My First Camera

I picked up my first camera today, a wee Kodak compact. I knew it was mine, because it was well-worn, like me, slightly battered from trips into the countryside, like me, and the battery cover had been replaced by a mountain of Blu-Tac. It’s all right, I know that you’re curious. You see, the fact is that a friend of mine dropped it from a great height one evening in a bar in Norwich. The camera survived, but a chip came off the battery cover, making it difficult to keep it closed. I attempted to remedy the situation by gluing the chipped bit back on; my idiocy was to carry out this repair job while the battery cover was closed.

Well, everything was fine, until the batteries ran out. Could I open the cover? Imagine it for yourself: the young budding photographer, struggling against his own camera as he struggles against his own mind, telling him how much of a BLITHERING SPAMHEAD he is. Who glues a battery compartment shut?

We can be thankful that I have learned how to take care of my equipment since those halcyon days of idiocy. I would hope that those I hold close to my heart have learned too – that friend of mine, who dropped the camera from a great height one evening in a bar in Norwich, is none other than my girlfriend. My current camera, much like its owner, can get as battered as it likes on future trips into the countryside…