And Out Goes The TiVo

Our new TiVo turned out to be a lemon and is now on it's way back to where it came from (land of mediocrazy?). The whole experience was very damaging to my relaxational program. I spend 4 sweaty hours trying to figure out what I had done wrong in connecting the set-top box.

I finally understood that it wasn't me but the box. But that took a lot of fiddling since I'm stubborn and fairly good at tech. A leathal combination in this case that delayed my lunch with 2 hours as well as got my heart rate up to unhealthy levels.

I called customer care and I think the lady who answered was happy that there was a phone line between us. She wanted to know what actually didn't work with the TiVo. What? Well if I only knew. She succeeded in turning my well-known sarcasm into sardonism within milliseconds.

At that point I was far from eager to play and just wanted to know where I could dump this piece of s**t. She further pissed me off by refusing to pay for the return shipment. Hmm, I buy their product online, it doesn't work and I have to pay for the return? Seriously, it took several inner mental exercises including saying the word WOOSA before I could return to close down the conversation - in a polite manner. Hmm, who am I kidding.

So now I'm rethinking the design of our home entertainment center. I might come back to the TiVo solution but don't hold your breath.

Waiting For TiVo

I got my new rear satellite speakers and the new TiVo delivered yesterday. I've been waiting eagerly for my new slack toys, like a kids longing for Christmas. They arrived 5.35pm yesterday and I've been cutting wires and fiddling with setup menus since then. I still have a few hours to go until the TiVo is 100% functional and ready to record TV shows without any disturbing ads.

But the 5.1 surround system is now alive and kickin'. I test drove it yesterday and used Star Wars IV and Bad Boys II to show the magic to the missus. She looked overwhelmed, as I would imagine our neighbors did. That's right, the kid is back in town and ready to turn the funk up.

Now it's time for my elevensis (smoked bacon and eggs) and "The Game" with Michael Douglas. I guess wanting routine is a human habit.

It Was Easier Than I Thought

I couldn't in my wildest dreams (oh boy, do I have WILD dreams) imagine that slacking was that easy. I took it to the extreme the first day: we missed our 8 o'clock flight to Albuquerque with a solid half hour. So what! Let's take the 11 o'clock flight and have a Bloody Mary drink-off to kill off some time, I told the missus.

The past few days have been a fantastic journey back in time, almost back to college. I have slept in, had numerous Margaritas, read books and enjoyed extended afternoon siestas. Every evening has been spent at a new cocktail party in the art community of Taos, New Mexico. Sipping drinks and chatting with artists, donors, collectors and a general audience of connoisseurs and retirees.

I feel very confident to say that I outperformed all retirees I met in Taos this weekend. Noone came even close to kickback like I did. And everyone of them was at least 25 years my senior. This slacking off business is much easier than I thought.