RWC Confessions

With all the hype around the Rugby World Cup, I thought it would be the perfect time to make some rugby confessions. Actually they're not all that dramatic, so I'll rename that list:

3 Rugby Things You Didn't Know About Me And Probably Couldn't Care Less About

1. I thought the way the RWC song (the "World In Union" one?) was performed during the opening ceremony was ... lame. I apologise if you're reading this and you're the chick that sang it or whoever put the music together, or if you're a friend or relative. I don't mean this as a personal insult, and unfortunately your relation to them does not influence my opinion on the musical arrangement. I always thought of that song as a dramatic and inspirational sounding song, not a poppy lip synched one. I guess South Africa spoiled it for me. If you disagree, feel free to try and convince me, because I have recorded the opening ceremony but can't bring myself to watch that part again.

2. I don't think Dan Carter is all that...off the field. And I mean in the looks department, just to clarify! I don't deny that on the field he deserves to be drooled over by all the SKY commentators. But in the looks department ... I don't see it. (GASP! Oh no you DIDN'T!). Oh yes I did. It's such a burden, to have this complete disregard for all those Dan Carter undie ads. And that little boy face of his. Don't get me wrong, I don't think he is "ugly". Far from it. But when I see Dan Carter, all I can see is "that really talented first-five that comes from my beloved Canterbury." The end.
[starts ducking all the eggs that female readers are throwing at me]


And last but not least, the nail in my RWC coffin...

3. I don't support the All Blacks. That's putting in "nicely". I have never liked the All Blacks. I guess I've always been one for the underdogs, and I guess that's something the All Blacks can't help. Living in New Zealand has only made my dislike grow. I don't understand how the best rugby team in the world can't win the world cup. Apart from the so-called "food poisoning" incident. I mean, people say Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu is a crybaby for what he said about having only 3 days of rest before "that Wales game", and yet here you find a whole nation that can not shut up about their team getting "poisoned" in South Africa, causing them to lose the World Cup final. How many years ago was that again? How many world cup tournaments ago? Then you have all non-Cantabrians calling Richie a "cheat" during Super Rugby and NPC tournaments, and then he dons the black jersey and exhibits his same "cheating" ways and the nation grovel at his feet. I could go on, but I won't. I do value my permanent residence permit.



Deception. Disgrace. Exile - what could happen to me,
should the AB's not win the RWC


So there you have it. Feel free to stone (with words only). I'm interested to hear what you have to say. (Well, I'm also a bit bored now that I've vowed to log on to Facebook only once a day for a few minutes in protest of its stupid new layout and security issues).

Crumb

noun
A very small amount of something

Here are this week's crumbs:

Manu money matters
An article was published in "Le Weekender" exposing details about the misuse of finances donated to the Manu Samoa by the people. I won't go into it any further, except to say that it is disappointing and just downright stupid. Greed plus power is a recipe for disaster. It is especially a downer in this case, where people who had little gave a lot, and gave wholeheartedly, trusting that the funds would be managed appropriately by the stewards.

That money could have been spent on so many useful things, like paying someone to do the team's washing, to prevent this from happening:
 

Honest to goodness tweet from one of the Manu players,
whose name has been filtered out to protect his identity
(coz I'm profesh like that)

 Mad love
No matter how bad things can get, and for me they got pretty bad 2 weeks ago, God has been the light. I dread to think of where I would be without Him. This week's impossible work challenges I also overcame as a result of God's power. Nothing but mad love for the ultimate Father.

Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don't try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way

- James 1:2-4 (The Message)

Tow Woes
On Wednesday, my car got towed from the parking lot behind work. The way it works is this: you drive in, park your car, pay the ticket machine thing and print out a ticket, and place the ticket inside your car on the dashboard.

I haven't had any previous problems following those instructions. Until Wednesday. I did everything except the all important last step, putting the ticket on display. So when I walked to my parking spot after work and looked at the empty space, before my heart could complete its sinking motion, my head had already replayed the morning's actions and I knew what I had done...or not done.

We got the car back, but our parking expense for the day, instead of the usual $10, was $185. Big fat tired sigh.


And last but not least...

Hot and Spicy
(No, this is not related at all to the Rugby World Cup)

KFC hot and spicy chicken is "back" ... from wherever is usually goes before it periodically returns. Big yippee from me...I only like the spicy chicken from that place. So every time it returns, our little family has a KFC feed. Just the one...until the next time it returns.



You know where that's going. Straight to the bootay.

And that's where I leave you, folks. Looking a photo of a delicious piece of hot and spicy chicken thigh. Off I go to bed before I make a late night dash to the nearest KFC.

Rugby gaga

The rugby world cup starts in 66 days. Now, before you assume I am the face-paint rugby crazed type ... I'm not. I do have teams that I love - Crusaders, Springboks and of course, the boys in blue - Manu Samoa.

As a teenage girl living in the wop wops of Samoa, I was quite fanatic about rugby. I won a trophy/cup in high school for something (note: something COMPLETELY un-sporty like mathematics or chemistry) and the side that had my name and the subject on it, I covered with a piece of cardboard on which I had scribbled "Webb Ellis Cup". True story. The lovely ladies at the photo shop past Molesi were quite used to me turning up clutching a newspaper photo asking for it to be laminated. They would smile and ask "Oh, who's this?" It was usually Bobby Skinstad. Or Joost van der Westhuizen. Yes, stalker scary fanatic.

Fast forward n years and I no longer have the energy to be fanatic (apologies for sounding repetitive, this is the general tone of my posts - getting old and tired). For my teams, I will sit still for 2 hours and Facebook/catch up with the blog world in front of the TV and look up to watch when the commentators voices start rising.

For a while the thought of the rugby world cup "coming to town" was just blah blah to my ears. But today, the pool match tickets went on public sale. I had the honour *cough* of buying the tickets for hubby and friends for one of the Manu Samoa games. And it wasn't until I received the confirmation email for the tickets that reality hit...the Webb Ellis cup was going to be competed for in this country in 2 months time. Ooooh exciting! At that point I also felt a bit of envy that I couldn't go. And in a matter of seconds, that envy turned into relief that I wasn't going, because like I mentioned before, I'm too old and tired for that stuff.

However, I am still excited about the games. Excited about the excitement surrounding the games. With hubby going to the game(s), Lyla and I will be able to enjoy the games girlie style. Hmmm, I think we'll dress up and have a high tea party while we watch the game on SKY. So our theme is completely unrelated to rugby or Manu Samoa. That's a minor detail. Woohoo for the world cup and William Webb Ellis and all things rugby!