Nathan's Insights

2016 Myrtleford Easter Tournament

March 28, 2016

Friday 25 March to Monday 28 March – Photos

My 18th annual Myrtleford Easter Tournament dating back to 1998 has just been completed. The earlier in the year Myrtleford Easter Tournament are also the best, daylight saving a still on and the weather is generally better and this was definitely the case in 2016.

My results were significantly better than the 2015 tournament in which my score was 25 games for and 35 games against (total 60 games), which also helps in the enjoyment factor of the long weekend. The Easter get away allows time from the stresses of life, on the different nights you get to catch up with different people, tell a few tall stories and sit back under the stars.

Results (96 games – 50 games for / 46 games against)

D Grade Singles: 7-0 & 6-7 (lost tie break)

D Grade Doubles: (with Reagan Burgess): 7-2, 7-4 (group stage), and 5-7 (knock out stage)

C Grade Doubles: (with Leon Roche): 1-7, 4-7 (group stage)

C Mixed Doubles: (with Lyn Longmuir): 6-7, 7-5 (group stage)

The best match was my 6-7 mixed doubles loss with Lyn Longmuir which we had to run back to the courts to play after I didn’t see we were scheduled to play late Sunday afternoon! Every player held serve in a close tense match, unfortunately I served a rare double fault first point of the tie break and we never recovered, still some great points.

Erin was also a highlight on Easter Day, we even got a bunny dance, even if not as good as last year’s 🙂
Nephew Andrew Gauci in B Grade Singles
Moomba Magic 2016

March 14, 2016

Today I was lucky enough to visit Moomba with my sister Lana and my nephew Harry and niece Darby. It’s been a few years since I’ve been to Moomba and I hadn’t realised how much it has grown.

The day was great fun as Team Harry (with me) got caught up in Dodge’m Cars and all the hits and crashes on Team Darby (with Lana) that later I let Harry and Darby convince me to go on the No Limit ride, 42 metres high, crazy spinning and flipping as we pulled 5gs.

Hopefully people think the girlish screams belonged to someone else on the ride 🙂 – I’m second from the right between Darby and Harry.

The crazy No Limit Ride , very tall at 42 metres

Harry and Darby couldn’t get enough of the rides.
Destination: India

February 23, 2016

Established: 1848 (Modern India, 600 AD for Medieval India)
Population: 1.27 billion (2018 Estimate)
Religion: 79.8% Hindu, 14.2% Islam
Capital: New Delhi
Order of Visit: Fifty-First
First Visit: 20 April 2015
Last Visit: 02 May 2015
Duration: 16 Days
Highlights: Taj Mahal, Agra Fort, Swarda (small village), New Delhi Slums, Kerala backwater experience
Places Visited: New Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, Sawarda, Kochi, Kumarakom, Alleppey, Cherrai Beach
India Journal Entries

History and Geography
Covering 3,287,263 square kilometres India is a country in South Asia bordered by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the southwest, and the Bay of Bengal on the southeast, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west; China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the north; and Bangladesh and Myanmar to the east.

Exploring the Paharganj Slums – Delhi, India (Taken 20 April 2015)

Agra Fort – Agra, India (Taken 21 April 2015)

Visiting the Taj Mahal – Agra, India (Taken 21 April 2015)

Water Palace – Jaipur, India (Taken 23 April 2015)

Playing cricket with the locals – Sawarda, India (Tken 24 April 2015)

What I Experienced
India is one crazy place, so many people, really hot temperatures, infrastructure that breaks down regularly (6 power failures in 3 days in New Delhi), terrible poverty sitting right next to extreme wealth and an immense history that saw India the most wealthy country in 1600s. It hard to sum up India, confronting it can definitely be, especially in the largest cities. The locals seem to be cricket obsessed (I was in India during the Indian Premier League 20/20 competition).

The north and the south are very different. While the north has the great sites, the Sikh Temples, the Taj Mahal, Agra Fort and lots of palaces it’s culture appeared very different to the more laid back south which seemed at times to have a pacific island culture to go with the humid temperature. In the south I got to experience a Kathakali cultural show, seeing the precision of the performers and the colourful attire, in particular the face paint, made you feel like I was back in the 1600s.

The Hindu wedding celebrations appear to be something else. I only got to watch a few from outside the events but they are loud, colourful and go on for days. I also got to see a Bollywood film which seem to love signing and dancing with very proper women being courted throughout.

In a small village I got to play a game of cricket with the happy children and in the south in some places the locals all wanted their photos taken with me a white man, telling me how few non-Indians visit some of these areas.

I did get sick in India, I don’t believe you can avoid it when visiting but taking care and medication can limit the damage.

India was the last well major country I haven’t visited, I never many people who had been there many times. I left it this long due to the extreme weather and the reputation of visitors getting sick but I’m glad I finally did go.

Standing in front of the Taj Mahal and the baby Taj Mahal, seeing magnificent forts over 500 years old, seeing elephants up very close, happy children, great marble and gem craftsman up close and the great contrast from poor to rich, to fast paced and sleepy paced country areas is something that has taught me a great deal.

Countries Visited List

Local Fishing – Kochi, India (Taken 27 April 2015)

Cruising – Kumarakom, India (Taken 28 April 2015)

Local transportation – Alleppey, India (Taken 29 April 2015)

India
Review – Deadpool

February 18, 2016

Released: 12 February 2016
Seen: 19 February 2016
Cinema: Hoyts Melbourne Central
Director: Tim Miller
Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Karan Soni, Morena Bacarrin, TJ Miller, Ed Skein, Michael Benyaer, Stefan Kapicic
Gene: Action
Rating: 8.5 / 10

Synopsis
A former Special Forces operative turned mercenary is subjected to a rogue experiment that leaves him with accelerated healing powers, adopting the alter ego Deadpool.

Review (warning spoilers)
Super hero movies are everywhere in particular Marvel related properties that split with Fox (X-Men and Fantastic Four), Sony (Spider-man) and Disney (everything else Marvel) so it takes a lot to stand out.

Most super hero movies play it safe, go for a PG rating, have an uplifting story, good always wins and wins the right way (not unnecessary deaths, don’t kill the villain if at all possible), the hero is someone everyone can look up to, and the hero is in a better place than the start of the movie. That’s not the case here.

Deadpool is a balls to the wall movie, Wade / Deadpool is not exactly a nice guy he mostly seems okay because of the asses he tracks downs and kills. He isn’t motivated by doing the right thing but instead revenge and doesn’t care a great deal about the destruction he causes in bringing it.

The movie is hilarious with cross references to other movies and I don’t mean just Fox Marvel movies, Ryan Reynolds makes fun of himself as former sexist man and the god awful Green Lantern movie he starred in. There are two minor X-Men characters used to show how this links to the Fox Universe but even that is made fun of (“A big house but only two mutants, it’s almost like we didn’t have enough money to hire anyone else!”).

The movie doesn’t the origin story well, in flash backs at the right times (and even makes fun fast forwarding at one point). This is an R rated Super Hero movie which the fans deserved. Not every blockbuster movie needs to be aimed at 8 year olds who will drag their parents along.

Ryan Reynolds obviously was having fun. The stunning Morena Bacarrin plays the love interest who is just as messed up as Deadpool in that they have the same weird sense of humour and view on life. In fact it appears as if everyone was having a ton of fun making this movie that took 10 years to get approved and need the fans to demand this crazy assed character get an R rate movie that was as meta and four wall breaking as the comics and video games. It is a great ride.

Recommendation: A movie aimed a adults, mostly males but hardcore female gamers would love it as well, instead of your typical family super hero movie, if you love action, blood, coarse comedy and meta references you are in heaven with this movie.
Review – Fiddler on the Roof

February 14, 2016

Seen: 11 February 2016
Theatre: Princess Theatre, Melbourne
Cast: Anthony Warlow, Teagan Wouters, Monica Swayne, Jessica Vickers, Madeline Perrone, Sara Reed, Blake Bowden, Andrew Kroenert, Jensen Overend, Sara Grenfell, Derek Taylor, Prue Bell, Jared Bryan, Zoe Coppenger, Zach Curran, Mark Doggett, Matt Douglass Brett Fisher, David Hammond, Glen Hogstrom, Jennifer Peers, Matthew Predney, Annie Stanford, Darren Tyler and David Whitney.
Gene: Musical
Rating: 9 / 10

Synopsis
The story centres on Tevye, the father of five daughters, and his attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon the family’s lives. He must cope both with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters, who wish to marry for love – each one’s choice of a husband moves further away from the customs of his faith – and with the edict of the Tsar that evicts the Jews from their village.

Review (warning spoilers)
A great birthday present saw me attending a presentation of Fiddler on the Roof. An amazing story with an interesting story that stands the test of time. A traditional community, and in particular a father, deals with rapid changes in society and from his daughters breaking those traditions.

This issues is seen in all conservative religions and how they integrate, or don’t, in western societies. Anthony Warlow is magnificent as the lead character Tevye as he struggles with the changing world. While I hadn’t seen Fiddler in the Roof I quickly realised I had experienced the songs in one form of another once Anthony Warlow started with “If I Were a Rich Man”.

Tevye always tries to do the right thing and is happy enough with his life even if it is a struggle. Even when his first two oldest daughters Tzeitel (who wants to marry a poor tailor not the arrangement marriage to the rich butcher) and Hodel (who wants to marry Perchik who is poor and mixes in politics and a revolution outside of the village) make choices against tradition Tevye finds a way to agree as he talks to god / the audience.

Tevye can’t find a way to allow Chava marry the non-Jewish Fyedka but you can see the struggle in his words and actions. Eventually when things get their darkest and the Jewish community his expelled he makes a quiet “God be with you” to his estranged daughter who he had vowed never to speak to when she elopes against his wishes.

The undercurrent of racial hate in the background plays nicely along with a community that doesn’t want to integrate with the wider community. Unfortunately whenever a small community keeps to itself amongst a wider community human history tells us there will be problems, it’s a sad reflection on humanity.

Still I loved the performance and understand why the Fiddler on the Roof is such a beloved classic. I need to see more of this classics in live performances.

Recommendation: A must, see it whenever you get a chance.

Songs:

“Prologue: Tradition” – Tevye and the Company
“Matchmaker, Matchmaker” – Tzeitel, Hodel and Chava
“If I Were a Rich Man” – Tevye
“Sabbath Prayer” – Tevye, Golde and the Company
“To Life” – Tevye, Lazar Wolf and the Company
“Tevye’s Monologue” – Tevye
“Miracle of Miracles” – Motel
“Tevye’s Dream” – Tevye, Golde, Grandma Tzeitel, Fruma-Sarah and the Company
“Sunrise, Sunset” – Tevye, Golde, Perchik, Hodel and the Company
“The Bottle Dance” – Instrumental
“Entr’acte” – Orchestra
“Now I Have Everything” – Perchik and Hodel
“Tevye’s Rebuttal” – Tevye
“Do You Love Me?” – Tevye and Golde
“The Rumor/I Just Heard”§ – Yente and villagers
“Far From the Home I Love” – Hodel
“Chavaleh (Little Bird)” – Tevye
“Anatevka” – The Company
Review – The Hateful Eight

January 31, 2016

Released: December 2015
Seen: 23 January 2016
Cinema: Astor (70mm version)
Director: Quentin Tarantino
cast: Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Michael Madsen, Walton Goggins
Gene: Western
Rating: 7.5 / 10

Synopsis
While racing toward the town of Red Rock in post-Civil War Wyoming, bounty hunter John “The Hangman” Ruth (Kurt Russell) and his fugitive prisoner (Jennifer Jason Leigh) encounter another bounty hunter (Samuel L. Jackson) and a man who claims to be a sheriff. Hoping to find shelter from a blizzard, the group travels to a stagecoach stopover located on a mountain pass. Greeted there by four strangers, the eight travellers soon learn that they may not make it to their destination after all.

Review (warning spoilers)
It was with some excitement I went to the Astor to see Quentin Tarantino’s latest film ‘The Hateful Eight’ in extreme widescreen. Tanatino was aiming for an old style film format with the movie having an extended opening scene with live music (at least for this special event version at the Astor), old style/font credits and 70 mm version. Sitting in the historic Astor Theatre it was easy to recall an era without the multiplex especially as I was sitting in a balcony view.

Tarantino movies almost always have great dialogue, rapid fire conversations that usually go in directions you can’t pick. In this film Tarantino again brings the dialogue but as also can happen struggles with the conclusion of the film without having to go to crazy lengths to resolve the issues, usually only through extreme violence.

The movie bought back several actors who obviously love working with Tarantino (Samuel L Jackson, Michael Madsen) and lots of great landscape scenery during a winter in Wyoming which causes our cast to have to at first travel together and later take refuge at “Minnie’s” for a few days.

There is a lot of misdirection during the film. Samuel L Jackson’s character has issues with racism he has experienced in his life and has no problems getting an old Confederate General draw first so Jackson can claim a ‘legal’ kill. The flashbacks of when Jackson explains to the General what happened to his son are intense which causes us to miss the plots happening around Minnie’s.

If you blink you will miss key details that on reflection reveal the different players agendas, nothing is what it seems and the story in front of you is mostly used to hide the main plot. As is the want of Tarantino movies unexpected violence is suddenly used to move the story forward. The are no real heroes here, no one is safe or pure. The love of a brother to save his sister might be a pure good but attempted by the most evil characters.

The racism and segregation of the era makes you think that a self-proclaimed red neck former Confederate officer now Sheriff Chris Mannix (a fun Walton Goggins) would never team up with a black bounty hunter (Jackson) but in the end the harsh environment makes their alignment make sense. These are the two characters who are the most honest with each other (they hate each other based on race) meaning they have the most honest relationship and in the end can trust each other.

The main surprise for me was the violence ‘The Hangman’ (Kurt Russell) inflicted on his fugitive Daisy (Jennifer Jason Leigh). I guess a Tarantino movie can get away with non-politically correct actions in violence against females but then again Daisy is no rose and has killed many men herself.

Recommendation: While not the best Tarantino movie if you like his style or you like Samuel L Jackson you will find this a very enjoyable movie.
2016 Australian Open Experience

January 23, 2016

Photos

Each year since the Australian Open moved to Melbourne Park (formerly Flinders Park) in 1988 I’ve attended at least one day with the exceptions being 2000, 2010, and 2013 when I was travelling overseas. Living in Melbourne means I get to see the best players in the world playing in the first Grand Slam Tournament of the year. In fact the venue is only about a 20 minute walk from my apartment in Southbank and day passes are extremely cheap (currently $30-$45 depending on which day) and you get to see 10-12 hours of some of the best players in the world.

(more…)

AusOpen
Short Trip – Wilsons Promontory National Park

January 18, 2016

Photos

On my birthday my best friend suggested we head out to Wilsons Promontory the next day. For Jon it was a chance to try his new camera and for me the new Fitbit and daypack. For both of us it was a chance to experience nature at it’s best.

Wilsons Promontory – view from Mount Bishop

It took over 2.5 hours to drive to Wilsons Promontory which is really at the outer limit for a day trip but gave me a good chance to catch up with Jon. It’s strange how you can travel the world but not explore your own country or local area. I have a long term plan to when I retire to get into a car and explore Eastern Australia for 6 months to a year but I feel I should do more local areas like this now.

Entry to the National Park is free and they hand you out an information sheet on the best walks. There is a central camping site near a beach that looked like an ideal place to take a young family. Watching young kids play beach cricket and others building sand castles helped me feel young again. Laugher is a great energy boaster.

After a 3.3 km hike around the forest area and beach near the camping site we headed off to the main event – a hike at Lilly Pilly.

Despite the length of the Lilly Pilly Hike Jon was keen to complete all sections. The first part was extremely easy, I mean it was pram accessible so like a 40 minute stroll. However that sets up the wrong idea of the hike, ie after that point the path gets rougher and you start heading up.

The views made the hike well worth the visit. The 1 litre water bottle was a must item which I fully used over at next few hours. The only risky part of the walk was a brown snake (extremely dangerous) that crossed our path. Wasps were also a pain at one of the lookout points. I felt the years a near the end of the hike, reminds ,e to get fitter before next overseas trip.

Nature can be extraordinary. We live in cities and suburbs and yes we see some trees here and there but real nature, as it grows and strives to survive and works with all creatures for balance, is really amazing.

I’d recommend a visit to any national park and especially this one. A chance to get away from the culture of fear we live in with terrorism everyday on the news and changing our lives but instead to see people and especially children having fun. An impromptu idea turned out to be a great birthday present.

Fitbit GPS Hike Map – Lilly Pilly Hike
Creating a false sense of security and what we lose

December 28, 2015

As I do every year that I’m located in Australia at Christmas time I got to go to the Boxing Day Test match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). As an adult the only times I didn’t go to at least one day of the five day test match (yes friends it takes five days to get a result) was when I’m overseas (and the one year they only played a one-day match on 26th December instead of a Test Match). It’s a tradition in Melbourne to attend and for the rest of Australia to watch including hosting/attending a BBQ on Boxing Day. It’s a time for swimming, relaxing, catching up with friends, recovering from the excesses of Christmas. For some it’s the day to get the post Christmas sales. Mostly it’s a time to enjoy life whatever way that you want.

Unfortunately this year the over the top security at the MCG over the first two days of the Test Match have made me incredibly sad. It shows we have let a few crazy people (terrorists) run and ruin our lives. We seem to be saying “You have won, we give up you don’t need to actually do anything to make us scared now.”

This new security is having check points away from the ground that include metal detractors and pat downs which really only protects the ground not the patrons arriving at the ground. The justification is what happened in Paris recently when so called “jihadists” tried to get into an International Football match and failed. The security at the match in Paris is the same as what we had ie it worked. The terrorists just killed people outside the ground instead.

I hate we here in Melbourne seem to have given in to the terrorists despite it being way more likely in Australia to die from a tree falling or heatstroke. What’s next? Body scans at the Chadstone Shopping Centre? I mean there have been far more terrorist attacks at shopping centres then sporting grounds around the world. It sucks we have giving up the fun and enjoyment in our life and seem to want everyone to be scared all the time.

I mean I saw a five year old getting security scans 😦 Come on, more people die from smoking or car accidents or workplace accidents in Australia but let’s scan a five year old and let them know to be afraid despite there being more chance a shark will eat them. It also meant the kids having a bowl / playing outside the ground were stopped from doing so, this will likely stop the kicking of the footy outside the ground as well if this becomes the new reality.

Let’s not give in to terror. If there is intelligence / justification, or even if the chance goes up from 0.000000001%, we should / could consider a short term over the top useless and expensive security like what I’ve seen the last 2 day at the G but until then don’t give the terrorist what they want – us scared. Let’s support our intelligence and police community but not give in on enjoying life.

Let’s enjoy the sun, the cricket and our friends and really piss off the crazy ‘religious’ fanatics. Let’s live our lives, yes take reasonable care, but we can’t stop living or only living on their crazy terms. Life is so short let’s enjoy it and not jump at shadows and for gods sake let children be children and grown men try to be children again :).

Wishing everyone a great 2016.
Review – Star Wars: The Force Awakens

December 19, 2015

Released: 17 December 2015
Seen: 17 December 2015
Cinema: Hoyts Melbourne Central
Director: J.J. Abrams
Cast: Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Lupita Nyong’o, Andy Serkis, Domhnall Gleeson, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Max von Sydow
Gene: Science Fiction
Rating: 8.5 / 10

Synopsis
Thirty years after the defeat of the Galactic Empire, the galaxy faces a new threat from the evil Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and the First Order. When a defector named Finn crash-lands on a desert planet, he meets Rey (Daisy Ridley), a tough scavenger whose droid contains a top-secret map. Together, the young duo joins forces with Han Solo (Harrison Ford) to make sure the Resistance receives the intelligence concerning the whereabouts of Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), the last of the Jedi Knights.

Review (warning spoilers)
The Force Awakens is a memorable welcome back to the Star Wars Universe. The prequels are now behind us which most people are happy to forget but I thought we passable (at least Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith).

The movie quickly establishes the new main characters; the wonderful Rey (Daisy Ridley), the conflicted Finn (John Boyega), an ace Starfighter Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) and the main protagonist Kylo Ren (Adam Driver).

There is much in common with the original Star Wars Episode IV including having an android (BB-8) lost on a desert planet after Poe Dameron realises he will be soon be captured and needs to get critical information to the Resistance. The old stars are back, Harrison Ford (who plays a significant large role), Carrie Fisher (in a small but important role) and in Mark Hamill (for about 30 seconds but very important for the future).
At times the movie felt like a rehash (but a fund rehash) of the original Star Wars movie.

There is a death star like weapon (well be a sequel it’s an even bigger weapon), a call to arms but a young hero, a reluctant hero (Finn) and a dark opponent. But that is selling this movie short. The new characters have greater back stories and motivations, there are secrets we still don’t know and the pieces for successful future movies have been set.

The only thing I was unhappy was with is how they explained the Resistance as different to the New Republic and the First Order. I totally understand the First Oder being established out of the Empire but at the start of this movie there shouldn’t have been a Resistance, they were the winners and part of the New Republic. With the destruction of the Republic (I’m fairly certain Coruscant was destroyed or at least the New Republic headquarters planet) we then should have seen the survivors form a ‘resistance’. For the story to make sense the New Republic needed to be destroyed for the opposing sides to be of similar strength but the Resistance doesn’t make sense existing before the destruction, they could have still be the New Republic Army hunting down the First order.Still it’s hard to be critical when I get to see the Falcon jump to hyper-drive after all of these years. I’m looking forward to this new expanded universe and finding out what is to come and even who of the old cast will be there to see the Force Awaken a long time ago.

Recommendation: The Force is back and the House of Mouse (Disney) will be very happy for the next decade full of Star Wars movies that will expand the Star Wars universe while trying to forget about the prequels.