Wig Shots

Well, I actually liked this wig until I saw these pictures. My reflection in the mirror looks so different than this. How can that be? Maybe the photos just accentuate how incredibly pale I am? Hmm? Anyway, here they are. . . me and my new hair. I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to just getting back to having a buzz cut. Heck if my eyelashes and eyebrows would just come back I think that would even be pretty thrilling. Soon enough. . .



If you've got some time to spare read the "Camera Saga" below. Its not life-changing or really all that interesting, so please do spare yourself if you are short on time or whatever. But, if you're interested. . . read on. . .

A couple of years ago I purchased a Canon Powershot Elph SD200. It is tiny, takes fantastic pictures, super easy to use, etc, etc. Not a thing in the world was wrong with it, but a couple months ago I decided I wanted to upgrade, specifically to get a waterproof digital camera. I do so much outdoors and around water that I thought it would be nice to have a camera that could go more places with me. So, I put my little canon for sale on craigslist.com. It sold quickly and painlessly for $250, which included the case, extra memory cards and batteries, etc. The buyer said he would pay through alertpay.com and I recieved a confirmation email that the payment had been made in my name. I also recieved a pre-paid fedex label. So, I sent the camera off in anticipation that I would recieve the payment within a few days, as the email had stated. As soon as the camera was sent I recieved no further communication with alertpay or the buyer. Finally I got in touch with alertpay to inquire about the situation and they informed me that the email address from which I had recieved correspondence from them was not their address. A few emails to the buyer (that were never responded to) later I gave up. I had been had. It really did bother me for a while, but finally I let it go and just thought, one, thank goodness its just money, and two, he must have needed it a lot more than me. Sure seems like a lot of trouble for a scam though.

Meanwhile I ordered my new and improved camera, the shockproof/waterproof Olympus SW800. It arrived quickly, looked nice, had cool features and even took pictures while sitting in a glass of water. Only one tiny little problem. . . the picture quality sucked!!! Truly. So, back to the store it went, minus a 15% restocking fee and shipping charges to and from, which added up to about $70. Ouch.

So, I decided to just go back to the tried and true Canon, even though it wasn't waterproof. So, after browsing through the newer Powershot Elph models and reading reviews, I decided on the SD600. I did price checking online and ordered the best deal I could find, which happened to be through prestigecamera.com. Next, I got an email that says verbal confirmation was required on my order. When I called to confirm and declined the additional items they tried to sell me (memory cards, batteries, etc.) they became rude with me and reluctantly completed my order. Only, they didn't. 2 days later I recieved an email stating that the camera was no longer in stock. So, I tried again and ordered the next best deal I could find, which was through digitalfotoclub.com. Again I had to call to verbally confirm my order, only this time I understood that it was all about up-selling me. I politely declined everything offered to a fairly indignant customer service agent. He pressed me to tell him why I didn't want anything else and when I told him that I had purchased the items from another retailer he simply told me that my order would be cancelled. I told him I didn't want my order cancelled, just that I didn't want the extra items. He then said, "well, I don't want to sell you the camera anymore. . . why don't you buy the camera from the same place you got the memory card. . ." and then hung up on me. I called back and he refused to let me talk to anyone else, told me that he didn't have to sell me the camera and then hung up on me again. I couldn't believe it. So, finally, one last time, I ordered it again. This time it was from broadwayphoto.com. I had a very similar experience as the previous two, but this time they didn't cancel my order and the camera did come. You may think this story is finally over, but oh no, not yet. The camera arrived, only it wasn't what I ordered. It was the Japanese "equivalent" (but not necessarily equal to, as canon told me when I called them directly to inquire). What?! Seriously?! What a scam. It looked very similar, and maybe it was just fine, but the screen was incredibly grainy and there was no warranty at all. So, back to the store it went too. This time, only a 5% restocking fee plus shipping to and from, which equalled about $30.

By this time I am out a perfectly great camera, $100, and have had to deal with 3 rude customer service guys, and two months hassling over finding a new camera. What a ridiculously unneccessary fiasco. So, on my last and final attempt at buying this camera I went through amazon.com. Yes, it was a little more than some of the other places I found, but it was completely and utterly hassle free and my camera arrived in 4 short days. If only I had just gone through them in the first place I would have saved about $80. I guess my point to this story is just to warn you to be smarter than I was. Don't send off any items from an online sale without the money in your hand first. And, don't bother with those online discount companies. Just go through a known retailer, spend a couple extra dollars, and skip the headache.

One final thought. Canon cameras rock! I've had this new camera less than a day and I love it already. The size is perfect to take it anywhere and it really takes almost flawless pictures every single time.

Enough for now. . .