The View from my Bicycle + VIDEO + GRAPHS

So last week, in an effort to find a new view from my bicycle, I ventured down to the Free State flatlands determined to train hard. The goal was to put down 16-18 hours of training in 6 days. You do the math. That's a minimum of 3 hours each day.

As it turned out, tough as the week was, I surprised myself by:

1) enjoying it
2) finding I was a lot stronger - despite earlier sickness - than I'd have guessed
3) becoming very tough mentally as a result

Some of the highlights of the week included doing a hard 3km swim and following that up with 10 pullups. To give you an idea, 10 pullups are tough as it is. To do them after 3km of swimming, and not struggling, that's quite surprising.

I also cycled 137km on my own. That's surprising on both counts. My last long ride was around 75km. This was almost twice as long, and I can't remember when last I trained - on the bike - alone. I have done some indoor training on my own, and that - because it is so boring - does toughen one up a lot. Still, 137km in the wind wasn't a joke, and I surprised myself by averaging over 30km/h. Here's a short clip from the road...

You can see below that it's reasonably flat (brown line), but turning back is a gradually undulating uphill, not helped by constant, nagging crosswinds.

One silly aspect of the ride was forgetting to apply sunblock to my arms and legs and also forgetting to eat over the last hour or so (I didn't completely forget, I didn't want to consume too many expensive gels).
In any event, I paid the price for not applying sunblock.

My skin was burnt so badly for the 4hours in the sun that they stung. Like they had been singed by a hot pot.

I have to credit a South African remedy - it's called PREP. Very good stuff, and a few days later my skin isn't a holy mess.

I also did a 18km run over a fairly tough route, and for the first time felt definitely LIGHTER. This lightness was to be my saving grace on the last tough day - a 105km race. Here's the race profile below.


Now you can see the toughest effort was right in the beginning. There is a very nasty constant climb that you don't expect in the beginning, and my legs really weren't interested in that sort of effort, especially at the beginning. It also proved to be the hardest effort for the whole race. In any event, just before the downhill the leading bunch broke away, and I found myself adrift with 3 other riders, one of them my brother.

We worked well together and were fairly evenly matched in terms of strength, with each of us taking equal turns at the front. I went through a bad patch at 60km, which I think was from the high sugar content of the gels backfiring (I've been cutting my sugar intake sharply). But a few kilometres later, (probably the 1hr 45 min point above) I felt better again and started to dominate the group, doing long stints in front, first on the downhills, then on the uphills too.

The wind was all over the place, so didn't really allow a reprieve. At the turn on the Caltex bridge my brother asked if we could stop for water. I didn't really want to stop, but since I was riding on one bottle myself (he had two) I thought if we could make it quick it would be fine.
Can't really blame the two other guys for not stopping. In the end my brother took a long time, and I drifted off with the two other riders started to grow small in front of me. At first they were just 30 metres ahead, then 50 metres, then 100 metres, then 200 metres. My brother took a long time to reach me, and then wasn't coming round so I worked to get back to the other two.

I was under the impression they were riding hard. It took all of 20 kilometres riding on my own then to catch one. The other one had gone off on his own at the top of the biggest climb.

It was an unfortunate result, but in terms of training, it was perfect. It meant I essentially time-trialled the last 25km and felt really strong. Also - though I have no idea what my brother's backstory is - it was interesting to ride in such a weakened condition (the 137km was deep in my legs still, nevermind all the other exertions) and still find myself so strong.

Often when we do races he rides with the VA's or VB's and I ride with the open seeded guys. His time is often 5 minutes quicker than mine, but I've often thought this is due to the strength of the group pulling one along. Especially the first 10 % of the race. On the last two occasions I've encountered my brother on the road in a race, I was able to pull ahead. On the one occasion I had no Zipps, and on this last occasion, I was using the lighter rims.

In the end I did 16 hours and 8 minutes of training. My weight dived to 79.6kg at one point. Tonight (after dinner though) I weighed myself and tipped the scales at over 82kg. I'm going to have an easier week this week, probably 10 hours, and then want to follow that with 12 hours, and then 18 hours. Not sure when I'll get the 18 hours in but want to at some point.

It is great to see a combination of lifestyle, diet, determination and discipline bear fruit. I'd recommend it to anyone.

Jenna [PHOTOGRAPHY]

America - Sober Up! [Though you know you won't]

"There is no more moral justification for the private ownership of land than for the private ownership of air or rainfall."

clipped from jameshowardkunstler.typepad.com The political theater of the moment in Washington is not focused on any of this, but on the illusion that we can find new ways of keeping the old ways going. Many observers have noted lately how passive the American public is in the face of their dreadful accelerating losses. It's a tragic mistake to tell them that they can have it all back again. We'll see a striking illustration of "phase change" as the public mood goes from cow-like incomprehension to grizzly bear-like rage. Not only will they discover the impossibility of getting back to where they were, but they will see the panicked actions of Washington drive what remains of our capital resources down a rat hole. This striking poverty of imagination may lead to change that will tear the nation to pieces.

Bailouts are rescuing huge banks that squandered our wealth...so our wealth gets squandered twice?

These bailouts are a big big mistake, the the ease with which those greedy paws are being regreased is crazy. The bailing out of the automakers is incredibly stupid when so many other systems and services need attention. Chrysler can't survive because it never anticipated higher fuel prices, so built only trucks and SUVs. They made a mistake. Rescue them, thanks, but they'll go down anyway, and that money will go up in smoke...just more of it than was necessary.

When people (taxpayers) realise they've been swindled (and things are worse than ever) it's hard to imagine they will go quietly into the night.

clipped from seekingalpha.com This week President Obama claimed that failure to pass his economic stimulus bill will have catastrophic consequences for the U.S economy. The reality is the catastrophe will be far greater with his plan than without it. If the trends of January and early February of 2009 continue, the rug will be completely pulled out from beneath the U.S. economy, and the full cost of the President's "economic depressant package" will be apparent to all. If foreign capital does not continue to pour into Treasuries, interest rates and consumer prices in the U.S. will soar. At that point, we will finally be confronted with the real crises that I have long predicted. When the day of reckoning arrives our policy response will be critical. If we continue on the course our new President has mapped out, the catastrophe will far exceed the scope of any he hoped to avoid.

SA voters abroad cleared to vote - for now [and one simple step for this election]

The ANC's arrogance (just remember A is for arrogance) as ruling majority party is (hopefully) at an end. It seems whichever party rules this country, whether the NATS or the ANC, they become arrogant and then belligerant. Maybe they just feel helpless and ineffectual against the huge problems we face - in crime, in AIDS, in poverty, education, in our neighbor.

That may be so, but it's also true that very little leadership has been demonstrated.

We need at a minimum a two-party state (although the USA shows how a on-off scenario eventually also gets you nowhere. Personally, I have a problem with 'Majority Rules'. That might sound rich from a minority population group person in SA, but let me make my point.

The majority may think there is no such thing as global warming, they may eat meat until the cows no longer come home. they may follow endless traffic queues day after day and eventually get to work - but the majority aren't right. They don't have the best solution. To say so and believe it (blindly) puts yourself in a position of throwing large groups of people in utter chaos/or utterly being stuck. We've seen how majorities elect Bush. Sometimes, often, the majority mindset is dumber than the minority. Think of scientists, think of Simon and Ralph in Lord of the Flies. Think of Jesus (if you must).

The point is, our system of selling the easy to buy shit to the masses and then having people represent those views...it's going to get us into trouble. And politics is in trouble because trouble is everywhere right now. This is the failure of critical thinking (something few people do.)

One simple step in this election - vote for any party except the ANC. Cope is pseudo-ANC, and that's fine. The point is, political parties need to be on their toes now. You don't perform, you're out. Lies, corruption, failure to deliver, failure to act - you're out. It's like a kindergarten game, except until now it's been 'steal the cake and eat as much as you can (and get your buddies to help push your weight around).

clipped from www.iol.co.za South Africans abroad should be allowed to vote, the Pretoria High Court ruled on Monday. Handing down judgment, Acting Judge Piet Ebersohn ruled that the current legislation infringed on the rights of South Africans living abroad. The court ruled that the electoral act "limited" the casting of votes to people temporarily living abroad. It referred the judgment to the Constitutional Court for confirmation. The Independent Electoral Commission was also ordered to change its voting procedures so as to allow South Africans living abroad to vote. 4 Hours ago S'fiso wrote : I note with interest the excitment coming from ANC opposition parties about overseas people voting.What makes the opposition sure that they will vote for them (or vote at all).How is that proportion of voters going to affect the outcome of the elections(if it will have any effect at all)?Is this one of the desperate strategy by the opposition parties to gain +/-0.5 seats in parliament.

We killed Lucky because we thought he was Nigerian - OK?

No, not okay.

Check out this clip from Bitches Brew - well worth reading every Sunday at Sunday World.co.za.

clipped from www.sundayworld.co.za My friend was telling me how Lucky Dube was killed because some cowards thought he was a Nigerian. What is wrong with you people? Do you mean to say you killed him because he is black or because he is dark skinned? WTF! Do you monkeys miss apartheid that much that you have taken it upon yourselves to continue to kill and rape the black race? �This is what happens when niggers are unemployed and rely on cash from stealing cars.� What? You can�t call people niggers! You should call those morons kaffirs (unbelievers) as they believe in nothing. Top tips for surviving in South Africa if you�re dark skinned and why we adore Nigerians: Don�t take any shit from cops who want to deport you because they think you are a foreigner on your own continent. Prove you are South African by swearing at them in all 11 official languages. You will survive Mzansi more easily if you speak your mother tongue more often and embrace your culture.

Woolworths becomes 'cheapskate' - YAY!

Woolworths are vrek expensive, and on the few occasions I shop there, I tend to regret it. I know some people who shop there and nowhere else - they tend to live in places that could fit about ten of my loft apartments, and have a nice moat to go around the whole shebang too.
Oh the layout and the Woolworths product is great (and all), but you're not getting any value - not close. So I think it's good that they're shaving some bucks of their stuff. The question will be - how much? Enough?

clipped from www.reuters.com JOHANNESBURG, Feb 9 (Reuters) - South African retailer Woolworths (WHLJ.J) has cut prices on 5 percent of its product lines as it grapples with a consumer downturn in Africa's biggest economy. Woolworths, which has been losing market share as its hard-pressed middle income customers switch to cheaper supermarkets, said on Monday the cuts applied to a range of products, including basics such as oil and rice. The food and clothing retailer said the price reductions were part of a drive to make its food division more mainstream, rather than focusing on pricier items such as ready-cooked meals and speciality foods.

Adelaide hits a staggering 45.6C, heat records breaking day aftyer day in Australia...

NVDL: Although it's getting less and less ironic (something we can ill afford by the day), let's say that thing altogether now:

'Do you think this stuff might have something...may have some connection...to that other thing...something about the global climate or something... they were gabbing on all the time...what was it called again...?'

I believe by the time we are forced to adapt and change to the worsening climate, we'll really have used up our resources, and choices to do so. It will be a scramble for survival (for food, water, amenable living temperatures) in some parts of the world - it already is. That's a different scenario to luxurious living. It becomes a desperate state of hanging on, and we have no idea how much worse this could become, and for how long. We all took a terrible gamble that it probably wasn't worth worrying about. Because it suited us to live with selfish indulgences. Now the pendulum begins to swing the other way as it always must.

clipped from www.independent.co.uk Leaves are falling off trees in the height of summer, railway tracks are buckling, and people are retiring to their beds with deep-frozen hot-water bottles, as much of Australia swelters in its worst-ever heatwave. On Friday, Melbourne thermometers topped 43C (109.4F) on a third successive day for the first time on record, while even normally mild Tasmania suffered its second-hottest day in a row, as temperatures reached 42.2C. Two days before, Adelaide hit a staggering 45.6C. After a weekend respite, more records are expected to be broken this week. Ministers are blaming the heat – which follows a record drought – on global warming. Experts worry that Australia, which emits more carbon dioxide per head than any nation on earth, may also be the first to implode under the impact of climate change.

"Hi, sorry got some bad doomsday scenarios to report." "Look, we can't afford them, so don't tell us." "But you didn't want to hear them when things were going great either..."

Recent opinion polls suggest that the economic recession has eclipsed concern about the environment.

NVDL: There are a few analogies that are worth remembering. The grasshopper and the ant, and the field mouse and city mouse. I think the moral has something to do with having one's labours rewarded, but not just labors, forethought, anticipation of winter etc. And here we went and had a global party on the stock markets, and still got ourselves in debt, and thought it would be an endless summer? We'd better start preparing for the winter of our discontent, and quick! How? Start changing how you live, what you buy, your perception of yourself as 'consumer'. Start now.

clipped from www.guardian.co.uk Unless there is timely action on climate change, California's agricultural bounty could be reduced to a dust bowl and its cities disappear, Barack Obama's energy secretary said yesterday. The apocalyptic scenario sketched out by Steven Chu, the Nobel laureate appointed as energy secretary, was the clearest sign to date of the greening of America's political class under the new president. Suzanne Goldenberg on US energy secretary's warning on climate change Link to this audio In blunt language, Chu said Americans had yet to fully understand the urgency of dealing with climate change. "I don't think the American public has gripped in its gut what could happen," he told the Los Angeles Times in his first interview since taking the post. "We're looking at a scenario where there's no more agriculture in California. I don't actually see how they can keep their cities going." He also directed the car industry to produce cars that can achieve 35 miles per gallon by 2020.

Snow in London, Fire in Australia, Ice Storms in the USA - what about you?

So what's the weather like in your part of the world. If you're sensing anomalous weather conditions in your area, please leave a comment here...hopefully we can gauge a fraction of the global consensus...

Jenna [PHOTOGRAPHY]

Vicky Cristina Barcelona - Movie Review

Cristina: I'll go to your room, but you'll have to seduce me.

I'm not a fan of Woody Allen (the nerdy chattery geek who once said, "Why is it that'happiness sounds like 'a penis')". I think I don't like Woody because he represents a different kind of man - the emasculated man. Turns out even weaklings can have a healthy, and as it turns out, MANLY sex drive (or is it sexual fantasy life).

I have to admit, also, that I have recently had a shift in my attitude towards wanting to pawn off homosexual sex on the fairer sex. Apparently a study has confirmed that women are turned on (more or less) by just about everything.

I know some women reading this will find that bit of information about as charming as the proposition made by (Don) Juan Antonio Gonzalo (well played Javier Bardem)who invites two American tourists to his villa for a threesome.

The flick is a lot deeper and more interesting than it pretends to be. While Penelope and Scarlett are memorable, Rebecca Hall's performance as Vicky will probably resonate with many.


Cristina: [Looking at a sculpture of Jesus] Are you very religious?
Juan Antonio: No, no, no, no, I'm not. The trick is to enjoy life, accepting it has no meaning whatsoever.
Cristina: No meaning? You don't think that authentic love gives life meaning?
Juan Antonio: Yes, but love is so transient. Isn't it? I was in love with a most incredible woman... and then in the end...
Vicky: Yes?
Juan Antonio: She put a knife into me.
Cristina: My God, that's terrible!
Vicky: Well, maybe you did something to deserve it.

I tend to agree that love is transient. In fact, it occurred to me this morning the kernel of wisdom that this movie has. Skip the next paragraph if you want to go watch the movie and find out for yourself.

The thing is, love changes. I think people implicitly believe that when they love, love stays the same, because people on the surface appear to be the same. But they aren't. Are you? And so what makes love so difficult is that even two people meant for each other change, and so does their love for each other. It fluctuates like a maturing wine, or a worsening vinegar. And it takes vigilance, and something else, spice, caution, gardening, to keep love growing, flourishing, tasty.

There is meaning wherever we choose to see it, and sometimes, it sneaks up on us.
At the end of Woody's flick I couldn't help but feel he'd reversed Vicky's attitude with Cristina's - they arrive back at the airport wanting the opposite of what they had wanted when they first arrived (and ironically, each wants the opposite of what the other wants).
It makes one wonder whether our wants, and our moods, ought to be listened to...like listening to the wind and allowing it to blow us far and wide, over fallow and foul fields. I believe the magic trick is to let go a little (sometimes a lot), but part of the beauty and power love is discernment, and discipline. Loyalty is what we give when we find someone worth being with, and we find we're worth being that someone too.

Juan Antonio: We are meant for each other and not meant for each other. It's a contradiction.

SPLASH! [NVTV]

This is a classic!

Africa chooses Moammar Gadhafi to represent its interests

It is no surprise that Africa is the wasteland that it is, and will remain a moral wasteland when we choose to serve the leaders we do.
It's going to be a great gang this year - South Africa will bring Jacob Zuma to the club, he'll be rubbing shoulders with Mugabe and Gadhafi. Maybe they can swap arms deals over lunches, and play poker with national AID money while puffing on cigars.

Take your pick - dictator, terrorist, criminal, militarist...this is a man who imprisons people for dissent, who shoots down public aircraft over foreign soil to score political points. But there is far more wrong with the idiots who elected this man than the man himself.

clipped from news.yahoo.com ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia – Moammar Gadhafi of Libya was elected Monday as leader of the African Union, a position long sought by the eccentric dictator pushing his oil-rich nation into the international mainstream after years of isolation. Some African leaders offered tepid praise for the choice of Gadhafi, who grabbed power in a 1969 coup. Rights groups called him a poor model for Africa at a time when democratic gains are being reversed in countries such as Mauritania and Guinea. Once ostracized by the West for sponsoring terrorism, Gadhafi has been trying to increase Libya's presence on the global stage and its regional influence — mediating African conflicts, sponsoring efforts to spread Islam on the continent and pushing for the creation of a single African government.

Life, God and Dried Fruit [NVTV]

London goes back to the Ice Age - Ice worst in 18 years - bus services cancelled for first time in 100 years

"We don't have an infrastructure built for constant snow."

London's subway network was hit hard because much of the system is above ground. Of some 12 lines, only the Victoria Line was unaffected.

"There has never been a day where the bus service has been canceled for bad weather. Not in 100 years," he told the BBC.

clipped from news.yahoo.com LONDON – The British capital ground to a halt on Monday after the worst snowstorm in 18 years caused hundreds of flight cancellations and virtually halted public transportation. Shops, schools and courts shut down and long trails of commuters trudged through the streets looking for scarce taxis or ways to work after more than four inches (10 centimeters) of snow fell overnight. "We're not in Russia here," said Guy Pitt, a Transport for London spokesman. "We don't have an infrastructure built for constant snow."

The Matrix - The Pill

Punxsutawney Phil confirms now is the endless winter of our discontent

"Now is the winter of our discontent
Made even chillier by one ice storm in (New) York, after another
And all the clouds that loured upon our house
and all the houses and malls in suburbia with no future
were thanks to us and other collective carbon footprints
In the deep bosom of the ocean we buried hurricane
and toxins (mercury, chromium, uranium)
Now are our brows bound with frowns,
Our bruised arms hung up on homes we cannot sell,
Our stern alarums changed to traffic with nothing to go on,
Our dreadful marches to criminal plots and warring thoughts.
Grim-visaged war may smooth our energy ravaged landscape
or worsen it
And now, instead of mounting barbed steeds
we try to push the plough into Earth like sponge
sucked dry of all its goodness
like the people it nourished
but the people nourished their hearts and minds
on the pornographic delights
of shops
and addictions
and consumption
To fright the souls of fearful adversaries,
to frighten the families who were wont for love
not money and more stuff
But I, that am shaped for sportive tricks,
made to court an amorous looking-glass;
I, that strut before a wanton ambling nymph;
I, that am not curtailed of this fair proportion,
but nevertheless
Cheated - like you - of a future
by man's dissembling nature,
and governments
Deformed, unfinished, sent before my time
Into this breathing world, scarce half made up,
And that so lamely and unfashionable
That dogs bark at the world
and I compete with my blogs on anti-war
and honesty as I halt by them,--
Why, I, in this weak piping time of peace,
Have no delight to pass away the time,
Unless to spy my shadow in the sun
in the growing, bitter cold
in the growing of the dark knight
in the growing of our common fright..."

clipped from news.yahoo.com PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. – The world's most famous groundhog has seen his shadow which, legend has it, means this already long winter will last for six more weeks. Punxsutawney (punx-suh-TAW'-nee) Phil's forecast was announced in front of thousands of revelers gathered at Gobbler's Knob in Punxsutawney, about 65 miles northeast of Pittsburgh. They gathered Monday morning in near freezing temperatures, with many revelers buoyed by the Super Bowl victory by the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday night. Since 1887, Phil has seen his shadow 97 times, hasn't seen it 15 times, and there are no records for nine years, according to the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club.

NVDL's SEXIEST PHOTOGRAPHY [SLIDESHOW]

The View from my exercise Bicycle [COLUMN]

Today I missed the 5am breakfast ride. This meant I had to catch up the workout in the gym. Now they say an hour in the gym is equivalent to 2 hours on the road. So I would have done the equivalent of 4 hours.

I am weighing around 79.5kg, thanks to some long workouts. I have plenty of sopping wet t-shirts in the washing basket. I am also eating very well - lots of fruit and vegetables, no fruit juice, no sodas, lots of water. The only junk food I am eating is some chocolate, but here's a tip: dark chocolate has less sugar than ordinary chocolate.

This weekend we saw Nadal - who must have been tired from his previous five set epic - steal victory from arch rival Federer. We've seen Lance Armstrong return from retirement to mix it up with the Australians. I saw some gutsy running performances on TV.

The background to the above is a book I am reading on nutrition. Some of it is really complicated, the diseases one can get and the complex processes involved. It turns out that the basics remain - exercise, don't stress, get enough sleep, eat organic and plenty of fresh water. Care about yourself. It turns out that our ordinary habits are cancer-inducing.

Never mind the idiots who smoke. I have to say, I have little respect for people who today spend money on cigarettes. Take your pick which cancer will usher you out of this world. And take your pick on how you would like to age prematurely? Wrinkly skin? Hallitosis? Stains on teeth and skin? And each time you smoke a cigarette you bring all this on yourself. My guess is smokers try not to think about what they do every time they do it. In that, they are not alone.

If you want to win - not only against an opponent, but in life, you (we) are going to need to have guts, and bring guts to the table. And the fact is, not everyone has guts. And some who have guts, lack the brains or the will to use them. Big changes are upon us. Hold tight, but not too tight that you're unable to dance around the wolves...

Obama launches 'war on error' - trying to repair the boo boos of his predecessor

That means he has quite a lot of work to do...

clipped from news.yahoo.com WASHINGTON – The "War on Terror" is losing the war of words. The catchphrase burned into the American lexicon hours after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, is fading away, slowly if not deliberately being replaced by a new administration bent on repairing the U.S. image among Muslim nations. Since taking office less than two weeks ago, President Barack Obama has talked broadly of the "enduring struggle against terrorism and extremism." Another time it was an "ongoing struggle." He has pledged to "go after" extremists and "win this fight." There even was an oblique reference to a "twilight struggle" as the U.S. relentlessly pursues those who threaten the country.

I farted...should I issue a public apology to the newspapers...?

No, but that's because I'm not famous and no one would be interested. I guess celebrities do have to set an example. I just reckon we treat them like gods, instead of the ordinary people they actually are (although blessed with some particular talent...)
We ought to give them a break...Prince Harry and all the rest, and get a life.

clipped from sports.yahoo.com Olympic great Michael Phelps acknowledged “regrettable” behavior and “bad judgment” after a photo in a British newspaper Sunday showed him inhaling from a marijuana pipe. In a statement to The Associated Press, the swimmer who won a record eight gold medals at the Beijing Games did not dispute the authenticity of the exclusive picture published Sunday by the tabloid News of the World. “I engaged in behavior which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment,” Phelps said in the statement released by one of his agents. “I’m 23 years old and despite the successes I’ve had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner people have come to expect from me. For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public it will not happen again.”

Nadal edges Federer 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 (3), 3-6, 6-2.

Although Federer actually won one more point — 174-173 — his serve let him down all too frequently. He connected on only 51 percent of his first serves, and it seemed as if all of his six double-faults came at critical times.

NVDL: Nadal is a great fighter.

clipped from news.yahoo.com MELBOURNE, Australia – Rafael Nadal held off Roger Federer in another momentum-swinging, five-set final to win the Australian Open on Sunday, keeping the Grand Slam singles record safe for now. After coming through the longest match in the tournament's history to reach the championship match, Nadal needed 4 hours, 23 minutes Sunday to win 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 (3), 3-6, 6-2. The 27-year-old Swiss star couldn't hold back tears at the presentation. "Maybe I'll try later. God, it's killing me," Federer said, sobbing. He returned to congratulate Nadal within minutes, saying: "You deserved it. You played a fantastic final." Nadal collected the trophy and put his arm around Federer. "Roger, sorry for today. I really know how you feel right now," Nadal said. "Remember, you're a great champion, you're one of the best in history." "To receive this trophy from Rod Laver is a dream for me," Nadal said.

The Orient - In 5 Minutes (more Or Less) [NVTV]

The Orient - In 5 Minutes (more Or Less) - The top video clips of the week are here

Honeymoon in Thailand [NVTV]

Honeymoon In Thailand - Amazing videos are here

The Dark Knight - did the Joker trick Batman into saving Dent rather than Rachel?

Yes. Batman was so enraged by the Joker that it didn't occur to him to second-guess the Joker's instructions. He leaves the building telling Gordon he will go to Rachel but instead finds Dent... Rachel's death weighs on Batman's conscience, making him even darker and more troubled....

clipped from en.wikipedia.org At the police station, Batman interrogates the Joker, who reveals that their police escorts were on Maroni's payroll, and have placed Dent and Rachel in warehouses rigged with explosives on opposite sides of the city—far enough apart so that Batman cannot save them both. Batman leaves to save Rachel, while Gordon and the police head after Dent. With the aid of a smuggled bomb, the Joker escapes police custody with Lau. Batman arrives to save Rachel but instead finds Dent—the Joker switched their locations. Batman successfully saves Dent, but the ensuing explosion disfigures Dent's face. Gordon arrives at Rachel's location too late, and she perishes when the bomb detonates.