Nothing Like…

…getting kicked when you’re down. Got home last night to find Jo’s computer was on the fritz as well. I have been trying to take the time away from internet access at home to catch up on some reading I needed to get done. I have also been watching some movies that I haven’t seen before. Although I am almost through Blockbuster’s selection and will need to find a rental place that carries a few older titles.

On a side note, on my walk to the train at 5:30 this morning I noticed a car had been torched during the night down by this Chinese church beside the train station. Interesting phenomenon. Everyone month or so it seems a vehicle gets torched.

Back to the main track…

I think I could do without internet at home. Jo and I both have access to it at work. The downside would be that skyping people would probably go the way of the dodo, and I don’t know if I am prepared to do that just yet. I suppose I could always use Wifi at a cafe or something. Something to look into for sure. I don’t think I have gone without internet access since I was in college. So that’s what… going on 13 years ago? Maybe we’ll give it a go for a month or something and see.

Not that it matters right now with no computer. No word yet. Maybe today.

Crisis

I think my computer was hacked. Can’t boot up now. Possibly lost everything on it. Unimpressed. Getting it looked at today to determine how frigged it is. The biggest loss will be my digital pictures. Most have them have been backed up. But not all. My ipod stuff is on an external HD. My calander and email will probably be lost. Unimpressed. It is not recognizing my start up disk. Won’t repair either. So, I will only be around when I have access to a computer at work. Can’t even put Jo’s laptop on at home as log in info was on mine. Unimpressed.

South Of The Border. Down Mexico Way!

So my brother is set to head down to Mexico for a few months. He has quit the job… packed his stuff, and should be on his way soon. Because I am an awesome details person (so often we are on our way to meet new people and Jo asks me questions about them that I guess normal people should know, or would have asked beforehand, and I have no idea whatsoever. I like the adventure. I can always fake a seizure if we “need” to excuse ourselves:) I know this about his trip:

- he’s going to Mexico.
- he’s going with at least one friend.
- they have an apartment to rent that’s furnished.
- they are going to work on a computer game that they have been working on for a year or two.
- there might be surfing.
- I will see him at Christmas time.

Bang. That’s about it. Hopefully I’ll snag him for a chat before he heads off. We’ll see. And if I don’t and he’s reading this: don’t drink the water.

In other news, found myself a good used 28mm M42 mount lense for my camera, so I am set. I am hoping to take one afternoon a week and shoot a roll or two, and maybe some stuff on weekends. If I get lucky and some of them turn up shareable, I’ll post them. Until then…

The Aussie Paradox: Shrapnel

I have been slowly making a quick list of things I really enjoy about living in Australia, and am going to comment on them in no particular order. As a side note, things that are of more importance (i.e. see refugee policies and work place legislation) will not be mentioned at this time. Mostly because I am only learning how crazy some of it is, but don’t have a good enough handle on it to be fair… not that has really ever made a difference… but I digress.

Coin change. They call it “shrapnel” down here. And here is a feature I think North America should embrace. The phasing out of the penny. Round everything to the nearest 5 cents. In fact, you could probably get away with phasing out the 5 cent piece as well. A lot less weight in the pocket, and let’s be honest… you can’t buy “penny candy” for pennies or even nickles anymore. Don’t need em. Let’s ditch em.

The downside of the shrapnel here… a 50 cent piece the size of your palm. Seriously, 5$ in change can kill you. There is no need for a coin to be that size. It’s for purchasing goods and services… NOT to serve dinner on.

This is my irrelevant rant. End.

Obligatory

Yeah. Not heaps going on right now. But I’ll give you the pithy updates.

* Just getting over this stupid flu thing that is lingering far too much. This will be the third week, and AFTER a dose of good ole penicilin. Usually the antibiotics make short work of attacking viruses, but this one seems a bit tougher.

* It is looking like that this will be the month that Caleb will be debt free (if the estimate on my tax return holds true).

* Since Caleb is not single, this means he still owes… lots. But the student loan and the Mastercard will be cleared by the end of the month. Which is awesome.

* I have begun to dabble in 35mm film photography. I have my grandpa’s old Pentax Ashai ES II. It’s about 40 years old, so finding lenses and accessories for it down here is tricky, but not impossible (the lenses are all Pentax Mount, which is a threaded screw mount). I JUST missed out on a 400mm lense on ebay this morning, but picked up a flash for it for 0.99$. Bert did have a 200mm Macro Zoom lense which works very nicely. I am not a pro yet, and I am learning patience, as film is NOT instant results orientated, so fine tuning takes time. But it’s been cool. There are rumblings of a photographers club starting up soon at this cafe I volunteer at. Should be able to learn a lot there.

* I think I know how I want to finish my tat. Doing some extra work here and there to save up for it. Might have it done in a month or so. We’ll see.

Confessions Part 3: Heresy

Ok, so maybe this should be titled, “What some may call heresy.” But whatever. Here are some things that I have been reading about, listening about, studying/learning and etc.

A. How the NT was formed
The process that the church went through was quite interesting. It was quite a big deal. I was rather surprised by when the canon was officially closed. I thought it was done much longer ago than it was. Which brings me to another point I have been wondering about. Since archeological pieces are still being added to the collection (see Gospel of Judas) what happens if we find a scroll that should be added to the canon because it meets the requirements? I have also read/heard that “God inspired” was not one of the requirements of the canonized texts. I think that throws an interesting angle to the “inspired word of God” view point.

I realize my specifics are lacking. My apologies. If you are interested, I can post the links to the teaching series and sites I looked at.

B. Making an arguement for whatever you believe
If you look around enough you can find ample support for whatever p.o.v. you hold. Makes for interesting conversation if you ask me.

C. Context
Learning about not reading my own context into the Bible. It is easy to do, but can get you into trouble I think. Subsequently, learning about ancient Jewish culture and traditions. Very interesting. I need to get my hands on some more texts, so if any of you know of any good ones, let me know.

Which brings up issues of literalism and the Bible. When I hear people ripping off passages to “settle” a conversation it always makes me nervous and ask the question, “Are you sure that’s what it says and to whom it was said?”

D. The God of the OT vs. Jesus
All I am saying about this is that the actions of one doing necessarily reflect the actions of the other. Why? I have been struggling on this one for almost a year now. Anyone want to take a stab at it? And get stabbed ?

These are a few that I am willing to post. Having said that, can I say that I have never felt more secure in my faith and what I believe.

Does anybody else struggle through this stuff? Drop a comment.

In The Belly Of Australia

Spent a couple days up in the Blue Mountains at the end of this week. Visited the Jenolan Caves while we were there. It was pretty cool. The guys that first searched these out did so with some hemp rope and a candle. Insane.

Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain

Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain plays Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit”. Awesome.