Computers are necessary, aren’t they?  Okay may be not for everyone.  But for me, yes!  I don’t know what I would do, now that I am blogging, without a computer.  My current computer was purchased in December of 2004.  It is a Dell XPS M140 laptop.  It has been a wonderful computer and if I could suck more life out of it I would.

Let me tell you a little about my computer.

I am missing the F6 button.  I don’t remember how I lost that one.  I am also missing the 5 button.  F6 has never been a problem but the 5 button has been a big problem! I lost my 5 button when I put the computer down, and the scissors I had on my lap (don’t remember why) fell and hit the 5 button and it popped right off!  So now when I want to type the number 5 I have to find a 5 I can copy and paste!  This is one of the reasons I love the form filling software Roboform because I can fill out forms without finding a 5.  My missing 5 button is a pain since I have two fives in my phone number and one in my address!

After four years there is trouble.

I started this blog on Blogger in April and within a week my computer started to act up.  It was a whole big drama!  I thought I had it all solved after I got it back from the computer guy but nope.  The insanity continued when I  lost my external hard drive! Since then it has been working great.  It occasionally gets a bit hot but that can be dealt with, right?!

Last month I decided I finally needed get a new battery.  I have the original one that my laptop came with. The problem was that the battery wasn’t charging.  I figured it was just the battery.  I ordered a battery from HQRP through Amazon.  It came and it was charged only to fifty-one percent.  I plugged it in and it wouldn’t charge.  I then knew that the battery was not the problem!  It was my computer.  I called Mark my computer guy.  He told me it was part of my motherboard that went bad if it won’t charge.  He said it would be another $200-300 for that to be fixed.

My computer is almost four and half years old!

I was not going to be paying another $200-300 to fix it again.  So I dealt with fifty-one percent.  Here comes the next problem.  I took my computer to the family reunion two weeks ago.  The cabin had very few three pronged outlets.  I had to unplug the television in order to turn the computer on.  Well one day I decided to keep it on for a bit longer.  I went and played a game with the family.  It had been a while and I heard the television on!!  My father-in-law had the television on.  Sure enough he just unplugged my computer and plugged in the t.v.!!  I was down to twenty-six percent!  So next (I don’t even remember how it happened) one of my kids unplugged the computer and I lost it all.  Now I have no power left in the battery.

This would be fine except, my computer is four and half years old! Where the plug goes into the computer it is a bit loose. If the computer gets bumped, a child trips on the cord or my newly crawling son comes over to chew on the cord it will pop right out.  This has happened several times.  It is so frustrating, when this happens.  It takes a while to boot up because it is a bit slower these days.

My decision on buying a computer.

After having to restart my computer three times on Friday, I had had it!  I talked to my husband and we decided it was time!  So I got on Dell.com and ordered a Inspiron 17 with 4 GB memory and 320 hard drive. I splurged a bit and bought Microsoft Office with Excel and Power Point.  I have never had those.  I have a longer life battery and a 17 inch screen!!  I am so excited to get it!  The only problem is it doesn’t come until Aug 17th!!  I got free next day air but… it will take that long to build it!  I am not impressed by that but I guess beggars can’t be choosers.

I am really excited but waiting patiently for this new computer!