Aussie Day

Went kayaking yesterday. There aren't any photos of me, but I did give kayaking a go in a double kayak with my lovely husband.

 Here are some others from the group getting ready and having a go.

There's the double kayak, the one on the right just before that little island in the middle of the water.


Also found an amusing post on a friend's blog, and thought I might share. It comes from http://footprintsaustralia.com/blog/2011/01/25/aussie-aussie-aussie-oi-oi-oi/.

Here is a list of Aussie things.  The ones I have done are bold.

1. Heard a kookaburra in person.
2. Slept under the stars.
3. Seen a koala. (We used to get them the trees in our backyard all the time!)
4. Visited Melbourne.
5. Watched a summer thunderstorm.
6. Worn a pair of thongs (flip-flops for the non-Aussies).
7. Been to Uluru (Ayer’s Rock)
8. Visited Cape York.

9. Held a snake. (Not a chance!)

10. Sang along with Khe San. (Well the last plane out of Sydney’s almost gone …)

11. Drank VB.

12. Visited Sydney.
13. Have seen a shark.
14. Have used Aussie slang naturally in a conversation.
15. Had an actual conversation with an indigenous Australian.
16. Eaten hot chips from the bag at the beach.
17. Walked/climbed over the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
18. Used an outside dunny, and checked under the seat before sitting down.

19. Seen Chloe in Young & Jackson’s. (Apparently it’s an old nude painting in a bar in Melbourne? Not that I'd be interested)

20. Slept on an overnight train or bus.
21. Been to Sydney’s Mardi Gras

22. Have gone bush-bashing

23. Taken a sickie.
24. Been to see a game of Aussie Rules football.
25. Have seen wild camels.

26. Gone skinny dipping.

27. Done a Tim Tam Slam. (which is??)
28. Ridden in a tram in Melbourne.

29. Been at an ANZAC day Dawn Service.

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset.

31. Held a wombat.

32. Been on a roadtrip of 800km or more.
33. Seen the Great Australian Bight in person.
34. Had a really bad sunburn. (no, but seen my husband have one... told you so honey, you need to wear suncream!)
35. Visited an Aboriginal community.
36. Seen a redback spider
37. Have watched Paul Hogan.
38. Seen Blue Poles in person. (Blue Poles is an abstract painting by Jackson Pollock. It was painted in 1952)
39. Wandered barefoot in the bush/outback.
40. Eaten Vegemite.
41. Thrown a boomerang.

42. Seen the Kimberleys.

43. Given a hitch-hiker a lift. (no way...)

44. Been to Perth.
45. Have tried Lemon, Lime and Bitters.
46. Tried playing a didgeridoo.

47. Seen dinosaur footprints.

48. Eaten Tim Tams.

49. Been to Darwin.

50. Touched a kangaroo.
51. Visited the Great Barrier Reef.
52. Listened to Kevin Bloody Wilson (who??).
53. Killed a Cane Toad (no, I'm extremely squeamish)
54. Gone to a drive-in theatre.
55. Have read and own books by Australian authors. (yep...I'm one of them!!)
56. Visited Adelaide.
58. Been camping.
57. Know the story behind “Eternity”.
59. Visited Brisbane. (yup, still live there..)
60. Been in an outback pub (in the Northern Territory, and by the way, who sells fish 2000kms from the coast? Yuk!!!)
61. Know what the term “Waltzing Matilda” actually means. (not a clue...anyone want to enlighten me??)
62. Gone whale watching.
63. Listened to Slim Dusty.

64. Own five or more Australian movies or TV series.

65. Sang along to Down Under.
66. Have stopped specifically to look at an historic marker by the side of the road.
67. Eaten a 4′n’20 pie.

68. Surfed at Bondi.

69. Watched the cricket on Boxing Day. (grandparents fault...)
70. Visited Hobart.
71. Eaten kangaroo. (both wild and store bought...wild wasn't quite cooked, but it was made by authentic indigenous ladies in the middle of the bush, miles from anywhere...a truly Aussie experience!!)
72. Seen a quokka (which is??)
73. Visited Canberra.
74. Visited rainforests.
75. Used a Victa lawnmower (never mowed a lawn..thats what men are for!)

76. Travelled on a tram in Adelaide. (never been there)

77. Used a Hills hoist. (does that include swinging on them???)
78. Visited Kata Tjuta (the Olgas)
79. Used native Australian plants in cooking.
80. Visited the snow. (no, ah so deprived!)
81. Chosen a side in Holden VS Ford.
82. Visited the desert.

83. Been water skiing.

84. Read The Phantom

85. Visited Parliament House.
86. Gone spotlighting or pig-shooting.
87. Crossed the Nullarbor.
88. Avoided swimming in areas because of crocodiles.
89. Listened to AC/DC.
90. Called someone a dag.
91. Voted in a Federal Election. (You have to! I would anyway)
92. Have been swimming and stayed between the flags.
93. Had a possum in your roof. (it died right above my room, and the fluids leaked into my room through the moulding making it unlivable for weeks. The smell was terrible!!! To this day, the sight of a possum makes me feel ill. People think they're cute..I know better!!! Uck!!)
94. Visited the outback.
95. Travelled over corrugated roads.
96. Hit a kangaroo while driving (played dodgems with dead ones on outback queensland roads).
97. Been well outside any mobile phone coverage.
98. Seen an emu.
99. Have woken to the smell of bushfires.
100. Patted a pure-bred dingo.

101. Seen the Oils live.

A reminder: no matter who you are, everyone can sin

King Solomon had lots of things, and had the kingdom that many people would have dreamed of. Yet he took a wrong turn, and ended up losing it all. Lesson learned: Don't get too sure of yourself that you are immune to sin, and don't hold onto your possessions too tightly.

*********************************************************

But ^aKing Solomon loved ^bmany foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites— ^2 from the nations of whom the Lord had said to the children of Israel, ^c“You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.” Solomon clung to these in love. ^3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. ^4 For it was so, when Solomon was old, ^dthat his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his ^eheart was not ¹loyal to the Lord his God, ^fas was the heart of his father David. ^5 For Solomon went after ^gAshtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after ^hMilcom ²the abomination of the ⁱAmmonites. ^6 Solomon did evil in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord, as did his father David. ^7 ^jThen Solomon built a ³high place for ^kChemosh the abomination of Moab, on ^lthe hill that is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the people of Ammon. ^8 And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.

^9 So the Lord became angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned from the Lord God of Israel, ^mwho had appeared to him twice, ^10 and ⁿhad commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; but he did not keep what the Lord had commanded. ^11 Therefore the Lord said to Solomon, “Because you have done this, and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, ^oI will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your ^pservant. ^12 Nevertheless I will not do it in your days, for the sake of your father David; I will tear it out of the hand of your son. ^13 ^qHowever I will not tear away the whole kingdom; I will give ^rone tribe to your son ^sfor the sake of my servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem ^twhich I have chosen.”

^a [Neh. 13:26]

^b [Deut. 17:17]; 1 Kin. 3:1

^c Ex. 34:16; [Deut. 7:3, 4]

^d [Deut. 17:17; Neh. 13:26]

^e 1 Kin. 8:61

¹ Lit. at peace with

^f 1 Kin. 9:4

^g Judg. 2:13; 1 Kin. 11:33

^h [Lev. 20:2–5]

² Or Molech

ⁱ 2 Kin. 23:13

^j Num. 33:52

³ A place for pagan worship

^k Num. 21:29; Judg. 11:24

^l 2 Kin. 23:13

^m 1 Kin. 3:5; 9:2

ⁿ 1 Kin. 6:12; 9:6, 7

^o 1 Kin. 11:31; 12:15, 16

^p 1 Kin. 11:31, 37

^q 2 Sam. 7:15; 1 Chr. 17:13; Ps. 89:33

^r 1 Kin. 12:20

^s 2 Sam. 7:15, 16

^t Deut. 12:11; 1 Kin. 9:3; 14:21

The New King James Version. 1982 (1 Ki 11:1-13). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

MORNING DEVOTIONS: God's handwriting

God’s Handwriting

January 15

Missionaries Dick and Margaret Hillis found themselves caught in China during the Japanese invasion. The couple lived with their two children in the inland town of Shenkiu. The village was tense with fear, for every day brought terrifying reports of the Japanese advance. At the worst possible time, Dick developed appendicitis, and he knew his life depended on making the long journey by ricksha to the hospital. On January 15, 1941, with deep foreboding, Margaret watched him leave.

Soon the Chinese colonel came with news. The enemy was near and townspeople must evacuate. Margaret shivered, knowing that one-year-old Johnny and two-month-old Margaret Anne would never survive as refugees. So she stayed put. Early next morning she tore the page from the wall calendar and read the new day’s Scripture. It was Psalm 56:3—What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.^*

The town emptied during the day, and next morning Margaret arose, feeling abandoned. The new verse on the calendar was Psalm 9:10—Thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.

The next morning she arose to distant sounds of gunfire and worried about food for her children. The calendar verse was Genesis 50:21—I will nourish you and your little ones. An old woman suddenly popped in with a pail of steaming goat’s milk, and another straggler arrived with a basket of eggs.

Through the day, sounds of warfare grew louder, and during the night Margaret prayed for deliverance. The next morning she tore the page from the calendar to read Psalm 56:9—When I cry unto Thee, then shall my enemies turn back. The battle was looming closer, and Margaret didn’t go to bed that night. Invasion seemed imminent. But the next morning, all was quiet. Suddenly, villagers began returning to their homes, and the colonel knocked on her door. For some reason, he told her, the Japanese had withdrawn their troops. No one could understand it, but the danger had passed. They were safe.

Margaret glanced at her wall calendar and felt she had been reading the handwriting of God.

When I pray, Lord God, my enemies will retreat, because I know for certain that you are with me. I praise your promises! I trust and am not afraid. No one can harm me. Psalm 56:9-11

^* Scriptures from KJV.

Morgan, R. J. (2000, c1997). On this day : 265 amazing and inspiring stories about saints, martyrs & heroes (electronic ed.) (January 15). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.

More flooding..but the waters are receding

Some friends who are closer than myself to the flooding, posted some updates on their blog this morning. Thanks to God that the church was saved, and that the floods did not peak as high as was predicted.

http://tallmoores.blogspot.com/2011/01/floods-rising.html


http://tallmoores.blogspot.com/2011/01/floods-receding.html

Photos on my facebook, compiled from three different people: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=281842&id=642050687&l=9b27f59d94

Other friends facebook albums:
https://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=261615&id=735282529 
https://www.facebook.com/album.php?id=729002344&aid=315537
https://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=32265&id=100000972833741

QLD Floods

A website that may be helpful for those in QLD looking for updated information on the flood situation. This site has been set up as fast as possible to contain a one place resource for people to access news, emergency services, contact numbers, references, news feeds and so on. http://qldfloods.org/

[QUEENSLAND FLOODING] Fairfield Flooding: My old home, and the place where I grew up...

I have been watching helplessly as the place where I grew up and lived goes underwater. This news has been breaking headlines all over the world...but what is worse is when you are trapped somewhere else, unable to help your family and friends... I lived on this block of land for 5 years, and attended this church for over 20 years... and now it is going underwater...

BEFORE

BEFORE

NOW:friends sandbagging the church

NOW: getting things off the floor

NOW: getting things off the floor

NOW: sandbagging

NOW: sandbagging... check out the water creeping up the hill on the right. The water is going to rise another 2 metres today... the church is going to be inundated

NOW: water creeping up sunbeam st

NOW: water creeping up a block away from the church

NOW: the church carpark early this morning... my house is behind the trees at the end of the carpark

BEFORE: Looking at the church from the carpark

BEFORE: My old house, at the end of the carpark

NOW: The carpark

NOW: the carpark

NOW: water creeping up sunbeam st (water is covering sunbeam st on the right)

NOW: I used to walk to work this way. the flood waters rising up ashby st. Very quickly... this is one hour...

NOW: this is the next hour... same photo!

NOW: Fairfield rd/Ashby st intersection, a road I walked many times. Turn left on ashby st to get to the church

The hard part is feeling completely helpless as I watch my home church go under. Please pray for others in this area..