As usual I’m joining with Emily of Nerd in the Brain (and others) for Three Things Thursday’. As she says…
*three things that make me smile: an exercise in gratitude – feel free to steal this idea with wild abandon and fill your blog with the happy*
First, I’m always pleased when a worn-out object can be repaired or have a damaged part replaced. Who would have thought, though, that it would be possible to get a replacement blade for our 15-year-old potato peeler? In fact we were so pleased that we bought a second peeler… those boxes of apples can now be peeled in half the time.
The joy of peelers
Second, money. Now I know that happiness often comes from the little things in life, but let’s face it, being financially secure means we can enjoy the little things rather than constantly worrying about where our next meal is going to come from, how we are going to cover the rent/mortgage and whether we can afford to switch the heating on. Over the past year or so my much-repaired old computer has progressively been failing – broken mouse key, deteriorating keyboard, problem with overheating because of faulty power supply, software so old it is no longer supported, inability to open new format files for work… the list goes on. Anyway, when the power supply connecter came off in my hand yesterday I decided to finally admit defeat and, because we have money, we were able to just go out and buy me a brand new laptop. Hopefully it will last as many years as the old one and I won’t need to spend any more money on technology for a good long time. I still feel a bit guilty that I can’t keep the old one going, but it’s essential for my livelihood, so there really wasn’t an alternative
Third, I made this little chap and I think he’s rather fun. He’s made from yarn oddments and stuffed with organic kapok. He’s going off to Ludlow Library along with the Fair Isle mice from last week… and then possibly on a library tour (lucky bear)
snug bear
So, those are three things making me smile this week – what about you?
The Snail of Happiness 
w1nt3l
/ October 20, 2016I can certainly appreciate trying to keep an older system working. I appreciate being able to just buy a new one even more. My cycle with laptops is usually a new one about every 3-4 years, with an upcycle of the old one for a more sedentary purpose. Congrats on the new shiny tech!
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The Snail of Happiness
/ October 20, 2016I think my about-to-be-retired machine is 8 years old or so… I will have to look back at old invoices to find out. It will be quite a relief to be using hardware that is reliable… I’ll have to get used to being able to use the left mouse button again!
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w1nt3l
/ October 20, 2016I’ve replaced hard drives, memory, keyboards, and even bezels with integrated mouse pads/buttons. There is a moment though where it’s time to play Taps and send hardware to the recycling bin. Make sure to give your old machine a good sendoff. 😊
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coppicelearner
/ October 20, 2016Like you I feel no need to have the latest, the poshest but am profoundly grateful that I have enough money not to be scared by envelopes with windows and can replace essential items when I need to. Good luck with getting the hang of the newer software (though you do have an ‘in house’ geek which helps!😉).
Love the bear!
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The Snail of Happiness
/ October 20, 2016Oh, I remember the days of dreading a bill coming through the door… what stress
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Charli
/ October 20, 2016Any good ways to recycle old computers? I’ve just replaced mine after ten years of use, but that means it is rather old and slow and I’m not sure what to do with it.
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The Snail of Happiness
/ October 20, 2016Sometimes you can sell them for spares but otherwise it seems to be a case of hoping the local recycling service actually does its thing. Really, if everybody would keep using their computers for as long as you and me there wouldn’t be such a big issue!
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Ann
/ October 20, 2016Love your little bear. And I agree with the lap top. Mine is 4 1/2 and going strong.
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The Snail of Happiness
/ October 20, 2016He’s quite easy to make…
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thecontentedcrafter
/ October 20, 2016I think you are ‘supposed’ to upgrade your computer every two years….. I remember when my previous one slowed down to a snail crawl talking to a guy in a shop who, on enquiring how long I’d had my computer and me replying ‘Only about six years’, had laughed and clapped his hands and said ‘Man, that is ancient!’ 🙂 The next time I have to replace I’m doing some very careful research in order to ensure I have a computer that only supplies what I use – there is so much stuff crammed into these things that couple of the rams or the gigabytes or something else that we never have need of. At this point it sounds like all I need is a tablet………… Love the snug bear!!
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The Snail of Happiness
/ October 20, 2016Because my laptop is the main tool for my editing work I have some very particular requirements. When I bought my previous one the guy in the shop kept trying to persuade me that I needed the biggest possible screen and the fastest graphics card and was completely bewildered when I tried to explain that I had different needs. This time I was treated with much more respect and so making a choice was much easier and quicker.
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katechiconi
/ October 20, 2016Being an Apple Mac girl, I get a slightly different experience. I have a desktop iMac which is now 10 years old and still working OK, even if the colour card does occasionally go a bit splah. A quick restart does the trick… I haven’t bothered to update anything for a couple of years because I now have a laptop for travelling, and that’s current. The Mac shop people are admiring of longevity in their machines, which makes a nice change, and are helpful with suggestions for extending their working life.
Oh, and I’m thankful for good weather, and few bugs and a comfy camp bed!
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Ally Bean
/ October 21, 2016I found you via Nerd in the Brain’s Three Things Thursday, so “hi!” I love the little bear that you made. He’s cute and his scarf is so chic! I’m with katechiconi in using Apple Mac machines, but can understand your frustration when what you have won’t do what it’s supposed to do. Botheration.
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The Snail of Happiness
/ October 21, 2016well, here I am on my new computer… in the end it was relatively easy to set up and I think I’ll get used to it quite quickly… plus all the keys on the keyboard work, as does the left mouse button – hurrah!
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crawcraftsbeasties
/ October 22, 2016Hurrah! I hope you’re enjoying your new computer, with all its working bits and bobs! Boyfriend treated himself to a new computer this year, which means I got his old one… It’s reached the ripe old age of 9, but it’s so much quicker than my equally ancient laptop was. Are we really expected to update every 2 years, though? It takes me that long to figure out how to use the thing!
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