Carter's Column

My last blog entry touched on the tragedy surrounding the death of Robin Williams and the depression he suffered, and today we have learnt of another tragedy and one that will affect many people I associate with. Phillip Hughes, just 3 days short of his 26th birthday, has died after being struck in the neck by a cricket ball 48 hours before. Tragedy is an overused word, but this more than qualifies. Especially when you take into consideration that he was on the verge of being recalled to the Australian Test side to face India next week on the back of Captain Michael Clarke's injury and his own excellent form. I won't go into the details of Phil Hughes' career as they will have been covered in the press several times this week and will continue to be as the full story emerges. Here in Sydney the news has come as a complete shock and is made even more devastating by the fact that not a single person has a bad word to say about the bloke. What makes it even more difficult to...

We have all seen at least one Robin Williams film. We've all laughed at his genius and could probably quote at least one line from a film or stand-up routine. His explanation of the Scottish accent and how the game of golf was invented still has me and other friends in fits of laughter. But the sad story that he had been suffering depression before deciding to take his own life is almost the definition of the word "Tragic", and highlights the fact that no matter how big a star or how funny someone may be, everyone is susceptible to depression. They are all human, after all. Those of you who have read my blog before will be aware that I have battled depression in the past, and that my way of dealing with it had been to write about it. I have written about how I became aware of it and how it has affected me for the last 6 years or so, and the realisation of how it works. I have reached the conclusion that every single human being will deal with depression at some point in...

I seriously cannot believe how my life has turned out at times. I grew up feeling that everyone else had it better than I did, that everyone else got what they wanted and I never did. I've been abused, lied about, gone through hells some of you cannot imagine and yet today I feel more fortunate than ever and appreciating everything around me. At Titanic in Belfast These paragraphs are to show my continuing appreciation for many aspects of my life today, including my adopted country, my family and adopted families and the many new friends I've made. But this particular piece I am writing concentrates on the one person who means the most to me, who saved me from a living hell without even knowing it, who has loved me unconditionally since we met and who I am delighted to say will be my wife as of next year; Jess. At Sarah & Garth's Wedding I don't really like clichés, but when it comes to describing our relationship they cannot be avoided. It has been ...

Post 31 of my blog has been a long time coming, probably my longest between blogs so far. Much has happened in this time, yet part of the reason behind the gap is a phenomenon known as "Writer's Block". It's not that there has been nothing to write about, it's not that I didn't want to write something... I just didn't think I could write anything of particular interest. Initially I started the blog as a way of letting off steam, a cathartic release from the stresses and struggles of everyday life in England. But I have to say that I haven't often felt the need to release any stress since moving to Australia. There have been stresses, don't worry about that! But there are only so many times I can write about how great it is to live in this country before it gets repetitive. In fact for many of you that read my blogs I would wager it is already. And thus, the Writer's Block strikes. What is there for me to say? It's normal to carry a...

Stuart Broad beats Brad Haddin's bat. A rare English plus. Take nothing away from the Australian cricket team, they deserve their Ashes victory. England have been extremely poor and there isn't much for an England cricket fan that could be more painful. Until now my most painful England cricket memory was losing the Ashes 5-0 in 2006/07 made worse by the fact I was there at 3 of the games and experienced it in person. This year it is rapidly overtaking it and losing 5-0 again is almost a certainty, meaning that I would be here in Australia for 10 losses out of 10. Coming so quickly after a 3-0 Ashes victory in England where there was talk of England winning 5-0, it makes it even more painful. Generally I think I am a respectful and fair person when losing. As biased as I may be with my desire for England or Tottenham Hotspur or Macquarie University CC to win sporting events I think that my assessment of events is a fair one. In this instance, England have been out-skill...

Whenever we go out and decide to take something up, we do it with a view to being the best we can at it. We aspire to be like someone. Learning the guitar I'd want to be as good as Justin Hawkins, Slash, Brian May, Eddie Van Halen and many more. With cricket, I want to be coached by professional players and be around the best coaches and players I can. So it was by luck rather than judgement that I came to be in the presence of 3 of the top snake handlers in the whole of Australia. Death Adder Through previous blog entries, my Facebook page and me talking about it constantly you will be aware that I have been a volunteer at the Australian Reptile Park and love every minute of it. Before I made the permanent move to Sydney I had a growing interest in reptiles, snakes in particular. As this interest grew I wanted to learn how to deal with venomous snakes, especially those found in Australia. It's common knowledge that there are dangerous animals everywhere in this country,...

September already? I am just two weeks away from having lived in Australia for 6 months and it's fair to say that more has happened since I have been here than would have happened had I stayed in England. I would never have got my hands on a range of snakes, alligators, lizards and other reptiles in Devon. We don't have them in the UK and we're not expected to have any understanding of them but Australians? They are... At this time of year when things are warming up in Australia snakes tend to come out of hibernation, Humpback Whales are part-way through the Great Migration to the Antarctic and the beaches are gradually filling up with people bringing them closer to marine life. So I find it somewhat dismaying to hear of people over here that are seemingly so unaware of the nature around them that their answer is to kill an animal that happens to cross their path. When I was a kid I was petrified of sharks, snakes, crocodiles, alligators and any other dangerous animal. ...