Today, my constant companion, my shiny little Dell laptop, took a precipitous plunge out of my locker. In the harrowing moments that followed, I opened the padded case to find the "pg dn" key broken off, a crack along the left side, and the shiny silver plate on the top popped out of position. When I tried to resuscitate it, the little machine would turn on, but the screen remained dark. I rushed it off to the tech guy who lives in the library computer room. He took a screw driver to it- prying off different parts and panels- it was truly painful to watch. The diagnosis: a broken back light on the LCD panel. I immediately pictured a little light bulb replacement and am quite relieved. Unfortunately, its a little more complex than that. The poor little guy is going to be mailed to the Dell depot, fixed up, and then sent back to me.
The good news is that all my files are fine (those copious notes from admin are unharmed!) and the repair is covered under my warranty. The bad news is it will take 8-10 days to get my laptop back. The longest my laptop and I have ever been separated was when JP and I went on our 6-day honeymoon to Jamaica. As amazing as that trip was, the whole flight back I thought about checking my email. Yes, I may have some kind of addiction. I have never been separated from my laptop during law school. But I have faith that somehow, we'll both get through it.
How do you take notes by hand again?
I had to start taking notes by hand with clients when I started practicing (if I'm taking notes around attorneys, I just type them). A laptop presents too much of a psychological/physical barrier for clients. Until Apple comes out with a tablet (or my husband gets a new tablet that I can use), I use real briefing paper with the wide margins and write quickly. It's definitely NOT as good for me, though, because I am a verbatim note taker with a computer and sift through for relevancy later. By hand, I always feel I missed something.
ReplyDeleteGood luck getting the laptop back quickly!