Cabin Crafted

Tag: technology

  • Horse Carriage and Smoke Signals

    This has not been my week for modern conveniences.  As I posted a few days ago, http://wp.me/p3JVVn-zq, I have been having cell phone issues.  We don’t have a land line as the service from our cooperative is sketchy at best, we can’t even call the next county without incurring a toll and the signal is so full of static that we can’t hear the party on the other end of the line.  We rely on our cell phones.  Both of our phones are  about 8 months old and mine won’t hold a charge and gets extremely hot even when everything but calls and texts are turned off.  I had it factory reset, which was supposed to cure it and didn’t.  They have ordered me a warranty phone which is being mailed from Texas and will be here some time next week.  Then I have to go through the set up process again.  If this wasn’t enough for one week, two trips to the cellular store, I also started having car trouble.

    When my 91 year old Dad was visiting, http://wp.me/p3JVVn-xj, we used my car as Jim’s is the pup mobile and we realized that every time we braked, it shimmied and pulled to the left.  I had front and rear brakes replaced last May when it was inspected, but it obviously was a brake issue.  I took it in for it to be checked and it was determined that the front rotors needed to be re-machined which fortunately they did not charge me.  Shortly after, I drove it 4 1/2 hours northeast to babysit for our eldest grandson for a week and back last weekend and was concerned that the brakes still didn’t seem quite right.  Wednesday evening, I had the radio off and the windows open and could hear a metallic squeal as I accelerated and more as I braked coming from the right side of the car.  Again, I scheduled a maintenance check with the dealer, 40 minutes from home.  The car was delivered Friday morning and the inevitable call came that the caliper was stuck and had eaten the brake pad and damaged the rotor on the right rear, so 11 months later, the rear brakes were again replaced and not for free.

    Amishbuggy

    Perhaps a simpler life isn’t so bad, it would certainly be cheaper.  I know bad news comes in threes if you are superstitious.  I’m glad I’m not, I don’t need anymore bad news this week.

  • Midweek Issues

    ACKKKK! I have been having cell phone issues, heating up so hot I can’t carry it in my pocket, holding a charge for only 4 to 5 hours with the Data turned off and the phone is only 8 months old. Yesterday afternoon on my way to my knit group, hubby and I returned to the cellular phone store where it was purchased with the idea that we were probably going to have to purchase me a new phone.  The agent said that our model the Samsung 3 did develop those issues with the update, but that resetting it to the factory settings would probably cure that.  He asked me had I ever done a factory reset and I said no.  He backed up my contacts to the SD card, we checked that all my photos were on the SD card but never, ever, did he ask about my calendar.

    I figured any of the other apps that I use could easily be reinstalled.  He reset my phone and worked me through setting up the google account.  As the store is 2 doors down from Starbucks, I immediately added that app and rewarded myself with a glass of iced roibus tea.  The phone held its charge though the evening with my friends, didn’t get warm.  I was excited, until this morning when I checked my calendar to see if we had anything scheduled today and discovered nothing but national holidays and family and friends birthdays.  ACKKKK!  I have a paper calendar on my fridge with that info.  I don’t carry a paper calendar anymore since I retired, when I used to carry a Franklin Planner every step I took.  I am a retired senior citizen, but I do like my electronics and have been frustrated that my phone calendar did not sync with my Google calendar, but not wanting to input the data in both, have just used the phone calendar.  I know I have appointments scheduled 6 months to a year ahead and now I don’t know when.  Perhaps I am going to have to revert to the old fashioned paper calendar on the fridge.  If smart phones are so smart, why am I calendar free now?

    20140424_095837

    I have now installed the Google Calendar app and will hide the default calendar and hope that it will sync to my other devices.

  • Today’s Frustration

    It is snowing here today and that snow reminded me of one of my first blog posts a few years ago. Perhaps you actually got to read today’s post after it was published and before the blog gremlins made it disappear.  Thus today’s frustration with modern technology.