Holiday Fun Times

My life of travels is finally all coming together. Last weekend I went to the Sounds and had a chilled weekend in the hot sun with the Jamiesons. It was funny seeing my CEO on the same flight both ways. The Sounds was such a quiet place and we were so close to the water which was cool. Everyone has there own miniature stony beach which is cool. We played 500 in the bach and also watched Andy in a bike race.

This weekend heaps of us are going to Waihi Beach. We have a bach booked until Tuesday, but I am staying on and hanging with my brother before returning on the Friday. It is mainly guys going on this trip as it seems hard finding many Christian women who aren't intimidated by eight guys. It will be awesome to go to the Chiefs vs Highlanders on Saturday night at Mount Maunganui. I managed to get $10 tickets at www.no8.co.nz.

We are going to the famous Easter Egg Hunt at Emma Trail's house in Tauranga and will enjoy the hospitality of the Trail family who put the Donaldsons to shame. The muffins last year with chocolate eggs in the bottom were magic. We will go to this when we aren't lounging at the nearby beach.

In other news, I have booked flights to both the Gold Coast and Invers for July. They are ridiculously different, but both will be fun and give me a chance to use up some leave.

So all my holidays are planned in some form or another so I can go on with life.

Ricky Martin Is Gay!

You have clicked on blog is astonishment at the revelation that Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin has come out and told the world that he is a homosexual. It is hardly surprising judging by his image which was just a little too slick and flamboyant to be straight. Women the world over probably refuse to believe it, but it must be true. What I want to know is how he got some of the lyrics for his songs like "She bangs"? Anyway, Ricky Martin is still in the limelight a decade after he rose to popularity with his songs, so surely that counts for something!


http://nz.entertainment.yahoo.com/100329/7/i335.html

Boy With 31 Fingers and Toes Gets Some Removed

A Chinese boy born with a rare condition which saw him have 31 fingers and toes got 11 removed recently as his parents got sick of him getting picked on at school. It makes you wonder how you would survive with so many digits? Special gloves, shoes and socks. I wonder how his balance and touch will be affected? Anyway, it will hopefully help him carry on and live a normal life rather than being called a "monster" by his class mates. Kids can be cruel!

http://weeklyworldnews.com/headlines/16672/boy-with-31-fingers/

VIDEO: "Three's a crowd"

VIDEO: "Three's a crowd"

This is a video with an exert from the show. It was actually quite a long running show!

Hey Dad!

Apparently the Dad might have done some dodgy stuff to the kids in Hey Dad! The kids have taken ages to come out about it, but all seem to think that the Dad was a shady character. I guess we will wait and see what happens. It was funny seeing it shown on the news, so I had to look up the actual show as I remember watching it. It is amazing how poor television was back then, but how much we loved it!

Who Said Small People Are Pushovers?

Sure, the world is made for tall people, but these two small guys have over 5 million hits and have shown bigger guys how to fight. I love the small guy in blue trunks. It is amazing how the other guy is so much bigger, but struggles with the smaller man's agility.

This is Thai Midget Fighting from 2007. I saw it on television and had to investigate. It is difficult to stop watching. It is like the cross dressers at the Newtown Fair, you don't like what you see, but you are kind of intrigued and find it hard to not look at them.

I Am A FOMO, especially this weekend!

FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)
It is a syndrome experienced by extroverts who are always concerned that they are missing out on something fun usually. It is fear that others are having fun on the other side of the hill, where the grass is also greener.

But this weekend I have every reason to be a FOMO. I am winging my way to Blenheim to visit my friends Andy and Greer on Friday night before hitting the 26 degrees in the Marlborough Sounds on Saturday.

There is a plethora of social options on this weekend in Wellington (well The Street social scene anyway!). Friday night and there is a Flatwarming at Greta Point, while on Saturday there is an engagement party, two parties (one Irish St Paddy's Day theme, the other Suit Up party in Churton Park with at least 50 confirmed Facebook guests). The Hurricanes host the Sharks on Saturday night too! On Sunday there is the last football friendly in for my team.

Seriously, I probably need the tranquility of the Sounds for my mental state, but at the same time, the FOMO in me wants to go to everything, even if I am not invited. There are so many things on the weekend before Easter, but it makes life interesting.

But you know what? The true test of a superstar FOMO is one that is able to enjoy themselves no matter what they do. Andy and Greer are awesome and I hear the Sounds are beautiful. The weekend will be brilliant basking in the sun and water. Hopefully I come back refreshed and ready to hit the week running!

This Goalkeeper Breaks His Arm!

This Brazilian club goalie broke his arm. Football is such a dangerous sport. Although you would be gutted if you missed as the striker with this penalty shot.

Kiss An Asian Day!

Kiss this Asian!

Unofficially it is "Kiss an Asian Day" on Tuesday 23rd of March. So go up and give Asians a smooch. Of course the 23rd is almost over, but it will still be relevant overseas overnight, just don't tell my Asian flatmate or he will get a hat like people wear on St Patrick's Day "Kiss me I'm Irish!" and change it to "Kiss me I'm Asian!".

Tonight we went out to Porirua to play mini golf at the Treasure Island course but it had shut early and we missed out. Instead I managed to drag the others along to Denny's restaurant. It is a tacky family restaurant with bright lights and heaps of specials. They had two for one meals, but I think the desserts were the best with my Oreo Sundae the best. Some of the other meals are poor quality, but it is the American diner style place. They are also open 24 hours on weekends. They didn't have any of the plastic glasses which light up when you drink from them. I broke Jenny and Tali's cup a few years ago, but they don't sell them any more. This place is tacky, but has good desserts and fast service. It is in Porirua, so gets lots of locals along. They have a seniors menu and kids often eat free.

Reject Movie Club

I get the feeling I should write a Wikipedia entry on the origins of Reject Movie Club. It all stemmed from 2007 where a group mainly from my life group with occasional extras (Karl, Matt, Tali, Jenny, Andy and me) would go to the movies most Tuesdays since it is the cheap night. We also went to salsa Monday nights, Life Group Wednesday nights, Pub Quiz Thursday nights and drinks Friday nights. This lasted about a year, but the memory lives on. In 2008 we still went to the movies, but it moved in a different direction with a few others coming along and originals not being as keen. In 2009, myself and Jenny changed Life Group to a Tuesday night group and although Movie Club only met really rarely, we had to start our own offshoot of movie club meeting on other nights of the week. When we say "movie club" it isn't quite as intense as a "book club" where you talk about plot, character development etc. It is more just a group of people meeting for a greasy feed in Reading Courtenay, before going to the movies.

Reject movie club was myself, Jenny, Bridgey and Sacha who once had the dubious distinction of rejecting Reject Movie Club as we were going to see Fame and going to her own movie, but she did also come to Reject Movie Club night and sometimes she used to host Reject Movie Club at the house she was staying at.

Movie Club has really disappeared, but we are still known as Reject Movie Club. Like the original Movie Club, we always invite others to movies, but it usually ends up that the same loyal members come regularly while a few fly by nighters can't handle the pace of Reject Movie Club.

The reason I raise this is because Reject Movie Club is attending Bounty Hunter at 8:30pm tonight (our first meeting in a month) preceded by the usual dinner in Reading Cinemas. It is usually a case of wanting to go somewhere classy, but we usually end up at Maccas at it is standard and the all Asian buffetts on offer aren't that good.

RIP He Pingping

The inspirational smallest man in the world died after suffering chest complaints while recording a television show in Italy. 22 year old He Pingping was born in China and measured 2 foot 5 inches. He was known as a bit of a celebrity and seemed to make the most of life despite his obvious difference. I remember taking taking a shining to Pingping when I saw him meeting the World's Tallest Man on television. It would be interesting experiencing life as someone so small.

I wonder who takes over the mantle as the World's Smallest Man now? Any ideas?

http://nz.news.yahoo.com/a/-/world/6937547/worlds-shortest-man-dies-in-italy/

An Upset, A Holiday and I Am Going Camping!

After the disappointment of my tennis defeat on Satuday 7-6 in the 3rd set, I ended up winning against the top team in our grade. In an upset of epic proportions I won 6-2 6-2. The other guy had a bad day at the office and I had one of my better days. Tennis is funny like that, but I was on a singles three loss streak and so my rating will thrive against someone rated about 800th in New Zealand unlike me 2800th.

I heard at work the other day that I have to use my annual leave soon. I have about four weeks owing and will keep accruing them at a rate of about two days a month until I use them. It is hard to know the best way of using them. It is definitely preferable to go away, but of course not many other people have several weeks off like me. Some options include a trip to a mates wedding in USA with a few others, going to Europe to visit my brother or a trip to Aussie. Of course, these cost money, but the concept of earning money while being away is ideal and there are a few months until the wedding.

It is hard to know whether to go to one country for a good length of time or head to Europe after the wedding for a few weeks? This concept of using up leave is actually quite stressful! It is a paradox, a pleasant problem.

I am off to a night church Street camp near Silverstream. Friday night starts with an Op Shop Swing Dance. The only problem is that I don't have access to Op Shops working in Thorndon and they don't open as late as costume hire places. It is going to require some improvisation. It should be fun times, but I wonder if we are going to get a chance to watch the Phoenix somewhere?

Topless Dancing and the Phoenix!

The weekend was brilliant. Only in Wellington can you go to the Newtown Fair and hang with all cultures and sexualities and then hit the Stadium with 34,000 others and watch the Wellington Phoenix win 3-1 in a match which became more memorable for events that happened off the field, for me anyway. I got a good mixed crew of eight along and an overexcited short Asian flatmate of mine ripped his shirt off with ten minutes to go as a good luck thing to do (like what the Yellow Fever do). He started doing is usual high pitched screams before jumping up and down. There was also an overly excited/woman who must have had too much to drink sitting standing in front of us who did the same, then turned around. For an awkward minute the two fans held hands while jumping up and down and screaming. She was wearing underwear, but it was even more funny given that two kids were stuck in the row between the two. My flatmate should've got her phone number, but it was entertaining anyway and the best moment of my flatmate's life.

It was amazing having 34,000 for this win, although I thought we should have won earlier, but we didn't. The atmosphere wasn't quite as good as the Bahrain game, although I was sitting near the White Zone for that match and this match I was a bit further away from Yellow Fever.

The odds are out for Saturday's match and we are the underdogs according to the New Zealand TAB.

$1.40 Sydney FC
$2.80 Wellington Phoenix

What A Place - I Live in Wacky Wellington

There is such a variety of entertainment on in Wellington. It just seemed like yesterday that a bunch of bogans arrived for the ACDC concert, yet the following weekend there were a bunch of stoners at the One Love concert. This weekend is no exception to the wackiness.

Tomorrow there is a bike race just out of town. The Karapoti cycle classic sees people slogging it out over 50 kilometres of mountain terrain. In town there is the Wellington Festival of Circus in Waitangi Park which looks intriguing with the Circus of Horrors and Gallery of Oddity.

For all you booze hags out there, the Stadium is hosting a beer festival which is bound to get messy. There will be music and food as well.

Sunday is an absolutely bizarre combination of events. There is the mass nude photo shoot at Breaker Bay at 8am. This was postponed after the tsunami warning last week. Following this is the Newtown Community Fair with a real international flavour and atmosphere. Following that you can head along to the watch the Phoenix play Newcastle in football. Make sure you are wearing yellow.

I will no doubt investigate some of these events over the weekend. But there are also other things happening that I have missed off. I am just not used to the diverse range of people and events in this city! You are not in Invers now Mr Donaldson!

Do You Want Sold Out Phoenix Tickets?

I have two Phoenix tickets for sale to Sunday nights game against Newcastle. It starts at 4pm and should be an amazing match since it is sudden death in front of a full house of around 34,000 people. If you want the right to purchase tickets off me for their face value of $35 each then email me on stagsforever@gmail.com or Facebook message me. There will be such an amazing atmosphere at the game, so I will sell the tickets as a couple or two singles to two people who can somehow prove in any way shape or form why they deserve the tickets. If you want to sweeten the deal then I may consider even giving you the ticket free of charge. Entries close Saturday at noon and winners will be notified then.

Good luck to all contestants!

New Zealand in the World News - Who is Victor Cattermole?

New Zealand is in the world news at the moment for an assortment of reasons. I am writing this while our All Whites football team get defeated by Mexico as one of many international friendlies between the world heavyweights who are attending the World Cup like us. We are playing in front of 90,000 people in the Bowl in LA.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/3404213/Another-possible-Madeleine-McCann-image-surfaces/3404213/Another-possible-Madeleine-McCann-image-surfaces

CCTV footage of a potential sighting of British girl Madeleine McCann has surfaced from The Warehouse store in Dunedin. You can't really get much further from where the case was in Europe where she went missing on holiday. It is hard to know what to make of it? Why would she be at The Warehouse in Dunners for? Getting a bargain?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1254597/Portsmouth-buy-boost-New-Zealand-businessman-admits-interested-Fratton-Park-bid.html
Finally, hands up who knows who Victor Cattermole is? I didn't either. It ends up he is some wealthy New Zealand businessman in line to buy struggling Premiership football club Portsmouth. They have gone into administration at the moment, but it would be awesome if he could somehow set up a club that New Zealanders could go and play at once it gets relegated. This guy must be rich, but why haven't we heard of him? Maybe he is buying Portsmouth for a bargain. It has made headlines in the UK.

It is time to plan holidays

http://www.flightcentre.co.nz/product/Gold+Coast-1102336

It is time to plan some holidays for over the next six months. After returning to work on the 5th January I have accumulated leave and the need for leave. I have been back at the grind for almost two months and figure that it is time to get out of Wellington for some R and R.

Firstly I want to go and visit Andy and Greer in Blenheim. They have access to a bach in the Sounds and I am tempted to go in March maybe the weekend of the 20th? I have never been over and explored the Sounds, but it would be awesome to get a crew together or just a few peeps for a quiet weekend where the weather is warm.

For Easter we are looking at going to Tauranga/Mount Maunganui. We have some accommodation potentially lined up with friends, but if you are keen to join us or assist with accommodation then let us know. Last Easter was great in Tauranga with warm weather and a great wedding.

I am also keen for a trip to the Gold Coast. Last time I was in Australia I didn't have the money to enjoy it and so I would love to go over there and hit the beaches and theme parks. There are some good deals going at the moment. Let me know if you are keen and which time you are free. I have no real preference in term of dates.

Finally, I have to buy flights to Invers for the Big Guy's 70th. My Dad turns 70 and I want to coincide my trip south with a Ranfurly Shield defence by the Stags. So I will be going there in late July. When the Air New Zealand Cup draw is made in the next few days, I will know which weekend to hit the mighty Invers.

So if you are up for these trips or have any other ideas for fun then let me know. It will be brilliant to get some good crews together.