Chapter 10: You Can't Teach An Old DOS New Tricks

A week later, Cecie was back home with Sally and Carl. She was being careful not to stress her incision or her gut. Her temperature was normal and she was finishing her course of antibiotics. She was even getting horny but Carl regretfully explained how her doctor had nixed the sex. He said, “Fortunately Darlene is covering for you.”

Her eyes got really big, then she punched him in the arm, saying, “You hurt me, you beast!” “What did I say? Besides, Becky is helping too. Ow!” “Go to work, boy, while you still can.”

By this point, the Nerdettes were a well-oiled machine. The pile of machines to be restored was shrinking quickly. Although it was repetitive, the four sisters were taking pride in their work and picking up a lot of knowledge along the way.

One day, Carl showed them a true dinosaur. An original IBM PC/AT, with a 20 MB hard drive, 80286 processor, 16 MB of RAM, two kinds of 5” floppy disk drives, PC-DOS 3.0, and Windows 3.1.

“This beast from 1986 cost about $6,000 new, which is close to the price for a new Volkswagen at that time. The two floppy drives are not cross-compatible, neither DOS nor Windows could network or reach the internet. Almost all of the original hard drives failed and had to be replaced. The Macintosh was out, but it cost about $2,500 and didn’t have a hard drive or color display.”

Finally, the big day arrived. The task was complete: all 96 systems were ready for sale. Carl had repaired nearly all of the customers’ machines. “Tomorrow evening, Ed is going to bring you to Sally’s for dinner and a soak in the spa. Ed and I will go elsewhere and do manly things for a few hours. Maybe we’ll hit the strip club. What? New York strip steaks. Can’t a guy have any fun around here? Meanwhile, Cecie can tell you how wonderful I am. No retching noises, please. Think of your father. He needs treatment for a severe estrogen overdose. One last thing: Sally has your four portable computers ordered. They’re really expensive, DOS 3.3, floppy disk drive, 9-inch monochrome screen, the works. Each about 20 pounds. And WordStar for your assignments. No, you’re right. WordPerfect, not WordStar.”

The next evening, Carl was all prepared when the (ex-) Nerdettes arrived. Proudly displayed on the coffee table was a vintage Compaq Portable “Suitcase” Computer, featuring a 9” monochrome display, floppy drive, and built-in keyboard. All four girls scowled at this wretched relic.

Sally said, “You’re a cruel man, Carl. Ladies, will you join me in the kitchen?” A furious Cecie stalked off with them. On the breakfast table were four identical silver laptops from Hewlett-Packard, with all the options. Sally gestured to Ed, “Yours is on the counter, it’s the same model but the shell is navy blue.”

After some excited discussion, the girls all hugged Sally. Turning to Carl, Helen spoke for all. “You’re really snotty, but we love you too. Now kiss us and take Daddy to the Strip Club.” Cecie raised an eyebrow. “We’ll explain later. Get moving!”