Dave Barry's Web Site
DAVE BARRY COLUMN
I'm a big fan of technology. Most guys are. This is why all important
inventions were invented by guys.
For example, millions of years ago, there was no such thing as the
wheel. One day, some primitive guys were watching their wives drag a dead
mastodon to the food-preparation area. It was exhausting work; the guys were
getting tired just WATCHING. Then they noticed some large, smooth, rounded
boulders, and they had an idea: They could sit on the stones and watch! This
was the first in a series of breakthroughs that ultimately led to
television.
So we see that there are vital reasons why guys are interested in
technology, and why women should not give them a hard time about always
wanting to have the "latest gadget." And when I say "women," I mean "my
wife."
For example, as a guy, I feel I need a new computer every time a new
model comes out, which is every 15 minutes. This baffles my wife, who has
had the same computer since the Civil War and refuses to get a new one
because --
get THIS for an excuse -- the one she has works fine. I try to explain that,
when you get a new computer, you get exciting new features. My new computer
has a truly fascinating feature: Whenever I try to turn it off, the
following message, which I am not making up, appears on the screen:
"An exception 0E has occurred at 0028:F000F841 in VxD---. This was
called from 0028:C001D324 in VxD NDIS(01) + 00005AA0. It may be possible to
continue normally."
Clearly, this message is not of human origin. Clearly, my new computer
is receiving this message from space aliens. I don't understand all of it,
but apparently there has been some kind of intergalactic problem that the
aliens want to warn us about. What concerns me is the last sentence, because
if the aliens are telling us that "it may be possible to continue normally,"
they are clearly implying that it may NOT be possible to continue normally.
In other words, the earth may be doomed, and the aliens have chosen ME to
receive this message. If I can figure out exactly what they're saying, I
might be able to save humanity!
Unfortunately, I don't have time, because I'm busy using my new GPS
device. This is an extremely important gadget that every guy in the world
needs. It receives signals from orbiting satellites, and somehow -- I
suspect the "cosine" is involved -- it figures out exactly where on the earth you
are. Let's say you're in the town of Arcola, Ill., but for some reason you
do not realize this. You turn on your GPS, and, after pondering for a few
minutes, it informs you that you are in… Arcola, Ill.! My wife argues that
it's easier to just ASK somebody, but of course you cannot do that, if you
truly are a guy.
I became aware of how useful a GPS can be when I was on a plane trip
with a literary rock band I belong to called the Rock Bottom Remainders,
which has been hailed by critics as having one of the world's highest ratios
of noise to talent. On this trip were two band members whom I will identify
only as "Roger" and "Steve," so that you will not know that they are
actually Roger McGuinn, legendary co-founder of the Byrds; and Stephen King,
legendary legend.
We were flying from Chicago to Boston, and while everybody else was
reading or sleeping, "Roger" and "Steve," who are both fully grown men, were
staring at their GPS devices and periodically informing each other how far
we were from the Boston airport. "Roger" would say, "I'm showing 238 miles,"
and "Steve" would say, "I'm showing 241 miles." Then "Roger" would say, "Now I'm
showing 236 miles," and "Steve" would come back with another figure, and so
on. My wife, who was confident that the airplane pilot did not need help
locating Boston, thought this was the silliest thing she had ever seen.
Whereas I thought: I NEED one of those.
So I got a GPS for Christmas, and I spent the entire day sitting on a
couch, putting it to good use. Like, I figured out exactly where our house
is. My wife told me this was exciting news. I think she was being sarcastic,
but I couldn't be sure, because I had to keep watching the GPS screen, in
case our house moved. I also used my GPS to figure out exactly how far my
couch is from LaGuardia airport (1103 miles). There is NO END to the
usefulness of this device! If you're a guy, you need to get one NOW, so you
can locate yourself on the planet. While we still have one.
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© 2001 Dave Barry / Printed by permission