Technological Aggravation

I woke up falsely believing I had the answer to why my stupid handheld Windows Mobile 6.5 Pocket PC, (a basically obsolete piece of garbage, but my basically obsolete piece of garbage,) worked perfectly for handwriting recognition (amazing), was working great as a media player, and was storing all of my contacts, but was not syncing my calendar. Sure, I could retrieve my calendar on my obsolete piece of garbage using Google Calendar, but doing so would require an Internet connection. I wanted to be able to sync my Outlook calendar via Active Sync as seamlessly as Google handled the issue. I had read on one of the techie forums that Outlook 2010 "likes" digital certificates and installing a certificate solved a similar problem, so this morning I went to work getting a digital certificate (highly sensitive file containing personal information -- not something that you want bad guys to get ahold of), believing that installing the certificate (digitial ID) would enable my handheld to retrieve my calendar from Outlook. Seemed like a reasonable assumption! In the process, I learned how to get a free digital certificate and figured out how to import it on my handheld.

Unfortunately, the changes I made made my Outlook unresponsive and only resolved that issue several hours later.

I tried killing the partnership between my laptop and handheld and setting up a new partnership ... several times.

I give up.

I was hoping to avoid getting a new smart phone. All I really want is my stupid calendar. I was hoping I might ask for a new grill instead, so that I can cook that stupid piece of frozen salmon that has been sitting in the freezer for weeks. The lack of money breeds insanity. Maybe Freud was right, that the weak minded devolve into cavemen as cash dwindles to zero. If I don't respond to the train heading my way, maybe I will devolve into protoplasm ... Ha! (It's okay, I'm sitting at a desk, not standing on train tracks.)

Yesterday, I was handwriting notes in cursive from Brain Bugs, a really well-written book on neuroscience, lovingly using my obsolete piece of garbage. The handwriting recognition of my cursive was heavenly. The notes from my handheld even transferred directly into Outlook upon syncing. Ahh!

That little bit of success suckered me into believing that it was worth the trouble figuring out why something as simple as syncing my calendar was causing me so many bloody problems. There had to be an easy solution, I figured. Somehow, the memory of working on old cars while in high school just popped into my head -- I was never much of a mechanic. I am also reminded of how I felt like I was getting a bargain at the Asian Supermercado up the street recently by showing up at 6:55 pm and getting a real bargain on sushi and quesadillas -- half price! I left with a s-eating grin, falsely believing I had gotten over them. After I reached my truck and greedily digging in, I was reminded in the most unpleasant way that you get what you pay for. One of the problems predicted in my reading last night was that, since I know based on past experience that there must be a solution, I might not properly assess risks vs. rewards ... that's an ADD / OCD thing. Fell for it, hook, line, and sinker!

The obvious solution is just to print the agenda each week. I knew that, but was overconfident about my abilities to resolve an issue best left to the technological elite.

As I pump iron tonight at the gym, I will be listening to my angriest head-banging music. Nothing subtle, real caveman stuff!