THE AGONY

Still terrible and absolute agony when my leg is not lying flat. Asked about crutches and was sent to the hospital who decided to keep me all day while 3 doctors investigated.The main concern is that clot dveloped after going onto Warfarin. Going to get compression stocking that covers from ankle to thigh which we hope will work.

Me

Not the greatest - my right leg is giving me hell. They increased my Warfarin dose to 5 from 3.

I am typing this on the laptop but Blogger is having problems so I will sign off meantime.

I'm back. As I said my leg is bad news.Went and had an ultrasound today and they found two large clots in the leg extending from the thigh to the ankle.They can't do anythng about them except thin the blood and allow for the body to slowly destroy them.

Election: After the RWC party now we are into election mode.To be honest I don't really thnk their is a great deal of difference between them although I think Labour & the Greens are more policy orientated while National are banking on the extremely personable John Key. I am more interested in retaining MMP particularly against FPP which is not democratic. STV I could put up with.

Holiday Weekend

Labour Day: As usual the Police went on about lowering the road toll by concentrating on speed. As usual they and the Government will not attack the problem sensibly.

How to do it - install road barriers on all of our motorways/major roads. Since they put one on the Kapiti Highway not one death has occurred from crossing the median strip.

Most deaths from 'reasonable' drivers come from crossing the centre line. They are wasting their time for the useless ones in our society for whom nothing apart from jail ( and therefore off the roads) will work.

Reflections and thoughts

RUGBY WORLD CUP 2011

In retrospect, the All Blacks might have played their final in the semi-final against the Ozzies.

France seemed to have left their best until the last and the All Blacks their worst. The AB's won the first half but failed to convert their dominance into a big points lead - I thought they needed at least 15 points.

In the second half the All Blacks hung on desperately and played really dumb. During this half, it was France who failed to convert three penalty shots at goal into points and one was a reasonable kick. If any had gone over I can't see that we would have won.

We were extremely lucky.

If someone had suggested when the tournament started that Stephen Donald would kick the winning penalty for New Zealand in the final they would have been thought as mad.

As for the IRB: Its chief executive, Mike Miller, who does not come to the administration of the game with a rugby background, just does not appear to understand rugby matters. I have commented earlier about him not realising that Fiji, Samoa and Tonga exist. His rejection of the SANZAR complaints that their countries lose $50 million in a World Cup year was just brain-dead. He also seems to be opposed to changing the schedule of World Cup tournaments to October-November. The current schedule suits French rugby clubs. So we had the CEO of the IRB rejecting claims from rugby nations that have won six of the seven World Cups to favour some millionaires who have invested in French rugby clubs. There was also the nuttyness of the mouthguards and the scheduling of matches for the minnow countries that disadvantaged their chances of defeating the major teams in their pools. SANZAR may have got some agreement on these issues. We shall see!

One real conflict of interest is the appointment of the RWC refs - it was headed by the Welsh Unions Chair.

How prophetic is this Tom Scott cartoon - a week before the final.

NZ 8 France 7

Well we did it but I think we played dumb by again kicking poorly and giving the ball away.

Tonights the night!

A couple of pics

So much to say but...

Just don't have the energy due to the shortness of breath.


Boat: The Rena is spilling oil at Tauranga. What a disaster and inept response by the Government. The problem is that they get criticised and react saying how wonderful they are and everybody is doing their best. We don't doubt that but they never get asked (as usual) the difficult questions. Why would 't they take the volunteers to help clean up the mess, do they have a system in place to call on them (it would seem not - a point I will take up at Rotary for our local Civil Defence), any system to call on the unemployed? etc.

What they have is understand is that 'perception is reality' and it is not a good look.

It seems we never signed a shipping disaster protocol that will end up costing us around $20million - it goes back to Labours day and they are getting stuck into Key for not doing it!!

Rugby: Well into the final. Our pack was just too good and we should have won by 20 more points. The problem we now have is the unpredictable French.

The booing of Cooper is just obnoxious.


I have always favoured Deans but his tactics over most of the RWC defeat me. Berrick Barnes is a much better option - but in this games why did they persist in kicking to Jane - to Kahui you could have understood - why when it wasn't working did they carry on. Something wrong somewhere.

Money: There has been some comment about the AB's bonus if they win the RWC of $100,000 each. To put it into perspective the French get near $250,00 for getting into the Final and will get over $300,00 if they win.

C.R.U.D.E.N - Carter ruled unfit, didn't even notice.

I see Joubert has the final. Thank heaven a reasonably good ref.

Bus Tours: I see they are doing bus tours of the quake area. Brilliant - just 3 months too late plus the RWC tourists have almost left. Pathetic.

Me: Last but by no means least. Still struggling but a 1000% better. A friend took 2 years to come right!!

Now on about 20 pills a day but the injections have stopped. I have to take Warfarin (rat poison) and that is very complicated with constant blood tests to get the dosage right and it has to be taken att the same time each evening - I've settled for 6PM.

Where to start?

I suppose at the beginning.

Hospital: I have never stayed in hospital since the day I was born. Last Sunday I wasn't feeling too good so I went and lay on the bed and watched the Rugby. Still no good with pains in my right side I struggled through the night; the pain was so great I couldn't sleep.

Next morning Christine phoned the hospital before the Doctors Surgery opened. Their initial take was gallstones. Went to the doctor who saw me and at a loss to explain the pain sent me off for a blood test and an Xray. The Xray revealed some lung infection and maybe the start of pneumonia so I was put on antibiotics and pain relief.

That night I was worse and got no sleep and as it was better standing than laying down I tried to sleep (but didn't) in the Laze-E-Boy.

Again into the Doc (a different one) and he said book in for an ultrasound which we did but couldn't get one until next Monday (17th).

Again a real struggle through the night with no sleep and so back to the Doctor. She was still at a loss as with Gallstones should be pain when the stomach was pushed, After carrying out an ECG to check the heart (which was OK) she said I should go the Hospital.

Typical of our system easy to book in; then more prodding,poking, blood tests, blood pressure taking etc and as they also couldn't home in on the problem they then gave me a MRI scan.


Wow - talk about Star Trek.

This was about 5 PM and they said I would have to stay in overnight at least while they carried out the analysis of the scan etc. They then came back with the answer (isn't science and technology wonderful).

Blood clots from the leg (where I had been having pains but just thought it was varicose veins) had settled in my right lung.

So a couple of nights in Hutt Hospital, pills/blood tests.blood pressure/injections galore then I was allowed out Friday night (just in time for the Rugby). In the usual of Hospitals they check everything so found a couple of other small problems caused by my blood pressure pills (low Potassium). I also now have to wear compression socks for my veins.

I can't speak highly enough of Hutt Hopspital and its staff - they were all superb. I also think our healthcare sytem is terrific - God knows what it would be like in the USA. It may have problems with delays etc but for the $ we spend we certainly get value for money.

Pills: Luckily the boss is an ex-nurse as I have to have a daily injection on top of the 20 pills and I have to have a bood test every coupople of days while they try and work out the dosages I require. Plus a booklet has been supplied to record everything.

The good news is they know the problem and it seems to be coming right as the pain is much more manageable.

Meanwhile the world carries on without me.

Rugby: Watched France - Wales. A Yellow card would have been OK but I come back to my idea (for which SKY awarded me the email of the week and a prize) - a Red card you stay off but after 10 minutes another player comes on.

France were awful and the better team lost.

Now to tonight and the "final".

I want to write about the shipwreck in Tauranga but another time as pretty tired.

And now the Souths turn

Australia 11 SA 9
NZ 33 Pumas 10
Interestingly the expansive south scored 4 tries while the conservative north 9 - although Wales and France are really expansive.

NZ weren't that good although we have to give credit to the Pumas (who actually have a Jaguar on their jersey - another stuff up)

Funny but the same 4 are in the semi as in 1987 except we have split different ways as we take on Oz while last time it was Wales. Cruden looks better than Slade and if Slade is out I wonder what they will do. Bring in another halfback (Mathewson) and play Weepu at first five or go back to the old warhorse Steven Donald.

Chesty: I haven't been saying much as I have had a chest infection - at first Christine thought it might be gall stones. Anyway have been to the Doc and now loaded up with anti-biotics.

It was the North's turn

And they were both good games. I am pleased Wales went through 22-10 against Ireland and as for the Frogs over England 19 - 12 - that is just France.

Jobs

Although a visionary not a particularly nice person. Funny how his products seem good (I have never owned any Apple product) while Gates' stuff is a bit of a mess but he is a wonderful human being.

The quarters

We have now found the quarter finalists with -

NZ - Argentina - AB's to win
Wales - Ireland - too close to call. I think Ireland are passion - Wales skill - I hope Wales
France - England - you would think the Poms but France are France
Boks - Wallabies - I would think the Boks forwards would be too strong.


A comment in the New York Times said how long it took to reach the sharp end of the tournament compared to the Soccer World Cup. They didn't seem to understand that Rugby is a contact sport unlike Soccer. To quote Tana - its not tiddlywinks.

As the graphic above shows Gridiron and Rugby are quite different as the US needs size/strength while in Rugby more stanima is needed. Also generally Rugby is still to a degree a game for all sizes.

Naturally the Yanks are paid more.

Tragedy

TRAGEDY

The only word for itCarter down at training.