An Accidental Luddite With A Broken Money Maker

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(Edited)

I’ve been meditating for more than half my life now. The practice brings many benefits to your life but the most significant one is that it forces you to be more introspective. You begin to live more deeply, notice more of life’s subtleties. Lately, I’ve noticed a pattern of the beloved technological gadgets I use on a daily basis completely crapping out within the span of just a few weeks. It’s slowly transforming me from a tech geek to a reluctant Luddite.

Homepod Mini


First it was my, nearly new, Homepod Mini. It would become unpaired with my phone sporadically. For those of you unfamiliar with Apple’s newest “smart” speaker it’s not a traditional bluetooth speaker. Apple worked some kind of dark magic with it. The speaker is the size of a baseball but it sounds like one of those huge 1970’s tower speakers. Pairing it with your phone requires a complete reset and setting up your user profile all over again. I’m now having to do this every other day. Siri is my arch nemesis at the moment.

Broken Money Maker


Next it was my (usually) trusty 2015 MacBook Pro. Being a writer, this is my lifeline, my money maker. In fact, a few years ago my wife told me to “shake my money maker” and without missing a beat I picked up the MacBook and suggestively gyrated it from side to side. We both laughed until we cried and, of course, it’s become a running joke.

Everything began to go south in MacBookland a couple of weeks ago when the “V” key started acting up. The blasted V key alternated between not working and sticking. I tried compressed air, hoping it would blow out whatever was lodged underneath the key but it only got worse. Now the entire keyboard, including touchpad, is shorting out.

I’ve written three books on this laptop, co-crafted a few seasons’ worth of episodic sci-fi screenplays, drafted countless short stories. Let’s just say there’s history and an emotional connection there. Considering the laptop is six years old I decided to trade it in for the new 2021 MacBook Air M1. Due to supply chain problems Apple can’t get the new one here until September 8th, which is precisely why I haven’t been blogging much as of late. Steve Jobs is mocking me from the great beyond.

Keplr Dilemma


Years ago I bought an obscure ERC-20 token called Sentinel (SENT). Earlier this year the team announced their plans to swap the coin for a mainnet token (DVPN) on the COSMOS blockchain. The new coin is POS so you can stake the coin with a validator and make up to 60% APY.

I struggled a bit with the MetaMask wallet but overcame that hurdle with the help of a friend, performed the swap, saved the DVPN in the Keplr wallet, delegated my coins to two different validators, and happily began cashing in my rewards. Then suddenly, a few days ago, my password just stopped working. I had it written down so I cut/pasted it thinking this would be full proof, still nothing. I tried restoring the wallet with the seed phrase and discovered it is associated with an entirely different address and the balance in my Keplr wallet is zero.

This Keplr dilemma has completely befuddled me and no one else seems to have a logical explanation for it. The seed phrase, in theory, should recreate the exact wallet associated with it. Only it isn’t.

Maybe this Keplr dilemma is associated with my broken money maker?

Was I somehow hacked?

I’m not sure but I hope it’s #1. I’ll find out once Apple gets around to delivering the MacBook Air. For now I’ll keep drawing deep breaths with fingers crossed. One thing is for sure, it’s always an adventure in the cryptosphere.

VanPOOF

Last but not least, I lost use of my VanMoof S3 ebike as I explained in my previous post.

A Silver Lining


As I always do when a string of bad luck comes to visit I keep asking myself, What is the universe trying to teach me?

I’ve come up with two possible answers:

  1. You need a break; and/or
  2. You need to stop relying so heavily on technology.

I’m going to roll with #1 for now. In two days I’ll be unplugging almost completely, heading up to the north shore on my annual buddy trip with good friend @luckyfellow. We’re going to be staying in a tiny house in the woods just a mile from Lake Superior.

The extended weekend will be filled with hikes, good food, and I’m sure lots of laughs. I’m even bringing my old jazz clarinet up there to play. I figure I’ll be far enough from civilization that it would bother anyone too much. Now is the time to focus on the good, on what I’m grateful for (which happens to be a whole lot).

As the great Ella Fitzgerald sang, "Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall". It makes us appreciate everything else that much more.

After a little spiritual reset and nature-infused therapy I’m confident all will be right again. Shortly after I get back home the new MacBook Air will be delivered and I can look forward to shaking that new money maker. Come hell or high water I have a novel to finish and variety is the spice of life after all, right?

All for now.

With Gratitude,

Eric Vance Walton

(Gifs sourced from Giphy.com)



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Poetry should move us, it should change us, it should glitch our brains, shift our moods to another frequency. Poetry should evoke feelings of melancholy, whimsy, it should remind us what it feels like to be in love, or cause us to think about something in a completely different way. I view poetry, and all art really, as a temporary and fragile bridge between our world and a more pure and refined one. This is a world we could bring into creation if enough of us believed in it. This book is ephemera, destined to end up forgotten, lingering on some dusty shelf or tucked away in a dark attic. Yet the words, they will live on in memory. I hope these words become a part of you, bubble up into your memory when you least expect them to and make you feel a little more alive.

Pick up a copy of Ephemera today on Amazon.



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Most of us have experienced a moment of perfect peace at least once in our lives. In these moments we lose ourselves and feel connected to everything. I call these mindful moments. Words can’t describe how complete they make us feel.

These moments are usually fragile, evaporating in seconds. What if there was a way to train your mind to experience more of them? It’s deceptively easy and requires nothing more than a subtle shift in mindset. My new book, Mindful Moments, will teach you to be much more content despite the chaos and imperfect circumstances continuing to unfold around you. Upgrade your life experience today for only $15.99 on Amazon.com.



Let’s Keep In Touch

www.ericvancewalton.net



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22 comments
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Sounds like you got hacked. Your restore key passphrase should work no matter what. As you say you got metamask to work "with the help of a friend" Maybe your friend is not as friendly as you thought!

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I would think that too if I didn't trust this friend as much as I do. There's zero chance they would do something like that so it has to be some kind of error on my end. I'm hoping this glitchy MacBook didn't type some random "v" as I was setting up my password. I would have had to do the seem random thing twice for the wallet to accept the password when I set it up.

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(Edited)

My metamask is weird, I have 2 accounts, and whenever I log out of one and into the other on the same browser it will not let me in with the correct password. I always have to restore, so now I just use two separate browsers. As long as you have the pass key phrase, those are words so then the Mac would not have been able to interject any extra letters. That has happened to be before, I've had random letters added when I copy and paste. Did you know one of the permissions on metamask is we grant it permission to actually add characters into the copy and paste? We'll good luck, I hope you get it all figured out.

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Oh wow, that sounds horrible. I am sorry to hear you have been having such bad luck. If it makes you feel better, working in technology I can honestly say it isn't just you. It probably feels like it is though! I picked up one of the M1 Mac Mini's a little bit after they were released, but I haven't played around with it too much yet. It's really just been sitting on my desk for months not being touched. Isn't that a crime!? I just bought a new LG Windows Laptop and I am loving it so far. I hope you get your Macbook sooner rather than later. I had some iPads that took all Summer to show up.

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Thanks man. You have more patience than I do. When I get a new piece of tech I can't help but dive in. I'm going to appreciate the lighter MacBook Air when I travel. You wouldn't think 3.5lbs would feel heavy in a backpack but when you're trudging through airports you start to feel it. LG makes a great product, I'm glad you're happy with it! Wow, all summer? Those iPads must not have had the M1 chip?

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Oh wow, I can only imagine! This LG is only two pounds so most of the time I feel like I am going to break it! I am not sure about the ipads. We got 10 of the 15 right away and then the other five took three months or so.

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Hey there, Friend,

I resemble many of your remarks...

My MacBook (circa 2014) is in dire straits - touchpad no longer 'clicks,' the battery is badly swollen, and the keys (which OUGHT to be double-shot injection molded) have the letters worn off of them from much good use.

Nevertheless, despite serious disappointment with and misgivings about several things Apple, I purchased another MacBook (this time an Air, with the new M1 chip).

It's been mostly OK so far, though Text Edit crashes!!! (pretty scary that they can't even seem to get that basic utility program right, and won't respond to crash complaints).

Even so, the Air is pretty much the only game in town for a fan-less, long-battery-life, ultra light weight portable.

Eric, here's hoping you have a great break, and that you enjoy your new MacBook Air. :)

😄😇😉

@creatr

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Wow, you got one more year out of yours! I own a 2010 too that I never sold or traded in. It doesn't hold a charge anymore but the keyboard works perfectly. If I could combine my 2010 and the 2015 I'd have a perfectly functioning laptop!

The Air is such a good value. If you're stuck in the Apple ecosystem I don't think there's a better choice unless you're a hardcore gamer or video editor. Did you spring for the 8 Core/16gb memory? Kind of scary that you're having an issue with Text Edit.

Thanks @creatr. Good to hear from you! Take care of yourself.

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Take a break friend and enjoy a few days of vacation. Sometimes the body asks for a pause and it is necessary to listen to it and heed that call. I have wanted to take a few days off, but between work and the whole pandemic issue, it has not been possible. Greetings, a big hug for you.

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Thanks! This will be a welcomed pause. There's really nothing but nature on the north shore and that is just what I need right about now. I hope you're having a great week!

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I am sorry for the bad streak dear friend @ericvancewalton, I think I would also lean towards option one, when one is exhausted, it is vulnerable to bad energies and we attract all these things
I hope the tokkens find a solution.
You do very well to disconnect and clear your mind a bit
enjoy this rest

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Thanks my friend! It’s great up here so far. It’s much cooler up here than where we live. I hope you’ve had a great week!

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No cycling while heading up to the north shore? It seems you will run away from city for a while, to rest your head. Have good times, enjoy.

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No cycling on this trip. We’ll be doing lots of hiking though. Thanks!

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A vacation is always a great idea. Enjoy!
I'm trying to unplug from as much as I possibly can. Luddite sounds good to me.

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Thank you! It’s definitely been great to unplug for a few days.

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Oh dear.. those low moments comes when they just want to and sometimes, it doesn't even matter if we were trying to avoid them or didn't factor them in the first place. But like you said, what is the universe trying to teach us? Everything works out for the greater good.

I'm glad you're back and running.

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So true! Some of these trials and tribulations are unavoidable. I think it's more about searching for the meaning in them and not allowing them to put us into a psychological tailspin. Thanks!

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