February is historically a quiet month of Blogging, but it’s not usually quiet so quiet. So quiet that it lasted a third of the way into March.

Really quiet.

That isn’t to say that things have been happening, because they certainly have been, though maybe none of them have been as exciting as the disintegration of my favorite piece of outerwear. I just haven’t found a way to tell you about any of it.

Tonight I am reinstalling my entire operating system from scratch.

I’ve never done it before. Previously I just ran a computer into the ground – installing and uninstalling programs hoarding media files until I had run down to my last 5% of hard drive and then escaping to a newer machine, spending years delving into the last castaway to grab important files.

I’ve known since July 2004 that I wanted to reinstall my system. At the time I fought off a deadly Coolweb infestation, and ever since my computer hasn’t been the same – notably, I haven’t run any version of IE or NET Framework since then. Yet, every feint at reinstalling was quickly aborted – too many files to corral, too much mixing to fit onto any number of DVDs, too many programs and drivers to reacquire.

With each failed attempt at reinstalling my eDisorganization continued to swell. More files, more priceless audio, more programs, more peripherals with hard-to-find drivers. The accompanying implication was that if my computer actually succumbed to a virus or worm my life would be completely irrecoverable – a computer meltdown would surely be accompanied by some sort of real life Seppuku.

Six months ago I finally started digging out of the eDisorganization, eventually backing up all of my data to an external hard drive. Half a year after I began, I’m finally ready to take the plunge, which probably won’t be much of plunge at all, since I have everything I need redundantly backed up and ready to reinstall.

I’ve rendered the possibility of a meltdown completely obsolete. For the first time I don’t feel as if I am merrily running into the ground, blithely unconcerned at how I might survive.

I’m safe.

And, not just on my computer.