Tom's Diary

Dear Dean,

Yes, I enjoyed the visit too. I’ll let you know the next time I come to Dayton, and we can do it again. Perhaps we can start a tradition.

Here are some major points about re partitioning your hard drive.

• To repartition your hard drive, you need to boot up in DOS, and run the FDISK command. I boot from a Windows 98 startup disk. FDISK is a program for managing partitions on the hard drives in your computer – unless of course you’re running Partition Magic, or some other third party program like that.
• At any rate, FDISK displays a menu upon startup that gives you an opportunity to delete all partitions on a drive. You’ll need to know the drive number (0, 1, 2, … Etc.) that the system has assigned the drive that you want to re partition. You can learn this information by choosing the display drive information option in the FDISK main menu, then looking at the drive model numbers it displays for each of your drives. These codes usually incorporate a few letters of the manufacturer’s name or its initials, and the size of the drive.
• Once you know the drive number FDISK has assigned to the drive you want to repartition, you need to first delete all partitions from that drive. Follow the menu items to do this. They’re pretty clear. After this is done, when you display the drive information, it will tell you that the drive has no partitions. Note however that if your drive has any logical DOS partitions on it, you’ll need to delete those first before you remove the primary partitions.
• Next you want to create the new, single partition on that drive. When asked, say that you want to use all free space on this drive for the new partition.
• After the new partition is created, you’ll need to reboot your machine.
• After the reboot (again into DOS), run FDISK again and verify that the new partition has been created by using the display drive information option again. This screen should tell you the drive letter assigned to the new partition. Note this, because you’ll need to know this in order to format the new partition in the next step. Exit FDISK and get back to the DOS command prompt.
• You’ll need to format the new partition on the new drive. To do this, run the FORMAT command, which should also be on the bootable DOS disk. Follow its instructions. Depending on the size of the partition being formatted, the format operation can take the better part of an hour. So be prepared.
• Once the format is complete, you’ll need to install an operating system on that partition if it is your C drive. But I think you already know how to do that.

Good luck.

You have to make sure when you delete the partitions, that you remove ALL partitions from the drive, so that FDISK reports that the drive has no partitions. Then, when you make the new single partition, you must tell FDISK to utilize ALL the available space on the drive. Try that and see what happens.

I’m heading back to Altoona today. Can’t wait to get back into my own bedroom.

Well, I have to finish packing and buy an extra suitcase at the mall. I bought lots of books and software while here, and all of it will not fit in the suitcase I brought with me.

So take care, and I’ll talk to you later.

Tom Hesley

Dear   [Tad],

Thanks for writing. Yes, it’s been a while. I’m here in Dayton until tomorrow, when I return to Altoona. Been here for two weeks, and I’m ready to come home.

I have signed up to attend the alumni weekend in August. I’ll be bringing a guy from Overbvrook who wants to meet more people from WPSBC. His name is [Rick], and he’s always wanted to see our school up close.

Bogut? Wow. I’m definitely coming now.

Living in Altoona is going well. There’s just so much to tell you about what I’m up to. I’ll give you a call during the next couple of weeks and fill you in.

Hope your job is going well there at the school.

Sorry about not keeping in touch more. But work has been exceptionally painful the past six months. The pace is really picking up, and I’m having trouble spending so much time looking at the computer screens these days. A job change may be in order. But I’ll tell you more about that on the phone.

Well, gotta run for now. Thanks again, so much, for writing, and I’ll call you soon.

By the way, [Elstan] was undecided about my romantic proposition. So I just let it be. I felt such a triumph over getting up the guts to tell her my desires, that I think that perhaps that’s all I ever really wanted to do. It’s kind of like stripping naked in front of her, as she watches. Wow, thought of it still gives me the chills. But I guess it just wasn’t meant to be. But at least she knows now, exactly what I had been thinking about her all those years ago.

More later,
Tom Hesley

Dear [Tad],

Forgot to ask you. My friend [Rick] needs to get a hotel room somewhere near the school during the alumni weekend. I’m wondering if you know of any places. There used to be a Holiday Inn down around Pitt but I’m not exactly sure where. Perhaps you and [Morra] know of a closer place?

Thanks much,
Tom

Dear Ron,

Thanks, Ron. I’ll consider this extensively. Perhaps I could publish the booklets in both hard copy and in eBook format, and see if either one is any more successful than the other. This might reveal if going with a single publishing venue might be more profitable than doing both. At any rate, I have to write the booklets first – probably there’ll be about five of them to start. Once that’s done, the marketing issues will become a higher priority to be sure.

Tom Hesley

Dear   [Lynn],

Ah yes, those photos sure bring back some nice memories from two summers ago. Wow, we’re starting to develop quite a history of friendship. Nice.

A few minutes ago, I thought to call you. But you’d probably answer on the “bassy” phone, which means that you’re in your bedroom, and that means that, especially at this hour, you’re probably asleep. And I remember the last time I called you late, it ended up costing me a dinner at The Haven.

I’m here in Dayton at present on business. Been here a week already, and will remain here another week before returning to Altoona on June 29th. Working feverishly to get the writing / publishing business off the ground – just set up Quickbooks tonight, and I now have a web site. It is still under construction, but I hope to get some sort of introductory page up there in the next week.

http://prosaic-expressions.com

My email there is
pulse@prosaic-expressions.com

Work on the first few booklets I’m going to publish is well underway. They’ve been a truly potent experience to write and hopefully, they’ll be well received.

Haven’t decided on a logo yet, or how my business cards will look. But these tasks are nearing completion. Oh this is soooo much fun !

How are you making out? [Your business] keeping you busy?

Talk to you more later. I’m off to bed.

Take care,
Tom Hesley

Dear   [Vee],

Sure I’ll be there for you. No pressure. I’m in no hurry to do anything, and am not unhappy with things the way they are right now. Getting a new business started, which as you know, I’m in the process of doing, leaves little time and money for anything else. But I would always make time for you if you need it. I don’t want to do anything that you don’t want to do with me. So, just focus on getting your life together, and I’ll work on my business. Perhaps in a year or two, we both will be in much more enviable positions in life.   I’ll be rich, and you’ll be free of [your current husband].

If you ever need to talk, just call me. I promise I’ll listen non judgmentally.

Started working on my business plan this morning. With just a little hard work, I really think I can pull this off by sometime in 2004. And the income potential is just phenomenal!!

Also bought lots of software yesterday to help with the business – Quickbooks for handling the finances, Office XP for doing the writing and email, FrontPage for developing my business web site, and a few other packages for FAXing and business and marketing plan writing. By the way, my new web site is:
                  http://prosaic-expressions.com

and once I get my email working over there, you’ll be able to email me at:
                 pulse@prosaic-expressions.com

Well, I’m headed out the door to do more business shopping today. Hope it is not at hot today as it was yesterday.

Take care, and we’ll talk soon.

Tom

Dear   [Vee],

Congratulations on your TWO job offers. Wow.

My flight leaves Saturday, June 29th, at 3:45 PM.

What do you want to talk about?

Tom

Dear Dean,

I talked with Earl. Everything is all set. He’s picking me up at 5:45 and we’ll meet you at the club soon after that.

See you then,
Tom

Dear Chirag,

Yes, let’s do Amar India on Monday. I’ll put it on my calendar. I’ll get with you Monday morning to confirm.

Tom Hesley

Dear Dean,

Just tried calling Earl. Not home, so I left him a message.

I will be back at the hotel at around 6:00 PM tonight. Hopefully, he’ll get back to me sometime before 2:30 this afternoon, as we have a company off-site meeting scheduled from 3:00 to 5:00 this afternoon.

If you talk to him before I do, let me know. You can reach my pager voice mail at 937-865-xxxx. Leave me a message there, and I’ll be paged, and call you right back as long as I’m near a phone.

By the way, what’s your area code?

Later,
Tom