What did we do B4 the internet?

I am an Internet addict!! Emails, browsing, IMing..... I didn't realize my addiction til Wednesday night!!!

It was 8:45 pm. I was watching a movie and thought check email. I clicked my Internet globe icon, my laptop hummed and the little green lights flashed. My screen read, "Cannot connect to Internet. Check connection."

Ok, this happens two or three times a week. For the last three years, when that dreadful message appears, I walk myself into my closet, open the data box, which is a tangled mess of cables, a modem and a router, unplug the ac adapter to the router and the modem resets itself. I also have to count to thirty to allow the router to reset. 1 Mississippi, 2 Mississippi.....yeah, yeah, it's a quick thirty seconds when I am thinking of what wonderful emails have just made their way to my inbox. Great, now I have lost count...plug adapter back in.

All the green lights on the modem are lit. Ebo is blow drying his hair in my bathroom. On, off, on, off....."STOP!" I say. "You will blow a fuse!!!"

Return to my laptop in the living room. Click the globe, the dreadful message appears AGAIN!! Back to the closet....only this time, all three of the green lights on the modem aren't lit. Unplug the router. Count AGAIN!!! Geez!!!

Plug adapter back in router. NOTHING.....no green light, no yellow light, not even a red light!!! So, I start unplugging and replugging....still nothing!! Call Bear in San Antonio. He asks if I have done the usual routine of unplugging and counting. "YES! Like three times." "Well, call AT&T" he said. Great!!

Now, being angry and knowing that I'll be on hold with AT&T for hours, I decided to finish my movie and deal with it later.

So, at 10 pm, I am on hold with AT&T. I finally get thru and Dillon is ready to help. Altho, I couldn't really understand Dillon. He had to repeat himself several times. He asked me to locate the reset button on the modem. It should be on the back panel. I swear to you, there is NO DERN RESET BUTTON on this thing. Dillon laughed!! There should be a pin sized reset button.....NO THERE ISN'T!! I am now frustrated and thinking I need to eat more carrots or have my eyes checked!! I have now grabbed the modem and taken it to my bedroom and plugged the thing into another outlet to see if it will power up. NOPE!!!

Dillon informed me that since the modem is three to four years old and of course, NOT UNDER WARRANTY anymore, gave me a number to call to order a new MODEM. WONDERFUL!!! I asked him if there was anyway to connect at all to the Internet....I just know that I have received many fun emails and need to read them like NOW. "I am sorry, Miss Barry (think he got the first and last name mixed up), there is no way to connect. You need new modem." HELLS BELLS!!!

I thanked Dillon for his wonderful guidance and patience and hung up. I immediately texted Bear and told him the news!!! "OMG!! Modem is dead. Need new one!!"

I couldn't wait to go to sleep and get up and get to work so I could check my emails!!!

So, this evening, Bear made his way to BEST BUY and purchased a NEW MODEM!! It sure is a pretty one and now, my newest, best friend.

I know!! I need to get a life but I am techy and LOVE my somewhat geeky ability to be on the Internet to email, blog, IM, or browse (I can do all at one time. It's called MULTI-TASKING!!!)