Due to basically having no internet service for much of the trip...and certainly having no time for writing up blog entries when I did, this is now a few weeks old news but in any case...
Saturday brought a trip down to see the mighty Eels against the filthy Broncos. A bus was acquired for the day - Andrew drove us down, participants were the 5 of us, Andrew, Linda, Mick, Margaret and Alex. Went to the Leagues Club for lunch followed by a visit to the Eels store where much stuff was purchased - new sweat shirts for Mindy and me; t-shirt for Naomi; ball for Fiona (but later this became a shared ball) and a scarf for me. Inflatable hands where bought for the girls (thanks Uncle Mick) and so we did our part for giving the team a few $$$.
Before the game, we decided to go for a walk around the stadium. We then were hanging around outside our gate when some of the players started to walk by. A marker was acquired and Angus in his mini-jersey was thrust in front of several players for signing purposes. First Nathan Hindmarsh and Luke Burt, followed a few minutes later by Fui Fui; Daniel Mortimer and Jarryd Hayne! Not a bad little collection in the end. Was on the lookout for Nathan Cayless but I guess he came earlier or used a different entrance.
As for the game...well, the night was a lot of fun but from a league perspective, quite disappointing again. The Eels played poorly and came up short in the end. We were then treated to 2 hours of Angus screaming in the bus on the way home...after the result, I felt much the same way.
Sunday was a lazy day spent with Mick but went along to his local club for some free APL poker. I did OK, and made the final table but in the end, never got the hands when I needed them. However, in good news for the family, Alex went on the win the whole thing so in the end a decent Quirk showing.
Monday was spend at the house getting ready for our Sydney trip on Tuesday...
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Friday, June 25, 2010
Australia - Week 1
First achievement was actually making it here in one piece with 3 kids! Actually they all did fantastically on the flight, all the flights were on time and so we really could not have asked for much more. iPods loaded with movies was a good way to keep the older two in check...breast feeding seemed to work for Angus! Also, the first drive on the other side of the road was quite uneventful whihc is nice, especially when doing it after about 3 hours sleep on the flight!
Upon arrival it took us a few days to adjust to the time zones. The kids were waking up at 4:00am for the first few nights but are now on Aussie time. So far...some relative visiting and spending time with my mother have been the main activities. I did go to see the Eels play the Knights in the rain on Monday night - a fun night but losing in the last two minutes was not a part of the plan.
Have tried to consume as many pies as humanly possible. Consuming beer and Solo whenever possible. Other junk foods and assorted crap being thrown down at a rate of knots. Will seriously need a purge when I get back to the USA but that is something to worry about later.
Managed to catch up with a couple of (close to) Newcastle based friends. Evo - an old cricket mate from Richmond - works in Newcastle on occasion so we caught up for lunch. Maybe can arrange another meeting involving beer in a few weeks. Daniel and Alethia also came up during the week - always good to catch up.
Last night we went to my brother's house for a BBQ and some beer. Fat Yak was recommended to me before the trip and it has not disappointed. Of course, several other brews were sampled as well last night. A lot of "James" beer (Bogues and Squire). Today we are off in a bus to see the Eels play the Broncos in Parramatta. Kids will be kitted out in blue and gold...just hope the rain stays away...and we don't blow this one!
Next week...still unknown - maybe a couple of days in Sydney to catch up with some people but nothing planned as yet. Much beer and many pies in my future...that is for sure!
Upon arrival it took us a few days to adjust to the time zones. The kids were waking up at 4:00am for the first few nights but are now on Aussie time. So far...some relative visiting and spending time with my mother have been the main activities. I did go to see the Eels play the Knights in the rain on Monday night - a fun night but losing in the last two minutes was not a part of the plan.
Have tried to consume as many pies as humanly possible. Consuming beer and Solo whenever possible. Other junk foods and assorted crap being thrown down at a rate of knots. Will seriously need a purge when I get back to the USA but that is something to worry about later.
Managed to catch up with a couple of (close to) Newcastle based friends. Evo - an old cricket mate from Richmond - works in Newcastle on occasion so we caught up for lunch. Maybe can arrange another meeting involving beer in a few weeks. Daniel and Alethia also came up during the week - always good to catch up.
Last night we went to my brother's house for a BBQ and some beer. Fat Yak was recommended to me before the trip and it has not disappointed. Of course, several other brews were sampled as well last night. A lot of "James" beer (Bogues and Squire). Today we are off in a bus to see the Eels play the Broncos in Parramatta. Kids will be kitted out in blue and gold...just hope the rain stays away...and we don't blow this one!
Next week...still unknown - maybe a couple of days in Sydney to catch up with some people but nothing planned as yet. Much beer and many pies in my future...that is for sure!
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Australia!
We are close to being ready for our trip on Friday. I think I remember Mindy saying something about packing some clothes and things for the kids...so I am assuming that is done. My main focus is getting content downloaded to our new Apple devices. In addition to Mindy's iPad and Naomi's iPod Touch, we decided that with the looming trip, it would be quite tough for Fiona to sit there and watch Naomi play on her iPod for 24 hours. Alternatively, it would be quite tough for Mindy to sit there and watch Fiona play on her iPad for 24 hours! So we brought forward her birthday present and got her one the other day. However, that is not all... Mindy has been hitting the gym and the MP3 player she had been using had some issues with it, so we decided to get her an iPod Nano. And, not wanting to feel left out, I was eying the 160GB capacity of the classic, so with a shrug and a "what the hell", decided to get one of these for myself. Since then, the computer has been running 24x7 ripping CDs for everyone to load. Also, this week, we have been ripping some DVDs for the girls to watch while on the trip.
Looking forward to the holiday there. Not sure what we will be doing. The only thing that is somewhat planned is a trip to watch the Eels play on the 26th. Certainly a trip to Sydney will be happening at some point and I think Mindy has been sorting out some other options as well. Prime focus of the trip is visiting family, friends, drinking beer and eating pies. Pretty sure all of this will not be an issue.
Looking forward to the holiday there. Not sure what we will be doing. The only thing that is somewhat planned is a trip to watch the Eels play on the 26th. Certainly a trip to Sydney will be happening at some point and I think Mindy has been sorting out some other options as well. Prime focus of the trip is visiting family, friends, drinking beer and eating pies. Pretty sure all of this will not be an issue.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Harley-Davidson
Spent the last couple of days at Harley-Davidson in Milwaukee and will be back there next week. Quite an interesting place. Jeans are the dress code and Harley shirts are everywhere. Cool cubicle decorations...instead of the toothpaste, soap etc from Colgate, the place is adorned with helmets and fuel tanks. Nice section of the parking lot devoted to Harleys of course. Apparently the employees get a 20% discount on buying a Harley...every year! Not a bad benefit, although my wimpy self you take advantage of this benefit exactly zero times.
Was supposed to be home today but weather meant my flight was cancelled. So had to hop a BUS to Chicago and have a mid-morning flight out tomorrow :-( .
Was supposed to be home today but weather meant my flight was cancelled. So had to hop a BUS to Chicago and have a mid-morning flight out tomorrow :-( .
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Pearl Jam - MSG
On Thursday night I saw Pearl Jam at Madison Square Garden. A fantastic show and a great set list, probably only topped by MSG the next night (a show I sadly could not get tickets for)...anyway... From the opening number they were on fire, hitting song after song on their way to a 2.5 hour set. Highlights...Elderly Woman, last Exit, Jeremy and Do The Evolution.
Many drinks were had pre-show with Tim. Luckily made it home after falling asleep on the train and waking up one station before I had to get off. Friday was a struggle, not getting much sympathy (deservedly so) from Mindy and the kids.
Here is the set list...
Set 1
Sometimes
Breakerfall
Last Exit
Animal
The Fixer
Severed Hand
Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town
I Am Mine
Comatose
Force of Nature
Even Flow
Low Light
Down
I Got Id
Army Reserve
Insignificance
Unthought Known
Do The Evolution
Encore 1
The End
Lukin
Just Breathe
You Are
Love Reign O'er Me
State Of Love And Trust
Once
Porch
Encore 2
Jeremy
Leash
Mankind
Crazy Mary
I Believe In Miracles
Alive
Indifference
Many drinks were had pre-show with Tim. Luckily made it home after falling asleep on the train and waking up one station before I had to get off. Friday was a struggle, not getting much sympathy (deservedly so) from Mindy and the kids.
Here is the set list...
Set 1
Sometimes
Breakerfall
Last Exit
Animal
The Fixer
Severed Hand
Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town
I Am Mine
Comatose
Force of Nature
Even Flow
Low Light
Down
I Got Id
Army Reserve
Insignificance
Unthought Known
Do The Evolution
Encore 1
The End
Lukin
Just Breathe
You Are
Love Reign O'er Me
State Of Love And Trust
Once
Porch
Encore 2
Jeremy
Leash
Mankind
Crazy Mary
I Believe In Miracles
Alive
Indifference
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Kasper
The festival guest at Philly was Michael Kasprowicz. Personally (and not just because he is an Aussie) I think he was one of the best guests we have had. Getting to play against him was great. But it all comes down to how well he can speak. Derek Underwood was a great guy and nice to chat to in the bar...but his speech was deathly dull. Kasper walked the line perfectly providing insight, comedy and anecdotes in the right proportion.
Andrew Symonds is apparently quite the character. Kasper told a couple of stories about comments he would make from time to time. Apparently Andy Bichel had a couple of letters written on his bat: "FT". The 3 of them were there one day and Symonds saw this and asked what it stood for. Bichel replied: "Focus and Technique...it is just something that helps me think about the important things when I am batting". Symonds then replied: "I think I would have 'SW" ". "What would that stand for?"..."Swing Hard" was the reply.
He also spoke of the 2005 Ashes and the mood in the dressing room. He said it was the first time that "luck" was being mentioned in an Australian dressing room. There was also a subtle change in tactics when we beat India over there for the first time in forever. Instead of setting typical Aussie fields with 3 slips and a gully, bowling at off stump, they played to India's strengths. Block off mid wicket and mid on and bowl at the stumps and force them to change. The results would indicate this was quite effective.
After the speech, got a cricket ball signed and staggered home...many bottles of Mad Dog wine was consumed and a lot of laughs were had. We also lined up Kasper and his wife for a dinner in NY when they were visiting the next week...
So Thursday night, a week later, and I went into NYC to meet Kasper and his wife Lindsey for drinks and dinner. What a great evening! Drinks were had at a small pub in the Greenwich Village and then we had a private room for our dinner. About 6 Mad Dogs, a few partners and the Kaspers. I managed to get a prime spot next to him and a great night of questions about cricket and everything else was had. For me the highlight was talking to him about captaincy. Steve Waugh was named as the best captain he played under and it was clear that there was a little resentment about Mark Taylor's "18 month form slump". Not that anything bad was said, but it was clear that it was not just the fans who were getting pissed off by his constant selection, despite him not being able to score a run.
It ended up being a very late night to get home but certainly well worth the lack of sleep. Not sure who will be next up for Philly but can't wait for 2011!
Andrew Symonds is apparently quite the character. Kasper told a couple of stories about comments he would make from time to time. Apparently Andy Bichel had a couple of letters written on his bat: "FT". The 3 of them were there one day and Symonds saw this and asked what it stood for. Bichel replied: "Focus and Technique...it is just something that helps me think about the important things when I am batting". Symonds then replied: "I think I would have 'SW" ". "What would that stand for?"..."Swing Hard" was the reply.
He also spoke of the 2005 Ashes and the mood in the dressing room. He said it was the first time that "luck" was being mentioned in an Australian dressing room. There was also a subtle change in tactics when we beat India over there for the first time in forever. Instead of setting typical Aussie fields with 3 slips and a gully, bowling at off stump, they played to India's strengths. Block off mid wicket and mid on and bowl at the stumps and force them to change. The results would indicate this was quite effective.
After the speech, got a cricket ball signed and staggered home...many bottles of Mad Dog wine was consumed and a lot of laughs were had. We also lined up Kasper and his wife for a dinner in NY when they were visiting the next week...
So Thursday night, a week later, and I went into NYC to meet Kasper and his wife Lindsey for drinks and dinner. What a great evening! Drinks were had at a small pub in the Greenwich Village and then we had a private room for our dinner. About 6 Mad Dogs, a few partners and the Kaspers. I managed to get a prime spot next to him and a great night of questions about cricket and everything else was had. For me the highlight was talking to him about captaincy. Steve Waugh was named as the best captain he played under and it was clear that there was a little resentment about Mark Taylor's "18 month form slump". Not that anything bad was said, but it was clear that it was not just the fans who were getting pissed off by his constant selection, despite him not being able to score a run.
It ended up being a very late night to get home but certainly well worth the lack of sleep. Not sure who will be next up for Philly but can't wait for 2011!
Monday, May 10, 2010
Philly 2010
The last few weeks have been really busy around here, partly due to work issues, and partly self inflicted. I have finally finished up at Colgate. After 3 years, literally, they ran our of money! Perhaps there will be an opportunity to return in the future, we will see. This did mean that for the past few weeks, it was a mad scramble to wrap everything up and to transfer all of my responsibilities to Colgate people.
Now to the fun, self-inflicted stuff...
Last week was the Philly Cricket Festival. We had a decent side going down there, full of drinkers and a few people with some cricket ability so we had all areas covered there. There were always going to be 3 games that were the tough ones in our group...Littleton; "Dream Cricket" and Toronto. Our first game was against Littleton so we had to be quick out of the gates. Additionally, I was the captain of the squad for the festival so there was a lot of additional stuff to think of.
The format of the festival was T20 this year, so we had to make sure that the runs were coming quickly and we remained focused on setting a decent score. We actually batted really well in this game. Lots of people chipped in with some quick knocks and we finished our innings 9 down for 151. I came in in the later overs and scored 14 from about 10 balls and was quite happy with how things were going. Things started well for us in the field, getting a wicket of the first ball! A great catch a few overs later saw us well on top and it was only a matter of time before the game would be wrapped up (or so it seemed). Then they began smashing us to all parts of the ground, not only keeping up with the run rate...but actually were ahead of it. It came down to the last two overs, with them having one good batsman left. The needed 10 runs from 12 balls and Boyke delivered a great over, only conceeding two runs! Even better, their good batsman was down the non-striker's end. First ball was a dot that popped off a length and caught our keeper under the chin making him lose the ball...so they ran a bye!! So not only, not a dot ball...but their hitter now was on strike. However, Coatsey knocked him over next ball and we all knew that would wrap it up for us. In the end, they got to 148...so a great start.
Game two was against "Dream Cricket", a group of 16-21 year olds with a couple of old heads to run things. We again batted first, I did nothing in this one but we got to what was another decent total - 131. At one point in the chase it looked like they were going to make it interesting but we held them under the rate for long enough to wrap things up and in the end, won by about 15 runs.
The afternoon game on Friday was against Philadelphia, a weak side but they had added the festival guest Michael Kasprowicz to their team for this game. The Aussies in our side all wanted a crack at him and so we were all thrown into the top 4 for this game. He was not bowling quickly but was accurate and swinging the ball around. I got a single, squirting one through square leg but as kept on the crease by his lenght and movement and he bowled a cutter that beat the bat and took out my off stump. Great experience to face him however, a really nice bloke too. The game did not go so well. We found a way to play down to the oppo and also, were giving all in our squad a chance to get a game so there were some of the better players who were sitting out. In the end, too many runs conceeded with 3 bad overs cost us the game.
Toronto was next up and we knew this was the biggest game for us to play. They had several former first class players in their ranks and 4 people who are current members of the Canadian national side. They had us very overmatched but one interesting thing happened during their innings. There were strict festival rules regarding getting through the game as they were playing 3 matches per day. Mid way through their innings a wicket fell and nobody was ready to come in. Also, nobody was even too worried about padding up. The umpires had already given us a hurry up for our overs and were then telling us that they have 90 seconds to get to the middle (festival rule) or he could be out if we appealed. Then one thing happened that really pissed me off. They stepped inside the boundary rope and arrogantly stated, we are on the field of play, so we are OK with the time. A quick poll of the team and we agreed that we should put him on his way, so I waited until the next player had begin his walk to the middle (one of their 1st Class players) and appealed. Never been a part of a timed out before... When I batted (and got a duck) I received all manner of abuse from their team (as was expected). Later that night their team walked into the bar quite late and I told them they only had 90 seconds to get a drink. I think they saw the funny side by then...also, since they won the game, it was a non-issue.
The rest of the festival was then focused on getting everyone a game and drinking. We certainly did our best at this!
Now to the fun, self-inflicted stuff...
Last week was the Philly Cricket Festival. We had a decent side going down there, full of drinkers and a few people with some cricket ability so we had all areas covered there. There were always going to be 3 games that were the tough ones in our group...Littleton; "Dream Cricket" and Toronto. Our first game was against Littleton so we had to be quick out of the gates. Additionally, I was the captain of the squad for the festival so there was a lot of additional stuff to think of.
The format of the festival was T20 this year, so we had to make sure that the runs were coming quickly and we remained focused on setting a decent score. We actually batted really well in this game. Lots of people chipped in with some quick knocks and we finished our innings 9 down for 151. I came in in the later overs and scored 14 from about 10 balls and was quite happy with how things were going. Things started well for us in the field, getting a wicket of the first ball! A great catch a few overs later saw us well on top and it was only a matter of time before the game would be wrapped up (or so it seemed). Then they began smashing us to all parts of the ground, not only keeping up with the run rate...but actually were ahead of it. It came down to the last two overs, with them having one good batsman left. The needed 10 runs from 12 balls and Boyke delivered a great over, only conceeding two runs! Even better, their good batsman was down the non-striker's end. First ball was a dot that popped off a length and caught our keeper under the chin making him lose the ball...so they ran a bye!! So not only, not a dot ball...but their hitter now was on strike. However, Coatsey knocked him over next ball and we all knew that would wrap it up for us. In the end, they got to 148...so a great start.
Game two was against "Dream Cricket", a group of 16-21 year olds with a couple of old heads to run things. We again batted first, I did nothing in this one but we got to what was another decent total - 131. At one point in the chase it looked like they were going to make it interesting but we held them under the rate for long enough to wrap things up and in the end, won by about 15 runs.
The afternoon game on Friday was against Philadelphia, a weak side but they had added the festival guest Michael Kasprowicz to their team for this game. The Aussies in our side all wanted a crack at him and so we were all thrown into the top 4 for this game. He was not bowling quickly but was accurate and swinging the ball around. I got a single, squirting one through square leg but as kept on the crease by his lenght and movement and he bowled a cutter that beat the bat and took out my off stump. Great experience to face him however, a really nice bloke too. The game did not go so well. We found a way to play down to the oppo and also, were giving all in our squad a chance to get a game so there were some of the better players who were sitting out. In the end, too many runs conceeded with 3 bad overs cost us the game.
Toronto was next up and we knew this was the biggest game for us to play. They had several former first class players in their ranks and 4 people who are current members of the Canadian national side. They had us very overmatched but one interesting thing happened during their innings. There were strict festival rules regarding getting through the game as they were playing 3 matches per day. Mid way through their innings a wicket fell and nobody was ready to come in. Also, nobody was even too worried about padding up. The umpires had already given us a hurry up for our overs and were then telling us that they have 90 seconds to get to the middle (festival rule) or he could be out if we appealed. Then one thing happened that really pissed me off. They stepped inside the boundary rope and arrogantly stated, we are on the field of play, so we are OK with the time. A quick poll of the team and we agreed that we should put him on his way, so I waited until the next player had begin his walk to the middle (one of their 1st Class players) and appealed. Never been a part of a timed out before... When I batted (and got a duck) I received all manner of abuse from their team (as was expected). Later that night their team walked into the bar quite late and I told them they only had 90 seconds to get a drink. I think they saw the funny side by then...also, since they won the game, it was a non-issue.
The rest of the festival was then focused on getting everyone a game and drinking. We certainly did our best at this!
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