Moose on the Loose

We have just received a text message and want to congratulate Clarke (aka Supercod) & Leona Duncan on the birth of their son Fraser Robert Duncan born at 1:40am & weighing in at 8lb 14oz. Both mum & baby are doing fine.

Wishing you all every happiness in the world with your new bundle of joy & a little brother for Adam.

Another fine mini-cod to add to the shoal & a fine name too.

A Moose’s Life is about to go through an interesting transitional phase. My son has just taken up drumming lessons at his new secondary school … great I thought … he is already joining extra after school activity clubs .. but then literally a few minutes ago my son “strolls” in with a full drum kit to put in his bedroom.

Okay … yes … I admit I will be itching to get my hands on it and have a bash, but I am sure you can imagine how it’s going to be around here for a while.

What a picture, what a photograph, poor old bloke couldn’t see the joke (excuse the punn)

With a couple of friends expecting babies very soon like Fraser & Clarke & others with young ones like Graham & Clarke, they have this all to look forward too 😉

Lyrics to Flash Bang Wallop!

From the London Musical “Half A Sixpence” (1963)
(Smile please, all smile. You too, Sir)
(I am smiling)

All lined up in a wedding group
‘Ere we are for a photograph
We’re all dressed up in a morning suit
All trying hard not to laugh
Since the early caveman in his fur
Took a trip to Gretna Green
There’s always been a photographer
To record the ‘appy scene…..

‘Old it, flash, bang, wallop, what a picture
What a picture, what a photograph
Poor old soul, blimey, what a joke
Hat blown off in a cloud of smoke
Clap ‘ands, stamp yer feet
Bangin’ on the big bass drum
What a picture, what a picture
Um-tiddly-um-pum-um-pum-pum
Stick it in your fam’ly album

(Thanks very much, one more picture. Hold it!)

The same thing ‘appened long ago
When man was in his prime
And what went on we only know
From the snaps he took at the time
When Adam and Eve in their birthday suit
Decided to get wed
As Adam was about to taste the fruit
The man with the cam’ra said…..

‘Old it, flash, bang, wallop, what a picture
What a picture, what a photograph
Poor old Eve, there with nothing on
Face all red and ‘er fig leaf gone
Clap ‘ands, stamp yer feet
Bangin’ on the big bass drum, W-e-e-a-ay!
What a picture, what a picture
Um-tiddly-um-pum-um-pum-pum
Stick it in your fam’ly album

(Thanks very much. One more picture, hold it!)

You’ve read it in a folio
Or seen it in a Shakespeare play
How Juliet fell for Romeo
In the merry month of May
And as ‘e climbed the orchard wall
To reach ‘is lady fair
As he tumbled, she began to bawl
As he floated through the air…..

‘Old it, flash, bang, wallop, what a picture
What a picture, what a photograph
Poor young chap, what a night ‘e spent
Tights all torn and ‘is rapier bent
Clap ‘ands, stamp yer feet
Bangin’ on the big bass drum, W-e-e-a-ay!
What a picture, what apicture
Um-tiddly-um-pum-um-pum-pum
Stick it in your fam’ly album

(One more picture, hold it!)

King ‘Enry the Eighth had several wives
Including Anne Boleyn
And he kept an album of their lives
With all their photos in
As Anne Boleyn was on her knees
Dressed in her very best frock
King ‘Enry shouted, “Smile, Dear, please”
As ‘er ‘ead rolled off the block…..

‘Old it, flash, bang, wallop, what a picture
What a picture, what a photograph
Comes the print in a little while
Lost ‘er ‘ead, but she kept ‘er smile
Clap ‘ands, stamp yer feet, Ye-e-a-y!
Bangin’ on the big bass drum
What a picture, what a picture
Um-tiddly-um-pum-um-pum-pum
Stick it in your fam’ly album

(Thank you very much. One more picture, hold it!)

When Napoleon married Josephine
There was just the same to-do
He galloped home from the battle scene
All the way from Waterloo
And as he came from orf ‘is ‘orse
To the boudoir where she sat
She said to ‘im, in French of course
As he took of his big cocked ‘at

‘Old it, flash, bang, wallop, what a picture
What a picture, what a photograph
There she was, with a big Hussar
All caught up in ‘er oh-la-la
Clap ‘ands, stamp yer feet, Ye-e-a-y!
Bangin’ on the big bass drum
What a picture, what a picture
Um-tiddly-um-pum-um-pum-pum
Stick it in your fam’ly album

Stick it in your fam’ly
Stick it in your fam’ly
In your fam’ly album!

As some of you may know there was an experimental Affiliate Fat Camp in Portugal back in early June, where a few sacrificial lambs were sent to the slaughter, most of us lost a little weight, except for Matt Wood who suffered a little from lazyitis and was maybe a little surprised that Fat Camp was actually for real with the extra notch he had to release on his belt.

For those that initially attended we are intending to set up a joint blog & website dedicated to trimming the fat of portly affiliates to ensure we maintain some of the discipline we endured.

However upon discussion with Matt Wood, it has been initially agreed that Affiliate Fat Camp Goes Large in 2008 in association with the affiliates4u forum.

It will probably be held in Portugal for a period of 7 to 9 days and will be focused on lots of fun forms of exercise & activities, some not so fun, healthy nutrition & little boozing, though there will be plenty of social nights out if you have any energy remaining.

What we would initially like to do is ascertain interest & ideas for activities. If interest & participation is good then we could look at sponsors (a secondary consideration at this moment in time) and maybe having something big brother style or at least have some edited or live streaming footage.

Attendees at fat camp back in June were Clarke Duncan (Supercod), Mark Russell (Flipper), Shane Robinson (Michael Chiklis), Matthew Wood (“Lip Up Fatty Matty” – Readaption of Lyrics by Bad Manners)  Paul Wheatley (Moose) & Zak Edwards (Skeletor).

There are a few pics on Clarke Duncan’s Facebook, though I think there are no endurance sea kayaking ones on there.

Mates are those you can confide in, enjoy great times with, share in life’s trials & tribulations with & appreciate the lifestyle associated with affiliate marketing … like my good buddy Eric.

When we attended Affiliate Summit East 2007 in Miami, there was one golden rule we swore an oath to .. which was “what happens in Miami, stays in Miami”… Comprende Eric. 😉

I guess now that the cat is out of the bag … take one … action!

Please note this is Eric’s handy work & I would like to personally thank him for getting me over my holiday blues.

Courtesy of Chris at Holiday Watchdog and Affiliate Future, many thanks to their kind generosity, I am off to Barbados this morning for a week, after only just getting back from Affiliate Fat Camp in Portugal last Saturday. I am naturally going to miss my children, as we have only had a few days to catch up especially with it being my birthday this saturday, it means I won’t be able to share it with them, which will be a first. However, they did spoil me rotten on Fathers Day last Sunday. 🙂

I have no idea what to expect in Barbados, as I haven’t been there before, or who the affiliate crowd going will be, so here’s hoping to a good time.

Now that the cat is finally out of the bag, this blog is a warm congratulations to Princess Fiona & Fraser (author of Affiliateblog.co.uk) who are are expecting their first baby Shrek.

I am totally chuffed for you both & wish you every happiness in the world for your bundle of joy which is due on the 30th October, around All Hallows Eve … Wooo! Hooo!

It seems some affiliates are getting quite viril recently, what with Graham (from Buyagift) & Mel having their first child about 13 weeks ago and with Leona & Clarke (Supercod) (Affiliate Marketing Blog) expecting their 2nd in September .. Congratulations to them also.

If you are a dad and also an affiliate, an affiliate community has been set up on the newly relaunched Affiliates4U forum, called Affiliate Dads .. Click Here

This is more a personal diary note to say Happy Birthday to my Grandad “Charles Frederick”, he passed away a few years ago, but is always fondly remembered. It would have been his birthday today and he taught me quite a lot. I’ve been invited to a geeky WOW pub meet in London today, so I’ll have a beer on him. Happy Birthday Grandad.

This is a massive thank you to Buyagift for an absolutely fantastic few days in Las Vegas. We were one of half a dozen lucky affiliates to win an all expenses paid trip to Las Vegas for a promotion they ran during the Christmas Period. Affiliates consisted of Neil, Steve, Romain, Richard, Wardy and myself together with Graham & Dan from Buyagift. It was a really good crowd and we all got on well.

Here is just a brief summary of what we did.

Friday :

Arrive at Las Vegas, 13:40 local time. Transfered to MGM Grand in a super-stratch-Vegas style vehicle! Our rooms were way up on the 28th Floor with a great view.

Afternoon & Evening we immediately hit the casino tables & bars. In the evening we watched the Crazy Horse Paris Topless Cabaret Show in the MGM Grand Hotel.

Saturday:

9am-5pm : Sports car driving tour to Lake Mead at break neck speeds along open roads, Sportscars included the Ferrari 360 Spyder, Ferrari 550 Maranello, Mercedes E55 AMG & a Ford Mustang GT Roush.

During this time period we had a short helicopter ride to Lake Mead, gourmet lunch at Luna Rossa together with a trip around the scenic Lake Las Vegas on an 86ft Supercruiser.

Full of adrenaline and all pumped up, it didn’t stop there!

9pm ’til late (vague recollections of about 5am) : VIP nightclub tour with a cruise of the Strip in stretched limo, with VIP host + Limo (filled with booze!) between each venue which included : Mix Ultralounge (spectacular city views from 55 floors up), Tangerine (outdoor terrace overlooking the Strip & burlesque performances) and back to Studio 54, picking up passengers along the way, where us unrhythmic affiliates strutted our stuff.

How most of us managed to get up for the following day I will never know!

Sunday:

1:30pm – 5:30pm : Helicopter flight to the Grand Canyon, taking in Lake Mead, Boulder City and Hoover Dam on the way – stopped for lunch, posed for pictures. I love flying in helicopters, even with a massive hangover like a few had, in fact a couple hadn’t even reached hangover stage .. it had to be done.

Evening: A delicious dinner at the Top Of The World revolving restaurant at the top of the Stratosphere Tower, over 800 ft up. With fantastic views all round.

For those who could stomache it, rides at the top of the Stratosphere. Unfortunately it was too windy and the ride was stopped when three who had the bottle were on it.

After that we spent some time in Cheetahs until about 3am, before inconspicuously being dropped on in the Pink Cheetahs Transit Van back at the hotel, where some of us played the tables or hit a bar.

Monday Morning:

Simply shopping & getting souveniers for my kids (who I always miss) before getting super stretched white hummer to the airport for the flight home for which I spent most of the time asleep. Arrived back home Tuesday morning in the UK.

Once again many thanks to Buyagift for what was a great prize incentive & will be a hard one to beat.

“St. George is the patron saint of England! His emblem, a red cross on a white background, is the flag of England! Adopted by Richard the Lion heart it was brought to England in the 12th century.

St. George’s Day is on April 23rd, so, in a sense, this is England’s National Day but unlike other countries, England does not have a celebration to mark this occasion !”

Which is a real shame! But for those of us who do have a bit of pride!

Happy St. George’s Day !!!

Many affiliates are what can only be politely referred to as possessing a physique which is considered portly, which is a natural side symptom of what goes with the territory when you are involved with affiliate marketing.

I am in the process of arranging an Affiliate Fat Camp, with a select few friends & business colleagues to spend 7 to 9 days in Portugal to enjoy a healthier lifestyle of exercise, good food and debauchery with the aim of losing a few pounds by the end of excursion, together with discussing new ideas and generally having a great time with friends & colleagues …

Because all of us will be leaving our good ladies at home, we have promised to leave out the debauchery. (Why have hamburger, when you can have steak at home)

The exericise regime is still to be finalised, it will be a mix of activities. However, to earn a beer .. and you cannot deny an affiliate a beer .. they would have to do 20 press ups between each beer to earn just one bottle.

However, we will have CCTV at the villa, with an option which yet to be voted on, whether or not to screen this live online in the form of a Celebrity Affiliate Fat Camp maybe to the extreme of Big Brother style diary room. It will depend what everyone else is up for or whether we wish to keep our flab under wraps.

Whatever is decided, those that have been approached so far are looking forward to it.