getting a new laptop!
Over the summer, my laptop, a Dell XPS 13 running Linux, finally decided it was time. It had served me faithfully and loyally for over four years, having moved around my family and having originally been used by my mom starting 7 years ago. Frankly, it's impressive that it lasted this long. However, it would enter a strange state when being woken up from sleep mode, turning the whole screen blurred with a pattern of vertical lines, and in the past month its battery life had plummeted to two hours on a single charge. It was in too poor shape to even run the IDE for one of my computer science classes. :(
Luckily, my parents (and my professor) were understanding. My dad, a software engineer, had an extra laptop at our house in case anything should happen to one of ours, and it just arrived in the mail today. I'm writing this from a Framework device a bit larger than my old laptop -- the screen is taller, 9", and the keyboard is slightly wider -- so it's a bit different to get used to the new feel. It feels like suddenly working on a much larger canvas -- having more space to work around in. People underestimate the small amount of additional time it takes to physically move from one area of a canvas to another, how everything is just "right there" on a small canvas versus a large one where you need to either reposition your easel or physically crouch to paint the parts of it towards the bottom.
It is very much a relief to finally have the equipment I need to do my homework, even if it is already the third week of class. Much better late than not at all.