I shouldn't be writing a blog post, I should be doing something far more productive, like, to pick an example of something I need to do before I go to bed, the washing up.

Trouble is that – washing up aside – I'm far too tired to actually be willing to do anything other than write this post. Not that writing blog posts to you, dear reader, requires no effort, not at all, but since this is mostly coming out of my head via my fingers and then into your brain via your eyes (now there's a creepy mental image for you) it's far more relaxing than, you know, real work. (I apologise now to those friends of mine whose jobs involve blogging. You do do real work. No, really.)

So the purpose of this post then? Well, it's not, as you might expect, to explain the contents of my previous post (sorry); that post is being worked on but has turned out to be rather lengthy, so I'm going to actually finish it before I post it.

No, I'm writing here because I'm in a quandary of a which-thing-that-I-want-should-I-get variety.

Now, here's the thing. I'm not made of money, but I have been saving up for a while so that at Christmas, as well as buying things for everyone else in my life, I can buy something for myself; an end of year treat, a well-done-you're-still-alive present, if you will. And when it comes down to it I realise that I've got two choices:

1. A new bass. I've been playing bass for quite a while now, since I was fifteen or thereabouts, and a a recent experience whilst I was in the States of playing in a band of like-minded musicians reawakened my thirst to play. I've always played anyway, on most days, as a way to relax, but now it's more urgent, more primal – and more fun when it sounds right. But alas the bass that has served me well enough for the last eleven years isn't quite what I need any more, so I'm thinking about getting a replacement, or at least a companion for it.
2. A new lens for my camera. Specifically, this lens. I hate using a flash with my camera, and although I admit that some of the results of doing so now that I've got a half-decent flash gun and learned to use bounce flash properly are pretty good I still prefer, where possible, to use a good, fast lens in low light. Unfortunately, my fastest lens at the moment is a 50mm / F1.8 Nikon, which is manual focus only on my camera for reasons we won't go into here. Manually focussing in low light is hard work and, though autofocusses aren't always better at it it would at least give me some assistance. Also, it's an excellent lens for portrait shots, particularly if you're a fan, as I am, as shallow depths-of-field.

So which do I choose? The lens is pretty much a fixed price unless I get one cheap in a sale somewhere, whereas the price for the bass is likely to vary depending on manufacturer, model and dealer. Whilst I was in Plymouth I played a lovely Ibanez four-string with a gorgeous, almost brassy, sound to it, so I might well look as an Ibanez if I can find one round here. What I'd really like is a Fender Jazz, but I don't have that kind of money.

But of course, it's not a need thing really, it's a want thing. And when it comes down to it I want the bass more than I want the lens. I can manage with what I've got for now, and I can always save up for the lens later. But music is one of the only things in the world that speaks directly to the soul, and your author's flinty little heart is crying out for a worthy tool with which to get into the groove.

G'night folks.