The drone came Thursday, the gimbal Friday, and a carbon tripod he had described to himself as being for the drone but which was really for the camera he bought in March and used twice. He got the drone out of its box on the floor of the apartment he moved into in January, held it in both hands, and felt the thing arrive. Nothing.

He looked up the return window, thirty days, restocking fee on opened items, and left the tripod sealed so it would still qualify. Then he sat in the packing paper a while. His son comes alternate weekends and thought the drone was extremely cool. They flew it once, into a maple, and laughed, and that was the best forty minutes of his month.