Sacrifices I Make

It is the biggest sporting night on record and I will miss it all to have fun with friends. The Breakers play their must win NBL final against the Melbourne Tigers in Auckland and most New Zealanders will be channel surfing between this event on Maori television and the other sport that takes place.

The New Zealand India Twenty 20 match takes place at the Caketin tonight and the slap and giggle brand of cricket continues to get decent crowds. I prefer ODI cricket and am saving my pennies after going to every home Super 14 match at the Caketin this year.

The Hurricanes are away against the Crusaders in Christchurch in what will be an amazing match. This is followed by my boys the Highlanders against the Waratahs.

But don't feel sorry for me. I will be going to my first pool party in about 15 years with plenty of food, fine company and then watching home theatre system movies. The party is thrown by a woman, so it won't be a sausage sizzle. The Americans always have these parties at college (Frat parties), but unfortunately Dunedin isn't the best place for this type of thing. The pool is indoors at someone's house so it will be great. The other thing is that there is so much sport on these days that I have had enough for a while anyway. People only have so much money and with so many other events on, it is a matter of being social. This point rose to the surface when I teamed up with a fellow sporting genius to dominate pub quiz and we came to the conclusion that the historical sporting results are easier to remember because matches were played less often and so they were special. These days it is total saturation. Sure, I have been to more sporting events than the average punter this year (Aussie Open, MCG ODI cricket, Super 14 season ticket, Phoenix) but sometimes you have to think of being social and not letting my fanbase down!

Getting back to pub quiz, we took second place, to prove that our dubious win last week wasn't a fluke. For our troubles we got $50 tab. The weekend also includes a re-emergence of Saturday Brunch and the Kyles Housewarming, so it is on for young and old.

The Torture Of Being A Highlanders Supporter

I went along to the Caketin with Muzza, Dave Lim and his American mate who he met on an Internet rugby forum. I was hoping that my team wouldn't disgrace themselves, but much like last week and all of the last few seasons supporting the Highlanders, I was left scratching my head. Not only had we nearly won, but we somehow did well to lose after getting into a seemingly unbeatable position. The ball resembled the cake of soap on a communal prison shower floor and yet again the Highlanders collect a bonus point. It is a bitter pill to swallow time after time, but given the limited resources/ ragtag bunch of misfits who make up the Highlanders, they probably still punch above their weight. People constantly kept trying to pick up the soap and dropping it. The grubber kick was underused and the game wasn't much of a spectacle. There were some positives. IT was wet tough conditions and it was refreshing to see them wearing their away strip, the maroon of Southland. I actually really rate Adam Thomson and his sin binning was a match winner for the Hurricanes. I reckon if people are sinbinned, it should be more like a power play in ice hockey where they can come back onto the field once the opposition scores (maybe a try). I also rate fullback Israel Dagg. He is a great up and comer.

Today I went to the Cuba Street Carnival. There was so much colour and it was such a haven for the alternatives of Wellington to come out (a good choice of words). I had to go to the bank and had to go through the hussle and bussel of Cuba Street Carnival. The pain of working 10 minutes walk from the Railway Station is that I never have time to bank cheques. I saw some easy on the women wearing nothing but body paint. I smelt plenty of foreign food and illicit drugs. I also saw plenty of people in unusual attire. I decided on purpose to wear my Blackcaps top so that I would stand out as a jock in an alternative world. There was plenty of colour and music.

I bought the current, but soon to be superseded Phoenix top and track jacket for half price. Bernie Fraser served me. I was assuming that he must have some kind of ownership of the RYOs clearance store. Now I can say that I have the original Phoenix top and hopefully they will continue to be worth supporting!

I had better go as the white lanky Elliot Taylor is set to hip hop at the Cuba Street festival. It will be interesting to see how he goes!

The end of an era and thoughts on a Thursday night

Yes it is true, Richie Benaud is retiring after 46 years in broadcasting next year. He has been the most imitated commentator ever with his 2 for 22 and Marvellous calls. We will miss Richie and his cricket commentaries. I love his honesty above after the underarm. He was also a more than useful allrounder.

I got this next snippet off Stuff. How crazy about this poor kid simply because of some bad genes.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/4852692a4560.html
An infant boy has been married off to his neighbours' dog in eastern India by villagers who said it will stop the groom from being killed by wild animals.


Around 150 tribespeople performed the ritual recently in a hamlet in the state of Orissa's Jajpur district after the boy, who is under two years old, grew a tooth on his upper gum.

The Munda tribe see such a growth in young children as a bad omen and believe it makes them prone to attacks by tigers and another animals. The tribal god will bless the child and ward off evil spirits after the marriage.

"We performed the marriage because it will overcome any curse that might fall on the child as well on us," the boy's father, Sanarumala Munda, was quoted as saying by a local newspaper.

The groom, Sagula, was carried by his family in procession to the village temple, where a priest solemnised the marriage between Sagula and his bride Jyoti by chanting Sanskrit hymns, a witness said.

The villagers then ate a feast with rich food and alcohol to celebrate.

The dog belongs to the groom's neighbours and was set free to roam around the area after the ceremony. No dowry was exchanged, the witness said, and the boy will still be able to marry a human bride in the future without filing for divorce.

Indian law does not recognise weddings between people and animals, but the ritual survives in rural and tribal areas of the country where millions are illiterate.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/4852692a4560.html

In other news, we won pub quiz tonight after really struggling through the early rounds. We came back in the final three rounds of Pot Luck and our two bonus rounds Colours and Sports and Games. We probably averaged about eight over these three and given the dubious adding ability of the judges may have put us up a place, but we will take it. The dream team of seven did well, but we were tearing our hair out after five really tough rounds. Obviously we weren't the only ones struggling.

Speaking of struggling, my fitness was struggling at touch last night. Ironically we stopped having Sunday afternoon run arounds after Christmas when the touch league started getting more difficult and serious. We lost in our 3rd vs 4th playoff 5-3, but just couldn't get much going and unlike before Christmas, we really needed another sub or two as my fitness was found wanting. 4th in Div 2 is a step up from winning Div 5 last year. Maybe we should throw a few more games before Christmas in the grading.

I really need a hit of tennis this weekend, but I can feel my torn achilles insertion. Tennis only started back after my rich vein of form just before Christmas, in late January. I then went over to Melbourne and so missed a week. On my return we were cancelled two weeks in a row, once for a junior tournament using the courts and the other for rain. I haven't practised in between and my passion isn't really with it now that we are at the back end of the season. My big winning streak will probably be broken.

The Cuba Street Carnival will insure some interesting sights over the weekend as people of dubious sexuality parade around Cuba Street in skimpy costumes. It is one of the cultural events of the year, so I had better prove that I am cultured by attending. There will hopefully be something for everyone from music to body paint to samba.

I am off to the rugby tomorrow night to see my Highlanders do well against the Hurricanes in the rain. I will definitely be forced to move from my season ticket seat in the Uncovered Bronze section. I wish we got our names on a plaque on our seats. My workmate has his name on a seat in the Embassy Theatre in Wellington, but rarely uses it!

I had life group last night and we really need some females to have fun. We are currently four guys and to be honest it would be great to have some new fresh blood of the female variety to study the good book with and to socialise.

Finally what do you think of the South African Rugby Union refusing the NZ Maori team a match against the Springboks as they are team picked on race. It seems backwards given the racism shown by South Africa for so many years and the continuing use of the quota system in South African sport. This is a case of the pot calling the kettle black, but I see the Maori team touring as undermining their authority and putting them to shame especially in ethnically diverse Soweto.

What do you think?

My Day

Today started off by me seeing a middle aged man in pink socks, a skirt and tshirt talking to a guy reading a newspaper. It took me a while to realise that this guy actually didn't know the guy reading the newspaper and was probably hanging out near his more regular hanging places, WINZ or the hospital. The WINZ office is now famous after appearing on Nightline tonight.

I went to Slumdog Millionaire tonight and it was great. I managed to get a party of five together, so me, Becs, Tali, Cleland and his Asian friend enjoyed a touching movie about a Mumbai street kid who makes it onto the Indian Who Wants to be a Millionaire. I am intrigued by gameshow movies having seen Starter For Ten and although this guy didn't cheat, he was accused of it. I also found the story of the mystery cougher in England intriguing and actually posted about this on my blog six months ago.

There are heaps of specials out there at the moment. I was on the verge of buying a new Wellington Phoenix top when I asked the sales assistant if they are changing them (because they were half price) and he told me that they are. It is like what happens every second year with the Super 14 teams. You have to be wary as next season the jersey can be completely different. The Phoenix are moving from their mainly black top to a yellow and black vertical striped top. They will be more like bumble bees, but I guess they had to change it as the other teams probably are. Buyer beware!

Finally, I hear that some guy completed the Coast to Coast in barefeet and didn't finish last. Good on ya mate!

How to make small talk

Here are some hints for making great small talk. About 3/4 of women avoid social events because they are too shy to make small talk with people they don't know. It is something to consider next time you are at a party.

The crazy thing is that I have talked to as many females as males over the weekend, maybe even more. It is as if there's a man drought or something! Is that opportunity knocking at the door?

Here are some tips on making small talk from Marie Claire.

Fake it, then make it
"A great small talker is someone who assumes the burden of other people's comfort in social situations," explains Debra Fine, author of The Fine Art Of Confident Conversation (Hachette $29.99), who says shy people tend to be too focused on what others think of them to make others feel at ease. To overcome this, practise approaching new people, at least three times a week, until you reduce the fear of rejection.


Lean into conversation
"If you want to engage someone, face them front on, look them in the eyes, and smile," advises Gary Bertwistle, author of Who Stole My Mojo? (Allen & Unwin, $22.95). "If you're truly listening, you should be hanging on every word and almost leaning forward to hear the whole story." Similarly, adopt an open stance - and don't fold your arms, glance around the room or check your mobile.


Don't interrogate
Avoid firing off closed-ended questions, such as "What do you do?" and "How have you been?" Instead, try, "Tell me about your work" and "What did you have on this week?" And don't forget to volunteer information about yourself in response to their answers. Topics to avoid? Your health, your awful job and any other subjects that suck
the positive energy out of the conversation.


Hook them in
To move the conversation beyond small talk, try to listen more than you speak. That way, you can tap into topics the other person is interested in. Alternatively, try repeating the last part of their comment. For example, if someone says they live in the city, say, "The city - which part?" Easy, but effective. Also, when the other person has finished talking, wait for a second before speaking. This will help you absorb what they're saying - and ensure you don't talk over the top of them.


be detail oriented
Make an effort to commit people's names to memory - repeating their names after you're introduced can help. Also, remembering one key detail about their lives, whether it's their job or passion for films, will make conversation much easier when you meet them again.

http://nz.lifestyle.yahoo.com/b/marie-claire/7194/life-how-to-make-small-talk

Why it pays to cut your nails and Valentine's Day 2009

I got this off the Stuff website as I watch love songs UChoose Top 40 on C4 and Old School where people my age go back to college and are considered old!

http://www.stuff.co.nz/4847960a4560.html
A woman recognised for having the world's longest fingernails has broken them in a car accident.


Lee Redmond, whose fingernails had measured approximately 8.5 metres in total, was hospitalised after being thrown from a car during a crash in Salt Lake City, Utah, the county sheriff's department said.

She is reported to have sustained serious injuries in the accident.

Redmond's fingernails, which had not been cut in 30 years, were listed in the Guinness Book of World Records in 2006.



I must say that Valentine's Day is more of an american thing than anything here. My flatmate said that when he was in the States people would give each other different coloured roses depending on what they wanted to say. Red for love, white for friendship etc.

I saw plenty of people at the rugby at the Caketin and I must say that apart from getting people to make out at halftime when the camera zoomed in on them (they always do this) nothing else was romantic.

The funny thing with that segment is the following scenarios.

You are sitting next to your sister.
You are sitting next to a total stranger who is hot.
You are sitting next to a girl you are keen on but are unsure what she thinks of you.
You are sitting next to your boss on a work trip.
You are sitting next to your Life Group leader.
You are sitting next to a transvestite (very unlikely)

One time in Hamilton for the cricket two lesbians caused an outrage when they made out for the camera. Crazy!

Tonight I was sitting next to Muzza. Unfortunately I lost the singles Street group I went with. If I was still sitting with them, it would've been worth slipping the cameraman a lazy $20 for the awkwardness.

The beauty of having the cheapest bronze memberships is that if the ground isn't full, you can go to better seats during the game. This is probably the case for all games except the Bledisloe Cup.

It was my first match as a season ticket holder at the Caketin. I got a sports bag and they are making the membership cards interchangable with Snapper cards. By the way, the Hurricanes blew hot and cold and the Waratahs infringed heaps, but did enough to beat the home team 26-22. Bring on the Highlanders who I actually support. Hopefully my boys do the damage against the Canes. The Southern Men will be underdogs.

The crowd at the Caketin was far more relaxed and laid back than the crowds at both the Aussie Open and the MCG cricket. The temperature was also more comfortable and because the seats are steeper, there is more leg room at the Caketin.

Check out my audio - Episode 37 recorded Thursday.

Being A Fan

Being a sports fan is tough. This guy goes through outrageous means to support the Duke College team. I should do the same, but fear retaliation from the Wellington southerly. It is a great leveller!

I have purchased a seasons pass at the Cake Tin and instead of romancing gorgeous women on Saturday night, I will be going to the game with my new seasons pass. I get Super 14 matches (6) Air NZ Cup (6 or 7), club games and the Bledisloe Cup match. It costs about $280 and I think it is worth it as you get preferential booking for any semi or final and the Sevens. You also get discounts at different establishments and a gift. I would probably spend around $200 going to the games anyway, but this way I will probably go to a few more matches with Mucka Jones.

We lost our touch semi final tonight. The opposition were the top team in Div 2 mixed McAlister Park Wednesday night and we were 4th ranked. It was close first half, but we couldn't finish our half breaks and they made us pay. They had one fast guy with great footwork. He single handedly was the difference with about 5 or 6 tries and laid one on for a female try. They won either 8-2 or 7-2.

I am looking forward to Valentine's Day this Saturday. I have a few women in mind, but believe that everyday should be like Valentines and that it is mainly for those who are actually already hooked up.

It is of course over commercialised, and a time for making people feel even more lonely, but it is still a great concept.

The Final Episode

My holiday is now officially over and I am not used to the Wellington weather. On Friday the cricket was magic as kiwis flew and claimed a marvellous victory. There was so much excitement in the crowd amongst the New Zealand faithful. It was funny how many randoms we approached and who approached us in our beige giving man hugs and high fives to.

We hit the town for a while. It coincided with one of Dave Meerman's mates birthday. It was good chance for us to go to a cool place.

Saturday dawned as a ridiculously hot day. It was unbearably hot. We stayed inside until about 2pm before venturing outside into the furnace. It was too hot to walk too far so we took a tram until part of it went on fire in the heat, so we walked to the Melbourne Museum. The walk there from the tram was ridiculous and a situation I have never experienced. It was 46 degrees and quite windy. The wind actually blew into your throat and up your nose so you could hardly breath. It was crazy. The Museum was air conditioned and had some interesting stuff, especially the insects. The heat took it out of me and I was stuffed.

We then went home and that gave Dave and myself enough time to win some 500 before we went an around about way of getting to Chapel Street near St Kilda beach. It had been too hot to go out there and join the beach bums earlier in the day, but by 8:40pm it was cool enough (around 30) to enjoy a walk/tram ride, because the trains weren't running because the tracks had melted. We met up with one of Dave's old Melbourne mates and Joe Fung got one of his many trip ambitions come true. We ate Italian. We were supposed to go to the Thank God It's Friday restaurant which is supposed to be amazing and instead had to go elsewhere because it was too busy.

We were amazed by the glitz and glamour of the area and the sleazy Italian male waiters hitting on the attractive patrons at other tables. This part of town is associated with hot women in short cocktail dresses and high heels. The guys drive around in Ferraris and Lambourghinis. It was an eye opener.

We went home tired to bed. The heat makes you so tired. I didn't do much running or sport as it was too hot most of the time. The next morning myself and Fungus has to get up at 630am to catch a shuttle to the station. We waited 45 minutes on a Star Shuttle (I can't recommend them at all). The driver of the 7am shuttle didn't show up to work. Luckily we got to the airport in time, but there were some anxious moments. What was annoying is that we flew Pacific Blue to Christchurch. We booked before both Dave and Ben, but still paid more, and flew at a worse time of day. I think Qantas added some flights just after we booked ours. Oh well, I am back in the game in Wellington.

Above are a selection of photos from the trip. I gave up taking my camera when Ben arrived as three of us had cameras and I didn't want to over do things.

For some more photos go to Facebook.

Photos To Follow

Hi guys,

It has been an action packed last few days here in Melbourne, Victoria. Myself and Joe Fung flew into Melbourne's heat and were met by Dave Meerman in a car on Saturday. He has been great since he knows his way around and has a vehicle, so we just chip in for petrol. He took us to a BBQ and then we went back to our hostel. It was funny meeting people who we will never see again!

On Sunday we went to the Assembly of God church in Melbourne (Penticostal) then we hit some factory stores like DC shoes, Nike, Kathmandu and picked up some bargains in the stifling heat. It is amazing what you can pick up and what you learn about others on these trips. What I have discovered is that people are different and this can come in handy.

We went to one of the highlights of my life. It was the mixed doubles final at Rod Laver Arena where an Bhupati and some female won. It was really boiling, so we walked to a nearby pub to kill two hours before the final. It beats looking around the stadium for overpriced souvenirs. We watched the Blackcaps bowl Australia out, before watching an amazing five sets of tennis. It was so emotional and Nadal and Federer were both brilliant. Federer should've taken it, but Nadal survived several break points to take it in five. Fed ran out of steam and should've won the 3rd set. He actually won more overall points. The crowd were 70% behind Fed and included so many stunning tourists who weren't short of a penny, and us.

Monday we went to the Melbourne Zoo and saw the animals. It was warm and they were often asleep. It got tiring.

Then we went to the MCG for a tour. IT is huge and Eric our guide is one of 100,000 members of the Melbourne Cricket Club who gets entry for $541 a year. We chewed the fat and I discovered that this massive ground has one white seat about 200 metres back where Aussie Simon O'Donnell hit the biggest six ever in a State game. There is also a special mirror above a urinal which looks outside straight at the pitch from the toilets inside the stand. The biggest ever crowd was for Billy Graham in 1959 about 130,000. Eric, Joe Fung and me discussed the state of world cricket.

We killed some time by going to the movie Underworld 3 before collecting Ben Mai and starting our best of five 500 series. 500 the card game. Me and Meerman are up 2-1.

Yesterday we went to the St Kilda and South Brighton beaches. St Kilda was better and Waboba Ball was the star of the show. The Aussies didn't know what hit them. The weather was hot (into 30s) the tanned beach bums were out in force and I loved it. We all got sunburnt, it was hard not to.

Today we came to the Great Ocean Road. The weather was mild low 20s and ideal for a spot of relaxation. The Great Ocean Road reminds me of the Catlins area and we are all underwhelmed. We arrived at Apollo Bay and I got my Souvlaki before we searched for a Golf Club which was closed until 4pm. To kill time, we went to the Apollo Bay Bowling Club and played two hours for $5, it was brilliant. We then went to our accommodation which was at the www.yha.com.au Youth hostel.

Later today we went for a swim and as me, Meerman and Ben were throwing Waboba, these people came to us asking if we are strong swimmers. Dave was the most confident, so swam out to save two guys who had been pulled out to sea. They were solid guys and he could only bring one in slightly from their 150 metres out to sea distance. They were in a rip. It was emotional for everyone, but with help of some local surfers and paramedics and a Lifesaver they got dragged to shore, It was like something from Piha Rescue and very dramatic.

Back to Melb tomorrow and hopefully Great Ocean Road is more overwhelming. Photos to come!

Love Scottyxxx