Speaking of weird...

My weekend so far has involved large crowds. Last night I headed to the rugby at Aussie Stadium. The season wasn't off to the best start for the Waratahs. The game was nothing more than sloppy. The final score was 16 all. The Western Force should not have got close, but we fumbled, lost possession, kicked too much, collapsed scrums and had too many bad reffing decisions go against us. Grrrr. But I love going to the rugby so it was a fun night. Today I bought myself a new bike helmet. It's actually one of the really good ones. I decided I needed something a bit more robust now that I'm becoming a fully licensed rider this coming week. There's another reason too, but more on that later in the week. While I was in the bike shop I got a call from a mate of mine who asked me what I was up to and if I was free if I could help him out. "Sure. How?" Well, I didn't see this coming, but within the hour I was heading to volunteer and help support an entry in the Mardi Gras parade. We had a huge hire van we were to drive behind the boys on bikes in case one of them broke down and needed to be carted away. What an eye opener. I felt a little uncomfortable but I was there in the thick of this amazing uniquely Sydney event. I got to see how well things were run behind the scene and got to see a parade from the "inside" of the fences.

There were thousands upon thousands of people. All cheering and laughing (mostly laughing I think) at the guys and girls in the parade. As the lads pulled into the centre of Taylor Square, in front of the very large screen, I sprung into action. We had one down. So while thousands cheers us on, we pulled the plank out of the van and pushed the bike up into the back and were off to catch up with the rest of the bikers.

The whole parade was over for me within less than half an hour from starting and I was probably home before the last float had even crossed the finish line. I'm starting to enjoy this volunteering caper. I'm now realising how import a good support crew is to the success of events.

This is just too weird, even for me...

How often has a bird fallen from the sky and missed hitting you by 2-3 feet? I'd say not many. Well, in the last 6 weeks it has happened to me 3 times. And every time it has been a pigeon that has landed with the most horrible of sound. It's freaky. Not in living memory can I ever think of birds just falling dead, or almost dead, from the sky.
The first time it happened to me I was walking down the Brisbane mall. It landed with a sort of muffled crunch/plop. Scared the crap out of me. I'd say it missed me by less than a foot. It flapped it wings twice and I quickly jumped away from it. Then, as it struggled to lift itself up, a crow swooped in and attacked it... rather brutally.
The second time I was with a mate sitting outside a cafe in Glebe and that same crunch/plop sound happened in between my seat and the people sitting behind me. It flapped once then moved no more. Dead as.
The third time was this arvo on my walk home from work. Plop. Within a few steps of me stepping on it. It didn't move at all after it hit the footpath.
Why are birds falling from the sky near me every couple of weeks? Huh?! WHY?...
I'm currently working on a weird nuclear energy emanating from my body theory.
Any other suggestions?

It's not easy being green...

Having to spend each day the colour of the leaves
When I think it could be nicer being red, or yellow or gold
Or something much more colourful like that

It's not easy being green
It seems you blend in with so many other ordinary things
And people tend to pass you over 'cause you're
Not standing out like flashy sparkles in the water
Or stars in the sky

But green's the colour of Spring
And green can be cool and friendly-like
And green can be big like an ocean, or important
Like a mountain, or tall like a tree

When green is all there is to be
It could make you wonder why, but why wonder why
Wonder, I am green and it'll do fine, it's beautiful
And I think it's what I want to be

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

March heralds the onset of Autumn. Although, you won't feel Autumn this month here. It'll still be hot and humid. With the amount of rain we've been having recently I've noticed that there actually is a lot of green around at the moment.

It's a colour that I don't often get the opportunity to use, but it's a colour I love.

There's just way too much wrong...

with this post. Example: 1: It's after 2 am 2: I'm awake 3: I've wanted to try one of "those" burgers for years (I've been a vego for aprox 25 of my 37 years on earth). So tonight I gave one a go. Needless to say, I didn't eat the whole thing. But now I'm, at least, aware of what I'm not missing out on. 4: <-- This is the hottest car E-V-E-R! 5: I'm thinking thoughts I shouldn't be thinking about the owner. Shall I go on? ok...

6: "River Deep Mountain High" by Tina Turner is a brilliant song
7: I discovered the Jim Henson Co is touring with an adult only show - A must see in my book. I loved The Muppet Show when I was growing up.
8: After a small hospital stint, I've been feeling so much pain in my throat for the last 4 weeks but tonight i'm not. I actually feel good!
9: I don't feel like sleeping because, I actually feel like wandering the streets and enjoying this weird feeling. (so I did)
10: Did I mention that on my walk I saw what I think is the hottest car ever?!

They are at it again...

and I really don't understand why. Last week it was my yoghurt now this week it's my milk - a whole unopened carton! Who steals other people's food from the fridge at work? Get your own dairy products people!

It was hot, humid, cold and wet...

and that was the weekend that was. Judo and I rode down to Canberra on Friday night because we had an early start on Sat morning helping out on an AROC (Adventure Race Outdoor Challenge). I've wanted to do one of these races for about two years now, but have kind of lacked the confidence to actually just put myself out there to compete in an actual race. Well, this weekend I agreed to help out and be a race official and was set up at some of the Transition Areas. It gave me a first hand look at some of the competitors and what an actual course comprised of. There were people from all sorts of fitness levels. Some didn't complete the race, some just had fun and others competed very seriously. Picture #1 is of the teams registering. Picture #2 is my first transition area. The teams of three picked up their bikes here for the first mountain bike leg in the race. I was on my motorbike, as was Judo, so we managed to have fun riding in our shorts and official T-shirt between the start, transition areas, Australian Institute of Sport, and the finish. Storms were brewing late in the arvo, so we decided to pack up and head home. On our way out of Canberra we seemed to be heading straight towards some intense lightning breaking through the black clouds. We pulled in to Golburn and had a snack at the Paragon (Picture #3). While we were inside the heavens opened up and bucketed down. We decided not to go any further and spent the night there.

We wandered the streets of Goulburn and went to the Hibernian pub (The Hybo) for a few beers. Steve, if I had some contact details on me I would have called you to say hi.
We woke this morning to more dark grey (Picture #4), but Judo had to be back in Sydney by lunchtime so we pressed on... and got wet and it was very cold as we passed through the Southern Highlands. The ride down through Macquarie Pass was a bit hairy as the roads were wet, slippery and the visibility was not ideal as we rode on through the mist. But I loved being out on the bike.
So, I had a great weekend.

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*I've just noticed that this post looks crap on a pc. It looks much better on my mac.

Unconscious Mutterings

I haven't played this for a couple of weeks, so here goes:

1. Threshold :: of pain
2. Jason :: and the Argonauts
3. Suspicion :: jealousy
4. Tender :: hearts
5. Tempted :: by the devil
6. Crimson :: roses
7. Repulsive :: troll
8. Bulldog :: Rugby League
9. Garage :: band
10. Racket :: noise

You can play too.

For all those who didn't get to see it...

I have posted my photo of the two great ocean liners, The QEII and the QMII in Sydney Harbour together here.

I'm at it again...

I just can't help it. I really like Yoshinoya. Today for lunch I had the "Combo Bowl" meal. Surely I can't be eating un-healthy food here. There's meat, there's veges and there's rice... not one fried thing in sight. Oh, other than the side dish of Karage.

I'm lovin' this right now...

Catherine Tate. I have only recently discovered this chick thanks to Steve who shared it with me. I don't watch TV, so thank you YouTube.

Damn paparazzi...

Why, oh why don't they just leave me alone and let me live my life!

I cooked...

this last night. Tasty. However, I made a few changes (thanks to a very poorly stocked local IGA) and I substituted the stock for consommé and halved the recipe... I wasn't planning on feeding a family. As I'm not a huge fan of salty food, I went easy on the soy at the end. In fact I think next time I'll leave that off mine. I'm sure the consommé added enough flavour and salt for the dish.
This is a really boring post... Although, you may be able to read between the lines on this one, with last night being Valentines Day and all... Mwaha hahahaa...

Notice anything different?

I've made it obvious by adding two big arrows. This is the left and right hand side of the swingarm on the rear wheel on my bike. For a few weeks now, I've been hearing a clicking noise occasionally when I ride. I was never sure what it was and looked and looked for what may have been causing it. Well, I finally found it. My chain was very loose and my WHEEL COULD HAVE FALLEN OFF!
Ok, that may be a little dramatic, but I have heard that it has happened before to riders. Luckily, I noticed the missing swing arm nuts and plate on the weekend and put young Ude in for a service and repair. I have him back in my garage tonight with all his bits and pieces checked, repaired and back in place. Sometimes I feel like I have more than my fair share of luck on my side.

How crap is this!!!!

England won... I just don't get it. I spend good money at the pub to see Australia flog the poms and THIS is the result!?!
I feel ripped off.

It's a first attempt ok...

There's something really good about...

an $8.50 steak for dinner. And it's even more special when it has a big dollop of sour cream on the side.

After Kookyknut and I had our dinner at the pub, we moved on to another pub to catch up with Jackie and watch the end of the cricket. Now, Kookyknut and I like to have a good laugh, but, when there's some drunks playing pool in line of sight of the cricket on the big screen, our laughs may have been miss read. One dude, who I would term "rough as guts", thought I was laughing at his pool playing ability. I was threatened by him. His "10 boys" would drag me off to a dumpster somewhere. Nice. He was so smashed I think I would have been too quick for him, but the cricket ended and we took to the streets to find a cab to take us to the final night of Club Kooky.

Club Kooky is/was a Sydney institution. It plays nothing but the coolest underground tunes and the crowd goes there for the music and not to look pretty. I liked it so much. It was one of the few clubs where I felt I was home amongst freaks and friends. I rarely go to clubs because, well, I'm not into that scene, but Kooky was unlike any other club. Kooky will be sadly missed, but I'm hoping it will resurface in a new venue. I got home at 4:30am this morning and thought I put in a mighty good effort. I love Friday nights.

The Coast Walk...

What a great way to spend 3 days. My mate Kookyknut and I caught the ferry from Cronulla to Bundeena then hiked from one end of the Royal National Park to the other. The walk takes in some magnificent views, beaches, marsh flats and climbs up some very tall escarpments.

We packed enough food and water for three days, however, after the first day it seems that we may have only packed enough water for 2 days. We didn't count on some of the walk being difficult and hard work with two fully laden packs. It was hot and we were drinking the water very quickly. So, after breaking camp on the first night we were conservative on the water. Unfortunately, the water in the park is not suitable for drinking. Luckily the walk to camp 2 was shorter, only about 6kms. The second night saw a line of storms blow in. Usually when camping, you don't really look forward to storms. There was one point during this second night where I began to imagine all the nice food and drink I could be having back at home and I was nearly temped to call Judo to come in and drop off a big bottle of Gatorade and a pizza... We had numerous pots, pans and plates out to capture as much water as possible. The rain water was sweet and we had more than enough to continue our walk in the morning well rested and hydrated. I really enjoyed this walk. It was challenging in parts and absolutely stunning in others. I have put some pics up on Flickr. Here's a brief explanation of the pics on the left from top to bottom: 1. Us at the start of the walk. We'd actually already walked about 2-3km's from the ferry at Bundeena to get to this "official" start of the walk. I was so very hot and sweaty already. 2. A view near the start of the walk. Looking south towards Marley Head. Marley Head was the halfway point on day one. 3. Storm brewing... 4. Looking out of the tent at Nth Era camp ground (camp 2). Just after the first storm had passed through. I love the colours of evening storms. 5. Sunrise this morning. There are some very nice beaches and rock platforms that are only accessible by doing this walk. This was right out the front of our camp ground on day two. 6. The view back north at the end of the walk. In the far distance you can see Marley Head from photo #2. What a great way to end an enjoyable holiday from work.

Unconscious Mutterings

1. Plaster :: of paris
2. Cabbage :: roll
3. Jazz :: blues
4. Darts :: from left to right
5. Poke :: in the eye
6. Bribe :: 'y Island.
7. Whale :: of a time
8. Receipt :: exchange
9. Answer :: me please
10. Dentist :: rip off merchants

You can play too.

Sometimes a day turns out to be so very unexpected.

On Wednesday I discovered a new Japanese restaurant that I hadn't been to before for lunch on Oxford St. So, Thursday I decided to go back there for lunch again to try something new from their menu. While I was sitting there waiting for my order to arrive a mate of mine walked in to try this same restaurant for his first time. I called him over to join me and we talked about what we had planned for the next few days. Me, I had nothing much to do other than relax because I'm on holidays. He was heading to Melbourne in 2 hours for work. He asked if I wanted to go with him. My brain went "No way, I couldn't do that". A few bites of a new Japanese curry dish later and my brain was saying "Go on... I dare you to go!" I finished off my lunch and called Qantas to see if there were any seats left on his flight (now scheduled to leave in an hour and a half). There was. I quickly threw a few t-shirts into a bag, called a few mates to let them know I was off and before I knew it I was on my way to my favorite city in Australia yet again. Melbourne continues to be a city that just seems to have its shit together. And each time I go there she reveals to me a side of her that, even though I knew was there, I had yet to experience. This trip Melbourne was even more creative than usual and she showed me a playful sexy side to her. Ahhh Melbourne. So much to offer a lad like me. I love the way she delights the ears and eyes. She teases the taste buds. She introduces you to new sensations and above all, she does it in a friendly atmosphere. Every time I go there I discover something new. For me, discovering and experiencing is living.

Welcome Feburary...

and this month's theme is history... I'll try and keep the self reflectiveness to a minimum. But let's start with a look back at the month of January:

There were ups and there were downs but all in all it was good. I made new friends. I found inspiration to be creative again. I spent time with all the people who I really care about this month. They showed me a huge amount of support. So, really, that was a good month. Oh, and my trip to Italy and Spain was booked for May-June. Look out MotoGP! I just have to work out a way to pay for it now...