Hawke's Bay Experience

I just had an awesome weekend. It was just what I needed (ironically) to recover from the staleness of the holidays. Brent and I travelled up to see our friend Dave P who is currently in Hastings doing a teaching placement. I haven't really seen either Brent or Dave for a while so it was good being around old mates- we go back to 'Carrington days'.

So I caught the train up to Masterton on friday night, and Brent and I drove up from there. The train was good- let me catch up on some sleep ;). It took us about 3 hours to drive up to Hastings from Masterton- with only a minor glitch where we got lost in the hick town of Waipukarau. It was our own fault as we were making jokes about how much of a metropolis it was and how much the local bars were going off, so we missed the turn off. Haha, it was pretty funny, and we were a lot more careful least other small towns also decided to bite back. Upon reaching Dave's Dad's place it was rather funny as once we had said our hello's we hit the sack. We were such a bunch of old men that night.

Resultingly, Saturday was a pretty early start- well a civilized 8:30. I discovered where Dave's great passion for food comes from. His Dad, Nelson, makes a mean bacon and eggs! Brent then went to test ride a motorbike while Dave and I lead him around in Dave's car. As that was such hard work, Dave and I had a deep fried moro bar and Brent an icecream on top of Te Mata peak. This gave us an amazing view of the Hawke's Bay and its surroundings. It was also incredibly sunny and warm. Seeing that Dave's Mum had invited us around for lunch, we went for a walk/bush bash through the redwood plantation on the side of Te Mata peak. It was so hot, yet amazing to be walking through some very tall timber. What an adventure- as we were running late we took some short cuts up and over some fairly steep land. note to self, shoes with grip do have their use.

Lunch with Dave's Mum, Rachael and her partner Peter, was a delicious experience. She had prepared some amazing vege soup with lentils, celery, carrots, chickpeas, kumara and many other bits and pieces. It was yummy! Accompaning it was tomato bread with sun-dried tom's from New world and some cheese and crackers for aftersready . I tell you, I'm glad we went for that walk, otherwise we might not have fitted into Dave's corolla. We then visited Dave's old school and went to the driving range. I have to admitt, it was an experience going to Dave's school as it was a Rudolf Steiner school, and not your normal state school. Apparently it's a very different way of learning, and although probably not for me, I can see that it would have had several advantages and disadvantages to your 'normal' state school. I don't think I'll discuss them here though.

To continue our adventure, I shall take you back to Te Mata peak, from which our three adventurers spotted a winery from the distance. And so, the idea to go wine tasting was brought forth. Well, for Brent and Dave- I don't handle wine too well so I drove. In our finest casual gears, we visited Blackbarn and Te Mata winerys. Although they didn't buy any wine, I found myself engrossed with the culture of the places and brought a poetry book by the NZ poet laureate, Brian Turner. There are some really cool poems in there- loving it! To finish off our cultural experience we drove around some of the newer subdivisions of Havelock North (the 'posh' satellite town of Hastings) and laughed at some of the new sub-divisions.

For tea, we discovered that Nelson also cooks a mean casserole. His kitset pie was amazingly tender and a bit of fun on the side. In a "its a small world" moment, I also discovered that Nelson's partner was my psych registrars ex wife. A little crazy i admit. After tea we went to Ocean Spa in Napier. This is a hot salt water pool, and a relaxing way to end the day. Well not quite an end- there was the matter of 4 games of Risk afterwards to complete the night.

This morning we slept through the sunshine. After yesterday's brilliant day, we were quite ready for a quiet one. So, off to New World for a fry up. Saussies, tomatoes. hash browns, bacon and eggs. Yummy, although incredibly bad for you. And by that time we were off, as I had to catch the train back home.

It was nice to be around old friends again, not that my new ones are bad by any stretch, in fact I'm very blessed to have them. but there is something about that familiarity that is just so... relaxing. I am very greatful for this weekend and would trade it for anything- well at least two weeks holidays.

Right, it is now thundering, so I am off to bed.

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Lesson learnt

Well, I'm a little bit embarassed about this but...
On Saturday night I was helping out with the IG2s (youth group). Unfortunately I was running late, so I was pushing certain laws. Like yellow lights. In front of a police car. Not the smartest move in the world. And defintitely a far world away from braking at every yellow light I came across in Dunedin. Man, there were some stops there going along Frederick St towards church. But yeah as I said not smart, and definitely an expensive way ($150) to learn to be organised. Darnit. Fessed up straight away, and the cop was as nice as you can be given the circumstances. I will be more careful from now on.

In other, slightly less exciting news I got my thesis back as previously reported. I guess I was a bit non-plussed about it. Partly due to the fact that I wanted a bit more, partly because I was disappointed at some of the errors, and partly because I really didn't want to have to do more work on it. I think that although I enjoyed the experience, research isn't for me. I definitely enjoy the clinical aspect way too much. I also think there's way more impact in the clinical world too. The number of people, both good and bad, are such a blessing. Speaking of which, I haven't actually seen a patient for a month. Given a two weeks of holidays and tutorial weeks both sides of the holidays I can not wait until Thursday- even if it will be a big scary experience in a Psych ward.

Speaking of Psych, I'm actually really enjoying the tutorials. I actually find them fascinating, and I quiet like the freedom that you have to explore many issues. I think the 'no right answer' policy is cool too ; ). I could see myself quiet enjoying psych, and although its considered medicine's poor cousin, there is a real need for it. I can also see where a lot of my theories of the Church fit into Psych and mental health issues. But in saying that, I'm not sure what my experiences will be like with the patients so I'll reserve my judgement until then.

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Late last night (Split Enz 197?)

Ah, the very first split enz video clip that I ever saw. It was so weird, I immediately became a fan.

I thought a random moment would be an interesting way to start a blog. So much has happened I'll try keep it in bite-size form. Because it's more of a collection of random thoughts, I thought I'd try using subtitles rather than paragraphs.

Badminton
I had the priviledge of going to see my brother's badminton game on Friday. It was so amazing. Apparently one of the guys was 3rd in Oceania. Unfortunately, he was not on my brother's team. But the shuttle cock was hit so hard. I had no idea it became a tracer bullet in the right hands. Ok, so Greg's school team lost 7 games-0, but it was very hard fought, and was kinda inspiring to try something like that myself. Yes, with all that free time I have I know.

Girls
I was talking with a friend's flatmate the other day, and he said something that was really wise. "The hottest chicks are the ones with Jesus shining through them". Ok, that's a real rugby guy quote- which is appropriate because this guy basically has no neck and loves his rugby. But the more I thought about it, the more I realised that it really was Christ that was attractive about many girls. That Christ was the most desirable thing about them. And then I realised that the reverse must be true as well. That's quite an unexpected (although welcome) benefit of "seeking first the kingdom".

Integrity
Recently The Rt Hon David Benson-Pope, MP, has been stood down from cabinet for allegations of abuse in his past life as a school teacher. This follows a line of other MPs who have been stood down, then eventually removed from cabinet because of past indiscretions. Dover Samuels for sexual assualt (?), John Tamihere for previous business dealings and so on. I suppose I could throw Graham Capill in there as well for sexual assualt of a child, although he never actually made it into parliament, and it was during his term as leader of the Christian Heritage party. It makes me think about how important it is to be a person of integrity always, not just when you are in the spotlight. It is a pity that your past can come back to bite you, especially in these guys cases, as they were all fairly talented high-ranking politicians.

Pedometer
The latest fad in exercise seems to be the pedometer- a wee gizmo that measures the number of steps you take each day, Its been made (in)famous by the “diet witch” on “eat yourself whole” (TV2 sometime- before Scrubs I think). Anyway, there was an article on it in the paper the other week, so I went and borrowed my mother’s, as she’s not currently using it. It’s quiet good, and for the 3 days that I’ve used it, I’ve achieved the goal of 10’000 steps twice. Although, predominantly females have picked it up, its so small and discreet it hides quiet well on the back of my belt, and at the moment it seems to be encouraging me to walk a lot more. I guess that I haven’t had the same encouragements to go for runs at the moment, and a weekly touch game is completely out of the question. (Well just unlikely- although getting a rugby ball and kicking around with the boys would be quiet nice). So yeah, at least I’m getting some exercise. In fact I took it on a bit of an adventure today. I walked through the Mt Vic Tunnel. This is about 75 years old, 1km long, dark noisy and smelly. But you know it gave me a totally different perspective in what the tunnel was and looked like. Normally you cruise through there at about 50km/h and its all very narrow- tunnel vision I suppose. But being up on the walkway, I found that you could explore the tunnel more visually, seeing all the wires, cracks in the plaster, the lights and stuff. The noise was bearable, although you did wonder how much car exhaust you breathed in. You also noticed how dumb people look when they honk their horn all the way along the tunnel.

Going out
Kristy wrote recently about going out, and what impact that had. Well, I also went out with a couple of mates on Saturday night. It was interesting, and I confess that beating drunk people at pool isn’t as fun as it sounds. But I guess I’d do it again. I felt that it maintained our relationship- admittedly they are good mates, and it was good to talk “guy stuff” with non-Christians as well. I will admit that it was easier to slip back into old habits while round them, which I found a struggle, but there were also new habits that held firm. Perhaps being salt and light took on its own meaning. One thing that was noteworthy, was some guys that we knew were hassling an intellectually disabled busker on the street. One of them challenged me to donate some money. One of mates said to the challenger, “Don’t tell him that he’s religious”. So although I dislike the term religious intensely, it was kinda cool to know that my presence was noted and that they knew something was different about me.

Thesis
Oh yeah, I got my thesis back on Monday. I got a B+, which is a second class honours. A first class would have been nice, but unnecessary I suppose. I think I'll comment on my reaction to it another time.

Bye

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Upper Hutt Siide Story
(spelling intentional)

Yesterday was a day of great excitement in the city of Upper Hutt. It got full cover coverage in "the Leader", the local newspaper and has been the city's main focus for nearly two years now. Even prior to yesterday's event, people were queueing outside wanting to be the first involved. The elderly, the mums and the dads and even the occaisional child were there to witness this monumentous occaision. Cars were parked for miles around, flooding the CBD with people, a sight unseen for many a while.

Why you ask was all this excitement felt in the sleepy city of Upper Hutt?

We had our brand-spanking newly revamped Warehouse open yesterday. Yes, ladies and gents, our own big red shed came out bigger and better than ever. With all the things you could ever want to buy, plus so much more that you wouldn't on sale at the usual price. Ok, so there were some good bargains, but really!

I love small city life :)

Btw, I actually went in twice, once to take a look, and once to take my one of My Dad's pharmacist's kid in for a wander. Is it sad that the only thing I even considered was this? I think it would sit quiet nicely next to my mini X-wing and TIE fighter. (Thankfully sanity prevailed, and the fact that buying lego in front of a 10 year old would be kinda shame ;))

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Toothless wonder
Sore. Absolute agony. I have never been in so much pain in all my life. The constant aching, and throbbing. The spitting of blood isn’t exactly pleasant either.

Well, that was what I was prepared for at least…
Having my 4 wisdom teeth out seemed to illicit the type of response from people usually associated with fear factor (Mmm, blundered big mac combo). But honestly, it hasn’t been that bad. The surgery took about 40 minutes and I only needed a bit more local anesthetic for the last one. While I wasn’t in any great rush to go out and run a marathon, panadeine kept me very happy. I guess I was pretty blessed in that respect.

I had some interesting “med-geek” bits and bobs while having the op. I noticed heaps of sympathetic responses while my mouth was being invaded. Like my breathing and heart rate went up, and I started sweating really badly. I also gagged a couple of times. Also as my lower face was numbed due to the anesthetic numbing the nerve that supplies the gums and face, I spent most the car ride home trying to discriminate between the sharp tip of a ball point pen and the dull end. That was my geek moment for the holidays- I hope! (If that makes no sense to you, I'm really, really sorry :) )

So apart from watching DVDs (Hero and A New Hope) and random TV bits, I haven’t really done much else. Oh, got a new jacket and shoes from dressmart today. Shoes cost $50- not bad really. That’s pretty much me, yay having holidays.

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Crush
If I spent as much energy on "crushes" as I did on my relationship with God, then how much better would I know Him?

If I can stand and cheer with gusto at a rugby match, how come I won't when I worship God?

If I can spend hours over books and papers, why do I fall asleep during my Bible reading, and why don't I think about it nearly as much?

If I love my friends and family so much, why don't I ususally consider their spiritual wellbeing ever and their physical health often?

And I wonder why it's hard to pray sometimes!

Over the weekend, we had Church camp at Forest Lakes, Otaki. It was pretty cool, and I got to know heaps more of the people at church better. Like Kerry the musician, some of the Asian Cell, Sue the teacher, Richard the Civil Engineer, and got to experience some of the guys in my cell's weird sleeping patterns. Ah, nothing like living with someone for a couple of days to show how unique they are! There was a giant game of cranium, interesting thoughts on the modern church, kids plays, reality theatre, bonfire (with 2.5kg of marshmallows!) and an INK service (worship without song). Oh and 250Km's for 1/3 of a tank. Yeah Baby!

There was also the revelation above, so I'm off now. I also have a Christian docs breakfast tomorrow, followed by the extraction of 4 wisdom teeth. :D

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Wrong profession
It's funny, over the past while I've been listening to patients, grandparents, neighbours, random strangers and the newspaper complain about doctors fees. GP $55, Specialist $90+, not to mention the price of medication these days. Well, now I'd like to have a go.

Took my car in for repairs today. I got a call about 11 O'clock, saying that my brake pads were worn, and that they should do those for an extra $80 while the car was hoisted. So, I went over to the garage, and the CV boot hadn't been replaced, and they'd forgotten to put the WOF sticker on. but in saying that, they were quite good otherwise, and very apologetic.

And then they charged me $324.

I tell you, if it wasn't for God, I'm so in the wrong profession.

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Photos

I've seen a lot of photo's of the World wars recently. Which isn't surprising seeing that it's been Anzac day and all. There were also some photo's in the movie last night. What is surprising, is how I've reacted to them. I've begun to see myself in those photos. Not as hallucinations or anything weird, but seeing those young men in exactly the same place as I am now. Young, idealistic, full of passion, intelligent, developing wisdom, gaining experience, ready to change the world. Some of those guys died, others moved on and moulded the world. And now they're old, with all its advantages and trappings. What gets me is that one day (in many years to come hopefully!), will I look back at my photos so fondly. What type of legacy will I leave? What will I look back on satisfaction, and what will I regret? How does the game end?

I think recently being challenged by sickness and death I've started to think about these things. Not to an obsessional point, but just starting to wonder, and just starting to seek that little bit harder where the next step is. God has ordered my steps this far, and I know that He will order them further. But I also feel that I am being challenged by Him to make the next move. God will still dictate the next big change/move, but I think, there are certain things that I need to move on and develop prior to that. I guess part of it is taking responsibility for what I've been given, that I have been shown how to goal-set, plan etc. and that I should use it. I can also see some things that I can work on, even though they're hard, and I've struggled with them for ages. There are things I'll need help on.

I don't actually know if this is articulated very well, but I thought I'd scribble it down anyway.

I also had an interesting experience today in a tutorial. It was the intro to my Mental Health run, and the tutor was getting us to pick delusional states that he portrayed. This was fairly easy, until he started doing a religousity-delusion. He made claims about being a child of God, with powers of prophecy and healing. When asked why, it was because the Bible told him so. Although we eventually discovered that the onset of these claims were in less than ideal circumstances, (psychotic episode), it was a stark reminder, how Christianity can be portrayed. It was slightly discomforting, but reassuring to hear that my colleagues found it equally as hard to pick. I guess, I need to pray about it more, but it was an interesting experience. It also made me see that my views of the 'sick', are that the disease is the enemy, until the disease is a little close to my reality.

P.S. Warrant of Fitness failed today, Need new brake hoses and CV boot. This is about $200 worth of work. Oh well, having the car more than makes up for it. And a fixed car is always better than one with 1.5 axles and no brakes. Especially on Wellington's hills.

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What a weekend

This actually has been a really refreshing weekend. I feel energized andready to face my new run of mental health tomorrow. It has had its God moments, social moments and moments of shear amazement.

I’d spent most of the week studying for my Neurology (brain)/ophthalmology (eye) and ENT (ear nose and throat) test. I got through this huge ENT handout, which was a real mission. I guess it didn’t help that I had only two clinical ENT exposures. I really enjoyed the ophthalmology part of it because I got heaps of clinical exposure, so that goes on the “maybe” list. Yay, I finally have something to answer when someone asks me “what type of doctor do you want to be?” (barring a good one!)

I was blessed by the fact that my pastor has been praying for me and with me this week. It has really helped me keep my focus on God, rather than my test. In fact, it was really inspirational at the prayer meeting on Thursday, where we just went hard for an hour with another guy, Simon. I haven’t had a good “guy prayer” in ages- it felt so amazing. I’m really glad that I went to it. It made me feel quite refreshed for my test, and I wouldn’t have passed up the opportunity to be in front of the king for the world.

The actual test was ok. Got most of the theory first time round, and 2/3 of the practical stuff (OSCE) worked well. The bits that I didn’t get, I learnt about, so it was pretty good overall.

The Open air was also pretty cool on Friday night. We had a band and some guys from Steiger international school of evangelism came out as well. They’re based in Waikanae but from all over the world. They were amazingly free and full of energy. I think they shocked a few people. But it was good, and gave me a lot to think about.

Saturday, I had the privilege of attending the CE national meeting with Yogs, Dan, Carmi, Sarah Beaumont and Colleen. It was so cool to see peeps who I hadn’t seen in ages. It was also such a good time, and I think the stuff that we talked about was huge, and really impacting. I’d honestly forgotten what it was like to be in a really intensive think tank environment. It was incredibly stimulating. After the meeting, Dan and I got some tea, where the intensive discussion continued over Chinese takeaways. Oh, I should also mention that with Dan’s guidance I parallel parked my parent’s corolla into a space slightly larger (like 10-20cm) than the car. It was so tight, and took about 7 “wiggles” to get into it. Where was that mini cooper when I needed it? Wouldn’t have done it in my car though, so there was a bonus.

Picked up Phil from work at about 9, and we caught the last 20 minutes of the rugby. Victory was sweet! (Hurricanes 49-Brumbies 37). Afterwards we went into Reading and talked for two hours. Yogs had posed the question “Do you have a spirit if you are a non-Christian?” After two hours of intense discussion, particularly “what is your spirit vs your soul?”, we came up with a partial answer. Funnily enough, it relates so strongly to the Gospel. I came away with this amazement of how what we had nutted out, didn’t actually change anything in the world, except my understanding of why we do something, thought about in ways that I’ve never considered before. Again, it was such a privilege to be involved in that discussion which was mainly driven by Dan and Phil.

Failed to get much sleep last night. Really blocked up, and quiet restless.

Which was annoying, because it made me late for church. Which is bad, but doubly so when your hosting someone. Thankfully Sam is big enough to look after himself in these situations. I think he enjoyed it. I enjoyed having him there. We also made the “church’s biggest pikelet” in cell. It was bigger than my head- and barely fitted on an oven tray. It didn’t cook that well, but it was still a challenge. Which is apparently what guys need, according to “wild at heart”. Which I shall add to my things to do this month, maybe.

Also "Bubba Ho-tep" deserves a mention before I sleep. Saw it with Sam and his folks. The basic premise is that Elvis is alive in a Texas rest home because he swapped his life with an impersonator. ends up fighting a soul-sucking mummy with a black guy who claims to be JFK who had a brain transplant into a black guy. B-grade at it's finest, although, my personal highlight was the appearance of Nagodoches, TX as the place where Elvis swaps his life. Sam and I cracked up, it was so funny.

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