Keeping the Peace and all that jazz...

Had a dreadful nights sleep – my so thought non-existant jet lag wasn’t so non-existant and at 4am I was wide awake! Plus it was super noisy… I felt like the rubbish man was waiting outside our room all night!

Decided (randomly) to head to the united nations building I don’t really know how I thought that my feet just led me I guess and I went with it. So walked along 45^th and then up 5^th avenue checked out st Patricks cathedral had a croissant and an iced tea… everyone drinks iced tea here it’s a dream!

Then found united nations and saw Donald trumps building on my way. United nations was pretty with the flags all out the front… randomly again (I think I was still asleep) decided to do the tour. Which to be honest was a bit lacking wasn’t amazingly life changing but what was exciting was there were no meetings on today (this rarely is the case) and so we were allowed to go into both the assembly hall as well as the council room. So that was kinda cool… I was quite excited/proud to be a kiwi when I saw the little New Zealand sign! Who is our UN rep anyways?

I don’t know how I felt about the HQ being in USA cos it seems like it’s the USA that always vito’s things and goes against things. Interesting 5 countries (I think) have vito power and if one of them votes no then everything is vetoed… this happens about 1ce a year but it did just in feb when everyone else wanted to look at Palestine and Israel renegotiating or something and then the states were like NO… kinda weird but yea I always find it hard to think of America as a peacekeeping country.

Also found out that there at least needs to be some peace for the UN to fight so in the situation of Libya they cant go in because its beyond peaceful… I thought that was interesting? Also a country government has to ok them going in so they cant go in unless they have confirmed it. Kinda makes it hard in some situations.

Also interesting Kosovo has been acknowledged as an independent county by England and usa but cant apply to be part of it because the other 2 super powers namely Russia and china wont allow it… yea it was actually quite fascinating… kind of weird though talking about it like a game of risk when its really the state of the world?

Then headed to 42^nd street and walked up there… was something happening there were cops on every corner. And a couple of blockades too… and just took in all the sites… went to grand central station… there wasn’t too much there? Just a train station… but now I know how to picture it when every broadway musical dream gets washed up at grand central!

Went across the road for some Pizza… EYW pretty much had a couple of bites felt my cholesterol levels jump by 100% and quietly threw the rest in the bin… just not appetising! And all that CHEESE! Eyw eyw!

Popped into the New York Public Library which wasn’t really what I thought it was… just an ancient building with pretty ceilings and lots of old ancient books. Went to the “reading room” and sat for about an hour reading on the road! Was bliss!

Saw a massive escourt/entourage/blockade don’t know what there called with about 20 cops, and then another 10 fancy black cars… was real excited… quite an affair… found out later that the president was in town… OBAMA! Flip what a treat… then overheard another person whos sister works for the LAPD… say that it was a decoy for the real presidents vehchile. Doesn’t make much sense really… funny how in NZ hed prob just drive his own? Were so low key! Haha

Went to War Horse… wow! The first half was quite boring. It wasn’t a musical (as mum told me it was) but there was a lady who sung irishy folk songs through it (weird I know) but it worked. And basically was the story of this horse in WWI the horses are these puppet things are were very spectacular and SOOOO lifelike. Check out the trailer here… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-bni4QqSv4 they just looked so real and every movement was so horselike! And… ill admit it I cried at the end… infact I actually balled! Hahaa they were doing curtain call and the tears were just streaming haha! Sign of a good story huh! It will SO be a movie I say! Someday! Just beautiful!

Then since all my muscles hurt and feet ache… I decided to catch a cab home… so I successfully hailed a NY yellow Cab was so proud of myself and it cos me 5bux to get back to my accom! Sweet man! So I just hung out in times square and just drunk in the people and the atmosphere. 

The Metropolitan Opera - every singers dream come true!

The opera was Sensational! Actually breathtaking… Renee Flemming was the Countess and if you don’t know she is pretty much the QUEEN of singing! I have about 6 of her CDs (and 7 CDs of opera music in total) Last time Cappricio was done it was in the 80s and Kiri played the Countess.  The theatre I mean opera house was just exquisite. There were about 5 fancy resturants that are part of the campus and it seemed like it was all about being seen… 

I was in the cheap seats with my $25 ticket (BARGAIN) and so was way way up in the Gods… 7 levels to be precise. They have this incredible Chandalier which was just WOW! They had one inside and one in the foyer. The one inside is surrounded by mini ones like 15 of them. These initially are lower down and then they moved up to the top once the overture was finished. They were cooler then they sound. Also they have these seats along the sides of the top level which are like lecture desks, I presumed they were for reviewers or something.

Basically the first 15 mins I was a zombie and kept having to wake myself up. Was like noooo I cant sleep and then miss her last song (this is the famous bit of the opera) but things picked up and just WOW! I don’t know what it was about it that was so incredible maybe just because its every opera singers dream to be part of the MET opera? It was opening night as well which is always a bit special!

Renee’s voice was so pure so crystal she just dropped the notes out. And just had such a hold on the performance. Her dresses were pretty cool too. The setting was a 1920s salon so kind of just a lounge and there was no set change and no half time. 

The men… oh man give me a singing man any day! Soooo hot! There was a tenor a baritone and then La Roche who was the old guy who was a bass! There was a good amount of humour in the opera, It wasn’t comic humour though (which opera funny often can be – I don’t know ive only seen about 5 operas) it was really intelligent and clever. Really liked the storyline though, about a poet and a musician and both fall in love with the countess so they have a battle off about which is better words or music…  very smartly written. The film of the performance will be showing in Auckland later in the year if there are any takers to come with me… its nice a short (only 2 ½ hours).  See full synopsis here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capriccio_(opera)

The ending was just huge  she has about a 15 minute scene where she is trying to decide which one to choose… Flamand or Olivier – so heart wrenching!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oUABPNM_AI Just HUGE! She had her own bow! 

Start Spreading the News...

Well im in the city that never sleeps... and quite literally im wide awake! 

Had a bit of a lame time last night - my shuttle never arrived to pick me up at 1am and i thought initially there would be quite a few people around but there werent so i spent about 10 mins waiting in the minus5degrees deserted trainstation with 3 guys that looked like 50cent... one of them was from the holiday inn and ended up offering me a ride I was like oh man I will pay you a million dollars to get me out of the cold and paranoid state I was in (I didn’t actually say that) … when I did pay him (and was like this is totally not legit but its 1am) he was like its only going to ma girl… she spends all ma cash! Kinda cute though.

Drove from the airport through Queens… got excited cos there is actually a Queens Boulevard (entourage fans!)


Theres currently a guy in the hostel common room with me watching arabs got talent haha! A serious good time! Haha

I Walked round and round (just one way actually) about 20 blocks (man im so legit American) its such a genius way of explaining how far!  

Central park was just my favourite! Totally loved! Its winter so all the trees are bare and look amazing… there wernt many people around I guess it was only 4pm? Took a million photos… saw a squirrel which I was super excited about until I saw another 20 and was like oh squirrels are normal here… luckily I didn’t try to point it out to anyone else. (I would so do that)

Got some roasted nuts from a vendor man – was exciting. Then headed back to the Lincoln centre where I visited the NY Public Library for performing Arts (man im such a nerd) it had soooo many amazing music/musical/opera dvds. I felt like a music student (super nerd) and felt pretty cool. Might just go there tomorrow to feel cool again!

Walked past the Julliard School of Music (of High School Musical fame) and then grabbed a hot dog (which was average like a sizzler in a bun – super average) before heading over to the opera (the hot dog was total class prior to the opera!)

  

The opera was Sensational! Actually breathtaking… read my full review in my next post on the opera ... for all those opera lovers who are my friends (not) 

I then headed back… was unsure if I should catch a cab back or walk… I felt lame cabbing cos it wasn’t far but apparently that’s what new yorkians do? Jump in a cab for a block! So I walked… initially I was like yea this is Broadway! Im sweet as! But then there got less and less people and I was like uhhh so I kinda just tagged on to groups pretended I was with them then there was a police officer so I kinda walked behind him for a few blocks – who better to protect you then NYPD! Then I think he knew I was following him so he turned down some dark alley and I was alone… had to gap it down a couple myself but then tagged onto a black family (whos gunna attack them) and then was fine once I got to times square where its ALL happening! That place is buzzing!

So overall… LOVE IT! Daunting but then its just some secret america “code” and once you’ve got it you’ve got it im guessing!

Tomorrow Im thinking MOMA and United Nations Building… but hey lets see what the day has in store for me! 

30 hours of planes airports and virtually no sleep!

Flew from Melbs to Sydney where we had a 5 min stopover... 

Had a panic attack on the plane when I couldn’t remember if I had booked the food service and thought I might have to starve for the next 13 hours. To make matters worse i had no inflight entertainment so had to work out how i was going to entertain myself for 13 hours... was pretty abysmal… slept for about 30 mins freaked out as there were still another 750 minutes to go… things got better… I had an epic 4 hour Dr who till my laptop died then ended up sleeping for about 3 hours. Spent quite a bit of time looking at the back of the seat infront of me... 

There are actually trees like this...

Welcome to California Baby!

Then arrived at LAX… to a 90 minute passport queue. I remembered how dad once said that it was the british that invented queueing – it definatley wasn’t the Americans I can say that much! It was a complete shambles just a mass arrangement of people standing round looking confused. I then was questioned heavily at passport check… the guy was very rude to me and made me feel just terrible. 

I was then moved into an interview room and was told my story doesn’t add up because I was a young girl and I was stupid to be travelling alone and ive never been to the US before so what was I thinking… he then went through all my documents and bags, pulled everything out... so after about an hour of intense questioning… he was like ok… and let me go. WHEW! 

So then I arrived and the airport here is so daunting and massive and crappy and there are no info desks and everyone is SO unfriendly and I had no idea where I was meant to go. I put my baggage on the transfer trolley but then I had no idea how to get to my gate and the lady just kept telling me to look at the screen and so I stood outside looking over whelmed for about 10 mins… took a photo of the palms and then I saw an LAPD car got a wee bit excited! And then worked out where to go and so just thought id check in early I had about 5 hours.

Zombie me eating a cheeseburger...

Got some american macdonalds… saw a real live soldier of the US army in uniform was also a bit surreal? Got confused because she charged me tax on my burger I was like ummmm but luckily just went with it and then realised how dumb I was afterwards.

Everything is so intense here… and kinda like massive! They have a vending machine for ipads, ipods, cameras phones etc and other technical equipment… no kidding! A VENDING MACHINE!

Day 2 – Saturday 26th March… Melbourne

I just LOVE Melbourne... and every time I go there I think I fall just a little bit more in love with it. The people the cultures the diversity. 

I love how there are always people everywhere and its such an amalgamation of peoples!

Went out for brunch had amazing wild mushrooms…with crazy bits that looked like octopus tentacles. (see picture) I went to ask for a trim flat white but apparently here it’s a flat white with skinny milk… whoops!

Then hit chapel street which is about 5 mins walk. We ventured down the “grunge” end in search of some boots… (it occurred to me while sitting at the tram last night that my one pair of canvas shoes probably wernt going to suffice the NY weather.) purchases made, coffee drunk, more purchases and more coffee (I love Melbourne coffee! So strong!)

Then we hit “The Auti.”  This is a german supermarket chain which has random sale items each week. This weeks sale included a set of bongo drums. Bought some wine and some feed and headed back to Jess’s apartment. Theres something exciting about living in an apartment. Sat and feasted while listening to the distant sound of Motors as the Melbourne Grand Prix was on this weekend. Headed to Korean for dinner with Rupert and then back for more friend time! 

Social Media (stolen article that is brilliantly interesting!)

I found this on the Collide Website - its by some guy called Ben Simpson but raises some interesting questions about Social Media... I found it here...

During the summers, my local church partners with a congregation in the inner city, sponsoring a Vacation Bible School and helping maintain the building. Among the tasks they were asked to complete this year was window washing. In some instances, the windows became clear after a little work. Others, however, remained dingy and fogged. No amount of cleaner would restore the panes to their former state. The condition of the window was fixed.

In both the real and the virtual worlds, there is a desire that the people we meet would be both transparent and authentic. We’d rather see people clearly than feel as though we were peering through a cloudy window pane. While undoubtedly in this age we see though a glass darkly, we hope that our perception of people would match up with reality. We hope for the best, but often it is difficult to discern truth from falsity, integrity from unscrupulousness.

Online, this is a challenge. Social media oftentimes is more of a foggy piece of glass, rather than a clear window pane. There is always the question as to whether an individual’s digital persona has a truthful correspondence to the actuality of their character. Being both transparent and authentic online is a challenge.

The Problem of Perception
The first challenge to being transparent through social media is the problem of perception. When your life is shared through Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, or a blog, a certain image begins to form in the mind of the viewer concerning your personality, your likes and dislikes, your passions, and your hopes. This perception is formed apart from an experience of your presence, including your mannerisms, social habits, voice inflection, and more. By nature, the initial image is limited by the medium.

Thanks to the wonders of the Internet, I’ve managed to gain an impression of a broad array of Christian leaders. There are those who come off cranky, kind, angry, passionate, inarticulate, gentle, persuasive, charismatic, forceful, hopeful, or pessimistic -- an immense range. Through podcasts, pictures, and blog posts, I’m given the opportunity to encounter a host of people without the constraints of time and space. The world, in effect, shrinks. But perceptions don’t always meet up with reality, and it is difficult to fill in the gaps without sharing proximity, community, a common discourse, and a common life. Social media only allows us to see so much.

The Myth of Transparency
In addition to the problem of perception, there is the myth of transparency. People seem to believe that social media can allow us to be transparent, or clear, in how we present ourselves to the world. However, little attention is given to just how clear the window of social media truly is. Online, are we peering through a clear or foggy pane?

Social media enables us to project an image to the world through short bursts. If you were to examine my media usage, you might conclude that I am a coffee shop hipster who likes to read and take my kid to the pool. If you met me in person, you might find me an abrasive Texan who is highly opinionated on matters of theology and church practice, who is occasionally obtuse, who has a “lover’s quarrel” with the church of which he is part, and who likes to talk Royals’ and Rangers’ baseball.

Though some will argue otherwise, I believe online transparency is a myth. We only see that which is revealed through pixels. That picture may be beautiful; it may be repulsive. Social media, like so much of modern public discourse, is a function of image management. You portray what you wish to portray. You choose your soundbites carefully. You present yourself in a light that reveals that which you wish to be seen, and you conceal those elements you desire to remain hidden. And I am not immune from this judgment.

Concerning social media usage and church ministry, this truth points us in a direction that influences our thinking about numerous initiatives and strategies currently being pursued and developed in the Christian world. The obvious applications concern Twitter, blogging, and other similar platforms. But projects like Internet campuses and other church ministries also fall under scrutiny, for to what degree can we truly be “real” with those who are separated from us by the buffer of technology, and how “real” can we be concerning ourselves? Might it be the case that we develop technological personas that deviate from our standard way of being?

The Challenge of and Aid to Authenticity
While total transparency may be a myth, it is possible to have an authentic online presence. But such a presence cannot be developed outside the bounds of a physical community. Being authentically human, in the Christian tradition, is to be formed and remade into the image of Christ. In order to for this type of transformation to take place, we rely both on the grace of God and the common life of the church. It is the church that presents us with the challenge of authenticity, while also exhorting us to be made new by God as authentic human beings.

At the Echo Conference, Charles Lee observed that a physical community was critical for the development of our character. And as more and more Christians engage in the digital world, it will be important for our presence there to be a reflection of the One we claim as Lord. To the degree that others see us through the window of social media, it should be our hope that our lives likewise serve as a window through which others can see the risen Christ.
Through the Looking Glass
If you recall the students mentioned above, they invested their energy washing windows that would never be restored to perfect clarity. Yet despite the fact that these windows remained foggy, perception was still possible. An impression of the person remained, even if a detail here and there became distorted or elusive.

In the same way, social media is the equivalent of an opaque piece of glass. It is a tool that buffers us from the outside world, while also allowing for a perception to be presented to others who look upon us through it. If one is to be authentic online, one must be involved in a physical community that helps to craft one’s character, so that in those areas where online transparency shields us from the critiques and accountability of the online community, there are those that can refine us and help us to become more authentic.

Our challenge, therefore, is to ensure that which is seen is in accordance with the image of Christ; we must be remade without spot or blemish (Eph. 5:27). May God give us the grace to be authentic, living lives that are clear windows to the Christ.

If you currently looked in my handbag you would find…

Seriously my bag is in desperate need of a cleanout… at the moment there are some rediculous things hiding in there… below is an attempt to describe the state of my bag…

iPhone - Essential
iPod - this is my old classic and you wonder why this also is in my bag well my phone doesn’t charge in my car and so I have my old classic for car listening purposes…
Wallet 1 - This is my new wallet… however its slimline and doesn’t actually fit everything (who buys these sorts of wallets anyway)
Wallet 2 - my old wallet to hold half the stuff that my new wallet cant!
Headbands x2 - like actual headbands how theres room who knows?
Crocodile clips x4 - ???
Reading Glasses case - where the glasses actually are?
Sun Glasses x2 pairs - why I carry 2?
Broken Sun Glasses x1 pair - theyre still in there
Broken Sun Glass arm - from a different broken sun glass pair - don’t ask!
Various Pens - most probablly stolen
At least 6 lip treatments - gloss, sticks, balm and ointment!
Drugs - neurofin, iron tablets, and strepsils (wtf I havent used them since winter)
My warrant notice - which was expired like a week ago!
Face Makeup Primer - Ahhh that’s where it is
Headphones x2 - pairs of broken and half broken

Bobby pins - An endless supply of

Keys - which always get lost at the bottom
Tampons - loitering at the bottom!
An Ipod to sterio cable - I always carry this baby!
An Ipod to Usb cable - also essential
Hair ties - Several stray
Resene paint pottle - filled with mosturiser
Some MicremeH - for dry skin
Several Stray Buy 10 get one free cards - Coffee, Sushi, Ice Cream, Cake, more coffee, books, dvd's
Not to mention a gazillion eftpos, parking, taxi and foodtown reciepts

books books books

So i decided I was going to read some more this year... finish off some of the started and attempt some of the unkown...

Here is my list to attempt...

Anna Karenina, Leo Tolstoy

Great Expectations, Charles Dickens

The Grapes Of Wrath, John Steinbeck

On The Road, Jack Kerouac
Animal Farm, George Orwell

Catch-22, Joseph Heller

The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald

A Churchless Faith, Alan Jaimeson

The Great Emergence, Phyllis Tickle

Surprised by Hope, N.T. Wright

Jesus Wants to Save Christians, Rob Bell

Confessions of St Augustine, Augustine

I took this picture in attempt to capture the beauty of life...

The Power is Yours!

The next on my list of blogging topics is My Favourite Super Hero and Why!


I think my favourite superhero would have to be captain planet! Apart from being ridiculously ridiculous… he is AMAZING! The song - WOW that was an inspiration! I loved how the planeteers collaborated to conjure him up. "EARTH! FIRE! WIND! WATER! HEART!"

And the fact that HEART was one of the key contributors to his success! The 5th Element some may say!

"Go Planet!" "By your powers combined, I am Captain Planet!"

Captain Planet, he's our hero

Gonna take pollution down to zero

He's our powers magnified

And he's fighting on the planet's side

Captain Planet, he's our hero

Gonna take pollution down to zero

Gonna help him put asunder

Bad guys who like to loot and plunder

"You'll pay for this Captain Planet!"

We're the Planeteers You can be one too

'Cause saving our planet is the thing to do!

Looting and polluting is not the way

Hear what Captain Planet has to say!

"The Power is Yours!"