That is for two reasons. First, bugger all has happened, second, this @#(*$&#@ machine bluescreened just before I clicked send the first time I wrote this.
Anyway, nothing happened big game wise, no Soccer game since Rory won the POD trophy. He has already mentally given it up and no longer sleeps with it. Only five games left in the season. Team photo was taken last week and they let me be in it!
Rain. Bloody rain. I have composed a small poem to cover it all.
It rains
no soccer
it rains
no kayaking
it rains
lots of jobs done in the house
it rains
rain sucks
I will send it to the Listener and see if they will publish it.
Rugby was good but not satisfactory in outcome. South Africa won 13-3. We missed 5 kicks, or more accurately Carlos Spencer did. Hart must be feeling the pressure. Although it is technically feasible for us to win the Tri-Nations I can't see it happening.
Tau jokes continue, including "Tau Snubbed" on the cover of the Listener this week. Very boring. Christine Fletcher (National MP with largest majority, our answer to Alan B'Stard) is now standing for Auckland Mayoralty. Will continue to serve as an MP. Stupid cow. She announced she wasn't going to about a year ago. Heaps of people are now planning to vote for Camp Mother (a Topp Twin in character) who wants more pink in Auckland.
Rain continued. This time north of Auckland. Funny, it always seems to rain in Auckland as well. Record rainfall for July in Glenfield, Orewa, and Freemans Bay (although more in Orewa and Glenfield - I keep telling you the shore is wetter, Ross). Floods, slips, etc up North. Boring.
South Taranaki has apparently made a name for itself by using some green colour paint to discourage graffiti. Spokesman said he was interviewed on BBC and mentioned South Taranaki five times in three minutes.
Rory's friend Jared (soccer player as well) turned up on Friday for Rory's "D" party in costume, shame it is next Friday. Poor little bugger. Anyway, we took him with us to McD's on Saturday morning seeing there was no soccer (he was in his soccer outfit by 6:40 apparently). Wore the kids out. Rory had cheese on toast before we went so he only ate half a muffin and about three hash browns.
Rory lost another tooth, finally, on Saturday morning. Now he has one missing top and bottom. Hannah says she has two wobbly teeth. She had a sleep in the afternoon on both days of the weekend, must have been pretty knackered from first week back at Kindy.
Stuck in the house all weekend, so I put up a shelf over the back door for my bags (soccer, gym, etc). Bought a Camelbak H.A.W.G. last week, was relatively cheap. Will use for kayaking if I ever go again.
Went bowling on Friday with Sandy (Liam's mum, Liam is in the team), Christine (Sandy's sister) and Cathy. Sandy and Christine are solo mums, Cathy soon will be. Her son is about to get the two year all-clear from cancer, poor little bugger. Gavin came too. I played like crap the first game, getting about 11 in the first 4 frames (not good, when you think about it). Improved considerably by the second game and got 132 which is okay but not flash. We had the music and lights and everything (disco night). I improved when the music came on. I've got rhythm, I've got music, ..
Diana is hoping to tee up Gavin with Sandy but that may be a long shot. Keep you posted if anything happens there.
Got a new gym program last week. Do three whole exercises once every five days. Still hard work but not long like it has been in the past. Do cardio the rest, including other visits with no weights. Hit a high score on the cross-trainer I use (I am NOT competitive). Never been able to beat 2.0 k's in 20 minute. Closest I got was 1.98. Got 2.31 the other day. Could only manage 2.10 yesterday. Best not to attempt that on the days where I am doing the weights. Legs were utterly screwed and then had to do the leg press. Anyway, it is based on a new theory, so I will test it for a month or so.
Rory threw up in the car yesterday morning, so we kept him home the rest of the day. Got some Lego that builds two competing cars where you try to hit each others target's and knock the other guy off his seat. Rory played me, then Diana, Hannah (when she woke up), the cat, anything he could find. He was considerably happier later in the day.
So, only four sleeps to Rory's birthday, the big S I X. Rory is going as a dragon slayer, Diana has spent the last week making the costume and finding pictures of dragons. I said just get a mirror. Anyway, we are going to do the "ball Olympics" which is something I dreamed up as a diversion for me and Rory one day where you throw a tennis ball through, at, and around things. Obviously Rory like that more than I realised. Will sneak off early on Friday to attend the function. Thinking of dressing up as a clown, but I won't have time so might not get carried away.
Hope you all have a good week, pray for no rain in Auckland until about 9:30am Saturday (when the game is finished).
27 July 1998
20 July 1998
Oh dear, are you ready for this? 20/07/98
Well, water continued to play it's part this week. More rain, more floods, waters up and down. Tamaki drive had a slip, more of state highway three had a slip. Pissed like buggery in Auckland on Tuesday night. Few very heavy showers Wednesday night. Thunder, lightening as well on Tuesday. One person I know had their basement flood Wednesday night, another had water running down the lounge wall. Waters rising in the Waikato all week, Smithy went to Hamilton Wednesday night. Haven't heard how that went yet but traffic was being diverted off the main drag so he may have had a long trip. They had to open floodgates at Taupo on Thursday so it didn't get any better for downstream areas.
We went down to see Gran and Pop in Te Kauwhata on Saturday. Water still over the road in two places on SH1. Streets behind Mercer underwater. Large lakes in numerous places where there used to be fields. After the visit, took the kids down to Huntly, where about 4000 acres were underwater at one stage. From some vantage points it looked like there was a harbour somewhere east of Huntly. We saw some houses that were little islands in the river. Heaps of houses that back onto the river in Huntly had their backyards under water, parts of the cemetary were afloat. We stopped at the visitors centre opposite the power station. We jumped onto a picnic table to see the water, the feet of the table were in the water. Then we went onto the deck at the centre, and we spotted the top of a picnic table that was about four inches below the water level. This really struck the kids, who then realised that there was considerably more water than there should have been. As it was, the level had dropped considerably in the two days since Thursday. Record rainfall for July by the 18th. Demand for garden hoses down heaps.
Me and Gavin were sorely tempted to take kayaks down to Waikato and go paddling. If we had taken them down Saturday I could have kayaked on SH1 but we didn't. In the end I decided we should do it on a more planned basis and instead built a new thing inside our bedroom wardrobe. Now have one full height rail and two half height, with some shelves for shoes in the middle. Took most of Sunday to do, well Sunday afternoon more accurately. Gavin assisted and got some thingies for the shelves from his work for us. Need a few more thingies and then all the shelves will be up. Need to biff some old shoes too. Diana keeps saying I am the male version of Imelda Marcos. I only have about twelve different pairs, which is not excessive I believe. Anyway, key thing is that the high areas are mine so that I am more likely to use them for putting things away.
For Penny mostly: Gran was pretty cheerful, seeing it was her 84th birthday. Was in a better state than I have seen her for a while. Memory even seems to be improving a little which is a good sign. I checked their smoke alarm on a whim and discovered there was no battery in it. Went and got one and checked it. With heaters running all day and Gran smoking it could get nasty without it. Pop has finished turning the carport into a garage, did a pretty good job. He says he has bugger all to do all day other than keep an eye on her. He had gone to Huntly to do the shopping in the morning we went down. He said water was higher than 1958.
With all the water, there was no soccer for THE TEAM on Saturday, hopefully we will get a game in next weekend. Only six games to go for the season. Due to the varsity rec centre being run by morons (or students), although our game was booked for 6:30 on Friday night they closed at 6:00pm. Real customer service success story that was. So game was postponed so stay tuned. Got all the protective gear I needed for it and everything. Official team photo Wednesday night.
Mercury Energy Chief Executive Wayne Gilbert had a heart attack and died in his office on Tuesday. He was the focus of the power collapse in March and they were going to release a report on the matter the next day, "Mercury fucked up big time under Wayne", but delayed it in respect to him and his family. They are using twink and are changing it to "Mercury f**ked up big time under Wayne" to soften the blow. . Some say they finally got power run to his chair, but that has not been confirmed.
Tau Henare, the man with the dirty dog sunnies, Minister of Maori affairs, was removed as Deputy Leader of NZ First on Tuesday (Tuesday was a busy day, believe me). Also on that day, he released a report which said the lot of Maori was getting worse. Six times more teenage pregnancies, and so on. More in prison, more truancy, less sit School C, etc. Compared it all to 1987 and they are certainly worse off. 50% earn less than $28,0000. All they need to do is increase the DPB and that would be fixed. Anyway, moves are afoot for all five NZ First Maori MPs to split and do it themselves. Boring.
Even worse, since his fall from grace, there have been incredible numbers of bad puns. Tau is pronounced "Toe", so we get everything from Tau gets the boot, failing to Tau the party line, stubbed Tau, and so on. Makes news headlines unbearable. AND they keep going on about the five NZ First Maori MPs being the "Tight Five". This may be what they are known as in prison, I don't know. So now we have headlines like "Tight Five are Loose Cannons" and so on. It just gets worse.
We finally sold the Corolla last week, so we no longer have a spare car. Kind of a bummer in a way but good to get it out of our hair. The savings on registration, insurance, etc, will be worthwhile.
New All Black team announced, Mehrtens is out, Joeli is out, Scott McLeod is out (he is a dork anyway). Carlos is in, Jonah is in (that is stupid - he's a waste of space now), Mayerhofler is in. We'll see. I have some doubts. They didn't play this weekend. This coming weekend they play South Africa. They narrowly beat the Wallabies in Perth. This year could be pretty close if you ask me. They say whoever can win away from home will win. That puts SA on the top at the moment. See what happens next weekend.
Given the fact that the Orcas have conceded less goals than Brazil this year and have a better win-loss ratio than the All Blacks, I think I am going to have a crack at coaching a national team. Haven't decided which one yet. Maybe even the Chicago Bulls seeing their coach is retiring.
Huge debate in our household about what we spend our discretionary income on. Diana did a budget thing on Bank Direct and it was willing to lend us $228,000 based on repayments of $2000 per month. Alternatively, it seemed to think we could afford to pay $2600 per month off our mortgage based on our "normal" expenditure. Needless to say, we don't pay that much. It is very hard to strike the balance between consumption now and saving. With all the crap the country is in with a distinct lack of balance between the two, I tend to favour the saving bit (which equates to reducing the mortgage for us). It is just that it is an awfully boring thing to do when it would be so much more exciting to put in a new wood burner or a wardrobe (hang on, did I say exciting? What I really mean is things like a new fibreglass kayak or a true mountain bike or a basketball hoop or a work bench or maybe me trying to paddle the Waikato - this week it would be really quick).
From my random thoughts department:
I glanced at an article on Viagra that was in one of Diana's intellectual magazines. It occurred to me that there are actually a number of reasons why men who need this product are unable to achieve a state required for a fulfilling life. These include blockages in the tubes that supply blood to the spongy tissue, problems with the spongy tissue, low blood pressure, a few mental reasons and then of course, the amount of alcohol in the bloodstream, and so forth. So, on that basis, how come Viagra can fix all that? I think it is crap and we are going to discover it was a big hoax and that all it contains is aspirin or vitamin B1 or something and Berocca's would do the same job. The article included comment from someone who tried it without actually needing it, which seemed utterly pointless. They also interviewed a number of men to see if they would "try" it. Like I said, an intellectual magazine.
Big milestone for Rory this week, he made his own bed. Then he made ours. Diana then pointed out the mistake he made. He guessed immediately and said "I know, I have to make it from now on". Interesting, the novelty of gaining new powers still outweighs the idea that he will have to make his bed for the rest of his life. He'll learn that bit too, soon enough. By the weekend he said he had forgotten his new knowledge.
He was very perky on Wednesday morning, as he seemed to be coming out of the illness. Almost a different kid Wednesday night from what he was earlier in the week.
They saw "The Borrowers" on Wednesday with Liam and Sandy. Liam is in the soccer team and Sandy is his Mum. She is a solo mum, and struggles a bit. She spends $80 a fortnight on food. I reckon I spend that much on Coco Pops per week (I worked out that I eat six of their "standard" servings per serving, which means I can eat a packet a day on my own). She is doing some sort of a course through Massey and finds it tough going. Diana thinks she and Gavin would hit it off. Could be interesting. Told Gavin and it sounds like he has volunteered to take some photos of the team playing a game, if it ever stops raining. Could be interesting. Gavin has a new flatmate so his finances are on a more even keel. Now all he needs is a keel for his kayak and he can stop worrying about falling out (I promise one day to stop going on about that, really I do).
I was in very bad shape on Tuesday, the gym just about killed me and I was a mess the rest of the day. A number of people cheerfully told me I looked like crap during the day. Finally went home and straight to bed. Didn't really feel sick, just very bloody tired. Have been sleeping about nine hours a night lately and am struggling to get to work at a decent time most days. Maybe I have the Tapanui Flu. I Don't really think so, but it is a worry. I still seem to get up at 6:30 on Saturdays, which is really annoying to everyone in the household including me.
On Friday I just about when mad and shot every courier in Auckland. After waiting all bloody afternoon for one to arrive on Thursday and eating breakfast in the office on Friday so I could get what I needed, then I get back after going to an appointment and discover that I have missed the bastard by six minutes. Oh, but that is not enough. To rub salt into the wound, I ring to tell them I am here, and am second in the queue. Then next in the queue. Then I get cut off. I redial and am second in the queue. Then I get cut off. Don't even get to next this time. Redial and am third in the queue. Then I get cut off. I ring the customer who is waiting for one of the packages and find out they can live without it today even though when they rang this morning they made it sound like their life was about to end. Then I ring again, am fifth in the queue. Then I hang up and find Courier Post's main number and call that and try very hard not to sound shitty, annoyed, pissed off, homicidal. I have been asking the courier to get the people across the hall to sign for stuff and they never bloody listen.
Kids are growing fast. Like about half an inch in two weeks. I measured them. Anyone who is interested, I think Action Man accessories may be the order of the day for Rory's birthday. I gave him one with all the moving bits the other day to gauge whether it would be played with more than the stupid one he has (with stiff arms and hardly any joints). Seems to be hot property. Got the gyro copter outfit with his pocket money the other day. Let me know if you have any queries.
He is having a D party for his birthday, wants to go as Dracula, I think all the kids will. He wants a soccer ball cake. Hannah wants a cake with Barbie and some flowers and a little baby and a tea set and ...... you get the idea. Saw a picture of a Roswell-like photo of someone operating on a teletubby - excellent!
See you all later, by next Monday you might have finished this.
We went down to see Gran and Pop in Te Kauwhata on Saturday. Water still over the road in two places on SH1. Streets behind Mercer underwater. Large lakes in numerous places where there used to be fields. After the visit, took the kids down to Huntly, where about 4000 acres were underwater at one stage. From some vantage points it looked like there was a harbour somewhere east of Huntly. We saw some houses that were little islands in the river. Heaps of houses that back onto the river in Huntly had their backyards under water, parts of the cemetary were afloat. We stopped at the visitors centre opposite the power station. We jumped onto a picnic table to see the water, the feet of the table were in the water. Then we went onto the deck at the centre, and we spotted the top of a picnic table that was about four inches below the water level. This really struck the kids, who then realised that there was considerably more water than there should have been. As it was, the level had dropped considerably in the two days since Thursday. Record rainfall for July by the 18th. Demand for garden hoses down heaps.
Me and Gavin were sorely tempted to take kayaks down to Waikato and go paddling. If we had taken them down Saturday I could have kayaked on SH1 but we didn't. In the end I decided we should do it on a more planned basis and instead built a new thing inside our bedroom wardrobe. Now have one full height rail and two half height, with some shelves for shoes in the middle. Took most of Sunday to do, well Sunday afternoon more accurately. Gavin assisted and got some thingies for the shelves from his work for us. Need a few more thingies and then all the shelves will be up. Need to biff some old shoes too. Diana keeps saying I am the male version of Imelda Marcos. I only have about twelve different pairs, which is not excessive I believe. Anyway, key thing is that the high areas are mine so that I am more likely to use them for putting things away.
For Penny mostly: Gran was pretty cheerful, seeing it was her 84th birthday. Was in a better state than I have seen her for a while. Memory even seems to be improving a little which is a good sign. I checked their smoke alarm on a whim and discovered there was no battery in it. Went and got one and checked it. With heaters running all day and Gran smoking it could get nasty without it. Pop has finished turning the carport into a garage, did a pretty good job. He says he has bugger all to do all day other than keep an eye on her. He had gone to Huntly to do the shopping in the morning we went down. He said water was higher than 1958.
With all the water, there was no soccer for THE TEAM on Saturday, hopefully we will get a game in next weekend. Only six games to go for the season. Due to the varsity rec centre being run by morons (or students), although our game was booked for 6:30 on Friday night they closed at 6:00pm. Real customer service success story that was. So game was postponed so stay tuned. Got all the protective gear I needed for it and everything. Official team photo Wednesday night.
Mercury Energy Chief Executive Wayne Gilbert had a heart attack and died in his office on Tuesday. He was the focus of the power collapse in March and they were going to release a report on the matter the next day, "Mercury fucked up big time under Wayne", but delayed it in respect to him and his family. They are using twink and are changing it to "Mercury f**ked up big time under Wayne" to soften the blow. . Some say they finally got power run to his chair, but that has not been confirmed.
Tau Henare, the man with the dirty dog sunnies, Minister of Maori affairs, was removed as Deputy Leader of NZ First on Tuesday (Tuesday was a busy day, believe me). Also on that day, he released a report which said the lot of Maori was getting worse. Six times more teenage pregnancies, and so on. More in prison, more truancy, less sit School C, etc. Compared it all to 1987 and they are certainly worse off. 50% earn less than $28,0000. All they need to do is increase the DPB and that would be fixed. Anyway, moves are afoot for all five NZ First Maori MPs to split and do it themselves. Boring.
Even worse, since his fall from grace, there have been incredible numbers of bad puns. Tau is pronounced "Toe", so we get everything from Tau gets the boot, failing to Tau the party line, stubbed Tau, and so on. Makes news headlines unbearable. AND they keep going on about the five NZ First Maori MPs being the "Tight Five". This may be what they are known as in prison, I don't know. So now we have headlines like "Tight Five are Loose Cannons" and so on. It just gets worse.
We finally sold the Corolla last week, so we no longer have a spare car. Kind of a bummer in a way but good to get it out of our hair. The savings on registration, insurance, etc, will be worthwhile.
New All Black team announced, Mehrtens is out, Joeli is out, Scott McLeod is out (he is a dork anyway). Carlos is in, Jonah is in (that is stupid - he's a waste of space now), Mayerhofler is in. We'll see. I have some doubts. They didn't play this weekend. This coming weekend they play South Africa. They narrowly beat the Wallabies in Perth. This year could be pretty close if you ask me. They say whoever can win away from home will win. That puts SA on the top at the moment. See what happens next weekend.
Given the fact that the Orcas have conceded less goals than Brazil this year and have a better win-loss ratio than the All Blacks, I think I am going to have a crack at coaching a national team. Haven't decided which one yet. Maybe even the Chicago Bulls seeing their coach is retiring.
Huge debate in our household about what we spend our discretionary income on. Diana did a budget thing on Bank Direct and it was willing to lend us $228,000 based on repayments of $2000 per month. Alternatively, it seemed to think we could afford to pay $2600 per month off our mortgage based on our "normal" expenditure. Needless to say, we don't pay that much. It is very hard to strike the balance between consumption now and saving. With all the crap the country is in with a distinct lack of balance between the two, I tend to favour the saving bit (which equates to reducing the mortgage for us). It is just that it is an awfully boring thing to do when it would be so much more exciting to put in a new wood burner or a wardrobe (hang on, did I say exciting? What I really mean is things like a new fibreglass kayak or a true mountain bike or a basketball hoop or a work bench or maybe me trying to paddle the Waikato - this week it would be really quick).
From my random thoughts department:
I glanced at an article on Viagra that was in one of Diana's intellectual magazines. It occurred to me that there are actually a number of reasons why men who need this product are unable to achieve a state required for a fulfilling life. These include blockages in the tubes that supply blood to the spongy tissue, problems with the spongy tissue, low blood pressure, a few mental reasons and then of course, the amount of alcohol in the bloodstream, and so forth. So, on that basis, how come Viagra can fix all that? I think it is crap and we are going to discover it was a big hoax and that all it contains is aspirin or vitamin B1 or something and Berocca's would do the same job. The article included comment from someone who tried it without actually needing it, which seemed utterly pointless. They also interviewed a number of men to see if they would "try" it. Like I said, an intellectual magazine.
Big milestone for Rory this week, he made his own bed. Then he made ours. Diana then pointed out the mistake he made. He guessed immediately and said "I know, I have to make it from now on". Interesting, the novelty of gaining new powers still outweighs the idea that he will have to make his bed for the rest of his life. He'll learn that bit too, soon enough. By the weekend he said he had forgotten his new knowledge.
He was very perky on Wednesday morning, as he seemed to be coming out of the illness. Almost a different kid Wednesday night from what he was earlier in the week.
They saw "The Borrowers" on Wednesday with Liam and Sandy. Liam is in the soccer team and Sandy is his Mum. She is a solo mum, and struggles a bit. She spends $80 a fortnight on food. I reckon I spend that much on Coco Pops per week (I worked out that I eat six of their "standard" servings per serving, which means I can eat a packet a day on my own). She is doing some sort of a course through Massey and finds it tough going. Diana thinks she and Gavin would hit it off. Could be interesting. Told Gavin and it sounds like he has volunteered to take some photos of the team playing a game, if it ever stops raining. Could be interesting. Gavin has a new flatmate so his finances are on a more even keel. Now all he needs is a keel for his kayak and he can stop worrying about falling out (I promise one day to stop going on about that, really I do).
I was in very bad shape on Tuesday, the gym just about killed me and I was a mess the rest of the day. A number of people cheerfully told me I looked like crap during the day. Finally went home and straight to bed. Didn't really feel sick, just very bloody tired. Have been sleeping about nine hours a night lately and am struggling to get to work at a decent time most days. Maybe I have the Tapanui Flu. I Don't really think so, but it is a worry. I still seem to get up at 6:30 on Saturdays, which is really annoying to everyone in the household including me.
On Friday I just about when mad and shot every courier in Auckland. After waiting all bloody afternoon for one to arrive on Thursday and eating breakfast in the office on Friday so I could get what I needed, then I get back after going to an appointment and discover that I have missed the bastard by six minutes. Oh, but that is not enough. To rub salt into the wound, I ring to tell them I am here, and am second in the queue. Then next in the queue. Then I get cut off. I redial and am second in the queue. Then I get cut off. Don't even get to next this time. Redial and am third in the queue. Then I get cut off. I ring the customer who is waiting for one of the packages and find out they can live without it today even though when they rang this morning they made it sound like their life was about to end. Then I ring again, am fifth in the queue. Then I hang up and find Courier Post's main number and call that and try very hard not to sound shitty, annoyed, pissed off, homicidal. I have been asking the courier to get the people across the hall to sign for stuff and they never bloody listen.
Kids are growing fast. Like about half an inch in two weeks. I measured them. Anyone who is interested, I think Action Man accessories may be the order of the day for Rory's birthday. I gave him one with all the moving bits the other day to gauge whether it would be played with more than the stupid one he has (with stiff arms and hardly any joints). Seems to be hot property. Got the gyro copter outfit with his pocket money the other day. Let me know if you have any queries.
He is having a D party for his birthday, wants to go as Dracula, I think all the kids will. He wants a soccer ball cake. Hannah wants a cake with Barbie and some flowers and a little baby and a tea set and ...... you get the idea. Saw a picture of a Roswell-like photo of someone operating on a teletubby - excellent!
See you all later, by next Monday you might have finished this.
13 July 1998
Well, I really have been remisce - 13/07/98
Couple of things that I continue to forget to mention. Firstly, they apparently did catch those guys that escaped from the Paremoremo holiday camp. Don't know much of the details.
Also, kiwis won two motor cycle races over the previous weekend. Simon Crafar and Aaron Slight I think. One was the British Grand Prix. Moderately big news here but quite an achievement for both who are always coming second to Australians Troy Corser (spelling?) and Mick Doohan.
No soccer on the weekend, a bit sad. Training for the kids again tomorrow night if the weather is okay. Game for me on Thursday, IDG journalists versus the people of the public relations fraternity.
Incredibly wet during last week, would have made shopping malls and theatres utterly unfeasible with the school holidays. On Friday, parts of state highways 1,2,3,4,12, 30, and 43 were shut. Chunks of road missing and heaps of flooding. Whanganui river was pretty hairy. Huntly was under a lot of water and they were using highway 1 as a spillway for about 2 kms. Worst flooding in about 30 years they reckon.
Anyway, busy kind of weekend. Built the dreaded shelf unit for the shed on Saturday, and reorganised the shed itself. Amazing amounts of room in there now, practically like the TARDIS. Am holding guided tours for those who can't think of a reason to be somewhere else quickly enough.
Sunday I went to the gym, then helped R&K move a small amount of furniture so they can have their floors sanded in two rooms plus hall. Didn't pop any discs this time so that was good. Had practice for the aforementioned IDG soccer game in the afternoon, and was thoroughly knackered afterward. A certain amount of pain occurs when I move my legs.
Rory had a fever yesterday so he didn't do much. Hannah kept nagging for Panadol, so I did some milk, sugar, and red food colouring which did the trick. Practised soccer with Rory on Saturday a little. He was being goalie and I booted the ball a bit harder than I should have. He took it in the midriff between chest and stomach. Rolled around on the ground, cried. I said "Why didn't you get out of the way?" Then he replies "But then it would have been a goal" between sobs.
Watched the big game on Saturday night. The AB's let themselves down badly. I don't think the new guys were in very good shape and they were not well coordinated. Far too many clever moves without the brilliance of it actually working. Radio Sport was full of black armbands yesterday. Wankers. I don't really think it is the end of the world. As long as they get their shit together before the World Cup that's all I am worried about.
In the Soccer World Cup, watched Brazil get their butts kicked. Good on France, certainly convincing in the end althugh nobody would have predicted it especially with ten men for the last 20 odd minutes.
Also, kiwis won two motor cycle races over the previous weekend. Simon Crafar and Aaron Slight I think. One was the British Grand Prix. Moderately big news here but quite an achievement for both who are always coming second to Australians Troy Corser (spelling?) and Mick Doohan.
No soccer on the weekend, a bit sad. Training for the kids again tomorrow night if the weather is okay. Game for me on Thursday, IDG journalists versus the people of the public relations fraternity.
Incredibly wet during last week, would have made shopping malls and theatres utterly unfeasible with the school holidays. On Friday, parts of state highways 1,2,3,4,12, 30, and 43 were shut. Chunks of road missing and heaps of flooding. Whanganui river was pretty hairy. Huntly was under a lot of water and they were using highway 1 as a spillway for about 2 kms. Worst flooding in about 30 years they reckon.
Anyway, busy kind of weekend. Built the dreaded shelf unit for the shed on Saturday, and reorganised the shed itself. Amazing amounts of room in there now, practically like the TARDIS. Am holding guided tours for those who can't think of a reason to be somewhere else quickly enough.
Sunday I went to the gym, then helped R&K move a small amount of furniture so they can have their floors sanded in two rooms plus hall. Didn't pop any discs this time so that was good. Had practice for the aforementioned IDG soccer game in the afternoon, and was thoroughly knackered afterward. A certain amount of pain occurs when I move my legs.
Rory had a fever yesterday so he didn't do much. Hannah kept nagging for Panadol, so I did some milk, sugar, and red food colouring which did the trick. Practised soccer with Rory on Saturday a little. He was being goalie and I booted the ball a bit harder than I should have. He took it in the midriff between chest and stomach. Rolled around on the ground, cried. I said "Why didn't you get out of the way?" Then he replies "But then it would have been a goal" between sobs.
Watched the big game on Saturday night. The AB's let themselves down badly. I don't think the new guys were in very good shape and they were not well coordinated. Far too many clever moves without the brilliance of it actually working. Radio Sport was full of black armbands yesterday. Wankers. I don't really think it is the end of the world. As long as they get their shit together before the World Cup that's all I am worried about.
In the Soccer World Cup, watched Brazil get their butts kicked. Good on France, certainly convincing in the end althugh nobody would have predicted it especially with ten men for the last 20 odd minutes.
6 July 1998
He got another GOAL!!!!!! - 06/07/98
Yes, folks, first goal of the game on Saturday morning, through the opposition coach and in. Diana was walking past the end of the field so got to see it close up. Rory was finally awarded player of the day. I was probably a bit mean not giving it to him when he got his first goal but I didn't want anyone to say he got it for the wrong reason. Stupid really, everyone thought I was too tough on him. Anyway, it is out of the way now. Harry's Grandma has bought a little trophy for the team and Rory gets it for two weeks (no game next Saturday due to holidays). He has taken it to bed both nights so far. He forgets about it now and then and then remembers and goes and grabs it. He was very happy. Took it to Allan and Jackie's to show Paul and Emma (Paul plays two games every Saturday, one for school and one for his club).
Anyway, good game, with all four of our goal scorers getting one each, final score 4-0. So far we have 24 for and 3 against, which isn't bad. Rory is averaging 0.28 goals per game, Joseph is 1.85, Harry 1.0. Aren't spreadsheets wonderful things.
The other soccer was pretty good too, fancy Croatia kicking Germany's butt. Remember the War! I think it is good that Argentina lost because they didn't really deserve to win the way they did. Mind you, neither did France.
No rugby this weekend, but Bledisloe Cup in Melbourne next Saturday night. Poms got their butts re-kicked in SA over the weekend to finish their tour without a win and only about thirty points all up.
Had Harry and Jared over after the game and so the place was rather full on Saturday. Was nice to spend most of the day at home though, did the same on Sunday. Didn't even go to the gym (watched soccer instead, but after playing with the boys on the back lawn most of the day on Saturday I think I deserved a bit of a rest). Will go tonight after a tennis club committee meeting.
Lawn is holding up pretty well given the rain earlier in the week. Did some minor gardening and trimmed the netting on the goal. Also bought a new shelf system for the garden shed so we can organise that better (R&K, got heaps of stuff you need to look at and decide if you want). Major ant nest in the shed was decimated with chemicals yesterday, think it is the same group that I have displaced twice already from the stepping stones and the ranchslider on the sleepout.
Kids are on holiday this week and next, so I am the only one that has to get out of bed, it's not fair! Especially when it is bloody cold. Not a frost today but could be pretty close.
Anyway, good game, with all four of our goal scorers getting one each, final score 4-0. So far we have 24 for and 3 against, which isn't bad. Rory is averaging 0.28 goals per game, Joseph is 1.85, Harry 1.0. Aren't spreadsheets wonderful things.
The other soccer was pretty good too, fancy Croatia kicking Germany's butt. Remember the War! I think it is good that Argentina lost because they didn't really deserve to win the way they did. Mind you, neither did France.
No rugby this weekend, but Bledisloe Cup in Melbourne next Saturday night. Poms got their butts re-kicked in SA over the weekend to finish their tour without a win and only about thirty points all up.
Had Harry and Jared over after the game and so the place was rather full on Saturday. Was nice to spend most of the day at home though, did the same on Sunday. Didn't even go to the gym (watched soccer instead, but after playing with the boys on the back lawn most of the day on Saturday I think I deserved a bit of a rest). Will go tonight after a tennis club committee meeting.
Lawn is holding up pretty well given the rain earlier in the week. Did some minor gardening and trimmed the netting on the goal. Also bought a new shelf system for the garden shed so we can organise that better (R&K, got heaps of stuff you need to look at and decide if you want). Major ant nest in the shed was decimated with chemicals yesterday, think it is the same group that I have displaced twice already from the stepping stones and the ranchslider on the sleepout.
Kids are on holiday this week and next, so I am the only one that has to get out of bed, it's not fair! Especially when it is bloody cold. Not a frost today but could be pretty close.
2 July 1998
Late but not forgotten - 02/07/98
Well, what an awesome game of soccer yesterday, penalty shoot-out after extra time. Felt very sorry for the England team. Watched it before going to work the day we got back (slack arse). A weekend of quarter finals coming up, should be able to see most of them with luck.
The Orcas won their game without Rory and their coach 7-0 (their best result so far). Don't know who feels more inadequate to be honest (probably me). Training cancelled due to rain tonight. Buckets of rain since returning home. Floods in BOP, Nelson, nothing major but enough to stop people watering their gardens.
Kids had a day off yesterday and Rory woke really late this morning, but they have recovered reasonably well. Hannah started wanting to go home on Monday, asked her if she missed Craig and she said "no, Penny". Later she said she missed everyone that had visited. It did feel kind of quiet on the Monday after everyone went home.
For those who weren't there, we had a real blast at Movie World. Definitely worth going to. Weather was cold for a couple of days but didn't rain until the Monday. I went to the airport an average of once per day for eight days, will kind of miss Coolangatta. Went to bird sanctuary, wandered around, fooled around on the beach for a little while, swam in the pool heaps. Someone put bubblebath in the Spa so that was knackered for a couple of days. Scored two adult passes (from an Uncle of a boy in the soccer team who recognised me)for what we thought was DreamWorld, turned out to be anything but. Went to SeaWorld instead. Kids saw the dolphin show which was very good, and the Team Extreme water skiing and stuff. Went on a couple of things then raced home wet and tired about 1:30pm. Weren't really prepared for rain. Went to a mall and let the kids fool around in the playground with some other kids - they enjoyed that, think they were feeling children deprived. Wouldn't have been too happy with Sea World if we hadn't saved about $70 on the fee. The whole swimming pool complex was closed, which was about a quarter of the park.
Bit of a funny day on Tuesday, without much of a plan. Went out to breakfast, the kids and I had a final swim. Then we tried to go see a movie at Australia Fair then Logan Hyperdome, both were chock-full so we flagged it. Went to Daisy Hill Koala sanctuary on the way to the airport and that turned out to be a bit of a find. Cost was nothing (unlike everywhere else). We saw two young Koalas eating, sleeping, then playing like puppies or kittens. Then we went for a walk on a nature trail and I spotted a couple of Kangaroos. Couldn't see any koalas in the trees, got a really sore neck just looking for the damn things. Saw a couple of Kookaburras too. Was quite windy and a bit cold, but we spent a couple of hours there. In the end we only just got to the rental place in time to get a lift back to the airport so we timed it well.
Didn't hear about the England-Maoris game until I got home. England went on to South Africa without a win (work it out yourself). People calling the second test a close result (40-10). Wankers. We beat them, they lost, it wasn't even slightly close. Major panics on Radio Sport here.
I don't think I have mentioned Radio Sport yet. It is sort of a new channel, or more like an old channel with a new format. Sport only, all the time. 6:30am to 10:00pm or so. Play recorded stuff all night except when something is live overseas. They play sport news on the hour, then other news and then weather. Got their priorities right these guys. Not much advertising (so far), but pretty popular. Couldn't live without it. Missed it while I was away. Anyway, the talkback is all about how the All Blacks are in trouble and Australia will win. Be interesting to see what the odds are compared between Australian and NZ TAB.
Marc Ellis is joining North Harbour, leaving the team I promised not to mention this year. He was a bit expensive to sit on the reserve bench for the reserve grade for $300,000 per year.
While I was away we lost two of NZ's hookers. Come back Sean! I think they are going to call in the women's hooker. Hopefully they will find these guys again.
Jonah looked like crap on Saturday, will be interesting there. Big news that Australian team is same for fourth test in a row when they play NZ in Melbourne in two weeks. Could be the upset of the season that game unless the AB's sort themselves out. Mind you, neither side has played anyone decent yet.
In other news, we are officially in a recession with Asia being the big contributor. Exchange rates have improved slightly and interest rates dropped a little but everything is very changeable. Government continuing their do nothing policy for the moment until the sub-committee on procrastination gets around to re-convening.
The Orcas won their game without Rory and their coach 7-0 (their best result so far). Don't know who feels more inadequate to be honest (probably me). Training cancelled due to rain tonight. Buckets of rain since returning home. Floods in BOP, Nelson, nothing major but enough to stop people watering their gardens.
Kids had a day off yesterday and Rory woke really late this morning, but they have recovered reasonably well. Hannah started wanting to go home on Monday, asked her if she missed Craig and she said "no, Penny". Later she said she missed everyone that had visited. It did feel kind of quiet on the Monday after everyone went home.
For those who weren't there, we had a real blast at Movie World. Definitely worth going to. Weather was cold for a couple of days but didn't rain until the Monday. I went to the airport an average of once per day for eight days, will kind of miss Coolangatta. Went to bird sanctuary, wandered around, fooled around on the beach for a little while, swam in the pool heaps. Someone put bubblebath in the Spa so that was knackered for a couple of days. Scored two adult passes (from an Uncle of a boy in the soccer team who recognised me)for what we thought was DreamWorld, turned out to be anything but. Went to SeaWorld instead. Kids saw the dolphin show which was very good, and the Team Extreme water skiing and stuff. Went on a couple of things then raced home wet and tired about 1:30pm. Weren't really prepared for rain. Went to a mall and let the kids fool around in the playground with some other kids - they enjoyed that, think they were feeling children deprived. Wouldn't have been too happy with Sea World if we hadn't saved about $70 on the fee. The whole swimming pool complex was closed, which was about a quarter of the park.
Bit of a funny day on Tuesday, without much of a plan. Went out to breakfast, the kids and I had a final swim. Then we tried to go see a movie at Australia Fair then Logan Hyperdome, both were chock-full so we flagged it. Went to Daisy Hill Koala sanctuary on the way to the airport and that turned out to be a bit of a find. Cost was nothing (unlike everywhere else). We saw two young Koalas eating, sleeping, then playing like puppies or kittens. Then we went for a walk on a nature trail and I spotted a couple of Kangaroos. Couldn't see any koalas in the trees, got a really sore neck just looking for the damn things. Saw a couple of Kookaburras too. Was quite windy and a bit cold, but we spent a couple of hours there. In the end we only just got to the rental place in time to get a lift back to the airport so we timed it well.
Didn't hear about the England-Maoris game until I got home. England went on to South Africa without a win (work it out yourself). People calling the second test a close result (40-10). Wankers. We beat them, they lost, it wasn't even slightly close. Major panics on Radio Sport here.
I don't think I have mentioned Radio Sport yet. It is sort of a new channel, or more like an old channel with a new format. Sport only, all the time. 6:30am to 10:00pm or so. Play recorded stuff all night except when something is live overseas. They play sport news on the hour, then other news and then weather. Got their priorities right these guys. Not much advertising (so far), but pretty popular. Couldn't live without it. Missed it while I was away. Anyway, the talkback is all about how the All Blacks are in trouble and Australia will win. Be interesting to see what the odds are compared between Australian and NZ TAB.
Marc Ellis is joining North Harbour, leaving the team I promised not to mention this year. He was a bit expensive to sit on the reserve bench for the reserve grade for $300,000 per year.
While I was away we lost two of NZ's hookers. Come back Sean! I think they are going to call in the women's hooker. Hopefully they will find these guys again.
Jonah looked like crap on Saturday, will be interesting there. Big news that Australian team is same for fourth test in a row when they play NZ in Melbourne in two weeks. Could be the upset of the season that game unless the AB's sort themselves out. Mind you, neither side has played anyone decent yet.
In other news, we are officially in a recession with Asia being the big contributor. Exchange rates have improved slightly and interest rates dropped a little but everything is very changeable. Government continuing their do nothing policy for the moment until the sub-committee on procrastination gets around to re-convening.
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