Ten good things

Here's a list of ten things I would have trouble doing without, listed in no particular order.

1. Call display and voicemail. I don't have to deal with newspaper call centres, recruiters, telephone solicitors, or anybody else unless I want to. My friends realize that if they're calling from a number I don't recognize, I probably won't answer the phone.
   
   Basically, I don't like the telephone. I prefer to either meet face-to-face, which allows for periods of silence, or send messages or email, which gives me time to think of what I want to say.
   
   
2. Solitude. If I spend too much time by myself, I get weird and cranky. But if I'm around people too much, I get frazzled. I need downtime to function.
   
   
3. Portable radio. Essential for listening to Blue Jays games when I'm away from home.
   
   
4. Cellphone. I just got one this year, and I don't use it much. But I no longer have to stay at home and wait for important phone calls.
   
   
5. iPod Shuffle. Another new toy (which superseded my old iPod after its battery life dropped to less than an hour, fully charged). Sometimes, you just have to have the tunes.
   
   Now if I could only figure out why my computer and iTunes don't work well together. I think it doesn't work properly if iTunes has already been started when I plug the iPod's USB cable in. But that's just a guess.
   
   
6. Knapsack. Carries everything I need: books, radio, cellphone, notebook, pens, umbrella and/or sunscreen (depending on weather), etc. etc. I do not travel light.
   
   
7. High-speed Internet. For a geek, this goes without saying.
   
   
8. Sunscreen. I'm white bread. I burn in less than half an hour on bright, sunny days. And I love to be outside. So I'm an SPF 30 kinda guy.
   
   
9. Headphones with volume control. I don't care whether I have great sound quality, but I need the ability to easily change the volume. My MP3s are not at a consistent volume level, and I don't want to have to fiddle with the controls on my iPod, as they're too hard to reach.
   
   
10. Prescription sunglasses.
    
    Side note: I can't imagine ever wearing contacts, even though I've never found a pair of glasses I look good in (I have a big nose, high cheekbones, and sunken eyes). Sticking things in my eyes? I don't think so. I'd probably poke myself into blindness.

Honourable mention goes to my digital camera: I've had a Nikon D70S for a little over a year now, and I love it. The only problem with owning a good camera is that I have no excuse any more: if I take a bad picture, it's not my camera's fault, it's mine.


Here's a sad story about a man who fell for a Nigerian bank scam.