..goes before a fall, they say. Have just watched the opening ceremony for the 2006 Commonwealth games on TV. MM, not bad fer a country with a total population of about 20 million.
(nah, just yer ordinary analogue CRT .. though digital widescreen will be all the go in 2010, or so I hear. Legislated, by the Guvmint .. "opening it up fer competition, everybody has the chance to buy all of our TV channels, radio stations, newspapers.. Furreigners, multinationals, anybody ..", or so they say. Mmm, thinks. Bit like expecting Joe Bloggs from the suburbs who runs around the local oval, trained by 'is dad, to compete with elite AIS atheletes in the 400 metre sprint... or the Mum 'n Dad corner delicatessan to compete against Woolworths or Coles/Meyer.)
Bugger it, a proud tear crept inter me eye when I watched th' Melbourne Aussies "do their thing".
Funny buggers, us Aussies. Since the 'official' head of the Commonwealth happened to be present, there was a protocol problem about which, or who's, National Anthem should be played. The dingbats in Melbourne solved it by playing the Australian National Anthem first, then getting a Kiwi (Dame Kiri TiKanawa) to sing 'Happy Birthday' to the great Lady to the tune of 'God save the Queen'.
Oh well, as one of the Bards has said .. 'all's well that ends well.' Heh.
8 comments:
The queen looked like a total putz to me until we got George Dubya Bush in office. Then she started lookin swell. Send those Redcoats back across the Atlantic! Even Prince Charlie or his fine son Harry would be an improvement over Dubya.
Hey, I get to see some Aussie stuff on BBC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT. I watch it to find out what's really going on in the world. That's how I know Queen E was in yer neck of the woods.
If God saves the queen, then we pagans won't have to worry about serving her tea on the other side.
G'day Davo, The games are leaving me a bit cold I'm afraid, I was involved in trying to get tickets fo my sons school group who are at the games as we speak.
This was in the first release over 12 months ago, they,the school, had applied for about $2000 worth of seats, budget priced seats!! they received about $1000 worth, at my sons request both I and his brother in law applied for $1000 worth each, this was after he had learned of the reductions to his application, still 12 months ago though!!!
We got nil, zip, zero, none!!!!
For the last 3 months I have been inundated with emails from the games organizers (read dickheads)
telling me of all the wonderful seats it is their pleasure to offer me, stick 'em where the sun don't shine ya bastards, while I hope the games are a great success for the athletes, and I'm sure they will be, for the organizers my hope is they get exactly what their greedy little minds deserve.
Re the Murray; let's hope we aren't the only two with enough brains to see what a problem this is.
We watched it live here :>)
It was great fun, the "walking on water with the queen's batton" did get us giggling a bit, but a splendid show!
Sounds like Australia will clean up on the medals too :>)
As for the queen PAH! She always just looks like she's thinking
"Have we got away with it still?"
My neighbour was 80 two weeks ago and we had a tea party :>) She truly is a great lady, a Queen in her own right!
Thought the opening was wonderful and loved the Kiwi Gold tonight complete with Haka and the theme from Footrot Flats. There's a special quality to the Commonwealth Games that is absent from the Olympics. Smaller nations get a fairer crack at things and there is a family feel for much that surrounds it. Anyway I'm having a bit of a go at reporting it at The Trad Pat at http://tradpad.blogspot.com
Jeepers, somebody else noticed the Opening .. oops. Yer, the Grand Old Lady looked a bit bored (well, whaddya expect after 80 years of very public office) .. and everybody who is not a weired, offbeat, manic depressive still can't figure out what the 'boy with the duck' was about. (Leunig)
Pesonally fell orf me chair with the 'bike and body' ballet. They should have made more of it.
Loved the bit about the possum cloaks .. more pesky Aussie possums in NZ than here.heh heh.
The 'Commonwealth of Nations' is still a peculiar notion, and long may it last.
(it will, of course, begin to disintegrate after the glue of the Old Lady fractures, like bakelite, over time. Charles never had a chance, Harry is a hoon, William may be able; but an unknown.)
The yanks, with their 4 yr fervour fer presidential change, will never understand.
Peter, thanks for some of the details. Am in another State, and only really caught the "spectacular" as transmitted (and selectively) chosen by the local commercial TV station.
Can remember saying to my ladyfriend 'shit, wish I was sitting somewhere in that stadium, watching that speccy without the close-ups and commentary."
Drily, she replied. "If wishes were horses, beggars could ride."
Mama D.. ah, "walking on water' .. interesting trick, you obviously noticed that his feet were six inches under the surface .. heh heh.
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