tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-199664362024-03-24T04:49:49.841+11:00Peps Place - I make pirate jokes look easy.For more pics and video visit:
pepfest.multiply.comPephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.comBlogger183125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-1152802962525441022016-03-30T09:29:00.000+11:002016-04-08T13:45:45.026+10:00The Last Tin Shui Wai Update<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4162/1987/1600/DSC02376.0.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4162/1987/320/DSC02376.0.jpg" height="300" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;" width="400" /></a><br />
Sab and I celebrating Halloween at the school in 2004.<br />
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And so it is....<br />
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It's the last night here in Tin Shui Wai. The place i have called home since October 2004. Right now as i'm trying to stay awake after a heavy nights celebrating Sab and mines farewell i have come to the conclusion that even though Tin Shui Wai was out of the city, it was my world for nearly two years.<br />
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During my time here, surrounded by endless apartment towers, cranky pedestrians and the never ending smell of chicken feet some fantastic events shaped my life and here are my top five.<br />
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1. Martine - Not only did she make me feel so special and loved but she was (and still is) one of the most beautiful people i've ever met. The time we spent together was magical and i still miss her smile.<br />
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2. Jimmy Barnes Concert - Not only was this the best night i ever had in Hong Kong but getting a photo with the man himself was just mind blowing. The music, the food, the view from Victoria Peak plus the vibe was just amazing. Did i mention Sab and i got a photo with the Tin Lids?<br />
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3. Ability to Travel - Being so close to other countries have given me the opportunity to see some magical places (such as Halong Bay, Vietnam) tries delicious food (Little India, Kuala Lumpur) and meet some of the locals (the ladyboy who tried to pick me up one night on Koh Samui) <br />
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4. Friends - I have met some fantastic people here from all over the world and they have made my time here magical. Special mentions to Candace, Kate and Gary. You are three of the coolest and nicest people i have met and i hope we can stay in contact in the future. To the Chinese Teachers at the International Play School of Topkids, thank you from the bottom of my heart for being some of the most kindest, patient and happy people on the planet. Even though there are days where one or two of us are feeling down, we have stuck together and become great friends. <br />
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5. The Kids - On the rare occasions where i feel like i really don't want to be teaching, the kids at the kindergarten have made me feel the desire never to go back to working in a cubicle. The kids in my classes keep me on my toes all the time with their ability to amaze me and make a nothing day seem great. I have loved seeing the progress of my kids and watching them develop their own personalities has been the highlight for me. The lowlight - the stupid maths book we have to teach.<br />
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There are plenty more memories that have come my way in the past 21 months and the person i want to thank the most is Sab. We have been travelling around for over two years and we are still having a blast. Shes an amazing person and i'm lucky to have her as my friend and travel buddy.<br />
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I've written many emails from Tin Shui Wai and well as of this time tomorrow, my time in Hong Kong will have ended. So i'll end this one with this little thought. Being in such a mad mad city as Hong Kong has given me the chance to appreciate life a hell of a lot more. There is so much to see in this world and in a place like Hong Kong the experience of finding something new happens nearly every day. <br />
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I'm looking forward to a change of perspective but i want acknowledge the importance Hong Kong has played in my life...it's given me something to look forward to in the future and that is the confidence to find my own way in life wherever it takes me. <br />
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Thanks Tin Shui WaiPephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-1159243126699067022016-03-11T09:30:00.001+11:002016-03-30T09:32:50.528+11:00Hong Kong - My other "Island Home."<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4162/1987/1600/joyce.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4162/1987/320/joyce.jpg" style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;" /></a><span style="color: red; font-family: "courier new";">My Hong Kong "Gang of Four"</span></div>
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Landing in Hong Kong on the various times we have come back from adventures on holidays always filled me with a sence of coming back the "real world" that Sab and i had made for ourselves. This time around it was a completely different emotion that hijacked me, the feeling of sadness. Hong Kong is such a wonderful city and i had such a wonderful time in my 21 months there that even though my time in Hong Kong started to become a little monotnous for the few mon ths before we left, there is a magical pull that the city will have on me for the rest of my life.<br />
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In short, I love Hong Kong.<br />
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Landing at the airport this time around was certainly more exciting as Sab and i made our way back to the city to meet up with Kate who was nice enough to have us crash at her place for a few days. Kate is such a lovely friend and we were lucky that even with her apartment that was about as big as a phone box she still managed to find enough room for two of us and all the crap we carried in our bags as well, including my traditional Cambodian cow bell. Sab and i had to organise flights and also organise a way to get our boxes that were gathering dust at my Chinese co-teachers place in Tin Shui Wai. Sabs experience in the freight world automatically took me to the travel agent but that would wait for a couple of days.<br />
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Before we knew it we were back at the airport as Candace's boyfriend Gary was going back to "Ingerland" to study. They are such a lovely couple and it was sad seeing the two of them depart because even for me, they just seem so great together. Candace wasn't feeling the best naturally so Sab, Kate and myself went back to Candaces for a couple of drinks and just to be in each others company..i love that little group. Friday morning found us back in Tin Shui Wai and back at Topkids whereby we were greeted with nothing but smiles and hugs from the kids and the Chinese teachers. To quote Sab from her blog "It felt like a rockstars return to see the kids."<br />
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<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4162/1987/1600/DSC07179.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4162/1987/320/DSC07179.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;" /></a><span style="color: red; font-family: "courier new";">Two of the coolest kids in Tin Shui Wai. Matthew and his adorable little sister Savannah</span></div>
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That night i was invited to a BBQ (Chinese style) by a parent of one of the kids i taught and Sab got roped in as well. I enjoyed the night talking to the parents and finally being honest about what i thought of the school and of Hong Kong in general. In my mind i thought "Sab and i must have done something right as the kids and the parents love us." We were just ourselves or maybe we wanted the kids to be kids for a little while.<br />
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<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4162/1987/1600/DSC07187.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4162/1987/320/DSC07187.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;" /></a><span style="color: red; font-family: "courier new";">Karaoke is a central part of working with Chinese Teachers. Remember that.</span></div>
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Saturday took us out to Karaoke whereby we had a wonderful time with some of the Chinese teachers and it was topped off that night by drinks at my favourite funky bar in Hong Kong (Joyce is not Here - Peel Street - Central- on the Island) and then dinner at our favourite and some what sentimental restaurant Jaspas. This dinner (the gang of four again) was so wonderful and the feeling of leaving was starting to hit me that night. there was no time to get teary as Lan Kwai Fong was calling us for the last time and after seeing a couple of slighty tipsy Irish girls (Fiona and Nicola who we used to work with) it really topped off the night. The last time i saw Nicola was down Kho Sarn Road in Bangkok a few weeks earlier so it was just wonderful to see them again.<br />
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Sunday was pretty quiet as i had one last dinner with the family whose kids i used to tutor on Tuesday nights. The kids names are Sherman (the girl) and Herman (the boy) and the whole family fantastic. The mum is a hostess on Cathay and she just came back from Melbourne the day before with fresh lamb and cheeses from the Queen Vic Market so i was getting a taste of home in a satellite town in the outskirts of Honkers. They are my Hong Kong family and hopefully i'll be able to introduce my Hong Kong mum..shirly to my mum..Dana when Shirly flies into Melbourne next time.<br />
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Thanks to Candace she has got me onto "Little Britain" and just the three of us at her place that night (we moved to Candaces from Kates as Candace is closer to the airport) was just a really sweet way to spend our last night in Hong Kong. The next morning we were back at the airport for the third time in 5 days and off to Saigon. We flew out hoping one day we will get back there.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-55172926247536972012007-05-27T00:10:00.000+10:002016-03-30T09:32:50.597+11:00Change of site<span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:130%;" >Hi everyone,<br /><br />From now on all my blog related stuff will be on <span style="color: rgb(255, 204, 0);">pepfest.multiply.com </span><br /><br />So cut the link and enjoy!<br /><br />Thanks :)</span>Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-45176021134018535522007-05-26T22:19:00.000+10:002016-03-30T09:32:50.589+11:00Too long to wait, too soon to leave.The morning after i saw Sab for the last time before she went to Perth, i had been counting down the days since i would see her again.<br /><br />After seeing her this time last week, i will be counting down those days again.<br /><br />You see people in all honesty, no-one understands me like Sab. We love being in each others company and we are completley at ease with each other. In fact she is so relaxed around me she fell asleep when we were watching 'Frasier' which she hasn't done in Perth at all...except when i am around. She used to do it all the time when we were together actually. So what did i feel when i saw Sab pull into the driveway at Stacey's (thats Irena's daughter. Irenea is the lady who joined me on this trip) house after getting lost on the way? Well i ran to the car and gave her a huge hug. I wanted time to stand still.<br /><br />I had never been to Perth before and i had been looking forward to seeing the city and all that it had to offer. I was looking forward to seeing Sabs life that she has made for herself as well. The flight over to Perth took four hours and when i get on a plane all i want to do is drink!! The flight over though was in the morning and i thought i needed a sugar kick so i decided to purchase a "turbo boost muffin" that had so much sugar in it, i felt i could have gone outside and pushed the plane myself! The flight eventually touched down (along with my sugar level) and i must say Perth Airport is a little smaller than the one i left earlier in the day. I was met by Stacey and whisked away to her place and whilst Stacey and Irena were getting the house ready for Stacey's baby shower the next day (i helped out as well..thank you very much) i was just counting down the minutes to seeing Sab again.<br /><br />Later in the night after a couple of phone calls from Sab who couldn't find the way, i finally saw her and as i said before, i wanted time to stand still. On the drive back to Sab's place we had a good old chat (even though we chat pretty much everyday) and fired up some old classics we used to listen to on the way to Uni. So by the time i arrived at Sab's unit we were already into the old routine. I finally met Sab's roomates Abby and Jihan who are both wonderful people. I think Abby and Jihan hadn't seen a certain side of Sab before and what i mean by that is the person before she came to Perth. After splitting a pizza, getting some grog from the bottle shop up the road and just relaxing and being in each others company, i had an early night as did Sab as she finished her two week prac that day and quite rightly was stuffed.<br /><br />Early Saturday morning Sab and I were in South Perth to begin my tour of the city. Now Perth i mustg admit is a lovely city to look at from afar but once inside the city centre i found out quite quickly that it is a large country town. I was amazed in the middle of the afternoon on a Saturday that the CBD was dead. Out of the hour we spent in the city, about half of that was spent inside Borders bookstore (the only one in Perth) and before i knew it we were on the road again. After Sab telling me about the pathetic Western Australian road system (which is true as for some reason in WA two lanes can suddenly become one without warning) and getting lost on those same roads as well, we found ourselves in South Perth again to catch up with a couple blasts from our pasts.<br /><br />We met Steve and Steph in Dalian and Sab and I were both dissapointed that we didn't keep in contact with them more as much as we did after we all went our own ways. Still seeing these two again after such a long time and just instantly being at ease with them again was a delight. They are wonderful people and the four of us talked about what had happened since we said our goodbyes in 2004 and where we are going in the future. After saying goodbyes, Sab and I were back to her place to get changed to go out for dinner with friends of my family and may i say, one of the nicest families on the planet. It was off to Fremantle with Peter, Kathy and their two really cool kids Jayden and Krystal. I hadn't seen them for about four years yet in the lead up to the weekend, Kathy kept saying "Call me when you get here and we'll go out for dinner" and the dinner we had that night (Italian in Fremantle) was sensational. Sabrina playing 'Dance Dance Revolution' was a sight to see (which you will all see soon) but all i know is that with each second with Sab, i was getting happier and happier just being with her.<br /><br />After dinner it was off to Perths nightlife mecca, Northbridge. Now Northbridge in hindsight was a pretty dodgy place to be. The pubs all had the same type of music and setup plus there was no real style in the clothing of the people there. I was surprised that Perth didn't have more lounge bars or variety in it's nightlife but all i can say is the only way to truely appreciate what i'm trying to say is by going there. I'll try and explain it though by saying this. If you love rock, cheap shots, thongs, people with no sence of fashion(a point Sab and I agreed with..Melbourne chicks and guys look a lot more classy when going out) and a get shitfaced attitude then Northbridge is the place to be. As it was the night of the F.A. Cup Final and my team Chelsea was playing, we just had to watch the game in a really nice pub called the Brass Monkey. The game itself was pretty boring (even though my team won) and the two of us were stuffed and just wanted to get to bed. The highlight of the night was standing at the top of the so-called Taxi Rank and the security lady telling me "If you see a cab that is free down the street, just run and get it." Once again, this was the person organising the taxi rank!!!<br /><br />Sunday morning quite relaxed and before i knew it we were at the Fremantle Market. I picked up a couple of pieces of art, some Tiramasu and Choc Mint coffee and also saw a clairvoyant (the same as Sab) which was an interesting experience let me tell you. Then Sab was driving me to the Subiaco Oval to watch my team (Melbourne) play like little bitches against the reigning premiers (West Coast) and even though we lost by a huge margin, it was great to see 40,000 fans support one team and it was more like being at a basketball game then a football game. Sab picked me up later and then we were off to Fremantle again to have what i can say without a shadow of a doubt, the best fish and chips i have EVER tasted. We had a pretty deep and meaningful discussion there as well and then before i knew it, Sunday night was here and Abby joined Sab and I in a few drinks and a bit of a dance in the kitchen.<br /><br />I don't really want to talk about Monday as it's still sad to think about. It will be November before i see Pudden again and it hit home to me how crucial she is to my life and how amazing our friendship is. I love her so much and i know that what she is doing is the best thing for her and as selfish as this sounds, i feel like i want her all to myself because i know how wonderful a person she is but there are greener pastures out there in the world for both of us but no matter where our lives take us, we will always be together.<br /><br />Always.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-69032823681919446252007-05-24T19:26:00.000+10:002016-03-30T09:32:50.611+11:00Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-18747235659490190672007-05-16T22:39:00.000+10:002016-03-30T09:32:50.558+11:00Fun Run - The Sequel<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1Lv0wPwfBxCMWmn8nEf56AiDcyh1RdJZHoiuHTcTelPTpyxNGVRoPBZFbNnYn4b6pnIl8HxsEFQ3zAdpY1k_S3IEIMhCJ-8SOCQOMzS0HF8oTi-Q7xn4umK2CQYONTaOErjdJjQ/s1600-h/mdcblueback1.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1Lv0wPwfBxCMWmn8nEf56AiDcyh1RdJZHoiuHTcTelPTpyxNGVRoPBZFbNnYn4b6pnIl8HxsEFQ3zAdpY1k_S3IEIMhCJ-8SOCQOMzS0HF8oTi-Q7xn4umK2CQYONTaOErjdJjQ/s320/mdcblueback1.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5068820962611825042" border="0" /></a><br /><p class="MsoNormal">Much in the same way as the Matrix films, I tried to go bigger and better with the sequel only to realize that even though I was satisfied at the end of the journey, the story along the way had lost its direction from the true purpose stated in the original film. That my friends is the summary of my 2<sup>nd</sup> ever fun run, the 2007 Mothers Day Classic.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p>The story of the sequel started just after the “Run for the Kids” where my Aunty Rhonda told me about the 8km Mothers Day event. My first thought was “ahh maybe” as I had my heart set on the 10km run at the end of May but going from a 3.4 to a 10km run wasn’t the best idea so I thought 8km was a good distance. So I started to get into the swing of things again but I lost my drive along the way. The main reason was simply because in my head I had already done the hard work and ran a freaking fun run. Well I know now that my heart wasn’t in this one as for dinner the week before I had pizza, noodles, Burger King plus various beverages throughout the weeks up to the even. My dedication to training was sorely lacking because the eye wasn’t on the prize. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p>So come last Sunday morning and I’m in the city at 6.30 in the morning and the whole city was quiet. The last of the moonlight was starting to disappear and the first rays of light were shining through. It was a crisp morning and by the time I met my aunty at 7.15 I was ready to get this run over with. We gathered on the main lawn and took part in an aerobics session that seriously felt that I was in the audience of Oprah. Throughout the day there were participants who had signed pinned to their backs ranging from “I’m running for grandmother” to little kids with “I’m running for my mother.” These messages were for people who had suffered from or died from breast cancer and I tell you, there was a lot of love on the gardens that day. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Let’s get back to the warm-up. There was music pumping out the speakers that would have given “Sisters are doing it for themselves” a run for its money and even though I looked like a dill doing it. I did the exercises and was nicely warmed up when it was all finished. Just as my Aunty and I were about to slowly make our way to the start line a message came over the speakers “All 8km runners please stay for a slightly longer warm up.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>We did the warm up again! It wasn’t slightly longer, it was twice as long. By this time I was getting cranky and wanted to get this show on the road. Just after <st1:time minute="0" hour="8">8am</st1:time> me and 22,000 other participants started the run and for the first 2.5 km I was feeling pretty relaxed but then the lack of preparation started to take its toll. I also got hit just under the hip bone during that time by a fitness freak who tried to squeeze in between me and the fence and his knee clipped me. Man that was painful, still I just did my best to get around the circuit but I knew 2 kms out that had no gas left in the tank. Also I’m slowly becoming addicted to fun runs and I don’t know why, there’s nothing fun about them, I thinks it’s more the challenge I set myself. So when I saw that finish line I just went for it and when I crossed I said to myself “I’m not going to prepare for another run by doing f#ck all.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p>Still I ran 8 km in 52 minutes and whilst I had never run 8km before, I was equally pleased that <span style=""> </span>I actually ran most of the way but as I said before my dedication to this run was lacking and in a way it’s a good thing as it has woken me up and tested me to see how dedicated I am in terms of increasing my aerobic capacity.<o:p></o:p> It was a great accomplishment to finish it and I have a medal to show for it! It was a great start to a wonderful Mothers Day.</p>Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-17504714249657418172007-05-10T19:49:00.000+10:002016-03-30T09:32:50.557+11:00Where have i been?For those who have been wondering where i have been and what i have been up to since my last update all i can say is i just didn't have the desire to update. I just had no desire whatsoever to sit down and write something meaningful for whoever wants to read this. Since my last update i've been keeping myself busy with work and other things to which i will explain. The one probably most of you want to hear from the last update is the story of Lorraine...well let's just say it was all for nothing.<br /><br />To refresh everyone i decided to do something silly and put a profile up on an internet dating site. I've checked it now and then but one of the profiles that stood out was this girl whose name was Lorraine. We texted and chatted ont he phone a few time and then...nothing. A couple of days after i last spoke to her there was no contact on her end and i went back into my old mode of "what have i done to piss her off?" only to find out a couple of days later she was getting her phone repaired which made me feel like a goose. Well she did msg me later on Anzac Day (April 25th..that's how long its been) and that night after i went to the football i met up with her at a pub and i really had a nice time talking to her. We had plenty of laughs and i really enjoyed her company and i think she enjoyed mine so we decided to meet up again sometime. I spoke to her on a Saturday (Saturday week ago) and since then....nothing.<br /><br />There was a girl who was a friend of Michaels (as he was back from Queensland last weekend) who decieded to meet up with us for a drink. She came by herself and the three of us had a great time and i enjoyed talking to her. Seen i was the one driving i did the nice thing and drove her home and then went back home talking to Mike saying should i msg her. When i got to my place i said "give me the number" so i msged her monday saying "hope you had a nice time" which she said she did and i left it at that. I msged her Tuesday saying if she was free sometine (as Mike was heading back to Queensland) did she want to catch up for a drink sometime....once again nothing.<br /><br />Srill there is more to my life at the moment than just a lack of romance. This weekend i'm doing a community radio station course whihc should be fun. I'm doin it with a very very funny guy who i sit next to at work and hopefully we'll get our own show on community radio.<br /><br />Also next week i'm going to catch up with Sab in Perth!!!<br /><br />I'd write more tonight but i'm just not in the mood to sit and write a lot of stuff but this has been a good start.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-49932127004926056952007-04-21T21:09:00.000+10:002016-03-30T09:32:50.595+11:00DriftingI'm 28 years old and i'm half drunk on Jim Beam and Coke and i know by the time i finish this update i will have had a few more beers as wel because at this exact moment of my life this is all i have to offer to the world. Since my last update here my life has become segmented into "get up, work, come home" and as black and white as that sounds, it's the grown up world we live in. My outlook on life has turned from the brilliant blast of colour that it once was to what can only be described as different shades of grey. For the few that read this blog you may have wondered where have i been and why havent i updated my page for over two weeks..well quite honestly its because there is nothing to update. Quite honestly i came to despise sitting at a computer all day at work then doing nothing afterwards but come home and get online and try and relive past glories with the people i shared so many wonderful experiences with. As i sit here now i feel that the past two weeks have been the most non productive in my life.<br /><br />It seems right now the only people who know what i'm truely feeling at this point in my life are Sabrina and Bruce Springsteen.<br /><br />I get up in the morning and go to work each day and when i'm not at work i don't feel i have a purpose here in Melbourne. My two closest friends in the world are at different end of the Australian continent and the freinds who came into my life in the past few years are all pretty much doing their own thing. They have direction and i don't. Its weekends between days here at the moment Mark side and whilst im not going to bitch and complain i just have to get how i'm feeling off my chest. There's a feeling deep inside my soul that i have something to give, i don't know what it is or where it will take me but i just know it's there. Life isn't meant to be easy and i accept that but its a real bastard when you know something inside you is wanting to burst out but you don't know how to go about it.<br /><br />So with that late last week i decieded to chane things. Tomorrow i'm off to the Melbourne Museum that has been open for about 5 years but i've never been too. I actually joined an online dating service (because i'm the most confident man in the romance world...not) and there has been one girl who i have spoken to during the week who seems to be really really nice and hopefully i'll meet her soon. Since i came to the conclusion that life is meant to be lived and not analysed i'm trying to make my home town mean something more than me than being just a transit lounge between adventures . I have my family and i have job that isn't life altering but the people there make the 5 days week i'm there the most entertaining of my week. I haven't been to the gym since the fun run because i lost the drive but that has come back in the past couple of days and i'm doing a 8km fun run on Mothers Day with my aunty for breast cancer which i'm looking forward to being part of.<br /><br />Right now you are thinking "whose the girl who he has been speaking to?" Well her name is Lorraine and for the past few days i've been speaking to her most nights and enjoyed talking to her and i'm sure soon ill catch up with this person but the point of it is that i have to break out of the monotony that i have imposed on myself since i've been back home. It's all about perspective and throughout the past few years i have learned that the glass will not always been half full but that shouldn't deter my fundemental belief that my life is half full and that i have to work towards making it overflowing with positive energy, love and excitement. So here i am on a saturday night getting shitfaced with Syd as my only company and my thoughts as my only escape from a life that has no meaning attached to it. Here i am at 28 years old feeling at the moment i write this diatribe that my life should mean so much more than the meaningless existence that it feels right now. It should mean more than the rambling you have been reading since the start of this update.<br /><br />All i know is since i started writing this i've had three beers and nearly half a bottle of Jack Daniels and for me thats not a good thing. Life at 11.57p.m on the 21st of April 2007 can only compared to a shitstorm of emotional confliction that no-one can have any idea of how i'm feeling with the exception of one person in Western Australia. At this point in time the world could shut down around me and i wouldn't give a shit.<br /><br />I would write more but quite honestly the Mark most of you know right now is in a period of adjustment and just not comfortable with the world right now. It's not the me you know and right now i'm the me that i don't like to be but i'm getting better though.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-47493142806894657282007-04-08T20:25:00.000+10:002016-03-30T09:32:50.591+11:00The Greatest of All TimeFirst of all a Happy Easter Sunday to you all wherever you are on this fragile blue planet. My good self is spending the day at my desk at work whilst the rest of my family is out having a beautiful picnic at a local park on a day where it would be a travesty to see a cloud in the sky.<br /><br />So while the day goes by slower than a Myanmar puppet show, I have managed to kill some of the time between calls by reading a copy of Empire Magazine. Now Empire claims to be the 'World's Best Movie Magazine' and considering I have never really heard of it before i would personally beg to differ and just as i type this i have just received two emails on top of each other. The first one asked if anyone wanted to go home early and the second one says if you didn't receive an email to say you can go home early then you have to stay. My computer decided to send them together even though the emails were 10 mins apart!! Arrghhhh!!!!<br /><br />Ah well such as life.<br /><br />Anyways back to Empire. The reason i am writing about this is because during my last minute easter egg shopping, i was standing at the checkout waiting to pay (so did about 3.5 million people who decided to do their shopping at the last minute) i saw the magazine cover which stated in bold silver writing "100 Greatest Movies of All Time." Naturally being a cinephile i wanted to read what Empire thought were the 100 Greatest Movies of All Time. So i picked up a copy knowing that working the next day "Company X" wouldn't be swamped with calls so i was give my opinion on this very ambitious list.<br /><br />As suspected today hasn't been a busy day at work. I have some faxes to key but i'll get to them a little later. As i read the article i found out that the list was complied by the readers of Emipre (a list was also complied in 2002 and this is a 5 year update) which made me think that this list could be skewed a certain way. By that i mean the core of the readers would be men who harbour dreams of being in the film industry, men who are trying to break into the film industry or movie tragics who can tell you why Samuel L. Jackson has a purple light sabre when no-one other Jedi does.So here are the top 10 greatest movies of all time according to Empire Magazine readers.<br /><br />10) Goodfellas<br />9) Amelie<br />8) Star Wars - The Empire Strikes Back<br />7) Lord of the Rings - Return of the King<br />6) Donnie Darko<br />5) A Clockwork Orange<br />4) Aliens<br />3) The Shawshank Redemption<br />2) Pulp Fiction<br />1) Star Wars - A New Hope<br /><br />Now its 8.30pm as i got swamped with faxes at work and now after having some dinner i can finish this off. My point was going to be how does shit like Donnie Darko get rated above classics such as "Goodfellas"? How does "A Clockwork Orange" get a mention when the copy that Sab had froze at the 20 minute mark and therefore we couldn't watch the film? I do agree with Star Wars being number one cause that is just a bloody fantastic film and it still sucks you in after the 20th time. Still with this list it makes me think the readers of Empire don't know what they are talking about when it comes ranking the best movies ever because everyones tastes vary.<br /><br />It's a good mag but this time around i wasn't impressed.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-39395749353580940482007-04-06T23:34:00.000+10:002016-03-30T09:32:50.583+11:00A really Good Friday<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSXH10PxYOaRpS65CmEdRrqfw3V2d_5BkMjLzOK4lNCgZPKoT5z5MOZYsK8C8PfAh8I9Txf9wA4eDDiT_1TUN9xStZ5y-hiAse1mykP5wURU4dNxcHF91f5EUPHZ59TNKuJu9fEA/s1600-h/DSC08295.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSXH10PxYOaRpS65CmEdRrqfw3V2d_5BkMjLzOK4lNCgZPKoT5z5MOZYsK8C8PfAh8I9Txf9wA4eDDiT_1TUN9xStZ5y-hiAse1mykP5wURU4dNxcHF91f5EUPHZ59TNKuJu9fEA/s320/DSC08295.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5050485329099266626" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-family:courier new;" >No i'm not sitting in Ferdinands kn</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-family:courier new;" >ee.<br /><br /></span></div>I'm Catholic so at this time of year we are all celebrating our very own 'Superbowl." There's a bit more of a spring in out Catholic steps as we amble our way down to church to celebrate the death of Jesus and his Lazurus like resurrection three days later. Growing up in a house where we aren't allowed to eat meat on Good Friday has meant this holiday hasn't been as much about remembering the death of Jesus as it has been about not having a really nice ham and cheese roll for lunch. That sounds selfish i know but thats the honest truth.<br /><br />So with that in mind Mum, Dan and myself were invited to the home of the owners of our local Chinese Restaurant. Now when i first heard of this i must admit my mind was boggled. Why on earth would you want to celebrate Good Friday, a day where you can't eat meat at the house of the owners of your favourite Chinese restaurant whose lemon chicken is to die for? Still Wendy and Ferdinand are part of our family (it's a rule in our house that once you are part of our lives you are part of our family) and we have been loyal customers for years. The good thing about yesterday was that their house was on ly two suburbs across and i didn't have to drive...woohoo!!<br /><br />As we made our way into the backyard i was confronted with a BBQ scene straight out of China. Grandma on the BBQ watching over the chicken wings which is being heated by charcoals. As soon as i saw that i thought "Crap, we are going to be here for 3 days waiting for this stuff to cook." I know that different parts of the world do BBQ differently but my god, it took me 30 mins to cook a chicken wing one day with the teachers from Topkids at a dinky little BBQ place out the back of Tin Shui Wai. Thankfully rather than just having two or three charcoals to heat the meat there was a bloddy bag full. On the other gas BBQ was some of the nicest fish i had ever seen and that in all honesty was going to be destroyed by persons typing this update.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTXjA5tJEgBjHiwL0rw0_Lg6oTgCqoPAEw7yR1Z_Z6WwyE2Qmjk33lH8guvB9K1iFI-_R-gStidXiptd-CmXl50Pq9YgmIg7Mz-IrB9sVW4wU0xtuymMQ6xJEyQjepTS3DW_Ru5g/s1600-h/DSC08272.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTXjA5tJEgBjHiwL0rw0_Lg6oTgCqoPAEw7yR1Z_Z6WwyE2Qmjk33lH8guvB9K1iFI-_R-gStidXiptd-CmXl50Pq9YgmIg7Mz-IrB9sVW4wU0xtuymMQ6xJEyQjepTS3DW_Ru5g/s320/DSC08272.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5050486677718997586" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family: courier new; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Grandma doing her thing.<br /><br /></span></div>I was also happy to see that Bev and Mick (who are basically my second parents) were also at the do plus a few more of Wendy and Ferdinand's family. A couple of the fam were over from Hong Kong and i naturally had a pretty good chat about the place and the more i talk about Hong Kong the more i realise i truely loved my time there and how much i miss that place. I know in myself that i will be off to Europe next but i will be flying though Honkers to catch up with friends and just soak up the atmosphere of that amazing city again. After all the food was cooked and ready to be eaten i sat down with a couple beers and managed to make my way though that much food that when i got home last night i was stuffed and had to actually take a nap.<br /><br />As the day wore on i hung out with Wendy and Ferdinands two kids. Now i know we all have to get older but when you have seen their two boys grow up you realise how fast time goes by. You see, this family works bloody hard at their restaurant and when the boys were only little primary school kids, everytime you went out the back to go to the toilet you would pass one or the two of them fast asleep under a blanket on top of the freezer. Later in the day their Aunty went back inside to get the Mahjong table up and running and judging by the sound of it the game was getting pretty heated.<br /><br />It was a really Good Friday.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-20041418231981103092007-04-05T17:14:00.000+10:002016-03-30T09:32:50.560+11:00Don't believe everything you readAccording to Melbourne's largest selling newspaper, the Herald-Sun, i'm a big girl.<br /><br />Now the reason for this claim is that in Tuesday's paper i was able to finally find out the time i ran for the fun run i completed last sunday. Actually now that i think of it, dad called me "Markina" in the morning before work and i had no idea why until i was given the phone only to find out that one of friends of the family (Irena...from the footy) had already found the results of the run in the paper and decided to call up and give me the good news.<br /><br />So getting into work i was confronted with a few laughs by some of the staff as they had already found my name in the paper and it was all in good jest. I just can't figure out how my results got in the womens side of the paper rather than the guys.<br /><br />Anyway the time i ran in my first 3.4 km fun run was 17 mins 30 seconds, not bad at all.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-26964110611388262742007-04-01T21:10:00.000+10:002016-03-30T09:32:50.569+11:00The first steps<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2p2QciEp5x1mqAyS2xnGRmaUGakhFa1duWEFC_6p9cSEKcpMAJNkZMxlaOMw6WULe8mY0dlbDtpz6LZJCe1FAV48POBlLMibzIYX9NsgjAFbV_dRzHbhN0S15I2WtYGuwD32XEg/s1600-h/DSC08000.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2p2QciEp5x1mqAyS2xnGRmaUGakhFa1duWEFC_6p9cSEKcpMAJNkZMxlaOMw6WULe8mY0dlbDtpz6LZJCe1FAV48POBlLMibzIYX9NsgjAFbV_dRzHbhN0S15I2WtYGuwD32XEg/s320/DSC08000.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5048425002140142066" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-family:courier new;" >It may be the official shirt but this green is not our colour!</span><br /></div><br />I've never been an athlete and considering i'm amongst friends here i can say with a pretty good degree of certainty that the Olympic medal dias won't be seeing my feet anytime in this lifetime. Yet earlier in the year when i came across the CityLink "Run for the Kids" it was something that struck out as something that i wanted to compete in to prove to myself that i can do something out of my comfort zone. I've never ever thought i would want to take part in a fun run and considering that i do enjoy a good bite to eat and a drink to boot why would me...me of all people want to do a freaking fun run?<br /><br />The simple answer is that my fitness levels have never been a constant in my life. My weight has gone up and done without any focus and this was something that i wanted to strive towards. My initial thoughts were to compete in the 15km leg but that was rightly shot down by one of the staff in my local gym who said to me in early feb "mate if this is your first one, take the shorter course, see if you like it and then if you do, slowly move to longer distances." That was the best advice as i really thought i could run 15km with 2 1/2 months preperation but instead mum, dad and myself signed on for the shorter 3.4 km run.<br /><br />Late last week i was getting excited about my first fun run and trying to figure out why runs like these are actually fun..then the flu struck. The guy who sits next to mea t work got a really bad case of the flue early last week and this hit me on Friday night and all day yesterday. I was feeling so bad that standing in the checkout of the Big W at Highpoint, i was looking around and felt that i wanted to faint. I woke up this morning with a headache and really not wanting to run. Unfortunately mum wasn't feeling to well so it was just dad and myself. It was a cool morning and there were 30,000 people participating and the atmposhere was amazing. Everyone from mums pushing their kids in prams to elite athletes whose shoes and hi-tech garments cost more than my yearly salary.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_E18Luq3VwMZ28lym6Vu7Dv6MP1dSIPB9RQFZn9e90SJmX2O1P70K9d4CIzFP1Z254Z5z3DFQoxUk2sY7qixg5fJhgF8zx3iqPc05ePsXUmIdeXp42T3vSj2F1ASv2f0Qq7RMcA/s1600-h/DSC07997.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_E18Luq3VwMZ28lym6Vu7Dv6MP1dSIPB9RQFZn9e90SJmX2O1P70K9d4CIzFP1Z254Z5z3DFQoxUk2sY7qixg5fJhgF8zx3iqPc05ePsXUmIdeXp42T3vSj2F1ASv2f0Qq7RMcA/s320/DSC07997.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5048426389414578690" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family: courier new; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Thousands of runners, hundreds of volunteers. One amazing atmosphere.</span><br /></div><br />Still that didn't deter me from giving the Tan Track a red hot go and as Dad and I slowly made our way to the start line i said to him "I'll see you later" and just jogged off. It was hard throughout the race as i was continually weaving between walkers and joggers but as soon as i hit the bottom of the hill i just ran my guts (which there is a bit) plus add to the fact that with the flu my head felt trapped in a vice but as soon as i got over the top of it and downhill again i just went for it. I stopped twice for 5 seconds as i really had to spit but as soon as i saw that finish line i just went for it and when i crossed that line i was stuffed and relieved that i actually did it...me..Mark Pepper just did a fun run!<br /><br />Afterwards i finally caught up with Dad and we got our showbags and made our way down to Port Melbourne for a big hearty breakfast. Whilst there we caught up with Stav whose place i'm at tomorrow night to watch Wrestlemania after work. As dad and i were walking back to the car we saw some of the field for the 15km run coming up to the finish and the encouragement from the crowd watching to the runners was just amazing, i've never been a part of an event like this and i know i'll be back for another fun run and i know which one i want to do.<br /><br />It's a 10km run in the beautiful bayside suburb of Williamstown on the last Sunday in May. It's just on two months away and with enough training and committment i know i can beat that distance. For those thinking "what time did he run?" well i didn't wear a watch but the results were all electronically timed and the times come out in the paper on Tuesday.<br /><br />It was a great morning and it was for the kids as well.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-43304269950564408902007-04-01T20:20:00.000+10:002016-03-30T09:32:50.585+11:00The things you miss, the things you don'tPart One : The things you miss.<br /><br />Last Friday the 30th of March saw me in two minds. Actually it was a day of contradictions I had two events on my mind and the problem was i really wanted to be at the one i couldn't be at. That event was Sab's 28th Birthday and as much as i could try to be there through phone calls, presents or birthday cards I felt a bit of sadness because i couldn't actually be there to celebrate with her. Even typing this now i just feel disheartened in some ways. Sab is such an amazing friend to me and i love her dearly and being away from her tears me up more when events such as birthdays come up.<br /><br />I know she had a wonderful time and i'm super happy for her that she had a fantastic night with her roomates and friends. The photos on her website (whatsabdid.multiply.com) projected to me someone who is starting to gather momentum after an adjusting period of being in a new city. I'm so happy for her and as tough as it is for the both of us being apart from each other i know we'll be back in the groove and piss farting around together again in the future. I never really realised or appreciated how important Sab is to me. That's not to say i didn't before but probably because we spent so much time together you sometimes forget why you are friends with someone in the first place. She understands and somehow tolerates me and that's a pretty rare thing for me. I just cannot wait to see her again.<br /><br /><br />Part Two : The things you don't<br /><br />As Friday night drew closer i was getting excited as it was the first Aussie Rules football game i have been to in 4 years. After finishing work i had a few pre match bevvies just to wet the vocal cords that i knew would get a pretty good working over later in the night. After staying at work and having a few laughs, it was time to make my way to the home of sport, the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Forget Wembley, forget San Siro the home of sport on the entire planet is the mighty G'.<br /><br />So as i made my way into this rebuilt mecca the atmosphere was rising slowly and the night was cool yet still. I felt like i was having a case of deja vu' as i know i've been to this place before and i know what i'm supposed to do here but i wasn't sure exactly what that was. Still after having a pie and a beer the feeling of the footy being back was just amazing. Needless to say that feeling didn't last long as my team played shit house and lost their opening game. In fact i was so pissed off with my team that i actaully went back to the pub near work were a few of the workmates were still there after the game as i had to drown my sorrows. Next thing i knew it was 2am and i was in a bar at Richmond with three of my workmates. My team really played that bad and it was just like the old days before i left.<br /><br />I didn't miss that at all.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-20910959213425490852007-03-28T21:43:00.000+10:002016-03-30T09:32:50.563+11:00The pitter patter of RaindropsThis is how exciting my life is these days.<br /><br />One of the wonderful things growing up in Australia is terracotta roofs. One of the sounds i love to hear is the sound of rain hitting the roof whilst you are snuggled up in bed. Today in Melbourne it has been raining which is a godsend as we really need the rain. When i left Melbourne was dry but not that bad but now people are showering with buckets, football seasons are being shortened due to the grounds being too dusty, you can't water your garden except for a couple hours a week and people are starting to dob people in if they think they are wasting water. It's pretty bad down here people. I guess that's why at the local 80's night when the band plays a cover of the song "Rain" by Dragon the crowd goes off as one of the lines of the song says "Don't go out in the pouring rain." These days we would if we could.<br /><br /> I was supposed to fill in for our local tennis team tonight but due to the rain, the courts were washed out so the night was called off and the players went home.I actually went to the gym and did a half session tonight and when i got outside it was still raining and even now as i type the pitter patter of raindrops is music to my ears. Tonight was that first night where it was a little chilly so that feeling of getting your feet into your slippers (for me...moccasins) is just devine. With global warming making our planets regular seasons more sporadic that Britney Spears attending rehab it was nice to come home and put the moccasins on and just feel a cool chill in the house.<br /><br />So going to bed soon, hopefully i'll have the pitter patter putting me to sleep,Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-10689378708359515102007-03-25T21:30:00.000+10:002016-03-30T09:32:50.524+11:00Boys and their Toys<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAIotTdafLPN4tF5wMuHMCwABBgJ_tW0V0sIOb5bKHZptlKSHStcVuwA767g_fhHGdJLQUx8bj-50BUbfF4yJZfVvqNEcMERNe3H7MrW8KFEOx1jvkWwH-_Yj3uj_N19q4VEYYcw/s1600-h/DSC08072.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAIotTdafLPN4tF5wMuHMCwABBgJ_tW0V0sIOb5bKHZptlKSHStcVuwA767g_fhHGdJLQUx8bj-50BUbfF4yJZfVvqNEcMERNe3H7MrW8KFEOx1jvkWwH-_Yj3uj_N19q4VEYYcw/s320/DSC08072.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5045824570751603298" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-family:courier new;" >I love planes! My face says it all.</span><br /></div><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-family:courier new;" ><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">WARNING: This blog update talks about things girls don't get.</span><br /></span><br />Ever since i can remember i have always loved planes. Growing up in East Keilor meant living under the approach path for Melbourne Airport and ever since i can remember the sight and sounds of planes has had a mesmerising effect on me. I could be standing out in the middle of the backyard hanging out the washing when the sound of a Qantas Jumbo Jet starts to rumble over our neighbourhood yet even though i have seen that flying kangaroo thousands of times it still an amazing feeling see how such a large piece of machinery can get off the ground. I love airports (except for Macau and the overpriced rubbish food at Saigon Airport) and i have always looked up and thought about the people on those planes above my house and wondered where they are coming from or where they are going to.<br /><br />So for the past hmmm 10 years now dad I have made our way down to Avalon Airport to see the Australian International Air Show. I didn't go in 2005 but dad was nice enough to send a copy of the programme and a souvinier to Hong Kong which i read from cover to cover. So after a 4 year absence i was back and looking forward to once again looking skyward and seeing the amazing thrill of super fast F/A 18 Hornets fly past us at 1000 kilometers an hour and just listen to the almighty roar when passing through the speed of sound.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcrvvDP_I_q5W8JQAPWiNJdizdkBDQ3exbYMwb5C3eVdRuXmGi3YHrYR40A_bZXAOaEguqGJ8g21u91uDQ4goEsx2R1pns3oBheq9gau68fLz0UdTxQiB73xfm6-7pKg4kmZ2C9g/s1600-h/f111.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcrvvDP_I_q5W8JQAPWiNJdizdkBDQ3exbYMwb5C3eVdRuXmGi3YHrYR40A_bZXAOaEguqGJ8g21u91uDQ4goEsx2R1pns3oBheq9gau68fLz0UdTxQiB73xfm6-7pKg4kmZ2C9g/s320/f111.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5045834346097169026" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-family:courier new;" >I'd love to say i took this pic but i didn't. It's the F-111's classic "Dump and Burn" </span><br /></div><br />The day didn't start off to well as i was feeling a bit seedy from the night before. It was my workmates birthday and a good night was had by all but as much as they wanted me to kick on and continue the party i had to tell them that jets flying past your head isn't the best way to recover from a hangover. So i pulled the plug and went home about 1.30am Sunday morning and we (Dad, Chris and I) were on our way at 8.00am only to find that the morons in the transpoirt deparment had closed 2 of the three lanes of one of the freeways leading to Avalon. What moron would be stupid enough to close two lanes on a day where they know that tens of thousands of people are going to use that road? Obviously Melbourne has the title of worst logistical management city all stiched up.<br /><br />As we meandered along and i finished digesting a pretty damn fine post party brekky of a couple of Macca's McMuffins, the traffic started to ease up and bit and we were flying towards Avalon. Parking was a bastard this time around as our Gold Passes didn't have their own parking areas like last time which meant we parked with the rest of the plebs. Throughout the day there were plenty of classic planes ranging from the P-51 Mustang....blah blah blah you say. Well i love seeing the fighter jets especially the F-111 and the F/A 18 Hornet. I just love the sound of those engines roaring past (which will be on multiply in the next couple of days) and trying to take photos with a little digital camera is bloody tough. This caused great laughs for Dad and Chris as they were watching me trying to take a picture of a military strike fighter going like the clappers and not getting anything in the shot except a little blurrly thing and sunshine.<br /><br />What makes it worse is that the plane geeks all around us had massive zooms on their cameras. When i go to the airshow i want me eardrums to be pleading for me to stick anything in them to make the noise go away. I get so excited by the roar of the engines that i think outside of little kiddies and the elderly you should try and appreciate the sounds of these massive engines.Then again i didn't wear headphones like this guy. He's soft in my books...very soft.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggtUjVmie85ajrp8kK6dCRVp1gsB6vE93rb-924en2CyajJjIuGRq8ikZkvnZhjgKYcvqX4G2o2HE5ZLYFsESSc0B3peL7q8v229ZHSUB-UGKYjp1gtjDPoUxiuemzr-TTaGdqYA/s1600-h/DSC08080.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggtUjVmie85ajrp8kK6dCRVp1gsB6vE93rb-924en2CyajJjIuGRq8ikZkvnZhjgKYcvqX4G2o2HE5ZLYFsESSc0B3peL7q8v229ZHSUB-UGKYjp1gtjDPoUxiuemzr-TTaGdqYA/s320/DSC08080.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5045833448449004146" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-family:courier new;" >Soft.<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: left;">During a small walk around the backlot i got close up with helicopters and some of the larger American aircraft which leads me to my next point. At these airshows there is a strong American contingent as they provide "for our viewing pleasure" some of the world's most technologically advanced aircraft. With that they also have someone (usually part of the flight crew) talking about the plane and the demonstration that the plane will be showing the public. During the display of the F-15 Eagle the commentator talked about how in "Desert Storm" (the first one) the F-15 shot down 46 enemy aircraft. What got me about that is two things. 1) He said in such a way that it was a magnificent achievment but mate..you were fighting the Iraqi's which the last time i checked...didn't have the strongest airforce in the world. That's like pitting a Formula One car against a Lada in a drag race! 2) Even at the Airshow we couldn't get away from American flag waving. When the commentator talked about "all the brave men and women fighting the continuing war on terror" I just wanted to slap him and i think a fewof the crowd did as well.<br /><br />Still at the end of the day and after trying to take too many photos and getting sunburnt, the three of us had a great day. It was great to be back at the Airshow and once again i camr away with the feeling of how much i love planes. Sure i don't think i'll have a private jet like John Travolta or have the chance to fly in the cockpit of an F/A 18-E Super Hornet but given half the chance i would jump at the chance. Flying to me means you are going somewhere, you are moving forward.<br /><br />I like that feeling.<br /></div></div>Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-66668224564681334312007-03-21T21:32:00.000+11:002016-03-30T09:32:50.609+11:00Shit of a DayWhen you start eating dinner with a knife and spoon..you've had a shit day.<br /><br />When you are asked to fill up the coffee jar and you fill up the enitire cup you are going to use to make your mother with coffee..you've had a shit day.<br /><br />When an Indian bottle shop owner blasts you for 10 minutes on the phone for something that you have no control over...you've had a shit day.<br /><br />When the traffic backs up so bad on the freeway you have to wait till you get a green light on the freeway on ramp before you can get on the freeway proper..you've had a shit of a day.<br /><br />When you can't say your name properly, spill water on the staff newspaper, have no motivation to go to the gym because socks you picked up have a hole in the toe, you can't figure out what to make for dinner and just want the world to pass you by as you stick your head in the sand..then you've had a shit of a day.<br /><br />I'm off to bed, i need an early night.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-34604561776348629522007-03-20T21:37:00.000+11:002016-03-30T09:32:50.581+11:00She's such a groovy lady.There are mystical forces in the world and i know that for sure. Some people call it karma, some call it faith and some have no idea what it's called. It's a feeling that higher forces are playing their part in your life. I came across a little of this feeling yesterday on the drive home from work. As soon as i left the car park i couldn't get across into the lane that would take me onto the freeway and home in about 25 mins. I actually had to go through the city centre and north of the city to actually get where i wanted to go (the discount petrol station). It took me 45 minutes to get home last night but that's beside the point.<br /><br />The point is that i found myself stuck in traffic behind a tram just looking around and there it was. A place that i have gone past probably hundreds of times but have never seen. As soon as i saw it i had to get my camera out of my bag to get a photo of this. This was momentous but my zipper was stuck (the bag not my pants) and i couldn't get the camera out. The traffic ahead was starting to move and my camear finally came out and somehow i opened it and took this picture.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhrAWVcfVhUO7yx0TAc2JlyIL9-j8FwrVGIQTnwX-tNmrQTlzKKQh8tTFUtjJXoqGWgjbNdJd_QRV2bS-93vmjTjwkGtGO_ToSinXLTirkXKoLHqFyPQm4_tGlSZpPAv77KIoUpA/s1600-h/DSC07971.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhrAWVcfVhUO7yx0TAc2JlyIL9-j8FwrVGIQTnwX-tNmrQTlzKKQh8tTFUtjJXoqGWgjbNdJd_QRV2bS-93vmjTjwkGtGO_ToSinXLTirkXKoLHqFyPQm4_tGlSZpPAv77KIoUpA/s320/DSC07971.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5043963355263816274" border="0" /></a><br />Now to pretty much everyone except Sab this pic is a blurry pic of a "Cafe Nervosa" that shows two things. 1) My camera work isn't the best and 2) It's the name of the cafe in "Frasier." But this pic is so much more. It's a picture of a place in a show that Sab and I both love. We have had millions of laughs thanks to Frasier and sometimes we see our friendship as Frasier and Roz. Actually we really are Frasier and Roz and if you're not a real fan of the show then you won't know what i'm talking about. Well if you have seen the two of us in action then maybe you have. We just get along so well that many people have said "why don't you two get married?"<br /><br />It's hard for me to explain the meaning of this pic but if you have a friend that is so close to you, someone who you share so many adventures with, who can tell what you are thinking, then you know what i'm talking about. I really miss Sab and seeing this sign made me feel both happy because of all the laughs we shared but sad because we aren't sharing them now. She's such a groovy lady (hehe i had to use it) and i just miss not having her here.<br /><br />So for you Sab here are some of our classic Frasier moments...just for us.<br /><br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/lSK1UeD9nvE"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/lSK1UeD9nvE" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><br /><object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/JDFGINcPH-4"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/JDFGINcPH-4" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object>Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-80880775424103128312007-03-17T20:10:00.000+11:002016-03-30T09:32:50.621+11:00Spicks and SpecksWhen i had my little mental breakdown in January one of the reasons was due to my physical state which in reality was sinking back into my pre leaving Australia days. Ever since that night i have committed myself to becoming as fit and healthy as possible. It has been a wonderful 10 weeks of sweat and sorness but the results are showing and i'm actually going to do a 4 km fun run on April 1 which all the proceeds go to Melbourne's Royal Children's Hospital. Well since i floated this idea i have had nothing but support but now i'm not the only person doing this fun run as mum and dad have decided to "Run for the Kids" as well.<br /><br />I must say that i am delighted that they are actually deciding to join in and not just because its a good cause. The three of us have sometimes let our healty lifestyles suffer due to the pressures of work and just everyday life but the three of us have drawn a line in the sand and we will do this together. Now seen that this is my first run i'm not going out to set records but just go for a nice leisurely jog around the course and soak up the atmosphere of the day. We also decided to get the official race shirts so there will be some photots to see from that day in a couple weeks.<br /><br />On Thursday night my team leader at 'Company X' informed me that my contract has been extended for six months so now i'm employed till the end of november which is a huge relief as the work is alright but the staff are really nice. Last night we went out for a few drinks at a pub in the city (Transport @ Fed Square) and before i knew it i was heading home at 2.30 Saturday morning. I'm enjoying hanging out with my workmates outside of work and getting to know them outside the office. With me having a good night last night i wasn't feeling or looking the best when i got my haircut this morning at 10am. Still that icky feeling subsided when i went to Target to buy new workpants. Ah the joys of wearing smaller sizes.<br /><br />I'm trying to make life in Melbourne more exciting by thinking of doing different things. I actually would like to meet new people and try new things and now that i have stability at work till the end of the year i can now focus on getting more variety areas in my life including romance (which right now is empty, so that can only go up), self fulfilment (my long delayed radio dream) and writing my travel book. I know if i stop bitching about how life in Melbourne can be mundane because its home then my outlook will improve from the up and down temprament that has been going on inside my head since i landed. It's not the travelling lifestyle that i crave everytime i see a Qantas jumbo fly over our house but i have to make my time in Melbourne mean something.<br /><br />Whilst Sydney is sleeping peacefully on the chair next to me, i'm thinking about how much of a support she really is. Everytime i come home she runs up the hallways and jumps up on me. She sleeps on my bed and follows me everywhere around the house. After i came back from my Nana's house (she's getting too old to give her house a good vacuum so i went over to help her) i took Syd over to the local footy oval and let her off the leash and just watched her run around without a care in the world.<br /><br />So with the Australian Grand Prix on tomorrow my backside will be couchside (after my gym and one hour spinning class in the morn) and looking forward to the first race of the F1 season. Much like the scratch ticket i purchased Thursday night, my life is getting better by the day and whilst its not perfect (i was one number off winning an instant $150,000) it is improving.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-60476060314826493642007-03-14T21:46:00.000+11:002016-03-30T09:32:50.603+11:00It's in the Stars<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxCIPFQBvML-EB0h0vNtsSpTDlKzpda9AKsg8cW1fMoSZjrmLTF521QxRyILIbwHJ01gq29VOoJj303AB1QZA9bXWvGEzyWX0lR0NFzJWze1_wfV1HdBA9pLBUjnfLtuEaVqGdBg/s1600-h/starwoman_narrowweb__200x313.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxCIPFQBvML-EB0h0vNtsSpTDlKzpda9AKsg8cW1fMoSZjrmLTF521QxRyILIbwHJ01gq29VOoJj303AB1QZA9bXWvGEzyWX0lR0NFzJWze1_wfV1HdBA9pLBUjnfLtuEaVqGdBg/s320/starwoman_narrowweb__200x313.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5041750233383922546" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">The only decent pic i could find of Athena Starwoman.</span><br /></div><br />I've always had a small interest in astrology. To some people it's all a bunch of rubbish about predicting finding the love of your life and being insanely rich but then again isn't that why most people read them anyway? Most days when i'm reading the paper i'll have a small read of my star sign (which is Aquarius) i'll read what the astrological svengali has to say and dismiss it as fast food astrology. You know the type, the astrology which is good for a small fix but it's nothing meaty or meaningful in the context of finding out wether i'm going to be rich or find a hot bird with all the right curves, moves and personality.<br /><br />I must admit i'm one of those people who do the "Ahh" at the end of the usual exchange of information when the topic of astrology comes up...example:<br /><br />"What star sign are you?"<br />"Aquarius...you"<br />"I'm a Gemini"<br />"Ahhh"<br /><br />Now that "Ahh" is the sound of you thinking you know what the other persons complete astrological make up is but you have no idea at all. The reason i'm talking about all this is that on my overflowing bookshelf i came across a book i purchased on special yet never looked at which goes by the complexing title of "Zodiac." This book is written by Australia's formost astrologer Athena Starwoman who for many years in one of the weekly womens mags cast her astrological eye over the nation and dispenced her very own blend of news both good and bad to a curious nation of housewives, grandmothers, gossip groups and sometimes me.<br /><br />Looking at this book i started reading about Aquarius (of course) and was surprised at what could be described as pretty darn accurate characteristics of my own personality. Here are 7 pearls of wisdom from Athena about the Aquarias male with my own little thoughts about them attatched as well.<br /><br />1) He may have many mates, good friends, associates and close contacts in his life, and he often enjoys these relationships immensely, on a social superficial level than rather on a close intensley personal one. <span style="font-style: italic;">Very true, i do have a lot of freinds but most of them don't know half the stuff going on inside my head due to the next reason.</span><br /><br />2) While there may be many times he wishes he could share his real thoughts and the private aspects of his world with others, it is unlikely that many can ever enter or share his private space.<span style="font-style: italic;"> There have been millions of times i just want to burst out and tell the world what i'm feeling but afraid that no one will understand me or just shake their head and say "freak." </span><br /><br />3) Women number among some of his greatest friendships. <span style="font-style: italic;">Sab, Cass, Candace, Mart, Louise, Nikki, Carly ..need i say more.<br /></span><br />4) He is totally different from other men, so operates with a different set of criteria in every department of his life. <span style="font-style: italic;">I'm a guy but i've never been a "guy's guy" so for better or worse i'm not sure but i ain't gonna change.<br /><br /></span>5) His patience, tolerance and amiability give the impression he's tranquil to the core, but his behaviour rarely reflects what's really going on beneath the surface. <span style="font-style: italic;">I do keep a lot of stuff bottled up inside that only very few people are aware of.<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: left;">6) He treats everyone with the same amount of respect, curiosity and ease, and people who normally uncomfortable with strangers respond to him like a long lost friend. <span style="font-style: italic;">I do have something that makes meeting new people pretty easy for me and i like that. People who i have met and people who i have known for years all stay on the same level of respect, curiosity and ease unless they piss me off and when i'm pissed off i get really really pissed off.<br /><br /></span>7) It is easy for him to offend or upset others. <span style="font-style: italic;">Oh bugger me where does this list begin???<br /></span><span><br />I was going to do 10 but i was getting tired.</span> There's also a lot of other stuff about love, career, family, spiritual and other bits and pieces but it's all too long and boring for you guys to read. I read most of Sab's info (Aries) and she and i agreed that both of our astrological profiles had some substance to their words. <span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span><br />So the question has to be asked....what star sign are you?<span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></div>Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-72712771497135326362007-03-12T21:25:00.000+11:002016-03-30T09:32:50.617+11:00Cheerio Moto!It seems me and mobile phones are not destined to be freinds.<br /><br />On Saturday morning, my Motorola RAZR which has served as a very useful phone for just under two years decided to shat itself and finally decide to update me with my messages. For 5 minutes late that morning all my house heard was the repeated strains of Michigan J Frog start to sing "Hello my Baby" as 9 messages decided to finally come through to my phone. For those not in the know Michigan J Frog is the frog in the Looney Tunes cartoon who is a tenor but doesn't sing in front of people. It's one of my top three cartoons ever.<br /><br />Now im with Optus and have been for a few years and actually worked for them for 6 months before i left Australia. Now there network coverage should be pretty good yet when i really want to speak to people my phone decides to drop the call, make me lose my voice and still hear the other person talk or say it sent messages but the other person never received them. It could be network trouble but my Moto was on the way out. It needed charging everynight, the alarm would sometimes forget to work (not because of me) and generally it had just about had enough scratches and marks on it to make a Jerry Springer brawl look tame by comparison.<br /><br />So Sunday morning i ventured down to Optus to pick up a half decent phone and i was amazed at the variety of phones you can buy. You can get internet, 3G, WAP, video calls and live TV but all i wanted was a phone. I never really used my phone camera on my other phone but i do have some nice pictures from my time in Hong Kong which i'll keep. In terms of wanting to keep up with the latest trends and be at the forefront of mobile technology i'll pass. All i wanted was a phone to call people when needed and to send messages to people...but the guy at the store wanted me to join a plan because i can get Google on a new Nokia if i go on a $50 a month plan over 24 months. Now considering i don't want to be here for 24 months and i don't want to surf the net on my phone i understand his need to upsell but please...<br /><br />I'm on prepaid and i like it that way.<br /><br />I purchased a new Samsung slider phone for $100 which has a camera and other stuff i will never use but its the closest thing to a regular mobile phone without the wanky techno stuff to impress other people with. "Oh look.I can listen to 1000 songs, surf the net, watch tv and order dinner." We don't have mobile phones anymore we have mobile entertainment units that just happens to have a phone function tacked on it as well.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-91860441155597706932007-03-12T21:22:00.000+11:002016-03-30T09:32:50.628+11:00Is Multiply going to simplify or just multiply my simple life?Someone once said "Go forth and multiply" and they did.<br /><br />I've decided to multiply as well and join well... Multiply.<br /><br />I didn't want to at first but due to a stubborn Candace and a small selling session by Sab i've decided to shut them up and join.<br /><br />My address there is <a onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)" href="http://pepfest.multiply.com/" target="_blank">pepfest.multiply.com</a><br /><br />There you will see a lot more pictures, videos and other stuff that this blog can't do.<br /><br />Don't go there just yet as there is only a pic of me and that's all but give me time and i'll keep you all entertained but when theres enough stuff to see, i'll keep all 8 of you posted.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-34235111885802061582007-03-12T21:20:00.000+11:002016-03-30T09:32:50.579+11:00Out and AboutWith the events of the past few days on my mind, I decided friday night that I was going out no matter what. Like that famous scene from the movie '"Network" I was as mad as hell and i' wasn't going to take it anymore. I needed to get out of the house, my work hours have been all over the place I have had too many nights in and just haven't had the desire to leave home and that's not me people. That's not good for anyone. I like my quiet time but if i have too much of it I lose my sence of belonging and i'm a freakin people person!!!!<br /><br />Altering my plans of going to the gym and then going out later with Mike, I ended up having a few drinks after work down at headquarters with a few of the guys who had finished work earlier that day. I was going to continue with them to another pub but had already promised Mike I would go with him to a local bar. That fell through which cheesed me off but I was determined so the call went out to about three or four people until I got a hold of my freind Louise who was heading to the same bar i was so i decided to tag along with her.<br /><br />As well as Lou her brother Simon was there as well. He attended the same high school as me but a was a year ahead and it's always good to see these two together as they are the closest brother / sister combination i have ever seen. I actually met Lou when i was working at a bottle shop a few years ago and she was working at the bakery just out the front of our shop. We both used to work Sundays and i would waddle over and have a chat with Lou and pick up a chocolate crossaint in the process. We have kept in contact and even though sometimes we go a bit long between catch ups she still is a dear friend.<br /><br />Then again as we were on the way to pick up her cousin Christine she told me about the people she had given nicknames for who are regulars at the friday 80's night. These names include "Retro" ( a guy who loves the 80's like no other and dances in a way i've never seen before. The next time i go i'll get footage) "Pedro" (who once wore a 'Vote for Pedro' t-shirt) "Whitney" ( because i think this girl chucked a tanti Whitney Houston diva style once) and other names that the fullness of time has made me forget. Get me on a dancefloor with anything playing from the 80's (with the exception of Nelson) and i'm pretty much dancing away. So when the band (whose lead singer is on a 5 week hiatus in Adelaide and whose replacement whilst very good just doesn't have the same showmanship as the original singer) started belting out 80's classics such as "Electric Dreams", "Jessies Girl" "Take on Me" "Send me an Angel" and the show stopper "Rain" the world around me just drifted away and i was injected with synthesised beats and fluid bass lines. I get down on myself a lot and the only reason is that i over think things and i forget that life is meant to be lived..not thought out.<br /><script><!-- D(["mb","<br />After the band finished about 1a.m. i found myself talking to Lou\'s cousin Christine. She had lived overseas for a year in Japan teaching and i was really interested in how she found the experience. It was three years ago that she came back but just finding out how different people dealt with it always helps me reach my own conclusions. i\'m hoping that i\'ll be out with these guys at the Cubby House once again very soon as when i fell into bed at about 4am Saturday morning i though to myself that nights like this have been a little slim recently and i\'m not going to take that anymore.<br /><br />> -----Original Message-----<br />> From: Pepper, Mark<br />> Sent: Monday, 12 March 2007 15:13<br />> To: \'<a>markjpepper@gmail.com</a>\'<br />> Subject: blog update<br />><br />> friday night<br />> cousins birthday,...pics of shayla<br />> star sign book<br />> bbq yesterday<br /><br />******************************<wbr>******************************<wbr>**************************<br />This email and any attachments may be confidential and legally privileged.<br />Please notify the sender immediately if you received this message in error.<br />Please do not delete or alter this notice.<br />******************************<wbr>******************************<wbr>**************************<br /></div>",0] ); //--></script><br />After the band finished about 1a.m. i found myself talking to Lou's cousin Christine. She had lived overseas for a year in Japan teaching and i was really interested in how she found the experience. It was three years ago that she came back but just finding out how different people dealt with it always helps me reach my own conclusions. i'm hoping that i'll be out with these guys at the Cubby House once again very soon as when i fell into bed at about 4am Saturday morning i though to myself that nights like this have been a little slim recently and i'm not going to take that anymore.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-82160365071680256672007-03-10T23:52:00.000+11:002016-03-30T09:32:50.623+11:00It's too quietComing home tonight from my cousins birthday i noticed something in my street that i have never really notices before. It was quiet. Actually it was really really quiet and i was surprised at how quiet the street was.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-59225124910772149942007-03-08T23:47:00.000+11:002016-03-30T09:32:50.601+11:00On the lighter side...Don't you love it when you put your pants on and 5 seconds later they are around your ankles again? No i'm not talking about former President of the United States Bill Clinton but as i got ready for work today i put my work pants on only to find that my tummy has receded so much that i don't have enough belly anymore to keep them up! I was rapt as i have been working my flabby butt of at the gym and eating like a human rabbit but i'm seeing results and i want more..more more!!! I wan't more weight to fall, inches to waste away and those things called...umm what are they called again..muscles to come out (but not in a freaky way like the freaky gym freaks at the gym) and to run without feeling like i'm going to die after 500 meters.<br /><br />Also a couple days ago i received the coolest birthday present ever from Sab. Sure it was belated but the love was felt as she put together an amazing photo album and a little video for me to watch. I came home from the gym to find a package waiting for me and as soon as i opened it mum got her hands on the album first and just started to make this happy about to cry sound. I was taken aback by the amount of work Sab put into this and i really do miss her. I have my friends here but she's such an integral part of my life that there are things i want to do in Melbourne that i know that she would love to do with me but no one else is interested. I called her afterwards and just wanted to thank her so much for this wonderful gift.<br /><br />I really miss having her around.Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19966436.post-44423023489026497922007-03-08T22:52:00.000+11:002016-03-30T09:32:50.587+11:00It's not you...i know it's me.<div style="text-align: center; font-style: italic;">"Lately I'm a desperate believer<br />But I'm walking in a straight line"<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-family:courier new;" >As sung by Silverchair<br /></span><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-family:courier new;" ></span><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;">I'm one fucking stubborn bastard.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;">That got your attention didn't it?</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;">But why the naughty words this time around? Because well like the lyrics at the top of the page i am a desperate beleiver and i'll tell you why. Now before i get into this i just want to say that what you read is not criticism of anyone except myself.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;">I'll probaby get lynched for writing this.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;">Two nights ago i was talking to Martine and matter of factly she said she met a guy on the weekend. Well i have to say now that i am happy for her and i wish nothing but the absolute highest amount of happiness in her life as i wish for all who reads this. It took me by surprise in a way and in a way it shouldn't have. Let's look at the facts people it was 2005 when it finished and i didn't get it through my head for a long time afterwards that what i thought could happen wouldn't happen. I've said this to people close to me...my biggest weakness / character flaw is hope.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;">I try and look at the positive of everything even when reality tells me otherwise. With Mart i was so cut up about how things eventuated but the fact is life moves on. I still consider her a very important person to me even though there are days where i feel i want to just cut all ties with her because of how things panned out but that's the weaker option and it's just not who i am. Did i feel angry at her at anytime? Yes there were times in my mind i would ask "Why this" or "Why that" but i was more angry in myself because as i have said before i self analyse to the point of depression events that i have no control over.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;">And while to most readers it seem all i talk about is her (much like</span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:georgia;" > Jon Favreau </span><span style="font-family:georgia;">in "Swingers") i have to admit that well i'm over it. I'm over this whole shitstorm that has been going on in myself because i'm too stubborn to accept reality but i have and i'm finding direction again. Everyone has their journey in life to accomplish and we all have our own dreams in life and whilst my dreams have conflicted with my own personal direction, i realise it's a learning experience that i had to go through. What matters is happiness inside and moving on in life cause for a while..i was stuck in the mud of my own critical assesment of who i am.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;">As i said i still consider Mart to be a truely beautiful person who i look forward to many years of friendship in the future. I still know in myself i'll always look for the positive in everyhing and i know that my life is starting to find it's purpose again as if it's waking up from a coma and looking for a personality overhaul. You know when you get to a point and you just say to yourself "why you so down when you have so much to give?" </span><span style="font-family:georgia;">That was me today.</span><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;"><br />For a long time i didn't stop to look at the world around me and take in how lucky i am.<br /><br /><br /></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-family:courier new;" ></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);font-family:courier new;" ></span></div></div>Pephttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08007148627176886493noreply@blogger.com1