Tuesday October 28, 2008
Experience, so much of this job is experience. The more I do the activities with groups and the more I see other people run them the more I will improve.
So the first activity of the day was the hike/swim at the jetty. It was another double activity so my group along with Pete’s group. Pete was setting up for abseiling so I led both of our groups in getting PFDs and walking the 2k trail to the jetty, where we met up with Pete. I had done the walk several times so that wasn’t a big deal and Pete was there when we got there so that all went well.
Back from the jetty we had morning tea and Christian Discovery (CD). Julie did the mean bit then we broke into our groups to cover some discussion questions . . . We talked about who God is; how we tend to get our own ideas about God and “put him in a box” but really we should look to the bible to learn who God really is. So in our groups we looked at some bible passages and pulled out some characteristics of God. We looked at how half of the words eluded to a loving, caring, forgiving God and the other half focused more on powerful, should be feared, God who likes justice . . . I talked about how it was important to remember God is a balance of these characteristics and not just see him as loving and not just as someone to be feared but a God who seeks justice because he loves us and wants a relationship with us.
Working with year nine kids is a whole totally different experience than working with younger kids. Ohhhhh so different. The conversations and topics are deeper; not just the basic bible stories and God loves you message! I’m definitely going to be challenged working here but it will be good I think. Part of me feels like “who am I to be teaching these youth about God and religion? I’m still learning and growing myself” I guess I’ll just keep in mind that it’s okay if I don’t have all the answers and I can always look it up or ask someone after work and get back to them!
After lunch I ran my first low ropes session. I had seen it done with younger kids but as I said, older kids are so different. My briefing went alright and I’m pretty sure I covered everything. Before getting them on the low ropes elements I had them do a few trust activities. I broke them into groups of three to do a “trust pass/fall” but they weren’t taking it seriously so I did a group trust circle instead; where everyone stands in a circle shoulder to shoulder with one person in the middle who falls and gets passed around. This went better but I still had to stop several times to remind them that we couldn’t do the elements if they could not trust each other and if I could not see that they were taking it seriously and were going to be safe. I actually had to have one kid sit out because we finally got this girl to go in the middle of the trust circle and it was going really well and then he did a fake scream and pretended to drop her . . .
So we finally got through that and moved on to the elements. The first one went okay and involved one person walking across a rope with two spotters. But the next one went really well! I was headed toward a similar element to the first one but Scott had his group there so I went to the ring of fire instead and was so glad that I did. Ring of fire involves the whole group getting from one side to the other through a metal rig which is placed about shoulder/head height off the ground. It was really cool to watch as the group worked together and came together through that activity – really cool! Some of the people that were hesitant in the trust circle were now being lifted off the ground and passed through a mental ring by their classmates.
The debrief went alright as well; discussing how our trust had changed from beginning to end and sort of analyzing what made the second activity smoother . . . I think they got something out of it – I hope! We also discussed attitude and how much of an impact that has. I shared the awesome quote “Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it: attitude is everything.” Then I added how our faith / trust in God combined with our attitude can really impact how we go through life . . . It would have been better if they could have somehow arrived at that on there own. That is one thing I really want to work on: asking the right questions and saying the right things to get a group thinking and talking. This I guess will come with experience but I’m sure it also depends on the group. *sigh* so much to learn – but you have to start somewhere.
Next activity, after afternoon tea, was abseiling. I have just spent a weekend getting abseil training but had never seen it run here at Shoalhaven and had never run a session. Julie hiked up with my group, which was good cause I wasn’t 100% positive of the trail, although I’m sure I would have made it fine. We always have someone staffed as “abseil extra” and today it was Alison
So Al and Julz did the briefing as I watched and then helped the students get their harnesses and hardware. We had a 20m, 10m, and 6m cliff set up. I went with Julz to the 6m and watched her belay a few people before she let me take over. First person I made a hugeeee mistake and sat the belay rope on the ground as I attached her onto the abseil line. Really, really bad as the whole point of the belay line is that I am holding on to them in case they fall.
Other than that the belaying was okay. I need to work on coiling the rope as I bring it back up and various other things but I think I have them main idea down. Abseiling is definitely one of the more involved activities I guess – a lot to learn. After this weekend, I think I’m pretty set on how to set up but I need to keep practicing and actually use it or I’ll loose it. I have some spare rope at home so I’m going to practice with that!
I definitely have a lot to learn still but the more experience and the more I see it run the more I will improve.
I feel sometimes like I’m just standing around not being helpful and there is something I should or could be doing. But again I guess more time and experience will help me know what to do and what needs to be done. For now I just keep asking “what can I do?” “Is there something I can do / should be doing . . .” I really like this job and want to do it well. I can’t believe there’s already only about five more months left of me working. I’m afraid that by the time I get fully confident and comfortable it s going to be time to leave. Hummmm . . . Trying to take it all in, retain it, get as much experience as I can, and learn from every opportunity.
Busy week – we all agreed that it already feels like Friday but it is only Tuesday! Tomorrow is going to be crazy as this group is leaving at 1:30 after lunch but the next group is due in at 10:30am. That should be interesting and crazy!
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
My First Group
Monday October 27, 2008
The Group: Holy Spirit College (Catholic High School)
The age: Year 9
Numbers: 11 groups of 15 (about 160 campers), 12 teachers
Wow so first group all on my own. Year nine – phew. It didn’t take long to realize they were going to be a whole different ball of wax than the year three and four kids I had spent the last two weeks with.
I had to be firm, I had to be confident, I had to be consistent and not let down. My biggest challenge was just getting them to stop talking and listen to my instructions. After being in the classroom, I have come up with several strategies for getting the attention of younger kids, but all would be inappropriate with this age group. For the most part just starting to talk would work but yeah, there are always “those few.” :-P
So the day began with Monday morning breakfast and devotions before we moved into setting up for the group, which includes many various jobs. The group arrived at 10:30 (half an hour early) but by the time they had their bags set down and were all in the meeting room for their “welcome to camp talk,” we were back on schedule!
Since it is such a large group, the girls are staying up at Koolona, about a five minute walk from Waterslea, where the boys are staying, where all the meals are being held and the activities are being run from. So after the talk, given by Julie, I helped walk the girls up to Koolona to drop off their stuff and get ready for their first activity of the day.
Back to Waterslea for a hectic lunch! 170 is a lot of people!! Apparently the dinning room can by set to seat 200 but I don’t know how that would work as you can barely squeeze behind the chairs now. The first meal is always the craziest, especially with this many people! But it all worked out and activity session 1 started on time at 1:30.
My first activity was orienteering. I think I have already explained this but basically they are given a map and are set out to find different wooden markers around the site and record the name of the bird written on the marker. For the older kids, we also give them a compass; have them take a bearing when the find the marker and then record the man made object at that bearing.
Before introducing orienteering, I sat them in a circle and went through their names and had them tell me something interesting about themselves, which most of them struggled with. I didn’t actually care if they told me something interesting or not I just wanted some time to repeat their name in my head over and over!!!
I also went ahead and told them about my eyes and how they might not think I’m looking at them . . . younger kids don’t seem to have as much of an issue with it but I could tell it could be one with this group so figured I’d get that out there from the start. Kind of funny cause then one of the girl’s interesting things was “I have the same eye problem as you” huh.
So yeah, orienteering went pretty well. It’s a pretty easy activity to run once you explain it. Did a debrief at the end where they choose a word from a pile and used it in a sentence to describe their experience – some where better than others but that is to be expected. Also asked them about their team work within their groups. . .
Afternoon tea then onto activity two – canoeing. Ohhhhh if an activity could crash and burn wow yeah. Just a mess. Lots of factors contributed to this hectic, chaotic canoe session! I would say “unorganized” would sum it up pretty well.
Since there are 11 activity groups this week a lot of the activities are doubled up – meaning two groups are there at the same time. So instead of the usual one instructor out with their 15 kids + someone in the power boat, it was 2 instructors and 30 kids. It was crazy. Could have gone alright had we just split and taken our groups separate ways instead of trying to keep them together. I won’t go into too much detail now but we’ll just say it was a learning experience! Then after we got off the water and the canoes stacked away the kids pretty much headed off, leaving paddles . . . It was 5:00 so the session was technically over but that didn’t give a chance to debrief at all. I’ve decided I’m going to debrief in the morning just cause I think we need some closure on that – or maybe at least I do!! Sometimes things seem a lot worse when you are in charge, I’d like to think that’s the case but I don’t know!
Pretty hot! It was hanging around 90*F and it’s still about 85*F in our lovely, non air-conditioned home!
We have a fourth house member this week: Jess. I’ve heard about Jess every since I got here and I finally got to meet her this weekend! She worked here for nearly three years before heading over to France to work on a camp and then to England to be with her boyfriend. She is home for a month so she can get a work visa to go back to England and while she’s here she is working at Shoalhaven and staying with us! She’s really nice and is an awesome and most welcomed fourth housemate!!!
The Group: Holy Spirit College (Catholic High School)
The age: Year 9
Numbers: 11 groups of 15 (about 160 campers), 12 teachers
Wow so first group all on my own. Year nine – phew. It didn’t take long to realize they were going to be a whole different ball of wax than the year three and four kids I had spent the last two weeks with.
I had to be firm, I had to be confident, I had to be consistent and not let down. My biggest challenge was just getting them to stop talking and listen to my instructions. After being in the classroom, I have come up with several strategies for getting the attention of younger kids, but all would be inappropriate with this age group. For the most part just starting to talk would work but yeah, there are always “those few.” :-P
So the day began with Monday morning breakfast and devotions before we moved into setting up for the group, which includes many various jobs. The group arrived at 10:30 (half an hour early) but by the time they had their bags set down and were all in the meeting room for their “welcome to camp talk,” we were back on schedule!
Since it is such a large group, the girls are staying up at Koolona, about a five minute walk from Waterslea, where the boys are staying, where all the meals are being held and the activities are being run from. So after the talk, given by Julie, I helped walk the girls up to Koolona to drop off their stuff and get ready for their first activity of the day.
Back to Waterslea for a hectic lunch! 170 is a lot of people!! Apparently the dinning room can by set to seat 200 but I don’t know how that would work as you can barely squeeze behind the chairs now. The first meal is always the craziest, especially with this many people! But it all worked out and activity session 1 started on time at 1:30.
My first activity was orienteering. I think I have already explained this but basically they are given a map and are set out to find different wooden markers around the site and record the name of the bird written on the marker. For the older kids, we also give them a compass; have them take a bearing when the find the marker and then record the man made object at that bearing.
Before introducing orienteering, I sat them in a circle and went through their names and had them tell me something interesting about themselves, which most of them struggled with. I didn’t actually care if they told me something interesting or not I just wanted some time to repeat their name in my head over and over!!!
I also went ahead and told them about my eyes and how they might not think I’m looking at them . . . younger kids don’t seem to have as much of an issue with it but I could tell it could be one with this group so figured I’d get that out there from the start. Kind of funny cause then one of the girl’s interesting things was “I have the same eye problem as you” huh.
So yeah, orienteering went pretty well. It’s a pretty easy activity to run once you explain it. Did a debrief at the end where they choose a word from a pile and used it in a sentence to describe their experience – some where better than others but that is to be expected. Also asked them about their team work within their groups. . .
Afternoon tea then onto activity two – canoeing. Ohhhhh if an activity could crash and burn wow yeah. Just a mess. Lots of factors contributed to this hectic, chaotic canoe session! I would say “unorganized” would sum it up pretty well.
Since there are 11 activity groups this week a lot of the activities are doubled up – meaning two groups are there at the same time. So instead of the usual one instructor out with their 15 kids + someone in the power boat, it was 2 instructors and 30 kids. It was crazy. Could have gone alright had we just split and taken our groups separate ways instead of trying to keep them together. I won’t go into too much detail now but we’ll just say it was a learning experience! Then after we got off the water and the canoes stacked away the kids pretty much headed off, leaving paddles . . . It was 5:00 so the session was technically over but that didn’t give a chance to debrief at all. I’ve decided I’m going to debrief in the morning just cause I think we need some closure on that – or maybe at least I do!! Sometimes things seem a lot worse when you are in charge, I’d like to think that’s the case but I don’t know!
Pretty hot! It was hanging around 90*F and it’s still about 85*F in our lovely, non air-conditioned home!
We have a fourth house member this week: Jess. I’ve heard about Jess every since I got here and I finally got to meet her this weekend! She worked here for nearly three years before heading over to France to work on a camp and then to England to be with her boyfriend. She is home for a month so she can get a work visa to go back to England and while she’s here she is working at Shoalhaven and staying with us! She’s really nice and is an awesome and most welcomed fourth housemate!!!
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Another American!
Tuesday October 21, 2008
We had initiatives and canoeing today. It was a bit chilly, in the lower 60*s F (15-16*C) but not too cold.
So yesterday I found out there was a student teacher from America here with the group! With the busyness of the first day we didn’t get much of a chance to talk so today we had a nice chat after lunch during free time. She is from Northern New Jersey in her senior year at Boston University and is studying abroad for the semester (Sep-Dec, like I did) but is doing her student teaching over here – wow! As you can imagine I had a ton of questions with her: how her student teaching is structured, if she’s taking classes as well, how her time in a private Christian school is going to transfer to a teaching degree and certificate at home, which I never really got a clear answer on!
So it was really interesting to talk to her. It made me think about how a year ago I was in the classroom; just getting my feet wet 3 days a week. I’m so grateful for the program I went through; the awesome mentors I had and the small-sized courses and seminars that helped me learn and grow.
We also talked about outdoor education and she agreed that it is way more common over here than at home for schools to take their students on camp. She mentioned how they have physical education as a class but then in addition to that they have an hour and a half of sport each week. It seems their education is a bit more holistic, with the student as a whole in mind where as at home there is much more pressure to focus on academics and intellectual growth.
We had initiatives and canoeing today. It was a bit chilly, in the lower 60*s F (15-16*C) but not too cold.
So yesterday I found out there was a student teacher from America here with the group! With the busyness of the first day we didn’t get much of a chance to talk so today we had a nice chat after lunch during free time. She is from Northern New Jersey in her senior year at Boston University and is studying abroad for the semester (Sep-Dec, like I did) but is doing her student teaching over here – wow! As you can imagine I had a ton of questions with her: how her student teaching is structured, if she’s taking classes as well, how her time in a private Christian school is going to transfer to a teaching degree and certificate at home, which I never really got a clear answer on!
So it was really interesting to talk to her. It made me think about how a year ago I was in the classroom; just getting my feet wet 3 days a week. I’m so grateful for the program I went through; the awesome mentors I had and the small-sized courses and seminars that helped me learn and grow.
We also talked about outdoor education and she agreed that it is way more common over here than at home for schools to take their students on camp. She mentioned how they have physical education as a class but then in addition to that they have an hour and a half of sport each week. It seems their education is a bit more holistic, with the student as a whole in mind where as at home there is much more pressure to focus on academics and intellectual growth.
All Boys
Monday October 20, 2008
The Group: Trinity Grammar School
The age: Year 5 boys
Numbers: 3 groups of 15, 5 teachers
I’m following Alison this week. It’s good to work with / follow different leaders to get the feel for things and see how different people run things. We had Billy carting today, which the year five boys got totally into!
Trinity Grammar is a private Christian boy’s school that takes the boys on camp every year starting with year five. So it is this group’s first time at camp. Every day at 4:00 the boys have journaling time to reflect on the days activities. . . Today they were asked to write 3-6 lines and draw a picture highlighting their day. These journals are then kept by youthworks and used by the boys every year up through year 9, when they spend 5 weeks in a camp-like setting! What a neat concept! So at the end of year nine they will have five years worth of journaling from camp!
I’m finding camps are much more common here. At home I went to outdoor ed once during 6th grade for three days. Perhaps that was just my personal experience and other states do outdoor ed differently. But still, here the camp experiences seem to start at an earlier age, run for longer periods of time, and occur more frequently than once in your schooling.
I think there is a lot of value in taking students on camp more than just once in their 12 years of schooling. There is so much learning to be done at camp that could not occur inside a classroom. And when coupled with journaling and reflecting, the benefits are invaluable.
However, I can understand, having nearly been in a teacher’s shoes, the various complications involved in taking a group away on camp.
Complication #1 – personal sacrifice – the teacher must be willing to step away from their personal life for 3-5 days in order to spend non-stop time with their students.
Complication #2 – risk of falling behind – in the days of standardized state testing and yearly progress evaluations, it is difficult to cover all the content in the time provided let alone spend a week out of the classroom with little to no academics.
Complication #3 – the cost factor – most school can’t afford to send students on camp once let alone every year and parents cannot be expected to cover the costs.
These are some of the sad but true facts that stand in the way of many children missing out on the opportunity to grow and learn in a camp setting. Perhaps that is why a lot of our school are private Christian schools. Hummm. . . .
The Group: Trinity Grammar School
The age: Year 5 boys
Numbers: 3 groups of 15, 5 teachers
I’m following Alison this week. It’s good to work with / follow different leaders to get the feel for things and see how different people run things. We had Billy carting today, which the year five boys got totally into!
Trinity Grammar is a private Christian boy’s school that takes the boys on camp every year starting with year five. So it is this group’s first time at camp. Every day at 4:00 the boys have journaling time to reflect on the days activities. . . Today they were asked to write 3-6 lines and draw a picture highlighting their day. These journals are then kept by youthworks and used by the boys every year up through year 9, when they spend 5 weeks in a camp-like setting! What a neat concept! So at the end of year nine they will have five years worth of journaling from camp!
I’m finding camps are much more common here. At home I went to outdoor ed once during 6th grade for three days. Perhaps that was just my personal experience and other states do outdoor ed differently. But still, here the camp experiences seem to start at an earlier age, run for longer periods of time, and occur more frequently than once in your schooling.
I think there is a lot of value in taking students on camp more than just once in their 12 years of schooling. There is so much learning to be done at camp that could not occur inside a classroom. And when coupled with journaling and reflecting, the benefits are invaluable.
However, I can understand, having nearly been in a teacher’s shoes, the various complications involved in taking a group away on camp.
Complication #1 – personal sacrifice – the teacher must be willing to step away from their personal life for 3-5 days in order to spend non-stop time with their students.
Complication #2 – risk of falling behind – in the days of standardized state testing and yearly progress evaluations, it is difficult to cover all the content in the time provided let alone spend a week out of the classroom with little to no academics.
Complication #3 – the cost factor – most school can’t afford to send students on camp once let alone every year and parents cannot be expected to cover the costs.
These are some of the sad but true facts that stand in the way of many children missing out on the opportunity to grow and learn in a camp setting. Perhaps that is why a lot of our school are private Christian schools. Hummm. . . .
Saturday, October 18, 2008
First Camp!
Saturday October 18, 2008
Okay, so I guess it’s not my official first camp since I wasn’t actually leading on it but was my first full camp experience here!
The group: Shoalhaven Anglican School
Age: Years 3 and 4 (3rd and 4th grade)
Numbers: 41 students, 2 teachers, 1 parent
The students were split into three groups. I was with Shaneo leading a group of 11 year 4 students. Since the kids were so young they only stayed Thursday and Friday; two days and one night. The first day’s activities included orienteering, jetty jumping, and initiatives.
Orienteering involves the students working in groups of three to find markers around the site and record the fish names that are on each marker. Each group is given a map of the site which indicates the location of each marker. As the group had 11 students, I got to play the part of a student for this activity, which was quite fun as well as beneficial; giving me the chance to locate all of the markers so I know for future reference.
Lunch followed orienteering and then we were off to the jetty! Upon returning from the jetty we had afternoon tea before I led our initiatives session. Overall, it went pretty well I guess. I had my list of pre-chosen activities written down which was good. We are meant to start with a warm-up activity, then a communication activity, followed by trust, and finally team work.
The group had a lot of energy and was just excited to be at camp. So in instructing this activity I was definitely using a combination of skills I have picked up from my various experiences. I used my enthusiastic camp counselor persona when explaining the activities / challenges and my teacher techniques and tone while conducting the debriefs. It is a bit tricky as you want the kinds to have fun and enjoy the activities but you also want them to take them seriously and be able to get something from them, preferably something that can be applicable to their life outside of camp. I’m finding this is going to require the appropriate mix of seriousness and enthusiasm.
I’m in quite a unique position; somewhere between teacher and camp counselor. Having experience in both of these roles is definitely valuable and now just leaves me to find the most effective balance, which will most-likely differ from group to group.
This was a really awesome group, very well behaved and polite so I may have been a bit more camp counselorish but then during initiatives I definitely put on my teacher hat; using techniques learned in the classroom to get their attention and help them discuss what they learned (often said “learnt” here).
It was really awesome to be able to use both skills from camp and from the classroom to get the kids talking about teamwork, trust, responsibility, and God. I wrapped up with them as I would with a group at the Marsh; having each kid share their most favorite and least favorite part of the day and something they had learned so far. Finally, since this was a private Christian school I was able to end by praying with them.
Yeah, so it’s pretty cool to think about how God has been preparing me over the years and has set a path that has led me here!
*Working at CA Nature camp – sparked my initial interest in working in a camp setting but also helped me understand that I prefer and desire to work in a Christian setting.
*The Marsh – solidified my desire and love for working in the Christian camp setting
*Student teaching – taught me valuable skills for working with kids in a more structured setting, giving me experience in lesson planning with a focus on delivering content. Not to mention the many discipline and teaching techniques and strategies gained.
*WAC and the college experience – well, there’s no way I can sum that all up but yeah, it helped me grow and discover more about who I was, become more independent and form some pretty awesome relationships.
*Crew - physical challenge, love of the outdoors & water
*Studying abroad – again, helped me grow and learn about myself and survive “on my own” for a while. Not to mention introduced me to this awesome country and gave me the “travel bug.”
Bottom line – never doubt that God has a plan! You won’t always be able to see where it is leading but “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your path straight!” Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)
P.S. I bought a new bible! A small one I can carry around with me at camp. It is New International Version – good stuff! J $27 but it has a zipping cover, thumb tabs, lots of “stuff” in the back like maps . . . AND – it is maroon and blue like my work shirt- hehe!
Signing off and thanking God for all the people and experiences that have been a part of my life thus far.
Hope all is well back in the states and everyone is enjoying the colors, smells, sounds, and tastes of autumn! I was trying to explain candy corn last night - “Is it sticky?” “Does it actually have corn in it?” “Well, no . . . “
Okay, so I guess it’s not my official first camp since I wasn’t actually leading on it but was my first full camp experience here!
The group: Shoalhaven Anglican School
Age: Years 3 and 4 (3rd and 4th grade)
Numbers: 41 students, 2 teachers, 1 parent
The students were split into three groups. I was with Shaneo leading a group of 11 year 4 students. Since the kids were so young they only stayed Thursday and Friday; two days and one night. The first day’s activities included orienteering, jetty jumping, and initiatives.
Orienteering involves the students working in groups of three to find markers around the site and record the fish names that are on each marker. Each group is given a map of the site which indicates the location of each marker. As the group had 11 students, I got to play the part of a student for this activity, which was quite fun as well as beneficial; giving me the chance to locate all of the markers so I know for future reference.
Lunch followed orienteering and then we were off to the jetty! Upon returning from the jetty we had afternoon tea before I led our initiatives session. Overall, it went pretty well I guess. I had my list of pre-chosen activities written down which was good. We are meant to start with a warm-up activity, then a communication activity, followed by trust, and finally team work.
The group had a lot of energy and was just excited to be at camp. So in instructing this activity I was definitely using a combination of skills I have picked up from my various experiences. I used my enthusiastic camp counselor persona when explaining the activities / challenges and my teacher techniques and tone while conducting the debriefs. It is a bit tricky as you want the kinds to have fun and enjoy the activities but you also want them to take them seriously and be able to get something from them, preferably something that can be applicable to their life outside of camp. I’m finding this is going to require the appropriate mix of seriousness and enthusiasm.
I’m in quite a unique position; somewhere between teacher and camp counselor. Having experience in both of these roles is definitely valuable and now just leaves me to find the most effective balance, which will most-likely differ from group to group.
This was a really awesome group, very well behaved and polite so I may have been a bit more camp counselorish but then during initiatives I definitely put on my teacher hat; using techniques learned in the classroom to get their attention and help them discuss what they learned (often said “learnt” here).
It was really awesome to be able to use both skills from camp and from the classroom to get the kids talking about teamwork, trust, responsibility, and God. I wrapped up with them as I would with a group at the Marsh; having each kid share their most favorite and least favorite part of the day and something they had learned so far. Finally, since this was a private Christian school I was able to end by praying with them.
Yeah, so it’s pretty cool to think about how God has been preparing me over the years and has set a path that has led me here!
*Working at CA Nature camp – sparked my initial interest in working in a camp setting but also helped me understand that I prefer and desire to work in a Christian setting.
*The Marsh – solidified my desire and love for working in the Christian camp setting
*Student teaching – taught me valuable skills for working with kids in a more structured setting, giving me experience in lesson planning with a focus on delivering content. Not to mention the many discipline and teaching techniques and strategies gained.
*WAC and the college experience – well, there’s no way I can sum that all up but yeah, it helped me grow and discover more about who I was, become more independent and form some pretty awesome relationships.
*Crew - physical challenge, love of the outdoors & water
*Studying abroad – again, helped me grow and learn about myself and survive “on my own” for a while. Not to mention introduced me to this awesome country and gave me the “travel bug.”
Bottom line – never doubt that God has a plan! You won’t always be able to see where it is leading but “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your path straight!” Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)
P.S. I bought a new bible! A small one I can carry around with me at camp. It is New International Version – good stuff! J $27 but it has a zipping cover, thumb tabs, lots of “stuff” in the back like maps . . . AND – it is maroon and blue like my work shirt- hehe!
Signing off and thanking God for all the people and experiences that have been a part of my life thus far.
Hope all is well back in the states and everyone is enjoying the colors, smells, sounds, and tastes of autumn! I was trying to explain candy corn last night - “Is it sticky?” “Does it actually have corn in it?” “Well, no . . . “
Mel and Julz took me out to Indian for a late birthday celebration!!!
Friday, October 17, 2008
Herding and House-Making
Wednesday October 15, 2008
So far the week has involved doing things that can’t be done when a group is in but must be done in order for things to run smoothly when they are here. Monday involved a bit of changing mattress protectors and pillow cases but the majority of our time has been spent setting up, inspection, and taking down all of our tents, which adds up to around 40. It hasn’t been the most fun job but hasn’t been the worst either. It has given us a chance to work with the others on our team and get to know them a bit. It is somewhat rare that the whole team is here at once, with out trips (camping over night), and people going to help at Port Hacking and Blue Gum so it has been kind of cool that we are all here. For the most part I don’t even notice but every so often I do step back and consider the guy to girl ratio! Julz and Mel have been in the office the past days doing administration stuff and preparing for groups from that end and Alison has been working on washing so doing tents I would once in a while be like “wow I’m the only girl here!”
So today around 4:00 (our day runs from 8-5) Tim, one of our bosses comes in and says “Can everyone just drop their tools for a minute?” and we were like okay and were all attentive before he continued “we need some help with cow herding . . .” At first I was confused but then remembered the cows down in the pasture. “A bunch of the cows have gotten loose and they need help getting them back in the paddock.”
Welcoming a change of scenery from the dining room and relief from the somewhat tedious task of tent duty, you could sense the excitement as everyone dropped what they were doing and ran for the car park, piling into cars and utes! I jumped in the back seat with Julie and Josh to find myself sitting on a pile of Steve’s clothes and other miscellaneous items in the back seat of his car!
After a bit of effort, we finally located the “runaway cows,” if you will, and herded them back into the paddock. Julie grew up on a farm as did one of the men who works maintenance so they more or less led the efforts, or at least tried to, as some of the guys were a bit excited about the idea of charging after cows and ran them straight passed the open gate, which another one of the guys was supposed to be standing at to make sure that didn’t happen - lol! All ended well with 15 happy cows and bulls back safely in the paddock and about 10 Shoalhaven staff happy to end the day with a bit of excitement!
Made it back with only about 5min left in our work day so most of that was spent recounting our adventure to those who had stayed behind! I stuck around to check my email with Dan and Phil and we didn’t make it back to the staff houses til nearly 7:15. Julie and Mel had already left for bible study, which I might have gone with them but oh well. I grabbed some dinner and tossed load of laundry in. We are in need of going to the store as we still haven’t gone since Julz and Mel got back from a week of being away. We were out of milk before the week started and I had the second to last slice of bread this morning! There was a muffin pan sitting on the counter and I remembered a box of muffin mix left on “my shelf” in the pantry by Leanne (who lived in my room for 3 months before I came). I pondered it for a moment then decided to go for it!
I know, I know it’s only a batch of muffins out of a box, it’s kind of pathetic that doing laundry and making muffins out of a box makes me feel “all grown up” but yeah, hahah. Julz agreed the box muffins were an accomplishment, commending me on getting them all to come out looking like muffins, and Mel reckons it is the start of things to come and that I’ll soon be making muffins from scratch – lol. They are both great, so blessed with awesome housemates and workmates!
So this turned out a bit longer than anticipated, but don’t they all! Everything is going well down here. A group of year 3 and 4 kids come in tomorrow; I am assisting with a group and will be leading their initiatives activity – should be good – just the beginning!
PS - the other day I mended a hole inmy pants using needle and thread - so domestic! :) :-P
So far the week has involved doing things that can’t be done when a group is in but must be done in order for things to run smoothly when they are here. Monday involved a bit of changing mattress protectors and pillow cases but the majority of our time has been spent setting up, inspection, and taking down all of our tents, which adds up to around 40. It hasn’t been the most fun job but hasn’t been the worst either. It has given us a chance to work with the others on our team and get to know them a bit. It is somewhat rare that the whole team is here at once, with out trips (camping over night), and people going to help at Port Hacking and Blue Gum so it has been kind of cool that we are all here. For the most part I don’t even notice but every so often I do step back and consider the guy to girl ratio! Julz and Mel have been in the office the past days doing administration stuff and preparing for groups from that end and Alison has been working on washing so doing tents I would once in a while be like “wow I’m the only girl here!”
So today around 4:00 (our day runs from 8-5) Tim, one of our bosses comes in and says “Can everyone just drop their tools for a minute?” and we were like okay and were all attentive before he continued “we need some help with cow herding . . .” At first I was confused but then remembered the cows down in the pasture. “A bunch of the cows have gotten loose and they need help getting them back in the paddock.”
Welcoming a change of scenery from the dining room and relief from the somewhat tedious task of tent duty, you could sense the excitement as everyone dropped what they were doing and ran for the car park, piling into cars and utes! I jumped in the back seat with Julie and Josh to find myself sitting on a pile of Steve’s clothes and other miscellaneous items in the back seat of his car!
After a bit of effort, we finally located the “runaway cows,” if you will, and herded them back into the paddock. Julie grew up on a farm as did one of the men who works maintenance so they more or less led the efforts, or at least tried to, as some of the guys were a bit excited about the idea of charging after cows and ran them straight passed the open gate, which another one of the guys was supposed to be standing at to make sure that didn’t happen - lol! All ended well with 15 happy cows and bulls back safely in the paddock and about 10 Shoalhaven staff happy to end the day with a bit of excitement!
Made it back with only about 5min left in our work day so most of that was spent recounting our adventure to those who had stayed behind! I stuck around to check my email with Dan and Phil and we didn’t make it back to the staff houses til nearly 7:15. Julie and Mel had already left for bible study, which I might have gone with them but oh well. I grabbed some dinner and tossed load of laundry in. We are in need of going to the store as we still haven’t gone since Julz and Mel got back from a week of being away. We were out of milk before the week started and I had the second to last slice of bread this morning! There was a muffin pan sitting on the counter and I remembered a box of muffin mix left on “my shelf” in the pantry by Leanne (who lived in my room for 3 months before I came). I pondered it for a moment then decided to go for it!
I know, I know it’s only a batch of muffins out of a box, it’s kind of pathetic that doing laundry and making muffins out of a box makes me feel “all grown up” but yeah, hahah. Julz agreed the box muffins were an accomplishment, commending me on getting them all to come out looking like muffins, and Mel reckons it is the start of things to come and that I’ll soon be making muffins from scratch – lol. They are both great, so blessed with awesome housemates and workmates!
So this turned out a bit longer than anticipated, but don’t they all! Everything is going well down here. A group of year 3 and 4 kids come in tomorrow; I am assisting with a group and will be leading their initiatives activity – should be good – just the beginning!
PS - the other day I mended a hole inmy pants using needle and thread - so domestic! :) :-P
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Phew 22!
Sunday October 12, 2008
Sitting in my “back yard” on this beautiful spring day looking out at the boats cruising along the Shoalhaven River and wishing I could be out there with them skiing!!
It’s nearly noon now and I’ve spent most of the morning using my calling card talking to family; mom & dad, grandma & granddad. Good to talk to all of them! I talked to Ellen on Friday for a while so that was good too!
Here’s a quick recap on my last few days:
Thursday
*Archery Training – I had just gone through archery training this summer at home so there wasn’t too much new information here. They have different names for a few things but overall everything was pretty familiar.
*Dinner w/ Alison and Dave – Since Julie and Mel are both away this week, Alison from work invited me over for dinner on Thursday! She is about a year younger than me and newly married – wow. So I helped her cook stir fry! I’m really going to come home knowing how to cook, which is really good! It was nice to spend some time with them and have dinner and everything.
Friday
*Low Ropes / Escape Course Training – Walked through our low ropes course and learned how to facilitate that. PG had us do all of the elements so that was really good. Quickly talked about debriefing low ropes and we were done before lunch time!
*Learned how to drive the power boat- Oh man! So driving the boat itself is not difficult but backing the ute with the trailer on is another story. Dan pulled the boat out of the shed and backed it down the ramp into the water but then I backed the ute with the trailer down the ramp, dorve it up to the shed, and backed it into the shed – pheww. I have a better appreciation for mom and dad driving with the trailer now. I don’t like backing up in a car much less backing with a trailer on and trying to get it into a shed!
Driving the boat was fun though; its’ just a little tin boat with a motor on it, sort of like the launches from crew. Whenever we take a group out canoeing we take the power boat out to have as a safety caution since the river can get busy and roughish.
*Cake! During our “end of day wrap up” everyone sang, although at their own pace and somewhat off tune – hehe, and then they brought out a cake! Very nice!
*Dinner with the Cases – After work I went home with Leanne, who works in the office three days a week, then we went to Tim and Naomi’s for Sloppy Joes! Time is one of my bosses and is from PA, although he has been here for seven years and is married with an adorable 1 year old son!
*Sing Star w/ Church of Christ People – The young adults from Leanne’s church were getting together for a night of sing start, a karaoke play station game, and just hanging out so I went with her to that. Everyone is so nice here I’m not sure if it’s an Australian thing or a Christian thing or both but yeah everyone was so nice and welcoming. Kind of made me think about my group of friends and if someone new came when we were hanging out if we would make them feel welcome. I would like to think that we would but I don’t know. Then I thought about how Rowena came senior year and how she started hanging out with our already established group and if we were welcoming enough and stuff!
It’s quite different going to a new environment where everyone is new compared to going to a new environment where relationships are already established and you are the only knew one. I feel there are pros and cons to each but I won’t go into that now, perhaps another blog!!
*Got home around 11:45 from that, called home and talked to Ellen for like 45min – good to catch up! :)
Sitting in my “back yard” on this beautiful spring day looking out at the boats cruising along the Shoalhaven River and wishing I could be out there with them skiing!!
It’s nearly noon now and I’ve spent most of the morning using my calling card talking to family; mom & dad, grandma & granddad. Good to talk to all of them! I talked to Ellen on Friday for a while so that was good too!
Here’s a quick recap on my last few days:
Thursday
*Archery Training – I had just gone through archery training this summer at home so there wasn’t too much new information here. They have different names for a few things but overall everything was pretty familiar.
*Dinner w/ Alison and Dave – Since Julie and Mel are both away this week, Alison from work invited me over for dinner on Thursday! She is about a year younger than me and newly married – wow. So I helped her cook stir fry! I’m really going to come home knowing how to cook, which is really good! It was nice to spend some time with them and have dinner and everything.
Friday
*Low Ropes / Escape Course Training – Walked through our low ropes course and learned how to facilitate that. PG had us do all of the elements so that was really good. Quickly talked about debriefing low ropes and we were done before lunch time!
*Learned how to drive the power boat- Oh man! So driving the boat itself is not difficult but backing the ute with the trailer on is another story. Dan pulled the boat out of the shed and backed it down the ramp into the water but then I backed the ute with the trailer down the ramp, dorve it up to the shed, and backed it into the shed – pheww. I have a better appreciation for mom and dad driving with the trailer now. I don’t like backing up in a car much less backing with a trailer on and trying to get it into a shed!
Driving the boat was fun though; its’ just a little tin boat with a motor on it, sort of like the launches from crew. Whenever we take a group out canoeing we take the power boat out to have as a safety caution since the river can get busy and roughish.
*Cake! During our “end of day wrap up” everyone sang, although at their own pace and somewhat off tune – hehe, and then they brought out a cake! Very nice!
*Dinner with the Cases – After work I went home with Leanne, who works in the office three days a week, then we went to Tim and Naomi’s for Sloppy Joes! Time is one of my bosses and is from PA, although he has been here for seven years and is married with an adorable 1 year old son!
*Sing Star w/ Church of Christ People – The young adults from Leanne’s church were getting together for a night of sing start, a karaoke play station game, and just hanging out so I went with her to that. Everyone is so nice here I’m not sure if it’s an Australian thing or a Christian thing or both but yeah everyone was so nice and welcoming. Kind of made me think about my group of friends and if someone new came when we were hanging out if we would make them feel welcome. I would like to think that we would but I don’t know. Then I thought about how Rowena came senior year and how she started hanging out with our already established group and if we were welcoming enough and stuff!
It’s quite different going to a new environment where everyone is new compared to going to a new environment where relationships are already established and you are the only knew one. I feel there are pros and cons to each but I won’t go into that now, perhaps another blog!!
*Got home around 11:45 from that, called home and talked to Ellen for like 45min – good to catch up! :)
Not quite like mom's but still really nice :) :)
Saturday
Leanne picked me up, it’s so annoying not having a car; I feel bad making people driver out of their way to come and get me and drop me off for things.
Anyway, a bunch of the guys had gone down to Ulladulla, a beach town about an hour away, to camp for the weekend. One of the guys is from down there and he knew of a national park. So we picked up Emma, one of the guy’s girlfriends, on the way down, and spent the day hanging out with them in Ulladulla. It was a bit cold to swim since we didn’t make it to the beach until the sun was almost setting. The guys played some beach cricket and then we had a bar-b over the camp fire. Already getting sick of sausages – lol! They are like the equivalent of a hot dog but almost worse. :-P Cheap, quick, and easy but not so healthy or appetizing.
Got back around 11:30 again, shower to get rid of the smokey smell then bed.
So it’s been a good last couple of days. Learned a lot work wise and spent time with people outside of work so it’s good. Julie and Mel get home today so it will be nice to have other people in the house again!
Loving this warm weather but thinking about crisp fall, jack-o-lanterns, and candy corn back home – hehe!
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
First Night In The Bush
Wednesday October 8, 2008
So after a late arrival home (thank you Dan for picking me up from the train station and bringing me back to good ole staff housing at Shoalhaven) and a night’s sleep in my own bed (which I determined I have yet to spend five consecutive nights in!), I was packed and off again on Tuesday! Our overnight hike that was meant to happen at the end of last week was a go for Tuesday /Wednesday since the health of our trainer, Pete (PG), had been restored.
I had packed the night before figuring we would probably be going but we still had to pack our food and gear, which took us up until about 11:00, when we set off up the trail. On the way there we did a bit of map and compass navigation work, which was really good as I had already nearly forgotten! Different from the ridge trail, done in previous training, where you are given a compass and a bearing, this time we were given a map with the markers plotted on it and a compass to calculate the bearing from one marker to the next. Dan and I had fun navigating our way through the bush as PG followed, for the most part, silently correcting us only when necessary.
Using the compass to navigate and find the markers really helped to break up the trip and make it a bit more exciting. I’m not positive but I’d say the hike was about 7km. We arrived at our destination, a cow farm in Ilaroo referred to as “Lynches” as that is the name of the family who owns it, between 4:00 and 5:00. Lots of out trips involve either hiking or canoeing to Lynches and camping for the night. However, we were picked up by Tony and driven to another campsite for the night, one a bit closer to Waterslea but still a ways down the river.
This site is called Bangalee and is owned by a boy scout camp. Often times two groups will camp at Bangalee with one hiking there and the other canoeing there, both spending the night, then swapping canoeing or hiking for the return trip.
PG instructed us that the first thing you do upon arriving to camp is set up the tents since this is about 90 times easier in day light!! After setting up tents we cooked dinner. Unlike at the Marsh where we cook over the fire, we brought little burner things with pots called triangia (I think), which uses methane to cook – pretty cool.
It was really good to go through all of this before having to do it with a group of kids. My first time will be with another instructor so that will be very helpful as well!!
PG and Dan shared a tent and I had my own. I would compare the weather to early April as it is definitely not summer yet but the bitter cold of winter has already passed. Needless to say I didn’t sleep all that well once you combine the chilly weather with the hard ground! We did have foam pads but they did little for comfort! They did however give you about half an inch of insulation between you and the cold ground! I brought my hand warmers as well but only as a last resort if my fingers and toes started to go white!! Luckily I was cold but not that cold! It was possibly somewhere in the low fifties or around there?? 7 C – whatever that is – I need to get a converter chart! Whatever it was, I sure was glad I had packed my warm pair of socks, my thermal long sleeved shirt, and a hoodie to sleep in, even if it did mean I had to strap my sleeping bag to the outside of my pack instead of fit it inside, where it is meant to be!!
We “turned in” about 9:45 and I was the first one up in the morning. PG said we could sleep in and get up around 8 but I knew I would be up earlier. I woke up around 6:30 but then went back to sleep until 7:30 when I got up, went to the bathroom, explored a little, pulled some things out for breakfast, and finally began to pack my bag before Dan and PG finally rolled out of bed around 8:45!!
Tony showed up about 9:30 to pick up our tents but we were still cooking pancakes and had not yet taken down our tents so he decided to come back later – opppss.
Filled the water bottle and hoisted the packs back onto our aching shoulders at about 10:30 and we were off, homeward bound. Not far down the trail we came to a large creek or small river. Luckily the tide was out so the water level was low and only reached just above my knees. I hate putting socks and shoes on wet feet so I dried them off as best I could with my Smokey hoodie before we set off again. We went home via the ridge trail, giving us a chance to navigate our way through the markers going the opposite direction we had come from last time. We did very well and found all the markers accept one that we missed somehow.
We got back to Waterslea around 12:00, giving us time to put our gear away before lunch, a quick shower back at the house, and an afternoon of finishing our assessments from boot camp, which involved walking around waterslea and koolona and mapping all the fire hydrants, extinguishers, and hose reels – fun.
Another really really great training experience! At several points during the trip I could help but think that there really wasn’t anything I would rather be doing right then. And I’m getting paid to do this! Sure beats a desk job!!!!! :) :)
So after a late arrival home (thank you Dan for picking me up from the train station and bringing me back to good ole staff housing at Shoalhaven) and a night’s sleep in my own bed (which I determined I have yet to spend five consecutive nights in!), I was packed and off again on Tuesday! Our overnight hike that was meant to happen at the end of last week was a go for Tuesday /Wednesday since the health of our trainer, Pete (PG), had been restored.
I had packed the night before figuring we would probably be going but we still had to pack our food and gear, which took us up until about 11:00, when we set off up the trail. On the way there we did a bit of map and compass navigation work, which was really good as I had already nearly forgotten! Different from the ridge trail, done in previous training, where you are given a compass and a bearing, this time we were given a map with the markers plotted on it and a compass to calculate the bearing from one marker to the next. Dan and I had fun navigating our way through the bush as PG followed, for the most part, silently correcting us only when necessary.
Using the compass to navigate and find the markers really helped to break up the trip and make it a bit more exciting. I’m not positive but I’d say the hike was about 7km. We arrived at our destination, a cow farm in Ilaroo referred to as “Lynches” as that is the name of the family who owns it, between 4:00 and 5:00. Lots of out trips involve either hiking or canoeing to Lynches and camping for the night. However, we were picked up by Tony and driven to another campsite for the night, one a bit closer to Waterslea but still a ways down the river.
Dan being attacked by the bulls at Lynches while we waited for Tony to pick us up.
This site is called Bangalee and is owned by a boy scout camp. Often times two groups will camp at Bangalee with one hiking there and the other canoeing there, both spending the night, then swapping canoeing or hiking for the return trip.
PG instructed us that the first thing you do upon arriving to camp is set up the tents since this is about 90 times easier in day light!! After setting up tents we cooked dinner. Unlike at the Marsh where we cook over the fire, we brought little burner things with pots called triangia (I think), which uses methane to cook – pretty cool.
It was really good to go through all of this before having to do it with a group of kids. My first time will be with another instructor so that will be very helpful as well!!
PG and Dan shared a tent and I had my own. I would compare the weather to early April as it is definitely not summer yet but the bitter cold of winter has already passed. Needless to say I didn’t sleep all that well once you combine the chilly weather with the hard ground! We did have foam pads but they did little for comfort! They did however give you about half an inch of insulation between you and the cold ground! I brought my hand warmers as well but only as a last resort if my fingers and toes started to go white!! Luckily I was cold but not that cold! It was possibly somewhere in the low fifties or around there?? 7 C – whatever that is – I need to get a converter chart! Whatever it was, I sure was glad I had packed my warm pair of socks, my thermal long sleeved shirt, and a hoodie to sleep in, even if it did mean I had to strap my sleeping bag to the outside of my pack instead of fit it inside, where it is meant to be!!
We “turned in” about 9:45 and I was the first one up in the morning. PG said we could sleep in and get up around 8 but I knew I would be up earlier. I woke up around 6:30 but then went back to sleep until 7:30 when I got up, went to the bathroom, explored a little, pulled some things out for breakfast, and finally began to pack my bag before Dan and PG finally rolled out of bed around 8:45!!
Tony showed up about 9:30 to pick up our tents but we were still cooking pancakes and had not yet taken down our tents so he decided to come back later – opppss.
Filled the water bottle and hoisted the packs back onto our aching shoulders at about 10:30 and we were off, homeward bound. Not far down the trail we came to a large creek or small river. Luckily the tide was out so the water level was low and only reached just above my knees. I hate putting socks and shoes on wet feet so I dried them off as best I could with my Smokey hoodie before we set off again. We went home via the ridge trail, giving us a chance to navigate our way through the markers going the opposite direction we had come from last time. We did very well and found all the markers accept one that we missed somehow.
A view of the Shoalhaven River from a lookout point!
We got back to Waterslea around 12:00, giving us time to put our gear away before lunch, a quick shower back at the house, and an afternoon of finishing our assessments from boot camp, which involved walking around waterslea and koolona and mapping all the fire hydrants, extinguishers, and hose reels – fun.
Another really really great training experience! At several points during the trip I could help but think that there really wasn’t anything I would rather be doing right then. And I’m getting paid to do this! Sure beats a desk job!!!!! :) :)
Monday, October 6, 2008
A WONDERFUL Long Weekend in Sydney
Monday October 6, 2008
Oh my goodness I don’t even know where to start!!! I just had a wonderful, wonderful weekend, by far the most exciting since I’ve been here! I’m now on the train again heading back down to good ole Nowra - haha. Not even sure what I could compare Nowra to at home. Possibly some place down the Eastern shore. I don’t know. Just one of those small towns that when you tell people you are working down in Nowra they are like “oh . . . Nowra . . . right . . . what are you doing down there?” lol. Then I explain I am doing outdoor education and camps for school groups and I get another “oh.” Haha. It’s great though and I don’t think I even mind being a 2-5 hour ride from Sydney – depending on your mode of transportation and whether or not there is track work going on – uggg..
So Friday was a late night as I didn’t end up getting to Sydney until about 12:30. I had looked up the train time table but didn’t account for track work, which meant an hour wait for a bus that would take us around the section being worked on to another stop.
Allison had arrived just a bit before I did as her flight came in at 10:30 then she caught a train from there. So I met up with Allison and Fiona when I got of the train at 12:30ish! It was sooooooooooooo good to see Allison and Fiona as well.
How We Know Fiona (the long version)!!
Allison met Fiona while playing tennis in “Uni Games” down in Adeliade when we were at Bond in 2006. Then later in the semester we went to Sydney and stayed with Fiona in Manly (just a ferry ride from the Sydney Harbor). THEN (we are still going here folks) in January 2007 Fiona and two friends stayed with Allison as part of their US tour and we all went to DC!! So it was pretty cool to be with her again in Sydney almost exactly two years later and also having had the chance to see her “on our turf” if you will!!
Oh my goodness I don’t even know where to start!!! I just had a wonderful, wonderful weekend, by far the most exciting since I’ve been here! I’m now on the train again heading back down to good ole Nowra - haha. Not even sure what I could compare Nowra to at home. Possibly some place down the Eastern shore. I don’t know. Just one of those small towns that when you tell people you are working down in Nowra they are like “oh . . . Nowra . . . right . . . what are you doing down there?” lol. Then I explain I am doing outdoor education and camps for school groups and I get another “oh.” Haha. It’s great though and I don’t think I even mind being a 2-5 hour ride from Sydney – depending on your mode of transportation and whether or not there is track work going on – uggg..
So Friday was a late night as I didn’t end up getting to Sydney until about 12:30. I had looked up the train time table but didn’t account for track work, which meant an hour wait for a bus that would take us around the section being worked on to another stop.
Allison had arrived just a bit before I did as her flight came in at 10:30 then she caught a train from there. So I met up with Allison and Fiona when I got of the train at 12:30ish! It was sooooooooooooo good to see Allison and Fiona as well.
How We Know Fiona (the long version)!!
Allison met Fiona while playing tennis in “Uni Games” down in Adeliade when we were at Bond in 2006. Then later in the semester we went to Sydney and stayed with Fiona in Manly (just a ferry ride from the Sydney Harbor). THEN (we are still going here folks) in January 2007 Fiona and two friends stayed with Allison as part of their US tour and we all went to DC!! So it was pretty cool to be with her again in Sydney almost exactly two years later and also having had the chance to see her “on our turf” if you will!!
The three of us at Fiona's in 2006!!
So back to the wonderful weekend . . . Fiona is dating a really nice guy from work named Rob that lives pretty much on George Street, which runs straight up to Circular Quay (pronounced key as we learned on our last visit!) and the opera house. His place was just a short walk from the train station so he let us stay with him the first and last night and we stayed with Fiona Saturday night. Both places were amazing with awesome views: his of the city and hers of Collaroy beach.
Saturday
involved sleeping in on my and Allison’s part but poor Fiona woke up at 4:20am for ocean rowing! Wow! Talk about intense. She showed us some videos on utude.com and wow. Talk about dangerous. They row out past the surf, using oars almost identical to those used for “flat water rowing,” as she called it. Their seats don’t move but are splashed with water so the rower can slide back and forth, often on their bear bum, as this has been proven to work most efficiently! Once they get past the surf and around a bouy they catch a wave back in, which can have some wicked consequences – phew. All of the boats are designed for four rowers and a sweep, I think she may have called it, who does makes the calls and does the steering from a standing position using a large rudder. Wow!
-Walked around Sydney city with Fiona
*Max Brenner – “chocolate by the bald man” – café with everything chocolate!!
*”The Rocks” – shops and restaurants near the base of the harbour bridge
*Sydney Information Centre
-Drove to Collaroy Beach / Fiona’s place
-Dinner in Manly at a German restaurant – soft pretzel appetizer ?German?,
mango beer, crazy Melbourne Storm fans in the street excited about the NRL (National Rugby League) Grand Final on Saturday night – Manly Sea Eagles vs. Melbourne Storm.
Sunday
Another leisurely morning
-Coffee from a café right on the beach on our way to the store
-Store to get stuff for the bar-b-que and Grand Final Party
-Bar-b-Que at Andrew’s (Fiona’s housemate from the last time we stayed with her)
*Andrew taught Allison and I how to cook on the bar-b! We did onions, capsicum (peppers), and sausages! He even had an Australia apron!
-Bus to the city to Rob’s
-NRL Grand Final Party at Fiona’s boss’s
*She is doing an internship with some financial company or something
*So psyched about catching the rugby grand final!!! Allison and I were both bummed when “our team” the Brisbane Broncos got knocked out of the running but naturally we would support the Sea Eagles since we were pretty much in Manly and it was the Storm who rivaled, and lost to, the Broncos in the grand final in 2006! I’m happy to report the Sea Eagles swept the Melbourne Storm 28 to Nil – phewwweee. I’m pretty sure I’ve actually found a sport I enjoy watching!
-Celebratory visit to the pub across the street
-A Late dinner in China Town before heading back to Rob’s for the night
The view from Rob's balcony
Monday
-Attempted an early start but left around 9:30 heading down George Street towards the opera house.
-Stopped in Maccas (McDonalds) for a coffee!
-Reminisced our sprint down George Street to catch the last ferry to Manly and Fiona’s house two years ago after the Tri Nations rugby final
-Walked around the outside of the opera house before realizing the place to inquire about tours is actually under the steps!
-Signed up for a tour and browsed the gift shop until 10:30
*A really neat, educational tour!
*learned a lot of the history and interesting facts
*Got to go into and sit in three of the five theaters including one with a huge huge organ with over a thousand pipes if I remember correctly – so cool!
-Wandered back through Circular Quay and back to the rocks, stopping in gift shops and searching for an affordable lunch as well as the entrance to the bridge tower lookout, which we never did find – next time I guess.
-Lunch in an Irish pub / restaurant where we were asked if we were Canadian!
-Walk back down George Street to meet Fiona and Rob
-Cheap souvenir shop!!
-Grocery store to get lychee
*an interesting fruit that we had never heard of: almost like a peeled grape for lack of a better way to describe it.
-Back to Rob’s to pick up my bags
-Back on the train at 4:20pm, arrived in Nowra 8:44pm hummmm another loooong train ride. Totally worth it though!!!!!! :) :)
OnThe Trian Again
Friday October 3, 2008
I’m on the train again, for the second time this week. The first time was on Monday heading up to boot camp at Port Hacking. Dan went home for the weekend so he went straight to Port Hacking so they decided to send me up on the train and catch a ride back with him rather than drive a vehicle up. This meant an early start but it was fine with me as the tracks run right along the coast most of the way, making for a scenic view.
This time is a bit different though as it is already 8:00pm. It is dark, so no coast line to be seen. Monday is Labor day so I am headed up to Sydney for the long weekend! I am soooooo excited because Allison is going to be there and we are staying with Fiona, a friend from last time we were here! Allison has been traveling around Oz since late September and Sydney is her last stop. It’ll be so good to see her!
So this past week has really felt like two weeks; boot camp Mon-Wed then our first “realish” days at Shoalhaven. Right now kids have off school for “holidays” so we were running a “holiday camp” called “Adventure Days” on Wednesday – Friday. It was just Alison and Scott on it so Dan and I helped out with that. It was lots of fun! Usually we will be working with school groups so the teachers will be there but this is more like summer camp where it is just us and the kids. I stuck with Scott (foundly known as Scoty_ for the two days and helped out with the year 5-6 kids. Dan helped Alison with the year 3-4 kids since he said he had never worked with that age before.
Thursday we started out with the low ropes course. It was really good to see that run but to have the chance to be involved in it as well. I find it really beneficial to experience the things you will be leading / teaching / facilitating. Low ropes went until 10:30 when we took a break for morning tea (a piece of fruit, water, and juice).
After morning tea we had Christian Discovery (CD); sang some songs, did some skits, had a message, and then split back into our age groups for discussion. We gave the kids a bit of free time while we set up lunch and then a bit of time after lunch before moving onto our afternoon activity of canoeing!
Canoeing was pretty fun! Unlike the somewhat protected cove area at the marina at Sandy Cove, at Shoalhaven we canoe right out on the river. It was another windy day on the river so the kids were fighting the current. Luckily we were split into three boats of three people each so two of the boats had an instructor with them. There are so many lessons to be learned from canoeing. Besides the obvious canoe strokes and learning what side to paddle on, team work and communication are also key factors in a successful canoe experience. Trust is also a factor as each person in the boat has the potential to cause a capsize. Not to mention the physical aspect and concept of “pushing yourself.” While on the water we “rafted up,” meaning we had all the boats come together side by side. Scot then had everyone grab hands with the person next to you from the other boat. We stood up one row at a time until everyone was standing. He had everyone clap once, twice, then do the “YMCA.” No one fell in – this time!
So that was wonderful, exciting day one. Day two was pretty much the same accept “billy carting” took the place of our morning activity and jetty jumping occurred in the afternoon.
I believe I described how waterslea is set up on a hill overlooking a cow pasture as well as the Shoalhaven River. Billy carting pretty much involves the kids sitting in a box on wheels, strapping on a helmet, holding on, and riding down the hill!
Jetty jumping was good fun, although again we had the current to look out for. There is 2k (a little over a mile) walk to get to the jetty which involves going over, under, and around a few pasture fences, a bit of a trek through the bush dumps you out at a park where people like to have bar-b-ques on the weekends, then down some rocky stairs lands you on the jetty (pretty much a little dock with a ladder and stairs leading up out of the water). The instructor always goes in first to “check the water” then the kids can jump in, wearing a PFD. Apparently the PFDs are a somewhat recent thing after a student claimed he “forgot how to swim” when he jumped in. I think PFDs are probably a good idea anyhow especially for the young kids and when there is a current.
We call them PFDs because apparently someone in the US sued b/c it was a family member died wearing a life jacket and the term life jacket implies that it should save his life?? I don’t know – so PDF – personal floatation device.
So that was Tuesday! Lots of fun! Really good to actually get into a bit of what I will eventually be doing, although it will be a bit different with a school group.
I’m on the train again, for the second time this week. The first time was on Monday heading up to boot camp at Port Hacking. Dan went home for the weekend so he went straight to Port Hacking so they decided to send me up on the train and catch a ride back with him rather than drive a vehicle up. This meant an early start but it was fine with me as the tracks run right along the coast most of the way, making for a scenic view.
This time is a bit different though as it is already 8:00pm. It is dark, so no coast line to be seen. Monday is Labor day so I am headed up to Sydney for the long weekend! I am soooooo excited because Allison is going to be there and we are staying with Fiona, a friend from last time we were here! Allison has been traveling around Oz since late September and Sydney is her last stop. It’ll be so good to see her!
So this past week has really felt like two weeks; boot camp Mon-Wed then our first “realish” days at Shoalhaven. Right now kids have off school for “holidays” so we were running a “holiday camp” called “Adventure Days” on Wednesday – Friday. It was just Alison and Scott on it so Dan and I helped out with that. It was lots of fun! Usually we will be working with school groups so the teachers will be there but this is more like summer camp where it is just us and the kids. I stuck with Scott (foundly known as Scoty_ for the two days and helped out with the year 5-6 kids. Dan helped Alison with the year 3-4 kids since he said he had never worked with that age before.
Thursday we started out with the low ropes course. It was really good to see that run but to have the chance to be involved in it as well. I find it really beneficial to experience the things you will be leading / teaching / facilitating. Low ropes went until 10:30 when we took a break for morning tea (a piece of fruit, water, and juice).
After morning tea we had Christian Discovery (CD); sang some songs, did some skits, had a message, and then split back into our age groups for discussion. We gave the kids a bit of free time while we set up lunch and then a bit of time after lunch before moving onto our afternoon activity of canoeing!
Canoeing was pretty fun! Unlike the somewhat protected cove area at the marina at Sandy Cove, at Shoalhaven we canoe right out on the river. It was another windy day on the river so the kids were fighting the current. Luckily we were split into three boats of three people each so two of the boats had an instructor with them. There are so many lessons to be learned from canoeing. Besides the obvious canoe strokes and learning what side to paddle on, team work and communication are also key factors in a successful canoe experience. Trust is also a factor as each person in the boat has the potential to cause a capsize. Not to mention the physical aspect and concept of “pushing yourself.” While on the water we “rafted up,” meaning we had all the boats come together side by side. Scot then had everyone grab hands with the person next to you from the other boat. We stood up one row at a time until everyone was standing. He had everyone clap once, twice, then do the “YMCA.” No one fell in – this time!
So that was wonderful, exciting day one. Day two was pretty much the same accept “billy carting” took the place of our morning activity and jetty jumping occurred in the afternoon.
I believe I described how waterslea is set up on a hill overlooking a cow pasture as well as the Shoalhaven River. Billy carting pretty much involves the kids sitting in a box on wheels, strapping on a helmet, holding on, and riding down the hill!
Jetty jumping was good fun, although again we had the current to look out for. There is 2k (a little over a mile) walk to get to the jetty which involves going over, under, and around a few pasture fences, a bit of a trek through the bush dumps you out at a park where people like to have bar-b-ques on the weekends, then down some rocky stairs lands you on the jetty (pretty much a little dock with a ladder and stairs leading up out of the water). The instructor always goes in first to “check the water” then the kids can jump in, wearing a PFD. Apparently the PFDs are a somewhat recent thing after a student claimed he “forgot how to swim” when he jumped in. I think PFDs are probably a good idea anyhow especially for the young kids and when there is a current.
We call them PFDs because apparently someone in the US sued b/c it was a family member died wearing a life jacket and the term life jacket implies that it should save his life?? I don’t know – so PDF – personal floatation device.
So that was Tuesday! Lots of fun! Really good to actually get into a bit of what I will eventually be doing, although it will be a bit different with a school group.
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