Damn Malware

Shun Wah e-mailed me and said that she also got hit by the malware.  She said several of her friends got it too.  The really scary thing is we don't know how we got it.  This is what the virus does.  You go to Google search (or Bing) and you type in a search word (or phrase).  It gives you links to pick (like usual). When you click on the link you get directed to a totally unrelated site.

At least Shun Wah knew how to fix it herself, but she had to go back to factory settings and start all over with her computer, reinstalling everything. I took mine to Cowabunga at around 10:00 yesterday morning.  The guy said he would call me daily with updates.  DAILY!!  Like how many days gonna take if he's gonna call me DAILY???!!!  He did call me yesterday afternoon. He said they were still working on hardware diagnostics. So that means they neva even work on the virus problem yet.  What's really bothering me is that after I pay $125 to fix it, and maybe even after having to remove everything and starting from scratch again, how do I prevent from getting reinfected when I don't know how I got it in the first place?  When searching online, I found that some people got infected with this misdirecting malware even though they had good protection and safeguards in place.

Right now, I'm using my old computer.  I hooked it up and can't believe it still works after being idle for years, especially since I replaced it because I thought it was gonna break soon.

So peoples please be careful . . . although I can't really tell you of what.

Malware

My computer's got some kind of malware that misdirects my search links to unrelated sites. I'm taking it into the shop. I'm pretty sure we didn't download anything recently, so how did this happen?  I feel weak.

Anyway, over and out for a bit.

Leaving Mother Lake

I got this book at the swap meet this past Saturday.  It's written by Yang Erche Namu who grew up in a remote village in the Himalayas in a region the Chinese call the Kingdom of Daughters, home to the Mosuo people, where women rule and there are no husbands.



Women here make most major decisions; they control household finances, have the rightful ownership of land and houses, and full rights to the children born to them.  From the age of 13, after being initiated, females may choose to take lovers from men within the tribe, having as many or as few as they please over their lifetime. Male companions visit the women's homes at night, but must return to their own homes in the morning. Any resulting children are raised by the woman's family. The father and all adult men are known as "uncles". There are no words to express the concepts of "father" or "husband".  In place of one father Mosuo children may have many uncles who take care of them.

I find this 2,000-year-old tradition strange, intriguing and kinda cool.  Here's more:

Swap Meet - 8/18/2012

Here are a few swap meet finds from last weekend.


This was my find of the day . . . a vintage Coach wallet.  I had a hard time understanding the seller when I asked "how much".  I couldn't tell if she was saying $8, $18 or $80.  I had to ask her around 3 times.


It was $8 and in really good shape . . . so I got it.  Score!


Geri is really into matryoshka dolls and got these for $2.   I can never remember the name for um and I end up calling um babushka dolls.


I had a tube of this for a long time and I really liked it.  It got old though so I dumped it awhile back.  I was glad to see it for sale at the swap meet.  It was $5.


Geri bought this squeak squeak toy for her dog Star.  It was $2.



I didn't buy this plant, but I thought it was so neat.  The guy said it's called a Lipstick Plant. He said that when there are a lot of flowers on it, it cascades over and is really pretty.  It was $4.


I bought this bowl for $1.


Yes, I bought more stamps . . . 50 cents each.


These papaya were 90 cents/pound . . . more expensive than a lot of the other sellers', but looked really good so me and Geri bought some.


Looks like they're from B. Shiroma Farm.


There was a little kid selling some of his toys.  We thought that was so cool.  Geri bought this helmet from him.  He was asking $1 . . . Geri gave him $2. It uses batteries so we think it lights up.


We noticed a garage sale sign on the way home so we followed it.  I got this big insulated bag for $1.  I thought Landon could use it for his drinks when he goes fishing.

Special Olympics Aukake Classic 2012

The Aukake Classic is a 2-day event where more than 400 Special Olympics coaches and athletes from throughout the state participate in Soccer and Bocce Doubles competitions.  It was held this past weekend at the Waiau District Park in Pearl City.  Here are a few photos.

Movie Day!

This past Friday was Movie Day for my working place.  We got to see ParaNorman.  Everyone had a great time . . . especially the kids who had never been to a theater before!