Well, many of you kept up with my laptop saga last year. If you didn’t or forgot, here’s a little refresher and update.
My laptop and external hard-drive died while I was on the Race back in March or April of 2008. So I was sending them back to the states with a teammate that went back for a few days in between Africa and Central America. Unfortunately, my products never made it back to America. They were stolen right out of her luggage.
Then…when I was in Panama about two or three months later, I received a strange e-mail from South Africa, saying they may have recovered something that belonged to me, and wanted to know if I had recently been in the Johannesburg Airport. After a ton of correspondence, even roping my mom into helping by making some expensive international calls, we came to the conclusion that they had my laptop. One of their own security guards was caught with it. Unfortunately, they didn’t have my external hard-drive or the power chord, but hey, the laptop was exciting in an of itself.
Well, they gave me the run-around for a while once our communication switched hands to the detective. Meanwhile, it’s now August, I’ve finished the Race, and am now back in the States. I had an incredibly generous donation from a supporter, which enabled me to get a new laptop, since it was becoming more clear I may never get mine back. Not only that, but they stole a broken laptop…which still makes me laugh.
The conclusion from the detective was that I needed to pick it up, or send someone to sign for it in Johannesburg, South Africa. I jokingly told him I’d let him know the next time I was in South Africa, and consented to possibly never getting it back.
Redemption! More than a year later, I’m back in Southern Africa, but not South Africa. I was, however, able to make arrangements for a friend to pick it up while she passed through Johannesburg. So…drumroll, please…my laptop is finally back in my hands, albeit still broken! Yay! I have a completely dead laptop to hang on to. Haha. But, the hope is that I can still take it home and get it fixed before the service plan expires in February 2010. Thank goodness for long warranties!
Just thought I’d share how crazy and ridiculous my life can be sometimes.
