Some thoughts on computers, writing, and travel

I've been having laptop problems for the past several weeks; turns out it's not so easy to replace a power adapter for an Acer laptop in this country, at least not for the type of laptop I have. The plug no longer fits snugly into the laptop, and the loose connection means that the battery won't charge or charges only intermittently. But suddenly the original adapter worked again after not working for several weeks, so I'm making up for lost time while it still works, as there's no guarantee that it will work tomorrow. I've ordered a new adapter from an online 'store' but it's impossible to know whether these stores are reputable or not; they take your money (as confirmed by Paypal) and tell you they've shipped the item, but that was eleven days ago and still no new power adapter. So I ordered another one from another online store and am hoping that they will deliver. You would think too that Amazon would offer this adapter, but no, not this time. I wish they did, because Amazon delivers. You can criticize the company as much as you like for my sake; I will continue to do business with them because they deliver when they say they will deliver, and because their customer service is dependable.

This entire situation has shown me just how dependent I am on having a working computer at home. It is my connection to the outside world and to the States, and as a writer, I feel lost without it. Tablet computers are no substitute; they're fine for reading e-books and email and for catching up on social media, but for writing, they won't do. Even for writing emails, I find that tablets are limited because the keyboards are too small. And I cannot use my workplace computer to access my Gmail; that is no longer possible in my workplace, since the IT department blocks all programs that even remotely resemble social media. Websites such as Gmail, Facebook, Twitter, some newspapers, and the like are forbidden to access at work. So it's not possible to use my computer at work to send personal emails. Not that I ever really did, but now and then it would be nice to be able to do so in a pinch, like now. I refuse to use my work email program for any sort of personal communications; personal and work emails should be separate, like personal life and work life.

I've missed posting here as well. My blog has become an extension of me. When I look at the body of writing that I've produced during the past nine years, it's overwhelming and amazing at the same time. But mostly it's important, to me, because it's given me an outlet and a megaphone to voice my opinions, share my writing, poetry and photography, share my reflections, and my travels. As I grow older, I see that this has been my way of 'publishing' what I write. Not all of what I've published is good, but a lot of it is. There are hits, and there are misses. When I read articles that find their way into major newspapers at present, I don't feel that my writing is necessarily of lesser value. If I wrote for a living, I would have had the chance to perfect the work I produce. As it is now, one of the nice things about having a blog is that one can always go back to a published post and edit it. That's important because sometimes, upon reflection, one finds it necessary to rephrase a sentence, correct a grammatical error, correct a factual mistake, and so on.

I've been wanting to post an article about my recent Scotland trip together with two of my closest childhood friends. Despite some recent health problems (not major, but a bit bothersome), it was possible to do the trip, although I was fairly exhausted afterward. I don't find being in a new place tiring, I find the actual travel to and from a place tiring. I find airport security procedures tiring--jackets and shoes in one small bin, laptop/devices in another, knapsack in another, and so on. Retrieving them all and restoring order are bothersome. This year, I thought it would be easier to travel with carry-on luggage; not so, because you have to remember to place all cosmetic items in the correct type of plastic baggie, and if you don't do so, your luggage is flagged and you must open it and present it to security. I found the whole experience exhausting, and will check my luggage the next time I travel. Plus not all airlines have enough overhead compartment space to accommodate everyone's carry-on luggage, so some airlines offer you priority boarding and that your baggage will be unloaded first, if you check it instead of carrying it on board. And so it goes.

So hopefully my next post will be about Scotland, if I retain access to my laptop. Hopefully the new adapter will show up any day now, and the problem will be solved. But given the current state of the postal system in Norway, even that is up for grabs. Mail is delivered sporadically; what was once a well-functioning system has gone the way of most everything else--in the interests of saving money and making it more efficient, efficiency has been lost. I no longer am even sure what days of the week mail is delivered; all I know is that I'm happy to see mail in the mailbox. Express mail delivery works, but the logistics of delivery are complicated. You're either rushing home from work to receive a delivery, or making a deal for them to come to your workplace so that they can deliver packages. Some will do that, others won't. There is no rhyme or reason for most things anymore. I'm used to it, as I suppose everyone else is. The question is rather--where does it all end?