New Computer? Sorta...
My beautiful 17" screen HP laptop with its hefty 4 gigs of RAM is working as if it was new. It's incredible. I love it. Purring at my wonderful laptop.
In order to get it into decent condition that took a $49 repair and paying $100 to get Windows 7 Home Premium. It would've cost the same to get Vista Home Premium which is what it used to have. System files were nastily corrupted.
I'm now experiencing the relief of it functioning without the inherent problems of Vista. It feels like I doubled the RAM or something, it's all running real fast and sweet.
Functionally though, it's like getting a new computer in the other way. I had to download Gimp and RoughDraft all over again and install them, choose a wallpaper, turn off the "wallpaper changes every half an hour" default that would drive me nuts and get used to new features. My bookmarks are gone and my files are now disorganized with everything from My Docs, Pictures, Videos and everything else in loose subfolders in "Robert's Folder." Sorting that is a task for a sick day.
Scanner is hooked up now. This is a pen and wash sketch of Westminster, Houses of Parliament from a Weekend Drawing Event photo posted by DominicM on WetCanvas. So that was yesterday's daily art, which I got back to after days of being too sick and too busy to do any. Derwent Soft Cover Journal, Stabilo Point 88 pen and wash.
Progress toward San Francisco. I ditched two full shelves of books yesterday and my body's feeling that exertion. Today I've got the final class of "Essentials of Painting Buildings" with Johannes Vloothuis. As always, Johannes class takes top priority on a class day. I got in my new Bienfang Notesketch in time to take notes on this final episode and will be able to review them all on streaming video as part of what I paid for the class, a very moderate $19.99.
I also sent emails to two affordable Craigslist room listings with full disclosure on my disabilities, my habits, my limits and that gold-star housemate factor of "I've got SSI and they won't fire me while I'm breathing." I'll be checking listings daily. I washed out some of them on location and any that said no smoking or no cats. Also washed out one that said they wanted someone 25-30 and "pitch-in" personality. IE they want an undisabled non-deadbeat and are fed up with housemates who leave a pile of trash and never clean up. I don't leave much trash but can't clean up or compensate if someone else trashes, so I need to find a compatible house that understands that.
Friends have suggested adding a PayPal donations button to my LJ to ask for help making this move. It's true that I'm doing it without the savings I'd expected to have, and that may give me a hard time - one of the listings I answered wanted a $600 deposit in addition to the rent. I raised $770 raffling a painting for Big Cat Rescue recently, so I considered doing a raffle of my next art commission slot among all the donors - put up a donations button, every $10 puts your name in the hat again, then I number all the entries and roll dice to see who won the art. But that commits me to a next commission when I'm not done with Lauren's Wombat yet.
So in brainstorming funding, I think I'm going to start by creating some eBay listings and start looking through my Keepers. This isn't a Fire Sale, I'll put a fair price on them for starting bid. These are my best artworks to date that happen to be on separate sheets and not in sketchbooks. They are the pieces I loved so much I didn't want to sell them. Listing them on eBay, they may get bid up past minimum too - there are reasons they were keepers and it wouldn't surprise me if one or two of them raced ahead of the pack because everyone loved that one best.
I'll need a few more Sorting and Organizing days before I start the great Sale of the Keepers. Even that will help me lighten the load. Some of them are framed, if it's an easily shipped small frame I'll put that in the listing photo. Most are not. Shipping will be by USPS Priority Mail because that's the physically easiest way for me to ship, the bennie to you is that you get the art at loony fast speed and it arrives safe. I've never lost an artwork sent Priority Mail and I always insure it so you'll get your money back if it's lost or destroyed. I'm sure that's why I've never lost one, maybe they take more care with insured packages.
Total cost to be securely back online with a good machine in my hands - $153 and some change. $100 for Windows 7 and $53 and change to the little repair shop down the street, which rocks. I'm going to find out first if the netbook has a software problem or a hardware one by letting Kitten play with it for free before taking it in, but if it still has problems after her fixes I'll get them going over it before I leave.
I can just imagine bringing it with on that laundromat trip, in my power chair. Going online with wireless and hanging out with my friends while the dryers tumble. It's a happy fantasy. It's having a life.
In order to get it into decent condition that took a $49 repair and paying $100 to get Windows 7 Home Premium. It would've cost the same to get Vista Home Premium which is what it used to have. System files were nastily corrupted.
I'm now experiencing the relief of it functioning without the inherent problems of Vista. It feels like I doubled the RAM or something, it's all running real fast and sweet.
Functionally though, it's like getting a new computer in the other way. I had to download Gimp and RoughDraft all over again and install them, choose a wallpaper, turn off the "wallpaper changes every half an hour" default that would drive me nuts and get used to new features. My bookmarks are gone and my files are now disorganized with everything from My Docs, Pictures, Videos and everything else in loose subfolders in "Robert's Folder." Sorting that is a task for a sick day.
Scanner is hooked up now. This is a pen and wash sketch of Westminster, Houses of Parliament from a Weekend Drawing Event photo posted by DominicM on WetCanvas. So that was yesterday's daily art, which I got back to after days of being too sick and too busy to do any. Derwent Soft Cover Journal, Stabilo Point 88 pen and wash.
Progress toward San Francisco. I ditched two full shelves of books yesterday and my body's feeling that exertion. Today I've got the final class of "Essentials of Painting Buildings" with Johannes Vloothuis. As always, Johannes class takes top priority on a class day. I got in my new Bienfang Notesketch in time to take notes on this final episode and will be able to review them all on streaming video as part of what I paid for the class, a very moderate $19.99.
I also sent emails to two affordable Craigslist room listings with full disclosure on my disabilities, my habits, my limits and that gold-star housemate factor of "I've got SSI and they won't fire me while I'm breathing." I'll be checking listings daily. I washed out some of them on location and any that said no smoking or no cats. Also washed out one that said they wanted someone 25-30 and "pitch-in" personality. IE they want an undisabled non-deadbeat and are fed up with housemates who leave a pile of trash and never clean up. I don't leave much trash but can't clean up or compensate if someone else trashes, so I need to find a compatible house that understands that.
Friends have suggested adding a PayPal donations button to my LJ to ask for help making this move. It's true that I'm doing it without the savings I'd expected to have, and that may give me a hard time - one of the listings I answered wanted a $600 deposit in addition to the rent. I raised $770 raffling a painting for Big Cat Rescue recently, so I considered doing a raffle of my next art commission slot among all the donors - put up a donations button, every $10 puts your name in the hat again, then I number all the entries and roll dice to see who won the art. But that commits me to a next commission when I'm not done with Lauren's Wombat yet.
So in brainstorming funding, I think I'm going to start by creating some eBay listings and start looking through my Keepers. This isn't a Fire Sale, I'll put a fair price on them for starting bid. These are my best artworks to date that happen to be on separate sheets and not in sketchbooks. They are the pieces I loved so much I didn't want to sell them. Listing them on eBay, they may get bid up past minimum too - there are reasons they were keepers and it wouldn't surprise me if one or two of them raced ahead of the pack because everyone loved that one best.
I'll need a few more Sorting and Organizing days before I start the great Sale of the Keepers. Even that will help me lighten the load. Some of them are framed, if it's an easily shipped small frame I'll put that in the listing photo. Most are not. Shipping will be by USPS Priority Mail because that's the physically easiest way for me to ship, the bennie to you is that you get the art at loony fast speed and it arrives safe. I've never lost an artwork sent Priority Mail and I always insure it so you'll get your money back if it's lost or destroyed. I'm sure that's why I've never lost one, maybe they take more care with insured packages.
Total cost to be securely back online with a good machine in my hands - $153 and some change. $100 for Windows 7 and $53 and change to the little repair shop down the street, which rocks. I'm going to find out first if the netbook has a software problem or a hardware one by letting Kitten play with it for free before taking it in, but if it still has problems after her fixes I'll get them going over it before I leave.
I can just imagine bringing it with on that laundromat trip, in my power chair. Going online with wireless and hanging out with my friends while the dryers tumble. It's a happy fantasy. It's having a life.