Back in the day when camera phones were first becoming popular, I just had to have one. I'll admit up front to being a gadget person, but it was more than that. The opportunity to capture pictures anywhere I carried my cell phone really impressed me. In fact, I justified the cost (a whopping $70) with all the times I had wished for a camera when confronted with particularly humorous or memorable situations.

Ironically, those early camera phones lacked a lot in terms of their ability to produce “usable” photos – images I could take to the one-hour photo or even print out on my home computer.

The real revolution came when my Lumix replaced the bigger, clunkier digital camera I had been carrying. The Lumix fit in my pocket or purse no matter what the occasion, freeing me to take high-quality pictures whenever (and wherever) I deemed it necessary.

Well, on Saturday, as we were celebrating many birthdays over butternut squash soup and Portal cake, tragedy struck. After years of flawless performance, the LCD backlight on the Lumix – which has no viewfinder – quit mid-event. Now you see it, now you don't. I switched the camera on again after leaving it on a side table and...nothing. The most painful irony struck when I realized I could still take pictures, I just couldn't see them.

So, after an eventful two years, that camera and I are calling it quits. Luckily this has all transpired very close to Christmas, so certain nervous, idea-less husbands in this house are less than traumatized (more on that in a couple weeks, I suspect).

Meanwhile, I'm camera-less for the next week and a half. Granted, I still have the D80, but it's more valuable, less pocketable, and sometimes just overkill for the situation. I am amazed at how quickly I built an expectation of images at the ready. My hard drive is densely populated with images of funny scenes in the office, ludicrous and/or striking sights along my (walking) commute, and delicious meals I have made. The thought of losing that capability for over a week drives me more than a little batty.

Luckily, I still have my camera phone, whose technology has come a long way since the bulky, low-res model I owned years ago.