Ready for battle!

Well, it's the night before term begins, a time for all teachers to dread, but at least it's a student free day and my old mate Gerard from itcpublications.com.au is coming to school to improve our pedagogy. I've been hoping for this for some time, so fingers crossed it all goes well. It'll be good to see GPA again anyway.
On Anglican matters, I finally got a chance today to listen again to a sermon I heard a couple of months ago from Bishop Tom Frame. He was kind of plugging his latest book which is called Losing My Religion: Unbelief in Australia (or something like that), but expanded it to include comments on what we can do about it. It was one of the most motivational sermons I've heard in quite a while, really inspiring! Shame I don't think I'd be allowed to post it somewhere, but then again I guess I've given him a plug now...
In other related matters, I read a book recently called I Found God in Bermuda: Faith for the 21st Century by Rev. Steven Ogden, currently Principal of St Francis Theological College. It was good reading for the most part, though it suggests what seems close to a non-supernatural proposal for Christianity in the future. Now, this is not big news for people who've heard of John Robinson, Don Cupitt, John Shelby Spong etc, but I guess it may ruffle a few feathers. The interesting thing about the Ogden book is his focus on God's presence and, importantly, God's absence when suffering occurs (and by golly there's been a lot of that in the Asia-Pacific of late - typhoons in Philippines / Taiwan; floods in India; tsunamis in Samoa, etc). His idea is that we stop thinking of an interventionist, supernatural God and recognise God as existing in the web of human relationships. He deals pretty briefly with the resurrection, except to say "something happened" and that it has to be understood symbolically. It seems weird, but I hadn't really looked into the resurrection much before, so I googled it and went from there.
There are an astounding list of arguments for and against a literal interpretation of the recurrection, and I won't run through them all here. After reading a list of the pro-literal, I felt strong in that belief. Then I read a list of the responses from atheists, and changed my mind. After reading Ogden again and Spong's book about saving the Bible from fundamentalists, I think I am now somewhere in the middle, still trying to sort it out. I agree with Spong and others that the gospel accounts are very hard to reconcile. I was particularly disturbed by the verses in late Matthew, suggesting that zombies were seen walking around etc! I'd forgotten about those.
I was also disturbed by a quote from Phillip Yancey, where he says he finds the account of the Ascension to be a serious problem in terms of believing the accounts of the resurrection, and I know what he means. I'll need to read more about these things, but I felt heartened by John Spong, I must say. The meaning of the resurrection continues to be essential, he says, but we need to find a way of adjusting the Christian mindset to handle the non-literal interpretations and this is crucial. More about this to come.

Scoop

11pm and all's well. My heel still a little sore at times and of course it's annoying to think that I may have to ban myself from the gym for a little while until it heals up. Just not sure it's up to a full-on Bodypump just yet. It was really quite freaky to walk across the rocks and sand at Brooms Head with my sandal slippery with my own blood - watching the red drops left on the rocks etc.
Anyway, watched Scoop (Woody Allen) tonight. Not a bad flick - plot kind of OK - Hugh Jackman and Scarlett Johannsen making a very attractive couple so easy on the eyes.
Now watching the end of Later with Jools Holland on ABC2 - kind of good stuff that I could get into the habit of watching if I didn't fall asleep by this time of a Friday.
We drove to the Jacksons to pick up my car from them this afternoon (having lent it so Lynette could get over to Bob & Jean's while we were away) and then I went to Aldi Oxley, mainly to buy an advertised whiteboard for $99. Turns out they sold out today which was pretty darn frustrating! I still loved the whole multicultural experience of shopping among a huge range of accents and overseas styles.
Al has finally got a Facebook page set up and has about 30 Friends so far. Good stuff!
Verity seems to be taking more of an interest in reading which is good. I read The Bear by Raymond Briggs to her tonight for what must surely be more than the hundredth time, but I guess it's all good. She's also into "Beanie Kids", the latest trend in separating parents from their money.
Declan also has a few BKs for some strange reason. He spent a lot of time today working on a huge origami creation for Verity's birthday coming up soon - good concentration and I hope they're both happy with it.
Looks like Al has finally convinced me to buy a kitten for us. I'm still very concerned about the practicalities of this (looking after it when we want to go away, expenses, etc) but it could be good for the kids in terms of advancing their sense of responsibility, etc.
Still haven't finished my school work yet and that's annoying but it's been a matter of willpower which I've failed. I guess there's always tomorrow, though I do wish I was heading off on Long Service Leave like Daven and wagging Term 4 altogether.
Very sleepy now so will head off. Finally finished my last chessmaniac game today with a long draw against a stronger player, so I'm happy with that. One less distraction, I guess. Ciao for now.

Back from Brooms Head

Howdy again

Well as usual, much has happened and I'm disappointed I haven't been writing here more often, but enough whinging.
We came back yesterday from our second family camping trip to Brooms Head NSW, and this time was better than last. Last time we were with two other sets of friends and this time it was just one - I couldn't help but think it was easier with just two. The amount of washing up was smaller, it was faster to make decisions about where to go etc. It was a bit blowy on the first two days, but once it calmed down, it was great, though still cool right there on the beachfront. Hard to pick a high point, though just getting away from home/schoolwork and being able to sit and read for a while was terrific. Lowpoint was on the Monday morning when we all went walking over slippery rocks and on the way back I slipped and cut my right heel open. Lots of blood on my sandal and I was concerned I was going to have to go get some stitches, but some excellent first aid from Al once we got back to base and all was OK, though I still have a dressing on my heel right now. We had to spend about $700 on camping gear before we went this time, but I must say it all seemed well spent, especially our little gazebo which we rigged up over the cooking area. We have already booked again for the days before Easter 2010.
The Idea of North concert at the Powerhouse was excellent - just fantastic a capella singing from the two guys and two girls. They appeared on the Hey Hey It's Saturday reunion tonight as well and got a great reception as well as a big plug for their next album which I look forward to getting when it comes out. It's funny that they do Stayin' Alive as one of their big numbers after the huge number of times I sang it with the Clefhangers way back when.
Declan is reading away massively at present - after knocking off the Harry Potters, he ripped through the whole Deltora Quest series and I guess the question is what next to get him into. Verity is getting very tall and enjoys her ballet classes. Need to keep both kids active but not easy when I'm trying to mark papers and organise the term ahead for all the RAVE classes. Someone pointed out on camp how good it was to be with your family with no technology around for a few days - Dec and Verity just played on the beach for hours and hours.
Finished reading Steven Ogden's "I Found God in Bermuda" today and I wrote a little review for Facebook purposes. I enjoyed reading it and found it quite stimulating but wonder how to apply it to RAVE or even to parish worship generally. Was really pleased that Paul expressed an interest in reading it on camp, so I'll slip him my copy very soon, maybe after I get Steven to sign it at a conference coming up soon. It seems to be the idea of a non-supernatural God again, and while the idea makes rational sense, I'm just not sure I can easily give away my idea of a personal God 'out there' even though I concede I have no idea where 'out there' is or anything.
Very sad to hear that my old mate and groomsman Jonathan M has been in Adelaide Hospital at death's door with meningitis in the last few days. Apparently the latest is that he has responded well to treatment and is conscious enough to squeeze Robyn's hand etc, but this has been a very disturbing episode and I have been praying constantly for his return to his family - so much for my loss of a supernatural God!
Better head to bed - need to clock up more schoolwork tomorrow or life will be very tough!

Little and often

Hi ho, got to try to keep this diary going with entries which are probably smaller and more frequent.
What am I doing now? Watching Friday night NRL - one game going well, the other one not so well for tipping purposes. I'm currently 4th in this year's comp, but anything could happen this weekend. Al and kids have gone to bed.
What happened today? Took 16 boys from years 4 to 12 to last Chess tournament of year at Macgregor State School. Kids all did OK, if not spectacularly well. Highlight was Mark Bird beating the Churchie #1 - an awesome sight and well-deserved. A few other missed opportunities were less great. Still, everyone got at least a win or two, which is the main thing.
How's Alison? A little cranky tonight but probably tired after a long week. I know I am too and will be hitting the sack soon.
How's Dec? Not bad. Did great again in UNSW Science test the other day - another HD, only kid at his primary school to get one. Pretty remarkable. Soccer is all over - only the breakup on Sunday to come - and I think we're all fairly happy about that. I'll try to go to a bodypump class at the gym in the morning anyway. I was up very early today, worried about the excursion and also all the Yr 10 RAVE stuff to organise for today. All got done in time - just.
I'm still seething somewhat about the excursion I ran on Tuesday with all Yr 10s to St John's Cathedral. I was pretty happy with most aspects but very unhappy to see about 37 kids who had given back forms saying they were going, fail to turn up, citing 'being sick', having a Dr appt or just 'parent permission'. Allowing for those kids meant that we hired three buses instead of two and had basically too many staff going, costing the school more money -probably close to a thousand bucks all up. Grrr. Gave the teachers lots of chocolates today to give to the kids who went on the excursion and exclude the baddies. Vindictive? Maybe!
How's Ver? Usual great little Friday ballerina. Still struggles to stay in her own bed all night. Has frequently turned up in ours in recent weeks, which is fine except for interrupting our sleep if she rolls into us or sticks her hand underneath one of us etc. Would also like to see her reading by herself, but I guess we can be patient with that.
Big weekend coming up - finally seeing The Idea of North tomorrow night at the Powerhouse. Hope it's good. Sunday is Father's Day and packed with action of Church, Phil's "divorce liturgy" whatever that becomes and the soccer breakup. I've had at least two other invitations to do things on the day, which won't be happening!
OK, might be sleepy bobo time. Still playing a lot of chessmaniac, but I am fairly determined to let the current games be the last for quite a while - they are really soaking up too much time at present. Ciao ciao.

Adelaide conference

Hi ho, been quite a while since I last posted. Just very busy - heaps of marking and other odd things to keep me away from the keyboard.
A big night of sport on TV - cricket, rugby, AFL - just watched the Lions come back from 47 pts down to win in the last few minutes - exciting stuff.
Anyway, last weekend I flew to Adelaide for an Anglican schools conference - a real honour and perk, I guess. Had to be up at 4am on Friday to be at the airport at about 5 and then on the plane to Adelaide via Sydney at about 6. A few strange things happened here and there but I must admit it was nice to fly QANTAS with free food etc, not like last year's trip with Virgin back from Perth, which was a bit painful. Flew with Lizzie there and back - her first time away from the boys, so I expected it to be a bit odd for her, but she stayed calm. Spent a lot of the weekend in the company of other female chaplains Sharon S and Sarah L - great people to hang with.
Stayed in Mercure - not a great experience. I had deliberately booked a cheap room to save the school some cash, but by golly, my room was miles away from the lift - down a long corridor, through a doorway, down some stairs, around a corner and then right down at the end of another very long corridor. My view was scenic to the extent of lots of rusty rooves and back alleys and some other hotel in the distance. After being up at 4 and then a long (but admittedly mainly fun) day, I hit bed at 10 gratefully, looking forward to a long sleep. I was appalled to be woken at 3.30 by a fire alarm going off in the hotel. I made it to the door but noone else was going down, so I went back to bed. There was a rumour later that some party-goers had come back with sparklers to their room, setting off the smoke alarms - sounds right. My room also seemed to be near a nightclub, with thumping bass clearly audible most of the time. Oh well.
Conference itself was described later by Paul B as more interesting than good, which I think is about right. St Peter's College was even more obviously wealthy than I had believed - rolling in cash by the look of it. Amazing grounds and facilities - put shots on Facebook. Huge main oval - huge assembly hall etc. We were all stunned that almost none of the keynote speakers bothered to use PPT slides or visuals when they had a colossal screen to work with behind them. Having them lecture us for about an hour at a time with no visuals was hard going in some cases. Worship services were also very bland indeed - very little imagination, I thought. The up-side of this situation is that it makes our job on the committee for Brisbane 2010 pretty easy in terms of doing better than this one; the downside is that schools may be seriously wondering if it's worth going again, and we'll have to convince them that it is! I was very disappointed that Tim Costello dropped out as a keynote speaker only a few weeks before the conference. There was no explanation of this at all.
Other highlights for me, apart from my first trip to Adelaide, included meeting Tim Cooper, CEO of the Coopers Brewery, who was good enough to autograph a stubbie bottle of Coopers Pale Ale for me - that one went straight to the pool room when I got home.
In other news to hand, Dec got another High Distinction in the UNSW Science Comp - the only kid at KSS to get an HD. Amazing stuff! They also had their 2nd last soccer game today, and I think we're all glad the season is wrapping up soon. They won only narrowly 4-3 against a team they have walloped twice this year - their form has really dropped since the mid-year break and I don't think anyone really knows why. Glad I'm not the main coach!
OK, better head to bed. We are hosting Neville's 50th birthday tomorrow and this will require vast efforts of cleaning etc after church. Talk again soon.

All sorts of stuff

Hi ho, Sunday night. Weekend disappeared yet again. At least some of it was productive - Magazine report for chess club, drafting etc, and on the home front, finally got around to cleaning and partly oiling the pool deck which was looking a bit overdue. Will try to get home early tomorrow to finish it off.
Declan away on cub camp all weekend. Had to drive to Sandgate and back Friday night, and same this afternoon - 2 hr round trip each time. Still, seems like he had a lot of fun, and of course any time spent away from family is good experience for a young lad, I would argue. Didn't get into too many scrapes by the sound of it.
Still going with the Chess Fiends on chessmaniac.com. Had an awesome win over a guy where I sacrificed my Queen with only a slim likelihood of success, but it came together and I prevailed. I resigned my other game against him, but it was the kind of buzz that chess like this is meant to create.
What else? This week is going to be big. Ekka day on Wednesday so a day off to do marking and get ready for the days afterwards. Thursday night we are heading up to Toowoomba to see the TGS production of JC Superstar and then I have to be at Brisbane airport next morning at the appalling time of 5am for a 6am flight to Sydney then Adelaide for an Anglican conference. Hope I can sleep on the plane or at least not stay out late on the Friday. Never been to Adelaide before but looking forward to it - won't be much time to look around though, I suspect. We get back 7.30 Sunday night and then straight back into school on Monday, so no time to fool around.
OK, better hit the sack - but I should mention we had Bp Tom Frame preaching again at church this morning and it was one of the greatest sermons I've heard in a long, long time. Admittedly, he was at least partly plugging his latest book 'Losing my Religion' but by golly, I'm going to buy a copy because it sounds great. He didn't have any with him today because he says they don't actually come out until Friday, but I'll be on it when they do, you bet. Ciao now.

Wasted time

Well, today was a pleasant and relaxing day in many ways, but also annoying owing to self-inflicted problems.
Tutor group: fine. I had the bright idea of using the data projector to pull up Youtube to show the latest hit clip - the JKWeddingMarch - basically a young bridal party doing cool moves as they all dance down the aisle in pairs etc. So we all enjoyed that.
Yr 10s - drafting their satirical narratives. No big dramas.
Yr 12 - drafting their resumes and letters. Several away, including the slackest baddies, so class ran pretty nicely, despite my need to confiscate a couple of phones during the lesson - they don't like that!
Then 8 RAVE times 2: finishing off Evan Almighty which has really grown on me as a film - not at all offensive, and if I may say so, a bloody good choice for a Yr 8 RAVE unit! Need to follow it up with a discussion of discipleship etc next week.
Then a lunch duty where I was somewhat incensed by 5 year 8 boys who crossed my path brawling and being stupid - they soon came to regret the error of their ways as they accompanied me on a big litter pick-up. Silly stuff!
Then lots of spare time this afternoon which I mainly misspent playing chessmaniac games - continuing my winning run but making I think a fatal error in at least one game, so I suspect I'm going to be a dead duck there. I was disappointed to find the afternoon had disappeared in that way, but maybe I needed the wind-down time after being amped up at lunchtime!
When Nigel and I finally took off and made our way home for the umpteenth time, something incredible happened.
We got to the big roller coaster section of the road at Mt Crosby and we were listening to basically an announcer's comedy routine when suddenly there was a boom on Nigel's side of the car and I found myself shocked to realise I had actually veered slightly too far over and had actually bounced off the guard rail! I was able to immediately pull over safely and we both jumped out. There's a long thin mark along the side of the car and perhaps a slight depression, but no major damage, which is pretty lucky. I felt incredibly stupid - how easy it is to lose concentration and of course having a passenger on board was embarrassing. It certainly could have been a lot worse in many respects. We got back in and took off and I was a little surprised at how calm I felt as we drove along - but then again maybe I am just a cool customer who's become used to adjusting to strange circumstances.
Haven't told Al about it as yet but probably will tomorrow - would be good to see if I could clean it up before she sees it, but I'm not sure that will happen!
Bed now - absolutely intent upon getting as close to 8 hrs sleep each night as possible from now on. Must get back into the gym routine as well, but I don't think tomorrow morning will be the day!
With prayers for a good, productive day tomorrow, ciao.