Orders From Last Year Arrive...

arc here -

I came home from work today to find two packages on my counter.

I ordered these things before the New Year, and thanks to the festivities, they were delayed for almost 2 weeks.

I didn't immediately rip into them; I know what were in the boxes.

After I helped set up dinner, I opened the first one: my SB-600 Speed Light.

You could not imagine the biggest grin I had on my face. I pulled the flash unit out of its case and set it down on the table, and just said to myself "Holy cow, this thing is awesome." I inserted the batteries and when I turned it on, a high pitched whine indicated that the thing was live.

I hit the "flash" button. It flashed.

"Holy crap!!"

I hit the "flash" button a couple more times.

"OMG, THIS THING IS AWESOME!?!"

I stuck it on my camera and started shooting my dog. I felt like a freaking kid in a candy shop.
I kept fiddling. Kept shooting. Kept flashing.

I typed to AngryToast: "OMG, THIS FLASH UNIT IS AWESOME. TTL I LOVE YOU!"

His response was appropriate: "I....I'll leave you two alone."

Good move Toast. Good move. I went back to flashing.

My dog was seriously looking pissed.

I ran back to my room and packed it in again. I gathered my breath, calmed myself down. Enough.

The second box: brown evolv casual shoes.

"Oh. MY. WOW."

They looked better than they did online.

I was a little nervous about size, I just winged it and went with my gut size of 9.5.

I pulled it on. The wall of the shoe was stiff, very similar to my rock climbing shoes. I seated my heel. I wiggled my toes. Extended my foot and looked at it.

"Holy crap, it's a perfect fit!"

I pulled on the other shoe and walked around. They felt really good.

I was grinning like a freaking idiot.

I hopped around a bit. Looked at them. Hoooo boy. These are hot.

As I pulled the shoes off, I realized that I wasn't going feel like this for another year.

...

With the exception of an additional package coming, these are literally the last things I'll have purchased in 2006.

I felt sad. Depressed. Uneasy. Nervous.

This wasn't supposed to happen.

But I looked at the SB-600 nestled in the non-descript brown box, the brown shoes I've wanted for a year...and I can't help but smile.

This feeling will happen again.



Just not this year.