sentence it is pretty funny). I wish I could get ahead of my schedule like you have. I write everything done, and try to plan everything out, but never seem to remember or read everything that I have written down...maybe one day, I'll get it into my wrinkly brain, all the days tasks and not be reminded by the fact that I didn't do it today, but sure as h*ll have to do it tomorrow...lol...

As others have mentioned, MAC, when should we expect act 2, we all await anxiously as you inspirationally take heed in the jobs you suscribe to.

[thesidekickcat]

I used to be organized many years ago then I got married. Nowa days it is hubby pushing me to do what he says are top priority things, then I try to add in a few I want to do. Then that mixture is what usually turns the errand day into a chaotic disaster. At least we try to prioritize things (usually by deadlines!), and by which part of town we need to be in, and by energy level. Somehow yesterday turned out to be a backtrack day on Kaiser part.

Plus it was worse because we didn't eat lunch somewhere, breaking our own rules of what works and what doesn't for us. We know we should take a lunch break or things will only get worse. Sort of a Murphy's law thing, right?

By the way, we couldn't survive in this household without sticky note reminders all over the bathroom mirror. (unfortunatey some have been there so long we can barely read them...usually mine...Sigh! )

Having ducks in a row, implies knocking them down one by one. Which is what an errand list should have happen, but some birds wont stay knocked down. Such as banking trips, and yesterday even Kaiser stuff kept popping up again. And as it turned out yesterday even giving away the pile of stuff, from recently cleaned out basement corner, turned hard as no truck due on our street to pick up stuff recently, no attendee at Goodwill trailer in nearby store lot so stuff shoved underneath would get wet and/or stolen, and the place I had planned to give it to was on wrong side of town from where we would be. Finally found out the fairly new nearby Goodwill store has an attended donation driveup door. So that took longer to solve than expected. (That was on my priority list, as I couldn't clear out anymore stuff without a place to put it due to so much piled up from last session.)

I guess it was like the carnival ducks, that are set up so it is tough to knock them down for good.

So today I vacummed and though my back is sore, it seemed like a stroll in the park compared to yesterday. Ha!

God bless everyone.

Edited May 4, 2005 by thesidekickcat

[robroy]

My mother told me there would be days like that . The problem is that she didn't tell me that almost every day would be that way.

Some days I think I would be further ahead if I stayed in bed all day

Just never get caught up, too many interruptions

Mac, did you miss Liz's computer with the bomb because mine keeps rebooting itself

[Vile_DR]

Well atleast you know what you are doing SidekickCat, I am still working on what priorites means.

Sounds like a miss-guided bomb if Mac launched it. It probably wasn't anything he did, except bring the wrong jelly-filled donut...hehe...

Caffine has been a weird experience this morning, who made the coffee? Ouch...got the shakes...

[blim]

Hello All!

Haven't been to the Cafe for a few days, spending my now limited internet time lurking in Windows Support trying to decifer instructions Trying to share one internet ready computer with the kids leaves little time for Mom.

Mac, thanks for the missle--I loved the screamplay. I think the missle is hovering over the Possessed Gateway (now known as PG) waiting to strike, unless it went to Robroy's place first.

Sidekickcat, don't you just hate it when "one simple task" takes practically all day and leaves your mood shot??? Oh!!, I remember you writing about celery and blood pressure--is the celery still working and what is the "dosage" again? My mom recently started blood pressure meds and hates taking "chemicals" everyday. And she loves celery--told her about it and she asked, "does it work the same if the celery is in bloody marys? "

Gotta rant about my Gateway Adventure---I wanted to confirm that the Product Key code on the front of my MS manual is the code needed to reinstall windows, as I couldn't remember from 5 years ago and didn't write it down. Emailed Gateway Support as they "should" have it on file, at least you would think. Support emailed me back, saying,

"look through your boxes, it may have been misplaced"

!!!Like I have the boxes anymore, its 5 years old!! Found a great solution through one of Macmarauder's links and found the code in the registry. Easy as pie (yes, I actually WENT to the "forbidden registry" just looked, didn't touch)

Thinking about toying with Gateway Support, writing back, "no cannot find it" to see if they suggest what I learned, or to write back with the solution so they can put it in their "database" and tell them how rotten their support was. Hmmmmm.

Thinks Sidekickcat's mailman was trained by a PC Support Supervisor, as I learned Dell's support isn't any good, either (had another problem which I ended up solving through google after an hour with Dell!)

Dentist appt today, wish me luck!!

Liz

[macmarauder]

please forgive me for the long post.

Act II

(camera zooms out a few feet just after president macmarauder pressed the big red button on the desk marked never ever ever push, even in an emergency or even an alien invasion, except in case of invasion of evil furbies )

(missiles came shooting out of the ground behind the whitehouse)

(camera zooms wayout), (outside of macmarauders head)

macmarauder

so i said, that’s not my cd drive. HA HA HA ha ha ha! .......... (twitch, twitch)

date

HA HA HA HA HA! ????? is something wrong?

macmarauder

no i’m just fine. .........

click on link below for sound effects.

Missile

narrator

well any ways those missiles came roaring out in a bad way and headed straight for Montague (blims computer).

Meanwhile at norad.

(lots of loud buzzers and bleeps from the computers)

reusable extra

AAAAHHHHHHH!!!! WE’RE ALL GONA DIE!!

falls over railing.

Commander

WHAT’S GOING ON?!

soldier at the radar

we’ve picked up a nuclear launch sir.

Commander

finally some action. i’ve been waiting years for this. eat that NATO.

Proceed to Defcon 3.

(an even louder buzzer sounds)

alright solder which country is it? who do we get to bomb today?

soldier at the radar

i don’t know sir. the missiles is already over american soil.

Commander

what?!

soldier at the radar

the missiles were launched from our own country but it’s not one of ours.

Commander

Ohhh my god man. the terrorists have smuggled nuclear missiles in to our country to launch them at us. they must be stopped. we can’t launch our own missiles cause it could harm civilians. D&%M those clever Bas#@$ds!!

soldier at the radar

there’s something else sir. the missiles aren’t going that fast and they’re barley showing up on the radar.

Commander

where are they headed?

soldier at the radar

Montague sir.

Commander

how long do we have until impact?

soldier at the radar

6 hours sir.

Commander

get me a terrorist ASAP. we need to know what’s going on.

narrator

somewhere on a peaceful street corner about a mile away from norad.

(an american born Arab is playing checkers outside of a cafe’)

(an all black suv pulls up and several generic men in black suits jumps out)

generic man in a black suit

your coming with us.

(they toss him into the van and storm off)

narrator

an hour later. yes i have to keep popping up to say obvious stuff so that i have a job so that i can pay my child support.

generic man in a black suit

he didn’t talk much, dann he’s good.

Commander

this can mean only one thing, ..... a surgical strike. a terrorist smart enough to get those into the country would ...... they must know that our ......... they must know our secret barried 500 ft below the surface of Montague.

narrator

will Rocky save Bullwinkle who's dangling on a thin sting above a pool filled with vicious piranha, bull eating sharks, and Gilbert Godfree and will macmarauder blame it on the dog?

who really cares?

stay tuned for next week for act III.

Edited May 4, 2005 by macmarauder

[bar5]

Gotta rant about my Gateway Adventure---I wanted to confirm that the Product Key code on the front of my MS manual is the code needed to reinstall windows, as I couldn't remember from 5 years ago and didn't write it down.  Emailed Gateway Support as they "should" have it on file, at least you would think.  Support emailed me back, saying,

"look through your boxes, it may have been misplaced"

!!!Like I have the boxes anymore, its 5 years old!!  Found a great solution through one of Macmarauder's links and found the code in the registry.  Easy as pie (yes, I actually WENT to the "forbidden registry" just looked, didn't touch)

 

Thinking about toying with Gateway Support, writing back, "no cannot find it" to see if they suggest what I learned, or to write back with the solution so they can put it in their "database" and tell them how rotten their support was.  Hmmmmm.

 

Liz

Liz:

Download this "Belarc" and it will show you your product keys that you have for the software you have installed. I have it on my computer.

Belarc

Might want to print it out and stash it somewhere.

Barb

[Vile_DR]

Great Suggestion there Barb, i completely forgot about that little application. I even look at everyday on all my computers...

MAC, another great ActII actually had me thinking about something that the country knows about but won't tell us...if that makes sense. MAC what do you do for a daily job? I mean no offence or any disrespect, but you definitely have a quality imagination that is definitely admirable and I am just wondering if you are some type of programmer or story teller...