Mark O’Meara: the blog

run_fatboy_run_xl_01–film-B by ericyealland

I try to support Nicky in the things that she wants to do. Now and then I have even managed to watch The Fattest Loser with her for almost three minutes without being caustic. Perhaps this example doesn’t make my point very clearly at all.

Anyhow she has signed us up for three organised walks which I think it quite a good idea. Despite my natural awkwardness I can walk as well as anyone and quite enjoy a decent sized stroll. Two of these runs involve sponsorship and so I thought I’d ask you, my five gentle, witty and clearly handsome-as-hell readers so sponsor us for perhaps two, five or ten dollars.

I’ll be the first to admit that you’ll get nothing back for your money. However you’d make me feel good because I not only went on a long walk because Nicky wanted to but I also got some of readers to cough up a couple of bucks. I’m not asking for a lung here people.

Run Melbourne - sponsorship page
MS Walk and Fun Run - sponsorship page

Lesson for the day - it doesn’t hurt to ask (and it wouldn’t kill you characters to give either)

Taoist Tai Chi Demonstration by Taoist Tai Chi Belgium

Nicky tipped me off that there was a free introductory Tai Chi class running tonight just around the corner from here. Our council, bless their cotton socks, put out a flyer called Active in April and it was in there.

So I neglected my family responsibilities and off I went. As you would expect I felt terribly self conscious, utterly clumsy and quite a lot like it would be nice to simply flee the scene. I was the only new person there (it turns out it was more a “beginners are welcome” than “beginners class”) but they talked me though and showed me some basic moves and I quite enjoyed it. I also felt more calm. I also felt like this might be a way for me to become more aware of how I move and what my various parts are doing, If only for a few minutes while I think hard and try to be relaxed.

I don’t know for sure that I’ll go back to classes there but I well might. I’ll certainly be giving that DVD and its exercises a good try and I’ll see how I take to that.

Lesson for the day - you never know what will work for you until you try stuff.

Good Teacher, Bad Teacher by isthemessage.com

I only teach two sessions today but today I managed to be the teacher I would like to be. I wasn’t anything amazing but I did what I do reasonable well and that’s a nice feeling.

Lesson for the day - take your smiley stamps where you find them.

Rock Slab Growing at Mt. St. Helens Volcano by guano

I think I might give my Geography classes the chance to write a treatment for a volcano disaster flick. I am sure I’ll need to provide them with pretty clear instructions and plenty of structure but, right now anyway, it seems like an interesting idea.

Lesson for the day - there has to be another angle.

A Scanner Darkly Wallpaper 1024 x 768 by Politicamente Incorrecto

Mirrors on one thing. They tell me that I am bald and round but they also make it easier for me to shave, cut my hair and tell if I have some red on me.

Seeing yourself through other people can be an entirely different experience. It can be really confronting at times and it is always, always fraught with difficulties. By the time you see something of them and something of you all through the added filter of what you expect or fear it’s damn near impossible to get anything accurate or useful from the experience.

Lesson for the day - don’t be so sure you know what other people are thinking about you.

Graceland by MartinJames

I am not really your self improvement type. I don’t think I have a particularly inflated sense of my own qualities and skills. I guess I just do fairly easy on myself. I have a stable relationship, lovely kids, a steady job, friends I like and a reasonable proportion of people seem to find me capable and bearable.

All the same there are a couple of things that I’d like to improve.

The first of these is that I would like to be more calm. I feel like I am quick to anger when it comes to the crunch (from the little I know of the crunch) and that isn’t helpful for me or pleasant for other people. Other people face the crunch in a calm fashion and I’d like to as well.

The second thing is that I’d like to be more physically graceful. There is little charm or benefit in being this wooden. Part of me thinks that you are either born with grace or you are not. However the more sensible part of me knows damn well that most things can be learned if you make the time and effort.

There are no silver bullets but there are useful first steps. So today I bought myself a $14 Tai Chi DVD. I am sure that I’ll feel like a prat for a while as I stand in front of the telly being all clumsy. But if I stick with it I might just be a couple of steps closer to being a little more calm and perhaps even a little, just a little, graceful.

Lesson for the day - it is better to try the slightly likely than nothing at all.

No Country for Old Men Ed Tom Bell by dustinmew

I think that the book of No Country For Old Men is one of the best things I have read in a long time. The story is nothing special but the writing and the telling are excellent. And I really like most of the Coen Brothers work so I was really looking forward to this film.

And then I found myself a little disappointed. This is obviously a really well made film and there is heaps to like and admire. The tension is intense, the casting superb and the look and landscape spot on. But compared to the book, which has such character and timing, it felt rushed and superficial. Scenes just raced by and I wished for a much longer film that gave an idea of the patience and care of these men. I probably need to come back and watch it in twelve months once my memory of the book has faded a bit.

Lesson for the day - if you must read the book first it’s probably better to leave a decent gap before you see the film.

Death Proof by pedrotbm

I really liked Reservoir Dogs. It was not a film I expected to like but once I’d seen it it became one of my all time favourites. Equally Pulp Fiction was three hours of bloody good fun. Jackie Brown as a step sideways in terms of genre and while I appreciated that it was well done I didn’t cherish it as such. Likewise the Kill Bill films had their moments but I don’t feel the same affection for them that I do for Tarantino’s earlier works.

With all of this in mind I was interested in seeing the Tarantino/Rodriguez double bill Grindhouse but obviously not interested enough to get off my bum and see it at the cinema. The films have been separated and an extended version of each is now out on DVD. I thought about buying them ex-rental last week for $13 a pop but figured it might be better to hire given that they were an unknown quantity.

All of which is how I came to hire, watch and really bloody enjoy Death Proof. The dialogue and tension are vintage Tarantino. Although set in the current day the look is overtly seventies and the fake film damage (scratched, jumps and pops) narrowly avoid being annoying and add some charm. As you might have guessed I really enjoyed it and will certainly be blowing $13 of my pocket money on it when I see an ex-rental copy again.

Lesson for the day - retro is back.

Fishies by Mil

When we filled our fish tanks we used a cleanish bucket. As far as anything stays clean around here especially in the age when a boy is obsessed with making Wombat Stew.

However it wasn’t until Joanna told us you should use a clean and new bucket that we thought about all the things that bucket has been used for. It would have had all manner of cleaning products in there as I use it to move grey water around and clean the bathrooms. With that in mind it is possible that all this fish water has been tainted by some quite toxic chemicals.

With this in mind Nicky bought two new buckets and last night we did a complete water change. The fish still have these bloody white spots but we are pretty sure that, aside from the green colour of their medicine, the water is as clean as can be.

All fingers and fins are now crossed.

Lesson for the day - it pays to consider history when using household objects.

Western Heights North Entrance by www.doverpast.co.uk

I went back to work yesterday. I wasn’t fully better but then I wasn’t fully sick either. Mainly I went because I couldn’t be bothered to get a medical certificate and I suspected I’d need one of those to stay away any longer.

It was probably a bit soon but I don’t think that I did any major damage to anyone while I was there.

Lesson for the day - sometimes there are no great answers.