WE DID IT!!

We built a computer!We spent a few hours each day last week assembling the components we had purchased before Jerry left for camp.I tried to follow the instructions in our book, Building the Perfect PC, but since we were using different components than they used in the book it was a little tricky.
We ended up using a combination of the book, the manuals that came with the components, and various You Tube videos.
Basically, I read the instructions and Jerry did all the assembly.
During the building process we discovered that one of the architects that's been working on our deck started out as a computer engineer so we asked him to take a look at what we had done before we plugged in the PC. He said it all looked good but I was still worried.

I hemmed and hawed and checked connections and re-read manuals until Jerry finally said "Mom! Quit stalling! Let's just turn it on!"

So I held my breath as he hit the power switch. I was waiting for a small explosion but nothing happened. Nothing at all. Then Jerry remembered to hit the power switch on the back of the tower as well and I held my breath again, still waiting for the little sizzle and spark that would end our PC building project. But instead I heard the gentle whir of a fan and saw blue lights illuminate the sides of the PC tower and the screen came to life. It worked!

We jumped up and down and watched the screen, then realized we didn't know what to do next. The windows disc was in the CD/DVD drive but nothing was happening. I spent some time trying to solve the problem on my own while Jerry kept saying "Let's just ask Shawn" (he's the architect/computer guy). But we had come this far on our own and I didn't want to ask for assistance just yet. In the end we went out for a scone and coffee to settle my nerves and came back and asked for help. Shawn adjusted some settings in the BIOS and the computer was up and running in about two seconds. It was amazing.

Once Windows had loaded Jerry was busily clicking through screens and setting things up while I stood behind him saying "Wait! Did you read that? What did that screen say? Don't go so fast! What did you just put in the trash? You might need that!" He finally stopped what he was doing and said "Mom, you're ruining all the excitement. You need to calm down. Come sit in the living room."

"I can't," I said. "I have to make lunch." And I went back to stirring the pasta that had been cooking on the stove.

Jerry sighed and shook his head. He came over and started massaging my shoulders as I stirred. Then, in a very relaxed and mature voice he said, "Calm down, Mom. You're really taking the fun out of it. It's going to be fine." And it was fine. Until Jerry threw something in the trash that shouldn't have been trashed and Windows didn't work any more and nothing we did would make it work again. But that didn't happen until Sunday. I'm talking about Friday right now.

So Jerry stopped me from outwardly freaking out and I patted myself on the back because in spite of the fact that I'm a complete spaz, I must be doing something right in the parenting department because that was a very impressive display of maturity coming from a 12-year-old.

Of course, when Sunday came around and windows wouldn't open and we kept getting the same cryptic message over and over again I started freaking out all over again. I really, really, really had to work hard to keep myself from shouting "I TOLD YOU SO!" Though I'm sure I said a few things that imparted a similar message. In the end though we thanked our lucky stars for our new housemate because when Xi Quan came over to pick up his keys Jerry asked him to take a look at the computer and he fixed the problem in no time at all. Having and electrical engineer in the house is already making our lives easier!

Beach Days, Computer Fairs & Summer Camp

It's been a busy five days since my last post. On Thursday Jerry and I met some friends we'd made at the Life is Good Conference down at Salt Creek Beach in Dana Point--it was a half way point since they live in San Diego and we're in L.A. The kids had a great time boogie boarding, making sand castles, and playing the DS. We stopped at Starbucks after leaving the beach to prolong our visit.

On our way home Jerry and I stopped by my grandparent's house. It was a quick visit but we hadn't seen them since before we left for New Zealand. At that time my grandma had just gone into the hospital with pneumonia. I'd thought about putting off our trip but Grandma promised she'd still be here when we got back and somehow that made me feel much better about going. You might think she shouldn't make such promises because a person can't control when they'll die, but if you knew my grandma you'd think otherwise. She's not going until she's good and ready. No matter how sick she gets, regardless of the physical difficulties life throws her way, her fierce determination to live trumps them all. Go Grandma!

Yesterday was the day Jerry has been waiting for since we got the idea to build a PC: The Computer Fair. His friend Jackson came over early in the morning and Warren, Jerry, myself and Jackson headed out to the Pomona County Fairgrounds for what promised to be a computer parts mecca.

In spite of the terrific prices we managed to drop a huge amount of money on components. We ended up going with an Intel Core 2 Duo system and followed the recommendations for the value gaming system at SharkyExtreme.com. I made one decision that I'm not so sure about, though. We couldn't find the recommended motherboard so we went with one the sales guy recommended that's almost exactly the same but made by Asus instead of Gigabyte. I'm not sure why I bought it, to be honest. For everything else I stuck, religiously, to our shopping list (we made a stop at Fry's to get the case and I'm ordering one last part--the CD/DVD drive--online). But for the motherboard--one of the most important components!--I bought a different one. Dumb, huh?

After we left the fair (we were almost back to the freeway) I asked Warren to turn around so I could go back and ask the guy to check and be sure the specs were the same. He did and they were pretty close so I kept it, figuring I can always return it if we decide to go with another one. The one thing we got that Jerry can actually use before we get the PC built is an amazing sound system. It was only 55 bucks (with a subwoofer and surround sound) and we love the way it sounds! All in all it was just a really fun day.

Another boon to come out of the day was Jerry's decision that he wants to go to summer camp. He and Jackson went to sleep-away camp together last year for three weeks and they both wanted to go again this year. It's mind-blowingly expensive but it's such an amazing place we were happy to fork over a limb or two to pay his tuition. And then a couple months ago Jerry said he didn't want to go. But they don't do refunds. They could credit the money toward Family Camp or next year's kid's camp but there was no way that money was going back into our checking account. Needless to say this caused some strife. We definitely didn't want to send Jerry against his will, but we didn't want three thousand dollars to go to waste either. And I felt sure that if Jackson went and Jerry didn't, Jerry would regret it in the end.

Yes, we could have used the money for Family Camp but Warren can't attend since he's working and if the whole family doesn't go then it's just not the same. Luckily, on our way to the computer fair we spent some time reminiscing about Jerry and Jack's experience last year and by the time we arrived Jerry was looking forward to going again. I can't tell you what a relief it was! He had said before that he would go to make me happy but I was really uncomfortable with that. I wanted him to go, but I didn't want him to do it for me. So after talking with Jackson and being reminded of the fun and the friends, he says he's going because he wants to go. Not for me. Phew!

So that means that this week will be spent in a mad rush to get him ready to go. Saturday the three of us will fly up to Sacramento (yet again!) and drive him from there, to camp. Then he'll spend three weeks on the most idyllic ranch you can imagine. Meanwhile, I'll be visiting with friends, reading loads of books, organizing my office (yes, you will see before and after pictures!), going to the movies, spending time with Warren, cleaning out the garage, taking long walks on the beach, going to a writing conference, and just generally enjoying a rare few weeks of total freedom. I'll miss Jerry, of course, so I'll also spend time writing him letters (though not as many as last year--he said every day was a bit much) and sending care packages, and checking the camp website for photos of his smiling face. My boy is growing up!

PC Building 101

We're gearing up for the big project: Building a Gaming PC. As I mentioned before, at the Maker Faire we bought a book called Building the Perfect PC. It walks you through the process of building several types of computers and offers step-by-step instructions with photos. But the book came out in December of 2006. So most of the parts are outdated by now and I've been in a state of paralysis, not knowing how to choose between the gazzilions of parts on the market. I tried a few online forums but most everyone was building super high tech (i.e., expensive) stuff. Then we went to our local Fry's to browse the PC components aisle, thinking we might get some ideas there. But I ended up feeling totally overwhelmed. 

We had to put the project on hold while I recovered. 

Today, however, is the deadline for the monthly article I pen for our neighborhood newspaper and well--I haven't started it. It's only a short piece--300-400 words. And I only just interviewed the guy yesterday so it's not like I could've written it before today. And "today" goes all the way 'til midnight tonight so that gives me, you know, like another six hours to get it done. So it seemed like the perfect day to start working on the PC. And then post about it on my blog. Heck, I might even clean out a closet or two before the day is over. But I digress.

Today I found two articles about building a gaming PC--both written in the last few months and they list components! This article lists parts for a $1000 PC. And this is more of a budget model at $500. (I'm leaning toward the budget model.) So thanks to today's discoveries I feel like we have a jumping off place. We're going to read both articles and compare the parts and prices, referring back to our book to figure out what exactly we're supposed to be looking for in each component because, unlike wine, PC components do not have beautiful, artistic labels to help in the decision making process. Also, they're slightly more expensive than wine. Some wine. The kind of wine I drink, anyway. Mmmm, a glass of wine would be good right now. 

Okay then. Wine. Clean out closets. Write article. 

Right. I'd better get busy.

Home At Last/New Projects

We're all back in L.A. now. Me, Jerry, Warren, the dog, the cats, the hermit crab (the cats and the crab never left) and all of a sudden I don't know what to do with myself! It's only been a day and a half, though. We just got back from my parent's place on Monday. It was so nice to hang out with family again. And Patsy was crazy happy to see us. 

The Maker Faire was great! Here's a video someone posted on You Tube that gives a good overview of the event:

We saw the diet coke and mentos guys do their thing. There was a life-sized Mousetrap game. We saw a self-propelled Victorian house on wheels. And my friend Zefra met us there with her family so we got to see friends too! On Sunday Jerry hung out with some cousins he doesn't see much of so that was an unexpected bonus in an already terrific weekend. 

I'm continuing my cleaning spree now that we're home. When in doubt I clean. Did I mention before that this type of behavior is highly unusual for me? Yesterday I cleaned out and organized under the kitchen sink. It was dark and scary under there but I persisted and now it's beautiful. Well, maybe not beautiful--it's still under the kitchen sink--but it's better. And I've finally got all my cleaning ingredients (I make my own cleaning supplies) together in one place so I don't have to hunt for them (which is never good because usually by the time I've found them the desire to clean is gone).

Yesterday Jerry and I tried our hand at robotics. We soldered together a Mousebot we had purchased at Maker Faire. We got one motor working but the second motor wouldn't run so we took it off and resoldered it but in the process I melted the on/off switch into a permanent off position. So. Now we have to go to Radio Shack and see if we can find another on/off switch. Up until that point we were doing pretty well though. 

Oh, and we have a new project on the horizon. At the Maker Faire we bought a book on how to build your own PC so we're going to build a PC!! We only have Macs in our house and there are a lot of games Jerry wants to play that aren't available on Mac so I told him I'd supply the parts if he wants to build one with me. I'm going to read the entire book first and then we'll whip out our lab coats and pencil protectors and get started. I don't have the slightest idea how computers work and whenever I try to understand it my brain feels like it's going to explode so this should be. . .interesting. Hopefully there's no soldering required.