Plans for a mammoth photo shoot are deferred as we decide to take she who must be obeyed’s sister to the zoo. Far too many people there, reminding me of why I never normally go during the school holidays. Still, the sister seemed to enjoy it, and I took a few shots.

Me: Hello little girl, you are very pretty.

11 year old girl: Thank you, old and slightly creepy man.

Me: I would like to take some photographs of you. If you let me take photos of you in a variety of poses; then I will buy you a new phone.

11 year old girl: OK!

The good news is that the 11 year old girl is she who must be obeyed’s much younger sister; and my photographic intentions extend no further than wholesome photos of a young girl such that might sell on a stock site. I leave it to she who must be obeyed to explain to her little sister that this is an offer she should normally refuse.

Sister has come to stay with us for a couple of weeks. This is not a problem because she is unfailingly polite and fun to have around. She is also a potentially excellent subject for stock photos. Young girl leaping about; young girl using iPad, young girl doing homework, young girl engaging in endless activities as dreamed up by her sister and shot by me. Result: massive sales and a life of leisure. Well, probably not, but hopefully enough dollars to pay for the studio lights I have just bought.

Yes, the arrival of the sister seemed an excellent excuse justification for the acquisition of some lighting. I have always had a hankering for a little home studio, without having a clear understanding of what I would do with it. But now I had clear need, at least for a week. Endless sister shots resulting in huge earnings, it was a winning concept!

So on Monday afternoon I was in Bangkok and was soon the owner of a set of three lights, assorted stands, softboxes and reflecting umbrellas. The set came with a free flash trigger and a couple of DVDs which purported to explain how to use them; but didn’t.

Back home and I set everything up and pointed the flashing contraptions at a bottle of wine.

Went to Bangkok yesterday for some crucial equipment acquisition and stayed overnight so I could meet up with Nik this morning for a little photo tour.

We met at the main railway station where the rolling stock looks sufficiently ancient to be pulled by steam; but isn’t.

Man flu again. Several days of fever, sniffing, coughing and staring into the dark abyss of despair. Women will think I am exaggerating, men will know that there are no words to describe the pain we go through. I’d rather give birth to fat triplets than have man flu.

On the positive side, she who must be obeyed swung into action with lotions and potions, which may bring no immediate medical benefits but are always comforting. And the downtime from my usual busy life of drinking coffee and cruising the internet, allowed me to catch up on some to the movies and TV shows that have been accumulating on my hard drive. The rigours of man flu can be made more bearable if you have an iPad and the Air Video application, so you can stream media from your computer to your sofa of suffering. Many a happy tolerable hour was spent curled up in the corner watching assorted shows, with the occasional break to let out low moans and confirm that another cup of ginger tea would be appropriate, with perhaps a couple of chocolate biscuits on the side to help quell the pain.

I appear to have been instrumental in encouraging a number of people to join the Micro 4/3 camera club. The latest, I believe it is number ten, is Camberley.

Camberley has a Canon 5D, assorted lenses; and has no need of another camera. But that is irrelevant, he decided he wanted a GF1, justification enough for the male of the species; but not enough for wives.

He is planning to take his wife on a trip to Vietnam, and decided the trip might serve as a justification for a new camera. The conversation went something like this:

Peacock, that is.

In town yesterday, and there was the usual assortment of street vendors, including a man selling household brushes, and peacock feathers. Not clear how and why his business model had been expanded to include plumage as well as brushes; but she who must be obeyed was straight into negotiation mode.

Why are you buying those?

To play with the cats.

Can I photograph them first?

If you must.

I must.

A glance at the Google home page this morning will remind you that it is John Lennon’s 70th birthday, possibly the best ever export from Liverpool; apart from Billy.

A slightly lesser known anniversary, and not celebrated by Google, occurred yesterday; the 40th anniversary of the death of Mit Chaibuncha.

Mit was a famous Thai movie actor and was filming on Jomtien beach. An exciting scene where Mit would hold onto a ladder attached to a departing helicopter. The helicopter departed, but Mit did not hold onto the ladder; and he plunged to his death.

A shrine was duly constructed and it stands today next to the gorgeous cement plant which is pretending to be the site of the Ocean 1 development. We went to take a look (at the shrine, not the cement plant) and the place was very busy with devotees of the “acts, but can’t hold onto a ladder” celebrity.

What’s this?: