Cuba and Me!

At yum cha yesterday, Aussie Christine was talking about her upcoming trip to Cuba and, deeply envious, I said "Lucky you. I've always wanted to see Havana." and she turns to me and says "Why don't you come with me?" and I thought "Whoa! I can't go to Cuba!" ... and immediately something very akin to an explosion in my head goes "Why can't I?" and thus, totally unexpectedly, I hear myself say "OK, I'll do it!"

And that's why I'm going to Cuba next month.

Only it isn't that easy. Aussie Christine booked weeks ago and when I went in yesterday to reserve a place on the same tour there were no places left. However, rather than being despondent about it, I wrote to them and asked if they'd wait-list me ... and I've just got an e-mail saying someone wants to change their dates and they may just have a place available and they'll get back to me when they know for sure ... so it could very well still be happening!

Yayyyy!

Cuba and I go back a long way. In fact, in the Murphy-sense of the word, Cuba is definitely one of "my ghosts".

What I mean by that is, in my family, we all believe words are vitally important and that you must do everything you say you're going to do, and if you don't, those things become "one's personal ghosts" which somehow tangle up in your life and pull you from your true path.

And maybe Cuba was my true path. See, back in 1976, I was invited to visit Cuba as Fiji's representative at an International Youth Conference in Havana and I was so excited about it because it felt so right, and then all the negative-nelly nay-sayers materialised and I had so many grown-ups kept telling me that the whole thing was a hoax and that the Communists intended to kidnap us and sell us as slaves to Angola ... and back then, as a teenager, I didn't yet realise how truly ridiculous most grown-ups truly were and I believed them ... and thus I turned the trip down and Fiji chose Sam to go in my place and, rather than becoming an Angolan slave, he had a truly fabulous time, and so I've always regretted I listened to other people instead of my own instincts.

And over the years, I've met so many people who were at that very conference and, yes, they've all said "Oh, I remember Sam. He was great!" and, in consequence, I've always thought "Since our paths have crossed since, I was meant to meet you back then, which really means I was sooo meant to be there!" ... and so this "ghost" has been hovering over my life for many decades.

So now, if the Universe so decrees it, I will finally go out to confront this "ghost"! I wonder if it will change anything about my life. My mother and I once had a very interesting discussion on this very topic. I had just read Virginia Woolf's "To the Lighthouse" and, because I knew it was one of her favourite books, I told her I had absolutely no idea what the sodding novel was about, and that's when she explained it to me as she saw it:

Have you read "To the Lighthouse"? In it, the Ramsey family keep talking about taking a boat out to see the lighthouse on the horizon, but never get around to it ... and bad things keep happening, like World War I, and they all keep dying off and failing and having their dreams unrealised and they just get sadder and more contemptible, until, finally, 30 years after the trip is first proposed, Professor Ramsey, the only survivor, finally takes the boat out to the lighthouse, and when he steps off onto the island, suddenly everything makes sense to him ... and that's where the books end and we never actually find out what it is that makes sense and it's all very strange and, well, I first thought it was all really quite silly, until mum explained ...

... that if you defer and procrastinate and don't do what you're meant to, well, things go very wrong with your life and you never actually take your true path and yadda yadda yadda!

So Cuba is obviously something I'm meant to do, although, like Professor Ramsey, it's thirty years too late!

Also, you know, if I go to Cuba, you'll go to Cuba because I'll be blogging it and thus you'll know all about the place too ... so please cross your fingers for me.

Yayyyy, Cuba!!!

It's ON Again!!!

Advertising is going up folks! Yesterday, light box posters went up all around HK ...

Fijian Hot Foot Training!

Yes, folks, it's that time of year again.

The Kiwis Sheep Tackle Training.

HONG KONG 7S 2009 APPROACHES!

English Hunting Dog Attack Training.

27RD TO 29TH MARCH
2009

The French Scrum the Grapes Training.

Normally, we have to line up and sleep overnight to get TWO ONLY PER PERSON of HKs share of the tickets - 2000 only of the 40,000 tickets available for each day of competition - but this year they were only available on-line. They only had 7 lines, which opened at 10am, and crashed by 10.07am, such was the rush ...

The Aussies Keg Toss Training.

... and I don't know a single soul who actually managed to score even one.

Hong Kong Pass the Grouper Training.

However David A. says he knows a guy who has a corporate box and since those people and companies who have boxes are permitted to have as many folk as they want to invite, we're all hanging out for invitations. Fingers crossed, huh!!!

Go 7s, Go 7s, Go 7s!!!!!!

No Cuba Trip!

I'm not going to Cuba now. Went in to book the ticket here and found all the places were taken. Am really sad about it.

Will talk about it tomorrow because I'm a little too sad now.

10,000 Steps per Day! For Erin!

Erin, as requested, here's my harsh daily health regime: first I slap on a pedometer and then I keep walking until it says 10,000 steps, then go have a pot of tea somewhere nice.

Where I walk? Well, let me show you some places where I do my brutal daily hike:

It takes me 800 steps from home to here:


And I can usually manage another 1000 just, you know, strolling in this immediate vicinity:


With maybe a short breather here:

Vivien Tam

Before maybe another 1000 on the other side of the way:


Followed up with another 1000 on the floor below:


And then, well, Seibu, the Japanese Department Store, is good for perhaps 4000:

And then there's my final 3000 in Lane Crawford, drooling over the furniture and homewares etc:

And that's my workout for the day! Gosh, just call me a hopeless exercise junkie.

Te Vaka News

Opi's lovely wife Julie has sent us big news that Te Vaka have been nominated for a People's Voice award and need VOTES!!!

The Pacific is a tiny place with only a winsy number of people and so, despite having massive talent, it's difficult for us to get noticed out there in the big wide world ... so please, please, please, go into the site below and VOTE FOR TE VAKA!! They are completely fabulous and really do deserve it.

And to remind you what Te Vaka's all about, I'll download the song again off youtube.

And here's what Julie says:

“Tamahana” from the Tutuki album is a finalist in the USA International Songwriting Competition and up for the “People’s Voice” award.

“Being selected an ISC finalist is an accomplishment that acknowledges true songwriting talent. With only 287 finalists chosen out of over 15,500 entrants, this is an extraordinary achievement.” The “Category” winners and “Overall Grand Prize” winner and the winner of “People’s Voice” will be announced in April. Wouldn’t it be awesome if a band from the South Pacific won one or more of these awards!!! You can help us win the “People’s Voice” by going onto the website and casting your vote every day until the end of March. The link is below.

Finalists are posted on the ISC website at http://www.songwritingcompetition.com/winners.htm

“All finalists' songs and music videos are included in the People's Voice - an online voting contest that allows the public to listen to all the finalists' songs and vote for their favorite one. People's Voice is separate from, and in addition to, the winners selected by ISC's panel of judges. The winner of People's Voice will receive $1,500 in prizes and bragging rights! Be sure to tell all your friends, family, and fans, so that they can vote! Voting will take place from now until March 31, 2009. You can start voting now at” http://www.songwritingcompetition.com/PVWelcome2008.htm