Phew x 2.

Ok, bullet dodged. Data is fine, hard drive recovered. Backup external hard drive on its way to me. Wallet is lighter after this computer debacle/escapade, but so it goes. Now I need to decide if I can afford another laptop... sigh.

In the meantime, hope everyone out there had a great 4th of July. Mine was spent cursing the trend of planned obsolescence in the field of electronics. Happy Independence Day!