Bum knee

I think I have myself to blame for this one.

Being a bibliophile extrodinaire, I have a pretty large collection of books. Not as large as my cousins', but more than several people I know. Chrismas day, I had just gotten back my "Twilight" series of books - around 2000 pages of literary junk food - and hung the bag over the back of a tall chair. Catie zoomed past the chair and knocked it over, and the top of the chair connected with my kneecap. I made a few noises of the type you make when you'd like to swear but have small witnesses. It bruised a bit, but I figured I was OK.

Fast forward to today. I must have twisted it weird, because now I can't walk without pain. Bummer.

Good news, my laptop will finally be fixed, and I can pick it up Friday! The computer guy I use is a crusty silent old man who runs a business called Qualitech in Lemoyne. Really, it's such a weird experience, because you walk in the door and he doesn't greet you - his tiny little dog does! It's a small fluffy breed, and very calm even around my kids, so the kids like going there. You take your computer, tell him briefly what's wrong, he prints up a service agreement and tells you "I'll call you when it's ready.". So, in person, not very charismatic. Then he calls me - "Ma'am, your power jack was bent out of shape, not the charger cable. It'll need to be replaced."
"Oh no! How much will that run?"
"$110, but I have a parts computer here - I can replace the jack and double your memory while I'm at it. Sound good?"
"Um, yeah! Sounds great!"
"Oh good, because I already did it." I laugh, he fiddles for a moment.... "oh, ma'am? It looks like your battery is bad too - it's not charging. I can sell you the battery from the parts computer for just $20 more?"
"Wow, OK! I know they usually run around $80 to $100!"
"Yeah, and this one has double the charging capacity of your old battery - you can go twice as long between charges. So, $130."
Can't get those deals at Best Buy! And they don't have a sweet little pup who cuddles your kids while you check out!
Today's moral?
Shop local, support small businesses!