Tracking a cat with GPS January 4
I finally got around to attaching my I-gotu GPS tracker to Tuffin to see where he goes. I cleared the device, charged it and attached it to his harness, ending up with a setup like this.
He didn't like it to start with - it's the same colour as his fur and he kept licking it as he thought it was his own body. Still, the battery was charged, the cat ready so I put some black tape over the GPS receiver and let him go.
He got stuck heading out of the cat flap as he left due to the tracker adding an extra 20mm to his height but after trying again he made it through. After a nervous wait he returned an hour or so later, with the GPS tracker intact, power light still on.
Eagerly we plugged the tracker in and dumped the data - waypoints appeared - woohoo!
It was logging data every 6 seconds and there are 3 erroneous readings from looking at the map, but you can still see he visits the back of around 9 houses, sits on sheds and uses the alleyway in between the rows of houses.
Next time we will attach it to his collar so it remains facing the sky, and set the logging to every 2 seconds to see if we get better results so stay tuned for updates. Still an amazing insight into our cat's life :D
2010 January 1
2010 is here. While it's 10 years since the millennium, so much has happened in that time that when I think about it all it doesn't seem quite so scary.
For comparison, here is how I saw in the year 2000:
and here is how I saw in 2010:
I think I prefer 2010 - friends, pub, beer and sparklers. :)
Handmade textile art pieces from Wales December 21
Well this is a bit of an odd post. My girlfriend is a Textile Artist and makes amazing jewelery and bags, which she exhibits in galleries around the UK.
We've just set up an online store over at Folksy.com and, though it may be a little late for christmas (although if you order something today it will be dispatched tomorrow), it would be great if people could take a look and spread the word :)
She does take commissions, and makes plenty of other pieces for weddings, etc which you can see in her gallery over on her main website.
Something for the winter months December 14
I brewed a nice strong (5.3% ish) English bitter called Tumbleabout Strong Bitter last weekend, as I wanted something a bit darker and more warming than the pale ales I've been brewing recently.
The brewday is written up here although I didn't take any pictures of this one. I did however sustain my first brewing injury - a skinned knuckle due to slipping whilst trying to push the hose pipe for the chiller inlet onto the outside tap and then managed to scald the same hand with boiling water when the chiller outlet hose jumped out of the sink.
Collected almost 23 litres in all and it's almost finished in the primary with S-04 yeast. Next up I think I'm going to be brewing a couple of well know classics for around my birthday - Morland Old Speckled Hen and Timothy Taylor Landlord. :)
Beer bread November 20
I've been reading an excellent blog about beer and bread which has inspired me to take up proper breadmaking again, rather than using a breadmaker.
My colleague lent me this book and I've since made a sourdough starter, where you make a natural leaven from wild yeast floating about in the air, which gives the bread a sour sort of taste.
I made my first bread using this as well as a bit of dried yeast and some home brew the other day.
Turned out well though I could have let it rise for a little longer - the pizza stone helped it rise I think. When I have more time I'll try a proper sourdough loaf over the course of a whole day.