I’m getting excited. I bought my tickets the other day for Adelaide United’s AFC Champions League Semi Final first leg match against Bunyodkor of Uzbekistan. [that was a bit of a mouthfull, wasn't it?]

This match is the biggest game in Australian club football and it’s this Wednesday. Adelaide have gone further than any other A-League club and Hindmarsh Stadium will be buzzing. The game sold out days ago.

Being part of a full Hindmarsh Stadium is great and witnessing an historic game like this will really be something special. Adding to the match is the chance to see Bunyodkor’s newest star signing – Brazilian legend Rivaldo.

He is a star. For people who don’t know Rivaldo, he is the guy who infamously caused a Turkish opponent to get a red card during the 2002 World Cup with this appalling display.

His excuse?

“I was thinking in advance, I thought that the ball was going to roll up my body and hit me in the head, therefore I tried to protect myself”

Anyway, this got me thinking about diving (or simulation as FIFA call it) and there is a lot that has been written about it. It really is a blemish on the game and there are far too many controversial incidents that have decided big games. The most painful incident (for Australians) was in the 2006 World Cup game against Italy when an injury time dive earned Italy a match-winning penalty. Heartbreaking.

If Rivaldo thinks about trying any of that stuff on Wednesday he will cop it. But on a lighter note, there is the story of Jürgen Klinsmann. His reputation as a diver attracted abuse and ill-feeling from English supporters when he joined Tottenham Hotspur in 1990. However, he managed to endear himself to supporters with this cheeky celebration after scoring on debut against Sheffield Wednesday.

Oh, I can’t wait for Wednesday.

Well, you can quite easily disable most of these tones and never know the difference but there is one tone that is an absolute essential in my mind. That tone is the new email alert.

Depending on what email client you use you might have a ding, beep, “You have mail” or something equally annoying. I pity you because, you see, I have the best email tone ever. I’ve used for a couple of years now and it never gets old.

Well come on then, tell me what it is.

It is Carl Carlson, of The Simpsons fame, questioning “Didn’t you get the email?”

I can’t find where I originally got it from so I have uploaded it here. Go on download it, it is good.

Download the Best Email Alert Sound

In my mind, it is the undisputed best ever email tone but if you think otherwise then I’d love to know what you think.

Do you use any customised event sounds on your computer?

Are they serious? The first episode is a joke and the second isn’t much better. I’ll watch it a bit more but if it doesn’t get better soon then I’m out.

You’ve probably seen it so I won’t retell the whole story. It starts off ok, a plane full of passengers infected with a face melting disease. Cool effects. Visually good. It definitely got my attention.

Anyway, the FBI is on the case and their investigation isn’t going great. Bugger. Here’s where it goes loopy.

The only person who can help them is a crazy old scientist, Walter Bishop, who has been in a mental asylum for 17 years. Of course, he needs his son as his guardian and so we are reintroduced to Joshua Jackson (or Pacey from Dawson’s Creek) as Peter Bishop. Ok, what’s next? Harold Bishop and his tuba?

The crazy scientist and his son (and guardian) helping the FBI. Of course no one else could help, had to be this nutcase.

Now I have heard comparisons of Fringe and The X-Files. Come on, I don’t think we would ever see Mulder watching Spongebob or Scully milking a cow. That’s what we get with Walter Bishop. A scattered man who can’t remember people he has met three times and needs to be sung to sleep. We also get the Magic Old Man Baby and the sharing of thoughts (Vulcan mind meld comes to mind, J.J. has spent too much time on Star Trek [which he better not stuff up] between a person in a coma and FBI agent Olivia Dunham, the main character.

Fringe tries to be sort of light hearted or charming while still being serious but it doesn’t really work for me. It seems quite intentional, I mean, we have Peter asking the questions we are all thinking throughout the show. He tries to point out how ridiculous it all is.

Of course we also have the obligatory super powerful corporation, Massive Dynamic [great name, not!], and its enigmatic owner, William Bell. Not sure of the true nature of Massive Dynamic yet but evil would be an obvious choice. [too obvious, perhaps]

There is bit more which I won’t go into but I am watching on free-to-air so I have only seen the first two eps. What I will say though is that I am not glad that I skipped Criminal Minds (and Special Agent David Rossi, the best voice on tv) to watch this.

Oh, and I love this image I found.

$1.75/L!! are you kidding me!

I watched March of the Penguins for the first time the other day and it reminded me of something I see more and more often when out and about.

The penguins’ is a proud march for love and specie’s survival. Unlike the -62 °C (-80 °F) temperatures that the Penguins face, the humans I see are enduring the humiliating march to the service station after running out of petrol.

When I was driving my car more [I've been taking the bus most of the time, lately] I would sometimes run out of money and, soon later, petrol. I always hated having to walk along carrying that jerrycan with every passing car looking at me [seemingly]

So the other day, while I was waiting at the bus stop I saw the latest victim of high oil prices. Poor bastard.

I can see a car pulled over some 300 meters away. At least he’s not too far from the servo.

I know it’s not really that big of a deal. You ran out of petrol? – So what? But that’s easy for the people driving past to say. Snickering, I imagine, from their sufficiently filled vehicle. Perhaps some of the drivers are looking down to a fuel gauge under the 1/4 tank mark, the needle nearing that dreaded E.

Even worse still, maybe some are experiencing the gripping fear and uncertainty of the low fuel light being on. I secretly hope so. Makes me feel more at ease taking the bus.