Photo Finish

At last. After two weeks and three countries, we were home. First order of business...a trip to CVS to print out our photos.

Unfortunately, the printer was out of order. No problem. Like weeds, CVS stores have sprung up in great number around our neighborhood. There was another one right up the street. With another broken printer! Okay, this was getting weird. First I couldn't take pictures of anything in London because everything was closed, and now I couldn't get the pictures I did take printed.

Feeling like I was trapped in a bad Twilight Zone episode, I bypassed a third CVS and went to Eckerd, where I was happy to find they had an actual working printer. Rod Serling was not getting his paws on me!

Relieved, I popped in my CD and waited for the machine to read it. And waited. And waited. Uh oh. This was not good.

I took it out, checked it was right side up, reinserted it, and waited some more. Frustrated, I tried punching some buttons. Nothing. Suddenly, I could hear the theme music from Twilight Zone ...do do do do...do do do do...

Finally, A message came up: CD is blank. No. Not possible. I had checked it after I downloaded the pictures. I know I did.

I could fel Rod Serling breathing down my neck, "Imagine a trip that never happened, except in (dramatic pause) the twilight zone."

Grabbing the CD, I headed for that third CVS, repeating to myself,"It did happen. I was really there, and I have the pictures to prove it!"

The third time (at CVS) was the charm. I inserted the CD into the machine and, voila, the pictures all came up. I hit select all, and was rewarded with the happy clickety-clack sound of photos being printed out. Take that Rod!

A quick trip to the dry cleaners and then back to pick up my photos. But wait. Something was wrong. The machine was flashing a message: Printer out of ink! over and over while blank sheets of paper landed in the tray.

Arrgh! This couldn't be happening. Do do do do...it was louder now. And was that cigarette smoke that I smelled wafting over from the shampoo aisle?

I didn't wait around to find out. I headed for my car, telling the girl I would be back the next day for the photos. She tried to assure me that she would change the cartridge and my prints would be ready in twenty minutes, but I wasn't taking any more chances.

I would return tomorrow with Tim. He had been on the trip too. He would back me up that it had really happened. Plus, I think he could take Rod down if he had to.