32.99726027

Well, I've been a bit slack in updating this thing in the last few weeks, and with my ailing, old-timer's memory, if I don't at least write something now I'll soon forget what's happened. So here's a very quick wrap up of the last week or so:

I went to a Switchfoot concert with two of my nieces, attended a Catalyst business breakfast the next morning, had a great time at Bec's 30th birthday party that night, spent most of the weekend in Yarram with Deb & the kids to celebrate two birthdays, spent Monday with my buddy Jessica, worked, went to the gym, watched a movie with M & J (Ratatouille), had Anthony & Christina & the boys over for supper/cake, and went driving around Nurburgring in a Porsche Carrera. The latter was achieved via a racing simulator, and the experience was a gift from the very thoughtful Christina & Anthony. I can't say that I covered myself in glory, and my best time was 10 minutes 25 seconds. (I was well on my way to beating the 10 minute mark when, on the 2nd last corner, I suddenly found myself embedded in a jungle of trees from which there was no return).

The Switchfoot concert was great, despite a rubbish audio system that made everything sound like it was played underwater, through a speaker stuck inside a mattress. My eldest niece, Susanna, was really looking forward to the concert but came down ill in the few days before it and had to miss out (she promises that she wasn't just trying to avoid being seen out in public with her daggy old uncle). Susanna's ticket was happily snapped up by Grace, so she and Erin joined me for a great night. We even had an opportunity to meet all 5 members of the band, as they shook hands and signed autographs after the show. The girls were all able to get t-shirts and have them signed by the guys, so Susanna didn't miss out completely. Music aside, the best part was spending some time with my nieces - something I don't get to do often enough. (Special note to you, Dad: Switchfoot are now doing a tour to support your mates at Habitat for Humanity: it's called the Appetite for Construction tour, but I think it's just U.S. dates so you might miss out this time 'round)

The Catalyst breakfast was also really interesting: I think there were 18 guys and 1 woman meeting at a cafe to chat about being in a workplace as a Christian. Anthony (he of the Nurburgring fame above) was asked to speak for a few minutes to get the discussion started, and the topic for the day was personal - and particularly, sexual - integrity. I think the one lady might have felt out of place, and she kept pretty quiet, but it was a good robust discussion for the rest of us.

Bec's 30th birthday party was a very stylish affair, with the house decorated beautifully with a gold theme, and everyone dressed as their favourite literary character. Everyone except the three of us, that is! As Mel & I were on unofficial video/photo "duty", we were let off lightly for having failed to find an outfit. And Jessica was let off because, well, she's Jessica and she's gorgeous. Everyone had a great time, and the food was amazing!! I'm on a very strict low-carb, high-protein diet at the moment, but do you think that stopped me having a little chocolate mousse? Not likely! I did manage to hold back from the Biscotten Torte & Birthday Cake, so that's perhaps something. I'd love to post some photos from the night, but since they feature other people and other people's kids, I'm not too sure that I have permission! (What's the protocol there? Hmm? I think I'd best err on the side of caution, and just post a picture of some of the cakes!). So another great night, Mum & Becky - thankyou!

Well, I have one day left at age 32 - 99.7% of that year having been used up already. It's amazing (and a little frustrating, unsettling, daunting) to see how fast time is going these days; there's so much I want to do and seemingly no time to do it. Maybe 33 will be the year that I get serious and make sure that at least some of those things happen...

Cheers,

Matt

Blessed

A hand-painted and glazed "Daddy" mug.  A hand-painted watercolour on canvas. A "Why I Love My Daddy" book (with a photo of Jessica & I inserted in the last page).  A new Ravi book.  A selection of delicious cheeses.  A brekky fry-up of bacon, eggs and sausages.  And lots of lovely hugs and kisses.  I could get used to days like today. (Thankyou Jessica & Thankyou Melly!)

We were also able to spend our afternoon at Jeff & Keren's (thanks again!) for a delicious lunch to celebrate Sammy & Eliza's birthday's. Jessica came down a little ill, but rallied enough with some mediine to still have a lot of fun with her cousins, Uncle, Aunts & her Granny (that's her pulling the go-kart). In fact we all had a great time.

Mel is hard at work at the computer tonight - a big deadline and meeting tomorrow in the City - and that follows her getting to bed at 5:00am today after an all-nighter on this same project. I hope she gets to bed before 12 tonight, but something tells me she won't. So all I can do is ply her with nice warm cuppas. And maybe some yummy cheese. I'll go and get her next cuppa now, but will include a few photos taken this week.

Take care,

M

Work, Wiggles, Wickham & Watoto

Hey,

I should be off getting my bag packed for work, so of course I'm writing a quick post instead. An early start awaits tomorrow (3am-ish) as I'm off to Sydney for the next couple of days, and our company likes to make sure we don't waste a minute by insisting that all flights are booked for 6am. I say 3-ish because, although I would normally leave the house by 4:00am, tomorrow I have to drop in at my local office to collect something on the way to the airport. Yay! I'm also heading back to Brisbane for the next couple of weeks, so not really looking forward to that. We've thought about trying to bring Mel & Jessica up with me, and even trying to get out to Wiggles World (it's part of Dreamworld I think), but it may prove just a little too difficult - particularly as they have me working night shift while I'm up there (10pm starts I believe).

Getting off the topic of Work as quickly as I can (which is not nearly soon enough), have you heard of Phil Wickham yet? If not, I'm pretty sure you will soon. We picked up his self-titled CD last week, after hearing just a snippet of "Grace" on the radio, and have to say that it is a wonderful album. If you go to his website (http://www.philwickham.com), you can hear some of the songs yourself. I think "Grace" is still my favourite (wonderful lyrics, passionate delivery), but it's a CD filled with some very unique & memorable tracks. Beautiful stuff.

Speaking of music, we ventured out on Sunday morning to see/hear/experience the Watoto Childrens Choir peforming at Berwick COC. I hadn't seen them before, but Mel had unexpectedly caught a preview show at the shopping centre in Fountain Gate on Saturday. If you haven't seen 21 Ugandan orphans beaming with delight as they dance and sing about being rescued (Watoto is a Christian outreach and purpose-built 'village' that provides family, housing, health, education and leadership traing to Ugandan orphans), then you're missing out. I think they are still going to be touring in Victoria for awhile, so if you get a chance to see them, I heartily recommend it. Here's their website: http://www.watoto.com/

Must go and pack! Good night.

M

More than meets the eye...

Seen any good movies lately? I've only seen a couple in about 6 months: Shrek 3 a few weeks ago (really disappointing, IMHO) and Transformers last weekend after work. It's such a guilty pleasure, but I really enjoyed Transformers: it's big and stupid as far as dialogue and story goes, but for anyone interested in digital effects and compositing, or sound design, it is simply a work of art. The first half was definitely better than the second half (the latter was mostly one loooonnnngg battle, whereas the first half actually introduced characters and began a few parallel plotlines - it was even pretty funny). Don't go for the intricacies of the plot, or the sparkling dialogue (it gets especially cheesy when the machines start talking - why can't they just shutup??), but the effects are outstanding. I have no problem enjoying a dumb film that knows it's a dumb film: it's films that think they're clever but which really are dumb that I can't stand! Transformers is a Jerry Bruckheimer/Michael Bay production - the same two people responsible for The Rock - and when I list my Top 10 favourite films, I do have to concede that The Rock is certainly near the top of that list (it's very, very low-brow to say that, but hey, it's true). Another reason for seeing Transformers was that MuteMath (my MuteMath) are featured on the soundtrack! (they have recorded a version of the old Transformers theme). I can't say I heard it anywhere in the movie though, so that's a shame. But they're still on the soundtrack CD, so that's gotta help them along: they deserve to be much bigger than they are, and I'm sure they will be soon. (speaking of bands that I like that seem to be getting some traction, Mat Kearney has been playing on Fox and MMM quite a few times recently. I even hear Brooke Fraser's "ShadowFeet" being used on the ads for 9's "Sea Patrol" or somesuch at the moment).

As a segue, I listen to the MuteMath CD every time I go to the gym - the first 5 tracks are great for the 10 minute run and 10 minute cycle that I always have to start with. I've managed to consistently go to the gym 3 times per week since I started 6 weeks ago - it's still not easy, but it is getting marginally easier. Haven't noticed much of a physical change yet, aside from the fact that I can get through the routines with less of a struggle and have steadily increased the weights on each of the machines: I guess that must mean that some invisible good is being accomplished. I've actually noticed a very fundamntal thing about myself in the last couple of years: I have no respect for small increments. Whether in financial terms or in weight loss/gain, or in most anything else, I have an unhealthy attitude toward small increments. For instance, intellectually I know that saving $5 per week would eventually lead to a worthwhile amount of money if I had the discipline to keep at it, but I don't have the patience for it. I know that losing 500g per week would eventually result in a really positive overall weight loss, but if I don't see at least 1kg being lost each week I lose all momentum and interest. Conversely, if I know that I'm not eating right, and see that I'm putting on a few hundred grams each week or so, I'm not likely to change anything until a few weeks later when I realise that I'm 5 kilos heavier than I was "yesterday". It's weird I know, and it's a personality flaw that I'd like to work on for myself and in turn, be mindful of when setting an example for Jessica. Money boxes will feature heavily!

Jessica is pretty well now, but we calculate that she hasn't been well for a full week in at least 2 months. It seems that she just gets over something, starts to perk up for a day or two, and then comes down with something else entirely. Hopefully she's just getting all of her sicknesses out of the way in one convenient block, and then she'll be a picture of health for the next 3 years straight. She's doing a lot of dancing these days - some of it we have managed to catch on film, but most of the time you can't get to the camera so you just get to sit and enjoy it while it last (LOTS of ballerina twirling). She's also stringing two or three words together ("There's my Daddy! Where's my Mummy? There she is! Cup please? Ta!"), and has become really proficient at recognising colours, people, objects in her books etc ("Where's Anthony? Can you see RED? Where's the boat? etc"). She often does things now which cause Mel & I to look at each other and say "she's too smart for us!" (we walked in to the lounge last night and she had inverted a heap of coloured, plastic cups and placed them in a row across her other toys - and the cups were all sorted into colour sequence!). She also loves watching herself on TV or on the computer (video clips we've made of her) and she'll giggle away at all the funny things that onscreen Jessica does - no matter how many times we replay it.

Mel is flat-out at the moment - getting to bed after midnight, getting up at 5am, working whenever she can find a moment during the day (eg. when J goes down to sleep). Her major client is very high maintenance, very volatile in terms of mood and expectation, and pretty unreliable when it comes to completing tasks that Mel depends upon to complete her own role. So after being told one week to cut her hours back (for the clients financial needs), they turn around overnight and demand weeks worth of new analysis to be completed and sent back to them almost immediately. It's very taxing on her when it happens (which is not every day or even every week, thankfully) and makes every aspect of her life very difficult. On top of that, they are getting her services for a fraction of what they would need to pay anyone else (and they know that she does a brilliant job), so hopefully the next time they try to push her around she'll not only say "sorry, that's an unreasonable expectation - I'll have it for you next week instead" but she'll also add, "and my fees have gone up by 150% too!".

Speaking of Mel, it is her birthday next Friday (August 3rd). Every year, I spend at least June & July contemplating the perfect gift for her, and yet I always reach the last week as confused and as anxious as ever. I've never managed the 'perfect' gift, and on a few occasions what I have carefully planned out as being a brilliant set of gifts, matched perfectly to her interests and passions (or so I thought), has fallen pretty flat. Most of the time I think I hit somewhere in the middle to upper-middle range. I have a list of about 15 things this year, though recent conversations have helped me rule out about half of those too. This may be the year that I ask Mel to pick something that she'd like: it sounds incredibly unromantic and even thoughtless (hence I haven't done it before), but if it leads to her 'perfect' present, maybe the end justifies the means? I don't know. It seems like such a phone-in. I think I'll persist with my self-directed endeavours, and hope for the best (it is still the thought that counts, right???)

Well I must go and get my things ready for work tomorrow. I was told today that I need to fly to Brisbane tomorrow, investigate a perceived problem, then fly back tomorrow night. I'm up at 3:15 to leave the house by 4:15 (my flight is at 6am), get into Brisbane at 8:30, to my destination at 9:30, investigate this so called problem (which really needs a week to properly investigate), then back to the airport at 6:30pm, onto a plane at 7:50pm which gets into Melbourne at 10:15pm, so I'll be home by about 11:30pm: that's a long day! But on top of that, I'm told that I have to submit the full report on my findings (with photos and powerpoint slides) no later than 10am on Friday, as they'll form the basis of an 11am meeting. Since I cant start that report until I leave Brisbane, I can't see that I'll be going to be tomorrow night! On the bright side, it sounds like Mel will be up most of the night working on her projects, so we'll at least give each other company. On that note, since it's 10:22pm and she's busily tapping away on her laptop in the study, I should go and get her a cup of coffee.

Goodnight,

Matt

iMatt

So I never did get around to that appraisal/review of our new computer, and I know that there is at least (at most?) one person in the world interested in our findings (thanks for your interest, Jon - you're personally responsible for the next few paragraphs). To recap, we were ready to replace our 5 year old PC recently and decided - for the very first time - to depart from the Windows World and into the Macosphere. We had looked longingly at the 24" iMac's for several months, drawn by their stylish simplicity (Mel HATES cables, and on the iMac the pretty HD screen is the entire computer - there's no separate CPU tower, and only a power cord and the lead running to the keyboard and mouse), the great interface, the promise of a host of creative applications, and the fact that it provided a non-Vista future (I'm not willing to "upgrade" to an operating system that requires 1GB of RAM just for itself). It also helped that the PC-based software I use for video editing has been discontinued as of this release (ie. there won't be a version 9), so there was very little to tie us to the Windows format. The only other stumbling block for moving to a Mac - that your existing software library becomes redundant overnight - is no longer an issue due to programs like BootCamp and Parallels, which let you run Windows software on the Mac too. On top of that, my employer had a staff discount night and we were able to get 20% off Apple's price, so it became a no-brainer.

Where do I start? In short, this is a wonderful machine to use. It is so unlike the PC's that I've been using since the early 90's. I know I'll sound just like the "I'm a Mac" guy on those Apple ads, but you really do get the feeling that there is absolutely no contest between the two formats: they're like chalk and cheese. The HD screen (which again, IS the computer) looks beautiful. The machine starts up and is ready to use in a matter of seconds (maybe 10?). I plugged in the Airport wireless network adapter on the first night and both the Mac and Mel's Windows-based laptop instantly found the network and connected to broadband automatically - no laborious setup required (the iMac has built-in wireless networking). There's a built-in camera and microphone above the screen, hidden speakers below, and the Apple logo - the only branding anywhere - doubles as the receiver for the included Apple Remote. The Remote lets you control your iTunes library, watch movies, watch/listen to podcasts, play a DVD, view online movie trailers or watch a slideshow of any of your photo libraries (complete with auto pan-and-zoom and music). The problem for us is that we don't want to leave the Mac in the study, since it's so much fun as an entertainment centre. Thankfully it's so portable (just pick up the screen, keyboard and mouse) that you can move it about as required: we've had it set up in our bedroom and even downstairs in the kitchen (that's where I'm typing this from actually - and I can keep an eye on Jessica as I type).

The included software is fantastic: Garage Band is a full featured music creation program that lets you create complex, layered music tracks in minutes; it even lets you create Podcasts or a score for your home movie. Things like Comic Life (used below), iPhoto, iDVD, iMovie HD and PhotoBooth are a lot of fun whilst also being pretty powerful. The Mac even has a feature called VoiceOver: if I hit the Esc key while I say (yes, SAY) "Open Browser", the internet browser starts up. If I say "Stew & Dumplings" or "Deb's Mutterings", it navigates to those blog pages instantly. If i say "Check Mail", it will start up the Mail application and download any new emails. You can even have it read blocks of text (web pages, emails etc) aloud to you in a choice of voices. If you say "Quit This Application", it'll do that too. In fact, if you ask "What Time Is It?", it'll tell you that aswell. Pretty neat. What else? Icons for your applications sit in a Dock area at the bottom of the screen (like the Windows Taskbar) and will jump up and down if they have something to alert you to (eg. new mail). If you click a mouse button, every open application is instantly arranged in a tiled manner across your desktop, so you can keep track of things. Press another mouse button and a second desktop is overlayed across your existing one, this time showing all sorts of customisable widgets such as weather, calculators, world time, dictionaries, flight trackers etc: press it again and it just fades away. All the ports and connectors are tucked away behind the screen (and there are lots of them - including Firewire 800 and Optical digital out) and DVD's slot into the right hand side of the screen. Tired of a boring static desktop wallpaper? The Mac lets you have all of your photos cycling through as your wallpaper. Finished with the remote? It magnetically sticks to the side of the iMac for safekeeping. The list goes on - it just feels like Apple have thought of almost everything to make this a pleasurable experience.

In some ways it's completely unfair to compare this computer to our last PC: the PC is a single-core 2.4GHz Pentium 4 with 512 MB RAM and a 19" CRT monitor, whereas the iMac has a 2.33MHz Core 2 Duo with 1GB RAM and a 24" LCD screen. But even with allowances for the PC's older, slower, smaller feature-set, and you compare to what's on offer with current PC's, the Mac experience is so much more enjoyable. It's been a joy to use so far, and there has only been one occasion where it became unresonsive (I think I was possibly trying to do too many things at once - loading a DVD, playing a movie in iTunes, surfing the web etc) - so that's a good start. I know I sound like such an Apple Tragic, but the experience so far - for both Mel & I - has genuinely been fantastic. Amazing to think that - as well as being the most heavily featured computer we have purchased - this is also the cheapest computer we've ever purchased. Based on our early experiences with it, I'd recommend a Mac to anyone looking for their next computer. Mel has already decided that, when she replaces her business laptop later this year (a Toshiba), it'll be replaced by an Apple MacBookPro: and by then Apple will have replaced their current operating system ("Tiger") with a new OS ("Leopard") which is tipped to include a truckload of added functionality. http://www.apple.com/macosx/leopard/


The one drawback of moving to Mac is that I have to relearn a lot of things (keystrokes, folder behaviours, file types etc are quite different): thankfully there seems to be a lot of help both online and built in to the OS and it's applications. It can be frustrating being out of your depth for a while (especially when you were reasonably proficient within the Windows environment), but hopefully the learning process doesn't take too long: I can see that there is so much potential to unlock.

So there you go - these are my first impressions of life on 'the other side'. I may sound over zealous and uncritical, but it's an accurate reflection of our experience so far (which I appreciate could change). Those Mac ads - which I happen to think are terrifically funny but which I know many people find infuriating/belittling/misleading - might oversell the idea that Mac owners have discovered Utopia, but it's only a mild exaggeration. :)

Matt

(BTW, moving to Apple also means that I can someday in the future move up to the industry-leading video editing software, which is Mac-only. "Final Cut Pro" (part of the "Final Cut Studio" suite) is used to make Emmy-winning TV Shows and a number of feature films, and is one of the two editors that you would need to learn if you ever wanted to move into the industry full time (the other being "Avid"). FCStudio has just been upgraded and includes 6 pro applications, for colour manipulation, 3D design, soundtrack development etc, and is a seriously powerful suite. It's not cheap, and I'll be saving for a little while longer before I can afford it, but I found out this week that my YMCA gym membership entitles me to certain discounts at the Apple store, and I can save 18% on - you guessed it - Final Cut Studio! That saving alone would pay gym membership for 6 months, so it's a pretty terrific bonus that they've made available.

I promised to follow that last Wiggles post with some photos, so here they are (a few weeks late - but who's counting?). Not sure how this will work, but I decided to try out an application called ComicLife which comes preloaded on the iMac, and which lets you quickly arrange photos in a comicbook layout with speech balloons and thought bubbles etc. It may not work very well for posting in a blog, but here goes...(if you click on each individual page in turn - there are 8 - a larger version should appear)...

Wigglepalooza

A terrific day today: our very first Wiggles concert!  We set off nice and early (7am) and headed in to the City (I was able to take a day off work, in lieu of the Queens Birthday holiday).  After a latte and breakfast at McCafe, we crossed the road to join the gathering throng of parents and toddlers waiting outside Dallas Brooks Hall.  When the doors opened at about 9:45, and we were shown to our seats, we were pleasantly surprised to see that we were right at the front corner of the stage (Mel had bought the tickets on eBay - they were the only one's still available - so we weren't really sure what to expect).  The show started at about 10:15 and it was - from the opening moment to the finale - just fantastic!  There was just so much effort and energy and enthusiasm out into every part of it, and the guys really went out of their way to interact with the kids and ensure everyone had a special time.  It was a scaled-down show due to the fact that it was a much smaller venue than where The Wiggles routinely perform (places like the Entertainment Centre, Rod Laver Arena etc), but that only meant that the set wasn't so elaborate and there were fewer props (ie. no Big Red Car).  But due to the intimate size of the venue, our proximity to the stage, and the fact that performances were still at a 110% level, it felt more special than I imagine a stadium show might feel.  We were able to get some great photos, and I'll post some of those tomorrow.  Jessica was overwhelmed for the first half of the show - I think it was too difficult for her to initially comprehend (she was giving us looks of, "why are they here? they're supposed to be on my TV screen! why are they so big? what's happening??"), but by the second half she was starting to dance around (in her Dorothy The Dinosaur tutu, of course), clap and do many of the actions (in the photos where her hand is on her head, she's actually doing the 'cockadoodledoo' action in "Quack, Quack" (or "Captain Feathersword Fell Asleep On His Pirate Ship" as they've started calling that song on their DVD's).

After the concert, we walked through the Fitzroy Gardens to Federation Square, and went in to the "Pixar - 20 Years of Animation" exhibition.  If you're a fan of the Pixar films (we certainly are - The Incredibles and Toy Story 2 are two of my favourite films ever), then you'd find it well worthwhile.  It takes you through a lot of their early sketches and clay models, their storyboards and "colorboards" (where they decide the overall palette that they'll use throughout the film), and there are some kiosks where you can watch some of the animators and writers talking about their work. By far the most impressive thing for me was something called a Zoetrope.  Unfortunately you're not allowed to film or photograph anything, so my description won't do this justice, but essentially the Zoetrope is a large circular platform encased in a large glass display, where characters have been positioned in slightly different poses at each point around the circle (eg. there were about 32 "Jesse" dolls posed in a circle, and each had Jesses' lasso positioned in a slightly different way.  Around that there were about 32 "Woody" dolls riding horseback, all positioned slighly differently.  The circles were concentric, with about 9 or 10 rings and therefore 9-10 different characters.  Confused yet?).  Anyway, the platform would start spinning very fast, then the main light would dim and 3 strobelights would come on. The moment the main light went off, and the strobe light combined with the spinning platform, you no longer saw the 32 different Jesse dolls, but instead 1 Jesse doll swinging her lasso up and down around her head and down her body. The Woody doll was just a single image, galloping around the place. The Army Men were parachuting, the Penguins were dancing and jumping off diving boards, the Aliens were waving and doing somersaults, Buzz Lightyear was riding a big bouncy ball and there was a huge amount of activity. It was amazing how this machine suddenly came to life, as your eyes were suddenly tricked into seeing something that wasn't really there. We watched it twice, then went back at the end to watch it again. Another room had a huge screen (5000x1080 pixels wide - utilising 4 linked projectors) to show some storyboards coming to life in pseudo-3D. Overall it was a really good exhibit - the Zoetrope alone is worth getting along to see.

After a walk back through Fitzroy Gardens, it was off home. Jessica was exhausted due to 1. the 6:30 wake-up call, 2. her recent sickness, 3. the excitement of the day, 4. the lack of a midday nap (which is now often up to 2hours long), so she had dinner and was asleep just after 7:30. I also went to the gym tonight and - while it is still excrutiatingly hard - I did a lot better this time around (maybe there's hope for me yet). And now I think it might be bedtime for me aswell - too much excitement today for an old man like me.

Goodnight,

Matt

Fully Sick

Note to self: avoid a lengthy discussion at the beginning of your post about the fact that you haven't posted for awhile: 1. people get it already, 2. it takes up valuable posting time and screen real estate, and 3. nobody wants to hear your lame excuses.  So tally ho!

Jessica has been very sick recently: in fact she first came down with 'gastro' two Thursdays ago (ie. not last Thursday) and hasn't really been well again since.  The gastro really took hold for a little over a week and then, just when that was getting under control she suddenly developed a fever and became listless, irritable, unwilling to eat etc.  After a number of calls and visits, she was diagnosed yesterday as having contracted tonsillitis...again!  So it's been a hefty dose of antibiotics four times a day now, and she really does seem to be on the mend.  She had lost a worrying amount of weight in the last week or so, so we are trying to sneak in as many calories as she'll cheerfully eat: even with the offer of chips, chocolate cake, ice-cream and biscuits, she shows remarkable restraint (must be Mel's influence - it's definitely not mine).  Jessica was at her most perky today and it's wonderful to see her running around pretty happily again. Hopefully in the next 24-48 hours she'll be back to full Jessica standard.

Speaking of restraint around bad food (and other related but equally-unfamiliar concepts), I joined a gym this month. It's a local gym - on the way to work - and it seems pretty good from the two times I've been so far (well three, if you count the time I walked in to look around and sign up!). It has been 4 years since I've been to a gym, and boy has that been patently obvious. Absence hasn't made the heart grow fonder; it's made the heart grow weaker and made the belly grow rounder. I do a one hour session (30 minutes cardio, 30 minutes weights) but on the first night I just couldn't get through the program. I did the 10 minute bike ride, the 10 minute run, and about half of the weight session, but I couldn't o the last 5 minutes on the cross-country-skier thingo, nor the reminder of the weights. It was a real eye opener to how ridiculously unfit I've become: I eventually stumbled back into the changerooms exhausted and feeling physically sick! The second time I went I did a bit better (finished the cardion and most of the weights) but it was by no means easy: I'm quite sure a few people around me were embarassed on my behalf as I plodded slowly through the tasks laid out on my form. At one stage one of the erabud headpones from the iPod fell out of my ear, and I didn't have the energy to lift my arm to put the earpiece back! And when I dragged myself to the car, I hoped that everyone drove very well on the way home, because I couldn't see that I'd be able to quickly apply the brake pedal in an emergency. I'm no expert, but I think that probably suggests I've been inactive for too long. I know on an intellectual level that it gets easier each time, and that eventually I'll sail through the program and be looking for more challenges, but that day seems soooooooo far away at the moment. (There's a great big heated pool at this place too, which I'm entitled to use and look forward to using sometime soon, but at the moment I'd probably just sink straight to bottom and wouldn't even have the energy to wave for help!). Hoping for visit number 3 tomorrow, once Mel comes home from working in the City.

Speaking of Mel, she is getting a bit sick and tired aswell (not just the usual 'sick and tired of her husband', either). She has been working so much recently, and has been given lots of late, urgent jobs from her clients. I think she worked about 35 hours last week on top of caring for Jessica, so that meant a lot of 5am starts and midnight finishes (working while Jessica was asleep). I think she's just feeling unwell as a result of being rundown, but perhaps she's coming down with either of the things Jessica has been battling. Thankfully she's not required in the City until after 11am tomorrow, but she'll still be in there after 6pm, so won't get much - if any - chance to get some rest.

Last night we went to a birthday party for my eldest niece, Susanna. Susanna (or Fruitbat, as we used to call each other when she was much, much younger) turned 18 this week! I know it has to happen, and it's a terrifically exciting time for her, but it's difficult accept that little Susanna is now not so little. It was a great party, with lots of people (close to 100 I think), masses of food, music, games and great company. I think Susanna had a great time. She is a truly wonderful young lady - smart, funny, caring, beautiful etc - so it was great as an Uncle to see her surrounded by so many friends who obvious think the same things that we do. As my small contribution to the party, I was hoping to put together some photoshows interspersed with mini vox-pops about Susanna, but in the end we didn't get to record enough of the mini-interviews and instead just presented the three photoshows. For a number of reasons, there was still a lot of work to do on those as late as Thursday/Friday, so I got an hour and a half of sleep on Thursday night, then didn't go to bed again until about 10:30 on Saturday night (i think that means 90 minutes sleep in about 64 hours?). I must get better at finishing these well ahead of time - though I'm not sure how that would have been possible. Anyway, it was finished in time and I liked the way the photoshows came together. A bit disappointed that it wasn't the full package that I'd hoped (at one stage there was going to be a Pirates of the Caribbean meets Lord of the Rings themed montage (with Susanna and references to her edited in) but since I couldn't even get the vox-pops done in time, I can't see how I was ever going to finish anything quite so complex. It might have to wait until her 21st (which I should probably start working on this week!).

The montage for Susanna's 21st will have to wait until at least Friday, because we are taking Jessica to her first (and our first) Wiggles concert this Thursday. Jessica is fanatical about the Wiggles, and we would watch their DVD's 12-15 times per week. She never gets tired of dancing and wiggling along to every song, especially "Rock-a-bye Your Bear", "Move Your Arms Like Henry" and "Can You (Point Your Fingers And Do The Twist)". I think Thursday will be off the chart, and will help Jessica to completely forget about the rough couple of weeks she has had. It's funny, but although Mel & I originally thought we'd avoid the whole Wiggles phenomenon (by choice), we've become surprisingly fond of them: I wonder if it's related to Stockholm Syndrome? Although we still sometimes cringe at certain aspects, it's hard to criticise anyone who does something with as much enthusiasm as they do (their live concert DVD's are great fun in particular), and I don't begrudge them the $45m they supposedly make each year.

Anyway, it's somehow become 11:50pm, and I need to go to bed. We have the iMac in our bedroom (we watch DVD's or podcasts in bed), so I'm actually going to impede Mel going to bed if I stay on this (and she has just turned her laptop off and started brushing her teeth). Must say goodnight and click on Publish.

Goodnight (and click on Publish),

Matt

May Day

What a month.

As many/most of the people who would regularly read this blog already know, this month started with a tragic farm accident and the resultant death of my brother-in-law, Ray. Much of the month has been spent with Deb and the kids on their farm, helping them to cope in whatever little ways we can (mostly that just means making cups of tea!). Deb and all seven kids seem to be handling things as well, or maybe better - than you might expect...at least that's how it seems on the surface. While it doesn't lessen the tragedy of the situation, the support that Deb and the Kids have received from friends, family, churches, workplaces, old acquaintances and even anonymous strangers has been a real blessing (and in many ways a surprise - at least the extent of it - to Deb and the family). There's been a veritable supermarket in the shed, made up of all the bags and bags of groceries brought around by lots of different people, freezer-loads of meals and cakes and biscuits, and lots of others have been helping in different ways. The funeral itself was attended by a huge number of people, despite being held in a small, remote, country town. When the cars pulled out of the church on the way to the cemetery, there were at least 80 cars in the procession - the line continuing well over the horizon. Everyone at the funeral said the same things about Ray, and they were all spot on: a devoted family man who loved his wife and kids dearly, a man who relished his time on the farm, someone who was always ready with a big smile and a friendly chat, and essentially a man who knew how to live life well.

Consequently, the month has been a bit of a blur. We don't seem to have had much of a grasp on what's been going on, and have seen several birthdays and Mother's Day whizz by without us even getting around to making a phonecall, much less buying and delivering a present (So if you're one of those people - we aplogise!). Obviously blogging has had to be put on the back-burner too, but it looks like that's a common ailment for most of the blogs I visit anyway. As much as I like reading what people are up to, and I love seeing their photos, I completely sympathise with everyone who can't make time to post: life is increasingly hectic and blog-unfriendly for all of us. Maybe life will get a little more settled sometime soon, and things like blogs and emails and phonecalls and (gosh!) visits can be a top priority again. Realistically, I can't see it happening anytime soon, but we can live in hope.

(in other quick news, I managed to catch up with one of my brothers last week for our bi-annual (no not quite) coffee and chat, and I managed to spend some time with half of the family again yesterday. My sister-in-law and their five kids arrived in town this weekend, having flown down from Nhulunbuy in the Northern Territory. We haven't seen any of them for over two years - they are stationed up there working for M.A.F. - but after 30 seconds of our reunion it was almost as if nothing had changed. OK, the kid's are much bigger (it takes more effort to tackle them, turn them upside down and tickle them) but in most other respects it was as if we hadn't been apart, and it was great to see them. My brother arrives in town on Wednesday this week - having driven down through the centre of Australia with my other sister. And last night my Mum hosted us for a lovely low-key dinner in her newly-created residence: a converted tin garage (it looks amazing!). Mel is at work in the City today, so I have the privelege of looking after Jessica. I moved our computer downstairs so that I could type this blog while Jessica watched The Wiggles and ate her lunch, but I needn't have bothered as she has gone back to bed. I think she's yet to recover from the hectic month, too (so don' expect her to update her blog this month either!). Speakin of the computer, we replaced our 5 year old HP this month with...a Mac! It's our first foray into the foreign world of "i" everything, and away from the well-known PC that we've been used to since the early-mid-90's, but if the last few days are any indication, it's a change we won't regret. I might leave that full review for my next post.

Take care - I'm off to vacuum, and hopefully avoid waking Sleeping Beauty in the process.

Matt

He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength as our labours increase;
To added afflictions He addeth His mercy,
To multiplied trials He multiplies peace.

When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
When our strength has failed ere the day is half done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources
Our Father’s full giving is only begun.

His love has no limits, His grace has no measure,
His power no boundary known unto men;
For out of His infinite riches in Jesus
He giveth, and giveth, and giveth again.

- Annie J Flint.

"The Hardest Thing Ever"...