End of the Week

The end of the week has arrived once more. The week seemed to fly by very fast. I don’t know why, it just did. Maybe it’s because I really wanted the week prolonged. It’s almost time for the first marathon of the year and I’m not sure of how well I have prepared for it. And maybe, just maybe…another week of practice would have made me more comfortable. But these races are more a battle of the mind than the body and doubt is one of the things you have to conquer.

It’s very quiet at this hour and so I can hear a very faint sound that seems to be coming from my computer. It cycles on and then off again after about three seconds. At first I thought it was the microwave that I was hearing, but it’s at the other end of the house and no one is using it at this hour. Disk drive? Or just the fan from the power supply? I suppose I had better make sure that everything important is copied onto my back up drive. That drive, a stand alone Seagate HD with 250 GB capacity is my lifeline for important stuff. I think it cost me $235 a few years ago, but I just read of a new (and much smaller) Maxtor drive that holds 100 GB. My Seagate is approximately 8” x 8” x 3” in size and probably weighs 2 pounds, The Maxtor is only about an inch thick and resembles an iPod in size. It weighs close to 7 ounces and will cost under $200. With a USB connection, this becomes a great portable drive. Want to take all of your photos with you on a trip? And your music as well? I know…you can do the same thing and more with an iPod. But if you’re not interested in being part of the very proprietary Steve Jobs Apple world, this would make a great backup device for your laptop.

From that last remark, you can probably guess correctly that I’m not an Apple fan. I am a fan of the Apple computer itself; it’s a great design! And I really would like to own one sometime. I’m just not a fan of Steve Jobs and the Apple Corporation. When you buy a Mac, you’re really not allowed to “mess around” with it, as you can with a PC. It’s a feeling similar to not being able to modify your car…”I bought it. It’s mine and if I want to add three carburetors and a full-race camshaft, I can…” I also know that those days of hot rodding are long gone as well. A pity.

The news stories are all about the same today as they were yesterday…but I have been enjoying the roasting of Senator Frist, the sponsor of the infamous $100 gas rebate plan. Mr. Frist, who can apparently make life and death medical diagnoses via television, is not so hot at figuring out what the voters want and thinks that a $100 dollar bribe will shut them up. Perhaps this latest blunder of his will make him go away. One can always hope!

Also political…have you noticed that our acting governor, Schwarzenegger, has managed to stay off of the front page recently? His handlers must have a new strategy and low-key is the word for it.