There’s always next year

posted February 15, 2011 in Happenings

The call came in moments ago.

“We have not received your prints,” stated a nice representative from the 2011 Awards of Excellence 16 x 20 print competition. I almost cried.

I knew I shipped the prints to arrive in plenty of time before they were judged at Wedding & Portrait Photographers International Convention (WPPI) held next week in Las Vegas. I was super stoked to check this goal (#90) off my list of 101 goals in 1,001 days.

David Beckstead and Jerry Ghionis offered a positive review in a recent critique. Since I admire their work and accomplishments, I followed my gut and entered the images in my first contest, hoping to walk away with a good experience.

After typing frantically my UPS tracking number into the system, with the representative on the phone, I see this:

Turns out my local UPS shipping station is closed for the night. Even if the package was found today, the circus left town. In the face of adversity, I ask myself:

Was it my fault for someone not following up on delivery? Perhaps.
Was it WPPI’s fault for not informing me sooner that the prints had not arrived, despite a prepaid registration? Perhaps.
Was it UPS’s fault for delayed shipping? Yes.

At this point, I can look at the situation in one of two ways:

1) “WTF????!!! I just spent $50 in prints, $110 in entrance fees, $100 in a special secure shipping case, $25 in UPS shipping… then find out 45 days later and past the point of no return that my package never arrived. I will hunt you down!

2) “There’s always next year.”