Thursday, November 1, 2007...the date of my first post. It seems so long ago that I first sat down to describe the beginning of my journey. It seems so long ago that I described how incredibly nervous I was to take the plunge and leave home. But now, here I sit, 50 posts and ten months later, describing the exact opposite. Describing how wonderful this journey as been. How truly life changing this entire experience is, and will continue to be years down the line. My how times have changed...
But yes, my time hear is nearly at an end and so many emotions are running through my head. Absolute joy that I will be back home among my friends and loved ones. A surge of pride that I faced this challenge head on and won. A sense of accomplishment that I chased a dream and became a better person for it. But on the other hand, a profound sense of sorrow stirs with the thought of leaving this great land. A sense of loss while saying goodbye to my friends. A feeling of lonliness knowling that I will never have this experience again.
But in the end, as I wrap up this journey, no amount of joy or sorrow can deflect the sense of love that I felt daily from both sides of the world. From beginning to end the amount of support and kindness I received, in many different fashions, kept me stronger than I have ever thought I could be. When I was feeling a bit out of place, a call from a friend pulled my head back in. When the holidays came around, cards and letters from home lifted my spirits. When I needed a kick in the butt, Lisa P gladly provided (just kidding!!!). So thank you to everyone who made this journey possible, because you are the ones who have made this experience truly remarkable. It is in the people closest to us that we find our greatest source of strength.
And so I say "I'll see you soon" to all my mates back home. I'll say "until next time" to all my mates still here. Fair dinkum, you are all the best blokes a seppo like me could ask for. I reckon we'll see each other soon, and when that day comes, bob's your uncle. Cheers everyone and I'll see you in Chicago on Saturday night!
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
A Valiant Effort
While some things are meant to be, others are not. And as much as we worked and fought, Saturday was not our day to be victorious, falling to the mighty Hammersley-Carine by nearly 5 goals.
The day started off on the right foot with the team arriving at TJ Perrott Reserve in the right state of mind. After such a big win the previous week, it's always a concern a let-down will occur, but this was not the case. The team arrived fired up and ready for another upset bid. Taped up and boots on, I was anxious to get on the field and face Dan and his team (one of only 2 teams we hadn't yet beat during the season). It was a bright and sunny day as the oval overlooked the Swan River and as a crowd of nearly one-thousand watched over us. You could feel the electricity in the air.
From the first bounce the Scarborough Eagles looked poised for an upset as we kicked the first goal of the match. With a gusty effort on only one leg (he had a torn calf muscle), Willow started us off right and got us going early. From around the ground every player was making incredible plays as the tempo picked up every quarter. From the stands the crowd couldn't believe what they were seeing as we continued to lead at quarter, half, and three-quarter time (it should have been more at this time because we had the breeze to our back but we couldn't capitalize).
But sadly those present were ready for an upset that would never come. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, Hammersley-Carine began to show their true colors as they kicked two quick goals to cut the lead to just one goal. From then the tide had turned and they could smell the victory and wouldn't be denied. Despite our most valiant efforts, once the final siren went the mighty Eagles had fallen by nearly 5 goals. It was a sad sight, but nothing to be ashamed of as we played better than we ever believed and gave the opposition (the best in the competition) their hardest victory in a long time.
So at last, the curtain has closed on my footy career Down Under. What started way back in January has come full circle with many ups and downs along the way. From beginning to end this has been an incredible journey and something that I will take with me until I die. I can only hope that others will make this same leap of faith that will undoubtedly change their lives forever.
The day started off on the right foot with the team arriving at TJ Perrott Reserve in the right state of mind. After such a big win the previous week, it's always a concern a let-down will occur, but this was not the case. The team arrived fired up and ready for another upset bid. Taped up and boots on, I was anxious to get on the field and face Dan and his team (one of only 2 teams we hadn't yet beat during the season). It was a bright and sunny day as the oval overlooked the Swan River and as a crowd of nearly one-thousand watched over us. You could feel the electricity in the air.
From the first bounce the Scarborough Eagles looked poised for an upset as we kicked the first goal of the match. With a gusty effort on only one leg (he had a torn calf muscle), Willow started us off right and got us going early. From around the ground every player was making incredible plays as the tempo picked up every quarter. From the stands the crowd couldn't believe what they were seeing as we continued to lead at quarter, half, and three-quarter time (it should have been more at this time because we had the breeze to our back but we couldn't capitalize).
But sadly those present were ready for an upset that would never come. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, Hammersley-Carine began to show their true colors as they kicked two quick goals to cut the lead to just one goal. From then the tide had turned and they could smell the victory and wouldn't be denied. Despite our most valiant efforts, once the final siren went the mighty Eagles had fallen by nearly 5 goals. It was a sad sight, but nothing to be ashamed of as we played better than we ever believed and gave the opposition (the best in the competition) their hardest victory in a long time.
So at last, the curtain has closed on my footy career Down Under. What started way back in January has come full circle with many ups and downs along the way. From beginning to end this has been an incredible journey and something that I will take with me until I die. I can only hope that others will make this same leap of faith that will undoubtedly change their lives forever.
Monday, September 1, 2008
Semi-Finals
Another weekend and another win!! This past weekend we took on the boys from Collegians on a bright and sunny Saturday afternoon at Hamer Park. We had previously lost to this lot in one of the first games of the season, so we were ready for some revenge. Right away our team jumped out to a two goal lead and continued with the lead throughout the entire game. But no matter what we did, we couldn't quite put them away. They kept fighting and clawing their way back into the game, but we were doing just enough to keep them at bay.
Through some outstanding performances and a very tight final term, the boys from Scarborough managaged to frustrate Collegians enough to miss open targets and open goals. On our offensive end of the field, they were doing about the same effectively keeping the game in reach. But, with a ferocious last few minutes, Collegians couldn't do enough and eventually succummed to the Eagles 46-45.
This coming weekend were are playing against Hammersly-Carine, who we have lost to twice this season. But, this time around we have the upper hand as we are playing better footy that we have all season. If we win this weekend we will then be playing next weekend in the Grand Final, which would be a dream come true. This game also has significance for me as Hammersly-Carine features a player who played with the Bombers a couple seasons back, my friend Daniel Hyman. A great friend and someone that I am looking forward to beating. It's going to be incredible!!
Through some outstanding performances and a very tight final term, the boys from Scarborough managaged to frustrate Collegians enough to miss open targets and open goals. On our offensive end of the field, they were doing about the same effectively keeping the game in reach. But, with a ferocious last few minutes, Collegians couldn't do enough and eventually succummed to the Eagles 46-45.
This coming weekend were are playing against Hammersly-Carine, who we have lost to twice this season. But, this time around we have the upper hand as we are playing better footy that we have all season. If we win this weekend we will then be playing next weekend in the Grand Final, which would be a dream come true. This game also has significance for me as Hammersly-Carine features a player who played with the Bombers a couple seasons back, my friend Daniel Hyman. A great friend and someone that I am looking forward to beating. It's going to be incredible!!
Monday, August 25, 2008
Finals Fever
Just about the only exciting news from this side of the pond is that my team has won our first round of the playoffs. We won in dramatic fashion over Mt. Lawley for the second straight week. After a very slow start, we found ourselves down by 18 points at quarter time, but completely outplaying them in every part of the game, except accurate goal kicking. By halftime we had crawled our way back to within a couple points, and maintained the spread until the beginning of the fourth quarter. With a victory in the balance, we started the fourth quarter on a surge, kicking 5 straight goals to take the lead and the victory. A well earned win for the boys and I couldn't be more proud.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Time to Rumble
First, a big Happy One Year Anniversary to Lisa and Tim! I can't believe it's already been one year since they tied the knot. Such a special memory that I'm sure no one will ever forget. I can still remember dancing on the Royal Argosy (is that the right spelling???), getting told to be quiet while in the courtyard of our hotel, and watching people get hit in the face with flying fish at Pike Place Market. So many funny memories that I will never forget. Congratulations again!!
Secondly, a big Happy 25th Birthday to Lisa P!! This past Saturday, Lisa turned the big quarter century and I know she celebrated in style. With friends from school and work she painted Milwaukee red while calling me throughout the night, just to say hello. I was quite flattered.
Thirdly, some good news from this side of the pond. My knee is good to go and I am ready to kick some butt this weekend. This past weekend we had our regular season game against Mt. Lawley, which was a must win for us. Previously I stated that we had cemented a spot in the playoffs, but I was wrong. We had to win this past game to make the playoffs, and we did it in fine style. Down by 2 goals at halftime, we came back to win by 4 goals. Very exciting and a huge relief for me because now I can actually play again!! Very thrilled. Our game this Saturday is again against Mt. Lawley, so we know it will be tough but I am confident we will be victorious!! What a great feeling it would be to win some more games and come home as a Champion!! Wish me luck!!
Fourthly, my tenure at Meerkats is over and I am a bit disappointed. I had a great time and learned a lot and have already started missing some of my co-workers. What made it even harder was that they had a going-away gig for me on Friday afternoon. We had cake, sausage rolls, meat pies, and they even gave me a really nice present, an official West Coast Eagles team jacket. Very nice of them and really unexpected. I can't wait to show it off around Milwaukee.
Lastly, since I am no longer working I am sorry to say that their will be no more pictures. I am using Jared and James' computer and their provider only allows a certain amount of uploads/downloads a month. And, since they are Packers' fans, their entire allotment is spend on downloading Packers' clips. I will see if I can find a way around this, but I'm not too confident.
Anyways, less than 5 weeks until my plane touches down and I couldn't be more excited. I will miss it here terribly, but home is where the heart is, and my heart is in the Midwest US.
Secondly, a big Happy 25th Birthday to Lisa P!! This past Saturday, Lisa turned the big quarter century and I know she celebrated in style. With friends from school and work she painted Milwaukee red while calling me throughout the night, just to say hello. I was quite flattered.
Thirdly, some good news from this side of the pond. My knee is good to go and I am ready to kick some butt this weekend. This past weekend we had our regular season game against Mt. Lawley, which was a must win for us. Previously I stated that we had cemented a spot in the playoffs, but I was wrong. We had to win this past game to make the playoffs, and we did it in fine style. Down by 2 goals at halftime, we came back to win by 4 goals. Very exciting and a huge relief for me because now I can actually play again!! Very thrilled. Our game this Saturday is again against Mt. Lawley, so we know it will be tough but I am confident we will be victorious!! What a great feeling it would be to win some more games and come home as a Champion!! Wish me luck!!
Fourthly, my tenure at Meerkats is over and I am a bit disappointed. I had a great time and learned a lot and have already started missing some of my co-workers. What made it even harder was that they had a going-away gig for me on Friday afternoon. We had cake, sausage rolls, meat pies, and they even gave me a really nice present, an official West Coast Eagles team jacket. Very nice of them and really unexpected. I can't wait to show it off around Milwaukee.
Lastly, since I am no longer working I am sorry to say that their will be no more pictures. I am using Jared and James' computer and their provider only allows a certain amount of uploads/downloads a month. And, since they are Packers' fans, their entire allotment is spend on downloading Packers' clips. I will see if I can find a way around this, but I'm not too confident.
Anyways, less than 5 weeks until my plane touches down and I couldn't be more excited. I will miss it here terribly, but home is where the heart is, and my heart is in the Midwest US.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Playoff Fever!!
Hello everyone and welcome back to the United States Tim and Lisa! I hope your trip to Europe was incredible and I can't wait to read the blog and see the pictures. I am so very jealous of you two and I can't wait to have a trip there myself!! Visiting Prague, Greece, and Rome would be such an inspiring trip. So much beauty and history, I think I should start planning right now!!
On this hemisphere things are just as exciting as my time here begins to draw to a close. Over this past weekend my team scored another victory cementing our place in the Finals (playoffs). Our team puzzle is nearly complete, except that I am still sitting out with a knee problem. I tried to go, but after the first ten minutes I was in pain and had zero mobility. At this point we were already up by 4 goals, so I decided it was about time to get off the ground. It's really disappointing to not be playing because this is the most important time of year and I would do anything to finish the season strong. The knee is healing slowly, but I'm going to see a sports doctor to get a proper assessment. Hopefully it's nothing serious!! This weekend we're playing Wembley and we should come away with another win. This will give us home field advantage our first playoff game, which will also be against Wembley. Wish us luck!!
Another exciting/humbling event is that my time here at Meerkats is nearly expired. My list day is Friday (tomorrow) and it's really excited to branch out into other work, but really sad to be leaving. I've had such a great time working with everyone here and made so many memories and friends, that saying goodbye will be difficult. These people have become like a family to me (a loud, swearing, and beer drinking family) that I will never forget. What a experience this has been. What a lucky man I am. One of my co-workers in the IT area has volunteered to burn all my files/photos to CDs for me to take back to the states. It will be nice to look at these in 10 years to remember all the great times.
In some positive news, my car is back up and running!! After a few discussions with the mechanic, the problem was a bad circuit/relay board under the dash board. Apparently when it overheats it short circuits, cutting power to the fuel pump. This car has been such a clunker, but it sure has kept me on my toes and kept things interesting. It has also really made me appreciate public transportation.
One thing that I am looking forward to when I'm home is football. I love watching footy and all Australian sports, but since pre-season NFL has started up things around the house have been buzzing. I forgot that Jared and James are from Wisconsin (born and living in Green Bay for a number of years) and are crazy Packers fans. Both have been wearing their hats around the house and downloading all the video clips every day. It's great to have such excitement, but these guys are total Cheeseheads. I can't wait until Detroit takes them to the cleaner!!
On this hemisphere things are just as exciting as my time here begins to draw to a close. Over this past weekend my team scored another victory cementing our place in the Finals (playoffs). Our team puzzle is nearly complete, except that I am still sitting out with a knee problem. I tried to go, but after the first ten minutes I was in pain and had zero mobility. At this point we were already up by 4 goals, so I decided it was about time to get off the ground. It's really disappointing to not be playing because this is the most important time of year and I would do anything to finish the season strong. The knee is healing slowly, but I'm going to see a sports doctor to get a proper assessment. Hopefully it's nothing serious!! This weekend we're playing Wembley and we should come away with another win. This will give us home field advantage our first playoff game, which will also be against Wembley. Wish us luck!!
Another exciting/humbling event is that my time here at Meerkats is nearly expired. My list day is Friday (tomorrow) and it's really excited to branch out into other work, but really sad to be leaving. I've had such a great time working with everyone here and made so many memories and friends, that saying goodbye will be difficult. These people have become like a family to me (a loud, swearing, and beer drinking family) that I will never forget. What a experience this has been. What a lucky man I am. One of my co-workers in the IT area has volunteered to burn all my files/photos to CDs for me to take back to the states. It will be nice to look at these in 10 years to remember all the great times.
In some positive news, my car is back up and running!! After a few discussions with the mechanic, the problem was a bad circuit/relay board under the dash board. Apparently when it overheats it short circuits, cutting power to the fuel pump. This car has been such a clunker, but it sure has kept me on my toes and kept things interesting. It has also really made me appreciate public transportation.
One thing that I am looking forward to when I'm home is football. I love watching footy and all Australian sports, but since pre-season NFL has started up things around the house have been buzzing. I forgot that Jared and James are from Wisconsin (born and living in Green Bay for a number of years) and are crazy Packers fans. Both have been wearing their hats around the house and downloading all the video clips every day. It's great to have such excitement, but these guys are total Cheeseheads. I can't wait until Detroit takes them to the cleaner!!
Friday, August 8, 2008
6 Weeks
Well, in exactly five weeks I will be boarding a plane to head back to the United States. Back Home. Back in Milwaukee. And back to being American. It's a sobering reality to really see the end, but it's a great reality none-the-less. I have had an absolute blast here these past 9 months, but still nothing compares to home and the people who make it special. I can't wait to see everyone again.
With that being said, I am going to really try and soak in my remaining few weeks here, starting with lots of bike rides and long walks. You may be saying to yourself, yeah that's a great idea to really take in the sites. And, you wouldn't be wrong: but I would have to disagree only because this has been forced upon me because my car died on the way home a few nights ago. Literally, James and I were driving home from Brett's place and the car died, no acceleration or anything, and we ended up walking back the last couple kilometers. Not quite the way I pictured ending the night, but still pretty funny. Currently I am still without car and greatly enjoying the night time bike rides.
In other news...my footy team is still doing well and in the hunt for a Finals appearance (the playoffs). Currently we are sitting in contention, but a win this weekend will guarantee us a stop in the top 5. The buzz around the team is incredible and I can't wait to get on the field to have a win. But, that will be waiting a bit because my still ain't quite right. My MCL is still a bit off, so I will only be played sparingly this weekend, just to make sure I don't injure it even further. I should be completely fine by next weekend, but this waiting period is awful!!
In international footy news, the International Cup begins in a couple weeks and I am still being courted to play for the US. I have already spoken with the coach about my situation (my finals series happens on the same dates), but they are really persistent. If things work themselves out, I may even be able to get flown to Melbourne to play a few games while still playing for Scarborough in the Finals. Could be a pretty great experience!!!
In work news, my next day will be a week from today and I am not excited. Meerkats has been such a great experience for me and I am dreading to go home to any type of dictatorship company. Every person here has made me feel so welcome to the point that I feel like many of these people are my great friends. What an incredible experience and something that i do not take lightly or for granted. Maybe I can take this business model and replicate it back in the States!!! Would be well worth it because this place has found such an incredible balance of work and play that no company in the States (that I have seen) can match.
Anyways, it's nearly 5 pm and I am ready to go home. I hope everyone has a great weekend and enjoys the warm weather (it's supposed to rain all this weekend here)!!! And please, pray for the people of Wisconsin and their dramas with Brett Favre.
With that being said, I am going to really try and soak in my remaining few weeks here, starting with lots of bike rides and long walks. You may be saying to yourself, yeah that's a great idea to really take in the sites. And, you wouldn't be wrong: but I would have to disagree only because this has been forced upon me because my car died on the way home a few nights ago. Literally, James and I were driving home from Brett's place and the car died, no acceleration or anything, and we ended up walking back the last couple kilometers. Not quite the way I pictured ending the night, but still pretty funny. Currently I am still without car and greatly enjoying the night time bike rides.
In other news...my footy team is still doing well and in the hunt for a Finals appearance (the playoffs). Currently we are sitting in contention, but a win this weekend will guarantee us a stop in the top 5. The buzz around the team is incredible and I can't wait to get on the field to have a win. But, that will be waiting a bit because my still ain't quite right. My MCL is still a bit off, so I will only be played sparingly this weekend, just to make sure I don't injure it even further. I should be completely fine by next weekend, but this waiting period is awful!!
In international footy news, the International Cup begins in a couple weeks and I am still being courted to play for the US. I have already spoken with the coach about my situation (my finals series happens on the same dates), but they are really persistent. If things work themselves out, I may even be able to get flown to Melbourne to play a few games while still playing for Scarborough in the Finals. Could be a pretty great experience!!!
In work news, my next day will be a week from today and I am not excited. Meerkats has been such a great experience for me and I am dreading to go home to any type of dictatorship company. Every person here has made me feel so welcome to the point that I feel like many of these people are my great friends. What an incredible experience and something that i do not take lightly or for granted. Maybe I can take this business model and replicate it back in the States!!! Would be well worth it because this place has found such an incredible balance of work and play that no company in the States (that I have seen) can match.
Anyways, it's nearly 5 pm and I am ready to go home. I hope everyone has a great weekend and enjoys the warm weather (it's supposed to rain all this weekend here)!!! And please, pray for the people of Wisconsin and their dramas with Brett Favre.
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