Going Back to School

What are your memories of your school years? Was school a happy place or something to be endured?

It’s been over 30 years since I left school to start a cooking apprenticeship. It seems like a lifetime ago.

The holidays are over or almost over for most students. Do you remember that feeling? I know I do.

School was OK but holidays were just so wonderful. I used to wish that they would never end. Holidays are great no matter how old you are but there’s something magical about school holidays.

Our kids are on holiday at the moment. They head back to school on Wednesday. They have two days of freedom left.

I used to get particularly annoyed by the advertising in the summer holidays. Weeks before the new school year started I’d start seeing back to school signs everywhere. They’d have big signs up in shopping centres, they’d advertise back to school sales on TV and radio and the newspaper would be littered with back to school ads. Then the letterbox would fill up with catalogues full of back to school specials.

I didn’t need reminding that the holidays were rapidly coming to an end.

So how were your school days? Do you wish you could go back and live those times all over again? Can you remember what you thought your life would become after school? Has the reality lived up to what you imagined back then?

I’d love to read your comments.



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Smokefree Perth Criteriums 2011

Smokefree Perth Criteriums 2010I’m looking forward to some excellent cycle racing around Perth from Saturday the 12th to Monday the 15th of February.

Smokefree Perth Criteriums 2011 is on its way with some spectacular racing around various street circuits. The series is being run by the team at TriEvents and promises to be a highlight of the Perth cycling calendar in 2011. I’m looking forward to once again being part of the commentary team with Gary Suckling of Riders Choice. Gary is such a professional and it’s a real honour to work alongside him.

Criterium racing is the most exciting version of road racing. Each race involves high speed and intense competition, around a tight and intimate circuit. No rider is guaranteed a win and no spectator walks away disappointed, which sets the scene for a perfect week end of racing.

A Criterium is a fast paced, multi lap cycling race on a tight and relatively flat street course. The course is approximately 1km in length. Criteriums are raced over a specified time rather than a distance with the races lasting no longer than 1 hour.

Most venues give spectators the opportunity to see a high portion of the course with the circuits being tight and intimate. Tactics are usually played from start to finish; so spectators are more than entertained for the entirety of the race.

Each rider receives points for placing in the top 10 of the race and these points accumulate to decide the overall winner. With a large calibre of cyclists in the event, the overall winner is often not decided until the final race.

Smokefree Perth Criteriums is made up of four events over four days. The events are afternoon / evening races in four high profile locations – Northbridge, Victoria Park, Leederville and Fremantle.

The first event of the series gets underway at 2:00 p.m. in Northbridge on Saturday the 12th of February.

Western Australians are great supporters of this kind of cycle racing and there’s sure to be plenty of spectators watching each event. There have been a number of Perth Criterium Series over the years and they’ve all been nail biting spectator events. If you get a chance, get out and enjoy some fantastic racing.

Race One:
Northbridge – 2:00 p.m. Saturday 12th February 2011

Race Two:
Victoria Park – 2:00 p.m. Sunday 13th February 2011

Race Three:
Leederville – 6:45 p.m. Monday 14th February 2011

Race Four:
Fremantle – 6:00 p.m. Tuesday 15th February 2011



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The Pope and Facebook

The head of the Catholic Church, Pope Benedict XVI, has encouraged Christians to get involved in online social networks, but at the same time he’s warned users, especially young people, about the dangers of superficial online relationships taking the place of real life interaction.

In his message for the 45th World Day of Social Communications, he talked about the new horizons that are now open that were until recently were unimaginable.

The papal message, entitled Truth, Proclamation and Authenticity of Life in the Digital Age was released by the Vatican yesterday, the 24th of January.

Who is my ‘neighbour’ in this new world? Does the danger exist that we may be less present to those whom we encounter in our everyday life? Is there is a risk of being more distracted because our attention is fragmented and absorbed in a world ‘other’ than the one in which we live? Do we have time to reflect critically on our choices and to foster human relationships which are truly deep and lasting? It is important always to remember that virtual contact cannot and must not take the place of direct human contact with people at every level of our lives.

I reckon he’s pretty well spot on. We’re in danger of losing ourselves amongst everything from Facebook to Twitter and so much more.

It can be easy to create an online persona that doesn’t really exist. We can chase online “friends” who will never really be there when we’re going through tough times and who we won’t get the opportunity to support in their time of need. Online friends are unlikely to hold us accountable or move us forward on the journey of life.

I love the opportunity to communicate with people all over the world, and I must admit that I really value some of the online friendships I’ve developed, but I’m very aware that I can’t let online relationships rob me of real life relationships with those who need me to be present in their lives.

Young people in particular are experiencing this change in communication, with all the anxieties, challenges and creativity typical of those open with enthusiasm and curiosity to new experiences in life. Their ever greater involvement in the public digital forum, created by the so-called social networks, helps to establish new forms of interpersonal relations, influences self-awareness and therefore inevitably poses questions not only of how to act properly, but also about the authenticity of one’s own being.

Entering cyberspace can be a sign of an authentic search for personal encounters with others, provided that attention is paid to avoiding dangers such as enclosing oneself in a sort of parallel existence, or excessive exposure to the virtual world. In the search for sharing, for “friends”, there is the challenge to be authentic and faithful, and not give in to the illusion of constructing an artificial public profile for oneself.

What do you think? Are you careful about the kinds of friendships you’re developing online? Do you think the Pope is right? Are there dangers we need to avoid?



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Has Honesty Died?

Some are suggesting that Ghazi Adra is the most honest man in Australia. Why? Because he handed in $50 000 that wasn’t his.

Mr Adra found a cooler bag stuffed with five neat bundles of $US100 notes on a Sydney train and took it to a police station. He didn’t even think about keeping the money.

In the News.com.au story Honest Aussie battler Ghazi Adra hands in $50,000 found on train we’re told that the 68 year old man shocked police by handing in the money.

He was holding more money than he earns in a year as a storeman at an electrical factory, but Mr Adra never once thought about keeping it, telling his family: “We must go to the police station and hand it in.”

Even the policeman on duty at Mt Druitt was surprised by his honesty.

“The officer said to me, ‘I can’t believe you are handing this in, you are a very good man’,” Mr Adra said.

Mr Adra deserves to be congratulated for his honesty, and I wouldn’t want to downplay what he did, but is that kind of honesty really that rare today?

I don’t know how anyone could keep that amount of money if they found it. Would you have kept the money?

Not many of us would be likely to find such a large amount of cash but some of us may find money or other items from time to time. Have you ever found anything valuable? Did you try to find the rightful owner? Would you keep $50 if you found it? What about $100 or $200? What amount would you consider needed to be handed to police?

Have you ever lost something valuable that has been returned?

While cycling I find a number of items on the side of the road. I’ve tracked down owners for several phones and a few other bits and pieces. I found a USB Drive a few days ago. I found the owner’s email address on the drive and have emailed them to arrange its return. I haven’t heard back as yet.



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Clever Coffee from Five Senses

It’s Sunday morning and I’m sitting at my desk enjoying a freshly brewed coffee. Brilliant.

You may remember that I recently wrote about the The Death of the Breville, a sad tale of the end of the line for my old coffee dripper. Today I’m sipping coffee made with a device that brews coffee just as I drink it, one mug full at a time.

It’s the Clever Coffee Dripper from Five Senses and it’s wonderful.

So what is the Clever Coffee Dripper? I’ll let Five Senses explain.

It’s a free standing, one cup filter (which is often called a pour-over) with one very important addition — a valve that keeps your brew from drawing down until you activate it by sitting it on a cup. What’s so good about that? Well, the way the valve works means that you can control all the variables of your brew independently of each other. You know the ones I’m talking about! No matter which brewing method you’re using, it always comes down to the same variables — grind size, the amount of coffee you dose, water weight, water temperature and the amount of time that the water and coffee are in contact.

One of the great things about the Clever Coffee Dripper is that you can get involved in the process of creating the perfect cup. Not that it’s terribly involved or that you have to nurse the device through the process but you do have control over various elements that lets you ensure you get the brew you want. I’ve experimented a couple of times since the Clever Coffee Dripper arrived and I reckon I’ve got it just how I like it. From here on in I’ll be drinking my favourite brew whenever the mood hits.

Oh … one last thing. Just because the Clever Coffee Dripper comes from Five Senses doesn’t mean that you can only brew coffee from their extensive coffee range through it … but seriously … why would you use anything other than Five Senses?



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