Down Under Day 3

I got a lot of work done today and in the afternoon went for a long run. The scenery here reminds me so much of Montana with eucalyptus trees. The mountains are awesome. I’ll take my cameral tomorrow.

My bowling début finally arrived and I headed to the club. They welcomed me with open arms and told me all about the game. I got asked a dozen times why I was in Dungog and then asked what could possibly have brought me here. I had a great time. The game was really fun and the people were awesome. You play in teams of 3 and it is one team against another so you are paired against another team for the game. There were 6 teams playing so there was 3 lanes we were using. Here’s a picture of the playing area.

As you can see it is an open terf area and you roll a small yellow ball (kitty or Jack) to the other end. Then try to roll your ball as close as you can to the kitty. It is a lot like our lawn bowling at home with one major exception. The balls here are waited on one side so they curve a lot. For example you have to roll it out away from the kitty and have it curve back in. as you can see in the picture the guy, Ron my coach, isn’t aiming straight at the yellow ball at the other end. The trick is to gauge how hard to through it (how heavy) and how wide to through it (how much grass). We played for a couple hours (you go 12 times so 6 times from each end). At the end they had some food and people just sat around and talked. Little by little the numbers decreased until there was Robin (the most celebrated female bowler of the club), Bob (a great guy that was on my team, in the picture he is on the other end with the beard), Ron (my coach and an extremely nice guy), the club manager and his wife who were both really nice, Ken (the most celebrated bowler of the club having won the club championship 19 times), Spencer (business owner and president of the club) and I. We talked till way after 10. They told me all about the history of the town and how much they loved it here. They told me of famous people from Dungog, a cricket player and an equestrian Olympic medalist. They talked about when dairy industry was deregulated and almost all of them went out of business. They also talked about when the government turned state forests into federal parks and whipped out their timber industry. They used to have a milk plant and 3 lumber mills now none of them exist. There is still a lot of farming but very few dairies. Just what I was looking for.

In the end I now have a group of mates who are all over 60 who play a wonderful game of bowling, the real way they say. They gave me a towel from their club as a memento.

Down Under Day 2

Last night after getting to my room I finally met my roommate, Juliano. And yes I am not making this up he is from Belo Horazonte in Brazil. He has a wife and daughter in a town about 2 hours from here and has come her for work. We talked for hours in Portuguese. I loved it. It was great. We talked about the differences in cultures and traditions here as compared to Brazil. He said one big difference is that in Brazil there isn’t much of a social service system for the poor or disabled and here there is an incredible social service system. His wife gets paid 500dollars (about $560 US) a week to stay home and take care of their daughter. That is to encourage mothers to stay home with their children so they don’t have to put them in child care. Also, he told of how it was possible to get disability for about anything. While there was a side of this that he saw as really good he also talked of how it drove him a little nuts because it seemed like everyone wanted to get on disability and it didn’t take much. I don’t know how many people really are on disability but I’ll look into it. In his mind he saw the people as lazy because they had the perception that if they didn’t get work they could government assistance. So while he thought it was good for the country to take care of its poor. He also thought it made them lazy in his mind. Kids don’t have to pay for college because of a program called hex which, nobody seems to kmow what it means, but if you enroll in it they pay your tuition and then when your annual salary gets to a certain level instead of a tax refund they put that money toward the amount of debt they paid. So most of the kids go to school for free and only if they end up getting a good job and begin making good money do they have to pay it back and even then it is paid as a withholding of their tax return. I don’t know if this is really the way it works but it is an interesting model. So he saw a lot of kids get done with college and not really do anything because they could also collect welfare and even though it isn’t much it is enough to live on.

One other thing I noticed is the cost of things here. I paid 15AUdollars for a fast-food hamburger. I also paid 2dollars for 3 mandarins for breakfast. It is kind of crazy. Juliano said it is very expensive here. It seems a lot more expensive than the US. I’m going to keep track of it and see what some of the other places are like.

I spent the morning at the research center I found yesterday talking to them about aboriginal families. It is amazing how similar an experience was had by the aboriginal tribes here as to the Native Americans. Children were taken from their parents to be raised by white people in order to “educate” them and get the wild out of them. They were given “Christian” names and taught at white schools. The aboriginal people were relegated to “reserves” that were locations nobody wanted. They were then promised by the government that they would be taken care of. Today, there is virtually no industry there and the tribes live off of money from the government and have a terrible alcoholism problem and high suicide rate. Sound familiar?

Anyway, I had a wonderful morning talking to them about marriage ceremonies and family dynamics. They have a great deal of tradition that is gender specific. Women don’t know the men stuff and men don’t know the women stuff. She said it was sacred but also said that it wasn’t restricted to native peoples. For example if she were to marry a white guy and he wanted to be initiated into the tribe they would welcome him with open arms and teach him as a full member. She said this was important because the traditions are passed to the sons and daughters by their aunts and uncles not their parents. It is a big responsibility to be an aunt or an uncle. I had a great morning.

Then it was time to head to Dungog. The train ride was about 3 hours for what is about a 1 hour car ride but I didn’t mind. The scenery was awesome. Here are some pictures

After arriving in Dungog I found the hotel and knew I was in the right place. I walked from the train station into town and there was one street with businesses and the rest is just houses. Just the small town I was looking for.

After getting settled in I want for a walk and found a bunch of guys playing a game called bowling (not our bowling thought). I watched for a while and they invited me to play Wednesday night. They have a social game that night and asked if I would like to join them. I’m excited.

Jana was going to call the hotel to talk and I don’t have a phone in my room Which meant I waited in the lounge area till 9. Normally this isn’t too late but jet lag caught up with me. I was falling asleep standing up and didn’t want to fall asleep on the couch cause I need to get into the right rhythm. At any rate finally talked with Jana for a few minutes because I was using their phone in the bar. 

Day 1 DownUnder

Downunder Day 1

As with all trips abroad my trip to the land down under started with a drug sniffing dog. The dog went up and down the rows of people who have just travelled for 16 hours to get there sniffing everyone. Yes I truly feel sorry for the dog. I know after my 24 hours of travel I would not have wished sniffing me on someone I wanted to get revenge on. At any rate, I passed the drug sniff test but definitely not the human sniff test.

Then the fun began, I failed the initial screening because they had one question “have you been to a rural area or a farm in the past 30 days, including contact with any farm animals”. I struck out right out of the gate. Anyway they asked “did you wash your shoes off good”. At that moment I had yet another reminder to always listen to your wife who before I left suggested that I wash off my boots instead of just beat them together. Anyway she was right and they had to go through my luggage and they took my boots to a magical secret room where they were eviscerated, probably just washed in water and that was good but I was then on my way.

The train was great. I love traveling on a train. It is nice and smooth with a lot of room. I could stand and stretch as well as put my feet up and enjoy the scenery. It was a great trip. I got to Newcastle and found the University. I was proud of myself, I got on the subway to the center of Sydney then another train to Newcastle and made it to Newcastle by 11. On the way I asked some people on the train about getting to the University and one was going there and said she would show me the way. Once on the university campus there is a shuttle that goes around which I got and they took me to the Family advocacy center. One of the students riding the shuttle was a kid from Aubern who was doing a study abroad semester here. I dropped off my bags and headed to my Hostel.

When I got off the train at my stop I was walking behind a guy who was wearing a university of Wyoming hat. I asked him why and he said he had lived in Aspin Wyoming for a couple years. As I listened to people talking on the train and while I walked around it was clear that there were a lot of Americans here. The other thing that was clear as I left the train and began walking to my Hostel was that I was going against the grain. After about 10 blocks of wondering why I seemed to be running into everyone that I was walking on the wrong side of the sidewalk, yes I’m a slow learner. You see not only do they drive on the left side of the road here they also walk on the left side of the sidewalk. The other thing is in the states there is a standing rule when you are meeting someone on the street head on you both go right and all is well. I had half a dozen times when I met someone I went right he went left and we were right back where we started. Then we do the dance back and forth to see who is going to go which direction. At any rate, it was clear that I was not catching on to something until I figured this out. Then things were back in sync. I did notice however, several groups of obvious tourists walking on the right side and making traffic go around. I even noticed this one the running trail.

Anyway, I finally got a shower and felt ready for the drug dog to come back. I went for a run and had a great run. While running out on a dyke a wave splashed up over the dyke and totally covered me. I asked someone if the waves were normal and they said no. for some reason they were in rare form today. It was like nothing I’d ever seen. They were about 20 feet tall and the spray when they hit the bank was amazing.

I went into a store that was selling aboriginal artifacts and found out that it was a center for aboriginal research. I’m going back tomorrow to do some reading in their Library about family traditions for the tribes in this area. I’m excited.

I love a good roach coach or street food vender as much as the next guy but one I never want to try is a sushi roach coach. Raw fish in a box in the 90degree weather. Scary

So I went on a walk and there were all these parrots flying around. if you zoom in on the bird you should be able to see how colorful it is.

Home Sweet Home

I am now sitting in Hogwarts Griffendor house common room, surrounded by 20 somethings that are who are drinking coffee by the picture full. If any of them sleep tonight I will be amazed. In reality a Hostel is the closest thing I’ve ever seen to a hippy commune. Everyone acts like they are family here even if you just go here today. Shared bathrooms, shared private showers (there is a room with a bunch of shower rooms that lock so you get privacy but there all crammed in a small space, but it is appropriate, nobody’s running around unclothed). In fact it is the calmest bunch of 20 year olds I’ve ever seen. One group is right now playing the game of Life, another playing cards, another ping pong and another watching a home building show. Remarkably it is a very comfortable environment, not anything like a spring break scene. I feel really comfortable. The one thing that is normal is they are all eating pizza. Tonight was pizza night at the Hostel so they ordered pizza for everyone that wanted it. Tomorrow is b-bcue night. Bummer I’ll miss that. Oh well.

I survived the day without sleeping so I am ready to hit the bed and I am sure I’ll sleep well tonight. It is 3:43 in the morning in Nebraska right now.

Where did April Fools Come from?

P.S. STEVE I GOT YA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have not idea why we like to play jokes on April fools day. It makes no sense. I did find some interesting things on one website (http://www.april-fools.us/history-april-fools.htm) about the cultural traditions. They state:

"In Scotland, for instance, April Fool's Day is devoted to spoofs involving the buttocks and as such is called Taily Day. The butts of these jokes are known as April 'Gowk', another name for cuckoo bird. The origins of the "Kick Me" sign can be traced back to the Scottish observance.

In England, jokes are played only in the morning. Fools are called 'gobs' or 'gobby' and the victim of a joke is called a 'noodle.' It was considered back luck to play a practical joke on someone after noon.

In Rome, the holiday is known as Festival of Hilaria, celebrating the resurrection of the god Attis, is on March 25 and is also referred to as "Roman Laughing Day."

In Portugal, April Fool's Day falls on the Sunday and Monday before lent. In this celebration, many people throw flour at their friends.

The Huli Festival is celebrated on March 31 in India. People play jokes on one another and smear colors on one another celebrating the arrival of Spring."

I have no idea if it is true but it is interesting.

What did you say

How is that that people allow themselves to say things in an attempt to make a point or to be assertive/aggressive that decreases their IQ and apparent intelect to such a degree. I am talking about profanity.

George Washington also set us a good example in this regard. When he learned that some of his officers were given to profanity, he sent a letter to them on July 1, 1776, from which we quote:
“The General is sorry to be informed that the foolish and wicked practice of profane cursing and swearing, a vice heretofore little known in our American army, is growing into fashion. He hopes the officers will, by example as well as influence, endeavor to check it and that both they and the men will reflect that we can have little hope of the blessing of heaven on our arms if we insult it by our impropriety and folly. Added to this, it is a vice so mean and low, without any temptation, that every man of sense and character detests and despises it.”

"Profanity is a feeble brains way of expressing itself" Spencer W. Kimball

social networking confusion

I am behind the times and for the past couple months have been trying to catch up, at least with social networking. I signed up for a facebook account, found my friends at least some of them, then some others found me. Now I have contact information for more individuals than I have for decades and I am really not sure what to do about it.



I look at the things people are writing and it seems nonsensical. I stare at the screen and after a time of reading what others have written and leave. I ether need to practice my "social networking" jargon, which seems more like yap yap or I need to figure out what the heck this whole thing is about. Is there any rhyme or reason to what is posted? If not who thought up this thing maybe we should change the name to "social ramblings".

Hope on a Rope

The Obama-mania is an amazing thing in our country right now. I find myself excited about the possibilities and cautious about the future. At any rate, they have talked a lot about the marketing that has gone on since his election as president. One company made Obama shaped soap on a rope and called it "Hope on a Rope".

I thought this was a stretch for marketing but a youthful sage was talking to me about it and said that he felt like if you washed with a politician you would probably wind up more dirty. He may be right and in some cases I am sure he is.

Justifying our existance

In this world of economic instability and financial fear. I have to ask myself how do I justify my existence to my employer. I work for the University of Nebraska. Every year we have to put together a file of all the things we have done over the past year that justifies our existence. As I put that document together I wonder if those are the things that really have impact on the world around me. One of my heroes once told me that the most important thing is to go out and do good things. If that is what I am doing how am I doing it? How do I count it? How do I measure it? How do I know it?

A friend and I were talking about this and he said "I wonder how Martin Luther King Jr. would have been evaluated the year he was killed." Would all of the bean counters have found a way to measure the global impact of a man who 50 years later is still a guiding light in the storm. The interesting thing about Dr. King is that the impact on me isn't only from the changed policies and beliefs but how I am personally different because of his teachings.

That makes me wonder which is most important for me a professor the global policy impact or the personal impact on those I interact with. In the end I will need to have both. Maybe Dr. King is a good example of how to count impact. When historians are measuring his impact on history they talk of the rallies, speeches, leadership, and works that shaped and moved our country forward. When I measure his impact I think of what kind of a person he was and how his example can lead me personally.

Who knows maybe there isn't a good way to accurately justify our own existence in an academic world. But I do know one thing, "going out and doing good" is a wonderful charge and full of ups and downs, good days and challenging days. However, at the end of the day I must find a way to justify my existence because I love what I do. maybe that is the key, play the game well so you can stay on the team.

The inspiration for our blog

This video is from Mark Gungor. Unfortunately it may be true.