is it just me?, page-23

"Didn't someone say life is like a box of chocolates? You pick what you like."

But that's the problem. You do pick something you like but you don't get to enjoy it for long. Not just computers, everything you need for a home. And it doesn't matter if your computer is a Mac or Windows PC (let's not get into that boring argument...), no sooner do you get used to using it and find it meets your needs perfectly, they decide to upgrade it. That's ok, you'll survive without the upgrade, the new-fangled thing that was added you can live without. Until the next upgrade. Then the next. Now some of the things you've used for ages are no longer supported "ooh my phone is soooo old, wow I bought it in 2010 would you believe" (insert sarcastic tone). There are no more firmware upgrades for your "ancient" piece of equipment. One tiny part fails on your dishwasher/pc/aircon/whatever but nobody makes those parts any more. You might get lucky and find someone selling old stock on ebay. Generally the best option is to chuck the failed bit of equipment and buy a new one.

So now you have a dishwasher that won't fit in the old space in the kitchen. A shiny new working computer but the old modem/printer/insert other gadget won't work with it. A new washing machine that's so complicated I start feeling nostalgic about my mum's old twin tub.

Not only do young couples struggle to get on the housing ladder, pay rent, afford things for the kids, they also have to now budget for upgrading all their technological gadgets every couple of years, and replacing all their household appliances every 5-7 years when they break down.

And you can't just "pick a chocolate" randomly these days. There are 100 different versions of everything. Not just different brands but within each of those brands. Different features are offered on the variety of products you are looking at, but none of them offer all three useful features you are particularly after. Unless of course you can afford to pay $$$ for the top of the range model. Which only comes in black. The rest of the range had lovely colours, aaargh! And how do you know about all the interesting features on offer? Yes you have just wasted a whole day of your life researching on the internet, then driving from shop to shop trying to haggle the best bargain. I can't believe how much time I wasted last week trying to find light bulbs for the floor lamp that I had to replace (which conked out after just 4 years). No more "standard" light bulbs any more, took me ages to find the required E14's then within that type there were so many choices (colour? shape? dimmable? wattage? energy-saving?). The LED ones I bought will last 25,000 hours apparently. I will probably only use that lamp a few hours each week, so the light bulb should outlive me. Somehow I don't think the floor lamp will last as long though. So in a few years time (10 years if I'm lucky) I will be traipsing round again trying to find another nice-looking floor lamp, preferably one that takes E14 LED bulbs! And so the cycle goes on again and again. I want to "pick a chocolate" and enjoy it for the rest of my life. It's all getting a bit tedious :-(