I'd like to introduce you to the newest member of the family...and before you jump to the conclusion that I've added another pet to the household, I have to tell you that my neurotic beagle wouldn't take too kindly to that! And there's no bun in the oven, either. But what is now at my house is...
A new laptop. A shiny, happy
Mac Book Pro that I'm head over heels over. I've often toyed with the idea of upgrading to a Mac over the years, especially with how hard I seem to be on PCs. I tend to be bad about shutting down my computer, I run several memory intensive programs at the same time, and I use my computers
a lot, so PC laptops usually have about a one year lifespan with me before I start cursing them and griping incessantly about how sluggish they are and how many blue screens I'm getting. The HP one I bought earlier this year only managed to last nine months before it started to give me trouble. So I trucked over to the Apple store, and came home with this pretty Mac.
Admittedly, I don't love Mac's price points when compared to PCs. They're just not as affordable, no matter how you slice it. But to some extent, I've started to wonder if I've been getting what I've been paying for, so I'm giving this a go. I will definitely keep you guys posted, but so far, it's been a mutual admiration society here with me and my new Mac. I've even installed
Parallels
on it so I can run any Windows based program I want (like EQ!) whenever I want, without having to even shut down my Mac. It's kind of awesome.
I think my Juki might be feeling a wee bit jealous, though, with all the Mac love that's been going on the last several days. She's been pretty lonely, without nary a stitch sewn since I bought the Mac last Friday. I'm hoping to change that today though - I cut out these pretty strips to make myself a nice little fall wreath for the door. I'm usually not much of a fall person. I mean, we don't get "real" fall in Florida, it's more like not-so-hot summer in the fall here, although today it actually feels like fall with a cold front that's brought windy 60-degree weather to my door. Even so, I'm trying to get in the fall spirit by using
Jeni's awesome and super easy
wrapped wreath tutorial. Here's hoping it actually gets done before Christmas is upon us! Have a great day :)
Definitely value for money. That mac should last you at least 3 years. Think of how many PCs you would have bought during that time - probably enough to come close to paying for the mac. If you are prone to bumps and drops you might want to consider putting a hard shell on it, Apple tends to void warranties based on dents (scratches are usually ok).
ReplyDeleteThanks for the case tip, I hadn't realized you could get a case like that! I couldn't agree more, I think ultimately my investment will pay off, but sometimes it's hard to jump in like that when you think about how much fabric you could buy with that money ;)
DeleteHave you heard of The Oatmeal? Great cartoons...just did one Mac vs. PC :) I will try the wreath too! Thanks for the link!
ReplyDeletewww.sewcraftychick.blogspot.com
Congrats on your new family member! I'm not a Mac person, so can't comment on the newest member of the family, but instead just wanted to extend my sympathies as a fellow neurotic beagle mom. :-) I saw your book at Barnes & Noble the other day (yay!) and when I read the author profile on the back, that was when I first learned that you had a beagle, despite having followed your blog for almost a year. We have 2 beagles, plus 2 herding dogs that are even more neurotic that the beagles, and a 9-year-old boy, so I totally get the craziness. I love your work, and appreciate that you find time to blog with everything else you do!
ReplyDeleteAw, thanks! It's hard to imagine a dog more neurotic than my beagle, but I'm sure they're out there! Blogging and sewing is how I keep sane, even if it just for a few minutes at a time :)
DeleteEnjoy! We've been entirely converted to Macs over here and haven't looked back! Well, except for a teensy second when I realized I can't use EQ on mine. But the hubby's Macbook can run windows.... hm. I'm completely spoiled with the biggest Mac computer on the market (at least, when we bought it). It's awesome for streaming movies. We hardly ever use our TV anymore. :)
ReplyDeleteI love my Mac Book Pro, however my only issue is that it runs really hot. I would suggest getting a chill pad for it if you don't already have one. Mine is a much older model so I don't really know if they've fixed the problem.
ReplyDeleteWoo Hoo I got my copy of your book from Amazon yesterday, it was a 2 cups of tea read through. I fell in love with Precious Stones and cut out a stack of 2 1/2" squares. They are being sewn together as leaders and enders, by the time i have finished my wips I will be nearly there with the coloured squares.
ReplyDeleteYou are definitely going to love your Mac. I'm an Apple head to the core! I also just got your book, it will be my weekend read.
ReplyDeleteMacBooks are definitely worth it. I had mine for nearly 5 years, and then the only thing that was wrong with it was my fault - i didn't keep up with the software upgrades, and it was starting to get a little slow. I've since downgraded to a chromebook since all I ever really do is surf the internet. But seriously, never had a single issue with the Mac. Never even had to see how good the warranty was -- and it fell out of overhead baggage once and survived with no issues. I agree, the price is a little gulp worthy, but when you do the math out, totally worth it.
ReplyDeleteYou will love love love your Mac. You do get what you pay for. I was diehard PC for years. Now I could NEVER go back, and I'm a 56 year old who changed over 5 years ago and never looked back.
ReplyDeleteThe expense up front usually covers itself long term. It only seems like a lot because it's all at once instead of continual. $500 computers bought every year or sooner add up quickly. My last Macbook lasted 5 years before software eclipsed it and the hard-drive wore out (which was my fault...) You won't go back. It takes some getting used to but the learning curve is steep and intuitive, which is everything the PC is not and has trained you not to expect. Enjoy!!
ReplyDeleteI got an iskin to protect the keyboard openings. (Did that after a student almost dumped my coffee into the brand new laptop.)
ReplyDeleteHave been a MacBook lover for years. Worth every dollar!
ReplyDeleteHP laptop (especially Pavillion) sucks! Big time! We have had two in the family that broke down before it's due time.
ReplyDeleteMack Book Pro rocks. Mine has never misbehaved once and if it starts to act up a wee bit, I just re-boot it and that's that.
You gonna love yours :)
Rosemary B here:
ReplyDeleteMacBook Pro is the best! It will last you a very long time
I have had mine for over 5 years and it is still running strong.
If you can, get a nice backpack for it, one specifically for a big one - with all of the padding
We are a mac family since 1994.
My hubbs is a mac geek that works at the apple store at Tysons Corner in Northern Virginia
I hope you enjoy your new family member, and have many happy years of reliability
Tell your sweet little sewing machine that Juki's are the MACs of the sewing machine world!
ReplyDeleteSmart choice, we are fully Mac'd up here, wouldn't be seen dead with a PC - my husband has a Kindle and that's as anti-Mac as we get.
ReplyDeleteI have just had my first hard-drive replaced, but had this Mac Book Pro since 2009, used everyday, so not complaining xxx
Long time Mac user here - I've been waiting forever for these words: EQ is working on a Mac version. After many years of using EQ on my Macs through PC emulator, I'm so excited about EQ's change of heart. They were pretty firm in their position about not being able to produce a Mac version, but in late summer we heard rumors, and they are true. I love EQ even more now!
ReplyDeleteI've been a long-time PC user (25+ years) and just recently got my first macbook. It took some adjusting, but now I really love it. There are things I prefer the PC for (mostly gaming) but for all the design work, the color fidelity of the retina display is way better than any PC monitor I've found. The only downside is I'm used to being able to fix my PC myself, or get it fixed quickly. Having to go through Apple to get fixes and having my computer gone for a while for it to be fixed makes me sad.
ReplyDelete