BY DAWN REED

It was a dumb move. I was carrying too much coming in from the back porch. A pillow was under one arm, coffee mug in one hand. In the other hand, I held my laptop. It was updating as it shut down, so I needed to keep it open. As I crossed the threshold into the kitchen, I bumped the screen door. Quick as a wink, it slipped from my hand, falling flat on the concrete from shoulder height. I had never dropped it like that before but knew it was bad.

To be honest, it could have been worse. Much worse. The screen was not completely shattered-more like splintered-but it still worked. That was what mattered.

I didn’t mention the incident to my beloved.

The coolest thing is that since the “incident,” my laptop works better than ever. I won’t mention the brand, but not long after purchasing it four years ago, I had a small problem. Static electricity built up each time I used it, causing the touchpad to stop working. It was so frustrating. After several calls to customer service, I found that it was just a thing with this type of laptop. I could get it replaced, but if I switched it for the same thing, I would have the same problem. A wireless mouse was the fix. Not the end of the world.