It was one of those scatterbrained Sundays. Frantically running about in an attempt to do all the things I meant to do on a long weekend, but never actually got around to you know, doing. Son 2™ wanted to go driving. Learner's permits are hell on gas, especially with all the new "Must have x amount of hours driving" laws. So we drove around. I tried not to watch the gas gauge too much, or notice that gas prices dropped 4 cents since I filled up on Saturday. Finished with aimless driving, I came in the house and decided to add my third color layer on my woodblock print, turn on the sprinklers, set some stuff to downloading on my laptop, and hey, I could throw a load of clothes in, too. Multitasking at its best!
I blame the newly acquired Wii. Yes, we are now a 3 system family - XBox, Playstation 3, and Wii. Two of the three I lucked into on deals. Nothing shady, just being in the right place at the right time. (Doesn't seem to work with lottery tickets, however....)
After finishing a print run with color 3, Son 2™ convinced me I needed to learn how to play Wii sports. So I threw more clothes in the washer, and commenced learning how not to throw my shoulder out of its socket when swinging my arms wildly about. My coordination level is iffy at best, but I didn't break anything, or punch the dog, so I think I did okay.
I decided to throw my clothes in the dryer before working on a web page. As I'm pulling them out and tossing them in the dryer, I hear this suspicious metal clink in the washer tub. It wasn't a money clink. This was tinnier. My brain immediately went into berate mode. "You forgot to empty your pockets. It's probably your name tag from work. Now you'll be Constan or something ..." No, I knew my name tag was magnetically adhered to my desk at work. I remember doing that. Brain started shooting off fireworks, or burning synapses or something as I rummaged through soggy underwear in search of the clinky object.
Brain - "I know what it is, I know what it is, you are going to be Sooooooooo pissed..."
Me - "Shut up! It can't be that bad."
Brain - "Ha!"
Me, as I spy the object in the bowels of the washer - "Oh, shit!!!" - Profanity being most definitely called for.
My jump drive.
The one I left in my pants pocket when I came home from work Thursday and changed out of my 'pretend I'm fashionable' clothes.
I pulled it out, and unsnapped the cap. I tried to look inside, but shiny silver metal looks the same wet or dry. I ran upstairs, and grabbed the blow dryer, and applied cool heat to its dark insides.
Me - "That cap was snapped on really tight. Maybe it will be okay."
Brain - "Ha! Say goodbye to the last chapter of that novel. Should have transfered it to the laptop right away, like I told you to."
Me - "Nobody likes a smug brain. Be quiet or I'll reduce your caffeine intake."
Brain - "?!?"
So I popped the drive into a USB slot on the laptop. With a little "Bing!", the interface came up and asked me what I wanted to do. Suspicious, I clicked on the drive. All my files came up. Still in a state of disbelief, I opened a few at random. The jump drive still worked. I transfered everything to my external hard drive as fast as my brainless fingers could command.
Me - "I can't believe it."
Brain, sulking - "You never listen to me."
Me - "Hooray for old, 256mb jump drives with snap-on caps."
Brain - "Let's go play Wii Bowling."
I owe the technology gods, big time. Maybe I'll sacrifice a few CD's their way. The knitting gods, however, will be heartily displeased with me. In the same load that I found the jump drive in, was a pair of hand knit wool socks. I threw them in the dryer in my quest to find the metallic clinky object. My socks are now really, really dry. Luckily, they don't look too shrinky. I can still put them on my feet. Thank you, Knitting Goddess, for superwash wool. Savior of ADD laundry-idjits everywhere.
6 comments:
That was a damn lot of luck indeed.
But if you want some real good fun in the washer, forget a paper handkerchief in the pockets.
Been there, done that. Still picking paper flakes out of my jacket. :)
Is a jump drive what I call a memory stick or a flash drive? If so, those things are made out of something closely related to aeroplane black boxes. They survive almost anything.
It is soooo good to know those things are survivalists. I have two--one for day-job & one for creativity-- and my life is in their...whatevers.
You had me laughing so hard I had to forcefully bite my lip when I answered the customer line :)
We're getting old, dear. Luckily my wedding band has a design, or the dryer dinks would show big time [ha]
Carla- yes, that's what it is. My other ones have the little lever that pokes the usb connector out. They would have been toast. Or soggy toast. This was the one I stick in my pocket everyday to take to work.
KC - I couldn't live without mine. Have to have something to do while I'm sitting in the middle of nowhere, Wyoming waiting for phantom people.
Dryer dinks? I thought those dents were from rapping your knuckles on the counter to get Brad's attention!
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