When the Cheshire emerges...

I took a sneak peek at the shoes for the week before I left... and I must say, I did appreciate the beading on the side of this shoe.

It's a little bit bling-bling but actually OK.

***

On a different note, there are two big birthdays today. Thinking of my mum and cousin Maree, can't believe it's just about spring!

It only took 11-and-a-half months, but I caught a bus in Dubbo for the first time last week.

It was my day off and I had to get my car serviced. The place I go is only a 10-minute walk from the centre of the east, Orana Mall.

I got a bus back to the city so I could continue with the rest of my day (there's not enough to hold anyone at Orana for four hours). It was one of the newer siblings in the fleet so the seats were really hard and uncomfortable, but at least it was clean.

The trip, however, was certainly an adventure. I'm used to decently long bus rides in Adelaide so don't mind that side of it. But they're pretty direct. This route, the quickest between the two points by a minute at 22 minutes, went through some streets I never knew existed.


So the pen marks Cobra Street/Mitchell Highway (CBD left, Orana Mall right), the quickest way by car at approximately five minutes. I took the green route - while it doesn't look too bad, look at the loop to the right. You go the other way before turning back! That was frustrating.

***

I still decided to catch a bus to get back to my car, and this time got one of the old ones.

Like the old Adelaide seats, got a bit reminiscent here

Only after the bus in photo one came, he told me a following bus would drop me off at a better stop. I wait for a minute totally confused - and rightly so. The bus I ended up taking, where I got to sit on these old-school red seats, is a one-off that isn't on the timetable.

That would be right.

So I stumbled upon a direct route from the CBD to the mall that I found out only comes at 2.45pm, and only in that direction. Random is really the best word to describe the whole thing - but I did get there in the end. The first day of real spring weather helped the situation along too.

Oh deary me.

After watching the Olympics and reading about my friend Luke's amazing two-week sporting extravaganza over there, I was excited. Excited about really wanting to get out somewhere for ages again. Doing something on a big scale like seeing sporting events day in, day out for ages.

Sporting events...

BRAZIL 2014.

I mentioned this briefly at the end of the Games, and this week I decided to do my research for the next World Cup.

Unfortunately, in the words of a travel agent, I was just a little too keen.

Not much has been revealed in terms of tours (I did discover the Fanatics are taking interest already for theirs though, that would be fun), and flights and accommodation for that time aren't released until next year.

That didn't stop the agent from telling me all about possible tours I could do around South America before or after the event. After all, there's so much to see - I wouldn't just go for the soccer, right?

The pictures in the Intrepid catalogue alone transported me to another world, the intense colour in every shot just drew me in. They really pop, so beautiful. And they do Antartica!

***

Slight tangent: a few weeks ago my mother tells me the household's latest revelation.

My dad apparently wants to go to Antartica in two years time.

He watched this series of videos about people who had toured and apparently it's something he wants to do. Now, whether this is still the case in a year is up for debate... but 2014 is in two years time as well. So it makes total sense for me to want to go to the World Cup so then I can get down to Argentina and get the departure with Dad to Antartica. Making sense? Gosh, how wild would that be if I managed to pull it off?

***

If I do commit to saving up for the World Cup, that means any overseas trip next year is a no-go (although, maybe somewhere in south-east Asia could stick if I really had an itch). This particularly affects my pre-Olympic idea which I got rather excited about; while I was home, I was thinking of the USA because Topdeck had just announced their first itineraries there in 20 years...



...and while I'm sad because this is 99.9 per cent on the backburner, I got the agent to pass me a brochure over anyway. Since she was there and all.

Oh deary me.

Amidst all the current uncertainty within the Fairfax sphere, newcomers like myself are privy to some of the perks the company has to offer.

I've landed for cadet camp!

I was meant to see Hope Springs this week but after waiting for it to start for 25 minutes they told us there were technical issues that couldn't be fixed. Went back two hours later to see this.

Total Recall (2012)

CREATING memories from advancements in technology could well be the pinnacle of existence for many living in centuries to come. The concept of being able to live the life you want, however you want, would surely fascinate even those most sceptical. Philip K. Dick’s 1966 short story We Can Remember It for You Wholesale has already been explored once on film with Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1990, but a new generation and shifting economy called for an updated recall.

It is not primarily based on either Dick’s story or Paul Verhoeven’s adaptation, Wiseman and screenwriters Kurt Wimmer and Mark Bomback taking elements loved from both and blending them. While the key plot point of visiting Mars is abandoned, characters like the three-breasted woman make a return – and their futuristic world is still just that, where boundaries can be stretched.

Rating: 3/5

*Published in the Daily Liberal (Dubbo), Western Advocate (Bathurst), Parkes Champion Post and Midstate Observer (Orange) from Saturday 25/8/2012

***

Don't Look Now (1972)
 

Many of Daphne du Maurier’s novels have been adapted for the big screen and most famously so by Alfred Hitchcock. But this short story brought to cinema by English director Nicholas Roeg holds just as big an appeal to audiences with a different style of filmmaking and a cast not part of the Hitchcock clan.

Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie were both at a high in their careers when taking on the roles of John and Laura Baxter. The couple deals with the drowning of daughter Christine (Sharon Williams) by moving to Venice and forging a new life among the canals.

Meeting a pair of elderly sisters, one a psychic, they are swept into believing Christine is spiritually present but terrible things are about to befall them. Amid the dark, winding alleys and canals their paranoia increases to create high tension and general uncertainty.

 

The now-famous sex scene, the duo’s first scene together, still has to be denied as real by those there. But interest also comes from the general creepiness of the film, and Sutherland and Christie’s great performances. It doesn't bring many scares throughout, but with some smart flashbacks the film sets the audience up for a very unexpected outcome.

I had a cracker of a day yesterday.

First I was invited to watch a clip from my colleague, who is a cat video lover and hilarious. I give you:

Now, I didn't know the theme before watching this as I've never seen the show, but I was captivated by this. And then even until the end of today, more than 24 hours later, the tune was still being sung around the office. I've felt like I've been in a video game with how it sounds just quietly.

***

I thought that was pretty awesome. But THEN I was distracted at work and on Facebook for a minute. My newsfeed offered me this, via South Australia + Adelaide Memes:

It's that time of year where I have to pay my car insurance, and it's a lot. I still haven't done my tax return but I dare say it would take out a very large chunk of that sum.
Thankfully, it's a simple payment, done either in person or online. Nothing compared to the horrors of last month where I had to pay for my registration and the other part of insurance (which actually still confuses me a whole lot, now that I think about it I sincerely hope I'm not doubling up).

In short, living in NSW is a BITCH for this.

Your green slip (right) and certificate of registration with sticker (top left) are sent out to you. But before paying those off you have to obtain a safety check/pink slip (bottom left) by going to a mechanic and forking out some dough. Once that approval's sent to the department, you pay for the green slip side. Then you have to wait at least an hour for that info to be sent to the department before you can pay for the general payment and put your new sticker on.
Because I had to be somewhere within the hour I couldn't even finish the job. The whole process took me a ENTIRE DAY. Just to pay for my annual car registration. You can only pay for six months or a year (not like the 3-month option many pay in SA), so between these three payments it was a LOT. More than what a year's worth in SA would've been too.

There's even a green slip site to help people deal with the confusion of it all and make sure they're paying correctly. It's clearly an issue when it gets to that point.
The whole thing drained me hardcore.

So with Channel Nine bombarding us with ads for their new program schedule during the Olympics, my interest was taken. Although half have started, I thought I'd weigh in on how they might fare.

Big Brother

Well you all know where I stand with the return of the reality TV king, returning for the first series since I came of age. I don't think Nine have great production value overall but so far it's looking OK.

Underbelly: Badness



This has started already - and while I was excited for a new Underbelly series and also to see how Jonathan LaPaglia would fare as a bad-ass, I've decided to give it a miss. Just have too much going on right now. Plus LaPaglia doesn't look great on the ads (purely because of his character) - if I want to watch him I might as well watch The Slap again where he looked reeeeeally good.

Anger Management



Not a fan of Charlie Sheen or a watcher of Two and a Half Men, but really appreciated the first teaser ad where he took the mickey out of himself. He DID make the channel what it is (whatever that means for Nine), and he's clearly not losing (so that means he's wi..., geddit?) if he's back being paid a shitload for every episode of this show. I won't be watching.

House Husbands



I wouldn't mind giving this one a look actually, it sounds like a good concept. Great Australian cast and something of a dramedy that's making me think of the dads in What To Expect When You're Expecting.

Dallas



This is the one that intrigues me the most. I thought it was in vein of the remakes of 90210 and Melrose Place where they've just rehashed the same characters and stories. This will no doubt rehash some things too, but it's a continuation to focus on the descendants. I like that idea, and I like that Jesse Metcalfe's in it (the other guy's creepy looking, if he's not the really evil one that would weird a lot of people out).

I latched onto the other big event of the early 80s, Dynasty, for a time but never got onto the episodes of old from JR and the gang. I know about the whole 'who shot JR?' thing and how HUGE that was, and it turns out my parents were big fans and fully into it when that went down. Hilarious. Very curious to see how it'll rate, whether people will tune in to see where it goes.

***

Have you seen the American offerings in advance? Will you be watching or leaving Nine in the dumps?

The last week has been all about moneyboxes (well, a part of it anyway). As some of my friends know, I was rather excited when I found Spiderpig in a jeweller on Tuesday. For $11, ceramic. Win.

After having his title song in my head for a full 24 hours and much deliberation as to where in my apartment he would reside, Spiderpig is now happy in his new home; he was christened with a single gold coin and is now fulfilling his duties. Ta-dah!

On Friday there was actually an attempt to rival Spiderpig for coolest moneybox. This camera was pretty spiffy. But rather heavy and a bit too chunky for my liking. Spiderpig still wins.

It's been the season for odd additions to franchises, first with The Amazing Spider-Man and now the latest in the Bourne series. But that's Hollywood for you.

Here's some handy trivia for you: what is the only X-rated film to ever win a Best Picture Oscar? You'll find out below in this week's classic review.

*Published in the Daily Liberal (Dubbo), Western Advocate (Bathurst), Parkes Champion Post and Midstate Observer (Orange) from Saturday 18/8/2012

***
 

Midnight Cowboy (1969)

It only took Jon Voight two films past bit-roles in TV shows to bring him in front of the Hollywood spotlight, but even he would admit it was with a lucky break. At least two others had been slated to play the role of Joe Buck and many more considered, but he took on the role of the naïve prostitute to then have it pay off enormously.

Based on the novel by James Leo Herlihy, Joe moves from Texas to the Big Apple in the hope of becoming a big-time hustler. As he struggles to find his way, he finds himself being used by all sorts, including con man Ratso (Dustin Hoffman). But their relationship develops into a friendship as neither can get out of their rut and slowly get left in the dumps to waste away.

With use of flashbacks and dream sequences, director John Schlesinger makes it known that Joe feels incredibly alone having lost all those important to him. His relationship with Ratso is initially one of necessity to combat loneliness before harsh realities truly bring them together.

While in Australia the rating is now M and in the US rated R, it stands as the only (USA) X-rated film to win a Best Picture Oscar. There are no extreme nudity scenes or profound language, but the film still feels strongly adult. Experimental with its fluidity between past and present, it is desperate and vulnerable, and with Hoffman and Voight so good as friends in hard times you’re sucked in completely.

MISSED LAST WEEK'S REVIEW? See what I thought of The Sapphires.

A few things to tackle on this wonderful Friday. Wonderful because I feel inspired since the Olympics, getting back into routine and looking ahead to the future. The only thing to dampen my spirits was the realisation I'll miss Soundwave's most awesome lineup ever in its short history because my $1 Jetstar flight goes to Brisbane as their show comes to an end. And then Sydney's is the next day. Epic. Fail.

Plenty has happened this week, some of which you'll be reading about in the coming days. For now, a few tidbits.

***

It's back.

I wanted to write about it only once all the housemates had gone in, so here we are. It's been a few days now, and for the first part all the girls were screaming over the top of one another which annoyed me to no end. While that's somewhat settled down, I'm not sure if I've really warmed to anyone yet.


I do like that for the resident "wog" (this year of Greek-Lebanese origin), George seems really chilled compared to previous loudmouths that haven't lasted long. I've always thought I could represent Greek Australians well (and maybe I will next year after this year's failed attempt), but I think this guy will go a long way.


Ray's first impression did not go down so well with me at all, but I think he's starting to redeem himself. Waiting on what Charne's going to do, I think these days I'd be like her and observe a bit rather than jump right in to be heard. That's surprising coming out of my mouth.

Still weirded out that it's on Channel Nine, keep switching to Ten anticipating it's on there. Glad it's been kept relatively similar so far, although I'm interested to see how people will react knowing George is the millionaire. I can't pick who the genius is. Either way, I'm going to stick it out, I'm so glad it's come back.

***

To more TV-related babble now, and I just wanted to pay my respects to Ridge Forrester.


The Sydney Morning Herald's best article for the week gave a beautiful eulogy to the B&B great. Even as an irregular watcher, I admire, respect and acknowledge that no-one could do the longing stares or forgive a whore better than he could. Vale.

***

And to my shoe of the week, which of course usually takes precedence on Fridays - and they spelt the title wrong. It's hard to comprehend where anyone would ever wear these. Although it makes me want to eat mangoes in the sun.


***

Plus I got a surprise package from my mum as I got home tonight, major win. I was excited so took a photo... as I do. You can view the goodies here.

I'm yet to watch the Closing Ceremony, although I'm excited to see the Spice Girls perform in the replay tonight. Not really one for watching concerts on TV (obviously it's not the same as being there) will stick this one out.

So to the home stretch.

Days 12-16

The last few days went by in a total blur. I remember...

We won a few more golds.

Hell yeah we did!



Wow - with my other fave, this is also one of the best photos of the Games.

Two more sailing golds, making the most interesting of trifectas for our country - not least because Channel 9 didn't have enough faith to have their own commentators down there so relied on the BBC, whose coverage I wish I could've tried elsewhere.



The gold we didn't expect in the canoe sprint - which I missed seeing The Sapphires... it was exciting though, that I found out about it and hung out for a replay later on. I saw all the other golds either live or the first replay after.

Steve Hooker and Matthew Mitcham came out to play really late. And crashed early.

Can't say much about this. Mitcham's miss in his signature dive was devastating, and while Hooker made his final it didn't matter because he didn't clear a jump. All the talk and not the walk. Comments made today that Hooker particularly was "a disappointment" I sadly agree with.

***

The coverage still managed to stab me and Australia in the back until the last minute.

Last night:

Channel 9‏@Channel9

A year ago today, I was home.

I decided to stay in the car for a considerable time after being driven home from the airport. I couldn't believe that I was back.

Eventually I made my way in, and by the end of the day I was already starting to feel like I was back into the swing of things a little bit. There was plenty to catch up on, namely doing my tax return.

But that wasn't to be. Not having everything I needed, I left that for another day and decided then was as good a time as any to see what journalist jobs were out there. Seek had one going for a journalist in Queensland somewhere, I think for the ABC, and then also one for a cadet journalist at a paper called the Daily Liberal, in Dubbo in New South Wales...

I wonder how that turned out...

***
Things change so much in the space of 12 months. I grew after 2010 having had my eyes forced open to the world, and then even more so on this day in 2011. In 2012 I find myself in a place I sometimes doubted I'd be. But I'm very happy I've made it to this point and been given opportunities to learn - and while much of me yearns to have the freedom of endless travel, reality isn't so bad.

--------
That concludes the A Year Ago Today series. I hope you've enjoyed reading about my travel exploits and felt you've seen some of the world with me. Keep checking in to see what life throws my way - same Bat-time, same Bat-place.

Before getting into the review for the week I just wanted to tell you a bit about my afternoon.

Dubbo finally decided to bring us Katy Perry: Part of Me 3D - for one weekend only, so I made sure I got my arse into gear to get down the street and be an extra bum on seat. And I was lucky I did; my Olympic schedule for the night went haywire - crashed and missed the BMX, Steve Hooker's attempt at the pole vault etc, and then proceeded to finally make it to my bed at 6am where I crashed for a further five hours...

So anyway, I'd heard pretty good things about the film and I hoped to see since watching some Australian interviews. And it was a great look into not just her, and not just the tireless work put into a tour, but the support that even those at such a successful level need, crave, desire.
I've always thought myself, and been seen to be, a bit on the crazy side - sometimes through what I wear, or my at times unrelenting loudness. But the way Katy sticks by who she is seems to be almost unrivalled, and hearing from those in her life about how hard she'd worked to get to where she is now was beautiful.
Not shying away from the difficulties, I felt wrapped up and quite absorbed in this world by the time the lights came on, understanding the good and the bad. It made me think about how she perceives dreams and greatness and what greatness meant to me. Have I achieved it in any capacity? Sometimes I doubt myself. But when I see things like this it kicks me into gear and makes me reassess, with the hope that one day I will be capable.

But for now, I'm declaring myself a KatyCat because I think she really is the best advocate for pushing that it's OK to be different, and I respect her so much.

***

To this week's review: Indigenous filmmaking of late has shone a light on our industry and it continues with Cannes standing-ovation recipient The Sapphires. No classic review tonight, was given the week off. Handy with the Olympics and all.

My reviews are finally being published on our website now that it's been revamped, so view it online here!

The Sapphires (PG)

A SENSE of belonging was something the Australian government felt was lacking among a significant part of the country’s community in the 1960s, where the wrongs of the Stolen Generations were still in effect amongst the introduction of various ethnic minorities as migrants. While there was an increasing movement for equal rights following in the footsteps of Martin Luther King Jnr and Rosa Parks in the United States, Australia as we know was still in a tumultuous place.
*Published in the Daily Liberal (Dubbo), Western Advocate (Bathurst), Parkes Champion Post and Midstate Observer (Orange) from Saturday 11/8/2012

MISSED LAST WEEK'S REVIEWS? See what I thought of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter and My Left Foot.

A year ago today I was at Athens International Airport, on the plane going home.

Mum and I relieved to be settled ahead of the long flight back.

After Thessaloniki we caught the train back to Athens. A journey that took almost two hours than it should have, not least because the train stopped in the middle of nowhere about an hour in... for a SMOKE BREAK. I'm not kidding, look.


The last days in Athens were pretty chilled. I didn't want to stay there again for as long as we did, especially because we stayed in the suburbs again - but I did see some beautiful sunsets, had some more great food and succumbed to buying shoes I'd spotted all the way back in Santorini (they were wedges that had gone down by 40 Euros from the first sighting though, sweet). It's a shame that my afternoon at the beach, the last afternoon before heading to the airport, was ruined because some middle-aged sleazeball tried chatting me up in the water and then tried luring me away with him. Seriously. Ew.

***

I wasn't sure if I wanted to leave this time around. In 2010 I had almost no desire to go home, but a year had changed a lot. It was a daunting prospect after almost four months away, but I was hopeful as well about getting into a routine again, and really committing to looking for a job and/or pursuing travel-related freelance work. But also thinking about USA 2012, which had popped into my head with their financial woes in that particular month (good of course for the Aussie dollar).

Ironically, it ended up being our shocker of a stopover that made me overly anxious to get home.

We had booked rooms at the hotel inside Singapore's Changi Airport. Got there, not available until 8am - three hours after we arrived. It was a 17hr stopover with the intention we'd get that morning rest, then go to the city in the afternoon refreshed to have a look before flying out. The rooms were eventually lost, then no-one proceeded to move from a group of couches for hours at a time. When I finally managed to get my mum and brother to make the trip with me, they could only sustain a quick lunch (at McDonalds of all places) and a short walk along Orchard Avenue before the long return because of their jetlag. So I, clearly least affected, was restless and forced to weigh it out. Why did I not explore myself? Do not even go there. By then I was dying to get home.

A few photos now, from (until the flight itself) a less hectic end of my journey.

Had a rather embarrassing one of my brother at Singapore's Changi Airport, but I'll save it for his 21st. Instead, the area I mostly hung around.

A breaking dawn soon before touchdown in Adelaide.

Shoe of the Week is a day early again, but all will return to normal next week and this series will return to Friday nights.

I was reminded by the works of Antoni Gaudi and even Charles Rennie Mackintosh seen during my travels on first sight of this shoe, but a moment later I realised they wouldn't make a shoe like this. They would've made shoes so much better. I'm just wondering if the heel would feel funny... unbalanced...

How could I NOT talk about the events of this morning? To top off the laser sailing win from the awesome Tom Slingsby late on Monday, the two races I, and the nation, wanted desperately to fall in our favour did.

Meares v Pendleton



I feel like I've missed so much of this epic rivalry in between Olympic and even Commonwealth Games because of the lack of overall coverage for sprint cycling. But while I was disappointed about Meares' keirin loss to the Brit a few nights before, we all knew that it was the sprint that mattered.

For me, and many glued to the Games, this was just about THE race of the tournament. Yes, for some even rivalling Usain Bolt and Yohan Blake in the 100m. The intensity that bounced off these two ended up being as explosive as it deserved to be.

I actually lost my TV signal completely - yes, at 1am for the semis and then again at 2.20am just before the first of the races for gold - and missed the first race that saw Victoria Pendleton relegated. Thank goodness for Twitter. Anyway, I screamed and then started blubbering when Meares won because it was the fierce, tactical final she wanted to play and that Australia had hoped for. And she spoiled the British party.

I'm still in awe, Meares spoke so well in later interviews, great sportsmanship from Pendleton humbled her as well as all of us and she showed her raw emotion. Such an inspiration, to work up through the medals across eight years, to stick it out.

Pearson vs Pearson

Sally wasn't competing against her American rivals as much as she was against herself. For her form, a slightly rocky lead-up to the Olympics had left her more reason to knuckle down and focus. But didn't she give us all a mighty fright? I thought she had it in the bag but as soon as there was a moment of hesitation I definitely doubted.

When she screamed though I'm pretty sure I rivalled her in the decibels.


For me, Dawn Harper, Beijing 2008 gold medallist to Sally's shock silver, was phenomenal here. So ecstatic, as Sally was in reverse four years ago, she gladly embraced Sally, as did bronze medallist Wells. It was just beautiful to watch. And yes, from there to Sally's post-race interview I cried even more.

I'm just so proud of what these two have achieved, not just in these Olympics and standing their ground as the best in their field, but how they got there.



***

Days 10-11

To the rest of the recent events, and Karl Stefanovic is clearly not impressed with Steve Hooker and other pole vaulters as I write this for protesting about the continuation of their qualifying. Maybe because it stuffs up his shift?

Disappointing that our women's water polo team's gone. Same with the Hockeyroos. But having already heard we've got a second sailing medal already in the bag, I was lifted even ahead of the ultimate races.

Most impressed with award: Chris Hoy.


So we love to hate the Brits. But you can't hate this guy. He's a champion in every respect and I felt privileged to see him win his last gold and take the stand.

Least impressed with award: The Daily Telegraph

In all my hectic days before heading home for a week's holiday I didn't get a couple of classic reviews up. So tonight you're welcome to read my brief thoughts on some of the best from Spike Lee and Alfred Hitchcock. Share if you enjoy :D

I'm talking about the middle section of the Olympics tonight, the guts of it, where the swimming petered out in favour of the track and field in between continuation of basketball and hockey. And we found God residing in a Jamaican.

Through all of it, I've still had the Swisse song in my head almost all the time from the ads. It's so catchy, yet slightly annoying at the same time.

Days 4-6

Hearing about the four badminton teams throwing games made my blood boil. Did they not remember the mutual, unspoken agreement they had taken less than a week ago? It's called the athlete's oath, bitches.

And then one quits the sport in a huff and a puff saying it's destroyed her happiness. Brought it. Upon. Yourself. No sympathy from me. Just a shame the Aussie girls couldn't capitalise on their second chance.

***

It seems in the pool we became the epitomy of that dreaded term. Bridesmaid. The amount of silvers is testament that our talent remains a threat in world sport, but whether the hunger's there as much as it was a decade ago could easily be questioned. Susie O'Neill certainly raised the debate.

James Magnussen was again a a talking point. The Missile misfired big time once again as we all know by now. That 100m freestyle final was absolutely heartbreaking. 1/100th of a second. It's the cruellest of margins and suggestions he touched with a curled hand as opposed to a flat palm didn't help. I think everyone watching would have had to have been at least slightly shattered no matter how they felt about the 21-year-old. I certainly was. Even in post-swim interviews it's clear he's gained a new perspective - on everything, and he'll definitely grow from it. Whether we see him in Rio will be an interesting development.
This photo of him by Brendan Esposito would have to be my favourite photo from the tournament so far and I'll be surprised if another one better comes along. It says so much about defeat, vulnerability and the disappointment of not just one, but a nation.

The best article so far also reflected on the swim meet, blaming poor media judgment for how we viewed their reactions. A great read.

***


On a better note, my happy silver award goes to Jessica Fox with the kayak slalom. Must be a pretty good feeling to beat both your parents at their own game. And what a darling: "This is the most beautiful piece of metal I've ever seen." Wow, I'll be so shattered if she's not a gold medal winner in Rio. So much good to come for the 18-year-old.

Day 7

Channel Nine called it the lucky day, and with the track and field beginning it was going to be for me. It's the first night I could stay up and then sleep in being Friday night/Saturday morning. The Opals were still in the mix so that was good. But the rest of it was NOT lucky. You jinxed it 9, you frickin' jinxed it. The men's team sprint lost. Anna Meares lost (I still can't talk about it). More silvers in the rowing. Magnussen not even in the 50m final. I stayed up until 4.50am for goodness sake and that's what I got. Damn you Brits.

Days 8-9



OK, so with day seven I was trying to channel my anger at the time. Now AOC's John Coates has conceded we won't make top-five. Well, hate to spoil the party but we figured that out at least five days ago. I'd predicted we wouldn't win another, but without much thought. APPARENTLY (I say this with trepidation) we're a shoo-in with a sailing gold medal tonight. Well done to Tom Slingsby, who I understand is chasing redemption for a poor showing in Beijing. As for those to come, like Sally Pearson, I hope they are also better at withstanding the pressure. God I hope she does it.

***

A turning point for me on day eight. I actually shared my brain with the end of the night's AFL game and then an episode of Once Upon A Time. Unheard of. But a part of me is becoming disillusioned... I think it's a mix of Australia not performing all that great and the continued shit coverage.

Yay, someone out there's sticking it to the man! I love Facebook.

Yes, I still want to punch Leila McKinnon a bit. And no, montages DO NOT COUNT in showing us a sport. I have seen no: weightlifting, handball, football, fencing. Hardly saw any tennis - and the men's side had some cracker games (although the Federer-Del Potro game was apparently a no-show on Foxtel's eight channels either).

And with the news updates: DON'T TELL US ALL THE RESULTS AND THEN PROCEED TO SHOW US EXTENDED HIGHLIGHTS. It becomes lost to me and is a waste of people's time. And don't you dare say you have more live footage from 7am onwards because you DON'T. Ever.

Usain Bolt = God.

I'm ending on awesomeness because I'm not all that bitter. The 100m men's final was something to behold. There had been lots of talk but the defending champ stepped up and took it to everyone. Bolt looked set from halfway, it was just phenomenal. And the friendship with others, especially Yohan Blake, was so great to see. Usain Bolt is one of the great personalities sport has possibly ever seen - confident and able to deliver.