Category Archives: Gymnastics

Gymnastics and Hog’s Breath Cafe | @hogsbreath

It’s been a big day. My three daughters all had things on and I’m happy I could get them all there on time without any major problems. Okay, there are some Brisbane drivers who did not appreciate a couple of rapid lane changes when I couldn’t quite understand the new road system in Brisbane. I’ve now lived in Darwin and Canberra since the beginning of 1996 and have gone soft when it comes to driving. Brisbane has changed so much and the motorways and overpasses are something more like the roads I’ve seen in Los Angeles. I’m surprised I made it everywhere and back today. Because I only visit every couple of months, my ability to navigate traffic is a struggle. Ask anyone who knows me and I am very directionally challenged.

Today Miss18 was a volunteer at Paniyiri which is a Greek festival in Brisbane. Volunteering is part of her events management course. Miss12 had gymnastics training and Miss16 had the South East Queensland Regional Senior Women’s Artistic Gymnastics competition. I was able to watch the L9 (MIss16) and L8 competition this afternoon. Miss16 did okay. She came second on the uneven bars and third on the floor. I captured a nice video of her floor routine on my iPad but then accidentally deleted it. Fortunately I had already posted a low resolution version to YouTube. I wish I could recover the original video without resorting to paying for an app to recover the file. I know what you’re thinking, Gary was one of those dorks holding up an iPad while video recording an event. Yes I was! The camera is a good one and the quality is very satisfactory.

I tried to enhance the quality by using the YouTube enhancement tools but it’s pretty shaky and grainy.

The competition was held at Moreton Bay College

I needed lunch. A bacon, egg and hash brown burger. I hope I don’t get sick. I noticed the eggs and hash brown were pre cooked and then heated again on the hot plate. I nearly said something but figured, it’s a typical school sporting event and hopefully everything was cooked properly the first time through.

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Moreton Bay College is a pretty well endowed girls school.

I’ve never seen illuminated podia before.

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Tonight we went out to dinner to celebrate birthdays and Mother’s Day. My birthday was on 1 May, Miss16 and Miss18 had their birthday on 8 May and my Dad has his birthday on 23 May. Miss18 also got a part-time job to her her get through her events management course and business degree. We decided on Hog’s Breath Cafe because it’s family friendly and a decent meal for hungry mouths.

I had an avocado prime rib steak

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Miss12 and Miss18 asked for a crispy chicken burger each

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Miss16 asked for the TexMex chicken steak combination meal. It was huge.

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The meals took quite a while to get to us because the restaurant was so busy. They’ve opened up more recently and enhanced the parking area.

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I asked if anyone wanted dessert. Miss18 shook her head. Miss12 smiled and said yes and Miss16 said no and then Mum asked about banana bread and butterscotch sauce…Miss16 relented.

This shot doesn’t do the plate justice. It was an extra large plate almost covered in a deep layer of butterscotch sauce. Mum and Miss16 really enjoyed it.

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The plate is so long the ice cream is blurry. This is the Strawberry pavlova Miss12 and I wanted.

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It’s been a good day. Tomorrow Miss18 heads back to volunteer at Paniyiri and Miss12 has to help with a gymnastics competition for juniors. That means Miss16 and I get to enjoy Greek food at Paniyiri by ourselves.

Hog’s Breath Cafe http://www.hogsbreath.com.au/
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My weekend in food while in Brisbane

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This weekend I visited my daughters in Brisbane. Miss14 was competing in the Queensland Women’s Artistic Gymnastics championships for 2012. It also included the trials for the state team to compete at the national titles in June in Sydney. Miss14 is Level 9. On Saturday she came third overall in Queensland. She freely admits her vault lets her down. Her routine is not as difficult as the others in the competition. When I asked why, she simply said she’s uncoordinated. That is the biggest understatement of her life. Compared to the rest of us in the family she’s amazing. So today as I was returning to Canberra Miss14 was competing to make a place in the Queensland team. She got in and received an award for her floor routine. I recorded her routine from yesterday which was ranked second.

On Friday I had lunch with some work mates and also some colleagues from another agency. We ate at the Hellenic Club. The Hellenic Club is a fantastic Canberra institution. It has a range of restaurants including a pretty good Chinese restaurant which is a nice touch for a Greek establishment. I love the Hellenic Club’s bistro. It does a really good steak with pepper sauce and chips (which is what I had) while others had chicken breast schnitzel or a roast dinner.

Hellenic Club's pepper steak (rib eye fillet) and chips (iPhone)

After a very squishy flight to Brisbane and then discovering I had rented a General Motors Barina (beep beep) I got to my parent’s place and enjoyed some time with the kids. Let me digress and discuss the rental car. I rent through Hertz and normally I get a small compact like a Toyota Yaris or Ford Focus. Both are good small manual transmission cars that I don’t find uncomfortable. I should declare that after Chrysler left Australia I switched my allegiance to Ford. For non-Australian readers, in the main, if you’re a bloke, you’re either Ford or Holden (GM). There’s not debate. The Barina, even if Ford produced it would have been and remains a lemon. For someone who is only 170 cm (short arsed), it’s hard to believe that leg room posed such a problem. I would NEVER purchase a General Motors Barina.

In the morning we had a light breakfast. By light I mean toast. I don’t mean warm bread either. I like toast that has a good amount of colour. Not burnt, but at least browned. I also like Vegemite. For non-Australians, Vegemite is a yeast extract and it is a salty dark paste the consistency of cream cheese. It is an acquired taste. If you don’t like it, that’s fine. I don’t get how some Australians go on and on about it. It’s good. Just don’t carry on about it.

Toast with a smear of Vegemite (iPhone)

For lunch I had a sausage roll and chips (no photograph). Most of the day was spent driving between Chermside, Clayfield and Chandler (Sleeman Sports Complex). The competition was at the Sleeman Sports Complex while Miss11 had to also train at Clayfield. I had Miss16 to keep me company

I also had fudge that Miss14 had cooked the day before. This is GOOD fudge.

Fudge after a bite (iPhone)

Miss14′s competition ran late, very late. We didn’t leave until nearly 2000 AEST. When we got back to my parent’s place, Mum and Dad had cooked a roast dinner. We had roast chicken, stuffing, roast potato, roast sweet potato, roast pumpkin, broccoli and beans. Mum also made gravy from scratch. I love Mum’s roast chicken with gravy and stuffing.

Roast chicken (Nikon D90) Click on the image for a more detailed view.

May is a big month for birthdays in our family and it’s not clear if I can visit in May so Mum made a cake. Miss14 and Miss16 become Miss15 and Miss17 on the same day in May. I turn 47 in May. My Dad also has a birthday in May.

Birthday sponge cake with almond chocolate (iPhone)

This morning we were in a rush but that didn’t stop Mum cooking us some snags, scrambled eggs and mushrooms. Mums and Dads are like that and I love my Mum and Dad for being like that.

It doesn’t look all that flash but it tasted great.

Sausages, eggs and mushrooms for breakfast on a plastic picnic plate. Classy (iPhone)

At the airport I sat in front of a container of macaroons. I will not say if I had any or not.

Macaroons (iPhone)

This afternoon after arriving back in Canberra I bought some baby spinach leaves, salmon and a tomato. Dinner was inspired by breakfast and I had the last of the very fresh free range eggs to cook. I cooked the scrambled eggs with cream, a pinch of sugar and a pinch of salt. I also added a little blue cheese for flavour.

Atlantic salmon and fresh free range eggs (Nikon D90) Click on the image for a more detailed view.

Look at how yellow and creamy the folds of egg are. They were amazing.

All in all it’s been a good weekend. Miss14 made the Queensland team. I hope Miss16 is watching the Brisbane Roar win the A-league soccer grand final tonight. Miss11 did an awesome job cheering today and being an all round great kid.

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Kids, sport and injuries

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If you follow me on Twitter you’ll know that I’ve taken a few days off work to attend the 2011 Women’s Artistic Gymnastics National Club Championships at the Australian Institute of Sport Arena in Canberra this week. It’s the last time they’ll be be managed by ACT Gymnastics. Gymnastics Australia will manage them from next year. However, it seems they may keep on being staged in Canberra.

I’ve been tweeting the hash tags #WAGNatClubChampionships and #DeltaBrisbane I am pretty confident every entry will belong to me

Two of my daughters are avid gymnasts. They previously trained at AIS and now are with Delta Gymnastics in Brisbane. Both have won performance (academic and sport) scholarships to a GPS school in Brisbane. They have talent. More importantly they love gymnastics. They love life.

Miss10 could not come to Canberra as part of the WAGL5 team. She has an elbow injury. She should be in the team and I know she’ll be disappointed. I would have loved for her to be here, she is such a delightful child. She is always smiling and encouraging others.

Miss14 is here as part of the Delta Brisbane WAGL8 team. She’s carried a number of injuries over a long period of time, she’s broken an elbow (avulsed medial epicondyle), she has bad knees and ankles and a strained back. Prior to this competition she strained her back again. Her mental toughness and determination is remarkable. I know she is in pain, yet during her routines she continues to smile and encourage others. After she’s finished an apparatus she reaches for her back and then lays down with a tennis ball under the sore area to massage it. I’ve seen her coach and the resident competition physiotherapist treat her after each apparatus to help her get to the next routine. As a parent, I sit in the stands and think about what she’s going through. I wonder if I should wander down and try to do something. I realise then that is more about me and my feelings rather than what is good for Miss14. She loves gymnastics. She has scars, they are her badges of honour. She is so strong. I love and worry about her mental toughness and determination. My mother says she reminds her of me as a kid. She says this in a positive way so I take it that way and hope Miss14 can apply the same level of determination to everything she does. Academically she’s bright, she excels at other sports, she knows what she wants. I only hope for her happiness. She tells me she wants to study physiotherapy and university. Miss10 on the other hand wants to be a surgeon.

In the end Miss14′s team came third overall. In previous years in previous teams they have come first. I ask if she’s happy. She beams and says yes. She knows her sore back has limited her. She understands, a place is a very good result. I am proud of her. I am proud of all three daughters.

Miss10′s team won all their events and won gold overall. They were a dominant force in that level. A Delta Force ha ha… I am sad that Miss10 could not be part of it. I wish she was here.

Delta Brisbane won Champion Club. This is well deserved. They are a fantastic club. Head coach and director, John Mitchell has a great philosophy to coaching.

I tend not to publish images of my daughters. I’m cautious about doing that. I will post some partial images and a couple of videos of the team cheering on their mates.

I’ve posted the videos to YouTube. I like the entrances when the gymnasts march on. They always looks so smart. If you look at the video on the entrance for the final presentation you’ll get a sense of the number of gymnasts who entered. Many of them had already left for their homes because it’s still school time. These are the top four or five gymnasts in each level from many of the clubs in Australia able to afford to send a team.

If you live in Brisbane and if your kids want to do gymnastics I highly recommend Delta Gymnastics. The coaches are wonderful. They have a fabulous outlook on life. They treat their charges well. They understand balance.

If you live in Darwin I recommend Gymnastics Metropolis. This is where Miss10 and Miss14 got their start.