I've Got Winter in My Discontent

This week just isn't going that great for me. I can't share the half of it, but here's a sample of what's bumming me out.


  • The local library sent me a "we'll call you when we actually form the position we're looking to fill" e-mail (semi-rejection)

  • People at work today seemed to be misinterpreting or just plain ignoring everything I said today (I really did try to tell the manager I couldn't work Thursday, but she looked at the schedule, made a comment about someone else, and walked away. Guess I'll call later today and try again.)

  • It's still really icy out here. As in my car doors keep icing shut and I'm worried I might break them (or all my fingers) prying them open.

  • And the big one: Monday night when I was writing on my G3, it fizzled out (that was the exact sound it made) and it will not restart.


All my writing is on there. I have a back-up that's about 75% up to date, but I'm not sure where I can get those disks read, if need be. But Dear Lord, please, I do not want my G3 to die. Not now. This was the year I was planning to finish my first novel, for good--sooner, rather than later.

I don't even know who could (or whom I'd trust to) repair it. Someone at work said her cousin's best friend works on Macs--but again, based on how bad communication was going today, she'll probably forget.

I've already cried about it twice, and I don't think I'm done crying. I'm scared about the future of this machine and its contents. And the implications for my writing.

I'm also mad at myself for not reading the warning signs when it shut itself off a couple of months ago. That time, it came back on right away, but the other night was different. Obviously.

I know it's just things, but it's also my hard work that I fear has just vaporized. I really, really, really hope not.

Is it just me, or is technology really mean this week?



Comments

Dave E. said…
Ok, the first thing to check is if you have power.
(sorry, couldn't resist) ;)

I don't have much experience with Macs so I'm not much good to you on this one. There are utilities that you can buy or try free that will read/copy mac files to windows. There might be some freeware ones out there too. Try the downloads page at cnet.com. Worst case you can call around and see how much to pull the hard drive to see if it's good. Ask how much it would it be to copy the files to another storage medium, and maybe convert to pc for you if the drive is good. Good luck.

Sorry to hear about the library position, but hang in there.
maggie said…
Oh Kate I would die. DIE DIE DIE. I had a TA in college who would periodically burn everything she'd written to a CD and send it to her mother, who would then put it in a fireproof safe. If Phillip were an Apple guy I would totally volunteer him, but alas, he knows nothing Mac-wise. I'M SO SORRY. I really hope it can be saved!
nightfly said…
Kate, that's horrible. I'm sorry... I've had this happen. Ever since I am so ridiculous about printing drafts and backup copies that I sometimes can't tell which is the most recent version of a story!

I really hope you can find a way to read the hard drive and rescue all your work.
Kate P said…
Dave--ha ha, IT help probation joke. That was perfect! (And ironically it does seem to be a power problem, only one not caused by my flakiness.) Thanks for the suggestions.

Maggie--Oh yeah, sending copies off-site will be next. Thanks for the kind words, and yeah I hope I find someone as smart about Macs as Phillip is about PCs.

'Fly--Thanks. Sympathy from a fellow writer. I know, I am kicking myself for not getting the printer back online. I have old hard copies, and I do save all my notes. . . but they don't have the good stuff I actually made out of them. Needless to say, I've learned a lot from this failure. And maybe my experience will save someone else from having to go through it!
Amy Giglio said…
Scott said that the good news is that you can probably take your hard drive out and just put it in the new computer. He thinks you probably only lost what you hadn't saved (or what hadn't been autosaved for you), so all hope is not lost!!! You might be able to find a new (to you) mac on a website like LEM Swap (low end mac) or even Ebay. We got the G4 I'm working on right now on EBay (reconditioned with Leopard on it and the MS Office suite for Mac) for 4 or 500 bucks. That iMac will be a bear to get downtown. The guy whose cell died on you sounds like a good place to start. Hope this helps!
Kate P said…
Hey, Amy--thanks to you and Scott for the advice. It's a lot like the plan from the Mac guy, although I'm praying I can stay under $400. At least a new (to me) machine will have a warranty on it. There's probably a bunch of things in line to bite the dust on the G3, so I think it's time to start saying our goodbyes. (Shoot, I don't even have Leopard, that's how old mine is!)

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