This week is final exam week at UMW. I’ve been grading essays and now exams for what seems like forever, certainly more than a week now. On Tuesday evening, I sat down at my kitchen table to start grading intermediate theory exams. I set up my MacBookAir and then poured myself a large (16pz) glass of water, which I set down on the coaster next to my laptop. As I got up to get something else, I knocked the water glass over, spilling the contents on the keyboard of my laptop. Judging from all the water I mopped up from the table and the floor, it didn’t *all* go into the computer, but still… The laptop immediately went dark.
A lot of things went through my mind, only some of them repeatable. I thought about how expensive it would be to replace my MacBook. I wondered how/if I could recover my data. But most of all I wondered how I was going to reconstruct my grades for the entire semester for all my courses. Before grades are due, early next week.
I immediately DM’d my go-to computer guy, Obi Wan Andy Rush, aka @rushaw. He sent me to a very helpful {and hopeful) webpage. As I did a little more research, I learned a few things:
- Several people wrote that if I went to the Apple Store, the Apple folks would immediately want to replace the logic board, for $1200.
- If I went to Best Buy, they would charge me $50 to tell me they couldn’t fix the laptop. That didn’t sound palatable to me.
- I found several positive references to YouBreakIFix.com. I called them and they confirmed that if they could resurrect my MacBook, the charge would be $200 + possibly more for parts, if necessary (e.g. a new battery). But it they couldn’t fix the laptop, there would be no charge. And they would do it within four days.
I took the laptop over yesterday and today they called me with the good news. My MacBook was fixed and the charge was $204, including the sales tax. YouBreakIFix was extremely professional and I highly recommend them for any computer repairs you need. They also fix cell phones.
The first thing I did was to email myself a copy of my grades spreadsheet. The second thing was to order the external hard drive Andy recommended I get nearly a year ago. I can’t believe how well this has worked out.
