This weekend after our games up in Brisbane we stayed around for a couple extra days. We went south of Brisbane down tot he Gold Coast. There we stayed at a place called Surfers Paradise. Katy and I stayed at a Youth Hostel right across the road from the main beach, almost out on the pier where a bar is and many nice boats and yachts are tied up. The place we stayed at was pretty nice. We stayed in a 4-share room. So there were 2 sets of bunk beds in the room. I didn't quite fit in the bunk frame (my feet hung off the end, over the metal frame that enclosed the mattress) so I took my mattress off and put it on the floor. The first night we were there, Sunday night, there was a live band a the Fisherman's Wharf (the bar next to where we stayed) that were not quiet. It sounded like the band was in our room giving us a concert. Even though it was loud we were pretty tired and pretty much fell right to sleep. The first night we were roomed with an older man, from New Zealand, who was here in Australia looking for a job. The second night we had a couple in our room from Germany. It was interesting, the guy walked around in his whitey-tighties and the girl just just went ahead and changed in the room like we weren't there. A little different than we probably would do it, but whatever.
The days there were very nice. The temperature got up into the high 70s low 80s and it was great. The first day we went and sat on the beach. It was the nicest sand we have ever seen. It was very fine and very white. It felt great underneath our feet. The water was also very clear, cold, but crystal clear. We got boogie/body boards from the front desk but ended up laying on the them in the sand instead of actually using them in the water. We laid out on the beach for a couple hours and then headed into the city to get some food and some souvenirs. They had some really neat shops and we were surprised at how many skyscraper/high rises there were. We looked at the price of one of the new buildings that is just being built (the Hilton) and the prices of the condo rooms started at $698,000. Other buildings were a little cheaper but still were pretty expensive.
The streets were filled with some neat restaurants and shops and Katy and both really liked it. We said we could definitely live there for a while and would go back if we got the chance. On Monday we decided to go hiking in the hills a little ways from Surfers Paradise. We saw one of the coolest waterfalls we have seen and the views from the rim of the old volcano of the city were awesome.
We really enjoyed ourselves and didn't want to fly back to Melbourne where it is 30-40 degrees cooler and rainy.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Games up north
G'day all.
This past weekend Katy and I both had a road trip up to Brisbane. The boys team flew up to Canberra on Friday for our game against them on Friday night. Canberra is about a one hour flight north east of Melbourne. It is the capital territory of Australia. Then on Saturday we flew up to Brisbane, which is another 1 hour and 20 minute flight North of Canberra, up in Queensland.
For the girls team this weekend their game wasn't the greatest. Brisbane got out to a 9-0 lead and never really looked back. The other team shot 63% from the field and a little over 50% from the 3-point line. Our girls didn't seem to be able to make a shot as they missed quite a few. They also seemed to have a little problem in getting a good shot. I wasn't able to see a lot of the game, but from what I did see it looked like the girls were forcing shots up - drive into 3 girls and toss it up at the hoop, or taking many shots off of only one pass instead of working it around in the offence and making the defence work for the full shot clock. I think their practices this week will be important to get back into the swing of things for next weekend. They did add another girl to the line-up this weekend who has been hurt for a while, so maybe the girls aren't quite used to playing together but hopefully they can get it worked out by next weekend.
Link to game story:http://www.kilsythbasketball.com.au/index.php?id=21&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=341&tx_ttnews[backPid]=210&cHash=5d54e291b6
Box Score:http://www.fibalivestats.com/matches/10/00/01/84/37jyoSuRKt98E/
For the boys, we split in our games this weekend.
Friday night we were in Canberra and got the win. It was a good game for us. I think it was probably one of the best games for us in terms of running and getting the ball up the court quickly. in doing that we were able to get quite a few fast breaks, and it was nice to get some easy baskets. I thought we played pretty well as a team and it was a good step for us.
Link to story:http://www.kilsythbasketball.com.au/index.php?id=21&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=340&tx_ttnews[backPid]=210&cHash=714331d356
Box Score: Dont have it up
Then Saturday night wasn't quite as good. We played well for the first 2 quarters and were about even at halftime, but then in the third quarter we just kind of let it slip away. We let them get too many easy fast break lay-ups and they pulled ahead of us. I think they are the best team in the competition right now for the men (and the women's team probably is as well) however we know that if we play a full game, without lapses at certain times, we could beat them.
Box Score:http://www.fibalivestats.com/matches/10/00/01/81/28tVeLwFqaYA/
This past weekend Katy and I both had a road trip up to Brisbane. The boys team flew up to Canberra on Friday for our game against them on Friday night. Canberra is about a one hour flight north east of Melbourne. It is the capital territory of Australia. Then on Saturday we flew up to Brisbane, which is another 1 hour and 20 minute flight North of Canberra, up in Queensland.
For the girls team this weekend their game wasn't the greatest. Brisbane got out to a 9-0 lead and never really looked back. The other team shot 63% from the field and a little over 50% from the 3-point line. Our girls didn't seem to be able to make a shot as they missed quite a few. They also seemed to have a little problem in getting a good shot. I wasn't able to see a lot of the game, but from what I did see it looked like the girls were forcing shots up - drive into 3 girls and toss it up at the hoop, or taking many shots off of only one pass instead of working it around in the offence and making the defence work for the full shot clock. I think their practices this week will be important to get back into the swing of things for next weekend. They did add another girl to the line-up this weekend who has been hurt for a while, so maybe the girls aren't quite used to playing together but hopefully they can get it worked out by next weekend.
Link to game story:http://www.kilsythbasketball.com.au/index.php?id=21&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=341&tx_ttnews[backPid]=210&cHash=5d54e291b6
Box Score:http://www.fibalivestats.com/matches/10/00/01/84/37jyoSuRKt98E/
For the boys, we split in our games this weekend.
Friday night we were in Canberra and got the win. It was a good game for us. I think it was probably one of the best games for us in terms of running and getting the ball up the court quickly. in doing that we were able to get quite a few fast breaks, and it was nice to get some easy baskets. I thought we played pretty well as a team and it was a good step for us.
Link to story:http://www.kilsythbasketball.com.au/index.php?id=21&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=340&tx_ttnews[backPid]=210&cHash=714331d356
Box Score: Dont have it up
Then Saturday night wasn't quite as good. We played well for the first 2 quarters and were about even at halftime, but then in the third quarter we just kind of let it slip away. We let them get too many easy fast break lay-ups and they pulled ahead of us. I think they are the best team in the competition right now for the men (and the women's team probably is as well) however we know that if we play a full game, without lapses at certain times, we could beat them.
Box Score:http://www.fibalivestats.com/matches/10/00/01/81/28tVeLwFqaYA/
Sunday, April 19, 2009
A week with Joey & Carrie
This past week Katy's brother Joey and sister-in-law Carrie have been out here visiting us. We did a lot of things and had such a good time with them! We got to see some amazing sights and do things we have wanted to do since we got here last year. They took off yesterday and it was very sad to see them go. We wished they could have stayed at least another week or maybe even another month! Its definitely a week we won't forget and hope they won't as well.
-us at Beachcomber
(view from Skydeck)
Each day we were very busy and seemed to have little down time, but it was nice as we got to do many things.
Sunday (day they got here)-Showed them around our place, hid and found Easter baskets, colored Easter eggs (Joey brought over a Easter egg coloring kit as they do not have those here-the eggs here are brown not white), had Easter dinner (Kangaroo roast, squash, sweet potatoes, potatoes, broccoli, cheese sauce, and rolls), and in the evening around sunset went for a walk around Lake Lilydale.
Monday - Katy's Birthday! Exchanged money and went shopping (couldn't do this on Sunday as all the stores and banks were closed for Easter) and drove down to Phillip Island. Can read more about this day in an earlier post.
Tuesday - We went into the city. In the morning we went to the Queen Victoria Market and got souvenirs, then for lunch we went over to St. Kilda (the place we had lunch at, the Beachcomber, was right next to the beach over looking Port Phillip Bay/the ocean). Then we headed to the Skydeck. Skydeck is 88 stories up, it is the highest viewing platform in the Southern Hemisphere with 360 degree viewing of the city of Melbourne. It was amazing to get to see the views of the city from up so high! 
-us at Beachcomber
(view from Skydeck)
(us at Skydeck)
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Wednesday - Winery tour at Domaine Chandon, my basketball game at night, then a birhtday party for Katy and Quincy at night (where Joey and Carrie tried Vegemite)
(us very excited at the winery)
(trying Vegemite)
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Thursday - Went to Healseville Sanctuary, saw some of the bushfire area, did the 1,000 steps and went to Skyhigh for dinner.
(very tired after doing the 1,000 steps)
(us at Skyhigh)
Friday - Great Ocean Road - Stopped at the Surf shops in Torquay, Erskine Falls, Camping at Bimbi Park
Saturday - Surf lesson, Footy Game (St. Kilda vs. Freemantle) at Etihad Stadium, and Ice Bar
(surf lesson)
(St. Kilda vs. Freemantle)
(Ice Bar)
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Sunday - Joey and Carrie flew out
:(
Wednesday Night Game
Wednesday night we had another game before a week and half break. Usually we have off for Easter weekend and the guys on the team said it was strange that we played that weekend so I am guessing that having off the weekend after was to make up for playing the day before Easter.
Wednesday night, we played Nunawading. Currently they are struggling, at 0-5, but we knew that they would come out and play hard. The game was relatively close until the third quarter where we were able to pull out in front and we never looked back. We ended up winning by 19, making it our second victory in a row. It was also nice to get a win before the week and half break so we wouldn't be sitting with a bad taste in our mouth that whole time.
For me, the game didn't really start until the second half. I decided that fouling would be fun and picked up three fouls in the first quarter. So with about 7 minutes to go in the first quarter I took a comfy place on the bench that I made my home until the second half. Then of course in the second half I played without getting a foul, ended up with only three. Isn't it funny how that seems to work out. But it was good, we got the win and started a little win streak.
Now, this coming weekend we fly to Canberra (the capital of Australia-about 1 hour away) for a game on Friday night and then Saturday we fly up to Brisbane, Queensland (a hour flight north of Canberra) for a game on Saturday night. Katy also plays on Saturday night in Brisbane right before our game. The weekend will also be fun as the club has switched the plane tickets for Katy and I (and the other girl from America) to come back on Tuesday morning instead of flying back with the team on Sunday morning. This way we will get a chance to see a little of Brisbane and the Gold Coast. It is nice that we will get to do this as I don't think we would get a chance to get up there otherwise. And, since the tickets were already paid for, switching them isn't that big of a deal. I am not quite sure yet what we will do, but you will have to check back next week Tuesday or Wednesday to see how it went.
Game Story-http://www.kilsythbasketball.com.au/index.php?id=21&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=339&tx_ttnews[backPid]=210&cHash=f30a87a48d
Box Score-http://www.sportingpulse.com/round_info.cgi?a=MATCH&fixture=126729737&c=1-3363-0-81436-0&pool=1
Wednesday night, we played Nunawading. Currently they are struggling, at 0-5, but we knew that they would come out and play hard. The game was relatively close until the third quarter where we were able to pull out in front and we never looked back. We ended up winning by 19, making it our second victory in a row. It was also nice to get a win before the week and half break so we wouldn't be sitting with a bad taste in our mouth that whole time.
For me, the game didn't really start until the second half. I decided that fouling would be fun and picked up three fouls in the first quarter. So with about 7 minutes to go in the first quarter I took a comfy place on the bench that I made my home until the second half. Then of course in the second half I played without getting a foul, ended up with only three. Isn't it funny how that seems to work out. But it was good, we got the win and started a little win streak.
Now, this coming weekend we fly to Canberra (the capital of Australia-about 1 hour away) for a game on Friday night and then Saturday we fly up to Brisbane, Queensland (a hour flight north of Canberra) for a game on Saturday night. Katy also plays on Saturday night in Brisbane right before our game. The weekend will also be fun as the club has switched the plane tickets for Katy and I (and the other girl from America) to come back on Tuesday morning instead of flying back with the team on Sunday morning. This way we will get a chance to see a little of Brisbane and the Gold Coast. It is nice that we will get to do this as I don't think we would get a chance to get up there otherwise. And, since the tickets were already paid for, switching them isn't that big of a deal. I am not quite sure yet what we will do, but you will have to check back next week Tuesday or Wednesday to see how it went.
Game Story-http://www.kilsythbasketball.com.au/index.php?id=21&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=339&tx_ttnews[backPid]=210&cHash=f30a87a48d
Box Score-http://www.sportingpulse.com/round_info.cgi?a=MATCH&fixture=126729737&c=1-3363-0-81436-0&pool=1
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Katy's B-Day
Happy Birthday Katy!!!!!!!!
Monday was Katy's b-day. It was a very fun day! In the morning Joey and Carrie made a wonderful breakfast and we all had ate together. Then Joey and Carrie gave Katy some presents from them and from her parents. She got a sweet Jacket, some awesome jeans, some new basketball shoes, deodorant, soap and some other things as well. It was really cool to see how happy it made her to get presents. I also got her some flip-flops. Here in Australia they have a very popular brand of flip-flops called Havianas, its one of the Aussie things kind of like Veggie-mite. Katy really wanted some so I got her a pair for her birthday.
After she got her presents we went to the grocery store so we could get some food for the next couple of days. I think Joey and Carrie liked shopping as things are different here and they liked seeing how the stores were a little different.
After shopping we grabbed some food and headed down to Phillip Island for the afternoon/evening. Once we got on the island we stopped and got tickets and went to the Phillip Island Chocolate Factory. I was hoping to get Katy a birthday cake, but they didn't have any. So we each got a little taste test of chocolate and headed on our way. They did have a 20 kilo chocolate Easter egg in the store, but we just admired it and decided not to try and sneak a bite. (20 kilos would be 44 pounds, so - big egg)
Then it was off to the Nobbies, where we could see the rocks that have the largest colony of fur seals in Australia. The scenery there is beautiful. Katy and I have been there 4 times now and like it more and more each time we go. We were there right at sunset and there were some pretty big waves crashing against the rocks. It was so nice.
From there we went over to the Penguin Parade. On the way over Carrie and Joey were able to see their first Wallaby (small kangaroo). We saw about 5-10 wallabies. Some were standing and staring at us and some were hoping around. I think they enjoyed seeing them hoping back and forth. From there it was over to see the penguins. This time there were more people than we have ever seen there before. It must have been because it was around Easter and school holidays. When we got to the viewing area, where they have the stands where you sit and watch the beach for the penguins to come out of the water, there were no spots to sit. Luckily we found an area in between two rows of seats and grabbed a spot to sit. After watching them come out of the water for a while we went back to the boardwalk and watched the little fairy penguins waddle by. The are pretty cool to see. Joey and Carrie said they had a good time. The penguins are another thing that even though we have seen them a couple times we still really enjoy them.
After that it was off to Red Rooster (Australian chicken sandwich place) and then home.
Monday was Katy's b-day. It was a very fun day! In the morning Joey and Carrie made a wonderful breakfast and we all had ate together. Then Joey and Carrie gave Katy some presents from them and from her parents. She got a sweet Jacket, some awesome jeans, some new basketball shoes, deodorant, soap and some other things as well. It was really cool to see how happy it made her to get presents. I also got her some flip-flops. Here in Australia they have a very popular brand of flip-flops called Havianas, its one of the Aussie things kind of like Veggie-mite. Katy really wanted some so I got her a pair for her birthday.
After she got her presents we went to the grocery store so we could get some food for the next couple of days. I think Joey and Carrie liked shopping as things are different here and they liked seeing how the stores were a little different.
After shopping we grabbed some food and headed down to Phillip Island for the afternoon/evening. Once we got on the island we stopped and got tickets and went to the Phillip Island Chocolate Factory. I was hoping to get Katy a birthday cake, but they didn't have any. So we each got a little taste test of chocolate and headed on our way. They did have a 20 kilo chocolate Easter egg in the store, but we just admired it and decided not to try and sneak a bite. (20 kilos would be 44 pounds, so - big egg)
Then it was off to the Nobbies, where we could see the rocks that have the largest colony of fur seals in Australia. The scenery there is beautiful. Katy and I have been there 4 times now and like it more and more each time we go. We were there right at sunset and there were some pretty big waves crashing against the rocks. It was so nice.
From there we went over to the Penguin Parade. On the way over Carrie and Joey were able to see their first Wallaby (small kangaroo). We saw about 5-10 wallabies. Some were standing and staring at us and some were hoping around. I think they enjoyed seeing them hoping back and forth. From there it was over to see the penguins. This time there were more people than we have ever seen there before. It must have been because it was around Easter and school holidays. When we got to the viewing area, where they have the stands where you sit and watch the beach for the penguins to come out of the water, there were no spots to sit. Luckily we found an area in between two rows of seats and grabbed a spot to sit. After watching them come out of the water for a while we went back to the boardwalk and watched the little fairy penguins waddle by. The are pretty cool to see. Joey and Carrie said they had a good time. The penguins are another thing that even though we have seen them a couple times we still really enjoy them.
After that it was off to Red Rooster (Australian chicken sandwich place) and then home.
Easter (and Joey &Carrie coming)
Happy Easter!
On Sunday Katy and I left early from Albury early in the morning to get to the airport to pick up Joey and Carrie. We were very excited as we were really looking forward to seeing them. Well, we got a little ways outside of Albury and the fuel light went on. Okay, we needed to get gas. No big deal. The first town we stopped at the gas station was closed as it was Easter. The second town we stopped at....yup you guessed it - closed for Easter. The next town didn't have a gas station. Now we were starting to get pretty nervous. On Good Friday everything is shut down, all the grocery stores and all the shops, so we were really worried that it was going to be the same thing on Easter. I started thinking about what we would do. We didn't have the number for the airport to call Joey and Carrie and let them that we were out of gas and we wouldn't be able to make it for a long time. Even though we have roadside assistance I started thinking that maybe there be no one there to be able to help us, or if there was someone to help where would they be coming from and how long would it take to get to us. Again we had no way of getting a hold of Joey and Carrie. I set the odometer when the gas light came on. As far as I know the light usually comes on with 50 kilometers to go (until you run out of gas) at 70 kilometers and some sweat running down the forehead we pulled into a little bigger town and found a gas station that was open. The lady said they were open every day of the year, and we thanked her for that as we were really close running out of fuel. We definitely said thank you to the big guy upstairs as he was watching out for on Easter.
We ended up getting to the airport about 10 minutes before Joey and Carrie came through so it worked out perfectly.
It was so good to see them.
When we got back our place they had Easter Baskets to find, which we had already hid and they hid some Easter stuff which they had brought over. We had so much Easter candy here it was crazy. Also, when they came over they brought Easter egg coloring stuff and we were able to color eggs as they don't have that stuff here (the eggs here are brown, not white). They didn't turn out that good as some of the eggs broke, but it was really fun. Quincy also had a friend that came out and when she came in on Saturday she brought us some Easter candy as well. Needless to say we have enough Easter candy to last a while. Hungry?
On Sunday Katy and I left early from Albury early in the morning to get to the airport to pick up Joey and Carrie. We were very excited as we were really looking forward to seeing them. Well, we got a little ways outside of Albury and the fuel light went on. Okay, we needed to get gas. No big deal. The first town we stopped at the gas station was closed as it was Easter. The second town we stopped at....yup you guessed it - closed for Easter. The next town didn't have a gas station. Now we were starting to get pretty nervous. On Good Friday everything is shut down, all the grocery stores and all the shops, so we were really worried that it was going to be the same thing on Easter. I started thinking about what we would do. We didn't have the number for the airport to call Joey and Carrie and let them that we were out of gas and we wouldn't be able to make it for a long time. Even though we have roadside assistance I started thinking that maybe there be no one there to be able to help us, or if there was someone to help where would they be coming from and how long would it take to get to us. Again we had no way of getting a hold of Joey and Carrie. I set the odometer when the gas light came on. As far as I know the light usually comes on with 50 kilometers to go (until you run out of gas) at 70 kilometers and some sweat running down the forehead we pulled into a little bigger town and found a gas station that was open. The lady said they were open every day of the year, and we thanked her for that as we were really close running out of fuel. We definitely said thank you to the big guy upstairs as he was watching out for on Easter.
We ended up getting to the airport about 10 minutes before Joey and Carrie came through so it worked out perfectly.
It was so good to see them.
When we got back our place they had Easter Baskets to find, which we had already hid and they hid some Easter stuff which they had brought over. We had so much Easter candy here it was crazy. Also, when they came over they brought Easter egg coloring stuff and we were able to color eggs as they don't have that stuff here (the eggs here are brown, not white). They didn't turn out that good as some of the eggs broke, but it was really fun. Quincy also had a friend that came out and when she came in on Saturday she brought us some Easter candy as well. Needless to say we have enough Easter candy to last a while. Hungry?
Weekend's game in Albury
This past weekend we had a pretty good game. We ended up winning by about 45. We played together as a team really well. It did help that the other team didn't have the greatest game, but it was fun to have a game like that and to get a win like that. Every body had a chance to play and got some minutes. Also it was the first game back for Chris Payne. This is the first time he has totally been back in uniform from his accident. Last year he had an accident when he was up on the roof of a house. He had a metal pole in his hand and when he lifted it up over his head it hit the power wire above him. He had huge burns on his hands and the electricity went out through his foot and left a 'hole' in his foot. He is very lucky to be alive, let alone playing again. So it was his first game back and it was great to see him running around. He had a couple shots and hit one of them. Even though he didn't hit a lot of shots he is a great shooter and it will be nice to have him back, especially when he gets his fitness back.
This Wednesday (tomorrow) we have another game and hopefully we will be able to get another good win. After the game tomorrow night we have a week and a half break. It will be nice to get a little time off too, especially now that Carrie and Joey are here (Katy's brother and sister-in-law). Even though we had a 4-hour drive to the game it was totally worth it.
Write up for the game: http://www.kilsythbasketball.com.au/index.php?id=21&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=335&tx_ttnews[backPid]=210&cHash=200435610a
This Wednesday (tomorrow) we have another game and hopefully we will be able to get another good win. After the game tomorrow night we have a week and a half break. It will be nice to get a little time off too, especially now that Carrie and Joey are here (Katy's brother and sister-in-law). Even though we had a 4-hour drive to the game it was totally worth it.
Write up for the game: http://www.kilsythbasketball.com.au/index.php?id=21&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=335&tx_ttnews[backPid]=210&cHash=200435610a
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