Ashes Preview

Well, seeing everyone else is doing previews of the upcoming Ashes/AFL Draft, I may as well throw my 2c in! Obviously a big day tomorrow for a heap of youngsters hoping for a crack at AFL tomorrow. But us Cats fans have a saying - in Wells we trust. He's the expert in drafting the next group of kittens to pull on the blue & white hoops. And as much as I love my AFL above every other sport, the up & coming new blood in one area I don't have a lot of expertise in. So we'll leave that to the experts, shall we? On the other hand, everyone has an opinion on how the upcoming Ashes series will pan out. The old enemies, Australia & England, will battle for the oldest prize in cricket again starting from tomorrow, & as its in Australia under the backdrop of summer (if it ever arrives here in Victoria), at a time where we'll be able to watch it, we're all pumped for it! Especially as we are seeking revenge on the Poms after a tense 3-0 loss in England earlier this year. As a kid, I was actually probably more so into my cricket than my footy, though people who know me or have followed me on twitter for any length of time may find that hard to fathom. I used to hang out for the start of the cricket season down under - probably cause it indicated that the school year was coming to a close, & the Xmas/summer holidays were nearly upon us. We would be free to go go out & play cricket in the backyard & the street, throwing the tennis ball down like we were Dennis Lillee, or Craig McDermott to our hearts content without having to worry about homework, or getting up early for school the next morning. Indeed, daylight saving meant more hours out having fun - a concept that seems to have been lost in the computer games/smartphone/electronics age than Gen Y have grown up in. For us, it also meant we got the chance to catch up with some extended family members,usually just after Xmas to exchange gifts at our grandparents place, if we were lucky, we'd all catch up at some point in January down at our holiday house in Apollo Bay. This was back in the day we could still take time to all get away from the regular life - before our society became 24-7-365. One thing about the Crofts - we're all sports mad! Especially cricket mad! So there were plenty of chances for a good hit at cricket. So over the summer, it was cricket, cricket, cricket. While today the game maybe doesn't hold quite the special place in my heart as it used to (unlike most of my cousins who are still involved at a lower level to some degree) but this is the big one. And while we tend to be divided during AFL season denying n which AFL club we support, nothing beats coming together to support our national team. So what does the next couple of months hold? I think this will be one of the closest series in recent times. Sure we got done 3-0 just a few short months ago, & while we (forgive me for calling the Aussies we, but hey this IS my blog!) did play some good cricket, & didn't have luck on our side at time with the weather, England clearly deserved to win. When it mattered, they found something extra. This time round, it will be on our pitches, & our conditions, which will obviously suit us better. We haven't lost a Test in Brisbane, where proceedings kick off tomorrow, in over 20 years. Perth with its extra bounce is always challenging for visiting teams, while pitches in Adelaide & Melbourne are not easy to dislodge batsmen. That being said, we need to beat England, not vica-versa. Neither team is completely settled. England are still searching for a 3rd pacemen to support Broad & Anderson with Bresnan still out injured. They still are a batman short of a settled top 6 as well, plus have injury doubts over keeper Prior. The Aussies also have spots up for grabs. We know the 1 vacant batting spot has been given to George Bailey for his debut. I'm happy with this decision. I know its been a different form of the game in different conditions, but Baileys maturity & experience is the key that gets him over the line in my book. You can't keep going back to the likes of Khwaja & Hughes time after time. Our bowling will be tested, with 3 or 4 frontline bowlers out injured - for the first couple of Tests at least. A lot will depend on whether Johnson can get the radar right, & whether Harris can play all the Tests without getting injured again! The humid conditions forecast for Brisbane may tempt Australia to go with all rounder Faulkner & leave Lyon out, but we can't keep falling for the trap of overlooking Lyon. Lets face it, hes never going to be on a par with Warney, but hes a good honest spinner. We will need his variety. So who do I give the nod too? As much as I hate to say it, England do look that little more settled, & have that little more talent right now. If our captain fails with the bat, or worse still that back of his plays up again, the middle order suddenly becomes very brittle. Ditto if another fast bowler breaks down. England you sense have a more even battling line-up, & have 1 or 2 more resources in the bowling stakes. Will this can be offset somewhat by our home conditions, I'm sad to say I think, they still might be too good for us. Remember a drawn series is enough for England. So I sure as hell hope I'm wrong, but I'll say England 2-1. I think we will learn a lot about our senior cricketers this summer too. The opportunity is there for the taking - who will stand up & deliver the goods? Time will tell!

Movie Review: Elysium

ELYSIUM USA, 109 mins Dir: Neill Blomkamp Elysium is a 2013 sci-fi flick I saw at the movies a few months ago, so be on the lookout for it on DVD by Christmas! It stars Matt Damon & Jodie Foster. The year is 2154. People are largely divided into 2 classes – the ultra rich, who live on a space-station sort of setup, hovering over Earth which is called Elysium, while the rest of the population inhabit the Earth, which has become a desolate, rubbish ridden & overpopulated planet where sickness & disease are common. They are also overseen & forced to work under robots with little to look forward to in life. Meanwhile on Elysium, the rich live a life of care-free luxury; with everything anybody could want, including a bed in every home which can instantly cure any illness. Anybody trying to reach Elysium illegally however meets with dire consequences. Damon plays Max Costa, who after contracting a lethal dose of radiation in his job, vows to make it to Elysium to cure himself & take childhood friend Frey (Alice Braga) with him. Meanwhile, Secretary Of Defence on Elysium, Jessica Delacourt (an excellent performance by Jodie Foster), is ruling the station with an iron fist in an attempt to gain complete control of Elysium, & is prepared to go to any lengths to stop the likes of Max & his cohorts from making it to the luxury station. So with this background conveyed to the viewer, Elysium really does set itself up well for what should be an excellent film, especially as I’m a big sci-fi fan. But alas it really goes astray in the middle of the film, getting bogged down too much in Max’s internal battles. Also we lose momentum as the film focuses on his relationship with Frey & his agreements he is forced to make with smuggler Spider (Wagner Moura) & his cronies. It is really hard to get behind Max as the films protagonist as well - though Damon does a fairly convincing job in his primary role here, Max is just not that likeable a person. The film does conclude well, as Max & Co finally make it to Elysium for the inevitable showdown. The futuristic special effects & indeed the whole Elysium station comes across very well on the big screen, no expense of the budgets spared on this film. Jodie Foster is also perfectly cast in her role as the ruthless, ice cold, power hungry politician of Elysium who will do anything to maintain the station for the upper class only. Action fans will also not feel left out with plenty to keep them satisfied right throughout the film. To wrap things up, I found Elysium to be a quite an entertaining film, but the thing is that it could have been so much more. Had there been more sympathy for Damon’s character & less distraction in the middle of the film which dragged things down, it would have really made a difference. As it stands, Elysium is only a good sci-fi/action film, instead of a great one. I’m giving this ***

Movie Review - Rewind This

OK, so somehow, I've been "dobbed in" to do a regular movie review for work as part of a new internal communications/social network for our company. that is to be launched soon. They wanted something "fluffy" (their word not mine) to go with all the business info stuff. So I thought I may as well share it with this blog, add a bit more content!
For a bit of background info for you all, I'm not generally a big movie buff - sport is obviously my major thing, but it just so happens we're about 3/4 of the way through a 2 week period of the year where I become a movie geek rather than a sports geek, thanks to the Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF) which is in its final days for 2013. If you're looking for an alternative to your major Hollywood blockbuster, or interested in seeing a different side of the movie genre, MIFF would be well worth a look - be it a lost classic, an International film, an independent movie from an up & comer filmmaker, a Night Shift classic late night cult film, a Documentary, or of course a Homegrown Aussie film getting its first ever release, MIFF has lots to offer. So it is the highlight so far from MIFF 2013 which is the the 1st cab off the rank for a movie review.!

REWIND THIS!

USA, 91 min

Dir: J.Johnson

 If you're a fellow Gen X'er like myself, then you'll have grown up with the humble home video cassette. Sure today, we have Blu Ray, VOD, Netflix, etc but back when our generation was growing up, it was all about this brand new concept that allowed us to first watch movies at home, known as a VHS. Rewind This is a really interesting, very funny, & poignant documentary that takes us back for a look at the video cassette - from its beginnings, right through until its demise due to the DVD.   

We hear from movie geeks still devoted to the VHS genre (& we're talking some SERIOUS geeks still with literally wall to wall VHS movie collections), archivists & various filmmakers themselves as they discuss how they see how the video cassette changed their lives, & dominated the movie media market for the 80's & most of the 90's. We look at the uprising of video stores across the land, & how Hollywood blockbusters could sit side-by-side on the shelf with cheesy direct-to-video releases. We even briefly delve into how this changed the adult film business, & how the landscape in Japan was also changing rapidly. We get a heap of clips from a bunch of so-bad-its-good horror & cheesy movies from the era & that had the audience in fitfuls of laughter. The film looks at the making of a home movie thanks to the video camera, & we witness the lengths that some everyday people went to in their quest for making a film - to the extent of recreating Raiders Of The Lost Ark in its entirety - now that's dedication!

Rewind This! wraps up with a look back at all involved in the documentary on how they see the positioning of the VHS in the modern era. The true value of nostalgia is not lost upon most fanatics & collectors, to the extent where video cassette conventions around the world are gathering storm, proving there is still a strong fan base for this part of  film media. There is also a belief in physical media possession, which flies in the face of the way the industry is headed today - e.g. Netflix, YouTube.

Obviously I'm right in the target audience for a feature documentary like Rewind This! Hey, I can still admit I have a VCR in my room still too! But a person of just about any age would find some value in this film. Even if its for the classic clips from movies you never though could possibly have existed back in the 80's! It is a well constructed & very well put together piece, giving you a decent history lesson, & an insight to what the genre still means to many dedicated VHS fans out there, to throwing in plenty of laughs along the way, Rewind This! is a really great feature, & well worth checking out. Look for it on VHS at your local video store, haha! :)   I'm giving it ****

 

 

 

What Footy Meant to Me Growing up

WHAT FOOTY MEANT TO ME GROWING UP

  

Sorry for leaving nearly 5 months between posts: never said I'd be any good at keeping this going! I guess 2013 has been a fairly up & down year so far, but seeing its Friday, & things have been into perspective somewhat over the last month or so (something I might discuss down the track if I remember to write again soon) I'll write about a primarily positive topic, & one of my passions in life.

So, footy. Australian Rules Football. Our great homegrown game that only true Australians really grasp, though that is slowly changing around the world thanks to the good work of many people - though its something that you won't find on the front or back page of the Herald Sun anytime soon.

 Its been my lifeblood, so to speak, pretty much all my life. Sport has always been an integral part of the Croft family for at least a generation or two, much to Mum's anguish - part of marrying into a Croft clan I guess!   

My Grandfather was a supporter of Collingwood believe it or not, but luckily for me, when my father first moved to live in Geelong for work as a young man, he went along the line of "when in Rome...." & decided since he was now a local, he'd better take up supporting the local team - the mighty Geelong Football Club. So when I arrived into the world, Dad was keen to pass that support down the line. We lived in Mildura for my first few years, but moved back down to live in Geelong when i was 5. While I still do have a few faint memories of Mildura, my most vivid memories from early childhood days will always be down at Kardinia Park. Even back in the early 80's, Dad was a busy man & worked long hours. So on Saturdays during footy season, it was father & son quality time together, & whenever Geelong was playing at home, he'd take me to the big game. I was fortunate that I took interest in the games very early on, & really looked forward to those Saturday afternoons.

 Of course, being the 80's, all games were played at 2pm on Saturday afternoon at suburban grounds with a reserves match on beforehand.  We'd park in South Geelong, stroll along the railway lines up to Kardinia Park, with the whistle of the V-Line footy special train in the background, quite often rugged up in a dufflecoat & beanie as we endured a cold & often rainy or foggy Saturday down at G town. Back then it was only standing terraces only for the most part, unless you got to the ground early enough to grab a spot on one of the wooden rows of seats that surrounded the fence on the Moorabool Street side of the ground. Don't think we ever got there that early though - you'd literally have to be queueing at the gates at 11am when they sprang open to get one of those elusive spots! Nope, it was always top deck of the terraces on the half-forward flank, just to the right of the traditional old scoreboard. Sometimes we lucky to arrive early enough for me to get a spot against the railing. Especially in my early days I could lean or even sit on the rails if I got a little bored, or at the breaks in the game. Mum usually packed us some sandwiches & fruit drinks, or often Dad would come home from a couple of hours work Saturday morning with some fresh rolls from the bakery, & some fresh strassburg, & we'd knock up some lovely rolls to take down to the footy.

Back then, it was first-in best dressed as far as viewing points were concerned (which i why it was a bonus to get a spot at the railing). Sometimes supporters made concessions for a kid, but often it was a case of leaning over people or swaying to see the action depending on where the play was on the ground! If it was raining, out came the umbrellas, making it virtually impossible for a kid like me to watch the game. Plenty of arduous fans muttered "get the umbrellas down" the instant it looked like stopping! 

Also there were little food options at the ground itself. I have fond memories of the crabby old lady at the hot donut stand proclaiming "It's only me serving, sorry", as you spent your entire half time break queueing for a warm bit of dough & faintly warm jam in the middle to ward off the cold! Then of course you had to squeeze past dozens of people on the terrace on the way back, & remember where Dad was situated amongst hundreds of other supporters sitting down & giving their legs a rest, or consulting the footy record to find out the codes of the other games' scores posted on the main scoreboard. Not to mention trying to find your way down to the packed toilets with very basic facilities! I remember on my 14th birthday Dad getting us & my grandparents who were down visiting reserved seats in the R.J Hickey stand behind the goals (this is the the stand that was just recently torn down to make way for the new stand being finished off now) - pure luxury! Pity the boys just came up short against the West Coast Eagles that day, spoiling my birthday! :(  

We usually take a footy along too for a bit of kick-to-kick on the terrace.. On extra special occasions, if Dad judged we'd had a good win, we'd even head onto the hallowed turf of Kardinia Park itself for a kick, & even once or twice head down the players race to pat the boys on the back. There were many times on Dad's orders that we'd slip away well before the final siren, tails between our legs, as Geelong crashed to another defeat. One time that almost came back to bite us on the behind - a game v the Swans in 1988, we looked done & dusted & Dad said that's enough, time to go. Optimistic me tuned on the radio on my brand new Walkman, locked it on to 3GL with Teddy Whitten calling the action as we strode back to the car. Turns out Robert Scott had a shot to win after the sire, but hit the post! 

While attending the footy is much more different experience nowadays, & is certainly more comfortable & enjoyable, I wouldn't trade those early days for a kings ransom in money. I got to see the likes of Daicos, Doull, Johnson, Salmon, Duntall, Flower... all the big names from the 80's & early 90's go through their paces at Kardinia Park well before things like switching games to bigger grounds became the norm. I saw many great players donning the blue & white hoops of Geelong come & go. Robert "Scratcha" Neal, Peter Johnson, Neville Bruns, Micky Turner, Darren Flanigan, the list goes on. Of course that gradually gave way to a more successful era as we entered the 90's - Brownless, Couch, Bairstow, the Hocking boys, Darcy, Stoneham. But still there was 1 player that stood above all - Gary Ablett snr. Even in the days when Geelong weren't a great team, it was worth it just see the great man wearing No. 5 in action. some of the stuff he could do & goals he could kick left me in disbelief. to this day, I rate him at the greatest player I've ever seen play our great game.

As the years rolled on, we even started going to some games in Melbourne. More great experiences as I was now old enough to understand the game well, but like the old saying goes, "theres no place like home". and that would always be Kardinia Park to me. Despite the heartbreaks of going so close to wining a Grand Final in the late 80's & early 90's, my father had taught me well - I was a die-hard cat fan for life, & a footy follower forever. 

As our game started to change & the ground facilities with it as footy was gradually evolving into what we know it as today, I grew old enough to start attending games by myself, or with some mates from high school. Dad also started working more often & more hours on Saturday, but he would still come down when he could - he always knew where to find me at the ground! That flank in the outer on the Moorabool St side was always our spot, & remained so right up till the end of the 2003 season when they began construction of a new stand that was to become the new Hickey Stand. After a season of using the standing room behind the goals at the city end - now known as the Ablett Terrace - I saw the writing on the wall, & upgraded to a reserved seat for 2005. By this time, Dad rarely came to many games, content I guess in the knowledge that the Cats footy fan gene had been passed on, & happy to watch the game on TV! So it was just me, though occasionally I'd organise a seat nearby if a mate wanted to head down for a game. 

We are about to enter a new era at Kardinia Park (OK, call it Shell/Baytec/Skilled/Simmonds Stadium if you wish) next week with the introduction of lights & the unveiling a new grandstand, truly bringing the Geelong Football Club& its home base in the modern era.We are very lucky to still have our own ground, when you consider most other Melbourne suburban clubs' home grounds have fallen victim to the evolution of AFL footy. Credit must go to the current board at Geelong, & those that have served over the past 10-12 years for their vision in bringing the club into the 21st century, & taking an old & rapidly declining stadium into what we know it as today!  My niece also has taken on the Cats as her team, & has started coming to home games the last few years, which has led to Dad also coming back to some games too - he & my sister take turns in bringing her along & letting her cheer on her beloved cats in person. So there are 3 seats waiting for us in the Gary Ablett Terrace next Saturday evening for what will be a historic night, & we can't wait!!

GO CATS!!

First for 2013!

 That Was The Year That Was

Happy New Year!! Hope everyone had a good Christmas, & a bit of time off over the festive season. So 2013 is here, 8 days in already. I had hoped to write over the break, but inspiration didn't strike alas. Having 10 days in a row off work for the first time in 12 months didn't inspire me to do too much in the the way of writing, even though I didn't do a lot over the break - more on that to come.

I got nothing specific to chat about today, just quickly to look at my highs & lows of 2012, my pretty unspectacular Xmas/New Year break, & a few things on the horizon in 2013! Only my 2nd full day of work here, things still fairly quiet - I guess a fair few of our suppliers still on their break - so lets do this now.

I look back on 2012 with mixed feelings - it was my 1st full year in the new job, & after a busy start to the year which involved settling in & organising the new office & completely getting my head round the job tasks, I settled in to a pretty good routine. A good group of people & modern facilities certainly helped. And before I knew it, the footy was back & I had a very big year, getting to over 50 games by my count if you include NAB Cup, VFL games & finals!! Adding in everything else socially, I kept busy for most of the year, while manging a couple of trips Harborside - including getting to the GWS Giants' 1st ever game for premiership points - a trip to Adelaide, this time last year, & a quick getaway to Cairns in October for a few nights.

On the flip side, we had a few family health issues which made you think twice about things. I felt I didn't quite achieve a few of the things I had hoped to - in financial terms mainly. Though I guess a new queen bed, a new MacBook, & a ticket to the AFL Grand final at the full retail rate will take the edge off your bank account in a hurry! Also, I sadly had to put a big black line through the names of some people who I either thought were my friends, but thought wrong (as I've spoken about before), or others I just continued to drift away from, as happens over time. I know that people coming & going from your life is perfectly normal part of life, but its always something that I personally find hard to do. Especially as I'm far from the best at replacing them with new friends & contacts.

So, to wrap it up, my highlight & lowlight of 2012: The highlight was definitely my 20 year high school reunion in March. I guess there's not much in-between with these things, either it really clicks, or you spend 90% of the night sitting in the corner sipping a drink, feeling very awkward & totally out of place. Luckily it was the former for me - the girls who organised the night picked a perfect spot to have it, & had things planned very well. Drinks, finger food, some old high school photos that had re-surfaced... all led to a very engaging night that I really really enjoyed. Great to catch up with so many familiar faces & catch up on 20 years worth of news. Head was spinning from so many memories & laughs & moments in time from some of the best years of your life! Especially as you know by now, I'm a bit socially awkward - but this night I mingled & chatted with almost everyone! Its amazing how some people looked exactly the same, & had barely changed, while others I honestly didn't recognise at first! The night went so well in fact, that there was serious discussion about making this an annual event! The next few months will determine whether that happens or not I guess, now that 9 months have since passed.
The lowlight is a bit more generic - that pathetic game of footy the Cats played in the elimination final at the MCG against the Freo dockers. Considering what was on the line that night, & as many predicted, 2012 would be Matthew Scarlett's last year in the game, that was just such a terrible effort that night to put it mildly - what a way to send off one of the greatest players to ever pull on the Blue & White hoops! :( I haven't been as angry as I was that night in a long, long time. My brother paid witness to that - come half time, he had re-located halfway down the aisle of seats, & i didn't blame him at all! I only need to track back to my tweets that night - I was seriously pissed off!!

Sorta ironic that both my highlight & lowlight of 2012 involved a Geelong-Fremantle game! Of course, the only other meeting between the teams last year was in Rd 1 on March 31st -the same night as my high school reunion!

Xmas/New Years

This section will be brief! We finished up at work on Friday Dec 21st, with a Xmas lunch celebration, complete with giveaways, the work KK, etc before an early finish. Was a nice way to wrap up the year, especially seeing  i won one of the door prizes - a $50 Coles/Myer gift card, very nice! I actually popped out & caught up with some old work colleagues at dimmeys Head Office (the ones still there at least) & to say Merry Christmas. Reinforced how glad I am I left too - it was deathly quiet, hardly anyone left anymore. Was quite depressing in a sense, actually!
My Christmas itself was fine - just spent with the family at home (one advantage of being single - only 1 set of family you need to visit, haha) My niece & nephew were over round 8.30ish to drag me out of bed & go open the presents with everyone else! My brother & his partner came down for lunch which was really nice, & after the traditional afternoon snooze, I ducked up to my sister & brother in laws place (within walking distance) for an evening drink & to reflect on what we all got from "Santa"! Nothing spectacular, but very enjoyable notheless.
I usually go to the cricket at the MCG on Boxing Day, but I have to admit on being totally uninterested with Sri Lanka being the opponents this year. Plus the prices seemed higher, too. Just not worth it - I popped up to the big smoke, did a bit of shopping, then found a good pub with a nice beer garden to watch the cricket on the big screen. Could think of worse ways to spend Boxing Day!
Rest of the break was mainly R & R. I got down to to Torquay for a couple of days (love the new Geelong Ring Road, makes it a lot easier) when it wasn't too hot & too crowded, & just basically took it easy. Was nice just to forget about the usual grind & not have to worry about going to bed at a reasonable hour & wake up to a darn alarm every morning!
Even New Years Eve was low key this time. I'd pretty much decided last new year's that I was just over the whole big party scene for New Years anyway.. A BBQ at home with family was more enticing, complete with drinks on the patio courtesy of the esky filled with cold ones on ice, with some tunes from the radio counting down till midnight. Was in bed not long after 1am! Also, it was back to work on January 2nd, so not really worth doing anything too huge.

2013?

So we had a quiet roll in to the new year at work, too. Was just a skeleton staff last 3 normal working days after New Years last week, with a short work day too - wasn't complaining! I'm not really a big one for New Years resolutions - was actually asked this at a End Of The Word/Xmas Party I was at just before Xmas - and I think the world just turns too quickly to set too many goals these days. Just look at these terrible bushfires in Tassie right now - sure the people who have had their lives disrupted the last few days had goals they were aiming for. Things just change too quickly in the modern world for mine.
That being said, I was looking medium term at another overseas trip. for the last year or 2, I'd envisioned going to the UK in June-July 2013 & catching some of the Ashes Test matches. But you have to face facts sometimes: its realistically not something I'm going to be able to afford. Not at the moment anyway, I know things can change. Anyway, I have to admit I'm not as sold on going as much anymore, seeing that the next set of Ashes Test matches will be just a few months later on, back here in Australia. It sort of de-values those matches in England a little for me. Next time we tour will be 2015 I think, so that may be a better long-term goal? We'll see. In the meantime, seeing I came back on Jan 2nd, & have a few days of leave still owing. (only problem with the new job was having to take almost 2 weeks of leave just 7 weeks into the job owing the re-location of the office over Xmas/New Years 2011) I'm thinking of settling for a few night sessions of the tennis, & taking a week in late Jan/early Feb instead while the weather is still good but after the school holidays are over & taking off somewhere. Right now that somewhere is... Fiji! :) But keep it under your hats, haven't booked yet, or even put my annual leave in either, though I'm not anticipating an issue at a quiet point of the retail year. Stay tuned, come next post I should have the details, whoo-hoo!!

One Thing to go On...

So NYE was the final trading day for Dimmeys Richmond -  where I began my 14 year career with the company in October 1997. Early 1998 through to early 1999 when i was working at Richmond is what I would rate my most enjoyable time with Dimmeys - it was before the cutbacks, staffing issues, mismanagement, etc. I could do a whole post on my time at dimmeys, so I won't go into details now. But when I walked past it on the weekend for the 1st time since it closed, I kinda expected to feel something - sadness, nostalgia, memories of the best times I had there..... but I felt nothing at all. Good in a way that I've fully moved on, sad that I had a lot of friendships & good times there, that seem to have been permanently scarred by more recent memories & how I was treated in subsequent years. Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing? In a more general sense, its certainly a loss for the area - so now the building just becomes another supermarket with some upmarket apartments on Level 1?  Hmmmmmmm...  At least the tower & wall along Green St has been Heritage listed & can't be touched. Still a sad occasion, especially for the staff still working there. Hope my old big boss has enough heart to find a role for them at another the stores.
.

Following Up/Big Bash

Upon Reflection.....

  

So reflecting back on what I wrote on a grumpy downhearted Monday evening about something which really bothered me big time, on a breezy Friday arvo (with only a fortnight till the xmas break, yay) was definitely interesting. But I sure as hell stand by what I said. and it sure as hell needed to be said. Some people just really need a good, hard look at themselves sometimes. That night was something that meant a lot to me, & getting it out there off my chest was a good way of properly moving on from it. If it causes a few frowns out there, so be it. I'm not going to sugarcoat everything I say on here - this is simply me speaking from the heart. And theres plenty, PLENTY of bad stuff in there as well as good.
I have had one or two persons reach out & communicate this week re my last post, & to them I do thank you. Particularly the one person who knew me the best during my time at Dimmeys, at least she has kept in touch & was kind enough to get back to me & say sorry. I  knew she would struggle to make it - becoming a Mum a short time before this would be a daunting task!
 It doesn't dilute how crap & worthless I felt that night, but we are just 3 weeks off 2013, that was in 2011. The past is in the past. We gotta keep looking forward, right? I'm certainly no Saint myself, I'm guilty too of not keeping in touch with some old friends.
 So lets move on....

Big Bash

 To quote of bit of Billy Birmingham (aka the 12th Man) when its summer, in Australia, if you don't like Cricket that's a real bummer that cause cricket is the number 1 game in town! Yo!! :)  And while to me the footy it still streets ahead, Cricket has its rightful place in my sports calendar at this time of the year. Its as traditional as a beer & a BBQ over the summer months!
While I'm a traditionalist at heart, & therefore enjoy Test Cricket, the rise of 20-20 can't be denied, & it certainly has its place. I challenge anyone to recall a memorial 20-20 game a month or 2 on, where as most cricket fans could quote a good dozen quality or spectacular Test matches off the top of their head going back decades! Even the good old one dayers (50 overs) a good few stick in  the mind from days & eras gone by.
But for a hit & giggle, & for 3 hours of entertainment, I don't mind me some 20-20. Could do without the fireworks & cheerleaders - just makes the game feel even more artificial, but then I know Cricket needs to cater to a younger audience this old stiffs & traditionalists like me.
Going from a State based local comp to a city based one has certainly taken a lot of real passion in who really wins out of it for me. Being a proud Victorian through & through, it very easy to get behind them in the longer forms of the domestic game, & in the earlier 20-20 days - you generally just barrack for your state. So now its the Melbourne Stars, & the Melbourne Renegades. Doesn't inspire a lot of passion for me, either team. Its a pity the Geelong bid for a fanchise didn't get up -that would have made picking ateam very easy. Alas, mainly becasue our stadium didn't have lights, we got turned down. pity cooky, we were just a few years too late with lights for K.Park!! Ahh well, if they ever expand the Big Bash Comp, you reckon Geelong would be favourite to gain a berth.
 Last year I generally followed the Renegades - seeing as they were a little less high profile, sorta seen as the underdogs. Also, I'm a big fan of Brad Hodge - its absolutely criminal he didn't play more cricket for Australia! So the Renegades it was.They had a fairly average season, finished 7th I think.
It was a fairly entertaining season, & I attended the vast majority of the games both the Renegades & the Stars played at home. but thinking back to last year, nothing really jumps out at me as a really amazing match. Only remember the Melb derby sadly being rained out.
This year, Hodge has jumped across town, & is playing for the Stars (based at the MCG, where the Renegades are based at Etihad Stadium). and so I've jumped ship too to the Stars, mainly cause of Hodge, & the MCG home ground effect - it is the best stadium in the world - where else would you rather watch cricket? Anyway, I thought what the hell & bought a Stars membership the other day - based more upon better value for money, better seating & saving the ques to buy a ticket on game evening rather than real loyalty. I know, changing team loyalties is something I detest, but them this really doesn't count, does it? Especially as this is just the 2nd years of these teams' existence! :)
So the first game is tonight, the first Melbourne derby (they have scheduled 2 derbies this season I think) but its at Etiahd, so the Renegades home match. Another reason I got a membership this time is that you get entry to this game as well. So for what works out to be around $20, a Level 1 prime seat to see the likes of Warnie, Murrili, Hodge, Hussey, Samuels, & Finch to name a few in action is pretty good value I think!! Lets hope for a good game, looks like it will be a nice evening weather wise for it.
While it sure as hell doesn't beat the footy, or an exciting Day 1 of the Boxing Day or New Years Test match, it certainly entices a good, entertaining evening. So long they don't overdo the ground announcing, or fireworks, or other side attractions - let the entertaining cricket be the forefront, says I!! :)

Go Stars!!

 

Real Friends v Work Colleagues

Alright, time to get a bit snarky tonight. Wanted to do this on the weekend, but the only night I felt really ranty was on Friday night, when I was out at a concert. Yes I admit to going to see Rick Astley Fri night, so sue me! ;) You should have an understanding of my love of 80's music by now! Actually, I was planning to go to a gig Sat night too, Monsters Of Rock - featuring Bon Jovi, KISS, Guns n Roses & AC/DC tribute bands. But seeing I didn't home till 1.30 Sat morning, rather shaken after a VERY scary drive home in those storms (but spectacular with all that lightning too - ahh Mother Nature) then felt productive when i got up, & organised some Xmas stuff, including getting a present for the Kmart Wishing Tree Appeal - something I remember to do every year - so come early arvo, I was beat! Add in it was totally 80's on Music Max all weekend, including the option to choose from 4 different styles of 80's on Party Max that night, I ended up vegging on the couch for the rest of the day. Sunday was fairly similar after going out for a breakfast & a walk - I guess after a busy few weekends where I wasn't home much, it was good to have a relative quiet one.
Anyway, I've been distracted, onto my main point tonight.....

Making A Differentiation Between Friends/Work Colleagues

What really defines a real friend, as supposed to, say people we work with on a regular basis & get to know pretty well? 

I  guess I've always held proper true friends as very important people, maybe that's part of my problem. Its the way I've always been - unlike my father, I work to live. Along with my family, my friends mean the world to me. My best mate has been my best mate for all of 31+ years - we've been best mates since shortly after I moved to Geelong when I was 5, & have been through pretty much everything together. If I had to ring him at 3.30am on a Tuesday morning, I'd know he'd understand. 

So needless to say I put a lot of trust in friendships. Trust is a key word here I think. I've also always been a quiet, private, non-talkative person. I guess for a lot of my life I've lacked self-confidence & that's affected my social skills. So, in stark contrast to my best mate, who is the kind of guy who could walk up to a female stranger he fancied in the street, & 10 minutes later he'd have her phone number, (just through sheer charisma, not through being sleazy or anything), I only had a few circles of friends. Mainly through primary/high school, & a few sports I played in my latter years in high school & post education.  Around people i don't know I've never been much chop alas. And if the situation involves females, especially good-looking ladies I'm even worse. Seriously, the brain just goes blank & I have no idea what to say or how to act.

So when I entered the workforce, this obviously presented the chance to interact with a whole new group of people, including girls. Now I'm not one to pump my own tyres up or anything, but I do like to pride myself on being a friendly, considerate & easy to get along with person. So once I settled in at the company I worked for, I found i got along with everyone really well. In particular, the guys I worked directly with I would consider my friends. Back in those days, on a Friday night we'd head down to the pub & have a few beers, egos were left at the door, & whether you were a manager, director, causal worker & a cleaner, we'd have a laugh or get along great over a frothy. 

Alas, times were a changing, & the company was going through some.. unfortunate..... changes. It resulted in a large staff turnover, & re-location of others.  In days pre Facebook/twitter, & in the early days of email & mobiles (both of which I was slow on the uptake of) it was easy to lose touch with co-workers. Sadly, bar 1 or 2, I have lost touch with the majority of people I worked with in those early days.

I should take to take this to the point of my issue here. I worked my way up in the company to an accounts role at Head Office, after spending a few years in our distribution centre, located in the same building. So I now was familiar & got along with a whole new group of people. It was in this stretch of time I made what I thought was a lot of friends. Especially with a number of girls, who worked in our buying office., which was/still is rare territory for someone like me. When we're exchanging email/mobile numbers, & of course adding on facebook & myspace (this was 2007-2008) I honestly felt like I'd really made a good group of friends. Which was good, cause as happens over the years, you gradually lose touch with old friends from high school days. Particularly as I was one of increasingly small group where were still single. Many of my old friends were now married/engaged/in a long term relationship, often with kids. They had their own families now. 

We still had a fair turnover of staff - I might as well name the company, they've been in the news - Dimmeys. Stay tuned for a major, & i mean MAJOR post on them sometime down the track. And no matter who it was, if I knew them, I always made an appearance at his/her farewell. Being based at Head Office, you talked to plenty of people on the phone, & there still a few in the system from when I first started, so I knew plenty of people. 

Also, often I'd go out for lunch with said (so-called) friends. If someone had a birthday, we'd occasionally go out for a drink or 2. Normal things that friends would do?  Eventually, a couple of the girls tied the know with their partners. I went along to a couple of weddings, was really wrapt for them. And after several left Dimmeys to move on with their careers, they'd still keep in touch via email& Facebook. 

I guess there was no real definite point where I noticed that things were changing. People left, others came in, & I made friends with a few of these guys too. 

But things in the place were pretty glum. It really wasn't a nice place to work for the last few years I was there. After my long service in 2008, I was going to think about looking elsewhere myself. But for one reason or another, it wasn't really until after my 2nd o/s trip in early 2011 where I finally resolved to move on. By now there were only a few people who i really close with left. Most had moved on. OK, we didn't get to catch up very often any more. They were leading their own lives, I realised that. New work friends, new challenges, etc.

But when the time finally arrived for me to move on, I was sure I could count on my old friends from work to turn up for a send off for me. I attended every single one of theirs. I even gave up movies I'd booked to go & see to make it one farewell. I was just planning on going for drinks & maybe a bite to eat a the Pub at Crown for my send off - a friendly, down to earth place centrally located, a place we'd had several farewells before. I put the word out through Facebook several times, to give my old friends(?) plenty of notice. Was hoping for a good turnout from current colleagues too. Although I wasn't hugely close to many that were still there, I had worked with many for years & years, & got along well with them. There were still a few people down n the distro centre who were probably more saddened to see me leave than some in the office, who said they'd try & come along. Thought I could count of some of them popping down, even if it was just for a quick drink. It was Friday night, I know people may have had other stuff to move onto, even if I gave 2 or 3 weeks notice. For me, it was an occasion to look back on good times/bad times & share a good night with people who had meant a lot to me over the years. Maybe even 1 or 2 of the bosses might stick their head in, it had been customary in the past, though not in more recent times.

All in all, I had been with the company for just over 14 years. I'd worked with maybe hundreds of people over the course of those 14 years?

Three people turned up.

Three.

Yes, I said 3 people could bother to come down & say goodbye. In the off chance you're reading this Darren, Justin & Brendan, thanks - appreciated it. Also thanks Rob who contacted me the following week apologising for not being able to make it.  

The rest of you - well, thanks goes to you guys too I guess. Thanks for waking me up to the fact that people you work with really aren't there for you when it counts. Thanks for clarifying the line between proper friends & people who you work with. Maybe that was my fault for blurring that line. Thanks to those people who have never bothered to even see how I'm going in the new job or how I'm going in general. 

To say that night was the biggest kick in the guts just about ever would be an understatement. I still have a couple of people from the Dimmeys era I still call friends - my closest female friend, for instance, had moved back to Turkey a few years prior. (She just arrived back in the country last Thursday - can't wait to catch up with her!) & maybe 1 or 2 others, but essentially I've learned my lesson. When push comes to shove, when shit gets you down, when you really need someone to call on - make it a true friend you know inside out, not a person you work with who many seem like someone you can trust on the surface.

It was a tough lesson to learn, & its sadly had some affect in my new job I have to say. I'm a lot more reluctant to open up to others I work with, despite the new workplace being a lot better than Dimmeys was., & the people I work with being very nice people in general. Only the 3 or 4 guys I work alongside in accounts at the new job have I really opened to. Even then, its hard at times, & I often keep quiet even if its something like footy being discussed round the water cooler. 

I don't know, maybe I'm being harsh & unreasonable. Maybe I'm overplaying the effect of one single evening. But on a night which meant a lot me, a lot of so-called "friends" let me down, & have never really explained themselves or bothered to reach out in the year thats since gone by. One or two have, & we've maintained some sort of contact I suppose.  Largely I've moved on from this, though that doesn't mean it still doesn't hurt like hell.

Just to end this post on a positive note - any girls reading this, never fear! Those days of my best mate chatting up the chicks on the street are long gone - he is a happily married man with 2 beautiful daughters nowadays! :)