Patch a year on...

Can't believe it's nearly a year since I wrote this. Life and its' distractions continue to fly at me apace since I did so. New experiences. Things to enjoy. Things to plan for. Things to worry about. 

We're all the same, I guess. Running on our private hamster wheels and trying to the Right Thing by the world. When kids come into your life, their priorities become your own. You can view their future needs in the years to come before they arrive. Girlfriends? (I hope my advice to X will be of use, not that I had much luck in the day?) Boyfriends? (I hope I can resist the temptation of seeing all D's male callers as spotty little hornbags.. much as I was). I have a roadmap of cultural titbits I would like to feed my children in the next decade which I hope will enrich their lives as much as they did my own...

Watership Down and the Annotated Alphabet for X next, if you're interested. 

Nonetheless I still get reminders of simpler times: a thought or a memory that will freeze me back in another time when the future was still undefined. Patch features prominently in these thoughts, like all my dearest friends. He's been gone a year now and the little things he enjoyed or was passionate about still stir me. I would've have loved to have shared my new life with him, to deluge him with the charms that my family and my Island have to offer. Despite the complexity of life and its' strains I know how lucky I am and wish I could've shared that fortune with him too...

Wherever you are, buddy. I'm thinking of you. I look forward to sharing a pint and a chat next time we meet..    

A.
 

MB - January 2015 £305.31

Profits for first month of the year. Mostly from the football, horse racing is a sideline I need to investigate more in order to unlock further £s. This will be my target per month for future planning - £10 per day.

Scraping Out Cat Poo Day... and 2012 revisted..

Lucky Maeve...

I bet she thought her little tray was like a regular Turd Mountain till this morning.

Looked at it this morning and felt better after scooping the poo. She should find her toilet much more agreeable now..

Anyway. January 30th. Today I finally feel like I can draw breath. Birthdays, weddings etc  and general kiddie chaos has taken up all of my time. There is nothing on the immediate horizon, except D's regular (often strident and shrill) demands. 

She turns 3 next month. The little Zen baby we had has turned into someone much more animated and formidable. With the ladies on my side of the family and the one's on her Mum's, Diz will be quite the lady as she grows bigger -  she's a regular social butterfly already. Whereas I just want to curl up and rest after my days activities, D is still full of life. 

Thinking of other times, I got my old Man Cave computer refurbed this week.. I'm writing upon it right now. My rock star haired tween boy and feisty preschooler looked alot different just a few years back:

The kids have matured wonderfully since 2012. Sadly the years have not been so kind on their Dad. 

Cheers,

A. 

Diz's latest stash

We've been to the arcade this afternoon. Normally exchanging banknotes for change to waste on tat is not my thing. It usually makes me cringe.

However today the 2p machine was appealing, and generous too. We found one that was dispensing rubber duckies (a D favourite)  on the drab sea of tuppences and promptly emptied the cabinet.

Dizzy's new 'fleet' for the bath

I booked my first child's birthday too. To celebrate her third we're off to 'Jungle Jims' for two hours of soft play mayhem. New ground as X lost interest in parties at the same time as he discovered Legoland. I'm looking forward to meeting the parents of Dizzy's little buddies and maybe discovering some kindred spirits on this lovely island. 

So come end of Feb we'll be tooled up with all things Peppa and Hello Kitty to celebrate the birthday of a Very Special Girl. 

A.

Logical Progression 2 - One for Patch..

I'm going to do something Insane today

My New Years resolution came through the post this week..

... ever since Diz arrived in the world my exercise routine has just dried up. Lets face it, a sporadic 30 minute jog will make you feel good but does little else.

I've been mindful of what inactivity does to the way i look and feel. Middle Age is a fickle mistress who slowly leaves you feeling flaccid and feeble if you don't do something about it. The perky pecs of your 20s become marshmallow moobs in later years unless something drastic is done.

Therefore I'm starting my Insanity workout tomorrow. 60 days of harrowing exercise with the a very nice looking bloke called Shaun T. My DVD set came through the post in a plain cardboard box, 'INSANITY' printed in a military font on the front. 'Looks serious.' I thought. Decide. Commit. Succeed' was the motto emblazoned on the side. Reminiscent of the fine motivational slogans the likes of Adidas have thrown at us in the past. Or even the funnier and more effective ones from elsewhere.

My current moto right would be  Sleep. Clear up after the children. Drink a beer. So it's all uphill from here.

Day 1 coming. Stay tuned.

A.

Matched Betting Latest

December has been a profitable month - With all the football matches around Xmas, the bookies will tend to throw a few tasty morsels your way. A nice little earner can be had if you know how to do it right.

I'll be publishing my monthly winnings on here, for my own benefit aswell as for any interested parties. I would like to keep track of my money over time, and be more methodical about increasing my earning potential.

Something new for 2015 I guess..

Alex