Carter's Column

Just about a week ago I thought to myself how these blogs were once a regular part of my existence; Putting it all out there, sharing my experiences or thoughts via a social media outlet, revelling in the number of people who would say they enjoyed what I had to say or catching up with what is happening in my life. Then I reached a point of writing these articles, and then not publishing them. Coming up with an idea, or a topic, but deciding to keep it private. Well, there is an element of that to this post too, only this time I want it to appear in my memories and I want to share with others. It is as much a diary entry as it is a letter to my future self. Of all the positives and negatives about socials, the memories function of Facebook is wonderful in that it allows you to look back at things you did, people you hung out with, trips you made or even games you played. It also allows you to realise how much you have grown and continue to grow as a person by highlighting what absolut...

This is very much a personal opinion piece.  The opinions of other members of Macquarie University Cricket Club may vary. Compared to others, I have not been involved at Macquarie University Cricket Club that long; a mere 14 years have passed since I arrived on Australian shores in September 2006 eager to impress and improve my game. I had come from playing cricket on beautiful grounds in the South West English countryside, where teas were served and we had followers that would watch us week in, week out, and a bar at the club for socialising. My first impression of MUCC was a midweek evening training session at the world famous Sydney Cricket Ground, I could hardly believe where I was! No disrespect at all is meant by this, but it was a far cry from playing at a ground like Barton in Torquay (not the worst but not my favourite) to being at the SCG. And the club colours of Green and Gold matched my beloved Bovey Tracey CC; it's almost as if I was meant to be there, a home from home...

Our USA Honeymoon was a simply amazing journey, with many memorable locations along the way. In October of 2019 my wife and I embarked on a month-long adventure to the United States of America, our delayed honeymoon after 4 and a half years of marriage. We packed so much into that month it hardly seems believable, and what will follow on this blog entry are just things that relate to a man I have been a fan of since my early childhood; Michael Jackson. You may not believe this given the number of MJ items I'm about to write about, but the vast majority of our activities in the USA had absolutely nothing to do with Michael Jackson. Given what will follow, hopefully that illustrates just how much we did! We visited (in order) Dallas, Washington DC, New York, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Solvang and Neverland Ranch, Los Angeles and Disneyland. We didn't do anything related to MJ in Dallas, so I'll head straight into Washington DC and the surrounding areas. Also, around t...

It sounds so easy, doesn't it; "Do what makes you happy" But somewhere in the chain you get overtaken by the need to pay bills or to do something else. Flying, being a pilot, being around aircraft is something I have wanted to do since I was 11 years old. I was fortunate to work at a flying school at Exeter (and sometimes Plymouth) for 4 years, having done a week of work experience in the same building for the school that was there before. So landing a job aged 18 in seemingly the perfect environment to achieve the goal of becoming a pilot, why didn't it happen for the kid who'd only ever imagined that one vocation? I can't put my finger on a single reason. Coming to Australia twice for cricket? Too much focus on cricket? Too much focus on other things? Honestly there can't be a single answer but my last flight in the UK towards my pilot's licence was in May 2008. I didn't take another training flight until May 2019. A lot happened in between, th...

Crap puns to start this article? I don't  see  why not. I recently had laser eye surgery, and have had many people ask me about it and what it involves, how the recovery is going and many other questions so I thought I would put it into writing (not braille) for you here so that you don't go into it blind. OK, that's enough.  Get on with it. The morning after my surgery under the effects of lots of medication. Back in the days when I used to play cricket and take it somewhat seriously I decided to have a season abroad in Australia to make myself a better player. When I got back to England the improvement was there for the first half of the season, and then I went on the sort of streak that makes me wonder how I didn't give the game up then and there; SEVEN ducks in a row, three of which were Golden (For those of you who don't know about cricket, a duck is when you are out without scoring, a golden duck is when you are out from the first delivery you face). I...

I don't remember a time when I wasn't aware of cricket, when the game didn't have some kind of spell over me. I remember English summers in a small Oxfordshire village watching the local team play and wishing I was allowed to, but also being afraid of a "real" leather cricket ball. A home-made block of wood that my father drilled stump holes into would be used on the street with a tennis ball and whosoever happened to be around and wanted to play would dictate my cricket until we moved to Devon, where I took up the real sport. Unbelievable to be bowling in the nets with Shane Warne just before the World Cup Semi Final in 2015 at the SCG. There is absolutely no doubt that the game of cricket has given me the life I have today. I have been fortunate to play with and against some excellent cricketers, international cricketers and to train with international teams alongside people I'd only ever seen on TV. I have so many happy memories of cricket that it...