RyanHarne.com

While the week pressed on, I managed to stay up-beat at the bookstore, doing what I could to pass the slow stretches, and savoring the moments when my salesmanship was appreciated. Friday morning, as a hectic group was beginning to form lines for purchases, a man with a USMC cap came up to me. His daughter was going to be a freshman in interior design and he was accepting the grey hairs on his head as a job well done.

He mentioned immediately that he wanted to buy a Dell and I replied that all of the design departments at VT are switching to Macs at the pace of a stampede - the dual-booting being the clincher. His comment after my point was that if she bought a Mac, he wouldn’t be able to help her, assumably with technical support stuff. But, having been informed about the department-wide switch, he seemed only to stare. Not in anguish or distaste at the decision, but rather in grief, as if my point had been a machete to his connection with his daughter, some hundreds of miles away at school while her calls for technical support would go unanswered.

At that point, I paused. Something told me that this father didn’t care about technical support stuff, didn’t care about virus protection, didn’t desire to remote desktop his daughter’s computer. My Mac-centric point then was that she won’t have to deal with issues that often plague the PC platform, thereby allowing their mobile-to-mobile calls to be about the things that matter, instead of filling time with complaints of poor computing performance.

Let’s face it, I said, whether you buy a PC or a Mac, you’re daughter will be just fine and will have full compatibility within her major. Computers are just tools to help us keep up with the mainstream - it seems like we cannot escape them, even with passioned effort. In the university setting, your daughter’s laptop will enable her to grow in knowledge at a faster pace than without such an aid, in addition to preparing her for a working career likely strewn with computers. With a Mac, your phone conversations will be less infested with tech support and more full of the latest news from her courses, from her roommate situation, from which boys she’s met.

He seemed to follow me as I said these things, his stare turning into a glance, and a glance into realization.

I have no idea whether he bought a Mac or another machine. Dell isn’t supported at VT because the company doesn’t play nice with the university bookstore where maintenance is addressed. Plus, I don’t take care of sales, just the selling. Plus, I don’t care if he bought a Mac. That wasn’t the point of what I told him. He shouldn’t hold technical support as a leash to his daughter when he can just be transparent about how clearly proud he is of his daughter’s university entrance, maybe even informing her overtly.

It is wonderful to see how much some of these parents love their kids. Truly wonderful.

There were a few minutes in my weekend to spend at the nearby AT&T store, where three iPhones were on display. There’s no clearer way to say: I.Am.Smitten. The multi-touch interface is flawless and typing was easier than I had imagined. Remarkably snappy performance, too; but, maybe, that is my perspective because I am used to typical cellphones with carelessly designed software. I haven’t heard any amazing life-altering stories about previous-existing smartphones to have suggested they were any better, though. This review does iPhone good.

The Apple TV is now hooked up to the HDTV in the living room. I had read, sometime ago when it was launched, that it runs hot. It doesn’t run hot - were it not for my heat-dissipating furniture, I can imagine that it would otherwise melt through its perch and drop to the floor. Given the complaints of overheating notebook batteries last fall, I’m glad that the Apple TV is not meant for use in my lap, otherwise more recalls would be in order. Apart from the heat issue, which doesn’t appear actually dangerous since the unit isn’t touched regularly, I suppose, except for a dusting over, I would appreciate an on/off feature. I had also read that there’s no way to actually shut it off; that is definitely the case. Jon and I, both, have low-power electronics around the house, barely let our compact flourescent bulbs burn when not needed, and keep the house well-tempered, so as to maintain a bare minimum electric bill. I wonder how much electricity the Apple TV sips on when not in use. Dag, yo.

On June 29, in the car, traveling to Radford University for their last day of orientation, I spotted a UPS truck being towed out of a neighborhood development. That same day, a package was expected to arrive, originally from Amazon, sent on a UPS truck that was said to have left Radford’s UPS facility. The thing was never left at my door, nor was the tracking information ever updated beyond “6:09AM - Out for delivery“. No word was spoken until this afternoon when I received an email from Amazon saying I was receiving a full refund for my purchase. Wow. I never even thought to email them - my assumption was that the package would be left on the truck and eventually, following transport maintenance, would be delivered. Wonderful service deserves public praise.

Today was a better Mac-selling, sanity-keeping day.

It gets rather tiring merely standing for 10 hours of the day. My knees get tight, my throat stings and whines, and my body just generally gets antsy from the stationary post. I tried Team Zissou exercises in the afternoon, but they only produced stares from the Fujitsu reps. There is so much energy compounded throughout my system by the time I leave the university bookstore that my evening cycling has been extraordinarily enhanced - I finally hit a solid average of 20 mph (32 kph) on one of my rides.

The scarce, slow times at the bookstore are used to pull updates from le Tour. Having a significant limitation on the amount of time I have to cycle each evening is a downer, particularly so when I am continually feeding myself the latest from the peloton. I get the feeling this will push my weekend rides to epic proportions to make up for the difference. If you see me on the West Coast any time soon - absolutely drenched in sweat - you’ll understand.

For the second half of last summer, I went through a self-sabotaging, academic/working sprint that required a new brain segueing into the fall semester. This time, it looks like I’m going to need a new body. Perhaps, I could rent this one out to a wayward spirit who dreads crossing the river Styx and, then, go pick up a new, multi-touch model. Win-win.

After Day 1 of Virginia Tech’s orientation for those incoming freshmen, I am positive that I will live a different life for the next three weeks. Though I couldn’t work the night at the lab today because of a planned dinner con friend, it surely will be my resting place while others dine at home and relax after a hard day’s work. I have worked two jobs in the past, but nothing like this. It took me five hours of talking to people about Macs for my throat to go sore. I had no idea you could cause that from simply talking - I imagined that effect was reserved for people who actually attend the football games here.

On a brighter note, my Apple-boss dropped me off at East Coasters so that I may pick up my bike following its weekend tune-up. I was finally able to take the new Madone out for a test ride, actually the exact model Trek has pictured on the linked website. It is smooth and must certainly promote a feeling of weightlessness. I appreciate that Trek has a representative on hand at the Tour de France who is uploading his photos to Flickr. Not the best quality, but the shots at least highlight the bikes, when they’re in focus. Excuse me a moment to drool. I need it after today.

In my recovery stage here at home, I had a handful - or more - of a new favorite: dark chocolate M&Ms. One fell to the floor and disappeared. I craned my body around cautiously from my desk chair in order to not crush it, wherever it was hiding. It was a brown M&M, matching my carpet to an extent, and it was a near disaster. Three minutes passed before the candy piece found its proper home. Considering the stress of the day, this recovery effort carried significant weight in the overall picture of this orientation Monday. Seriously.

Even before I moved from the subleased apartment to the house, I was mentally preparing for how much cash I would be laying down for furnishings. I am not good at spending money and tend to do so, reluctantly, only after I have read so many user reviews that it seems like my wheels are spinning. This is part of the reason I have yet to buy a car - I imagine the research leading up to the purchase to be a great abyss into which I will plummet. Plus, I am inconveniently picky and cars have so many variables that… I’m actually shaking my head right now.

So, as of this past week, a few more items remained absent from their respective nests in the house. Namely, some electronics. The first and only television I owned was purchased in my teens (allowances saved) and eventually died sometime around the point when I left for university (electrical surge via thunderstorm). My roommate does not have a living room-appropriate tv, so I began considering our options. Read: research.

In summary, my thoughts were:

obviously, LCD. CRT too deep and heavy. middle range of quality, willing to look into newer brands given good customer service ratings. HDTV tuner built-in?… let’s be forward-looking about this, so, yes. Olevia looks good (enter 200 user reviews and complaints). ok.ok.ok.ok.ok. buy? some more question marks and weeks of contemplating how I can justify this.

I bought a 32″ Olevia HDTV and it arrived at the house Friday, enormous savings brought to me by 4th-o-fJuly sales and website-scavenged coupon codes. The last check off of my Great List of Television Demands was met when several reviewers said they were able to run this tv at 1920.1200 & 60Hz with enough computer graphics power. A 32″ external monitor for a computer is worth lusting for. The Incredibles served as a test movie after I had calibrated the color to mimic an Apple Cinema Display (just sit them side-by-side and be patient while you change levels).

This is the type of purchase I will live with. Things like refrigerators, washing machines, beds and televisions should be deeply considered before buying - they stick with you and if they still run when you want to move, demand proper care and transportation to your new abode. I understand that LCDs don’t last like the age-tested tube televisions I grew up with, but this is a new era and I must give in to that type of consumer atmosphere. Plus, the whole dangerous chemicals thing must be dealt with for CRTs, unfortunately.

It may be a few weeks before I totally rehabilitate following these continual, major purchases. But after that period of self-reckoning and adjustment to a new mattress, you’re welcome to stop by for a movie. Maybe at that point, my roommate will have fully become a resident, our walls will have been filled with legitimate artwork, and the house will be in a condition worthy of numerous, sophisticated guests.

One year ago, I had a day that could quickly be referenced in my biography as “glorious”. The holiday forced me to refrain from both classroom instruction and studio slavery; I instead spent the time meeting some people who have become great friends in the last year. This July 4 was begun without the expectation for yet another ultimate refresher, but rather hoping to enjoy my time away from work and involving myself with the final unpacking of my stuff in the house.

I biked early, the earliest since Nik and I went on that 50-mile loop after the completion of the spring semester. It was ok. I think I prefer the evening air and environment - the attitude that says, “alright, let’s do this and call it a day”. Cycling in the late afternoon and evening has an appropriate finality to it whereas the morning hints at other cares and worries that will plague you upon your return.

With an afternoon at my disposal and nothing particularly to do except unpack, I unpacked at a brontosaurian pace. It became a chore itself to try and fill most of the day with minimal movements rearranging boxes from A to B. This pace is well-received when compared to my usual speedracer approach.

Finally - an evening with friends who constantly enlighten me with the art of bike maintenance, which is admittedly my Achilles heel. They are carnivores, so their freshly grilled chicken sandwiches weren’t so appetizing for me, although the well-prepared squash and onions smelled delectable. I stuck to baguette and brie.

This is a calm Fourth. And I need to start washing my vegetables before eating them because my stomach is not liking that I took celery straight from the pack and began chewing away. I just don’t like to wash vegetables. Maybe next Fourth I can chip away at that prejudice. At least, today, I was able to use the word brontosaurian.