360°

I went to see the U2 360° tour!!!

I've been a fan of U2 since I was in high school. I was never big on music when I was young, but U2 was one of the first bands that I began listening to late in high school, helping me to develop an interest in music generally. I still remember that their album "All That You Can't Leave Behind" was one of the first I ever bought.

People may complain that they're too political or that they've got problems with Bono, but I still like their music. It's strange hearing people criticise them, often the criticisms seem to have nothing to do with their music and performances, but more to do with "who" they are.

None of this was going to stop me enjoying my first ever U2 concert though. This was the 360° tour as well! I had wanted to see this since I had first seen the incredible circular stage set up.

The opening act was not to be ignored either! It was Jay-Z!!!

It seemed like a strange opening act. A hip hop artist doesn't really come to mind as a natural opening act for U2, but I wasn't complaining.

Jay-Z was fantastic and the crowd definitely appreciated what they were hearing.

Seeing him live wasn't something I had ever expected I would experience, so hearing him rapping out "99 Problems" and "Empire State of Mind" seemed almost surreal.

Andy in particular enjoyed Empire State of Mind. He's heading to New York next year on secondment, so this song game him more than enough opportunity to gloat to the rest of us.
As great as it was hearing Jay Z and showing him our "diamonds", he was still just an opener. It's amazing to think that U2 is so massive that someone as famous and talented as Jay Z is willingly reduced to being a warm up act (though a very fine warm up act he was).

Still, not everyone was as keen as the boys and I were to see Jay Z and the stadium crowd reflected this. There were a lot of people, but most people were still filtering in as Jay Z finished up.

The clock on the stage began to slowly countdown.

At "midnight" the clock began to break apart.
The song "Space Oddity" by David Bowie began to play as the stadium erupted!

U2 began their slow march towards the stage, with smoke filling the ground like four astronauts approaching the launching pad.
It didn't take long for the stadium to erupt again as they began playing "Beautiful Day"!
Seeing this concert live was more than I could have hoped for. It is a true sensual immersion as you find it difficult to work out where exactly to look.

The cylindrical screen they use is also something special.

During the performance, it began to open out like a concertina.
The screen became more than just a place to watch the video, as it transformed into a light show that filled the entire stadium with colour.
The screen then changed again, to float images only slightly off the stage.
I was amazed by the set list that U2 had chosen as well. The concert seemed to keep going and going (in a good way). I later found out that they played 24 songs! If nothing else, they definitely gave value for money.
It was also great to see them playing some of their classics. Songs like "Sunday Bloody Sunday" being played to the stage being illuminated in Irish green were very inspiring.
As the night wore on, it seemed as though they were done and the band did a few bows and the lights went out.

Some people began to filter out of the stadium, but then the stage began to glow an eerie red.
The band reappeared on stage, with Bono decked out in leather jacket covered in red lasers.
The lights slowly began to change from the red to blue as Bono asked the audience to turn on their mobile phones.
Combined with the lights shining off the mirror balls, the entire stadium began to glow.
The crowd looked like a moving sea of lights as the band sang "With or Without You".
It was hard to not be awe struck.

This band has been around for so long, and yet they still seem more than capable of capturing the imagination of audiences everywhere. It was definitely an experience to be remembered.

A Melbourne wedding

There's been a lot of running about lately.

A week before I went to the Gold Coast, I actually found my way down to Melbourne for the wedding of one of my old friends from high school.

Melbourne is a nice city. But this was the first time I had been in Melbourne during the summer in at least 15 years. I was confronted with the unhappy fact that I seem to be allergic to the city. From the moment I landed in Melbourne, I felt congested and my eyes watered. It took me back to my childhood days as one of those kids who was constantly suffering from allergies. Ahhh, sweet memories....

This trip had a very specific purpose though. The wedding.

Amazingly, I was late (an annoying re-occurrence recently). I found myself rushing to the church in a taxi, looking anxiously at my watch as the minute hand past the time that the ceremony was meant to start.

I jumped out of the cab (as best I could with my knee in its recovering state) and rushed (again, as best as I could) towards the the front door of the church.

It then dawned on me that I had no idea whether I was at the right location.....

.... luckily for me, right in front of the church, there was a nice big sign that this was the right wedding.

My friend Steve had chosen two Combi vans as his mode of transportation for the wedding.

Clearly the "white wedding" hadn't diminished his sense of humour. Taking this cue, I quietly slipped into the church and sat at the back to watch the wedding.

It was a lovely wedding too. Done in a combination of English and Vietnamese, so I was at least able to understand half of it.

As the formal part of the ceremony came to a close, everyone could suddenly hear the noise of a band play up. Out of no where, the band appeared and began playing the song "Sexual Healing" to lead out the bridal party.

The bride and groom looked happy. The parents looked happy. The family and friends. It was hard to find a fault at all? Then again, why would you want to?
Everyone retired for a few hours before the reception. I headed to a quiet pub with some friends before making my way towards the reception location.

Of course, my habits were continuing though, and I managed to get us lost. We arrived at the reception as the last guests.

It was a big wedding. There would have been close to 400 guests.

I found my seat with my friends and began to have a great time. I even managed to eat two dinners since there was a spare seat at my table (something that one would assume I should have grown out of doing by now... but hey, I'm not going to turn down extra lobster).

As the night progressed, the true entertainment started. The bride and groom, slowly approached the dance floor and began their first dance as husband and wife.

They danced slowly and lovingly.

And then as their dancing came to a close, a rush of people literally charged to the stage.

About thirty of their closest friends had been rehearsing with them for a choreographed dance that they put on for everyone!

It was fantastic seeing them all dancing along in step and livening up the entire event. As their dance finished, they all rushed into the crowd and dragged people onto the dance floor.

I stood on the sides and took my photos and then annoying, I slowly made my way back to my seat with a knee that was screaming at me for having been standing for far too long.

It's a waterfall!

Looking at this waterfall on my trip to the Gold Coast made me ponder something.

How many times has it actually been that I've seen a waterfall?

Seriously.

I think that this is only the third or fourth time at the most in my entire life that I have actually stood looking at a waterfall.

Simple natural sights like waterfalls are ignored and dismissed as being common occurrences. And yet it's so rare that we can actually see and appreciate them.

Totally unexpected

The Gold Coast definitely has a reputation.

And it's a not a good one.

The Gold Coast has the reputation of being a bit plastic and a bit trashy. It's where tourists congregate and it's where the annual event "Schoolies" is held for the kids finishing high school.

I was definitely surprised to find that to my horror.... I quite liked the Gold Coast!

Now don't misunderstand me, there are definitely parts of the Gold Coast that are incredibly trashy and tacky. However, these areas appeared to be relatively localised to the area of the Gold Coast known as "Surfer's Paradise".

The rest of the Gold Coast was quite pleasant.

It was green, leafy and had the benefits of the lovely warm climate.

Add to this the generally friendly nature of Queenslanders compared to their Southern counterparts, and I was beginning to understand the attraction of this region to many of the Victorians who were migrating North to flee the cold.

I was also surprised by the wide range of terrain that was on offer in the Gold Coast region.
The thoughts of the Gold Coast usually begin and end with the beaches. This was definitely not the case, as a mere half an hour drive from the beach was enough for me to be wandering through chilly, mist covered mountains.
It really is a very nice place.

And yet I still can't shake the lingering feelings that this isn't something I should be widely sharing....

The Gold Coast

It had been more than 20 years since I had been to the Gold Coast.

However, with my friends from overseas visiting their parents, it was as good as any time for me to do some visiting of my own.

One of the first things I did with them was to climb the Q1 tower, the tallest (for now) residential tower in Australia.

I'd be lying if I said it didn't give some fantastic views of the surrounds.
But I would also be lying if I didn't say that $21 for an elevator ride seems more than a bit steep.
Still.... while I won't be racing up that tower anytime soon, it was still nice to get a glimpse of the Gold Coast in all its glory.

Festival of lights

I was visiting some friends who were in Oz from overseas. I always enjoy catching up with them, even if it does leave me a bit nostalgic for younger days when we all used to live in the same city. I'm still young, but I'm definitely feeling the days and the weeks moving past me at an ever increasing rate.

My visiting friend is Jewish and I was staying with her and her family.

As part of her culture, she celebrates "Hannukah" or the festival of lights.

The intricate details and reasons behind this holiday are a mystery to me, but I enjoyed being able to view the simple and beautiful act of the family lighting the candles for the menorah whilst quietly singing.

The image of the metal menorah being slowly filled with the lights is almost entrancing, my eyes being drawn the the flames.

Hilarious....

At the end of every football season, it is traditional for there to be a black tie formal event called a "Presentation Night".

This evening brings the season to a close and provides an opportunity for all the players to celebrate the achievements of the year.

It also gives the club an opportunity to celebrate some of the other things that happen during the year....

This year, it was my turn to be one of the "other things".

I was still on a crutch at the time, and I found myself in a room full of footy players being presented with the award for the most physio used all season.....

.... basically I was given the award for being the most injured player of the season....

It's good to know the guys care.

Post Op (Week 7)

Who says hard work doesn't pay off?

I now have FULL RANGE OF MOTION!

This is a goal that is set for the third month of rehab. I have reached it in under 2 months!

It hasn't been easy.

I now find myself involuntarily waking up at around 6am every morning, my body anticipating the next round of exercises that I need to subject my body to.

The stiffness in the knee is slowly disappearing, but it's still a struggle to get the initial movements going.

It's time to move myself to the next phase of my recovery and begin my gym work.

My next goal is to be running in a month.

Post Op (Week 5)

My exercise regime has changed as I am now able to do significantly more in terms of strengthening exercises.

I have increased the resistance on the exercise bike and my floor exercises now include hamstring curls and tensing of my knee at a 90 degree angle.

I'm also pretty much completely weened off the crutch now as well. However, for my own safety, I continue to carry the crutch when I go outside and when I use public transport getting to and from work. I just find having the crutch ensures that I get a seat on the bus and that people know to give me space!

Looking at my scars, they're not too bad either.

It's pretty amazing looking at these scars compared to the enormous damage the surgery used to do only 10 years ago.

Escape attempt!

It was just a normal Saturday night.

I was being lame and studying in my room and my housemate Andy was half asleep on the couch watching a movie.

A pretty pointless and boring night for everyone involved.

.... nothing was happening. Sitting quietly in my room reading journal articles....

A concerned cry from Andy changed that.

"Ummmm, Paul.... we may have a serious problem...."

I rushed out of my room to see a noticeably agitated Andy rummaging through the enclosure of our pet snake Heidi.

It seemed as though Heidi had escaped.

A 3 metre long centralian carpet python had escaped and was loose in the apartment!!!!

Now, this isn't exactly the thing you want to hear when your evening is drawing to a close and you're thinking about going to sleep.

"What the f*** do you mean a serious problem!?!?" I politely enquired.

"I don't f***ing know where she is!!!!" Andy courteously responded.

"Check the f***ing enclosure!!!!" I ventured.

"I can't f***ing find her!!!!" was Andy's retort.

Heidi was not in her enclosure.

We started trying to think like a snake. Where would a snake go?

I ran into the kitchen and tried to search behind the fridge, thinking that she would be drawn to the heat. Sadly not.

Andy rushed into the living room and began lifting the couches. No dice.

I started wandering to the other side of the apartment. I turned the corner and opened the door to the bathroom.

Immediately before me was Heidi.

Two metres and she would have been out the window.

Thankfully, we had probably found her ten minutes before she made her way out of the window into the apartment of one of our neighbours.....

It's going to be a while before Heidi gets outside privileges again!

Post Op (4 weeks)

Four weeks in.

I'm back in Sydney and continuing my rehabilitation.

Things are going very well too.

I'm already able to full weight bear on the leg.

My range of motion is only 1 degree away from being fully straight and I can bend to 127 degrees.

The physios have placed me in the top 10% of recoveries so I'm very happy.

It hasn't been easy getting to this point though. Hard work and diligence have become my mantras.

Every morning, I wake up early, exercise then go to work. I go to the physio during the day. I get back from work and exercise. I exercise just before I go to sleep.

Eight more months.

Post Op (2 weeks)

I'm finally out of the bandages.

The stitches are also out.

I now have in place of the bandages a rather fetching legging.

Most importantly of all, I am now able to have a shower unimpeded by the giant brace on my leg (which I am allowed to take off at certain times).
I was absolutely gobsmacked by how much my left leg has shrunk when the bandages were taken off. It was as though it had halved in comparison to my right leg.

I've also kicked off my physio and personal exercise regime.

Physio, three times a week.

Exercises, four times a day.

Slowly, slowly, slowly....

Post Op (Day 6)

Did I mention how annoying this whole knee reconstruction has been?

It's starting to drive me batty. I need to keep my bandages and brace on for another week and I think I'm going to lose it well before then.

My knee has been aching slightly, but more than anything it just feels stiff. I think the first few physio sessions I go to are going to be nice and painful.

However, I would gladly take on that pain to be rid of the encumbrance on my leg.

Even the simple act of having a shower has become a chore as it requires me to bag up my leg to waterproof the brace and bandages.
One more week. I just need to console myself with that fact.

One more very annoying week.

Post Op (Day 4)

I was out of hospital and being well looked after by my parents.

The lack of pain had been a real surprise. I was clearly immobile as a result of the operation and definitely feeling tired and lethargic from the process, but on the whole it wasn't too bad. I had purposely built the whole thing up in my mind as part of a coping mechanism to ensure that what I did actually experience was nowhere near what I would actually face. The thoughts of "worst pain I had ever experienced" that echoed in my head from what I had read in other accounts wasn't even close to being true. In all honesty, this isn't even in my top ten for the worst pain I've experienced. It's a mild annoyance.

In fact, I've even stopped taking my pain medication. I simply don't need it. There is a mild irritation in my knee, but nothing that is worthy of the requirement for pain medication. Additionally, there's something very disconcerting about being on pain medication. It makes me feel a bit lost and distant. Being able to press the morphine button was one thing, but I felt a strange and uncomfortable sense of detachment when I was taking the other pain meds. I'm glad to be rid of them.

The worst feeling I had to date is still the throat though. This was something that I wasn't expecting (or even aware of) and yet everyone who has gone under general anesthetic seemed to be an after the fact expert. Apparently, when they intubate you, the tubes the push down your throat can irritate the throat. It's been 4 days and my throat still hurts like hell. No amount of ice blocks of lozenges has helped. The one thing that has, is not talking... wonderful.

Mobility is improving as well. I'm up and about without too many issues and bouncing around on my crutches.
As you can see, I have a pretty hefty set of bandages and a nice big brace preventing me from moving too quickly though. I can "partial weight bear" but generally I prefer doing the long hop motion. It gets me around quicker (and I feel myself getting increasingly impatient).

It's all just so annoying. This entire process. Annoying is the adjective that describes it completely.

Post Op (1-2 days)

Annoying and uncomfortable. Those are the best words to describe the feeling of the recovery.

It doesn't hurt that badly, but it's annoying not having my mobility.

I was always very upset when the nurses took away my morphine button. I had become quite attached to the button.

Sitting in bed, I was becoming increasingly bored. The CPM machine did its job and kept my leg moving, but besides that there wasn't too much too do.

The food came around and brought back memories of boarding school.

It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great. Nothing to complain about.
I had started wandering around on my crutches as well.

This whole process of recovery was clearly going to be time consuming and frustrating, but thankfully it looked like there would be no major issues with pain.

Post Op

Was it that bad?

I don't think it was.

Or maybe it's just the painkillers that are coursing through my veins, making everything seem so much better than it is.

Either way, the last thing I remember is being hooked up to some needles and then the next thing I remember was waking up in the recovery ward.

The nurses were nice and gave me a drink and an ice block.

I couldn't feel anything in my leg. Nothing at all. The femoral block that had been administered to manage my pain had clearly done its job.

Laying in bed with the tubes sticking out of me and the slow whir of the CPM machine ensuring that my leg was moving and not stiffening, I was overwhelmed by a wave of fatigue.
The lack of sleep from the night before was clearly catching up with me.

I groped around to my side and found the painkillers button. I pressed it and allowed myself to float off to sleep.

Pre Op

I hate waking up early. I always have and I always will. I'm much more of a night person.

The day of the surgery was upon me and I had to wake up at 5:00am to get to the hospital nice and early to check in.

Andy very nicely woke up and drove me in.

It was strange to not feel nervous. I was just relieved that I was finally able to get this done. I had been waiting a long time for this. I had been over 4 months since the injury so it had definitely been a long time coming.

After I was checked into my room, I sat silently waiting for the nurse until I got bored and decided to wander around and take a few photos.

Soon enough, the nurse came back and began to prep me.

She shaved my knee and I washed my leg in an antiseptic soap. Once I had done that, my leg was coated in betadine and I was wheeled towards the operating theater.

It felt strange being wheeled through the halls, the lights passing as I rolled along.

As I lay in the operating theater, I felt the needle of the anesthetist enter my arm. The doctor placed an oxygen over my face.... and then I was out cold.

Very very loud

I never expected to be here.

I have always appreciated music, but I have never been a dedicated or passionate fan as others are.

So it was more than surprising for me to be at a Metallica concert.

This band conjures up such passion amongst its true followers that I felt almost like a heretic at a religious event. Seeing the adulation and the adoration of the fans towards the hallowed stage, I was a distant observer.

It probably didn't help that I only have knowledge of a few of Metallica's most famous songs.

So as the others around me sang word for word what I found to be at times to be lyrics that were impossible to decipher through the volume of the music, I was forced to smile and soak up the atmosphere.
None of this prevented me from enjoying myself.

I have always been one to appreciate the spectacle, and this was well and truly a spectacle.

Metallica have finely tuned their performance abilities and it was amazing to see the precision of the show. The songs were well chosen, the effects impressive, and the choreographed movements around the stage perfect to ensure that no part of the arena felt neglected.
A few pyrotechnics also helped to keep me nicely enthralled.
As the night came to an end, it was great seeing the band hamming it up. They engaged the crowd and they even provided additional fun with a Metallica beach ball drop.

Standing in the crowd, it looked as though there were dozens of droplets of oil dancing and bouncing around in a surreal sea of people.

Damn it was loud though.... my ears are still ringing.