Lögberg-Heimskringla - 15.05.2016, Qupperneq 4

4 • Lögberg-Heimskringla • May 15 2016
VISIT OUR WEBSITE WWW.LH-INC.CA
Returning home from the engaging and enjoyable annual convention of the
Icelandic National League of
North America, I was expecting
a busy but energizing week as we
prepared this issue of Lögberg-
Heimskringla, with its coverage
of the convention. Having taken
notes through all the sessions I
attended, I began to write aboard
the plane, even though I found
myself in a middle seat, which is
a cumbersome place to try to do
anything except vegetate until
the flight is over.
On Monday morning, the
unexpected happened – my
laptop crashed. Despite repeated
attempts at resuscitation, every
effort to turn it on resulted in a
screen that looked remarkably
like an abstract painting I can't
understand. Now, I'm pretty
savvy with computer technology
but, by Tuesday, I realized I was
going to have to shift operations
to the old desktop computer
in my study. I've only kept it
around because I'm too lazy to
clean off its hard drive and send
it on to digital heaven. Confident
that the data was secure on my
laptop and will just have to
await a trip to the repair shop,
I switched desks and began
working at my desktop.
All was going well until
a software glitch developed
and the desktop wouldn't
let me save new files, only
existing ones – a glitch I only
discovered about a thousand
words too late. So I dug out an
old laptop – the newest of the
seven such machines stored in
a spare room along with two
old desktops – and I continued
working, transferring files
back and forth between two
antiquated machines while
trying to remain calm. Sitting
in my study surrounded by
three computers, an iPad, and
an iPhone – all held together
by metaphorical gum – I
desperately wanted to pace back
and forth while growling, but I
was tethered to my workstation
and a looming deadline.
This week has turned out
nothing like expected. I've
cancelled appointments I'd
hoped to keep, worked through
the evening every day, and
accomplished things at half the
normal pace, if that. Computer
technology brings us many
blessings and efficiencies, but
it also brings us new problems
to deal with. Yet I'm not
inclined to complain. Most
days, the benefits far outweigh
the problems. In producing
a newspaper, computer
technology has greatly simplified
the processes of writing and
editing, layout and distribution.
It has unleashed opportunities
for creativity that could scarcely
have been imagined in the
days when newspaper content
was handwritten and the type
handset, with much effort and
without many illustrations.
"The computers are down"
is not something we hear much
anymore, but we still like to
grumble about our technology
when it fails to meet our needs
in the moment. I still marvel
at it, though. My brother and
I both own cottages a few
miles away from where our
Icelandic ancestors first settled
along the western shore of
Lake Winnipeg. We used to
joke about only having dial-up
internet at the lake, "just like our
ancestors before us," while we'd
sit around watching satellite
television. Our water there
comes through taps, the waste
is carried away effortlessly, we
cook on electric stoves, and
we light house and yard with
the flick of a switch. So before
lamenting my computer woes
and launching into a chorus of,
"Nobody knows the trouble I've
seen," I must pause and remind
myself of the real hardships
faced by the first wave of
immigrants here and even the
generation or two that followed.
A computer problem might be
mentally exhausting, but my life
is still pretty easy compared to
that of past generations, not to
mention the troubles faced by
those in other parts of the world.
This week's trials have been
"First World problems," as the
popular saying goes.
So I hope readers enjoy this
issue of Lögberg-Heimskringla
because it has taken a lot more
effort than usual to bring it to
fruition – perhaps almost as
much effort as editors had to
give it a century ago, each and
every week, year after year.
Even in a trying week, modern
life is good.
Lögberg-
Heimskringla
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Heimskringla stofnað 9. september 1886
Lögberg stofnað 14. janúar 1888
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THE BLESSINGS AND TROUBLES OF COMPUTERSStefan's Saga
Stefan Jonasson
Editor
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EVERYONE WELCOME
Lögberg-Heimskringla is interested in hearing from individuals who
attended the recent Icelandic
National League of North
America convention in
Vancouver, British Columbia.
What was your experience of
this year’s convention? What
did you find most valuable?
Which presentations really
caught your attention? Who
did you meet that made a
difference? What did you
learn about Iceland, the
Icelandic community in
North America, or yourself?
Send your submissions
to the editor and include
photos, if you would like:
stefan@lh-inc.ca.
Did you attend the Vancouver convention?
First Lutheran Church
580 Victor Street
Winnipeg R3G 1R2
204-772-7444
www.mts.net/~flcwin
Worship with us
Sundays 10:30 a.m.
Pastor Michael Kurtz
Photo attribution
– Chicago Þorrablót
The photographs
that accompanied Lena
Hallgrímsdóttir’s article,
“Chicago Þorrablót draws
record attendance“ (May 1,
2016), were taken by Anna
Kárdal and Elva Johnson.
PHOTO: STEFAN JONASSON