Cav's Place

I’ll start directly with last week’s run, which was Wednesday and marked a second successful attempt to get back under 35 minutes after those four failures. Slightly slower than the week before, the time being 34:56, but can’t say it hurt again after I was done, so there was a definite improvement from that point of view. The intermediate times were 4:31, 5:13, 6:03, 4:40, 5:16, 6:14 and 2:59, making for lap times of 15:47 and 16:10.
After that, I took a shower and went back out, rushing to make it in time for the viewing of a documentary that was part of a festival of Romanian documentaries. It was something of an excuse to get myself out there a little, but I left rather late and after walking about as fast as I could for almost two thirds of the way I realized I wasn’t going to make it in time for the scheduled start time, so I started running where possible, dropping back to that quick walk when I had to or started feeling too awkward about running. This got me inside, all sweaty and wondering why did I bother to shower first, only a minute after the scheduled start time… Only to have to wait another 15 minutes before it actually started, meaning I hurried for nothing.

But if then I covered a good 20 kilometers, more than eight, maybe close to nine, of them while running, Monday I covered over 22. Once again started with the run, but at least there was no more running later, and I also didn’t shower before leaving again, not that I’d have had time to do so. Either way, I once again failed to stay under 35 minutes, the time being 35:05, with sector times of 4:33, 5:24, 6:03, 4:36, 5:18, 6:09 and 3:02, making for lap times of 16:00 and 16:03. Gave it everything on that final sector, but what I had left was obviously less than the previous two times, and either way I guess I had lost too much on the first lap’s second sector to recover when I’m feeling like I am. Not that I know why I was so slow in that sector.
Anyway, after that I attended the event organized here to support Polish women protesting against the proposed almost complete ban on abortions, which would have worsened what is already one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Europe by eliminating even the existing exceptions, leaving only one, in case the mother’s life will be in imminent danger, while adding other insane restrictions as well. I mean, if something like this wouldn’t have dragged me back out to such an event, and also made me have some public activity on Facebook once again, nothing would have.
Dad didn’t need a metro card that day, but hadn’t bought one since the previous one expired either, so he just gave me an old two-trip one that still had one trip on it and I planned to use it on the way back to also go buy some things and not need to go out again for that this week. So I walked all the way to the meeting point, leaving early enough so I still arrived a good ten minutes early even if I had to keep holding myself back and slow down the last part of the way, and then sort of stood around as others gathered and we started walking. Later, when we were in front of the Theater and the group split, most staying behind in order to stage or watch a performance that the Polish organizers were adamant about giving up on when the ten minutes allowed by the gendarmes expired without anything happening, I left with them and a few others, getting to the bar the event was initially supposed to continue in. Didn’t stay long there either though, and when the organizer thanked me for taking pictures, few as they were, I got even more uncomfortable and slowly made my way out and away, even if I met with some of those who had stayed behind, which obviously meant they were about to finally gather there as well.
However, that’s when things got strange and it’d have been better not to have that metro card, since a train was just arriving when I got to University station and it was the one I usually take to get back after a protest, so I rushed to catch it, only later realizing I had to go in the opposite direction then, since I meant to buy something. So I hopped off at the next stop, meaning to change lines, but that’s a weird station and instead of taking the stairs that’d have allowed me to switch, I took the escalator and found myself outside. Expected turnstiles before the exit, as there are pretty much everywhere else, so I was completely surprised, but after briefly considering trying to get back down the escalators and hope nobody’ll challenge me, I just walked back the same way I got there, therefore wasting that trip only to have to walk even farther. Also didn’t go to the hypermarket I meant to go to, but did pick up a few things from a supermarket on the way.

In between, last Thursday I got a message that I can pick my computer back up, so Friday I went with dad to do that… Only to feel even more uneasy about it, since apparently all they had done was update the BIOS, which admittedly does appear to have fixed the issue that had made the fans no longer change speed according to temperature. Or at least they still seemed to work all right when I checked yesterday, but now I’m noticing other issues and didn’t even dare look at that again today. Even though checks otherwise seem fine, my confidence in this system working properly and also being free of malware is pretty much negative at the moment and only getting worse as more and more problems seem to keep piling up for no apparent reason and with no apparent solution.
Yes, that means they said they didn’t do anything about the possible issue with the network chipset, didn’t replace the CPU, which at least I’m perfectly fine with, and also didn’t even fix that headphones connector on the case’s front panel, saying all of these tested fine, though at least that connector obviously is not fine, in fact seeming worse now than before. But what really is even worse is that whoever put the system back together was either clueless or made a mess of it on purpose. The side panels were reversed, the one with the vents ending up on the back. The side fan which obviously couldn’t be installed on the side anymore was installed in a top vent, and with screws instead of those silicone things it had, one of those screws being apparently forced through it and now I can’t seem to use its system again, which leads to the side panel vibrating. While those silicone things were at least handed back to me in a bag, the SATA cable which used to go to the DVD drive and which I hadn’t taken out because it was tied to others and too hard to remove is missing, the external HDD connector, which wasn’t connected before, being connected to the motherboard in its slot. Neither the rear nor the side, or top according to how they had installed it, fan were connected to the motherboard. The front fan was connected to the power fan slot instead of its chassis fan one. The front panel USB 2.0 connector was connected to the PC speaker one. The RAM modules were back on the first and third slots even though this motherboard recommends using the second and fourth first. And if that’s what I noticed, I’m wondering what else is there that I missed.
At least I put everything I did notice right again, added the HDDs back, the TV tuner, the PC speaker which is in fact from the old computer as this didn’t have one, the DVD player as well, and also took the sole remaining SATA cable from the old computer to use for it, but the system doesn’t see it, so I’m wondering whether there’s a problem or I simply forgot to connect it, as I definitely didn’t feel like opening it up again to check. One other thing I did notice is that now the CPU fan speed is only sometimes listed, as I rebooted four times and could only see it in Open Hardware Monitor two of those times, the decision apparently also being made on reboot. Was missing this last reboot, so not seeing it now, but the percentage is listed and it’s correct, so leaving it as it is for the moment and don’t plan to take it back to them for anything. I would take a SATA cable if they’ll offer one, but I sent an e-mail to their complaints department Friday evening, describing the entire situation, and still didn’t get a reply.

There are some other, newer, issues as well, but I’m not getting into that now, so let me just move on to yesterday, when I had to wake up at 7:15 AM, so after maybe an hour and a half of sleep at best, and a total of some 16 hours over the past four days, always split in little bits. That was because I had an appointment to get blood drawn for tests, after the paperwork will be dealt with, and these appointments seem to always be early in the morning, which won’t even allow me to respect the requirements. Couldn’t exactly respect those for the urine sample either, but got one to take there anyway, since that was also included in what was needed. Think I was about ten the last time I had blood tests done, but let’s see what the results will be now.
After we got out of there, I asked dad if we can get cakes and a pizza and he bought the cakes. Could have gone for the pizza too, but I knew the place I meant to go to opened at 11 AM and it was barely 9 AM. Later noticed that now they actually open at 9 AM, but didn’t know that then, so he drove me back and left, but also left me a new metro card, as he had bought one. With that, I then went out, also taking out the recyclables, and reached the pizza place only to find a man standing in front of the door and no waitress or anyone else inside. When I walked in, he greeted me in Italian and just stared at me as I glanced over a menu to make sure the prices hadn’t changed, then continued to stare when I said what I wanted. After I repeated myself, he seemed to understand I wanted a pizza, but simply told me “no”, responding to my surprise with some explanation in Italian from which I gathered something wasn’t working and they couldn’t make any at the moment. So we shrugged at each other and I left. I’m guessing that was the owner, as I know he’s Italian.
Still, I did want a pizza and had a metro card, so I weighed my options for a moment and decided to give another chance to the place with the dog that drove me away the first time, apparently getting there ten or so minutes after they opened, as they open at noon. But I got a pizza, which was decent and quite cheap, but not as good and full of stuff as what that other place makes. And this place is also quite far, so even with the metro it took a while to get back, but I had a pizza and I could settle down for the day… As much as possible under these circumstances.

Spent some five hours in bed last evening, but only slept the first two of them, or in fact a little less than that. Then got perhaps five or so more hours this morning, split in three or so. And now I’m hoping I’ll manage to take a shower, or maybe even a bath, to warm myself a little, since we’re definitely in that nasty part of the year, far too cold for me but also far from winter, and heating not on yet, so just one more reason to be utterly miserable. Will have to see if the water’s not still too dirty though, since a pipe was apparently changed in the building’s basement today and after having no hot water for some hours, it keeps being brown even if it’s left to run for quite some time.