So, I received the printed version of the Texas Fillm Commission's 2004 Production Manual, only to discover that my phone number is misprinted in it. It seems that I submitted the correct number, but that the data entry person mis-keyed it. I missed it on the proof, too. Just my luck! They are correcting the online database, which should be sufficient, as most people refer to it first, anyway.

It's a rainy day in Waco. My collegue is driving to Mexico today to do some shopping, while I get stood up on photo sessions. Typical. So, I am trying to make some headway with the studio installations, but the help keeps on disappearing! And SO, I am watching DVDs while trying to imagine what other artists are doing at this moment.

I've made some new equipment purchases over the last couple of months, and wanted to log some gripes over my dealings with the dopes at PC/MACMALL. For starters, the salesman would offer me discounts to make the sale, but would conveniently forget about them, and so I would get charged full price on the invoice. He would never, ever return my calls, either. In the RAM department, I was sold Viking PC2700, which proved to be inadequate. Since MACMALL would not return my calls, I contacted Viking and was told that they had PC3200 RAM specified for the Apple Dual 1.9GHz PowerMac G5 that I owned. Viking replaced the RAM with the PC3200 set and all appears sound.

PCNation sold me an NEC-Mitsubishi Diamond Pro 2070 SB with a big smudge in the phosphor, so it had to go back. The refurb arrived without my SpectraView calibrator. They had negleted to tell me to send only the monitor, no cables or accessories, and so I received only a monitor.

Several weeks after my upgrade to the G5, I now appear to have a complete set of tools, even though the SpectraView software is not compatible with OS X Panther...

Early in the winter, I purchased an NEC-Mitsubishi Diamond Pro 2070SB (22"CRT) with SpectraView gadget. The monitor was defective from day one, but I was reluctant to return it immediately (big mistake). When I finally did return it for a warranty replacement (refurb), I was sent an item that was missing all of the fancy SpectraView attachments. In short, I want to caution anyone against buying from NEC-Mitsubishi, because of the series of blunders that has resulted in a lot of down time for my office. It is said that a satisfied customer tells one other person of his experience with a vendor, and that a dissatisfied one tells ten others. Well, I hope to reach a broader scope though this posting... The NEC item appeared to have the features of the Sony Artisan product that I had considered, at a lower price, but the defects in the merchandise and in the replacement service has left me wishing that I had purchased something else. I am going to go and scrape the word mark and logos from the bezel of the monitor now...

This week, my little, tenacious car died. The timing chain broke while I was driving to the mechanic to investigate the rattling noise in the engine. So, as I understand it, the valves slammed into the pistons, essentially turning my engine into scrap metal. Things could be worse, of course. They could always be worse...

The move into the new studio is nearly complete, and now there may be a place for me in it. The new studio is close to my home than the old office, so if I have to ride my bike to work, I'll be less winded by the trip. Of course, motorists here in Waco are unaccustomed to bicycle traffic, and so biking to work might be my demise. I'll shop for an affordable used car to get me through the year, and by next year be in a position to buy a newer and better one. I just detest automobile salesmen so much! They are the primary reason that I resist the urge to buy new vehicles.

January was meant to be the month that a colleague and I moved her studio into a new location. The old location was musty with dismal memories, not to mention the rat problems, and so it was time to leave. The new place is slightly larger, and has a better layout, to boot. There may even be room enough to accommodate my small family of Apple computers -- we'll just have to see how and where everything lands. The new place would be ready by now, if it weren't for some bruised prides and touchy dispositions on the part of all involved. Throw into the mix the inevitable accident and you have what we are faced with: about three weeks of delays and setbacks. At any rate, we are determined to move forward. Perhaps the studio will be ready to present to clientele before the end of THIS month...