"SMART ASSES ' PAY BIG TIME

     Alright , it's another computer story!


     It seems to me to be outrageous that when you buy a computer, they are ready to set it up for you for a big price. In my case they offered to set things up for $200.00.Now my computer only cost $600.00. We hear all kinds of stories about setting up new computers. Some of them are scary and some say, "No problem . Computers are easy to set up." To my thinking , it should be easy to set up a computer.


     Well, here goes. I waited a few days to build up my courage. I read the rather small manual...76 pages. My camera manual is 234 pages.


    I started . Things went well and smoothly.


    I got to the part where I installed apps. The apps showed up on the screen. I thought there was more so I looked for something to click on to move forward. Nothing! Well then back up! Nothing.


    I was stuck with a blue screen with 4 window like squares with light streaming through.


    Finally, I shut down the computer. Next morning? It's still there. Well a quick call to Asus should fix this. Two calls to Asus talking to Asus dummies and then the third call he offered to set things up to reset the computer.


    Okay , I go through the same thing. Well, I slept on this overnight. It finally hit me that the funny blue screen was my home page. I was finished setting up my computer! The actual time to do this was about 20 minutes. I'm sure a guy from the store would take about two minutes. They would also teach me a few things which I would have to learn on my own.


     So that was a rather embarrassing error but I admit it.


      Next , I had some challenges with my pass words. All my pass words have  a similar key stroke. In Canada our keyboards must have French. Somehow or other that stroke would type the French. I discovered that by looking at my password when I typed it in.


     So I had a few errors but I got my computer set up and didn't have to pay the rats $200.00


     You know that from previous posts I try to do things myself and it's a challenge but gives satisfaction when it's done.

I THINK I FOUND SOMEBODY NEW

    That tune has been in my head for days. Who wrote or sang the tune?


     Well I really did find a new friend. Several weeks ago I told you that I had to get a new computer and that I would be making posts on my ipad. It was frustrating using the ipad as I'm not familiar with Apple. With a whole lot of crashing and bashing I posted a few poorly edited posts. I never did find out how to put photos on a post. I did read all posts and made comments. Along the way I learned more about apple. I still would not choose Apple to work with.


     Finally I made a decision about a computer. I bought an Asus. It has a windows 10 operating system. I was worried about Windows 10 as some people, including my son, said it was not easy to work with.. So I've been pleasantly surprised by how easy it is to work with. Yes, I've had to learn some things and have lots more to learn. It seems to be easy to navigate.


    It was easy to get my emails and contacts. It was easy to find my blogs. Surprise , surprise! I got most of my photos. I still have some other things I would like to get off the old computer, but not much.


    So I did find somebody new that I like very much.


   By the way , I haven't got a name for somebody new yet?

Last Day of Being Seventy Seven

   Yes, that's right folks. Today is the last timeI I'll ever ever 77 years old.

    What did I do on this or less day in my life? I made up my persona directive.

   Recently my daughter's mother in law went in for surgery and it didn't turn out well. Her husband is an only child and when his mother became incapacitated, they began looking, 
 for those important papers.

   That's when my daughter made the frantic request as to whether I had personal direction forms and if so where are they.

   Now my record on personal directive forms is rather pathetic.  About 15 years ago I'd heard of personal directives but didn't have the foggiest idea of their importance and of course like a typical male I did nothing about them.. About 10 years ago I got a little more serious about the issue. About 5 years ago I actually filled out forms but didn't get  them witnessed.

   So with my daughter's frantic plea , it was time to d something about it.aed out our province has a program in place to standardize personal directives.also learned ed that the all important form was only to appoint someone to be my agent if I became  . I was giving someone the legal status to make health and care decisions for me. I also learned the I would fill out another form with my doctor detailing my wishes for care when my quality of life deteriorates.

   The province also will set up an advisor to help you fill out the forms. The advisor sees thaat the forms are filled out correctly. She/he witnesses your signature and makes the necessary copies for you. That' s what we did today.

      So all in all, my last day of being 77was a rather important one.

Am I Biased?

     I start many posts with, "I was a teacher for 37 years." So every once in a while I get on a teacher topic.

     Over the years I had many different administrators. Most of them were middle of the roaders. One was outstanding and one just terrible.

     So I got thinking about hiring a good administrator.

      I would suggest that a good place to look for administrators would be in the fine arts section.

        Fine arts teachers have to set their classes up so that students work on individual projects or in groups. They also have to organize their program so that the curriculum police are satisfied. So fine arts teachers have many challenges with logistics. And they creative people.


       So if I was hiring an administrator I would look in the fine aarts section for candidates for an administrative position. 

       I would like an administrator to be creative and have a vision as to what he wants for his school. I want somebody who is well organized and can move  pieces of the jigsaw puzzle around and make the best use of space, time and talent.

      After that look for leadership ability and personal appeal.

        So here are the results of my afternoon of daydreaming.

       Am I a little biased towards fine arts?

I Got Lost Again

     Over my life time I've been lost a time or two. I'm not counting being as in trying to find a location int the country or city. I'm talking about really not knowing where you were.

     There four occasions of being lost that stand out in my memory. Two of them were when I was a small child and two as an adult.

    As a small child I wandered off the farmyard twice and a search had to be made. Once was in early  January. I was about 3 and my Mom put me out in the yard to play. When she checked , I was gone . She had two younger children in the house and couldn't leave. She phoned the neighbors and they started a search. My Dad found me as he was coming home from town. I think I got a good reminder of not to wander away when Dad picked me up on the road and another when he set me down in the yard.

       The second time a lady was babysitting and I wandered off the yard. Again she had little kids and couldn't leave the house. The hired farm hand found me. Apparently I had decided to walk home.

      At about age 25 I got lost in the Arctic. Four of us had flown into an uninhabited Island to hunt geese. Check it out...Richardson Island. I walked a long way around to get closer to the game, made my kill, dressed the animal and left it to come back the next day . I thought I knew the way back. I crossed the first ridge an things didn't look familiar. A second ridge. A third ridge. Now I was starting to panic. It was getting toward sunset. Finally, I found the shore and got back to camp. To say the least, I was relieved.

     The last Time I was lost was last night. I didn't know anything about it until I got home. I tend to be a little careless about communication with the Micro Manager. She was downstairs watching TV and thought she heard me leave for my walk but thought it was early for my walk. She came up an hour later and I wasn't in the house. She was ready to call neighbors to look for me. She discovered the keys and car were gone but couldn't remember where I was going. Finally she checked the calendar and then knew where I was.

       So I was lost for a while last night just like when I was a little kid and wandered away from the farmyard.

The Learning Curve is Steep

        Some of my readers may remember that my desk top is on it's last legs so I'm using it for only the important stuff.
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         I'm limping along with an iPad. I'm getting blogs read and have posted a few short posts.

          Now I've received a small comment which I understand well. Somebody said my posts were hard to read.as the type is small. I knew that and was hoping no one would notice. Since this is my first time using Apple things have been a challenge. I could not discover how to highlight the text and enlarge it. I always enlarge the text as I know it.'s easier to read.

      Well, this afternoon I just got mad and said I won't quit until I have 
Learned to cut and paste. So I decided to ask Google. After asking three times I finally got the answer and followed instructions. 

       So I have gone back and enlarged the print size on my last three posts.

        So it feels good to have discovered how to do something.

         If I keep on using Google, who knows what else I'll learn.

Eye Examination Day

      Today was the day for me to get my eyes checked. Here, seniors get a yearly eye examination from  Alberta health care. That yearly check makes sure our seniors are active. It also ensures that any eye problems are diagnosed and treated promptly.

     A few weeks ago I had my annual check up and passed with flying colours even though a test gave me some worries until I got the results.

    Today I also passed my eye exam and was declared healthy and that I could drive my car.. I do not have a change in my prescription. Cataracts are not an issue at this time.

    Now one of the great things about my eye exam is that I have an awesome optometrist. He's quiet, gentle and thorough. I certainly feel comfortable and confident that I will be examined in a professional manner.

      Now the kicker with my optometrist is that he is a former student of mine. So I not only get an eye exam but have an awesome visit. We catch up on all kinds of people.
:teachers, students. We also catch up on each other's activities. He's just recently taken in a partner explained why. Business is something I have very little to do with. All his kids have grown and left home to some degree. He's old enough to think ahead to retirement and what he might be doing.

        So I get a first class eye exam and a very pleasant visit. Very few people are f ortunate enough to enjoy this situation.

Winter Storm Oct. 2

.  In my last post I confidently called fall to be well advanced. Friday's temperature was 24C. It was beautiful. I went for a 17 km bike ride...shorts... The whole bit. I came back in a sweat.

    Little did I know things would change. I did listen to the forecast but didn't take things seriously. I couldn't imagine that much of a change. The wind picked up in the evening. It was a nasty gusty wind. I looked out after 1:00AM and the air was full of blowing snow!

    So what a big surprise for me.

     It blew and snowed until early afternoon before it died down. We ended up with about 10cm of snow.

    Tonight it gets very cold...minus 6C.

      Tomorrow it warms up and the snow will disappear.

       I will also be skating tomorrow.

      Once the first snow has fallen I relax and enjoy it.

      By the way I look forward to fine October weather.