A Few Extra Things About Me

I am an ardent anti-smoker.

Why is that we can be jailed/gaoled for carrying explosives, chemicals, hair-spray and other potential life-killing devices onto aircraft … yet we can purchase cigarettes duty free at the airport and carry them in our carry-on luggage?! Doesn’t anyone read the packaging – not even Airport security?
I’ll leave you all to dwell on that thought when next you fly, or suck on a ciggie. Ewww.

I have no fascination for televised sports.

You won’t find me watching cars race around a bituminous track . Nor do I revel in watching other men running around in short and shirts, hugging each other when one of them manages to kick a round-ball between two posts or an oblong-ball between the middle two of four posts. Watching boat with sails zigzag across an ocean to go in a straight-line seems pointless. Boxing should be banned. Kick-boxing stays – at least they are reprimanded when over-zealous.

Yet I like the good sports: Social soccer, Beach volleyball, 2-on-2 basketball, ten-pin-bowling, billiards, darts, table tennis. You’ll notice many of them are ‘solitary’ games where one can play alone. Thus removing any physical-contact or injury. Yep, always thinking of me.

I have broken more body parts than I ever anticipated.

1. Right knee got busted up at Dreamworld on the Gold Coast in 1986. Long story, maybe some other time. Will need to draw pictures to describe the pain that continues to torment me.
   SideNote: The ride doesn’t exist anymore. It was called the “Colorado White Water Rapids“. Its equivalent would be a cross between the THUNDER RIVER RAPIDS RIDE at Dreamworld and WHITE WATER MOUNTAIN at Wet’n’Wild. Except it was all on rubber inner-tubes, none of these fancy new OHS&W contraptions. Things have certainly changed since I was a kid!
2. Both arms in a late night bicycle misjudgement in 1992. Included hair-line fracture in both forearm bones, dislocated left elbow and shoulder plus various bodily abrasions.
3. Little finger on both hands at different times since 1990. My lips are sealed on those two separate stupid accidents. Thankfully I can still touch-type!
4. Almost shot off my right pointing-finger in 1984 or ‘5. Fourteen stitches between thumb and joint ensure it won’t fall off again. Bullet shrapnel is sharp!

I read, write, and code.

My fiction book collection is predominately made of Clive Cussler novels – most sit un-read! My wife has managed to get me reading “Clan of the Cave Bear” (Jean M. Auel).

The books I read most are web-help books. Photograh of proof. Last night I started reading Chapter 2 of “Sitepoint: No Nonsense XML Web Development with PHP” (Thomas Myer). Within minutes of experimenting with XML and XSLT, I had a few epiphany’s, had a few fantastic ideas of where I could take this – then amusingly realising I’d invented Microsoft ACCESS. No not really, but I realised that my idea had similarities to an obvious existing program. Doh! At least I understood what I was reading. I skimmed through the rest of the book – and noticed that the book was aimed at producing a simple blogging system. When I finish here, I will resume reading. Interestingly, I enjoy reading Microsoft manuals – which makes me unique amongst my peers!

PS. My favorite and only PC-game is SIMS-Original. SIMS-Pets? What is the world coming too?

Wow, that took less than an hour to compile. Each ‘thing’ could easily have a post in itself … but I fear I would say too much. Oh, one more.

I was one of the many amateur photographers who managed to push the guard-rail up and get onto the track at ‘Fosters Corner’ during the last-lap of the 1993 Adelaide Grand Prix.

I think it was that year. My memory is a little fuzzy. I intend to dig up those negatives, scan them in and put them on my flickr.com account.

That’s it. For now.