Email

I'm back. My champion friend James has got my pc back up and running.

If you are a friend, please email so i can get my address book back in shape.

Cheers

Tv Highlights

With a broken computer, there's more time for tv. Here's some reflections on my recent tv activity.

SUNRISE
The other week this brilliant tv show had an Indiana Jones theme to celebrate the new movie. The morning was called "Indiana Jones and the search for brekky central". It was a riot. Kochie dressed up as Indy. Champagne comedy.

RAMSAY
After watching a piece on him, I decided to have a look at one of his shows. They are great. It combines two of my favourite themes- food and striving for excellence. But seriously, it's a great show. He sure has a potty mouth, but he's a passionate man. The one last night on "Peter's Italian Restaurant" was awesome.

FLIGHT OF THE CONCORDES
Heard some good things about it and finally could be bothered to watch the other night. It's pretty deadpan and simple comedy, but it's pretty funny. The agent is great and the Arj Barker was awesome. Plus it pokes fun at kiwi's- what more could you want?

BASKETBALL
Loving the complete coverage of the Conference finals. Both series are great to watch.

Fire 000

So it's about 2:40am and I'm awoken to what appears to be a loud smash ie my car window. I look out the window and everything seems to be ok. My senses tell me something is awry though. I look out the back door and things look ok...then I see something in the sky. It appears some sort of power box on the power pole is sparking. It gradually gets worse and we soon have a small fire. At 2:45 I wasn't thinking heaps clear and wasn't sure who to call. After a little deliberation I call "000"- my first ever 000 call.

The lady sounds pretty calm on the other end. I explain what's up and our location. Within a few minutes I can hear the Fire Truck coming. I wander outside and discover it's actually a street light on fire. By now it's kinda dying down. I start to worry that they'll say something like "you woke us up for THAT!". But the guys were cool, much like the water they were pumping out of the truck. They put the hose onto it and it was out in about 2 seconds. They kept spraying though for a good few mintes. I thought it was overkill, until it started up again. Slightly tired, I asked them if they needed me for anything else. Kinda dumb question, what are they gonna say "yeh, we wanted to know how you would have put it out". So I left the guys to do their business.

No news yet if I'm up for any sort of bravery award.

*Fire in picture is nothing like the real fire

As It Is In Heaven

Wifey went to Blockbuster Sat night and this is what she came home with. She told me it was a foreign film, so straight away I knew it wouldn't be as good as a normal movie, but I was willing to give it a go.

"As It Is In Heaven" is about a world renowned conductor (orchestra one, not a railway one) who after a health scare decides to slow down his pace of life and return to his hometown where he grew up. He was going back with some trepidation though as he was always being bullied as a kid and had some issues to deal with.

Before too long Daniel is asked to lead the church choir and he eventually decides to give it a go. What starts as something to keep him occupied turns into an intense passion as he rediscovers his passion for music, the beauty of community, a foxy lady and even how to ride a bike (as pictured).

It's a powerful movie, teaching a lot about the fragility of life, the things that matter and the need for good relationships. Not really blokey but plenty of food for thought.

Best photo ever???

Now I'm not one to blow my own trumpet, but this photo I took during the dolphin show at "Seaworld" is pretty awesome in my estimation. It was pretty hard to get pics as you never knew when and where they'd appear from, but this one got snapped at just the right second. it looks a bit "photoshopped" but I swear it's not.

Holiday Photos- Pt 2

Me with Elijah

Isaac enjoying his babycino

Isaac and Elmo

Isaac in non-violent embrace with Elijah

Isaac enjoying the view from the monorail

Book Review- Reposition Yourself

Finished reading this book I got for Christmas on my holiday.

"Reposition Yourself" is written by TD Jakes, one of my favourite preachers. It's subtext is "Living Life Without Limits" and it's basically a motivation book. He covers dealing with your past, your self-image, your present, your future, your goals....lots of stuff.

I thought it was alright, not brilliant as some stuff I didn't feel heaps related to me and was pretty basic stuff but there is some good stuff in there. A good book to read if you're trying to take stock of your current situation and want to take some positive steps forward.

6.5/10

Funny Chinese Posters

I'm not racist, but these are funny............

Holiday Photos- Pt 1

At the wedding with my foxy wife

Tara and Diana at the wedding

Isaac in our room on one of his many phone attacks (Note my artistic photography genius)

Isaac frollocking at Surfers Beach

Isaac being naughty

The Holiday Endeth..............

Here's how the final 2 days of our holidays went down.

TUESDAY
Headed into Broady to ride the monorail and have a look around. Tara had her "Mother's Day Massage" while I took the boys for a stroll. Isaac went mental during the shop at Safeway, managing to throw several items on the floor, to pop two of my two huge foot blisters and then running off and destroying Australia Post merchandise while I was paying for my groceries. Tara sure got the better of that deal. After this we grab lunch at "Charlies", then headed home. We took it inturns having some poolside relaxation while the boys slept. I finished off my "Time" magazine, which took just the 1 week.

At night we went down for a bbq, then came back to the room for some rest, relaxation and reflection.

WEDNESDAY
Up early to get out of Dodge. Got a transfer into Gold Coast Airport. On the way we chatted to the only other passanger, Danny. Lovely guy. When we got out the driver asked us if we realised he was blind. I didn't. Had a fair wait around the airport for our plane to leave, which turned out good as Isaac stared at the tarmac for most of it while I watched some kids play the skill tester. Was tempted to give it a go after watching the various techniques used.

The flight went well, pretty empty flight, so I took Elijah over to a free row and laid him out to sleep while I read the paper. Nice. Got in and got the taxi to work, then took Tara to work, then came back to work, then went home. Crazy. Quickly got the boys sorted for bed, then chilled out.

SUMMARY: Excellent holiday- 8/10

Now here come the long awaited photos.

Spatulas, sore feet and Semi-Pro

SUNDAY
Went down to the shops to grab a few things, then came back to cook up a storm for Tara on "Mothers Day". One catch- no spatula. It's hard cooking eggs and flipping them with a potato masher. Brekky was ok, but not as hoped. After this went for a quick dip (it was cold), then went to Pacific Fair for a wander and special lunch. I then left Tara alone to have an enjoyable shop sans the boys. I brought the boys home for a nap and had a relax. At night we had a bbq downstairs. I also discovered it's hard to flip burgers with tongs and not a spatula. While cooking Tara tried to organise a spatula with reception but it seemed to be a huge task for them. They would try and drop one off later though. Helpful. After dinner came back to the room and watched some tv and relaxed. Tended to my feet also with some hi-tech bandages. They've blistered up real good.

MONDAY
Hung at the resort in the morning, then returned to Pacific Fair for a food court lunch and a bit of a look around. At about 2 Tara left me to my own devices and took the boys home. I got bored real quick, so just hit some cheap internet and a lolly shop until my movie started (see below). Came back and we did the bbq thing again, still without a spatula. I was pretty angry over the spatula incident by now and went to reception to get it sorted once and for all. I think I muttered the phrase to Tara "I'll get a spatula". No dice. Turns out they only have one person on reception between 6-8, so she couldn't leave to get me one, nor was willing to give me some keys to find one in a vacant room. They'd try to drop one off later tonight though she assured me. Luckily Andy, the guy cooking next to me, was willing to lend me his. I swear I didn't just start having a little chat with him just to get use of his spatula. Honest. Chilled back at the room after dinner, then when the boys went to bed we chatted outside on our balcony, mostly about spatulas.

Semi-Pro

Figured the holiday was a great time to catch this movie, which I wasn't overly excited about, but thought it would be something to do on a lazy afternoon.

Got to the cinema a tad early and sat down and played some golf on my phone. About 10 mins in and I was the only one there. Awesome. Sadly about 5mins later two losers with no friends walked in, making it a cosy cinema of 3.

The film starts with a pre-game intro of the Flint Tropics, a struggling team in the former ABA basketball league. We learn from the get go that Jackie Moon (Ferrell, in a role not much of a stretch for him) is the team owner, promoter, coach as well as a player. Jackie brought the team on the back of his one-hit wonder "Love Me Sexy" and is in it just for the fame and fun. Before too long Jackie finds out his team will absorbed by the ABA-NBA merger...unless he can get them in the Top 4 teams. Jackie goes out and signs (from a trade for a washing machine) Monix, played by formerly good actor Woody Harrelson in a minor attempt to tun things around. Soon he makes some other changes, such as agreeing to let Monix become coach to get his team into the NBA. Will it work......? See it to find out.

There's some more good quirky Ferrell humour, but this isn't a classic. The story had a lot more potential but in some circumstances went too oddball and weird and missed some good opportunities, probably largely due to the extra screen time given to Ferrell. Give him a few better support comedians and this could have been a classic. They missed some great opportunities with the basketball action too. One of the early scenes was gold.....but then after that very little was paid attention to.

Fri & Sat

FRI
Spent the morning at "Harbourtown". It's a bunch of Factory Outlet's. Was ok, saw some great basketball shoes that i was tempted to buy,then i remembered I don't play basketball much these days. Just got some trackies and books for Isaac- Tara found a little more.

Spent the end of arvo at the resort, then got some Chinese in from my mate Danny downstairs. Watched some more "Chaser", then called it a night.

SAT
Packed and cleaned up, then headed to our next destination at Broadbeach. Had a to wait a few hours until check in, so dropped off our luggage and had a look at the place. Bumped into some friends from Adelaide, Craig and Adele. Chatted with them for a while, then went into the "city" for a wander.

Came back, checked in, kicked back, then had Craig, Adele and kids over for a coffee. At night we went out for Indian with Diana and Peter. Isaac was a monster at dinner, which kind of altered the atmosphere. Came back for coffees, then they headed back to Brisbane.

NBA Playoff Predictions- Rnd 2

Time for my round 2 predictions. Got 6 of the 8 winners right for round 1, just getting the Spurs and the Hornets wrong. Some of my better predictions where that Chris Paul would step it up again in the playoffs and Okur would play great. Here's my round 2 pedictions.

JAZZ v LAKERS
Kinda cheating here as LA is already 2-0 upand they seem to be too strong for the Jazz. Hopefully Utah can get 2 wins at home...which will probably be all they get.

Prediction: Lakers 4-2

HORNETS v SPURS
Again the Hornets are 2-0 up, but did what they should in winning their home games. San Antonio has the experience, but the Hornets have the best player in Paul and have some solid defenders to guard the inside.

Prediction: Hornets 4-2

CELTICS v CAVS
Boston suddenly looks shaky with some injuries and rotation issues, but should have enough to beat the inconsistent Cavs.

Prediction: Celtics 4-2

PISTONS v MAGIC
Magic got a game back yesterday, but the Pistons should have too much in the long run.

Prediction: Pistons 4-2

That sets up some great Conference Finals. Hopefully the Foxtel covergae improves by that time.

Weds & Thurs in Surfers

WEDNESDAY
Started the day with that "special" breakfast. Turned out ok. We met up with the other suckers/people in the foyer, then headed to a proper motel for the brekky and seminar. Dropped off Isaac to the "kids club" (a room with "Hairspray" on dvd and a few toys and crafts), then headed to the main room.

Grabbed some nice food, then sat down to hear the spiel. Our speaker was Stewart (or "Stewie" as he liked to call himself). We were told by about 5 people beforehand that the morning would be really "relaxed" and we would have some laughs. I was pretty sure my idea of comedy was different to Stewie's. He did get some good laughs though, just not from me. They loved his larrakin-style and his no holds barred approach to the banks, those fat cats in Canberra and several other targets. At the end several representatives went around to the couples to check their interest. All groups were covered except us, another young couple and some 70+'s. We were asked to wait until someone had come to see us. We felt like they'd obviously targeted the most likely prospects and wouldn't be expecting to sign us up, so we hung 5 and then walked out. A guy got Tara's attention on the way out and gave some lip service but she brushed him off quickly and we were done. Sweet!

Came back to our room and then headed for the pool. I had a swim with Isacc, then listened to some podcasts. Came back, had a bite, relaxed, then went for a wander. Not much exciting to report. At night we ate, then kicked back and watched some "Chaser" on dvd.

THURSDAY
"Seaworld" day! Caught the bus over and from the get-go hit the ground running. Got in heaps of rides (for Isaac mostly), viewed lots of animals and saw the sights and sounds. Thankfully it was another really quiet day for the park owners, so there was little lining up to do.

My personal highlight was a near-miss of something that would have been one of the best things ever. Earlier in the day I went on the "Bermuda Ride", which I loved. Not too scary, some decent work done prop-wise and you got splashed with water. Late in the day I decided to go one more time. I got there pretty quick and was the only person in line. This got me massively excited. I was really hoping they'd still do all the pre-ride stuff, it would have been awesome being just me in that room being pumped up for the ride as a 31yr man for something aimed at 10yr olds. The other awesome thing would have been getting a photo of my ride, which would have had me by myself in a ride for 11. I was thinking of cool poses, probably the best one being me looking all sad and dejected being on a ride by myself. Sadly I had an ice-cream which i had to finish before I could get into the ride. Just before I finished it, a family of 8 turned up and my dream was dashed. Damn.

Headed home at close time, stopping on the way to grab some ingredients for my special fish meal i was going to cook tonight. It was a beer-batter fish recipe I'd found and was really excited about. We got home, Tara attended to the boys and i got onto dinner. Things were going great. Fish 1 come out a treat. As I was placing fish 2 into the frying pan, I kinda let it drop a bit too hard and boiling oil went flying. I was barefoot and got really badly splashed on one foot. So my dream meal, while still nice, didn't end out as I hoped as Tara had to make the final touches, plus I spent the next hour or so with my foot in ice-cold water. My lovely wife then headed out to get some lotions and as I write my foot is covered in weird gel and bandages. Tops.

Stay tuned for more upcoming adventures.

QLD- Part 1

At 5am Sat morning I woke up, ready for our holiday to QLD. From that moment it's been a cavalcade of events. Here's some notes (sorry for lack of pics, they'll follow when I get home).

SATURDAY
Everything went without a hitch on the way to the airport, which is always a good way to start. The flight went pretty well. Isaac had plenty to keep him entertained, which meant our trip was pleasant.

When we got to the airport it was straight to get bags, then to find our hire car. When we got there it was pretty clear our car wasn't ready (ie when the lady called the guys out back and said "can you put the baby seats in"). I guess they didn't want to go to all that effort and we didn't show. Eventually we got out car about 25mins later. Just like the "Seinfeld" episode. Around me there were people getting upgraded left, right and centre due to a lack of cars that had seemingly been booked. There was also the classy "charging you $330 now for the insurance" fee incase I had an accident, which they'd cheerfully refund if I didn't.

From here it was off to the Benn's to get set-up and ready for the wedding. On the way we stopped off at Myers to grab a shirt for the wedding. I did my "looking like a shoplifter" thing as I was in a hurry and had no idea what I wanted and was just cruising around the store looking very randomly at things. I'd no sooner settled on a style when Tara called me, worried, to check what that I was buying something fashionable. Seemingly I wasn't, so she came and looked at shirts while i waited with the sleeping boys. I was happy with her choice. You'll see some pics soon.

We got settled at the Benn's then headed off to the wedding. I got to see all of about 5mins of it due to Isaac's continually loud questions, so we spent most of it outside. At this point I should mention this was the wedding of Tara's dear school friend, Diana. The only people I knew at the wedding were Tara, Isaac and Elijah and Diana. It's pretty weird not even knowing the groom. If you know me you'd know the first thing I would have thought of was "who am i going to be sitting next to on our table at the reception". It's daunting when you know, definitely, you won't know anyone on it.

Several hours later my question was answered. Our tablemates included Marcus, a minister of 40+ years, Trish, who looked like Maxine McKew but I was still sure I knew her and Helen, one of the friendliest people ever. The average age on our table was 50ish, with Tara and I helping keep that under 60. Good people though.

The reception was great. Great food, some great people and some great speeches. My favourite part of receptions outside the food is the speeches, and while it was weird listening to speeches from people you'd never met about people (except Diana) you didn't know, it was still entertaining. Several of the speakers (about 3 of the 8 or so who spoke) were experienced ministers and speaking was obviously a gift. Picked up some good material to steal for any future wedding speeches I may take part in. The groom, Peter, spoke really well and said some lovely things. Even though he quoted Jack Johnson, his speech was one of the best I've heard from a groom. Funny AND romantic.


SUNDAY
Got up early and solved my dilemma about how to return the hire car and get to Surfers by 10am. Decided I'd drive the family to Surfers, drive the car back to the Airport, then train it back myself. Long story, but one of the issues was the "dropping the car off to a different location which is a real pain for us so we'll charge you $100" fee which i couldn't stomach. Man the banks have nothing on car hire companies. Just before we got to Surfers we rang and asked naively about returning the car to Surfers, to which they said "no problem". No charge! The first of several blessings we were to experience on the trip which saved some nice $$$.

Got into Surfers, returned the car and was told they'd refund the $330 in 5-10 days. Couldn't be bothered arguing, but let's just say I won't use EUROPCAR again. (I bet they'd regret that if they knew who I was and the potential audicence of 6 billion this blog is accessible to). After this we got set-up, looked around, did our shopping and laid low.


MONDAY
Pretty easy day. Headed to Cavill St Mall, had a wander and settled on some seafood for lunch. I become transfixed on watching the restaurant owner. He was a machine. He inspired me to own a restaurant. Great service and was watching over his staff like a hawk to make sure they properly serviced all customers. Then hit the shops. I bought some fake basketball boxers from a fake gangster shop. The lady annoyed us both so much by continually telling us how much stuff cost and how good it was that we didn't buy anything else out of spite.

In the arvo hung by the pool, then spent the night in. I got to watch "On The Couch" and a Crowded House doco so I was happy.


TUESDAY
"Dreamworld" day. Headed early over to "Dreamworld" where I'd never been before. To our surprise the place was pretty quiet, we assumed just because we were early. Nup- was quite all day. Never had to wait for a ride. Isaac loved it,he hit the rides hard and loved the animals. Pretty sure his two favourite parts of the day though were the lollipop we got him and the bus ride there. I on the other hand couldn't believe my luck with how quiet it was. Day capped off by me winning a stuffed toy for Isaac on the basketball game. Sure, i think the girl had just had a quiet day and was being generous, but Isaac was loving it.

At night got some take away from the little man in the booth near our motel. His name is Danny and we've struck up quite a friendship. He's passionate about his take away. Think I'll be going there again real soon. It couldn't be closer, is cheap and serves most of my favourite foods ie burgers, fish and chips and Chinese. Danny would have to be in my top 2 restauranteers in Surfers.

After dinner had been eaten and the boys went to bed, Tara and I sat and had a little chat on the balcony outside enjoying the great view, then came in and watched an awesome show called "Millionaires Mission". Amazing on so many levels. Basically a bunch of British millionaires have gone to Africa to help with some projects. Strangely their way of working isn't going quite as well for them here and it's fascinating watching one people group trying to impose their principles and beliefs on another people group and trying to achieve something. Check it out.


That it's for now, stay tuned for more exciting upcoming adventures including tomorrow's breakfast Tara booked us in for. It's free........all we have to do is listen to a property seminar message for an hour. The last time i went to one of these with Andy and Murray in Florida in 1998 I'd made them give up within about 13 seconds. Can I do it again or even beat my record? Check-in in a few days to find out.