The Good & The Bad That Turned Into Good

THE GOOD:
My books for two of my first three classes were suppose to arrive here today, but I was very happy to see the UPS man yesterday leaving a box by the front door!! Yes, that box had my books in there!! I was very excited!! Last night, I even started to read the first chapter of the art history book!! I haven't gotten to any of the incredibly interesting stuff in the book yet, but I'll get to it soon enough.

THE BAD [that turned into GOOD]:
Yesterday, I was getting ready to go outside with Michael while Brayden napped. Just like I always go, I grabbed my camera to take outside with me. I saw that my lens was a little smudged, so I wanted to clean it real fast. Now, I normally don't do this, but I was in a hurry to get outside because Michael just flies out the door the second he's asked if he wants to go outside - but I grabbed the bottle of Windex and lightly misted my camera lens, went to get a paper towel, then wiped off the lens. Everything looked fine, and I went outside after Michael. About 10 minutes later, I look at my lens because something seemed a bit off. Yeah, the Windex got in my lens!! I was so upset!! The Windex wasn't even on my lens for 5 seconds after I sprayed it!! I called the Geek Squad, then went to Best Buy to get it replaced. I get to Best Buy with my sister, and I go to Customer Service. After 5+ minutes of standing there, waiting for them to tell me what's going on, they inform me that I didn't have the protection plan and replacement plan!!!! I was FUMING because I definitely told the guy when I bought the camera that I wanted every little bit of protection/replacement plan and the longest warranty possible for my camera and all of the extra stuff!!!! They then told me that I would have to pay out of pocket for a new lens, but I might be able to get up to 30% off on that new lens. I go back to the camera section of the store, talk to someone who's working in that area, and they tell me that they don't sell my lens separately there, but that I'd have to go through Sony to get a new lens!!!! Are you kidding me?! I was about to lose it - right then and there!! My sister and I just decided to walk around Best Buy and look at pretty much everything else there. About 5-10 minutes later, I take my lens cap off to look at my lens, and guess what - my lens had completely dried out!! There was no more Windex in my camera lens!!!! OMG! I was so excited!! I was so excited that I decided to look at the iPods and accessories. [I've never had my own iPod. I've always borrowed Mark's, but can't now since he took it with him on the deployment. I told him I'd get my own while he was gone.] As I was looking at the iPods, some guy there was buying an iPod and talking to a worker at Best Buy. The worker told this guy about this iPod bundle deal that they have going on. I only heard bits and pieces of it, so after they were done talking about it, I asked the worker what the deal was. The deal was amazing!! It was an 8GB iPod nano, $15 iTunes gift card, iPod wall charger, and iPod arm band for just $179.99!! Yeah, pretty effing amazing!! The 8GB iPod nano is $149.99, the wall charger is $24.99, the arm band is $24.99, and the gift card is obviously $15!! So how could I pass that deal up?! I ended up getting that stuff, and I was so excited because they had only one blue 8GB iPod nano left!! Of course I got the blue iPod because blue is absolute favorite color!! I was so pumped though because that deal was absolutely amazing!! Also, I bought season three of "How I Met Your Mother" while I was at Best Buy. "How I Met Your Mother" is my favorite show!!!! I now have the first three seasons on DVD, and can't wait till season four is on DVD!! I have been watching that show since the very first episode aired on TV. I am a huge, die hard fan and know just about everything about that show!!

I'm just so happy that my camera lens dried out!! I don't know how long I'd have to wait for a new lens to come in and how much money I'd have to spend. I would be a major crab till I got the new lens if I had to get a new one!!

I want this!! I NEED this!!!!

Ever since I got my Sony a300 DSLR camera, I have been a bit obsessed with looking for accessories for it. You know - lenses, lens filters, flashes, tripod(s), camera bag [backpack, not a little bag], etc. I'm just always searching for that "next thing I have to buy for my camera". I think it drives Mark crazy because I'm always telling him "I need this", "I need that", "I am definitely going to get that", "You know I'd get some amazing shots if I had that"...you get the idea. HA. I'm just on a quest for accessories for my camera, even though I probably won't get 95% of the things I want no matter how many times I say I need it. The Rolling Stones said it best - "You can't always get what you want." [Even though that line continues with "...but if you try sometimes, you just might find you get what you need." And I do "need" a lot of things for my camera. HA.]

So enough about the Rolling Stones and back to my camera. There is this one thing that I just always find myself staring at - hoping, praying, wishing that I have it before the year's over. I absolutely am "in love" with it!! It's just beautiful!! It's this amazing Telephoto Zoom Lens!! Go ahead, look at it...lust over it. HA. I know, I know - it's a bit pricey. However, I could put that bad boy to use quite often!! I want to become a sports photographer, so I really do need that lens!! You can't disagree with the fact that I need it - nobody can. I just think it'd be pretty bad ass if I got it before I go to USA Swimming's 2009 ConocoPhillips National Championships this July!! Can you imagine the photos I could get of Ryan Lochte, Michael Phelps, Aaron Piersol, Brendan Hansen, Dara Torres, Natalie Coughlin, and all of the other US Olympic swimmers from 2008 there?! OMG!! I could get some amazing shots of them and have such great memories of that week for the rest of my life!! [Not to mention, some pictures of hot male swimmers to drool over!! HA.] I just want to get that damn lens right now!!!!