You said you were going to order the studio lights for the wedding next month.

Self, sometimes you're a pain in the ass. I didn't order the studio lights, but I did order the Nikon (Nikkor) 28 - 70mm f 2.8 lens. I've been using the 35 - 70mm f 2.8 for most of my shooting. It was, in fact, the first Nikon lens I ever bought. The 28 - 70 versus 35 - 70 doesn't seem like much of a difference, the same f 2.8 and all that, but it's the best glass Nikon makes of the type I use for most of my shooting. (I use the 135mm f 2.0, which I love, for much of the rest. I own others, and they're wonderful - yes, yes - but I could live without them.) The 28 - 35 costs about the same as a good set of studio lights, so I can say I struck a blow today for consumerism, American consumerism defined as blowing it on Japanese cameras.

Mumble.

Well, they say it's sharper and faster and shinier and cuddles up closer and warmer and worth every penny. They say that. And I (dear god) believe them.

Emmy is sitting on the rug near my chair looking out over the living room and she likes to check out the balcony, so it's time to order one of those kitty cat climb up the rug wrapped ladders to the rug wrapped perch level with a living room window. I'm not sure the logic of this, the cat lies on the rug monitoring the living room implying she wants a window perch, but I assume this is true because this will give me something half interesting to do on a weekend. And it would be a good place to shoot her photograph. (You may recall we started this talking about cameras.) And besides, I've always kinda wanted one of those window perch things and I've been meaning to get one once I've moved all of the unpacked boxes out of the way so I can get to it. Or am I drifting?

Mr. Amaya suggests I spend my evenings sipping expensive Scotch whiskey and writing these entries. Drinking Scotch whiskey, cheap or expensive, will lend to drifting, I admit it, but I do not spend my evenings drinking expensive Scotch whiskey. Only some of my evenings drinking expensive Scotch whiskey, like this evening. Hitting the wall in the middle of the week demands the use of the better quality medicines. Rein would understand. I am a man who recognizes demands, legitimate demands, like hitting the wall on a Wednesday.

Just as I wrote that the telephone rang and a recorded voice began "Hello, my name is Bill...." Would I feel any different if the voice, recorded, had demanded: "Young man, you should be drinking a glass of really good whiskey."? No! Emphatically no!