No title??? Is that Apropriate?

And it continues… Welcome again to another week or so of fun filled activities on the other side of the world. Today is a game day as we play the Kalamunda Eastern Suns tonight, here in Kalgoorlie. Last weekend we completed our first round of league games; now we begin the second round through the fixture. In the first meeting with Kalamunda, it was the second game of our season opening road trip doubleheader, we led by as much as 15 in the third quarter only to give up our lead and lose by a handful. Tonight will be different in front of the home crowd!

This past week was a bit of an adjustment. It has been really quiet around the apartment without the two American backpackers around. A week after Rusty left Brandon followed suit out of Kalgoorlie. He was just a week behind and decided to travel the other way around the world and stop in Germany. He spontaneously decided to meet up with some football buddies that were travelling over there. I could not have been more excited for the little guy living life. Because of his nearing departure Woody, I and others decided to make the most of his remaining time.

Last Thursday Woody began packing things up and preparing himself to leave. He and Rusty swapped bags so Brandon could have the smaller bag to backpack with. He sent Rusty back with his much bigger bag and a lot of his possessions to lighten his load. Apparently Rusty became Woody’s mule. We even made a trip to the post office where Woody decided to mail a package home with some of his belongings. $70 later, I decided I wouldn’t be sending much of anything home for some time. There are a couple of shipping methods to choose from: by air (3 weeks) or by ship (3 months).

Despite all their efforts to pack all of their belongings we were blessed with many small “treasures.” Here is a list of all the wonderful things that remain in Australia despite their owners being in America and Germany:

Mining uniforms
mining hardhats
muesli (granola)
3 sombrero’s (yes)
Weet-bix (cereal)
a Johnny V and Mike Haney painted t-shirt
2 carrots
beer bottle sunglasses
½ cucumber
lunch bag
½ onion
box wine (aka Goon)
chocolate sauce for ice cream
2 peanut butter containers (empty)
25 pack green tea
taco shells
and the valuable aluminum foil.

Consider us blessed to acquire such precious treasures!

Anyways, we spent last Thursday night after training at the Northend Tavern. Most of the players go to the Northend after training to watch the horse and dog races, eat dinner and have a drink. I figured I’d grab Woody and bring him along to see the guys and to show him how betting is done in Australia. From my understanding the government runs the sports betting under the name TAB. I have yet to bet, but an individual goes to a TAB (usually attached to a bar or a separate dwelling). The TAB is where the bets are taken through filling out what would be closely compared to as “bubble sheets” or “scantron” sheets that are used in the US for test taking. The sheet is then put through a reader; you pay and wait for the result.

Neither of us were very interested in wagering money. I don’t bet because I really do not have an interest in sports betting and the more likely reason being that I am intimidated by the whole bubble sheet thing. Woody did not bet because he was broke and all the money he made from working here was still being processed at the bank and was inaccessible to him.

Friday night we had some of the Bowler boys over for Woody’s farewell dinner. Jimmy was kind enough to bring everything over, and even cook chicken burritos for us. Throughout the night a couple people would stop through and hang out for a bit. It was a pretty fun night, but we had a bus to catch in the morning.

5:30 AM sure comes around quickly. Last weekend we played a double header in Perth against Mandurah and Perry Lakes. As usual, we all meet at the stadium and leave at 6 AM. We travelled with our junior development team this past weekend as they were scrimmaging the Mandurah juniors. Our club also wanted the younger players to gain experience on how the Giants’ road weekends work. Many of the players on these junior teams will be expected to move up at some point to the SBL club team. In addition to the juniors, we also threw Woody on the bus to get him to Perth so he could see a bit of the town and fly out. I doubt Woody expected to be on a coach bus traveling on the road this soon after finishing football.

Woody was going to be staying with a woman in Perth who was actually his babysitter back in the states when he was younger. He was dropped off by one of the parents on the way to Mandurah and we said goodbye in the parking lot. His first night in Perth included an exciting Linen Party! It was good while it lasted and he and Rusty will both be missed. I truly enjoyed having those boys here and it has made the transition of being abroad much easier to handle and the experience much more memorable. Thanks boys.

Saturday night we played at Mandurah. The last time our two squads matched up the game concluded with a double overtime victory for the Giants. The Magic had just sent home their other import player due to an injury and just not performing to the level they hoped for. This move put a lot of pressure on Casey Crevelone, their other import player and friend of mine from AIA. Casey was the focus of our defensive game plan and he single handedly put the previous game into multiple overtimes. Mike Haney spent some time going over film and drew up a defensive scheme to limit Casey. It worked very well for us and the Giants prevailed and took home the road win. The final score was 102-96. We led most of the game and by 12 the majority of the 4th period until they hit a couple threes at the end of regulation. I finished with 18 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists. It was a very good team win. Each player stepped up and contributed to the win and we had a very balanced attack. This is one characteristic that sets our team apart from many of the others in the league. On any given night we can have multiple players light it up for us. Many of the other teams rely so heavily on their imports to the point that they put up 25-30 shots a game. If those players are hot, the team usually wins. Down the stretch, however, I like where we are at.



It is always nice seeing friends on the road or when they come to town. Being able to see the AIA guys every other weekend or talking to them on the phone regularly has really enhanced my time in Australia. Hanging out with Casey after the game was also a nice addition to the road trip. I would have enjoyed spending some more time with him, but we had to get back to Perth.

One of the big adjustments I have faced here is playing on the road. The road trips are a bit different than what we did back home, but at the end of the day you lace them up, play hard and give yourself a chance to win. We played Perry Lakes Sunday at noon, 12 hours after we arrived back at the hotel. To sum up our road trip:

6:00 am – Leave Kalgoorlie
2:00 pm – Arrive Perth
5:00 pm – Leave for game
7:30 pm – Game vs. Mandurah
11:30 pm – Return to hotel
10:00 am – Leave for game
12:00 pm – Game vs. Perry Lakes
3:00 pm – Hit road for Kal (stop for drinks and food)
11:00 pm – Return home

36 hours later and it takes a toll on your body. Perry Lakes was the only team we had yet to play in the first half of the schedule. They have an import friend of mine, Bobby Kempf. Bobby has been playing very well in the league but has battled tendinitis in his knee and that has kept him out of some games. He’s a big boy; 6-11 and 240 lbs.

The game went back and forth in the first half and was a good battle. Both teams had played the previous night and the start of the second half showed how the games the night before had gone for each team. We had a battle throughout the game with Mandurah and without Jimmy Bowler (out with injury) the minutes were used up by our starters. We had heavy legs in the second half. Perry Lakes blew out Bunbury and their starters all played 25 minutes or so and were relatively fresh.

Perry Lakes took control of the game and mounted a pretty comfortable 10 point lead through most of the second half. With five minutes to go our guards connected on a couple quick baskets including a couple threes that brought the game to within three. That was as close as it would get. Perry Lakes put a run on that could not be stopped and we finished the game in second place, 105-90. I finished the game with 23 points and 7 rebounds but the only statistic that really matters is the W or L you get. We currently are 9-5 and in the middle of the playoff picture.

It is tough to take losses, but you should be able to take something from them and move forward. We grabbed some food and some cases of beer for the trip home. I was dehydrated, tired and feeling a bit sick so the beer was not very appealing. I chugged some water and took a couple nyquils that put me to sleep. I awoke later to all the guys sitting in the back of the bus shooting it like boys do. I got into the cooler for a couple and then realized that one of the juniors was on the bus and I would be seeing him at tutoring the next day. I kept it responsible.

Monday we packed up the old bedroom of Rusty and Woody and moved it to the garage. By bedroom I am referencing our living room and a mattress. After a night out on the patio with Woody and Rusty early in their time here I thought I had seen a snake. I tried to act calm although I was the complete opposite. My reaction, not as cool as I had hoped, required an explanation. I disclosed my morbid infatuation with snakes. I am very curios and fascinated by them, but deathly afraid of them. Poisonous or not; 6 feet or 6 inches it doesn’t matter. Thus the two boys decided to buy a rubber snake to plant around the house. Well one late night I walked onto the patio and in the dim lightening I made out the long slender shape of something on the ground. I was curious and hesitant to approach to get a better look. Woody watched me and laughed as he knew what was happening. He asked what I was doing and I said, “nothing.” “Bullshit.” He called my bluff and that was my introduction to the toy. From that day forward I found it planted in my bed, behind my pillow, in my shower, in the wash, opening the freezer, you get the idea. Well I snuck it into Woody’s bag and now it is in Germany!

This week I also had a wonderful dinner at the Hulme’s residence. This was the second time I have been over there and like the first time, the meal did not disappoint in the least. Great food, drinks and dessert! Mr. and Mrs. Hulme just returned from a long vacation to Europe after their son Ryan’s wedding in Mauritius. It was fun hearing about their travels through Dubai, England, France and Italy. Unfortunately we only talked about their adventures and did not see any of the 1800 photos they came home with. Oh well, maybe a reason for another dinner!

This week was my first week video chatting with people back home. The dynamic household of Dan, Charlie and Joe broke me in. I followed suit with my parents yesterday. I watched, in silence, my mom sitting at the home computer trying to figure out the speakers. I literally watched her mouth, “can you hear me?” multiple times. It is incredible the capabilities the internet and technology provide. It was really nice to see faces while hearing their voices.

I was talking with my dad last weekend and we kept losing the signal. My dad, and as most people do after 3 disconnections, was a little irritated and asked, “What is going on?” My attitude being that I am thankful to talk to everyone at home and amazed that I can sit on my cell phone in Perth, the other side of the world, and have a real time conversation with someone back home, I responded, “Sorry Dad, I guess all the satellites are having trouble lining up so we can talk.” I think skype is going to be the new ticket though! If you have skype, hit me up: john.vaudreuil

Until next week! I hope you are all enjoying the beginning of summer back in the states!

Bali is booked

Autumn is upon us in Kalgoorlie. It certainly has cooled down a bit, but that seems to only last a few hours in the morning. This weather is very reminiscent of home, especially during my favorite fall months. If I could have a wardrobe of jeans, long sleeve shirts and sweatshirts I would be extremely content.

After posting last weekend I was very pleasantly surprised to have Rusty show up unannounced. I was standing in the living room ironing my shirts and pants when his little head peaked around the corner. He was supposed to be at a “work camp” for the entire weekend. Thursday morning I had dropped him at the airport to catch the “work bus” to take him to his slave labor camp two hours away. He had been contracted out to work through the weekend at a mine site and we were not expecting to see him until late Sunday night. I was a little disappointed when dropping him off because he was going to be heading up to Cairns early the next week and I really wanted him to get to another game and go out afterward one last time before departing. Luckily he made some moves and made it back to Kal to paint his face for the game, cheer raucously and sing karaoke.

Our opponent in last Saturday’s game was East Perth. They have a very intimidating lineup on paper and have been playing very well. The squad boasts three gigantic players over 7 feet tall, a point guard from the NBL champion Perth Wildcats and a rumor that another player from the club may also follow. The footers were all very good players; skilled and coordinated for their size. It was great competition to put our 5-game winning streak on the line against.

I walked onto the court to lineup for the jump ball against, what I believe to be, the tallest man in Australia. Sam Harris stands 7 foot 5. After jumping extremely early on the tip, and I mean immediately after it was tossed, we had possession of the ball. The game went back and forth throughout the first quarter. We were all anxious to see how the players on East Perth would rebound after their bus trip earlier that day. East Perth was the first team to bus to Kalgoorlie the day of the game to play us, something we do regularly when we play on the road.

At the end of the quarter I found myself with the ball after Hamish saved it from going out of bounds. I pump faked and drove past Sam Harris to the basket. Jervis, one of the footers, stepped over from the weak side to go for the block. Luckily I got above him and put it down with a foul called and a little shiner to go with it.





At the break we trailed by a few points, but knew we had a lot of room for improvement. It seems that during our winning streak we have been able to play much better during the second half of the games. The pattern continued and we came out in the 3rd quarter and erased the deficit we faced and mounted a double digit lead. We held the lead well into the 4th quarter and with about 5 minutes to go in the game we maintained a 10 point advantage. East Perth clawed back and made it interesting as the game concluded with East Perth throwing up a desperation 3 point shot attempt to tie the game. We were victorious and were sitting in 3rd place at 8-3. I finished up the game with 15 points and 8 rebounds. I played 40+ minutes against the big loads and earned myself a couple post game awards which included $50 cash for runner-up MVP and a $50 gift card to the local jewelry store, my second, that will be given to my mother when she arrives.

After having a few delicious beers in the sponsors room I quickly regrouped with the other guys and made my way to The Palace. For those of you back home, The Palace is like going to Grandma’s on a Saturday night in Duluth or Stellas in Uptown. It was Rusty’s last night out on the town and we were going to make it big! Before making it out I phoned my Dad to see how things were. He was at the cabin and it was 9:00 am or so when I spoke with him. He had been up at 6:00 am and drove into the tiny town of Drummond, WI to get on the internet and follow the game via live stats. Dedication.

The Palace is always a great place to start with a couple drinks, chatting up with the other team and singing karaoke. Yes, Karaoke. After spending a considerable amount of time at our starting point the group moved down the street to DeBernales. I believe that is how you spell it, but everyone refers to it as Dbo’s. Dbo’s is more of a club setting with a dance floor and bar on the outskirts (very similar to the sports garden’s dance set up). We had a lot of fun and progressively made our way home on foot before succumbing to the temptation of a $10 cab. Done.



Sunday was a much needed recovery day. The game the night before had taken a toll on me and I literally slept all day. We wanted to organize an afternoon bbq for Rusty and get a “kick” in with the Aussie football and also a “throw” in with the American cousin. None of that ended up happening. It was a pretty lazy Sunday, and they are very much a necessity at times.

Monday was Rusty’s last night in Kal and Daniel and Cristy were nice enough to put on a dinner for him and all the friends he has made in town. This consists mostly of the Bowler family, significant others, and some basketball guys. We spent the night playing different games we have learned since being in Kalgoorlie; Mafia and The Game to name a couple. The nightcap came when Daniel challenged Woody to a foot race. Woody, being a sprinter on the track team in college, was the likely favorite. He forced his way into Cristy’s running shoes and they marched to the driveway and into the street. After a few stretches they were lined up. As they agreed to count down to the start, 3-2-1-go, Daniel was off at 2. It was like Jerry in “The Great Race” from Seinfeld. Another Seinfeld reference- I know, bear with me.

Tuesday morning Woody and I woke up to get Rusty to the train station before 7 am. When I first got here I was a lone wolf pack. When Brandon and Cole (their actual given names) arrived the pack grew to 3. Now, with the loss of Rusty, the pack is becoming smaller and we will just have to survive. Rusty was making his way to Cairns to hit the reef via Perth for a couple days. It was wonderful having him out here and I can speak for everyone that met him, we are very thankful he came and he is always welcome to return!

Michael and I recently started visiting primary schools in the community to spend time with the kids, teach them some basketball skills and do some community service. This past week we were at St. Joseph’s for a couple hours with kids ranging from school years 3 to year 6. When we first arrive at the schools all the kids look at us in shock. They all talk about us as we walk by and assume we cannot hear them. One girl said, “No wonder they are called the Giants.” The experiences are tremendous as we see all the kids in their uniforms and mandatory sun hats out on the play fields. They ask for autographs and they get so excited when we give them tickets to the upcoming game. They are really cute. Many of the kids attended the camp we put on a month or so ago and run up to us and say’ “John, Michael!”

The kids from camp always come down before or after the game and try to get my attention to show me they are there. It is really adorable. I will always take the time to go and talk to them and let them know I am really excited they came to the game. When I see these kids before the game it usually causes a slight problem. During introductions each player on our team has a mini basketball that we have signed. After the Australian Anthem we are to throw the balls into the crowd and those that catch a ball are able to compete for prizes at halftime. The kids always ask, “John, will you throw me the ball?” I guess it is not always limited to the kids, as Luke, Woody and Rusty also request the ball when there is $400 riding on a free throw contest. The problem for those three is that they are never at the game on time. I have tried to throw the ball to particular kids, but there is inevitably the bully kid that jumps up and knocks it away from the little girl. This happened on this particular night. After the East Perth game a boy came up to me and said, “John, next week is my birthday and all my friends are coming. Will you throw me the ball?” After failing in an attempt earlier that evening I told the young boy to find me before the game and show me where he was sitting and that I would be happy to give him the ball.

This past Saturday we played the Lakeside Lightning who were sitting in 4th place on the ladder and feature an import that is a very good friend of mine, Ben Beran. They arrived into town on Friday night and I hoped to meet up with he and John Chegwidden, but our paths would not cross. We planned to meet for breakfast the next morning and we set some time aside to show them my setup as well. It turned out that Chegs was a pretty popular man in town and had several friends from Kal meet us at the restaurant. He claims they are all his wife’s friends. It was a brief get together and it is disappointing that Lakeside is the only team in the league that does not spend the night of the game in town. I would have enjoyed spending more time with them, but I will see them this upcoming weekend when we travel to Perth.

As for the game against Lakeside: Frustrating. We played pretty poorly and let Lakeside dictate the game from the tip. I played terribly, as 6 fouls was the highest tally on my stat line. There are a lot of things to put our defeat on, but the bottom line is that they wanted it more than us, played harder and smarter than our team did. From this many positives can arise. We lost by 6 points to the defending champions. Our streak concluded and it gives us the opportunity to beat it. We showed up and expected to win, but in reality we need to bring much more. Fortunately we have a very skilled team and we will rebound very well from this defeat.



After the game I struggled to stay positive and upbeat. I was very frustrated with the outcome, how I played and some other things. Bottom line, I don’t like losing. I did head out with the boys after the game and was set to show Woody a good time before he departed the following week. He and I performed a duet of Sublime’s “What I Got.” What we got were crickets. No one in the entire place knew the song. We just had blank stares and those three minutes were tough to handle under the hot, bright lights. After bombing the song, Woody and I roamed down to Dbo’s to see what was happening there. He pulled me aside and pointed out a girl that he had chatted it up with last weekend. She was dancing with some guy who was holding her purse – classy. They must have noticed us because after their dance the man returned the purse to the girl and they walked in different directions. A moment later this guy, now with both hands free after discarding the purse, grabbed Woody from behind by the shoulders and told him that the girl was his sister and walked away. We kind of looked at each other, knowing it was a lie, and laughed. Who does that? Besides, if you were her brother why were you holding her purse and trying to bump and grind like that? Gross.

This upcoming weekend we head to Perth for a roadtrip to take on the Mandurah Magic and the Perry Lakes Hawks. I get to see two friends and AIA alums: Casey Crevelone and Bobby Kempf. We need to get back on the winning side and hopefully this weekend will provide us the opportunity to do so. We beat Mandurah in double overtime earlier this year, but have yet to play Perry Lakes.

A couple side notes, the young birthday boy did approach me before the game and I told him to come to the sideline when we threw the balls and that I would hand it to him to avoid risking not getting it to him. He did line up, as did 12 other kids. I had damaged my complimentary tickets and did not get one to Woody. Later I find that he gained admittance because he took my “Partner” card. The “Partner” card is used for partners and where we come from that implies something I do not want it to imply. The sad thing is that it has my name plastered across the top of the cared, “Partner Pass” is listed immediately under my name, and a boy is carrying it around. It has been returned to its owner to prevent mix-ups like that again. Finally, I am Bali bound. Booked and paid for to venture to the Indonesian paradise in August!

Until next week, God Bless!

Its the life I live

Welcome to another week of Australian events. This post is a bit delayed and I apologize for that. It has been a busy week. Since last posting I have received wonderful news from my family, things are great at home and they will be visiting Kalgoorlie! As of now it sounds like my mom, dad and littlest (but sweet) sister Jana will be coming here at the end of June for a couple weeks. My older sister Sarah continues to try to schedule a visit, but her schedule includes: finishing school, moving to Africa for a month to work, traveling through Asia (again), visiting a friend in Indonesia, and moving to Los Angeles. If she does not make it I will forgive her. My other sister, Margaux, is finishing school in the next fortnight and is going to be working soon after. It would be great if she could make it with my parents, but it might be a long shot. I hope that they can all find the time to make it here – it is a wonderful place.

I mentioned last week that we experienced an earthquake. We continue, more than a week later, to experience tremors. They continue to shake the earth and make a loud rumble randomly. They have been so common and frequent that it is now no big deal when they occur. There is no damage caused by them, just a reminder of what had happened.

Now for some updates. Last week we went on a hellish road trip. I say this not because it was a bad trip, we won both games, but that it was long, long, long. We left Kalgoorlie Friday after work, around 5 pm, with destinations of Perth, Geraldton, Perth and home. Our first game was on Saturday night against the Geraldton Buccaneers. Geraldton is a country town 6 hours north of Perth on the coast. It is a beautiful, quiet and picturesque. Sunday night we rounded out our trip against Wanneroo, a club based out of Perth.

As I eluded to the trip was a great success, here, however, is the not so great part about it – there is no direct route to Geraldton from Kalgoorlie. We drove the 7 or so hours to Perth on Friday and spent the night there. Saturday morning we awoke and headed to Geraldton to play that evening, only to return to Perth after the game. The Giants have had very little success playing there, and the Bucs were sitting atop the standings. To add a little fuel to the fire, our coach had decided to call the people of Geraldton “ferals.” This did not sit very well with the Buccaneer fans.

The game plan was to contain Ryan Zamroz, the import I had spent Easter with. He is a great player and has been leading the league in scoring at 33 ppg. Ryan started out on fire ending the first quarter with 13 points. We kept him in check the rest of the game and pulled out a convincing win 113-104. I finished the game with 17 points and only 4 rebounds. I played well at times, but could not put a whole game together. I experienced my re-occurring problem during the game. I find myself playing well in the first quarter and without any fouls at the conclusion of the quarter. Then to start the second quarter I get whacked right away with two fouls and I go sit on the bench. It is frustrating as I am playing no different than I was in the first quarter and then Bam, tack them on.

Our team played very well this night and earned a much needed victory. We had multiple guys step up and deliver big performances. This was the first win versus Geraldton in at least the last 4 years (home or away). A win on the road always makes the bus trip home that much more enjoyable. We returned to Perth at 3:30 am – the trip back was as enjoyable as it could have been.

After a bit of sleep I was able to meet the Chegs for mass at the Cathedral. The Cathedral has just been remodeled and it is quite spectacular. The music is fantastic and the Priest delivers a very nice service. It is always a pleasure to spend time with John, Kym, Alistair and Meaghan and to catch up on the latest happenings. They were the family I came to know very well in Perth while visiting in December.

After mass I made it back to the hotel the team was staying at in time to catch the bus to the team meal at the Sizzler! It was a buffet and sounded a lot like something that we would eat at in Grand Forks or something before a game. It was very similar, except I paid $22 for a salad bar (which included both a pasta and desert bar) and $3.95 for a bottomless drink. The food was good; I just continue to be amazed at the prices for some things. At home that meal would top out at $12.

We were on the court again Sunday night against Wanneroo. It is always difficult to rebound and play the second game of a doubleheader. Your legs are a bit worn, your energy is low and you ache from the game the previous night. This was no different, but rather a bit more extreme. Wanneroo also played the night before and had a hard fought victory. We knew both teams were going to have to pull out whatever they had left to get a victory. We were a bit inconsistent in the first half, but blew the game wide open in the second half. I finished the game with 26 points and 17 rebounds. After the game we had our usual post game get together with the other team. Awards are usually presented after each game to the home team’s top players. In Kalgoorlie, we honor the top opposing player by giving them a 6-pack of beer. Wanneroo practices the same beliefs and awarded me a nice cold 6-pack. I quickly found 5 friends and it amazes me how good a beer tastes in certain situations (like after a win). We won the game and completed a very successful road trip. We were back on the bus, Coronas in hand and on ice in the cooler, and heading back to get ready to hit the town.

After the game I was excited to spend some time in Perth with my American friends. Ben Beran, my friend from AIA that is playing here, presented at Lakeside’s Sunday evening service. All of the AIA guys went to see Ben speak and then we all met up at my hotel. Casey, Trey, and Ben (all of whom have been mentioned in previous blogs), as well as Bobby Kempf (Perry Lakes) and Luke Payne (Lakeside) came up to have a friendly drink and chat. It was really good to see everyone and hear about all the different experiences we are each having. Some of us are living quite literally on the beach, some are working a lot, and some are on winning teams and others that are struggling. We each are having very different experiences. I wish the night would have lasted longer, but they were all pretty tired and had a good amount of driving ahead of them.

After the guys left I met up with my teammates at The Shed in Northbridge. The stamp to get in read, “True Blue Aussie Venue.” We knew it was going to great! It was a nice outdoor bar / club that played songs like “I come from a land down under” and “Boys light up.” It was a fun night out in Perth, but the road trip and games had really taken a lot out of me. The highlight, other than the gyro on the way home, was watching Daniel Bowler request to be lifted up so he could crowd surf. I sat back from afar and watched him surf through the crowd like a professional. As I continued to watch him cut up the crowd from the outskirts I could see the bouncers preparing to swarm him- they moved in from every angle. Sure enough, one minute he was floating through the crowd like a feather in the wind and the next he was standing on the outside of the club offering the bouncers money to get back in. Priceless Facta.

Sunday was ANZAC day in Australia. It stands for the Australia New Zealand Army Corps. It is very similar to our Memorial Day in that it is a day of remembrance for those who have fallen during service. ANZAC day is very important here and celebrated properly. It is as if you took Memorial Day and put it on steroids. Since the holiday is always on April 25th, Monday was a public holiday and no one had to work. I am getting used to these holidays!

The bus ride home on Monday was BRUTAL. Our trip was approximately 2,100kms (1260 miles). This took place over 4 days and I am very happy it is over. It was successful, but it really took a toll on the body and required a couple days to recover. It is nice to have it out of the way, similar to traveling to Omaha when we played UNO. It is now behind us. We do have a triple header ahead of us, however.

The Wanneroo game was broadcasted live on the internet. I would have made this aware to everyone, but the only issue being that it began at 5:00 am CST in the US. My parents were dedicated enough to tune in and watch, but I cannot remember the last time my dad has missed a game in. The game is online and archived if you care to see some Australian bball. We watched the game on the bus ride home and quickly realized the commentators made some pretty ridiculous comments during the game. If you do choose to watch the game, I hope you enjoy some spirits before hand to make the comments that much better.

http://www.lmsc.com.au/index.php?page=display&key=U4bBoVmt

(Scroll to the bottom- SBL April 25, 2010: Wanneroo vs Goldfields)

It is currently Saturday, May 1 and we have a game tonight against East Perth. This team boasts a lineup that includes 3 players that are 7 foot plus. In scouting them they rotate through the 3 players, but usually have 2 of them on the court at a time. It should be a fun game at home as the crowd gets into the games. This is Rusty’s last game before he heads back east on his way back to the states. It should be a pretty exciting night – lets go get that win.

Until next week! God Bless.