Category Archives: Life

A bit of an update

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It has been a while since I have blogged anything so here is a bit of an update:

  • Work has been insane (both in terms of difficulty and work load) recently, so much for the downturn (I guess that is a good thing for me);
  • Went on my second pelagic bird watching trip (both have been off Hillarys in Western Australia), added two new birds to my life list but felt quite seasick…
  • The model trains have been going well – starting to clean up sections of ugly wiring, fix dodgy sections of track etc.  Adding bits and pieces to the collection (most of it second hand).  Starting to work on the scenery a bit too.

IMG_4071

Yellow-nosed Albatross (Diomedea (Thalassarche) chlororhynchos, race bassi).

SBS Ashes Coverage

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I have been really enjoying the SBS Ashes coverage (although I have been only watching the first few hours of each day).  The three Australian hosts have been entertaining and the Sky commentators in Wales have been excellent.

The only unusual aspect of the SBS coverage has been the advertisement breaks.  Each one starts with a glimpse of one ad followed by a completely different ad played in full.  Has anyone else noticed this?  Is the first ad a mistake?  Or is it a new subliminal advertising scheme because enough of the first ad is shown for you to know what it is?

A rather rambling update

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It has been a while since I have posted here – so here goes:

  • Added a few new birds to my life list – most notably a pair of Bush Stone-curlews (Burhinus grallarius) seen on the road to East Intercourse Island in Dampier in the middle of the night (I was on night shift, not going for a midnight twitch);
  • Work on my British N Gauge model railway is progressing well (tunnels are under construction, some buildings have been added). The locomotive and rolling stock collection is growing also (I have three Graham Farish locomotives: a Class 08, a Class 31 and a Class 37);
  • I seem to be continually adding Macs (in particular iMacs) to the collection – thanks Alex! Thankfully I have a shed…
Edit: Changed Beach Stone-curlew to Bush Stone-curlew after consultation with experts.

New Mobile Phone

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My Sony Ericsson K610i has had a hard life – busted screen, poor battery, numerous scratches. I have replaced it with a Sony Ericsson W610i. I purchased the phone outright.

So far it has been a nice phone – has the same connection cable (for charging and data) as the K610i (so I have less “redundant” chargers lying around) and a few new features (you can use it as a torch, it has a radio tuner). It also has much nicer buttons (that don’t try and connect you to the web the moment you brush them accidentally).

The torch/light feature comprises of two white LEDs. One of the applications on the phone signals SOS continuously…

Safe and sound

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Declan is finally home after a 4 day stop over in PMH.  No one is really sure what he caught but the staff at both PMH and KEMH (where he was born) were fantastic.  He is now more active, less yellow and generally happier.  He had his first bath at home today (in the kitchen sink).

Thanks to all who have prayed/visited/called/sent gifts/cooked meals – we all really appreciate it.

New Howell

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Declan Oren Howell was born 19/11/2008 at 11h30.  At birth he was 45cm tall and weighed 2.315kg (about 5 pound 2 ounces for those who work in imperial).  He was born by C-section (sort of in a hurry).  Kylie and Declan are both doing well.

Stay tuned for some photographs…