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Change... and why we dislike it so

This is the first blog I've written on my brand new computer. About all I can say right now is that the keyboard makes almost as much noise as a typewriter. I wonder if someone decided that writers need the sound of the key report to make them think they've written something profound--remember Greg Kinnear's character in You've Got Mail and how much he adored his typewriter--so much so that he bought another one just like it? Wish I could've done that. My new computer is not nearly as pretty as the one it's replacing. Instead of the nice, metallic teal I had before, this one is black and very functional-looking.

The funny thing is, it's essentially the same computer. It has the same size screen and is roughly the same size overall, though it weighs slightly less. It does, however, have a faster processor, more RAM, a larger hard drive, and a completely different operating system (Window 7 instead of XP), but my biggest beef is that it has two, as opposed to 4, USB ports (which I promise you I did use on the other computer!), so I had to get a four port hub to go with it. The other funky thing is that the delete key is in the upper right as opposed to the lower right of the keyboard. I guess they wanted to be sure we writers didn't hit the delete key by accident. The guys at Toshiba are obviously not romance writers. I used the backspace and delete keys on my old computer so much, I'm wondering why they still function.

But these things are not why I chose to get a newer model. My old computer was getting very reluctant when it came to turning on. So much so that I had to leave it on all the time and put it to sleep when not in use, but those automatic updates that pop up from time to time and require a restart were becoming the bane of my existence. It took my IT specialist/electrical engineer DH to get it going again, and, as you might guess, he is not always standing by for repair service.

But why did the manufacturers feel the need to change a computer that was, IMHO, perfect? There is a line in a Star Trek movie (I forget which one) where Dr. McCoy says he'll go down and check out the new sick bay, knowing that it will take a long time to sort it out. "I know engineers," he says with a knowing wag of his head. "They love to change things." My DH points out that the reason the original computer design was changed was because of the point of failure on my own device: opening and closing the lid repeatedly had worn out the wires that ran through the hinge, thus, the new one attaches differently, leaving no place for connection ports on the back as there were on the previous model.

Still, though the engineers may love it, we who use things do not. When we go to replace an item, we want to do just that: replace it, and preferably with the exact same thing. I have a friend who envies me for my old all-metal cheese slicer, which is just like the one her mother had. Many have tried to talk me out of the 9 X 13 baking pan that was given to me by my grandmother. Why? Because it has a metal lid that slides on and is every bit as sturdy as the bottom. It will not accommodate an iced sheet cake, but for anything else, it is ideal. Unfortunately, they don't make them anymore. Anyone deciding to bring back this design would make a fortune, but thus far, I've seen no evidence of such forward (or in this case, backward) thinking.

But enough about that. This blog was supposed to be about humor, wasn't it? Guess I'd better tell a joke then. Give me a moment to search through my emails to find one of those that I receive from time to time....

Ah ha! Here's a good one. This one is called The World's First Male Blond Joke. I've added a few embellishments. See if you can guess which one!

Three construction workers were having lunch high atop the skyscraper they were helping to build. The Irish guy opened his lunch box and groaned, "Corned beef and cabbage again! I swear, if I get this again tomorrow, I'm gonna jump off this building!"

The Mexican man opened his lunch box and exclaimed: "Burritos again! If I see another burrito, I'm going to jump off this building!"

The blond guy opens his lunch box. "A bologna sandwich again. I hate them so much! If I have to eat another one, I'm going to jump, too!"

The next day the Irishman opens his lunch box, sees the corned beef and cabbage his wife packed for him and jumps to his death. The Mexican opens his lunch and jumps, screaming, "I hate burritos!" as he falls to his death. The blond guy finds a bologna sandwich in his lunch box and jumps as well.

At the funeral, the Irishman's widow laments, "If only I had known! I thought he loved corned beef and cabbage! It's all my fault!"

With tears in her eyes, the Mexican's widow cries, "I could have given him tacos or enchiladas! I had no idea he hated burritos so much!"

The blond guy's wife shrugs and says, "Don't look at me. The idiot fixed his own lunch."


























To which I say, "If he had buns like that, I could forgive him for being stupid."

Comments

  1. Yay - a dumb male blonde joke! Thank you, Robin. That was funny.

    But you do realize why blonde jokes are so stupid, don't you?

    .......

    So men can understand them. :-)

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  2. I have a new iMac. I've had it for five months. So far, I have not found a reason to like it better than the old Windows system I had before. Not one.

    But I"m a person who prefers to hang new clothes for a month or so before wearing them. I prefer to sneak up on new things, and there's no sneaking up on a new computer.

    So Cheryl, while I know exactly what you mean, I have to ask you: how old was the old computer? I've never had any keyboard that put the delete key anywhere except the upper right hand corner.

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  3. Finally a dumb blonde male joke. I love it.

    Have you ever noticed that things that work so well are the ones that are "improved" and the ones that don't work worth a flip aren't.

    Mason
    Thoughts in Progress

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  4. Well, I obviously posted too early in the a.m. responding to "Robin" when it was Cheryl who wrote for the blog today. Sorry about that!

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  5. HA! Good one, Libby! Even if I'm not Robin....

    It's about five years old, MM. I'll probably learn to love this one just as well (it's very fast!) but the old Toshiba and I have been through a lot together. I really hated to part with it.

    You're right Mason. The "new and improved" label gets slapped on a lot of things, but sometimes things get improved that didn't need improving.

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  6. I've never heard of a dumb blond male joke! That was awsome! Great ending line Cheryl, think I go out by the pool and see if I can find the cute buns guy...if I had a pool! lol

    Just remember everything cycles, what is old is new again. Someday.

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  7. Cheryl, I love your blogs! They ALWAYS crack me up! My husband walked out just as I was reading your blonde joke and caught me cackling. All I had to say was, "Cheryl wrote something funny," and he just nodded his head. LOL!

    Have you seen the commercial for milk with the two gorgeous blonde men who are arm wrestling? After a bit they realize their strength is equal so challenge each other to a "battle of wits." Of course then they are silent, neither able to come up with anything clever or intelligent! LOL! I have to admit that I love that commercial. :)

    Yep, change is NOT always good. You and I work in the medical field so I know you could go on for ages about things that were "improved." A few years ago the hospital I worked at changed all the syringes. Talk about an undertaking! They went on about how much better the new brand was, blah blah (we all knew it was because they were cheaper). Sure enough, within weeks our suspicions were confirmed when the blasted things were constantly falling apart! Mid administration even!d

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  8. I'd never heard one like it, either, Jessica. It was just too good not to pass on.

    LOL on the commercial, Sharon. I haven't seen it, but then, I rarely watch TV anymore. I SO can relate to the "changes" in hospitals. They always go with cheap, which is never the best choice!

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  9. Cheryl, that's the thing. We get so used to them that we don't want to change. Everything is where we want it.

    Yeah, if he had buns like that I wouldn't care if he was dumb. :}

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  10. I like new things but sometimes, when you're so used to one thing, it's so much nicer. And Cheryl, well you know how I feel about buns :D

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  11. Hilarious Cheryl! I had not seen that one before...then again, most blonde jokes are about girls! :)

    Change is often hard to accept. Unfortunately, where computers are concerned, we really have no choice. As long as there are those ***holes who continue to get off creating virus's that force us to have to buy new computers it will be an ongoing thing. At least you got windows's 7-when we had to buy it was still Vista and God Vista sucks!

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  12. Hello,
    I understand. My new computer is taking some getting use too. The keyboard is so flat. I'm already wearing off the letter "N" ? But the screen is so much bigger. And your CBEB's posts look so much nicer Larger. Love the Male blonde joke and the the Blonde with the palm branch. He looks so familiar too. LOL!!!

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  13. Cheryl,

    I'm still trying to get used to this over-sized screen I HAD to have because I thought it would be so cool. Now, I'm thinking--What was I thinking!

    Was there a blonde joke?--all I saw was a blonde's buns and figured I'm make up my own story! :-)

    Amelia

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  14. Linda,
    The funny thing is, I don't remember having any qualms about switching from a PC to a laptop. I'm getting used to it.

    LOL! I knew you'd like them, Ana!

    They should look familiar to you, Donna. :) Thanks for all the great hunk pics!

    Lisa,
    I'd heard that about Vista. Guess I should be counting my blessings. Actually, the more I use it, the better I like it.

    Yes, Amelia, there was a blonde joke. You must've scrolled right past it to get to the buns!

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  15. I've just been out of electricity for the last 18 hours due to a severe storm in our area last night. argh. I had my whole writing day planned, and guess what? Laptop lost power, cell phone went dead, couldn't eat meals, couldn't get the car out of the garage to somewhere to get ice for the freezer or a charge for my electricity drained stuff...That's the kind of change I really don't like. LOL Electricity is on, and it's almost time for bed. *sigh*

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  16. A storm just blew through here, too, Terry. We still have power and the wind has died down now, but it was a little scary there for a bit! Glad your power is back on!

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  17. I was tired and skimming over the post pretty quick until I came to the end (ha ha). Well NOW I'm awake! Thanks!

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  18. Good one, Cheryl! Love those buns. I hope you and your new computer work out the growing pains soon!

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  19. Hilarious post, Cheryl! Made my Monday at work much better :)

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  20. Hmm, not sure which I liked best...the joke, or the picture. Okay, the picture. :} Just wanted to let you know I enjoyed your post, Cheryl!

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