A Different Wholeness

No, I haven’t taken to eating at fast food restaurants, and this isn’t a food review…

My sweetie Tim went absolutely overboard for Valentine’s day and got me a huge new iMac computer – the one with an unbelievable terabyte of memory. We had a terrific computer tech, Ollie, come help get it all set up (and bring my old PC data & programs over for the transition). Even he could hardly contain his excitement about working on such an amazing machine. All I know is it’s fast, fast, fast…

I’ve been a diehard PC user for (I hate to admit this) over 25 years. In the past, when the topic of switching to Mac came up, I steadfastly held my ground – I just couldn’t be bothered with the learning curve I believed would be involved to make the transition. So, for the last three years or so, I’ve hobbled along on my Compaq laptop which was getting progressively slower and slower – to the point that I would sometimes wait 15 or 20 minutes just for it to boot up.

Goodbye old friend...

If you’re going to be working from home and trying to make your living on-line (tea, vintage goods, jewelry, artful angels…), it’s pure insanity to sit in front of a computer constantly waiting for it to do the next task. Seeing me so frustrated, Tim suggested I try using his Mac when I wanted to go on-line, so I wouldn’t be waiting hours for things to load. I reluctantly gave it try – and much to my amazement – it was not only supremely faster but not nearly as difficult to navigate as I imagined.

It happens that Tim and I are both left-handed, but oddly enough, we use the mouse on opposite sides. His lives on the left (makes sense!), but mine is always on the right, probably because I learned to type with a pencil nearby for things like bank reconciliations, etc. So, I was always picking up the pencil in my left hand, making it possible to multi-task with the mouse in my right.

When I started using his Mac, I’d switch the mouse to the right and have to put a pillow on his chair so I sat up high enough to see his screen without craning my neck. Most times, when I was done using his computer, I put everything back exactly the way I found it. But then I’d get called away for one thing or another and forget to switch things back. He’d go into his office and find a computer set up “for Karen’s use.” He was very tolerant about it, but we could both see it wasn’t going to work long-term.

He began showing me iMacs on-line and asking if I’d consider getting one. I kept being obstinate and saying I wasn’t ready (didn’t want to spend the money, didn’t need it that much, would get my laptop serviced, and lots of other excuses). And then, a few days before Valentine’s Day, he just decided to come out and say it: “I really want to get you the iMac for a gift, but first you have to tell me you want it.”

Duh. Sometimes I don’t know how to get out of my own way. Of course I wanted it!

a new iMac on my desk!

So, here it is on my desk. I’m having a blast learning all the nifty features and absolutely zipping around between programs. I was also really excited to get my photos of items for my Etsy shop loaded and listed on the site in record time! So, I’m a convert. A very spoiled convert.

The desktop shot of the eggs and vintage egg separator is there to remind me that, if we’re willing, we can start from scratch at any time.

Thank you, Tim. I love you!