This evening Melly and I went out to the Durkin’s place, today was also the second anniversary of Luke’s death. The get together was in memory of Luke, Peter Durkin’s son, Erica’s boyfriend, and the friend of many others….. including me. It’s been two years since Luke died, and his death brought us all very close together. Over this time we’ve gone through a lot, and tonight we gathered together for good times. We started out with a barbecue, then later moved on to a bonfire where I revelled in the laughter and company of good friends. The focus of the get together wasn’t at all a sad one, I don’t think any of us really even talked about Luke, but I’m sure our minds were thinking about him at times during the night. It’s been two years since Luke’s death, but it barely even seams like two days.
For the first time in ages I was able to really relax. I think being out in the open air, underneath the stars, cracking jokes and laughing away, really soothed me. I had moderate success at roasting marshmallows, but the damn things kept melting off my stick because the fire was too hot. It was a lot of fun though, especially the part where I almost burned the first layer of skin off my arms as I tried to get close enough to the coals. What is it about boys and fire? Whenever I get close to the stuff I have this overwhelming desire to burn things. Maybe I’m a repressed arsenist…
Anyway, I’m home now feeling calmer then I can remember feeling in quite a while. I am so blessed to have friends like these. Despite the circumstances surrounding Luke’s death, his tragedy has kindled relationships of infinite worth, a work worth being happy about.
Listening to: I Remember by Stabbing Westward
:five:
You have just won one million dollars:
1. Who do you call first?
Ghost Busters
2. What is the first thing you buy for yourself?
A house.
3. What is the first thing you buy for someone else?
A Harley Heritage Softail for Melly.
4. Do you give any away? If yes, to whom?
To my parents.
5. Do you invest any? If so, how?
Some in real estate, some in the stock market. You’ve gotta hedge your bets.
Ever wonder why in this free country we live in, a country that allows all it’s citizens to vote, why it is illegal not to vote? Who was the genius who passed that law?
Listening to: My Last Breath by Evanescence
This evening I came across a cool little program for :mt: users called Zempt. It’s really quite a cool little program. It saves me having to login to my blog via my browser. It gives me access to all the same features as through the web interface, without the bandwidth bloat. I’m absolutely loving it, as one of the main things I hate about mt’s web interface is all the images it uses. In Internet Explorer this is a major pain, as IE likes to load all images before displaying a page, and will also not start loading another page if one is already in the process of loading. Mozilla of course does not have this problem, but it’s not as convenient. So anyways, enter Zempt, this cool little program that gets me past all these issues. I can now blog away to my hearts content without having to wait anymore. Hooray for convenient little programs like this. A plus also is that I now have a spell check for my blog entries! Yeah, I know……I’m a geek.
Listening to: Bullet The Blue Sky by P.O.D.
This evening I read an article from yesterday’s Chronicle that talked about John Howard’s new stand against “too politically correct and values-neutral” public schools.
The article was broadly about the recently exaggerated concern for the feelings of minorities and how this over-emphasis was eroding the support for the traditional religious and nationalist beliefs. The article provides the example of an English teacher who banned a production of Romeo and Juliet because “by celebrating heterosexual love, it discriminated against those of a different preference.”
This is why political correctness is so absurd. Those of us (the majority of the population) can’t even celebrate the way we live, so as not to offend any minority who lives differently. On the other hand, these minorities can hoo-ha and festively thumb their noses at us in their own lifestyle celebrations, but we’re not allowed to have our say against that. Tell me this: Who’s beliefs and lifestyle takes preference? Why is what they believe somehow more important then what I do, or better yet, what the majority believes? It’s become absolutely ridiculous.
This is the case though with all historical injustice. They swing from extreme to the other. First it was Aboriginal rights, then Women’s rights, and recently Homosexual rights, and blah di blah di blah. We start out with one set of minority injustice and then massively overcompensate. If you ask me more politicians should pull their heads in and call it for the joke it is. Do away with all this minority brown-nosing and start treating them like everyone else.
After all, in the democratic society we apparently live in, isn’t the majority supposed to rule?
:five:
1. …song?
Find My Way - P.O.D.
2. …food?
Chocolate
3. …tv show?
Stargate SG-1
4. …scent?
Joop!
5. …quote?
“Lust is the craving for salt of a man who is dying of thirst.” - Frederick Buechner
One Hour Photo: Starring Robin Williams, this flick was both original and eerie. Set around a lonely photo developer with an obsession with his customer’s lives, he lives vicariously through them until on day it all comes crashing down. A spiral of events follow that lead to a climatic and insightful conclusion. If you want to be weirded out, this is your film. Rating: 9/10
Black and White: An Aussie flick based around the true story of an Aboriginal man framed for the murder of a 9 year old girl back in the late 50’s. A shameful exposure of the Australian Legal system of the day, and the battles fought to keep him from the death penalty. A real underdog film, two young lawyers set out to set this man free against a mountain of fabricated evidence. This one really made my blood boil. Rating: 8/10
Mel an I went to church this morning. The service was really good. One thing I like about the church Melly and I have been attending recently is that they have communion every week. When I was young I really didn’t have a grasp of the gravity of communion. It’s a tradition, one instituted by Jesus himself, and one of the only two traditions He ever told us to practice (the other being baptism). As a kid I understood the symbolism of communion, the remembrance of the sacrifice Jesus made for us on the cross. By no means though did it weigh on me anywhere near as much as it does today.
In recent times thinking about the tremendous sacrifice Jesus made for the world, indeed me, almost moves me to tears by the shear weight it places on my heart, a weight grounded in my innate understanding of my own unworthiness to accept such a sacrifice.
I know it’s just bread and wine, symbols of the body that was broken for us, but at the same time these very icons are so bound up in what they represent that communion finally means something to me.
As a kid growing up in the church, a lot of the time I didn’t accept communion. I was well aware of what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 11:27-32 about taking communion in an unworthy manner. I knew I didn’t appreciate Jesus’ sacrifice as I should have then, and I didn’t want to disrespect the work of the cross.
Recently however, the price that was paid has taken on infinite worth in my own life, for with out this very gift, I’m as good as screwed. When I take communion now, I am increasingly aware of my own faults and short-comings and I’m grateful, so very grateful, that Jesus died in my place. I think I can finally examine myself for who and what I truly am: A sinner unworthy, yet exceedingly thankful.
1. Rudely awoken at 6:30am by work asking me to do a shift…..F*ck Off
2. Got up after a bit more sleep to meet meet Ian and Melinda for coffee, only to have Melinda call it off at the last minute.
3. Went to Big W to pick up my lay-buy of “Halo” for xBox ….. (it rules!)
4. Got out some videos using a voucher Melly and I got on a shopping docket.
5. Went back to our place to watch “The Good Girl” with my wife and Dan, who incidentally arrived at our place the same time we did.
6. Played Halo agaisnt Dan for a few hours.
5. Cooked dinner for Melly.
6. Played more Halo.
7. Dreamed of ways to end the next door neighbours.
8. Played more single player Halo.
9. Wrote this blog entry.
10. And now I’m going to sleep. Night!
I was reading online tonight about Bush’s plans for a new mission to the moon in order to set up a moon base, and then move on to Mars. The Whitehouse hasn’t apparently released any figures on expected costs but I was reviewing the previous costs of other space missions and was absolutely blown away. The Apollo mission to the moon cost between $150 billion to $175 billion in 2003 US dollars. That’s absolutely phenomenal! Back in 1989 the President Bush Senior proposed a mission to Mars that was estimated to cost $400 billion, but never went ahead because it was too expensive. This very same proposed mission was direct to the red planet and back, and didn’t even consider the possibility of building a lunar base in the process. You’d have to think that a trip to Mars plus a lunar base would cost more overall than just a round trip, yet the latter is exactly what today’s US President is proposing.
Ok guys, my new Photo Album is up and running and ready for browsing. Go have a look and leave some comments on anything that grabs your interest. There’s some new photos up there scattered about the place so it’s worth the look. Let me know what you think!
Specially thanks goes to Amy from Quixoticpixels for her great MT photoblog templates.
The funniest thing happened at work yesterday. My friend Rick (L) came to work with some of the funniest news I can ever remember hearing about a work mate. First I’ll explain the background.
There’s this chick at work. She’s only new but has still managed to get a reputation among the boys as a bit of a ho, mainly due to the way she parades herself around in very revealing clothes. She doesn’t say boo to anyone, so none of us know her very well, so anything said about her personality is only perceived knowledge. She’s a bit of a funny one, in my book anyway. She’s a pretty hopeless operator by even the most modest standards. She’s done some of the funniest/stupidest things at work, things that you sit there and scratch your head saying “How?” You can catch her dancing away in the dining room to the radio when she thinks no one is watching, and that’s not much of a sight. She carries herself in a way that seems to indicate that she thinks she’s all that, which when combined with her clothing screams try-hard. Don’t get me wrong, she’s gorgeous ……… from the neck down. And that pretty much sums it up. The kind of girl you’d walk a bit faster to catch up to down the street so you can get a better look, only to be disappointed when she turned to show her face. Oh, and she seems to spend all her pocket money on peroxide to get that “natural” blond look. Too bad the roots and eyebrows give it away.
Anyway, like I was saying, Rick came to work yesterday sporting a People Home Girls magazine. You can see where this is going can’t you? Yep, right there in that magazine was this same girl. It wasn’t really a surprise, nor would you be surprised if you’d seen this girl’s dress sense prior to hearing this. The strange thing was though you always think, “Nah, I’d never know anyone who’d put their picture in there.” Now I do. That’s the weird thing. So now, whenever I walk past her all I can think of is how anyone could be so silly as to think they could get away with that, and because pretty much everyone at work has now heard it’s all I can do not to laugh.
Sigh :confused:
Sigh :confused:
It seems no matter how well one spells something out these days, no one really listens. I could write the most brilliant essay about life and it’s pitfalls, and it would be almost certain that the majority of it’s readers would totally miss the point all together.
You see, people give themselves to much credit these days. They think they know everything, and therefore nothing anyone else says has any bearing on them. What could anyone say that would possibly expand their horizon any further than it has already reached on their own accord? So you see, when one opens their mouth to speak, a premptive conclusion is reached on part of the listener that differs immensly from the speaker’s desired communication. To bad for the speaker, no matter what else he says from this point on, the listener will undoubtedly run with their preconception and never really listen to what the speaker has to say. You could sit their for days, and never get any further along in your desired message, because the listener thinks they have you all figured out.
This makes communication virtually useless. What is the point of even speaking if the people you are speaking to don’t give enough of a rip about what you are trying to tell them to even listen properly? You may as well say absolutely nothing. Words are useless. The pen is mightier than the sword hey? Yeah right….
I think this comes as a result of a combination of apathy and stupidity. On one hand you have a set of people who give lip service to the validity of an argument/statement but don’t care enough to read it with care and thus miss the point. On the other hand you have everyone else, they read it with care, but are to stupid to grasp it’s meaning. Over all there’s 100% of the population who still, after verbose explaination of the simplest of details, have no clue about anything you’ve said. This at least, is how it seems to me.
Is there a solution to this problem? Well, apart from mass genocide I think it’s a predicament I’m stuck in. All one can really do is yell their point, and hopefully someone will get close enough to it to understand 
I was browsing a theological forum last night and came across some stuff that really grated on me. Basically the thread of this particular forum was talking about truth, and specifically religious truth. These days it seems you can believe whatever the hell you want to believe, as long as you don’t claim it to be true, or try to tell others what you believe. Everything has become subjective. Nothing can be known outside the context of your own experience. And why has this happened? It’s all in the name of tolerance. No body wants to be offended or have others impose differing beliefs onto them. It has been said by many in this era that all roads lead to Rome, or in relation to truth, all truths lead to the same apex.
On the surface this charade of tolerance seems rather nice. Everyone is free to believe whatever they want to believe, as long as they don’t live out their beliefs in a way that offends someone else. It imposes the question, who’s beliefs are superior? Who’s beliefs get preference in their practice. If part of your belief system requires you to live and share your beliefs, which Christianity certainly does, how can you then be a true practicing believer if you are restricted in how much of your beliefs you practice?
Better yet, what about the truth claims inherent in your beliefs? For instance, Jesus himself said “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” This is a pretty exclusive claim. Here Jesus says himself that there is no way or truth except in Him …. period! How then could all religions be true if any one of them claim to be the only way? Exactly, they can’t be. Ravi Zacharias said it best, “Anyone who claims that all religions are the same betrays not only an ignorance of all religions but also a caricatured view of even the best-known ones. Every religion at its core is exclusive.” (”Jesus Among Other Gods”, P7)
Well, it’s that time of the month again. Yes, that’s right, monthly review time! Yet another wage justification to please some big-wig in the company’s hierarchy. Well done genius!
Instead though, I thought I would take this opportunity to procrastinate. It is after all one of the things I do best! Let’s see what I’ve done so far. Last night after work Melly, Ian and I went out skating for the first time in ages. It was good fun, only I wore the wrong socks and I got a blister or two. After the session Ian came back to my place and played some xBox for a while, and totally whipped me. It’s my house, arn’t I supposed to win?
This morning Melly and I watched “The Exorcist” with the deleted scences, courtesy of Dan. I had never seen the film before, and was supprised how well done it was for the 70’s. Afterwards we watched “Balto”, the total flip side in style to the previously mentioned flick. “Balt” is a disney film that tells the story of a husky called….well….Balto obviously. It was based on a true story of the sled dogs that helped carry diphtheria vaccinations 600 miles across alaska in the 1920’s. I hate disney films, but this one was good. Plus it had a husky in it so it had to be good.
Now I am here with nothing left to help my procrastination efforts, except of course my blog. Only problem now is I’ve shared all the interesting stuff, and there’s nothing more to write about. I could of course keep writing about absolutely nothing. I’m doing a pretty good job of it at the moment. Look! I’ve completed almost a whole paragraph on nothing but nothingness. Have you ever thought about the word nothing. It really is a silly word. You see, we live in a world comprised of things. There is no place in this world, except perhaps in a vacuum (but even vacuums here arn’t true vacuums), where there is nothing. You’d have to leave our planet to find true nothingness. How strange is it then that we should have come up with a word to describe nothing when no one has experienced nothing. Nothing….No thing. Silly really.