Christmas time

My time speaking in church went great! Both Saturday night and Sunday morning I felt there was something specific that someone there needed to hear so I said it. I shared 4 times and each time was different; and each time, numerous people said it had impacted them greatly and prompted them to changes in their own lives. It is so encouraging to know that God is speaking through me when I just let Him!

After sharing on Sunday morning, I left for Saskatchewan. 700 miles, one family gathering, and one Boxing Day shopping trip later I’m now ready to spend another 7 hours or so driving out to see friends in another province. I’m planning to head out early tomorrow morning and get a couple days in with a few friends and a day of skiing in the great Canadian Rockies before driving back to Saskatchewan to share in a church here, take in an extended family gathering and spend a few more days with immediate family and some friends.

I joined my brother and his wife and children for their family Christmas celebration. We had a great time of reading a Christmas story, having a good meal, and exchanging gifts and playing with them.




Before the meal






During the meal, after one of the children took a solid swipe at a cup half full of pop and sent it sprawling over the table. I was so proud of my sister in law laughing over this as we cleaned up the mess – ok so she cleaned up most of it while I stood around taking pictures.


I also ended up having some fun with a new toy my nephew received. The fun came in the form of some photo editing, an email, and a later confession to my brother in Saskatchewan that I had not actually bought a snowmobile. This picture is actually of a toy snowmobile about 2 inches long. The background is an original picture of an actual house. I thought it had worked out quite well considering I was on a very tight schedule with it and it was my first time doing something so detailed.




The evening sky in the Prairies as I drove from Manitoba to Saskatchewan.

First week at home

I just have to tell this story… Over the last month or so, I’ve been trying to decide if I needed to share in church what God has done in my life in the last couple of years. (for those of you reading this who don’t know my life over the last few years; I had an incredible marriage with a phenomenal woman and just before our fifth anniversary in 2002, she was diagnosed with cancer. She died from it in May 2005. God has done some incredible things in my life during the time of sickness and following her death) As I was thinking and praying about this, I felt strongly that God wanted me to share in the church I grew up in so I made contact with the pastor there and arranged to speak there for a few minutes. I also wanted to share in my current church but wasn’t sure if that desire was only mine or if it too came from the Lord; so I said to Him that I was very willing but considering my lack of confidence that the desire was from Him, I would not pursue it so if He wanted me up, he should get the pastor to ask me for this and I would consider that confirmation. My pastor spends a lot of time in prayer every day and gets a lot of direction as a result of this. So my first weekend at home, I was in the choir (which was great!!!) and he saw me there. As we walked off stage after the worship time and went out the back door, my pastor was there waiting for me. He had left the service that was continuing at the time to come ask me to share next weekend! Can’t tell me God doesn’t speak to people today!
I’ve been enjoying time with friends and family. So far every evening has been busy with something. One friend asked if I had been running around like a chicken with it’s head cut off and I said I had been hoping for that but it hadn’t been the case. Side-note: In case anyone from around home is reading this while I’m at home, I am quite busy at this point but that’s the reason I came home. Please call me at my brother’s place (I will not post his name or phone number on this site for privacy reasons but if you don’t have it, leave me a message with your email address or phone number – include in your message a request for me to not publish the message – and I will send you his number or call you) to set up a time to spend time together. No matter how busy I get, my whole purpose in coming home for Christmas is to spend time with people so I want to make it very clear that I want to have something up all the time. I can relax after my time a home.) I’ve spent some time working on an ice rink here and have been enjoying the fresh air outside. It’s been great weather and I feel like I’m starting to adjust to winter again. I spent an hour playing badminton with a friend and it was great just to be so active. Unfortunately, I’m not in the greatest shape of my life and I’m feeling the results of an intense activity that I’m not used to. We’re hoping to get another round or two in yet before I head back to Australia.
I’m planning to head out to another province in a few days so my travel begins again; this time with a ten hour drive starting after sharing in two services Sunday morning. I’ve already bought the energy drink to make sure I’m awake for the driving time. I have a gathering to be at the next day.
I’ve had some contact with some friends who are staying in Sydney over Christmas and I miss them and feel like I’m missing out on things there but I’m enjoying where I’m at too.

Arrival home

As expected, my time here has been very busy so far. Sleep has been a bit scarce for someone getting over jet lag.

I got my car out the first day I was here and had to do some coaxing to get it running but after a good boost for the battery, it’s working well. My first time driving it I hit the wipers instead of the signal switch for three of the first four corners (the switch is on the other side of the steering wheel in case you don’t know this). I’ve also hit the door with my hand a couple of times as I reached to change gears. Fortunately I haven’t forgotten how to drive 5 speed standard and staying on the right side of the road feels very natural. I guess 15 years of driving on the right side doesn’t leave you in a few short months. I’ve also been able to drive on slippery roads and in blowing snow and snow drifts. Oh, the joys of winter.

I’ve been to my former workplace to see some great people there. They were happy to see me. I couldn’t resist singing “I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas” as I walked in the door.

I had a chance to stop by one of the best local restaurants and have also had some “squeaky cheese” (cheese curds) from the best cheese factory around, Reese’s Pieces, Cheese Whiz, ketchup chips, and farmer sausage. I’m still looking forward to the real A&W and a few slices of the best pizza in the world (http://www.vernspizza.com/) home of the legendary “Single slice is a meal”

Last night I was a choir practice for my church and had a great time there. One of the people was so surprised and excited to see me that she almost fell over (ok, I think it was basically surprise on this one)...I'm looking forward to being in church and singing in my home choir this weekend.

Below are some pictures of my trip and arrival home.




One of the sunsets on the way home.






The first winter clothing I saw when I got home was “earmuffs.” I use the term loosely to describe something that was made for me out of a plastic ice cream pail, some old rags, a bit of tape, and some cardboard. I chose to put up a picture in the real winter clothes I wore the next day as I went with my niece to her school bus stop. This walk also helped me realize I’ve started adjusting to the Australian climate because it was only 5 below zero (very warm for December in Manitoba) but I felt cold in only a few minutes.








On my way out of the airport, I saw this polar bear with a pine tree lit up behind it. It was a welcome site.





There was a Christmas tree in my room when I got home. My brother couldn’t resist when he saw it and his daughter insisted it needed to have an angel on the top (which didn’t make it into the picture because of size) even though the tree is dead. If you look closely, you can see on the wall is a picture of some of my friends in Australia. My brother and sister-in-law printed two pictures off my blog and put them on the wall. They help me remember where I’m away from for the next few weeks.










This Coca Cola bottle was also in my room. Anyone who knows my brother will know this was a real sacrifice considering his undivided devotion to the drink that claims to be something of competition for this great beverage icon.



Here’s my car on the first morning I could drive it. Yes this is my car, unlike a previous post regarding a car in Australia. But also remember, on that other post I didn’t say the car in the picture was mine, that was just assumed by some people. This picture actually is of my car in Canada. It’s so great to get the snow off a car before driving it!

Travel's done

Well, the day is done. I got up 37 hours ago, looked at a house which I may be moving into when I get back to Sydney, finished packing, said goodbye to some friends, and started my travels. This time around I got smart and took a sleeping pill on the plane and managed to get over 4 hours of sleep during the 14 hour flight from Sydney to L.A. That’s double the sleep I got travelling to Sydney!!! I am getting tired now though (4 hours in the last 37 is a bit short).

So on my arrival at the airport, I went through security – no problems, went through customs – no problems, went through secondary security because I was flying to USA – no problem. I arrived in L.A. and had to join everyone else going through US customs although I was only flying through. At this point I wondered why I had gone through customs in Sydney… but whatever. As I approached the customs desk, I saw a sign promising a friendly welcome, courteous treatment, fair treatment, etc. Now I know what you’re all expecting so I have to be honest. No problem at customs. They followed through with the pledge on the sign. After this, I had to get my luggage and re-check it even though I was flying through on the same carrier (didn’t have to do this on the way to Sydney) and follow directions to the area for continuing passengers. I followed the directions through a door, up an elevator, and on to what I hoped was the right side of security. At this point I was told I needed to go down the escalator to the back of the line that apparently started there (where I had just been sent from). When I explained that another airport agent had sent me this way together with some other people he was barking at (yes barking) He very sharply interrupted and said “And I’m telling you to go down there!” Maybe I’m wrong here but communication issues (different directions coming from different employees in the same area) ??? Courtesy issues??? A friendly welcome??? I guess the pledge on the sign doesn’t apply to airport personnel, only to customs officials. Now as I think back, if this employee was the only American exposure I’d have had, I can definitely see why people don’t like Americans! Fortunately, I’ve had many more experiences with Americans and I find this man to be the exception and I still like the people of that great nation. So I went outside and joined all the people coming in off the street in going through security again – no problems. I now had to wonder not only about going through customs twice and security twice, but now security three times – for the same trip. Again, maybe it’s just me, but if I have no banned substances the first time through security, or the second time, and I have no opportunity to get banned substances because I’ve been inside a controlled area the whole time, will I have banned substances the third time? It would be so much easier to just let continuing passengers through the hallway past security once clearing customs one time. But I guess that would cut down the number of employees, so it would put people out of work and potentially lower ticket prices; and it would save an hour or two for every passenger making this flight. Wouldn’t want to increase those efficiencies! Lesson for the day; if you’re doing an international flight with a layover in Los Angeles, make sure you have at least two hours extra to clear customs and airport security – even if you’ve already cleared those places once, twice, or more in the same trip. Maybe one day the people at that airport will learn from McDonalds that a burger is better if it’s only fried once. On to Denver…

“Attention please, passengers on United flight 6648 to Winnipeg. We seem to have a problem with the booking on this flight and as a result are looking for two volunteers to come forward and give up their seat on tonight’s flight. In return, we will book you on a flight the same time tomorrow or you can choose to fly through Chicago on an earlier flight tomorrow. We will also put you up in a hotel for the night, provided you with a good dinner and breakfast, and give you your choice of a free round trip to any North American United destination or US$600 towards another United flight.” Upon hearing this, I decided to volunteer myself. I talked with the agent and called home to confirm my ride from the airport hadn’t left home yet, and then was told “We’ll tell you either way” “what do you mean ‘either way’?” I thought, “You asked for a volunteer and here I am. Now you’re changing your mind?” So I waited until everyone else had boarded the plane and my luggage had been removed. They then told the other volunteer and me that we could board the plane after all (I think there were some other no-show’s) so I had to call home and tell the people to come pick me up from the Winnipeg airport after all. “Go ahead and call home. You’ve got 4 minutes till departure” I had to laugh at this one. They do all this last minute stuff that I volunteer for and then tell me I’ve got four minutes or the plane will leave without me because I offered to help them out. I laugh even now as I write this! They wouldn’t actually have left without me. They knew what I was doing and were ok with it…and my luggage did make it back onto the airplane!

“As your crew about United flight 6648, we would like to thank you for flying United; and let us be the first to welcome you to Winnipeg…you can pick up your luggage after passing through customs...” And one last time I had the privilege of answering questions for official with the authority to send me home (oops, that’s were I am now) detain me, do the wonderful searches that people are concerned about, question me endlessly about where I’ve been, how long I’ve been gone, why I was there, how old I am, what my shoe size is, when the last time is I used the – you get the picture. And one last time, I was asked no more than half a dozen questions before the agent decided that I’m a safe and honest law abiding person; and welcomed me through the gate.

What awaited me on the other side of the door were some very excited people. I heard from a third party (who shall remain anonymous for the time) that some of the people there were almost (or maybe completely) jumping for joy when they saw me waiting for my luggage before I could go through the doors to meet them. Hugs all around and I’m home with family. It’s great to be loved.

I heard my niece (who’s house I’m staying at) was in tears earlier tonight that I wasn’t here yet so I need to make sure I’m up in the morning before she heads off to school. Based on my body’s sleep schedule from Sydney, with the time change, I should be going to bed soon and getting up around 2 in the afternoon. She leaves for school closer to 8:30 in the morning so I’ll be getting up early. Need to get some sleep.

I’ll try to get some pictures up in the next couple of days too.

Home time

I can hardly believe this time has come already. It really feels like I just got here but it's time to come home for Christmas. Last night I went to one last Christmas party after packing most of my stuff. Today I go to look at a couple of houses with the hopes of finding one to live in when I get back here. The plan is that the people I'll be living together with will move in January and they will take my stuff from the apartment I'm in to the house so that means I need to have everything packed and ready for them to move it. So in the next three hours, I need to seen those houses, possibly submit an application to lease, finish packing (almost done) and get ready for the flight home.

I will try to keep this blog updated over Christmas but it may not be quite as regular as it has been till now. Keep watching as I have some exciting plans in the next couple of months. I'm scheduled to be back in Sydney on January 28th and life back here will start with a bang so watch for the updates. I'll see many of you in the next few days.

ps. I'm singing in the choir at Southland this weekend so if you want to see me from a distance, come to any of the services this coming weekend (Sat 5 and 7PM and Sun 9 and 11AM).

See you soon!

More Leisure Activities

After a short night and an early morning to bring classmates to the airport, I found a good place to relax. This is what a typical beach looks like midweek. I have not yet seen what it looks like on the weekend but I gained a new understanding of the beach culture in this country.




We heard there was a Walmart and an A&W close to here so some of us went on a hunt. We found the Walmart (Called “The Big W” in Australia) and a place that called itself A&W, using the same logo as the real restaurant and selling the same Root Beer (in a can) but having nothing else same - or even similar. I can’t help but wonder about trademark infringements on this but ???. The food was good after getting over the disappointment of it not being what we expected.


After some shopping and lunch, we went off to a wildlife park. We saw a ton of brightly coloured birds, some reptiles, penguins, Tasmanian devils, Wallabies, Kangaroos, Koala Bears, a 15 foot Crocodile, and a bunch of other animals.




Yes, I got a chance to pet a kangaroo. Sorry to disappoint some of you, they are not big enough to ride so I stopped at petting them. The picture is actually of me petting a Wallaby.








These bats have bodies about the size of a household cat. We saw one of these in the city the other day too.







Koala Bear – this is not a teddy. We got to pet one of these too.












It may be cute, but it’s still a bear; and we witnessed two males duelling out a short territorial battle just before I took this picture - yes, I took it myself; one hand on the bear and the other holding the camera.

It’s about time for another update. I’m finished classes and exams; and as the previous post mentioned, am making plans for Christmas time. Below are some pictures of my happenings in the last while.


Thanksgiving just doesn’t come often enough so, as you may recall, I went to two Canadian thanksgiving parties; and I’ve now done the same for our lovely neighbours to the south. Here’s a picture of one of the groups. In case anyone’s interested, two of the people in this picture are pure bred Americans, one has dual Canadian/American citizenship, one is South African, and the rest are pure Canadians.



The Frontline (25 to 35 years old) group went on a harbour cruise. We had a great time with a few hundred people, mostly from the church and mostly non college students. There was a lot of noise, loud music, a dance floor, and generally a good time as we sailed around the Sydney harbour for 4 hours. Here’s a shot of some friends having a great time.



One of the married couples was taking a picture and somehow I ended up in it. According to their blog (http://ryamy.blogspot.com/) I was being thrown overboard at the time but that’s nothing more than wish-full thinking. They did manage to get some better photos and also had a chance at a dance later. And speaking of dancing…since I know my family’s ears are itching to hear about this…ahh, if your ears really are itching, the itch won’t be soothed by anything I can say.

Another great view of the Opera House – I figure if this is one of the most recognized buildings in the world and I see it on a regular basis, I’d better have a few pictures of it on my blog.






We had a great graduation dinner at a high end restaraunt. Here’s me with one of my circles of friends at the dinner.







Hillsong Men’s weekly meetings have wrapped up for the year so we had some special activities on the last day. One of them was a mechanical bucking bull. As you can see, there were safety precautions taken. No one got seriously hurt but the longest anyone stayed on the thing was about 40 seconds, second place was around the 20 second mark.



No pictures of this, but I just got home from the golf course. Ryan (see man in couple’s picture above) and I left at 7 this morning and enjoyed a somewhat cool morning that turned into a beautiful summer day. We were warned at the beginning that if we encountered the snake on the 13th or 14th hole, we should not approach it. We should not try to get it to move (I assume this includes if our balls had gone close to it), and we would be ok. We had a great time and look forward to doing it again. We're also working on a few other people we know will enjoy golf once they try it.

Well, that’s about it right now. I’m expecting a great week here yet before I come home to see you in Canada! I know you’re expecting me to have bit of colour to my skin when I come home so I’ll do what I can to make sure I don’t disappoint you. I think the beach is calling me...