Shenanigans were the order of then day for the first weekend of 2009. Friday night saw an influx of Sydney-siders to the sunny Central Coast… Ben, Gav, Rachel, Juls & Crunch made the pilgrimmage to participate in the delights of the an evening out at Terrigal Pub. I’m not a fan of the nightlife on the Coast but the boys were not disappointed… plenty of barely-legal girls wearing “Gosford” skirts!

Sat night it was my turn for the F3 journey. Cocktails aplenty to celebrate Kat’s b’day as she turned 29b, a golden age. Happy Birthday Kat! Then on to The Burdekin for some dancing with Team James St (which is rapidly turning into my second home!)

Sunday raised the question – is there any better way to pass a beautiful sunny day than kicking back at the SCG, beer in hand, taking in a top-class Test match?

Especially with added face paint…

It’s got to be said, it’s a difficult experience to beat. We chose a great day for it – perfect weather, a Clarke ton, a Johnson half-century AND no security men checking the Platinum seating area in the Trumper Stand! We stayed in our cheap concourse seats most of the day but by late afternoon when it was time to get out of the sun, the migration occurred to the top level of the new stand. Commanding views over the pitch and the city, without the $110 price tag. Perfect!

It’s amazing how the cricket community has taken to Jane McGrath’s legacy. There was pink on display all around the ground. A hot pink leotard was even sported by the only streaker of the day! Not that he got far… security tackled him before he even reached the rope. An unimpressive effort in the end.

Seems a black eye does not always appear immediately. New Year’s Day lulled me into a false sense of security with no visible battle scars from my fight with the clothes stand. But 2nd Jan had a different ideas in mind as a awoke this morning to find a beautiful purple bruise stretching from my cheekbone to my tear duct. Lovely!

I’ve been wondering lately about our compulsion to partake in food and/or beverage on social occasions. Why does meeting with friends necessarily involve the consumption of coffee/lunch/dinner/drinks or any combination of the above? Why can’t we just meet for a chat? I satisfied this social more on two fronts today… coffee with Matt (that turned into a multi-hour chat-fest!) followed by picnic lunch with Kate at Terrigal. Not that I’m complaining. Good food and better company – a great way to pass the day!

As part of a seemingly endless series of New Year’s resolutions, I am embarking upon a new blog project. Last year’s adventures passed largely unrecorded and I am determined that this won’t happen again. Mind you, it is Day 1 and the enthusiasm is still in top gear… let’s see how long it lasts!

What is it about the start of the new year that creates such optimism for change? Why does it seem so much more appealing to make lifestyle adjustments on the 1st Jan rather than 15th July? I guess it’s the clean slate feeling, the knowledge that all the stuff-ups can be attributed to last year. This year it can be different…

So other differences 2009 will hopefully include… greater attention to being on time (a MASSIVE challenge), keeping fit & healthy, planning an amazing 30th celebration and ensuring 2009 is a year where priorities get sorted and I focus on achieving the things in life that are truly important to me. Oh, and making sure I pay NO attention to any losers who happen to cross my path!

The last addition to the resolutions list was added on New Year’s Eve… find a bunch of boys to play backyard cricket & football with! Our early-bird approach to festivities meant that the James St crew and I were hanging out at our park in Birchgrove for many hours… enough time for me to accidentally became involved in my first game of backyard cricket for about 4 years. It was awesome! I’d forgotten my appreciation of leather balls!

A great night was had by all. Music and dancing topped off by fireworks. What’s not to love? The celebration was made even better when Jak called from early morning Canadia to celebrate New Year’s Sydney-style!

The New Year did take a minor turn for the worse when it was only 2 hours old… a random injury from a falling aluminium clothes stand threatened to create a black eye… but looks like it was nothing an ice pack won’t fix.