Survival of the Fish Kind

It is with great relief that I can report Mickey alive and well this morning.

I was half expecting to find him floating at the top of the water, but, there he (or she) was, gently swimming around the vase.

Yes, a vase.

We don't own a goldfish bowl, or fish-tank, and so have resorted to a vase.

It's not round. But it is quite big, and should be sufficient for Mickey to have a good exercise.

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Whilst I'm here, I thought I'd update you on my shares portfolio. You may recall that I invested in some shares a while back, and have been keenly watching the value ebb and flow with the stock market.

Well, things haven't been going so well. Everything has fallen in value, with my darling, Stagecoach, being the worst offender. OK, so I had a return of £40 when the dividend was paid, but then the quantity of shares was consolidated, so now I have less, with a much less return. In fact, the value now is a paltry fiver!

Tesco has slid backwards as well, worth just over a pound, and even Standard Life has reduced to just over £200.

BSkyB is holding on around the £12 mark.

BT were doing OK, but have also slid back.

Still - as I've always maintained, this is a long term investment, so hopefully things'll improve with time.

Labouring The Point

Welcome to Thursday. Yes, just one day until the weekend. And what a week it's been. Well, actually, it's not been too bad, but I've been so tired...
Anyway.
The bathroom is finally finished, and the boys have christened the bath. There'll be a final photo here soon.
The Baby has discovered he can pull the plug out (something he couldn't do in the old bath). He also managed to climb onto the door of the dishwasher as The Wife was emptying it. She turned around and there he was, sat in a pool of water!
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Shares are doing quite well at the moment. Currently on a high, with a 25% gain (that's £289 in money terms). So, I'm quite pleased.
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Now, what's this about Gordon Brown having to wait 6 weeks before he can officially become Prime Minister. What's the point in waiting. There is no leadership challenge - did you really think there would be - so instead of pansying about, let Tony leave now, and let Gordon get on with the job in hand. I'm not a Labour supporter, I just want what's best for everyone, and letting TB have a prolonged exit is no good for the country.
There, said it.
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Not long until Center Parcs. The Boys are so excited (and so am I).
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OK - Hustle is on TV now - so off to watch some great drama from the BBC...

Polling Day

It's voting day, for the local elections. I feel it's important to have a say. We have a democratic right to vote, and even though the choice isn't strong, if we don't vote we can't complain about the state of the political scene. Since I've never voted Labour, I have to choose between Tory or Lib Dems...
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You may have noticed the image on the right, of Alan Johnston, the BBC reporter kidnapped in Gaza. You can click on the image to get more information, and add your name to the petition to get him released.
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I also wanted to report on an amazing day yesterday, for my shares.
BSkyB announced their annual results, which were way above market expectations, pushing their share price up 7%. I sat and watched the value of my holding increase overall by £20 in one day.
OK - so it's not a vast amount, and The Wife brought me down to earth by saying that today they could lose £30! Spoil sport.
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I spent an hour in the gym last night. Had a really good workout - concentrating on cardio exercise, as well as some weights.
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Tiling has begun in the bathroom. Good progress being made there.
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Finally - I've decided to look into laser eye surgery. It would be wonderful not having to wear glasses. And, The Wife is all for the idea. I've requested an information pack and will keep you informed.
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Right then - it's off to work.
Have a good day.

Twice In One Day

I just wanted to report on two things.

1. Today I invested in more shares. In Photo-Me International. They're cheap (75p), and they appear to be on the up. So, we'll watch and see. The Standard Life shares powered ahead, and even Sky didn't do too badly. Tesco, on the other hand, didn't fair so well, and was one of the FTSEs biggest fallers of the day. Stagecoach remained fairly static, as did BT.

2. The bath has now been installed in the bathroom. Maybe that should have been point number one.

That's all.

Who needs a title - just read...

It's Thursday at last.
Over halfway through the week.
On Monday evening, we spontaneously decided to go to the theatre. There was an Agatha Christie play at The Lowry, called "The Unexpected Guest" and I quite fancied going to see it.
Since I had finished work at 3 o'clock (due to a late finish on Friday), there was no particular rush.

So I booked the tickets, and got seats 6 rows from the front. Excellent view, and the play was terrific. Normally we go to shows, but this was something different. No song and dance, just good, old fashioned acting. And it was very well performed.
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I've decided to give up the spread-betting business. It was not doing my health any good, and it's impossible to concentrate when at work. Still, the shares still exist, and I'll keep an eye on them.
In fact, I can report that in the 8 weeks since I started, the value of my holdings has risen by £100. Not a bad return on investment, with Stagecoach seeing an 18% rise on their own.
Find me a savings account that returns that amount!
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Bathroom is now plastered and looking more like a room. Waiting for the electrician to come and put the lights in.
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So, off to work now. More regression testing - borrrring. Still, that's what we're there to do, so will make the most of it.

Have a nice day

I've not written for a while, so thought I would take this opportunity to play catch-up.

The bathroom work is moving on apace; the first fix is now complete, with all plumbing in place. The ceiling has also been done, and the new loft hatch in place. Next job is to plasterboard the walls.

More photos will be added soon. So watch this space. Well, not this space, but another entry in the blog!!
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It's Bank Holiday weekend, and today we went to Moss Bank Park in Bolton. The weather was scorching (reaching an unseasonal 18 degrees). The kids had fun in the sun, sandpit and on the fairground attractions. Number One Son also had a go on his Heeley's; to the amusement of many.

The Baby had fun crawling everywhere, and discovered that he can climb up steps (although has difficulty coming down, without hurting himself). I sat him in the climbing frame this evening and he enjoyed looking out of the different openings.

Tomorrow we're planning on going to Chester Zoo - the weather is expected to be exceptional again, so should be fun.

It's also the Malaysian Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton is 4th on the grid, so fingers-crossed for another fine performance. I wanted to wear my Vodafone Mclaren Mercedes top, but The Wife has decreed that I can't wear 100% polyester t-shirt to the zoo! I don't see why not. Other people wear their favourite football shirts.
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So you're wondering how the shares are looking? Well, it's been an up and down week, but on the whole, progress has been good. But - as I've said before, it's a long-term thing, so let's not worry about the small downs, and hope for the eventual growth.
Mind you - the legal battle between Sky and Virgin could have a nasty effect...

ShareWatch

Back on the 5th March, I wrote that I had invested some money in the stock market, when the prices fell due to issues in China.
Then, not long afterwards, the prices fell even further, and I started to think I'd made a big mistake. Oh, what a great start.

Anyway, over the last week or so, things have started to improve, and hopefully will continue to do so in the coming months. I wrote that I am in it for the long term, and I may look to invest more.

So, how are they doing.
Well - BT was slow, but appears to be growing
Stagecoach is my 'winner' at the moment, with a 14% gain
BSkyB was my worst buy - fingers crossed things get sorted soon in the Pay-TV row.
Tesco is doing alright too, with a 4.3% gain.

If you just make sure you subscribe to Sky and buy all your groceries in Tesco, I should be laughing. Oh, Stagecoach? They have a major stake in Virgin Rail, for which I booked tickets to London in June.
As for Standard Life (my freebies), they're at an all-time high, with a gain of 24.8% (or £136).

OK - so it's not big money. But it's fun, and I enjoy watching the rise and fall of the prices.