Canon Fodder

3D Tree

2011-07-31T11:54:00.001+01:00

3D Tree, a photo by Canon Fodder on Flickr.

It's been quite warm of late, by UK standards at least, so the workshop has been very warm. In an effort to keep the temprature down I've had the door open as well as the windows. The above is the view from my desk when you look up out of the door. Personally I count my myself lucky that it is. :-)
Okay there is a knack to this one. If you can pull it off you get to see the picture in 3D. You need to make your eyes go 'cross-eyed' if you can. You should then have three or four pictures, not two. (It may help to single out a single item such as a branch or individual leaf.) Three here is the magic number; once you have three (This may take some practice and some trial and error.) Stare hard at the middle image, make sure it is aligned and try to get it to focus. If you can, the image should resolve into 3D. Good Luck!

Silly Bob

2011-07-21T20:26:00.000+01:00

Grim week

2010-09-16T17:27:00.001+01:00

Are you dinner?
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Pepper died today. She was hit by a car. Lorii's dad found her trying to drag herself home Yesterday. The vet showed us five fractures on the x-rays. The four points where the pelvis attaches to the spine and her hip joint. The vet felt it was worth seeing if there was any nerve damage to the bladder, but overnight she lost the use of her legs. So we decided to end her suffering. I'll miss her company on the walks to the post office and her squirmed greeting whenever I came home.

2010-09-12T03:55:00.001+01:00

Multiple Sclerosis

2010-08-11T12:37:00.003+01:00

Lorii is still in hospital, but will hopefully be home soon. Perhaps even later today.

The treatment for her MS is over for now and it is only the fallout from the steroids that is keeping her in. Before the treatment Lorii was a Type 2 diabetic, managing her sugar with diet and drugs. Unfortunately a side effect of the steroids is to send your blood sugar way on up, and for Lori it has just not come down. She is now waiting on Diabetes Specialist nurses to come train her on how to manage her blood sugar with self injected insulin. Whether this promotion to Type 1 diabetes is permanent is unclear, but they won't let her out of the hospital until the nurses have signed off that she is okay.

The doctors have signed of on her MS medication. Another self injected drug called Rebif. Lorii will have to attend a clinic for training on that too. The poor girl is going to look like a human pin cushion.

Choices

2010-08-05T08:55:00.004+01:00

Well Lorii is still in hospital, will be until Friday, and today chooses which drug out of many to use to treat her MS long term. She now describes the sensation in her left hand as having a really tight rubber glove strangle it. They've given her some new medication to help with that but it is a cumulative one and will take some time to get working. The steroids given to help speed the MS relapse have screwed her blood sugar so much that she is now being taught how to inject insulin. This and the fact that she will have to self inject the new MS drug she has to choose today has really got her down. It didn't help that the doctors came and told her what her choices were, told her she had 24 hours to decide, and left her. Within a few hours of them leaving she had promptly forgotten what her choices were.

Latest news...

2010-08-02T23:14:00.002+01:00

Well as I type Lorii is once again in hospital. Another MS relapse this time effecting her left arm. She still has the use of it, but it's both going numb and itching. She should be out soon, they're just keeping her in while they give her some medicine that screws up her blood sugar as a side effect.

Katie

2010-06-01T18:13:00.001+01:00

2010_05_30_019817
Originally uploaded by Blastuk

Someone obviously put a lot of effort into their costume this year...

Blink

2010-04-25T11:24:00.001+01:00

Blink
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well the "Weeping Angels" are back on Doctor Who and last time that brought this picture a huge number of views. It'll be interesting to see if that's repeated this time...

Recent Events

2010-03-08T11:46:00.001Z

Under the Bridge
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

So this is the easiest way to catch up with everyone.

On the 1st of February Lorii woke up feeling dizzy. The dizziness made Lorii feel nauseous so she had trouble keeping her pain meds down. Thinking she had caught the Noro Virus that was in the news, Lorii decided to tough it out. However by Friday Lorii was in such bad shape I called an ambulance. The A&E doc thought the dizziness was down to her brain and was uber concerned. Lorii was sent up to the CDU ward where the docs could decide what to do with her. The docs dismissed the brain injury idea and concluded her ears were up the duff. They discharged her on the Monday after a weekend on a drip to rehydrate her with some antiemetics and an appointment at a clinic in two weeks.

By the next Friday (The 12th) Lorii was as bad if not worse than the last time. I again called an ambulance. These guys could see her distress was very real and gave her some morphine before they took her in. We saw the same A&E doc who through a fit over the phone that her previous diagnosis had been over ruled. She was again admitted, but this time the stay was much longer.

Test were done and Lorii was told her carotid arteries were badly blocked and full of dangerous clots. New drugs were administered and Lorii was told to stop smoking, "…or something terrible would happen!" Then a specialist said her arteries were not so bad to need a operation and a MRI was done. The MRI showed demyelising had occurred to her brain. The docs start to prepare us for a diagnosis of MS. Then a neurologist quashes this but orders a lumbar puncture to confirm it one way or another. Lorii is then discharged before the results are in.

So here we are at home. We're now waiting on our GP to come back with the results. Lorii is still dizzy, and can barely walk. If it's not MS then she's suffered a number of mini strokes. Oh and the recession finally bit and I've been laid off. But given the last month I just don't care.

Album Cover

2010-01-29T15:54:00.003Z

AncientAngel
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

What a small world! One day I take a picture of a statue in a cemetery. Piddle about in Photoshop a bit. Post it on Flickr to show the world. Now its album art for a band in the USA. Just watch my head swell!

You can check out the band here; Mike Nielson

Back To The Balloon Fiesta!

2009-10-04T12:14:00.001+01:00

Back To The Balloon Fiesta!
Originally uploaded by MikeJonesPhoto

This is Mike Jones picture I mentioned below. If you are a Flickr member please visit this picture and fave it. };))

Flickr

2009-10-04T11:54:00.001+01:00

Arrows@Blackpool
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

There is a professional photographer on Flickr called Mike Jones. He travels around America in a campervan taking pictures of stunning beauty for a postcard company. A bit of a dream job really. Aside from the utterly stunning (stonking even) pictures in his photostream the banter from his fans and himself always make it worth a visit. Last night he posted a request for fav's (It's a Flickr thing) on a beautiful picture of a balloon launch he took some time ago. It was a joke thing to beat a friend of his who had 800 fav's on one of his pictures and was teasing Mike with it. When I helpfully added my fav He had collected 16030 already! As Mike had promised all who gave him a fav a picture of a dollar I added a comment that I'd give home extra time to send me my dollar, given the large number of fav's collected. Imagine then my surprise to awake today to find a fav from Mike Jones on one of my pictures with a comment too plus a picture of a dollar. Poor Mike must have struggled to find a picture to fave as the start of my photostream is full of pictures of Katie dressed in latex and corsets modeling collars! But he tacked it on this one which was sitting on the bottom of the page. Thank you Mr Jones; a true man of his word.

Holiday

2009-09-20T09:14:00.002+01:00

I'm on holiday from work at the moment. Only trouble us there us so much to do I'm not having a very relaxing time. On Friday the whole family went down to the front to see some fireworks. Lorii used her wheelchair and while her dad, George, gave us a lift down to Gynn Square, Jake and I pushed her all the way home up the hill. We then went out for a steak meal. Everyone stuffed themselves and I even discovered what beer tastes like again!

Yesterday I took Katie and Lorii down to Ikea. We spent the whole day there! Spent far too much but we got a lot for our money. Though that said Ikea does seem to have become very expensive all of a sudden.

Quandry

2009-08-28T10:58:00.001+01:00

Engraving
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

So I got an email this morning, on Flickr, warning me that it against the (flickr) rules to post pictures for commercial purposes. So I've just dutifully removed all the links I put in the comments back to Wyred Slave. The truth is that the pictures of Katie I have recently posted were taken for a planned update of the website. But I was dead chuffed at how well they had turned out, and wanted to... Well I supose the honest thing to say here is show off! I mean, hell, Katie looks so God damned good. She has a talent for sitting in front of a camera and looking beautiful! Ironically the whole performace leaves her cold, so there is little chance if a career in modeling. Still, at least Katie got to find that out early on. So the pictures posted on Flickr are just the tip of the iceberg. I've loads more, and once the update goes live, you'll be able to see them all there.

Sleep deprived but happy....

2009-08-20T12:38:00.003+01:00

Well the neighbours over the road decided to take the caravan on their drive apart this morning; using small boys armed with tomahawks and hammers! Now I'm all for the wanton destruction of these vile things, but feel either the Brainiac or Top Gear aproach is better; i.e. explosives or high speed impact with something huge and hard. Hammers and tomahawks (really!) just take too long and, importantly, make a lot of noise. Only the fact that they were armed to the teeth stopped me from delivering a large piece of my mind in a forceful way. Four hour sleep to be awoken by caravan is not funny.

On a happier note Katie got her A level results this morning too. An A for Graphic Design, an A for Art, a B for English and an E for Maths. This is fantastic! Good enough for a scholarship from the University these grades have secured her place at. So right now I am really, really happy.

Arrows Smoke

2009-08-09T19:10:00.001+01:00

Arrows Smoke
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well I know I bitch about this town (Blackpool) a fair bit. But I have to admit there are a few nice things about living in this town. One is that I get to take pictures like these from my attic window. :)

Collared Slave

2009-07-31T05:02:00.002+01:00

Collared Slave
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well we're planning an update of the website for Wyred Slave some time soonish. So with that in mind, and as Katie volunteered, we've been doing a few test shots. Katie is modelling a prototype removable o-ring that quite a few customers have been asking for.

The main thing that has struck me about this and all the other pictures is just how great Katie looks. I know I'm biased but she looks really, really beautiful.

Look into my eyes...

2009-05-18T15:51:00.001+01:00

Are you looking at me?
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well whilst cats may do it naturally I have just qualified as a hypnotieraist! I can now actually put letters after my name! Obviously having learnt this new skill I an busy practicing on all willing members of friends and family. Which may explain why everyone is sudenly so docile and keen to please! };o))

Hypnotherapy

2009-05-10T12:35:00.004+01:00

Well I finally find time to make another entry into a very underused blog. Lots has happened, but the biggest news is that next week I attend a course to become qualified in hypnotherapy. Obviously the main aim is to help Lorii with her pain, though the course boasts that I will be able to set up as a business at the end; so the uses could be myriad. If all goes well and I find the time I'll keep you posted....

University

2009-01-21T01:54:00.001Z

Daughter
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well Katie has been provisionally accepted to her University of choice. Provisionally on the basis she gets the A level results they require. Though as the college are predicting she will get much better than the Uni are asking it looks like my baby girl is off to Uni next year. Tempus Fugit! Seems like yesterday she was asking me to adjust the saddle on her new bike!

Happy Birthday to Me!

2009-01-09T00:17:00.001Z

Grumpy
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Happy Birthday Jason, yer old git! Now yer 43.

One Armed Paper Hanger

2009-01-01T12:57:00.004Z

That's me! First sorry for such a wait between posts. To be honest I'm not sure if things are going to improve. Life has become super busy, and I just don't have spare time to write about it. Mostly it is for the good; Wyred Slave has really taken off, so I spend many waking hours making collars for folks now. Also Lorii's ebay shop has taken off ,so she is equally if not more busy than me. The result is there is barely time to do house work or feed ourselves!

So happy Christmas everyone! Happy New Year too. I hope 2009 is a better year than the last and I'll write again when I can.

Inside Me!

2008-10-30T23:16:00.001Z

Hiatus Hernia 1
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Apparently I have a Mixed Type 5cm Hiatus Hernia! I have been suffering dysphagia and heartburn so my GP sent me for an Endoscopy to diagnose why.

This picture is one of two that accompany the report from the Gastroenterologist to my GP. They are form inside me, but apart from that, and that I did not enjoy them being taken, I know nothing about them. Does anyone feel like telling me what we're looking at?

Silk Spectre II Comic-Con poster

2008-08-02T01:12:00.001+01:00

Silk Spectre II Comic-Con poster
Originally uploaded by Official Watchmen Photos

Okay this is not fair! I can see what they're trying to do, but it's working! The 6th of March is too far away. I'm going to be a gibbering wreck by the time the movie hit the screens if they keep teasing me like this. (Link through the picture to see more based on the other characters.)

An explanation...

2008-07-27T12:43:00.002+01:00

Ok, perhaps I should explain the childish gibbering below. That I enjoyed the source book must be self evident. But the trailer suggest that the plot has been adhered to. Every scene in that trailer seems to be lifted from the pages of the original comic. Well with the exception of the Silk Spectre, who is now clad in yellow and black latex, but I can hardly kick off over that! (Interestingly (If you are a nerd like me.) the reason for the costume change is because Laurie's costume, in the comic, was supposed to be extremely provocative. In today's sexual climate, with films like Underworld and X Men having gone before, it was felt the Silk Spectre needed to step up a gear, sexually speaking that is, to get this point across to modern audiences.) So it looks like we may be in for a rare treat; a movie that stays faithful to the original book. This seems to be becoming a more common thing these days; Lord of the Rings tried hard, Harry Potter films follow the books. Though there are still script writers that think they know better than successful authors. I Am Legend springs to mind as I type this.

Alan Moore is reported to have a downer on the idea of his work being interpreted into a movie. After V for Vendetta I can hardly blame him. I was a teenager when I first read Watchmen. I was blown away by the complexity of the plot, the jumping from past to present; the very idea of setting it in an alternate timeline. One where Watergate did not happen and America wins the Vietnam War. I can still remember my friends debating the true identity of Rorschach, guessing incorrectly that 'he' could possibly be a she! I still enjoy re-reading it today, even though I know every plot twist by heart, and a part of me wants to share this with others. I've lent my copy of Watchmen to all those I can convince to read a 'comic,' including my own children. But some can't/won't stoop to read comics. Until now I've pitied them, and their loss. Hopefully this film will show them the error of their ways, or at least allow them to glimpse the genius of Mr Moore's work. If he has had his name removed from the movie and his royalties sent to Dave Gibbons (The artist) then that is a shame. People should know where this movie came from, it may get them to modify preconceived ideas about graphic novels.

Oh My God!!!!!

2008-07-25T11:40:00.003+01:00

Okay I'm not usually prone to over-excitement but; Oh My God! Oh My God! Oh My God! Oh My God! Oh My God! Oh My God! Oh My God! OH MY GOD!!!!!!

Okay I'm calm now. Ish.

http://www.watchmenmovie.co.uk/intl/uk/

My favourite book is going to be a movie! (And you thought I was getting worked up over something important!)

Anyway that is far too many exclamation marks for one entry. Guess where I'll be on the 6th march!

Burning Clouds

2008-07-20T21:51:00.001+01:00

Burning Clouds
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Just discovered this picture has made it intp Explore on Flickr. A bit of a dark horse as I'd not thought it as popular as many other picture I've taken that have dropped out. It all just goes to add to the mystery that is Flickr's Explore....

Sex Slave Collar Test

2008-07-17T11:31:00.007+01:00

I was checking out the stats site for the Wyred Slave last night. I noticed that we were getting some traffic coming from a site called Hello Quizzy. It seems some girl, I'm assuming a former customer, has made a test/quiz to determine which is the perfect collar for you. (Or presumably your own slave!) Unfortunately there are links to other collar manufactures too, but hey it's free publicity! It has been put together by pasting up lots of pictures gleaned from other peoples sites, (Including mine!) and asking you to rate them. Have a go, just don't click on my competitors links at the end!!! };o))

If you do feel like taking the test, as I clearly did, you'll need to uncheck the I want an account box at the end to see your result. Let me know how you did and we'll see if anyone is more of a slave than I obviously am! :o)) (Having just viewed my blog after posting this I feel I should add that the text after the picture is the determination of the quiz writer and not written by me!)

Your result for The Sex Slave Collar Test...

Pure Slave

68 % Strength, 78 % Permanence, 60 % comfort

You want steel locked tight around your throat, and you don't ever want it removed. Explore Axsmar you won't be disappointed. Or if Axmars' prices scare you try Wyred Slave. They make collars that are a bit more affordable.

Take The Sex Slave Collar Test at HelloQuizzy

Catching up... again!

2008-07-02T09:13:00.003+01:00

So.. had a bit of a bump on the M5; heavy traffic, guy in front stops suddenly, so do I, the three behind me don't! Not until they've used up all the space between us anyway. :( The car was written off; huge argument with the insurance company of the driver behind me (Who had admitted liability.) over the value of my car. Finally settled on a price I'm not entirely happy with but still twice their first offer. So now I'm looking for a new car....

Finally got the Wyred Slave site up and running. There is a link on the right I'd appreciate all readers clicking, even if you don't need a steel locking collar for your slave. To be honest I just need the traffic to boost my rankings in the search engines. I'm really pleased with it as Lorii has done a great job, even to the point of a shopping cart and credit card facilities! So now I'm a shop keeper again, almost takes me back to the days I helped Uncle Ron run the stall on Petticoat Lane Market.

Katie has decided she wants to pursue art for her degree. So now she needs to do a foundation course before the university of her choice will admit her. That happens in Blackpool, so she will be at home one more year than we thought, before she flies the nest.

Goodbye Old Friend

2008-06-07T02:53:00.001+01:00

Goodbye Old Friend
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Shadow
November 1995 - June 2008

He always had a stick.
Sometimes the stick was a small tree.
He was a good friend.
He will be missed.
He always had a stick.

Missing in action...

2008-05-15T14:55:00.001+01:00

Are you looking at me?
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well it's been far too long since my last entry. Loads has happened. Jake got suspended from school; for being attacked. I was not going to post that but, the school has not kept it secret, so there seems little point in maintaining the charade. We go to see the school about the whole sorry mess on Monday. I'm far from happy with the way they have dealt with this and other incidents. It seems it's no longer about who hit first anymore; rather who hit hardest.
Lorii has been to the Pain Clinic and been put on a new form of Tramadol. It seems to be working well and is giving Lorii more of each day to enjoy.
Lorii has also discovered cross stitch in a big way. My mum gifted her a counted pattern and now there is no stopping her. If she's not on ebay there's a hoop in her hands!

Grandma?

2008-04-02T19:42:00.001+01:00

Grandma?
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Pootled down to the wreck again, this time with Katie's camera. I really cant see how they plan to float this ship away. It's sinking into the sand fast, and all the sand in the superstructure is going to take a lot of time to shift. |I am no salvage expert, but to my layman eyes, that boat looks like it's staying there.

Alone in the night

2008-03-24T18:13:00.001Z

Alone in the night
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well I finally got out and took a look at Riverdance. The wreck has now been written off, the term being used was a 'Constructive Loss.' They still want to float it away. There is 60,000 tons of scrap metal there after all. But if we have much more bad weather I think they'll be cutting it up on the beach. Not a pretty prospect for the residence of Clevelys who'll suddenly have lots of scrap metal lorries driving through their town.

Parents

2008-03-11T14:24:00.003Z

Well I got to go visit my parents this weekend. It was really good to see them as it had been some time since we last met. My dad seems to have found great satisfaction in learning how to use his wood lathe, and Mum is now giving demonstrations in making greeting cards.
On a sadder note, Shadow is getting on and is now deaf and nearly blind. I bet he would be really good at pinball! He seems pretty happy though and still enjoys his walks and playing with Breeze.
I left the South West just as a huge storm front was rolling in. I had a pretty uneventful journey home. But I was lucky to leave when I did as the pictures on the news look pretty catastrophic. That said my parents reported little except a new record low on their barometer.

Been busy...

2008-02-25T15:31:00.002Z

Life has been very interesting lately.. Had lots of trouble with Jake's school; to the point the police have been involved. That's still ongoing, with a meeting with the teachers and such like scheduled for tomorrow. Mostly this stems from the schools inability to control the bullying that Jake is suffering. The lad is so wound up now that the slightest provocation is provoking a over the top response from Jacob. Unfortunately he is not receiving slight provocation. Indeed he was 'happy slapped' at the beginning of the month. This is all getting too much, and is not helped, by the school punishing Jacob each time he retaliates or defends himself.

Lorii is still making very slow progress. Has been out a few times, but each trip exacts is toll. The last trip out was to Sues wedding, but we had to leave early, and Lorii spent the next two days in bed.

Katie keeps umming and erring on whether to drop art. Her workload is getting high, but I feel she should drop her Saturday job before lessons.

Lorii

2008-01-22T03:14:00.001Z

Kite Surfer 3
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Lorii had quite a good day on Saturday... But I think she under estimated just how weak the whole operation had left her. The day started with a trip to the park to feed squirrels. To be honest it should have ended there too, but although Lorii admitted to being tired once back at the car, she asked to be taken shopping. Sunday and Monday have now been wiped away as Lorii suffers the effects of muscle burn amplified by fibromyalgia.

So Sunday after taking Katie to work I stopped off at Starr Gate to watch the kite surfers. While it does look fun I think I'd be a fair weather boarder; that sea did not look inviting. That said the Irish Sea never looks inviting, and I could never afford this sport. A kite costs the best bit of a grand, the boards are about five hundred quid. Add to that a dry suit... My car cost less than these guys toys.

As Monday was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day I had the day off work. There is little point going in to service our American clients when they are celebrating a national holiday. So as I was home for the evening with the children I took them to the cinema. We saw the latest Ailen vs Predator movie. I was actually surprised how many survived a plot that basically sees an American small town wiped out. The kids were underwelmed, but I felt it was exactly what was on the tin. Sometimes you have to check your disbelief at the door. :/

I did it!

2008-01-09T13:20:00.001Z

I did it!
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well I finally had one of my pictures in 'Last 7 Days.' This has not been a long term goal, but after having a few pictures enter Explore after they were a week old, I'd be a liar if I denied that it bugged me a little. I'm aware that Explore is not a chart of the best pictures. Many fine pictures never make it into Explore. But now the box has been ticked I can forget about it. So as it turns out a little birthday prezzie to me from Flickr. But just to keep my feet on the ground; the picture has now been dropped from Explore. Ho Hum!

Flickr; Explore

2008-01-08T12:27:00.000Z

Isn't it sad how we find ourselves, from time to time, being sucked into the pursuit of fame and glory? Though in this instance I can claim I am merely pleased to accept the validation of my peers as well as the masses. What the hell am I talking about? The title to this entry should provide a clue, but just in case you're still in the dark, let me explain.

I enjoy, as I have from the age of about seven, the hobby of photography. So when I stumbled onto Flickr, a photo sharing site on the internet, wild horses could not have stopped me joining. Since march in 2005 I have been uploading my pictures so that my fellow members can critique them or ignore them as they may. Naturally I want to receive praise; which brings us to Explore.

Explore is amongst other things a popularity chart. Each day approximately 3.5 million pictures are uploaded to Flickr. Flickr rates each picture on 'Interestingness'. How 'Interesting' a picture is is based on a secret algorithm that takes into account such things as how many views a picture gets, who's looking, whether they leave a comment, how they found the picture or if they favourited it. Each day the top 500 pictures are placed in the Explore section. Where other members can peruse the best pictures of the day. There is also the 'Last 7 days Interesting' section where you can look at the most Interesting pictures from the past week. To get into Explore you must have posted a good or popular picture. The 'last seven days' feature makes it self feeding, the added exposure ensures more comments are left thus pushing up the ranking of a picture.

I have had 18 of my pictures in the Explore section. Though as it is not a fixed chart, but retrospectively amended, some have dropped out over time. I presently (As I type this blog entry) have 12 pictures in Explore. I have never had a picture in the 'Last seven days' section. All my pictures have crept up the chart slowly, proving their worth but never attracting fame or glory. The highest I have achieved is 113th on the 4th of January 2005 for my picture 'Mirror Ball'.

However on Sunday I posted 'Tide organ' which even I thought was a pretty good picture. It is presently 351st for the 6th of January 2008. I don't know how high it needs to get before it starts showing in the 'Last 7 days' but I'm pretty chuffed nonetheless.

If you have a Flickr account, or indeed if you don't, you can view this picture by clicking on the title of this blog entry. Obviously I'd be pleased if you left some feedback, but don't feel pressured, I want it to stand on its own merits. However, I do hope you like it.

Tide Organ

2008-01-06T22:31:00.001Z

Tide Organ
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well Lorii lost a couple of nights sleep to the pain, so when she finally got to sleep this morning, I kept out of the way taking photos. Had quite a good day of it too, if the response from my fellow Flickr users is any guide.

2007 Over and Out

2007-12-31T15:48:00.000Z

Well that's 2007 over with, and on the whole good riddance! There have been a few highlights but they were against the backdrop of Lorii's failing health. Lets hope that 2008 is better. I hope all of you had a good year and that 2008 is a better one for you too.

Photography

2007-12-30T17:45:00.001Z

Dog Walkers III
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Went out to try my new filters today. I got a neutral density filter and a R27 infrared filter. It turns out the beach is not the place to experiment with infrared photography, and the neutral density filter did not alow me to slow the shutter as much as I wanted. I did manage to take a couple of good pictures; the one here and another that you can view from my flickr site.

For those looking for news on Lorii. Bizarrely she hurts more now than earlier, but this is probably things healing up and letting her know they are back! She's not quite up to making the trek up the steep attic stairs to the computer. But as soon as she is, Lorii will be e-mailing you all to let you know how she is doing.

Christmas over...

2007-12-28T12:59:00.000Z

Well we all got great gifts; Lorii got a wood lathe, I got a flash for my camera, Jake got a limited collection of manga books and Katie got an easel.

A good time was had by all, though lorii is still in a lot of pain. Her tummy is still very swollen and she is in a great deal of pain. Her analgesics are only just covering her pain. She was seen by the surgeon on Christmas Eve who was very happy with her. Unfortunately the fibromyalgia and diabetes mean she is going to be slow to heal.

Drain Removed

2007-12-24T00:31:00.000Z

Well Lorii's drain has been removed, though not because she had stopped bleeding, but because it was dislodged. We are not sure what is supposed to happen to the fluids now, but she goes to see the surgeon on Christmas Eve to check all is well. At the moment she is feeling very sore, tired and nauseous. I've been running around, like a fly with a blue bum, trying to make sure we have all we need for Christmas and look after Lorii. If I don't get a chance to post again before Christmas have a good one and I hope you all get the prezzies you were wishing for.

Home

2007-12-20T09:09:00.000Z

Well Lorii is home! She it still pretty poorly, and has a short list of things she is not allowed to do; anything. In truth though this does not matter as she is so deprived of sleep and so full of medicine that I don't even think she wants to do anything. For now though I'm just relieved that the worst seems to be over, and that Lorii can now start the long road of convalescence.

Blood

2007-12-16T23:50:00.001Z

Blood
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Unfortunately Lorii's wound has not stopped bleeding. We've nothing official to go on but Lorii is pretty certain they will be going back in Monday afternoon. All a bit of a downer really as the nurses are all saying things like, "We have to try to get you out for Christmas." Lorii is very tired, probably due to the loss of blood, and upset at the prospect of another operation.
I'll post again once we know what the doctors plan to do.

More from the Vic

2007-12-16T00:50:00.000Z

Well Lorii seems to be improving, though she is still draining a lot of blood. It looks like the surgeon carved her up good and proper when excavating her left ovary. She seems to be surviving on 10ml of Orimoph every two hours now. Lorii had been hoping to be discharged on Monday, but if this bleeding does not stop that seems unlikely. On the positive side the hospital may enable her to jump the queue for a place at the pain clinic. This could help her manage her ongoing pain caused by the fibromyalgia in a way that has less of an impact on her daily life.

Scanned

2007-12-15T03:32:00.000Z

Lorii had her scan today. Didn't seem to show much. Asked operator why Lorii was so bloated. The response was to point out that morphine makes you constipated. So I turned to Lorii, "You hear that dear, You're full of..." You can guess the rest. Lorii had another fight for her pain meds today too. Some junior doctor stolled onto the ward and reduced her morphine by a quarter without even a look at her. Some arguing and a helpful Sister sorted it out before I left for work.

By the way...

2007-12-14T03:46:00.000Z

I've just been looking at the stats for my blog. It's funny how we are always told that sex is the biggest thing searched on the internet. Well despite the fact that Lorii and I together make locking slave collars for the BDSM and fetish market, and have links off this blog to the Wyred Slave site. Also despite having referred to these products in the blog, and used words that Masters and Mistresses looking for that all important fetter would use in searches is our range of restraints the most hit on search? No! The most used key words are "Star trek ships" closely followed by 1812 Overture! Go figure!

Hospital news

2007-12-14T03:34:00.000Z

Lorii stopped bleeding into her drain the other night, so the surgeons did not open her up again. However they put three litres of blood in and only took one out. Her tummy looks 9 months pregnant and she is still in a lot of pain. They are planning now to do a scan, though they have to wait for a slot in its very busy schedule. The morphine Lorii has be prescribed has been coming in varying amounts and doses, depending on which nurse is handing it out. All in all she is not a happy camper. Add to that that she looks set to stay on the ward for the next five day at the least and we are now wondering if she'll make it home for Christmas.

Lorii Latest

2007-12-12T18:50:00.001Z

Under the Bridge
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Lorii has not had too smooth a ride since the operation. Last night some jumped up nurse took into her head to refuse her her medication. Causing Lorii needless suffering. I've spent the day putting across my displeasure to various Doctors and Nurses at how she has been treated to date.

Now I've just had a call from Lorii (I'm at work) to say she has been put back on Nil By Mouth as they're thinking of going back in. Not good. Apparently they are not happy with the amount of blood in her drain.

More news as I get it.

Lorii

2007-12-11T02:01:00.000Z

Lorii had her operation on Monday at around 1.00pm. She had both her ovaries removed as well as her womb, though her cervix was left in place. Her right ovary had a cyst on it. Her left ovary was attached to her abdominal wall by many adhesions caused by the endometriosis. She is in a lot of pain and has a morphine pump she can use to inject 1mg every five minutes. When I first got there the five minutes were not passing fast enough. But by the time I left at 9.00 she was sleeping comfortably, waking only to push the button before returning to sleep.

The state of Lorii's ovaries would explain most of her abdominal pain. I may be counting chickens, but hopefully once Lorii has recovered from this operation, the removal of the cause of the endometriosis may allow her other conditions to laps into remission. if so this could vastly improve her quality of life. Lets hope hey!

I got Lorii a Nintendo DS Lite for Christmas, but when the operation date came through I decided to let her open her present early. Now I'm just waiting for her to be well enough to start playing Tetris!

The story so far...

2007-11-26T22:28:00.001Z

Mayor and Katie
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well the picture is of Katie picking up her exam certificates and lots of prizes from the Mayor of Blackpool.

Other news;

Lorii now has a wheelchair. She is not confined to it but it is there for those days when the pain is too much for walking. It got it's first outing to Ikea the other day. Made Lorii do a double-take when she rolled in front of a mirror and she saw herself.

Lorii has her pre-operation assessment tomorrow, with her operation on the 10th of December. We have had a chat with the surgeon and she has put a lot of Lorii's concerns to rest. However she is still looking at a week in hospital and convalescence over Christmas.

I have built Jacob a fitted bedroom. I'm pleased with it and Jacob is chuffed too. He just needs a new carpet and he'll have the first finished room in the house!

We now have four cats! This is getting ridiculous. We now have a ginger and white tom called Lemmy/Chairman Meow and a tabby called Bob.

More news when I have the time....

I am alive!

2007-11-08T14:17:00.000Z

Life has been very busy of late. So I have had no time to blog. Lorii had a further CT scan yesterday, will share results once they are in. Her wheelchair arrive yesterday too. That's a lot crap so soon after her birthday. Lorii does not need it all the time, just for trips out when the pain overtakes her and stops her walking. The kids are now officially adopted, so I can stop being nice now! };o)) Katie has a new laptop for college that is better than my computer. It even has a newer version of Mac OSX than mine. Jake met one of the Dragons from Dragons Den and won a £70 pound grant for his woodworking business. I'll do this all again properly when I have the time.

Sleep; What's that then?

2007-10-07T04:07:00.000+01:00

Hello World! Long time no write I know, but I've just been so busy. Lorii's parents have been on holiday, and it has driven home to me just how much they help. Lorii has been going in to the hotel this week and with George away that means I have to take Lorii in. So 4 hours of sleep a night if I can get to sleep by 3.00, which I rarely do. Tomorrow (What am I saying it is tomorrow!) I take Katie into work, at 9.15am; It's 4.15am as I type this!

Lorii went to hospital and has been told she is to have a hysterectomy. Soon I won't know a woman with a womb! No date as yet but with a 3 month waiting list we are looking at early December. Later this month Lorii has another CT scan to look at all those lumps in her lungs. I'm a little less worried about those since the Lupus diagnosis as it could explain what they are; scar tissue from an occasion when the Lupus turned on Lorii's lungs.

Lorii has a really heavy cold at the moment, which seems a bit unfair to throw at someone as poorly as Lorii. Plus she can't take any cold cures as they all seem to contain paracetamol and would cause her to overdose if she took her needed co-codamol. Ho hum.

Jake gets to meet one of the Dragons from Dragons Den on Monday. I've told him to ask for lots of money! You never know....

Fireworks III

2007-09-09T13:25:00.001+01:00

Multiburst
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well I got to see some fireworks this year. :o) The Portuguese put on a good show as part of the World Fireworks Competition, and I got to try out my new camera. Mainly it highlighted that I need to learn a lot more. Especially on how to control it in manual mode. However I did get a few decent results, though a lot did not work. This was not due to my bungling but the strong onshore wind; which made both the camera and tripod shake as well as deforming the star-bursts.

Shell Drop

2007-09-05T14:18:00.001+01:00

Shell Drop
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well I got lucky! There was one date on which the World Fireworks Competition is held that I could attend; last Sunday! I'll post pictures once I've sorted them out; I got very trigger happy. Anyway I was walking down the promenade to find a suitable spot to set up the tripod. I was keeping one eye on the sunset, as it was turning out to quite a good one. But kept noticing that the seagulls were all flying around with shells in their beaks. Puzzled I watched closely as the bird circled above my head before dropping its shell and immediately diving after it. With the crack the shell made the penny, as well as the shell, dropped. The gulls were smashing the shells open on the foot of the sea wall. Now while I'm sure the whelks were not very happy about this I hope you'll agree it made for a nice photograph.

Toby Playing

2007-08-25T22:22:00.000+01:00

Just a short vid of Toby playing with his favourite toy. If you want one of these for your cat you can get them from Lorii's ebay shop on the right.

Qualifications

2007-08-23T12:52:00.001+01:00

Pyro China 1
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well the good news is that Katie got her exam results today and they're excellent. Four B grades, four A grades and three A star grades. Katie is the first student ever to get A star in both English Literature and English Language at her school. Everybody is made up for her though bizarrely Katie is most pleased with the B she got in French. After a poor spoken test Katie had not been expecting to do so well.

On a slightly less happy note I have just noticed that the World Firework Competition, that is once again to be held in Blackpool, is going to do it's thing on Friday nights. I'd been really looking forward to trying my new Nikon out and seeing if I could better the results I got last year (See above). But with me working nights that's going to be out of the question. Ho Hum.

Adoption

2007-08-22T03:32:00.000+01:00

Well tomorrow I'm off to court to see the judge. Nothing bad though, just adopting the kids I've been raising these past few years.

Lorii has been told by the doctor to start the process of registering as disabled. A bit of a downer that, but at least once registered we should get some tax breaks and some better parking spaces.

Well as I'm up early tomorrow, and I'm only just back from work, I'd better get to bed.

Katie Job Watch: Day 35

2007-08-01T12:33:00.000+01:00

Yeay - KATIE GOT A JOB

She now works at Pets @ Home at weekends... she got the call the day after the interview... so obviously cleaning out cages and serving the general public is better than washing and ironing at home.

Scruff

2007-07-30T09:41:00.001+01:00

Scruff
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well we decided that the guinea pigs needed some new blood to diversify the gene pool. So lets hear a warm welcome for scruff! Scruff brings not only a fresh set of genes but a sense of style unknown to our family of guinea pigs. According to Katie his symmetrical rosette pattern actually means he is rather well bred. Gosh! Blue blood; who knew?

Katie Job Watch: Day 29

2007-07-26T16:25:00.000+01:00

Katie has an interview! Talk about jammy. One application and they phone her straight back within hours of submitting it. The meeting is on Monday; obviously I'll keep you all informed.

Star Trek Ships

2007-07-25T22:49:00.001+01:00

Star Trek Ships
Originally uploaded by Jibby!

Stumbled across this as I was roaming Flickr one lunchtime. Who knew there were so many ships in Star Trek?

Katie Job Watch: Day 28

2007-07-25T13:48:00.000+01:00

Yesterday Katie actually asked for a job and was given an application form!!! However this was because the employer had no vacancies at the moment and was probably being polite. Otherwise there is not much news on the seeking front, though Katie is settling in well to her new domestic duties. She did admit that she was getting fed up with, "Being the house slave!" But then that was the idea, so no sympathy here. If she does not step up a gear in the hunt soon Lorii and I will be adding more chores and a timetable they must be done by...

Birdgirl

2007-07-23T12:36:00.001+01:00

Birdgirl
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well getting the birds wings clipped seems to be paying dividends on the taming and training front. As the picture shows Katie can get up close and personal with the birds now. Oh and she did not lose an eyeball just after this picture was taken.

On the job seeking front there has been very little progress. I was right about the uniform though, so I'm glad I didn't waste my money there. If Lorii and I don't see some serious job seeking action soon though things may turn nasty...

Harry Potter

2007-07-21T03:25:00.000+01:00

Well Jake now has latest Harry Potter book. He queued for hours in the pouring rain to get it as soon as it was available. Lorii has peeked at the back page to discover Harry Potters fate, but I think I'll just read the book when Jake has finished with it.

Votes Please

2007-07-18T09:42:00.000+01:00

Well I've added a picture to the fashion competition on Jpeg Magazine. If any of you folks feel like supporting me I'd appreciate some votes...

Katie Job Watch: Day 19

2007-07-16T16:03:00.000+01:00

Still no job; or any serious searching for jobs. So Lorii and I now have a tame domestic servant. Until work comes her way she is now in charge of the laundry, dog walking, hoovering, washing and cleaning. Which is great! Tonight I'm coming home to a bed with fresh linen. Katie has just made me a packed lunch for work and she has a huge pile of ironing to do this afternoon. I'd get her a uniform, but she would probably like that, so we'll just keep piling on the chores until getting a job seem like an easy way out.

Katie Job Watch: Day 16

2007-07-13T02:23:00.000+01:00

Still no job yet. Though she has now made a curriculum vitae.

Happy Birthday

2007-07-12T12:00:00.000+01:00

Happy Birthday Mum! Hope you're having a great time.

Vanishing Point

2007-07-11T20:26:00.001+01:00

Vanishing Point
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

One of the ways Flickr categorise the pictures submitted to it is by 'Interestingness.' Just how 'Interestingnees' is accumulated is a subject of much debate by the users of Flickr, but it is something most want. It has something to do with the number of views a picture get as well as who looks, what groups the picture is placed in and how many. I'm damned if I can work it out, but I do know that in the "Last 7 Days Interesting" section you can find some pretty spectacular pictures. I've never made it into the Last 7 Days but I have had a few pictures placed in the Top 500 Interesting for the week they were posted. The beach shot above is the first to have made this distinction since January 2006, as well as the first on my new Nikon. I'm pretty chuffed. Lets hope it's the start of a trend.

1812 Overture

2007-07-08T16:11:00.000+01:00

I found this on You Tube; Now why were my science projects nothing like this? If we were lucky we got to play with a Van de Graaff generator, never a Tesla coil! But what a use! These guys are turning the word geek into cool! I can just see Heavy Metal bands wanting giant musical Teslas to replace their banks of Marshal amps.

Katie Job Watch: Day 5

2007-07-07T20:39:00.000+01:00

Katie is still looking for employment. Though she has made some half hearted moves in the direction of the local supermarket and DIY store.

Vet Emergency

2007-07-07T16:07:00.000+01:00

Well Toby has had his first visit to the vets. We don't know how but the poor mite lost the tip of his tail! The first we knew of it was when he jumped on the bed leaking blood everywhere! The vet thinks he must have got it caught in a door jam, which makes my eyes water just thinking about it. Anyway; he should be okay, we have some antibiotics to give him. Though if it does not heal he may be looking at a small operation to tidy the wound that will reduce his tail even more. So strike one life for Toby and £45 for me.

Get a job!

2007-07-02T11:50:00.000+01:00

Well Katie has now left school. Next it's college and then university. In the meantime Katie; GET A JOB!

Bye Bye Rats

2007-06-27T15:56:00.001+01:00

Play With Me
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Sadly the rats were taken on their last trip to the vets yesterday. Both had developed tumours on their mammary glands. One had become so large that the rat was struggling to cope with it. Well they had a good innings and fun lives. Both will be missed.

Blink

2007-06-24T19:02:00.001+01:00

Blink
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Both the children and I are fans of the recent Doctor Who episode Blink! Jake has made me a T-shirt that proclaims, "The Angels have the blue box," and I took a trip into a nearby cemetery to see if I could find any Weeping Angels. While the picture was taken with a bit of fun in mind I rather pleased with how it's turned out on an artistic level too. Remember; Don't blink. Don't look away. But especially don't blink!

Kitten

2007-06-23T17:35:00.001+01:00

Kitten
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

The zoo expands! Add a cat/kitten to the roster. I'll post name when we have one...

Shift Work II

2007-06-23T13:00:00.000+01:00

Well I've come to the end of another week on the new shift and have, effectively, a three day weekend in front of me. This is nice, but it would help if my employers had been kind enough to pay me the extra money they offered me for working this shift. Unsurprisingly the accounts department have screwed up. They obviously thought I was coming in late and working until two thirty to make up my time! Three day weekends and day-times at home do not make up for missing my kids and pushing through to the wee hours. I'm famously short tempered when it comes to money. Never having any helps. If it's not sorted by the next pay packet I'm back to days whether my employers like it or not. I've watched too many mates argue for months over new pay or working conditions, while the money earns interest in the bosses bank account.

On another level it seems my employers want to sack all their key staff! A new rule has been passed down from above in reaction to an alarming rise in bodged jobs and unhappy customers. To supplant a perfectly adequate grievance procedure they have invented a set of rules that is being called, "Five strikes and you're out!" Essentially each error that makes its way to to a customer will initiate a witch hunt to track down a scapegoat. The unlucky soul found guilty of being totally responsible will then receive a strike. Dependant on a rolling score that starts with each persons first strike one of five punishments is then metered out; starting with an official verbal warning and ending with the termination of contract. I've never heard of such nonsense! Clearly the sign of weak management. This means that if I have more than 0.0125 jobs wrong in 100 I'm in deep trouble. The numbers are quite scary; I do a lot of jobs in a year and just five missed typos could lose me my job!

The daft thing is it is all so unnecessary. Everybody knows who the weak links are. The ones who hold their positions due to nepotism or long penetrating tongues down their superiors backsides. Get tough and use the existing rules to lose this baggage, and stop firing shots across the bows of the good guys.

Canon Fodder

2007-06-19T13:00:00.000+01:00

When I chose the alias of Canon Fodder I really did not put a great deal of thought into the process. I was getting slaughtered in Unreal; I figured that the name would fit while I was still a noob and if I ever got good... Well lets say no one likes being told, "You were killed by Canon Fodder."

But I got lazy. Which is not such a deviation from my usual personality type. So from that point whenever I got asked to supply an online nickname I gave Canon Fodder. So while I am not the sole user of the handle, (I'm not even the only Jason Long) there is a fair chance if you meet a Canon Fodder online it'll be me. So obviously I blog under the name, I also use it on Flickr which has become a little embarrassing; as I now own a Nikon. I had to explain the origin of the handle when I joined the Nikon D40x users group.

I've taken a quick look at some of the other users of the name. It's quite a varied bunch;

First off there is a Wikipedia entry for Canon Fodder which to my ignorant delight was a 2000AD Comic character! I enjoyed reading my friends issues of 2000AD in the past and while I am a fan of such characters as Strontium Dog and Judge Dredd I never new their was a Canon Fodder. The Character has his own page on the 2000AD Website.

There is a sports blog using the name as well as the url, but I do not understand why. It is American, so there may be no reason.

Delightfully Trekies or should I say Trekers have entitled the page where they debate and fix continuity issues Canon Fodder

There is a slide show using the name. Once again I am clueless for the reason.

Finally a fellow Blogger has used Canon Fodder for his Blog He/She seems obsessed with reading a great big list of books. Once again no specific reason is given for the title. But I suspect the may be a play of words going on here. Canon with only one n is not a misspelt word. It could be a fact or a religious leader...

Sixteen

2007-06-16T14:31:00.000+01:00

Well Yesterday was Katies birthday; she turned sixteen. Lots of gifts were showered upon her. As well as the birds, that even as I type this fill the house with their musical squawks, Katie received a light-box, numerous artists pens, hand made cards, clothes and hard cash. Also, thankfully while I was at work, an alcohol crazed teenage riot/party was held in the evening. (I may have exaggerated a bit there.) I think Katie is a bit disappointed with turning sixteen; all the things she is now legally able to do either Lorii and I won't let her, or she does not want to. But that's teenagers for you.

Dog Walking

2007-06-13T14:20:00.001+01:00

Dog Walking
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Just a snap of Katie walking the dog; but look at that wall. I love my new camera!

Shift Work

2007-06-09T15:33:00.000+01:00

As from Monday I start on a new shift at work. I'll start at five in the afternoon and work into the early hours of the next day. The main incentive is a 15% pay increase, but it also means I'm at home during business hours and free to pursue the collars business that seems to be taking off. We have had enough demand that prices have gone up, and we have just taken an order from an alternative retailer. If someone had told me a year ago I'd be making money in the sex industry selling locking steel collars to the BDSM fraternity I'd have rolled on the floor laughing.

Happy Me

2007-06-08T22:35:00.001+01:00

Happy Me
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

When I was about seven years old I bought my first camera; an Instamatic 110. I keenly snapped away on this until, after a visit to Farnborough Air show at the age of fourteen or fifteen, I started lusting after an SLR. My first SLR was a Ricoh XR1, my second a Chinnon CE5 and there the progression stopped. Financial and family commitments ment money could not go on new cameras. My first digital was a Sony Cybershot W1 bought second hand from the modern day equivalent of a pawn shop. But today I have been gifted a Nikon D40x. Hence the bloody big smile in the picture. Stunning pictures should follow...

Stats

2007-06-04T06:36:00.001+01:00

Map
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

I've subscribed to one of those sites that counts the number of visitors your web-site attracts, and gives you various statistics about them. Of course these figures are predictably small; I'm not writing about anything important here. But they have thrown up a few surprises. I was unaware that I have readers in Kathmandu and Caracas. Or that I am the top result in Google when you type in 1812 Ovature!

New Job

2007-06-02T01:13:00.000+01:00

Well I've been offered a new position at work. It seems the company wants to make a push into America and, until there are enough customers to warrant setting up a factory in the states, I'm going to working a shift in time with the West Coast of the USA. The work will not change; I'll just be on hand to handle telephone enquires after normal UK office hours. The main incentive for me is the 15% pay increase. But it will also mean that I will be home during the day, which will give me more hours when I can work on making collars. Something that seems to be taking off quite well.

Fynn

2007-05-30T17:36:00.001+01:00

Fynn
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder

Well here is a picture of Fynn; the remaining bird from the original pair. Katie now has two new baby birds too. Needless to say Jake has been banned from her room unless she is present and he is invited. Fynn can be seen here posing with a piece of limp lettuce; She quite likes lettuce but prefers fingers when she can get them!

Roller Coaster

2007-05-26T11:50:00.000+01:00

Well the last few days have been a huge emotional roller coaster. Katie's birds duly arrived; though they were not transported to their cage without a fright. As Katie was adjusting something in the cage, one got out! Lots of flapping and chasing later the bird is back with it's mate, though Katie is nursing a severely pecked hand! Katie did not mind though, she was just so happy she spent the rest of the day just watching her new birds.

The next day Lorii wins a new ceiling fan for the dining room on the internet. I take Katie with me to fetch it, after dropping Lorii off at a friends hotel. Lorii had become quite chatty with the seller of the ceiling fan, and had told him about Katies new birds. He took us around the back of his home to see his aviary, containing numerous finches including canaries. He also owned chipmunks, though we only saw one as the others were fast asleep. Katie was delighted, however, and was glad she had not stayed in the car while I collected the fan. Another surprise though came while chatting with Eddie, the fans owner, when it emerged through conversation that he was a good friend of George, Lorii's dad. They had both run businesses near Gyn Square, and often went drinking together. Eddie was really amazed that of all the people on the internet, who should buy his fan but the daughter of a good friend. A small world indeed.

When we got home Jacob was really agitated. He thrust the phone at me and told me I had to phone Lorii. I was instantly concerned, frightened even, that something terrible had happened to her. I asked Jacob what had happened and he confessed; he had accidentally released one of Katies birds. Not just from the cage, but from the house. The bird was gone. Forever. It turns out that once the rest of the family were out of the house Jacob had decided to play with Katies birds. Knowing full well that Katie would not let him near the birds while she was there he had decided to feed them; despite Katie having done so already. So although being present when Katie chased the bird around her bedroom, he opened the cage without first shutting the windows! I have never seen my daughter so upset, or been so angry with my son. As a parent I feel incredibly guilty that I did not prevent this from happening. I have felt for some time now that both my children were mature enough to be left unattended without risk of a major incident. For Jacob to display such a monumental streak of both selfishness and stupidity is totally gutting. It has taken Katie two days to come to terms with this. Jacob has further angered me by trying to play the victim card, sulking and playing the woe is me act as he suffers his punishments. Time (and Jacobs savings) will heal this. I only hope that Jacob has finally learnt not to touch other peoples possessions without asking.

Birds

2007-05-20T08:32:00.000+01:00

Anyone who knows Katie knows she is just a weenie bit obsessed with birds. She has pressed us every year for some sort of bird every birthday and Christmas; and now she is about to turn sixteen. Well we have given in. Harris hawks are still off the list as we just cannot look after them properly. Large parrots and macaws are no-nos too, as they live too long and require too much attention. So we have settled on cockatiels. Lorii won a huge bird cage on ebay, that would have cost £90 or more, for only £15! Jacob has been doing his bit too, by wooing the local pet store owner; he may have secured a free bird. So, Katie is under the firm understanding, that when she flies our nest she takes these birds with her, but right now she is just bouncing of the walls with excitement. It's good to see her so happy.

Oven

2007-05-13T22:38:00.000+01:00

Well our oven died on Friday. So we've bought a new one and a new hob too. The oven I had installed in seconds, the only hitch being the lack of even a mains cable on the new oven. But I simpley removed both plug and cable from the out going unit and Robert was my Mothers Brother! The hob though is a different kettle of fish altogether. That is going to require a Corgi certified Gas fitter. I was amazed to find that, unlike cookers, hobs don't have flexible hoses to connect. Or if they normally do; my existing unit and my new one don't. So I can't install my hob. Ho hum.

Lorii gets the results to her second scan tomorrow. I'm not too worried; as they have left it nearly a month after the scan to tell her. I'm sure if they had spotted anything to worry about they would have called her in much sooner.

Wounded

2007-05-07T14:35:00.000+01:00

Well I've just got back from the NHS Walk-In Centre. I sliced my little finger on my right hand, on a broken glass, whilst doing some washing up. The bugger would not stop bleeding, so after an hour of leaking circulatory fluid, I thought I'd show it to an expert. It was only a little cut. But things must have been slow at the walk-in centre, as I was shown straight through to a nurse, after triage, instead of being sent out to wait while they dealt with real emergencies. For my troubles I got three steri-strips, as it did not merit stitches, half a mile of tubi-grip, some gauze, Micropore and a tetanus booster.

The good news is I'm banned from washing-up. This is a bit dire for Katie though, as Jake cut his hand earlier iin the week and he too has problems keeping his dressing dry.

A Death

2007-04-16T20:26:00.000+01:00

The little baby Guinea Pig died this morning. It seems a shame that it died without even a name, so I'm going to refer to him as Nelson; for no better reason than he spent a large part of his brief life using only one eye. Both Lorii and Katie tried spoon feeding Nelson through Sunday, but he was just too week to suckle from his mom. It was inevitable really, and I'm now left wondering if I should have ended his life earlier and saved him suffering.

On a brighter note the remaining four are doing great, as is mum. All the guinea pigs have developed a strong Pavlovian reflex to the sound of a rustling plastic bag. Woe be-tied the person who rustles and does not feed them; the reward is a barrage of wheeps that hurt the ears!

OCD

2007-04-15T13:16:00.000+01:00

Lorii has always been the sort make sure all the tins in the cupboard face the same way. Come to that she'll constantly rearrange the contents of the supermarket shopping trolly too. Which brings me to the new light fitting I've just installed in the front room. It's an OCD sufferers nightmare. It basically is a number of halogen bulbs on the ends of long thin, but flexible, bits of wire. Getting each wire curving the same as the others and to make the whole thing symmetrical is going to drive Lorii crazy.

One of the five baby guinea pigs was a runt. This small pathetic thing is melting the kids hearts, but I don't think it is going to make it. Pretty sad really. I've even tried helping it to suckle from it's mother without the rest of the litter. But as the rest go from strength to strength it just keeps getting weaker. Pretty sad really; but that's life.

I'm dreading going back to work tomorrow. The volume of work coming in has been more than our department can cope with for some time now. As I've taken on more orders my ability to move on to new orders is hampered by clients who see me as an opportunity to redesign the finished artwork they were supposed to be supplying for print. Ultimately it is not my fault but managements; all I can do is wade through the work assigned to me. But nobody likes to be a part of something that is breaking down.

Babies

2007-04-12T22:20:00.000+01:00

Izzy had her second litter today. Five baby guinea pigs this time, all as cute as you like. Spunky was removed from the cage beforehand this time, so there will be a chance now for Izzy to rest.

Work is absolutely manic. I'm working fifteen hour days with no end in site. One of my fellow artist gave her notice recently, and another is on holiday. When the one on holiday returns another leaves for theirs... Still the money is nice but both Lorii and I are so tired.

Lorii goes for her follow-up CT scan tomorrow; to check the nodule really is nothing as the doctors suspect. Watch this space for news.

Pigeon

2007-04-09T12:31:00.001+01:00

Pigeon
Originally uploaded by Canon Fodder.

I was looking at the title page on Katie's comic and thought I'd share with you the original image. Back when Katie was finding it difficult to complete any work (She just had to keep changing or amending things.) I gave Katie a 'get out clause' for when she was grounded. If ever she was grounded she could end the grounding by handing in an original and completed work of art. The picture on the right is the result of one such episode.

Aspects of Reality

2007-04-06T23:45:00.000+01:00

Katie wrote a comic! Actually Katie is in the process of writing a Graphic Novel and has placed the first pages on the web. I'm impressed, but then I'm biased, as I'm her Dad. So take a look at Aspects of Reality. I've also put a link on the right, so once this post is old news, you can still find her site. But I'm guessing a lot of you will be bookmarking her Novel so you can go straight to it.

Katie has been doing well at school and we had a "Parents Evening" recently. Luckily Katie does not put us through the trauma I subjected my parents to. In fact I'm still glowing from the praise awarded Katie by her English teacher; "Katies' course work will get het an A* for her GCSE. If we were to take the same work to College it would receive, a Grade A, A-level. IF we then took her work to University it would get her a First." When Katie heard that her head swelled so large she banged it getting into the car going home!

Snore

2007-03-31T21:42:00.001+01:00

Mothers Day

2007-03-18T13:05:00.000Z

Well my card made it to my mum on time. Which was a relief given the unreliability of the British postal service. Lorii however has not yet awoken to enjoy her Mothers day. Since being diagnosed with Lupus she has been very tired. We have both wondered if there may be something psychosomatic going on there, but it's hard to tell and we still know so little.

George is home from hospital and improving every day. Doubtless it is merely a matter of time now before George will be running the four minute mile.

Heart Operation

2007-03-12T21:06:00.000Z

Well George has made it through his bypass operation.
Luckily he did not have any protesters complaining about the defoliation of two perfectly hairy legs! So the police were not called and everything went smoothly. It would have been a shame if the ugly scenes of the Newbury Bypass were repeated in Blackpool.
At the time of writing this George is off the ventilator, has been conscious and is now exploring the wonders of morphine.