I Took My Sons to Red Lobster

2000

The Monday before my surgery, I took my sons to Red Lobster. For dinner.
This requires a great deal of strength on my part.
They descend. Mild description.
And by the time we are seated, my older child (nearly 24) is playing with crayons and the kid's mat. This causes comments.
Something about "She will write about this, you know!"
Kelly gives me some paper so I can do just that. So he balls up the mat and puts the crayons down so I won't write about him.
I do anyway.
They compare notes about this.
Mommy Dearest. They need to write their version of my stories. They tell me that I perceive things differently.
Perception is what it is all about I gently remind them.
They want me in a home.
Not mine.
They want my houses.
I need to update my will.
Not ones for sitting and waiting, we caravaned in two trucks to StarBucks for coffee while waiting to get seated at Red Lobster.
At least they didn't lock the Tacoma's keys inside. They did that last time. Takes a locksmith to get into the truck when you do that. Why I have AAA. Why he does too.
There is always the "break a window" routine - which someone did recently. Didn't take much - just papers out of his glove compartment (change the ATM and credit card numbers fast boys) but $200 to fix the window.
Of course, I can't complain. I took my younger son for a blood test, and was so sleepy I went to the car to sit and wait. I was cold in the doctor's office - so I had the accessory switch on and the heater running. When I left the car, to go check on him, I left the keys in the ignition, accessory switch on and locked the door to get the kid. Fortunately I had not locked the back of the truck (the camper shell), so my rather large child crawled though the small window and unlocked the door.
We weren't sure I should have been driving. (Exhaustion.)
The auto club has to rescue me once a year.
The best event was the van in the desert on a Boy Scout hike. 105 degrees. Keys in the van. No phone in site. Had all kinds of help - but no joy for 30 minutes. Then I had a brainstorm - someone had a big screwdriver and I popped the window. The van has sliding windows. Locks be damned. You can get into the van in 30 seconds with anything that pries. Most car thieves carry screwdrivers.
This time we were lucky.
We got our coffee and went back to Red Lobster and got seated.
We were in a hurry at dinner because my older son and his companion needed to get home early. And we had spent all afternoon loading the G4.
This big machine is slowly coming on-line.
56K modem that runs at 28.8. It has a 27Gig drive that Claris Home Page thinks isn't big enough. (Y2K type problem - Claris can only handle Megabytes - not Gigabytes - 10x megabytes. What will it do for the Terabyte systems?)
I've been hunting CD disks. How did I misplace the drivers for the HP340 portable printer(color)? (Still missing.) (No - I found themn in the Tax records drawer.)
And the software for the film scanner? (I found it where the cats had sent the CD case sailing).
And discovered Adobe sent Type Basic on FLOPPY and the G4 doesn't come with one. First computer I ever had that didn't have a floppy. (I went and bought one. USB floppy. Color-coded. I choose black.)
And setting up the FTP (download Fetch).
And figuring out the Zip external for the 3400C notebook to cross load. The Orb won't load. (Loose SCSI connection.)
And oh yes, now I have to run Ethernet networking to connect the HP laserjet printer! (Still waiting.) (I hate networking stuff.)
Egads!
I do not want to be a network guru!
I want to USE the computer!
It's like sitting in a cockpit. It sounds like sitting in a cockpit!
I also switched the extended keyboard for the one that came with the system - it's translucent and just a tad "off". Throws off my typing. Not that I am great at it anyway. Never took a typing class.
I do have a smart Kensington mouse - as soon as I figure out how to use it. It scrolls. Not too smoothly at the moment
I couldn't find the Office 98 CD. I have every other version of Word and Office I have ever owned. On floppies. On CDs. Just the new one was missing.
Let's see. I loaded the G3 notebook with that before I put it in my slip drawer.
Voila. The CD was----- wait for it ---- in the slip drawer! Took 4 hours and a lot of whining!
I need to get organized. (My younger son is cleaning his room! Gasp! He does this by dumping stuff on me. All over the family room.) (Still there.)
I may use the monitor box to store my software - big box. Lots of room. Lots.
Big monitor! 21". 80+ pounds. (Total box weight was 92 pounds.)
My younger son carried it in from the car! And he set it up on the new table I got for the system. Heavy sucker. Big legs. Won't easily move anytime soon. (The monitor, not the table.) G4 on one end and a UMAX scanner on the other.
Full table.
New table.
I've been busy.
Now I have cube areas in my home. Line them up. Move them out. I gave the IIci away.
The 3400 Notebook is about to go off-line. (It is.)
The G3 may get out of my slip drawer. (Not yet.)
The 3400 will probably go to the office. Keyboard and all. (Soon.)
The G3 will be set up as the portable in my bedroom and for trips.
I need the ZIP drive interchangeable unit. If I can get it. Then I can swap stuff back and forth easily.
The Orb needs to get over to the G4 too. As soon as I find it's install software! (My older son says the drivers I am missing can be downloaded from the companies that made them.) (Good thing. 'Cause they are still missing!)
And the Orb has come up with a 5Gig removable drive - coming soon. 5 Gigabytes! Gasp!
The UMAX needs my attention next. That and PhotoShop. The art for the cover and the poster cum ad for Jettison is on the way. (On CD.)
At Red Lobster we talk about all this stuff. We are a technical family. Toys.
We like toys.
The only problem is, they want mine.
My elder son won't share his alcohol - he has a double pina colada. (Lotta Colada it's called.) It is double - strong - good. (I finally got a sip.)
My younger son has his usual virgin cola.
The significant other has tea.
Since we are four, we are a small group. But we make up for this. My sons have appetizers.
The waiter makes off with the forks.
We get new ones for dinner.
The pina colada is too good.
My sons dual with crab legs.
This could be regarded as attempted murder.
Crab legs are lethal.
They play around.
They are stalling so that my sip (well, two of them) wears off. (Tired mothers shouldn't drink. Even a little. No matter how much coffee.)
We remind my younger son to get his license. That way I can have a nice glass of red wine (Dr.'s orders) and still get home in a timely manner. He hates alcohol.
And I make my older son stall until it is safe for him to drive. He is larger and ate more.
Me, I go under with a 1/2 glass of wine. Cheap date.
They consider this to be amusing.
Perverse sense of humor, my sons have.