Having posted some photographs of the new born Eddie I thought that it was only fair that I also posted some photographs of the other new born budgie Bruce.  So here they are.

Well finally after starting all the garden alterations in February we have managed to complete what I am calling the first phase.  We can now sit out in the garden and all the livestock have their homes.  Looking forward to the summer now.

Yesterday was the final push to get it ready for entertaining and using basically.  We were planting trees and the garden looks so bare without them.  Five trees were purchased for just over a ton and then the debate was held as to were they should be placed.  We finally settled on 4 trees in the raised bed that was constructed back in February and one over the other side of the garden.  We also came to the conclusion that we needed another two trees to finish it off, and it was decided that Apple trees would be great.  That way we could place one next to the rabbits pen and then when the apples fall from the tree they would have a ready supply for troughing.

Also we erected some hanging baskets at the front of the house as well as some wall mounted baskets with some smaller bedding plants in to provide some colour when they start to flower, hopefully fairly soon.

Jobs that we still need to finish include concreting underneath the aviary, which we cannot do until the baby budgies are old enough, electricity around the garden including a light in the aviary and perhaps the rabbit hutch and the possibility of widening the drive at the front of the house.  It is all working progress but I feel that we have made one big step to how we want it now.  Here’s looking forward to some nice weather so that we can sit out in the garden and enjoy our work!

The new born Budgies were hatched nearly 2 weeks ago now and so we managed to get our first proper glimpse of them when Helen has a hold.

We have gone for the names Eddie and Bruce as we think that they are males, however it is hard to tell until they get their colouration on their beaks.  Eddie is shown in the photos above.

Well today we finally managed to finish off (almost) the rabbits new home alongside the aviary. We wanted to create a new area next to the birds that the rabbits could use so that they did not have to live in the aviary with the birds. Yesterday we bought their new hutch and today it was time to finish off the fence and then get the rabbits in there.

The fence was really easy to construct as the posts had already been cemented in when the concrete base went down a few weeks ago now. We wrapped the wire mesh around the posts, which drew blood on both myself and my dad as it is very stiff with extremely sharp edges. Then the fence panels (or planks) went along the mesh to keep it in place after the mesh was stapled to the posts. The hutch was then moved in place and the rabbits were in their new home. Once Jeremy was in their he was determined to get behind the aviary as this video proves!

The other job of the day was planting. Now the rabbits were not roaming in the garden anymore it meant that the plants could be placed in the border behind the new patio and the raised bed, as they wouldn’t be eaten anymore. The climbers were planted at the back of the garden to climb up the trellis and all the other plants were placed in there positions. Tomorrows job is to buy about 5 trees and then we can get the rest of the plants planted, which will really improve the look of the garden.

Bank Holiday Monday and it was time to get out in the garden in true British style. Unfortunately it wasn’t out in the garden relaxing in the weather but working on the garden trying to get it finished. The work started in early February and is still going on now. By summer we should have it finished!

The first job was to cap the small wall that we had built in order to enclose the raised bed. The bricks that were used were normal building bricks and therefore they all had three holes in the top and therefore they needed something on top of them to make them look OK. Dad mortared them onto the wall and we only needed to cut a few with the Angle Grinder for a tricky little corner piece.

Whilst this was happening mum was digging over the raised bed and getting rid of all the pebbles and rubbish in there. After all this was complete we decided that we would head off to the garden centre and see if we could buy the rabbits a new hutch that would live in the run area. Southport Road, on the way into the seaside town is perhaps the best place for garden centres and pet stores and we found quite a collection of different hutches.

The first one that we saw (top right) was actually a dog kennel but it was made of sturdy stuff and it was considered for a while. Only one hutch caught our eyes which we liked (bottom right) however it was a little smaller than we wanted. Anyway stud up, flat-packed against the wall was an identical one but slightly larger and therefore that was the one that we bought. We we got back it was construction time.

So tomorrow we need to construct the fence that will go around the rabbit run. This means that the rabbits can live in there new home and we can then plant the plants without the risk of the rabbits eating them.

I was out and about in the garden this morning before watching the Grand Prix and the rabbits were out too. They looked so cute in the garden together!

This weekend sees perhaps what many consider to be the spectacle of the formula 1 season with the Monaco Grand Prix. The location is spectacular seeing these magnificent machines flying round the streets on Monte Carlo at tremendous speeds. But I can’t help thinking that the circuit needs changing just a little, to provide an even better race.

Above is the circuit as it stands today. It has seen some minor alterations over the years but essentially it is the same circuit that has been raced on year after year from the 1950s through to the present day. It has provided fans of Formula 1 and other motor sport with many thrilling races over the years. However it lacks perhaps the one thing that we all want to see in Formula 1 and that is overtaking. The narrow streets and twister circuit provide an excellent back drop for a terrific race, but what they do not give is overtaking opportunities. It is for this reason that getting on the front row of the grid (pole position is best) is absolutely crucial for victory. Take a look at this video clip below of Mansell and Senna back in 1992.

Mansell was leading the race from the start and had a 30 second lead over Senna. Then he picked up a puncture about 5 laps from the end which brought him out just behind Ayrton. He has 4 laps to overtake in an immensely faster car with fresh rubber giving him all the grip that he needed, but he just couldn’t get past. All Senna had to do was put his car in the right place and he could have drive 10 seconds a lap slower than normal and Mansell would not have got past.

So then, my proposal. Below is a diagram of how I think that the circuit could be changed in order to improve the overtaking opportunities on the circuit. Changes are in red.

I have been to Monaco and therefore know that there is room for these changes. The change that is needed is to lengthen the straight after the cars come out of the tunnel and create a high breaking zone where the faster Tabac corner is now. This corner would be turned into a chicane to slow the cars down before they get into the swimming pool complex. Having a longer straight would enable more passing to take place. They should also widen the track at this point to prevent drivers just putting their car in the middle of the track and stopping others passing even if they are slower. This could be done here because the Nouvelle Chicane escape road could be used as well as the existing track, providing a wider track for overtaking.

I think would still keep the Monte Carlo circuit character and at the same time hopefully make the race less of a precession with very little overtaking occurring at the moment. What do you think?

Today was the release day for Stanley to budgie. It was time for him to move from his house inside our house and go and join all the other birds in the aviary, including the two new arrivals (see below). He seems happy in there.

Stanley arrived at our house about 4 months ago now as he was found by someone who took him to the pet shop. We then took him in as he must have only been about 3 - 4 weeks old at the time. From then until now he has been living inside with us in order for him to get bigger and build up his strength.

Today he was put into the aviary with all the other 8 birds, and he seems to have settled in really well, with no signs of any problems which is good.

Also in the aviary we have now got two new birds. Daphne has given birth to two small baby budgies that are currently the size of a small egg with white fluffy bottoms. Today they opened their eyes for the first time.

My latest gadget arrived today after a rather rapid delivery from eBay. I had heard that you could record audio onto your iPod and so after a little research from my friend Mr Google I found that the gizmo that I needed was a little gadget called iTalk.

The device is made by Griffin Technology, manufacturers of many iPod gadgets. It is tiny, about the size of a cigarette lighter and it attaches to the dock connector at the bottom of your iPod video (mine is 60gb). Then you have a simple menu option to record. Speak away and the microphone built into the iTalk device does the rest.

I was skeptical at first when I was looking to buy as I wasn’t sure that the audio quality would be up to it, but it really isn’t bad at all from the built in mic. I really do want to get an external 3.5mm jack plugged mic that will fit into the iTalk unit and then clip to your tie for example and I think that the sound quality of the outputted .wav file will be better. If anyone can recommend a mic then I would be grateful. All in all a good £12 spent.