The shakes should be starting any time now

"Misfortunes, we are told, are sent to test our fortitude . . . and may often reveal themselves as blessings in disguise."

Thank you, Mary. Now come over here so I can beat you.

Just got off the phone with my friends at Dell, and we may be closer to solving my computer problems. The downside is that the people whose wireless I've been hijacking all year have possibly wised up, because as of today I can't get on it anymore. What am I even going to do without Internet access at home????

The answer is, of course, "write that %&*^ dissertation I've been meaning to get to." This is probably God's way of getting me out of my bedroom (aka That Place Where I Waste Time) and into the computer lab (aka That Place Where Sheer Boredom Makes Dissertation Work Exciting).

Also, it could be worse. I just talked to a guy on my program today who lost 6,000 words of his dissertation (his entire literature review and more) when his computer crashed. And no, he hadn't saved a backup copy anywhere. There's nothing you can say to someone who just lost their entire literature review (except perhaps, "Holy crap, you've already written 6,000 words? I've written like 200! Of course, I still have mine, and they're saved in three different places, but wow.") All you can do is make sure there are no sharp objects or large quantities of prescription drugs lying around all appealing-like.

Tomorrow I'm heading to London to interview Cory Doctorow and have myself some London Time. Will fill you in later if I'm not dying from Internet withdrawal.

Farewell.

Posted in: England