South America

We are almost away to South America. Thought I would just update our MP3 players but the Sanyo one wouldn't take any more files even though there was plenty of room. Having a look on the Net it seems to be a problem that can be overcome, but I don't have the time now to look into it.

The airports in both Wellington and Auckland were closed yesterday so we can only hope that they are open on Wednesday. This is the real problem, as timing is critical. If a flight is delayed for any reason then all your bookings and plans are down the drain. We have about 3 hours between flights in Auckland which we hope is enough. And when we get to Santiago we have to get another flight. If it is closed like yesterday then I don't know what happens.

So no blogging for a while until we return.

Rhett goes into kennels today - which won't make him happy.

Any way signing off for now - Bon Voyage!!

Mamma Mia

As I said yesterday, with a new battery we went to Mamma Mia today - although we took her car - to run up her battery?? - not really, just that it is cheaper using 91 fuel.

It was at the Embassy in Wellington which has been done up for when the the Lord of the Rings Premiere was held. The last time I went to the Embassy I think was when Christine and I went when we were single - My Fair Lady I think. I may have been since, but can't remember it.

The film - wasn't too bad as I like Abba and during any excruciating parts I just closed my eyes and listened to the music,. As for the stars singing who couldn't sing, with the 'tweeking' of their voices in the studio and the big backing effect they weren't too bad.

As for the battery; when we were rescued by the AA we arranged for them to come to the house to put in the new one. As he was carrying out the installation, our neighbour, Barbara came over. She said the same thing had happened to her a couple of days earlier and it was the same guy from the AA. However, her battery had only lasted 3 years.

No more medals but overall we can be satisfied and we have Kipp tomorrow.

Copy-Paste and batteries required

I liked this. Funny how when I started out using a computer I always used the mouse and and now I tend to use the keyboard. My favourite shortcut is the Windows Key + e to open Windows Explorer.

We won some tickets to Mamma Mia and we planned to go today. As I had to take the Rotary financials into the Auditor we thought we would do that, go to the film and then have tea in town. Also as my car has been very sluggish in starting lately we decided to take it in so we could run the battery up.

However, disaster - we found a good park right outside the Auditors but the car wouldn't restart. We got the AA (aren't cell phones great!!) and we need a new baattery. Can't complain as it is 8 years old. So we flagged the film away today and will see about going tommorow.

Kipps Blog

Found this blog on the Net and stole his logo!!

Games continue OK with a great result from Nick Willis - a Lower Hutt boy. I thought before the race that he would finish about 6th but I think it was his brilliant tatics and use of patience that enabled him to get the Bronze.

I read an article on the Wall Street Journal that tried to predict the medals on the basis of GDP. They had us down for 2 Gold and twelve in total. I will check at the end to see how they went. However, currently the big mover is Great Britain who have 16 Gold and how they have achieved that is simple - gold (that is money). Britain have pumped money in from their Lotto over the past few years and it is now paying off. The WSJ article predicted 3 Gold for them so they are well out.

The Internet and the PC

I suddenly noticed that our Anti-Virus (AVG) had not carried out its automatic check since 21 June. So I decided to have a look at the laptop and it is checking every day but it isn't updating.!! Looking at it the laptop it has a problem which can be overcome with a " fix". while I can't change the settings to automatic on the desktop PC. Upon our return I will delete AVG and move to Avast.

Another nutty decision whereby an accused rapist is allowed to return to the same school as his alleged victim. Radio NZ tried to get some sense out of a person speaking on behalf of the judges but really it was just a waste of time. Again commonsense is out the window.

So we must come to the end of it all below - for now anyway.

Super Saturday

Yes, and it was in both China and South Africa a really Super Saturday. I stayed up to watch both the Olympics and the Rugby so didn't get to bed until around 3AM. I understand that people like the Americans don't stay up through the night for sport but then again apart from the Olympics they don't really take part in International sport. Our problem is of course, our time zone with most countries, especially in the Northern Hemispere, having things on when we are asleep. This causes our Rugby to be played at night so that those in the top half of the world can watch at breakfast time. And night is not the time for Rugby - so it was great to see the Test at Newlands played in great weather in the bright warm sunshine.

However, it was a great day/night with medals and the AB's putting the Boks away. As for Mahe Drysdale - what a gutsy effort. I can only say - 4 more years. I am sure he will be back.

Counting Down

Counting down the days until we leave for South America.

She (the Boss) phoned the travel agent as we had heard nothing. They said the itinerary, tickets etc had just arrived !! The woman we have been using for a number of years has resigned so we will probably change to another firm in future.


When checking the itinerary we found a page missing, we have some queries - for example they say we have to pay an exit fee in one place but don't say how much etc. When we picked it up she just gave it to us unlike our previous agent who went through and made sure it was all there and that we understood everything. Not good enough. However, after picking it up we saw a friend who we know travels a lot and we will probably move to her agent.

Health: Shoulder - saw the physio who said the report said there was a slight tear or something so she has written away to a surgeon but booking in is weeks away so I will make contact again after I get back from the trip. Personally I think it will come right with exercise and time.
Meantime we saw the illness that the rest of them got is everywhere with many schools at half attendance. But our lot seem to be over it now. Thank heaven I didn't succumb (yet).

Sport - Olympics we are still medalless ( is there such a word meaning no medals??) AB's versus Africa tonight - or more like Sunday morning our time.

Had amazing hailstones this morning but quite warm and fine now.

Saw a site on TV3 that lets you add a caption to a photo so I did the following:

Sounding Off

I still have a 'dickey' shoulder after about 3 trips to the Physio so she sent me off for an ultrasound scan.

The good news is I am not pregnant (!!!) but I do have a tear in the tendon of my right shoulder. I have all the photographic stuff and have to take it into the physio tomorrow.

The picture is not my shoulder. Rather it is an ultrasound Internet picture of an tendon in the shoulder. To me, my ones look just about the same - a black swirling blob.

And more from the Net - Ultrasound imaging uses waves and their reflected echoes to characterize and/or study internal structures and tissues. Because of its safety and accuracy, it has proven useful in diagnosing a multitude of injuries and areas including bone, soft tissues, muscle, tendons, and ligaments. Most of us will think of fetal ultrasound. Not only can a diagnosis be made, but those movements causing or leading up to a particular injury can also be diagnosed. Ultrasound imaging can also distinguish between degrees of injury.

One thing I must say is that the ACC system, for all its faults, at least encourages you to get better. I am sure if many accidents weren't covered by ACC, people would be inclined to just hope any injury just gets better, which may end up costing the health system (ie The Taxpayer) even more later on.

On the health theme- Christine, Kipp and Sarah have all been sick. Then both Joe and Angela got it. Sarah's midwife said there is a 24-48 hour bug about but so far I have been lucky.

The Olympics are on in the background and a Chinese swimmer has just improved her time 10 seconds to win Gold. The incomparable Phelps improved 3 seconds in 4 years!!!
What am I saying? - it is possible - but!! Our rowers didn't impress but we will see. As for Rugby - Mr Henry is starting the same team for the first time this year - and about time.

Criticism of TV1 with the Russian - Georgian war underway and they lead with the Olympics. I would think that if TV3 had the Olympics they would do the same. And in the US they lead with Senator Edwards having an affair instead of the war.

As for the war, it would seem that as per usual there are no good guys and it is a very complex situation with probably both sides at faullt. But most independent views seem to slightly support the Russian view albiet not their methods. However, most American reports seem to be biased towards Georgia. We can only hope that calm heads prevail and and Mr Bush doesn't go off the deep end.

I haven't mentioned the weather - who would want to. If we have one really great day we then have 2/3 really bad ones.

Olympics Start

The Olympics get underway tonight - 8 minutes past 8PM on the 8th of the 8th month 2008. Supposedly lucky but really just superstitious rubbish to this sceptic. They are not what the used to be with just professionals and drugs - oh for the (maybe) drugfree previous competitions with (so-called) amatuers. At least ours were amatuers.

Spoke at our Probus Club (Boulcott) today about SeniorNet. In the usual fashion of my Welsh talking heritage, I could have talked for 4-5 hours.

As I was typing the TV news was on and they were talking about using corn as bio-fuel and how the idea had driven up the price of food so it was not such a good idea after all. I read an article which said, why doesn't the USA use sugar cane, which is cheaper and produces more fuel per hectare. The answer was because the first primary of the US Presidential election is held in Iowa - a big corn growing area - so that means the price of corn would drop and $$ talks. No candidate could win the Primary if he/she suggested that they use sugar cane.

The eyes don't have it

Fascinating and almost unbelievable.

From an article I saw in the New York Times:

When we look in the mirror, our relative beauty is not the only thing we misjudge.

Imagine you are standing in front of a bathroom mirror; how big do you think the image of your face is on the surface? And what would happen to the size of that image if you were to step steadily backward, away from the glass?

People overwhelmingly give the same answers.

To the first question they say, well, the outline of my face on the mirror would be about the size of my face. As for the second question, that’s obvious: if I move away from the mirror, the size of my image will shrink with each step.

Both answers, it turns out, are wrong.

Outline your face on a mirror, and you will find it to be exactly half the size of your real face. Step back as much as you please, and the size of that outlined oval will not change: it will remain half the size of your face (or half the size of whatever part of your body you are looking at), even as the background scene reflected in the mirror steadily changes.

Incredibly this half-size rule does not apply to the image of someone else moving about the room. If you sit still by the mirror, and a friend approaches or moves away, the size of the person’s image in the mirror will grow or shrink as our innate sense says it should.

I found it hard to believe so drew a line from my outside of my face to a mirror and it ended up outside my reflection.??

I suppose it is the same as when Einstein said if you go faster you age less. It seems wrong but it is right.

Pregnant

We had Sarah, Joe and Kipp plus Sophia (from Germany) AJ, as well as Alex and Josh around to watch the AB Wallaby clash last night. With ourselves the house was full - 9 plus Rhett.

For tea we had Pepes Pizza's and Sarah said do I remember the last time we had Pepes Pizza. I didn't cry but my eyes misted up that time as it was when she told us all (Brian and Valarie were also here) that she was pregnant with Kipp. She then said she was 10 weeks pregnant - due 28 February 2009. My eyes didn't mist up this time. Must be getting used to it!!

She has known for about a month but didn't tell us as she didn't want to spoil Angelas birthday. Isn't she sweet!!

Anyway it is wonderful news.

And to cap off a great evening the AB's really got stuck in and won 39 - 10 at Eden Park. It is pathetic that the selectors put the players back in their correct positions and have a game plan and everything improves. Henry is still not my cup of tea and I have long term concerns.

I have had a bad shoulder since I was helping with cutting up the firewood for Rotary. Being me I did nothing thinking it would go away.

The left shoulder seems to to have come 95% right but the right was still not good and seemed to have got worse. So I went to the physiotherapist. It seems I have agrivated the tendons so it is a matter of doing some excercises and waiting for nature to takes its course.