Can you help a sista out?

If you read my last post,or follow me on Twitter you are aware that my main computer (i.e. the one I use for my day job as well as stuff like… oh writing this blog) is dying a fast death. Over the weekend I got hit with a virus that while the virus appears to be gone has made my already janky computer damn near unusable. If my computer was just for pleasure it would be sad but I could limp through using my mini netbook and the broken down computer. However I work for a very small non-profit and my flex schedule allows me to do a great deal of work from home but in order to do that work I must have a functioning computer. Sadly our organization is small and convincingĀ  the board of directors to buy me a computer is not going to happen since as the person who puts together the budget I know the cash ain’t there.

Now I could do all my work at work but then I would end up spending a lot more hours in the office and frankly as a working parent that would suck. So I looked over my budget and the truth is with house taxes coming due in less than a month and college boy starting college in 2 weeks, running out and buying a computer right at this moment is just not happening. The Spousal Unit and I are working hard to dig out of debt and as much as I need a working laptop (computer travels with me from home to office so it needs to be a laptop) running out and using credit is just not the responsible thing to do.

Once upon a time I would have thought nothing of charging it but after years of living beyond my means and dealing with the aftermath I am trying to be responsible so I am holding a help BGIM get a computer beg-a-thon. Oh I already know there are some who will say and have already told me they find such things tacky and hey that’s cool. Yet over the years I have heard of too many folks who have asked for help online in some cases to dig out of debt and guess what? Folks helped out. So I created a page at Chip In where if the spirit moves you, you can help a sista get a computer.

I am hoping to get a Mac, I realize that sounds luxurious but after having 4 computers in 8 years I am getting a little tired of PC’s. Seriously in the past 8 years I have had 3 laptops and 1 desktop, all either were infected with viruses that rendered them unusable or they simply died. My ole desktop got me through grad school and after realizing the hard drive was literally smoking it was replaced with the laptop that is now headed to computer heaven.

I would have a widget on the side but since I use a hosted WordPress account I am not allowed to put a begging widget on the sidebar though it looks like it may be possible to get a paypal donation button up.

Seriously though any and all help would be greatly appreciated. Got $2-3 in your paypal account, every little but helps and if for whatever reason you are just not down with helping a sista out, well send some good vibes this way. Better yet you got a good usable laptop sitting around collecting dust, I would be happy to take it off your hands.

So if you can here is the place to go for the help a sista get a computer fund. Thank you dear readers.

7 thoughts on “Can you help a sista out?”

  1. You should check out newegg.com; they’re a good site for buying computers. Also, consumerist.com sometimes alerts you to early morning deals that newegg.has (along with other sites, so you might get lucky and find something for a computer.)

    I just bought an ASUS laptop off of newegg this summer and am extremely happy with it. Other people have told me that ASUS has really sturdy craftsmanship.
    Also, I got the laptop for $700 and it has a really good processor and I can even play some hefty games on it–a computer like this should normally cost at least $900.

    If you need a desktop, they have that too:
    http://www.newegg.com/Store/SubCategory.aspx?SubCategory=10&name=Desktop-PCs
    (And a nice search function to sort by price, manufacturer, and ability)

    Hope this helps!

    • Oh whoops just saw the thing about wanting a mac. As a PC gal, learning the interface for macs drove me nuts, but I’m sure after a few months it will be second nature. Best of luck in your computer hunt!

  2. Done! Hope you get there!! In the meantime, I may have a Dell Laptop you can use until you do reach your goal, let me know if you want to check it out.

  3. My wife is overstating her options when she says:

    “Now I could do all my work at work but then I would end up spending a lot more hours in the office and frankly as a working parent that would suck.”

    Actually, what would suck is the fact that the PC at work is far older and slower than her laptop at home. Even wounded by a virus, the laptop outshines the ancient work computer. Thing at her job takes 10 minutes to freaking turn on fully, then has all the speed and stamina of an asthmatic, 400-pound chain-smoking stroke survivor.

    I can’t imagine her trying to get grant research, grant writing, financial networking, fundraising, promotion, program planning, etc. done on that beast…she’d be working twice as many hours with no more pay than she’s getting now.

    In any case, that’s not an effort to guilt anyone into giving…but I don’t want anyone suggesting that she spend more time at the center. Hard enough to think there, much less get executive director work done there.

  4. No grief from me, do what you gotta do. In the meantime, until you reach your goal, would you like me to have my honey-bunches-of-oats look at it and see if he can fix it or at least make it workable? Computers are his forte. Also, have you thought about installing Ubuntu – you won’t get any viruses with that.

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