For years now, my family members have come to me for computer recommendations because I am, theoretically, the most tech-savvy member of my family. Most of the guys that I dated are laughing as they read this because they were all varying levels of Mr. Built My Own Computer, and they saw me as the Idiotic Techless Wonder. Yet another reason that marrying Matt was good for my self image.

At any rate, I’m going to go ahead and write a blog post about my recent purchase of a Dell Inspiron 1525, really, for my own laziness - so the next time I get an email asking for a computer suggestion I can merely point them to this blog post and be magically done.

Now, this laptop is the first computer I’ve purchased since Janet, the thing I put together from mangled computer parts 5 years ago. Always an early adopter of technological ideas but a late adopter of hardware that I am expected to purchase with my own bank account, I put this buy off until the very last minute.

A few things you should know, first being that I’m a PC user. I think Macs are great, but see paragraph above regarding how I spend my own money, and Macs are not worth the money you pour into them. Piggybacking on that thought, I’m a big fan of Dell’s refurbished machines because, like a used car, you can get a lot of bang for your buck if you’re willing to accept the fact that someone else owned this beauty before you.

In this case, I had to buy my Inspiron new to use a gift card I acquired from cashing in my credit card points, essentially slashing the cost of the computer in half. Otherwise, I would have bought refurbished. I had also recommended this laptop to my Dad who purchased it about a month before me and so far has really enjoyed it himself. So I wanted to make sure I had made a good recommendation.

Here are the specs on my particular machine, so if you want something that is good and fast and will last you 4-5 years (assuming you’re a standard user who wants to edit photos, use a word processor, surf YouTube, and check your Gmail), I think you’ll be more than satisfied with a machine with similar power.

• Intel Pentium Dual T3200 processor @ 2 GHz
• 3 GB Memory

All the rest is just details. As for Vista, a lot of annoying things there, but the new 2007 Excel is completely worth all of the annoying bugs in the rest of the operating system. You will be amazed by all the new shortcuts.

Now that I’ve moved into my Inspiron, I’m undergoing the process of wiping down Janet and installing Xubuntu. I’ve been wanting to play around with a Linux-only system for a while and, by my calculations, have about 5 more years to get used to Linux before purchasing my next Linux-only machine.

Best wishes with your computer-buying!

P.S. If you want to go with a little less power for a little less cash try the one I recommended for my sister - same model of Inspiron but with 2 GB memory. So far she seems to be enjoying it as well.

P.S.S. I believe I gave a recommendation to Big Ma that wound up being a catastrophe. Could you give us a Consumer Report on that one, Big Ma?

P.S.S.S. Back in the day when I was working in the IT department of a really great company that seriously gave their employees the best tools for the job, I was hooked up with a beautiful XPS M1530 that was great for running the entire Adobe Suite all at once. If you’re doing a lot of multimedia all at once, I highly highly recommend this machine.

A few weeks ago we went to Old Navy to get Matt a new sweater because he likes to wear shirtsleeves to work in the middle of February, and I’m sick and tired of catching his colds. As a rule, I would rather go to a hospital in a third world country to have my gizzards removed than to go clothing shopping with Matt. I grew up seeing my mother lay out my father’s clothes on the bed each morning, and foolishly assumed that marriage allowed me a similar privilege. Not so.

Matt is extremely particular about the things he wears which doesn’t make much sense because most of the time it is merely t-shirts and jeans. So whenever I pick something out that I really want him to purchase I have to go through an entire rigmarole convincing him that this is “SO something your dad would wear.” That usually works, and he will promptly carry the very sharp dress shirt to the counter to pay and we’re off to the races.

On this particular shopping trip, I found an orange and brown plaid flannel shirt that I knew he’d look STINKIN HOT in. I begged and pleaded and gave him the puppy dog eyes, but it was going nowhere. Finally, I pulled out my trump card. “Hon, this is SO Old Man Sullivan!” Since one of Matt’s greatest dreams in life is to become an old-timer like his grandfather, he ATE IT UP!

I spent much of Thanksgiving day sneaking around the dinner table snapping paparazzi-like photos of Matt in his Old Man Sullivan shirt. Hot diggity.

From Daily Daguerreotype

Hey folks. Bro in law Adam set me onto this fun one: My Morning Jacket’s Evil Urges. I was initially interested because I had heard the radio release on the local alt station. The song I was familiar with was a nice, hooky, alt-country singalong. What I encountered on this cd was much more than what I had bargained for. I heard some of Phish, Beck, Prince, and even some Neil Young in these crazy cats. It was great to listen to an album that was this diverse. I’m doing something different with this album, though. What I tend to do with new music is listen to the whole album over and over until I know all the songs, and then for about a week I’ll wake up in the morning with the songs jam-locked in my brain. It happened with Harvest, it happened with The Odd Couple (another one thanks to Adam). SO it ain’t happening with this one. I’m determined to enjoy this one correctly.

We enjoyed spending the Thanksgiving weekend with my side of the family this year, and the highlight (my sister’s killer turkey edged in as a close second) was spending a ton of time with my littlest niece. All weekend long she kept reaching out her arms for me to pick her up as I was clearly the favorite adult in the room.

Now pick yourself up off the floor because I know you’re all thinking I’m the least child-friendly person you’ve ever met. But I’m telling you the truth here, this little nugget did not want to sit on anyone else’s lap ALL WEEKEND LONG!

Naturally, I was in hog heaven and was becoming, I’ll admit, a bit cocky about the situation. On more than one occasion I made snarky remarks to my poor mother (who can’t even pick up her grandchildren because she’s recovering from a broken collarbone) about how quickly I had become the favorite adult.

As is the way my luck works, there are NO photos of my niece and I snuggling where she actually looks pleased. I suppose it serves me right that she’s all “Can someone tell this wacky woman to please put me down?”

From Daily Daguerreotype

My stomach is writhing. I will spare you the details, but I’m extraordinarily uncomfortable. And whiny.

Whatever this has been, I’m going on day three of it and about ready to surgically remove all of the organs confined in my torso. I made it worse by eating extra strong cheddar cheese today. I KNOW NOW!

I don’t know what else to consume. I’ve run out of all possibilities other than to mix up some brownies. I can’t imagine that would help.

The reason I’m such a mess over it is because I have an unusually strong stomach. So whenever I have internal angst, I become a complete baby. Kinda like men… whenever they’re sick.

So on that note, I’ll go whip up those brownies and let you know how they turn out. Cause at this rate they’re destined to come out, one way or another.

A few years ago I purchased these stocking holders that were perfect for our little family - Matt, Mojo and myself. I chose “Joy” not thinking about the practicality of the three letters, but because it was my favorite word offered. Unwise, as this year we’ve had an increase in family members, and now Mojo’s stocking has nowhere to hang. Berlin’s stocking has taken his “Y.”

Luckily, Pottery Barn has plain stocking holders for sale in the bronze finish, so Mojo will get one of these. Unpersonalized. Are all first children shafted when the second comes along?

From Daily Daguerreotype