7 Billion

Now 7 billion of us. A website purports to say what number I was -

Some changes

Changes: Got the stocking which has made a difference. It goes from thigh to foot and is a bugger to get on but she gets there. Good news (!!) is that he said I will probably have to wear it for the rest of my life.

Funny as the leg improved the pain went back to the lung area so we have upped my painkillers.

Still get tired and I am doing nothing.

Election: In my view all the running (policy wise) is Labour and the Greens.

Increasing the Pension age (10 years behind Oz), compulsory Kiwisaver (25 years or so behind Oz) and today compulsory Quake insurance. I am waiting for the cries of Nanny State. How John Key can say we can afford the current retirement age when it costs about $8 Billion and over the next 20-30 years will go to $75 Billion is again letting politics get in the way of common sense.

They rated the leaders debate and had a category of charm !!!! Beyond me.

MMP: Came into a Radio NZ debate about half way through and Ruth Richardson was on defending FPP. She doesn't seem to understand how democracy works - or more likely she does but FPP favours her Party.

Google and Blogger: I use Google's Reader and it has a section called Notes which I also use. Today they gave the usual 'better and improved' (translated WORSE) message. The Notes section has been deleted without warning. Lots of comment on the Net but as usual They couldn't care less - you've lost all your information.

Somebody has found a way to find them but it seems you can't really export the messages.
Who makes these dopey decisions.

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.