No Sleep 'Til Brisbane

Weekend Report

2010-08-16T14:40:00.000Z

I was a little bit busy on Friday afternoon. I got in from work and the joiner was still quite busy. I cleaned through everywhere but the lounge and the dining room. The kitchen wasn't that bad as Jo had done most of it the night before after the decorator had finished. I cut the grass and put the washing on. Jo's Mum, despite protestations then took over washing and ironing duty. Once the joiner had done, I cleaned up, moved furniture and took the rubbish to the tip. Then I moved the patio furniture and started sorting out the BBQ food for tea.

Mum arrived about 7pm, John (my Father-in-Law) at about 8pm and Jo shortly after, just as the food was coming off the BBQ. We stayed up quite late and I polished off a nice bottle of white wine and about a kilo of olives.

Saturday was a reasonably early start as Jo was awakened by DHL informing her that a tooth had arrived at the airport from India. She was off to work, so I cleaned my car, which was promptly shat on by our local wood pidgeon fraternity. I took the unused flooring and ancillaries back to B&Q then went to see my Dad who was a bit agitated and didn't really recognise me. Ah well, some days are good some are bad. I got home and crashed on the sofa for an hour before being woken up by Jo. Then it was a quick suprtmarket trip and off to Jay's birthday bash in Stafford. It was an ace night and it was great to see everyone.

Sunday was a bit more sedate, a lie in, sunday lunch prepared, a trip into Liverpool to see the Picasso exhibition at the Tate and a mooch around L1 and the Pier Head (pics on FB). Home for Sunday lunch then the evening spent loafing on the sofa watching Wigan get trounced by Huddersfield. As usual I cooked enough veg for four people. No man should be expected to eat so much cabbage.

Friday Plans

2010-08-13T10:37:00.004Z

Today it's looking like I'm going to finish early as the joiner is in doing the floor in our front room. One day we will restore the original parquet, but not yet. Pictures will follow probably on Facebook. If the weather holds off we'll have BBQ for tea tonight. The inlaws are house-sitting and Mum is coming over. The plan is to clean the house, cut the grass, brush (leaf blow) the drive and maybe clean my car, before we light the coals. It's not going to be anything too extravagant, just home-made burgers (natch), fresh bread and salad. Oh and probably some beers. What am I saying probably for. There will be beers.

Tomorrow, I'll be off to visit my Da. He was quite chipper for a short time yesterday. He could make full sentences, albeit ones that made no sense, he gave me a big hug and when I told him I loved him he said "I know" :-)

If we get done in good time and if this tooth that has been sent from India doesn't arrive we'll be off to Stafford to celebrate Jay's birthday. Should be class. Failing that, it'll be a walk over the Hill and doing tea in the oven.

Planning for Sunday at the moment is just tempting fate. One day at a time. I think Leeds play Castleford on telly tonight. Should be a good one.

A Bad Year to be a Stoic in the Duffy Household

2010-08-11T08:30:00.006Z

Once again, God laughed when I made plans to update my blog more frequently.

Just about a week after I last updated my Da went into respite care for a week. He had a fall, came home for a day, then introduced us to his vastly new and improved Alzheimer’s and Vascular Dementia. That was a weekend I'll never forget. We called an ambulance after suspecting another TIA and he then spent six weeks in an EMI ward in University Hospital Aintree. Mum and I trawled around the locale looking for a an EMI nursing home place for him. Feck me that was a grim month. A baptism of fire doesn't come close. Unless you've experienced a home full of demented and very ill people, nothing, and I mean nothing prepares you for it. We eventually found him a place in a BUPA Care Home in St. Helens. It's a great place. By great I mean they look after him and really care for him. The other synonyms of great don't apply to a home full of very very sick and dying people. Some days he recognises us for a few fleeting moments, hugs us and tells us that he loves us as best he can. Some days he's paranoid and very aggressive. He's pretty much immobile other than shuffling about a few feet at a time, he's incontinent and other than a few mumbled semi-words he can't speak. Some days he just sleeps or drifts in and out of consciousness. Some days he lashes out at staff. Some days he lashes out at my Mum. More than once he's given her a thick lip. Quite a transformation for someone who was such a kind, generous, proud and gentle man. So it goes.

So that's almost where we are at the moment. My Mum has sold her house and bought a new one nearer my Da, hopefully she'll complete soon. I now have Lasting Power of Attorney over my Da's financial and medical affairs. I didn't quite realise the implications of the latter part at the time. The former part is just a mechanism to enable my Mum to be able to sell her house and buy another one.

Some good news;

Simon and HJ are expecting. Despite many scans the wee one refuses to reveal it's sex just yet. Given all the ultrasound and my Mum's Dr. Manhattan-like force of will the wee one is bound to have some X-Men-like super-power. I reckon something along the lines of being able to stun you with a sound wave. Or the ability to communicate with dolphins and other cetaceans. Maybe the wee one will be able to summon a pod of orcas at will. Who knows.

Jo and I have been to Korea to see Simon and HJ for a fortnight. It was class. Jo had never been to Asia before and it was quite an introduction. There are a ton of pictures and a bit of a narrative on Facebook.

I started a new contract in June, after a couple of months of looking. It's alright, the money is a boon, it's 25-35 minutes away, they let me work from home occasionally and the office is in a very nice part of Manchester.

We sorted out my Da's stuff in preparation for my Mum's move. We found some interesting stuff. I've inherited some 37 year old single malt whiskey, a Tag watch and some really nice 50 year old binoculars with Zeiss lenses. Oh, and we found his Africa Korps hat. It wasn't actually his, but it belonged to some poor German, who he looted it from.

Simon and HJ have just been over for the last five weeks or so, which has been nice. We are looking forward to the three of them moving back to the UK in the next seven months or so.

Some more weekend reports will follow.

Weekend Report

2010-03-08T14:32:00.002Z

Just as I start writing weekend reports again, I find there is very little to write.

Friday pretty much went to plan. Jo crashed out early and agreed to listen out for Dad so I went to the Ringers for the last one. Saturday I prepared dinner as Sue and Ade were coming up that evening. I sourced a cheesecake, put wine in the fridge, set the table and as dinner was in the oven I started to feel pretty rough. Half an hour later I was burning up, muscles and joints were aching and I went to bed. For the next twenty delerious hours. Needless to say dinner was cancelled. My fever broke late last night and I feel remarkably human again today which is nice.

Friday Plans

2010-03-05T11:53:00.003Z

Right, today I'm looking after my Dad, mostly. He has Alzheimers and is coming to us so my Mum can have a break. The plan, check my emails making sure that there is nothing that urgently requires my attention. Head on out, pick up a bag of mortar mix as the concrete at the bottom of the drive has cracked in the bad weather, pick my Dad up, goto Asda, do some shopping, take him for a quick alcohol free beer in Helter Skelter, sort tea (soup and butties), he'll probably crash out, I'll probably go for a short run (5km), recline on the sofa with a brewski and watch Bradford vs. The Pies on Sky. That's the plan. Lets see how it goes.

Weekend Report

2008-06-30T10:03:00.000Z

This weekend was brought to you by Turtle Wax cleaning products.

Friday night, Dan and Lisa came over to watch the England vs. France game, complete with two large bags filled with takeaway delights from the Taj Mahal indian takeaway. Class. Chicken Tikka Dansak it was then. The match was good, but Burrow, Morley and Peacock didn't really shine despite the final score.

Saturday was spent cleaning two cars within an inch of their lives. This included Nina the Beetle.

Some pictures:

This was followed by a trip to Hell, sorry, I mean the Trafford Centre, shopping.

Saturday night we'd booked a table at The Goshawk, to celebrate Jo's first payday as Lab Manager. Jo had chicken liver pate with chutney to start and monkfish in parma ham as her main. I had a smoked salmon muffin topped with a poached egg to start and the fillet steak with dauphinoise potatoes (my favourite). According to the bill many many bottles of beer were drunk as was some rather nice wine.

Sunday was a bit more sedate, with the planned trip to Cheshire Oaks postponed and parents visited instead. The Saints score was quite a boon, it puts us even closer to Leeds on points difference and the pressure is now on them, which is nice.

Weekend Report

2008-06-10T10:24:00.002Z

This weekend was brought to you by a distinct lack of sleep. Friday afternoon was mental and it's not for these pages. Friday evening we went to the Inlaws' and watched the match. Signs of the Saints of a couple of years ago in the open attacking rugby, but the injuries are very worrying. It means that pretty much all of our first choice props, negating impact props like James Graham and Maurie Fa'asavalu are now out with about ten games still to go, not counting cup runs and play offs. Friday's game will be the big one. If we can beat Leeds with a rump pack and a few academy players up front, we can beat them in the forthcoming semi final. Lets see eh. After the match I went to Tesco in Northwich for some essentials. I met Mark E. Smith of The Fall in here a few weeks ago, again late one night. Bizzarre. That prompted a few more plays of "Big Prinz" from 1988's "Am Kurious Oranj" though.

Saturday morning became housework and garden morning. I am not even going to mention the Wales game. Saturday evening we went upto the Mersey View for Lisa's 21st birthday party. Class night all round I think. A few bottles of Corona and a couple of Cuba Libres were drank. We eventually got in at about 1am.

Sunday was quite sedate, as you'd imagine. A leisurely breakfast, a nap, the previous night's rugby saved on Sky+, followed by an evening fishing up at Acton Bridge. Jo came along and sat and read a book for an hour or so.

Some highlights:

Common Carp

Barbel

Golden Orfe

Weekend Report

2008-06-04T14:49:00.001Z

No pub tea with the folks on Thursday sadly, Mum wasn't feeling up to it, so Jo and I relocated to Helter Skelter to mull over the weeks events over a swift beer or two. Or three. Job done we picked up food from Pizza Pan. I can honestly say, that apart from a microwavable kebab that my brother and I bought from a chippy in Holyhead in 1989, it was the worst kebab that I've had in recent times. Knuckly chicken and shish that tasted of something that had passed through a cat first. Nasty.

Friday night Sue and Ade came over. We sat outside all evening and polished off a few beers and a half decent rioja.

Saturday I spent all day working in the garden and putting the Gazebo up. Pretty much as soon as it was up Cain climbed up the hedge and onto the top of it.

And Molly sunbathing:

And Cain hunting hover flies:

Dan and Lisa and the inlaws came up and we had a pretty decent BBQ. Nothing special, just salad, burgers and sausages, and a lot of bottled beer of many different varieties. I think we finally crashed out at 2am.

Happy Birthday Mum!

2007-04-23T09:45:00.001Z

Happy Birthday to the best Mum in the world!

Hedgehogs are back

2007-04-17T13:34:00.000Z

We had two just like these in the garden on Sunday night. I haven't seen them in a few years, probably due to the building work in the old orchard next door. Now that it's finished I guess we must be back on their nocturnal route.

Cats

2007-03-27T16:43:00.001Z

We have three cats:

Molly Fasavalu-Bloom

Molly, the eldest (5.5 Y/O), a white, chocolate and brown housecat who will sell her soul for chicken and if that doesn't work she demonstrates more cunning than a bag full of electric weasels in getting it. She prefers tandoori chicken (who doesn't) as I found out leaving mine unattended for twenty seconds whilst going to the fridge to get a beer. She sometimes ventures out onto the patio but generally just follows me and P-H around, presumably to make sure that we don't have any chicken without her having her share. I originally had Molly and her brother Isaac, from the rescue centre when they were six months old, but sadly Isaac died from the FIP retrovirus six weeks later. She is soft, floppy, cuddly, clumsy and generally scared of her own shadow. She is the Alpha Female at home though. She generally sleeps on P-H's feet and P-H was the only girlfriend (now my wife) that I brought home that Molly actually warmed to. Maybe it's their mutual like of tandoori chicken that brought them together.

Cain F. de Souris

Cain is the youngest (1.5 Y/O), he is a shorthair mackeral tabby, who we got from a vet as a discarded kitten. He is spoiled and indulged and generally bosses P-H and I around despite our best efforts to the contrary. He is more or less fearless and intrepid but an incident with a large dog and car when he was smaller have rendered him unlikely to go near either. He can eat his own bodyweight in food and kills more wildlife than a team of Brazilian loggers. We pretty much get small mice and voles as presents from Cain every day, but for variety he's brought home a rabbit, a wood pidgeon which was nearly as big as him, and someone's very expensive and very dead Koi Carp. He regularly stalks the rugby ball in the back garden for practice and if he was an inch longer he'd be able to open the back door. He pretty also much has figured out how to open windows and loves sneaking into the neighbours house. Well he is from Liverpool. Cain was named after the Liverpool Brewery in honour of another kitten P-H and I had called Stella who was named after a session in the pub. Stella was a rescue kitten who was full of ticks when she was brought in and had a leaky heart valve to boot. The vet didn't expect her to live the month, but she lived happily with P-H and I for nearly eighteen months. She is currently chasing dressing gown cords and scratching under the sofa in kitten Valhalla. Cain sleeps mostly on P-H depending on whether Molly feels like sharing her.

Dylan Thomas

Dylan is our middle cat (4.5Y/O). He is mostly black with white socks and chin and had spent pretty much all six months of his life being abused or in a pen at the rescue centre before we got him. He is pretty scaredy as a result, but once he gets used to you he will tolerate you. He sometimes lets you pick him up and he both protests loudly and purrs loudly when you do so. He isn't scratchy but he will run from sudden movements. He is very vocal and he'll let you know when he wants something, like food generally at six AM on a Saturday morning. Somtimes he will get on the bed, but mostly he sleeps in his basket. Dylan was named after my favourite author Dylan Thomas. Stella was his soul mate and he pined like hell when she died. Cain has taken this role subsequently, they can regularly be found cuddled up in the basket in front of the fire.

I've had a few other cats as well. Aslan and Leo were rescue kittens who where born with Feline Leukemia retrovirus as their Mum was presumed to have been a stray. I had them for 18 months or so. They are currently eating buttered corn cobs and chasing fish on sticks in kitten Valhalla. Polly was a black mature female rescue cat. She was a ferocious hunter and had a feral streak in her as her previous owners didn't care much for her. She currently lives near Bristol with two other cats, Jacob and Saffy.

Dad's Photos

2007-03-21T23:32:00.001Z

My Dad has an old scrapbook with lots of photos in it taken either by him or of him between 1943 and 1947. Below are selection. He's the one with the bandages on his head in the photo below.

Rome, July 1944

There is one hell of a story behind this photograph. On the 10th June 1944, they'd travelled all day in a convoy of trucks to a place called Civita Castellana just on the front line, to setup an airstrip and meet my Dad's planes. As they arrived they were spotted by a German forward observer who called his artillery down onto their trucks and onto them. Several trucks were destroyed by direct hits and men scattered, running for their lives as a lot more fire hit their new position. My Dad managed to find a shallow depression to shelter in along with three of his comrades. A shell landed four feet behind them. Unluckily for my Dad the shell fragments hit his head and his neck, knocking him out for a few seconds, deafening him and leaving a two inch long spike of searing hot metal embedded in the soft tissue of his neck. He still has specks of blue metal in his neck and ears to this day. Two of his comrades also in the ditch, his Corporal and an R.A.F. airman attached to the regiment were killed instantly. The third, his friend Denis 'Trapper' Moreten died later in the aid station that he and my Dad were evacuated to on stretchers on the bonnet of a commandeered Italian vehicle. My Dad was then flown to hospital in Naples in a C47 where he recouperated and was subsequently sent to Rome, where the picture above was taken. His comrades and his friend are buried in Lake Bolsena war cemetary which we visited in 2004. He was mentioned in dispatches for his couragous actions during this encounter. Kind of puts the meaning of a 'having bad day' into perspective. Told you it was one hell of a story.

Naples, March 1944

On the road, Italy 1944

Canadian Field Gun, Italy 1944

Burning Glider, Unspecified Italian Airfield 1944

Holland, April 1945

Holland, May 1945 (right)

I don't know who the lady he's with is. I don't think he cared too much either :-)

North West Frontier, India, Late 1946 (left)

At least our troops in Afghanistan don't have to fight the Taliban looking like Crocodile Dundee.

Back on the road, India, 1946

Hard at work, India 1946

India 1946

Happy 83rd Birthday Dad!

2007-03-02T11:07:00.000Z

Happy Birthday to the best Dad in the World!

Did I forget anything?

2007-03-01T13:40:00.000Z

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