Dig SLR & O Canada!

I've been too busy to update my blog lately. I'm still working on my parents' house, painting and replacing the carpet with laminated flooring.

I was supposed to meet with the DA for an accident I witness a couple of months ago, but when I called about the case, the recording said I didn't have to show up. When I talked to the process server that gave me the subpoena, I was told that if the recording says I don't need to go, then either the guy pleaded guilty, or the case is just postponed. If postponed, he said I could be subpoenaed again. Anyways, I hope I don't hear from them again. Initially I thought it was exciting to appear in court, but now the excitement has died down. Anyways, if I do end up testifying I'll make sure to turn to the defendant and yell out: "Did you order the Code Red?!!!".

One thing I've been obsessing about is getting a digital SLR camera. I'm not aiming for the really expensive ones since money is tight. But from the look of things, it's gonna cost around $1000 for the camera, lens, camera bag, tripod and all that good stuff. My options are Canon's Rebel XT, Nikon's D50 or D70/s and Olympus' E500. All makes a great first SLR. But it's amazing how good lenses can cost a thousand bucks by itself. The lens that comes with D70s kit cost $300 by itself! I paid $200 for my niece's 5MP Canon A520. And that came with a free 256MB memory card. Really good lenses can cost $1000 easily. But for now, I think a good everyday lens is good enough. That, and maybe a decent Macro lens. I'm hoping to get it by Christmas. So hopefully prices comes down for the shopping season.

Right now I have a four year old 2MP. To help pay for my camera, I decided to sell my Nintendo GameCube along with all my games, and I'll probably sell most of DVDs also.

I recently read an article about a survey that named Vancouver as the "Best city to live" in. I've never been to Vancouver, but almost everyone I talked to about the city gave a very positive view of it. They say it's very diverse and progressive. Plus, it's close to Seattle and only 17 hrs from Le Bay Area! Oh yeah, one doesn't need to speak French to live there. It also has the second largest Chinatown in Northern America (only SF's is larger). It has a lot of Asians, about 17% of its population are Chinese, 3% Filipino and 8% other Asians. If I were to live outside the Bay Area, Vancouver will probably top the list, and then Melbourne or Sydney. There are also European cities I'd like to live in.