Pure Nostalgia!

I recently found a great web site at Matchbox Kits

I cut my model making 'teeth' on these classic old kits. I used to have a collection of well over 100 of them, now I only have 1 left, my Handley Page Heyford.

Aah, those were the days! Multi coloured sprues, so you didn't need to paint them, all sorts of different genres, from Aircraft to boats and cars to motorbikes, and military vehicles and figures as well!

If you remember the old Matchbox model kits, this site is well worth a visit

What's been happening?

Well, the short answer is; not a lot!

The one major piece of news is that hopefully we'll finally be in a position to deal with my wife's sleeping problems. She has found it all but impossible to sleep in our double bed. The reason for this is that the Doctor told her she needed to sleep with her head and feet raised. We found that putting wedges on top of the matress didn't work because they would just slip out of place and fall off the bed, on the other hand, putting them under the matress, just caused the matress to twist, thus causing her back to twist as well. Because of this, she would wake up in agony, or the painover night would stop her getting any sleep at all.

This in turn meant that she would have very little energy during the day, and wasn't able to do the exercise she needs to do to lose weight.

We've been looking into the possibility of getting an adjustable bed, but they are way out of our budget and there are no grants available. We were advised by her occupational therapist to try and see if the District Nurse could maybe help in any way. This we did, and we were given a frame to support her upper body, and a memory foam matress topper to give her body the proper support it needs. We will be trying these things in the hope that they will help.

In the meantime, there is another possibility, which If it becomes a reality, I will give you an update about shortly.

A Twist in the plot!

Following on from my last post, in which I spoke about my fortnight break in England helping to make things better between my wife and I; I recently twisted my neck (twice) in my sleep! Don't ask me how I managed to do it, but I'm convinced my body rolls over and leaves my head behind when I'm in bed!!

Not only has this resulted in a lot of pain the last few days, but has also put paid to our efforts at improving our relationship.

When I got back from England, I was getting up early, doing as much as I could around the house and spending quality time in the evenings with my wife. However, now that is more difficult to do. The pain is stopping me from getting a good night's sleep, so I am struggling to get up early, and also the pain is preventing me from doing much around the house.

Typical! The best laid plans of Mice and Men eh? (Or however that old saying goes!).

Family & Friends

I've just recently got back from spending a fortnight in Redditch, staying with my Mum & Dad. It was so good to catch up with them, as I hadn't seen them for a couple of years. It was also great to see my two sisters who I hadn't seen for even longer!

The two weeks away was also an important time for my wife and I, as things had been so difficult between us for a while, we needed the two weeks as a sort of respite. We needed to refresh ourselves apart from each other, so that we could start afresh when I got back home. So far, this has worked, it almost feels like our relationship is brand new again!

The time away was also a chance for me to catch up on some old friends from Redditch, in particular an American couple who I became really close to while I was living in England. They were the minister and wife of the Christian Fellowship that I used to be a member of. At the same time I was able to catch up with another couple I had become close to. I used to work with the man of the couple and also helped out with the charity work that he did at the time.

All in all, it was a most enjoyable fortnight away, and an even more enjoyable homecoming!!

It's the big one!

40 years young today! Gulp!

They say that as you get older, your body slows down. If that's the case, why does time seem to speed up?!! Fortunately, I'm still (relatively) fit and healthy, so I can enjoy the life that's supposed to have started, now that I've reached the big 4-0!

R.I.P. Gary Moore

It's not very often that a celebrity passing away upsets me, but for some reason I shed a few tears when I heard the news that former Thin Lizzy guitarist, Gary Moore died whilst on holiday in Spain yesterday.

Maybe it was because he was so young (58) and was one of the few musicians who came to prominence in the '70s and 80's who never fell for the Rock 'n Roll lifestyle; he was still fit and healthy, and was still actively touring.

The last time I got upset about someone famous passing away was when British National Treasure, Sir Norman Wisdom OBE passed away in October last year.

Rest in Peace both of you...

Christmas 2010

We had our usual nice, quiet Christmas here, just the 5 of us enjoying the peace and quiet of the season. The girls got what they wanted, my step son was happy with what he got, my wife liked her 'treats' and I was spoilt by my wife as usual!

The only thing missing was some fresh snow to be added to the heavy fall we already had the week before Christmas!

Another thing that helped was that I seem to have gotten over the worst of my 'Winter Blues', so I was able to fully enjoy the blessings that have been given to me. There really is nothing in this world more special than a loving family to enjoy this time of year with. My thoughts go out to those people who aren't as fortunate as I am, those who, for whatever reason, spend the holiday period on their own.