A friend convinced me to go to some Halloween event, because it is kind of like a national holiday of sorts. I told her I'd go just to go, but I would probably leave early. I didn't get enough sleep last night, and I'm tired. Plus, all that yummy halloween potluck food is making my tummy ache! Guess I didn't need to eat another cupcake with orange frosting.

Happy Halloween!

There's nothing like pigging out at an office potluck, and eating the various orange frosted and halloween looking cookies, donuts, cakes and cupcakes. I've got a headache from all the sugar I've been eating. HELP!

It's Halloween, and it's another office potluck. I was in a fried chicken mood, so I bought some at the local grocery store. It's a good thing I've been eating less than 1,200 calories since Saturday so I can splurge today and eat all the scrummy food. It's the total calories at the end of the week that counts, not the daily total right? ;)

Time goes very slowly when you're waiting to hear if your computer is dead. I priced a computer on Dell, and I ended up spending way too much money. I'll have to really think about what I really need because it seems very easy to spend over $2,000 for a new computer.

I'm definitely buy a laptop before the end of the year. If I had a backup system, I could have finished my screenplay. My LG Phenom is a great little tool for writing on the go and for checking email on the road, but it's no substitute for a laptop. If I was a freelance writer with an article due, I'd be out of business by now. Luckily I'm not dependent on my writing for income, but I'm going to have to start treating my computer like a business investment and have system redundancy (two systems in case one fails), daily backup procedures, and on and off site data storage. I even checked out solar laptop batteries, and found solar panels used by Peace Corp volunteers to power their laptops.

Part of me wants to buy a laptop today, but I keep telling myself to wait until I know the fate of my pc. But waiting is so hard!!!

I spoke to Gordon Zaft, a regular reader to my blog, yesterday. I've met people through online dating sites, but I've never met or spoken to anyone this way or any othey way for that matter. He was my first. We had a nice and long conversation about all sorts of things, and it's cool to connect a voice to an email address.

I've been reading PC and notebook reviews all day. After much thought, I've decided I will purchase a new PC next year, and will get a Dell PC. I worked with the Dell sales reps in 1999, when I was working on a Y2K desktop replacement project. My company wanted to purchase 3,000+ desktops, and I attended the meetings with all the major vendor reps; Dell, Compaq, and IBM. I was impressed with Dell's customer service, and their willingness to bend over backwards to meet our needs. Plus, I've had a Dell PC at work since 1999 and I've never had a problem.

I'll probably end up getting a mid range Dell for under $1,000. Since I'm not a gamer and only use my computer for writing and checking email, I don't need a lot of firepower. A mid range pc will be however be good for the few games I'd like to play, like The Sims and that civilization game I keep hearing about.

In the meantime, I'll probably pick up a used IBM Thinkpad. My last company issued Thinkpads to their sales reps, and I heard horror stories of how they treated their laptops. Those Thinkpads amazingly can take a lot of punishment without breaking, and that's the kind of laptop I want; a workhorse laptop to check email and write with when I travel.

I'd like to keep some of my old pc equipment, but it seems cheaper to just buy a whole new system with everything included. I have a great set of speakers with a subwoofer, and a great monitor, but they are 5 years old now. I'll probably keep the scanner and the printer though. I'll donate my old equipment to some charity if I can, and take a small tax write-off.