My Trip to the Apple Store: It's a Whole New World

Today I bought my first Apple computer.

Let me back up and tell you how it happened. I have been using my third, and current, HP laptop computer for 5 years. It’s been a loyal workmate, accompanying me through several different businesses, through innumerable writing projects, spreadsheets, newsletters, grant proposals, graphic design experiments, and thousands upon thousands of emails and other internet episodes. I pay homage to my old machine and send gratitude into cyberspace for all it has provided me.

This is what I would have written 3 days ago:“My faithful PC has developed a few problems.The fan doesn’t work reliably, which means that from time to time, unexpectedly, my computer just shuts itself off. Another thing: the hinge springs on the lid to my laptop broke, so the monitor portion has to have something to lean on. So, if I’m going to Panera’s, for instance, for coffee and internet fun, I have to lean my monitor against the wall. And of course, like all aging things, my computer has reeeaaallllyy slowed down. I’m plagued by unwanted automatic functions gone awry....So, yes, there are lots of annoyances with my computer, but it is still mostly doing the job for me.”

I’m a loyal person; I don’t give up easily on a relationship – even with my computer, or my car, or a slightly worn-out vacuum cleaner.I’m loyal to a fault when it comes to machinery.

So, here’s how I knew it was time to say goodbye.

I completely lost all wireless capability. One morning I woke up, booted up, and prepared to sign up for something online and there it was, the error message.“This computer does not have wireless capability.”It was if the old woman had suddenly lost all her teeth overnight.I felt a chill, a cold snap go through my brain. A message flew in from the ethers: “This is the beginning of the end.” Clang. Suddenly my loyalty went out the window. That’s the way I am – take heed friends and family – I’ll stick with you through thick and thin, weather many a storm with you with relatively little complaint – but there will come a breaking point, a point at which I’ll say: “That’s it.”And after that, there’s no turning back.

So, that meant that, dread of dreads, I had to face the prospect of buying a new computer.That meant that I needed to borrow someone else’s computer so I could go online to compare prices, read reviews, get into the latest consumer data about personal computers, find the best place to purchase, blah blah blah.This was not something I had planned on.

Nonetheless, I found myself with some free time the next day and so got in the car with every intention of driving to Best Buy to at least see what they had to offer.And then I remembered that someone had just told me about a new Apple Store in Lexington. Hmmmm.... I had become curious about this phenomenon known as the Apple Store after Steve Jobs died and Apple Stores began appearing in the news with little memorials to his life. His customers were going down to their stores, in Manhattan, in Chicago, in Paris, and placing flowers and messages and photos at the door. That’s rather unprecedented in corporate America as far as I can recall? So, unbeknownst to me, that is to say, without a real decision on my part, my car began driving itself to the Apple Store. My thought was, “I’ll just stop by for a few minutes and look around, and then I’ll go to Best Buy.”

So, and if you have a penchant for beautiful design, positive environments, or the general aura of excellence, and if you haven’t had this experience yet -- you really do owe it to yourself -- I walked into the Apple Store in Fayette Mall. Right away I sensed something different. The light I think. Maybe it was whiter? Not sure, but there was definitely something drawing me in.

I immediately began to smile all over.

The smell of adventure was in the air. I felt a little thrill, a kind of delight that usually dawns on me when I’m looking at something new and beautiful, or contemplating a bold move. The clean design, the soft hum of people talking in pairs, the rows of gleaming laptops, desktop computers, i-Phones.... Clear open space, but still a feeling that you belong there somehow. A kid’s area, not stuffed with stupid plastic toys and worn-out books, but with computers, big beautiful computers, and round spongey ball-seats for little people to sit on and play games. What’s more, these round spongey ball seats had many children sitting on them! There was such a feeling of community in that store – it felt like a hi-tech hang-out, and everyone there looked thoroughly engaged.

Probably one of the most striking things about being in the Apple Store is the quality of the people working there. It’s immediately obvious.They’re all dressed in snazzy red t-shirts or hoodies with little apples on them. There is an unmistakable air of excellence.It’s apparent these (mostly) young people are proud to be working there. They are confident and well-trained; they know what to do. When you walk in the door, someone approaches you and asks “How can we help?” Then they immediately hook you up with your own smart, articulate, red-shirted personal adviser who just stays with you until you’re done asking questions.(“Gosh, I don’t think this would have happened at Best Buy,” I must have been thinking.)

You know what else? They have something called the Genius Bar, and once you own a Mac, you can make an appointment to meet with one of the geniuses, for One on One coaching to learn anything you want to learn about your computer and its software.(You have to pay for this privilege, but it’s cheap and covers an entire year.)

So, I got my guy – a beautiful young man, a former soldier, with a big smile and that air of confidence mixed with warm helpfulness that is so seductive.Before I knew it, I started asking him questions. How much of my data would I lose if I switched from a PC to a Mac? “None,” he answered. (This, by the way, turned out to be true.) And on we went, with my brain churning up surprisingly detailed and on target questions – the ones you would ask if you were actually planning to make a purchase, which I certainly was not. “Tell me about the advantages of the desktop vs. the laptop,” I asked, just to keep the game going a little longer.

This went on for about 10 minutes.He had a really good answer to my every query. And then, much to my surprise, and to his surprise, too, I heard myself say, “I’ll take it.” Just like that. And then I started laughing. Really, I was overtaken by a kind of giddy euphoria.Yes, it is true that I had promised myself 5 years ago that my NEXT computer would be a Mac, but I still was not planning on springing for the extra cash required to make that happen. Yes, it is true that I make my living highly dependent on computer technology and having a state-of-the-art computer would make a real difference for me professionally, but I wasn’t emotionally ready to tackle the learning curve of a new operating system.So, giddiness was probably in order, because I had just made a quantum leap. I had crossed over into the promised land.

Purchasing this beautiful computer has done more, however, than provide a new shiny machine. It has uplifted me! Every day I do my affirmations and visualize an expanded and improved life in the future, dutifully, and each time I try to conjure up the feeling of what it would be like to have those changes take place. This is well known to be the right approach when employing that grand old Law of Attraction. So, here’s what I want you to know, all you visualizers.Sometimes taking a leap forward, just moving ahead more quickly, making a quantum leap, gives you that very feeling. Because I’m now typing out this little piece on my new iMac, sitting in the comfort of my own living room, I feel uplifted to that new future. I’m already there. Doing my affirmations today felt completely different. Nothing seemed far fetched to me; nothing was too great to imagine.

So, hurry on over to your Apple Store, get your zing on, and see what happens.Or do something comparable that will have meaning to you – something that you’ll be confronted with every day, something that represents true, fast progress. May it carry you forward into the future on wings

p.s. If you’d like to see some of the uses I have for my computer, visit:

· stayactivelonger.wordpress.com

· meriahkruse.teamasea.com

· befreetomove.com