My Motorcycle and my computer form a symbiote relationship.A year ago they broke down a couple of days after each other.I dont really remember which broke down first ...but what the fuck does it matter. They both broke down anyways.

So I wasnt surprised when the computer broke down two weeks after the motorcycle. In fact I just shrugged my head and hauled the 70 pound equipment to the repair shop.As I stressed in the first blog entry a year ago, its a monster machine to carry from three floors down to two floors up and then reverse that!

When the system cannot find drive:d,I was in a panic because that's where I store my edited files. So I quickly backed it up.I consulted an in - law who happens to be a computer tech.He informed me that he problem solves computers and for 1,000 bucks he would do an analysis.

When I asked for a free consultation he gave me a slip-shod advise.When I asked for a more detailed consulation he wanted to charge me with the full amount.I told him that he hoped to god I don't come across him , bleeding in the highway or in need of help somewhere because I WON'T RAISE A FUCKING FINGER TO HELP HIM UNTIL I GET A CONSULTATION FEE!I ALSO told my sister, the pathologist who also doubles as a physian that whenever that in law would need her advise...that she should charge a consultation fee.

I then asked my wife's sister who also dabbles in pc repair for fun if she could check out the pc. She said that I should bring it to her office for her to take a look see.No consultation fee of 1,000 pesos was uttered.I figured I 'd just take her to lunch for helping out.

But since her office is just a few steps away from the pc shop, I told myself maybe I should just bring it to the shop instead of bothering her.Fixing up comps is not her real job and I might be intruding in her day job which is real estate.And instead of paying a consultation fee to my -in law,I'd go to a place where if there is a problem ..then they would have the resources and the spare parts to repair them.

I hauled it back to the shop where I had the system assembled.The tech pulled this wire and this and that! Turns out that the jumpers were mixed up.He also did a memory check. Drive d is ok he said.Just the jumpers.

Hard drives have a very limited life span.You'd be lucky if your's reached four years. Nowadays the manufacturer's motto is quantity over quality!

I was looking on 5oo pesos for consultation and repair fee and the system check up. WHICH TOTALLY IS CHEAPER THAN the I consult for 1,000 fee guy!

Then we discovered that drive c which holds all my system files is the one in danger of going KAPUT!

I told the tech if we replaced drive c what would happen to all the installed programs. He said not to worry because there is a program that would just transfer and not copy the files.

So I rushed to have my yen changed to peso and plucked out a sizeable amount of money and changed the hard drive.

When I got home my back was aching like hell.But the hard work is done. All I need to do is to dive at the back of the editing systems and squish my way thru a small path at he back of teh viewscreens to re-attach the wires and cables.Then I opened the air con and just sit back and streched my legs.Ahh...

Then Joe called and asked how the pc repair went. I told him that I had my hard drvie changed to this particular brand.He said that the brand I bought was defective. He bought the same brand and in 3 days , his hard drive concked out.

Of course that had to happen. I mean I was sitting there, relaxing myself.Feet up and the cool air conditioning cooling my back and he tells me that I got a bad hard drive.A brand new defective brand name hard drive.

When I was in the shop I asked for a particular brand that I knew was good. But unfortunately they didnt have it in 40 gig. So I had to settle with this other brand. That they said was also good.

I called the computer tech again and asked if I could have my hard drive replaced with this particular brand.

They said that its possible because they now have one.

I asked when did it arrive.

Just a few hours ago when I left.

FUCKING TYPICAL!

So I told them that I would..............sigh...........bring back the pc and have the present hard drive changed to that particular brand.

AFter putting down the phone I took a deep breath and started to disconnect the cables again. I had to controt my body in more difficult positions that would shame a yogi, just to reach the cables.

Then I made a phone call to my tech guy. I said that I was going to replace the hard drive with another brand. When I told him what brand he said that he prefered that one as well.

Typical.

But he said that there might be any harddrive with that brand.

I began to get irritated. I told him that I just called their supply section. So i talked to the supply guy whp assured me that he already reserved the hard drive for me.

So BRING THE DAMN PC TO THE DAMN SHOP, TAKE TWO! But this time the sun wasnt shining. It was raining like hell. Of course why shouldnt it be raining!I was amazed that a flashflood didnt hit us when we approached the shop.

When I got there . The hard drive was changed and we began transfering the operational programs. They have this cool way of transfering th eoperating system from one hard drive to the other without haveing to reinstall everything!

Everyone who operates a computer knows what an absolute thrill it is to reinstall every program you have. Its the equivalent of repeating grade four, over and over again!

But this cool process does away with that. I asked the tech guy if we were just copying and pasting the files. he said that it wasnt like that. It was transfering!

After the process was completed. We tested the pc. First shut off and rebooth was good.later the dvd rom developed a conflict with the other drives when it was boothing. So we ad to re arrange the os.

We fixed that.Back in the editing room, as i switched it on , it went smoothly. but the second re booth. It failed to detect I DONT KNOW WHICH HARD DRIVE IT WAS!

Five days later , the system cant detect one of teh hard drvies again. So i hauled it back to the shop.

We changed the old hard drive and replaced it with another and NOW THERE'S STILL THE SAME FUCKING PROBLEM! I glared at the tech guy who fixed it the last time.He asked somebody else to take over. While the other guy was fiddling with it. A thought occured to me.Maybe the hard drive that he said was going kaput wasn't even KAPUT!Maybe he's just a bad repair guy.

So when a system check was being done on my pc, I took out the old hard drive and had it anaylzed.True enough,it wasnt even malfunctioning and there was no bad sector.

I constantly assured them that I would need it as a another hard drive for my other pc so they can accurately scan it. If they thought that I was on a witch hunt then they wil close ranks and protect their erring colleague.

So the truth came out . The hard drive was sound and stable!

And what made that gymp think that there's a problem? He heard a knocking sound on the hard drive.Amazing scientific analysis. A knocking sound. which can be attributed to a hundred things.

This guy should work for NASA.Then it would be easy to pin point what the problem was on the next challenger disaster!

Now the new guy tells me that the problem with the pc could be the motherboard or the memmory. Memmory ?Cant be! We ran a memmory check the last time. If its the motherboard then ASUS is the worst motherboard on EARTH! BECAUSE ITS ONLY BEEN TWO YEARS SINCE I REPLACED THE OTHER MOTHER BOARD THAT ALSO CONCKED OUT AFTER TWO YEARS AND ITS ALSO A MOTHERFUCKING ASUS!

TECH: " I realy cant tell what the problem is. The only way we can go about it is to isolate the matter. "

FLIM: " In laymans term. The pc is working now. But I should always have the car standing by because there might be another conk out."

TECH smiles.

FLIM: " Well at least when I haul this pc back to the car I wont have that we're safe, its fix feeling. Actually its worst. Assuming its fixed and then finding out it still has a problem than knowing that its temporarilty fix but there might still be a problem.

Some days you can never really win.