Thursday, March 26, 2009

Still Trying...

My tech support (aka Larry) is attempting to fix my photo downloading problem. Isn't he nice? I couldn't get to it today, what with important things to do such as haircuts for the boys and an afternoon nap for me so that I wouldn't kill anyone. The nap was counterproductive, however; I managed to have a nightmare (I know! In the daytime!). I dreamed that I had a cute little 2-year-old boy who I had totally forgotten about and hadn't hugged in a year.

Let's not analyze that one, okay?

So, I woke up feeling awful and staggered downstairs to count my kids (no 2-year-olds, I checked) and start some dinner. And here's where something good happened. I found a whole bag of fresh(?) brussels sprouts that I had bought over 2 weeks ago, and they were still okay. So I managed to feel like a good mom feeding my children fresh green vegetables for dinner. Whew.

Does anyone live on a guilt rollercoaster like this? You'd think, after 17 years, I'd be past all that good mom/bad mom nonsense; but apparently not.

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Oh, joy! Theo has been accepted to two state universities. The relief in this household is palpable. Being the oldest, he has always borne the brunt of our angst. We worried about everything with him - I'm thinking he logged more doctor visits then all his younger siblings combined. We worried about his learning to share, his learning to read, his learning to make friends. Pity the oldest child...it's a miracle any of them grow up to be normal.

The next 5? I probably won't even notice the college application process.

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Well, I've been stalling in the vain hope that Larry would have figured out how to get my photos onto the computer; but it looks as if I'll have to give up for tonight. Let's see, we've de-installed and reloaded the software (Kodak EasyShare), we've restarted the computer, and I've jiggled the camera when the download gets hung up. I think we are out of tricks. Ideas?

Of course, I could just purchase a new camera, one that uses different software. Unfortunately, Larry nixed that idea; he seems to think that we have already done enough for the economy. If you lose your job next week, blame him.

25 comments:

  1. I think between the two of us we can take credit for the slight rise in consumer spending over the last month.

    Congrats on the college thing--it's a nailbiter!

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  2. Mother Guilt? I thought that was normal - is it not? Am I not supposed to feel guilt all of the time?

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  3. Before my oldest child was born, I had a dream that I put him in his car seat and sat him on top of the refrigerator. I dreamed that a week later I realized that he was there and I hadn't fed him the whole time.
    I woke up sobbing and my husband (rather annoyed that I woke him up with all the hysterics) pointed out that the baby would most likely let me know that he was hungry and needed to be fed.
    I still felt awful.

    Guilt, the gift that keeps on giving.

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  4. That is great news about Theo. Mine was accepted into 2 as well. Now let us see what kind of money they offer....

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  5. My oldest will be 17 in two weeks, so I've been riding that rollercoaster almost as long. Actually, she's a pretty good kid. I think I've really screwed up with the middle one though. Maybe I'll be redeemed in a couple of years...I'm hoping, anyway.

    The oldest is a junior right now...college application process? (fingers in ears) Lalalalalalala....

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  6. Congrats to Theo!

    The mother guilt and I are very good friends.

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  7. Pity the guilt free Mom. Her kids may not end up on Oprah like mine will because she is perfect. But I would rather have the guilt, it gives me the excuse to lock the bathroom door and have a hot bubble bath with the last mini-snicker bar I stole from the candy jar while the kids eat Lucky Charms for dinner. Gotta go, Oprah is calling but I may hold out for the Dr. Phil show.

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  8. I'm occasionally gripped by a horrific panic when I realize I have forgotten one of the children at home. Usually it is the three year old.

    Of course, she is always there in her car seat right where she is supposed to be. I blame it on her for not fighting with anyone, leading to sudden silence in the car.

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  9. For downloading your photo's... you could just open Windows Explorer once the camera is attached to your computer, select the drive the camera is registering as then drag the photo's from there to your My Documents (or other directory).

    When I plug my camera in, my computer automatically asks me if I want to open Explorer or not.

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  10. Is there a movie on your camera? Like, a really loooooong movie that the kids took while you weren't looking...They forever to download, making it seem like everything has stopped...

    Ask me how I know,
    Kari B

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  11. Shopping is the cheapest therapy I think!

    I had a nightmare on Tuesday night...that I was speeding on the motorway and got stopped by the police. I woke in total panic...until I calmed down - and remembered that my car doesn't actually go that fast!

    Have a lovely weekend
    H

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  12. Long time lurker here with photo advice. Get a $10 thumb drive. Take your memory card out of the camera, put it in the thumb drive and plug it into a usb port on your computer. Open that and drag the photos to your photo folder. If your software isn't working you might not be able to edit photos but you can still use them.

    Hope this helps.

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  13. I hate those daytime nightmares.
    My eldest son would agree that he has endured a wee bit of pressure from his parents. Currently, we are pressuring him to make some decisions about college. I know I shouldn't, but I'm about to make the choices for him. He is dragging his feet and it is driving me CRAZY!
    Congrats to Theo (and his parents)!

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  14. Oh, and Mother Guilt? One of those nightmares happened for REAL one day:
    I had to pick up the older two boys from a birthday party. The youngest was sleeping in his crib, so I told my husband (busily working on a project) the status of where the rest of us were. Then I left and drove across town.
    When I got back, I noticed hubby's car was gone... but I had the carseat with me, and I'd left the baby with him. WTH??? I rush from the parking lot to our rowhouse (the far end unit) and race up 2 flights of stairs to the top floor... where baby is peacefully sleeping.
    It took HOURS for my blood pressure to go down. SuperDad had been gone for over 45 minutes. (He wasn't so super in my book that day.) He said he thought I'd taken the baby with me, since why would I leave a nursing baby home with him??
    Sheesh, now I'm mad at him all over again!

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  15. Instead of using the Kodak Easy Share software, why don't you just upload your pictures directly to your computer? By plugging in the USB cord that came with the camera, you can drag and drop them into your folders. I never liked the software that came with accessories either! It's much easier to just do it directly. :)

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  16. "...the USB cord that came with the camera..." - oh, that's a good one! If only I could find that!

    And, embarrassing to confess, I have no idea what to do once I do that. What happens? I've always used this software that came with the camera. Yes, yes, I see now that it was a crutch; but I'm afraid it's too late to learn a new trick.

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  17. Hmmm, that means brussel sprouts are highly suspicious - something I have suspected for years. They are the Twinkie of the vegetable world. You could hang them from the ceiling of your high school science classroom for years and when you took them down and ate them they would still be ok.

    (They wouldn't taste good though, they NEVER taste good.)

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  18. Yes, the first child definitely gets the most parental angst. Good thing my oldest was the easiest to raise!

    I'm sorry, but I can do nothing to help the economy. Jobs are being lost just because of me. Although I did buy a bagel today.

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  19. I tell my oldest all the time that I've made all my worst mistakes with him. The baby, she's got it made.

    Congrats to Theo on the acceptances!!

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  20. Hmm- you don't have the USB cable? How do the pictures get from the camera to the computer then- do you take the memory card out and put it into a reader on the computer?

    However you do it- it's generally very easy to download without software:
    a) connect up the camera as if you were going to download (the camera must be on)
    b) Double-click on My Computer. You will get a list of drives- one of them will be the camera (the computer treats the camera memory like a flash drive, if that helps).
    c) Double-click on the camera drive to open it. If you don't see any pictures, click on whatever folders you find- until you find where the camera puts them.
    d) Open the folder where you usually save your pictures.
    e) Click and drag the pictures from the camera drive to your folder on the computer- it's just like copying any other file from one location to another.
    f) When you can see all the pictures on the computer, you can delete them off the camera.

    Like Rosie, I hate the software that came with my camera!

    Or- there may be another alternative. If your computer is running Windows XP, there is built-in picture downloading software in XP. In your Start menu, look under Programs, then Accessories, then the Scanning and Camera Wizard. If you hook up the camera and turn it on before you start the wizard, it should automatically find your camera and walk you through the download, step by step.

    Good luck!

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  21. Hello! Just meandered over from the Women's Colony. Your posts always bring a smile and a chuckle. I did especially like the bra story (have shared it many times!)

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  22. I adore that you call Larry "tech support." I call Mr. D "Sperm Donor," but that's kind of mean-spirited.
    I think we can all walk away learning a lesson from naps today.

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  23. Mommy guilt! I think from the moment you pee on the stick and the lines match up you start with the Mommy guilt. Should I eat that when I'm preggo? Is this too loud for the baby? You can't win. I'm amazed any kid will eat brussel sprouts. You must be some kind of Mommy God!

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  24. Congrats to Theo. That's awesome.

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  25. Yeah for Theo! Has he decided which to attend yet? We had that decision here about two months ago. NOW it's a decision between commuting and living on campus (it's only 15 miles away).

    The nailbiting doesn't stop with the first one.

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