2018 in review - personal.

As I continue my series on 2018, I felt I should share were I am up to. I am back in Hospital due to another infection. I was admitted last Wednesday, and at this stage hopeful of going home tomorrow. I obviously don't want to rush getting home because I don't want to be readmitted.

It has been tough. I certainly miss Fi and the kids while I am in hospital. It's been tough. Particularly seeing as I have lost count of my admissions into hospital since the end of August. We're doing what we can to keep me from coming back into hospital but it has been a tough road. 

As I’ve said before the journey is made easier by the wonderful people who have been looking after me, be it in the Emergency Department, Intensive Care Unit or the Wards and other services. They all have a tough gig, but you wouldn’t know it, because they don’t show it. 

Again, I am thankful for the loving God who not only has the whole world in His hands but is holding me together. Holding me together until the day all of creation is restored and renewed.

I’m thankful for your continued faithful prayer, it means the world. 

I am thankful for the gift God has given me in Fiona. I am constantly amazed by her strength and how she holds herself together. 

I am thankful for James – who has made it his personal mission to ensure that whenever I am in hospital, I have the internet to help keep me entertained and out of trouble. We have had coffee every two weeks (on average) since I was diagnosed with cancer. I cannot say how thankful I am to God for that. I’m also super thankful to the wonderful people who have looked after Fiona or the kids so Fiona could visit. Thank you Joel and Elaine, I just can't put into words how much your friendship means to me, especially as you walk your own roads too. 

I’ve started on a new drug with a new timetable which at least until this point I seem to have tolerated well, though do pray for its effectiveness and that I manage my disease and its symptoms better. At this stage we are up in the air as to when that will start again.

Sporting shorts

I'm going to briefly interrupt my best of 2018 series with some notes on the weekend's sport.

• Australia bounced back as expected from their close loss in Adelaide to put themselves in the box seat to win the second test inspite of a wonderful innings from Virat Kohli. Who I have to admit has done himself and India no favours in how he responded to his first innings dismissal. during the Perth test. It's been fabulous Cricket to watch, but I just don't see another twist in the tale. 
• The test has shown what a great bowler Lyon is. 
• Across the ditch, a wonderful few days for New Zealand Cricket. Williamson's star continues to rise. You get the feeling more fuss would be made about him if he was from another country. Read this piece here. 
• Latham was brilliant - his undefeated 264 the highest score by a player carrying their bat through a completed test innings and the highest score by any player during 2018. 
• The Champions League draw sees - Manchester Unitied v PSG; Roma v Porto, Tottenham v Dortmund; Ajax v Real Madrid; Lyon v Barcelona; Liverpool v Bayern; Athletico Madrid v Juventus; and Schakle v Manchester City. My predictions for what they are worth are in bold.  
• This week will also see the start of the Big Bash which I can't say I've ever really got excited about. 

I'll certainly write more about the year in sport later. 

2018 in review - a beginning

Given its now the 17th of December, I thought it is about time to start my year in review series.  I'm going to begin with books.

Surprisingly I exceeded my goal for reading this year and read just over 30 books for the year. I’ve read quite a few heavy and challenging books which has made it tough going in places through the year. 

So of the books that I did read the three that stood out to me are Leigh Sales Any Ordinary Day, Clementime Ford’s Boys Will be Boys, and Lizzie Marvelly’s Growing up F in Aotearoa.

As always there were a few that were tough to leave out Kon Karapanagiotidis The Power of Hope, Rob Bower’s Outspoken, and Rachel Held Evans book Inspired.

Each of these books has challenged me in different ways. Leigh Sales book was particularly good given I could relate to closely to the content, as I’m living a similar experience to her interviewees.

Boys will be boys really struck me, and was quite a tough read, especially the letter to her son that concludes the book. Her letter struck me as it contains so much of what I want to tell my son, and how I want him to grow up.

While Lizzie’s book is predominantly about growing up in Aotearoa (New Zealand), sadly it is hard to doubt women growing up in Australia have a different experience.

I share Kon and Rob’s visions for Australia so their books were also challenging reads. I will certainly be trying to reread their book, and want to work at seeing their vision be achieved. Rob’s book was particularly hard hitting, because the church he leads, is the church I want to be part of.

On my reading list – Hard Choices (Hilary Clinton), Pete Sampras’ autobiography, a collection of letters written to former US President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s memoir (Becoming).

Bon Jovi review

Bon Jovi were one of the very first shows I went to - memorable for all the wrong reasons - it was a hot humid day which finished with a hailstorm. Bon Jovi cut their set short. The show is in support of the album These Days. (Still actually on of their best albums in my view).

The nerd in me want to record the setlist from that concert too:

Bon Jovi - Eastern Creek Raceway, November 18, 1995

Rockin' All Over the World (John Fogerty cover) / Hey God / Livin' on a Prayer / You Give Love a Bad Name / Keep the Faith / These Days / (It's Hard) Letting You Go / Lie to Me / Someday I'll Be Saturday Night /  Something for the Pain / Because the Night (Patti Smith Group cover) / Damned / If Loving You Is Wrong, I Don't Want To Be Right / Blaze of Glory (Jon Bon Jovi song) / Lay Your Hands on Me / I'll Sleep When I'm Dead (with Papa Was A Rolling Stone… more ) / 
Bad Medicine / With a Little Help From My Friends (The Beatles cover) / Never Say Goodbye / Always (additional lyrics) / Wanted Dead or Alive / Blood on Blood / This Ain't a Love Song

I certainly wouldn't recommend going to Eastern Creek for a concert.  These Days still is up there as one of my favourite Bon Jovi albums. 

I think Bon Jovi may have toured Australia twice since 1995, but this was the first time I managed to go., here's the set-list for the weekend's show via Setlist.fm.

Bon Jovi, Sydney, ANZ Stadium Dec 8, 2018

You Give Love a Bad Name / Raise Your Hands / Lost Highway / Who Says You Can't Go Home / This House Is Not for Sale / Roller Coaster / We Weren't Born to Follow / We Don't Run / It's My Life / God Bless This Mess / Born to Be My Baby / Have a Nice Day / Keep the Faith / Bed of Roses / Lay Your Hands on Me / I'll Sleep When I'm Dead / Captain Crash & the Beauty Queen From Mars / Livin' on a Prayer / 
Encore: Bad Medicine / Wanted Dead or Alive / I'll Be There for You / 
Encore 2: Blood on Blood / Someday I'll Be Saturday Night

They both were wonderful shows. I have to admit it Saturday night had more of a greatest hits tour rather than a tour promoting/supporting their latest album This House is Not For Sale. As an aside I've really enjoyed listening to live recording of This House is Not For Sale.

While I think its fair to say the songs still sound amazing. The noise of the crowd and band during Livin' on a Prayer was amazing Jon Bon Jovi's voice perhaps isn't is good as it once was. Though it might well have been the sound mix (and stadium).

The highlights of the night for me where Livin' on a Prayer, Bed of Roses, I'll Be There For You and Blood on Blood. The band certainly played many of my favourite songs.

Funnily enough the lyrics of Blood on Blood don't sit as well with me now.  The idea of paying for sex equated with coming of age.

I was slightly saddened by the fact they didn't play much of This House is Not for Sale,

I miss Richie Sambora who was involved in a lot of their earlier song-writing.  Can't for the life of me think why, but I hadn't heard as much of their music between These Days and 'This House..''. 

Sporting shorts

It's been interesting looking at the cricket - still India's test to lose, but Australia have been chasing the runs. Much rather this than a block-a-thon. Shame the crowd hasn't been the best.

The other Cricket story is NZ's first win against Pakistan outside New Zealand in almost 50 years. Williamson was super impressive, he might not be as good a player as Smith, Root, or Kohli, but he's certainly as important to the New Zealand team as any of those. His 228 aggregate in the match is the most by a NZ player against Pakistan. NZ had a number of contributions from across the team.

Shah during the test became the fastest man to 200 test wickets. Breaking an 82 year old record in the process. Shah also has taken the most wickets in a three match series (29).

NZ's next assignment is a home series against Sri Lanka beginning on 15th December

The World Cup Drawer happened over the weekend and Australia's Matildas have drawn, Italy, Jamaica and Brazil. (Full draw and reaction here). NZ's draw was Canada, Cameroon, and European champions the Netherlands.

On the stadiums, still seems strange that we are talking about knocking down both the Sydney Football Stadium and Olympic Stadium, both of which are fully functional stadiums. I'm not a fan of their locations, but they still seem fit-for-purpose.

Sporting shorts...

• So, onto European Soccer and the Champions League – so far the teams who have qualified of the second round are: Ajax, Atlético Madrid, Barcelona*, Bayern München, Borussia Dortmund, Juventus, Manchester City, Manchester United, Porto*, Real Madrid*, Roma, Schalke. (* denotes as group winner). Other contenders are Inter Milan, Liverpool, Lyon, Napoli, Paris Saint-Germain, Shakhtar Donetsk, Tottenham Hotspur.
• The third placed team in each group qualifies for the phase of the Europa League currently Benfica, Club Brugge, Valencia will qualify and with a chance to join them are; CSKA Moskva, Crvena zvezda, Galatasaray, Hoffenheim, Lokomotiv Moskva, Viktoria Plzeň.
• Arsenal had a good win against Spurs this morning – one of the few times in recent memory they’ve managed to win the derby.  I guess that’s what often happens when you are an outsider supporting a team, the love-hate relationships don’t have the same intensity as they would if you live in London. I have a soft spot for Tottenham, possibly because they’re not one of the perennial favourites for the championship.
• Next week will see the draw completed for the World Cup – and the Matilda’s will possibly find themselves in Pot A, amongst the top seeds for the tournament.  Still on Soccer – the NZ U17 All Whites (Women’s) team became the first NZ team to finish with a media at a World Cup after they beat Canada 2-1 in the play-off for third. Quite an awesome achievement.
• While I think the Bronco’s have made the right call regarding Wayne Bennett, I hope the SMH article is not true and he wasn’t sacked via voicemail. He certainly deserved better than that, whatever he's decided to do. I have to admit I can't follow the coaching merry-go-round. 
• The other biggish sports story is the start of the Australia v India Test series in Cricket. I feel it might just be closer than expected with some one unexpected to start, along with Starc (who is my pick for top wicket-taker for the series. Kohli, will be the top run scorer. And I’m predicting a drawn series. But it will be nice to see some cricket take centre stage rather than talk about how Australia play and the ball tampering from earlier in the year