Billy Young's Blog, page 18
November 30, 2012
30th November 2012
Tammy is making space in the living-room ready to put up the Christmas tree under Magz’s instruction. It is quite good natured though rather loud and raucous in the way only families can know. It is times like this that make the memories that will make us smile in years to come. Just the same as when Tammy couldn’t wait for the tree to go up. She wanted to help but was more of a trial for her mum as Magz struggled to get the tree just how she pictured it. No matter how exacerbated she got she would not give up till it was finished. Of course she would find something wrong with it within a couple of days and take it to bit to rebuild it. Now it is Tammy’s job put the tree up even if it is under her mother’s eagle gaze.
I found a cheap tablet for myself on Ebay. It was too good a bargain to pass up but I do have to wait for it to come all the way from Hong Kong so it will take a few weeks to arrive. It has sixteen gigabytes of storage which is plenty of room for the e-books that I want to read on it. At the moment I have found about fifty or sixty book yet they only seem to take up a small twenty seven megabytes. Yes that is tiny though I should fill it out more as time goes by. I know modern tablets can do more display books for your reading consumption like play movies, play games and music. It is that I have other things to do all those types of activities on so the pad is really only for e-book which is harder I find on other hardware.
Why didn’t I just go for an E-book reader? We I think it is a male thing. I wanted something that had some more power than I really needed. Simple. In the end though I got such a bargain that I didn’t pay any more than I would have for a reader. Plus I also got a full HD colour screen rather than the grey spectrum offered on a simpler device. As is I think the Ainol NOVO 7 Mars should be up to the job.
I found a cheap tablet for myself on Ebay. It was too good a bargain to pass up but I do have to wait for it to come all the way from Hong Kong so it will take a few weeks to arrive. It has sixteen gigabytes of storage which is plenty of room for the e-books that I want to read on it. At the moment I have found about fifty or sixty book yet they only seem to take up a small twenty seven megabytes. Yes that is tiny though I should fill it out more as time goes by. I know modern tablets can do more display books for your reading consumption like play movies, play games and music. It is that I have other things to do all those types of activities on so the pad is really only for e-book which is harder I find on other hardware.
Why didn’t I just go for an E-book reader? We I think it is a male thing. I wanted something that had some more power than I really needed. Simple. In the end though I got such a bargain that I didn’t pay any more than I would have for a reader. Plus I also got a full HD colour screen rather than the grey spectrum offered on a simpler device. As is I think the Ainol NOVO 7 Mars should be up to the job.
November 23, 2012
23rd November 2012
I bought Magz a Kindle Fire HD for Christmas. She has already started using it. It has made me think of getting something similar for myself. It is mainly for e-books as I have been downloading a few of the classics from the Project Gutenberg website. Some of the books are ones that I read when I was younger but would love to reread. There are others that I have wanted to read for years and never seemed to remember when choosing books to buy. That is mainly due to the fact that most books were bought through impulse buys or through the charity shops. Not always the best way to buy reading material for the selection is usually restricted. Still it is a cheap way to find things to read. I haven’t been to a library in years as I never seem to find the time which is sad as I used to love going and browse through all those dusty shelves.
Magz is well pleased with the Fire. She has been using it for reading at night and the kids have also been using it for gaming. Mostly Tammy. She’s so in love with it that she has talked Calum into getting her a tablet for her Christmas. Of course he isn’t getting her the Kindle one though I’m sure the one he does get will keep her happy. That is as long as she can play Temple Run on it.
As I said I also want a tablet though it shall be after I have gotten Magz other gift. Yes as usual I am planning on getting Magz something else though I’ve yet to find the time to get into town to have a look. In the coming weeks I’ll have to get dropped off in town to have a nose to find something. At least she is enjoying her major gift.
Magz is well pleased with the Fire. She has been using it for reading at night and the kids have also been using it for gaming. Mostly Tammy. She’s so in love with it that she has talked Calum into getting her a tablet for her Christmas. Of course he isn’t getting her the Kindle one though I’m sure the one he does get will keep her happy. That is as long as she can play Temple Run on it.
As I said I also want a tablet though it shall be after I have gotten Magz other gift. Yes as usual I am planning on getting Magz something else though I’ve yet to find the time to get into town to have a look. In the coming weeks I’ll have to get dropped off in town to have a nose to find something. At least she is enjoying her major gift.
November 16, 2012
16th November 2012
Everyone in our house has been ill for the past week. Magz is suffering the worst. She has been put on antibiotics and steroids to clear up her breathing. The doctor wanted to admit her to hospital. Of course she didn’t go for that. She is feeling better now but over the weekend I will need to keep an eye on her. It has been hard for me to do that over the week as I have been ill as well and also had to go to work. Yes man-cold has been leaving me drained most of the week. I’m hoping that I can shake this achy, horrible feeling that goes with it this weekend.
Though I have been to bed early every night I still had to rise for work in the dark hours of the morning. So it will be good to have a long sleep in tomorrow. With any luck that will clear my mind. Much of the week has been very dream-like as in the way it seem to have drifted by. That can be put down to the slight fever that has come and gone over and over as each day passed. Luckily it seemed to abate while I was at work but gave me some restless night as it returned. As I said though two days to rest while sweating it out will be good.
Though I have been to bed early every night I still had to rise for work in the dark hours of the morning. So it will be good to have a long sleep in tomorrow. With any luck that will clear my mind. Much of the week has been very dream-like as in the way it seem to have drifted by. That can be put down to the slight fever that has come and gone over and over as each day passed. Luckily it seemed to abate while I was at work but gave me some restless night as it returned. As I said though two days to rest while sweating it out will be good.
November 9, 2012
9th November 2012
It has been a long week. Longer than normal. I think it has to do with the dark mornings. Yes daylight is still over an hour away as I head for work. It is surprising how with the shorter day work seems to be more taxing. Even though I work under the artificial lights of a cannery I still feel the effects of the changing seasons. Winter brings the drudgery of getting up in the mornings as tiredness clings to your eyes. Cold water isn’t enough by Thursday to wake the mind from the slumber fully. Even Friday takes coffee to bring the realization that the weekend is nearly upon us. That at least gives us the kick to our stride which helps to speed the day up.
Well at the least it’s the weekend now with the week behind me. I can catch up on the programmes that Magz recorded for me during the week and there is the Walking Dead tonight. Though I will have to wait until Calum comes in before we can watch that. Yes my son also likes that wonderful American zombie programme. Tammy is the only member of the family that isn’t interested in it. Though that is unusual for her as she is very into watching horror films. She’s always been big on horror from an early age. She used to find them funny and would sit laughing away to Halloween and the like.
Yes I must be a bad parent as my seven year old daughter thought horror meant comedy. In my defence I was at work when she and her brother decided to sneak the film up to their room. Calum learnt he didn’t want to watch any more films like that again. Tammy was another story. And as all kids know it is mum you have to harass to get your way. It doesn’t really matter what us dads’ think or say. Mind Magz did make sure that our daughter didn’t get to see another for some time and when she did it had a little bit less nudity. Tammy still laughed or so I was told. I still wasn’t happy but it seems not to have effected her in a bad way so it couldn’t have been that wrong
Well at the least it’s the weekend now with the week behind me. I can catch up on the programmes that Magz recorded for me during the week and there is the Walking Dead tonight. Though I will have to wait until Calum comes in before we can watch that. Yes my son also likes that wonderful American zombie programme. Tammy is the only member of the family that isn’t interested in it. Though that is unusual for her as she is very into watching horror films. She’s always been big on horror from an early age. She used to find them funny and would sit laughing away to Halloween and the like.
Yes I must be a bad parent as my seven year old daughter thought horror meant comedy. In my defence I was at work when she and her brother decided to sneak the film up to their room. Calum learnt he didn’t want to watch any more films like that again. Tammy was another story. And as all kids know it is mum you have to harass to get your way. It doesn’t really matter what us dads’ think or say. Mind Magz did make sure that our daughter didn’t get to see another for some time and when she did it had a little bit less nudity. Tammy still laughed or so I was told. I still wasn’t happy but it seems not to have effected her in a bad way so it couldn’t have been that wrong
November 2, 2012
2nd November 2012
It was Calum’s birthday yesterday. He turned eighteen. How old does that make me feel? Unfortunately for him he had to go to work so had no really time to celebrate. Magz and Tammy made him a cake. That is one of the traditions in our house. When a birthday arrives so does a large cake covered in icing. This year some home made strawberry jam separated the two layers. I had a piece in my lunch box today and it was delicious.
Calum’s friends at a local computer store (http://www.utopiacomputers.co.uk/) gave him a disk for Windows 8 or so he thought till he opened it. It was a floppy which they said was for the down-low version. He had went down town to spend the money we gave him which he bought himself a suit with, so popped in to see his friends. Unlike me he likes wearing a jacket and tie. I’m more the leather biker jacket type. Where he takes his style from must be from his papa Calum. He used to like to get dressed up if he had anywhere to go. More likely though it is his buddies that are the good influence on him as they also like suits.
As for the poem I was working on or I was supposed to work on last weekend. Well sadly I found that I never managed to get the time. The truth is that I was busy conquering the world again. Yes I was playing Civ V again. That is much what I have planned for this weekend as well. I might get back to the poem but I think that it might be for a future date. Sometimes that is the best thing for a poem when you feel stuck with it. You may even find that it wasn’t as bad as you thought. They do say a writer can be his worst critic and when it comes to my poetry I’m guilty of that.
Calum’s friends at a local computer store (http://www.utopiacomputers.co.uk/) gave him a disk for Windows 8 or so he thought till he opened it. It was a floppy which they said was for the down-low version. He had went down town to spend the money we gave him which he bought himself a suit with, so popped in to see his friends. Unlike me he likes wearing a jacket and tie. I’m more the leather biker jacket type. Where he takes his style from must be from his papa Calum. He used to like to get dressed up if he had anywhere to go. More likely though it is his buddies that are the good influence on him as they also like suits.
As for the poem I was working on or I was supposed to work on last weekend. Well sadly I found that I never managed to get the time. The truth is that I was busy conquering the world again. Yes I was playing Civ V again. That is much what I have planned for this weekend as well. I might get back to the poem but I think that it might be for a future date. Sometimes that is the best thing for a poem when you feel stuck with it. You may even find that it wasn’t as bad as you thought. They do say a writer can be his worst critic and when it comes to my poetry I’m guilty of that.
October 26, 2012
26th October 2012
It’s Halloween in Killie tonight. I know everywhere else celebrate it next week but here it has always been on the last Friday of October. Why? Well what I was told by a teacher many years ago was that it was to do with Kilmarnock being a mill town. Friday was pay day and because of this it was the only day when it made sense to hold the celebration as the kids would be sure dad had money. I don’t know if this explanation is true but it does sort of make sense. Of course I don’t really hold it these days as my two children are to old. Though my wife and daughter have fallen in to the custom over the past few years of watching horror movies. Me, well I hide up at the computer as I’m not as big a fan as I used to in younger years.
Even though we don’t officially hold Halloween Magz and Tammy do hollow out the pumpkin to make a face. While they watch their film of choice for this year they will light a candle, put it into the pumpkin and turn of the lights. This leaves me unable to see my keyboard so no working on any poems or writing in general. So I will be gaming tonight which could mean a late one for me. Luckily the clocks go back this weekend so I will have the chance to catch up on lost winks.
Talking of poems I’m still looking at that poem I mentioned last week. I’m still not happy with it. I might try to reconstruct it from the start, meaning keep what I have and use it to write another. Doing this I can use what lines I like, providing that they fit easily into the new poem, while scrapping what doesn’t work for me. I don’t often do this but it has worked in the past though not always. If it doesn’t work I will sit it to the side and come back to it at a later date.
Even though we don’t officially hold Halloween Magz and Tammy do hollow out the pumpkin to make a face. While they watch their film of choice for this year they will light a candle, put it into the pumpkin and turn of the lights. This leaves me unable to see my keyboard so no working on any poems or writing in general. So I will be gaming tonight which could mean a late one for me. Luckily the clocks go back this weekend so I will have the chance to catch up on lost winks.
Talking of poems I’m still looking at that poem I mentioned last week. I’m still not happy with it. I might try to reconstruct it from the start, meaning keep what I have and use it to write another. Doing this I can use what lines I like, providing that they fit easily into the new poem, while scrapping what doesn’t work for me. I don’t often do this but it has worked in the past though not always. If it doesn’t work I will sit it to the side and come back to it at a later date.
October 19, 2012
19th October 2012
Calum has gotten himself a part time job which made me very proud of him. He’s at college so the extra money is something he could do with. He’ll be one of those annoying telesales callers so please don’t hate him, hehehe. He’s a great kid and almost eighteen. Sometimes he makes me feel old, hehehe.
He was also planning on clearing his room for the project. I think the plan is to clear the space where he wants the desk built so not a full clear out. Still it will hopefully be enough to get the job done. That is the main thing after all though I would have preferred he did a complete tidy up. I suppose that is just the parent in me.
Magz made some small apple and blueberry pies which one or two of them ended up in my lunch box. They were delicious but I did miss the custard. Well we can’t have everything. She has more apples to make some more with. Hopefully she’ll make a tart this weekend. I will have to wait and see. Though I don’t think she got custard so that might be a bad sign. Maybe I’ll need to ask nicely, hehehe.
I’m working on another poem about the First World War. It was a haunting image of a blue on blue incident that has been fallowing me around for the past week or more. I post the first version in Absolute Write poetry critique section to get some feed back. Now I need to work on it to flesh the imagery out. I also have one or two clichés to remove. It is so easy to use them without realising you’re doing it. Still that is why I use the forums to help keep me straight.
He was also planning on clearing his room for the project. I think the plan is to clear the space where he wants the desk built so not a full clear out. Still it will hopefully be enough to get the job done. That is the main thing after all though I would have preferred he did a complete tidy up. I suppose that is just the parent in me.
Magz made some small apple and blueberry pies which one or two of them ended up in my lunch box. They were delicious but I did miss the custard. Well we can’t have everything. She has more apples to make some more with. Hopefully she’ll make a tart this weekend. I will have to wait and see. Though I don’t think she got custard so that might be a bad sign. Maybe I’ll need to ask nicely, hehehe.
I’m working on another poem about the First World War. It was a haunting image of a blue on blue incident that has been fallowing me around for the past week or more. I post the first version in Absolute Write poetry critique section to get some feed back. Now I need to work on it to flesh the imagery out. I also have one or two clichés to remove. It is so easy to use them without realising you’re doing it. Still that is why I use the forums to help keep me straight.
October 12, 2012
12th October 2012
Magz found a real bargain in the charity shops this week. She picked up a Black and Decker drill for five ninety-nine. Just the thing for Calum’s project of building a desk in his room to get finished. Now we can drill the holes to fix the supports to the wall. As you might remember that we had already cut all the wood as well as the old kitchen worktop some weeks back. Unfortunately it was after planning then cutting everything that we found that our drill had given up the ghost. Since then we’ve been on the look out for one going cheap. Now thanks to Magz eagle eye we have one. Of course now I need to get Calum to clean his room all over again. It took me weeks to get him to do it last time. Let’s hope that the wait for his desk to be completed will motivate him to be quick off of the mark this time round.
Good news on my apples too. Again it was Magz that spotted one had fallen from the tree during the week. I was at work so found out she had decided to pick them all. There had been a frost during the week so I think that may have encouraged the tree to finally give up its fruit. Sadly Magz is still to make the pies, maybe this weekend. I hope she remembered the custard, hehehe.
Good news on my apples too. Again it was Magz that spotted one had fallen from the tree during the week. I was at work so found out she had decided to pick them all. There had been a frost during the week so I think that may have encouraged the tree to finally give up its fruit. Sadly Magz is still to make the pies, maybe this weekend. I hope she remembered the custard, hehehe.
October 5, 2012
5th October 2012
No overtime this weekend so I’m looking forward to my two days off. I’ll get the extra I worked last weekend on my wages next week which is something. Magz will put it to getting some of the smaller gifts I imagine. With my kids now getting to that awkward age to buy for, we’ll probably chicken out picking something for them and just give them the money so they can spend it as they wish. Though saying that it will be Magz that makes the final decision on what happens. She seems to know the wants of Calum and Tammy than me. Is that just me or is it because she’s the house parent? I think the latter. I say that because when the kids were younger Magz and my roles were reversed. She had the job leaving it up to me to deal with the smelly nappies. Sometimes I miss those times then I remember how exhausting it was running after two children. I feel for the parents of larger families.
I picked more tomatoes on Sunday with more to pick tomorrow. There is more blueberries as well and the apples to check again. The branches are weighed down with the swollen fruit which are a lovely red. They look almost good enough to eat straight off of the tree. Though I know that wouldn’t be wise as cooking apples aren’t the sweetest. I don’t think that I will be getting any pumpkins this year. The ones that I planted haven’t done so well. With the awful summer and the slugs they suffered. They did try to produce fruit repeatedly. They are also flowering again but the colder nights have come in now so I don’t see them producing anything. I did have my corn though which was delicious though a little on the young side. Well it is the first time I have tried to grow corn.
I picked more tomatoes on Sunday with more to pick tomorrow. There is more blueberries as well and the apples to check again. The branches are weighed down with the swollen fruit which are a lovely red. They look almost good enough to eat straight off of the tree. Though I know that wouldn’t be wise as cooking apples aren’t the sweetest. I don’t think that I will be getting any pumpkins this year. The ones that I planted haven’t done so well. With the awful summer and the slugs they suffered. They did try to produce fruit repeatedly. They are also flowering again but the colder nights have come in now so I don’t see them producing anything. I did have my corn though which was delicious though a little on the young side. Well it is the first time I have tried to grow corn.
September 28, 2012
28th September 2012
It will be a short weekend for me this week. I agreed to overtime for tomorrow earlier in the week. I was hoping it would be cancelled but sadly it wasn’t. Looking on the brighter side it is only half a day so it should go by quick. It isn’t the work rather it is the getting up a little earlier than I like on a Saturday that makes me wish I wasn’t doing it. Still it is more to put towards the end of year spend.
I think my corn might be ready for picking ready for Sunday dinner. I’ll check it tomorrow after work though I shall leave picking it till Sunday. That will ensure it is at its freshest. I’ve never grown sweet corn before so I’m hoping I have gotten the timing just right. What I have read online said to wait till the silks turn brown. I worked out that was the strands that came from the top of the developing husks. The only thing is the ones that appeared on my plants about two to three weeks ago have vanished. I’m not sure what that might mean. I suppose I will find out on Sunday. Magz will need to have the butter ready, hehehe.
The apples are still swelling on the tree. I checked them on Wednesday by give some of them a tug to see if they wished to come off. They didn’t so I left them to mature for another week and then I shall give them another test. I think it could be another couple of weeks or more though before I get that pie from Magz.
I think my corn might be ready for picking ready for Sunday dinner. I’ll check it tomorrow after work though I shall leave picking it till Sunday. That will ensure it is at its freshest. I’ve never grown sweet corn before so I’m hoping I have gotten the timing just right. What I have read online said to wait till the silks turn brown. I worked out that was the strands that came from the top of the developing husks. The only thing is the ones that appeared on my plants about two to three weeks ago have vanished. I’m not sure what that might mean. I suppose I will find out on Sunday. Magz will need to have the butter ready, hehehe.
The apples are still swelling on the tree. I checked them on Wednesday by give some of them a tug to see if they wished to come off. They didn’t so I left them to mature for another week and then I shall give them another test. I think it could be another couple of weeks or more though before I get that pie from Magz.
