So our relatively new computer starts making growling noises last night, right before I had to get to bed in order to wake up early to continue working off the flab I managed to put on at my last assignment. (20 pounds in 2 months thank you very much.) So when I got off work tonight I popped the case open, hoping and praying that it’s just a little dust and not a power supply getting ready to take a dive and OMFG THE INSIDE OF MY COMPUTER IS FURRY! I could knit another cat with the fur that’s accumulated in there.

So I power off the ‘puter pull out the Kirby Supersucker (a 2000 model that’s still working better than anything else I’ve ever paid that much for), attach the hose and begin to suck out the fur that has managed to accumulate in every nook and cranny of the box paying particular attention to the power supply fan, the CPU fan, and the fan that blows across the motherboard. I also got the bear rug that had formed on the bottom of the computer. Okay. Should be good now.

I leave the case open because…well because to close it would be a sure fire way to ensure that I’d have to open it again. It’s sort of a rule. I power up the box again and…no growl…no growl…everything is sounding right. All the fans are running at full capacity with great air flow. Cool. I go to put the cover back on the case and GROWLLLlllllllllllllllllllllllllll. I knew it.

Okay, where the hell is that coming from? I turn off the box again and hit all the fans with the vacuum again. I power it back up: GROWWWWWLLLLllllllllllllll. Instead of turning it off I start poking and prodding around with a finger. By the way, important safety tip, even though those fans are low powered and plastic, they really kinda hurt when you poke your finger in them when they’re running. None of the fans are vibrating…but if I could figure out how to hook the video card up to a bed, I could put magic fingers out of business.

So I undo the screw and pop the…pop the…push the little thingy that allows me to pop the card out and…exactly how can there be that much fur stuck in that teensy weensie little fan? That shouldn’t be possible. It’s like compressed fur. It’s fur concentrate. Hit that with the vacuum and…it doesn’t more. It’s staying there. Okay, take out the jeweler’s screwdriver set take out the tiniest screwdriver and see if I can’t…CLUNK. Okay, it’s more than fur concentrate, it’s now the Kevlar of cat fur. Okay, maybe I can get under it…and nowwwww…it exploded? The fur is now the consistency of…fur. Apply vacuum and it’s all gone.

I go to put the card back in it’s slot and…sigh…the slot is furry. Vacuum and it’s all gone. Anything else? I shine the flashlight all around. No more apparent fur.

I pop the…I pop the…I push the little thingy that lets you pop the card back into the slot. Screw the card back in. Plug the monitor back in, start the computer…ahhhhhhhhhh, no growl. I wait five minutes, still no growl. NOW I put the cover back on the case and all is good.

Cats.

UPDATE: Right before bed last night…GRRRROOOOWWWLLLllllllllllll.