pebblerocker

I should get around to fixing my bike stand. I'm used to reaching back with one foot and flipping it back up before going around a corner, but today I got my shoelace caught on it attempting this move. Cleverly I got it unhooked while still riding in a straight line, but next time might not be so lucky.

Rugby starts tonight (sorry to add to the oversaturation) and I intended to ignore it as far as possible -- not a fan of rugby for many reasons including these -- but ended up watching live coverage of the opening ceremony and mostly enjoying it. I loved seeing all those beautifully carved waka paddling into the harbour in Auckland, and the singing and dancing and that projection on the stage adding to the spectacle. It's great that the whole world is watching this -- I quite like the celebration of various countries and people coming to visit New Zealand, and the display of flags hanging on the lamp-posts in town is fun. I just wish it could be a celebration of something other than sports.

Oh, and that haka group was amazing, with the women armed with patu and stamping and shouting! I wonder if the warrior women are there for modern sensibilities, equality and stuff, or if they're actually traditional and I've never seen them before because the idea horrified European colonial types and women doing anything but melodious singing and poi used to be suppressed.

I had a good Christmas, how about everyone else?

On Christmas Eve I played Castle Risk with the family. Much hilarity. I had Germany and made the first move of the game by invading Poland. "Get some new material," they says, "that's been done before." My sister was pleased to draw Great Britain (everyone wants that territory the same way we all want to be "the goodies"), but she had her opportunity to find out that the isles are vulnerable to invasion by sea as well as -- like Greece -- too fiddly to fit all your armies onto in the endgame. My small brother had Russia and won the game; we are discovering that Russia and France are the most easily defended territories and seem to have a definite advantage. A well-defended Moscow is tough to crack.

Christmas Day: we had a big water pistol battle. What a war-crazed violent family we are. Several presents from the boy and me gave joy to other people, and I was delighted with a funny-looking toy creature whom I will upload a photo of later on, and also with my brand-new laser mouse. Forward and back buttons, YES. So far I have not come across a single web page that requires the use of my tilt wheel.

Boxing Day: went for a bike ride, six of us pedalling along together. As most currently-experienced cyclist in the group I ended up at the back looking after the less confident and making sure nobody got lost, which meant that I missed out on seeing the spectacular crash when the leaders decided to fill in time waiting for us by playing silly buggers on the skateboard ramp.

Since then I have been engaged in extensive testing of the new mouse's gaming performance, drumming my arms off in Rock Band, and looking after tomatoes. I read recently that you can break off the tops of tomato plants so they don't get ridiculously huge and top-heavy. This may be the first year when my tomatoes don't end the season lying down.