LOCAL NEWS
The big political news this week was rumours that Don Brash is having marital problems, and after we all assumed the blue pills weren't working (or perhaps the problem was that they were) we got news that he's had an affair. Yuck. Really, I mean, why would anyone want to with him? And I think I have a philosophical issue with anyone that can't keep it in their pants, politician, movie star, or whatever. Regardless, not sure that anyone really needs to know.
Following the attention on Brash, Darth Helen's husband has been under fire with a variety of rumours including that he is gay and that he was detained in California for something unsavoury (heard this last bit on Saturday, before I heard it in the media). Helen is not impressed. I have to say that while I suspect it is unlikely to be true, if any of it is true it is likely to severely tarnish the PMs already dented reputation.
As I continue to struggle with local newspapers, we got the premature halt of The Sopranos as front page news this week. The story then failed to point out that this is yet another reason why people are choosing to download TV shows from the net or just buy the box set of DVDs when they come out and not bother to watch them with advertisements when the broadcaster feels like it. If there was a TV license I would stop paying it (not actually sure I ever did when there was, but let's not go there). It also failed to ask advertisers what they thought about broadcasters driving away viewers by pissing them off and whether that might change their view of the value of television advertising.
A dog in a life jacket swam for 18ks to land after a boat capsized.
A Romanian man was severely beaten in South Auckland over the weekend. Things don't seem too good in South Auckland, don't think I would go there on a Saturday night.
News this week that New Zealand will host the 2008 under-17 women's Football World Cup. Hannah will be too young to play in it but there is a very good chance we will know someone in the team. New Zealand hosted the men's u-17 tournament in 1999, I think. It was pretty good.
THE PASSING OF A CROCODILE PERSON
Got some good feedback from around the world (thanks folks). Sounds like the crocodile hunter made more of an impression in Holland and Singapore. Germany wasn't too concerned about it, they didn't seem that convinced that he wasn't just a crocodile botherer/molester and England was possibly more interested than Germany but less than the others.
Ever wonder why he was called the Crocodile Hunter when he didn't actually hunt them?
WORLD NEWS
Apart from Pope Benedict offending Muslims and the space shuttle floating around I am just not noticing much about the world around me. Apparently a 70 year old nun was killed in Africa as a revenge attack for the Pope's comments.
REAL SPORT
Friday night was a dour affair. Spent five hours at the pool because Rory refereed. I also reffed my first match and was useless. Partly because I was reffing with someone who I know well and is a very experienced ref and I didn't want to call anything he didn't call (but I did, a few times, eventually). I also couldn't co-ordinate hand signals to save myself. Afterwards I went straight into coach mode and was waving my arms with signals to, um, guide the refs. Was interesting.
Hannah's mixed team played the top of the table team, and struggled. Not being a biased parent but once Hannah was marking the danger player he was pretty much out of the game. They lost 2-10.
The girls team played the top of the table girls team (Rangeview Pink, with pink swim caps and insane supporters), and were totally destroyed. The Rangeview team are a very good unit, and won 8-0.
Hannah also had a mini-tournament on Saturday in preparation for a tournament next weekend, three quick games, they won two, lost one. Rory refereed.
SPORT
The wheel blacks lost to USA 30-34 in final of wheelchair basketball on Saturday.
Auckland drew 22-22 with Waikato after being down 0-19 at half time. Wellington beat Canterbury 26-24, Northland had their second win of the season (and second in about four years)
Man Utd lost 0-1 to the Arse, Chelsea beat Liverpool 1-0. Newcastle had a win 2-0 over West Ham, Blackburn beat Man City 4-2.
Germany beat Australian 4-3 in the men's hockey final. New Zealand came 8th.
New Zealander Valerie Vili won gold in women's shot put in World Cup of Athletics over the weekend.
MY SAD LIFE
Another pretty busy week for me (I said for me, I know many of you live considerably busier lives). Went to Hamilton again, but this time I managed to go on Hannah's birthday. Not good. Just never joined the dots. Somehow I had two Thursdays, the one that was Hannah's birthday and the other one for going too Hamilton. I left at 6:30am before Hannah was awake, so she didn't open any presents, which was the main annoyance for her, I suspect. I think I had over 80 unread emails that night. Only managed to go through a chunk of them this morning.
We had a nice family dinner on Thursday night with the Grannies for Hannah's birthday. Rory seemed to use some phrases that most would consider entirely inappropriate with parents, let alone grandparents, in the room. I won't repeat them here. On the way home from Hamilton I stopped at Candyland and bought some things to redeem myself with Hannah, she seemed happy with what I got for her.
Judy is off in Fiji, as is Sarah, for a wedding. Judy has had her stitches out and is reasonably well recovered from her unplanned dive.
Kathryn is in NSW for the week, checking out customers over there. Ross is holding the fort at home.
Heard from Jack in Stuttgart, he has got his father's lathe going, which is cool. Was also nice to hear from Peter Evans in England. Not that hearing from Shin and Heidi wasn't good, of course, it's just that I hear from you more often than Jack and Peter.
Heard that Bambi is off to China for some fireworks competition. I suspect that similar to the Mancunians with their nuclear accelerator, the planet will not be safe.
Went to a memorial thing Wednesday night for Les Dobson, a guy that was a client for about five years. Lots of insurance bods there, the usual suspects as one of them always puts it. Saw a few people I had not seen for a while, including a few soccer people who are in the insurance business (Mick Miller being one of them). You know you are getting old when you see so many people you have known since before children (especially when the children are older too). Got to town late from way out east so didn't get to change into glad rags, luckily wasn't too badly dressed but most were in suits (although the ties came off very quickly). Had a chat to Paul East (former Attorney General and National Party cabinet minister, I know him reasonably well from a number of these dos) about the Don Brash stuff, his viewpoint was similar to mine, although not surprisingly given that Brash is leader of the same party as him.
Among everything else on Saturday, Hannah and I went to an end of season soccer do and Hannah went to a birthday party for her friend Bonnie and 50 of her closest friends, which seemed to go well. It was fancy dress, every went as something beginning with the first letter of their name. Hannah was a hippy (Rory suggested Hooker, and other unsavoury things, good on you, son).
Diana, Rory, Paul, and I went to see Clerks 2 on Saturday night (while Hannah was at the party). It was an R16, but Rory was not challenged on the age question. Afterwards we decided perhaps it should have been R40 (so people over 40 wouldn't go, Diana was a little dismayed at some of the content but I enjoyed it). Rory enjoyed it immensely, our shares went up for taking him.
Had a good crack at the garden over the weekend, it doesn't take long to fill the garden bin. There is so much to do around the house, really need to spend a good couple of hours every weekend on things, but it doesn't often happen. I am not sure I am actually catching up at all. We relocated the soccer goal to the opposite corner of the garden.
Hannah has inter-school volleyball this week, I am attending.
Diana worked full time last week and this week, but has next week off, I think. It changes a lot.
This is last week of school before yet another school holidays. It seems like they never go to school.
TV SHOWS, PIRACY, AND BROADCASTERS
I was thinking about this, and ranting in the car to the family yesterday. It doesn't seem fair to me that the broadcasters can basically do whatever they want about scheduling, stopping, riddling with adverts, and so forth without any breach of the law. However, the poor old consumer is treading dangerously if they download episodes they miss, or imports DVDs from overseas. In other words, consumers should either lump it or not watch it at all, there is basically no other choice. I don't think that is remotely fair.
TEN YEARS AGO
We had had 29 days of rain in August in 1996. I am sure it wasn't anything like that this August. It was the beginning of me weeding the lawn. I still do it, but not very often (but I did yesterday). For many years you could run around our section with no worries of prickles. Kiwi Air was going bust, and Air New Zealand was silly enough to buy half of Ansett (which was a major factor in their reorganisation about five years later). Stage three of the playground was constructed (which has been gone nearly two years now).
A 13 year old took a bus on a joy ride, which resulted in the following joke:
Q: Why did the teenager steal a bus and go on a joy ride?
A: He asked his mum the best way to get to Kaeo, and she said "Just take a bus."
I noted in an email back then that I wanted to write more. Interesting, this was before I wrote the proper books. Part of me still wants to. The sensible part knows it doesn't really pay.
Guess that'll do for now. You know these emails are like 1500 words every week? What was I saying about writing a book?
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