Recently in Good Vibes Category

Bless me Blogogsphere for I have been self-disciplined, it's been 21 days since my last espresso shot...

It's that time in the Christian calendar known as Lent and while we in our branch of Christianity don't generally observe Lent we have been known, from time to time, to undertake periods of prayer and fasting.

This one has been a 21 day fast rather than the full Lenten 40.

For 3 weeks before I went to America back in '06 I fasted everything except veges, fruit and meat...This time? Caffeine and Alcohol...

Do you need me to tell you which was harder? Yeah... no margaritas... and no morning brews on the way to work.

In praise of the whole process I'm happy to say that it has saved me a tidy sum... so maybe I should try and be a little less likely to stop on the way to work... maybe restricting myself to a flat white on a Saturday morning could be the go...

Sounds like a good idea...

But I don't like my chances...

HEAR ME!! (dramatic clap of thunder). THOU SHALT NOT REMOVE ANYTHING FROM MY BUCKET. THIS IS A BIG NO-NO COBBER!

I HAVE HEAR A THUNDERBOLT WHAT GOD DID GIVE ME TO WIELD AT PEOPLE LIKE YOU! (Shakes thunderbolt in a threatening manner)

JUDGEMENT DAY COULD BE BROUGHT FORWARD YOU KNOW, JUST BECAUSE OF YOU!!! DON'T INCUR MY WRATH AGAIN, RIGHT, OR ELSE.....

WHY DOESN'T YOUR PASSWORD BOX LET ME ENTER "WHATEVER COLOUR I WANT IT TO BE"? I HATE THIS INTERWEBNETTHINGY. IT@S DEFINITELY A PRODUCT OF THE FALL

*this appeared in the comments at the other blog and it was too good not to share it here as well... the other has a human verification system for me, final comment is just gold.

It seems a little incongruous to celebrate the fact that I don't have to go to church tomorrow because I went tonight. Like it's bad karma for feeling as though I've discharged my duty to 'the Baby Cheeses' rather than celebrated the 'communion of the saints'.

I don't actually think that 'Cheeses' is keeping score. My boss may be. But Cheeses isn't.

Funnily enough, I'm glad I went. Quite apart from the obvious free Sunday benefit, I was truly surprised that the smaller crowd, 'the B-Team' leading the 'cheering', and the relaxed Saturday afternoon vibe actually made for a great experience, one I want to repeat rather than one to avoid (as has been the case in the usual flurries of Sunday morning).

I guess one of the perils of being involved in one of those mega-churches is the most common criticisms levelled at outfits like mine is the absence of the personal touch.
I can't criticise it for that because I'm not one to hunger for long leisurely chats after the meeting. I'm a get in and get out congregant. I'm more about hang time with 'Cheeses' than with the saints. That may make me anti-social but I'm past worrying about what everyone else thinks, or even if they notice my presence or absence. But the hang time with 'Cheeses' feels to me sometimes like it's obscured in the crowd and tonight it didn't feel like that.

I can't decide if it's because I'm getting old or because genuine Cheeses moments are easier to come by in the quiet. And while the proceedings are far from quiet it seems there's more room for it on Saturday.

I wonder whether if I make Saturday night my more regular appearance whether Cheeses will mind if I take money out of the bucket rather than put it in.

Just to make up for the babysitting I'll be missing...

“Really great people make you feel that you, too, can become great.” Mark Twain

It's been a week of friends. This is quite an achievement for a self confessed ISTJ introvert but I'm holding my own. (Late nights and noise canceling headphones help...) But the truth is I've been loving it. It does this body good to be reminded of the sterling people around my world.

Charm and Just spent a week here, all tucked into my shoebox of a flat. Charm is a sterling musician and one of the best bits of the week for me was to spend an afternoon around the piano singing along to some of my favourite Jazz standards interspersed with quality piano solos. I'm pretty stoked that they're coming over again next year, so we can do it all again. Actually, quite apart from the musical benefit, as someone I've known since she was 14 it's fantastic to see what a great woman she's become and great that we've stayed friends! Even though I'm an old duck by comparison... And Just? A brilliant choice of partner for her and fast becoming a great friend to me too! Guys, January can't come fast enough!

Kirk and The Guy had us all for lunch and provided the piano, and well, as she reads this regularly I don't want to embarrass her. But she's been to hell and back with me and there's no one else I'd rather have there too. Hardly fair on her... but that's the test of a good friend really, that and whenever I need corned beef I only have to ask and they'll throw it in the pot. Oh, and she's the mother of my 2 favourite Australians which makes her a gold medal winner.

Then there's Shoe who's back in Sydney after 15 months away. She's back. That's bloody awesome in my book. As sterling single women of a certain age we're both prizes that are yet to be snapped up. It can't come soon enough for either of us to be honest, but while we wait we are going to have some fun painting the town together, let me assure you!! We started tonight here. We'll be back... in Margarita season. (Who am I kidding... every season's a Margarita one!)

Monday night saw me at the MacFriends place. Now there's where you go when you want deep and meaty conversation. If you can fit it in around the kids coming and going and climbing all over you and the chatter and the dinner and the ridiculous Skype conversations with the neighbours up the road. Mrs MacFriend is a regular reader too... and so this is a 'Hi' for you busy mum... you rock, I love hanging out there! We may not get to hang out often but it's worth it when we do!

Ok, so I think I'm approaching the cheese border line. I'll forego all the other gushing I may have been tempted to do when thinking about my fabulous friends. But before I go I did have one other social engagement on the weekend.

One that really could be considered a bit of Boy Action...

Heh, that woke you up!

If you've been around here long enough you'll remember Clayton. Well... finally after months of talking about it we finally hooked up.

Sunday night he came over to admire the Mac and talk about web development and projects we've got going on. I cooked him dinner and actually, if I had taken him at his suggestion and gone out to eat I would never have burned my fingers.^{See Extended Entry} Guess that's what you get for diffusing the 'potential date' scenario by attempting to create a casual 'friends hanging out at home' vibe. It's either that or it was the cunningly calculated 'ouch, I'm an invalid, can you please 'carve the chicken' for me' man trap ploy...

*bats eyelashes and passes the knife...*

Well, I'm going to out myself just a tiny bit here and show off a project my work/church has produced which is just about released...

We've done a new album, a process I used to be really heavily involved in. Life changed, I changed, the world got turned upside down and for a long time I haven't been wholly appreciative of the music we turned out. But... having stuck it during the intervening years - and while sometimes I still have the occasional 'moment' about it I do have to say we've come a long way.

Seriously. If you have any idea about what church music is like check that at the door and go here for a preview of 'Here We Go' the next offering from CCC Oxford Falls. It's quite a church, like nothing I ever thought I'd be into, and by no means perfect.

But it's home to me. And we like, totally rock out, on a Sunday...

Time Check 1:48 am.

Sleepless in Sydney once again as I stayed up past the 'sleep window' watching tv which was hot on the heels of 3 long chapters of a theology textbook.

Yes blogosphere, you have been forsaken for the joys of deep theological study. Specifically this month, Christology... I just bet you never knew there was such a thing as a deep intellectual branch of science all about Christ. Yep. And I'd be lying if I said I wasn't enjoying this course... I know... it's not normal.

However, I'm not posting about Christology, so if you were about to leave here for more interesting shores, forgive my errant ways and let me waffle on about fasting... another strange and unusual Christian rite/tradition.

Now, I know that mostly fasting is associated with Lent, which is not heavily featured in the Pentecostal calendar. We just fast when we get the urge. And our Senior Pastor got the urge for the church to do a 21 day fast in August.

So? I hear you say, you don't have to fast do you? The answer is of course no, I choose to do this. And for what it's worth, it isn't as though I'm eating NOTHING... actually, I'm doing a partial fast, I simply eat fruit, veges, seeds and nuts, and occasionally some meat. And I drink juice or green tea.

Yeah, sounds like a diet huh? Well, it may have physical benefits as well as spiritual ones, certainly the absence of coffee made its presence felt with the headache and lethargy, but a week into this 21 day course of action and I'm feeling pretty good. (No, no chocolate either... [gasp]).

The next step is to pray, and the flip side of the fast is that there is a roster going for 24/7 prayer, in the prayer chapel (yep, our church has a dedicated prayer building) and tomorrow I'm going to pray for an hour. Got anything you want me to add to the list?

Ooh.. here's the answer to my prayer for tonight...[she yawns].... yep, better head to bed before I miss the next window...

Tis Easter Sunday. Generally considered to be a good day to go to church, if you're of the Christian persuasion, and sometimes even if you simply nod to the Christian persuasion now and again, Christmas Day and Easter Sunday are Days To Go To Church.

So, this is why Dusel and Dorf wanted to go to church with me, and also because they wanted to give their parents the [apparently] quintessential Australian experience. So this evening, all 5 of them arrived at church to enjoy the Easter Sunday services. Which, happily, instead of being subjected to having the thrill of a good meaty sermon, they were able to partake of our annual Easter musical, or passion play.

That wasn't the freakshow part.

Actually, it isn't really a freakshow, but sometimes, when I'm with someone who doesn't usually identify with our expression of worship I put myself in their shoes and wonder if the services don't appear a little that way...

First of all the music simply doesn't sound holy enough... click here for an example... There's no choirs or strings or even any organ type instruments... But we've a plethora of electric guitars, drums and singers...

Second, we even have dancers... (eep I hear you say)... I know, it's strange and unusual... but happily they've come a long way from the streamer waving, tambourine banging, white skirted pentecostal dancers of yore... but stil... dancing in church???

Third, it's noisy... people pray out loud, there is much passionate seeking God from the pulpit...

Fourth, there is much talking about giving and the offering... which, when you are standing in buildings worth a substantial amount of money, all paid for by donations from the congregatiion is likely to feel a little disturbing... our detractors regularly use that as a point of disagreement...

Finally it's mad simply because of the number of people there... to see so many individuals clapping, dancing, and praising God you have to think you've walked in on some kind of cult... I mean, church is so passé these days isn't it? For so many people to be identifying themselves with that kind of organisation there must be some kind of mind control in play right?

At least, these are the things I imagine that people are thinking when they come to church with me.

Dusel has gone home to check us out on the web and google the Captain to see what people out there are saying about him... From what I've seen he won't find much that's derogatory... and after the show, and even after the appeal at the end for 'souls to come home' (Not the terminology used... ) I think we made a good impression.

And if not? Well... they haven't started looking at me as if I'm from another planet.

That has to count for something...

Brad (actually a girl) and Henry got married today.

Sigh.

I went to the wedding with 'the other D' (actually a girl too).

It was great.

I have all sorts of plans for my own wedding and no groom to fit into the plans. But! Another boy is writing to me online... He's local and a writer photographer like me- bonus!

However he is totally freaked out by churches like mine... in fact his most recent epistle (the second he's sent) he launches into a soap box type rant downgrading the most visible of pentecostal expressions/doctrines- speaking in tongues and healing THEN presumes I'm not offended.

Yeah, like THAT's attractive!

Actually, as a formerly non-pente Christian I have seen from the outside in and been equally cautious... but there are charlatans and freaks in all manner of pente and evangelical churches alike. So I can see both sides,( though even from the inside there are occasional times when I'm weirded out.)

Still, I think it's a bit soon for him to be laying a heavy trip on me now about my church - I guess he's establishing the big issues up front... but man, whatever happened to making a friend before you decide on her suitabilility for life partnership!

Sheesh... looks like another one for the compost heap.