How to waste time.

I have spent the day practising my procrastination over and over again, and it's still not perfect. but I did manage to waste several hours.

The computer is still at the shop but we have been assured that the memory is intact. However something else is "heating up" and they don't want to give it back until it's really fixed. Ka-ching! Ka-ching! so, today I brought the laptop upstairs to check on my e-mail--my little routine over my morning coffee. E-mail problems, but one message out of 13 got through. A troublesome one pertaining to one of my volunteer groups and something I had to deal with. In the middle of typing up a lengthy, considered response explaining why the organization is expected to adhere to privacy legislation,and why that meant that we didn't give/sell our membership lists, my laptop died. Turned out it hadn't been plugged in for two days. Thank Goodness the answer was that simple but talk about a shock.

Then downstairs to make little neck bags for the up coming retreat. I had bought decorative ribbon to use instead of cording after calculating the cost of each. So I worked out the pattern--including a trip to the store to buy more ribbon- and made up a prototype. I needed permission to proceed--no e-mail--and it had been strongly suggested that I have 16-20 of them done by Monday. So, I left a phone message. Now--she knew I was having computer problems-but she e-mailed back telling me that she had some cord and would bring it with her on Monday and she would get them done, using my machine! Say What! Well, of course, I cooled off before replying that this would be great.

All the time this was going on, I was working with Shaw Cable trying to get the e-mail back up. Obviously they are having problems all over today, as there were long waits and call backs, but finally I got to talk to a real live technician. He walked me through the system and then we discovered that the power bar for the whole system was off. One of the tricks we've discovered is to turn everything off for a couple of minutes when we are having "internet connectivity problems". this usually works but, my laptop, it now charged up, and I had been able to turn it on using battery power without turning on power to the whole system. Without power the modem won't work.
Ar-g-h-h-h-h.

Last night I went to an Embroidereres' Guild meeting. My internal response to the meeting/discussion/environment was frustration and anger. During the drive home, I spent a lot of time talking to myself and coming to the realization that--right now--I'm in a very unpleasant space, and I'm not very happy with the person I appear to be becoming. This morning, when I looked in the mirror, I noticed that my hair is getting very thin again--a sure sign of stress. I'm not sure how to deal with this, or even what's causing it.

Then, when I finally got e-mail there was a message telling me that a friend had died last night. I had been told only two days ago that she had made the decision to d/c treament for cancer and was entering a palliative care program. So quick. She was about 10 years younger than I am. Another incentive to figure out what's going on and fix it. Life is too short.