One sign that we were getting close to an election in NZ was the announcement a couple of weeks ago that the RNZAF's retired Skyhawks have been sold (link). Again.
Since they were retired without replacement in 2001, announcing a deal has been struck to off-load them has become something of a pre-election tradition, with this being the fourth time it has been made, and the third in the run up to polling day. Here is the 2003 version, the 2005 version, and the 2008 version :)
I'm optimistically thinking this time it looks like the deal might actually fly. That they haven't sold yet isn't because they are rubbish or no-one wanted them. There have been other erm, issues at play.
In the meantime back in April the government decided enough was enough and started dispersing some Skyhawks to museums (link). In addition some of the also redundant Aermacchi jet trainers will be going to museums, as well as the now twice retired Strikemasters the Macchis replaced (after retirement from flying some Strikemasters were retained to train ground personnel).
The Museum Of Transport And Technology in Auckland got their Skyhawk about a month ago, and reassembling it for display looked something like this:
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
At least it isn't "Wellywood"
(image sourced from Stuff.co.nz)
So the people have spoken (sort of, since "No Sign" wasn't an option in the public vote), and "Blown away" will soon be adorning the hill at the northern end of the airport. The crowd isn't exactly going wild.It isn't the option I voted for, and I don't really like it. It plays to and reinforces an outsider's and negative stereotype of the city (tellingly it was designed by people based in Auckland), and just seems a bit meh. It does tie in to the nearby collection of kinetic sculptures, and isn't the godawful cringe that "Wellywood" would have been, but that is about all the good things I can say about it. Uninspiring.
The second alternative option "Eye of the Taniwha", I thought was much better, not only being more creative and actually designed by a Wellingtonian, but also specific to its exact location.
(image sourced from Stuff.co.nz)
In explaining it you could have told a great story, how Ngake the Taniwha escaped to the sea, while poor Whataitai got stuck (link). I would have loved relating that to visitors.With "Blown Away" pretty much all you get to say is "Yeah, it gets a bit windy sometimes".
Who knows, it might grow on me and be affectionately regarded one day.
Meanwhile, in another part of town, the Ian Curtis graffiti I've blogged about here and there is doing a good cheshire cat impersonation (link).
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Things annoying me about the election
The first general election I voted in was in 1996. I've voted in every one since then, seldom for the same people twice, and mindful that democracy is a privilege, will be voting again next week.
But while the ability to vote is a precious one, gee the weeks leading up to an election can make it hard to appreciate.
Things annoying me about this election in particular:
-"Vote for me/us" billboards everywhere.
-Vandalising of said billboards by people who think they are being funny or making a point. Really they are doing neither; they are just being a dick. When such vandalism is by a well organised activist element of a political party it is even more dickish (and disappointing too), endorsed by the party itself or not. Covering up someone else's free speech with your own is not free speech.
-Media manufactured scandals that distract from the real issues, and give anyone not involved the chance to display hypocritically righteous faux outrage, all the while being grateful it wasn't them being recorded.
-People on social media and other public forums saying "I'm voting for X because I love NZ/democracy/kittens etc" or "If you vote for X you hate NZ/democracy/kittens etc". I don't care who you vote for, just as who I vote for is none of your business.
-The idea that a giant walking ego in a suit might for the third time have the power as an individual to determine the make-up of the next government. Winston Peters is a one-man indictment of the flaws of MMP voting.
-The fact that while I like some policy elements of most parties, they all have policies I don't like enough to make me not want to vote for them, meaning I don't feel particularly represented, and thus cynical about the whole thing. Also while I might not be a particular fan of the incumbents, the opposition don't exactly fill me with confidence either (NZ politics has been lacking in genuinely inspiring individuals and policy for a couple of decades now).
Hopefully I will have made my mind up by next week.
But while the ability to vote is a precious one, gee the weeks leading up to an election can make it hard to appreciate.
Things annoying me about this election in particular:
-"Vote for me/us" billboards everywhere.
-Vandalising of said billboards by people who think they are being funny or making a point. Really they are doing neither; they are just being a dick. When such vandalism is by a well organised activist element of a political party it is even more dickish (and disappointing too), endorsed by the party itself or not. Covering up someone else's free speech with your own is not free speech.
-Media manufactured scandals that distract from the real issues, and give anyone not involved the chance to display hypocritically righteous faux outrage, all the while being grateful it wasn't them being recorded.
-People on social media and other public forums saying "I'm voting for X because I love NZ/democracy/kittens etc" or "If you vote for X you hate NZ/democracy/kittens etc". I don't care who you vote for, just as who I vote for is none of your business.
-The idea that a giant walking ego in a suit might for the third time have the power as an individual to determine the make-up of the next government. Winston Peters is a one-man indictment of the flaws of MMP voting.
-The fact that while I like some policy elements of most parties, they all have policies I don't like enough to make me not want to vote for them, meaning I don't feel particularly represented, and thus cynical about the whole thing. Also while I might not be a particular fan of the incumbents, the opposition don't exactly fill me with confidence either (NZ politics has been lacking in genuinely inspiring individuals and policy for a couple of decades now).
Hopefully I will have made my mind up by next week.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Rememberance Day Airshow
Some shots from The Vintage Aviator Ltd's rememberance day show at Masterton on Saturday. Despite it being spring the weather put a dampener on both flying and photography, with low cloud, cool winds and passing showers.
Airfield Rabbit Control Manager
The low cloudbase meant the resident Corsair stayed on the ground, which was a pity since the damp air could have made for some great vapour effects like these.
I see things like this and think, "this really is the future". I like the technology contrast between the 1910's and the 2010's:
Triplane vs Triplane (Sopwith and Fokker):
Airfield Rabbit Control Manager
The low cloudbase meant the resident Corsair stayed on the ground, which was a pity since the damp air could have made for some great vapour effects like these.
I see things like this and think, "this really is the future". I like the technology contrast between the 1910's and the 2010's:
Triplane vs Triplane (Sopwith and Fokker):
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Monday, November 14, 2011
Look what I made!
Listening to: Chemical Brothers - Surrender (1999)
I don't know if it is just me, but every time I see diggers parked up for the night like this atop a pile of spoil they have just created, I think of a kid on a beach proudly displaying their work :)
I don't know if it is just me, but every time I see diggers parked up for the night like this atop a pile of spoil they have just created, I think of a kid on a beach proudly displaying their work :)
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Elevens
Forgot to post this the other day. Would have looked really good if posted at 11:11pm on the 11th :)
Tuesday, November 08, 2011
Guy Fawkes
Shots from the crowd on the waterfront of the annual November 5th public fireworks display last Saturday night:
Monday, November 07, 2011
Letterbox malfunction
Awoke on Saturday morning to find we were having some trouble with our droid letterbox. The "Where the feck is it?" kind:
It was definitely there on Friday evening when we came home. Surmising that "some p***k has nicked it!" (pretty much a direct quote), we resigned ourselves to searching the neighbourhood for our beloved sentinel. We didn't have to go far. It was on the doorstep, somewhat worse for wear:
We can only surmise that some passing enthusiastic young ruffian/scallywag took a shine to it (and who wouldn't, it is a damn pragmatically sexy letterbox) in the middle of the night and decided to have their vandalous way with it. Presumably it then got tossed aside before some kind neighbour found and returned it. It wouldn't have been hard to figure out where it came from, being now the only house on the street sans postal device.
Naturally in the way of these things, it required complete disassembly before we could rebuild better and stronger six-million-dollar-letterbox style. Fixing the loose flap in particular was something we had been meaning to do for a while anyway.
The glass of sav isn't a compulsory piece of DIY carpentry repair equipment, but does make the job more enjoyable on a nice spring evening.
And a bit of hammering, screwing, levering, drilling and nailing later we had it back at it's post.
I tempted to line it with sheet steel to make it a bit more vandal proof (and maybe some electrification, but that might annoy the posties a bit, and posties aren't people you want to annoy), but Fi and I opted for the logistically easier option of bigger nails instead.
It was definitely there on Friday evening when we came home. Surmising that "some p***k has nicked it!" (pretty much a direct quote), we resigned ourselves to searching the neighbourhood for our beloved sentinel. We didn't have to go far. It was on the doorstep, somewhat worse for wear:
We can only surmise that some passing enthusiastic young ruffian/scallywag took a shine to it (and who wouldn't, it is a damn pragmatically sexy letterbox) in the middle of the night and decided to have their vandalous way with it. Presumably it then got tossed aside before some kind neighbour found and returned it. It wouldn't have been hard to figure out where it came from, being now the only house on the street sans postal device.Naturally in the way of these things, it required complete disassembly before we could rebuild better and stronger six-million-dollar-letterbox style. Fixing the loose flap in particular was something we had been meaning to do for a while anyway.
The glass of sav isn't a compulsory piece of DIY carpentry repair equipment, but does make the job more enjoyable on a nice spring evening.And a bit of hammering, screwing, levering, drilling and nailing later we had it back at it's post.
I tempted to line it with sheet steel to make it a bit more vandal proof (and maybe some electrification, but that might annoy the posties a bit, and posties aren't people you want to annoy), but Fi and I opted for the logistically easier option of bigger nails instead.
Friday, November 04, 2011
Big Bangs
One of the more arcane things I am mildly interested in is The Bomb, most likely due to being an impressionable pre-teen in an era when it's use was considered a strong possibility (how I never learned to stop worrying and love The Bomb is another post in itself). While not a lay expert by any means (probably a good thing), I do know a public-domain bit about how they work, how they might be used, and their history.
Which is why it was nice to see a story last week (link) about a quietly ongoing long-term process to get rid of a few of them, with the dismantling of the last B-53 gravity bomb in the US stockpile. While I am interested in them, I am not in love with them either. They are too scary, and stockpiles being ever reduced in the post-cold war era is a good thing for all of us. The active warhead numbers quoted in the article are still too high, but are now only moderately insane, in comparison to the full-tilt barking levels they attained at the height of the arms race a few decades ago.
While missiles are arguably flashier and higher tech, old fashioned free fall bombs still remain in service (and will be for the foreseeable future), not least because a bomber carrying one can be recalled; once a missile is on its way, you had better be sure you made the right decision to send it :).
The B-53 from what I can tell was intended to be used as a bunker buster, delivered in what is called a laydown attack by an aircraft flying directly over the target, with a descent slowed by parachute to give the aircraft time to escape. Detonating on the ground, the 9 megaton warhead would generate shockwaves or dig a big enough crater to destroy whatever was below it. An identical size warhead probably intended for the same purpose used to be mounted on some US ICBMs.
Contrary to some popular beliefs, while the strategic weapons deployed today are many times as powerful as those used against Japan in 1945, the trend for some time has been for warhead yields to decrease, as delivery systems got more and more accurate and reliable. The two atomic bombs used in anger are estimated to have yielded roughly between 12 and 20 Kilotons, while modern warheads seem to range between around 100 Kilotons to around 1 Megaton (Kiloton = 1000 tons of TNT, Megaton 1,000,000).
At 9 Mt, some sources have been referring to the B-53 as a 'Monster' size weapon, but in a historical context it isn't really. While it does represent a certain class (big) of weapon and for some time it was the most powerful weapon in the US arsenal, it isn't the biggest they ever fielded. That was another long retired gravity bomb, the B-41, rated at a theoretical 25 Mt (theoretical because it was never live tested at that size). In addition from what I can gather the Russians had a few 20 Mts warheads deployed on ICBMs until as recently as a couple of years ago, and fielded a few 25 Mts back in the bad old days. Hiroshima and Nagasaki were bad enough, but the sheer power of larger weapons like these is hard to comprehend, especially when it is reasonably likely that had they ever been used there would likely have been more than one arriving at a target to ensure its destruction.
In all the reportage about the B-53 dismantling, the significance of the particular date seems to have been missed. Fifty years ago, in late October 1961, the largest bomb of them all was exploded. Too large in every respect to be a usable weapon, the Tsar Bomba was created as a propaganda stunt by the Soviet regime, pretty much because they could. The weapon was capable of a mind-bendingly Strangeloveian 100 Mt, but was scaled down to a merely surreal 50 Mt for safety reasons (allowing the aircrew on the delivery aircraft to survive, and not causing blast damage to or irradiating nearby countries mostly.
Here is what the fireball looked like to a heavily filtered camera just after detonation (you would be blinded using the naked eye, in addition to being exposed to potential 3rd degree burns on exposed skin up to 100km away from it according to some sources):
(image from Wikipedia, originally copyright to the government of the USSR I expect)
Doesn't look like much, until you remember the diameter of that fireball is measured in kilometers (about 8 according to most sources).
Which is why it was nice to see a story last week (link) about a quietly ongoing long-term process to get rid of a few of them, with the dismantling of the last B-53 gravity bomb in the US stockpile. While I am interested in them, I am not in love with them either. They are too scary, and stockpiles being ever reduced in the post-cold war era is a good thing for all of us. The active warhead numbers quoted in the article are still too high, but are now only moderately insane, in comparison to the full-tilt barking levels they attained at the height of the arms race a few decades ago.
While missiles are arguably flashier and higher tech, old fashioned free fall bombs still remain in service (and will be for the foreseeable future), not least because a bomber carrying one can be recalled; once a missile is on its way, you had better be sure you made the right decision to send it :).The B-53 from what I can tell was intended to be used as a bunker buster, delivered in what is called a laydown attack by an aircraft flying directly over the target, with a descent slowed by parachute to give the aircraft time to escape. Detonating on the ground, the 9 megaton warhead would generate shockwaves or dig a big enough crater to destroy whatever was below it. An identical size warhead probably intended for the same purpose used to be mounted on some US ICBMs.
Contrary to some popular beliefs, while the strategic weapons deployed today are many times as powerful as those used against Japan in 1945, the trend for some time has been for warhead yields to decrease, as delivery systems got more and more accurate and reliable. The two atomic bombs used in anger are estimated to have yielded roughly between 12 and 20 Kilotons, while modern warheads seem to range between around 100 Kilotons to around 1 Megaton (Kiloton = 1000 tons of TNT, Megaton 1,000,000).
At 9 Mt, some sources have been referring to the B-53 as a 'Monster' size weapon, but in a historical context it isn't really. While it does represent a certain class (big) of weapon and for some time it was the most powerful weapon in the US arsenal, it isn't the biggest they ever fielded. That was another long retired gravity bomb, the B-41, rated at a theoretical 25 Mt (theoretical because it was never live tested at that size). In addition from what I can gather the Russians had a few 20 Mts warheads deployed on ICBMs until as recently as a couple of years ago, and fielded a few 25 Mts back in the bad old days. Hiroshima and Nagasaki were bad enough, but the sheer power of larger weapons like these is hard to comprehend, especially when it is reasonably likely that had they ever been used there would likely have been more than one arriving at a target to ensure its destruction.
In all the reportage about the B-53 dismantling, the significance of the particular date seems to have been missed. Fifty years ago, in late October 1961, the largest bomb of them all was exploded. Too large in every respect to be a usable weapon, the Tsar Bomba was created as a propaganda stunt by the Soviet regime, pretty much because they could. The weapon was capable of a mind-bendingly Strangeloveian 100 Mt, but was scaled down to a merely surreal 50 Mt for safety reasons (allowing the aircrew on the delivery aircraft to survive, and not causing blast damage to or irradiating nearby countries mostly.
Here is what the fireball looked like to a heavily filtered camera just after detonation (you would be blinded using the naked eye, in addition to being exposed to potential 3rd degree burns on exposed skin up to 100km away from it according to some sources):
(image from Wikipedia, originally copyright to the government of the USSR I expect)Thursday, October 27, 2011
Ads not like they used to be
I've been revisiting the world famous in NZ mid 80's Hilux ads after randomly discovering them on youtube.
This one was apparently banned, although I clearly remember seeing it screen at around the time it would have come out.
I like how Scotty's tunnel 'shortcut' getting from Kent Terrace to Thorndon via the Mt Vic Bus Tunnel is in completely the opposite direction they need to go :)
Bringing the fine dynasty of Hilux ads up to date is the brand new 2011 version:
While it is light years ahead in concept and execution, I think I prefer the 80's ones in that they make me want to buy the truck more. And just how is that chimp managing to use an airbrush in the slipstream like that?
I know. Rambo'd up pig driving a tooled up motorcycle with a talking chimp in the sidecar, and it is the airbrushing I call out for being unconvincing...
This one was apparently banned, although I clearly remember seeing it screen at around the time it would have come out.
I like how Scotty's tunnel 'shortcut' getting from Kent Terrace to Thorndon via the Mt Vic Bus Tunnel is in completely the opposite direction they need to go :)
Bringing the fine dynasty of Hilux ads up to date is the brand new 2011 version:
While it is light years ahead in concept and execution, I think I prefer the 80's ones in that they make me want to buy the truck more. And just how is that chimp managing to use an airbrush in the slipstream like that?
I know. Rambo'd up pig driving a tooled up motorcycle with a talking chimp in the sidecar, and it is the airbrushing I call out for being unconvincing...
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Smugly Blissful
Saw this the other day, and am in a grumpy mood anyway, so am taking it out on the internet:
Makes as least as much sense as an invisible omniscient omnipresent being creating everything out of nothing on a whim. No, in fact it makes more, since it even though the statement is a profoundly over simplistic generalisation the theory it mocks is backed up by repeatable observation and experimentation. Y'know, freaking actual science, something I bet the authors and propagators of this piece have little useful understanding of. Anyone who argues "Evolution is just a theory anyway" usually needs to brush up on the scientific definition of "theory". It is a bit more strict than the common one.
I have no general issue with religion, I really don't, but when it gets all "scientists, what do they know?" anti-science like this (aside from the literally holier-than-thou "my sect is better than your sect" BS that screws up everything it touches), it really pisses me off. Science and religion can co-exist, if only the fundies will let them.
Makes as least as much sense as an invisible omniscient omnipresent being creating everything out of nothing on a whim. No, in fact it makes more, since it even though the statement is a profoundly over simplistic generalisation the theory it mocks is backed up by repeatable observation and experimentation. Y'know, freaking actual science, something I bet the authors and propagators of this piece have little useful understanding of. Anyone who argues "Evolution is just a theory anyway" usually needs to brush up on the scientific definition of "theory". It is a bit more strict than the common one.I have no general issue with religion, I really don't, but when it gets all "scientists, what do they know?" anti-science like this (aside from the literally holier-than-thou "my sect is better than your sect" BS that screws up everything it touches), it really pisses me off. Science and religion can co-exist, if only the fundies will let them.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Officially best in the world again
While my relationship with rugby can be love-hate at times, after a very hard fought and too-close-to-call-until-it-was-over final on Sunday night, this was a pretty sweet moment to savour:
This is my favourite press pic from the night, Corey Jane and Israel Dagg making confetti angels (source NZ Herald), and summing up the mixture of joy and relief felt by All Black fans everywhere after hanging on to win a low scoring game by a single point.
While it wasn't the prettiest game to watch, it is nice to be able to say we are World Champions again, especially if like me you are old enough to remember the last time we won it, at the same ground on a winter afternoon in 1987:
And this, for anyone interested, including the muppets at the IRB who are discussing fining the French team for technically breaking the rules by crossing the half-way line, is a perfectly acceptable, nay encouraged, response to the challenge of the haka.
And to their credit, the French took some beating, despite most pre-game predictions, making the game anyone's to lose right up until full time.
This is my favourite press pic from the night, Corey Jane and Israel Dagg making confetti angels (source NZ Herald), and summing up the mixture of joy and relief felt by All Black fans everywhere after hanging on to win a low scoring game by a single point.
While it wasn't the prettiest game to watch, it is nice to be able to say we are World Champions again, especially if like me you are old enough to remember the last time we won it, at the same ground on a winter afternoon in 1987:
And this, for anyone interested, including the muppets at the IRB who are discussing fining the French team for technically breaking the rules by crossing the half-way line, is a perfectly acceptable, nay encouraged, response to the challenge of the haka.And to their credit, the French took some beating, despite most pre-game predictions, making the game anyone's to lose right up until full time.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Do you have a flag? *
Spotted in the stupormarket carpark this morning:
One of the things I have liked about the RWC is the car flags, from little window ones to full size national flags stretched across bonnets. They haven't usually been as nth level as this one though.
* gag reference
One of the things I have liked about the RWC is the car flags, from little window ones to full size national flags stretched across bonnets. They haven't usually been as nth level as this one though.* gag reference
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Lights over Wellington
More or less coincident with the World Cup, bright lights have been piercing the skies above our fair city. I thought it was something to do with the event itself, but after a bit of digging I found it sort of is and isn't.
It is a promotion for Victoria University (press blurb here), with a light shining from each of their campuses around the city.
With the right cloud base the effect can be quite striking:
No reports of Bat-signals have been noted, although something similar in Christchurch last month prompted someone in a Batman costume to turn up at the local copshop and ask to see 'the Commissioner'.
On a vaguely related note, while the Stadium is still helpfully labelled as such, last night while driving past it I noticed the the 'T' in the lettering wasn't lighting up. This turned the title into "SADIUM", which made me wonder if there was hopefully a "HAPPIUM" out there somewhere.
It is a promotion for Victoria University (press blurb here), with a light shining from each of their campuses around the city.
With the right cloud base the effect can be quite striking:
No reports of Bat-signals have been noted, although something similar in Christchurch last month prompted someone in a Batman costume to turn up at the local copshop and ask to see 'the Commissioner'.
On a vaguely related note, while the Stadium is still helpfully labelled as such, last night while driving past it I noticed the the 'T' in the lettering wasn't lighting up. This turned the title into "SADIUM", which made me wonder if there was hopefully a "HAPPIUM" out there somewhere.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Prodigal Bella
A few days after the prodigal piglet episode last week, another wandering companion serendipititiously (I have no idea if that is even a word, but I'm using it) returned to the household after a much longer absence. Pussycat Bella has been on an extended holiday at the gym creche, after last being in our possession over a year ago. The stories she could tell...(or he, as Charlotte calls him/her. We think it is a her since it is named after my parents real female housecat)
She fit right back in.
She fit right back in.
Monday, October 17, 2011
Final finally
Our house yesterday evening:
I didn't even know we had this until Fi discovered it while rummaging around for something else. Seemed only natural to join the rest of the flags up around the neighbourhood.
I'm not the hugest rugby fan in the world, but I do like watching my team, and like it even more when they win. My cynicism around the World Cup mostly sprang from the way it was promoted, but also a little bit from being wary of committing to the idea that this time we might actually win the thing. After last night's semi final win ruthlessly brushing aside our closest rival and biggest threat 20-6, a whole lot of people are daring to hope, and swinging from very (very) quiet confidence to well placed belief that this time next week we will be World Champions for the first time in 24 years (could be worse, we could be English football fans; their national side hasn't won the Soccer World Cup since 1966). The tension before the game was the most I have felt for any AB's match I have ever seen. Interesting though, throughout the game the AB's themselves were the most pumped and psyched I have ever seen as well, which was borne out in the result. Australia didn't play that terribly; we were just a lot better.
For the country renowned as generally being the best in the game historically (with the All Blacks being one of the most winning teams in any code worldwide), the lack of World Cup success has been mystifying and frustrating, and ultimately monkey on the back building. After winning the inaugural event in 1987, we only reached the final again in 1995, and have fallen at the quarters and semi's every other time (1991, 1999, 2003, 2007, the last mentioned here).
A few other hoodoos around the tournament:
-Prior to last night, the All Blacks had never beaten Australia at a world cup. Hoodoo broken.
-Conversely Australia haven't won a match at last night's venue since 1986. Hoodoo stands.
-In prior world cups, the team that beat the reigning champions went on to win it. Australia did that this time, eliminating our other biggest rival South Africa in last weeks quarter final, but that trend is now broken.
Also in prior world cups, no team that has been defeated in pool play has gone on to win the tournament. Since Australia got knocked over by Ireland a few weeks ago, that trend still stands. The AB's are the only undefeated team in this years tournament.
-Our final opponent, France has eliminated NZ from a world cup twice and have been regarded as a bogey team for NZ, mostly because they are so unpredictable even the French themselves don't know which team (the rubbish one or the awesome one) will turn up on the day. We thumped France in pool play this time, so that monkey if not dead, is seriously wounded. Plus France lost not once in pool play, but twice (see above), and were lucky at best to win their quarter final. They are not to be underestimated, but if the AB's play the final with the intensity and clinicality they displayed last night, no team in the world right now can beat them.
Still it isn't over until it's over. The final matchup is the same as it was in 1987; all going well the result will be too.
And kind of apropos of nothing, but I liked the sky at dusk last night, so here it is:
I didn't even know we had this until Fi discovered it while rummaging around for something else. Seemed only natural to join the rest of the flags up around the neighbourhood.I'm not the hugest rugby fan in the world, but I do like watching my team, and like it even more when they win. My cynicism around the World Cup mostly sprang from the way it was promoted, but also a little bit from being wary of committing to the idea that this time we might actually win the thing. After last night's semi final win ruthlessly brushing aside our closest rival and biggest threat 20-6, a whole lot of people are daring to hope, and swinging from very (very) quiet confidence to well placed belief that this time next week we will be World Champions for the first time in 24 years (could be worse, we could be English football fans; their national side hasn't won the Soccer World Cup since 1966). The tension before the game was the most I have felt for any AB's match I have ever seen. Interesting though, throughout the game the AB's themselves were the most pumped and psyched I have ever seen as well, which was borne out in the result. Australia didn't play that terribly; we were just a lot better.
For the country renowned as generally being the best in the game historically (with the All Blacks being one of the most winning teams in any code worldwide), the lack of World Cup success has been mystifying and frustrating, and ultimately monkey on the back building. After winning the inaugural event in 1987, we only reached the final again in 1995, and have fallen at the quarters and semi's every other time (1991, 1999, 2003, 2007, the last mentioned here).
A few other hoodoos around the tournament:
-Prior to last night, the All Blacks had never beaten Australia at a world cup. Hoodoo broken.
-Conversely Australia haven't won a match at last night's venue since 1986. Hoodoo stands.
-In prior world cups, the team that beat the reigning champions went on to win it. Australia did that this time, eliminating our other biggest rival South Africa in last weeks quarter final, but that trend is now broken.
Also in prior world cups, no team that has been defeated in pool play has gone on to win the tournament. Since Australia got knocked over by Ireland a few weeks ago, that trend still stands. The AB's are the only undefeated team in this years tournament.
-Our final opponent, France has eliminated NZ from a world cup twice and have been regarded as a bogey team for NZ, mostly because they are so unpredictable even the French themselves don't know which team (the rubbish one or the awesome one) will turn up on the day. We thumped France in pool play this time, so that monkey if not dead, is seriously wounded. Plus France lost not once in pool play, but twice (see above), and were lucky at best to win their quarter final. They are not to be underestimated, but if the AB's play the final with the intensity and clinicality they displayed last night, no team in the world right now can beat them.
Still it isn't over until it's over. The final matchup is the same as it was in 1987; all going well the result will be too.
And kind of apropos of nothing, but I liked the sky at dusk last night, so here it is:
Reading Nature's signs
Mowed the lawns for the first time in a while on the weekend. If things on the lawn start disappearing into the grass, it probably means it is a good time to get the lawnmower out:
That's better:
Due to a combination of factors I hadn't been able to get out and get the lawns done over the last little bit. Combined with the spring growth spurt we had been watching Charlotte's Dora ball slowly disappear...
PS lest the amount of debris leads anyone to think I was mowing with a chainsaw or something, we don't collect our grass clippings, since we have nowhere to dispose of / no use for them. In this instance there just happened to be a lot of clippings, hence the mess.
That's better:
Due to a combination of factors I hadn't been able to get out and get the lawns done over the last little bit. Combined with the spring growth spurt we had been watching Charlotte's Dora ball slowly disappear...
PS lest the amount of debris leads anyone to think I was mowing with a chainsaw or something, we don't collect our grass clippings, since we have nowhere to dispose of / no use for them. In this instance there just happened to be a lot of clippings, hence the mess.
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Bumpity bumpity bump
So just as history repeats itself with Charlotte needing another dilatation, it also repeated itself with the op to perform said dilatation being bumped. Last time it was because she had a cold, this time it was because there were more acute cases needing the surgeons attention (Charlotte herself being one of those acute cases).
I don't begrudge them that. I'm grateful she isn't worse off, and it isn't anyones fault the schedule got busy today (we've been told she will be rebooked for a couple of weeks from now, which will in theory be an unbumpable fixture).
It's just frustrating to be there ready to go, having gotten up early (so early Charlotte needed to be wakened, and she is usually Early McEarlyson when it comes to getting up in the morning), been in the ward for a couple of hours, seen the anaesthetist and signed his consent form, meeting the surgical team and having the risks and conditions explained and signing that consent form, then settling down to wait for the call to theatre, only to be told it's all off and you can come back in a couple of weeks provided she is okay right now. Which she was, need for the op aside, the blockage at the root of this weeks adventures having resolved itself in the two nights between when it happened and this morning. Buildup and let down. It has been a tiring couple of days.
Still, while waiting she got to play around with some new toys, taking her friends along for the ride (along with Tigger is also shoehorned in there with her along with Piglet ).
She liked the toy room so much she didn't want to go home. Piglet would go on to have his own solo adventure this afternoon after being left in the play area at the mall. We had given him up for lost (just like her original Thomas engine, which is having a long holiday at the new Kilbirnie sports centre), when the mall rang to say someone had handed him in. Which is good, since I am probably just as attached to the little guy as my daughter is.
I don't begrudge them that. I'm grateful she isn't worse off, and it isn't anyones fault the schedule got busy today (we've been told she will be rebooked for a couple of weeks from now, which will in theory be an unbumpable fixture).
It's just frustrating to be there ready to go, having gotten up early (so early Charlotte needed to be wakened, and she is usually Early McEarlyson when it comes to getting up in the morning), been in the ward for a couple of hours, seen the anaesthetist and signed his consent form, meeting the surgical team and having the risks and conditions explained and signing that consent form, then settling down to wait for the call to theatre, only to be told it's all off and you can come back in a couple of weeks provided she is okay right now. Which she was, need for the op aside, the blockage at the root of this weeks adventures having resolved itself in the two nights between when it happened and this morning. Buildup and let down. It has been a tiring couple of days.
Still, while waiting she got to play around with some new toys, taking her friends along for the ride (along with Tigger is also shoehorned in there with her along with Piglet ).
She liked the toy room so much she didn't want to go home. Piglet would go on to have his own solo adventure this afternoon after being left in the play area at the mall. We had given him up for lost (just like her original Thomas engine, which is having a long holiday at the new Kilbirnie sports centre), when the mall rang to say someone had handed him in. Which is good, since I am probably just as attached to the little guy as my daughter is.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
This and that
Wellington from my upstairs window this morning:
And this evening:
I love this place when it is like this.
More than a little fecked off with the master and navigator of the Rena at the moment. I'm not normally one to prejudge investigations, but for pete's sake, this is the 21st century. The reef they hit was first charted in 1827. There was a hint of a story today that their charts might have been out of date, but I'm betting they are less than 184 years old. I haven't spent a lot of time in Tauranga, but the times I have been there have been good. This is just a shame. I'm getting annoyed as usual with all the "somebody must DO something, why aren't they doing this?" speculation from the armchair experts and the media which are usually in ignorance of what is actually involved. I'm not an expert, but at least I usually know enough to know what I don't know.
Another long night in A&E last night with another bit of food stuckage, ending at 2:00am with a check in to the Children's ward for Charlotte. Since this is the second incidence in a month, we had prediscussed going to Wellington hospital with the surgeon so thats where we wound up. Charlotte was well enough to come home today, but is going back tomorrow for a second dilatation. Her last was back in 2009 and went without too much drama, so hopefully this one will be the same.
Still Fi and I were watching TV earlier and a promo for 24 Hours in A&E came on. Quick as a flash she joked that was just a reference to the waiting time for those triaged as non-urgent :)
And this evening:
I love this place when it is like this.More than a little fecked off with the master and navigator of the Rena at the moment. I'm not normally one to prejudge investigations, but for pete's sake, this is the 21st century. The reef they hit was first charted in 1827. There was a hint of a story today that their charts might have been out of date, but I'm betting they are less than 184 years old. I haven't spent a lot of time in Tauranga, but the times I have been there have been good. This is just a shame. I'm getting annoyed as usual with all the "somebody must DO something, why aren't they doing this?" speculation from the armchair experts and the media which are usually in ignorance of what is actually involved. I'm not an expert, but at least I usually know enough to know what I don't know.
Another long night in A&E last night with another bit of food stuckage, ending at 2:00am with a check in to the Children's ward for Charlotte. Since this is the second incidence in a month, we had prediscussed going to Wellington hospital with the surgeon so thats where we wound up. Charlotte was well enough to come home today, but is going back tomorrow for a second dilatation. Her last was back in 2009 and went without too much drama, so hopefully this one will be the same.
Still Fi and I were watching TV earlier and a promo for 24 Hours in A&E came on. Quick as a flash she joked that was just a reference to the waiting time for those triaged as non-urgent :)
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