Eating out

This is a piccy of Andrew and his beautiful wife Pennie, taken in November 2006. I can't wait to see their kids!

Christmas in the Park

The following piccies of my sister and I on Christmas day show the creative art techniques referred to as Rippling, Sketching, Embossing and Whirlpooling. Pretty cool. I like the sketching best. You can see we inherited the genetics from different parents, well that's what some say. I think it's just that she ate all the food in our critical growing years ;)



Today we served at the big Christmas Lunch in the Park event. It was really awesome to see lots of familiar faces this year. It was my sister's first year as a volunteer. We dressed her up in red with some tinsel around her waist and a little Santa hat and she did a great job. It was nice to see her smile again and enjoy herself. One of the Channel 9 camera guys even insisted on filming her, but, like most years, we forgot to watch the news! Who watches the news on Christmas day anyway?

One of the familiar faces was dancing Adam from Riverview. It was funny seeing him again, because I only just saw him on Friday night in Claremont, where Aaron Malone was singing and where he was dancing with Miagi from RVTV and Aaron from Multimedia, oh and me at some stage! He was at bible college with me earlier this year. Riverview is blessed to have such a great guy among its family.

Another was the beautiful Kelly on the rego desk and later as a Table Host. Hey Kel, if you’re reading this, thanks heaps for all your help. You did well. Thanks to your friend Andrea as well.

Then a couple of chicks from my last work place, Dee and Kim, also lent a helping hand... oh and Kim's hubby Mark came too. God bless them all.

Towards the end of our shifts as Stewards, my sister and I helped Santa give out leftover presents to all the kids, many homeless kids. It is so encouraging to see all the gifts that have been donated from local businesses, all sorts of toys, games, bags, bathroom packs, hats, books, etc… I grabbed a big box of hats and starting putting them on all the toddlers as they came up, which was very satisfying. There were some kids from Ethiopia, who really appreciated the hats. Just seeing their big smiles made my day.

Unfortunately, we ran out of gifts for teenage girls, so we were rummaging through the boxes of gifts for younger kids and trying to find things that they might appreciate. It was pretty challenging, though an amusing exercise. Praise God for the generosity of all the people involved in the event. I think it was a huge success yet again. Next year I think I’ll see if I can get a job in the toy tent.

Birthday bash for Ali

Went out last night to celebrate the birthday of a very beautiful HAPA friend of mine…. what a stunner! Ali treated us to some really lovely finger food, before we headed out to Claremont for a bit of groovy dancing ... or jumping, as some preferred ;-) haha ...pity i didn't capture any dance moves!

Chrissy rapidly approaching

I can’t believe it is almost Christmas. Tomorrow, we’re having another Chrissy party at work before most of us head off on holidays. The big boss is shouting us drinks. Nice! Man i love this worplace!

Saturday night my sister is having a little Chrissy dinner up in her mansion in Mindarie and then Christmas day I’m helping out with the Mission Australia’s Christmas in the Park, which caters for 2,000 people whose lives have been shattered by poverty, illness, marriage breakdown, unemployment, drug/alcohol abuse, social isolation or homelessness.

I’m pretty stoked about the big lunch because this year, I have managed to get six other people to volunteer with me and we’ve got the best roles as stewards and table hosts, so we get to mingle with the guests. I always pretend the people at the lunch are my long lost relatives. I think I like the homeless people the best, because they really appreciate the love and attention we give them and I guess it is the only place that they don’t get shunned by society, but rather embraced by a bunch of colourful volunteers. I guess it is one place we can really shine God's love. It’s also great because I do this every year and so do a lot of the other 500 volunteers, so we get to catch up and talk about what we did in the previous year. Some guys that I went to uni with also do it – however, they do the heavy work - lifting food trays off the truck, because they’re all muscly gym junkies and that’s what they like to do ;-) God bless them all.

I think the artist who drew the cartoon piccy must have been a bit intoxicated, because the eyes are just totally out of control.

A good dentist

Have made the switch to a really great, honest and cheap dentist, thanks to the guys at Consumer Protection for recommending him to me. It’s a small family business, where the father and two sons are dentists and the daughter works at reception. It’s in North Perth – 366 Fitzgerald St. This dental clinic is different to others I have been to. For starters, there’s a Bible in waiting room. Praise God! … and it’s not a particularly glamorous place, like the dental clinics I have been to in Subi. It’s located down a little alley in a converted block of flats. The interior is unique because the father has a passion for photographing wild animals in Africa, so all the walls in the clinic are enhanced with spectacular close up photos of beautiful animals. There's also a real peace about the place - it almost feels like you're in a home, rather than in a dental clinic!

One of my work friends was telling me she knows a few people who had their fees discounted because they were struggling financially. I was really impressed today because a different dentist told me earlier in the year that I would need to have a ‘scale and clean’ done every six months and was quoted exorbitant fees for the privilege. I just assumed I needed them done, as you do, and so I went in today and told them that was what I needed. Matthew, the youngest son there, had one look and said there was no need and that my teeth were in good shape and he suggested I come back in 12 months time for a check-up. How nice to find a dentist that isn’t trying to get every cent out of each patient.

Jack's First Birthday

Last Sunday I went to Jack's birthday....he has a really amazing family. This is him and his lovely hedgehog icecream cake.








Then here we have his immediate family,




...followed by his uncles, aunt and cousins...



...and finally, then some of his friends ;-) sweet!


Happy birthday Jack!

A chair from the Ming Dynasty

so it's a little different to most chairs we use these days ;-) My great grandfather bought this chair as an antique many years ago.

This is the information i got from the Wikipedia .... The Ming Dynasty was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644. It was the last ethnic Han-led dynasty in China, supplanting the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty before falling to the Manchu-led Qing Dynasty. The Ming Dynasty ruled over the Empire of the Great Ming, as China was then known. Although the Ming capital, Beijing, fell in 1644, remnants of the Ming throne and power (now collectively called the Southern Ming) survived until 1662.

Ming rule saw the construction of a vast navy, including four-masted ships of 1,500 tons displacement, and a standing army of 1,000,000 troops. Over 100,000 tons of iron per year were produced in North China (roughly 1 kg per inhabitant), and many books were printed using movable type. There were strong feelings amongst the Han ethnic group against the rule by non-Han ethnic groups during the subsequent Qing Dynasty, and the restoration of the Ming dynasty was used as a rallying cry up until the modern era.

... and to think i just thought it was this daggy old chair, which i dragged from rental property to rental property years ago when i moved out of home!!!

Chrissy

Our Chrissy home group went well and everyone who was meant to be there rocked up, which was great! I gave them their gifts one by one as they came in and then we sat around drinking hot drinks and eating Christie's chocolate santa clauses and candy canes. I adore christmas, it is just so much fun when you have great company to celebrate it with.

Yesterday, one of the guys in the office invited me to a lunch he had organised at the M-Cafe for new staff. How sweet is that - someone sensitive enough to make an effort to create an opportunity for new people to meet other people in the office and chat. I was really touched he invited me because i pretty much work alone with my boss on a different floor of the building to everyone else, so it's not like i see them all that much, except for morning tea. One funny thing about this place is that between 10:00 am and 10:30 am, everyone in the office stops work and goes into the tea room on the 2nd floor of the building and sits and drinks coffee or tea together. I guess you can only really do that in a small work place. It's such a lovely idea though.

Today we had our big work function for Chrissy. It was a three-hour lunch held in the Langley Hotel and there was a big dance floor and an all-you-can eat deal with the most magnificant spread of foods. Yum! I actually didn't think i would be able to last the full three hours with almost a complete bunch of strangers, but it turned out that everyone made a lot of effort to talk to everyone and i had such a great time. I even got up and danced with the Commissioner and the some other clowns in the office. I don't usually do that, but i guess they just all made me feel so welcome and loved, that it was almost like being around family by the end of it. There's something just so special about this work place and the staff. They are just so nice to be around. I can't get over what a blessing this job is - great work, really lovely office accomodation and people.

My boss even bought me a present for Chrissy - totally caught me by surprise. I got him a ridiculous inflatable green fish, with a note in the card telling him it made me think of him when i saw it. It really did, haha.

So anyway, after three solid hours of eating, drinking and dancing like a mad man on the dance floor, i am absolutely exhausted.

Praise God.

Great Company

Went to another very classy work function yesterday after work. My boss invited me to this one and then at the last minute pulled out, leaving me to go alone! It was in the town hall and I didn’t know anyone, except the Holy Spirit. All the way there, I was praying for God to bring people across my path to talk to and man, I ended up being bombarded! God is just so faithful to prayer. At the steps walking in, some important-looking man asked me if I was heading to the same function and then he started telling me about all the consulting work he has done in the public and private sector. Then, after we got our drinks and sampled some of the amazing food, this weird boldness came over me and ended up introducing myself to all the executives around … who kept referring me as a “YP”, aka young professional. How funny is that.

Anyway, I met some really interesting people. One lady with particularly green eyes and an immaculate green suit to match, told me she used to work with the former Chief Justice as a bench clerk and apparently, if you walked into his presence and were not dressed to his standards, he would rudely tell you so and send you out of the room. I am so glad he’s long gone. What a wally. I talked to another animated lady, who works in an unusual role of resolving major people-related problems - so when teams are at each other’s throats, they recruit her and she puts out the fire. I have never seen work situations get that nasty, thank goodness. What a challenging role. I could type out all sorts of little bits and pieces people said about themselves, but really, while the company was quite interesting, I think my attention was more on the fine finger food – such unusual combinations of food, exquisitely presented and so amazingly delicious…. I ate like a total pig. Haha, I was so full when the function was over, that I was struggling to get to my car…

Then I headed over to Dave and Cate’s house, my new amazing prayer warrior friends. We had such a wonderful night with Dave interpreting lots of dreams I have had – they all make so much more sense now – and both shared some of their own “encounters”, I guess you could call them. I am constantly praising God for bringing them into my life. I just know deep inside that God has led them across my path because it feels like I have known them for ages, we are like-minded, so I feel a deep peace in their presence and refreshed when I am around them, they understand my thoughts and my dreams, and it’s just a very special and unique friendship I have with them. I guess they are divinely appointed friendships – God’s response to persistent prayer. I admire them so much. Dave shared some keys to hearing God’s voice clearly and set me up on a challenge, so today is the proper start date. Amen.

Tomorrow night I get to see my home group brothers and sisters – another set of absolutely amazing and inspiring people. I can’t wait for tomorrow night cos I bought them all Chrissy presents, some pretty funny things too. For Ewen - I got an inflatable goldfish, Christie - a star-shaped plate, Narelle - a beautiful soap flower with every leaf being a single serve of soap, Ali - a pair of groovy socks with individual toes, Clayton - a tall mug and a little metal chick, Andrew - a shoe shine kit, Pen – some salad servers and Rob – some egg cups. I just hope they all rock up. God bless them. I absolutely adore them all.

The best days are yet to come.

Sweet aroma

One of the guys who has worked in the same organization as me, but who I never got to know (apart from his name), left work yesterday for a new job and just before he left, he sent an email to everyone with the following words:

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

It was just such a beautiful thing to say, really touched me. I wish I could have had a chance to get to know him. Some of the staff were saying that he organises soup kitchens and other things to help out homeless people. Oh what a sweet man.

I have a feeling there are quite a few Godly people in this work place – hence why there is just such a deep peace about the place. I love going to work each day – the atmosphere is so refreshing.

Active Mind

In the last two months, in particular, I have met so many different people, worked on so many different projects, learnt so many new skills, been exposed to so many new challenges …. my mind has been buzzing constantly and every now and then, I will remember snippets of conversations with people and it takes me a while to figure out where I was and who exactly I was talking to. Often I will run up the terrace at lunch times and bump into people from the numerous work places I have been in. For a moment, my mind goes blank as I try and recall where they were from, what their names were, whether they are affectionate people who want to embrace me and kiss me, or the distant variety who are happy with just a nod…. aaaggghhh I remember …

….sitting in work meetings in my last work place with team members, talking about the progress with legislative amendments and administrative changes.

…having intense spiritual conversations in the work kitchen with people absorbed in new age practices, clairvoyants, yoga, mediation, star signs ….

…. laughing with the chicks in the change rooms, all talking about our muscles, clothes, fitness efforts for the last year and our new year’s resolutions… then running up the hill with them, all trying to get some words out, while gasping for breath and trying so hard to just get up those darn steep hills while having a meaningful conversation.

…seemingly endless conversations over many lunches and coffees with work friends at different places in the city, while sampling all sorts of different foods…

….sitting with my family, having discussions about work experiences, clients, patients, big technical words to describe common problems

…taking my puppy for a walk and telling him about little things along the way, as if he’s a young student

…sitting among film crew people, talking about shots we took, issues we had, cables, music, black clothes, black shoes, black curtains…

…sitting in big church services, with 1000s of people, impacted by the large-scale worship and people all around me

…then sitting in small intimate church services with less than 30 people, overwhelmed by the intensity of God’s presence, the comparably quiet, yet sweet and power worship times

…then sitting among foreign missionaries in YWAM meetings, identifying with the different cultures making up my genetics

…5am prayer sessions talking to God, absorbing words of wisdom that are highlighted to me…

….sitting through a grueling interview with powerful executives firing me with hard questions and responding quickly by putting my six years of work experience into smart replies …. Finding out I got the job, then my first day on the job, meeting face after face after face, new hands to shake.

…going to new work functions, surrounded by people I know nothing about, struggling to find common ground …..

….intensely productive and constructive meetings with my boss, targets, milestones, skills to learn, places to visit, people to meet, research to undertake

…meetings with powerful well-groomed executives in immaculate suits, my knees shaking under the table, terrified in their presence, hoping they wont notice how uneasy I feel, wondering if my suit blends in with the culture….

…phone calls about controversial topics, racking my brain to quickly find diplomatic ways of saying things

…conversations with pushy sales staff, fighting to win the contracts I’m awarding …

….entertaining friends who had dropped in for coffee and afternoon tea, laid back, casual, peaceful catch-ups…

agggghhh, so much activity for the poor dendritic cells in my brain!!!!

New Job

What can I say – it is totally the most amazing new job, by far the best job I have ever had. Funny how after years of being in work places and never quite feeling satisfied, because of the type of work or the fact that the jobs didn’t give me mental stimulation or the people were pretty dodgy, I have finally come across a job where it is everything I have ever wanted in a job.

From the first day, I knew it was pretty special. My boss congratulated me and as I was introduced to the 40 + staff members, probably every second person also congratulated me and made a big fuss about me getting the job. That has definitely never happened in any other job. Apparently it was advertised very broadly and two of the other applicants were internal staff, much older and experienced than I am. I didn’t really think it was a huge achievement, but maybe the fact that it is in a much smaller organization, makes it more important. I also get my own very fine office with a bit of a view of the Swan River – nice! Never had my own office before.

It is so different to be in a job where you are treated as though you are special. In my first week, one of the executives came and wandered into my office and sat in one of the visitors chairs I’ve been given and I guess he just wanted to chat because he didn’t seem to have any other reason for coming in. How bizarre … executives have never been that interested in talking to me before.

There are no health-related facilities/activities attached to this place, probably because most staff are around their late 40s and somewhat overweight, and not even remotely interested in exercise, but I managed to find a sole shower that I can use after running. It was actually pretty embarrassing to use it the first few times, because it was created in their former kitchen, located in the middle of an office space, with staff sitting about 1.5 metres from the door!!! so I can hear them talking outside and they sure know when I am in there, and no one else uses it. I have used it at least twice a week at lunch times now since I started four weeks ago… so I’m used to it now.

The work itself is really interesting, very intense and very busy, I seem to be working very long days, but time flies and when you are treated like royalty, suddenly your work ethics change. This week I spent two days assisting members of four political parties learn how to map their areas of interest! and I had a meeting with the big Chief Justice of WA, who is only referred to as “Chief Justice” or “His Worship” or “Sir” or “Your Honour”. I must say my legs were trembling in his presence! … and boy do they have some amazing functions. In my second week, my boss invited me to a very high-class function after work, with extremely fancy finger food and champagne…. there’s more coming up over the next couple of weeks. Pretty nerve-wracking getting invited to very formal after-work events! …all good though. Who can complain with such a fine job. Praise God.