It's been 2 weeks since my last post.
To be honest, there is a good reason for that (well, a reason at least . . . whether it's good or bad is for you to decide for yourself).
I can't remember whether I mentioned that my rather whizzy new computer got a random blue screen a few weeks back or not. I was rather taken aback as it's been years since I'd seen one and thought they were a long distant part of a bygone IT era. However, no, Windows really is still as shit as it's always been.
The first time it happened, I assumed it was a random blip and ignored it. The second time I did a restore and then quickly made a recovery disc - something I haven't bothered with for years. Then, on the day after my last post, the worst happened and my lovely new computer died completely, leaving me stuck on the BIOS screen.
I spent 2 days (including taking some leave because obviously there was no way I could concentrate on work when I couldn't get into Hogwarts Legacy 😂) but after literally trying everything, including attempting to boot from the old command system (hurrah for my early 1990s computer training allowing me to be able to remember how to do that sort of stuff), I had to conclude that the hard drive had snuffed it.
Fortunately, I had, somewhat amazingly, had the foresight to save all my new stuff to an external drive, so I didn't lose anything, but it was extremely frustrating. As was trying to get the bloody thing replaced.
Now, this isn't a criticism of the company that supplied the PC. They were all (with the exception of one person) exceptionally friendly, patient, and extremely helpful, despite that they were dealing with a clearly difficult customer (that's me, by the way 😂).
I shall explain.
Unlike the old PCs I'm used to dealing with, this super whizzy has an M2.SSD card rather than a SATA drive (for those who don't know what I'm talking about - the new one is a 3" stick as opposed to something that resembles a metal brick). The first problem came when I had to unscrew the cover for it and immediately lost one of the tiny screws somewhere inside the casing of the PC and couldn't get it back out again.
Unscrewing it was difficult enough in itself and took me almost 10 minutes with the nice young man patiently waiting for me to confirm I had done it (and listening to a stream of swear words because my arthritic hands weren't dextrous enough to manoeuvre in the small space available to me. He helpfully told me that the cover was just decorative so not to worry, but they could send me another screw if needed.
Finally, the card was free 🎉, but I couldn't get it back in again (he wanted to check I wasn't going to have the same problems - I obviously did). After we'd been on the phone for about 20 minutes, I decided to give up and wait until the replacement card arrived to worry about it.
And so I was back to my old, eternally grumbling (freezing) PC with no ability to do anything much, and, I'll be honest, no desire to blog. It completely ruined my Kingdom comeback experience - the new album, History of Kingdom Part VI: Mujin is a cracker, btw, check out the MV for the lead track Dystopia.
So, the new card arrived on Friday afternoon, and I was obviously excited to get it into the PC, get all my crap re-uploaded and get back into
I am generally not a quitter, especially when it comes to stuff like this, but my fingers were sore from trying to bend in ways they can't and I was getting really pissed off with it. So I contacted my neighbour, who I knew was at home, and asked her if she would help me, as she's far more dextrous. She spent over 30 minutes trying to do it, and eventually had to admit defeat too.
Of course, by that time it was almost 5pm, the time the company's helpline closed, so I don't think the guy I spoke to was particularly happy to have to deal with me. I had no choice but to play the stupid old lady card to the full extent 😂, but even that didn't work. He kept saying 'but it's just one screw', completely ignoring the fact that 2 different people had tried to install it and failed, then told me to keep trying over the weekend and if I still had problems on Monday to phone back 🙄. I tried to explain that it was impossible to do, especially with the space available to get in there, and he then suggested I remove the graphics card to give me more space 😂.
I therefore spent the weekend with my old PC, no access to Hogwarts Legacy (or anything else of interest because no RAM etc.), so I still wasn't in the mood for blogging, and instead binge-watched the K-dramas Goblin and Hotel Del Luna back-to-back because they were perfect for my mood. Then I started the C-drama My Lethal Man, which is surprisingly gripping, particularly considering it's not a top class drama.
Now, before you think I just gave up and spent the weekend moping around in my PJs and weeping along to K-drama, I can tell you I didn't. I tried several more times to insert that screw - I even bought a set of magnetic screwdrivers because I thought that might help - but when they turned up they weren't actually magnetic 🤬 and I don't own a magnet to follow all the DIY tips for turning screwdrivers magnetic.
I even watched the company's very own Youtube video about how to remove a graphics card (as I was willing to give it a shot). Unfortunately, the first stumbling block was them not showing exactly where the screws that hold it in place are - to be fair they did explain they could be in different places - but of course, I was unable to locate where the ones on my PC were so they weren't very accessible and I just knew that if I did somehow manage to get the graphics card out there was no way I'd get it back in again.
On Monday morning I contacted them and told them to come get the PC and either send me a new one, fit the card and send it back, or give me my money back. On Wednesday they collected my poor broken PC, which I had packed as best I could given the size/weight/mobility restrictions. It arrived back with me yesterday afternoon and it's running perfectly again 🤞🏻.
There was a slight delay in setting up, as I was trying to sort out my March playlist and get up and running with the April playlist (yes, there is already music in it) before I immersed myself back into the world of Harry Potter (because we all know that was exactly where I was going to go once it was working again) - more about the music tomorrow as this post is already more than long enough.
I am now off to create another recovery disc - better to be safe than sorry - then I'm going to make some dinner (steak and jacket potato with mixed vegetables. Then I'm going spend the evening breaking into the lock level 2 and 3 houses in Hogsmeade and surrounding villages and steal all their loot 😂 (honestly, I know you're supposed to do it, but I feel like a burglar, especially when there are NPCs in the house at the time).
I will be back tomorrow . . . I pinky promise.
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