packing

Packing is going excellently well. I'm quite excited about it.

This morning I was contemplating spending quite a bit of money buying boxes. ($292.26.) Then the good people at BWS, MacDonalds, Subway, and Mitre 10 kindly donated many, many near-new boxes to our cause. The buzz of saving money got the day off to a great start.

I've now packed all the books in the house. Too bad if anyone wants to read anything. The boxes are labelled precisely - "Bookshelf A, box 4. LHS middle shelf." And there is a helpful picture illustrating exactly where the books should go. Nathan is at the age where he is very useful. He managed to carefully pack all the books from his room (3 boxes) while keeping up with his Saturday ABC News 24 schedule (all work stops during Foreign Correspondent.) The kids also packed the dvds and videos, returning each to its correct case. The cds were a huge job. I still have 15 cds without cases and 20 cases without cds. How does this happen?

All up, we've packed 37 boxes. Here's what remains: (written for my benefit)
- Bedroom cupboards (not clothes). The kids and mine will be fast because I've already cleaned them out. Andrew's will be a task.  (Sunday)
- games chest (Sunday)
- Desktop computer and desk
- Bathroom cupboard
- Bedroom misc
- Linen cupboard
- Pictures off walls
- clothes
- kitchen
- laundry
- the horrible mess that is 'under the house'

personality prayers for my family

Nathan -
* ESTJ: God, help me to not try to RUN everything. But, if you need some help, just ask!
* ESTP: God, help me to take responsibility for my own actions, even though they’re usually NOT my fault.


Joel
* INTP: Lord, help me be less independent, but let me do it my way.


Micah
???


Andrew
* ISFP: Lord, help me to stand up for my rights (if you don’t mind my asking)

myers briggs prayers

I'm ENTP. Here's my prayer.


Lord, help me follow established procedures today. On second thought, I’ll settle for a few minutes.


Except I wouldn't pray that because I don't want to follow established procedures. At all.


The INTP and ENFP prayers also speak to me:


* INTP: Lord, help me be less independent, but let me do it my way.


* ENFP: God, help me to keep my mind on one th-Look a bird!-ing at a time.


These are heaps of fun. Thanks Jean.

the social network

Andrew and I saw this yesterday. Loved it.

right now

Watching: Angel

Listening: New songs from emu's coming cd 'undivided'

Reading: First Term at Malory Towers (again.)

Writing: Year 3 music test paper

Thinking about: Romans 8

Yes. I know. Nothing too profound right now.

You?

how good will the new creation be? (rom 8:18)

how I imagine romans 8:18-21

 ¹⁸I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. ¹⁹The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. ²⁰For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope ²¹that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.

Here's how I imagine it. Think of a fairy tale kingdom. There is a bad royal family. They are mean and nasty and corrupt and horrible. The whole kingdom groans under their rule. No one is happy. People are jailed for no reason. Everyone has to work far too hard. Farms don't produce properly because the rulers skimp on fertilizer and equipment. Taxes are really high. No services are provided. There is no freedom. Nothing is fun.

Then, from within the kingdom, a new royal families arises. A good king. (Perhaps like Prince Caspian.) Suddenly, things change. People start smiling again. Everything brightens. Even the animals are happy now.

We are the kings of the world. Humanity. Because of our corruption, the earth is a mess. But one day a new humanity will be revealed. The Sons of God will rise and be seen in all their glory (they were there all along, mixed in with the others and didn't seem to be anything special) and freedom and happy times will follow.

It will be good.

beyond stuffed

I have blog posts to write but no energy to type them.

Sorry guys.

[My boy is feeling the same.]

Spring Soiree

Our school concert is on tonight. I've spent all day pretending that I'm a sound guy, plugging in microphones and moving them around until the feedback stops. I have no knowledge, so trial and error is my only method.

My choirs are performing. Another hour to practice would have been nice. 1.5 hours before things kick off I am still unsure whether to accompany them on grand piano, keyboard or guitar. The advantage of grand piano is that it sounds good. Advantage of the keyboard is that I can stand in front of the kids and sing at them. Advantage of guitar is that I play in front of the kids so I'm in control and I can jump around a bit to enthuse them. Thoughts?

My year 4/5 choir are singing - Island in the Sun (2 part) and Close Every Door (unison). My year 6/7 choir are singing Love is All Around (2+ parts, drums, saxophone, trumpet, + piano/keyboard/guitar). Good times.

home home home

in Sydney

I'm staying with Ali this weekend. We've just been op shopping. I have a new pair of jeans! I like them.

all the cool people are writing in 6/8 at the moment.

Maybe I should try it.

reading levels

While I'm reading trashy vampire novels, my boy is reading this.

I should be ashamed of myself.

excited about today.

If you are not coming to Twist, you really should be.

MTC 9 years on

Women's bible study still on friday morning!

in sydney

Listening to a piano part being recorded for one of our songs on the new cd. Nothing like last minute. The whole thing needs to be finished and mastered by tomorrow.

The new piano part is lovely.

Even Macs...

... need to be restarted occasionally.

Safari was getting very sluggish. It wouldn't let me post to my blog. My first thought was to blame blogger or my internet connection. Then I remembered it had been over a month since I restarted my Mac. All is well again.

going to sydney friday morning...

... completely disorganised.

Don't even have anywhere to stay yet!

Blenvy

Ben has given us the terms blangst (blog angst) and blatisfaction (blog satisfaction). Now I give you blenvy.

Blenvy is Blog-Envy. The act or attitude of envying another blogger her readership, influence, layout or design, writing style, or the comments or praise her blog receives. Blenvy can be experienced in many ways from feelings of personal inadequacy to anger at another blogger. It can find expression in petty ways like withholding blog love (blove) from that blogger (not linking to him, commenting on his posts, blugging etc), to public, real world bad mouthing of him. Blenvy is an experience common to bloggers. It often takes the blogger by surprise and leads to much blangst ('Oh no! I can't believe I'm feeling this way. Blogging is really bad for me!') but should be considered normal. The best treatment for blenvy is usually to laugh it off and try not to take yourself and your blogging so seriously.

What? No WW3?

William Tapely, also known as the Third Eagle of the Apocalyspe and the co-prophet of the end times, told us that the great tribulation and World War Three would begin a few days ago, on October 13. I watched. I waited. No WW3.

But the Eagle has an explanation. Worth watching for its creativity.

just had our open house

12 groups of people came through.

6 took applications.

One couple have put in an application already.

One couple want to know if a caravan would fit in the front yard. A caravan!

A few left saying that the house is heaps smaller than it appeared in the photos. (Yes it is!)

One family had a kid I taught at a reasonably rough school. He recognised me.

I'm pretty sure we'll get someone. Just need the right people.

potential tenants about to arrive

A couple sitting out in their car smoking.

Is it okay to reject people on the basis that they smoke? Would hate the blinds to get all smelly.

This is getting real now.

house

Much interest in our house. Praise God! 5 people are coming tomorrow for a look.

Hopefully they won't be turned off by the size or the disgusting bathroom.

pupil free day

I went to a music teacher's day. It was pretty good. Much better than what regular classroom teachers had to endure! Amongst other things, Tripod performed for us. Very funny.

This was one of the songs they did.

Things that get on my nerves: overfamiliarlity

What it is.
Treating someone who is above you as your peer or lesser. For example, speaking about God as your buddy, your aunty as your sister, your teacher as your brother, a child speaking to an adult as if they were the same age, a young schmuck critiquing Don Carson, offering advice to those more experienced than you.


Why it is bad.
It is disrespectful. It is annoying. It makes me think you've got boundary issues and don't know where you stand in the world.


Oh no! I think I do that! How can I change?
Listen to what God says:
¹Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers, ²older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity. (1 Tim 5)
Notice that we don't treat older people as brothers and sisters? That is presumptuous. We treat them as mothers or fathers. We keep some respectful distance. Honour them. But younger people, people below us in the pecking order, we elevate them to the position of brothers and sisters, thus lowering ourselves.


And with God?
It is hugely condescending for God to call himself our father. For us to be his children. But father is still a position of honour - more so 2000 years ago than now. Don't forget it.

5 reasons why vampire dramas work

1. We love an impossible love story. A vampire-human relationship is about as impossible as they come. A vampire drama has enough UST to keep us watching for 7 seasons.

2. Longing for ... what? We all know this angst. Vampire dramas capture it so well.

3. We love superhero stories but feel silly watching them as adults. Good vampires are superheroes without the fancy dress.

4. We love a fight scene. Gun fights are over so fast and there's too much blood. Vampires and demons fight with their fists and cool wooden stakes. Afterwards, there's no messy corpse to deal with - just dust on the floor.

5. Once vampires are accepted as reasonable, the door is open for demon characters, witches, mind readers etc. So many possibilities.

One passion has overtaken the other.

Which one?

Only half a cupboard cleaned out today, but 4 episodes of Angel watched.

new passions

I've spent today simultaneously indulging my two new passions: Angel and pre-move house decluttering. I've watched 8 episodes of Angel and finished sorting the kids rooms. All of their clothes and toys are organised. I've filled our bin and probably half filled a life-line bin.

Can't wait for more...

[Thanks Anthony for the suggestion that I make this house move my new project!]

want somewhere to live?

It's a bargain.

And we have a winner...

It's the Benn diagram!

Well done Wendy, Milika, Jon, Nathan, Sheryl, Nicole, Marshall and Karen. I think you were all fantastic to enter. Really impressed with you venn diagramming skills. Now the challenge is for you to continue with venn diagrams. As you are about your everyday tasks, you need to ask, 'How can I use overlapping circles to represent this mundane aspect of life?'

Go forth and venn diagram!

And now on to the fantastic prize... Ben, stay tuned. There are 3 prize options to choose from. Watch this space.

We got the house.

Now we're all feeling sad about having to move out of our house. Because it is our house. The only house we've ever bought. We painted it and put in a new kitchen. Andrew built a room underneath. We've had happy times here. The end of an era.

The agent comes tomorrow to take photos.

wow!

Just listened to one of our songs from Emu's new cd which will be released next month. It sounds really good. Better than any of our stuff before. Can't wait to hear the whole album.

Come to twist next weekend for a taster.

poll

Don't know why there's still 15 hours left on the poll. Time zones?

Oh well. Guess we'll sit it out. (The suspense!)

we put in an application for the house.

Not sure if I want us to be accepted or not.

What happens if no one will rent our house?

[An opportunity to trust God.]

decisions

We're contemplating moving house. Our house (which we bought 3 years ago) is 4kms from church and school. 4km isn't far on a Sunday, but in peak hour it can be. We've also outgrown it. Hard for us to have people over.

So we're planning to put it up for rent and rent out something bigger that's close to church and school.

We were thinking vaguely of making a move in the new year, but this house has become available now. It's directly across the road from school and a short walk to church. If we got it, it would be easy for us to have the kids' friends and others over.

Please pray for us. Quite stressy. So much paperwork involved. Financially risky.

Venn diagram competition closed. VOTE NOW!

Now the fun bit. The surprise. YOU get to vote for you favourite venn diagrams in my poll. Even though they're not labelled, it should be fairly easy to work out which is which. Please vote. You can vote for more than one. Maybe choose your top three. Ask your mum to vote and your neighbour and your neighbour's aunt. Voting for your own diagram is perfectly acceptable. There is a great prize up for grabs.

The poll will remain open for 2 days. So vote vote vote!

Last one!

Responses to Missionaries

and even more venn diagrams

more venn diagrams

Entries in the Venn Diagram competition

more soon.

venn diagram competition closes tomorrow!

Get them in!

Winner announced Tuesday.

5 thoughts on eat pray love

I saw this movie last night with some friends from work. Here are 5 thoughts.

1. It felt very long. Knowing that we had to do Italy, India and Bali before the movie could end wasn't helpful.
2. It was preachy. Painfully so. And cliche.
3. The music was overwhelming.
4. The real issue is what to do when you feel restless with life and relationships.
5. At the end of the movie, Julia Roberts' character was no better equipped to deal with the real issue than she was at the beginning. It was good, though, that she learned how to forgive herself. Will come in handy when she screws up this new relationship.

Anyone else seen it?

This is brilliant!

busy busy busy

My choir is performing tomorrow. I woke up in a cold sweat last night. Are we ready? Are we good enough? Will the kids even show up for a Saturday event?  I don't work Fridays so was free(!) to spend half the day at school rehearsing them. My worry was unnecessary. They sound fine. They can hold their parts. They are excited about tomorrow.

But it's an outdoor thing. It's pouring now and more rain is forecast for tomorrow. Oh well. 

 

my favourite smell

Amniotic fluid.

I love visiting friends in hospital with newborns. The best time is before baby's first bath. The smell is wonderful. It makes me feel that post-birth rush of adrenaline and excitement. I would happily quit my job and drop everything else if I got to look after an amniotic fluid smelling infant.

Just me?

Sorry, I'm in a youtube mood.

the annoying orange

Pachelbel Rant

help needed

I've promised to bring some youtube gold for my year 7s to watch tomorrow. Nothing M rated, of course, and if it was musical in some way that would help me justify it. I've shown them Charlie Bit Me, which they loved.

I have nothing to say.

I could give you a review of the Vampire Diaries that I read last week but I'm sure none of you were considering reading them anyway. (If Twilight scored 3/5, these scored 1.5/5. Enough said? Not even mildly interesting.)

I could give you a rerun of my heated argument with Andrew last night about whether the government should control what gets advertised during kids' tv shows (I think the government should.) But I can't be bothered. I'm sure you're all on my side anyway. (I reckon that last sentence made most of you join Andrew's side!)

I could tell you all to keep those venn diagrams coming for my comp. Great prize etc. But you already know.

I coud keep writing this post, but .... I won't.

This book should be green.

Not sure why yellow and orange were chosen. What were Chester's guys thinking?

love is...

... large vet bills.

[Andrew's post here.]

$206 vet visit

Ouch! We could almost buy ourselves a new dog for that much!

Our poor little pup has bacterial and yeast infections in her ears, paws, tummy and round her mouth.

daylight saving time begins tonight

Once again I'm glad to be Queenslander.

October

How did that happen?