Just to tide you over until your GF arrives…
http://www.hobbyking.com/mobile/viewproduct.asp?idProduct=108576
Important notes:
OOOHH I can do my nails with this one!! LMAO…
Sadly, there will be people doing just that…and skin…
Does it come with an application for a guide dog? A whopping .5 watt laser that wont burn much but certainly could fry a retina. I’ll wait patiently. Good find though!
My favorite part is the rating…
An inch and a half square. So… you could make… small and medium sized pendants!
Yet another machine built out of a couple of crossed cr-rom drives. I finally started disassembling mine this past winter because I wanted to use the stepper drivers for something else. They’re a sort of cheap gateway drug. And if you baby them along very carefully, you can cut/engrave just enough to prove that it’s possible.
(As part of that craziness, I now have a bunch of somewhat higher powered diodes and almost enough sense not to use them.)
I’ve got a handheld laser pointer I picked up in China that has more power than this device. Yes it will cut plastic and burn through dark colored paper. White paper reflects to much of the light to cut. It’s a really dangerous toy, but still fun outside at night. 
Yeah it looks like a laser point on roids. Why do I feel like a soldering iron with a fine tip could do more and faster.
This was my first laser earlier this year ( and it came with safety glasses!!). I was able to engrave toothpicks (seriously) and I did make wedding table “number plates” on wood as well as other wedding favors ( small) with it. Kind of fun to play with a little I got some 99 cent wooden boxes from craft stor and was able to put art on the lids as well as personalize pencils. Will try and post project pics if I can . For the price it is kind of fun to see what you can do… The air assist is human powered BTW ( blow on it) 