The Final MO!!!

I did it. I grew a Mo for the month of November. All for charity. I raised over $300 in the process, so thanks to all who sponsored me. The event was celebrated by a free Movember Gala at Luna Park on the harbour. Its a sort of fun fair I guess. Good fun night, but very very odd noticing every bloke, and even some girls had moustaches!!!!

Anyway, here is my effort....

More from Sydney

Not a lot has been going on really since I got here. The major concern was the lack of a house to live in. It seems there is a bit of a rental crisis in Sydney at the moment. Well that's not strictly true. There is plenty of accommodation, its just that a lot of it is in somewhat undesirable areas. Anyway, Bondi and the surrounding area was the main focus of the search. And the fact that every bugger and his dog pretty much wants to live in Bondi doesn't help. And a lot are damned backpacker types who rent the places for 3 months, sleeping 10 to a bed to save funds and then cruise off to their next destination. Some of the viewings were not even worth bothering with after you see the queue of 20-30 people outside the house looking for one room.

So after a mix of motels and weird hippy new age writer woman, there is now a roof over my head. Well, not quite yet, but on the weekend there will be. Its a 4 bed place, 2 bath, and home brewery, nice back garden and a wicked BBQ. Oh and its 10 minutes from Bondi Beach!!! AWESOME!!! TOTALLY AWESOME!!! Pictures will follow.

Aside from that I have been unbelievably busy at work. Which is good. But it hasn't really left much time for anything else. But that will change having got a house now. The stress has cleared.

Mo - 10 days to go

Mo Update

Its been nearly 2 weeks now......

Movember

This month is Movember. Yes thats right. It is not a typo. MOvember. I have become a 'Mo Bro' for the month, and starting from clean shaven, will be growing a mo for 1 month. I shall be asking for sponsorship for this, and all monies go to charities that deal with male health issues. MOstly (hahah that was actually a typo but I will leave it in the spirit of the month) prostate cancer and depression.

A good cause I think you will all agree. So show me the moneeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeey!!!! Please.

Sydney - Oct 2007

I'm in Sydney. It Rocks. I love it. First impressions.... it is spectacular. The only other place that has grabbed me right off was San Fran. And Sydney is right up there. Seeing the bridge and opera house just made it all real. The bridge is HOOOOOOOGE!!! And the opera house is spectacular. I think i am going to enjoy living here. Haha, I live here. I LIVE here. Awesome!!!

Just need to find a house now. Anyway.... a few pics to start things off.

Awesome!!!

Rugby - The World Cup Final

One word - Gutted!!!

But fair play to the boys. Against all odds they made it to the final. And for fear of sounding like an All Black supporter (or team member for that matter), IT SO WAS A TRY!!!

Anyway, early morning drinking is always a laugh. And the whole thing was done in very good spirit. And having started at 7am with just a single piece of toast in me, I apparently left the pub at lunch time. I blame the sambuca shots at 10am. Hmmmmmm.

Just don't tell my mum...

Pissed - well done me!

Rangitoto

So as I am leaving NZ I thought I had better get around to ticking a few of the things I always meant to do off the list. One of them was to climb Rangitoto.

Rangitoto is the most recent volcono to have erupted in the Auckland Volcanic Field. It sits out in the Hauraki Gulf watching over the city, and can be viewed from most places. To keep the nerd level down to a minimum I shall only give you a few facts. It is between 600 - 700 years old. It was formed over a series of eruptions over anywhere between a 10 yr and a 100 yr period. It is not going to erupt again (like all the volcanoes in the area) and the name means 'Blood Sky' in Maori. But thats enough of the boring stuff.

With Becky up in Auckland en-route to Seattle it was an ideal time to visit. And the weather was spot on too. So after a lie in and recovery from the night before Becky, Rachel and myself headed for the ferry.

After the dissapointment of Becky not being sea sick on the the way we headed off to catch the tractor to the top. Yes, yes, i know I said I wanted to climb it, but time was against us and to be frank, I really couldn't be arsed doing it under my own steam!!! And besides, it was a guided tour. the driver did a very good job if keeping us not very well informed. Ah well, it allowed time for a power nap to cure the hangover.

The tractor doesn't actually go all the way to the top. There is a 15 minute board walk right to the summit. But the views from the top are superb. Over to Waiheke and the Coramandel beyond, the North Shore, and of course the city itself.

Rotorua - 21st-23rd September

A few mates were down in Rotorua for work purposes so it was a good opportunity to catch up for a weekend of fun and frolics. Bailing from work early on friday, Tracey and myself made a dash for the vegas and made it in time for dinner. Curry. And a superb curry at that - very rare for New Zealand. It was to set a theme for the weekend though. Not an indian theme - that would be odd, but one of excesses I think. Waaaaaaay to much food, drink and heaps and heaps of fun. Time was limited so my aim was to reduce faff to a minimum. Hmmmm easier said than done.

Saturday was an early start. Nursing a slight hangover we grabbed breakfast and planned the day. Zorbing was on the menu but we decided that we should perhaps let the breakfast go down, and let the hangover clear first!!! First port of call was gokarts, mini golf and segways. Segways are those weird two wheel things that always stay upright. They are perhaps the coolest thing ever!!!! I want one. Surprisingly easy to master (although I made a good job of crashing one). I think they are the future of inner city commuting.

Next stop was the luge. Three wheeled tea trays zooming down a concrete track. Superb. Such good fun although Darren employed some Schumacher dirty tactics to gain a so called victory by running me off the road. Shorts and t-shirt, concrete and travelling at speeds of 40kph don't mix especially well. Great fun though. Then it was off to the Zorb!!!

For those that don't know, a Zorb is a large inflatable ball, which you then climb inside of and get rolled down a hill. A sport born a bred in New Zealand. After a brief safety chat (hahaha as if I was paying attention) we caught the shuttle to the top. I was in a duel Zorb with Becky. And a wet one at that. The most worrying part for me was getting in the thing. The hole is tiny. And you literally have to dive head first through it to land in the Zorb. I had visions of me missing and landing in a heap!!! Haha. Thankfully my aim was spot on and I landed in a nice pool of warm water. Becky followed and we were zipped up and were ready to go. Three taps on the side and we and we had to walk forward. What happened next was all a bit of a blur of somersaults, limbs, water and shrieks of fun. Brilliant. Your orientation becomes completely shot and tumble down the hill trying to gain some form of control. Keeping upright is impossible.

Soon it was over - I think we were only in there for 30 odd seconds, but it seemed like ages. And it was SO much fun. From the outside it does look like not much. I was a little dubious. But inside the thing it is just chaos and hilarity. I would totally TOTALLY recommend it to anyone.

Our 'extreme' day was finished by some pub grub and a very chilled dip in the hot pools in town. Then it was out for drinks and more food. More food than you could possible imagine.

The Sunday was spent doing the geothermal stuff. This stuff totally fascinates me and I am sure I have been on about on here before so I won't waste much time now. To sum it up, it smells of rotten eggs, has loads of pretty colours and steams and gloops a lot.

Snow Patrol

Snow Patrol came to Auckland and played at the Vector Arena. I went. It was AWESOME. One thing that struck me was the band seemed genuinely pleased to be performing their songs. Especially the sing along classics like Run and Chasing Cars. Awesome.

Sydney

The big news is that I have decided to move to Sydney. Yes I am waving goodbye to the land of the long white cloud. It was a tough call, for a whole host of reasons, but career wise it is a must. To progress in anything like the direction I want I have to move. Watch this space as the next chapters of my antipodean adventure are written.

Around Auckland - West Coast Beaches

It was a bright but chilly Sunday so we decided to hit the west coast for a bit of rugged beach action. The west is dominated by volcanic formations and black sand making the whole place seem pretty bleak and desolate. Its only 30 minutes from my house too. Its amazing how the country can change from east to west in such a small space.

Cassandra - my niece

I had met her before when Bethan and Pete (and Cassandra) came to see me in New Zealand in March. But now Cassandra has grown quite considerably. And I have to say, she is fab.

Stu, Kate and Al's Leaving and a goodbye to the mighty 'diff- 21st July 2007

Stu is off to Melbourne to do contaminy type stuff with Golders, Kate is coming to Akld to make people better and Al is off to Alaska to top up her tan. No wait thats wrong, get frost bite doing more contaminy type stuff.

The classic Miss Thomas pose

To celebrate the off a small gathering was had at O'Neills in Cardiff. I was fortunate enough to attend having extended my stay in UK. There was booze and boogying and the three couldn't possibly leave without the traditional dirty pint.... Nothing to do with me I promise!

It was touch and go as to whether I would get there though. Flood mayhem had gripped the south west of the UK. The M5 was flooded and I reckon I made it through with 20 minutes to spare before it was inpassable. And the M50, I could have actually paddled down it!!!! It took me just shy of 5 hours to get from my good friends Matt and Kates house in Brum to Cardiff. It is normally easily doable in 2 hours. Anyway...

Back to the dirty pint topic, it needs to be noted and put on record that Stu was beaten by his Mrs (Kate) - hahahaha, will he ever live it down I wonder? Saying that though Kate was passed out on the table at the end of the night and Stu was still standing!!! Following O'Neills we headed to Lloyds bar.

Stu and his magic flaming beard

It was to be my last big night in the UK for a while too. Although thankfully I had already had my goodbye filth two years previous. It was a fine way to see them off, especially Stu and Al who, over my Cardiff career I have shared houses with. An experience Al will forever have etched (burned) in her memory i'm sure - haha.

I think a good night was had by all, and for me it was almost perfect. I heard on the radio once that those that don't love Cardiff have never been. Too true innit butt. Fablass. It was with a lump in the throat and a tear in the eye that I drove through Cathays and onto the A48 and headed north.

In the words of Arnie - I'll be back. When though - thats the question...

Royal Engineers Regimental Summer Ball - 13th July 2007

It was that time of year again for Cacketts summer ball. This time the event was to be held in Monmouth where James is based. The barracks are at Monmouth Castle. Each year the ball acts as a get sort of reunion of the old gang from earth sciences at uni. And more often than not they are somewhat of a drunkard affair.

Pi and Sian where up from London and Stu from Cardiff (via brum). We met at James' and Nats flat in downtown Monmouth, then headed to the barracks to get ready. Sadly the weather didn't make the ball feel particularly summery - it was a bit damp to say the least (probably the fact it was Friday 13th had something to do with it). It did hold off enough to enable a quick dash across the parade ground the dodgems though. After all what would an army ball be without the dodgems.

Stu is expecting the call from McClaren any day now...Lewis is bricking it.

Dinner was served followed by a ceili in the officers mess and a disco in the squaddies mess. Irish jigging didn't really appeal so to the bar it was. Then to the dodgems, then to the bar, then the the dodgems - you get the picture.

This man defends the Empire - worrying

Come 3am breakfast was served, so G&T in hand we headed off for a fry up before passing out.

Saturday dawnwed and hangovers were cleared with (another) fry up at Weatherspoons in Monmouth. Then it was off to the Gower via Cardiff for a nights camping at Llangennydd. There was a slight worry that people may not find the campsite due to none of us really being locals to the Gower. But it was ok because after superb directions form myself and Stu confidence was high amongst the troops that we would all make it.

Well everyone else made it apart from Stu and I. One missed turn, and a lot of 'I don't remember this bit' we arrived a couple of hours after everyone else who made it first time! Ah well.

Whilst the others in the party (some of James' other mates) sat round drinking tea and eating scones, Stu and myself set to work in getting trollied. Out came the beer. Then it was off to the beach to play frisbee and fly a kite. The wind was too light for the kite and after we lost the frisbee in the water we headed back to camp and on to the pub for food and beer. At closing it was back to the dunes, beer coat on to put the world to rights.

In a bold time saving iniciative Stu and myself had decided to for go the tent pitching when we arrived in the day light to allow maximum beer and beach time (and to make the most of the sun - which was rare this summer). It was now 2.30am and we were drunk, with no torch trying to pitch our tent in the dark. Classic. Midly entertaining. Thankfully being camping (and drinking pros) we managed it and collapsed into a coma. Then it rained. And rained some more. And that was it for the rest of the weekend really - wet.

All things considered I had a good weekend. It was what I needed at the time. Thanks to James for the invite, and to Sian, Pi and Stu for making it another classic.

Claires Wedding - 6th July Knowle Church

It was time for another wedding. This time it was Claires tuen. She was marrying Ian. They have been together since Uni so guess it was about bloody time they tied the knot!!! The ceremony was in in Knowle Church with the reception just up the road at Hogarths.

Claire and Ian

Everyone was a bit nervous about the weather seeing as it had been shocking for the past few days (read weeks). But when the time was right it came good with just the occasional shower to dampen things.

After a warm up pint in the Red Lion we went to the church. The ceremony was nice. Then it was back to the pub for another warm up pint. Then we hit the reception. We were greeted by Champagne. Nice. Then some more champagne, then a free bar. Well it would be rude not to really....

Rumours were circulating that the bar was only free until dinner at 5pm. So we had to make the most of it. However in the beery haze we made a slight error of judgement. Rather than stacking the pints on our table it seemed double parking was not allowed - so down the hatch it went. I for one was pretty battered by dinner!!! Nice.

The drinking was combined with a game of croquet on the lawn. Fabulous. Such fun - although I did shockingly badly. Although I am sure there was some dodgy tactics going on and it had nothing to do with the beer and champagne!!! I came last!!!

The croquet battle

They had a quiz on each dinner table to get the cogs whirring. Mentally Challenged as we were known (back to the old pub quiz days) played a blinder and won!!! Ok so we had a little help from Jenna and my folks on the end of a few txts but hey - we just saw it as using all available resources!!! The prize - more champagne!!! Just what we (didn't) need!!!

The gang

Food came, and went, then it was disco time!!! Cheese-o-rama into the small hours. Fire works at night fall too. Fantastic day topped off with a late night curry on the way home!!! Hehe. Oh and there seemed to be some discussion amongst the 'older' members of the group about approaching the big three-O. Something epic has to be done to celebrate. Well Daves suggestion of the 30 highest mountains in the world before we are 30 is errr, an interesting one - we'll put it down to the booze I think. But we settled on Kilimanjaro. The highest peak in Africa. There we go - its on record!!! I'm game.

errr, yes.. ROCK AND ROLL!!!

Granny

My Gran passed away just before Christmas. I couldn't make it to the funeral because I was in New Zealand. We decided to delay the spreading of the ashes until i was back in the UK. My Gran wanted her ashes spread by the rocks at the summit of Caer Caradoc near the Shropshire/Welsh borders.

The view was stunning. It was a nice day and a nice way to say goodbye...

Hannahs Wedding - 16th June 2007

It was Hannahs wedding to her man Steve, so the venture lot all got together to attend. Cracking day in Bishops Tachbrook for the ceremony - the weather came good just at the right time. Then it was on to the Glebe Hotel in Barford to celebrate into the wee small hours.

Hannah and Steve - the happy couple

The venture lot

Steve Clews clearly happy at the vast mount of single girls Hannah had invited to the wedding

Claire - all class this girl

Back to the UK - part 1

It had been 2 years to almost the day since I had been back to the UK. And seeing as its such a flippin' long way awa, the fact I had a couple of weddings to cram in, as well as spreading m Grans ashes and various mates to catch up with I decided to make it a 6 week marathon!!!

The flight was long - and thats about all i have to say about that. Apart from somehow I managed to bring 30kg of stuff with me - in one bag!!! AND not get charged excess baggage!!! Wow!!! Anyway...

I arrived on a muggy hot afternoon in London and made for the Pi and Sians house, who kindly put me up for the night amongst the boxes and packaging following their recent move. Tufnell Park - nice area. And it wasn't long before we were off to the pub to sample some real beer. Then it was off to dinner and for me bed - I was shattered after the journey.

Sunday dawned and we were off to Hampstead Heath for a walk and a pub lunch in the sun. Fab. The UK hadn't seemed to have changed much. After a good chin wag I was on the train up to Leicester to see my folks. It was a suprise visit as I had arrived a day early!!!

Plans were then made to head to Cardiff.

I stayed at Tim and Ruths house. It was awesome to catch up with them, and everyone. It was like I had never been away!!! Everyone met at the Pen and Wig. It was a fab night!!!

Owen and Tits

The following day was spent recovering and then prepping for a BBQ.

Owen a little drunk and well done Hudman!!! Nice pants in both cases.

Fun and games ensued at the BBQ culminating in and incident involving cold spray, testicles and a video camera. Well done Stu!!!

It was a top weekend.

I then stayed with Jenna for a few days. It was amazing to see her agian. She has just bought a house so there were few things to be done - starting with the garden.

Marsay

My mate Becky came to stay for the weekend. I used to work with Becky at MWH in Cardiff and she moved to MWH in Nelson about 6 months before came here. Anyway, it was Becky's first proper trip to Auckland so we did the touristy thing.

Kelly Tarltons was the first stop. It is an aquarium and arctic centre. They had penguins in a big snow room. You had to ride a snow cat to go through. Penguins are cool.

This isn't a penguin - its a pyranha!

Then it was onto the aquarium. Stingrays were the main attraction. And it was feeding time when we got there. A lot of effort was put in by the staff to dispell any tales about stingrays in the wake of Steve Irwins death. It was a good show.

Following Kelly Tarltons we heading for the Sky Tower - the tallest tower in the southern hemisphere. It was touch and go whether we would go up as the weather was being typically aucklandish. Raining. But at the last minute it cleared and we made a dash for the summit. Ok so we couldn't see the full 85km claimed visibility but the view, as always, was stunning.

Then it was down to the casino to waste Beckys hard earned cash on the 'pokies'. Why is the person next to you always seems to win?

The it was dinner time at perhaps one of the best restaurants in Auckland. Mai Thai is a fabulous thai place. Then it was to the pub to watch Wales narrowly lose to the Aussies and England get spanked by the Saffas.

Tom, Bryce and me in the pub - suprise suprise!!!

Burglary

My house got broken into last week. Annoyance. The most annoying thing though is the pinching of my paddling kit. Yeah I know I can't paddle for a while (or at all in some peoples eyes) but it is still mighty annoying. Thankfully nothing of great sentimental value was taken, its just the hassle of it all.

News on the Shoulder

Had an ultrasound scan on my shoulder this morning. I have a 'small focus of abnormality involving the left distal supraspinatus tendon.' Which i am told means I have a 'partial thickness articular surface tear.'

Which in english means I have 6 weeks of physio to look forward too and no paddling for 3 months!!!

Fuljames - Easter Weekend

Easter was spent at the famous Fuljames wave in Taupo. It is on the Waikato River, which due to its numerous hydro schemes has hugely variable flow. In order for the wave to work the flow has to be up around 200 cumecs. This happens daily during the week as this is when the businesses in the area need power. Weekends however the flow is just a low base flow. However, thanks to some excellent work and pleading by Nicki we had a 2 days of FULL flow all to ourselves over Easter. We even got granted permission from the local Iwi to camp right above the wave. It was a 30 second walk down some steps to the eddy and some natural hotpools. AWESOME!!!

However there was a problem. The week before, paddling the Kaituna, I buggered my shoulder. However, I was not going to miss out on a rare occasion of paddling the Fuljames wave. It was the site of the first freestyle world champs after all. The wave is pretty sweet. I also deliberately didn't seek medical advice on my shoulder post Kaituna so that i wouldn't be going against any advice this weekend. Of course the Dr's would tell me not to paddle, but then if they never told me, I would be guilt free. Ignorance is bliss.

After hearty breakfast of beans and a few cups of coffee to clear the hangover from the night before, and a dose of ibuprofen for the shoulder, we kitted up and went for a short float down the river above the wave whilst we waited for the flow to optimise.

It was very, very, VERY boily (Bitches boily), which provided endless entertainment in a tiny playboat. Then we hit the wave. The first run down was just a blast through. Then it was to the eddy and onto (hopefully) to rip it up pulling some really sick moves. Well that was the plan. I think I am now world class at mystery move no's 1 through 5!!!

Sadly my rides were relatively short lived. I simply could not take the pain in my shoulder. Easter Sunday was spent playing official camera man, kicking back in the sun, sipping beer (medicinal) and cheering on the spankings dished out by Fuljames at full bore!!!! Excellent weekend!!! Its off to Physio for me!!!