Thailand, Milky Way, Comet and Meteor
Image Credit + Copyright © Matipon Tangmatitham

What an amazing photo this is.  First for the long exposure technique to get the foreground lights and the stars together.  Then to catch a comet in the shot, and a meteor!  This came from http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/, Astronomy Picture of the Day.  They say there’s an ESA space rocket launch in there too, but I can’t find it.  No matter, this is a great picture, and all down to digital photography with its extremely sensitive sensors and the huge amount of control we have now compared to film.  Oh, and of course, getting out and being there!

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Second day on insulin and it’s working well. I was worried about hypos, but I don’t feel any different, yet the effect on my BSL readings is good – from big swings, from 14 to 18, down to pretty constant readings of 12 mmol/ml at the recommended measuring times.

On Wednesday I increase the dose to 20 units and see what the readings are. Then wait three days and try 30 units if I need to. And so on to get the readings down to below 7, or more correctly my HbA1c to 7 or below.  My last one was 7.6 and here in Perth they want 6 or below.

This should all become unnecessary, along with most of my other medications, after the gastric sleeve operation. Meds for BP, BSL, cholesterol – all no longer needed. Let’s hope so. But I’m also taking a med which gives me better BSL control and will continue for the foreseeable future, because it makes me feel so much better in both body and mind.

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The exercise physiologist came this morning and put me to the test:  hard walking (outside) for 15 secs, then 30 secs of slowish walking, then 15 secs as hard as I can, and repeat for 10 mins. It’s called interval training and I can handle it, but not for long – 5 mins at the moment.  She wants me to reach the stage of 30 mins of hard(ish) walking by about three months time.  Well, it’s OK if you’ve got someone pushing you, checking on you, but there’s only one more visit scheduled.  This is being paid for by HBF, so after three visits, I have to pay.  Pay what, I have no idea.  Treadmill buying time, I think.

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I finished Veni Vidi Pici Vol. III on Sunday evening and sent it off to the printers.

And a few sample pages:

This one was pre-paid too, using one of Photobook’s offers, only costing $46 each for two copies.  They should be here (from the printers in Kuala Lumpur) early next week.

How incredibly satisfying it is to be able to assemble and print my images like this, with the extra information, rather than rely on slide shows which nobody liked and no-one would watch.  Mind you, as I said before, the editing and proof reading is interminable.  Right up to the last I was finding minor typos and rewriting sentences to convey the meaning more clearly.  Good fun, though.  I have vouchers for three more pairs of books, so Japan, Bali and Malaysia are next.  Come to think of it, I may have enough for a Veni Vidi Vol. IV from my USA, Europe and local shots.

The criterion for selection from the thousands I’ve got is that they have to be able to stand alone, as interesting enough, without relying on others from the same trip.  That narrows it down pretty well.