Our First Computer Was An Apple... Steve Jobs Will Be Missed

The news was kind of expected... since I had seen photographs of Steve Jobs not too long before he passed away and I thought he looked so thin and unhealthy. I guess I just didn't expect the news so soon, on October 5th, 2011, that he had passed away from pancreatic cancer at the age of 56.

So young... this man was an absolute technology genius and a visionary. The world was changed forever by his brilliance. One lady upon hearing the news had this to say, a quote she remembered being said by Steve Jobs: "The people who think they are crazy enough to change the world are the ones who do," said Cory Moll, a 29-year-old employee at Apple's downtown San Francisco store. She then went on to say "He's really someone special. To hear that he is gone--he's going to be missed." I couldn't have said it better.

I remember back in the mid 1990's when we got our very first computer and it was an Apple. I was afraid of the thing at first! I would watch my husband do things on it and I think it took me about three months of just watching what he did and how he did it before I was brave enough to venture out on my own and use it.

In 1998, we got one of the "space ship" Apple McIntosh computers. At least that's what I called them because of all the different colors that were available, and the strange way they were shaped... they looked like no other computers out there. The thing is, they were so simple to use, which I absolutely loved!

Since I've started using a computer, it has totally changed my life. One of the first things I learned to do on it was email. After that, I became totally enthralled with websites that existed at the time to provide information about country singers, and my personal favorite singer at the time was Alan Jackson.

I would look over websites that were created to inform people about his work, albums that were available, pictures, and general information. At that time, I don't even think he (Alan Jackson) had a "official" website. The websites that I found were ones that had been made primarily by fans of his. Early on, these fans had the wherewithal to create websites when it seemed as if most of us were just learning how to use computers. I loved that I was able to find out about upcoming tour dates. That made planning to go to a concert so much easier.

I learned how to use "chat rooms" and message boards, and in the process made some friends back in the mid 1990's who are still friends today! We have communicated for years through the internet and also in person. We've met up at concerts in different cities, all because of a mutual love of country music. We have watched each others children grow up and have given each other advice on raising them. We have been there for each other through sorrow and tears and through the happy times.

A man like Steve Jobs comes along so rarely, sometimes only once in a lifetime. But the legacy that he left behind him is forever. Here are two of my favorite quotes of his:

"Here's to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes... the ones who see things differently — they’re not fond of rules... You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can't do is ignore them because they change things... they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do."

"The only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it."

Brilliantly said, by a very wise man... Mr. Steve Jobs... you will fondly be remembered always! Gone too soon ~

Steve Jobs ~ 1955-2011.