Low End Mac Reader Specials

Memory To Go Special: MacPro 8 Core 8GB kit $232 / 4GB kit $116 / 2GB kit $72. New Macbook 2GB DDR3-$65. HARD DRIVES available -- Free shipping / LIfetime warranty.

Download Typestyler, still the Ultimate Styling Tool for Internet, Print and Video Graphics. Works great in Classic with a Native OS X Version on the way. Free Tryout: www.typestyler.com

LA Computer Company: Specials on AppleCare, iMac's, Apple Batteries and Apple A/C Adapters. Also Great prices on Used Apple Computers. Call 1-800-941-7654 Click Here.

Mac users can finally play Party Poker for Mac. Not only that, they can also learn how to play PokerStars for Mac.

Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.

Compare products like desktop computers, laptops, and LCD TVs side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for a new cell phone GPS products or MP3 players. The Ciao network makes searching products easy for you.

Welcome to Macintosh

Days of Shock and Hope

- 2007.10.01

Bong! . . . :-) . . . Welcome to Macintosh!

Hello friends and readers. Like the rest of the columns on LEM, this column would usually discuss the oldest and newest Mac or "i" related news and features, but today's Welcome to Macintosh article takes on a far more personal note.

In our lives, we go from place to place, here to there, filling up our days with work and hopefully ending our days with a family to come home to - people whom we love and care about dearly. In our circle of life, this includes friends as well.

Imagine a much loved friend, whom you truly cared about, but also someone you happened to care about as more than a friend, coming by your house to tell you she has cancer....

That's what happened with my dear friend in February. (To respect her privacy, I prefer to leave her name out of this column.)

I met her in the summer of 2006. She changed me in many ways. I weighed more than I had in my life at 210 pounds. Because of her, I found the initiative to drop 70 pounds. She changed me on so many levels. I grew to care about her very much over time. Then, just like one of the worst nightmares you could imagine, word came....

She dropped by my house in February to tell me the doctors had found she had cancer - life-threatening cancer. I was shocked to the very core, frozen in terror. I clung to my faith in God, my hope never wavering, not for a second. I kept the prayer lines jammed up in the sky every second for the woman who I affectionately call "the girl with the sparkling eyes and beautiful smile." Doctors threw the maximum amount of chemo and radiation they could at her to stop the cancer, as it was in the most advanced stage. The odds for survival weren't in her favor, but I had faith God would heal her.

My life hasn't been the same, as my focus has shifted in many different directions since. I've been consumed with worry but have managed to stay strong through it all. This is also the reason I've been absent recently on Low End.

The good news is that the chemo killed the cancer. The not so good news is that the chemo is beating her up pretty bad. She has to continue the chemo treatments until March at the latest.

She's been home from the hospital for a while and came by to see me this past Friday night. She's still as beautiful as ever. She's hanging in there, and I was beyond thrilled to see her. My eyes lit up like never before! (Early on in February or March, I even got her a pink iPod nano and gave it to her as part of a care package. I adore her very much.)

She's an independent woman and asks for very little. She asked me not too long ago if I could find her a used laptop, and that she would be willing to pay for it. But with all the medical bills she and her family are paying, I want to find her one and give it to her. She wants the laptop so she can keep in touch with family members in Minnesota via MySpace, along with her friends, plus she's interested in taking online courses. She would like to stay with Windows, because she knows it best.

What little she has asked of me, I've never let her down - and God willing, I don't intend to start now. I want to come through for her if at all possible!

My first request above all: Please pray for my friend and her family that God will heal her and bring her through this stronger than ever before. I know her family, and I know I personally would be forever grateful for any and all prayers. She has another surgery coming up later this month.

My second request is a plea to everyone out there: Does anyone have a Windows laptop no more than 3 years old they don't need anymore? Money is extremely tight for me as well, but I'd be willing to work out something to make it happen. It has to be in good working condition. If you or anyone you know can help with this, or if you'd like to share your thoughts, please email me at thomas (at) lowendmac (dot) com.

I'd like to end on this note: When you wake up in the morning, be thankful for each and every day. When you greet your family in the morning and in the evening, give them a hug and hang on tight. Life is but a whisper in the wind. Treasure the people whom you love dearly. Never take a second for granted.

God bless you all! LEM

Recent Welcome to Macintosh articles

Links for the Day

Recent Content on Low End Mac

Recent Deals

About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts

This article copyright ©2007 by Tommy Thomas. Entire Low End Mac website copyright ©1997-2009 by Cobweb Publishing, Inc., unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Advice presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all. Please report errors to .
  LINKS: We allow and encourage links to any public page as long as the linked page does not appear within a frame that prevents bookmarking it.
  Access our RSS news feed at http://lowendmac.com/feed.xml.
  Email may be published at our discretion; email addresses will not be published without permission, and we will encrypt them in hopes of avoiding spammers. If you prefer your message not be published, mark it "not for publication." Letters may be edited for length, context, and to match house style.
  PRIVACY: We don't collect personal information unless you explicitly provide it. For more details, see our Terms of Use.
  Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, iBook, iMac, eMac, iPod, iPhone, PowerBook, MacBook, MagSafe, Mac Pro, Apple TV, and AirPort are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are hereby acknowledged.


Have a question?
Ask an expert!

Navigation

Used Mac Dealers
Apple History
Video Cards
Email Lists
InfoMac's Low
End Mac Forum

Favorite Sites

MacSurfer
MacMinute
MacInTouch
MyAppleMenu
InfoMac
Macs Only!
The Mac Observer
Accelerate Your Mac
RetroMacCast
PB Central
MacWindows
The Vintage Mac
   Museum
DealMac
DealsOnTheWeb
Mac2Sell
ramseeker
Mac Driver Museum
JAG's House
System 6 Heaven
System 7 Today
the pickle's Low-End
   Mac FAQ
Abandonware
   Petition
Mac vs. PC Info

Affiliates

The Apple Store
Mac Connection
MacMall
TechRestore
MacResQ
ExperCom
Crucial Memory
batteries.com

Advertise

All of our advertising is handled by BackBeat Media. For price quotes and advertising information, please contact at BackBeat Media (646-546-5194). This number is for advertising only.

Open Link

Problems viewing this page with Internet Explorer 5.5 or 6? It works fine in other browsers, including IE 7. We recommend Firefox for those using Windows, as it is standards based and more secure than IE 6 (and earlier). More LEM visitors use Firefox than any other browser.