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Freindly Fire

“What I am doing in more that 140 characters”

04/12/2011 New Carp Hunting

After 3 and a half years, my sister-in-law and her husband are returning after galavanting around the world. It has been a long time coming. Most people head away for a few months or a year at the most. Not Mark and Jay. Erin and the rest of the family are well and truly ready for their return this Friday evening. We have had many good times with Mark and Jay and hopefully many more to come. The other day I came across a dvd that held some of the fondest memories. In lieu of their return I thought I would share it here..

So we went on a houseboat holiday on the Murray River, NYE 2007 with Mark’s brother and his wife and a couple of Mark’s cousins. To cut a long story short, we discovered that European Carp like to flail around in the shallows of the river in the late afternoon sun and early morning. Mark, being a the crazy man that he is, happened to bring a spear. Now the thing about carp is that they are vermin. If you catch a carp you can’t legally return it to the water and are required to kill it. They are ruining the river. We decided that we would try to help this problem by ridding the waters of as many carp as we could. Armed with a spear and a net this video documents some of our efforts. Enjoy!

Thanks to Kath and the Captain for putting this video together.

NB: No carp were harmed in the making of this video.. well 2 or 3 maybe.

03/12/2011 Celebrity Status

I’ve never aspired to achieve celebrity status. Some people do all they can to make themselves known – youtube videos, reality TV, shameless self promotion, etc. Others prefer to lay low, avoiding attention at all costs. And others have fame thrust upon them. The other day fame was thrust upon me (and Erin) when I least expected it.

It was our 3 year anniversary. As Erin is very sentimental and loves to reminisce, we went to Killara Estate for lunch, the scene of our wedding reception. We had been there once since our wedding and it was lovely to sit quietly and remember the day. This time we wandered in a found ourselves a table out on the deck. The waitress came out and to our surprise said, “you guys got married here, didn’t you?” She must have been flipping through the photo album that they have on display. We thought there might be a couple of our pictures in there but she seemed to have a very good memory to notice us. After all, I had a dirty big moustache on my face that wasn’t there 3 years ago. We told her that we were back for our 3 year anniversary. To our delight we were offered a free bottle of wine. I wondered if all previous brides & grooms received this generous offer. Feeling pretty chuffed we continued our meal. A few minutes later a very excited man came and sat at our table as I was taking a bite into my pizza. He introduced himself as Kevin and using our names said it was so great to meet us. He said that we are like celebrities at Killara. I was quite surprised. Kevin didn’t work at Killara when we got married so I wondered how he recognised us and even knows our names! He went on to say that we were once of the first couples to have our wedding reception there and that we were like pioneers. He continued to beam as he talked about how our wedding is still talked about and ideas used at following receptions. Eventually it was revealed that there was not just a few photos in an album amongst other wedding photos… there was a whole album of our photos! Our wonderful photographer, Kim Mackay of Kmack Photography, had put together a mock wedding album to promote her business and for Killara to use to promote theirs. So there, on full display and shown to all prospective customers, is our wedding album with our names on the front. Kevin went on to say that he had also seen our photo on the cover on Wedding Bells magazine (which is another story). He seemed genuinely excited to meet us and said numerous times that we are like celebrities. I must admit, I was a little surprised by all the attention, but if it means we get a free bottle of wine each time, it’s all good. They can have our photos on display.

Now it’s got me wondering, with all these photos around the place, I wonder if we will get recognised at the supermarket or out for dinner… “Hey, aren’t you that couple that got married at Killara?” Somehow I think our celebrity status does not extend beyond Killara and probably doesn’t even extend beyond our mate Kevin. Flattering nonetheless.

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28/11/2011 Ideas man

I know I haven’t blogged in a while but thought I better put something on record.

Sometimes I can be a little bit like Hamish & Andy‘s friend ‘Horgs’. Horgs is what can be referred to as ‘an idea’s man’. Every now and then Horgs appears on air to discuss his latest invention or business idea and pitch it to the listeners. He is always coming with new, revolutionary ideas. However, it seems that there is often a glaring flaw to his idea which is quickly pointed out to a dejected Horgs. Yet back to the drawing board he goes and will again, with full confidence, pitch a new idea another day.

I too have come up with some ideas. Some with glaring flaws like Horgs’, others with little or no merit. One of my more recent ideas I believed quite strongly in and still do. It was a little left of field but could really work. Anyway, over a beer I pitched it to a few friends. While some entertained the idea briefly, others flatly rejected as ridiculous.

So the idea.. It originated when I was in England. Many of the urinals in pubs have targets or mini soccer goals to encourage accuracy and give somewhere for wandering eyes to focus. I thought it was a novel idea and provided a small amount of entertainment while making room for another pint or two. I didn’t think anymore of this novelty urinal until I was at the Royal Melbourne Show.

At the Show there was a game at the arcade whereby participants fire water pistols at a target. As the target is hit and water pressure applied, a stuffed Spiderman doll attached to a rope moves up on a pulley system. The first person to get their Spiderman to the top wins a prize. It required accuracy and an ability to maintain consistent and forceful water pressure.

So I put the two ideas together. Imagine a urinal where men line up having paid a fee to enter. After a countdown they urinate at a target. Using a similar mechanism, the first player to reach the top wins a prize (free beer or similar). I think it could work. Sure there are a few things that would need to be ironed out and a few questions to answer, but I think it could be very popular. I reckon there would be plenty of blokes prepared to test their accuracy and urine pressure.

Anyway, after hearing some criticism and negative feedback, I put the idea on the shelf.

This evening though, I received a text message. It said, “Dude your idea was just on 7pm project. Urinals set up as a video game you control the race with your flow haha!”

There are some minor differences in technology, but essentially, it is my idea. I’m claiming it! I should have backed myself and gone with the idea rather than like Horgs, dejectedly shelving the idea and going back to the drawing board.

Here is a news report on the video game urinal.

So what do you think? Would my idea work? Is it too late?

But at least let it be known that I came up with it first.

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18/10/2011 Prison Pen Pal – Update

Firstly I should apologise for not posting in quite a while. It seems it not just the readers of my blog who might be upset about my lack of wordsmithing (spoken like a true wordsmith). You might be wondering how my prison pen pal is going. Truth is, I haven’t written to him since his initial letter followed by my blog post about him. I have meant to write to him, as I have meant to write a blog post, but one thing you should know is that when you start doing home renovations, time quickly disappears. You finish one job and there is always another one waiting. Add to this the fact that I have taken up cycling, time to write has been hard to come by. I say that I have taken up cycling and this is true, but I haven’t really spent much time on the bike. I have, however, spent many hours online looking at the many accessories I must purchase. Anyway, I digress.

I kept thinking I really should write to Mr Carter. After all, I did ask readers of this blog to write a message to be included in my reply if they wish (not too late to do this… read this post and fill in the form down the bottom). A couple of weeks ago I received a Tweet from @grazermawson. He collects the mail at which address Mr Carter writes to. Graeme tweeted the following..

It was a bit presumptuous of Graeme to think that it was a bail request. I tend to think that Mr Carter doesn’t have any ulterior motives. Anyway, as it turns it was somewhat of a ‘hurry up and write back letter’. It actually made me feel quite bad and also sad. It was a much shorter letter so I’ll  type it out again.

Hey how are you doing fine I hope as for me I’m doing alright you been on my mind for the last few weeks did you get my letter with all of my informtion i send to you can you please write me and let me know if you got my information i read your letter again last night i was going threw my mail and came across yours looked at the date and felt I get at you because I know for a fact I wrote you right away I want to help you with your blog God bless you.

So I feel a little bit bad for not writing back to him earlier. Obviously he is quite lonely and has a lot of time on his hands. It seems that letters he receives are cherished. I think it shows even more that writing to a prisoners is actually quite a good thing to do.

Now I’ll stop writing about writing and actually write.

14/09/2011 Are we friends?

I have 423 friends. Well actually in reality I don’t have that many but according to Facebook I’m pretty popular. Sometimes I think I have too many Facebook friends. 423 is far too many to keep in contact with and it’s even far too many to Facebook stalk. Recently I came up with a rule that determines whether I accept future requests. It is this: If I saw this person in the street would I stop to say hello or pretend I didn’t see them? If they are worthy of a hello, they can be considered a friend. If I would look the other way then I don’t need them clogging up my timeline. I think this is a good rule to go by. However, I still have the issue of the many FB friends that I have added or accepted back when I thought it was cool to have heaps of friends. These are the people that I don’t talk to, don’t see and don’t really have any intention of rekindling any lost friendship with. I could do what many people do and go through and perform a cull followed by a very annoying message that says something along the lines of ‘If you are reading this, congratulations you are still my friend.’ I don’t really want to do this. But there is another option..

Earlier this year I was in Copenhagen visiting a friend. One Sunday my wife and I went along to his church. The whole church service is in Danish so there was headphones available so that we could have the sermon translated into English by a guy who spoke into a microphone from the back of the church. The receivers weren’t working this particular Sunday so half-a-dozen English speakers huddled around the translator and listened intently. The translator was a guy by the name of Rune Toldam. We got chatting to him after the service and found that he was  very funny and likeable guy. Now in Copenhagen everyone is very fashionable. The guys could be described as what we might refer to as extreme metrosexual. Rune told a story of time when he was in Sydney and was wearing a bright purple scarf – totally acceptable in Copenhagen but can be misleading in Sydney. Rune told us how a guy began chatting to him one night and because he was traveling by himself Rune welcomed the opportunity to make a friend from Sydney. However, his scarf was like a red rag to a bull. This man was wanting more than friendship.. Immediately I thought, this Rune is a funny guy and as you do, I added him as a friend on Facebook.

A few weeks later I received an email from Rune. We had not spoken since visiting his church. In fact we hadn’t even poked each other or liked each other posts. Suffice to say, I was surprised to receive an email from him. It read as follows;

Dear friend
This is a friend request. I am undertaking a full review of my current ‘friends’ as defined by Facebook and would like you to confirm whether you in fact would like to continue our friendship together. I am writing because I would like to stay friends with you, but I need you to take the time to confirm that we are in fact friends and you wish to continue the friendship.
If you wish to do so, please copy the following text into an email, type in your name and send it to runetoldam@email.com or through Facebook. All submissions should be sent no later than 16/02/2011 at 23:59.
I (your name) hereby confirm that I am friends with Rune Toldam.
If you have any questions about the project you are welcome contact me via phone (+45——–) or email.
Your current friend,
Rune Toldam

I must admit, I was a little taken aback but the upfront-ness of this request. I appreciated it but at the same time felt very challenged. I had to ask myself, ‘am I really a friend of Rune?’ ‘Can I maintain this friendship or am I just a number?’ Rune is a really cool guy and someone that I could imagine being friends with but the reality is that I don’t know him. I cannot call myself his friend. Sure it’s good to have a token Danish friend but I didn’t really like seeing status updates that I could understand. All things considered, I decided that I should let Rune know that I can no longer remain his FB friend. I could have done this simply by ignoring his letter but felt that he deserved an explanation. So I sent him this reply;

Hi Rune.
I’m not sure what time it is now in Copenhagen but I’m pretty sure I’ve missed the cut off time.
However, upon reflection I have decided that I should be removed from your friends list. This is in no way a slight on your character of friend-worthiness. In our short time together I appreciated your humour and fine translating skills, yet our geographical separation would make it hard to be a worthy friend of yours. While Facebook makes communication possible, it is not enough for you to consider me a true friend. Perhaps if our paths cross again this may change, but it would not be appropriate to remain your Facebook friend at this time. It also doesn’t help that I can’t understand you’re status updates.
So for these reasons I am requesting that you remove me from your friend. I felt it necessary to write to you with this request since you took the time to write to me.
Please do not be offended by this request. Let me reiterate that it’s not you, it’s me.
I hope that one day we will meet again and rekindle our Facebook friendship.
Your former Facebook friend,
Brad Freind

He took it well and wished me a great life. I didn’t think any more about Rune until today when I began thinking about my glut of FB friends. I remembered that Rune had set up a webpage which documents his quest to answer the question ‘are we friends?’ So I found his website arewefriends.org and discovered a few things. Firstly, Rune has made all his resources available so that others can ethically cull their friend list. Secondly I discovered that not only has my name been removed from his list, but it also has a big cross through it!

After feeling quite offended I realised by watching his videos that the big cross is for those who did replied but declined friendship. Surely there would be a nicer way of marking it than with a big red cross!

Anyway, Rune and his project got me wondering whether I could complete a similar undertaking to minimise my friend list. He has provided everything I need to do it. Have a watch of his intro video and let me know what you think.

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06/09/2011 Prison pen pals – the reply

Sorry for the delay in posting. I’ve been planning on writing for ages.. but new hobbies and house issues seem to take up a bit of time.

This particular post I am very excited to write. If you usually read my blog you will remember that I wrote to a prisoner in America after hearing about prison pen pals. I wasn’t sure if this guy was genuine or going to reply at all.. well after a couple of weeks a letter came in the mail with my name on it! Excitedly I ripped open the envelope that was addressed with nice cursive handwriting. I flicked through the content of the envelope to find several photocopies of newspaper articles and photos. Eventually I came across a letter that had been typed on a type-writer. It was written without the use of punctuation so is a little difficult to follow. Mr Carter is all too happy to share his story as is evidenced by his letter and newspaper cuttings. He has no issues is sharing this story with you too. I thought about summarising what he wrote but thought it might be better to let him tell it himself. So here is exactly what was written.. ( key sections in blue)

hi how are you doing fine i hope as for i’m doing alright i was happy to here from you and i would love to help you out can i send you a picture of me and something i would like to put together let me know what all you want from me well let share a few things with you i’m a gang prevention counselor at this prison ive been working with these kids sense 2006 when i first came to the group alot of the kids felt i was putting alot on it and they didn’t think i new snoop dog and the rest of the crew so one day this lil kid from oakland was super wild and he had just got out of camp and all these kids at the foster home was scared of him because he had just got out of camp and he was the biggest dude there so i asked my home boy to let me use the calander we did for snoop dog, warren gee and nate dog r.i.p. when i showed it to that kid i let all the air out of him he was like dam seeing the history of my ex gang and snoop dog and all the homies who are dead in a wheel chair or in jail men and women some inmates in the group went behind my back and told the head dude of the group that i was bragging to the kids that i was in a gang so he asked me to show me what i been showing the kids so one of the dudes in the group was sitting with me while i had a blood in my face as i was showing him some of my friends and this old white dude been in the group for along time as i was showing the youngster my materials i slid it to wolf and even him was amazed at what i was showing the kid so when we got to education me and him and the head dude of the group went to a class room by ourself when i showed the head dude all of what ive been showing them kids his mouth dropped open and like i was telling him you cant name 5 people when you where there age died gang related he was tongue tied and added a gang prevention to the group before you new it a grip of people was coming to see my gang presentation so one day the discovery channel came and they had heard about it and asked me would i like to get put it on film and that’s how my name got real none pretty fast another thing made feel good all the gang members that i had a chance to get at they bring in there friends and say watch this and that’s what makes it all worth it to me so i sent on line my.space but i wasn’t sucessfull so i can use your help my video is out there but its the small version enough of that well i’m from long beach calif i’m a ex 21 street insane crip sense 1981 i was 11 when iu got jumped in and now i’m 41 years in these self help groups going to church and these bible study groups going to school and doing whats right and keeping these kids on the right track i also work with parents who lost there kids in the streets called the healing circle their stories will rip you apart i’m a good person and i treat people the way i like to be treated i am dead to the streets so i figure it will be best for me to reach outside this prison to answer your question about what made me change my life style is this i went to prison in 1990 for murder and took a 6 year deal for manslaughter i was in new folsom in 98 and me and this somoan crip from park village compton crip and he told me he didn’t have alot of respect for my ex gang and i was like what do you mean by that so he told me that his girlfriend kid had became retarted some of my home boys had went in a hamburger stand and shot her baby daddy while he was holding there new born baby so i told him that was my crime partner and i ask him would he please let me tell her that i was sorry for what had took place and saying to myself that i need to do something about keeping the newer generation from doing what we did because look at how alot of us turn out for the worst so the first thing i had to do is stop gang banggin and ask god to forgive me for all the foul things i ever done the full time i was in a gang something i feel bad about now that i’m older you don’t need to keep me anonymous i want to help that’s why i went on line and hopefully i can find somebody who like to come see me i’m very lonely and far away from my city so i don’t get visits like i would like to with my mom and sister here is some of my work let me no what all you will like for me to say and i will do it ask me anything you want and i will be truthfull with you god bless

So it seems I am writing to a friend of Snoop Dog! I don’t know about you, but I found that fascinating reading. Here is guy with a heap of regrets but is doing something to make things better. The newspaper cuttings he sent suggest that his talk about gang prevention programs is real and genuine. He is serving a life sentence but still wants to make something of his life. That is certainly commendable. The other thing that is clear is that he is very lonely. As quick as would be possible he wrote this reply and took to great care with his response. No doubt he is hoping for ongoing correspondence. It is also great to hear him speak of his faith in God and need for forgiveness.

So I will write to him again. Here’s the plan.. if you would like me to include your own message to Mr Carter, write in the form below and I’ll forward it on. You can write as much or as little as you would like. I think it would be great to be able to give him a couple of messages.

I hope you enjoyed reading his letter. Stay tuned for more correspondence from my prison pen pal.

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07/08/2011 My saddle’s waiting

Recently Cadel Evans became Australia’s new hero when he won the Tour de France. It was a massive effort and had Australians suddenly taking interest in race that had been going on for three weeks. We all love a winner and Cadel was a winner of momentous proportions. Now, while I am obviously very happy for Cadel, I couldn’t help but feel a little bit bitter.

I had decided before the start of the tour I would become a cycling fan. This is not a decision I took lightly. It was a decision that required commitment. I could not casually follow the tour by reading updates in the newspaper the next day. For me to become a cycling fan I needed to commit to 3 weeks of of staying up until 2pm watching SBS (even though the viewing is only G rated..). So from day one of the Tour de France, I was there. I’ll admit, my cycling knowledge was limited, in fact, the majority of it came from reading Lance Armstrong’s book titled ‘It’s not about the bike’. As the tour went on I began to understand the intricacies and grandeur of this great race. It was fair to say, I was hooked. My interest in the race was further whetted by the fact that an Aussie, Cadel Evans was right in contention.

After about the first week of racing I decided that I would not just be a cycling fan, I would become a cyclist. I began a casual peruse of eBay to see how much money would be required to get on the road. Before Cadel had won I had determined to become a cyclist. I had done the hard yards of staying up late every night. I was a true fan who would soon become a participant in the great sport of cycling.

So perhaps you can imagine my frustration that as Cadel rode the final stage to victory now every man and his dog was a cycling fan. Those who had not shown any interest in the race were now claiming ‘our’ Cadel. All of a sudden, everyone is a cycling fan, even those who didn’t even stay up to watch any of the race. What’s more, it seems everyone now wants to become a cyclist. It’s a classic case of bandwagon jumping. Now, I know there will be those that will accuse me of doing likewise but I must retort by making it clear that even if Cadel had finished dead last, I would still have watched the race and my decision to buy a bike and take up cycling would still stand.

Since my decision was made to become a cyclist, I have had to make a few tough decisions in order to fund this new venture. Over the past couple of weeks I have sold my much loved bass guitar, and my hastily purchased and scarcely used keyboard. Still with a limited budget I have been trawling through eBay looking for the perfect bike. Unfortunately due to Cadel’s success, so is everyone else so this has been quite difficult.

The more I look at bikes, the more I desire. You could even say I lust. Some bike retailers will tell you that their bikes are sexy. I cannot deny this. Whenever I go into a bike store I feel as though the bikes are singing to me Ginuwine’s hit song from 1996 that says, “my saddle’s waiting, come and jump on it”. I am attracted to bikes. I can’t stop looking at them. It so extreme that my wife has accused me of spending more time looking at bikes than with her. She has also accused me of, ‘just going through another phase’, but that’s another story.

Despite my limited budget, my sights are set high. I want a really nice bike. So I set out with @ultrafernandez on Saturday on a quest to find the perfect bike. There are multiple bike shops within range of one another so we hit them up equipped with some internet based knowledge and a willingness to barter. There was some really beautiful bikes but nothing that would fit my price range. I was feeling a little dejected until the salesman in one shop pressed a few buttons on his computer and offered me a price that seemed too good to refuse. The bike was magnificent, a stunning piece of machinery. It was exactly what I’m looking for – a bike with class and style and price tag that suggests I’m not batting out of my league. With this bike though, I am batting above my average. The deal has not yet been finalised but I’m happy to unveil the bike that will transport me thousands of kilometres over bitumen surfaces. Here it is.. the Cannondale CAAD8 6.

Hopefully within the week I will have this bike at home so that I can look at it and marvel at it’s beauty. All that’s left is to get me some lycra and work out how to ride it. I did have a test ride at a bike shop. I started off a little shaky but managed to stay upright at least.
I’m really looking forward to getting out on the road with my riding buddies, Dusty, Steve and Matt. Together we are going to make a formidable riding team. I have November 11th penciled for our first event, a 75km on the Eastlink freeway. I think it’s doable.

We are currently taking suggestions for team names. Please submit suggestions using the form provided below.

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21/07/2011 Prison pen pals

The Internet really is an amazing invention. It never ceases to amaze me what weird and wonderful stuff can be found online. This morning two things on the more wacky side of things were discussed in my office. Richard, an avid Costo shopper alerted us to the fact that they have a range of coffins and urns that can be purchased online. Great to know! If I ever need to purchase a coffin, that’s where I’m looking. Costco of all places. Next you know, Aldi will be stocking them. They often have some bizarre stuff. Speaking of Aldi, I got the Aldi iPhone app the other day. It tells me all of this week’s specials. For example, you can buy dining chair covers for $12.99 or an anti-fatigue mat for $19.99. You just never know what you might find at Aldi. No caskets though. Costco has them covered there. I wonder if you can pay one off over 50 years.. If they ever have a sale it might be worth getting in quick.. well, not literally in.

Even more bizarre than coffins online is the fact that there are websites set up (eg. www.prisonpenpals.com) whereby you can find a prisoner to become pen pals with. There are literally thousands of prisoners who are looking for a pen pal. There are even sites dedicated to inmates on death row! Their profiles are posted complete with photo, what they are locked up for and their own little spiel. Here’s an example of a meth manufacturer from Illinois..

I’m a 30-year-old single, white male looking for female companionship. I’m 5 ft. 11 inches. I weigh 170 lbs. It’s mostly muscle ladies. I work out 5 days a week. I have brown hair and hazel eyes. I was born Jan. 10th 1981. Yes ladies I’m a Capricorn. Some of the things I enjoy are music, movies, reading and any other kind of outdoor activities. I’m pretty open minded when it comes to entertainment. I love to have fun.
Well, right now not too many people write I’m hoping to find someone to connect with, and talk to. It can get lonely in here ladies. As far as relationships go I’m pretty open-minded. We can see where it goes and if we connect on a good level then we can decide to take it to the next stage or not. I’ve got 20 months left to do at Logan Correctional Center figure it out. I hope to hear from you soon.

It almost sounds like a dating site for prisoners! It never occurred to me that something like this would exist. The wonders of the internet!

Now, although I find this whole concept a little bit strange and amusing I also find it quite intriguing. I can imagine that for someone who is behind bars and with little correspondence with the outside world, a letter from a stranger could absolutely make their day. I’ve been perusing prisoner profiles for a little while and there are those who are looking for love but there are also those who are incredibly lonely and craving interaction with someone outside of the prison walls.  It would be so isolating being in prison and sure they have committed crimes that have led to conviction and incarceration but surely they are still worthy of receiving some sort of real world interaction.

So I’m going to get myself a pen pal. After searching the listings I’ve found a guy who would be great to write to. Here’s what his profile says..

I am currently an inmate at San Quentin State prison. I am serving a 17 to life sentence for an alleged gang related attempted murder. I must say that as I look back and see the error of my ways I become filled with regrets.
Although, I may not be able to change my past I have changed my present. I now work with at risk youth to warn them of the unseen pitfalls of the glamorized “gansta” lifestyle. I am currently working on a series of gang prevention DVDs to be shown to inner city youths. I am attempting to give back the money to my community but to communities across the nation. However I cannot make contributions to society without the help of people from the other side of these walls.
I am looking for friendships with those who feel that I can help their youth or make their community a safer place by sharing my story.

What I’m going to do is include correspondence on this blog, with the prisoners permission. I’m not sure if this will work but hopefully people who read this blog will also be able somehow get to know this guy.. I think it will be great just to hear his story if nothing else.

 

14/07/2011 City and Colour – Make Believe

I came across this song yesterday. I’m a big fan of City and Colour and love this song. It’s got some really interesting lyrics which I might post some thoughts on one day. Feel free to comment with your thoughts and I’ll try to interact with them when I post my response. Hope you enjoy!

I was raised in catholic school,
taught to obey that one golden rule
That is, He who sits in the Heavens above
deserves all your praise, devotion and your love
Because he had a son who had died for our sins
And with that sacrifice came a sense of contrition
That we all seem to feel when we’re down on our knees
looking up to die hoping he’ll answer all our needs
But I tend to believe that it’s all for not
and when the sun does set, all our souls will rot
along with our flesh and our bones and our blood
will seep into the earth reconnecting with the mud
And I think to myself, what a beautiful lie
to waste being devote to what could all turn out to be a lie
To be a lie
Now I do not know, but I have been told
If you don’t believe in Him, well then the devil owns your soul
But let us just examine what’s below this land
It’s the story of a man with a pitchfork in his hand
Could you honestly believe in such a tall, tall tale
Something that sounds so make believe just like the sailor and the whale
Well I guess that this song has sealed my own fate
Lucifer won’t take me, ain’t crossing through no pearly gates
But if either one exists well that’s fine by me
I will gladly spend the afterlife waiting in purgatory, purgatory

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07/07/2011 Charles the friendly giant

I asked mum to scan an email me a picture which has now been added to the post ‘Football Redemption‘. However, I enjoyed the photo so much that I felt it deserves it’s own post. So here it is..

This photo is of my grade 5&6 football team. As you can see, there is one abnormally large player in the middle. That is Charles, or Chuck as he was known. Unfortunately Chuck has a growth disorder, hence his massive body. Despite his obvious physical differences and intellectual impairment, everyone loved Charles. Such a friendly Giant. He reminded me a lot of the one-eyed monster in ‘The Goonies‘. Such a likeable fella. Not sure where Charles is now. I do occasionally wonder if I will see his name in the Guiness Book of Records one day..

Also in this photo you’ll see me. See if you can work out which one I am. I’ll give you a clue.. I’m not second from the right in the second row – that is Ahmed. So is the kid first from the right in the front row and the one two to the left of Charles..

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