Kindness of Strangers

I clearly remember my family’s first computer.  We purchased it in 1993, and it was a behemoth.  It took a full day to set-up the machine and we were afraid to touch anything, lest the computer self-destruct.  For some reason I can’t recall we backed up the entire Windows system on floppy disks.  When I opened the box to our new Asus EEE PC, I couldn’t help but remember that first computer.  “How things have changed,” I thought.  The computer we will use for our trip weighs just a little over two pounds and can be held in the palm of one’s hand, like Vanna White demonstrating some super fabulous product. 

We’ve spent a few days trying it out and, despite its size, are pretty impressed with its capabilities.  We held out for the newer model that was released at the beginning of June, which provides a larger screen and longer battery life than its predecessor, and I’m glad we did.  We’re having some troubles getting the iPod and computer to “talk” to one another, but hope to have it ironed out soon.  The keys are pretty small, too, but we’re praising the gene pool that we both were blessed with small hands:  we may not have a future in piano playing, but we’re turning out to be the perfect EEE users. 

Sort of like how kids enjoy the box a gift comes in more than the gift itself, my very favorite feature of the EEE is its small, plush carrying case, which looks like a cute clutch.  If it wasn’t such an aberrant idea for keeping ones goods secure while traveling, I’d carry it in the crook of my arm everywhere I went.  Just because I could.