chuckography

Two monitors...no waiting.

 As I get back in the habit of sitting at my computer and posting on my blog, it might be a good time to flashback to how it all started.

Let's see, I retired from the local paper in 2004. Yay...retirement.

No longer "working for the man" and able to call my time my own.

No boss...no work schedule..,ummm, and no paycheck.

Divorced, my children grown and off on their own, no family at home to worry about, I agreed to move in as my Mom's roommate because she didn't want to stay there alone after my dad died.

I blogged about that adjustment for both of us.

For the next 10 years, I could either have home-cooked Mom meals or stay out as long as I wanted. She was happy, I was glad to be with her and my blog was reflecting our shared good times.

The computer shown above was not mine. My first venture online was a Brothers Word Processor.

It too used discs to store things but it wasn't a "real computer." I had used it though, to create and print resumes when I was job-seeking.

The flip phone on the left never really existed and was something I saw online as a bit of cyberspace humor.

My sense of humor liked the reminder that I grew up with a dial phone (our home number on Society Street was 5924) and I even recall us being on a party line!

I'm still looking for the "handset" I stashed somewhere.

I bought it as a joke to plug into one of my first "non-flip" cellphones.

It really did work like an old-timey headset, with the advantage you could talk and listen.

 ...and hand it to someone and say "It's a call for YOU."

As a photographer, I "retired" large SLR-type cameras and opted for a pocket-size Canon P/S.

I was aware that phones were getting better and better at taking photos and yet, no camera existed that could make a phone call.

I finally did get a real computer made by GATEWAY, their boxes distinctly spotted with black and white Holstein cow markings.

A simple setup with, I recall,  a "giant" 17" monitor.

I went through an expensive phase of buying different sizes of color paper - and pricy color inks - to have photos to show, hand out and send to others.

The color printer was relatively inexpensive but devoured color inks like crazy. Finally, emails became stable - quickly outdistancing the old FAX machines - and our phones now could show photos in great color so there no longer was a need to make prints to share!

My "home office" setup evolved nicely when I bought a brand new desk.

My old one was a WWII era dark wooden desk with a hidden compartment taking up the left side that would store and pop-up the typewriter when it was  needed.

I had bought it VERY used for $20.

My new light-blond beauty had four pull-out drawers and two deep ones for hanging files!

It even had that clever small shelf that would slide out to show the keyboard and mouse.

Ah, but my life changed the day I visited a friend and saw that he had TWO monitors.

What a concept..work on photos on one side and write copy on the other side.

I even found a bargain 32-inch CURVED Samsung monitor when I bought a new Dell XPS 8930 computer.

"Sure, put that in the cart too" It had been 6 years since I had bought my last Dell PC. Lots of changes in that length of time!

So, here I sit now, going back into the past to gain traction to pick up blogging again.

It had been several idle months.

I would think as I attended a music show or met some interesting people, that THIS would make a nice blog item.

And then not follow through.  Look out, I'm back!

Thanks for stopping by. Let's make that a habit again. 

Click on the links and photos for more details.

Labels: 32" curved monitor, Brother word processor, Gateway computer with B&W cow markings on its boxes, Hand-held large receiver to plug into your cellphone, no more missing FAX paper, WWII-era wooden desk

posted by chuckography @ 10:06 PM