Self Promotion – Chris Watson Music
Just a note to let everyone know my other blog at Chris Watson Music is finally gaining some attention. I'm getting back into performing again and my (mis-)adventures will be documented over there. Right now I'm in the process of building a set list up, so head on over, check out what I'm up to and share your thoughts.
That's me in the white shirt rocking out.
TAGGED – Eight Random Facts about Wookie
Matt over at Guitar Stuff tagged me in this ongoing run of Eight Random Facts. He is very lucky I saw this with the amount of down time I've had with this site lately. So here we go, Matt asked for it, and now you have to put up with it. Eight random facts about Wookie.
1. I am an absolute cricket and rugby union tragic. A few weeks ago I was in almost orgasmic heaven as the Cricket 20-20 World Cup and the Rugby World Cup were on at the same time. I have also nearly physically injured people around me due to my exaggerated reactions whilst watching these sports.
2. I'm allergic to codeine - I learnt this the hard way. I got home from school and was about to head out to a gig to see my favourite Australian band of all time, Horsehead (don't bother trying to find anything about them online, it's like they don't exist), and I had a monster headache. So I rummaged through the medicine cabinet and found some migraine tablets. I took one, jumped in the car and headed for a mates place. by the time I got there, I was dizzy, clammy, numb and eventually covered in hives. They took me to the hospital and after waiting for two hours to be seen all the symptoms had gone and I was feeling fine. 30 minutes later I was at the gig rocking out.
3. I'm a Sci-Fi nut. I love Star Trek, Heroes, Aliens, 2001, Blade Runner, Asimov, Clarke, and almost any other true sci-fi. Do not say in my presence that Star Wars is science fiction. I will punch you very hard (BTW: Star Wars is a fantasy movie set in space, space does not equal science fiction).
4. When I was a wee child I wanted to be a garbage man.
5. My left leg is significantly larger in diameter than my right leg. i learned this the other day as I was getting my new gym program made up and having my measurements taken. It is from driving using a stick shift.
6. I used to be involved with a site called Sledgehammer of Justice (SOJRadio). We were podcasting before podcasting existed. We talked about wrestling. In fact, some website awarded us with Interview of the Year for our chat with Bret Hart. I left when I realised that just about everyone in the wrestling industry is a wanker.
7. I played in a band called Sledge for several years. We were good. At a New Years Eve gig in Tamworth my girlfriend jumped up on stage for a kiss at midnight and it got broadcast all over the regional television network up close and personal.
8. I'm also allergic to egg white.
So there you go. So in true tradition I'm going to tag a bunch of people. Not all of them are guitar sites but here you go.
Ryan, Phil and Tino over at Offside Sports Weekly - not that there is anything on there site yet the slack bastards.
Stu at YeLPar
BittBox at Bittbox - a great place for Photoshop and Illustrator tips
Petey at Plug Into Amp
Newcastle June Long Weekend Storms
For those that don't know I live in the coastal city of Newcastle, NSW, Australia. Our claim to fame is beautiful wine country in the Hunter Valley, silverchair, an earthquake, a riot at a pub, and coal. Lots of coal. We also have some of the best beaches in Australia. Take Nobby's Beach for instance:
Beautiful isn't it. Well, right now it looks like this:
That's the Pasha Bulker, a rather large coal ship.
Streets that once looked like this:
now look like this:
.
My usual 15 minute drive on a busy day turned into a one hour ordeal as I tried to get home from work. I had already been out at lunch and realised that it was not going to be a great drive home. My usual route was already under water and not passable. I work in the suburb of Lambton, right near the football ground. Instead of normal route which takes me pass the stadium I cut directly across heading to New Lambton trying to avoid low ground. Not far from work I came across my first water crossing, in the middle of suburbia, when the local public swimming pool decided to also take up the neighbouring park and surrounding streets. The ajoining street that I wanted to take is divided, with a high side and a low side. Well, the high side had water over the road, so you can imagine what the low side looked like.
I cut through New Lambton, and as I got to the back end of the suburb I came across my next water crossing. This water managed to get into my car, a Magna stationwagon, about two inches deep. The plan was to cut through the back of Kotara, go up the hill past Blackbutt Reserve, and then come down the hill to my place.
Well the entire area around the Blackbutt Hotel was completely under water. About three foot of it.
I turned around and headed back through New Lambton. In 15 minutes the water had risen another foot and I would think I was very lucky not to get stuck on that water crossing. I went up past the John Hunter Hospital and could not believe the carnage. Trees down all over the road. People who had just abandoned their cars because they were too frightened to drive through. I continued, very cautiously, down to the city bypass and heading down Park Ave.
As I got to the bottom of my street, which is at a very low point on the road, I saw a sight I will never forget. A Nimbus, a large 10 seater Nimbus FLOATING and spinning in a circle with the water current. There were other cars that had already sunk but the site of that white Nimbus, at the end of my street, I can never forget. I turned around and with my Window down in the torrential rain I let the people who were behind me to turn around and not bother. I took a few of the back streets and eventually got home.
About 2am that night we lost power. very little sleep was had as we could feel the whole house groaning under the pressure of the wind. About 4am (I'm guessing), the storm that started at 4pm the afternoon before had finally passed. 12 hours of not stop rain, wind, bouts of hail, all over in an instant. I eventually fell asleep.
Then we woke up to see the whole carnage. Our suburb, Kotara, was hit very hard. Kotara used to be a natural water course, and has several large storm water drains that criss-cross the area. Any property around those water ways has been destroyed. Steel railings bent and snapped by the force of the debris in the water. Mammoth trees snapped like twigs, through homes and power lines and over cars. When the rain started again we realised that a section of our roof, our house, had been ripped up and flung into the yard. It left me, terrified of heights, with the help of my father to pick up the missing tiles and put them back in their place. Driving around the suburb we found power lines down everywhere, trees all over the road, and people cleaning up and helping each other.
What scares me most is that what we experienced was the equivalent of a category 1 cyclone. I cannot begin to comprehend what it must be like to be in something worse, or to live in an area that has such a storm season every year. They are calling this "Black Friday", a once in 30 year event, the worst storm to hit the area since the Sygna . Guess that means I'll probably have to live through one more of these yet.
