It was yesterday that we went to Mud Ducks to have breakfast there where I had a corned beef hash then we went to the market & after that, we went to the Kiwiana cafe that I had a mocchachino & a banofee pie for morning tea then we went back home so I might've played the Playstation 4 all day such as both the F1 2016 & Rugby Challenge 3 games so we had a tomato soup with the pizza that we made on Tuesday & it was delicious so we had a pie with canned tomatoes, boiled carrots & peas for dinner & it was yummy & today I had cold meat & cheese sandwiches for lunch then we had sausages with canned tomatoes, boiled carrots & peas for dinner tonight.
And it's round 14 of Super Rugby as the match between the Blues & Chiefs at Eden Park in Auckland ended in a draw while the Highlanders defeated the Waratahs at Forsyth Barr Stadium in Dunedin but miss out on a bonus point then the Crusaders remain unbeaten (Although they have now equalled 13 consecutive wins compared to 2002 in which they had an unbeaten season) this year in Super Rugby by beating the Rebels at AAMI Park in Melbourne & the defending champion Hurricanes getting the better of the Bulls with a bonus point victory at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria by moving up to 2nd in the New Zealand conference.
So that was Round 14 of the 2017 Super Rugby season and here are the matches for Round 15 (Australia & New Zealand):
Blues Vs Reds: Apia Park, Apia, Samoa
Crusaders Vs Highlanders: AMI Stadium, Christchurch
Chiefs Vs Waratahs: FMG Stadium Waikato, Hamilton
Brumbies Vs Rebels: GIO Stadium, Canberra
& the Force Vs Hurricanes at nib Stadium in Perth to end Round 15 (Australia & New Zealand) of Super Rugby 2017.
And finally Kimi Raikkonen (Finland) in the Ferrari is on pole position for the Monaco Grand Prix (The last time Raikkonen was on pole was way back in 2008 at the French Grand Prix surely) as Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain) in the Mercedes fails to fire by not advancing to Q3 (That was the 1st time since the 2013 Italian Grand Prix that Lewis Hamilton did not make it into Q3 because the streak began at the 2013 Singapore Grand Prix up until the Spanish Grand Prix this year) because he had a lack of pace because he felt devastated about it (Although he struggled to understand poor qualifying) after his qualifying woes & he was absolutely left languishing (And we will keep you informed of any changes depending on what is happening by reviewing the race tomorrow).
So that is my 110th blog of the year 2017 (MMXVII), we will look forward to seeing you again, next time.
P.S. And it's only 6 days to go until the beginning of the British & Irish Lions rugby tour of New Zealand (Although they were without dynamic English number 8 Billy Vunipola due to an injured shoulder while playing for his club Saracens...well that is a massive blow for the British & Irish Lions, a big blow as fellow English flanker & number 8 James Haskell replaces him after being originally not in the squad) as they tackle the New Zealand Provincial Barbarians at Toll Stadium in Whangarei on the 3rd of June...''As it was in the beginning, is now...and ever shall be, AMEN TO THAT!''
And Sebastian Vettel (Germany) in the Ferrari has won the Monaco Grand Prix with all of that pit stop strategy gamble paid off again just like in both Australia & Bahrain! So Vettel has extended his championship lead by just 25 points ahead of his rival Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain) in the Mercedes who had a disappointing grand prix eliminated in Q2 during qualfying & finishing a dismal 7th behind Carlos Sainz (Spain) in the Toro Rosso but Mercedes hopes it will come back stronger when the F1 circus heads to Canada (It will be Lance Stroll's home race or should I say homecoming because remember that Lance Stroll is the 1st Canadian since Jacques Villeneuve to compete in Formula 1 after winning the European Formula 3 crown last year & I didn't know he's French Canadian because he is a Montreal, Quebec native & not only he is of Belgian descent & of course, Lance Stroll's biggest inspiration when he grew up was Michael Schumacher (My childhood hero of course).
And here's the points standings for both the drivers & constructors but 1st here's the drivers standings:
1st: Sebastian Vettel (Germany, Ferrari), 129 points
2nd: Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain, Mercedes), 104 points
3rd: Valtteri Bottas (Finland, Mercedes), 75 points
4th: Kimi Raikkonen (Finland, Ferrari), 67 points
5th: Daniel Ricciardo (Australia, Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer), 52 points
6th: Max Verstappen (The Netherlands, Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer), 45 points
7th: Sergio Perez (Mexico, Force India Mercedes), 34 points
8th: Carlos Sainz (Spain, Toro Rosso), 25 points
9th: Felipe Massa (Brazil, Williams Mercedes), 20 points
10th: Esteban Ocon (France, Force India Mercedes), 19 points
11th: Nico Hulkenberg (Germany, Renault), 14 points
12th: Romain Grosjean (France, Haas Ferrari), 9 points
13th: Kevin Magnussen (Denmark, Haas Ferrari), 5 points
14th: Pascal Wehrlein (Germany, Sauber Ferrari), 4 points
15th: Daniil Kvyat (Russia, Toro Rosso), 2 points
And then the constructors to wrap up the Formula 1 report:
1st: Ferrari (Italy), 196 points
2nd: Mercedes (Germany), 179 points
3rd: Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer (Austria), 97 points
4th: Force India Mercedes (India), 53 points
5th: Toro Rosso (Italy), 29 points
6th: Williams Mercedes (Great Britain), 20 points
7th: Renault (France), 14 points
8th: Haas Ferrari (USA), 14 points
9th: Sauber Ferrari (Switzerland), 4 points
And speaking of the Monaco Grand Prix, we head over to Indianapolis for the Indianapolis 500 as pole sitter Scott Dixon (New Zealand) was involved in a horrific crash but he was lucky to be alive after all that sudden impact but the race went to Takuma Sato who became the 1st Japanese driver to win the Indy 500 to become Japan's most successful Indycar driver & for the 3rd year in a row that a former F1 driver had gone on to win the event with Juan Pablo Montoya (Colombia) winning it in 2015 (He won it before in 2000 before going on to compete in Formula 1 a year later way back in 2001) & Alexander Rossi (USA) last year but one of the rookies competing is Formula 1 driver Fernando Alonso (Spain) because his chances of glory ended in retirement.
And my dear cousin Paige has sent me an email so here's her message in it's entirety:
Hi Whetu,
I'm not actually going to that but jarrod might be going to it! I better let him know it's on :)
Yes we definitely need to organise a trip to come and visit you.mum just had her birthday in March.
Yes I have nearly finished my bathroom which is exciting I will send through some photos once it is all finished!
Lots of love xxx
And finally here's her reply:
Hi Whetu,
I think something might be wrong with your email, I just for your email 8 times.
I will be in Touch with photos of he bathroom spin.
Have a good night :)
Love Paige xx
Sunday, 28 May 2017
Saturday, 20 May 2017
30/30-150/Absolute Zero/Say You'll Haunt Me/Sillyworld: Super Rugby round 13 review & Monaco GP preview
Well, we had a dinner of the day today as Poppa's members of his Whanganui male choir came here for lunch so we had the soup for starters 1st then chicken with roast vegetables, leftover coleslaw & lettuce for the main course & for dessert we had stewed apples with lamingtons, yogurt & ice cream & dinner last night was spaghetti carbonara before we watched the Hurricanes play against the Cheetahs on TV but I went to bed immediately because I didn't feel like watching the 2nd half because it was the same as Friday night between the Chiefs & Crusaders.
And the Crusaders headed to Fiji (Well, it's a homecoming for both Fijian born players Seta Tamanivalu & his nephew Manasa Mataele) with a win against the Chiefs to remain unbeaten in Super Rugby after 13 rounds while the Blues (Who welcomed back code hopper & second five-eighth Sonny Bill Williams from concussion) 3 match winning run was over after losing to the Africa 1 conference leaders the Stormers in an ill disciplined game which resulted former league player & winger Matt Duffie sent off after a 2nd yellow card then the Hurricanes avenged their demons in Christchurch by demolishing the Cheetahs 61 points to 7 with a Vince Aso hat-trick (Actually he is the top try scorer of this years competition & he has a brilliant midfield pairing with second five-eighth Ngani Laumape) but he is back to his very best after a poor showing against the unbeaten Crusaders & the Highlanders (Who are without several players such as Ben Smith due to injury & the dynamic winger Waisake Naholo due to suspension) win 8 in a row by thrashing the helpless Western Force who are on the brink of being axed for next year with both doubles by prop Aki Seiuli & reserve back Rob Thompson.
So that was Round 13 of the 2017 Super Rugby season and here are the matches for Round 14:
Blues Vs Chiefs: Eden Park, Auckland
Reds Vs Force: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Sunwolves Vs Cheetahs: Prince Chichibu Memorial Stadium, Tokyo
Highlanders Vs Waratahs: Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Rebels Vs Crusaders: AAMI Park, Melbourne
Bulls Vs Hurricanes: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Sharks Vs Stormers: Growthpoint Kings Park, Durban
Jaguares Vs Brumbies: Jose Amalfitani Stadium, Buenos Aires
& the Lions Vs Kings at Emirates Airline Park in Johannesburg to end Round 13 of Super Rugby 2017.
And the Formula 1 circus heads to the principality of Monaco next week as Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain) in the Mercedes will try to take over the lead of the championship if he wins because he is trailing 6 points behind Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel after winning so comfortably in Spain so here's the circuit guide of the Circuit de Monaco in Monaco which will host Round 6 of the Monaco Grand Prix (The crown jewels in motorsport along with the Indy 500 (Which Fernando Alonso will be competing this year as a rookie) & the 24 Hours of Le Mans because the Monaco Grand Prix is Formula 1's premier sporting event so what's the difference between winning the Monaco Grand Prix or the Formula 1 World Championship because the last time it was happened was Vettel in 2011 in which he won the Monaco Grand Prix before going on to win the F1 crown) according to the Collins Grand Prix circuits book:
''One of the best-known events in the world of sport, the glamorous backdrop captures the imagination as readily as it provides a unique challenge for the drivers. Three-quarters of the street circuit remains exactly as it was when first used for the Monaco Grand Prix in 1929.''
So that is my 109th blog of the year 2017 (MMXVII), I'll see you up front.
P.S. I wrote it down on a piece of paper tonight to see what it says:
Paige Williams
Lower Hutt beauty
☯
And the Crusaders headed to Fiji (Well, it's a homecoming for both Fijian born players Seta Tamanivalu & his nephew Manasa Mataele) with a win against the Chiefs to remain unbeaten in Super Rugby after 13 rounds while the Blues (Who welcomed back code hopper & second five-eighth Sonny Bill Williams from concussion) 3 match winning run was over after losing to the Africa 1 conference leaders the Stormers in an ill disciplined game which resulted former league player & winger Matt Duffie sent off after a 2nd yellow card then the Hurricanes avenged their demons in Christchurch by demolishing the Cheetahs 61 points to 7 with a Vince Aso hat-trick (Actually he is the top try scorer of this years competition & he has a brilliant midfield pairing with second five-eighth Ngani Laumape) but he is back to his very best after a poor showing against the unbeaten Crusaders & the Highlanders (Who are without several players such as Ben Smith due to injury & the dynamic winger Waisake Naholo due to suspension) win 8 in a row by thrashing the helpless Western Force who are on the brink of being axed for next year with both doubles by prop Aki Seiuli & reserve back Rob Thompson.
So that was Round 13 of the 2017 Super Rugby season and here are the matches for Round 14:
Blues Vs Chiefs: Eden Park, Auckland
Reds Vs Force: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Sunwolves Vs Cheetahs: Prince Chichibu Memorial Stadium, Tokyo
Highlanders Vs Waratahs: Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin
Rebels Vs Crusaders: AAMI Park, Melbourne
Bulls Vs Hurricanes: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Sharks Vs Stormers: Growthpoint Kings Park, Durban
Jaguares Vs Brumbies: Jose Amalfitani Stadium, Buenos Aires
& the Lions Vs Kings at Emirates Airline Park in Johannesburg to end Round 13 of Super Rugby 2017.
And the Formula 1 circus heads to the principality of Monaco next week as Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain) in the Mercedes will try to take over the lead of the championship if he wins because he is trailing 6 points behind Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel after winning so comfortably in Spain so here's the circuit guide of the Circuit de Monaco in Monaco which will host Round 6 of the Monaco Grand Prix (The crown jewels in motorsport along with the Indy 500 (Which Fernando Alonso will be competing this year as a rookie) & the 24 Hours of Le Mans because the Monaco Grand Prix is Formula 1's premier sporting event so what's the difference between winning the Monaco Grand Prix or the Formula 1 World Championship because the last time it was happened was Vettel in 2011 in which he won the Monaco Grand Prix before going on to win the F1 crown) according to the Collins Grand Prix circuits book:
''One of the best-known events in the world of sport, the glamorous backdrop captures the imagination as readily as it provides a unique challenge for the drivers. Three-quarters of the street circuit remains exactly as it was when first used for the Monaco Grand Prix in 1929.''
So that is my 109th blog of the year 2017 (MMXVII), I'll see you up front.
P.S. I wrote it down on a piece of paper tonight to see what it says:
Paige Williams
Lower Hutt beauty
☯
Thursday, 18 May 2017
Been Away For Too Long/Black Hole Sun/By Crooked Steps/The Day I Tried To Live: A Chris Cornell Tribute (1964 - 2017) + F1 2017 game announcement & Aunty Tania's car accident
It was last night that Pops & I went to the lucky bar & restaurant for Uncle Bryan Christie's 69th birthday (Well, Aunty Viv (Uncle Bryan's wife), her mother Donna & my 2nd cousin Ashley (Uncle Bryan & Aunty Viv's only son) were there although Charlotte wasn't there because she was doing roller derby) & I quite liked that atmosphere & did enjoy that when I had starters as well as having the main course when I had lamb with rigatoni pasta & peas & I also had a dessert there before we went back home to watch MacGyver to end a wonderful night it was.
And finally the rock music world is in mourning with Soundgarden (Which features Pearl Jam's Matt Cameron (Drummer), Ben Shepherd (Bassist) & Kim Thayil (Lead guitarist) & Audioslave (A rock supergroup just like A Perfect Circle, Chickenfoot, Them Crooked Vultures & Velvet Revolver featuring Tim Commerford (Bassist), Tom Morello (Lead guitarist) & Brad Wilk (Drummer) from Rage Against The Machine) lead singer Chris Cornell passing away aged 52 in the Motor City of Detroit after his last performance with his band at the Fox Theatre so RIP (Rest in peace/Requiescat in pace/Rest in pieces)...And what do I think of Chris Cornell's passing, well, I have no certain words to describe it.
Chris Cornell
1964 - 2017
So that is my 108th blog of the year 2017 (MMXVII), I'll see you around.
P.S. And the new F1 2017 game is announced so I'll be getting that game on the PS4 depending on the good ratings when the game comes out on August 25th so I've got $245 so I would rather be saving a heap of money for that & talk about the return of classic Formula 1 cars featured in the game because it will be the 1st time since F1 2013 that these machines from the past are appearing in that game (The 3 classic cars that are appearing in the game are the 1988 McLaren MP4/4 (Driven by the legendary late Ayrton Senna (Brazil) & his main rival, Alain Prost (France) as a pre order bonus, the 1992 Williams FW14B (Driven by the iconic Nigel Mansell (Great Britain) & his teammate who replaced Nelson Piquet (Brazil), Riccardo Patrese (Italy) & of course, the Ferrari F2002 (Driven by the highly controversial 7 time world champion & my childhood hero, Michael Schumacher (Germany) & his teammate who replaced Eddie Irvine (Great Britain) for the 2000 season until he was replaced by fellow Brazilian Felipe Massa for the 2006 season, Rubens Barrichello (Brazil).
And finally my beloved Aunty Tania was involved in a car accident in Canada injuring her chest but was lucky to be alive but she needs a new car as she is heading over to Alaska tomorrow with Rejean.
And finally the rock music world is in mourning with Soundgarden (Which features Pearl Jam's Matt Cameron (Drummer), Ben Shepherd (Bassist) & Kim Thayil (Lead guitarist) & Audioslave (A rock supergroup just like A Perfect Circle, Chickenfoot, Them Crooked Vultures & Velvet Revolver featuring Tim Commerford (Bassist), Tom Morello (Lead guitarist) & Brad Wilk (Drummer) from Rage Against The Machine) lead singer Chris Cornell passing away aged 52 in the Motor City of Detroit after his last performance with his band at the Fox Theatre so RIP (Rest in peace/Requiescat in pace/Rest in pieces)...And what do I think of Chris Cornell's passing, well, I have no certain words to describe it.
Chris Cornell
1964 - 2017
So that is my 108th blog of the year 2017 (MMXVII), I'll see you around.
P.S. And the new F1 2017 game is announced so I'll be getting that game on the PS4 depending on the good ratings when the game comes out on August 25th so I've got $245 so I would rather be saving a heap of money for that & talk about the return of classic Formula 1 cars featured in the game because it will be the 1st time since F1 2013 that these machines from the past are appearing in that game (The 3 classic cars that are appearing in the game are the 1988 McLaren MP4/4 (Driven by the legendary late Ayrton Senna (Brazil) & his main rival, Alain Prost (France) as a pre order bonus, the 1992 Williams FW14B (Driven by the iconic Nigel Mansell (Great Britain) & his teammate who replaced Nelson Piquet (Brazil), Riccardo Patrese (Italy) & of course, the Ferrari F2002 (Driven by the highly controversial 7 time world champion & my childhood hero, Michael Schumacher (Germany) & his teammate who replaced Eddie Irvine (Great Britain) for the 2000 season until he was replaced by fellow Brazilian Felipe Massa for the 2006 season, Rubens Barrichello (Brazil).
And finally my beloved Aunty Tania was involved in a car accident in Canada injuring her chest but was lucky to be alive but she needs a new car as she is heading over to Alaska tomorrow with Rejean.
Sunday, 14 May 2017
Blurry/Control: Super Rugby round 12 review & Formula 1 report episode 5: Spain
Well, round 12 of Super Rugby got underway as the ruthless Blues were too quick against the Cheetahs to win 3 games in a row (It's the Ioane brothers show again just like they did against the Waratahs with Rieko Ioane scoring a try twice & his brother Akira just scored a try once) at Eden Park in Auckland while the Crusaders (Although Crusaders lock Scott Barrett won the brothers battle against the dynamic duo of Beauden & Jordie Barrett of the Hurricanes but he is injured at the moment so he is definitely out of action for 2 to 3 weeks) edge the Hurricanes in titanic style to remain unbeaten in Super Rugby at AMI Stadium in Christchurch & the Highlanders did overcome a red card (1st, Highlanders winger Waisake Naholo got sent off (Although he's expected to front up the judiciary but how long will he be banned for because he only got 1 week (Well that was lucky because he almost got away from it) followed by RG Snyman for the Bulls (He only got 4 weeks for that) to edge the Bulls 17 - 10 in an ill disciplined game at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria.
So that was Round 12 of the 2017 Super Rugby season and here are the matches for Round 13:
Chiefs Vs Crusaders: ANZ Stadium, Suva, Fiji
Stormers Vs Blues: DHL Newlands, Cape Town
Hurricanes Vs Cheetahs: Westpac Stadium, Wellington
Force Vs Highlanders: nib Stadium, Perth
Sunwolves Vs Sharks: National Stadium, Singapore
Lions Vs Bulls: Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg
Kings Vs Brumbies: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
& the Waratahs Vs Rebels at Allianz Stadium in Sydney to end Round 13 of Super Rugby 2017 (With the Jaguares & Reds taking a week off to prepare for Round 14).
And Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain) in the Mercedes has won the Spanish Grand Prix after starting on the pole then losing the lead in the opening lap but what a comeback from Hamilton after coming from behind to take the lead from Vettel on lap 44 to reduce Sebastian Vettel's overall lead in the Formula 1 driver's championship.
And here's the points standings for both the drivers & constructors but 1st here's the drivers standings:
1st: Sebastian Vettel (Germany, Ferrari), 104 points
2nd: Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain, Mercedes), 98 points
3rd: Valtteri Bottas (Finland, Mercedes), 63 points
4th: Kimi Raikkonen (Finland, Ferrari), 49 points
5th: Daniel Ricciardo (Australia, Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer), 37 points
6th: Max Verstappen (The Netherlands, Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer), 35 points
7th: Sergio Perez (Mexico, Force India Mercedes), 34 points
8th: Esteban Ocon (France, Force India Mercedes), 19 points
9th: Felipe Massa (Brazil, Williams Mercedes), 18 points
10th: Carlos Sainz (Spain, Toro Rosso), 17 points
11th: Nico Hulkenberg (Germany, Renault), 14 points
12th: Romain Grosjean (France, Haas Ferrari), 5 points
13th: Pascal Wehrlein (Germany, Sauber Ferrari), 4 points
14th: Kevin Magnussen (Denmark, Haas Ferrari), 4 points
15th: Daniil Kvyat (Russia, Toro Rosso), 2 points
And then the constructors to wrap up the Formula 1 report:
1st: Mercedes (Germany), 161 points
2nd: Ferrari (Italy), 153 points
3rd: Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer (Austria), 72 points
4th: Force India Mercedes (India), 53 points
5th: Toro Rosso (Italy), 21 points
6th: Williams Mercedes (Great Britain), 18 points
7th: Renault (France), 14 points
8th: Haas Ferrari (USA), 9 points
9th: Sauber Ferrari (Switzerland), 4 points
So that is my 107th blog of the year 2017 (MMXVII), I'll catch ya later then.
P.S. And here are 4 email messages coming right at ya so here's Sophia Ong 1st in it's entirety:
Hey Whetu
Wellington is going well, I brought a scooter and have been rolling around Wellington. I also got a job at an ice cream parlour and eat ice cream every day!
Yes, I'm still at university, it's going o.k., writing all the essays is hard sometimes.
Yeah I still like sushi but I like pizza more now.
Sorry I didn't reply to your email over Easter, I got very busy, someone has to keep all those people happy by giving them ice creams.
Yes, I will have to visit next time I'm in Wanganui!
Hope you're well
love you too
Sophia
And here's the 2nd with my grand aunty Kathryn:
Hi Whetu
It is my favourite thing to be a mother. But it is not easy! It is very tiring - lots of other people to look after and worry about.
Hope you and Henry have had a good day. My friends Tracey and Joan called in. They said that they had gone to see Helen's garden and Henry invited them to lunch with the two of you. They really enjoyed themselves I think.
Arohanui
Kathryn
And the 3rd one is my biological aunty Cathey Middelplaats:
Hi Whetu
Lovely to hear from you. I hope you are well, Paige and I will visit with the boys hopefully sometime this year.
Mother’s day has been lovely, John my husband’s Dad flew down from Hamilton and we had dinner together. Paige came over for it. The family gave me two plants, which I love.
John is going into Hospital for a very important knee operation tomorrow, so we are busy preparing for that. I will be extra busy as he will be in Hospital all week!
Henry said you visited Helens grave which was lovely, and you cleaned it all up.
That was very nice.
Arohanui your Aunty Cathey, xx
And finally here is my cousin Paige's message that she sent to me:
Hi Whetu,
Thanks for your email - sorry for the late reply.
I do not always access this email address so missed your email.
I love salads - I really like the salads they sell at a shop called habitual fix!
I have had a good week thanks, Jarrod and I are renovating our bathroom at the moment so we have had the plumbers and builders over getting that all ready.
I will send through some photos to show you how it looks once it is all finished.
I definitely need to make a trip up to visit!
Luca and Nico are really good 😊
How are you going?
Funnily enough I have actually just dyed my hair darker now so I could be just like that waitress.
Hope you are having a good day.
Paige xxx
So that was Round 12 of the 2017 Super Rugby season and here are the matches for Round 13:
Chiefs Vs Crusaders: ANZ Stadium, Suva, Fiji
Stormers Vs Blues: DHL Newlands, Cape Town
Hurricanes Vs Cheetahs: Westpac Stadium, Wellington
Force Vs Highlanders: nib Stadium, Perth
Sunwolves Vs Sharks: National Stadium, Singapore
Lions Vs Bulls: Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg
Kings Vs Brumbies: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
& the Waratahs Vs Rebels at Allianz Stadium in Sydney to end Round 13 of Super Rugby 2017 (With the Jaguares & Reds taking a week off to prepare for Round 14).
And Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain) in the Mercedes has won the Spanish Grand Prix after starting on the pole then losing the lead in the opening lap but what a comeback from Hamilton after coming from behind to take the lead from Vettel on lap 44 to reduce Sebastian Vettel's overall lead in the Formula 1 driver's championship.
And here's the points standings for both the drivers & constructors but 1st here's the drivers standings:
1st: Sebastian Vettel (Germany, Ferrari), 104 points
2nd: Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain, Mercedes), 98 points
3rd: Valtteri Bottas (Finland, Mercedes), 63 points
4th: Kimi Raikkonen (Finland, Ferrari), 49 points
5th: Daniel Ricciardo (Australia, Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer), 37 points
6th: Max Verstappen (The Netherlands, Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer), 35 points
7th: Sergio Perez (Mexico, Force India Mercedes), 34 points
8th: Esteban Ocon (France, Force India Mercedes), 19 points
9th: Felipe Massa (Brazil, Williams Mercedes), 18 points
10th: Carlos Sainz (Spain, Toro Rosso), 17 points
11th: Nico Hulkenberg (Germany, Renault), 14 points
12th: Romain Grosjean (France, Haas Ferrari), 5 points
13th: Pascal Wehrlein (Germany, Sauber Ferrari), 4 points
14th: Kevin Magnussen (Denmark, Haas Ferrari), 4 points
15th: Daniil Kvyat (Russia, Toro Rosso), 2 points
And then the constructors to wrap up the Formula 1 report:
1st: Mercedes (Germany), 161 points
2nd: Ferrari (Italy), 153 points
3rd: Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer (Austria), 72 points
4th: Force India Mercedes (India), 53 points
5th: Toro Rosso (Italy), 21 points
6th: Williams Mercedes (Great Britain), 18 points
7th: Renault (France), 14 points
8th: Haas Ferrari (USA), 9 points
9th: Sauber Ferrari (Switzerland), 4 points
So that is my 107th blog of the year 2017 (MMXVII), I'll catch ya later then.
P.S. And here are 4 email messages coming right at ya so here's Sophia Ong 1st in it's entirety:
Hey Whetu
Wellington is going well, I brought a scooter and have been rolling around Wellington. I also got a job at an ice cream parlour and eat ice cream every day!
Yes, I'm still at university, it's going o.k., writing all the essays is hard sometimes.
Yeah I still like sushi but I like pizza more now.
Sorry I didn't reply to your email over Easter, I got very busy, someone has to keep all those people happy by giving them ice creams.
Yes, I will have to visit next time I'm in Wanganui!
Hope you're well
love you too
Sophia
And here's the 2nd with my grand aunty Kathryn:
Hi Whetu
It is my favourite thing to be a mother. But it is not easy! It is very tiring - lots of other people to look after and worry about.
Hope you and Henry have had a good day. My friends Tracey and Joan called in. They said that they had gone to see Helen's garden and Henry invited them to lunch with the two of you. They really enjoyed themselves I think.
Arohanui
Kathryn
And the 3rd one is my biological aunty Cathey Middelplaats:
Hi Whetu
Lovely to hear from you. I hope you are well, Paige and I will visit with the boys hopefully sometime this year.
Mother’s day has been lovely, John my husband’s Dad flew down from Hamilton and we had dinner together. Paige came over for it. The family gave me two plants, which I love.
John is going into Hospital for a very important knee operation tomorrow, so we are busy preparing for that. I will be extra busy as he will be in Hospital all week!
Henry said you visited Helens grave which was lovely, and you cleaned it all up.
That was very nice.
Arohanui your Aunty Cathey, xx
And finally here is my cousin Paige's message that she sent to me:
Hi Whetu,
Thanks for your email - sorry for the late reply.
I do not always access this email address so missed your email.
I love salads - I really like the salads they sell at a shop called habitual fix!
I have had a good week thanks, Jarrod and I are renovating our bathroom at the moment so we have had the plumbers and builders over getting that all ready.
I will send through some photos to show you how it looks once it is all finished.
I definitely need to make a trip up to visit!
Luca and Nico are really good 😊
How are you going?
Funnily enough I have actually just dyed my hair darker now so I could be just like that waitress.
Hope you are having a good day.
Paige xxx
Wednesday, 10 May 2017
Forty Six & 2/Lateralus/Sober/The Pot: The 2019 Rugby World Cup draw review & Special Pasifika Challenge rugby test match details (+ Tendencies of being a radio Disc Jockey, a phone call with Aunty Tania & the 2016-17 UEFA Champions League semifinal wrap up)
Well, it was yesterday that I spent the day on both the computer listening to rock music (I always listen to The Rock FM since I moved here a decade ago so I used to listen to Brian FM) & playing playstation (I had to play my only 2 favourite games such as F1 2016 (I raced as Valtteri Bottas (Finland, Williams) 1st in Russia then Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain, Mercedes) in China & Sebastian Vettel (Germany, Ferrari) in both Australia & Bahrain & I didn't know that one of Poppa's friends Matt Pine (Well I think I may be friends with him) is a self-proclaimed fan of Formula 1) & Rugby Challenge 3 (I played as the All Blacks in the Rugby World Cup 2015 created competition because I thrashed Argentina 63 - 0 in the tournament opener because it was in Pool C but I played against Namibia because we put 70 points on them in the 2nd pool game of the Rugby World Cup 2015 tournament) so we had breakfast as well as an omelette for lunch & had sausage pasta for dinner & we went to Caroline's yesterday (Pops went to the bank then to recycling) so I had a gooey caramel slice with mochacchino & I told Pops about the waitress who looks like my cousin Paige Williams (Kiwi girl with Welsh surname, remember! Please acknowledge because she's the sister of my 2 little cousins, Nico & Luca Mitchell) except she has darker hair & I told Pops that I have 2 aunties, one is Aunty Tania who is my real aunty & the other is Paige's mother Cathey Middelplaats who is my biological aunty.
And so on, onto the draw for the 2019 Rugby World Cup (Well I did write it down last night while I watched it online), held in Japan so here it is:
Pool A
Ireland
Scotland
Japan (Host nation)
Europe 1 (Russia)
Playoff winner (Samoa)
Pool B
New Zealand (Defending champion)
South Africa
Italy
Africa 1 (Namibia)
Repechage winner (Canada)
Pool C (AKA pool of death)
England
France
Argentina
Americas 1 (United States)
Oceania 2 (Tonga)
Pool D
Australia
Wales
Georgia
Oceania 1 (Fiji)
Americas 2 (Uruguay)
And what do I think of the draw...well, we are going to face the Springboks & Italy so the last time we met between South Africa in the Rugby World Cup was the Semifinals in 2015 in which we won by a whisker & Italy was in 2007 during the pool games in pool C so we might take on Scotland in the quarterfinals & if we win, we're going to face England (Well talk about England being in the pool of death in Pool C along with France & Argentina because the last time England clashed with France was in the quarterfinal of the Rugby World Cup in 2011 in which they lost after being outnumbered & Argentina was also in the same year way back in 2011 during the pool games in Pool B & what was England coach Eddie Jones like? Because he's like ''France & Argentina? Are you Serious? We will see about that! Game on!'') in the semifinals & if we beat the English, it's the Wallabies in the final (A possible rematch of the 2015 Rugby World Cup final)...fair call so this is our last shot at World Cup glory but if we win, the All Blacks would dominate the rugby team of the 2010's (Although I told Dad 2 years ago that winning the Rugby World Cup is hard because in 1987 it was easy but since 1991 it became increasingly insanely difficult)...bang on.
And here is the news report about the draw taken place in Kyoto according to Stuff News:
It never seemed likely to happen, but the Springboks' slide has pitted them against the All Blacks in pool play for the first time at a Rugby World Cup.
With All Blacks coach Steve Hansen looking on at the Kyoto State Guest House, his side were drawn in pool B for the 2019 tournament in Japan, alongside South Africa, Italy, Africa 1 and repechage winner. The latter two teams are yet to be decided in the final qualifying phase.
In the other groups, England, France and Argentina were drawn in a tough pool C which may well be dubbed the 'Pool of death'. The Wallabies fared reasonably well alongside Wales and Georgia in pool D, and Ireland and Scotland are the two big guns in pool A, alongside the host nation who caused the big boilover of 2015 with victory over South Africa.
Japan, coached by former Highlanders coach and All Black Jamie Joseph, were drawn out by the nation's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
The two old foes who slugged out a semifinal in 2015, won 20-18 by the All Blacks, will meet again much earlier in Japan after the Springboks' woeful 2016 saw them slip to seventh in the world rankings.
"We've drawn a pool that's got some strength in it, and that's OK. We know South Africa well and know they will be tough. Italy are an improving side and we can assume the qualifiers will be good sides if they're going to make it," Hansen said.
"There are some very tough pools, and pool C is also very tough. Eventually if you're going to win the thing you've got to play all the good teams. We're happy now, we've just got to find out where the games will be played so we can get our planning started."
The All Blacks will face the Springboks, Italy and two qualifiers in the tournament.
By coincidence the two head coaches Hansen and Allister Coetzee, who kept his job after a horror year, sat next to each other in the theatre with the likes of England's Eddie Jones and Ireland's Joe Schmidt also watching on. Both Jones and Schmidt will fancy their chances of going all the way if their teams can maintain their recent form.
Hansen arrived with the Webb Ellis Cup and was even involved in the draw, as he pulled out Italy, Argentina and Georgia in their respective pools. World Rugby chairman Bill Beaumont drew the top-four nations in their groups.
New Zealand have never lost in pool play at a World Cup, and in Japan will chase their 3rd successive title. They will meet Italy, remarkably, for the 6th time at a World Cup after the two sides played the 1987 opener at Eden Park.
Safely through their pool, the All Blacks could meet either Ireland, Scotland or even Japan in the quarterfinals.
At the 2015 World Cup the All Blacks emerged from a pool containing Argentina, Georgia, Tonga and Namibia, with the Pumas providing their toughest opposition in a 26-16 scoreline.
In the quarterfinals the All Blacks smashed France 62-13, before scraping past South Africa with a 2-point victory in the semis then beating Australia 34-17 in the decider.
The 2019 draw was conducted along similar lines to past tournaments, with the top-12 sides from 2015 qualifying automatically.
They were divided into 3 'bands' based on their current world rankings, with the 1st band including New Zealand (top-ranked), England (2nd), Australia (3rd) and Ireland (4th).
Band 2 contained Scotland, France, South Africa and Wales - the teams currently ranked 5th to 8th - and band 3 was made up of Argentina, Japan, Georgia and Italy.
One team from each band was drawn randomly for each pool, with bands four and five made up of allocated spots to regions yet to stage their final qualifying events.
It will be the 5th World Cup with 20 teams divided into 4 pools of 5 teams.
And this is what the quarterfinals, semi finals & final of the 2019 Rugby World Cup will look like (I'm not sure that this prediction is accurate enough):
Quarterfinals
England Vs Wales
New Zealand Vs Scotland
Australia Vs France
Ireland Vs South Africa
Semifinals
Wales Vs New Zealand
France Vs Ireland
Final
France Vs New Zealand
And finally in this rugby news, the All Blacks will take on Samoa in a pre-British & Irish Lions tour test match hit out on the 16th of June at Eden Park in Auckland (Which will host 3 test matches this year which is against Samoa & of course the 1st & 3rd test matches against the British & Irish Lions) billed as the Special Pasifika Challenge which will feature Tonga taking on Wales (Minus it's Lions stars such as hot shot first five-eighth Dan Biggar, fired up centre Jonathan Davies, Tongan born flanker & number 8 Taulupe Faletau (Who was once known as Toby who is the son of former Tongan international Kuli), maverick fullback Leigh Halfpenny (The self-proclaimed playboy who plays for Toulon), Welsh captain Alun Wyn Jones, the dynamic flanker Ross Moriarty (Son of Paul & nephew of Richard), the instant classic winger George North, the incredible hooker Ken Owens, the incomparable & influential openside flanker Justin Tipuric, Lions skipper Sam Warburton, the red hot halfback Rhys Webb & ice cold fullback Liam Williams) 1st before the AB's-Samoa encounter because 2015 was the last time that the All Blacks clashed with Samoa because it was at Apia Park in Apia (We won the game 25 points to 16 in our last meeting & I was with the late Nan & Pops at Uncle Bryan's because the match was shown on Sky Sport) & the 1st time since 1993 that Eden Park will host the All Blacks taking on Samoa (Well, we won our 1st encounter between the 2 teams because Sean 'Fitzy' Fitzpatrick was the captain of the All Blacks & the late Peter 'Fats' Fatialofa captaining Samoa (It was Western Samoa way back until 1997) because the test match takes place the night before the Lions go toe to toe against the Maori All Blacks at Rotorua International Stadium in Rotorua just like as it was back in 2005 that the All Blacks took on Fiji at North Harbour Stadium in Albany the night before the Lions took on the Maori All Blacks at Waikato Stadium in Hamilton.
So that is my 106th blog of the year 2017 (MMXVII), see ya then.
P.S. We are going to Caroline's again (There's a waitress that looks like my cousin Paige Williams except that she has got darker hair but how did Paige manage to dye her hair darker? Funnily enough) because this time we are having lunch (I had rare steak with salad, chips & blue cheese sauce while dessert was a repeat of yesterday's afternoon tea) so we'll be heading over to Nan's grave 1st but my favourite programme is on tonight at half past 7 which is MacGyver because there's only 5 episodes left (The last episode of the 1st season of the 2016 reboot is due to air on the 8th of June because there is going to be season 2 but I have only seen 16 episodes so far compared to my Dad who only watched a single episode of MacGyver during our trip to the South Island because we were in Christchurch) but what am I going to watch once MacGyver ends? Is it going to be Toyota Grassroots Rugby after all.
And my 2nd cousin Gemma (Daughter of Kathryn, Sister of both Huia & Ben, mother of Rosalie (Happy mother's day this Sunday) & cousin of both Aunty Tania & my Dad) listens to Mai FM (It's a hip hop, R&B & rap music radio station because I label hip hop & rap music as black music (AKA the dark side or should I say the Xander side) compared to rock music which is white music (Known as the light side or the heavy metal side) not Mai Shiranui FM because Mai Shiranui is a character from The King Of Fighters because I mistakenly label Mai FM as Mai Shiranui FM because Mai Shiranui could be a radio disc jockey just like DJ Atomica from Crash FM in the Burnout Paradise game.
And I chatted to my beloved Aunty Tania on the phone about Rejean Gatineau's son Eric graduated his way to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police over in Regina at Saskatchewan where the graduation ceremony was held as well as going to Alaska on a trip & she has heard the progressive rock band way back in 1982 called The Alan Parsons Project during her high school years because I had rock music in the background during our phone call as well as going to Caroline's for lunch & finally the 2019 Rugby World Cup draw that we were discussing such as England being in another pool of death & the All Blacks taking on South Africa for the 1st time in a pool game after taking on in the final in 1995, the 3rd/4th place playoff in 1999, the quarterfinal in 2003 & the Semifinal in 2015 & facing Italy for the 1st time at a Rugby World Cup in 12 years after 5 meetings (We 1st played against the Italians in 1987 then in 1991, 1999, 2003 & 2007).
And finally it will be defending European club champions Real Madrid (Coached by French football/soccer legend Zinedine Zidane & captained by Sergio Ramos & featuring the likes of the best footballer/soccer player in the world: Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), James Rodriguez (Colombia), Gareth Bale (Wales), Karim Benzema (France), Pepe (Portugal), Keylor Navas (Costa Rica), Marcelo (Brazil), Toni Kroos (Germany), Alvaro Morata (Spain), Luka Modric (Croatia), Casemiro (Brazil), Raphael Varane (France), Lucas Vazquez (Spain), Mateo Kovacic (Croatia), Dani Carvajal (Spain) & Fabio Coentrao (Portugal) taking on Italian champions Juventus in the UEFA Champions League final at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff after Real Madrid succumbed to a defeat against city rivals Atletico Madrid (Featuring star player for France, Antoine Griezmann) who won 2 goals to 1 but still advance through to the final 4 - 2 on aggregate by surviving Atletico Madrid's comeback attempt to take on Juventus (Which features the likes of Gonzalo Higuain (Argentina), Gianluigi Buffon (Italy), Dani Alves (Brazil), Juan Cuadrado (Colombia), Mario Mandzukic (Croatia), Leonardo Bonucci (Italy), Sami Khedira (Germany), Claudio Marchisio (Italy), Giorgio Chellini (Italy), Andrea Barzagli (Italy) & Stephan Lichtsteiner (Switzerland) who defeated French league leaders Monaco in a comfortable aggregate victory because Juventus will try to avenge their demons 2 years ago because they took on Spanish champions FC Barcelona (My favourite football club) & lost because since 2014, only 2 Spanish clubs have won the last 3 UEFA Champions League tournaments such as FC Barcelona in 2015 who went on to complete a treble (Winning the La Liga, Copa Del Rey & the Champions League) & Real Madrid in both 2014 & last year in 2016 because 2013 was the last time that a non Spanish club had won a UEFA Champions League title which happens to be Bayern Munich from Germany because the final will take place next month because it is a rematch of the final in 1998 (It was FIFA World Cup year that the hosts France dominated the tournament & won).
And so on, onto the draw for the 2019 Rugby World Cup (Well I did write it down last night while I watched it online), held in Japan so here it is:
Pool A
Ireland
Scotland
Japan (Host nation)
Europe 1 (Russia)
Playoff winner (Samoa)
Pool B
New Zealand (Defending champion)
South Africa
Italy
Africa 1 (Namibia)
Repechage winner (Canada)
Pool C (AKA pool of death)
England
France
Argentina
Americas 1 (United States)
Oceania 2 (Tonga)
Pool D
Australia
Wales
Georgia
Oceania 1 (Fiji)
Americas 2 (Uruguay)
And what do I think of the draw...well, we are going to face the Springboks & Italy so the last time we met between South Africa in the Rugby World Cup was the Semifinals in 2015 in which we won by a whisker & Italy was in 2007 during the pool games in pool C so we might take on Scotland in the quarterfinals & if we win, we're going to face England (Well talk about England being in the pool of death in Pool C along with France & Argentina because the last time England clashed with France was in the quarterfinal of the Rugby World Cup in 2011 in which they lost after being outnumbered & Argentina was also in the same year way back in 2011 during the pool games in Pool B & what was England coach Eddie Jones like? Because he's like ''France & Argentina? Are you Serious? We will see about that! Game on!'') in the semifinals & if we beat the English, it's the Wallabies in the final (A possible rematch of the 2015 Rugby World Cup final)...fair call so this is our last shot at World Cup glory but if we win, the All Blacks would dominate the rugby team of the 2010's (Although I told Dad 2 years ago that winning the Rugby World Cup is hard because in 1987 it was easy but since 1991 it became increasingly insanely difficult)...bang on.
And here is the news report about the draw taken place in Kyoto according to Stuff News:
It never seemed likely to happen, but the Springboks' slide has pitted them against the All Blacks in pool play for the first time at a Rugby World Cup.
With All Blacks coach Steve Hansen looking on at the Kyoto State Guest House, his side were drawn in pool B for the 2019 tournament in Japan, alongside South Africa, Italy, Africa 1 and repechage winner. The latter two teams are yet to be decided in the final qualifying phase.
In the other groups, England, France and Argentina were drawn in a tough pool C which may well be dubbed the 'Pool of death'. The Wallabies fared reasonably well alongside Wales and Georgia in pool D, and Ireland and Scotland are the two big guns in pool A, alongside the host nation who caused the big boilover of 2015 with victory over South Africa.
Japan, coached by former Highlanders coach and All Black Jamie Joseph, were drawn out by the nation's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
The two old foes who slugged out a semifinal in 2015, won 20-18 by the All Blacks, will meet again much earlier in Japan after the Springboks' woeful 2016 saw them slip to seventh in the world rankings.
"We've drawn a pool that's got some strength in it, and that's OK. We know South Africa well and know they will be tough. Italy are an improving side and we can assume the qualifiers will be good sides if they're going to make it," Hansen said.
"There are some very tough pools, and pool C is also very tough. Eventually if you're going to win the thing you've got to play all the good teams. We're happy now, we've just got to find out where the games will be played so we can get our planning started."
The All Blacks will face the Springboks, Italy and two qualifiers in the tournament.
By coincidence the two head coaches Hansen and Allister Coetzee, who kept his job after a horror year, sat next to each other in the theatre with the likes of England's Eddie Jones and Ireland's Joe Schmidt also watching on. Both Jones and Schmidt will fancy their chances of going all the way if their teams can maintain their recent form.
Hansen arrived with the Webb Ellis Cup and was even involved in the draw, as he pulled out Italy, Argentina and Georgia in their respective pools. World Rugby chairman Bill Beaumont drew the top-four nations in their groups.
New Zealand have never lost in pool play at a World Cup, and in Japan will chase their 3rd successive title. They will meet Italy, remarkably, for the 6th time at a World Cup after the two sides played the 1987 opener at Eden Park.
Safely through their pool, the All Blacks could meet either Ireland, Scotland or even Japan in the quarterfinals.
At the 2015 World Cup the All Blacks emerged from a pool containing Argentina, Georgia, Tonga and Namibia, with the Pumas providing their toughest opposition in a 26-16 scoreline.
In the quarterfinals the All Blacks smashed France 62-13, before scraping past South Africa with a 2-point victory in the semis then beating Australia 34-17 in the decider.
The 2019 draw was conducted along similar lines to past tournaments, with the top-12 sides from 2015 qualifying automatically.
They were divided into 3 'bands' based on their current world rankings, with the 1st band including New Zealand (top-ranked), England (2nd), Australia (3rd) and Ireland (4th).
Band 2 contained Scotland, France, South Africa and Wales - the teams currently ranked 5th to 8th - and band 3 was made up of Argentina, Japan, Georgia and Italy.
One team from each band was drawn randomly for each pool, with bands four and five made up of allocated spots to regions yet to stage their final qualifying events.
It will be the 5th World Cup with 20 teams divided into 4 pools of 5 teams.
And this is what the quarterfinals, semi finals & final of the 2019 Rugby World Cup will look like (I'm not sure that this prediction is accurate enough):
Quarterfinals
England Vs Wales
New Zealand Vs Scotland
Australia Vs France
Ireland Vs South Africa
Semifinals
Wales Vs New Zealand
France Vs Ireland
Final
France Vs New Zealand
And finally in this rugby news, the All Blacks will take on Samoa in a pre-British & Irish Lions tour test match hit out on the 16th of June at Eden Park in Auckland (Which will host 3 test matches this year which is against Samoa & of course the 1st & 3rd test matches against the British & Irish Lions) billed as the Special Pasifika Challenge which will feature Tonga taking on Wales (Minus it's Lions stars such as hot shot first five-eighth Dan Biggar, fired up centre Jonathan Davies, Tongan born flanker & number 8 Taulupe Faletau (Who was once known as Toby who is the son of former Tongan international Kuli), maverick fullback Leigh Halfpenny (The self-proclaimed playboy who plays for Toulon), Welsh captain Alun Wyn Jones, the dynamic flanker Ross Moriarty (Son of Paul & nephew of Richard), the instant classic winger George North, the incredible hooker Ken Owens, the incomparable & influential openside flanker Justin Tipuric, Lions skipper Sam Warburton, the red hot halfback Rhys Webb & ice cold fullback Liam Williams) 1st before the AB's-Samoa encounter because 2015 was the last time that the All Blacks clashed with Samoa because it was at Apia Park in Apia (We won the game 25 points to 16 in our last meeting & I was with the late Nan & Pops at Uncle Bryan's because the match was shown on Sky Sport) & the 1st time since 1993 that Eden Park will host the All Blacks taking on Samoa (Well, we won our 1st encounter between the 2 teams because Sean 'Fitzy' Fitzpatrick was the captain of the All Blacks & the late Peter 'Fats' Fatialofa captaining Samoa (It was Western Samoa way back until 1997) because the test match takes place the night before the Lions go toe to toe against the Maori All Blacks at Rotorua International Stadium in Rotorua just like as it was back in 2005 that the All Blacks took on Fiji at North Harbour Stadium in Albany the night before the Lions took on the Maori All Blacks at Waikato Stadium in Hamilton.
So that is my 106th blog of the year 2017 (MMXVII), see ya then.
P.S. We are going to Caroline's again (There's a waitress that looks like my cousin Paige Williams except that she has got darker hair but how did Paige manage to dye her hair darker? Funnily enough) because this time we are having lunch (I had rare steak with salad, chips & blue cheese sauce while dessert was a repeat of yesterday's afternoon tea) so we'll be heading over to Nan's grave 1st but my favourite programme is on tonight at half past 7 which is MacGyver because there's only 5 episodes left (The last episode of the 1st season of the 2016 reboot is due to air on the 8th of June because there is going to be season 2 but I have only seen 16 episodes so far compared to my Dad who only watched a single episode of MacGyver during our trip to the South Island because we were in Christchurch) but what am I going to watch once MacGyver ends? Is it going to be Toyota Grassroots Rugby after all.
And my 2nd cousin Gemma (Daughter of Kathryn, Sister of both Huia & Ben, mother of Rosalie (Happy mother's day this Sunday) & cousin of both Aunty Tania & my Dad) listens to Mai FM (It's a hip hop, R&B & rap music radio station because I label hip hop & rap music as black music (AKA the dark side or should I say the Xander side) compared to rock music which is white music (Known as the light side or the heavy metal side) not Mai Shiranui FM because Mai Shiranui is a character from The King Of Fighters because I mistakenly label Mai FM as Mai Shiranui FM because Mai Shiranui could be a radio disc jockey just like DJ Atomica from Crash FM in the Burnout Paradise game.
And I chatted to my beloved Aunty Tania on the phone about Rejean Gatineau's son Eric graduated his way to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police over in Regina at Saskatchewan where the graduation ceremony was held as well as going to Alaska on a trip & she has heard the progressive rock band way back in 1982 called The Alan Parsons Project during her high school years because I had rock music in the background during our phone call as well as going to Caroline's for lunch & finally the 2019 Rugby World Cup draw that we were discussing such as England being in another pool of death & the All Blacks taking on South Africa for the 1st time in a pool game after taking on in the final in 1995, the 3rd/4th place playoff in 1999, the quarterfinal in 2003 & the Semifinal in 2015 & facing Italy for the 1st time at a Rugby World Cup in 12 years after 5 meetings (We 1st played against the Italians in 1987 then in 1991, 1999, 2003 & 2007).
And finally it will be defending European club champions Real Madrid (Coached by French football/soccer legend Zinedine Zidane & captained by Sergio Ramos & featuring the likes of the best footballer/soccer player in the world: Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), James Rodriguez (Colombia), Gareth Bale (Wales), Karim Benzema (France), Pepe (Portugal), Keylor Navas (Costa Rica), Marcelo (Brazil), Toni Kroos (Germany), Alvaro Morata (Spain), Luka Modric (Croatia), Casemiro (Brazil), Raphael Varane (France), Lucas Vazquez (Spain), Mateo Kovacic (Croatia), Dani Carvajal (Spain) & Fabio Coentrao (Portugal) taking on Italian champions Juventus in the UEFA Champions League final at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff after Real Madrid succumbed to a defeat against city rivals Atletico Madrid (Featuring star player for France, Antoine Griezmann) who won 2 goals to 1 but still advance through to the final 4 - 2 on aggregate by surviving Atletico Madrid's comeback attempt to take on Juventus (Which features the likes of Gonzalo Higuain (Argentina), Gianluigi Buffon (Italy), Dani Alves (Brazil), Juan Cuadrado (Colombia), Mario Mandzukic (Croatia), Leonardo Bonucci (Italy), Sami Khedira (Germany), Claudio Marchisio (Italy), Giorgio Chellini (Italy), Andrea Barzagli (Italy) & Stephan Lichtsteiner (Switzerland) who defeated French league leaders Monaco in a comfortable aggregate victory because Juventus will try to avenge their demons 2 years ago because they took on Spanish champions FC Barcelona (My favourite football club) & lost because since 2014, only 2 Spanish clubs have won the last 3 UEFA Champions League tournaments such as FC Barcelona in 2015 who went on to complete a treble (Winning the La Liga, Copa Del Rey & the Champions League) & Real Madrid in both 2014 & last year in 2016 because 2013 was the last time that a non Spanish club had won a UEFA Champions League title which happens to be Bayern Munich from Germany because the final will take place next month because it is a rematch of the final in 1998 (It was FIFA World Cup year that the hosts France dominated the tournament & won).
Saturday, 6 May 2017
All My Life/Best Of You/Everlong/Learn To Fly: Super Rugby round 11 review (+ Joseph Parker's world heavyweight title defence & Spanish GP preview)
Well, I haven't been doing a blog since last week (It was only 5 years & a week since my 1st blog that I did which is Rules Of The Game Of Thrones way back in 2012) so it is round 11 of Super Rugby as the Hurricanes defeated the Stormers 41 - 22 with a bonus point victory at Westpac Stadium in Wellington while the Highlanders snatched it right to the death with a match winning try scored by winger Waisake Naholo (He used to play for Whanganui way back in 2009 (He went to school there because he went to Wanganui City College & he used to play under the name of Waisake Ratunideuba) before moving to Taranaki in 2011 & he also used to play for the Blues in 2013 2 years before making the jump across the South Island to the Highlanders ever since 2015 (It was exactly Rugby World Cup year that he made his test debut against Argentina in the Rugby Championship opener before breaking his leg ruling him out of the World Cup then he did get picked ahead of fellow veteran outside backs Israel Dagg & Cory Jane because he was expected to get match fit for the All Blacks 3rd pool game in the 2015 Rugby World Cup against Georgia but he did play that game by scoring his 1st try for the All Blacks as well as the opening try in his 1st game back from a broken leg when the All Blacks defeated Georgia 43 - 10) by getting out of trouble (Although they scored 21 unanswered points to win that game) in a high scoring game against the Cheetahs at Toyota Stadium in Bloemfontein then the Chiefs claim a bonus point win against the Reds with a Stephen 'Beaver' Donald (The unlikely hero of the 2011 Rugby World Cup final for the All Blacks who scored the match winning penalty against France but what about the return of the magnificent second five-eighth of Charlie Ngatai, scoring a try in his return from concussion after almost out for a year but Hurricanes lock & 1 test All Black James Broadhurst says that he doesn't play rugby anymore from now on because he is failing to recover from the ongoing effect of concussion but if he deserves to play rugby again, he would be paralyzed or even especially dead due to the high amount of risk that's all according to the doctor's orders) double at Yarrow Stadium in New Plymouth while the Blues continue New Zealand's trans-Tasman dominance against the Waratahs by 7 points with the Ioane brothers show (Although Rieko Ioane picked up both tries then his brother Akira scoring just one) at Allianz Stadium in Sydney then the Crusaders still remain unbeaten in Super Rugby this year by demolishing/thrashing the Bulls with a Jack Goodhue double at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria.
So that was Round 11 of the 2017 Super Rugby season and here are the matches for Round 12:
Blues Vs Cheetahs: Eden Park, Auckland
Brumbies Vs Lions: GIO Stadium, Canberra
Crusaders Vs Hurricanes: AMI Stadium, Christchurch
Rebels Vs Reds: AAMI Park, Melbourne
Bulls Vs Highlanders: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Kings Vs Sharks: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
& the Jaguares Vs Force at Jose Amalfitani Stadium in Buenos Aires to end Round 12 of Super Rugby 2017 (With the Chiefs, Stormers, Sunwolves & Waratahs taking a week off to prepare for Round 13).
And Samoan Kiwi boxer Joseph 'Joe' Parker (Well I didn't know he is related to Judith 'Crusher' Collins but Dempsey is Joseph's father who was named after famous boxer Jack Dempsey & Sala is his mother) has retained his world heavyweight title with a unanimous decision victory last night against Romanian Razvan 'Big Foot' Cojanu (Who replaced the injured Hughie Fury (Who claims to be a cousin of Tyson Fury) at the Vodafone Events Centre which is in Manukau, Auckland so his next opponent will be against British boxer Tony Bellew (Who had to win against David Haye).
And finally the 2017 Formula 1 World Championship circus heads to the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya next week which will host the Spanish Grand Prix (It is billed as the home races for both twice world champion Fernando Alonso (Who will compete in the 2017 Indianapolis/Indy 500) & the son of twice World Rally champion Carlos Sainz, Carlos Sainz Jr) as Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel (Germany) is still leading the championship by 12 points ahead of Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain) in the Mercedes (They lead the constructors championship by a single point) after Hamilton's teammate Valtteri Bottas (Finland) claimed his maiden Formula 1 victory in Russia by holding on till the end so here's the circuit guide to the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Barcelona Montmelo who will host Round 5 of the Spanish Grand Prix according to Collins Grand Prix circuits book:
''Well thought out in every respect. A resonable layout with good spectator viewing, facilities & a direct rail link to nearby Barcelona. Poor initial attendances, boosted to the sell-out by the rise of Fernando Alonso in the 1990s. Used frequently for testing.''
So that is my 105th blog of the year 2017 (MMXVII), so here's looking at you kid (From Casablanca)...But frankly my dear, I don't give a damn (To Gone With The Wind).
P.S. I have found a new friend which is Francesca who is one of Pop's friends pet dog who came here along with her so she spent the night here at the studio along with Matt Pine who lives in Tangimoana (Although I befriended him as a result) who also came here to stay for the night & we had a great dinner last night in which we had chicken as well as stir fried vegetables & rice so we had a dessert during half-time between the Chiefs & Reds (And Dad & Jansen came here to watch the rugby but I always miss Dad a lot now since I moved from my flat in 28 Koromiko Road where I have lived for nearly 3 years to Pops at 15A Kells Avenue where I lived here for the Christmas lights competition from December until January (The same month as we went to the South Island on a family trip) as well as during Waitangi weekend (I watched the Super Bowl on Waitangi Day) & the Super Rugby pre-season game (I stayed from the 16th till the 17th) since from the 23rd of February officially onwards).
So that was Round 11 of the 2017 Super Rugby season and here are the matches for Round 12:
Blues Vs Cheetahs: Eden Park, Auckland
Brumbies Vs Lions: GIO Stadium, Canberra
Crusaders Vs Hurricanes: AMI Stadium, Christchurch
Rebels Vs Reds: AAMI Park, Melbourne
Bulls Vs Highlanders: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Kings Vs Sharks: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
& the Jaguares Vs Force at Jose Amalfitani Stadium in Buenos Aires to end Round 12 of Super Rugby 2017 (With the Chiefs, Stormers, Sunwolves & Waratahs taking a week off to prepare for Round 13).
And Samoan Kiwi boxer Joseph 'Joe' Parker (Well I didn't know he is related to Judith 'Crusher' Collins but Dempsey is Joseph's father who was named after famous boxer Jack Dempsey & Sala is his mother) has retained his world heavyweight title with a unanimous decision victory last night against Romanian Razvan 'Big Foot' Cojanu (Who replaced the injured Hughie Fury (Who claims to be a cousin of Tyson Fury) at the Vodafone Events Centre which is in Manukau, Auckland so his next opponent will be against British boxer Tony Bellew (Who had to win against David Haye).
And finally the 2017 Formula 1 World Championship circus heads to the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya next week which will host the Spanish Grand Prix (It is billed as the home races for both twice world champion Fernando Alonso (Who will compete in the 2017 Indianapolis/Indy 500) & the son of twice World Rally champion Carlos Sainz, Carlos Sainz Jr) as Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel (Germany) is still leading the championship by 12 points ahead of Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain) in the Mercedes (They lead the constructors championship by a single point) after Hamilton's teammate Valtteri Bottas (Finland) claimed his maiden Formula 1 victory in Russia by holding on till the end so here's the circuit guide to the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Barcelona Montmelo who will host Round 5 of the Spanish Grand Prix according to Collins Grand Prix circuits book:
''Well thought out in every respect. A resonable layout with good spectator viewing, facilities & a direct rail link to nearby Barcelona. Poor initial attendances, boosted to the sell-out by the rise of Fernando Alonso in the 1990s. Used frequently for testing.''
So that is my 105th blog of the year 2017 (MMXVII), so here's looking at you kid (From Casablanca)...But frankly my dear, I don't give a damn (To Gone With The Wind).
P.S. I have found a new friend which is Francesca who is one of Pop's friends pet dog who came here along with her so she spent the night here at the studio along with Matt Pine who lives in Tangimoana (Although I befriended him as a result) who also came here to stay for the night & we had a great dinner last night in which we had chicken as well as stir fried vegetables & rice so we had a dessert during half-time between the Chiefs & Reds (And Dad & Jansen came here to watch the rugby but I always miss Dad a lot now since I moved from my flat in 28 Koromiko Road where I have lived for nearly 3 years to Pops at 15A Kells Avenue where I lived here for the Christmas lights competition from December until January (The same month as we went to the South Island on a family trip) as well as during Waitangi weekend (I watched the Super Bowl on Waitangi Day) & the Super Rugby pre-season game (I stayed from the 16th till the 17th) since from the 23rd of February officially onwards).
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