Monday, September 10, 2007

Fighting Back, Heat of the Moment, -and- The Wrong Stuff


Fighting Back - intruder's ear cut off during home invasion
Heat of the Moment - activists take Al Gore to task over his diet
The Wrong Stuff - Buzz Aldrin: Novak should be "admired"

On this day in history: September 10, 1977 - Convicted torture-killer Hamida Djandoubi, an immigrant from Tunisia, becomes the last person executed by France when he is guillotined in Marseilles.

Born on this day in history: September 10, 1929 - Arnold Palmer (1929 - ____) golfer. He was the first to win the Masters Tournament four times and the first to earn $1,000,000 in tournament prize money.

Scripture of the Day: “Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.” (Isaiah 46:4)

Video of the Day: Mike Huckabee responds to evolution question - submitted by Donny





The sky is darkened from the smoke of fires. The sun hangs in the sky like an orange-red fireball. The humidity is great. It could be worse. I thank God for the day he has given us and praise his holy name. I celebrate this day and am thankful that the fires are not here. It could be worse.

Seconds following my writing that, it did get worse! A cretin burst into my office with a laptop in her hand—the power cable following behind her. As the door closed, the plug on the power cord became caught in the door. The woman dislodged the power cord from the door and began a loud, fast-paced rant about problems she was having with the laptop. Her diatribe was difficult to follow, but I managed to ascertain that she had purchased the unit (a Dell, of all things!) at Wal-Mart Friday evening. Apparently, all was well until her niece used the unit Saturday evening. Following that, random problems and general slowdown has plagued the system.

I said, "It sounds as though your system is infected. It probably has been infected with spyware and, possibly, viruses. Do you not have anti-spyware and anti-virus applications loaded?" "How should I know?" she responded. "You are correct," I said. "There is no reason whatever to imagine that you should be expected to know anything." I smiled. The smile was not returned. "So, what are you going to do?" she asked. "I am going to recommend that you consult Wal-Mart and determine what they recommend you do." "I called them," she said, "and they said to call Dell." "In that case," I said, "I am going to recommend that you consult Dell and determine what they recommend you do." I smiled. Once again, the smile was not returned. "I called them," she said, "and they said the warranty didn't cover what's wrong with it."

I said, "If you wish me to address the issue, I could make an appointment to do so tomorrow at 1 PM. I estimate repairs will take an hour, and the charge will be $60.00." "Why should I have to pay anything? It's brand-new!" she screeched. "You are right!" I said. "Ask your niece to pay the $60.00!" "She doesn't have any money!" she spat, as though this were something of which I should be aware.

"I recommend, then, that you find someone with the desire to perform repairs on your computer at no charge. You shall not find that person here, so I suggest you begin your quest elsewhere." She departed. Once again, the power cord became caught in the door. She jerked violently on the power cord and managed to rip the plug from the cord. "Now see what you've done!" she screamed. I offered no response. She slithered off into the gloom of the morning.