I'm feeling a little anxious; time is running out. There's only 33 hours until I leave for three weeks away, the first week in Perth for Country Week and the next two in Melbourne for a footy pilgrimage and I haven't packed or got things ready, and I've still got another taxi shift to do tomorrow night! Plus there's Sport Boy's soccer game tomorrow and the Geelong v Sydney game on tv tomorrow afternoon!
I spent another hectic day finishing off the Country Week prep at school today and got 98% of it done. It's going to be a busy and intense period, both this weekend and the next three weeks.
The good news is that my long service leave starts at the end of next week so I will have some time to rest and recuperate once I get back.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Friday, June 29, 2007
3 More Sleeps
The days are getting very hectic trying to make sure everything is ready for Country Week.
On Sunday we leave for 6 days in Perth with 147 kids and 14 staff and invariably there are challenges and changes to deal with constantly. Yesterday there were $9,000 in unpaid fees, today it was down to $3000, the threat of not being allowed on the bus unless fees are paid in full did the trick! By tomorrow I expect it to be down to just a couple of hundred.
We had a Country Week Assembly today to farewell the team, announce team captains etc. It was a very frustrating experience. There were many other certificates to hand out and students to recognise for excellent academic achievements which is great, but it was so slow and ponderous and inefficient that the assembly ran 20 minutes into lunchtime!!!! By the time I spoke, 2nd last on the program I was so conscious of the over-run and the restlessness of the kids who'd been sitting on the wooden floor of the gym for over an hour that I raced through it at about 200 km/ph.
I find that sort of poor performance and lack of understanding very trying of my patience, which comes in a very small bottle at the best of times!!
I was working on CW stuff right up until 6.30 then raced up to volleyball to do refereeing duty only to find the rest of the team had got there first and had it covered so I went back to the office to keep working. Unfortunately I neglected to turn my lights off when I got out of the car. They were still on when I came out an hour later and I thought it wouldn't be a big problem, but it was! The battery was dead as a doornail! My volleyball game was about to start! Instead of being an hour early I ended up being 10 minutes late! More frustration!
On a happier note, we won 3-0.
I'll have to collect the car in the morning. It will cause some mild consternation for those who get there early, it's parked in the Deputy Principal's parking spot!
On Sunday we leave for 6 days in Perth with 147 kids and 14 staff and invariably there are challenges and changes to deal with constantly. Yesterday there were $9,000 in unpaid fees, today it was down to $3000, the threat of not being allowed on the bus unless fees are paid in full did the trick! By tomorrow I expect it to be down to just a couple of hundred.
We had a Country Week Assembly today to farewell the team, announce team captains etc. It was a very frustrating experience. There were many other certificates to hand out and students to recognise for excellent academic achievements which is great, but it was so slow and ponderous and inefficient that the assembly ran 20 minutes into lunchtime!!!! By the time I spoke, 2nd last on the program I was so conscious of the over-run and the restlessness of the kids who'd been sitting on the wooden floor of the gym for over an hour that I raced through it at about 200 km/ph.
I find that sort of poor performance and lack of understanding very trying of my patience, which comes in a very small bottle at the best of times!!
I was working on CW stuff right up until 6.30 then raced up to volleyball to do refereeing duty only to find the rest of the team had got there first and had it covered so I went back to the office to keep working. Unfortunately I neglected to turn my lights off when I got out of the car. They were still on when I came out an hour later and I thought it wouldn't be a big problem, but it was! The battery was dead as a doornail! My volleyball game was about to start! Instead of being an hour early I ended up being 10 minutes late! More frustration!
On a happier note, we won 3-0.
I'll have to collect the car in the morning. It will cause some mild consternation for those who get there early, it's parked in the Deputy Principal's parking spot!
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Getting Closer
The countdown to Country Week is well past the point of no return and things are getting hectic. Lots of details to finalise. My head was spinning today. Only 4 more sleeps till we board the buses.
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
The "Lost" Boys
I spent today helping Patesy, one of the phys eders, with his hiking camp. I just had to accompany a small group as they navigated through the bush on a 15km hike.
The day started out normally enough as Patesy pointed out the route they were meant to take to the boys on today's hike through the Boranup forest south of Maragret River.
Once on the track the boys got into the spirit of the occasion and despite the overcast, later to become wet, very wet, weather, shed their shirts. With little sun tan action likely this was presumably for effect and macho points. It did emphasise the status of their low-slung jeans and exposed undies, my favourite fashion faux-pas!
One of the boys set about constructing a weapon, as you do when you're out in the bush, and managed to fashion quite a reasonable looking bow and arrow. Even when the bow snapped in the firing of the second arrow he was not deterred and set about strengthening it with the ubiquitous black pvc tape. I'm confident no native animals were in any danger but he was suitably proud of his efforts.
It rained heavily as we approached the Point Rd campsite, from where we had about a 1.5 km hike to the finish at Contos Campsite. The last part is very steep, affording a good view of the valley and anyone approaching on the track. The group became separated in the rain and when we got to Contos, the 4 intrepid hikers had not arrived.
Patesy and I went to see if we could see them but they didn't show up. Patesy was a little concerned which is fair enough but I felt reasonably confident, they'd been navigating with the map and compass all day and done a good job. Still, their non-appearance required action so I set off in the car to see if they'd gone the wrong way on Point Rd.
The start of Point Rd is VERY rocky and a previous attempt to drive on it a couple of months ago had failed, however this time the stakes were a little higher and I persevered, managing to get through the worst of it and head up the track in search of the lost boys.
Sure enough, there they were, about 3km up, heading in the wrong direction (toward the coast) having by their own admission tried three out of the four available directions at the critical junction, all of them wrong!!
I loaded them into the car and drove them back to the correct position and pointed them in the right direction, and they set off on the last leg of their journey, insisting that I not tell anyone I'd found them and "helped" them! Don't worry boys, your secret is safe with me.
The day started out normally enough as Patesy pointed out the route they were meant to take to the boys on today's hike through the Boranup forest south of Maragret River.
Once on the track the boys got into the spirit of the occasion and despite the overcast, later to become wet, very wet, weather, shed their shirts. With little sun tan action likely this was presumably for effect and macho points. It did emphasise the status of their low-slung jeans and exposed undies, my favourite fashion faux-pas!
One of the boys set about constructing a weapon, as you do when you're out in the bush, and managed to fashion quite a reasonable looking bow and arrow. Even when the bow snapped in the firing of the second arrow he was not deterred and set about strengthening it with the ubiquitous black pvc tape. I'm confident no native animals were in any danger but he was suitably proud of his efforts.
It rained heavily as we approached the Point Rd campsite, from where we had about a 1.5 km hike to the finish at Contos Campsite. The last part is very steep, affording a good view of the valley and anyone approaching on the track. The group became separated in the rain and when we got to Contos, the 4 intrepid hikers had not arrived.
Patesy and I went to see if we could see them but they didn't show up. Patesy was a little concerned which is fair enough but I felt reasonably confident, they'd been navigating with the map and compass all day and done a good job. Still, their non-appearance required action so I set off in the car to see if they'd gone the wrong way on Point Rd.
The start of Point Rd is VERY rocky and a previous attempt to drive on it a couple of months ago had failed, however this time the stakes were a little higher and I persevered, managing to get through the worst of it and head up the track in search of the lost boys.
Sure enough, there they were, about 3km up, heading in the wrong direction (toward the coast) having by their own admission tried three out of the four available directions at the critical junction, all of them wrong!!
I loaded them into the car and drove them back to the correct position and pointed them in the right direction, and they set off on the last leg of their journey, insisting that I not tell anyone I'd found them and "helped" them! Don't worry boys, your secret is safe with me.
Addiction
I'm addicted to Scrabble at the moment, computer Scrabble that is, and it's a painful addiction because I lose a lot more than I win! The problem is I play against "Professor Maven" the computer's resident Scrabble genius. I have a choice at what level I can set the proffessor to play and therein lies the dilemma. If I set him at Advanced I win pretty easily so I set him at Expert, and he usually kicks my butt! The scary thing is he has another level to go to but I haven't been game to take him on at Champion level! All is not lost though, according to the computer's records I have a winning percentage of between 25% and 28%. Each win is hard fought and precious.
Tomorrow night is Scrabble Club with the old ladies and they are going to cop some Professor Maven inspired pounding!!
With less than a week to go until Country Week I'm working hard to make sure everything is ready. Most things are coming together but there are always new dilemmas to deal with, for instance, today the caterer rang me with the bad news that her regular supplier has refused to make lamingtons this year and no-one else is willing to step into the breach!! We're not talking puny supermarket sized lamingtons here, these were mega-jumbo sized chocolate and coconut monsters, almost a meal in themselves! Country Week will not be the same without them, although it's not all bad news; there will be a choice of 4 replacements, including one of my all-time favourites, chocolate hedgehog slice!
Tomorrow night is Scrabble Club with the old ladies and they are going to cop some Professor Maven inspired pounding!!
With less than a week to go until Country Week I'm working hard to make sure everything is ready. Most things are coming together but there are always new dilemmas to deal with, for instance, today the caterer rang me with the bad news that her regular supplier has refused to make lamingtons this year and no-one else is willing to step into the breach!! We're not talking puny supermarket sized lamingtons here, these were mega-jumbo sized chocolate and coconut monsters, almost a meal in themselves! Country Week will not be the same without them, although it's not all bad news; there will be a choice of 4 replacements, including one of my all-time favourites, chocolate hedgehog slice!
Monday, June 25, 2007
Oh When the Saints...
Geelong didn't even play this weekend but still managed to go further clear at the top of the ladder courtesy of the Eagles losing to St Kilda! Carn the Cats. Mum and Walter are here for the night, it's good to see them after their time away.
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Saturday
In a gut-wrenching display of will powerI dragged myself out of bed this morning to get to soccer on time. The late taxi shift-early soccer combo is not a favourite at Holt Press. The weather has been filthy the last couple of days but thankfully the rain held off until five minutes after our game finished this morning. It would have quickly degenerated into water polo otherwise. The wind blew a gale against us in the first half, then mysteriously dissipated to a gentle breeze when it was our turn in the second half! It was a close exciting game, Cornerstone led 1-0, then fell 2-1 behind before staging a great recovery in the second half to win 3-2. Sport Boy was excellent again, playing both defense and attack.
I did a few jobs and errands, including exchanging a couple of tops that the family gave me for my birthday. Sadly they under-estimated my size as they were both too small. I ended up getting 4 new tops in the exchange but had to pay some extra, for my own birthday present!
I slept for a couple of hours this arvo before heading off for tonight's taxi shift. I drove the bus tonight and had some stark contrast between the various groups of passengers. Two hockey teams were great fun, very friendly and chatty and amusing; I took one group to Margaret River then went back for them a few hours later. Less pleasant was the group of young women all dolled up and loaded with bottles of booze and low-cut tops who quickly degenerated into foul language and bitchiness when they realised that their looks weren't going to earn them any short-cuts or discounts! One of them complained that I had turned the meter on too soon and another actually said "But we're sexy!" as if that was some sort of valid reason for them not to pay a legitimate fare!
I'm looking forward to a proper sleep-in tomorrow. I'm on roster at the gallery in the afternoon and then Mum and Walter are coming to visit in honour of my birthday now that they are home again from their trip east.
I did a few jobs and errands, including exchanging a couple of tops that the family gave me for my birthday. Sadly they under-estimated my size as they were both too small. I ended up getting 4 new tops in the exchange but had to pay some extra, for my own birthday present!
I slept for a couple of hours this arvo before heading off for tonight's taxi shift. I drove the bus tonight and had some stark contrast between the various groups of passengers. Two hockey teams were great fun, very friendly and chatty and amusing; I took one group to Margaret River then went back for them a few hours later. Less pleasant was the group of young women all dolled up and loaded with bottles of booze and low-cut tops who quickly degenerated into foul language and bitchiness when they realised that their looks weren't going to earn them any short-cuts or discounts! One of them complained that I had turned the meter on too soon and another actually said "But we're sexy!" as if that was some sort of valid reason for them not to pay a legitimate fare!
I'm looking forward to a proper sleep-in tomorrow. I'm on roster at the gallery in the afternoon and then Mum and Walter are coming to visit in honour of my birthday now that they are home again from their trip east.
Friday, June 22, 2007
One of the most unusual birthday presents I've ever received
I'm a little vexed with Blogger tonight, I posted several pictures from the hike and a description of one of my birthday presents but out of all of them, only one has appeared on the blog!
It's funny how much harder it is to post something a second time! Especially if you put a bit of extra time and thought into the original and then it disappears without trace or reason!
I'll just try one more time with this post.
Their Hiking and Cooking was Impressive
Thursday, June 21, 2007
The YWAM Crew
Happy Mid-Life Crisis to Me
After two days away on the hike I had plenty to catch up on at work and I wasn't moving very fast, my legs are sore and stiff. I'll be 46 tomorrow and I'm feeling every bit of it right now, fast approaching my use by date in fact!
Apart from Country Week tasks I also had to make arrangements to move our fish.
You may remember the fish sculpture I helped to buy after the Commonwealth Games?
For a variety of reasons the project has stalled and the place where it has been stored can no longer accommodate it and have been hassling me to come and get it! No easy feat considering said fish is 7 metres long and weighs around 300kg!
I called Aussie, a friend from church who has a truck with a crane and he's going to come and pick it up tomorrow morning. From there we need to get it into the art compound at school. There's space for it but lifting it over the brick wall will be tricky.
Hopoefully we'll get it done without damaging the fish or the school. From there we still need to do some work on it to prepare it for installation, AND convince the shire to allow us to put it somewhere prominent in town. Perhaps with my long service coming up next term I can devote some time to the project and see it to completion.
WARNING:
Serious Blogging Ahead!
I started writing and next thing I knew I was exposing more of my thoughts and feelings than usual and feeling nervous as a result. Vulnerability Rating: High
I saw my therapist again this afternoon and from the tests she's done and her observations it seems pretty clear I have depression. I'll continue with the counselling but may also reconsider medication as an option. I have good days and bad days but of late the bad days are winning and I don't have the strength or emotional reserves to cope. I spend a lot of time struggling with my internal world, unable to function at the sort of levels I'm used to or expect.
This remains a difficult subject for me, it has taken me a very long time to even get to this point and acknowledge I need help. My usual strategy is to withdraw and close down emotionally and hope that it passes. No prizes for working out that's not a very effective strategy! Talking about it isn't easy but it is preferable to continuing the unhelpful patterns of the past.
I'm not a very forgiving person, and that lack of forgiveness extends to myself. When I fall I tend to follow it up with a good beating which keeps me down longer and makes it a real struggle to get up again. Maybe my expectations of myself are too high, or maybe I just don't have the capacity I thought I did. Hopefully therapy will help me work some of this stuff out and find ways to improve my coping skills.
A bit of extra "happiness" as a side effect wouldn't go astray either.
You are now exiting the Vulnerability Zone!
I don't often post other people's stuff but I got some great puns given to me today and as I'm very fond of a pun myself I can't resist posting a few here.
Two antennas met on a roof, fell in love and got married. The ceremony wasn't much but the reception was fantastic.
A jumper cable walked into a bar and asked for a drink. The bartender said "OK, but don't start anything!"
Two peanuts walked into a bar, one was a salted.
A dyslexic man walked into a bra.
A man walks into a bar with a slab of asphalt under his arm and says, "A beer please, and one for the road".
There'll be more tomorrow.
Apart from Country Week tasks I also had to make arrangements to move our fish.
You may remember the fish sculpture I helped to buy after the Commonwealth Games?
For a variety of reasons the project has stalled and the place where it has been stored can no longer accommodate it and have been hassling me to come and get it! No easy feat considering said fish is 7 metres long and weighs around 300kg!
I called Aussie, a friend from church who has a truck with a crane and he's going to come and pick it up tomorrow morning. From there we need to get it into the art compound at school. There's space for it but lifting it over the brick wall will be tricky.
Hopoefully we'll get it done without damaging the fish or the school. From there we still need to do some work on it to prepare it for installation, AND convince the shire to allow us to put it somewhere prominent in town. Perhaps with my long service coming up next term I can devote some time to the project and see it to completion.
WARNING:
Serious Blogging Ahead!
I started writing and next thing I knew I was exposing more of my thoughts and feelings than usual and feeling nervous as a result. Vulnerability Rating: High
I saw my therapist again this afternoon and from the tests she's done and her observations it seems pretty clear I have depression. I'll continue with the counselling but may also reconsider medication as an option. I have good days and bad days but of late the bad days are winning and I don't have the strength or emotional reserves to cope. I spend a lot of time struggling with my internal world, unable to function at the sort of levels I'm used to or expect.
This remains a difficult subject for me, it has taken me a very long time to even get to this point and acknowledge I need help. My usual strategy is to withdraw and close down emotionally and hope that it passes. No prizes for working out that's not a very effective strategy! Talking about it isn't easy but it is preferable to continuing the unhelpful patterns of the past.
I'm not a very forgiving person, and that lack of forgiveness extends to myself. When I fall I tend to follow it up with a good beating which keeps me down longer and makes it a real struggle to get up again. Maybe my expectations of myself are too high, or maybe I just don't have the capacity I thought I did. Hopefully therapy will help me work some of this stuff out and find ways to improve my coping skills.
A bit of extra "happiness" as a side effect wouldn't go astray either.
You are now exiting the Vulnerability Zone!
I don't often post other people's stuff but I got some great puns given to me today and as I'm very fond of a pun myself I can't resist posting a few here.
Two antennas met on a roof, fell in love and got married. The ceremony wasn't much but the reception was fantastic.
A jumper cable walked into a bar and asked for a drink. The bartender said "OK, but don't start anything!"
Two peanuts walked into a bar, one was a salted.
A dyslexic man walked into a bra.
A man walks into a bar with a slab of asphalt under his arm and says, "A beer please, and one for the road".
There'll be more tomorrow.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Home and Wrecked
I'm home.
I'm sore and tired.
I'm physically and emotionally drained.
I've just spent an hour soaking in a hot bath to help my aching muscles.
As predicted the hike was hard work, 22km in 2 days with a few testing hills along the way.
But the hardest work was dealing with the kids.
Several were pretty well behaved and easy to get along with but a small group were loud, rude, crude, obnoxious, anti-social and unaware. As I stared up at the stars amongst the trees late last night after chastising the group of boys I was supervising in yet another vain attempt to get them into bed, settled and quiet and not throwing things or abuse at one another I wondered what hell is like?
I'm fairly certain it was worse than the experience I was going through but it didn't feel like it.
When one of the boys called me an obscene name I saw red and blew my top at him.
It wasn't good, it wasn't funny, it was just stressful and frustrating.
Thankfully they eventually settled down and actually slept.
I had to laugh to myself when one of them complained that my noise and snoring disturbed his sleep!!
The walk back today was done under time pressure which meant pushing myself harder than I'm used to and thus I'm paying the price physically. We made it back just in time for the kids to get their buses home.
On the positive side the bush was beautiful, the countryside was green and fresh and we walked through some truly picturesque places as we followed the Donnelly River. There was an abundance of interesting mushrooms, toadstools and related fungi of many different colours shapes and sizes. We crossed bridges of fallen logs covered in moss, through dense bush and towering Karri trees, and drank cold fresh water straight from the river and streams.
We started and finished at One Tree Bridge on the road to Pemberton and it is well worth a visit if you're ever in the area.
I'm sore and tired.
I'm physically and emotionally drained.
I've just spent an hour soaking in a hot bath to help my aching muscles.
As predicted the hike was hard work, 22km in 2 days with a few testing hills along the way.
But the hardest work was dealing with the kids.
Several were pretty well behaved and easy to get along with but a small group were loud, rude, crude, obnoxious, anti-social and unaware. As I stared up at the stars amongst the trees late last night after chastising the group of boys I was supervising in yet another vain attempt to get them into bed, settled and quiet and not throwing things or abuse at one another I wondered what hell is like?
I'm fairly certain it was worse than the experience I was going through but it didn't feel like it.
When one of the boys called me an obscene name I saw red and blew my top at him.
It wasn't good, it wasn't funny, it was just stressful and frustrating.
Thankfully they eventually settled down and actually slept.
I had to laugh to myself when one of them complained that my noise and snoring disturbed his sleep!!
The walk back today was done under time pressure which meant pushing myself harder than I'm used to and thus I'm paying the price physically. We made it back just in time for the kids to get their buses home.
On the positive side the bush was beautiful, the countryside was green and fresh and we walked through some truly picturesque places as we followed the Donnelly River. There was an abundance of interesting mushrooms, toadstools and related fungi of many different colours shapes and sizes. We crossed bridges of fallen logs covered in moss, through dense bush and towering Karri trees, and drank cold fresh water straight from the river and streams.
We started and finished at One Tree Bridge on the road to Pemberton and it is well worth a visit if you're ever in the area.
Monday, June 18, 2007
Holt Press All Sports Update
The Cats had another good win this afternoon, beating Brisbane by 50 points to stay top of the AFL ladder. Gotta be happy with that. Sport Boy and I went to the Esplanade to watch the second half over a lemon squash and dessert.
I then had to hurry in to the art gallery for my afternoon roster!
In a couple of hours Aaron Baddeley will try and hold off the the biggest threat in golf, Tiger Woods on the final day of a major, and hang on to win the US Open. This time last year Geoff Ogilvy, another Aussie, came from nowhere to win his first Major. Back in the 80's and 90's I would always get up early to watch the Golf Majors in the hope of seeing The Shark, Greg Norman win. He seldom did and I'd feel disappointed. Hopefully Aaron will hold his nerve and triumph.
Tomorrow I'm going on an overnight hike on the Bibbulmun Track. It's pretty cold in the south-west at the moment so I'm trying to fit two sleeping bags in so I've got a better chance of not freezing tomorrow night!
Sunday, June 17, 2007
The Wheelie Bin
An even later finish tonight after a very strange night in the cab. One of the other drivers got a job to take someone to Perth (a lazy $350 fare and 7 hour round trip!) in the cab I was rostered to drive, so I drove the wheel chair taxi, colloquially known as "the wheelie bin"! My first job was to a spot in the bush 20km west of Nannup for a fare of $127! The lady I took ear-bashed me the entire trip and was the sort of person who says a lot of things that should be challenged but for the sake of peace and sanity you don't tend to challenge! I had to smile to myself a couple of times when she tickled my "Bad Grammar Man" funny bone. She referred to a certain place a couple of times as that "pacific spot" and I'm sure she wasn't talking about Hawaii, and later mentioned the "Christian Philadelphians" who I presume she mistook for the "Christadelphians".
My next job was to Dunsborough but with dubious directions and street numbering it took me about 15 minutes just to find the right house and get on the road so by the time I got back from there the Noodle Bar was closed and I'd missed out on the Seafood Mee Goreng noodles I'd been looking forward to all night.
Things got much worse than that though! I picked up 6 people from the Goose, two of the ladies sitting in the back hatch, when the car ran out of gas! LPG Gas that is! It coughed and spluttered and finally died, then I succeeded in flattening the battery while trying to re-start it on what I thought was the reserve petrol tank! Turns out the petrol tank holds about 2 litres and is only used for starting the engine! The customers took it in very good humour.
Many comments were made back and forth, amongst which the most memorable were:
Female Customer: "Now we'll never get there"
Me: "Yeah we will, it'll be no problem with this many people pushing".
Me: "I'll turn the meter off until we get this sorted and back on the road."
Customer: "We've past the point where we owe you money...!"
John came to there rescue in the maxi and I drove his car for the next few hours of a very busy night.
Later Leggy towed me to the 24 Houry and used his jump pack battery to get me started again.
A bit later my customer was not at the appointed pick-up address and coincidentally a police car pulled up next to me to say they'd had a report of a "domestic" but couldn't find it. When I knocked on the door of the address I'd been given I was informed by the males in the house that "the woman has walked off" with what I presume were meant to be knowing looks and tones. As I was getting back in the cab one of them gave me $20 and pointed me in the direction she'd set off and asked me to see if I could find her and take her home.
I did just that but not before she called her husband on her mobile and let rip at him with a torrent of swearing and abuse. I think I'd found the "domestic"!
I finished at 5 and made plenty of money tonight. Now the question is will I get enough sleep to be able to get up and watch the Geelong V Brisbane game at 11.00 in the morning!
Further to that, on Monday and Tuesday I'm going on an overnight hike on the Bibbulmun Track with a group of year 10 students that I've been helping a teacher with for the last few weeks. It will be a challenging hike I'm sure, moreso emotionally than physically!
Just a quick word before I finish on Sport Boy's soccer game this morning. From the comparitive riches of our initial 13 man squad, this morning we only had 8 players so had to play one short against St Joseph's Eagles. Despite being out-numbered and being under early pressure, the kids played extremely well and ended up winning 5-0. Sport Boy scored two goals and in the second half when I switched him into defense also played really well. He has become our most consistent and reliable player this season. It was a very good game and some of the kid's passing movements brought comments and appreciation from the crowd, not just the proud parents but senior soccer players who were watching the game.
Just time to check in on Aaron Baddeley's progress in the 3rd round of the US Open before I go to bed. Need to go soon before the sun starts to come up!
My next job was to Dunsborough but with dubious directions and street numbering it took me about 15 minutes just to find the right house and get on the road so by the time I got back from there the Noodle Bar was closed and I'd missed out on the Seafood Mee Goreng noodles I'd been looking forward to all night.
Things got much worse than that though! I picked up 6 people from the Goose, two of the ladies sitting in the back hatch, when the car ran out of gas! LPG Gas that is! It coughed and spluttered and finally died, then I succeeded in flattening the battery while trying to re-start it on what I thought was the reserve petrol tank! Turns out the petrol tank holds about 2 litres and is only used for starting the engine! The customers took it in very good humour.
Many comments were made back and forth, amongst which the most memorable were:
Female Customer: "Now we'll never get there"
Me: "Yeah we will, it'll be no problem with this many people pushing".
Me: "I'll turn the meter off until we get this sorted and back on the road."
Customer: "We've past the point where we owe you money...!"
John came to there rescue in the maxi and I drove his car for the next few hours of a very busy night.
Later Leggy towed me to the 24 Houry and used his jump pack battery to get me started again.
A bit later my customer was not at the appointed pick-up address and coincidentally a police car pulled up next to me to say they'd had a report of a "domestic" but couldn't find it. When I knocked on the door of the address I'd been given I was informed by the males in the house that "the woman has walked off" with what I presume were meant to be knowing looks and tones. As I was getting back in the cab one of them gave me $20 and pointed me in the direction she'd set off and asked me to see if I could find her and take her home.
I did just that but not before she called her husband on her mobile and let rip at him with a torrent of swearing and abuse. I think I'd found the "domestic"!
I finished at 5 and made plenty of money tonight. Now the question is will I get enough sleep to be able to get up and watch the Geelong V Brisbane game at 11.00 in the morning!
Further to that, on Monday and Tuesday I'm going on an overnight hike on the Bibbulmun Track with a group of year 10 students that I've been helping a teacher with for the last few weeks. It will be a challenging hike I'm sure, moreso emotionally than physically!
Just a quick word before I finish on Sport Boy's soccer game this morning. From the comparitive riches of our initial 13 man squad, this morning we only had 8 players so had to play one short against St Joseph's Eagles. Despite being out-numbered and being under early pressure, the kids played extremely well and ended up winning 5-0. Sport Boy scored two goals and in the second half when I switched him into defense also played really well. He has become our most consistent and reliable player this season. It was a very good game and some of the kid's passing movements brought comments and appreciation from the crowd, not just the proud parents but senior soccer players who were watching the game.
Just time to check in on Aaron Baddeley's progress in the 3rd round of the US Open before I go to bed. Need to go soon before the sun starts to come up!
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Too Tired to Blog
It's 3.30am at Holt Press after a very full day and night.
The last day of YWAM stuff at school. Pizzas for lunch with 100 hungry kids.
Driving the cab tonight. No time to post about the drunk woman driver and her unbelievable excuses and denial, that will have to wait.
Thankfully Sport Boy's soccer game tomorrow kicks off at Noon so I can have a decent sleep-in (hopefully).
Adios.
The last day of YWAM stuff at school. Pizzas for lunch with 100 hungry kids.
Driving the cab tonight. No time to post about the drunk woman driver and her unbelievable excuses and denial, that will have to wait.
Thankfully Sport Boy's soccer game tomorrow kicks off at Noon so I can have a decent sleep-in (hopefully).
Adios.
Friday, June 15, 2007
The YWAM Crew
2nd: Carter, Landon-the team leader, Merrick, Cara
3rd: ?, Carlos, Sonya, Dan
Bottom: Sara, Sarah, Lauren, Lauren
All week I've had a team of young people from YWAM working in the school. There are 13 of them, from Canada, England, Australia, Brazil and the USA, who have presented seminars to all the Yr 8 & 9 Health Ed classes on topics like Bullying, Relationships, Alcohol and Drugs. They've done a great job and we've had a really good time together, they hang out in my office between sessions playing with all my toys and puzzles and helping me with jobs that need doing. Considering they're all aged between 18-20 and have paid their own way to come to Australia and be part of a 6 month DTS-Discipleship Training School- they are a very impressive bunch of young people. Before coming to Busselton they spent time in China and Mongolia!
Tomorrow is their last day so we're having a big pizza lunch and inviting the kids to come and hang out with them and hear a bit more of their story. Today they helped me run a Phat Thursday lunchtime program and got their hands dirty playing "Frozen Chook Ten Pin Bowling", always a poular favourite. Corey, top row, 3rd from the left, even managed to bowl a strike at his first attempt, a truly impressive achievement!
Thursday, June 14, 2007
EIAIAIA
I play a 2 handed game against Professor Maven, the computer player. The rating level ranges from Novice to Champion. I set the computer to expert level, the second highest rating. It wins most of the time but every now and then I manage to overcome it's lightning moves and encyclopaedic dictionary. My winning ratio stands at 28%. Most of the time the game seems reasonably fair but every now and then the automatic tile picker serves me up a rack of absolute rubbish. Thus the 7 letters I copped the other night. I'm pleased and proud to say that I went on to win the game, thanks largely to scoring two 7 letter words in the game, Wanders and Trombone, and the 50 bonus points for each of them. Maven got one two but I held him off in a tense finish.
I love Scrabble and it's good for my brain, lots of problem solving and lateral thinking and the computer doesn't complain when I take half an hour over my move.
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