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Saturday, December 31, 2005
 
Yet another cat update.

In a surprise turn-around she's much brighter this morning after being on a drip all night and has been allowed home.

The blood tests last night showed slightly higher than normal levels of something (I can't remember exactly what they were testing), more tests are needed to get to the bottom of the problem but, as she's better, we are going to watch her and wait (Vet agreed to this).

It's all about money really, in the last two days vet bills have totaled more than £300 and we just don't have that spare. If she suffers she'll have to be put down but at the moment she isn't suffering and is recovering from all the stress (unlike me).
- Steve, 1:25 PM,
Friday, December 30, 2005
 
Another cat update...

Not looking good for the smallest of the two cats I'm afraid. She has always been a bit sickly (as documented here) and she hasn't coped well with being spayed today.

Right now she's back at the vets for the night because she became weak and couldn't stand up, lots of dribbling too. She's seen a different vet tonight and they think she may have a Portosystemic Shunt in her Liver, it's a kind of "short circuit" that stops the blood being cleansed by the liver and the nutrients being absorbed properly. It would account for her odd behavior and lack of growth, blood tests tonight may confirm this.

I think it's likely that she will be put to sleep, she's very ill tonight and even if she recovers from this bout she'll probably be left with a serious condition which isn't going to get better.
- Steve, 10:19 PM,
 
Probably going to take a trip this afternoon to the new Ikea store in Milton Keynes, it's finally open which is great because it's only around 20 miles away from here.

I like shopping at Ikea, furniture is one thing but I like all the other stuff like cheap batteries and pint glasses. Swedish food shop is great too; the root beer is nice and the pear cider is even nicer.
- Steve, 1:58 PM,
 
Both cats are at the vets today being Spayed, they probably won't like that much.

According to latest reports the op's have been done and they are both fine, but a bit wobbly. We can collect them later and I think they will be shut in a bedroom with all their stuff so that they can have some peace and quiet.

I wish I could do the same (peace and quiet, not be Spayed) as I'm feeling quite tired, the cats kept me awake last night because they couldn't eat after 9pm and I think they were vocalising their displeasure. Also, a while back they got collars with bells on that are supposed to give birds etc a fighting chance of not being eaten, what they really do is annoy me when they charge up and down the stairs all night.

I really should have gone to bed before 4am but I've been enjoying "me time"... alright, I do the washing-up while listening to Podcasts.
- Steve, 1:10 PM,
 
This Google Video is great, you might have seen it as it's linked from Boing Boing.

Record an old Lottery show, buy a ticket to match the numbers, play it back as live and watch the guy who isn't in on the joke... a classic.
- Steve, 1:03 AM,
Thursday, December 29, 2005
 
Pilot dumps drunk man on island - Excellent story, I hope he has to fund his trip back home personally and hopefully the airline will try to recover the costs of the diversion from him.

It's nice to see people being held resposible for their actions, I don't think it happens enough in the real world but airlines and airports are pretty hot on this sort of thing.
- Steve, 11:44 PM,
 
According to the local paper there might well be heavy snow tonight/tomorrow in North Oxfordshire, where I live.

I really would love to have a few inches of fresh snow, I'm not at work and we have a sledge all ready to go. It used to snow much more often when I was a kid than it does now, I don't want Georgia to miss out on it all.

If it doesn't snow I'm thinking of packing the car and going somewhere where there will be some snow, we can always get a cheap Travelodge in the area... It would be a kind of poor mans skiing trip!
- Steve, 2:59 PM,
Tuesday, December 27, 2005
 
I'm loving having a break from the usual routine of work, the big difference from taking time off at other points in the year is that everyone else is off now so the 'phone is quiet. It's been a busy year and I haven't had much time off to relax, taking last week off was a good move because it always takes me a while to wind down.

I like not having to know what the time is, it really doesn't matter because I have nowhere to be and nothing to do. It doesn't matter that I've stayed up to 4am hitting the "random article" button on Wikipedia* because I don't have to be at my best tomorrow.

If I won the Lottery my life would be like this all the time.

I think I might have a glass of Port now.

* You can't say that I don't know how to enjoy myself.
- Steve, 3:35 AM,
Sunday, December 25, 2005
 
Merry Christmas everybody!

So, 24 presents have been wrapped and put under the tree this evening, all of them for Georgia. I know that seems like an absurd amount but it's pretty much all "stocking filler" stuff with a couple of larger items too. It's a big pile but it's not really high value stuff, that's something you can get away with when you are buying for a 5 year old.

It's the early hours of Christmas morning and I'm just starting to feel Christmassy, I have drunk Santa's cup of coffee, I have yet to consume his mince pie and Rudolph's carrotts though. I'm about to have Daddies glass of Baileys, the lights are low, the tree is twinkling and there is Groove Salad spilling out of the laptop... yeah, I could get used to this.
- Steve, 1:15 AM,
Friday, December 23, 2005
 
Sometimes I wish I lived somewhere with a little bit of life in it. Bicester is alright, it's good for all the sensible things in life like schools, transport links and shopping, but when 6pm comes entertainment is very limited. If you wanted to go for a beer you would be ok but that's not what I'm after, since I passed my driving test in September 1993 I've preferred to drive rather than drink*.

Now is a good example, it's gone 2am I'm wide awake and would quite like to go out for a change of scenery. Ideally I'd like to go somewhere dimly lit for a machiato and some stimulating conversation, maybe even a smoke if the mood was right. There is nothing within miles of here that would suit my needs, the only things open are the 24hr Tesco and the Cherwell Valley Services, both of these are full of people who aren't allowed out during daylight hours.

So, I'll be staying in tonight with the only the cats and Keith & The Girl for company.

* Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy a drink it's just not a necessary part of having a good time these days.
- Steve, 2:03 AM,
Monday, December 19, 2005
 
I'm loving the Citroen C6, quality car but understated in the way that BMW's and Merc's aren't. I want one. At £29k it's out of my league though, Audi A6 might be the answer as it's more than £5k cheaper.
- Steve, 12:22 PM,
Sunday, December 18, 2005
 
It's been a really busy couple of weeks what with one thing and another, little time for anything but work and getting to and from work. I am officially on holiday until after Christmas now but I think it's just too busy to be completely free from work. This is a problem because, as the schools are off and Clare is working, it's my job to entertain a 5 year old all day and that's not easy when the phone is ringing all the time and the emails are flooding in.

I also need to finish an end of course project for OU course I'm doing, I've found it really hard to get enough free time (and motivation) to do enough study. The course is made up of three tests and the project, the tests are all done (80%, 90% and 80%) but the project is going to be hard as time is running out. I'm actually not too fussed about passing the course because it's the learning part that interests me, but it never hurts to have a certificate when you're job hunting (which I'm not).
- Steve, 8:20 PM,
Wednesday, December 07, 2005
 

mini_old_new
Originally uploaded by Saturner.
This is the newer Sportspack with the Mini Cooper 1.3i we already had.

The black one we had for a few years and it was great fun. We hit the streets of Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam in it, all the time topping the radiator up with mineral water. Good times.
- Steve, 11:23 AM,
 

mini_sportspack
Originally uploaded by Saturner.
This is probably my favourite car out of all of those we've had in the past. It's a '98 Sportspack and we had it from new for about a year.

I really wish I still had it, no good for the milage I do these days but perfect for long drives in the country and having fun.
- Steve, 11:18 AM,
 
So, David Cameron is the new leader of the Conservative Party and I think this is probably a good thing. I'm not a Tory voter but there are two things he has committed to that really endear him to me... actually, I may have misunderstood...

Anyhow; the two things are:

An end to "Punch and Judy" politics
and
Supporting the Government when they agree with their policy (i.e. not opposing for the sake of it)

These might actually be the same point but I hope that the "end of Punch and Judy" thing relates to PMQs. I listen to it when I can but I can't get through a whole session without being both angry and ashamed of the behaviour of the MPs in attendance, if you don't know what I mean then listen to it today. They are supposed to be representing us but it sounds like an unruly kids party.

The point about not opposing everything just because you are (or think you are) the opposition is also a good one. Some policies are correct and some aren't, if you oppose everything then you are just self serving and not looking out for the country.
- Steve, 10:26 AM,
Monday, December 05, 2005
 
I should point out that my friends Ernest and Julio have paid a 750ml long visit tonight, there is a good chance that disjointed rambling might follow (more than usual).

I left the house this morning at around 9.45am and was home around 5pm, between these times I drove for 4hrs 52mins. I only made two stops, Bletchley and Lichfield... what a waste of a working day. I shook hands with a couple of people but that is probably as productive as it got. Tomorrow I'll balance that by working from home where I can start work just after I get out of bed (sometimes I'll even get dressed first).

Tomorrow though a man is coming to fix the oven (I could fix it myself because I did an apprenticeship instead of going to university, therefore I call myself an "Engineer" (at least in private))

As we rent this house someone else fixes anything that breaks, this means that I should probably hide the cats as our agreement states "no pets"... will they stay in my sports bag without making too much noise?

I'm listening to todays DSC, I'm starting to quite enjoy Country music, keep that between us.

Where has Sheila gone?
- Steve, 11:39 PM,
Thursday, December 01, 2005
 
- Steve, 1:21 AM,

 

  
 
   
 
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