Zzzzzzzz......

I am on the way home after the end of financial year, and there is a man asleep on the train near me, snoring quite loudly. Good on him, I say.

Things I am going to do on holidays

I am on holidays for the next two weeks - yay! Things I am going to do are:

1. Not catch a train
2. Not get up at 6.40am
3. Not move house (unlike the last two times I had annual leave)
4. Go to the Live Earth concert with my friend Lisa
5. Go to Tingha for a few nights with my lovely husband and two dogs
6. Not dream about bank transactions and excel spreadsheets like I have been this week
7. Probably do something drastic at home like rearrange all the cupboards. This usually happens in the first few days of holidays. I get half way through whatever it is and lose all enthusiasm
8. Walk Ruby ever day and try to do some proper training with her, eg how not to stress if Adam and Saffy walk in front of us instead of behind
9. Maybe do some gardening
10. Maybe do some cooking
11. Definitely do some relaxing!!!!

Peel me another one

Bomby the Beetle

This story on Criag's blog is funny.

Strange noises

Late last night, just when we were ready to go to sleep, we heard a very strange noise. It sounded like lots of bubbles popping, with a lot of froggy noises as well, and was quite loud. We eventually figured it was water in the drainpipe outside. I hope it's not blocked.

Foggy day

My brain feels like it is in a bit of a fog today. I think it’s in coping mode – to get through this week before I’m on holidays. It will be a busy week, with end of financial year looming. It’s also foggy outside the train window on my way to work, which is quite pretty, especially across the Hawkesbury River.

We had a good sermon at church yesterday, it was about wisdom. It gave me some food for thought, particularly about how I make decisions. I think I will be mulling over it some more, although perhaps not until my brain switches back on!

Something else I am mulling over is how involved I should be in church activities – I don’t have much time for it at the moment because work takes up so much of my week, and I’m not sure if this is a bad situation or not really something to worry about. I like to be involved at church as I think we are called to encourage and support one another, and how can you effectively do that when you’re not there? But I also think my priorities are legitimate (work and home) and it would be foolish to neglect them. I am leaning towards the view that “ministry” is not limited to time spent at church but should be how we live our whole lives, so wherever we are we can minister to others. Having said that it is important to be in a church community and I do make it to either bible study and/or church most weeks.

Adam and Minnie (aka Beard-o)

Personal space on public transport

There is not much personal space on trains. There is less on buses. I always think it’s funny how everyone sits half on top of one another but pretends no-one else is there. People don’t talk to one another or acknowledge other people. I’ve particularly noticed it when someone needs to move for another person to get out of their seat - etiquette demands that the person making them move says thanks, but the other person rarely makes eye contact or says anything. There are these funny unspoken boundaries that we are reluctant to cross.

Comment moderation

I’ve turned off comment moderation now, it was on by accident. I was wondering where all the comments were!

Intro to Our Pets

These are the pets we have (in the order they arrived):

1: Oscar the Cat
We got Oscar in 1998 when he was a little kitten. He was very pretty and also very unsocial. He has warmed up over the years, although he is still not keen on being picked up. Oscar likes to sleep in wardrobes and to eat raw chicken. He like to eat it so much that if he hears us cutting it up, he starts to make vomit noises because he is so excited.



2. Minnie the Cat
Minnie invited herself into our house in 1999. She was only a few months old and we suspect she had been abandoned by her previous owners. She was named Minnie as a shortened version of “Mini-Me” because she has a grey mark under her chin which looks a bit like a beard, and Adam had a beard at the time so they matched. He wanted to call her Beard-o.



3. Tuff Bunny
I bought TB around March 2006 as a present for Adam. He was the only bunny in the shop and his cost of $15 was within my meagre budget so it was fate. He likes to eat carrot and wake us up in the middle of the night by thumping his feet loudly. He lives free range in our laundry, and comes out in a cage when we are home. The dogs think he is VERY INTERESTING.



4. Saffy the Malamute
We got Saffy in November 2006 when she was only about 9 weeks old. She was very cute and fluffy then, with a mean set of teeth. She is still cute and fluffy, except now she weighs 41.5kgs. She likes to howl and always wants to be part of the action.



5. Ruby the RSPCA dog
Ruby was the last to arrive, also in November 2006. We chose her from the RSPCA. Ruby is a big sook who also likes to bark aggressively at other dogs and men. She is very clever and has just learnt to shake paws.

Daniel

I have been slowly reading through the Old Testament book of Daniel on the train to work in the morning, using the Briefing study guide. I finished it this morning. Some observations:

- Daniel showed unwavering trust in God, beyond the point where a lot of people would give up. Hands up who would walk into a fiery furnace without protest?
- Daniel had some visions that are quite similar to those in the Book of Revelation. This to me is a powerful indicator that it's the same God inspiring both and therefore points to the trustworthiness of the bible as God's word.
- Daniel has some cool stories in it, about kings and big statues and amazing events. I remember it from sunday school when I was a kid and it's still fun to read today.
- The bad side of human nature recorded in the book is the same that we see around us today - people wanting to rule their own empires at the expense of others, and trying to be their own god instead of looking to the one true God.

My favourite verses are 7:13-14:

"In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed."

This morning

I fell asleep on the train on the way into work this morning. This is both good and bad - good because I get more sleep, bad because of the potential to embarrass myself (eg falling onto the person next to me). Luckily this morning I don't think I did anything silly whilst asleep.

I think falling asleep on public transport is a good indicator that I need a holiday.

A Few Snapshots

Two cats asleep



Saffy makes a good pillow



Saffy wouldn't co-operate for this photo...





Gumboots in action



Saffy and Mr Pig were great friends...until she got a bit too enthusiastic!