still cogitating

i continue to be at something of a loss as to what to do about my computer situation. i suppose i should at least try talking to a local repair shop before i make any other decisions, but part of me is insisting that being laptopless for a while could really be good for me. do i try to borrow a usable laptop from someone? do i try to buy a used machine adequate to the job? do i go ahead and buy that studly new desktop?

i just don't know.

well...

i've been quoted $200 as a ballpark figure for fixing the laptop, from a local repair place that specializes in notebooks. i just have to drop it by and let them look it over to make sure they really can fix it. i'm betting it'll be fixable. we shall see.

in other news, i finally got round to calling the tax accountant caitlinburke recommended. they estimated it would cost me about $800 to have them deal with my taxes for the last three years. that was just too damn rich for my blood, so i canceled the appointment and made one for a free consultation with a guy at an H&R Block office, who said he couldn't really give me a ballpark figure but that he would definitely cost much less than the other guy.

my taxes aren't especially complicated -- it's just that there's stuff i don't know how to deal with in there, and i'm too intimidated to try it myself. so now i get to spend a bunch of time Organizing Papers. won't that be a treat?

the really great news

yesterday, i picked up my custom orthotic insoles. i was told there would probably be some discomfort, or even pain, and that i shouldn't wear them for too long continuously at first.

i wore them all afternoon yesterday. they felt kind of uncomfortable, but weren't painful. my feet were mildly achy at the end of the day, but they usually are.

i wore them all day today. my feet don't hurt at all. i'm noticing differences in the way my entire skeleton hangs together, feeling different muscles working in my legs -- and my feet don't hurt at all. i don't even want to take them off.

i suspect this is going to end up making a very big difference in my physical well-being.