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I thought to begin this weblog by explaining how a rabid, card-carrying, evangelical atheist has become a practising animist. Once upon a time I bought my first pc (to satisfy the computer archaeologists among you, it was a first generation Pentium 60 MHz) which ran on Windows 3.11. Now anyone familiar with this setup and this information really dates me, next show me a geranium to sit behind instead of a pc screen, will know that it was basically a nightmare to work with. The first three month was a war of attrition, I got no sleep and the thing on my desk got rebooted every ten minutes, shouted at and used as an ashtray. Reading those manuals and trying to apply those wondrous solutions gave me a completely new appreciation of absurdism (Ionesco really began to make sense, Kafka as well): this is the official manual and you have no hope in hell of understanding it unless you already understand it, brilliant. Well, after those first three month I lost it and put a big dent on the casing. Yes, I admit it, I physically abused my first pc. I think it came as a bit of a shock to the both of us. Ever since, I take great care to whisper sweet nothings as I power up a computer, feed it tasty software and to supply it with a burnt offering to pacify it (it pays to be a smoker if you use computers, even if all of the above is complete bullshit, it gives you something to do while you’re watching the little sandglass). Horrifyingly, especially for someone who used to invite seventh day Adventist in for recreational purposes (can you really, honestly respect a god who sends bears to eat children, just because they are disturbing the siesta of your prophet, Eliah or something, I’ve forgotten the exact quote), it worked.
Which all in all is a good thing as I spend significant amounts of time sitting in front of a computer screen. In addition to this day-time job at the notary office (about which undoubtedly more), twice or three times a week, in the evening, I’m in the sound recording business. Not, sadly, in the heroic pose (see above photograph where I’m listening to the sound of grass and other vegetable matter gently growing), but inevitably pushing keys on a Mac.
(I threatened to use this weblog shamelessly to promote the cd’s I’m recording: go to www.home-academy.nl, buy our products, make me rich, no free shipment of Viagra included, your life will never be the same again, with a bit of luck it will have slightly less money in it.)
Time to wrap it up, anyone interested in the why’s and wherefore’s of computers, I recommend reading Neal Stephenson’s essay In the beginning was the command line, which is ridiculously outdated (must be more than eight years old, an eternity in computing), but still strangely relevant. You should be able to find it for free somewhere on the internet. Lastly, why am I writing this in English? Personally I blame Grace, which is fine, because she’s my boss and can therefore be safely blamed for anything and everything.
Sandro
2 April 2007
Found it, it’s in Kings II, chapter 2, verses 23-25. Guy named Elisa had 42 kids eaten by bears because they called him a baldy.
Anyway, back to work.
Sandro
3/04/2007 om 8:27. Geplaatst onder Ontspanning.
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4/04/2007 om 20:26
het verborgen leven van een cameraman zou de titel van deze essay kunnen zijn. Heel 21st eeuws Kafka-esk is zijn leven. ik vind jouw woordgebruik in 1 adem gezegd: beeldend en vol humor met geestelijk voer. ik kijk op tegen zoveel verfijning. nu ik www.home-academie.nl heb bezocht heb ik daar ook een mening over. Die management stukjes van Tiggelaar ken ik natuurlijk al, en die van Stephen Covey is de beste. De lezing over Proust moet ik eigenlijk kopen echter de componisten vind ik mager vertegenwoordigd. Mijn super role models zijn catharina de grote en Gustav Mahler. Jouw ervaring met de Pentium 60 computer lijkt een beetje op de mijne met de 1e Roland Synthesizer. Nadat ik de boxen had opgeblazen heb ik mij volledig aan dat ding overgegeven. Overgave is soms mijn enige mogelijkheid van redding. Ook op een notariskantoor.
8/03/2010 om 18:41
Thank you for tale!