I was surprised to see that my last post was six weeks ago. Where have I been? Where have you been, Dave?
I finished work on December 11 and flew home to see my family which was great. Then I spent a week holidaying in Phuket which was a little crazy, but also super relaxing. Returning to Darwin on New Years Eve, I didn't make it to midnight, opting instead for a 12 hours catch up sleep beginning at 10pm. With one week, at that stage, before I had to return work, I did a whole lot more of nothing, but did manage to get sick (a really bad cold-almost man flu) for the first time since moving to Darwin in August 2016. Thankfully there was plenty of cricket to watch, and everyone knows how much I love that great game. Back at work, I was a little lethargic, but eventually got back into the groove, and before long the whole holiday seemed like a dream.
I think that's one of the things I really like about vacations. especially overseas or even interstate trips: they are real, but not quite real. There's an ephemeral quality to life in another place where you don't work, you just rest and play. You save, plan and wait, then you enter the twilight zone.
Then, like a flash of lightning in a stormy sky, it ends before you want it to, before you can really enjoy it, and soon becomes just another memory.
2018 is here. 2017 seems like so long ago.
Celebrating writing over 60 assessment tasks this week in preparation for term 4 which starts next week. Huge effort! I congratulate myself.
However I wish to offer more huger (sic) praise to my son James, (on the left in the photo) who will make his international rugby league debut for Thailand this weekend. James' mother is Thai so he is eligible to play for the national 13 in this weekend's series of matches to support the development of rugby league in non traditional league playing countries.
James has been the digital media manager for the Thailand 13 for some time now, and to my surprise this week, when the team was announced, he had made the cut. I didn't even know he was thinking of playing again. He played junior league with the Dapto Canaries, but retired a number of years ago. This is a comeback match and a International Rugby League (IRL) sanctioned match to boot.
Do you reckon a proud dad is writing these words? Go James! Go Thailand!
I note with interest, not surprise, that Channel Ten's 'comedy' show, Have You Been Paying Attention, received an official dressing down from Thailand's ambassador in Australia, who said the panel of comedians was "very inappropriate, disrespectful and certainly not amusing." Read the full story
I happened to be watching on October 17, but only because the show I was watching (Todd Sampson's Body Hack - a great show by the way, unlike Have You Been Paying Attention) had finished and I had nothing else to watch. I don't watch shows like HYBPA, or The Project or any of the other myriad shows which attempt to make fun of anything and everything in the news. Good taste, respect, and cultural and religious sensitivity get thrown out the window for the sake of laughs.These shows are quite popular, but I don't like them,
Nothing is sacred. These people will say anything to try and get a laugh. They don't know where to draw the line. There are no lines. I avoid comedians in general for the same reason.
On HYBPA they showed a woman crying over the death of the
beloved Thai monarch, with one goose suggesting she had a problem with her backpack. I thought it was unbelievably disrespectful. I know a lot of Thai people, and I have lived in Thailand. I doubt any of them were watching which is good, because no one in mourning deserves to be ridiculed.
The other problem I have with these shows is that the viewer can get sucked in to laughing at everything. They find one comment funny, and the next, and keep laughing at the third even if they don't think its funny. Even if they think it's sick or offesnisive. Maybe it's just me. Maybe I'm weird. I mean I hate Funniest Home Videos because I don't think watching people get hurt is funny.
It's further evidence to me that I do not belong. So much of what is 'popular' nowadays is of such low morality it makes me sick. People like me get ridiculed for not having a sense of humour. So be it. I guess humour, like beauty, is in the eye (or ear) of the beholder.
The 2014 A-Z Blogging Challenge is only two days away, so today, as I prepare for the challenge, I just wanted to share this story with you.
It was written by one of my students, nicknamed Bill, who is 18 and from Thailand. He has recently completed Year 12 year and is studying with me, working on his English language skills, until he begins a course at TAFE.
Bang where are you?
This story takes place in Spain and is an adventure and drama story. It's about a young girl who was looking for her pig that had been kidnapped by a stranger.
Her name is Alice, she is Spanish. A week ago Alice took her pig named 'Bang' out for a walk at the park in the morning around 7am. She met an old looking man with a big back pack. The man walk toward Alice and asked her to sell Bang to him. Alice was very upset and refused, and then the man walked away.
After that Alice and Bang went back to their house. Alice leaved Bang to play in her courtyard. Then Alice went inside to get soem food for bang. But when she came back she saw Bang was taken away right before her eyes. That man ran on to the train. Alice tried to chase him.
Alice had been walk for a week on the railway. She was very feeble. But finally she found that train. The train was docked at the station. This station was 200km-400km away from her town. Alice went into the city and walking around and asked the people about her pig. But unfortunately there was no clue. So Alice decided to fill her guts before continuing and search for bang. Alice stopped at a restaurant called "The Bob" that's probably the name of the owner.
Alice sat down and ordered "grill pork with three seasoning". When the food was ready! Someone come to serve the food. But when Alice looked up at his face it happens to be the same guy who took Bang. Alice grabbed his neck then shakes his and asked for Bang. But Bob said "Bang is right in front of you!! (Alice shock.)
