A is for...

Yes, that's right -- I am blogging from my brand new, barely out-of-the-box, can't-believe-I-actually-own-one Apple computer. I've been a die-hard PC user forever, and never thought I'd turn to the proverbial Dark Side. Specifically, Rick and I have used DELL computers for as long as I can remember -- purchased, no doubt, partly because Rick worked for the company... and, since his expertise is in sales, he knew all the reasons why a person SHOULD choose a Dell computer.

And don't get me wrong -- I've never had any major problems with any of my Dell computers (with the exception of one particular laptop case that cracked/was replaced about three times...). In fact, I've always been quite happy with my Dell computers. But I do, at the moment, have a slight issue with Dell as a company. Because if you lay off Rick once (as they did back in 2008), perhaps you can use the old "it's not personal, it's business, you were just the new guy on the team" line... but if you lay him off TWICE (as they did just a few weeks ago), well, that's just colossally rude... and maybe I don't want to buy my computers from your stupid mean company anymore, Dell...

But really, this all works out great -- because not only has Rick already found a new job (which he's much more excited about than he ever was about his Dell job), but the "you must always buy Dell" guilt dropped away the moment he was laid off, paving the way for something new.

And so far, I'm really liking the Apple. The only other time I've ever used an Apple computer was a million years ago when I worked at a law firm in downtown Austin... and they were using Apples that were old for a million years ago. The ugly, bulky, monochromatic kind that still had that little guy with the x-ed out eyes that popped up when the computer crashed. Which happened a lot. I mainly just used the computer in the file room to keep track of file numbers, and to delete the sexist jokes that were constantly distributed throughout office email. (I've always thought it was ironic that the only place I've ever felt like I honestly could've filed some kind of sexual harassment lawsuit was when I worked at a LAW firm...)

But now, Apple computers are about a million times cooler and more interesting. For instance, I've been having lots of fun with the photo options on this laptop:

Andy Warhol pop art... (Ah, so THAT'S where all those people who use this for their Facebook profile pictures got it from.)

 Pencil drawing...

 Scary pencil drawing in which I look like I want to kill someone...

The "glow" setting -- I think I like this particular setting. It removes all those little wrinkles/imperfections/etc. (My mom will tell you that I have no imperfections to begin with, but that's just because she's my mom... ;))

I tried to get Riff to sit still long enough to get a picture of him with the "comic book" setting (because I think he'd make a great cartoon character, anyway), but he moves around too much. I'll keep trying... comic book Riff would be cool...

Anyway, like anything new, it's taking some getting used to... but I can definitely see the appeal. So perhaps my years of absolute PC-loyalty were unnecessary. Maybe I CAN get used to an Apple... maybe the Dark Side isn't so bad, after all...