We decided to try an experiment at our house. The theory we were testing was "Is it possible to live for a month without a mouse on our computer?" The conclusion: It is probably possible, but the lack of the mouse causes emotional and mental stress and could lead to divorce so the experiment was abandoned after 3 weeks.
It's a fairly long story, but to summarize, I was installing new software for my phone and as I plugged in the cable on the back of the computer I knocked out the mouse and keyboard cables. For future reference to anyone who is considering disconnecting their mouse or keyboard (if they are not USB) while the computer is running, I don't recommend it. Unless you want to use the tab button to navigate web pages for 3 weeks, and that only if you are lucky enough not to have fried the keyboard. It probably didn't need to be that long but I was insisting on figuring it out myself (with some phone calls and emails to my computer geek brothers-in-law). But now 3 weeks and two new mice later we are back up and running.
So, inadvertently, we turned the mouse-less state into an educational experience. M was completely shocked to learn that when computers were first invented, they didn't have a mouse. This discovery prompted questions such as: "Did they have electricity back then?" Of course, you have to remember that this is from the girl who was disappointed with our new house because it had an "old fashioned" mailbox. (It's a single-family version rather than the multi-family locked boxes usually found in HOAs.) We also had to learn the keyboard shortcuts for Gmail (print that out sometime, it's about 4 pages worth of commands). And if you ever want to give yourself a serious migraine, try creating a newsletter for the Young Women's organization using only the keyboard. I must say J was very patiently trying to work on his school project using just the keyboard, but every few minutes he would cry out, as if in pain.
One benefit of this experiment, is that none of us have wanted to spend much time on the computer. It's amazing what time you have available when you can't surf. We've had all sorts of quality family time. Hmm, that makes me wonder to myself, should I tell the rest of the family that I fixed the mouse today?
You mean it's fixed now?
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