Friday, February 19, 2010

Anticipation (New Camera Lens)

Anticipation is going to bed on Christmas eve, wondering what gifts Santa Claus will bring.  It's a child putting a tooth under her pillow, wondering if the Tooth Fairy's rates have gone up in the thirty years since her parents were kids.  And it's the cheap bastard, waiting for a package to be delivered via UPS Ground because air shipment was ten bucks more.

I ordered a Nikon 12-24mm camera lens online last week.  The street price is about $1,000, so I bought it used through KEH.com, saving about $300.  Being one quarter Jewish (on my mother's side), I selected the most cost-effective shipping option, UPS Ground.  The nice thing about UPS is one can track the delivery status online.  In this case, the lens was scheduled for delivery on Wednesday, 17 February.  On Wednesday, I was in the office, tracking the package hour by hour, minute by minute, and second by second.  At 7:25 AM, it was out for delivery.  The status didn't change until 2:03 PM, when the status changed to, "Delivery rescheduled to 2/18."  The detailed status indicated the UPS driver attempted to deliver the package but nobody was home to sign for it.  We've received millions of packages via UPS over the years and we've never had to sign for one.  But, I guess it makes sense, KEH wouldn't want a $700 lens sitting on one's door step waiting to be stolen before the purchaser accepted possession.

According to the notice left on the door by the UPS driver, the package would be delivered on 2/18, between 2-5 PM, so I decided to work from home on Thursday.  There was no way I was going to miss the delivery again.  My wife and I remained vigilant, listening closely for the UPS truck and the door bell.  Only one of us was allowed to use the bathroom at any given time, leaving the other available to sign for the package.  I looked out the window every time a truck drove by…darn, it was the garbage man, then the neighbor's landscaper, then a moving van...then a UPS truck!  At 3 PM, a UPS truck was delivering a package to a house on the next street.  Anticipation set in...I must be next.  I patiently watched and waited.  The driver set two large boxes on the door step of the house, turned around, walked back to his truck, buckled his seat belt...and drove off.  WHAT THE HECK???!!!! (not my exact words, but this is a rated PG-13 blog).  For the next three hours, I checked the clock, hour by hour, minute by minute, and second by second.  At 6:06 PM, I finally heard another UPS truck and I immediately jumped up to put on some warm clothing.  I planned on running outside and laying down in front of the truck until he handed me my package.  Fortunately, he showed up at the door before I could get outside.  I opened the door and said, "Hi, you're my favorite person today."  He replied, "Oh, you say the nicest things."  He was probably thinking, "Oh, you're gay..."  I explained I was waiting for this package, then signed for the package, thanked him, and closed the door.  I finally had my lens.  Some days I wonder....why can I spend $700 on a camera lens, but not the extra $10 to get it quicker?

After this experience, I can now empathize with my poor daughter...all those times she'd wake up in the morning, only to find out the Tooth Fairy was a no-show.  Twenty four hours later, she would get five bucks (more than normal...but, the Tooth Fairy probably felt guilty).

The opening picture is a test shot taken at 12mm (equiv to 18mm in 35mm film) and f/8.  Not the best lighting and not the best subject, but it's supposed to rain soon, so I took a few quick shots from the driveway.  I plan on taking more test shots tomorrow, weather permitting.

Below is a shot taken at 12mm and f/11.  Notice the unexpected lady and her dog entering the frame and wondering why this guy has a tripod set up in his driveway taking pictures of the neighbor's house.

1 comment:

  1. Your anticipation of the arrival of your lens is hilarious! I couldn't stop LOL'ing. FYI: the tooth fairy has no-showed at our house too.

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