Last week, my new computer arrived.

I had ordered it over the phone with help from the Web. My 4-year-old HP Pavilion that I bought at Wal-Mart was doing fine. But, as in cars, printers and lots more, something pops into my head that says, "Andy, time for a new one."

I admit I'm an impulsive buyer. I once bought a car over the phone and a house without my wife's input, but I survive to tell the tale.

I like HP. I once worked for an adopted child of theirs, Digital Equipment, which was acquired by Compaq, which was bought by HP.

About three years ago, we were on a river cruise down the Elbe and some friends each had little pocket PCs with books loaded onto them. In the dead of night, you could go to the lounge and see them reading their books from their pocket PCs. I was hooked on this, and when we got home I investigated these instruments, thinking it would be great to read in the dark without disturbing my honey.

This time I decided to be a more discriminating buyer and researched the pocket PCs for about an hour. I found that I could buy one for about half price if I got a "refurbished" unit. Got it. Loaded some books on it. Read a few pages and put it away in my desk drawer, where it still resides. Even at a bargain, it still was about $300. Now it just sits there.

I'm destined to read hard-copy, hands-on books that will fit on my elliptical at the Fix & Flex workout center. Because that's the only time I read.

Anyway, I looked into the Dell products, with their impressive ads coming in just about every newspaper edition I receive. But I bought from HP because their "refurbished" unit came with free shipping and a three-year free warranty.

My new HP dc7600 (refurbished) sits happily in the place of the old Pavilion and is many seconds faster. The refurbished computer was about 40 percent below the cost of a new one.

Because I have so much stuff of an important nature written on the old PC, I wanted to make sure I backed everything up before transitioning to the 7600.

As I procrastinated over the time of arrival of the new box, I began to worry about all the important things from the Pavilion I needed desperately.

At 3:30 a.m. on the day after the arrival of the new machine and the arrival of the Mobile Computer Doctor, whom I employed to make a "seamless" installation, I began to copy files.

The Computer Doc showed up at the appointed time and began his chore.

"Need anything saved from the old computer?" he asked. Affirming this, he took out the hard drive from the Pavilion and copied it onto my new box, obliterating anything I did to preserve previous files. So much for the 3:30 a.m. exercise.

In retrospect, I probably should have just contacted The Pilot columnist Sandy Berger, who is a local computer expert.

I'm now pumping away at my new machine and am quite satisfied. But I know there are many important files still back there in never-never land that I would very much like to access.

I've got my Pavilion slated for a good new home. One of my pals has three of his old computers stashed away, including a Kaypro. Now that's a relic.

More thoughts:

-- The reception for the inaugural Delta flight and service into SOP (Pinehurst) was uplifting. The support offered to Delta for our local service was extraordinary. While in Chapter 11, they took us on, and hopefully, we can improve their profitability.

I remember when Delta was one of the most successful airline ventures.

I'll never forget the conversation I had with Jimmy Carter's mom, Lillian, in the Delta Crown Room in Atlanta. She had just made a speech somewhere in Alabama. She was very outspoken.

Sandhills residents and organizations were overly generous at the reception, pulling for the success of the new Delta undertaking.

-- Let North Korea launch their missile. What's the big deal? They have a rocket, but the country still awaits indoor plumbing. The guy is nuts. Let it rip!

What's all the fuss about? We taxpayers have paid big bucks to protect our land, including anti-warfare missiles. Send it over, North Korea, and we'll blast it out of the sky! Target practice.

-- Gen. Manila Shaver got his quota of backers to put his name on the ballot. Has he ever announced what his agenda is? We don't know what his position is on anything. Don't get fooled by his questionable motives to defeat Joe Boylan. Shaver is a political nuisance.