How was your New Years Eve?

Mine was soaked in Sake, beer and wine...but not so much that I made a mess of myself.

Welcome to 2008!

Happy new year everyone...2007 is over. It was a year of many highs and lows, and things are set up now for a rollicking good 2008. I shall endeavour to get on here from time to time as usual and hopefully not bore you to tears too much. As long as The Idiots Who Have Looked counter keeps going up I'll keep posting , so thanks for reading!

Anyway it wouldn't be a new years post without Razors top 10 albums from last year. In no particular order of course...and please let me know the great ones I've missed so I can have a listen!

Top 10 CD's for 2007

• Liam Finn- I'll Be Lightning
• Arcade Fire- Neon Bible
• Radiohead- In Rainbows
• Grinderman- Grinderman
• SJD- Songs From A Dictophone
• Manic Street Preachers- Send Away The Tigers
• The Phoenix Foundation- Happy Ending
• White Stripes- Icky Thump
• The Feelers- One World
• Lindon Puffin- Show Pony

Top 5 Gigs 2007

• The Cure at Vector Arena
• Liam Finn at the Kings Arms
• Muse at Christchurch
• Snow Patrol at Christchurch
• Kasabian at the Big Day Out

Xmas in Wellington

Have had a couple of very relaxing days catching up with the whanau in Wellington. Weather hasn't been so great but Xmas dinner was fantastic, as evidenced by the attached pic of my placemat. I hope the rest of you have had an equally satisfying festivity. One more day in Wellington, and then its back home to the new pad!

I have eaten so much I'm going to explode.

And Santa was very kind to me, I'm currently simultaneously drinking and eating, wearing, and listening to all my presents...I am a very lucky man!

Razor Review- The Feelers at home in ChCh on Xmas Eve

Right, I will keep this brief because its all it deserves.

For one hour on Xmas Eve night at The Civic James Reid and the boys (including the talented Andy Lynch from Atlas) played a solid if unspectacular set of Feelers classics.

For the next half hour (or was it longer- it sure seemed like it?) they descended into a pit of complete and utter stupidity. Ok the Bowie cover was cool, sampling Killing an Arab by The Cure was neat...but the 10 minute utter mindless masturbation that they put their increasingly frustrated fans through on the pointless "In The Air Tonight" Phill Collins cover was ugly.

If it hadn't have been for the fine company at the gig I would have for the first time in my life left a Feelers gig early. Very unhappy.

First hour- 6.5 out of 10
The rest- 0 out of 10

Competition: Name the drink

As per every game of cricket we play, the Merivale- Papanui 4B's meet at the pub for a jar before hitting the field on Saturday afternoons. While we won't mention the score in yesterdays game (not so good) we can show you the "Bar Cat" who quite happily curled up on the stool next to the bar.

Now, your challenge is to suggest what drink the cat might order if it were able...







Cheers (and Merry Xmas!)

Razor

Kepler Challenge Report

Well the training had gone well, in fact it was perfect. Race day arrived and it was a stunning day, hardly a cloud around but the usual cold crisp start you get at 4am in Te Anau- and straight into carb loading for the 6am start. In fact Glenn and I got so ensconced in stuffing our faces we nearly missed the bus to the start line...typical boys, always thinking of their stomachs

Anyway, never fear it was off to the Control Gates at the lakeside for us and 400 other lunatics for the 6am start. Ran into Janine at the start, and Richards bro Graham- although in the murk had trouble with recognition! And off we went, the first 6.8km round the lake flew by in just half an hour, before heading into the slog up the hill. Once I worked out the controls on Lisa's flash harry MP3 player I was off like a rocket, I have to say events like this are so much better with music- I'll revisit this.

I reached Luxmore Hut after 1hr45mins, a personal best. It was cold up there but was feeling good. Stunning views as the sun came up, very very cool I don't think there is anywhere prettier in NZ than Fiordland- my ashes are going there one day- but not for a long time I hope.

After the tops section reached Iris Burn Hut- and the half way point after 4 hours, coming down the last of the zig zags with "Don't Stop Till You Get Enough" in the earflaps- it seemed ironically appropriate and soon morphed into "beat it" as the17km drag race section down the Iris Burn got going. As always it was half way down here when the wall gets hit, and Lake Manapouri is a very very relieving sight at the 6 hour mark.

The last 17km for there back to the finish was a real grind this year due to the tendons on the front of my ankles swelling up. And it was hot, man it was hot- but the dude in full Army fatigues still got round, and only half an hour slower. I tip my hat to that man, apparently he had to apply to Wellington to get permission to race in the gear. As if a 60km mountain run isn't hard enough!

So I crossed the finish line after 8hrs and 42mins and beat my best time by 4 mins. Glenn turned up 45 mins later looking spritely and fresh, an inspirational effort for a bloke who practically had two broken legs for the most of November!

The Kepler continues to be the biggest challenge I've encountered, and the most rewarding finish line. Problem is now I've done 4 I have to go back again for the 5 year medal...dammit. Oh well, a few Xmas spirits will dull the pain and charge the motivation again I'm sure.

Huuuuuuge thanks to Lisa for being essential support crew for me and Glenn, and for putting up with our "Ministry of Stupid Walks" routine around Te Anau the next day

Sheep turn the tables

Who'd be a sheep farmer in the current economic climate? Dairy receiving gigantic payouts, the high dollar, declining wool prices, drought, high country politics, the list goes on.


And now a new breed of supersheep is emerging, deeming dogs inadequate for mustering purposes.

Kepler article on TV3

For those of you who missed it, TV 3 had some great coverage of the Kepler this year.

You can watch it here.

I'll have my write up here soon...had a great time, hurt like hell afterwards, but got my best time so all was worthwhile!

Movember results...Hats off to you guys!!!!

Yes I found a razor. Congrats and a huge and very appreciative round of applause to all participants and sponsors.

I also raised $205 for the charity cause thanks to all you superstars who sponsored. Such a great cause- last time I looked they had raised over a million bucks nationwide, and even Spain had a group going, which was surprising as the way I understood it all Spanish kids were born with Mo's? Who knew?!

Anyway, some of you wanted photographic evidence or some bang for your buck so here goes...have to admit that it was very tempting to keep it!!!

What a bloody poser...must have been all that time in Auckland ;-)

What Were The Odds?

A light plane flipped on the Wellington Airport runway yesterday, as pictured from Stuff.co.nz

Now the scarcely believable bit about this is that they claim a freak gust of wind caused it. In Wellington? No, surely not!

Actually the really cool thing is the passenger filmed the whole crash... it was on the news last night but I can't find a video link. No one badly hurt, by the way. Although the plane may need a panel beater

Kepler Update

Well, 13 sleeps to go and its getting into crunch time. Training has been a bit interrupted this week with a massively crazy week, and on top of all that theres a wee niggle in the calf muscle now which has necessitated a layoff over the weekend. Not so happy :(

However, overall I'm looking forward to the event this time and expecte a decent crack at beating 8 hours. I've managed to shave 14 mins of my best half marathon time, win the workplace 4 week pedometer challenge, nail a 30km race in the Port Hills in really ugly conditions, and last weekend did 30km on the Routeburn and didn't keel over at Chris and Stacey's wedding afterwards. So all is good really!

One more week of hard out training now, then tail off into the carb loading and the long drive down.

And then we all get to enjoy the Xmas party season- hard earned!

Movember

Yes folks, with the numerous facial hair references in this blog it was impossible not to down tools and procure the face fluff for the fine cause of raising loot for Prostate Cancer prevention, and mens health in general.

And you can even sponsor me- go on throw a $5-er in and if theres enough out there I may even accept Mr Smoothfluid's request for a photo! To sponsor my Mo please go to http://www.movember.com/nz/donate/?action=sponsorlink&rego=183272, enter my registration number which is 183272

And feel free to pick one off the list that you think would suit me.....

Razor Review- Crowded House

Well this was always going to be a good one. And in this particular case it was a great one shared with the best possible company :)

First time I saw the Crowdies was back in the early 1990's at a free gig in Hagley Park on my first ever visit to Christchurch. Of course since then I think I've seen every incarnation possible of the Finn family- brothers, solo, Betchadupa, Liam, Liam with dad, brothers junior, everything except Split Enz. And of course that little oversight is going to get fixed in March 2008 now!

We arrived near the end of Pluto's set, so I can;t really rate them. But the specially reformed Supergroove then proceeded to warm the crowd up very nicely thank you very much with a trip back down memory lane with the 1990's funk jazz fest, much like the Chilli Peppers on speed really. An energetic and enthusiastically received show.

The main even started off with a great version of Private Universe and then carried on for an hour or so with a mix of old and new tracks. Some of the new stuff has grown on me nicely- especially People Are Like Suns and the excellent Transit Lounge- there is a lot going on in that one when you give it a few listens.

For a few moments early on the band wandered off into freefall a bit often, but minor gripe really, this was more than made up for and soon forgotten with the stirring final encore of Don't Dream Its Over, the haunting Into Temptation, and Better Be Home Soon.

Everyone left happy, have to say not as good as 1992 but this was still great- 8 out of 10.

Ok I know

...its been quiet here lately. Never fear there are updates coming soon, I promise. Especially about weddings in Paradise.

See This Film

Genius!

Walking home accross a sundrenched Hagley Park after work today a dude went past the other way riding a mountainbike, which he'd hooked up to a lawnmower engine. Now thats outside the square- it wasn't fast or graceful and it wouldn't add to the Pedometer Challenge, but man I just tip my hat to that sort of outside the square thinking!

Labour Weekend Shennanigans

Ok, hold breath, it goes something like this:

Saturday morning- last ever breakfast at the Chocolate Fish in Wellington. Fly to ChCh do sweet FA all afternoon, then hit the Dux with the boys.

Sunday- Drive to Mt Cook via World Cup final at Tekapo pub, have a wander up the Hooker Valley until hypothermia and avalanches set in. Seriously windswept and challenging landscape today, not much to hang around for so it was back to ChCh as soon as I heard it was 22 degrees at home!

Avalanche Alley- some huge ones lately

Monday- Kepler training in the morning, I suspect the Dux again for the afternoon!

Never a dull moment.

In all seriousness though, the walk up the Hooker was tinged with great sadness for me, it was the first time I'd seen the memorial plate for John. I'm not sure if its the done thing to post it on the web here, but it feels right. Please let me know if you disagree and I'll take it down....

....but for John, Simon, Hamish, Steve, Cam, Liz.... our friends; and all the other souls that are up there in those mountains- we will always remember that if you must bow your head then it can be to a lofty mountain.

Make the most of what we have folks, while we have it. It may be gone tomorrow.

Conference in Wellington

Well I flew up at a hideous hour (ie 5.45am!) and its been a pretty ugly day here in Wellington. Thankfully the conference is at Te Papa so if the sessions are shithouse you have the option of sneaking upstairs for some real art to keep you awake.

Highlight of the day was Rob Sarkies...aka Scarfies, Out of the Blue.. Best hour of business yakka I've ever heard, Sarkies is a dead set Kiwi Hero!

Who says Christchurch is a conservative town?

Shagley Park upon Avon I presume?

Oh No.....

It would appear Christchurch is under seige ....