macs are a sickness.

I just spent $3100 on a new computer. Thinking of all the money I have spent over the years on macs makes me feel sick, but at the same time, it's probably a sickness that makes me buy another one. It's a vicious vicious cycle. As they say, "once you go mac, you don't go back". Yup, it's true. But my stomach still hurts from the files I lost and the money I just forked out which make me feel even more ill.

At least the sun is shining, tomorrow is Tuesday and we leave for Chicago on Thursday. Things could definitely be worse, and now that I've lost files 3 times in the past 6 years, I'm taking it much better each time one decides to die on me. (Way to think positive, eh?!)

Happy Memorial Day. I know the week is going to get better.

(added: Question of the day -- why do you keep buying macs? Answers are in the comments. I should have made it a post. Thanks, Jenn, for asking. It got me to thinkin'!)

Worst Memorial Day. Ever.

It has not even been a year that this last happened to me. Is it even possible?! (Apparently so.)

While working on my desktop Mac doing some proofing, I also had open my macbook trying to open up a slideshow, when suddenly my computer (macbook) went still. (For mac users, you know that twirly rainbow circle? It just kept going and going and I wasn't even able to click on the blue apple or any program at all.) I restarted it and now it won't even turn on. Well, I take that back. There is a flashing folder with a "?" mark inside of it. Same exact sort of deal as my desktop a year ago. Remember me posting about that? Yeah, I remember that, too.

I'm beyond upset. This may be my 5th (FIFTH!) mac in 7 years. Is that possible?! Mac is going to hear from me. Not that they'll listen, but I thought these computers were suppose to be reliable?! Not any of the ones Val gets her hands on. This is horrible. Horrible!

Now the rest of the day I will be sick to my stomach thinking about all I lost. And tomorrow it's a drive to the "mac authorized repair shop" to pay for them to tell me that I lost everything.

I'm doing 6 shoots in Chicago this weekend. I have to have a laptop. I'm going to order one today and hope it arrives by Thursday. Ho-hum, another mac. I hate perfect ingenious technology. I hate macs. (Harsh word, I know, but I can't think of a better one right now.)

I really do hate my mac.

I just heard back. I lost all data on my hard drive. It went bad. (After not even 2 years?! How is this possible????????!!?!?!) They replaced it as it was under warrenty.

Of course I'm thankful I will have a computer now, but I am just beyond . . . I'm not even sure what. Part of me was hoping it was all going to be okay. I lost a whole bunch of personal photos ---- tons ----, Noah is really misbehaving, and I just want to go cry now.

Thoughts residing in my head right now.

* I have to pick out a new comforter set for both Noah and Maia. Noah says he wants dinosaurs. I'm thinking plain ol' white or pink for Maia. We'll be switching Noah to his full-size bed and Maia to a twin. I can't (well, I don't want to) pick out paint for their walls until I have exact matches to their bedding. I know, I'm anal in that way. (So, I really think this is cute. It's Pirates, though. But I think I can add some dinosaurs in there. He already saw this and really liked it. I think matching wall color would be fun and he'd like this theme for years to come. But I also found this which is similar but way cheaper, and just about as cute. I am having troubles finding dinosaurs that I like in a full size. Your thoughts?)

* I really really really want my computer back. Or, at this point, any computer. If it has to be new, so be it. I'll just be even more in debt. Sigh. Since I have to have a mac (all my software is for a mac) and since I have to have a computer that is fast but has a lot of storage capacity (it seriously is a must with what I do), and *if* I have to buy a new one, I will probably get this one. I just pray I can do a lot of biz this year to pay for it. *deep breath* (Fellow mac-ies, what do you use?)

* I need to return a cable to a photography place (Tallyn's) in Peoria because it didn't fit in my lighting system and I'm waiting to hear back from the place first to see if they even have what I am needing. (Please respond to me! Please. You are usually so quick. Don't let me down now!)

* I need to make a list of all the places that I need to do change of address for. The ones that I know there will be dozens (probably hundreds) of, are my work-related contacts, businesses, catalogs, vendors, etc. Ugh. I almost forgot about doing this.

* We begin painting on the new house the 6th. I will be doing most of it myself. Any ideas on how to keep my kids entertained (in a house that has absolutely nothing in it yet) and not be in my way? (You and I both know they'll want to "help" and then would make a huge mess doing so. They're kids. It happens. What can I do to distract them for long periods of time?)

* I get to see Jenny-Jen on Saturday!! She is coming "home" from Hattiesburg, MS. I cannot wait to see her. It's almost been an entire year. We're having lunch and shopping. Girls day out, no kids! I have missed her so much.

* Packing up my office, especially packing up all my client files, old negatives, etc., is going to be a tremendous job. I'm already in denial that it has gotta be done. I can just pick up the office and move it like it is, right? The file cabinets. Man, that will be a huge job. How do you recommend I do that? (I've never had to move my business before!)

* I want to be back on vacation.

* I need to go through all the magazines that I have not read in months and months and throw them out because I am not moving them to the new house. I guess I will get off of here and do that next. Anyone in need of Parents, Child or Family Fun? I want to read them, but I never ever have time to. I'd honestly rather read a book. I'm discontinuing my subscriptions to save some trees and piles of waste collecting in my house :c) (Btw, did you know that Child is discontinuing it's magazine? I love that 'zine, too. Parents is taking over it's subscriptions. Shoot, that stinks. But they will still have their great website packing with parenting info.)

* My list of to-do's and thoughts going through my head is just way way too long.

Mac went to the hospital.

I know . . . enough about my Mac, but you see, I rely on that piece of technology like it's my best friend. Some days it is my best friend. Right now I am having a love-hate relationship with it. My whole live revolves around it. My personal and work life resides in that computer. Thank God for my two back up external hard drives (did you guys take that advice???), but still, it's only been (not even) 2 years, it shouldn't die on me already. For goodness sakes, it's a Mac! Isn't that one reason why we Mac junkies buy them?! For their reliability?

I cannot afford a new one at $2500 a pop. No way, no how, and if I do buy a new one, I would have a "but" thought going off in my head . . . but, if I already have to buy a new one, I might as well buy the bigger one because I really do need it. HA.

So I took my imac to the Mac doctor today. A sticker was put on it and into the waiting room it went with other waiting-to-be-worked-on Macs. They said it could take 3 days and that's just to tell me what's wrong and whether my hard drive can be saved. This is bad. So bad. I know they'll do their best, though. They've helped me a lot in the past.

In the meantime I guess I send out an email to my clients who are waiting on their pictures to tell them I have no idea when they'll see their proofs and/or receive their pictures, and that I don't even honestly know if I have their pictures to one day be able to print them. Tell me, now how do I eloquently tell a client this?! I swear, I don't need this now, and neither do my clients. (But who does?!)

On the flip-side, I bought two decorating books today at Barnes & Noble. It made me feel temporarily better for about 10 minutes, and that was a nice feeling.

Mac Help Please!

Anyone know anything about Macs that have crashed?! This is a plea for help!

I'm having the worst day. You see, my hard drive (iMac) crashed. Not just a glitch either. Crashed as in, it's almost dead.

I called Apple and they walked me through all the steps that I did on my own yesterday and again, nothing. My computer cannot even find the hard drive on start up. I tried re-installing everything and it's impossible to even do that because the start up screen cannot find the hard drive to install anything to!!

Oh my Lord, this is not good at all. Please please please tell me there is hope. And if there isn't hope, I pray to God that I did save everything. I think I saved all my client photos -- I think . . . I'm not for certain at all -- but I am way more certain that I had not saved all my personal photos. I am beyond not okay right now. For a photographer, professional or not, this is not good. Not at all.

Tomorrow I call the Mac place. Then I make an appointment to bring it in. Then I wait a few days to a few weeks for someone to, most likely, tell me it's unrecoverable. I had two weddings to still proof and a lot of orders to do. This is not good. At all. I need a glass of wine.