I'm bummed at myself. I didn't know my company had a program with Dell so employees could buy computers. So I tortured myself and priced the system I just bought, and if I had used the company discount I would have saved myself about $85.

I wonder if I can call Dell and let them know I didn't know about the company discount.

I’ve never been much of a shoe person. I’ve always bought shoes on sale and wouldn’t spend more than $50. After one or two years, my shoes would either fall apart of I’d get bored of them and throw them out. The only time I was really into the quality and cost of my shoes was when I was running marathons. If you’re going to be running continuously for 26.2 miles, choice of footwear becomes a major, major issue.

But who cared about work shoes. I used to wear sneakers to work, and only wore my work shoes in my carpeted office and out to lunch on the street sometimes. Then I had that problem with my heels and had to start wearing very, very comfortable well built shoes that I seemed to only find from European manufacturers. And since wearing sneakers to work is like so last millenium, I wear my comfy, comfy european shoes all day along.

Well, my foot problem is gone now thanks in great part to $2,000 worth of acupuncture treatments but after a couple of years of wearing incredibly comfy shoes, it’s hard to go back to shoes that don’t feel comfortable to walk in all day.

But I now seem to be in a different shoe phase. I am now the proud owner of three pairs of shoes that cost each $300 to $400 retail, which I bought from Ebay. The comfort level is still there, but my shoes are now more stylish not to mention they just plain look more expensive than other shoes. And I only know this because I’ve starting looking at other people’s shoes and trying to guess how much they cost retail.

There is a world of difference between very expensive shoes and cheap shoes, and you can tell just by looking at the shoes. It’s such a weird thing to be aware of, but I am, and I don’t think I’m the only one who notices such things.

So I finally broke down and bought myself a laptop. I just purchased on Dell 700M, and bought myself a new printer/fax/scanner/copier as well. My poor printer although still working, it's an ancient HP Deskjet 722C, is on its last legs. Plus when I had printer/fax/scanner/copier for my work at home job, I really really got used to it. I liked being able to make copies and fax stuff.

I hope I'm doing the right thing. I hope it doesn't just become a toy that I will eventually get tired of playing with. I think I got a good deal though considering I bought a multi-function printer, a port replicator so I don't have to mess with plugging and unplugging wires, 60 gig rather than 40 gig, and a 128 MB memory stick and extra battery that I hope to God I will use.

I just wish it didn't have to cost so much money. That's the part I really, really hate, and wonder if it's worth it to buy new instead of used on Ebay or refurbished at the Dell Outlet.

I think I might be allergic to chocolate and if I am, I will be so bummed. I so love chocolate, but lately when I eat chocolate my mouth itches. I don't know if it's just my other allergies or if I'm truly allergy to chocolate.

I know when I'm stressed I crave chocolate like you wouldn't believe, like it's an addiction. Addictions to food are sometimes a sign of an allergy. Damn, I'll just be like my sister. She's allergic to fish and eats it anyway, and has a constant rash. I used to just lecture her about it, and now I'll be in the same boat if I find out I'm allergic to chocolate. I'll eat it anyway and have my mouth constantly itching, not mention be bloated like a whale for the rest of my life.

AAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!

I am saddened by the Pope's death. He was a good man and tried to do much for the Catholic Church. Although I disagreed with many of his views, I admired his tenacity for life and how much he kept holding on despite his failing health in the last several years.