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I Am Dumb

·310 words·2 mins
Articles Assorted Geekery Personal
Daniel Andrlik
Author
Daniel Andrlik lives in the suburbs of Philadelphia. By day he manages product teams. The rest of the time he is a podcast host and producer, writer of speculative fiction, a rabid reader, and a programmer.

So one of the coolest things my dad got me for my birthday was a new computer desk to replace the cunningly stacked boxes that I have been using the last few weeks. It is very pretty and super nice. I was so excited as I moved the boxes into my spare room, and set my computer up on this new piece of furniture.

Upon setting up my computer I noticed that my speakers were no longer working, despite a functioning sound card. I adjusted the volume knob again and again. I double checked that they were properly connected to the computer, and everything was fine. It was then I noticed that the speakers were not displaying their power indicator light. Aha!

I double checked my surge protector, and found that the speakers were plugged in just fine. I tried switching outlets, and that did not improve the situation either. Puzzled, I turned off the surge protector, waited a minute and turned it on again. Still nothing.

Thoughts flew through my mind. Maybe I gave the speaker a shock when I was reconnecting it. Maybe I pulled one of the connectors too hard by accident. Swearing to myself in frustration that I may have to buy new speakers, I pulled out my screwdriver and opened them up to examine that all the wires were properly connected to the board inside. Nothing appeared out of place and with irritation I closed them up again, now convinced I was going to have to make a trip to the store to replace the speakers that came with my brand new computer.

Suddenly, a thought struck me, so embarrasing in nature I almost tossed it away out of hand. Grimacing, I examined the right speaker again, and found the answer, so simple all of my geeky solutions overlooked it.

I pressed the power button.

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