New 'puter and a new vector

After a certain amount of dithering, a little bit of research, and a frustrating hour with my old laptop, I treated myself to a new HP Pavilion.  My old PC is a Pavilion as well, so I felt comfortable with the quality.  And I think (hope) I got a good price.  I won't know for sure because once I purchase what amounts to a big ticket item for me, I stop looking at advertisements.  No sense torturing myself.

Originally, I looked at the 17" ones, but they are HUGE.  I don't watch movies on my computer (that's why I bought a big screen TV), so I went with the 14" model.  Why the 17" one was less, I don't know - most of the features were identical.  Maybe small is preferable when the public shops for laptops.  Who woulda thought?

Meanwhile, I managed to catch a cold from my granddaughter.  The past several years have been relatively illness-free for me, but now there is this drooling creature who sticks everything into her mouth, and sneezes so hard her pacifier flies several feet, and does not cover her mouth with the crook of her elbow or wash her hands AT ALL.  Oh, well.  My immune system needs to be exercised.  Just wish the cold had hit during the week instead of the weekend.

Speaking (obliquely) of work, the past few weeks have been difficult.  Part of the problem is a looming deadline on a big project where a lot of smaller projects all need to interact.  People are getting a little tense.  From my perspective, I find myself NOT invited to meetings and NOT `cc'd on memos, and yet expected to know what is going on.  Goes hand in hand to having a role for which I was NOT trained (just expected to magically know what to do).  My current project is winding down soon (it's part of the looming deadline pastiche), and there has been talk of a subsequent release, but no one is keeping me in the loop.  My line manager has discussed what I may be working on next, and it involves a role I liken to being the guy with a shovel who follows the elephants in a parade.  So, yeah, a little stressful.

And I'm at that awkward age:  too young to retire, too old to start over.  And there is the money and the benefits and the green building and relatively nice co-workers and the ability to work from home, etc.  A lot of perks.  Too bad the work itself is so stultifying.

Poor me.  I have to work for a living.  Wah.  Wah.  Wah.