There have been various stresses with the kitchen, and I�ve spoken to several other kitchen companies. They can all do it for a fair bit less than this first company quoted us, so we�re going to cancel. We both feel awful about this, because it was so silly of us to sign the contract in the first place, when we both know that we only signed it because it meant we got free stuff and didn�t want to �miss out�. It was a good company but they were just charging too much.

I still can�t believe how stupid we were.

Anyway, I think it�s all over for now. Next time we will make a more informed decision before signing anything. Presuming, of course, that we have finally learnt our lesson.

Moving on, I was at mum�s place again yesterday, and since I had my camera on me, I decided to take some photos of my sister�s dog while I was there.

The dog is only a few months old and rarely stops moving. It took me several attempts to get a shot where the whole dog was actually in it, because every time I got her in frame she would run somewhere else. She doesn�t seem to understand �dammit, dog, stay still for a moment!� The only time she stays still seems to be when she has her paws up on your leg, wagging her tail excitedly and peeing on your shoe (I�m hoping she grows out of this one soon).

So, without further ado, I give you� Coco.

My nonna says that Coco looks like a little kangaroo. I�d never really thought about it but having seen this photo, I think she�s right. Coco�s ears used to flop over but now they�re almost always pricked up like that � permanent bat-ears.

The dog looking pretty, during a rare moment of not running, jumping, chewing, digging, or peeing.

Before you look at the next photos, I need to explain. My camera has a red-eye reduction setting, meaning that the flash goes off twice � once to allow the subject�s eyes to adjust to the bright light, and the second time it takes the photo. The assumption behind the success of this method is that people expect the flash and prepare themselves for it.

Try explaining that to a dog.

The following images are a warning. If you love your dog, DO NOT take photos of it using red-eye reduction. If you do, this is what happens.

The dog sees the first flash and cringes. Then, before your canine friend recovers, the second flash goes off and the camera takes the photo, making your dog look retarded. I still laugh when I look at these pictures, especially the second one, where one eye is half closed and one ear is half back, and her little jaw seems slightly crooked.

I have no plans for this evening, other than possibly drinking beer, eating corn chips and playing table soccer with Daniel. If I can get him to drink way more than me, I might actually be able to beat him at it. I�m trying not to cling to this hope too much though, because he really is a lot better than I am when it comes to games of dexterity. Half the time I drop things because I forget that I�m holding them.

Happy Friday!