So about a month out of my warranty, my Sony digital camera decides to stop closing properly. It closes most of the way, just not all the way, like there's something stuck in it. I always keep it in the case, and it looks brand new -- no scratches, no dings, nothing.
Today I finally bring myself into the Sony store. Guess what? They no longer service cameras in store. I have to call the 800 number. So I do. And find out that it will cost a flat fee of $111 to send it back to their repair center to be fixed. $111! Are they crazy? I can buy a new one for that!
So we've decided to try to fix it ourselves. What have we got to lose? If we mess it up further, it would cost the same to fix it, and we could just buy a new one. One with an extended warranty. I've never been a big proponent of extended warranties, having worked in retail for as long as I did. But now here are my thoughts on them: If will cost the same to fix an item as to buy a new one, and if you won't be able to fix it yourself (i.e. with a computer we have the knowledge between the two of us to fix it. With a camera you need tiny special tools and I can't do that), then buy the warranty. The warranty is $25 for a year, $45 for two years. And then I wouldn't have this god-forsaken problem.
I'm taking canned air to the sucker and hopefully that will blow out whatever got stuck in it. If it breaks? I have my Nikon that I've had for 5 years that still works without fail.
BTW, this is not our first recent issue with Sony. Everything we own is Sony -- cameras, DVD players, tvs ... my husband had a Sony credit card and we remained loyal, buying everything through them even though it was often more expensive. He had a $6000 credit limit, and he always paid it off quickly. We usually only used it for big purchases though, because we could get free financing for so long (18, 24 months, things like that). The last purchase on it we made was our big screen tv for $3500 about 3 years ago. But we went to buy a $1200 camcorder from them before Spencer was born and they had closed the damn account due to inactivity. If we would have carried a balance, they never would have closed it because they would want their money, but because we're responsible purchasers who paid it off in a reasonable amount of time, they closed the account. And because we're buying a house, we don't want to reapply because we don't want another hit to our credit. We still haven't bought a camcorder, and it won't be from them when we do, assholes.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
My secret (total mommy-blog time)
Here's my dirty secret, while I wait to make sure that Spencer is fully asleep so I can go back to sleep:
I hate breastfeeding. At first it was because I wasn't exactly doing it right and he was hurting me. In the past six weeks I've really tried to like it. I know of all the benefits for him and for me; I certainly know how much cheaper it is. And I'm not going to stop any time soon -- I enjoy those benefits too much that it outways the other things.
But my main problem is that it still hurts. It's not because of what I'm doing, but Spencer ... he's impatient, and I don't know if it's because it takes a minute for my milk to let down or because he wants it faster than it can flow, but he tugs and shakes his head with it in his mouth and it hurts for hours afterward. And then when I feed him again on that breast it seriously hurts. Tonight we decided to make a bottle for him (at 4am -- another perk, not having to do that; it sucks when he's ready for food and it still takes another 6 minutes to get it for him) because my boob hurt too much, and then I topped him off with the pained breast after he had eaten a bit. It still hurt because it was sore from before, but he didn't move around so much so it was manageable.
My other major problem with it is the isolation. I know I'm supposed to be able to breastfeed anywhere, but I don't feel comfortable doing it in public. I'll do it in the car, or in a women's lounge at the mall but I can't just pull it out in Starbucks -- it's just not me. Now, I don't really have a problem feeding in front of friends or family, but my in-laws are of a different era and are very uncomfortable about such things (FIL more than MIL; he won't even set foot in our room. She just gets flustered and leaves immediately or talks to me from around the corner). So I spend much of my days at home in my room or Spencer's so that I can feed him. Half an hour a feeding (approximately) every three hours is at least four hours a day I spend by myself (He's been eating almost every two hours lately so it's probably closer to six hours). My husband tries to hang out with me when he's home, but he gets bored too; I don't blame him.
To a lesser extent and more lately (like since his last doctor's visit) I also worry about how much he's getting. The doctor wasn't happy with how little he had gained since his last appointment, and so I try to feed him as much as I can. However, he is always trying to eat so I can't tell when he's done (if he had his way he'd be permanently attached, which also doesn't help the soreness) until he starts spitting up his meal because he's overfull. But then what if his spitting up is not because he's full, and he's not getting enough to eat because he is spitting up so much?
I feel guilty not enjoying breastfeeding; I know it's supposed to be this great bonding time for me and my child but I feel like I bond with him so much more when we're playing. Feeding has become so utilitarian. We do it because we have to.
But like I said, I'm not going to stop anytime soon. The perks outway the bad. I just had to get it off my chest (no pun intended) and at 5am it seemed like as good a time as any.
I hate breastfeeding. At first it was because I wasn't exactly doing it right and he was hurting me. In the past six weeks I've really tried to like it. I know of all the benefits for him and for me; I certainly know how much cheaper it is. And I'm not going to stop any time soon -- I enjoy those benefits too much that it outways the other things.
But my main problem is that it still hurts. It's not because of what I'm doing, but Spencer ... he's impatient, and I don't know if it's because it takes a minute for my milk to let down or because he wants it faster than it can flow, but he tugs and shakes his head with it in his mouth and it hurts for hours afterward. And then when I feed him again on that breast it seriously hurts. Tonight we decided to make a bottle for him (at 4am -- another perk, not having to do that; it sucks when he's ready for food and it still takes another 6 minutes to get it for him) because my boob hurt too much, and then I topped him off with the pained breast after he had eaten a bit. It still hurt because it was sore from before, but he didn't move around so much so it was manageable.
My other major problem with it is the isolation. I know I'm supposed to be able to breastfeed anywhere, but I don't feel comfortable doing it in public. I'll do it in the car, or in a women's lounge at the mall but I can't just pull it out in Starbucks -- it's just not me. Now, I don't really have a problem feeding in front of friends or family, but my in-laws are of a different era and are very uncomfortable about such things (FIL more than MIL; he won't even set foot in our room. She just gets flustered and leaves immediately or talks to me from around the corner). So I spend much of my days at home in my room or Spencer's so that I can feed him. Half an hour a feeding (approximately) every three hours is at least four hours a day I spend by myself (He's been eating almost every two hours lately so it's probably closer to six hours). My husband tries to hang out with me when he's home, but he gets bored too; I don't blame him.
To a lesser extent and more lately (like since his last doctor's visit) I also worry about how much he's getting. The doctor wasn't happy with how little he had gained since his last appointment, and so I try to feed him as much as I can. However, he is always trying to eat so I can't tell when he's done (if he had his way he'd be permanently attached, which also doesn't help the soreness) until he starts spitting up his meal because he's overfull. But then what if his spitting up is not because he's full, and he's not getting enough to eat because he is spitting up so much?
I feel guilty not enjoying breastfeeding; I know it's supposed to be this great bonding time for me and my child but I feel like I bond with him so much more when we're playing. Feeding has become so utilitarian. We do it because we have to.
But like I said, I'm not going to stop anytime soon. The perks outway the bad. I just had to get it off my chest (no pun intended) and at 5am it seemed like as good a time as any.
Monday, March 24, 2008
A quick moment of quiet
Did I tell you that I was rear-ended a week and a half ago? Not bad; I was basically rolled into in traffic, but now I need a new bumper. So today I dropped off my car at the body shop and Enterprise put me in a Kia Spectra. Not as bad as I thought it would be ... not the greatest car in the world, but it fits the stroller in the trunk and the baby in in the back and it'll only be a couple days. However, it's hard to find a rental in a parking lot when you can't remember what you are driving.
Spencer has been cranky lately -- I don't think he's napping enough during the day because he fights it and then cries a lot because he hasn't gotten the sleep he sorely needs. He has been sleeping during the night pretty well -- well, last night he slept from 1 until 5:30, and then from 6:15 until 8. He just slept for about 10 minutes and he's already awake again, but I'm leaving him in his crib since he's not crying so maybe he'll go back to sleep (not likely but worth a try).
And in other news, we got a new laptop! I've really wanted a new one but I didn't want to get one unless we could sell the old one and could get a really good deal on a new one. The stars aligned with the ads this week and we got one yesterday! Now I have to go through the process of moving all my stuff from one laptop to the other so I stopped and got a 4GB flash drive at OD to do the moving, so woohoo! The only problem I've found so far is that the "k" sticks a little bit but I think that will work itself out since I seem to use so many "k" words. That and we need to upgrade the ram since the damn thing has Vista (can't get away from it) and only 1GB of ram. Oddly it's cheaper to upgrade the ram then to buy a laptop with more already installed, so there you go!
I have to go to the butcher tomorrow morning and see if I can get a beef brisket -- I've decided to try one of Pioneer Woman's recipes this week and I'm very excited -- yum! I've been drooling over her site for weeks but Christen's dad is so ... traditional in what he eats that I was looking for the perfect thing to make, and I think this is it. I'll let you know how it goes!
Spencer has been cranky lately -- I don't think he's napping enough during the day because he fights it and then cries a lot because he hasn't gotten the sleep he sorely needs. He has been sleeping during the night pretty well -- well, last night he slept from 1 until 5:30, and then from 6:15 until 8. He just slept for about 10 minutes and he's already awake again, but I'm leaving him in his crib since he's not crying so maybe he'll go back to sleep (not likely but worth a try).
And in other news, we got a new laptop! I've really wanted a new one but I didn't want to get one unless we could sell the old one and could get a really good deal on a new one. The stars aligned with the ads this week and we got one yesterday! Now I have to go through the process of moving all my stuff from one laptop to the other so I stopped and got a 4GB flash drive at OD to do the moving, so woohoo! The only problem I've found so far is that the "k" sticks a little bit but I think that will work itself out since I seem to use so many "k" words. That and we need to upgrade the ram since the damn thing has Vista (can't get away from it) and only 1GB of ram. Oddly it's cheaper to upgrade the ram then to buy a laptop with more already installed, so there you go!
I have to go to the butcher tomorrow morning and see if I can get a beef brisket -- I've decided to try one of Pioneer Woman's recipes this week and I'm very excited -- yum! I've been drooling over her site for weeks but Christen's dad is so ... traditional in what he eats that I was looking for the perfect thing to make, and I think this is it. I'll let you know how it goes!
Thursday, March 20, 2008
A long post but worth every shiny penny (at least to me, and that's what counts)
So I have managed a feat today -- I finished making my baby announcements 2 days shy of his 6-week birthday (isn't amazing that we count in weeks?) and have them and all thank you cards set to go out tomorrow. Before Easter. Can I get a woohoo? Woohoo, then!
I had my six-week check up at the OB -- just so y'all know, my uterus is back in place and I've been cleared for sex and exercise ... or sex as exercise, if I so choose. I've also lost another 7 pounds, making me now lighter than I've been in a couple years. Another 30 and I'll be where I was for the three months between my relationship with my ex-fiance and my relationship with my husband. That is my ultimate goal weight. Now, I'm not telling you what that amount is but I'll tell you if I get there! And I refuse to do it by starving myself or becoming one of those exercise-anorexics, and I will not give up my favorite foods. Folks, if I can't get there in moderation it's just not worth getting there, for I do so love my sweets and carbs.
I've also decided that my new contraception of choice is an IUC -- you know, those commercials with the lady with 4 kids running around who gets the t-shaped plastic doo-dad shoved up her hoo-haa, and then decides she wants another one so she gets it pulled back out? Yeah, that's going to be me. I can't wait, really. I'm terrible with pills (noted by my vitamins sitting next my child's vitamins with the hopes that we can take them together but instead neither of us get our vitamins even though strangely he likes his).
So now that you know everything about my, well, hoo-haa, on to bigger (hehe) and better topics. Yesterday I was wandering around B&N (which incidently I'm not fond of anymore ... somehow I became a Borders convert without realizing it) looking for a book for my mom that obviously has not come out yet, and I located Diablo Cody's Candy Girl - A Year in the Life of an Unlikely Stripper and promptly purchased it. I also bought Roald Dahl's autobiography Boy to even out the subversiveness. Even though I had finally gotten 25 pages (and they were 25 great pages) into Almost Moon, I was too curious to not start it right away. So this morning I did.
At 3pm I finished it. Pretty decent, I would say. Not in the "clothed" decency realm, more of the skanky, greased stripper pole end of decent, actually. I wasn't too impressed at the beginning -- I remember before I saw Juno I read a review which said something along the lines of it being "overtly aware of its own wit". I didn't see that in Juno so much because I wasn't reading the non-dialog, but Candy Girl read a bit like a pop culture Dennis Miller rant -- lots of similes and adverbs and obscure references that seem contrived to make her feel smarter than she actually may be. But after about 20 pages I got over that and it was a pretty fun read! Those that are less sensitive about those sorts of things are likely to really enjoy it. Although I felt a little dirty reading it while breastfeeding ...
So now back to the more respectable I-killed-my-mother-because-I-couldn't-clean-her-feces-anymore book. I'll let you know how that is too!
In other completely non-vag related news, I took Lola to the groomers yesterday. How she turned out is completely my fault, and I feel bad about it. But really, the groomer's idea of "all shaved down" and mine is completely different. She has the mane and tail though ... and she'd look less ridiculous without them. I'll post pictures as soon as I don't have a child attached to my teat, I promise (see, teat but no vag -- I'm coming up in the world!)
I had my six-week check up at the OB -- just so y'all know, my uterus is back in place and I've been cleared for sex and exercise ... or sex as exercise, if I so choose. I've also lost another 7 pounds, making me now lighter than I've been in a couple years. Another 30 and I'll be where I was for the three months between my relationship with my ex-fiance and my relationship with my husband. That is my ultimate goal weight. Now, I'm not telling you what that amount is but I'll tell you if I get there! And I refuse to do it by starving myself or becoming one of those exercise-anorexics, and I will not give up my favorite foods. Folks, if I can't get there in moderation it's just not worth getting there, for I do so love my sweets and carbs.
I've also decided that my new contraception of choice is an IUC -- you know, those commercials with the lady with 4 kids running around who gets the t-shaped plastic doo-dad shoved up her hoo-haa, and then decides she wants another one so she gets it pulled back out? Yeah, that's going to be me. I can't wait, really. I'm terrible with pills (noted by my vitamins sitting next my child's vitamins with the hopes that we can take them together but instead neither of us get our vitamins even though strangely he likes his).
So now that you know everything about my, well, hoo-haa, on to bigger (hehe) and better topics. Yesterday I was wandering around B&N (which incidently I'm not fond of anymore ... somehow I became a Borders convert without realizing it) looking for a book for my mom that obviously has not come out yet, and I located Diablo Cody's Candy Girl - A Year in the Life of an Unlikely Stripper and promptly purchased it. I also bought Roald Dahl's autobiography Boy to even out the subversiveness. Even though I had finally gotten 25 pages (and they were 25 great pages) into Almost Moon, I was too curious to not start it right away. So this morning I did.
At 3pm I finished it. Pretty decent, I would say. Not in the "clothed" decency realm, more of the skanky, greased stripper pole end of decent, actually. I wasn't too impressed at the beginning -- I remember before I saw Juno I read a review which said something along the lines of it being "overtly aware of its own wit". I didn't see that in Juno so much because I wasn't reading the non-dialog, but Candy Girl read a bit like a pop culture Dennis Miller rant -- lots of similes and adverbs and obscure references that seem contrived to make her feel smarter than she actually may be. But after about 20 pages I got over that and it was a pretty fun read! Those that are less sensitive about those sorts of things are likely to really enjoy it. Although I felt a little dirty reading it while breastfeeding ...
So now back to the more respectable I-killed-my-mother-because-I-couldn't-clean-her-feces-anymore book. I'll let you know how that is too!
In other completely non-vag related news, I took Lola to the groomers yesterday. How she turned out is completely my fault, and I feel bad about it. But really, the groomer's idea of "all shaved down" and mine is completely different. She has the mane and tail though ... and she'd look less ridiculous without them. I'll post pictures as soon as I don't have a child attached to my teat, I promise (see, teat but no vag -- I'm coming up in the world!)
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Somehow I think I gave birth to a teenager. He stays up all night and then sleeps until 11am (or 1pm). He also has a fair amount of baby acne, cries for no reason sometimes and wants things (like his pacifier) only to throw them away as soon as he gets them. Thank God he can't talk back yet.
However, last night I got almost 6 hours of uninterrupted sleep, so when he wouldn't go back to sleep after his feeding at 6:45 I didn't hold it against him. I fed him last night at 12:45, he was asleep by 1:30 and didn't wake up until 6:30 this morning! Hallelujah! I know not to expect that every night, but I'm so excited you can barely see the patches on my head where I was pulling out my hair.
It has been a grueling process transitioning him to his crib from our bed, but I'm so excited for the possibilities of being able to cuddle with my husband again. Which is funny because I'm not a cuddler. I get hot and itchy and annoyed very easily. But I could if I wanted to! :)
In non-baby related news (how is it that all I had to do was spend 7 hours in labor and 4 days in the hospital and my blog turns into a mommy-blog?) ... I think I'm going to start reading again! I've shelved Almost Moon by Alice Sebold since I got it for Christmas. First I was reading other things, then I thought I'd read it while I was in the hospital (I know, lofty ideas and all that) and I haven't even looked at it since getting home, what, five weeks ago? So today (or tomorrow, who am I kidding) I'm going to start on it ... I'm so excited! I loved her other books and if this one turns out half as heart-wrenching as the other two, I'm going to be in love.
At a friend's recommendation, I also want to read Diablo Cody's book about being a stripper. I may have to pick that up in the next few days. Any Border's coupons out there?
**edit** he fell asleep while I was posting this ... why have I not gone back to sleep yet? Maybe I'll pull out that book sooner rather than later ...
However, last night I got almost 6 hours of uninterrupted sleep, so when he wouldn't go back to sleep after his feeding at 6:45 I didn't hold it against him. I fed him last night at 12:45, he was asleep by 1:30 and didn't wake up until 6:30 this morning! Hallelujah! I know not to expect that every night, but I'm so excited you can barely see the patches on my head where I was pulling out my hair.
It has been a grueling process transitioning him to his crib from our bed, but I'm so excited for the possibilities of being able to cuddle with my husband again. Which is funny because I'm not a cuddler. I get hot and itchy and annoyed very easily. But I could if I wanted to! :)
In non-baby related news (how is it that all I had to do was spend 7 hours in labor and 4 days in the hospital and my blog turns into a mommy-blog?) ... I think I'm going to start reading again! I've shelved Almost Moon by Alice Sebold since I got it for Christmas. First I was reading other things, then I thought I'd read it while I was in the hospital (I know, lofty ideas and all that) and I haven't even looked at it since getting home, what, five weeks ago? So today (or tomorrow, who am I kidding) I'm going to start on it ... I'm so excited! I loved her other books and if this one turns out half as heart-wrenching as the other two, I'm going to be in love.
At a friend's recommendation, I also want to read Diablo Cody's book about being a stripper. I may have to pick that up in the next few days. Any Border's coupons out there?
**edit** he fell asleep while I was posting this ... why have I not gone back to sleep yet? Maybe I'll pull out that book sooner rather than later ...
Monday, March 17, 2008
Happy St. Patty's Day!
Hope you have fun no matter what your pleasure! Me, I'm hanging out with my babydoll and playing video games. Ahh, the good life. Can they tint black tea green? I don't like green tea :)
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