TEGENCE FIXES HIS LAPTOP AND MAKES ANALOGIES

My laptop has been crashing like crazy recently. Which, along with laziness, will probably explain the lack of an update. Was very frustrating. My Internet becomes slower than a dyslexic sloth, programs don’t work, and the Blue Screen Of Death appears every ten or twenty minutes to put an end to everything fun I do. Party pooper.

Since I spend a lot of time on the Net (playing Online Mafia and writing and stalking Neil Gaiman on his blog..by the way his birthday was five days ago, happy belated birthday, Mr. G!) this was a colossal frustration and so pondered on changing my laptop. Unfortunately, I know just as much about computers as Paris Hilton knows about quantum thermodynamics. For me, RAM is a male sheep with big-ass horns, a processor is friendly Mr. Raju from down the road who works in Campbell Soup, and Firefox is the villain in the next Batman movie. (seriously though..Firefox. isn’t that a really cool supervillain name? He/she could have fire-based powers! And be part fox! Or be cunning like a fox! Or be foxy! Or have an army of foxes, all set on fire! Or work at Fox Studios! I think you get what I mean.)

And so, thought of buying a new laptop, but since I am poorer than Richie Rich after being blackmailed in the infamous Casper the Over-Friendly Ghost sex scandal, decided that perhaps a simpler thing to do would be to try and fix my laptop. Yes, I have almost zero knowledge of PCs, and the saying ‘seperti tikus membaiki labu’ popped immediately to mind, but decided it was better than anything else.

Did not exactly aim to achieve much. After all, I don’t exactly have the best history when it comes to battles with machines. My previous confrontation, the clash between the evil Duke Can Opener, in the fields of Reading (see older blog) did end in disaster after all. But I figured, its not like the problem could get any worse, and if my laptop did go wonkier than a psychopathic gorilla high on tequila, well, it could come in useful in other situations. You could close it and put it on a chair, to sit on if your seat is wet. And..well, can;’t think of other things. But you know what I mean.

So, since I had such limited knowledge, decided to just go the easy way first. Go to System Restore, find a date before the crashes started to happen frequently, and restore my computer settings to that date. Actually the closest thing to time travel I will probably ever do.

So I did all that, and waited. Did not expect it to work.

And so, was incredibly surprised when it did. Honestly, since the day I tried out that nonsense two weeks ago, my computer has not crashed a single time.

YEA!!!!
And lo, Tegence did triumph over the Adversary, the Blue Screen of Death
And restoreth he the systems of his laptop
And his is the Internet connectivity, the productivity
And the downloaded wallpapers of Scarlett Johansen, blessed be her hotness
Now and forever!

Alright, alright, blasphemous exaggeration there. But felt very proud of myself, hurrah! Did not realise fixing it would turn out to be so simple.

Got to thinking, though, after fixing the laptop.

If only real-life problems were as easy to solve as this.

Something happens in your life? Said something you regret? Committed a crime you know are sorry for? Ruined your life, or the life of a loved one? Voted for McCain?
If only it were possible to just System Restore your life: no matter how bad you screw things up, just return to a happier time before all that happened, and go on from there.

Life sadly, is more complex than that. We hardly ever get second chances, after all: mess up once, and you have to deal with whatever consequences happen, which sometimes feel way too hard to handle. God knows I’ve made my share of mistakes and mis-steps.

But then again, the past builds you up for you are now, after all. I like to believe in the idea of God’s plan, after all: that everything, no matter how bad, has a purpose and reason that will come together to create the best possible outcome for you. It does sound ridiculously optimistic (and this from me, to add!) but I believe in it.

To add, messing with the past always ends in disaster after all. Have seen The Butterfly Effect and countless other cheap science-fiction movies after all. Learn from your mistakes, move on, no point in focusing on them and wishing things in the past had worked out better.

But another strange thing that I have realized after some thinking: for the first time in quite a long time, I am actually very satisfied with my life. Honestly. These times are indeed some of the happiest I have ever been. Granted, its not perfect (5 hour weekend classes come to mind) but I have to say, this is the happiest I have been in a long, long time.

I live my own life in the way I want it to be. Though others may judge me, or I am misunderstood: I’m pretty happy with how I am now, my conscience is clear, and I’ve come quite a long way. And that is all that matters.

And that is all.