coming unhinged

Before any of you can say it,  I will say it myself.  You told me so.

Almost two years ago I decided to buy a new computer.  I described it thus. “Sony has produced its second generation of notebooks.  Lighter.  Sexier.  And for a price that is almost six months of rent at my duplex.”  (falling off the electronic wagon)  Most of you latched onto that last phrase.

And rightfully so.  The laptop was almost obscenely expensive.

But it has proven to be a great machine.  I take it wherever I go.  And I barely know it is in my back pack.

The warning most of you gave was that the briny air of Melaque would put this little gem in an early grave.  That did not happen.

To reduce its weight, Sony built the Z series with a very thin screen.  I have always been worried the lid itself would break.  Disabling the monitor.

It turns out the lid is not the weak link.  The hinges are.

When we moved house last Saturday, the laptop slipped off my nightstand.  I caught the computer by the screen before it hit the floor.

That was a mistake.  I should have let it fall.  When I grabbed it, the main body rotated to the left.  The lid stayed stationary.

I thought I was quite clever until I tried to close the lid.  It wouldn't budge.  A quick look told me the fall had warped the lid's left metal hinge -- cracking the plastic housing.

Obviously, I couldn't take it on my return flight this weekend in its permanent open position without risking further damage.  On Sunday, I thought I had found a local computer repairmen to repair it.  It turns out he couldn't.

So, on our return from Key West, we stopped at a Sony Store.  The technician immediately saw the problem.  That was heartening.  But he did not have a new hinge in stock.

The best he could do was pry out a piece of plastic that was exacerbating the closure problem.  His suggestion for a fix?  Close the laptop with tape.

I am not going to do that.  The computer will easily fit in my backpack -- and, when I get to Melaque, I can have Omar, our local computer wizard, order a hinge and fix it. 

I will confess that I briefly considered buying an even-lighter version of my now-old computer.  At about half the cost of my current laptop. 

But I will first give Omar an opportunity to get my door rehung.  Before I prove to all of you that it is Steve who has come unhinged.