Monday, March 8, 2010

Bits and Pieces on a Busy Day

What I'm Reading

John Hart's Down River. It's good, keeping my attention. I should have finished it this morning because I only have a few pages left, but I forced myself to put it down and get on with my other projects.


The New Computer

It's crazy. My wireless internet connection keeps going in and out while I'm trying to create this post, so I'm going to keep this one very short. The new keyboard is a tiny bit different. I keep hitting the caps lock key, but returning to the old keyboard is not an option.


Revisions and Visiting Blogs

Trying to get both of these things done at the same time is crazy. My own blog stats showed a big decline in visitors last week. I guess I have to take the bitter with the sweet. I'll catch up with my blog visits when this manuscript is finished. In the meantime, I must try to get my internet connection back so I can publish this post.

14 comments:

Unknown said...

Good luck. I've often wonder why computers became so crucial when they operate like Model-Ts.

Donna Volkenannt said...

Hi Pat,
I've been working my way through the box of books I won in your contest last month. Reading so much has kept me from writing, but they are so good it's hard to put them down.
Donna Volkenannt

Patricia Stoltey said...

I think I have my problem solved already -- I was whining to my hubby about the internet connection, and he said we might have to move the computer to the other side of the room or move it from the floor to a table but he had to leave for his bridge game so he'd look at it later.

Never one to wait, I came in and looked it all over, pulled the computer forward (away from the wall) about one foot, and suddenly I have this super powerful connection. Do I get a gold star for doing it myself?

This machine is a little strange. It doesn't make any noise. Even the fan runs silently. I'm not used to that. Now I can hear the neighbor's dog barking ever so much better...

Mason Canyon said...

It's extremely hard to put a book down with there are only a few pages left. Part of you wants to finish to see what happens and another part doesn't because you don't want it to end. Good luck with the computer and internet service.

Jan Morrison said...

oh Patricia - the joys of computing! My life is a thousand times nicer now that I've got more memory in my hard drive. Before it was like walking through mud and I couldn't keep up with anyone's blogs or even my own.
I'm reading Nuala O'Faolain's book "My Dream of You". I've read it before but I found it at a friend's last night as we watched the Oscars and I couldn't resist reading it again - I just listened to the audio book of her's 'Almost There', her last memoir -read by her. I'm also reading The Idiot by Dostoyevsky. I've not read any of the Russians and think it is time!

Patricia Stoltey said...

You're right, Mason. It's so hard to let a good story go.

Kay -- Computer and I are making progress. I have to agree with Jan, though. Getting a machine with more memory has made all the difference in response time.

Donna -- Oops -- I never considered the fact that I might be sabotaging a writer when I gave away all those books. But happy reading anyway.

Hi Jan -- Ah, the Russians. I've read a couple of them, but I just bought a copy of Crime and Punishment and will be reading it for the first time (but I have a couple more thrillers to read first).

Elspeth Futcher said...

New keyboards drive me mad. Keep plugging away at that manuscript, but stick your nose outside occasionally. Spring is sneaking in.

Elizabeth Spann Craig said...

Good luck with the new computer! Losing internet connections makes me crazy...

Elizabeth
Mystery Writing is Murder

Anonymous said...

What kind of system/computer is it?
Sometimes wall and floors can interfere with wireless connections, good job on solving the problem!

Carol Kilgore said...

Good luck with your new computer. I hate when techie stuff doesn't work as it should.

Jane Kennedy Sutton said...

It sounds like a typical Monday! Hope your connection settles down. I know how frustrating losing it can be when you're trying to get work done.

Gutsy Living said...

The blogging and manuscript revisions are also a problem for me to keep up with. The Internet doesn't help when it doesn't cooperate. Keep going.

Anonymous said...

Gotta have Internet connection. I posted my review of Desert Hedge Murders to B&N. I'll do the same for Amazon as soon as I find my password.

Stephen Tremp

The Old Silly said...

Wow - great list, Pat! I bookmarked the permalink to this post. One Bible in my literary library is Carolyn Howard Johnson's book, "The Frugal Editor". It is a vast wealth of excellent self-editing tips and techniques.

Marvin D Wilson