Dear Computer,
I have friends and family, but you are often my best friend. When life gets really wild, I need you to be the constant calm in the flurry of my day! I visit you just about every day and I rely on you to be awake (working) and cheery (making some sound, but not too loud) when I am drinking my cup of coffee and starting my day.
I look forward to your bright screen reminding me of the many opportunities that await me this new day. I plead one special request and that is: please don’t show me the blue screen of death this week, month or year. This may require a trip to the repair shop. However, if you are just not feeling well and have no other choice, please wait until my work is done for the week! If you are having just a little hiccup or minor illness, my friend Dave Winstead, will be happy to add you to his list of computer patients and make you well again!
I know it is not normal to think of you as my friend, but friends’ are loyal and true to each other. I really need you to be that kind of friend to me! You hold odds and ends of pictures and documents but you also direct me to hundreds of cases/patients each day. It is true, I have never seen these patients nor, will I share a meal with them or shake their hand but they are VERY important. Each case is unique and special and is a member of someone’s family. Their diagnosis and treatment are crucial for me to document so someday no one will suffer from cancer like we do now.
You work quite closely with my other friend, the internet! You both should be compatible and very willing to work closely together. I know you may not always like each other, but please agree to disagree and help me complete my work! Sometimes I don’t quite understand my friend, the internet as she sometimes seems to avoid me or simply not want to talk at all.
I have tried to reason with her and even used technicians to schedule an intervention. I know my friend the internet can sometimes be tired and definitely is afraid of storms. I am too, but I certainly don’t run away like she tends to do. Though this may seem odd, I actually have to pay to have a friend, the internet. This is a requirement in order for me to complete my work each day and has allowed many other people the ability to help me collect very important information about these patients that you are so kind to store the data for.
The data is used for review and analysis so one day we can pay back some favors to you, and the need for you to store this data will be a thing of the past… we hope someday we will conquer this cancer thing and be able to use you for only fun things! You are lucky to be a “computer friend” vs. a “patient friend” because you are only subject to viruses which usually can be treated successfully. I am thankful you allow me to have many friends who I spend time getting to know each day…these friends come with no cost at all!
I need to warn you that there may be some days when I am not very nice to you. I apologize for that but you see, sometimes my boss sends me a message through my internet friend, that I don’t necessarily like or agree with. Sometimes she is a real annoyance and asks me to do things other than spending time with my patient friends. Just between you and me, she can be a real pain! If I happen to shout at you or slam my fist on the desk and you feel the desk shake, please know it doesn’t mean I am upset with you…it’s just my boss ruffling my feathers and I will calm down eventually. Maybe you can help me find a way to block messages from her and then when she asks me why I never responded I can blame you for not delivering the message to me (sometimes having you provides the best excuses!)
In closing dear computer, I am thankful to have you and I hope you can be my friend as we live a nice long life side by side, together!
Your friend,
A very dedicated RPI employee