The Most Expensive Disposable Camera EVER!

So, I'm angry and bitter. Last night at dinner I pulled out my trusty Canon Powershot SD500, which I received as a great Christmas present a year and half ago, and it stopped working. The lens would retract and then beep at me a couple time and then shut down with E-18 error across the screen. I LOVE my camera. I have NEVER dropped it and I keep it in a padded case and in its own special pocket of my purse.

I come home to do some internet research and find out this is a common occurrence in Canon cameras!!! I spent the whole night trying to fix the thing. Doing what all the forums said to do: turn the lens clockwise/counter clockwise till it snaps back into place, run a toothpick around the lens, use an air compressor to get out all the dust, charge the battery, push on the lens, and whack it on a hard surface at the padded AV port. The thing just wouldn't work. I called tech support here in NZ (thanks for the info, Duff) and after an hour they said they could fix it......for around 200$ and they can't guarantee the work. So it could happen again. I went to a local camera store a town over (they also work with Canon) and they quoted the same.

THIS IS SO FRUSTRATING!!! I'm on a trip of a lifetime and my camera dies.

So here are the last pics from my not-so-trusty camera:

Some of the Swim School kids being silly copying the aqua aerobics instructor.

It was really funny.

Jo and I (She's one of my co-workers from WRAC. She makes the job alot more humorous).

My fantastic uniform (in the water). Please note the bike shorts.

I deemed them the "Lance Pants"

So that's all for now. I'm really grumpy but that won't stop me from trying to figure out a solution for my now Amish camera ways.
Cheers.