I sent my friend in Boston some money to source parts and build me a computer. He mailed it out last week, and I just finished setting it up with his help. Not only did he upgrade the parts and build me a PC (we named her Ladybird after the dog in King of the Hill), but he also downloaded a whole swath of emulators onto it.

Rather than needing a console or physical game cartridge, emulators allow you to play beloved classics from your computer with ease, and I’m getting to replay some childhood classics – mostly Pokémon Game Boy games, along with some other emulators, such as Mario Kart Wii (a staple from my college days).

I don’t have much experience with computers, though I’m excited to dive in with my custom-built PC!

He also got me the laptop I use to write all my articles for free thanks to his job – as a humanities dude, it helps to have tech-y homies!