And now what did you do TODAY?

[HeadphoneAddict]

Fought with Microsoft for an hour and a half because Office 2011 wouldn't activate on my oldest daughter's Macbook Pro after the Apple store replaced her crashed hard drive Friday afternoon.  

 

Fortunately she had the AppleCare extended warranty and a recent time machine backup, and any critical files between backups were on Dropbox or Google Drive and a thumb drive.  The Apple store had it up and running for free by closing time.  But after the Time Machine restore MS Office told her that it was activated on too many computers (3 license version for students, one for each kid).

 

We tried the phone activation twice, feeding the automated activation line the 54 digit installation ID, and then having the voice on the other end thank us for contacting Microsoft and then disconnecting the call without further notice, and no confirmation ID needed to activate Office.  

 

The first Microsoft tech I spoke to (daughter was at work and couldn't call them) stated that Office 2011 treats any new hard drive as a new computer, and to activate Office 2011 on her new hard drive I'd have to pay $40 for another license.

 

I told him that made no sense because in 2012 I backed up her old computer before I wiped it, and installed her clone onto her new Macbook Pro, and Office didn't complain about the changes.  I told him I did the same thing with the other 2 kids computer upgrades in 2013 and 2014, with no issues.  But now he's telling me that "the new hard drive counts as a 4th computer" and he would not budge to activate Office. WTF?

 

The dipshit put me on hold for almost half an hour when I asked for his supervisor, knowing I'd eventually hang up so I couldn't complain and get him in trouble.  I had to call Microsoft back, but the next tech was very nice and gave us a confirmation ID right away so we could activate Office again.

 

Meanwhile my daughter spent the hour and a half freaking out over it, with an important paper due soon that she couldn't work on during her free time at work.  Maybe I should have paid the $40 right away and saved her the misery of not knowing if we'd get Office fixed, but it was the principle of the thing that made me continue to fight for our current license to work.  

[luvdunhill]

Gambled. Whoever thought water, coffee and Milo should be the only option at a casino needs to be shot. On the flip side, the vast number of baccarat tables unlike 2 tables on a good night in Vegas is nice. Also no double-zero roulette nonsense.

[jvlgato]

Iain, really cool owl! I wish I'd see one in my trees!

 

Shelly, I'd have a panic attack. Glad you were able to recover them!

[GrindingThud]

Fabricated unobtanium brake line on my 03 Marquis...

[Salt Peanuts]

Went to a local farmer's market and saw an Easter Bunny.  Predictably, also saw few children crying and running away from the said bunny.

[shellylh]

Iain, really cool owl! I wish I'd see one in my trees!

Shelly, I'd have a panic attack. Glad you were able to recover them!

Oh, I did [have a panic attack].

[HeadphoneAddict]

Framed a large picture to hang over the fireplace, but got tired/bored and decided to go see Noah - told my son we were going to go as a family, and he complains he has too much homework.

 

I go check and he's playing minecraft. 

 

I told him I was going too block the IP address for mine craft, and then I used Mac screen sharing to go in and quit the game in the middle of what he was doing.  2 minutes later I see he is doing his science homework.

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

Got in a minor fender bender.  My fault, as I struck the other driver, but she suddenly slowed down in heavy traffic, for no apparent reason, when I was in the middle of the lane change, and I couldn't entirely avoid her car due to another car pulling in behind me, so I think it was pretty crappy all together.  Even getting into a small traffic accident can't diminish my excitement for how awesome my new VacMaster 260 is, though.

 

Man, I hate when that happens.  I hope everything turns out okay.  

[CarlSeibert]

Shelly - That app-on-the-desktop-that-syncs-deletions thing has always scared me. I do use it on Dropbox, although more and more I'm thinking of turning it off and just using the web interface and the apps on my mobile devices. Never have installed the equivalent thing on Box.com.

 

Really large owls would reduce the need for longer lenses. ) Although I'm not sure what one would do with an 80 pound owl.

 

Our owls are super tiny. You need a 400mm AND to be within 15 feet.

[shellylh]

I love the flexibility of the app since I have about 4 different computers that I use.  I have turned the app off on all but my two main computers (Macs, where I sync everything).  I think the problem started when I just wanted to sync a couple of folders on my Windows tablet pc (with a 60GB HD).  It was definitely the Windows computer that deleted the files.  What is weird is that it only deleted some of the files (chosen at random).  Perhaps I turned off the computer and disconnected from the internet before it could finish though.  

[acidbasement]

 

Really large owls would reduce the need for longer lenses. ) Although I'm not sure what one would do with an 80 pound owl.

 

Our owls are super tiny. You need a 400mm AND to be within 15 feet.

 

Great grey owls can have up to a five-foot wingspan.  They're pretty badass.  We also have great horned owls, which are not quite as big, but meaner - they'll take out cats, no problem.

[CarlSeibert]

Hmmm. Sounds like there are advantages to our itty bitty screech owls. Non aggressive, they don't require much habitat, and they're fun to watch. Fuel efficient compact models.

[Dusty Chalk]

Creatures of the night, natural pest control, what's not to love?  Alright, they're not black...

[Voltron]

Opening Day in San Francisco. The Bat Kid just rode into the park in a Lamborghini Batmobile and threw out the first pitch. I think Ray was driving.

[blessingx]

^ Nice.

When's Grounds Crew Day?

[Grahame]

Admired the two baby hummingbirds in their nest in a tree outside our office.

 

 

 

[Hopstretch]

That is cool!

[jvlgato]

Very cool, and very cute!

[Dreadhead]

^ that

[shellylh]

Try traumeel. Comes in pills and ointment. My 57 year old body definitely gives it 2 thumbs up. Also no gastric or kidney side effects.

 

Ok, I have an appointment for a cortisone* injection but for now I've decided to get a tube of Traumeel.  I am skeptical but I guess it can't hurt to try.  

 

*The orthopedic surgeon suggested to get Supartz with the cortisone injection because he says they tend to work well together.  I am somewhat reluctant because of possible side effects and it isn't covered by insurance so it will be an extra $200.  My reluctance comes because I had an fairly bad skin (allergic) reaction last year when I got a flu shot.  Also it says the following:  "tell your doctor or pharmacist if you are allergic to it; or to bird proteins, feathers, or egg products" which is what they also say about the flu shot. There is no real indication that I know of that the trouble is arthritis.

Edited April 12, 2014 by shellylh

[Augsburger]

The allergic warning is because the flu vaccine is cultivated in egg albumen so if you have a sensitivity to eggs or chickens you may have a reaction.  I have an egg allergy so that is why I cannot have the flu shot. Was the skin reaction hives or swelling? 

[morphsci]

I have no faith in the ability of modern medicine to treat any kind of chronic condition. Period. End of statement.

[grawk]

Went to dc to see the cherry blossoms

[jvlgato]

Nice! We missed them by two weeks.

[Augsburger]

Well there is always voodoo.  I have family in NOLA if you need a referral.

 

 

Oh, forgot to mention, they don't take Blue Cross.

Edited April 13, 2014 by Augsburger