Hungover from Excessive Sleep
Jan. 3rd, 2025 06:05 pmMentally hungover. I can't believe how hard it is for me to sleep because of how dry it is, and it's not just me but Michelle as well. Spent 11 hours trying to sleep 10 hours and even after all that I woke up with this permanent hangover that's making it impossible for me to get anything done. Ugh.
I received a royalty check from some photos I did via stock years ago and it made me wonder if I should start submitting things to agencies again. My gear is a lot better now and I don't mind the excuse to sell images since I don't think anyone wants to hire a photographer that wants to keep away from people in general (thanks COVID).
My new camera came in. I didn't think it was going to be this soon, before the trip to Montreal. I'm not complaining though, if I wasn't so lost in the brain fog I'd actually be excited. I can start using the 200-600 I was gifted. Even came with a nice camera bag that I wouldn't feel bad using for groceries.
We hit one of those bin return stores for the first time after Michelle found out about them and if you ever want to do these things: unless you know what you're looking for, expect to find a lot of not much that's worth it. Most of the things Michelle grabbed were decent 40 dollar items for 12 bucks each but that was because she knew what the items were. Some of the other ones were breaking even. The sort of things people return from Amazon goes through all sorts of types, from headsets that probably didn't fit the user, to mugs that are full of mold, to small boxes of individual items that were probably returned after someone got them from bulk. A few things that are relatively untouched exist, like a box of a desk arm that was untouched, but it's really specialized stuff. Other things suffer from being stuffed in a box and returned without a care with no way to tell unless the box is breached. Ironically the only thing I wanted to find when we came there was a draftguard and there was none to be found.
I think Michelle wants to try it again which we might during a fresh day tomorrow when we'll hopefully be more awake. She wants me to test out the new camera. I'm sure once my head is normal I will feel that way too. Sunday will be a trip to NYC to get a screen protector at B&H, a new macro lens for Michelle, and some of the usual dockside shenanigans.

By the way, see this cutie?
They're like 10 bucks a pop at IKEA. The newest line of toys from IKEA are really cute and this one will now harass The Rat until I gift it to an owl fan I know come Christmas (to The Rat's annoyance). There's also these bees that are impossible to find and a hedgehog that has velcro to turn into a ball.
The quest for tripods and new airtag holders found me a nice new mount that should be coming in tomorrow and a pair of tripods that are small but (more important) are SMALL AND LIGHT but have a decent carry capacity. Perfect stuff for future macro excursions. The new ones, even if knockoffs, are fantastically cheap and sturdy but work really well for 2-3 pounds at the size of a water bottle. I don't need something that gets big, just something I can use with a hook to weigh it down and this does it. I'm okay with crouching (I shoot from the hip normally anyway).
Peloton is getting easier, so why am I not feeling it?
Finally, that bunch of purchases? Included a bunch of guinea pig hats. The Rat is ready for the new year.

If curious I can post some shots, there's... a lot of hats now. There's a lot of other photos too (just found a bunch I didn't download yet while hunting for stuff to add to my stock sales). More stuff should come. Should come.
I received a royalty check from some photos I did via stock years ago and it made me wonder if I should start submitting things to agencies again. My gear is a lot better now and I don't mind the excuse to sell images since I don't think anyone wants to hire a photographer that wants to keep away from people in general (thanks COVID).
My new camera came in. I didn't think it was going to be this soon, before the trip to Montreal. I'm not complaining though, if I wasn't so lost in the brain fog I'd actually be excited. I can start using the 200-600 I was gifted. Even came with a nice camera bag that I wouldn't feel bad using for groceries.
We hit one of those bin return stores for the first time after Michelle found out about them and if you ever want to do these things: unless you know what you're looking for, expect to find a lot of not much that's worth it. Most of the things Michelle grabbed were decent 40 dollar items for 12 bucks each but that was because she knew what the items were. Some of the other ones were breaking even. The sort of things people return from Amazon goes through all sorts of types, from headsets that probably didn't fit the user, to mugs that are full of mold, to small boxes of individual items that were probably returned after someone got them from bulk. A few things that are relatively untouched exist, like a box of a desk arm that was untouched, but it's really specialized stuff. Other things suffer from being stuffed in a box and returned without a care with no way to tell unless the box is breached. Ironically the only thing I wanted to find when we came there was a draftguard and there was none to be found.
I think Michelle wants to try it again which we might during a fresh day tomorrow when we'll hopefully be more awake. She wants me to test out the new camera. I'm sure once my head is normal I will feel that way too. Sunday will be a trip to NYC to get a screen protector at B&H, a new macro lens for Michelle, and some of the usual dockside shenanigans.

By the way, see this cutie?
They're like 10 bucks a pop at IKEA. The newest line of toys from IKEA are really cute and this one will now harass The Rat until I gift it to an owl fan I know come Christmas (to The Rat's annoyance). There's also these bees that are impossible to find and a hedgehog that has velcro to turn into a ball.
The quest for tripods and new airtag holders found me a nice new mount that should be coming in tomorrow and a pair of tripods that are small but (more important) are SMALL AND LIGHT but have a decent carry capacity. Perfect stuff for future macro excursions. The new ones, even if knockoffs, are fantastically cheap and sturdy but work really well for 2-3 pounds at the size of a water bottle. I don't need something that gets big, just something I can use with a hook to weigh it down and this does it. I'm okay with crouching (I shoot from the hip normally anyway).
Peloton is getting easier, so why am I not feeling it?
Finally, that bunch of purchases? Included a bunch of guinea pig hats. The Rat is ready for the new year.

If curious I can post some shots, there's... a lot of hats now. There's a lot of other photos too (just found a bunch I didn't download yet while hunting for stuff to add to my stock sales). More stuff should come. Should come.