[Eric Auer]

Good for you man.

Does this mean you're done cheerleading and and starting a career as a photographer?

[crewl1]

Great story! Glad you decided not to wait.
Well deserved, enjoy and I look forward to your photos.

[paulh]

Wow - congrats & Merry Christmas!

[NZ_Ross]

What a fantastic story.

Thanks heaps for sharing it with us. I reckon this is what this time of year is about - not retail, not commercial, but just people showing each other love and kindness.

If everyone could do that the world would be a much much better place.

Enjoy the new camera, and keeping the giving traditions going

[TenZ.NL]

Merry Xmas, Monochrome. TFS this wonderful story, enjoy your awesome gift!

[pearsaab]

paul i couldn't be happier for you...awesome story and i love the fact that larry and i have such a negative/positive influence on you...enjoy!!! as i said before well deserved!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! happy holidays to everyone!!!

[KDAFA]

do you believe in santa claus? No, not that one - not the one in the red velvet suit with the reindeer and the sleigh and the magic bag of toys for all the good little girls and boys (but if you still believe -- well that's good!!). That one as you probably know was made up 400 or so years ago in holland to explain something that really is a mystery.

Why do people give other people gifts? I mean - it doesn't make sense, does it? It wasn't all that long ago that we were squatting in the dust holding our spear protecting our meat and our woman from the other guys who wanted to take them away. Every day. So why would we give something away?

I don't know. But i do. And sometimes i do nice things for people that i don't have to do just because i can and i think i should. And sometimes people do nice things for me that i didn't expect or bring me things that they think i will like or from their travels.

And not just at christmas - i mean all the time - any time - really!! It's pretty cool, if you think about it.

People have brought me gifts like this:



Because they know i like the west and who else in missouri has a coffee mug with the university of wyoming cowboys mascot on it? And they knew i wanted to go an that little adventure but i couldn't, so it was thoughtful.

Sometimes they see something at a sale and they know of my interest and the price is right so they buy



this and bring it over and ask (kind of hesitatingly) if it will work with my camera so i go upstairs and get my adapter and k10d and take a shot and chimp it to show it works - and tell the takumar story and, "really, this is a beautiful lens, thank you for thinking of me!!" and the smile is better than the lens, right??

And i give them, too. Especially to my family, but to all my friends in our little flyover community (if you aren't from the usa, flyover country is the part in the middle that the cool people fly over on their way from the east coast to the west coast, or vice versa. Sometimes they stop here to gas up their planes, but usually that's only if it is snowing in chicago) - i give them, too, just little things that i think people will like, or quietly do things that people need, and don't ask for any credit or anything - just get it done so we can all be more cheerful, right?.

It binds us. It lifts us up. We sort of make a big deal about giving time, talent and treasure.

In my family we don't buy things for ourselves after about november 1st. We only give 5 presents each, and they're really good presents that we think about for weeks or months first, and if we buy something somebody else might have thought of that and then they'd need to start over. After the 15th of december we start to get really excited. First thing when we get home we check to see what packages have been delivered. My wife gets home first, so if there's anything left by the door



i ordered it and i need to spirit it away to my hidey spot But that can wait until after dinner because people don't shake them and try to guess - that would spoil the fun.

So after dinner i looked at labels to see what had arrived. . . . .

Be patient - i'm getting there.

To see what had arrived, and there was something addressed to me from a friend - but i hadn't ordered anything for anyone from that friend. So i picked it up - heavy, huh. What could it be?



Weird - well, there's a silver box - wait - what!!! it can"t be!!!


O. M. G. It is!!!

now at this point things get a little weird. I sort of actually don't want this right now. I'm all focused on giving stuff and maybe getting a bottle of wine (which i can share) or some chocolate (which i won't even have a chance to sample) - but not what this looks like it is. Somehow it doesn't seem fair that i get a cool new camera before christmas and everybody else has to wait over a week. So i told my wife, and showed her the note, and my daughter validated it, and they were cool with it - but i didn't even pull the tab on the box for an entire day.

Until larry and amy essentially forced me to do it :d



that ricoh's not so bad in the flesh.




Ricoh seems to have gotten the idea - no more brown boxes!!



Yep - its the real deal - everything is taped up and never-been-touched!!



Never thought i'd be so excited to see a white body cap - always been a locking black cap kinda guy myself.



here's all the little bits and pieces before they go back in the box and on the shelf with all the other empty boxes. They still send a viewfinder blind - how quaint!! Love the li-90 battery - just swap one out of my k-01 and i'm good to go instantly!!



What's all the fuss? That's really tiny. Without my glasses on i can't even read it!! :d



the original glamour shot with my only limited lens - sorry about the little leather tab covering the beautiful white k3 - i was a bit excited



i always wear my cameras with a strap. It's an old film habit from high school days - "if you drop it, you buy it, mr.!" i wind the strap around my left hand.

So i got a really neat present from a friend that was a completely, totally, unexpected surprise gift. I didn't ask for it, i didn't expect it and i sure was stunned to get it. Maybe it was a bit over the top - but i'm sure the giver had a lot of fun giving it.

So do i believe in santa claus? Well, let's just say i believe in the mystery that little story tries to explain.

But even that's not the most important thing on this forum.

Think about what ricoh gave us for christmas -- ricoh gave us hope!! I know, i know, i'm the plan guy and the eternal optimist and the be patient they'll get there guy - but really boys and girls - this is the real deal. This is a great camera - really, really good stuff. Go get one asap - you'll love it. So - i mean this.

be of good cheer, pentaxians. Ricoh has a plan, and you will be happy!

you can bet i'm happy!!

bravo!!