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2004-04-19 - 7:56 p.m. But about that mouse There shouldn't be a big huge story behind getting your broken mouse replaced at work... but things are often not as they should be, yes? Friday when I began to have issues, I tried to open the mouse. I've cleaned many mouse rollers in my day. Problem is, there is no easy way to get this mouse open. I did it once. Christmas Eve, I was working pretty much by myself, and it needed cleaning, so I was able to fight with the thing and force it open with no one watching to call the authorities and charge me with mouse abuse. There is one screw holding this mouse closed, and the head of the screw is covered in such a way you'd have to actually destroy part of the mouse to get to it. In fact, I kind of sort of destroyed part of the mouse doing what I did. Still worked and all but no longer in what you'd call "like new" condition. Anyway... so Friday when it started to really not work, I tried to get the thing open. There were people around this time, so after it flew out of my hand and caused a scene the first time, I stopped, and called the help desk. After waiting on hold for a few minutes, I decided I could send an email instead. So I wrote and told them the problem, and asked if they could swap or clean the mouse. Please. I have manners. Want to challenge yourself? Try to use your computer without using your mouse at all. Try to accomplish something. Try to open Outlook, open a new email, address it, type the message and send it - all without a mouse. I did it. HA. I was also able to finish up some documents, save and close everything, close all the programs and shut down properly for the day. I can even minimize a window with the keyboard. Try that. Or you could try the total geek amusement of playing Solitaire with just the keyboard. It can be done. Why you'd want to is a question only a real geek can answer. So, I came back in this morning, turned on the computer, tried to move the mouse - oh yeah that' s right, dead mouse, I remember. So I opened my email (mouselessly, thank you) and sure enough I had a reply. I swear, this one woman in the IS dept - she's very nice in person. I like her. But she can achieve tone in an email like no one else - you need a sweater and a kerosene heater to keep from getting frostbite reading her email. Informs me that they do not clean mouse rollers but after *I* clean it, if it is *truly* broken, I should call, and then they will replace it. Well, if I make it in there again enough to be able to reach the rollers, it will be truly broken. Trust me. So I called. Explained again. Explain that I tried to open it to clean it but I can't get it open. Really, what kind of mouse is it? I tell him. Hmm, he says, that kind usually pops right open. Yes, I know. I've popped them many times. If I had a dime for every mouse I've ever popped open, I could... well, I could drop them on your toe and it would really really hurt, because it would be a LOT of dimes. He agrees to send someone out. Thank goodness, the guy decided to just swap the mouse instead of taking the mouse ball out of the old one and reaching into the opening with a pocket knife and cleaning the rollers - which is what he said he'd have to do. So I now have an optical mouse... the better to not eat my hair with! And with a scroll wheel... you have no idea how much I'd missed that. To have a scroll wheel, I would have brought in my own mouse long ago, if I hadn't thought it would set off as many alarms as firing a phaser on a starship. Ah... gotta love it, or just explode. And exploding is messy. my mood - |
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