Part of me

Just because I can't see you
Doesn't mean I'm blind
If I hear your voice when you're not around
It doesn't mean I've lost my mind
I reach so I can touch you
Even when I know that you're not there
I can feel you on my fingers
I can smell your hair

Because you're part of me

Sporting Achievement No. 2 overshadowed.

It used to be that even though my older son has surpassed my highest score, I could boast of the best bowling figures, once having taken a Michelle (5-63). Sadly (for me, but happily for him) theses are no longer the best bowling figures in the family.

They are now:

O M W R
11 4 6 24

5 bowled and an LBW. Well done.

A thinking voter!

This is reprinted from the blog of my friend's brother. I just wish a higher percentage of voters asked the same of their representatives.

November, 2007

To: Michael Keenan
Honourable Member for Stirling

Dear Sir,

You have been my voice in the federal parliament for 3 years. Now it is time to renew your contract and I would like to check some of your Key Performance indicators. By this, I mean, have you represented my interests at a federal level.

Therefore, I would like to ask you a few questions on which I can base my decision:

1. What have you done to make life in the city of Stirling ecologically sustainable? For example: subsidising renewable energy.

2. What have you done to reduce Western Australia’s contribution to global warming (and thus ensuring that the houses along the Mitchell Freeway don’t become water-front properties)?

3. What have you done to ensure the release of refugees from the “detention centres” in Western Australia? They are always welcome to stay at our place, if accommodation is an issue.

4. What are you doing towards creating a stable Middle-East, which the current administration helped to (further) destabilize?

5. What are you doing towards reconciling the interests of the Aboriginal Community with the rest of Australian Society? For example: perhaps moving to amend the constitution to recognize the indigenous people are the rightful custodians of the land might be a good start.

I did take the time to review you website/s in search of answers to these questions, but they seemed more concerned with crime and safety. This is not a major issue for me, having lived in the City of Stirling for 20 years, and never once been the victim of a serious crime. However, if this is a problem for the majority of residents my question is this:

What are you doing to address the causes of crime? For example: the economic factors, social environment and family structures.

If you could let me know as soon as possible it would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks in advance.

Sincerely,

A




Unsurprisingly, he is yet to receive a reply.

Creative

For those of you not bludging @ work or stuck on dial-up, this is one of my favourite songs and an extremely creative and, i'm sure, time consuming effort. Hope you like it as i do



Don't you love You Tube

Hadn't heard this

Found @ song codes

Dear Australia (Redneck Wonderland)

In case there are any of you left out there who actually wonder where we stand as a country, have quick read of the comments here regarding the Bali Nine. I will admit to this being a real thorn in my side, primarily because of the way the Federal Police let Scott Rush's parents down, but I am once again appalled by the callousness of supposedly fellow Australians.

There was a time in my life, not that long ago, when I believed that this country was on a spiritual upturn, that we had taken on board the message that love and positivety were the way forward. Now this message is limited to the annoying "send this to 10 friends" chain email variety, while in the "real world" people not only "look out for number one", they no longer have the decency to be even faintly embarrassed by it. This leads me to a moral dilemma. Do I avoid watching the news and current affairs and reading public opinion, thereby leaving me ignorant and content, or do I tilt at windmills and look in to the face of the Ignorance Beast thereby condemning myself to spend my time in despair at my increasing feelings of isolation from, what i used to think of, as humanity?

2 weeks in

Just for you Natha!

Movember 12th

PLEASE! Sponsor me!

You think I want to look like this??

Battlers

When I was a child, there still existed the Australian icon, the battler. The battler worked hard for a wage, doing anything they could to avoid going on the “dole”, being a “bludger” and accepting a welfare hand out from the government. They weren’t always particularly well educated and maybe life hadn’t dealt them the best hand, but they had pride and they had hope and they knew that it was them and only them that could change their circumstances. The “battler” stood for pride and the indomitable Australian spirit.

Sadly, the word itself has been hijacked, by current affairs television and worse, by the bludgers themselves. Thanks to “Today Tonight”, “A Current Affair” and their ilk, every dole-bludging piece of white trash (to steal a term from the Yanks) in leggings or a flannel shirt thinks they get to call themselves battlers.

To be fair, I realise they can call themselves what they want, but it distresses me that only a generation ago, the true battler would be faintly embarrassed to be named so. Now it is bandied about like it is a Golden Ticket to Willie Wonka’s Welfare and Sympathy Factory.


For fuck’s sake, No, for your own sake, wake up to yourself, especially if you have kids. Maybe your life hasn’t been easy, maybe it wasn’t even your fault but let me tell you something. No one else is going to fix it. Very few of us even care, as harsh as that sounds. We’re all dealing with our own shit here and all you can realistically hope to get from us is our understanding and acceptance. If you want to better yourself financially, stop feeding your kids Happy Meals. Stop smoking, or smoke rollies. Stop drinking so much. (I am going to punch the next person that tells me that smoking and drinking are the only pleasures they have in life because they can’t afford anything else and the government is trying to tax it away from them). When you go grocery shopping, buy healthy food; it’s cheaper and better for you. Sure you may have to do a bit more work, like COOKING but if you’ve cut back your alcohol consumption, you should be sober enough to manage. One or two lifestyle changes can save you upwards of $100 a week. Who doesn’t want that! $5K a year in your hand! If not for yourself then think of your kids. Or mine. I don’t want them to have to share space with the next generation of no hopers dragging them down.


The Aussie Battler these days is more likely to have come from Kenya than Kalgoolie, disdained by the bludgers for “stealing their jobs”, when really, their work ethic and desire to better themselves under adverse conditions is one of the cornerstones of this country and part of the culture that we pay lip service to.

Day Seven

This is bullshit! I should have started to grow this thing in August

Smee starts again

Let's hope he remembers not to shave it off this time. Still, just looking, I think Woodie and I probably needed the head start :-)

Woodie - Day Five

Won't be long before the hair on his face is longer than the rest of his head.

First shave of Movember

Monday morning and my first shave of Movember. Nearly 96 hours of growth and not much to show other than a slight case of sunburn on the weekend. Speaking of the weekend pretty good results all round for the Rankin clan; 74 n.o. for me, 3 for 8 from 6 overs for my big boy and 15 n.o. in his first bat for Wanneroo for my little one.

If you can spare it, I'd love it if you'd sponsor me. The mo' is for fun, but the cause is serious. Our official Mo' Log is here

(Just looked at that photo again, who stole my chin?!!!)

Smee's on board

Another sucker

Movember - Day One

Woodie and I are growing Mo's(obviously in this picture we have just started)(and I'm hungover) for Movember. Check it out at www.movember.com.au

Can't believe your eyes

Found this site following up an email G sent. Don't understand it but it's pretty cool. Up close, these 3 girls look unhappy, but move back 2 or 3 metres et voila! the outside two are smiling and the middle girl looks surprised. There are more of them here

Cnr St Geo's Tce and Mount Street looking East @ 7am Tuesday

I am trying to balance this page out. When I posted the photo's of the low-lying rainbow yesterday, I noticed that the whole page had an angry tone and anyone reading this would think I was constantly unhappy. I decided to post the things that give me joy; Yes, even on my way to work! My phone camera does no justice to the light here, but my favourite saying has always been "It is better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness".
As cold as it is on my way to work in the mornings; at least it is light. I really like the look and feel of the city at around 7:00 am, before everyone arrives and starts rushing and there's still enough space for everyone.

Bob Brown

Senator Bob Brown says a lot of things that get him in to trouble. He also makes a lot of sense.


"Four years ago Kevin Rudd got drunk and took himself into a strip club," Senator Brown said.

"Four years ago John Howard, sober, took Australia into the Iraq war.

"I think the electorate can judge which one did the more harm," Senator Brown told reporters in Melbourne.

River View

Stood up to speak to Smee at around 11 o'clock this morning, peering over the cubicle wall that separates us and looked out the window to the right to see a spectacular rainbow spread across the river to the west of here. I actually stopped mid-sentence and exclaimed "Wow, look at that" (I must have been too shocked for profanity :-). I snapped a couple of photo's with my phone that come nowhere near to doing it justice, but I'll share them anyway

Blood on their hands

The Australian Federal Police today came one step closer to being directly responsible for the death of at least one more Australian citizen. I've already made my feeling clear here, but the disgust and shame has reared its ugly head again with the news of the dismissal of the appeals of three of the nine.

Growing up, I was fiercely (maybe foolishly) patriotic, believing in the ideals of a "fair go" and "look after your own". Shit, when I was a kid, I thought it was a national custom never to "dob in your own". Over the last decade or so (coincidence?), I have gone from proud to disillusioned to embarrassed to downright ashamed to be an Australian. I know that it is usual to lose SOME of your ideals as you grow older, but to have them ripped from you and torn up in front of your face and danced on is surely more than we should have to bear? This is no longer the place I grew up in, nor the place I hoped my children would grow and prosper in. I can only hope that those that come after us will look back on this era as something to fight against, as a good "bad example".

I just pray that the deaths of these foolish young Australians is not part of that example.


Oh, how do you sleep?
Oh, how do you sleep at night?
-John Lennon 1971

Dispirited

I was originally tempted to title this piece "People are cunts", but thought better of it.
I receive a newsletter from news.com.au each day. Sometimes I click on a link and have a read of some of the reader comments. This is a bitter-sweet experience for me, because as well as reminding me that I am somewhere near the top of the pile of humanity in this city, it also reminds me that that is not really that difficult.

Two stories have really stirred the vitriol of the yahoos. The death of a 16 year old girl in a car accident last week and the road rage attack on a young mother and her two children this week. I really can't bring myself to comment further, other than to say that some of the comments sicken me.

I try hard every day to have faith that humanity is ostensibly good, filled with love and the universal spirit. The days I don't read the comments section, it is easier.

Footy bash dad 'banned for life'

This bloke or someone very like him is most likely at just about every junior sporting fixture around the country. Granted, most of them have enough restraint not to belt a child, but it is simmering there all the same. I will readily admit to a visceral desire to snot any little bastard I feel has dealt unfairly with one of my boys (Fatness, how did you live through your "sporting" years), but, what raises us above the lower animals is our ability to reason, not to immediately react as our instincts bid us.

But is it all one way traffic? A number of times this season I have been appalled to hear some foul-mouthed little turd has given a referee or a linesman a spray that even someone with my scatalogical vocabulary would be proud of, with no repercussions from coach or parent. I'm not going to start banging on about how "in my day" we respected adults (i.e. were too afraid of) too much to even dare answer back, let alone suggest they were in fact sight impaired female pudenda performing a primary procreational function, but todays parents do have a lot to answer for. Not only for the way they raise their own children, but for how they interact with other people's.

Jason Akermanis looks like a dick....

....or at least he does now that Channel 7 decided to name Michael Braun as the player Akermanis says he suspected had taken performance enhancing drugs in this piece at the Herald Sun. With Braun's manager threatening to sue the pants of anyone within arms reach, Akermanis must be wishing that Seven had kept their mouth shut, at least until the AFL and/or ASADA had investigated the matter. Now he has no option but to either stand by his allegations and risk being sued, or back down from his story. If he does run the legal gauntlet, and it costs him money, he will look like a dick. If he backs down, he will look like a dick.

If it looks like a dick and quacks like a dick............

Read this book

My 14 year old son has to do a book report for school. It can be on any book of his choice and he has chosen "Scar Tissue" by Anthony Kiedis with Larry Sloman. It is Kiedis' life story with apparently nothing held back. I was between books when it came home so I swooped on it Wednesday evening to flick through, maybe read on the toilet. It's now Friday morning and I am on page 350 of this 450 page book. I simply cannot put it down.

Kiedis frankly details his early life and friendships and is harrowingly frank about his drug use and abuse. It is one of the most honest portrayals of a drug addict that I have read, openly detailing the euphoria of the hunt and score (or 'cop') as well as the blackness and despair of being lost in the need. Amongst it all is his love of his music and drive to be different. It is a fascinating read.

I'm not entirely sure how I feel about Fred reading it though. The message I get from the book about drugs is not "don't do drugs, they're evil" but more like "drugs are great fun, but they fucked me up". That message translates well as a warning to someone with a little life experience, but to an invincible 14 year old boy who processes everything through his "it couldn't happen to me" filter, I'm not so sure. I guess I can only give him the benefit of my experience and trust in him. Raising a teenaged boy is a lot harder than I thought it would be. Raising is the wrong word, I guess, I think guiding is probably a better word.

But that's another thought and another post

Apathy?

Recently I was informed that I was caustic and apathetic. Since then I have been wondering why this offended me, what chord deep down did it strike? As anybody who knows me can tell you, I have been called a lot worse. I have been gradually driving myself deeper into despair because it had a ring of truth. Was it the "caustic" comment that cut me? All my life I have been fairly quick on my feet, verbally, and found out early doors that the best way to deflect focus from your shortcomings is to point out the absurdities of someone else. As I've got older and more enlightened, I still make fun, but confess to the odd twinge of guilt when I do.
But surely that wasn't it? I've been aware of that for a long time and am doing my best, if not to moderate it, then at least come to terms with it. It was definitely the apathy thing. There are times when my eyes glaze over and the conversation sounds like "blah". Surely I should have a greater stake in the things being discussed? Not necessarily. Do you know why?

Because its not fucking interesting.

I am 43 years old and one of the most valuable lessons I have learnt in that time is that I don't have to put up with bullshit. I have too many tangible issues in my life to fake curiosity or concern for someone elses fabricated concerns.

I say fabricated because I know damn well that there is no likelihood of contributing anything worthwhile to the solution of the problem. Life has led me to observe what I call the "Who Cares Most" principle. It's really just a simple observation about how people react to stimuli and consequence. People provided with the right stimulus in the absence of overwhelming consequence will make a contribution. Consequences like losing your job because you quit to go protesting the plight of caged bears, in my case, would be a deterrent. Some people may possess a greater passion for these things and will follow their words with action.

Otherwise it's just all hot air, worthy of passing discussion, maybe, but certainly not my attention. Moral of the story, if you would like to engage my interest, talk about something interesting. Otherwise my caustic side may resurface and I'll tell you exactly why I'm not listening.

Monday, bloody Monday

Just one of those days. My monkeysphere has shrunk to record low numbers. But why should you care?

Five of Swords

From (and for) mi amica bella


"FIVE OF SWORDS: BE DETERMINED TO MAINTAIN A POSITIVE ATTITUDE TODAY. OTHERS WILL ADJUST IN THEIR OWN TIME....

all i can say is it gets might lonely when you are always so far ahead of everyone else. why do i have to continually wait on others. let me tell you now, its just easier if things get done my way first time around and then i wont have to wait for others to adjust in their own time. its not just their time. its my time too..... why don't you just all stop dilly dallying around and hurry the FLICK up!!!
what have you got to blog about that ranxy????
that text killed my positive attitude."

So I thought I'd look up the Five of Swords.

acting in your own self-interest
setting aside the concerns of others
looking out for number one
thinking of your own needs
knowing you must concentrate on yourself
encountering selfishness
indulging in power plays
gloating
going for the win-lose result
experiencing discord
being in a hostile environment
feeling people are set against each other
choosing to battle
having an "us-against-them" mentality
creating ill will
experiencing conflict
witnessing open dishonor
losing your moral compass
letting ends justify means
sacrificing integrity
losing sight of what is right
achieving a dubious victory
knowing of criminal activity





Not a lot of positivity in any of those definitions, but read in the context of the accompanying email, the Five of Swords sounds like the right card. There is little point becoming impatient that the world will not adjust itself to suit your needs. It is difficult to affect the external stimuli in your life in a predictable way, all you can do is manage how you filter and react to them. If it is important to you that things be done your way (control freak) then your options are hope that people will do it your way or do it yourself. Saying that you are ahead of everyone else implies that you know where you are going and that "others" are going to follow you. Do they know where you are going? Or are you asking they trust blindly in your divine right to lead? Do they even know they are expected to follow? It's not just your time, it's their time too. It is just your journey, unless you include others in it, but once you do, it is never going to go 100% your way. That's the beauty of it, the unpredictablilty of it all. The travelling partners you pick up and leave behind when you find a different direction or that leave you behind as their priorities and goals change. You can encourage the ones you want to follow you, (which is more likely to happen if you display a positive attitude), or you can piss and moan that life is unfair because it isn't going the way you planned. I like to think I'm one of the former type of people that slips occasionally. I love nothing more than to rant and rave when I feel things are not going my way, but only in short bursts ;-)

Don't read the news.....

....just the headlines

Every day I promise myself I'm not going to read the news, but I can't help myself.
If I did keep my promise, I would miss out on gems like these two. Oddly enough, they both come from the South of the USA.

In an endeavour to stop a man doused in petrol from setting himself alight, police shot him with a Taser. Really.

The next one is about a couple who fell to their deaths in flagrante delicto. A pretty sad story, but a headline writers dream.

Naked couple's sex death plunge

Lazy

I have been extremely lazy in keeping this updated, but that's partly because I'm experimenting with different ways of expressing myself (poetry and song writing at the moment is a heap of fun) and partly because I spend what little free computer time I have reading other people's blogs. If you have a few minutes, visit Sweet Namasté. I read it a few months back and thought "meh", but since then she has moved on and is living with a family on the West Bank. Her pictures and stories humanise the Middle East without the heavy, depressing rhetoric of most of the stories I come across. It makes me aware that my time could be better spent without completely quashing my hope.

HBTM HBTM HBDM HBTM HHH HHH HHH*

Woo hoo!! The Foundation Day long weekend once again coincides perfectly with my birthday. Unlike certain people (Norm, Woz, Jillie, I'm looking at you) I love making a big deal of my birthday. Not because it's my birthday, but purely because I'm more likely to get "Yes" when I invite people over. I just love to surround myself with friends and family and my birthday is the perfect excuse, a sort of mid year Christmas. So if the weather stays fine, Sunday will find me basking in the backyard drinking and making merry, while my friends come and worship at the altar of me. If it rains, I hope we fit in the shed.

Just hope no one brings any myrrh. :-)

*Happy Birthday to me
Happy Birthday to me
Happy Birthday dear me
Happy Birthday to me
Hip Hip Hooray
Hip Hip Hooray
Hip Hip Hooray

Jeff Buckley

10 years ago Jeff Buckley went swimming and never came back. I always wonder, after the succcess of Grace, if he would have gone on to be known as a brilliant song writer or if he would have disappeared, leaving behind a trail broken songs. From the music he did manage to record before his death, it was obvious that he played music "outside the box", but to watch and listen to him sing was to see and hear real emotion and power. Every syllable, every emotion was squeezed out, kicking and screaming and laid bare before the audience.

RIP Jeff Buckley

Zimbabwe

I have thought about the Australian Cricket tour to Zimbabwe since the Australian Government announced its ban and have come to the conclusion that they have it right. Sadly it is at the expense of my favourite sport (and Johnnie's), but something had to be done. It is patently obvious that the ICC (Ineffectual Cadre of Cretins) have no intention of doing ANYTHING, EVER. They seem to think that the World Cup is over they can sit back an rest until the next one. Then again, maybe their indolence is not such a bad thing when you consider the last actions they took was to sack Darrell Hair for upholding the rules of the game and, coincidentally, reinstate Zimbabwe as a Test playing nation (which way did Zimbabwe vote, I wonder?).

The problems in Zimbabwe go way beyound cricket, this may not even be a blip on the radar there. That any country in this day and age has an average life expectancy of 36 defies belief.

Just say ....sorry what was the question?

This post over at The Age is one of the most reasonable arguments against marijuana use I have seen in a long time. The argument that pot is harmless, as put forth by the older smoker, is based on the misapprehension that the weed today is the same as back in the day. It's not. Its stronger and covered in pesticides and other harmful chemicals. (But what deterrent is that going to be to people who gladly ingest those chemicals in pill form?)

The best argument (and i say best because it has been one that has always haunted me) I have copied from the Age article.

"the truth is marijuana probably isn't gonna make you kill people, and it most likely isn't gonna fund terrorism, but well son, pot makes you feel fine with being bored -- and it's when you're bored that you should be learning some new skill or discovering some new science or being creative. If you smoke pot you may grow up to find out that you aren't good at anything."

Look here

My older son is going to be playing indoor cricket for WA at the National Titles in Sydney next month and I'm going along as a sort of diarist/chronicler. I'll be keeping notes here.

Fascism

This article from the Guardian web site by Naomi Wolf argues that there are 10 necessary steps that need to be taken to "destroy constitutional freedoms" and ... well, have a read. It just wears me out thinking about it.

Caption

This site makes me question, and a lot of my bullshit is germinated from there, and I just noticed the catchphrase contest was still going, so I thought I'd chuck this in, because it sums it up for me.

I can kick your arse, or oughta, but I can't make you think.

I didn't say it was good, but it sums it up for me. Hell, I may use it.

Blogs are bad

I remember, when I was younger and more idealistic, thinking that free and open speech was a wonderful idea, because, surely, if everyone knew everyone else's motivation and listened to the reasons behind their actions, this would help spread understanding and love through out the world.
'blogging and online forums have proven me wrong. Well, not completely wrong. Everyones still gets to have there say, but NO ONE LISTENS. There is no understanding, just opportunity to spew forth your opinion (fuck off, i see the irony) with none of the give and take, the listening and understanding that a normal conversation requires. Is it because of the anonymity afforded the writer by their pseudonym? Or that distance removes the physical threat when you behave badly? Or is it the "me" generation, like so many Lleyton Hewitts, growing up believing Mummy and\or Daddy's constant flattery and pandering in their misbegotten attempts to raise their "self esteem"? Am I wrong to blame the medium? Maybe it truly does reflect society and we are all a bunch of whiny, selfish babies.

False Idols

Rant starts .....now.

My football team the West Coast Eagles has been in the news quite a lot recently for incidents unrelated to the game. I have tried very hard to avoid the subject but it is getting more and more difficult as the criticism is becoming more and more foolish. The frustrating thing is that the criticism is coming, not only from the "fans", but from the governing body as well. I am not going to pretend that my arguments are un-biased, but I will present them as cogently as possible.

Criticism from the fans

The primary criticism from non-AFL sources is that footballers have a responsibility as role models to children and that Ben Cousins' drug problem is adversely affecting younger fans. As a parent I have taken responsibility for who my sons see as "role models" (I am sick to death of that term). What most people do not seem to realise that success in one "role" does not automatically grant you "model" status across the many roles that we as human beings play. I am more than happy for my boys to aspire to Ben Cousins and Shane Warne's achievements as sportsmen, but would not be happy for them to emulate their personal lives.

Sadly, when I espouse this point of view, the most common argument I receive is that it's "too hard", that "the media" are at fault for sensationalising sportsmen's private lives. Boo Hoo! Who's fault is it that you allow your television to raise your children? Ben Cousins'?? No, it's YOURS and YOURS ALONE. I KNOW raising children can be difficult but so it should be, it the most precious responsibility you can be given and YOU chose to accept it. Football is meant to be entertainment, not footballers lives. That football players take drugs and drink and get into fights does not surprise me and I do not believe that is a very clever lifestyle but NEITHER DO MY CHILDREN. Why? Are they inherently smarter than other children? I don't know. I do know that they have been raised to recognise the difference between the achievements of sports people and their private lives. It is about time you started to teach your kids the same. Not only because I want better lives for your children, but so that my children don't have to put up with people that think like YOU when they grow up.

As you can probably guess, people don't speak to me for long at parties. Hearing that it is your fault when you are looking for someone else to blame makes people uncomfortable. Hopefully, if they are smart enough to listen, it also makes them better people.

Criticism from football

It seems to me that the AFL has accepted the woeful ICC model for adminstering it's sport. Essentially it boils down to "If you make a profit, it doesn't matter about the state of the game or the players". As long as you can convince the fans to show up on the weekend, then you are doing your job properly. Sadly, this is of little practical benefit to the product (i.e. the players) or the consumers (i.e. the fans).
Of course to keep the fans happy, you have to be seen to be doing the "right thing" whether you are or not. For example, require Adam Selwood (who was cleared of any wrongdoing in the incident with Des Headland) to undergo counselling for making derogatory comments about women, while allowing Des Headland (who, oddly was also found not guilty by way of provocation, though nobody was found to have provoked him) to escape unscathed after his violent outburst.

The Eagles finally had enough of Ben Cousins' behaviour. When it became apparent to them that the cause of the erratic behaviour may have been substance related, they did their best to see him rehabilitated. Their motivation may not have been completely altruistic, but they were attempting to address the problem. This week Jeff Farmer, currently serving a 6 week suspension for violent behaviour, was arrested and charged with assault. Fremantle's response was to suspend him immediately until round 13 and then summon him before the board. The news media is full of speculation about Farmer's future and some self-congratulatory back slapping by Club President, Rick Hart. Their actions may have been "swift and decisive" but will they go any way toward helping Jeff Farmer with his anger problems? I don't think so. Instead of trying to assist a player (product) who has brought thousands of fans (consumers) through their gates, Hart has donned his Pontius Pilate hat (wreath?) and washed his hands of Farmer.

Guess which of these scenarios was sanctioned by the AFL commission? Or how many Fremantle executives were called before Andrew Demetriou?

Sadly it appears that sport is mirroring society again in as much as the "rehabilation vs retribution" argument is swinging firmly toward retribution.

Taking gullibility to a new level

"Journalists" fooled in "poodle" scam

I thought this story about Japanese pet owners being sold a sheep for $1600 AUD and told they were poodles was a little far fetched. My favourite part of the story is the Japanese movie star that was on a talk show and complained that her new pet wouldn't bark or eat dog food.

"She was crestfallen when told it was a sheep."

The story goes on to tell of another couple who "became suspicious when they took their 'dog' to have its claws trimmed and were told it had hooves."

A little more investigation shows the original story comes courtesy of "The Sun" newspaper in the UK, notorious for its sensational stories and minimalist approach to fact checking. It seems that the "news" editor at ninemsn takes a similar approach. Sapporo, in Japan, where the scam purportedly took place has a sheep farm and a hill called sheep hill.

ninemsn did print a semi-correction here (dare i say sheepishly), but surely a simple bit of fact checking (remember fact checking? apparently journalists used to do it) instead of regurgitating some tripe found on Google would have saved them the em-baa-rrassment

Short butts

Stole this link from Stu over at yelpar. Please read it to remind yourself that not all Americans are psycho gun-wielding maniacs. Then read the comments and remind yourself why you should be scared of the ones that are.

Not my best look, I know...

IMG_2943
Originally uploaded by IAmRanx.

.....but really, do I look that old?

At the Blues and Roots Festival late last month I was standing watching Missy Higgins, smoking a cigarette when this young lady (I have no idea, somewhere between 15 and 25 years old, I was a bit drunk)[Edit: "young lady"? I guess I just answered my own question] tapped me on the shoulder and said, politely "Can I have a light please.....Mister?". Poor girl I gave her the light and turned back and said "Did you just call me Mister?".

Oddly enough she moved away not long after that

My Hump

Playing guitar, I always look for different ways to play songs (think "Mad World" from "Donnie Darko"). Alannis Morrisette obviously does the same. This is a cracking cover (parody?) of "My Hump" by the Black Eyed Peas.

Ouch

Whiteside Primary School would be proud of us.

Friday night was a fantastic drinking fest. I had the best time. After the initial awkward question and answer about family...actually, I'm not entirely sure what we spoke about for the rest of the night, but I recall climbing in to bed at around 4 o'clock after watching the Aussies towel up the Kiwis in their last Super 8's match.

But I'm never drinking again.

Reunions

My regular Friday night shed-fest will be interrupted this week. I got an email a few weeks back from an old school mate who'd tracked me down via a school reunion site and, after some shuffling, we have organised a small get together for 4-5 of us at my place tonight. Sadly, neither of my old schools exist any more. I've never really been big in to the whole reunion idea. Maybe that's because nearly half my close friends have been beside me for 20 years or so, there's never been the drive.The year we turned 40, a few of us caught up, I think as an obligatory nod to the mid-life crisis, but that's about it.
I have been viewing tonight with some trepidation. I am never good with awkward social situations, I am absolutely crap at making small talk and have almost completely (deliberately) forgotten most of my teenage years. I thought that I would have Puddin' there as my firewall (he went to school with us as well) but the inconsiderate swine is on his honeymoon until late tonight! This morning, however, I awoke with a sense of anticipation. The focus has changed from worrying about what they will think of me to wondering what they've been doing (for the last 30 years!).


For the record, I am third from the left on the lower row of boys in the black and white photo and top right in the colour photo (Nice Paisley, I know). Peo, who made contact, is second from right in the row below me in the colour photo. Norm is far left, row 2 in the colour photo and 2nd from right, 2nd row in the B&W. Graham far right, 2nd row in the B&W.

Conspiracy Theories

I have to admit it, I am a huge fan of conspiracy theories. The lengths to which some people go to "prove" their theories fascinates me. Of course these are only fun if you accept the theorists accounts on face value.

The Virginia Tech shooting this week, while horrifying, started me wondering when the first conspiracy theories about it would start. It is my guess that there will be a web site blaming the American government in place in under 6 months.

That's just a guess of course. While you're waiting, here's on of the better researched conspiracy sites, written by a bloke who used to live in my home town

A sign of the times

I couldn't help but overhear the conversation in front of me. Two women discussing back pain when one of them asked the other if she had been working too hard. The woman with the sore back replied that it was "from the baby" and was called pelvic something or other. Then woman one asked her, full of concern,

"Have you googled it?"

Not that there's anything wrong with that, Google is my memory's best friend, it just struck me as odd. Not "have you seen somebody about it?" but "Have you googled it?"

2007 and counting

War Movies

Just in case you thought John Wayne and Audie Murphy were in Iraq. Watch and listen to this. Please.

In the minority again

OK, to balance out this morning's "butterflies and unicorns" post, I thought I would once again peek into the David Hick's debacle. I wish I hadn't, I really do. I've seen his guilty plea reported on a number of websites, some of which allow comments from the public. These ones sadden me the most. The number of people who seem to have missed the point entirely scares me.
Comments like these:
"We need to bring back capital and corporal punishment. I don't know how anybody could turn against their own country like this guy. Shame shame shame."

Why will he be coming to Australia, he should be sent back to the country he was fighting for and that was Afghanistan. I'm surprised that there are not more comments from the do-gooders saying he has been coerced into pleading guilty.

He's no longer a terror suspect but a self confessed terrorist and will shortly be a convicted terorist. He's had his day in court which we've all been waiting for, so now it's time see what punishment this sloppy bit of dog s*it has agreed to.

and the worst of all
"Obviously we've had enormous concerns about the allegations that have been brought against David Hicks," he said.

"(But) I'm pleased for everybody's sake ... that this saga has come to a conclusion." Foreign Minister Alexander Downer

Reading back over these comments has convinced me that I have been wrong all along. The people of Australia have EXACTLY the sort of government the majority wants (and for that matter deserves). A Government that abrogates it's responsibility to a citizen who, while in a foreign country, is captured by an invading force and shipped to a third country, incarcerated away from the rule of law for 5 years until he pleads guilty to trumped up charges, then allows the invading force to then "graciously" hand responsibility for that person back when they've finished, but agree to lock him up at taxpayers expense until they say it's ok. That's the sort of Government we have. I don't care if David Hicks is guilty or innocent, and neither apparently do Howard and Downer. It's the difference of opinion about how he was treated that scares me.

Be the change......

Click here and watch this video
Just when my cynicism reaches new highs after the handling of David Hicks, the murder of Bob Woolmer at the World Cup and a swimming coach being banned for fighting with his daughter pool side, something comes along to give me hope.

Motherhood ain't what it used to be

Jordan named celebrity 'Mother of the Year'

Seriously, how hard would this have been for her to win. She was up against Jade Goody, Kate Moss and Heather Mills McCartney. Other contenders were Victoria Beckham, The Duchess of York and Davina McCall.
Andrea Yates is unlucky not to get a nomination.

This is wrong

This story was just about the final straw for me today. I have almost completely lost faith in the human race. An old man who, apparently, acted as a "sperm donor" for a woman has had his estate claimed against his wishes by the "donor" children and not his two daughters. Bad enough, I know, but the last paragraph sickens me

"DNA testing proved they were Mr Willem's biological children after their solicitor plucked his eyebrow hair as he lay in Port Macquarie Base Hospital."


There was more to this post, but blogger seems to have joined the queue of entities hell bent on fucking my day up.

Victim 700

Boxing Day



I've been meaning to post this for ages. Boxing Day at the MCG, Victim number 700 for Shane Warne. It was freezing cold, but my favourite live sporting moment.

p.s. Even if it hadn't bowled him, the stumping was on :-)

Post 101

A bunch of random stuff today.

I thought the pictures on Preparation H web site were amusing. Roll your mouse over the pictures on the front page to see exactly what "anal discomfort" looks like.

I found a new blog I like Violent Acres. Freedom of speech at it's free-est

My musical tastes are expanding, thanks to my older son. Last 5 songs on my list were "Du Hast" by Rammstein (which i introduced him to), "Download this song" by MC Lars, he introduced me, I in turn introduced him to "The Passenger" by Iggy Pop. "Hey Now Now" by the Cloud Room, introduced to us both by Pepsi, "Vicinity of Obscenity" by System of a Down (me the band, him the song, both surprised to find we're fans) and "Mama" by My Chemical Romance. (Him the band, me the song).

My Chemical Romance. New Romantics without the style. What an odd band they are. As a product of the '80s (well my teenage years) I can understand the make-up thing (the Cure, Duran Duran) and the angst thing (the Smiths) but the combination of the two in My Chemical Romance freaks me out a little bit.

No, No, No, No, No

One less reason to go to the gym

Not that I need encouragement to avoid going to the gym (I've been once) but if I did, this story is exactly the sort of thing that would do it.

Surely straddling the seat of an exercise bike with sweaty, NAKED arse cheeks is neither savoury or sanitary.

That's without even thinking about the bouncing bits on the treadmill.

Jesus Christ

The man, the figurehead and the epithet

I've always had a real interest in Jesus as a historical figure (rather than a religious icon), so the news about the James Cameron documentary caught my eye this week. It seems an interesting story and one I would like to hear more about. Scott Adams (the Dilbert Guy) makes an interesting comment on the discovery over at his blog.

Of course, Christians around the world have either condemned or dismissed it out of hand, which got me to thinking about why the would do that. I have expressed my thoughts on religious fervour before but the thought keeps gnawing away at me, "Surely, these people can't be so different from me that they won't even entertain the idea?".

Apparently I was wrong. I ran across this entry by Stu over at yelpar. Apparently Wikipedia is "anti-christian" and "anti-American", so the neo-Cons have taken it upon themselves to create a strikingly similar looking web site and called it Conservapedia. This is where the epithet part comes in. Some of the things there are so far removed from what I think that it scares me. I thought Jesus Christ, what if these people are right? What if the world is really only a couple of thousand years old and carbon dating is fraudulent? What if I am one of the deluded? All this time, growing up, growing older, science has been lying to me?

Jesus Christ, I am in trouble.

By an Australian, for Australians, in search of our culture...

I forgot how much I loved this album. Dave Warners- From the Suburbs

I love what the lyrics in this song say about Australia and Australians. That is, Australia and Australians as I remember us. None of this flag waving, chest thumping nationalism bullshit that you see nowadays. It's almost un-Australian to fly the Australian flag inside the country, outside of ceremonies etc. I have no problems proclaiming my Australianism overseas, but here, it seems unnecessary.

I think that's what the organisers of the Big Day Out were getting at.



CONVICT STREAK

Maybe it's because of our Convict Streak
We wanna fight everyone we meet
Anzac Day is our day of the year
We march our march, we drink our beer

We don't like Slopes, we don't like Yanks
I'd personally like to blow up
every Commie tank
We're only few but we fought in 'Nam
Packed our guns alongside Uncle Sam
Ask any of us, it were no sin
The only crime was that we didn't win

(chorus)
And ... The Poms are weak as piss
The French are queer
The Germans are wankers,
but they make good beer
Don't criticise what you don't understand
If you think I'm talking shit
you don't belong in this land

I'm Australian, we all are
We watch the telly and we drive our car
But don't you ever SAY WE'RE WEAK
Or you'll learn all about our Convict Streak

The world began with Adam and Eve
But Australia started at Gallipolli
Our fathers put the Desert into Desert Rats
Their uncles slipped the boot in,
up in Lambing Flats

Don't criticise what you don't understand
It's not that we're behind the times,
we're in a different land
We might be slobs but WE'RE NOT WEAK
Maybe it's because of our Convict Streak

(chorus)

I'm Australian, so are you
It doesn't matter if you're Ding or Jew
Just remember, while you're here
You march our march and you drink our beer

Lyrics Dave Warner

Old School Valentines Day

I found this picture by accident and thought it appropriate for Valentine's Day. It really is beautiful. You can read the story of their discovery here or by clicking on the picture

The Happy Planet

I thought this was interesting.I also thought it must be wrong until I read the way it is calculated. It's basically :

(Life Expectancy * Life Satisfaction)

_______________________

Ecological footprint

We do have a pretty big impact on the environment, but I still can't work out if the index is how happy we are on the planet or how happy the planet is with us. Maybe a combination of both. Still....90 places below Palestine??

Should have picked that

I don't know why, but i keep running in to these "You are the...." tests recently.

Here's the latest

You are The Fool

The Fool is the card of infinite possibilities. The bag on the staff indicates that he has all he need to do or be anything he wants, he has only to stop and unpack. He is on his way to a brand new beginning. But the card carries a little bark of warning as well. Stop daydreaming and fantasising and watch your step, lest you fall and end up looking the fool.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

Crash and Burn

OOOOH! Found more scribblings

I see the train coming,
And I put my foot to the floor
I can feel my brain humming
But my body doesn’t know the score

The voice in my head and the fire in my heart
Scream at me to let them out
Grip the wheel tighter, push the pedal harder
Close my eyes and shout

Crash and Burn
Crash and Burn
Crash and Burn
Crash and Burn

The voice in my head puts a gun in my hand
Saying give the barrel a spin
You’ve just gotta jump and not care where you land
You can only lose if you win

Crash and Burn
Crash and Burn
Crash and Burn
(I'm gonna) Crash and Burn

Draft 1

It's more than the parts that make the whole
Sometimes questions outweigh the answers
It's not always easy to discover your role
Amongst the myriad of dancers

When you think you're fighting a losing cause,
Or someone, to you, is lost
You cast about and clutch at straws
No matter what the cost

Be who you are, be what you are
Do all that you can do,
Anyone can be a star,
Only you can be you

With an open heart and open mind
Let song burst from your soul
Do not fear for the things you’ll find
Just let yourself be whole

Though many join us on this path
At the end we’ll be alone
Then say, looking at the aftermath
That life, it was my own.

I partially scribble song lyrics some times, and then lose them, so i thought this is as good a place as any to keep them. Who knows, i may actually get around to polishing and putting a tune to one. One day.

Pigs on the Wing

I may never have seen Pink Floyd as a band, but after a nearly 19 year wait I can now say I have seen them all live.

The first half (or should that be three quarters) was as a callow 23-year old in February of 1988 at East Fremantle Oval. Extremely drunk and drugged up I saw the group in what was their first post Roger Waters world tour. I loved it but couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that he wasn't there. Fast forward to last Friday night when, fuelled by two mid-strength beers, I rounded out the quartet when I saw Roger Waters at Members Equity Stadium in Perth. And it was awesome, in the true definition of the word. The first part of the concert (which was my favourite part) was made up of songs from "The Wall", "Wish You Were Here", the (IMHO) under-rated "The Final Cut", "Amused To Death", "Animals" and the excellent "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun" from "Saucerful of Secrets". Some reviews I had read leading up to the show criticized the strength of Rogers vocals, but we must have got him on a good day, because he just blew me away. The set finished with "Sheep" from "Animals" complete with inflatable pig. And yes (thank you bella) I was one of the sheep staring and taking poxy phone camera photos of it (see above).

After a 20 minute break (during which the full moon projected onto the screen behind the stage grew steadily larger) the band launched into the concert's title piece "Dark Side of the Moon". It was an excellent rendition. My only disappointment (again) was that it was not Pink Floyd the entity. Snowy White and Dave Kilmeister were superb on guitar, but couldn't quite carry off Dave Gilmour's vocal parts, which to me are a highlight of the album. Other than that I could have been sitting at home (in a really uncomfortable platic chair in the backyard crushed up againslt my mate Norm) listening to the album. Even P.P. Arnold's vocal on "The Great Gig in the Sky" was almost indistinguishable from the original.

After a rousing standing ovation, Waters then returned to introduce the band (interestingly, keyboard player Jon Carin toured in 1988 with Pink Floyd) and finish off with a collection of songs from "The Wall".

Members Equity Stadium may not have been the most comfortable place to see a concert and I'm never keen to sit through live music (no-one stood until the encore) but I'd gladly cough up $250 to do it all again.

Lazy, I know, but fun

It definitely sounds like me

You're The Poisonwood Bible!

by Barbara Kingsolver

Deeply rooted in a religious background, you have since become both
isolated and schizophrenic. You were naively sure that your actions would help people,
but of course they were resistant to your message and ultimately disaster ensued. Since
you can see so many sides of the same issue, you are both wise beyond your years and
tied to worthless perspectives. If you were a type of waffle, it would be
Belgian.


Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

Cos I'm in that sort of mood.

A couple of things from which I draw inspiration.
The first is from "The Paradoxical Commandments of Leadership".

1.People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered. Love them anyway.
2.If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives. Do good anyway.
3.If you are successful, you win false friends and true enemies. Succeed anyway.
4.The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
5.Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable. Be honest and frank anyway.
6.The biggest men with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men with the smallest minds. Think big anyway.
7.People favor underdogs, but follow only top dogs. Fight for a few underdogs anyway.
8.What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight. Build anyway.
9.People really need help but may attack you if you do help them. Help people anyway.
10.Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth. Give the world the best you have anyway.

It sort of reminds me to go with my instinct, live from my "higher" self as it were. This quote attributed to Mother Theresa sums it up.

"You see in the final analysis, it is between you and God; it was never between you and them anyway "

Herschelle Gibbs

Let me preface this post with 2 statements:

I am conscious of and try very hard not to be racist.

I am not a Herschelle Gibbs fan. In fact I have been known to decry him loudly as a cheat to anyone who will listen.

Having said that, I think Malcolm Speed and Chris Broad have made a big mistake in charging him and finding him guilty of category 3 racial abuse.
I saw some footage with the audio the other day and, unless there was more than they played, the whole thing is a crock of shit. He called the "supporters" (now there's an irony) "animals" and "fucking hyenas" that should go back to the zoo where they belong. The only thing that will hang him is right at the end, in an almost exasperated tone, he mutters "fucking pakistanis". I'm not going to run crying home to mummy if I get called a "fucking Australian" and I don't see how hyena or animal can be deemed racial epithets?
From memory, the last player banned for racial abuse was Darren Lehmann and Gibbs' comments come nowhere near his outburst.

At the risk of copping a ban myself I ask the question: Did the ICC come down hard in this case because it was Pakistan? Look at the most controversial events of the past few months in world cricket.

The first ever forfeit in Test cricket
The Pakistan team refuse to come back on to the field in a Test match because they don't like the umpires decision.
Result:The Pakistan captain is banned for four one day matches. One of the umpires in question is widely condemmned as a racist and removed from the panel of elite umpires.

Drugs in cricket
Two bowlers are banned after testing positive to a metabolite of nandrolone.
Result:Shoaib Akhtar (2 years) and Mohammad Asif (1 year) from Pakistan had there bans overturned after using the dazzlingly brilliant "we didn't know" defence.

And now Herschelle Gibbs is banned for a potential 10 playing days for complaining to his team mates about the behaviour of a section of the Pakistani crowd.

Anyone seeing a pattern here? Do Pakistan have too much influence in the ICC at the moment? I don't know,maybe I just selectively pulled these incidents from the headlines to make this entry seem more interesting than it really is. Or not.

Comet McNaught

After the disappointment of Comets Haley and Kahoutek, I finally managed to see a comet with the naked eye last night down at the beach. Sweet.