Microwave living

July 31, 2007
by Rodney Olsen
3 Comments
I was reading today that August 2007 marks the 40th anniversary of the microwave oven.

Of course microwaves weren’t a common sight in kitchens until a number of years after that but we’ve certainly grown very used to the convenience of microwave cooking. Food that used to take hours to cook can now be steaming hot in minutes. I guess that most of us have come to depend on the microwave. A lot of people wouldn’t even remember a time when microwave cooking wasn’t an option.

I wonder what else we’d like to see undergo the microwave treatment. What would you like to see sped up?

I’d love to see a microwave mower that would have the lawn looking brilliant in less than three minutes.

I’d imagine that a lot of people would like to see a microwave airplane that would turn a 14 hour flight into a ten minute journey. I’ll stick with the conventional flight. I enjoy the in flight entertainment and the food too much.

How about five hours of housework in five minutes? An hour at the dentist in 45 seconds?

We all thrill to the idea of speeding things up but I wonder if we might be better off if we managed to turn things around and started taking the time to enjoy the many good things life offers instead of rushing through everything and missing the moment.

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Thumbs Up!

July 30, 2007
by Rodney Olsen
16 Comments

Want to highlight someone making a positive difference?

Is there a blogger who deserves a pat on the back or simply something that has you feeling thankful this week?

The blogosphere can sometimes be a pretty negative place so I reckon it’s great to make a habit of accentuating the positive.

I want to link to a number of bloggers who are writing positive posts each week.

Do you want to be a part of the positive? You can post a thank you to someone, a list of reasons you’re thankful this week, or highlight people doing something worthwhile in your community. You don’t have to post every week but it’d be wonderful if you’re prepared to make the effort to write a positive post most weeks.

If you’re willing to jump in and give it a go, just copy the code from the box below and insert it into your blog post to display the Thumbs Up! badge. (Like the one in the top corner of this post.) Don’t sweat it if you don’t feel technically confident enough to add the badge. I can give you some help if you need it or just simply post without it, however you must link back to this post.

I’ve also been asked about a smaller badge for sidebars. You can copy the following code for a smaller badge.

Write your post any time during the week then email me or simply enter your post details via the Thumbs Up! Blog Carnival submission form. Once you’ve entered the permalink URL of your post, the form fills in most of the details for you.

I reserve the right to reject submissions that don’t fit the criteria outlined above.

At the start of every week I’ll write a post that links to everyone who’s participated over the past seven days.



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Thanks Cadel

July 30, 2007
by Rodney Olsen
3 Comments

It was an amazing three weeks.

A lot of people ended up calling the Tour de France the Tour de Farce due to the many drug disqulaifications but the race will be back next year, cleaner and better.

While some saw the drug issues as an indication of what a dirty sport cycling is, I see it as proof that the officials are no longer prepared to take a casual attitude to doping. Cycling is getting cleaner and the clean riders showed their disgust at those who would ruin the reputation of the world’s greatest sporting event for personal gain.

In the end Cadel Evans didn’t snatch the yellow jersey but he did stand in second place on the podium next to the winner, Alberto Contador, the highest position ever for an Australian. Cadel, thank you for doing Australia and the cycling world proud. You’re a gutsy rider and I’m already looking forward to seeing you in yellow in 2008.

I’ve never heard of so many people watching the race as this year. It’s all over the media, and not just for the drug issues. So many of the people I talk to have been staying up late watching every stage. Many of them are people who have never expressed an interest in cycling before.

Oh well, looks like I’ll be able to get a few early nights this week.

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Daring to say the F word

July 27, 2007
by Rodney Olsen
3 Comments

“If we have something done to us, we are victims. If we physically survive, we are survivors. Sadly, many people never travel any further than this. I did travel further, going from victim to survivor, to victor. To become a victor is to move from being an object of history to become a subject once more”. – Michael Lapsley (In April 1990 Michael received a letter bomb in the post. He now runs the Institute for Healing Memories in Cape Town.)

The Forgiveness Project is an amazing website. I found a link to it while reading Jarrod McKenna’s blog.

It’s not a ‘religious’ project, it’s a coming together of people of all backgrounds who have experienced the power that forgiveness gives to all who embrace it.

The site carries dozens of stories of forgiveness. The stories aren’t about a glib ‘sorry’ but the kind of tough forgiveness that hurts and heals at the same time.

Do you dare use the F word? Are you able to forgive?

Offering forgiveness can be hard on so many levels. Forgiveness means giving up our right to revenge and working towards getting rid of the feelings of resentment and hurt that we can enjoy so much. Forgiveness is especially hard when the person who has wronged us still refuses to accept responsibility for their actions.

On the front page of The Forgiveness Project website it says,

The Forgiveness Project works at a local, national and international level to help build a future free of conflict and violence by healing the wounds of the past.

By collecting and sharing people’s stories, and delivering outreach programmes, The Forgiveness Project encourages and empowers people to explore the nature of forgiveness and alternatives to revenge.

Can I suggest that you take some time to look through some of the stories on the site? Could you forgive someone who murdered your mother or your husband? Could you forgive someone who sexually abused you? Is there forgiveness for those who perpetrate racial violence against innocent people?

The stories don’t just end with sorry, they go on to tell about the power, the healing, the restoration that comes from forgiveness.

Have you got a story of forgiveness to share? I’d love to hear how forgiveness help you to move forward in your life. Please leave your story in the comments section of this post or link to a post on your own blog.

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Bad weather for coughs and colds

July 27, 2007
by Rodney Olsen
4 Comments

I’m so glad that I work in radio.

If I lose my voice or have to cough I can simply push a big green button and along comes some music to fill the void.

It’s not so easy to cover up when you’re doing live television, as this video of Perth weatherman, Jeff Newman, reveals. Jeff has been letting us know whether we should pack an umbrella for the coming day on local station Channel 7 for many years.

I’m caught between finding the incident hilariously funny and feeling sorry for poor Jeff.

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