Friday, June 05, 2009

How'd That Happen?

By mid-afternoon yesterday the plan for the day was:

Do a bit more packing.
Make fondue for dinner.
Head to the $3 cinema and watch Escape to Witch Mountain with the kids.
Done.

By the evening what really happened was:

I bought two Macbook computers.
I bought two iPod Touch thingies.
I bought a Nintendo Wii, a game for it, and accessories.

How'd that happen? I really can't figure it out...

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13 Comments:

Blogger Tia Nevitt said...

Wow; that's some impulse shopping on an enviable scale! Enjoy your gizmos!

2:35 PM  
Blogger Meghan said...

Whoah! Somebody loves their electronics (been keeping up with E3 at all?)

I hate the Wii because the controls are so wonky, BUT with the new Wiimote coming out and the lure of WiiFit (fun game!) I might finally have to get one...

2:59 PM  
Blogger Mark Lavallee said...

I love my Wii. Sometimes, I take my Wii with me and Wii watch the sunset together. We hold hands, and enjoy long walks on the beach at sunset. And I ask, Wii, are you having a good time? And it says "Wee".

Mac is cool. I've been wanting a Macbook for a while now, they have some great writing software I'd love to try, and I just can't find anything close to it on PC.

That and Garage Band. :)

3:20 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

LOL, that is pretty cool. any correspondence with the fact that your wife was along? ; )

6:15 PM  
Blogger David Anthony Durham said...

Tia,

Yeah, it was strange. In a way these are things we've talked about getting before, but the sudden cascade of purchasing left me a bit stunned.

Meghan,

Truth is, we're catching up with most folks. We've managed to NOT have a cellphone or any video games so far, and considering we're a family of four that seems almost... un-American. "Unusual" at the very least. I like unusual. But my kids like the Wii. And Gudrun needed that computer. And so did I. And the iPod Touch things are free, sort of, after a paying for them, and then... um, waiting for Mac to give us our money back. At some point... I think that's how it works...

Incubus Jax,

I was a PC guy for years, but about five years ago we got a eMac. Loved it. We still have it. It still freaking works! No sign that it won't keep doing so for a while. Sure, our laptops are now way more powerful, but I'm hoping the eMac will hang in there for a few more years as the household computer.

I'm a complete convert now.

Anonymous,

Right you are. It didn't seem like anybody was twisting my arm, but...

6:32 PM  
Anonymous Greg said...

Hahahaha. In other words, "teh awesome" happened...don't question, just enjoy the experience (if not the bill). Agree entirely about the Wii, not at all about the Mac...but different strokes, as they say!

10:31 PM  
Blogger David Anthony Durham said...

Greg,

What? You've had, used, or owned a Mac... and didn't love it? Please say more, because I'm curious. (And I'm assuming you speak from a place of some familiarity with the fruit in question.)

10:52 PM  
Blogger Shauna Leigh Atkinson said...

So, uh, I'd like to know the secret in getting my husband to do the same, ha ha. Seriously though, after just one semester back in school my PC has had to be reformatted, new battery and adapter purchased, and I found out its only running on a gig or two and apparently needs 2-2gigs (very slow right now)! I've about had it and want a MAC soooo bad. Hubby knows this, but is pretending he doesn't, procrastinating on the big purchase I think, ha! Eventually I will get one, just when I am not sure. I do have the iphone, which is a perk from work, and I LOVE it so that sort of closed the deal for me on MACs... just have to wait, which I'm horrible at. Were there good deals somewhere in town that might help seal the deal???

Congrats on the new purchases. Sounds like a lot of fun. We've played Wii with our nephews; actually, we just got back from playing sports and board games on it with them tonight. My husband kind of wants a Wii too, maybe he could get that and I could get the mac... you'd think two engineers could work out some kind of a deal, right?

2:58 AM  
Blogger David Anthony Durham said...

Well... You could get a student discount. That knocks $50 or $100 off the computer price. And they do have promotions on right now wherein you can get rebates on an printer or iPod Touch.

I'd go directly to the Apple Store. There's one in that mall on Shaw (west of campus). They know their stuff, no pressure, and they're happy to answer questions, etc. I'm not a big fan of shopping, but they make it a relaxed experience.

And then I end up buying...

Maybe you should accidentally stroll by with your husband... Wander in...

7:15 PM  
Anonymous Greg said...

Yeah, I don't know--I've always been irritated by how simplistic Macs feel...too cutesy (my wife named her Mac laptop from college "Jean-Claude." This is apparently not an isolated incident.). The fact that Macs are essentially closed boxes bothers me as well--part of the "we're going to protect you from doing anything to your computer for your own good!" mantra, it seems to me. There's no doubt they're good machines, and for some things (particularly graphic design and some music editing programs) are superior to PCs. But on the whole, I'm definitely a PC person (er...not that kind of PC...well, you get the idea. ;) ).

10:26 PM  
Blogger David Anthony Durham said...

Greg,

Sounds to me like you have personal issues.

With your...

...Jean-Claude.

Or lack there of...

All I can say is that so far my experience with Macs is that they don't suck. They don't break. They don't crash. They just... work. They do what they're suppose to do. Two, three years down the line they're still there. You may want to buy the new version, but you don't have to - as in, have to because the old piece of... poo... just crashed.

Sorry, but on this one I'll take Jean-Claude.

(Are we talking Van Damme, here? I can see that being more troubling.)

12:32 AM  
Anonymous Greg said...

Heh. Yeah, I am talking about Van-Damme...I acknowledge that may be part of the issue. ;) In all seriousness, I hear what you're saying--I just always find myself bashing into limitations of the interface when using Macs. ("No, no, you didn't REALLY want to delete that file, did you? I'm sorry, I'm afraid I can't delete that file, Greg...") And while I will readily agree that Macs crash less than PCs, that's also because they do less than PCs do--go look at the software section for a Mac in a computer store and compare it to the software section for a PC and you'll see what I mean.

But hey, don't take my word for it. Wait till one of your kids starts calling your computer "Hugh" or "Jason" and you'll see the light... :)

2:06 PM  
Blogger David Anthony Durham said...

Greg,

Oh... Sorry about the Van-Damme thing.

Maybe it's the simplicity of my computer use, but I really haven't felt the problems you mention. I did have to get used to the Mac, but for a good five years now I've been using them - while still having pcs also. And, for me, it's been the pcs that have seemed increasingly wonky and problematic.

What's changed recently is that we won't be replacing our pc in the future.

But I that's just us. I'm happy to say we're Mac lovers, but I certainly don't know enough about the comparisons and about other users needs to argue their merits for everyone. Me though? I'm smiling with my Mac...

My kids... Well, so far they're more likely to name the computer Harry, Ron or Hermione. Perhaps Anakin, Yoda or Kai-Adi-Mundi...

2:31 PM  

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