The legend of the chair, the pipe and the sink.

I read somewhere that pictures should tell a story, while i agree certain types of photography should tell a story others are just beauty in the eye of the ogre.
When i looked at the above picture i imagined that these things, the chair, the sink and the pipe were somehow interacting with each other, yes i know that they are inanimate objects the feeling that being left alone for so many years allowed them the ability to react to one another. i broke down this picture into a few parts and below are a couple. i hope you understand what i am talking about cause i really dont know how to explain . I have looked at this picture long and hard and to me personally it is one of my best, maybe not technically but to me to conveys emotion, the same goes for the earlier post of the table titled "forgotten" as well as my fav photograph of the stone bench "take five"in a post i did a few months ago. They are not photographs that would win any competitions or sell books but to me these pics are my favourite work so far. remember in this story i am the ogre.

"You know i always wanted to pretend i was an architect" GEORGE COSTANZA

Greetings and salutations! no photographs today. Havent done ANY photography this past week but i hope to change all that this weekend. Dont worry i will put more baby pics soon.

You may be aware that i am in charge of feedign the piglet at night and since i sleep very little anyway its not a problem but now that i have to stay awake i find myself getting sleepier much earlier ! ! ! Its catch 22. Anyway to kill time i discovered that the kind people from google have developed a software called googel sketch and i have been happily trying it out. Below are some pics of the little doodles i have done using this software, please keep in mind that i am neither an artist or an architect. I had to resize the pics cause they were just too big and i did find i lost some detail but such is the life of a poor blogger. I havent tried doing any interiors yet...next project maybe i will.

A pretty basic house with a half court basket-ball court a pool and a bbq pit...lovely. I think i shall get abit more "out there" with the next house i do.

I wanted to sketch a church that was not run of the mill, i wanted it to be different and yet keep soem of the 70's style church designs. The roof is supposed to symbolize Golgotha...you know the hard uphill struggle to Calavary...the triangles well like my home parish "trinity". This was the first building i did so please be gentle.

These are DOODLES nothing more nothing less, they are not meant to be taken very seriously :) things i do late at night!

1year annivesary

While feeding Catilin this evening after we got back from the wedding, i heard some music cominng from outside so once she was done i decided to go and have a look, took some pics, not very good cause of the angle but i like the look of the sepia style i tried.
Just some random shots, all pics have been resized to 20% of the original for bloggin purposes.
And if u find any typos, dont tell anyone let it be your secret.....

The thing i forgot to mention earlier is that the 29th of june was the 1st anniversary of me starting up my blog. yup 290605 one year ago i blogged for the first time and i really didnt think that i would keep it up for a year! in one of my earliest post i spoke of a departed friend and how i still think of him, i nthis past year both tloml and i lost our grandmothers and it was hard or it is hard sometimes to think of the loved ones who have left but this past year wasnt about loss alone, in the 12months since i started bloggin, pepper has grown up to be a kind and caring little dog to her new sister Caitlin whose image i am sure will grow to dominate the pages of this blog. To all those of you who were forced to "check out my blog" much thanks for the many comments that you have posted, i look forward to reading everytime i go online. The pics i take are for me a form of release it destresses me to take pictures and it gives me pleasure and while i take pictures that i enjoy to view the same cannont be said for the few people who stroll through here, lol who can blame them i mean on one post you get oranges and another u get fabric..not the general idea of art lol but still bare with my pics and i will post more of what yo u all like, Caitlin :)
Lets see if i can make it 2years. watch this space.

Debbie and Adriel ..for life.

Where do i start! what a great day! Debbie and Adriel got married today! and not one picture did i take...i didnt bring the camera as i thought i was going to be rather busy which i will say i was! The morning started early with TLOML(bridesmaid) leaving at 645 for debs house. My mum stayed over and helpeds us with the baby sitting duties for the day, while i left for church at 815(bloody early). After a lovely mass, where of course the people in my pew were all giggling away just like the last time we attended mass together, badly behaved heheh. The bride looked radient and the groom looked ready for action, after mass we headed to the merchant court hotel where my duties of the day were awaiting me. AS the MC i decided that my co host would be Tuf Tuf (she had no say in the matter) and together with a very happy bunch of staff from the hotel we set about to make sure that a good time was had by all. Aside from the eating and drinking there was dancing and lots of laughter and i think that anyone who didnt enjoy themselves would either have to have been dead or wanted to marry debbie or adriel for themselves lol. In my opinion a damn happening wedding! i enjoyed myself. So here is a HEARTY CONGRATS to the happy couple! May it be a long, bountiful and happy marriage :)

A bug a day.....

After putting Caitlin down for the night, i went back to the study and lo and behold there on the wall was this green monster, we have had our fair share of moths, beetles and even on occasion a praying mantis but this monster is something different altogther. I reckon its from the family Tettigoniidae Katydid Similar to grasshoppers but with some difference especially the curved bit at the back lol anyway after taking some qucik shots of the green hopper in a fish bowl i set it free, long may it hop.

Caitlin.

Had a bit of fun with Caitlin after TLOML gave her a nice bath.

Messed with her hair and her outfit

The two sisters have been bonding nicely, look at Caitlin holding her head up! sniff sniff they grow so fast

Old School Series One.

A couple of weeks ago some friends and i took a walk around Sungei Road, while it is just a shadow of its former "resale" glory there are still bargins to be bought. I walked away with a couple of old school cameras which i am thinking of hocking on ebay but you never know. Here is Series One. If i ever get in the mood again i am sure there will be a Series Two.

Sidebar-These photographs were taken after a long day, i took them even though i am really tired so forgive the little problems you may have with them....i will try and do better next time.

One day to a Month

23rd of the month tom and my daughter(thats right u heard right) will be 1month old! Its been tough on TLOML over the past few days as i have been sick and she is bearing the load as it were all by her lonesome.WELL DONE HONEY! Today i feel alot better so its back in the saddle with the night feeds tonight, i hope our precautions were effective and she does not get sick as well(knock wood, oei knock man)

I have been asked many times over the past few weeks what its like being a father, i really cant explain as yet but i think the emotions have been changing or should i say growing as i get to know her. Caitlins sister Pepper has been a good girl and if i may say more loving than ever. Aside from her birthday tomorrow Caitlin will also be getting the first of a series of jabs, welcome to the world of immuinization!
On a photographical note, aside from the baby i havent really taken anything worth posting, got a couple of cat pics but hey who doesnt, i really need to get into the groove soon ...hopefully sunday

Still not sure who she looks like, it seems to change from day to day, she has one hell of a head of hair i must say. I have also been asked why we chose the name Caitlin, in many places on the net it states that the name is of irish decent, but Caityn is the Irish version and Caitlin is of a welsh background which has a suttle difference in meaning with the latter meaning pure and the former pure beauty, however both of them derive from the Greek "Catherine" which i always though of as a russian name Mischa actually pulled the name out and it was the only one we agreed on, as for Rose i picked that i felt it would go well with the first name plus i like roses, we had wanted Victoria, Isabell or even Gemma but in the end we got ourselves a little Caitlin. As they say a Caitlin rose by any other name.....
SideBar-As my sister has pointed out it is a rather nice quilt that baby c is resting on, i bought that quilt almost 10years ago for philip aka baba and i hope one day he can rest his baby's head on it as i rest mine.

Happy Fathers DAY

Today is my first fathers day as a father, last year we only had pepper and that really didnt count. A nice dinner was organzied by tloml, tuff and jamie for the doo and me, hot dogs galore!

I was trying to think if i felt different being a father, i guess i do and i dont..i do cause there is alot more responisblity with being a father now, and sacrifices have to be made by both tloml and i however i cant realyl call them sacrifices as we are giving up all the little good things we enjoy like the freedom to just go out or take a long nap or travel(for now) in exchange for a child that we love more and more with each day. I did not of course think its possible to feel like this before she was born but I AM A FATHER and i am going to get a real kick out of hearing Caitlin calling me Daddy for the first time! AS new parents everything and everyday something new happens sometimes its a joy and sometimes it does feel like a hard struggle esp when at 2 in the morning she doesnt want to sleep and i have work the next day! but the good outweighs the "not so good" i wont say bad cause there really isnt any bad in this context!
Some day i shall write about what kind of father my dad was too me, someday.
for now all i can say is HAPPY FATHERS DAY.
The pic i have loaded on this page should actually have been for mothers day but me being me i didnt take any pictures of fathers lol .

BIRTHDAY NUMBER 8

HAPPY BIRTHDAY
MEGAN!

It seems that someone allowed megan to grow without my knowledge! i am very displeased! in a blink of an eye she is now 8yrs old!
We had a nice birthday celebration at my mums place and as always food galore! we ate like there was no tom! and instead of cake we had ICE CREAM!!! with 8 tiny candles !
It was also Caitlins first birthday party and she had a wild time!(fast asleep)
:)

"Weeping May Endure for a Night, but Joy Cometh in the Morning."

When i first started this blog almost 1 year ago, i did not think it would survive. As i said in my first post i have never been one for the "diary" entries but as time moves on all things change.
Change, that seems to have been a big part of what has happened over the past year. With a tough first couple of weeks of being pregnant when both TLOML and i thought that we would lose our baby to a tough delivery with an emergecny C sect, we have run the full range of emotions from Happiness, Fear, and finally JOY.
Over the past week TLOML lost a major part of her life, her grandmother Nano as she was known by all. At 80 Nano had alot to be proud of having raised 3 fine children who went on to raise their own fine children some of whom are rasing children of their own! Wealth, glory, power all these things are well and good but what Nano had could not be bought it was a family who loved her, who love each other. On her deathbed Nano was surrounded by the one thing she deserved the most, love.
Tales will be told for many years about this grand lady, a woman who could truly use the words "my way". An impossible amount of strength of will and fortitude she was also a fount of infomation and wit. Nano was everyready with a good story and always ready with a quick comeback. I shall miss her phone calls which always seem to start with "what exactly is everyone doing?' and somehow connect to food, she would always ask how pepper was having met the dog only once! Her concern for details legendary as was her use of the english language, once we were playing charades(this is my fav nano moment) and someone was acting out a movie tital or something and out of the blue the nano shouted "BARRAGE" fits of laughter i tell ya i had fits of laughter. She survived a war, being widowed early, illness and many other trials and tribulations that would have broken most people but with her spine of steel Nan survived it all. It is a bittersweet moment, when i know we should be happy that she is at peace but ........scripture says "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning " I do not know about the "a nigth part" but i do belive that joy does come in the morning if it didnt life would not be bearable. So here is a tip of the hat and a gentle bow to a grand dame.

Day 15

Its been rough at work lately and this morning is no different. Sigh what i wouldnt give to just be able to tell these people off but such is life. On the plus side Caitlin is doing well and TLOML is getting better everyday. Caitlin is already 15days old and tough it has been trying esp since we are still trying to find a rythm. It has actually been a joy overall. Pepper is in assistant mother mode and looks like she wants to give "a paw" at feeding the baby. anyway just thought i would post some pics ...

Battle of the Milk

So the weekend has come and gone and last night was the first night that Tloml, Pepper, Caitlin and i spent alone without the moo as backup. We were both nervous but it went well and it will get better as we learn more. (pics will be posted tonight)

feeding time 0200hrs
While sitting there in the semi darkness, holding the baby in one hand and the bottle with the other i came to a conclusion. Feeding time is not about fun and games its about fighting a battle, what as a parent i want is to get the most amount of milk down Caitlins gullet in the shortest possible time, she on the other hand has her own ideas about the whole process. In my arsenal i have many weapons including delaying the feeding till she goes WAH WAH, or the rotating of the bottle so that she doesnt fall asleep, or tugging it in and out of her mouth so she remains interested and if that fails and she does fall asleep i can always try tapping the bottle with my finger nail and that normally works . The nuclear option is burping, clears her belly for more milk. Caitlin like all females feels the need to thwart her fathers good intentions, her weapons are, sticking her tongue to the roof of her mouth so the nipple goes under it, closing her mouthing tightly so you cant get in, shoving the nipple out with her tongue, falling asleep, pretending to be asleep, and my favourite smiling and allowing lots of milk to drip out the side of her mouth. There can be only one winner in this battle of milk and that is her, she will feed when she is hungry and sleep when she is tired. And that my friends is lesson number 1.

Hold On Daddy

Doesnt it just say it all.

HOME!

Today was the day of TLOMLs return home and it was the first time that Caitlyn(yup this might be the spelling) has come home. She has only known two place the womb and the hospital and now she needs to get used to our humble abode. Pepper was excited to see her mummy as well as her younger sister. we spent our time trying to figure out the milk balance..the wrapping of the baby and all other things associated to the baby.

Day Two

Feet that have never touched the ground
Today was a good day for both mother and child, TLOML managed to walk around with less pain then yesterday and i hope it gets better tom. Caitlin was as snug a bug though from what i understand while i was at work she was a little handfull. Tom they will both be home and all will be well! So exciting its the start of a whole new life for one and the beginning of the next phase for the two of us.

Our Baby.

Tuesday 23rd May 2006, and our little bundle of joy was born.
After a long and sometimes stressfull day the very brave love of my life delivered a bouncing baby girl. We have named here Caitlin. Mother and child are doing well. As for the father, words cant express my emotions. Many thanks to the many supporters, esp those who prayed for us.

Pongol.

It was a rather quiet day at work this morning, i should say half a day really. I knocked off at 1230hrs and a friend and i went to an abandoned house i heard about in pongol, nice looking building with a high ceiling, large rooms big bathrooms but as i said abandoned, i reckon its waiting to be torn down.

I actually spent more time photographing the servents quarters then the main building, seemed abit more interesting

The pics themself are nothing special, just another set of pics to document an old building

On the grounds of the building we stumbled across a doggy and her two pups, very cute. Its so sad to think of them all alone in that house ..so if you know anyone that wants a couple of cute little puppies drop me a line.

Got back at around 2, had a it of lunch played with the puppy while TLOML rested and then we went to pasir ris for the great introduction between Dolce and Pepper, lo and behold we met Glen and clan there as well! A nice time for dogs and all. Dinner was lovely Salt fish fried rice and sweet and sour pork from changi village we the two of us brought home and filled our bellies to satisfaction.

Nostalgia

The baby is due any time now! It could be today or next week but any day now another little simon will pop out. I had lunch with my mum today and we had a look at her photo albums. Nostalgia, thats the word and looking at the pics thats what i felt and still feel. Above is a pic of my mum in her youth, prob in her teens ! sitting next to her is her sister in-law and her assorted neices and nephews who now have children and grand children of their own!



Above is a pic of my Dad, Sgt Simon. He signed up with the british army before his 16th birthday and told them he was already 16!

Edwin met Lucy and they were wed!

Above is my granny from my dads side and on the right is my grandpa(now you know why i like to wear hats) from my mums side.

An early pic of the Simon Kids, and now i am having one of my OWN!


Checkout the bed Alison and I are on! what a cool kiddy bed not a sharp edge on it, mind you its solid metal! Like my doll?