My Early Xmas Gift

Elspode · 12-13-2005, 01:01 PM

This subject was actually going to be a lament about how reliant we become emotionally on stupid gizmos and technology...that is, until last night.

Last weekend, while 15 year old stepson and I were staying at the hospital with Mrs. Elspode, I let him use my Creative Zen Touch 40 gig mp3 player. When he gave it back to me the next day, it was dead. HD sounded as though someone had thrown a handful of sand into it during the night. There was an obvious impact mark on the formerly pristine case on one corner, and it seemed fairly clear to me what had happened...device dropped while operating, HD failure results.

I was seriously disturbed about this incident, because 15 year old stepson has a rather pronounced history of careless abuse of expensive items, both his own and those of others, and I thought this was one more example. The difference was that I had already waited over a year to replace the older Creative I'd had stolen. In the meantime, the stereo out of the car I'm now driving was ripped off, the stereo in the other car my wife and I drive is dead, and so I had nothing but a crappy portable AM/FM radio to plug into my noggin while driving. After getting the Zen, I was very happy with it, and had spent hours and hours ripping and loading CDs into it...many which I did *not* save backups of, especially the stuff I got from the public library.

Normally, in cases like this, I would have launched into a tirade accompanied by a lecture, but I was *so* incredibly livid over the destruction of the Zen, that I had to really, really rein in my emotional response. I determined to deal with the lad as I would an adult, and so I expressed to him, calmly, both the practical, financial and emotional pain his carelessness had caused me, and left it at that.

Last night, after we had all put up the tree and decorations, I was presented with this.

It seems that the eldest kid, wanting desperately to spend some of his newfound cash (the result of a decent pizza delivery job for him), had instigated the replacement of my dead Zen, charging the 15 year old with the research and my wife with the financial coordination between the three kids. After a full day of research, including studying up on the reported failure rate and operational difficulties associated with aforementioned Zen, the MPM 202 is what they came up with. I was rather stunned. It is quite a cool device.

It isn't as portable as the Zen was, but it does a number of great things that the Zen did not do. The operating system leaves something to be desired for the mp3 purist, but again, it makes up for what I lost with the Zen by dint of its functioning as mass storage device, making it work much as a computer does, including sorting by directory. It is odd in a way, almost as though the R&D budget ran out before they finished putting operational features on it, but I can't find a real good reason not to simply adapt the way I handle my media to overcome the shortcomings in the unit.

Most touching about all of this is that the 15 year old, with no real money of his own, promised his brother his share of the purchase in gift cards that they both receive annually from their father's side of the family at Xmas. This, despite me repeatedly telling *all* of my wonderful kids that all I really wanted from them for Yule this year was some help around the house and some work on bettering their own schoolwork and lots in life.

It was pretty touching.

Trilby · 12-13-2005, 02:17 PM

You must be a superior dad! Good for you and good on them! Congrats!

dar512 · 12-13-2005, 02:26 PM

Great story. I have to say you handled it better than I probably would have.

But I have to ask the geek question. Does this one have bookmarking?

xoxoxoBruce · 12-13-2005, 07:34 PM

Uh...nope, in the spirit of Christmas...I'll just say nothing.

Elspode · 12-13-2005, 08:31 PM

PM me, Bruce. I'm always interested in your take on things...

No bookmarking. Bummer, that. No audiobooks.

zippyt · 12-14-2005, 09:03 PM

Verry cool Toy !!!!
Congrats !!!

12-13-2005, 01:01 PM	#1
Elspode When Do I Get Virtual Unreality? Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Raytown, Missouri Posts: 12,719	My Early Xmas Gift This subject was actually going to be a lament about how reliant we become emotionally on stupid gizmos and technology...that is, until last night. Last weekend, while 15 year old stepson and I were staying at the hospital with Mrs. Elspode, I let him use my Creative Zen Touch 40 gig mp3 player. When he gave it back to me the next day, it was dead. HD sounded as though someone had thrown a handful of sand into it during the night. There was an obvious impact mark on the formerly pristine case on one corner, and it seemed fairly clear to me what had happened...device dropped while operating, HD failure results. I was seriously disturbed about this incident, because 15 year old stepson has a rather pronounced history of careless abuse of expensive items, both his own and those of others, and I thought this was one more example. The difference was that I had already waited over a year to replace the older Creative I'd had stolen. In the meantime, the stereo out of the car I'm now driving was ripped off, the stereo in the other car my wife and I drive is dead, and so I had nothing but a crappy portable AM/FM radio to plug into my noggin while driving. After getting the Zen, I was very happy with it, and had spent hours and hours ripping and loading CDs into it...many which I did not save backups of, especially the stuff I got from the public library. Normally, in cases like this, I would have launched into a tirade accompanied by a lecture, but I was so incredibly livid over the destruction of the Zen, that I had to really, really rein in my emotional response. I determined to deal with the lad as I would an adult, and so I expressed to him, calmly, both the practical, financial and emotional pain his carelessness had caused me, and left it at that. Last night, after we had all put up the tree and decorations, I was presented with this. It seems that the eldest kid, wanting desperately to spend some of his newfound cash (the result of a decent pizza delivery job for him), had instigated the replacement of my dead Zen, charging the 15 year old with the research and my wife with the financial coordination between the three kids. After a full day of research, including studying up on the reported failure rate and operational difficulties associated with aforementioned Zen, the MPM 202 is what they came up with. I was rather stunned. It is quite a cool device. It isn't as portable as the Zen was, but it does a number of great things that the Zen did not do. The operating system leaves something to be desired for the mp3 purist, but again, it makes up for what I lost with the Zen by dint of its functioning as mass storage device, making it work much as a computer does, including sorting by directory. It is odd in a way, almost as though the R&D budget ran out before they finished putting operational features on it, but I can't find a real good reason not to simply adapt the way I handle my media to overcome the shortcomings in the unit. Most touching about all of this is that the 15 year old, with no real money of his own, promised his brother his share of the purchase in gift cards that they both receive annually from their father's side of the family at Xmas. This, despite me repeatedly telling all of my wonderful kids that all I really wanted from them for Yule this year was some help around the house and some work on bettering their own schoolwork and lots in life. It was pretty touching. __________________ "To those of you who are wearing ties, I think my dad would appreciate it if you took them off." - Robert Moog

12-13-2005, 02:17 PM	#2
Trilby Slattern of the Swail Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 15,654	You must be a superior dad! Good for you and good on them! Congrats! __________________ In Barrie's play and novel, the roles of fairies are brief: they are allies to the Lost Boys, the source of fairy dust and ...They are portrayed as dangerous, whimsical and extremely clever but quite hedonistic. "Shall I give you a kiss?" Peter asked and, jerking an acorn button off his coat, solemnly presented it to her. —James Barrie Wimminfolk they be tricksy. - ZenGum

12-13-2005, 02:26 PM	#3
dar512 dar512 is now Pete Zicato Join Date: May 2003 Location: Chicago suburb Posts: 4,968	Great story. I have to say you handled it better than I probably would have. But I have to ask the geek question. Does this one have bookmarking? __________________ "Against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain." -- Friedrich Schiller

12-13-2005, 07:34 PM	#4
xoxoxoBruce The future is unwritten Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 71,105	Uh...nope, in the spirit of Christmas...I'll just say nothing. __________________ The descent of man ~ Nixon, Friedman, Reagan, Trump.

12-13-2005, 08:31 PM	#5
Elspode When Do I Get Virtual Unreality? Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Raytown, Missouri Posts: 12,719	PM me, Bruce. I'm always interested in your take on things... No bookmarking. Bummer, that. No audiobooks. __________________ "To those of you who are wearing ties, I think my dad would appreciate it if you took them off." - Robert Moog

12-14-2005, 09:03 PM	#6
zippyt LONG LIVE KING ZIPPY! per Feetz Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Arkansas Posts: 7,661	Verry cool Toy !!!! Congrats !!! __________________ "Success is getting what you want. Happiness is wanting what you get. " Brother Dave Gardner

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