BurbleChaz

Thankyou all for my wonderful prezzies! Particularly, thank you to my progenitors for the excellent t-shirts, and to the London Branch of our globe-encompassing empire for the wine. Your taste is excellent, and it will be enjoyed. Probably in the next hour. You have learned well, Padawan.

So, how did my day go? It started last night, when, in the traditional manner, the Birthday started with prezzies at midnight. A compact digital camera! Almost identical to the fully-functional camera I already have! Slightly slimmer, and with better on-board software. How kind. Just what I needed. Battery on charge (another good reason for ddoing prezzies at midnight). Next prezzie: an underwater housing for the camera. All is now clear. Happy happy me. The birthday plan is clear.

Today starts with a piggy breakfast. All that was missing was the blood sasusage. Cholesterol levels dialled to maximum, we gently started making ready for the beach. I was stowing my wetsuit in a bag when the World's Largest Justified Shriek was emitted by The Normally Not Freaked By Things person. While moving a few things on a windowsill, she had been attacked and mortally wounded - well, attacked, anyway - ok - maybe had just startled A Potential Killer Spider. Funnel web we decided. Permethrin spray to the fore. Pssst. Psssssst. Pssssssssssssst some more. I really don't like killing things, except for lunch. And, no, thank you. Not eating it. I don't like the taste of permethrin. We showed the picture of the sadly deceased Certain Killer Arachnid to a friend. He let us down gently. Not a funnel web. A perfectly harmless Huntsman spider. No toxic bite, just a propensity to grow to 150mm leg span.

Off snorkeling, then. We haven't been for a while, because the water's been too cold, or the surf's been too good, or the weather's been too rubbish, or we've been too lazy. Today, was cool (24 degrees) sunny, with a gentle onshore breeze. The surf was rubbish, and I had a new camera with underwater capability. To Shelley Beach!

Some divers had left a hoop anchored to the bottom. No idea why. Perhaps the intention was to trap any passing skin divers. It almost worked.

After the recent thunderstorms, the water quality was rubbish. Visibility was about five metres, and all the fish were hiding. On the up side, the water is getting warmer, and the weather is getting better.

There was beer after that. Possibly quite a lot. Thank you all for my fantastic birthday!