A few days ago, my Sharp TV conked out.
My first thought was, "Geez, Louise! That TV is only fours years old! Well, I'm not going to just rush out and replace it only to watch summer re-runs. I can watch stuff on my computer or better yet, do more reading and practicing my piano and ukulele. Also, the house needs cleaning and organizing. My grounds need mowing and landscaping. Things need repair. Brush needs cutting. I should take more walks!"
Minutes later, I imagined spending the summer without Judge Judy. Minutes after that, I'd picked out a different brand of TV and set sail for Best Buy in Barrhaven, a suburb of Ottawa.
A sunny, warm day. Perfect for a little driving. Keyed the address into my Garmin GPS (a 2009 present from my sister) and pointed my Yaris north.
Well, that GPS had me going on three or four roundabouts -- over and over and over again!!! It felt like running a barrel race with no home barrel, just an endless loop around the same three (or four) barrels.
ARgghhhh!!! Finally I just ignored the silliness, headed off in the direction of the tallest buildings and found the store by educated guess. With a record high of $2 Canadian a litre for gas, the extra air pollution and wear and tear on the vehicle -- not cool!! I know I need to upgrade the maps but the Garmin maps upgrade would cost more than a brand new device. So, the next time I head off to parts unknown, I'll print out a map with the route highlighted and use the GPS only as a rough guide.
Now I'm training my fingers to forget the old remote control and work a completely different and much more complex one. And Judge Judy continues to remind her litigates how smart she is.
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Of course I have to include a few shots of my current backyard fauna.
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| Hummers are back and slurping their feeder syrup. |
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| Oreoles also back and slurping their grape jelly. |
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| One of my many rabbits, helping mow the lawn. |
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| A Cooper's hawk plucking what I think was a Mourning Dove. |
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| A male house wren claims this box with twig deposits. |
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| He prepares several nests to attract multiple mates. |
Florence, I enjoyed reading about your new TV--I was beginning to think you were going to say you wound up not getting one! Just out of curiosity, what size is it? As always, I love your photos; that Oriole is striking! And only you can make me laugh over a tiny house wren looking to and fro for his future mate! 😄👍♥️
ReplyDeleteMy new TV is a 43 inch, 4K UHD LED Samsung Tizen Smart TV. Was disappointed that PBS Passport is not available on it. Oh well, I can always watch it on my MacBook Air. The Samsung does come with quite a few of it's own channels. Some of which are interesting to me. I was surprised that not all Smart TVs come with coxial ports now. I still have an antenna for over the air channels. The interface is quite a bit different from my old Sharp. I've some exploring to do, Doug.
DeleteWow! It sounds great Florence! I'm sorry about the PBS Passport, you strike me as a PBS person. 🙂. That's great you use an antenna for over the air channels, I do as well and have more TV than I need or want to watch. And it amazes me what these smart tvs can provide!
DeleteThat first TV really didn't last long. Hope this one does better and glad you caved to get one. Can you still get regular PBS over the air? I wish an antenna worked here but it just doesn't or at least it didn't when I moved in.
ReplyDeleteLove the wren setting up his home. Did not knkow the little romeos had multiple mates. Must keep them busy with chick support.
Yes, Patti, I can get PBS through my antenna -- unless it's very windy or rainy or snowy between my place and the transmission towers. Also, I too often fall asleep just when I'm getting interested in a show. (Strangely, boring stuff keeps me wide awake.) Yes, I know that wrens have harems and that they often destroy eggs of other species nearby. Oh so cute, but little shits! Chick support? Ha!
DeleteHi Florence, goodness, electronics just don’t seem to last anymore.
ReplyDeleteA friends 20+ year old washer is pooping out and she is fretting about buying a new one. In my experience ones made nowadays only last eight or nine years with all the chips and computers in them.
Glad to read you bought a Samsung tv. That is the only brand we buy and we have recommended them to a few people. Ours is 13 years old.
Love your wildlife photos. The Orioles are wonderful. We have so many people feeding them in our little town the local grocery store runs out of grape jelly.
Take care!❤️
Robin
Now I feel better! Thank you, Robin, for the encouragement on the Samsung purchase. Never bought that brand before. Surprised at how light the thing is. How funny that orioles are causing a run on grape jelly at your grocery store. I generally buy 2 jars at a time. 3 if they're on sale. (what are we like?!)
DeleteOur tvs seem to last forever so I agree, that doesn't seem to have been enough usage from that one. Meanwhile, having an upgrade is great fun. We love our huge new(5 years now, where does time go!) one. I too enjoy Judge Judy; I get to watch her on YouTube. I enjoyed seeing your critters as always. Oh I don't drive in Barrhaven anymore...too much traffic there so I admire your driving skill!
ReplyDeleteThe only other time I've been to Barrhaven was four years ago to buy the previous tv, Jocelyn. Seems to me my GPS was a little flustered then. This time it was completely bonkers. I could have just ordered a tv delivered but I wanted to drop off the old set for recycling. Anyway, I sure got in lots of practice on those strange roundabouts!
DeleteYour birdies are awesome ! 🐦🌻🦋
ReplyDelete