Earlier this month, I was in the middle of writing a post when I took a break, visited another website, and watched helplessly as my 9 yo Air locked up. No keyboard response. Finally got it to shut down, started it up in Safe Mode, but then couldn’t find my hard drive. Managed to get an appointment at an Apple Store Genius Bar. Technician could see hard drive, but couldn’t access it. Laptop was kaput.
So I ordered another Air, an M1 with 1TB storage and 16GB RAM. It arrived a couple of days ago–I needed to get an adapter to connect to my external HD so I could load the last back-up. Now everything is ported over and I’m enjoying a speedy laptop with actual battery life. I wonder if it will last as long as my old Air did?
Besides that, it’s been a week. I cut the cord and quit cable and got a new internet provider. Worked in the yard in between swings of our slingshot weather, sunny 70s one day, rainy 50s the next. Baked muffins.
I’ll close this hurry-up State of the Kris post with a snippet from early in Echoes. Jani, in a tense meeting with ná Feyó, who of late hasn’t been allowing her very much room to maneuver.
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Jani reported her progress in the design and development of a hybrid paper system, one of the many stumbling blocks on the way to a blending of two conflicting modes of commerce and communication. “Haárin enjoy the freedom they have gained from doing business with humanish, but when it comes to the concept of payment, most haven’t moved past the idomeni barter system. The dock owners and traders are building up Commonwealth currency reserves they don’t know what to do with, and the financial sharks smell blood.” She caught the tilt of Feyó’s head, a posture that signaled puzzlement. “Commonwealth financial dominants would trick them. They would pretend to help them so that they could take their money.”
Feyó gestured understanding tinged with anger. “Humanish being humanish.”
A reflexive protest sprang to Jani’s lips, then stalled because really, what could she say? She gestured agreement, then paused for a beat before resuming. “I would like to go to Samvasta. Because of the huge influx of Vynshà, it is by far the largest Haárin colony, and therefore the most vulnerable. I could speak to the Trade Association dominants, ask their advice on moving forward.“
“Let our trade dominants speak to them.” Feyó sat back, tented fingers so long and spindly they looked like they had extra knuckles. “I most believe you should not travel for a time.”