You are now reading the weblog of a laptop owner. A laptop owner who
also happens to be insane. You see, I've been shopping and pricing and comparing laptops for about a month now, and I'd narrowed it down to a Dell, Sony or Toshiba that had to be $1,000 or less. But then I was thinking that, with extra things like a case and wireless Internet stuff and maybe more RAM, it would cost more. So I thought I should probably wait.
I looked at the "Crazy Day After Thanksgiving Shopping" ads Thursday
morning and, lo and behold, there was a Toshiba laptop with my minimum
requirements -- for $500. After some pondering and more research, I went to
bed early enough to get up at an unholy hour the following morning.
I left my house at 4:50 a.m. and found myself in line outside Best Buy
in Stockton at 5:15 a.m. The employees were giving out vouchers for the
hot-selling, limited-number-in-stock items and I figured I was doomed,
because there were already at least 200 people in line ahead of me. But,
shortly before the store opened, an employee came by with the laptop
voucher. Mine was number 29; the store had 35 in stock. I was thrilled.
The store opened at 6 a.m., and the madness ensued. How
those people managed to maneuver baskets and kids around the store is beyond me: I had enough trouble with just myself. After a short amount of browsing (and picking up some super-cheap DVDs to play in my new laptop), I got in line. Ten or 15 minutes later, I began to wonder if I was in the right line.
My intuition was correct; I needed to be in the special, non-moving computer
line.
Two hours and 20 minutes later, I was finally holding the box containing my
laptop. The waiting really wasn't too bad, because I love watching people.
Of course, the annoying woman in front of me got on my nerves, but she said
some of the strangest things, making it tolerably amusing. The other people
were friendly, and I learned all sorts of things about them (in typical
Layla fashion).
Six hours after I left home, I returned, laptop in tow. It then had to sit,
unopened, in its box while I went to work.
I've never had a great longing to cover politics, and I've never even thought I'd want to cover the White House. But I would give a lot to be able to fly on a top-secret trip with President George Bush to dine with troops in Iraq on Thanksgiving Day. Even Bush's closest family members did not know about the trip until shortly before he left. His father, the former President George Bush, didn't know at all -- though he'd been invited to a "free-range turkey" dinner with a menu that had been nationally announced.
Not only would the adrenaline and thrill of the trip be incredible, but the trust would be an enormous compliment. I've mentioned more than once in this blog (even less than two weeks ago) that I never want to burn a source or go back on my word as a journalist. Being trusted enough to go on a 30-hour trip into a war zone with the president would certainly prove that I had kept my word.
And to think that I thought covering politics meant there wasn't as much excitement...
What the hell is wrong with people? The Ku Klux Klan is apparently still initiating people into the racist group, and now they've gone and critically injured one of their own.
If you ask me, someone needs to initiate the initiaters.
Michael Kamen, the man behind my all-time favorite music album, has died.
I love the combination of rock and orchestra, and he did just that. In 1999, the Metallica and the San Francisco Symphony, under the direction of Kamen, collaborated to make a two-disc album titled "S&M." The result is nothing short of brilliance, and I've been listening to the album ever since. I don't know how many times I've heard James Hetfield say, "Michael Kamen at the helm!" at the end of the album, as cheers erupt in the background.
He worked on so many other amazing songs, albums and movie soundtracks that have all stood the test of time. Farewell, Michael Kamen.
During the Sarah Dutra trial, I light-heartedly complained that Scott Peterson (the Modesto guy accused of killing his wife and unborn child) was stealing the space that might otherwise have gotten the Dutra trial played up higher. Such things happened several times, and then his preliminary hearing interfered with another murder hearing I was covering.
But now I've concluded that it's not just Scott Peterson. No, it's also his celebrity attorney, Mark Geragos (whom I blogged about briefly in April).
Yesterday, I happened to cover a double homicide in Galt (a Big Deal). Several of us reporters are working on a big follow-up to it.
Just what does Geragos have to do with this? You see, a $3 million arrest warrant was issued today for Michael Jackson, accused again of child molestation, a day after a very public raid at his Neverland Ranch. You guessed it: Geragos is his lead attorney.
One of the worst things a reporter can do (besides libel, or basically being Jayson Blair) is betray sources. If a reporter agrees that something is going to be "off the record," it damn well better be, or else such information won't be given the next time. If a reporter burns a source, word quickly spreads and the damage worsens.
I'm fairly certain I can say that I have never burned a source, and people tell me things because they know I won't let them down. As time goes by, more people are willing to tell me things.
I love getting more information, and I love it when I can confirm that information and print it. But sometimes I can't print the information. In one case, I knew part of a story but had to wait about five months before I could print it. Other things have been waiting much longer.
What makes it frustrating is seeing the shoddy television 'reporters' use the anonymous sources by beginning and ending all sorts of outlandish newscasts with, "sources tell us," or, "officials close to the investigation said..." One reporter with a local CBS affiliate is especially notorious for doing this.
It bothers me because I know that some of the "off the record" information I receive is not always completely accurate. It's a piece of the incomplete puzzle, and my sources don't usually have the whole puzzle figured out. These TV reporters can call themselves journalists, but if I printed the stuff, I'd be no better than a tabloid found in the check-out line at the grocery store.
(Oh, and this information is all on the record, thank you very much.)
Since I'm a reporter who informs the masses about news, it's only fair that I can report on my own news, right? Right.
This breaking news just in: After 69 days, Layla has updated her Web site, www.thesmudge.com.
Though one page is new, the changes are not as drastic as some might have hoped. Layla, however, showed little concern that some of her loyal Web site viewers may be disappointed.
"Hey, it's the effort that counts," she said. "I'm sure all 3.5 of my fans will be thrilled beyond belief."
Layla declined to comment on when she would again update her site.
As a reporter, I learn and experience a lot of new things every day. Yesterday, I was reminded that the American way of doing things is not the only way -- and that some things transcend cultural and religious lines.
A 10-year-old Pakistani girl was killed Wednesday when her bicycle collided with an 18-wheeled big rig. About 24 hours later, she was buried while 200 men from the Muslim community looked on. Across town, women gathered at a home to mourn; they could not attend the funeral, though they may go to the grave after the burial.
At first, I thought this was yet another example of gender discrimination. But then I began to realize that the women themselves don't see it that way. For them, it's the custom, and American funerals are probably viewed as strange and unnatural.
I also realized that I was too quick to judge. Is it discrimination? Perhaps, but I had formed that opinion in about a minute. I hadn't taken the time to delve more deeply into the subject and view it from all angles.
I was able to catch a glimpse of what it's like for the women to grieve. I borrowed a scarf from a co-worker, went to the home where the women had gathered, left my shoes outside the front door and spent a few minutes in the home. After I left, I knew one thing for sure: Grieving is a universal concept that does not change through cultural or religious differences.
(The story can be found here. Scroll down to the sub-heading called "Women gather in grief.")
OK, so a few people read my weblog. And a few have e-mailed/called/messaged/spammed me to ask what happened to it. Your persistence paid off, because it's back now. I don't think I should take it down again, because I've always hated it when people kill their Web sites due to Sheer Angst.
Why did I take it down? I won't go into all of it, but one of the contributing factors is that I've been going through some weird version of writer's block -- a kind that only affects my personal writing, though. I'm not sure what it is, really. Part of it is the realization that I have no idea where I'm going or what I'm doing. Don't take me wrong; I'm not the depressed suicidal type, and I never have been. It's not a new feeling, but it's just a quiet voice that's gotten a bit louder over the past couple of months.
It's not job-related and it's not friends-related, but maybe it is career-related and long-term-future-related. The last couple of birthdays have been very uneventful and almost nonexistent, and I don't see this next one being any different. But it means I'll be another year older, and I should be another year closer to the whole "permanent career, permanent family" thing, and I'm far from it. I don't mind that, but I do sometimes feel detached and isolated while I live in my own, solo world.
At any rate, the blog is back, and I don't see it leaving again in the near future. Thanks for asking about it, and please feel free to make comments -- here, or through e-mail.
Oh, and what was it that finally made me bring the weblog back? It was Tom, who rules a lot and made me laugh so hard I nearly choked on my coffee.
Laptop
You are now reading the weblog of a laptop owner. A laptop owner who also happens to be insane. You see, I've been shopping and pricing and comparing laptops for about a month now, and I'd narrowed it down to a Dell, Sony or Toshiba that had to be $1,000 or less. But then I was thinking that, with extra things like a case and wireless Internet stuff and maybe more RAM, it would cost more. So I thought I should probably wait.I looked at the "Crazy Day After Thanksgiving Shopping" ads Thursday morning and, lo and behold, there was a Toshiba laptop with my minimum requirements -- for $500. After some pondering and more research, I went to bed early enough to get up at an unholy hour the following morning.
I left my house at 4:50 a.m. and found myself in line outside Best Buy in Stockton at 5:15 a.m. The employees were giving out vouchers for the hot-selling, limited-number-in-stock items and I figured I was doomed, because there were already at least 200 people in line ahead of me. But, shortly before the store opened, an employee came by with the laptop voucher. Mine was number 29; the store had 35 in stock. I was thrilled.
The store opened at 6 a.m., and the madness ensued. How those people managed to maneuver baskets and kids around the store is beyond me: I had enough trouble with just myself. After a short amount of browsing (and picking up some super-cheap DVDs to play in my new laptop), I got in line. Ten or 15 minutes later, I began to wonder if I was in the right line. My intuition was correct; I needed to be in the special, non-moving computer line.
Two hours and 20 minutes later, I was finally holding the box containing my laptop. The waiting really wasn't too bad, because I love watching people. Of course, the annoying woman in front of me got on my nerves, but she said some of the strangest things, making it tolerably amusing. The other people were friendly, and I learned all sorts of things about them (in typical Layla fashion).
Six hours after I left home, I returned, laptop in tow. It then had to sit, unopened, in its box while I went to work.
Posted by Layla at 9:40 PM, November 29, 2003. Comments (0)