Return to Coolangatta

We had a blast and our team came in 6th at Australian Beach Ultimate Nationals.

We're going to put the Cool back in Coolangatta

This weekend we are flying back to Queensland to defend last year's third place title at the Australian Beach Ultimate Championships, with our team, BUFF (Bondi Ultimate Frisbee Federation). Last year was really fantastic, and we are looking forward to another fun weekend. Lookout Coolangatta, you're about to be taken over by ultimate players for the next few days!

Party of Five, revisited

Due to technical difficulties lately, we have only been able to watch TV shows on Hulu, AMC,  and HBOgo. After re-watching the always fantastic Parks and Recreation, I discovered that all seasons of Party of Five are also on Hulu. If you're up for an angsty teenaged blast from the 90's past, it's for you. Also, so many actors and actresses got their start on the show, and it's entertaining to see them in their younger days. 

Knockout

It has been an unusually sporty week for me working at schools this week. Yesterday afternoon I got to play Knockout with some 6th graders. I'm about as good as a 6th grader at shooting a basketball, so it worked out well even though I didn't win. It was much better than teaching them shotput, which was originally supposed to do. 

Today I was at another school that was having its sports carnival, which is similar to a field day in the US. The best part about it was that there were some staff whose only job was to walk around giving tea and coffee and pastries/cookies to all the teachers working. That should be standard at all school events going forward. 

Who knows what tomorrow has in store.

Golden Sands

This weekend I directed my first ultimate frisbee tournament, with help from a bunch of friends. I had no desire to direct a tournament, but since I'm the club secretary, I decided to take one for the team and take the lead this time. It was only one day at Maroubra Beach, and we had perfect weather. . We ended up exceeding our predicted number of registrations, everyone seemed to have a good time, and I got paid in leftover BBQ steaks and bananas. 

Eddie the Eagle

Tonight we saw Eddie the Eagle at Govinda's. I had to roll my eyes at Hugh Jackman's stereotypical American character, who he played quite well. It was fun, feel-good flick. I had never heard of the athlete until seeing the movie; I found it very interesting he was in the winter olympics the same year as the Jamaican bobsled team competed. 1988 was just a strange year. 

Eurovision

I was going to write a big post about Eurovision, but then I found this great NPR article that pretty much sums it up anyway. I'm amazed it's been happening since the 1950's. Even though it's been pretty popular for Australians to watch it for years, I happened to see it for the first time here in the same year that it is first airing in the US. Some friends invited me over for a viewing party last night to watch the semis. Below is my current favorite (Austria), as well as one of the more ridiculous, memorable performances of the past (known to many as "the butter churning one").

Party Animal

I don't normally just post memes, but when I saw this I laughed too hard not to re-post it. Happy Friday!

Happy

Michael recently created this gem. It's true, on the internet now, anyone can be a star. Enjoy!

O or U

It's been another fun weekend. Yesterday, both Michael's and my frisbee teams had their end-of-season parties. Later in the night, a lot of us karaoked it up at Ding Dong Dang. 

Right now Michael is on a plane over the Pacific, sleeping or watching movies. He'll be back in the states for just a week. This will be the first time he's seen his mom on Mothers' Day in 3 years. 

I spent the day playing frisbee with some friends and now I'm just relaxing. Unfortunately, I didn't get to hang out with any moms today (mine or anyone else's). 

Happy Mothers' Day to all the mums (as they say down under) out there! 

For the Love of Cycling

Last night, we found out one of our good friends here was swiped by a car while riding on his bike. He was doing all the correct things one should do while riding on a shared roadway, but the driver had road rage and was driving aggressively and honking; there were witnesses that could attest to this. Our friend is fine aside from some cuts and bruises, thank goodness. It's very sad that I have several friends here and in the states that have been hit by cars over the years while cycling, or have been rudely accosted by strangers for simply preferring to travel by bike. 

I also enjoy cycling from time to time. Like many cyclists, I know to always be visible and hyper aware of my surroundings when on a busy street. Nevertheless, there have still been times that I have come close to getting hit or hurt, or people have just generally reacted rudely.

Bikes are good for everybody.

Someone on a bike is one less car on the road, which means less traffic and cleaner air for everyone. Biking is healthy exercise which helps cut down on obesity and other health issues. Biking is free.

If you get angry at cyclists when you're driving, maybe you need to think about these two things...

1. Infrastructure definitely needs to be updated for the 21st century; that's not a cyclists' fault. Do the local roads have bike lanes and sidewalks, or do cyclists really not have much choice of where to ride in some areas? Is local public transport bike-friendly (safe parking areas, safe ways to get in and out of high-traffic areas, bikes allowed on trains or buses at all times, etc.)? 

2. Why am I such an angry person? Seriously, if I am getting irrationally angry because I need to slow down a few mph for a short period, maybe I need to find better ways to reduce my own stress on a regular basis. If I'm running late to get somewhere, chances are it's my fault in some way. What can I do next time so that I can leave early enough and not get angry at everyone else that is also on the road? I am not the only person in the world; sometimes just I need to wait for my turn (didn't we all learn that in preschool?). 

It's fine if you're not a fan of cycling. Just don't make it unsafe for people out there who are. 

Terrigal Towel

Michael and I played in the Terrigal Towel Hat beach ultimate tournament over the weekend. His team came in first and mine came in third. For the record, though, my team beat his.

We both played considerably well this weekend; it was possibly my best tournament ever, and it appears nobody got pictures of any our amazing throws and catches. Seriously, I got about five layout scores and not one person has a picture of any of them. How is that possible? Come on! 

We ended up staying in a house with a group of friends and we definitely filled the hot tub past capacity. We ended the weekend with a delicious dinner with a few of our friends at Tandoori Hut, my new favorite Indian place in the Sydney area. It was a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to more tournaments this month. 

Other recent events? 

- A frisbee couple we know had a going away/art party which ended up being a lot of fun. Anyone who wanted could donate artwork to be auctioned off for charity; the art ranged from professional-caliber to novice. Michael's ultimate frisbee sculpture made out of forks garnered $80. 

- I worked at a special needs school on Monday on an autism class of three kids that is ordinarily very difficult. Because of the regular difficulty of this class, I was given very low expectations from the principal from the get-go. The kids ended up being exceptionally behaved (compared to the usual, which apparently can include literally freaking out and screaming for hours). #winning

- We did decently well at trivia this week, but alas, not enough to place. At least we won one of the special rounds for some free drinks, thanks to my random knowledge of Alaska!

Not a bad start to the week.