Roath Park.

Roath Park.
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

Ros and Roy.

Ros and Roy.
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

Oggy oggy oggy....

For Christmas,we bought Ros and Roy two tickets to see Max Boyce at WMC...and this weekend they came down for the show and for one last visit to see us in Cardiff. The plan was to have a drink with them in the bar....they would see the show...and then we would meet them afterwards. The show started and on our way out I stopped to say hello to Abbi who was the duty manager for the performance. I explained that Ros and Roy had come down from Wigan and were inside watching the show...and she said..."there are some spare seats in the mid stalls..would you like to go in?". Before we knew it we were watching the show too. Terence said its great to have connections.
Max was brilliant....and there was a great atmosphere. Ros and Roy loved it...and we spent most of the next day repeating the jokes. He finished the show with Hymns and Arias....Superb.

Watching the birdies.

Watching the birdies.
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

Sitting on our bedroom windowsill....Wilson got a good view of the seagulls and pigeons in the street.

Getting some "fresh" air.

Getting some "fresh" air.
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

I took myself ..and my bad hand...out for a walk today. Over the Butetown Link Road to Asda. You get some great views of the bay...I wonder if the tour bus goes that way? I bought a bag of pre chopped onions and a jar of "lazy garlic". I ve always thought things like that were for really lazy cooks...but I now think otherwise.

My hand is on the mend...I think.Its hard to be definite though, as I havent seen it for a week now. It could have turned green and I wouldnt know. Sometimes it throbs..other times it feels cold...then theres the pins and needles and the itchiness. The plaster and bandage arrangement is starting to look a bit minging!!! There are a few food stains!!! Eeewww!

Icy cold River Taff and Millenium Stadium.

Icy cold River Taff and Millenium Stadium.
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

Magic.

Wigan Athletic have made it to the Carling Cup Final...to be held in Cardiff on 26th Feb. There they will play Man Utd in what should be a great game. Its fairytale stuff for Wigan...the genuine excitement from the players, fans, manager and chairman when Jason Roberts scored against Arsenal in the last few seconds on Tuesday night, was fantastic. The Wigan goalkeeper said the players had a great trip home that night....a few drinks and a sing song on the team coach. Its like the old days, when football was played in black and white....maybe Ill put a small bet on them to win the cup?

"What if's"

Are "What if's" always negative...or is it just me?
I'm really good at "What if's"...I can get on a roll with them and it drives Terence mad. This is understandable as my "What if's" are just problems I dream up,to go with the ones we already have. Terence says ...lets just concentrate on things that are actually happening.
I think its a stress related thing...so I'm coming up with all sorts at the moment!!!. The combination of a hand injury and moving house...Where's Dr Phil when I need him?

Paul Jewell to replace Sven?...

...could be slightly Mike Bassett. Not a bad thing.

Wrapped up and ready to go out.

Wrapped up and ready to go out.
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

" Molly Parkin? "
It was misty on the bay this morning. We took lots of photos...{well Tel and Graham did....I'm struggling to use our camera with my one good hand}. We saw the ducks and enjoyed the fresh air. Our days on the bay are numbered...it was great to share it with our friends today.

The Rhos. The ducks. The mist.

The Rhos. The ducks. The mist.
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

Warm enough to drink coffee outside....its madness!

Warm enough to drink coffee outside....its madness!
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

Ronnie O Sullivan......making snooker sexy.

Ronnie is great.....amazingly talented snooker player, young, edgy. Snooker is addictive to watch.... and Ronnie looks good too.

Damaged finger....bad timing.

Damaged finger....bad timing.
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

I am sitting here..... bra less.... and without my wedding ring!!!! This is the state you get in when you cut through the ring finger on your left hand. I 'm a sad and sorry sight. It hasn't really been the week I had planned. I was intending to pack lots of boxes for our house move...sorting through some old glassware got me into this mess.
I knew that I'd done some damage straight away. Quick thinking meant that I managed to get my wedding ring off...If I hadn't they would have cut it off and that would have been really upsetting as its my Mums wedding ring too.I didn't really think I'd need an operation. Going into theatre was a bit surreal...losing an hour and a half of my life under general anesthetic was very odd and a bit scary.
I ll get to see my hand and the stitches again in 2 weeks....isn't that the day before we move????? It isn't that painful at the moment. The top of my right arm where I had a tetnus jab hurts more.
Making a cup of tea seems to take a lot longer now...and going to the loo is fun!! I still feel tired and a bit groggy.
Its obviously not life or death...and I feel a bit silly really. The staff at Morriston were really helpful and I was really impressed at how quickly they sorted me out.
So now I have to be patient and hope that my finger heals well and one day soon I ll be able to put my wedding ring back on. And my bra of course!! Might need some help with that one.

The Deep Cut - a rare post from Terry

P1010008
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

Its very rare for me to post an entry on Jill's blog but she cant type too well at the moment!

It all started with a text from Jill while I was working in Swindon on Tuesday afternoon. "I've cut my finger, in casualty but fine". So I headed back to Cardiff to locate my stricken wife, thinking - 'well its not good but a few stitches, a big plaster and she'll be on her way'.

Unfortunately, it turned out that she had cut her finger very deeply, taken out a few nerves, an artery and possibly a tendon. She would need micro surgery first thing in the morning....and oh, the nearest facility is in Swansea! Crikey as Steve Irwin would say!

I did brave a look at the cut and it wasn't pretty - although I did feel a pang of jealously - there does seem to be a strange glory in minor injuries! Maybe that's just a man thing.

So they patched Jill up and we were back home at about 9pm. The bedroom, where the cutting incident took place, looked like a scene from Chainsaw Massacre.

We arrived bleary eyed at Morriston Hospital at 8:15 the next morning, located the scary sounding 'Plastics & Burns' unit (no mention of cuts there) and checked in. 3 nurses, 2 doctors, 1 tetanus jab later and Jill was assigned a bed to wait to be called for the op (Jill's first!).

She would need a general anesthetic, the full works. We had to wait ages (having been bumped by more urgent cases a few times) and I did loads of pacing (hate waiting), took 4 trips to the dining hall and chatted to the nice old ladies across the way who all seemed to have suffered burns to their legs from getting in hot baths (must watch that one when I'm older!).

The time for the op finally came at 3pm and Jill beckoned me to follow. As we headed for the yellow theatre doors I imagined I would have to watch the whole thing and had visions of the opening sequence to Quincy QC. Luckily, my job was done and I turned back to the ward to read some more womens magazines.

The op took one and half hours and seemed to be a success. Jill had to stay in overnight so I picked her up this morning. She now sports a rather large left hand and forearm, cast in plaster (havent been tempted to sign it yet). This stays for 2 weeks before being sawn off and then Jill's finger needs intensive physiotherapy with it own trainer. And we're in the middle of moving house - guess who's definitely doing all the hard work now!

And all this because Jill was trying to pull something out of an old tankard which then shattered - the offending glass still stares with menace across the bedroom!

I'll be looking after Jill over the coming weeks and I really hope she gets better soon - she's looking a bit sorry for herself in a biglefthanded sort of way. I'm sure she would appreciate lots of get well comments!

Until the next time Jill decides to chop a finger off.

Terry

Lets hear it for the boy....

Lets hear it for the boy....
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

Footloose on saturday night, was my last shift as an usher at WMC. Its been a great few months, directing people to their seats..selling ice creams and programs. I met some really nice people...and watched some great shows. I think my highlights were...
1. The magic of James Thieree
2. Shirley Bassey at The Royal Variety Performance
3. The fantastic songs and dancing in Saturday Night Fever.
4. The Phillip Glass Qatsi Trilogy.
5 ...and after a matinee of The Wizard of Oz...seeing the Tin Man having a fag at stage door.
Thats showbiz baby.
Thanks to WMC.x

Paul and Terence...double trouble?

Paul and Terence...double trouble?
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

Note the plastic stingrays on the nose of the plane. A great photo.x

Terry Shilton.

As if we havent got enough going on at the moment.....or maybe because we have....Tel has created a character called Terry Shilton,and a whole new world to think about in the realms of "Second Life". Its a virtual world were characters walk or fly around....checking out their surroundings and bumping into other characters. The first character Terry Shilton met was called Bumcheeks!!!!!...this is a bit alarming. If anyone else is enjoying a "Second Life"...look out for Tel....he's the one with the beard.

"Join Me" by Danny Wallace.

"So these days I seemed to be doing a lot of sitting down.A lot of glancing about.A lot of wondering wether or not I should be doing something else. Something more important. Something for which someone would actually pay me some money. In an ideal world of course, Id have Patrick Moore's job, already being his number one rival for just sitting on a chair, staring into space."
"I know what I want out of life, and by gracious I know how to get it. But what I want out of life is usually a nice cup of tea and a biscuit, and how to get it involves nothing more than a short stroll to the kitchen, so I m not sure if that really counts alongside the achievements of others."

Pete Burns.

Pete Burns.
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

Its been a stressful day.....so much to remember...so many things to check. Wish we could fast forward to a moving date!!!! So, Celebrity Big Brother is a welcome distraction and a great way to end the day. In the absence of camp Scouser Derek Acorah.....we have camp Scouser Pete Burns. I think I like him....but I could change my mind. Of course Maggot is a favourite. You knows it.

Freezing cold.

4 layers of clothes were required for our walk from Llantwit Major to St Donats this afternoon.....and a flask of coffee and 2 Mr Kiplings viennese whirls. Its always good to be out in the "fresh" air....makes you feel better. When you are out, walking in the countryside, people say hello to each other as they pass by...wouldnt it be nice if people did that wherever they were?

Beach at Llantwit Major.

Beach at Llantwit Major.
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

Coast.

Coast.
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

Roy.

Roy.
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.

Wilson and the badger and the fox.....

As we edge closer to our "big move"...we are starting to imagine what life will be like in the new place. How we will be able to walk around the house.....to step outside our front door and see trees and green things.....to have a garage.....and a garden. Blimey!!!! But how will our city cat cope? Hes used to walls and litter and noise....will he be able to cope with the "space" ? We imagined him being chased down the hill by a badger, which was in turn being chased by a fox!!! We hope he doesnt catch a strange countryside disease and keel over in the first week. Or maybe he ll just disappear into the woods and we ll never see him again.He'll have to ring Gilbert for some advice. After 11 years of city life, we must all prepare for a period of readjustment.

TV to cheer you up....

A must for young and old....You ve Been Framed presented by Harry Hill. His commentary on the clips is hilarious. "This one is like the opening scene from Casualty....doh!!!"

120 degrees at Wyee.

Auntie Angela said the sky was red over Kincumber a couple of days ago. The bush fires got as close as Umina...and she took in some friends who lived there. Its been the hottest she has known in 40 years.....hope her little air conditioning unit can keep up.

NYE at The Pump Rooms, Bath.

NYE at The Pump Rooms, Bath.
Originally uploaded by terry Dixon.