can't think of a creative title tonight...

...but this is a picture of the mountain we have in our back yard. We are on a hill 300m above sea level, maybe 100m above the surrounding farmland, the mountain is around 1300m and beyond it is a high plateau and the Great Lake. Water from there powers the Hydro-electric scheme, waters this town, and tastes great straight from the tap!
As you enter Poatina, my house is one of the first you come to. This, however, means I have the furthest to travel of all my classmates as the Training centre is at the opposite end of the town. I'm up here in Poatina Heights and have to travel through the Central Business District to get to school down in the northern suburb of Poatina Links. It's next to the Golf Course. The only further suburb is the new development at Valley Vue. This walk can take in excess of five minutes! Longer, because you stop and pass the time with everyone you meet. Of course I take my lunch every day because there is just no time to get back up here to eat a sandwich, because, by the time you do, you have to turn around and head back down again. If only they would extend the lunch hour beyond 75 minutes...
We are now studying the tragic doomed love story of Hosea. Fascinating insights.

splash

Just a short note to say hi. Last week we started our look in Ecclesiastes (All is Meaningless..) and Victor Frankl's reflections on his life as an Auschwitz resident (Man's Search for Meaning). It's interesting to see how all these things tie in with each other. Even having just studied James, and before that, Haggai we are making all these wonderful connections.

Speaking about making connections, here is young Tim, from Tasmania discovering the meaninglessness of Human Flight, and about to make connections with the deep end of the Poatina Pool...

Life's pretty good here, don't have much time to get bored. Just been for a walk down to the creek through the bush with Sara, my Thessalonikan class-mate, and Layne, a young guy from Broken Hill, via Adelaide.

I have a great group of guys in my class, unusually for this course, two thirds are male, but all excellent people, including three Greeks (one half English, one half German) and three Ghanaians (all African!) and assorted Aussies.

More photos soon!

poatina and Potaroos...

This place is invaded by wild-life every night; from dusk on, the potaroos roam the streets, looking for what they may devour... there are also reports of echidnas and wayward wallabies, a few nights ago one of the boys in my class was accosted and harrassed by a Tasmania Devil. Well, he says he was, it might have just been a sabre-toothed possum.

Yesterday we had a fusion Expo day where people were able to come from al over Tassie to learn how to run Community Festivals as outreach events to build connection and comunity in their areas. Mal Garvin gave one of his famous Key Note addresses, and there were stories of past successes and the chance to learn a few festival skills or explore further how to do these things or discuss issues, network, play a few games, juggle, face-paint, eat a potato or just meet people. There will be one next week in Victoria. http://www.fusion.org.au/vic/Pages/Training/expoday.html

If you have a day to spare, and are interested in ways of reaching your community, check it out.

Like to thank my English/Greek classmate Patrick for the loan of his internet connection, but his computer is bi-lingual, and much of it is in greek. Do you know the greek words for cut or paste?
Anyway, he's been quite happy lately, now that the English cricket team has started to win...

Well, back to Studying the book of James, Quiz first up tomorrow. Consider it all joy...

1st day of school

Well, it's the first formal day of school, and already I've learnt so much. We've had a couple of days of orientation, and before that a week of Foundations, where there were about 300 extra people in town, or so it seemed. It's a lot quieter now.

Anyway, the online access place is only open for a short time each day and there are people who want to check their emails. Unfortunately I have problems with checking mine, so if you are expecting me to answer your email, I can't right now, 'cos I haven't read it... expect to get something sorted soon!

Like to get some photos here, maybe next time...

see ya!

here and now

Well, I've been in this town since thursday and sooooooooo much has been going on. Just to let you know I'm still alive and it's al really good! Catch up when I have more time!!
At the moment access is a bit scarce, and there's so much to say but, it's all good.
Nice town, this.

ch ch ch changes

Yes, a new look Honzablog. But then, changes is all around, as regular readers will no doubt be aware! In 2 days time I will be on my way to a new adventure, a new life in Tasmania. What's in store? God only knows... I mean, I think that this was his idea!

Anyhow, watch this space!

recent trends in white goods design

Whilst sifting through my junk I came across these old sketches of a brilliant idea I once had.

I think at the time, potbelly stoves were quite big (as in popularity, not in their physical dimensions.)

So I thought I would apply the potbelly principal to other household appliances. I looked no further than the humble refrigerator.
I though everyone could use a pot bellied fridge!




Rebelling against the notion that white goods had to be white I did my first sketch in potbelly pink. This led to the blue singlet version with the workboot feet, and a sort of eighties paint job on the body.

The more astute reader will of course realise I have these two pictures in the wrong order. The rest of you be assured there is nothing wrong with your eyes. Well, nothing that Honzablog has caused!






Following this came a more definitive Australian themed version, complete with a green and gold body with stylized kangaroos, Aussie flag, the ubiquitous blue singlet motif, and to finish it off, wearing thongs... oh, for non-Australians, read 'Flip-Flops...' (ooh that can be embarrassing!)








Of course the great thing about the potbellied fridge is all that extra storage space in the door! WOW!

I'm not sure how this feature would suit the dieter, so much more food can be stored.

Although, on the other hand, generously girthed individuals might find reaching the handle quite a challenge...



PS: for illustration Friday readers! This is your actual peice of Industrial Design concept Sketching what I did back in the eighties (when I was a mere toddler...), And it is kind of a coincidental incident that I upload this two days BEFORE the eighties topic is announced. I even mention in the original text that the design is eighties style. Not quite a Memphis fridge, but the colours would do...

All is Quiet...

on New Year's Day.

Not much to report except how easy it is to find alternatives to packing!!! These dodgy photos show Mr Clayton with his bass, and Mr The Edge and Mr Bono.

I shall stop blogging now...

Mysterious Ways...

There is a theory that time was invented to stop everything happening at once. In November there was a four week period where I felt that time had let me down and everything indeed was happening at once.

Let me list some of these events.

I guess we start on 16th of November when cancer finally took my mother.

18 November I went to see Mr Paul 'Bono' Hewson, a noted activist, champion of the poverty-stricken and the justice-deprived, friend of presidents and popes, Pavrottis and punks, and some-time lead singer of a little band called U2. One of the finest bands of this genre in the world. These are some of the photos I took with my mobile phone... we had a great spot, perhaps only 5 metres from Mr Bono and Mr The Edge when they played on the little sattelite stages. A fantastic concert.

21 November was the last class in Foundations, a short course I had been going to on every Tuesday night for a few months. It's run by Fusion and is a very worthwhile look at how to live with yourself, with others and with God.

23 November was mum's funeral.
The next two weeks were reasonably quiet until...

7 December. Fusion contact me and tell me that I have been accepted into their 6 month Intensive Certificate course in Youth and Community work. It means moving to Tasmania and getting into penniless student mode.

8 December. Dad put's on his Santa suit and goes to Boronia Mall, where he falls ill. He is rushed to the hospital, but only kept alive long enough for my brother and I to see him...

9 December, Mike Pilley who captain's my cricket team and plays trombone in the Melbourne Staff Band gives me tickets to their Christmas concert. MSB is one of the finest bands of ther genre in the world. Also sharing the stage was the a Cappella group The Idea of North, one of the finest groups of their genre in the world. A fantastic concert.

11 December, Volleyball Grand Final. We won the first two sets reasonably comfortably, but then got a little anxious and showed signs of choking when Kaylor's team won the next two... We got our act together in set five and finished the season in style! I've played volleyball in this competition every season since 1987, except for a season of basketball in '98, but that is my last game of v-ball for the forseeable future.

12 December, Dad's Rotary club's Christmas party. A month ago we were all looking forwards to going to this annual event, Penny, Allan, their three kids, me, mum, dad... six of us went and saw a bunch of very sympathetic Rotarians, and despite not buying ANY raffle tickets, we won four prizes! hmmm...

13 December, I hand in my notice at work. I've only been there since 1987, so it's no big deal really...

15 December, Dad's funeral. Mum and Dad re-united on their 44th wedding anniversary.

Since then it's been me procrastinating about packing, and getting serious about de-cluttering myself, finding homes for stuff. Anyone wanna buy some cheap stuff? Lot's of books and old Cassettes? Unbuilt model kits? Vinyl records from the eighties? (mostly played once to record to cassette, so 'as new') old clothes? call me...
I move to Poatina on Jan 18, so I really should get stuck in.

Bono sang the song Mysterious Ways that day at the Docklands Stadium. The words of the bridge mean something.

One day you'll look back
And you'll see
Where
You were held how
By this love
While
You could stand
There
And not move on this moment
Follow this feeling...

It's Alright..
We move through miracle days
Spirit moves in Mysterious Ways.

Penny doesn't know how we've made it through this period except to say that we've been held. God has given us his peace. Mum and Dad's birthday and Christmas all occurred between dec24 and dec27. Miraculously those days all passed with more joy than sadness.

And now a new year begins. A new adventure awaits. New doors open. May I have the courage to step through them and the Faith to know that God is right here with me all the way.

masks

This week's topic in Illustration Friday is Masks. I asked my 6yo neice to help me with this one. She loves drawing, and has discovered painting on the computer too, I supervised and suggested, but she did the colouring herself.

People wear masks all the time, to hide how they feel, who they really are. It seems safer, but is it? to deny your true self?

re-united...

The last few days have been surreal. Smoke from fires in the north of the state have blanketted the city in a dirty fog, the sun an alien red orb bathing us in eerie light, not bright, but intensely hot.

And my father. Since my mother died, a large part of him left too. On friday morning he went out in his Santa suit, to do that thing that he loved, but early in the afternoon, dad was re-united with mum, both now safe in the arms of Jesus.

From Fiona

Hi John, I led the service at Ashburton this morning and as we follow the Christian calandar, it was "Christ the King" Sunday, a day when we traditionally celebrate Jesus as both king and servant. I wrote one of my prayers using images that came to me on the day when we honoured the life of your Mum.
This was my prayer...

Let us pray ..

To Jesus whom we worship as King,
but who constantly comes
to us as Servant.
Jesus with sleeves rolled up ... and hands in the sink.
Jesus in gumboots ... sweeping out sheds and milking cows.
Jesus, the sign of hope in every drought...
move among us ... stand among us....
teach us to love ... teach us to serve.

You are God in human flesh,
God with human hands.
Open our hearts;
Fill our lives with your compassion.
As we bring our lives as a daily offering...
to Jesus Christ,...
our Servant King.
Amen.

(Let us stand to sing, "The Servant King".)