Carly Sparkles

This is what happens when you let a five year old name the new puppy: Carly Sparkles... the pitbull.

I knew that this puppy would likely be a challenge. I imagined that she would teeth more than the average pooch out there, and destroy more based on her jaw muscles alone. What I didn't realize is that pitbull puppies are much like sharks... with thousands of teeth that are constantly falling out and growing in. Daily she chews at least one toy, a sock, a hairband, sunglasses, moulding off the doorways, etc. One may say to me "well, you adopted a pitbull puppy, what did you expect?" And alas, I have no cute response to this. Darla did her fair share as a pup - ruining the carpet in our brand-new condo, eating pens and spewing ink daily - but Carly Sparkles takes it to a whole new level. Honestly, I often wonder if she's pissed off about her name.

The best part about Carly's name is that Carly means little and strong. Which Carly was (now forgoing little for more of the strong side of things). What I didn't know is where Katie came up with the name from. I found out at a preschool function recently, when I introduced myself as "Katie's Mom" to a woman standing beside me. "Oh. I'm Carly's mom," she said, and my heart skipped a beat. She quickly followed up with, "I heard you named your new puppy Carly, too." Lovely conversation starter. I wanted to wring Katie's neck. I blundered on about what a beautiful name it was, and that I had no idea where Katie had come up with the name. She looked less than impressed. I left with an awkward "nice to meet you" and haven't spoken with her since.

Back to Carly Sparkles. If anyone knows of a good trainer in Richmond, send me their way. I had thought I was the mac-momma with animals, but Carly's teaching me a few lessons.

Speaking of Macs (total stretch there, I know), my three month old MacBook Pro 15" notebook is TOAST. Done. Mac said I could replace the screen for $1200 through them. As if. They also said that the only way it could have cracked is through blunt trauma to the screen. Not true. Close it when its hot. That will do it. Others have reported this problem, though not often. I suspect that, as this new MacBook was just released this summer, that we will see lots of these stories in coming months.

The interesting thing is that I got back home, and using the half of my screen on the laptop which still works, did a quick google. Turns out there are lots of people who can fix it for less. MacService.com was the one I chose - $495.

I have this to say about Mac. I've been a total, devoted disciple of your products for over a decade. This is the way you treat your customers? Blindly rob them for a repair that costs, AT MOST, 1/4 of your quote, after they sink thousands into one of your new products? That is not the way to gain new customer loyalty, or to retain long-time customers. I will not be buying a new Mac for many years to come. I may even stop sniggering at the Mac vs. PC commercials I've so loved. It's that upsetting.

The fun just won't stop

So... Sadie's sick this time around. Total sick time between Katie, Sadie and myself (without break) = 3 weeks and counting.

Also, my brand-new MacBook Pro that I got to replace the stolen iBook has a cracked screen. Cost of repair, $1200. Thing is, I did nothing to break it. It was running very hot, so I decided to close it, give it a break and take it upstairs. These MacBooks run hot, and it's a common thing. It's supposed to shut off if it gets too hot. Fifteen minutes later I opened it and voila' - large black spots connected by a spider web. Better yet, half the screen promptly turned white, then got lines going up and down it. Good news is half the screen works.

Also, it's running about 75% of the time since the bizarro screen "accident." This is a 3 month old computer that cost more that $2500. I am not a happy camper.

This is the 4th Mac I've owned, and I've never been disappointed until I got this one. This is by far the most top-of-the-line one I got, but from day one there have been little "glitches" I don't like - its Airport isn't as powerful as my iBook G4s was. It's frozen several times when I have multiple graphics programs running. Granted, they're super powerful programs, but this is a MacBook Pro... it's DESIGNED for this stuff and should do it in its sleep mode. I've looked around on line, and it seems like everyone's pretty happy with them, minus battery issues and power plug fraying. Except if the screen cracks. And it seems like a lot of the screens crack. It's not covered by warranty, they say, because it's blunt trauma from an accident... usually. 

So, I'm sitting at the only Mac store in town, which is full to the gills. Waiting for a "genius" to tell me my screen is cracked, which I already know. And ready to fight the "accidental" clause (which I'm sure is what they'll say caused this). Wish me a bit o luck, please.