Bronchitis...

Bronchitis... not the words you want to hear 3 weeks out from a major holiday but those are the words I just heard from my doctor. As mentioned in my previous blog I've had a cold for most of this last week and today have pains in my chest and back. It turns out that I have yet another case of bronchitis. Up until a few years ago I would get this on an annual basis but have been lucky the last couple of years! Oh well... The Dr thinks I will be feeling much better within a week so hopefully my work trip to Melb Next week won't give me a relapse.

21 sleeps to go until I jump on a CX 330-300 bound for Hong Kong...

Blah....

Hi All,

Well with 3 weeks to go before I fly off I have come down with a pretty bad cold and am feeling blah! I've had minor symptoms of a cold for a while now but have been fighting it... however on Monday the cold hit. Today, Saturday, has been the worst day for me so far as I now have pains in the chest from all the coughing. I hate to go to them but I think I might go to the doctors soon to get some "drugs".

Unfortunately being sick has put a hold on my trip preparation... I still need to finish some projects that I have been working on around the place so once I'm better it will probably be a mad rush to the finish line.


I finally finished the Cat Tree I had been building for Max & Charlie two weeks ago. What started out as a short term project back in December last year turned into a long term one! I have uploaded some pictures of the building process to prove that I build it myself :-). Everything was going well until I got to the carpeting stage which I found hard. I got the top pieces of carpet up there pretty much as soon as I built all the frame (as in the picture to the right) but that's when things came to a halt! That didn't stop Max & Charlie from still playing on it and sleeping up there... they loved it.

With the project on hold I've been procrastinating since about how to do the rest of the carpeting due to the fiddly work involved for months. When I had finally finished it the other week I sat back and had a tear in my eye, Max loved to sleep with his head rested on the edge of the top support and never got to see it finished. Thankfully Charlie who never really used it much by herself has started to use it more now and will often jump up the top if I'm sitting in the lounge. I downloaded the plans for this design along with 5 others so perhaps one day I will build another.

I am also nearing the completion of my front garden upgrade. I have put 2 of the "Mop Tops" in last week and now just need some good weather to put one more "Mop Top" in and then its just the watering system to go. In saying that I think there are some changes that I will make when I get back from O.S. but I'm not really thinking about that too much just now.

Well I should go and make some chicken soup to sooth my throat.

Take Care

al :-)

43 days to go....

Just searching though youtube.com and found this video... Its tempting to try are re-create this video with all the places I'm going to but may just have to settle for photos!

Enjoy...

R.I.P. Max...

Those that know me know who Max is... for those that don't he was one of my best friends, a pet yes, but best friend still the same. The first time I saw Max was the moment he was born on the 10th October 2005 along with his sister Charlie who I also "Adopted". From the moment I saw him I knew that I wanted to adopt him, I knew that he was special.

Max at 18 days old

I brought Max & Charlie home on the 24th November 2005 and for the next 7 months they were inseparable and would do most things together. For me living by myself they were more than just animals or pets, they were friends and sounding boards, there to give me a hug when I needed it.

A few of many pictures I have of the inseparable Max & Charlie

Being kittens they were both inquisitive but Max seemed to take this to a new level. He would love to investigate anything new and I would regularly hear a crash or a bang from one of his adventures. He seemingly wasn’t afraid of anything. Max would love to help me out with odd jobs around the place. If I was digging a hole in the garden for plants he would make a “deposit” and start to fill the whole back in to help, when I was making the cat tree he was there acting as a foreman making sure I did it right. He was definitely special.

Coke anyone?

Max loved to climb

Max and Charlie would always come to greet me when I got home, Max would come to the car and Charlie would wait for me inside by the front door. The only times that they didn’t was when they managed to lock themselves into a room while play fighting with each other. The most recent time they managed this was last Monday. When I got home from work there was silence… they had locked themselves into the Toilet! I have no idea how long they had been in there but there was cat hair all over the place! It brings a smile to my face to remember those times.

Max & Charlie a few months ago investigating...

Last night Max didn’t come home as he usually did, I thought he might have found somewhere dry to wait until the pouring rain stoped and return during the night. When I woke up this morning he wasn’t back which was not like Max as he would normal be banging at my door at 7am in the morning to wake me up for a hug and some food. I got dressed and went for a walk around the corner and saw a little rug covering what looked like a cat on the footpath. My heart dropped and as I walked over I saw a little bit of black fur and knew it was Max. He had been run over during the night and looks like he would have died instantly.

I can’t believe that I will never see that cute little face again and have my friend follow me around. I have so many wonderful memories of Max that will be with me for a lifetime. Both Charlie and I will miss his cute face and the cheekiness of this great brother, mate and friend.

RIP Maxxie, we love you bud.

Max
10/10/05 – 01/07/06