Weekend Assignment 325: Tech Savvy

This week Karen asks a great question for the Weekend Assignment.

Weekend Assignment #323: Tech Savvy

When you bring home some new piece of technology, do you usually get it up and running with pleasant anticipation and calm confidence, or is there more likely to be much swearing, wailing and gnashing of teeth? What's the most trouble you've had with a new computer, tv, phone or related tech gadget?

I think I'm pretty good at getting tech things up and running. I rarely have problems and when I do I can easily find the answer online. You just need to know where to go.

I think the last thing I had a problem setting up was our router a few years ago. I had never set one up before, and it was giving me problems. Then, I went to the company's website and found the solution to my problem. As is most often the case nowadays, it was a software issue. But, yes, I did swear a little bit while trying to get it to work.

Usually I'm the go-to-guy in my family to set up electronics. I don't know why, but I can usually figure out how to hook up everything pretty easily. I think it helped that I worked at Circuit City for a while. (A short while). Maybe, I picked some things up there.

It works out, though. I have family members come over to help me build or fix things in the house, and I set up their TVs and stereos. I think that is a fair trade, don't you?

Extra Credit: Who do you call in to help, if you get stuck?

I kind of answered the question above, but I do have a few tech savvy(ier) friends that can help me out if needed.

My friend sent me something cool the other day

Back in March, Florinda mentioned she was going to the Festival of Books out in LA, and as a half-joke I mentioned to her that Pamela Ribon was going to be there and it would be great if she could get me an autograph. Now, I didn't really expect Florinda to do that. Like I told her, I didn't have anything I could send her to have Pam sign. But, she was the only person I knew who was going. It was worth a shot.

Now, I found Pamela Ribon (AKA Pamie, Pamie.com, May Q. Holla, Wonder Killer) on the Internet several years ago, but she's been on there with her online diary since 1998. I didn't even have a computer that could go on the Internet back then, I think we got one in 2000 then all we had were those free AOL discs so I wasn't online a whole lot. Anyway, a couple of years after that I found out about blogs, I found hers and have enjoyed it since then. She cracks me up. But, besides being a blogger, she's also a TV writer (Samantha Who, Romantically Challenged), author and a Derby Girl in LA. I'm not sure when she sleeps, to be honest.

I'm going to stop with the background on Pam so I don't sound like some kind of stalker. I've been thinking how to write this without sounding that way. It's not easy. Really, I'm not. Florinda can vouch for me. Just check out Pamie.com to see what I'm talking about.

Anyway, back to the Festival of Books. As you can read on her blog, Florinda did go to see Pam who was speaking on a panel and got two books signed. Yes, she got one for me. How cool is that?

As Florinda knows, the book isn't my normal genre, so to speak, but if you see what Pam wrote in there, I really have no choice but to read it. It's almost like a threat. She'll probably get the Chicagoland derby girls to kick my ass if I don't.

So, that was my good news in the mail the other day.

Thanks for all your hard work, Florinda. And thanks, Pam, for signing it.

Normally Worf wouldn't be caught dead in this car...

Also, he would never let the girl drive. It's not the Klingon way. But, Barbie is a superstar you know.

It doesn't matter anyway. Look at Barbie. She's not even looking at him. She's tired of the Klingon jealousy and all the talk about honor, etc.

I think she spied Ken off to her left. Someone is going to be whipping out his bat'leth soon...

Weekend Assignment #313: Meet a fictional character

It's been a little while since I've participated in the weekend assignments (sorry Karen and Carly), but I'll try to get back on schedule. Most of the time I've forgotten what day it is and missed the deadline. Think I'm making it up? Today, Wednesday, the kids get out of school 30 minutes early and I forgot. I pulled up to school and wondered where everybody was going. Luckily, I was early and was going to wait in the parking lot. I think I was about five minutes late. Not that my son didn't notice.

Anyway, on to the assignment!

Weekend Assignment #313: Through some miracle of colliding realities, you have the opportunity to meet a fictional character, face to face. Which character would you most like to meet, and why?

I've been thinking about this for a while. Who would I want to meet? I like Die Hard, and watch it whenever it is on, but would I want to meet John McLane? Probably not, he seems like he'd be hard to get along with. He's too much of a loose cannon you know.

I thought about Mulder and Scully from the X-Files, but I would think Mulder is a wacko and Scully is too annoying and has to be right all the time. Her and her so-called analytical thinking.

KITT? Ugh, even more annoying than Scully. I don't know how Michael Knight didn't drive KITT off a cliff and end it all. Oh...so that's why the car is indestructible. I understand now.

So, I was thinking I should go back further into my childhood. I was thinking about Mork, from Mork and Mindy. That would be an interesting conversation. Though I would think I'd come away with the thought that Mork was the stupidest person on Ork. Am I right?

So, I'm going to go even farther back (Jenn can probably see where I'm going) and say I'd like to meet Lt. Columbo. Wasn't he the best. He was great at playing dumb and allowing the bag guy (or girl) to think he had know idea what was going on then let them hang themselves, so to speak. It's still on of my favorite shows. I wanted to go as him one year for Halloween, but Jenn thought nobody would get it. Maybe she was right. I need to find an old Peugeot to drive to complete the outfit.

I would ask him what made him to decide playing dumb, or was it an accident. (Actually I don't think it was always that way. If I remember correctly, in the first movie he was quite a bit more direct. I think he even pulled a gun! Sorry, for the Columbo geek-out).

Extra Credit: What question would you most like to ask that character? Extra extra credit for posting the character's likely reply!

I imagine his answer would be something like this: "Oh, it just kind of happened. You know, when your clothes look like mine people tend to look down on you and not take you too seriously. I decided to use that to make them feel at ease. Like I wouldn't notice if they changed their story, or their answers didn't make sense because I was too impressed y how important, or rich they were. I worked out pretty well for me." Then he would turn and walk away, stop, turn halfway back to me, raise his hand in a slight wave, and walk out of the room; cigar smoke trailing behind him.

Anyway, go check out what others had to say over at Karen's blog.