Hey everyone, welcome back. It is the Danny Dot Podcast. I'm your host, Danny Dot, coming to you from the really warm Cromwell. I felt like I got off the plane from Brisbane just recently and Mother Nature has turned the heating on. I am not sad about it. Bring on spring and summer. I say I've got a lot going on, but I'm very excited to have things warm up, that's for sure. And also I have a nectarine and a peach tree outside my bedroom window. They are in full blossom and it's pink and I am really happy about it. I mean, if I could savour this moment of blossom, I would. It was windy last night. Half of it's on the grass. Anyway, what's everyone been up to? Can I just say I just logged into my Spotify dashboard. Appreciate all the Adele memes from the hello joke.
Speaker 1:Yes, I was not bringing it back up again from the 2000 bloody era, but I was just letting you know that this is how I warm up to do a pod. I don't go into it with an ounce of confidence, that's for sure. So I actually didn't end up doing it this morning. I don't know why, I got stage fright. But hey, this pod is mate. Have I got a story for you. So, basically, I I'm not going to lie. I'm currently sitting on my bed. I can't bend my left knee and things are a bit shit, but hey, we're doing it. So I apologise now if the coughing or clearing of the throat happens just because I am a little bit poorly at the moment. I have an injury, but also this pod's more of a story. So if you can't understand or keep up or don't you know, figure out what I'm talking about, it's all good not to listen to this one. This one's more or less the one about my family and my trip to Australia just gone and everything that happened. So everything that helps me fill my cup, I feel like. But no, it was a really special trip just gone, even though I was in a bit of a bad way, but hey, this is how it happened, right, and I haven't really told anyone about this. So there are people in Australia that don't even know what happened. So how do I sum this up?
Speaker 1:Okay, about a month ago, when I was coming back from the Lizzo concert on the Jet Stuff flight from Auckland to Queenstown you know the one, the one I cried heaps right here are real good, wow. I went to get up off the plane to disembark and my left knee caught the armrest in front, the middle sticky adibet on the back of it. At the time I went oh far up, didn't really, you know, react too much. I thought it's all good, I'll just grin and bear the pain as I do with everything else. But no, I was in an immense amount of pain. I thought, holy shit, what have I just done? And so sorry, I was just finishing off a throaty. Oh, my god, I need more of them. Anyway, I got myself to Queenstown, it was all good, did a bit of rest, nothing major. And then, just I don't know, three weeks later I actually said to the gym receptionist there's tread mill, the tread moves to the left, it jolts when you run it. Just you know, it tries to catch you. There's like this weird sensory system where the tread tries to catch you. And I didn't think much of it. I knew that they wouldn't look into it or do any maintenance. It was just me making a generalization of a comment. Totally fine, we can all make those.
Speaker 1:So the Monday, two weeks ago to the day, I was just walking on the treadmill. I don't think anything of it, but obviously trying to get my steps up. I've got a bit of a plan in place going to Australia, seeing all my friends and family and so I thought I just do a cheeky ten minute run. Shouldn't have. That's the basic scenario. So I started doing this run. I was three minutes in and I thought, oh, it's still jolting, it's still, you know, pulling. I thought I'm going to, should I jump off? Should I just sort of cut my last rowdy row? Obviously you try and get to a kilometer. Well, I do anyway. So I'm running along and then all of a sudden it jolted and I landed, funny, and my left knee just caught me, twisted I don't know, and this searing pain happened and I thought, holy frick, what have I done here? Got myself home. As everyone knows, there's no one at the gym when I go, so there was no one there to help. So I just got myself home, cruise control didn't have to use my left knee, and I said to mum yeah, I've done something and I don't know what it is, so I'm just going to like rest it and then maybe I'll try and get to physio.
Speaker 1:On the Tuesday, which is the next day, tried to get in to see my GP. The next available appointment was a 22nd of September. Whose fault's that? Not mine. So I went to my physio and she was like, oh, it's an accident. So it's, you know, under our ACC Accidental System in New Zealand, which is totally fine, I get that. She didn't know what I did. She did a couple of stretches. Everything hurt. I thought, oh, far out, am I doing more damage to this? I don't even know. So I was resting still. Pain relief is still shit.
Speaker 1:I'm only using deep heat and anti-flammaric stuff at this stage because I'm on anticoagulants. I can't use a lot of the strong anti-inflammatories, can't take them in tablet form, which is my biggest let down. I can use a Voltaire and cream, not the tablets. Just you know weak shit. So I packed up this little medicine case and I got myself to the airport. My brother lives 1.1K from the Queenstown Airport and I thought I'll check my big bag in and I'll drop my car off my brother's car space and I'll walk back. Nothing, that's not hard, I can do that. My carry-on bag had wheels so I could stabilise myself and get myself over. It's all good. No, no.
Speaker 1:Over an hour later, three stops and many tears, I was like, oh, my god I've done something here. I just thought you know what, who cares, I'll get myself to the departure lounge and everything will be fine. I'll sit down. I'm sitting there and I'm thinking. I'm in a bit of pain, trying not to show the airport staff that I had it like a stupid compression bandage on my knee that the physio gave me because they're gonna like kick me out of the emergency exit row as we're getting onto the plane. We're not even using stairs to get out the plane. They've got this really cool zigzag ramp at the minute. So I thought, oh, that's nothing major, I can use that.
Speaker 1:I go to get in my seat and it's against the window and there's this woman sitting in the middle of the seat and I said to her sorry, can I just scoot in there? When I sat down I accidentally grabbed her seatbelt and she was like that's mine. And I was like, whoa, this chick's like, but he's a, he's a tint at the start. I mean sorry. So we're sitting there and she's got her headphones in and she's watching something on her iPad and she started like running her nails on the tray table and I'm like, ah, I haven't got my headphones, all I can hear is her nails and we take off, everything's fine.
Speaker 1:We get ourselves to Auckland and I'm thinking, oh my gosh, I didn't think this through, but I have to get from domestic to international. It's a bit of a walk where you can take the free bus. It's every 15 minutes. So I got myself on the bus and get up to the departure area, fly through customs nothing major there. Everything's so empty and chill at the minute it's a great time to fly. And then I see the sign that says 15 minute walk from the customs area to my gates and I thought, ah, mother. So I'm hobbling along. How cute, how had a couple of stops.
Speaker 1:Use those travel later things with the escalator, thinking in the floor and I'm thinking, okay, I can do this, I can do this, I can do this, I can get myself. So I've got this weird. What is it? Deep relief, ibuprofen, menthol cream that I should not be using because it is ibuprofen but it is a cream, so I'm hoping it hasn't got the same effect as taking a tablet, not allowed ibuprofen. And I get myself to the gate and again I'm on the emergency exit row and I'm hiding this compression bandage and I'm fine. I'm fine if they say are you willing and able and I say yes and they say no, I'm gonna be pissed off because I can't sit, you know, scrunched up in cattle class. So I get myself into the seat and you'll never guess. The woman with the nails was sitting behind me.
Speaker 1:So I just that flight. I don't know something so fun about. It has all the technology. It was fun. You could swipe your fbos card in the seat in front of you, back screen, and you could get food delivered to you at any time and Wi-Fi throughout the flight. So I was talking to everyone. Sorry and it was just. I don't know. It was so good.
Speaker 1:But however, the woman behind once she found out that the hot options for food was only a pesto toasty and a meat pie. She got on the Facebook page for Air New Zealand and she wrote this terrible comment. I don't even know what it was, I couldn't find it fast enough. But as we're coming into land, a couple of my nearest and dearest message to say hey, danny, there's a thunderstorm happening in Brisbane. Hang on tight, you'll come down soon, right here. Ah, hey, danny, the flight in front of you from Wellington has just come into land and taken off again. Hang on tight. I'm thinking great, I am so cool as a cucumber right now. I don't even know if it's the fact that I get to see my best mate in like half an hour or I don't know.
Speaker 1:It was just the smoothest Air New Zealand flight ever and I didn't feel any turbulence. I was just living my best life, drinking champagne, eating meat pies. I had a Moscow mule there, so I had a bit of vodka and ginger tonic stuff. I had Wi-Fi. I was sending snaps to everyone. It was so good that when we did come into land not a word of a lie, guys. The woman behind yelled out fucking Air New Zealand blocked me. I think that they saw her post about the food and they blocked her. But she went on a tirade and so when we were getting off the plane I just managed to scoot up a head before she came up the aisle and I said to the air hostess just be aware that one's on a rampage.
Speaker 1:So everything from disembarking that plane to getting to the baggage collection happened so fast when I say so fast, all of a sudden I was at the baggage collection and it was less than a minute. It was so good I wasn't even first off the plane. I was in row 13, so a couple of planes landed with us. There was like a customs line. There is like different express things that you can do. I didn't have a disabled wheelchair or anything like that. I just I just hobbled along, I don't know.
Speaker 1:However, my dad, who was on the other side collecting me, was like let me know when you're in the baggage area and I'll get to the, because he was at the plane watching place where you can watch the plane land. I'll go to the arrivals area and I'll meet you there. And I was like I'm at the baggage area. However, because my bag was a connecting flight bag, it actually took a lot longer to come through, so he had some time to catch up, which is not a bad thing. So it was just one of those moments when you pass through customs and you just get to those freaking arrival gates and you stand there and you know your best mates on the other side and you just want that hug. You've like gone a whole year of just seeing each other through a screen and you know it was just everything and more. So I knew that even though I was in a really poorly way didn't matter, my best mate was on the other side of those doors and he will make anything happen that I needed help with. So he's the most patient person. It's unbelievable. I hobbled up to him. He had some cocktails in the car ready for us. I was like, yes, doesn't matter, we'll just get me home, we'll catch up, it's all good. And look, when we were at his house that first night I did drop him some ideas about Danny Dot's empire, what we were talking about. He is totally on board with what I'm deciding to do to bring into Cromwell here. So that's exciting, because obviously I don't need the okay from him, but of course I want his input.
Speaker 1:We had some Jin Sour cocktails, moe's it all over to the Alcamino, had some chicken wings and some margaritas. I actually had a chalice of beer. I actually really love great northern beer in Australia. It's this, I don't know weird brand. It's kind of it's my jam.
Speaker 1:But yeah, when I got back to his place I went to sleep. I was on New Zealand time so I was all confused and it was cold. It's weird for me to say that it, but it was cold in Brisbane. So, yeah, snuggled up when to sleep and then the next morning he made avocado and feta on pretty full, that stuffed Turkish bread, and it was yum. Oh my gosh, have I forgotten about that type of a breakfast? Yes, but I was pretty excited to get ourselves in the car and drive down to Harbour Town, and Harbour Town is my favorite outlet shopping hands down. If ever I go to anywhere in Australia, I always try and find the outlets. But we know, in Brissie you've got one at Harbour Town, you got the DFO at the Brisbane Airport area. So there's a little little tip for you. But no, I was so excited.
Speaker 1:However, I only got around about three shops, three shops the Harbour Town, before I called it quits, and I managed to find this honky little pharmacy. It was weird, but it was half decent, that's for sure. There was a guy ahead of us that needed a hernia brace. But I think this the sales associate could see the absolute agony in my face and he was trying to hurry this hernia guy along because apparently he had to get referred a brace so his one wasn't gonna move very fast. The hernias move anyway. So no, once I was next, I said to the guy hey, listen, I'm struggling. I need maybe a brace, a wheelchair, a walking stick. I don't even know, just help me because I'm really suffering. So he fits me with this knee brace, which is this honky mushroom color, and I'm like, oh, whose idea was this? But no, it got me, I don't know, a couple more shops.
Speaker 1:I just wanted to go to like cotton on and just see what was in the outlet for cotton, on typo and all them kind of cheaper places. But not, still wasn't anything any better. So where's that? The pharmacy, I said to the lady can you dispense me any type of pain relief, like I'm really needing something right about now because I'm on anticoagulants, can't have this. This nurse, she gives me osteopanidol, so a slow release paracetamol, and I'm like, oh, far out, that's not gonna go far. So I took a couple of those jumping in Dan's car.
Speaker 1:We were off to Audi so I was so excited because obviously Audi, like I said in the previous podcast, has the cheapest alcohol and Dan ran ahead and got a trolley so I could lean on that and oh, my goodness me I was. I was actually managing there for a little bit. So we were moving along and then all of a sudden it got to the alcohol part of Audi. I was so happy. There they have like bottles of wine for $3.50. We hada letter of. I don't even know what it was, we had it just recently, but it was a red. But I was like a letter of red for like $7.99 or something. It was very cheap. He's probably gonna text me and be like it wasn't $7.99. It was $4.99.
Speaker 1:But no, my shopping consisted of like six bottles of wine, a tray of strawberries, hundreds and thousands and peanut butter, and the poor guy at the counter. I don't know if he was gonna say something like well, this is a big sexual night ahead. All we're missing is the cream, and we would have had fun. But anyway, he Let me check out and it was barely anything. It cost nothing. I was like, oh my god.
Speaker 1:And then we made our way down to Burley, which was where the hotel was and this is the hotel that I've been looking at for like Weeks now, and I got so excited. It had this gigantic swimming pool and it was close to my family, and I knew that they were all starting to diss them like come into Burley for Accommodation and stay there for the wedding. And I was like, yes, this is why I'm here. I'm so happy they put us on the fifth level, which is totally fine. However, we had a balcony, which is so good, but there was a step down to the balcony and I missed the step. So you can imagine the crunch my knee made. I mean, it was atomic. And I grabbed the chair because I almost went over, like through the glass balcony railing and over five floors, to my death basically.
Speaker 1:But Dan came around the corner. He was like what happened? And I was like, oh, far out, I almost went over the balcony, but there was just nothing in my knee to grab me. It was just like jelly. And that's when I knew it was really serious.
Speaker 1:I sat in this chair and I rang mom and I was like, oh, my god, I've done something. I don't know what it is, don't panic, but I just don't know what it is. And she was like just have a couple of drinks and go, tell Dan to go down to the RSL underneath the hotel and get them To give you a wheelchair so that you can wheel down and then you can go and have something to eat and just, you know, relax. And I was like, oh, should have really gone to the hospital that night. But we didn't. But my cousin messaged to say he had baby Arlo and he was gonna bring him down to see me. And I was just like, does it matter anymore, I'm gonna see Arlo. Yay, I always put everyone else in front of myself. It's just something I do. So I Managed to limp my way down to the RSL because when Dan went to go get the wheelchair, there's a little old lady said to him if you don't already have an assigned wheelchair, we're not able to give you one from here. And deaf was like shut up. So I let my way down and I was propped up on.
Speaker 1:This week still was best I could. We were playing Kino, it was, it was fun. And then in came my cousin and baby Arlo and it was just I Knew from that moment on it didn't matter. I had my best mate next to me who would do anything to help me. I had Jack and Arlo and Chiara and I was like I was pretty hesitant to hold him. To be quite honest, I was very scared. He was very tiny. So I had my dinner, had a couple of drinks, and then I just got some Dutch courage and I said to them okay, okay, I can hold him, it's fine. And I had like 15, 20 minutes just looking at him. He's my arms and he just reached out and just grabbed my little finger and I was like oh, oh, my god, and it's. I've never thought of myself as a maternal person. I've not ever said I've wanted one. I've never. You know, babies freak me out. But Arlo, arlo stole my heart that day. He's still got it. It's still there at the RSL. But no, there was a moment there.
Speaker 1:I tried to go to the toilet and some one of the patrons yelled out what why don't you lot help her Me holding across the ground, the ground? And then, yeah, I went to go a second time. I don't know what happened that night. I needed to pee quite a lot, but this other lady yelled out that there was $10 crutches at the Salvation Army and to go get some of those, because then I wouldn't look so retarded walking across this foyer area. So the next day we did. We got up and I said all the alcohol is wearing off, but it's painful again and nothing's hitting the side. So we managed to get in the car and go to the Salvation Army.
Speaker 1:The some vinnies and there was a lot of jokes about this just because we're not people that go into op shots between me and Dan. We're not. I never know where they are to go into them, and he just would rather not. But he was like, oh, you know, what could really happen is that we could come out of this with like new dresses or something. I was like, oh, so they didn't sell crutches.
Speaker 1:I don't know if that lady was lying or we got the wrong Salvation Army, but we managed to go to the chemist warehouse and the we do that the counter oh, he was hopeless. The actual customers waiting for prescriptions were more helpful than this dude. But he gave me this box and I was like well, that's fine, but I gotta use them. So we got them out of the box and then I was standing there. I was like I don't know how to use them. This little old lady comes over and she was like what have you done? I was just telling her and she's Like helping me put the height of them up, and she was like you've got to use your arms. Don't don't lean on your leg or anything like that. You've got to use your upper body strength. And I was like I don't have any.
Speaker 1:So, as we were going to leave, we accidentally managed to go down the one aisle in chemist warehouse. They had a massive pole through the center and I had to navigate around it and I was like this is shit, like I was psycho when I say I was in a mood. I actually turned to Dan and I just burst into tears and I said to him I know that I half ass everything in life, like I literally will go the cheap route for everything. I'm the worst at it. But am I doing this wrong when I should be at the hospital? I think we're too far gone at that stage, because I probably should have gone to the hospital before I went to Australia. But we're here now. We've just got to do our best. So he's like no, no, no, the crutches are going to help you. You're just, you're just tired and you've just not got any pain relief. You can't take anything. So it's best when you just use the crutches to just try and navigate. And I tell you, when I say he's got the patience of a saint oh, even my mum knew that she was like no, I wouldn't worry too much, because Dan's in, he'll do everything to help you get from A to B. Just let him help you. And I was like I don't want this. I'm so independent. It was the worst. So we paid for it.
Speaker 1:We left and, as we're driving back to the accommodation to start getting ready for the wedding, I said to Dan can you get me some McDonald's, because I need to lie my stomach or else this is going to be a fucking shit show at the wedding in the. So we pull in and we get this random beef burger with a Crumbed mozzarella patty and it's something I don't have in New Zealand that often take away as whatever. We get back to the apartment and I'm enjoying this burger, I'm like wow, that's a really different style of burger. And I said to him I've got this production line. We've got everything from makeup, hair, jewelry, bag, shoes, underwear, everything all in order.
Speaker 1:Just make sure that I don't leave the house without anything, because this is the lineup it has to go and like for me to get ready, to feel confident, to go to this wedding. It's really important because I've waited for this for months. I'm so excited for my cousin to walk down the aisle. I can't look like a bag of shit, even though I feel like it. But I said to him how are you doing makeup, because I can't stand at the bathroom sink to do this and I'm freaking out because I know that this is going to turn to shit. He's like, nah, I'm not doing it. So I had to, like, just do my best and there aren't as many photos of me as I would have liked with all my family, just because I just felt really uneasy that whole day.
Speaker 1:However, the reference they made to the McDonald's situation was because when there's alcohol and Dan had given me a couple of pre-drinks before I was getting ready and I was, you know, sitting in the car and I'd had some medication and had some alcohol, I had some McDonald's. We're pulling into the wedding and I'm going to be honest with you guys, because I know that you love my honesty and my stories and stuff like that, but I farted. Now Dan has leather seats and so he had the window down. He thought the car made a noise. He's hanging his head out. He's like what was that noise? For pulling in? And I said to him it's just one of the things that I've been doing, that noise for pulling in. And I said to him it's just wind. I'm just full of wind.
Speaker 1:It's the medication, um, and he's like get out of my car, you stink, and my uncle's walking towards and he's like what's going on? I'm like, take the present, I've got a, I've got to navigate Using crutches. He's like, oh my god, what have you done? Um, so there's like this really cool holding area where there was like games and stuff being played and, um, I walked across to my family and none of them knew I'd broken myself and you got my great aunt and she was all. What have you done?
Speaker 1:I love my family so much that I just I enjoy the fact that I don't see them that often, but when I do catch up with them, it's just everything and more. And you got to remember that that down in queen's, down here, I've just got mum and tom. So any opportunity to see any family, like I just grab with two hands and I hang on to and I just I treasure every little ounce of that time because it just goes and we feel like we're left alone again. And it's not just our choice to live here in queen's town, in crumb wall and, you know, do our best, but tom, I couldn't shake him to move out of queen's town if I tried. Like he is queen's town, like not born and bred, but he is obsessed with that area. So Me, I just love being their mum and tom and sometimes it does fill my cup that that's my only family.
Speaker 1:But then I look over at what was going on at that wedding with how much family was there, and I was like I need to marry some Greek man with lots, of, lots of sisters and brothers that have lots of nieces and nephews, because, oh my god, I mean I was reconnecting with so many people. It was and I don't go to that many weddings, I would say. Last year my actual half cousin who got married in melbourne. That was the first wedding I've been to in years. And then this year my cousin who got married in this rainforest. It was just so stunning and I couldn't I can't go into it anymore than to say that weddings are just so romantic. But it's how they get put together that speaks volumes. And there's one part of her wedding which was very special was the fact that, well, there was two. The groomsmen did shots of fireball before they all came down the aisle.
Speaker 1:But I didn't want to look back when my cousin was coming down the aisle because it just breaks me. I would rather that she like walked past me and I saw it from like everything. But it wasn't until someone yelled out oh there's Rory, and Rory is my cousin's sister's son, who she had him in the pandemic when I couldn't witness her being pregnant and him being a baby. I basically saw him when he was a toddler and he comes running down this aisle with his wee suspenders on and, oh, I was like no, there's more babies. But no, when we saw Shant that's when I look back and I saw the bride and I was like, wow, far out, she is stunning and I think obviously every bride is stunning. But we all just had a real teary moment. We all looked around at each other and we all just had tears in our eyes and everyone was passing tissues to each other.
Speaker 1:But the special moment that I talked about, that just mentioned, was actually throughout the vows. They had a moment where the bride and groom whispered something to each other that just made each other laugh and it was very romantic and we'll never know what they said. But I thought, yeah, girl, get it, because that is some real romantic shit right there, and I've been together for like 10 plus years, so seeing them get married just filled my cup and I knew from that moment I was like again, I should be here, I don't need to be like in a hospital or whatever, I'm here, I'm healthy, I'm happy. I mean I'm a little bit drunk, but I'm at the wedding, so that's the main thing and I would not miss that for the world. So once the nuptials happen and we mosey, don't back up to the reception area and we all got to have catch ups and have cocktail hour. Oh, it was so fun just catching up with everyone and spin yarns and I just love the whole thing.
Speaker 1:And then, yeah, I go down the 20 minute notice at about 10 o'clock, 10 pm. Come get me. I've been on the sailor jerry's and run with my great, great grandma. Oh, that was a big cough. So then, yeah, the whole trip kind of sped up after that and I knew that it would, because that was the main reason that I was there was to see family, the wedding and just hang out with my best mate. So when we got back up to Brisbane, you know, I made the decision not to go the next day to the lunch with my family because I felt like I looked miserable. The pain was just too much and I would just I'd had enough. I was like, just get me back to Brisbane so I can just like relax and not be in this knee brace and not have to worry about using crutches and just sit me somewhere.
Speaker 1:So that night was Riverfire, and Riverfire is like one of my most favorite celebrations not for the fireworks compared to shit's better fireworks it was actually because of the jets there are. There's flyovers of these planes and I feel like as long as I can remember being in Brisbane, I've managed to see these jets in September, and so it was super special that my friends all work together and getting us this rooftop to witness them fly over and I tell you, the last time I saw them was 2019 so to have the opportunity to have them fly, which it feels like they're so close, but they're not and just go so fast as much as they do. Again, I was just flatlined like heart skipped a beat. This is the most perfect weekend wedding jets, alcohol, catch-ups it was just exactly what I needed. I had drank two bottles of wine at this celebration on the rooftop because why wouldn't you? And it was $4 bloody proscico from Audi. So who cares?
Speaker 1:And then I said to everyone can you get me to a nightclub? Just to say that I've made it out to have a little bit of a nightclub experience while I'm here. So I'm down outside this property and my friend oh, she's crazy. If I can, I would get her on this podcast in a heartbeat she just manages to wave $50 in the air and throw it at a driver and said to him get her to the top of Brunswick Street, we're gonna take it a marquee bar so she can have a drink and then we'll take her home. And he was a random guy, guys, he wasn't a noob, but he was just a random that she threw 50 bucks at and she said can you take my friend? She's she's own, I didn't have my crutches, but she's, she's cripple, can you take her to the nightclub? And then, lo and behold, we got there and and she walked in with Dan and, oh my god, had a couple of drinks, a bit of a boogie. They took the seat away from underneath me so I had to stand and that kind of like turned everything upside down because I couldn't stand.
Speaker 1:So we managed to get back to Dan's apartment. However, I started getting a little bit tired and he lived so close to the dam, see the the down the the valley nightclub area. So I couldn't we couldn't get an Uber because it was literally like 300 meters. You just had to walk and grin and bear it. So they have this new invention in Brisbane where their lime scooters they now have seats. So I sat on it and I had to use the accelerator a little bit because it was a little bit uphill. And oh, oh, my god, as drunk as I was just taking off up Brunswick Street with this accelerator on the scooter on my seat and having Dan thinking that he's pushing me, he's just running behind me. Oh, he was so like nervous that I was gonna plow into a bus stop or something.
Speaker 1:But we got back to Dan's house and we had some more drinks and we got towed off by security for playing music up too loud, so we had to sort of simmer it down. However, we've cracked another bowl of wine I mean him are just chilling, catching up and everything else. Got a couple of friends at the apartment who'd left at the stage and we got into our minds that Dan should record a podcast with me. So, you guys, he did. We were sitting outside on one of his balconies he's got two and we were roaring with laughter.
Speaker 1:We didn't know how this was gonna sound. We were just talking and some guy yelled out you know, shut the fuck up, get inside. So we had to move to the other balcony, which was more street side than courtyard side. So we ran out to the other side and we're having this you know, podcast and catch up. I'm using the questions I took over to him underneath candlelight. He's lost the muff off the top of the microphone that he could not attach to his top. He was that drunk and he kept whispering. It was 24 minutes of chaos and we didn't know how it was gonna sound or anything. So we were like, okay, we'll wrap it up here and we'll go back to this and we'll see how we sound and we'll add on to it and rady, rady, which is Exactly not how I do podcasts. I do it one go and that's it.
Speaker 1:So the next day, when I was catching up with a friend at El Camino, I knew for a while that I had to bite the bullet here and actually see what we recorded on this microphones that we had, and, and it sounded so terrible, my god. I would not put you guys through that terrible staticness. But he the best part is that he didn't. He didn't not want to be on the put. It was his idea. That was. The main thing was. It was very funny. But I plugged this little adapter thing into the side of his laptop and we're not sure if the microphones weren't picked up About the speakers on the laptop were the microphones? Because the clarity was so terrible. It was static, um, it was really quiet, I don't know, it just sounded horrible.
Speaker 1:And for me and his friendship, 25 plus years, um, I don't want to half-ass this if he's going to be on the podcast, you guys hands down 1000 it's got to be perfect or it's not going to be, it's not going to be published at all, and that's how I feel. So that pod he will always keep is his first opportunity at being on the pod and he, he loved it. I'm I want to say that for him. He loved it. He was laughing, he was Whispering, he thought he was being loud and he wasn't. We were told off, you know, told to move on. However, he is here in about 60 days, so I've got to get my a into g and start organizing some shit. But also, that is his main opportunity to be on the pod and I am going to smash out of the park for you guys. He deserves it, I deserve it. It's going to be great.
Speaker 1:However, it happened that night. So three bottles of wine for myself later and multiple gin cocktails. It was a shit show, but when does anything ever go right on my pod anyway? So it's fine. But that was his first opportunity and he nailed it, so we'll get him back. It's all good. And then, yeah, I just spent a couple of days sitting on his couch just catching up with him. We had a few friends coming and going and just meeting up with me. It was super special.
Speaker 1:So, um, honestly, like mum says, you went over there with a whole lot of money to go and like smash out doing things and everything and you couldn't. So the fact that you just had to sit still and just Hang out with Dan, I think like and she's right, you needed it and I was like you know, I did so came back to Queenstown with a full on new sort of clear mind that, um, you know, it was exactly what I needed at the right time. I'm not sad about going over with a knee injury coming back out, however, um, it was a direct flight and I was kind of a bit nervous because, obviously, when you go through an injury and your body starts trying To heal itself, it was kind of like day 10 as I was coming home and I thought, oh shit, what if my leg swells up and something happens? You know, I didn't. I couldn't be honest to the ear hostesses because I was back in the emergency R-Row again, which is something that I don't know. People just look at me and go oh, give her the extra leg room, are you willing and able? No man, I'm gonna stop, I'm gonna have to start wrapping this up and I'm actually getting the coughs here.
Speaker 1:Um, but on that flight there was a girl that was vaping and it was very obvious because the plane smelled like Froot Loops. But when we were coming into uh, descend into Queenstown, the air hostess came over and gave her a bit of a bit of an earful I'm quite impressed and when we got to leave she was sitting in the seat. Like the air hostess, made comment that the police were coming on board and to stay in your seats, it was a federal offense and she vaped on board. So the police were coming on board. So I don't know what happened, but people started disembarking. So I jumped up and just ran ahead because I just wanted to get off the plane and, um, I just managed to walk past the air hostess and I said, hey, listen, really proud of the fact that you confronted her about it.
Speaker 1:It was very obvious that she was doing it and she was sitting next to her mom, which is even like more grosser. And she was like thank you, thank you. And I said we actually wanted to give you a round of applause. And she was like honestly, this never happens and none of us knew how to approach it that well. And I was like well, you smashed out of the park, mate, you did really well.
Speaker 1:And then, while we were in the customs area, she got collected up by the police and put into a room. And then, while I was getting my taxi to go to my car Because I clearly could not walk, she came out and she'd been crying. She had this big red patchy face and I was like you, gronk, you shouldn't vape on a plane anyway. Even my brother, who's like Mr Cigarette he only smokes cigarettes Um, we had to give him heaps and nicotine patches to get from Sydney to Dampen Sa. He didn't even smoke on a plane and he's a chain, so, look, that was just really weird and gross and nasty. But yeah, all in all, I sum up my trip to Australia definitely in 10 hour. 10 Didn't get to see a lot of people I wanted to see, just because I couldn't get around, and, um, my tolerance was shit.
Speaker 1:At the end of the trip Dan wanted to rerecord the pod and I just wanted to get home and just cry just because the pain through a shoulder was just awful. Um, so again, he was sober and he still wanted to rerecord it. But uh, yeah, it was just such a lovely sort of romantic, fill your cup kind of a weekend and I'm really happy I went um. But then, yeah, I got back on Tuesday at four o'clock and I went to the doctor nine am Wednesday, and that's when he advised that I've torn my mcl, not my acl, my mcl and he was like it's got six weeks of healing before you can get an MRI. Here's some codeine, paracetamol, which is 8mg codeine. If this doesn't work, give me a call and I will prescribe you something stronger. So I was like, okay, at least that's kind of making a bit of a plan.
Speaker 1:I got this text message to say, hey, danny, can you come in for an X-ray? 12 o'clock Thursday, all good, I went into that. I rang the GP office before 5 o'clock on the Thursday and said, hey, are my results in? They said, nah, we'll give you a call tomorrow, danny. I said all good, my GP text me I know, is that a new thing? I don't know text me at 5.45 Thursday night and said, hey, danny, no broken bones or fractures. I said nah, didn't think so, all good.
Speaker 1:And then, 9am Friday, everything fell through the toilet. Oh, I tell you, you couldn't even make this shit up. I rang the GP's office because the pain Thursday night was so bad. I said to mum we might have to go to Dunstan or Lakes District Hospital. I can't sleep, I can't stretch my leg out, I can't bathe. This is shit.
Speaker 1:And so we called Healthline. We called Healthline, which is a free service, just to get some advice on pain management, because my blood thinners are causing such a ruckus. And we had this sweetest little old lady. Her name is Belinda. Massive kudos to you, just absolute star. And she said to me the things that don't react with your endicoagulants are tremidol, so give your GP a call Friday morning and ask for tremidol. I said, yep, cool. I don't know if you're supposed to go into your doctors with an idea as to how you're supposed to get prescribed medication.
Speaker 1:I'm not very educated in drugs at all. I'm definitely not someone that dabbles in pain relief. I just sort of take what is offered and try it. But she said to me that the fact that I was given eight milligrams with paracetamol is kind of like something you give someone for attention headache I'm not very strong at all, barely touches the sides. However, the pharmacist even said one out of three people coding doesn't work for and I was like, oh, that's me, that's totally me Right, nothing major there. And then so I call up my GP and then the receptionist.
Speaker 1:The receptionist takes the call and she takes it into a quiet room because it was very loud and then went very quiet and I said to her hey, I just wanted to catch up with my GP. He said, if the pain relief wasn't working, to give him a call and he'll send me a prescription for something stronger. But I've spoken to Healthline and they said that Trimador might be better for me. And she was like you can't just get things dispensed over the phone. You have to come into the clinic and people have to see you. And I said there's nothing to see, nothing's changed. I still look the same, I just need a stronger pain relief. And my understanding is is that I can just ring up and ask you can do a phone consult? I didn't give two shirts, just make sure that he gets the message that this hasn't worked and I need a bit of help.
Speaker 1:She went wild, literally just demanded that I go to a different GP's practice. She was like I think it's in your best interest to leave. And I was mortified. I was absolutely like I'm going to end this call right now Because it's not going well and I don't want to make you any more upset about this, just because I'm just asking for a bit of help and I don't deserve to be treated like this. And I hung up and I tried to get in the shower. I even put a stool in the shower, took my phone with me just in case I fell down.
Speaker 1:And I got a phone call back from who I think is someone quite high up in the GP practice that I go to. I'm not sure, and this was about 15 minutes later and they were like hey, danny, sorry about that previous phone call, you shouldn't have been talked to in that way. I'm going to prescribe tramadol. I just didn't know where you heard that you should get that and I said from advice from Healthline. It's like not me making up anything. I just thought I'd say to you is my GP, if this was something I could have and it wasn't even like it was a big deal. I honestly was just like I'm so sorry. I wouldn't have upset anyone with the fact that I was just asking for different medication.
Speaker 1:But this is day 10 where I'm not coping and you're just telling me that because of this injury, I have to sort of ride through the pain and not seek, like immediate medical attention from a hospital or anything like that, but that this injury actually hurts this much because they can't take anti-inflammatories. It's going to hurt for a long time and I'm like mother fuck, I'm not ready for this. So I said, look, I totally understand that. So he prescribed tramadol, sent it to the pharmacy, everything was all fine and I have another appointment. However, I'm definitely moving practices just because that was wild and I don't feel like now being Monday that I can even go to get my medical certificate extended.
Speaker 1:I can't do anything. I just feel like the receptionist just had a bad day. I don't know, but it speaks volumes because I told mum. She was like, obviously, how did this all pan out with you painfully? And she told a few people at her work and then they actually offered her what was in their cabinets at home For me to have as pain relief, because they just felt for me. And mum was like she's struggling, she can't take a lot of things. But mum was like it was wild how many people came forward with different things that they had to offer you, even a lot of marijuana. A lot of people are like self medicating with marijuana right now, which is that that wasn't people from my mum's work or anything like that, that was just something that was brought up and lots of valium. So I am very thankful for the love and support from so many people that had different things to offer.
Speaker 1:But at the end of the day, like I'm not someone that really pushes for medical help or anything, like I grin and bear it and I probably shouldn't, because I totally get that I'm not in a good place with this injury, but I don't know. The lady at the reception just said that you can't go and sit at Dunston Hospital in the emergency section and get seen to, and I was shocked. I was like, okay, so you're actually going to make me go back to Queenstown Hospital and sit and wait to be seen when there's no visible nothing visible to be seen about my knee, it's just this ongoing searing pain like a hot poker through the side of my knee and you're just telling me that that injury is exactly that pain and that threshold won't go away. I'm currently sleeping with this like long pillow underneath my legs, almost at a 90 degree angle, just because I can't straighten my leg and I can't. It's just. The whole thing is so messed up I can't even tell you guys. So I think you know about all the end all.
Speaker 1:I hope that you know by the time this next podcast comes around that I can be honest and say that I'm feeling a bit more positive about my pain relief this week. I hope that everything just goes really smoothly. I'll just keep on top of what I've been taking. I haven't really even been posting on my social media just because I can't stay awake for long. Trivador really hits, but I don't feel like it hits in the pain relief sector. It makes you feel really warm and fuzzy, and yet you go to sleep but then you wake up and you're like my God, that pain is still there. So I only have six tablets of codeine left and I don't know 28 tramadiles. So how am I supposed to make this work until my next doctor's appointment with this horrible receptionist that I don't want to see? Oh yeah, well, that's a story for another day, I suppose. But yeah, one of the week I haven't drunk anything in New Zealand, to actually make that comment, to be quite honest. No, I haven't even done anything I could even comment on. It's mostly Australian stuff and I don't want to tell anyone that, because I feel like everyone will end up driving to Audi, which is not fair. I want to go to Audi.
Speaker 1:Do I have anything else to add? Oh, probably, probably, but this has just been one of those catch up podcasts, just to let you guys know how I am. I have a terrible cough at the moment and pain relief isn't cutting it. I've got a knee injury. I've just seen all my friends and family. I think it's 52 days until they go on the cruise, which makes me not want to have surgery if this is a surgery type of an injury, because I want to walk around the boat, thank you.
Speaker 1:But yeah, it's just definitely been one of those kind of fortnights. I suppose it's been two weeks since we caught up. All I had in my mind was just to tell you about my trip and that was about it. But I totally get it if this is sort of one of those lull podcasts. There's nothing to be taken away except broken. But yeah, I hope everyone's been really well and I will get on to making a upbeat fun pod moving forward. This has been Danny Dot having a quick yarn about an injury. But no, take care and I will get another pod out shortly. Bye.