I've just signed up as a 'couch surfer'! It looks like a good way of connecting with like minded people, with the added benefit that you might be able crash on someone's couch for a few nights. Click here to see my "Couch Surfing Profile"
When I was in NZ I used the SERVAS organisation. I stayed with some really great hosts and I'd like to be a host in the future.
As part of my travels next year I'd like to deepen my experience of organic / biodynamic farming / sustainable living / alternative communities and I'm hoping that WWOOF (willing workers on organic farms) will provide some opportunities for this.
One way or another, I shouldn't be short of somewhere to stay! All of these organisations seem like a great way to establish a meaningful connection to a place when away from home. I'm hoping that my new housemates will be up for getting involved too as I'd love to offer our sofa bed!
Sunday, December 24, 2006
Monday, December 18, 2006
The Importance of Being Earnest
Click here the photos from our graduation performance!
Here is what I was thinking a week out...
I've never been involved in anything like this before, this final week is 'production week' and the best way I have of understanding it is to compare it to something I am more familiar with, the last week before a big triathlon / rowing event. There are 8 of us cast members plus our wonderful director Joanne Panagiotopolous and we are a tight team so it feels a little bit like our final week of rowing before Henley '97...
In both cases you are trying to build your energy and bring your performance to a peak at the right time. In both cases an outstanding performance involves reproducing the best from all the hours of practise you have put in but also creating a good mental space to allow something extra special to happen on the day. Great 'performances' seem to correlate quite strongly with 'letting go' and enjoying each moment as it unfolds... The biggest difference, as far as I can make out, is that I'd be spending most of the week ahead of a race with my feet up doing very little!
Oscar Wilde is a comic genius and you if we the team do our job well then the audience will certainly be laughing a great deal more than you ever did when you watched a race!
Here is what I was thinking a week out...
I've never been involved in anything like this before, this final week is 'production week' and the best way I have of understanding it is to compare it to something I am more familiar with, the last week before a big triathlon / rowing event. There are 8 of us cast members plus our wonderful director Joanne Panagiotopolous and we are a tight team so it feels a little bit like our final week of rowing before Henley '97...
In both cases you are trying to build your energy and bring your performance to a peak at the right time. In both cases an outstanding performance involves reproducing the best from all the hours of practise you have put in but also creating a good mental space to allow something extra special to happen on the day. Great 'performances' seem to correlate quite strongly with 'letting go' and enjoying each moment as it unfolds... The biggest difference, as far as I can make out, is that I'd be spending most of the week ahead of a race with my feet up doing very little!
Oscar Wilde is a comic genius and you if we the team do our job well then the audience will certainly be laughing a great deal more than you ever did when you watched a race!
Friday, December 15, 2006
Looking for housemates again!
Olivier and Chrissie are moving out in the new year, they are going to get a place together. So I'm on the hunt for housemates again. It gets a bit easier each time. I'm a lot clearer about what I'm looking for now. We always get a lot of interest so it is good to be really clear about what kind of a person you are looking for. Click anywhere on the text to see the ad.
Here are some of the people I have lived with over the last 3 years: Nick, Bianca, Jane, Jamie, Melody, Elmo, Mattieu, Carole, Thomas, Martin, Adam, Cath, Chrissie, Josh, Mali, Olivier, Christina. Perhaps we ought to have a 303 reunion sometime and see what everyone is up to...
Here are some of the people I have lived with over the last 3 years: Nick, Bianca, Jane, Jamie, Melody, Elmo, Mattieu, Carole, Thomas, Martin, Adam, Cath, Chrissie, Josh, Mali, Olivier, Christina. Perhaps we ought to have a 303 reunion sometime and see what everyone is up to...
2006 draws to a close
My year is nearly over and it has been the best of my life so far. I have been a full time student at Parsifal College in Sydney for the year and that had a lot to do with it! In my spare time I have been running Total Immersion swim coaching for Australia. I've started a photo page too. My aim is to post only the best ones so that we can avoid digital overload! In any case I've put in permanent links for each of these so you can check them out.
Does anyone use RSS with 'live bookmarks'? It seems like a great way to see when websites have been updated without checking them every 5 minutes...
Bye for now,
Dunstan
Does anyone use RSS with 'live bookmarks'? It seems like a great way to see when websites have been updated without checking them every 5 minutes...
Bye for now,
Dunstan
Thursday, March 02, 2006
February Birthdays
Well 3 of the 9 of us on my course happened to have birthdays within 4 days of each other so Zohar, Evan and Myself shared a cake!
... and then there were the parties...
Myself and Josh had a joint BBQ in Centennial Park and managed to find some fairly subtle (not!) fabrics for our togas. People made a great effort, Phil maintained his near-perfect record for party attendence and the bottle walking brought out a competitive streak in many!
The following week was Claire's 'Moulin Rouge' themed party at 'Slide'. Another great night where people made a real effort with outfits, although the sight of a 6ft drag queen was somewhat disturbing, especially to me!
Here are a couple of photos. Emma has provided her ususal excellent service of publishing them online and I have added her website as a permanent link on the right ... Dunstan & Josh's Toga BBQ and Claire's Birthday
... and then there were the parties...
Myself and Josh had a joint BBQ in Centennial Park and managed to find some fairly subtle (not!) fabrics for our togas. People made a great effort, Phil maintained his near-perfect record for party attendence and the bottle walking brought out a competitive streak in many!
The following week was Claire's 'Moulin Rouge' themed party at 'Slide'. Another great night where people made a real effort with outfits, although the sight of a 6ft drag queen was somewhat disturbing, especially to me!
Here are a couple of photos. Emma has provided her ususal excellent service of publishing them online and I have added her website as a permanent link on the right ... Dunstan & Josh's Toga BBQ and Claire's Birthday
on becoming an anthroposophist...
Well I'm now 4 weeks into my course. It is unlike anything I have ever done before and I am enjoying some of the creative tasks such as sculpting, painting and weaving. We have 3 sessions each day from Monday to Thursday. I leave home by 8 am for the hour ride up to Pennant Hills and am showered in time to start at 9:30.
I've also started a blog for us, the students at www.anthroposophists.blogspot.com. Full time students are: Celine, Connie, Dunstan, Ella, Evan, Kelly-Anne, Naho, Naoto, Rosa and Zohar. 5 of us are international students from as far afield as Japan, Israel and the UK so its a good mix.
Here are some photos!
I've also started a blog for us, the students at www.anthroposophists.blogspot.com. Full time students are: Celine, Connie, Dunstan, Ella, Evan, Kelly-Anne, Naho, Naoto, Rosa and Zohar. 5 of us are international students from as far afield as Japan, Israel and the UK so its a good mix.
Here are some photos!
Friday, January 20, 2006
Dunstan's UK Tour draws to a close...
Well my 6 weeks excellent weeks in the UK are drawing to a close. Lots good times with great people. Sorry if the blogging has been a bit sparse!
I've been doing my best to get around the UK and see as many people as possible and am doing a couple of weeks of supply teaching to finish off the trip.
I'm having a great final week in Northampton. Lots of challenge, especially in the classroom - teaching in a school that is in special measures - ie under threat of being closed down. This week is their follow up Offsted inspection. Yesterday one of the inspectors went onto the field when a fight was in progress and had a burger thrown at her! Most of the classes need a pretty high level of behaviour management so it is keeping me honest!
Thought for Thursday 19th Jan 2006:
"A lot of the kids at school seem to think that I (their supply teacher) am there for their entertainment and try their hardest to get a predictable reaction. Well they are most mistaken - I'm actually there in a spirit of lovingkindness and light humour to help them to learn and to grow as people. Often I feel as though certain individuals are the ones who are providing entertainment for me and the rest of the class!"
... love that shit!
When I get back to Sydney I'll be starting my course in Anthroposophy with a view to becoming a Waldorf teacher. I will miss many aspects of my job at NumberWorks and there will be many sad farewells but I am fully excited about the start of the next chapter of my antipodean adventure. It seems as though the Steiner approach treats a person as'an acorn to be nurtured in growth', rather than a 'vessel that needs to be filled' and this is something I believe in my heart.
I'll also be running Total Immersion swim workshops, setting up swim squad, getting more involved with Rob's Run teaching, helping friends with their triathlon training and perhaps doing some supply teaching and maths tuition.
Plenty to keep me busy there!
I've been doing my best to get around the UK and see as many people as possible and am doing a couple of weeks of supply teaching to finish off the trip.
I'm having a great final week in Northampton. Lots of challenge, especially in the classroom - teaching in a school that is in special measures - ie under threat of being closed down. This week is their follow up Offsted inspection. Yesterday one of the inspectors went onto the field when a fight was in progress and had a burger thrown at her! Most of the classes need a pretty high level of behaviour management so it is keeping me honest!
Thought for Thursday 19th Jan 2006:
"A lot of the kids at school seem to think that I (their supply teacher) am there for their entertainment and try their hardest to get a predictable reaction. Well they are most mistaken - I'm actually there in a spirit of lovingkindness and light humour to help them to learn and to grow as people. Often I feel as though certain individuals are the ones who are providing entertainment for me and the rest of the class!"
... love that shit!
When I get back to Sydney I'll be starting my course in Anthroposophy with a view to becoming a Waldorf teacher. I will miss many aspects of my job at NumberWorks and there will be many sad farewells but I am fully excited about the start of the next chapter of my antipodean adventure. It seems as though the Steiner approach treats a person as'an acorn to be nurtured in growth', rather than a 'vessel that needs to be filled' and this is something I believe in my heart.
I'll also be running Total Immersion swim workshops, setting up swim squad, getting more involved with Rob's Run teaching, helping friends with their triathlon training and perhaps doing some supply teaching and maths tuition.
Plenty to keep me busy there!
Dunstan's UK Tour draws to a close...
Well my 6 weeks excellent weeks in the UK are drawing to a close. I've been doing my best to get around the UK and see as much of my friends and family as possible. Lots good times with great people. Sorry if the blogging has been a bit sparse! I'll post some highlights soon :-)
I'm having a great final week in Northampton. Lots of challenge, especially in the classroom - teaching in a school that is in special measures - ie under threat of being closed down. This week is their follow up Offsted inspection. Yesterday one of the inspectors went onto the field when a fight was in progress and had a burger thrown at her! Most of the classes need a pretty high level of behaviour management so it is keeping me honest!
Thought for Thursday 19th Jan 2006:
"A lot of the kids at school seem to think that I (their supply teacher) am there for their entertainment and try their hardest to get a predictable reaction. Well they are most mistaken - I'm actually there in a spirit of lovingkindness and light humour to help them to learn and to grow as people. Often I feel as though certain individuals are the ones who are providing entertainment for me and the rest of the class!"
... love that stuff!
When I get back to Sydney I'll be starting my course in Anthroposophy with a view to becoming a Waldorf teacher. I will miss many aspects of my job at NumberWorks and there will be many sad farewells but I am fully excited about the start of the next chapter of my antipodean adventure. It seems as though the Steiner approach treats a person as 'an acorn to be nurtured in growth', rather than a 'vessel that needs to be filled' and this is something I believe in my heart.
I'll also be running Total Immersion swim workshops, setting up swim squad, getting more involved with Rob's Run teaching, helping friends with their triathlon training and perhaps doing some supply teaching and maths tuition.
Should be plenty to keep me busy there!
I'm having a great final week in Northampton. Lots of challenge, especially in the classroom - teaching in a school that is in special measures - ie under threat of being closed down. This week is their follow up Offsted inspection. Yesterday one of the inspectors went onto the field when a fight was in progress and had a burger thrown at her! Most of the classes need a pretty high level of behaviour management so it is keeping me honest!
Thought for Thursday 19th Jan 2006:
"A lot of the kids at school seem to think that I (their supply teacher) am there for their entertainment and try their hardest to get a predictable reaction. Well they are most mistaken - I'm actually there in a spirit of lovingkindness and light humour to help them to learn and to grow as people. Often I feel as though certain individuals are the ones who are providing entertainment for me and the rest of the class!"
... love that stuff!
When I get back to Sydney I'll be starting my course in Anthroposophy with a view to becoming a Waldorf teacher. I will miss many aspects of my job at NumberWorks and there will be many sad farewells but I am fully excited about the start of the next chapter of my antipodean adventure. It seems as though the Steiner approach treats a person as 'an acorn to be nurtured in growth', rather than a 'vessel that needs to be filled' and this is something I believe in my heart.
I'll also be running Total Immersion swim workshops, setting up swim squad, getting more involved with Rob's Run teaching, helping friends with their triathlon training and perhaps doing some supply teaching and maths tuition.
Should be plenty to keep me busy there!
Friday, January 06, 2006
Flying Long Haul
Here is an excellent article about surviving international flighst from my friend Matt Eaves. His hilarious posting includes factual info, tips for coping and comments.
Check out the site by clicking here!
here is my response ...
haha - I thought he was joking about the pepper thing!
re: when to get on the plane I agree with Matt that being in the middle of the anxious throng is the worst scenario. My solution, however is the opposite - I like to stay in the lounge, with my laptop plugged into the mains, until the very last! I figure they will always give me a final call and once you get around the corner there is always a queue anyway so you haven't exactly delayed proceedings... I just hate queues so I want to avoid them & spend the mimimun time in the plane possible!
re: charging your lapton on the plane - especially for Cokaru the new Airbus A340-600 has in-flight charging facilities without having to buy one of those silly and expensive adaptors. You just plug in between the seats! The socket takes US, Au and UK plugs (very clever) but my AU iBook charger didn't have enough clearance to fit in. Next time I'll take my US adaptor or an extension!
BTW I once got 'in trouble' for plugging my laptop into a socket I found. I figured that if it was going to cause the plane to crash then they wouldn't leave it lying around, but the I got busted and the head air steward told the pilot who told the head air steward to spank me soundly! If only it had been a stewardess, sigh... note: only one part of this story is elaborated, can you tell which...?
an aside: Has anyone ever tried charging from a 110V shaving socket? Kind of antisocial but if you were on the last level of Tetris and you combined it with a pepper snorting mission...?
Cheers Matt,
PS "Discomfort is a state of mind!"
Check out the site by clicking here!
here is my response ...
haha - I thought he was joking about the pepper thing!
re: when to get on the plane I agree with Matt that being in the middle of the anxious throng is the worst scenario. My solution, however is the opposite - I like to stay in the lounge, with my laptop plugged into the mains, until the very last! I figure they will always give me a final call and once you get around the corner there is always a queue anyway so you haven't exactly delayed proceedings... I just hate queues so I want to avoid them & spend the mimimun time in the plane possible!
re: charging your lapton on the plane - especially for Cokaru the new Airbus A340-600 has in-flight charging facilities without having to buy one of those silly and expensive adaptors. You just plug in between the seats! The socket takes US, Au and UK plugs (very clever) but my AU iBook charger didn't have enough clearance to fit in. Next time I'll take my US adaptor or an extension!
BTW I once got 'in trouble' for plugging my laptop into a socket I found. I figured that if it was going to cause the plane to crash then they wouldn't leave it lying around, but the I got busted and the head air steward told the pilot who told the head air steward to spank me soundly! If only it had been a stewardess, sigh... note: only one part of this story is elaborated, can you tell which...?
an aside: Has anyone ever tried charging from a 110V shaving socket? Kind of antisocial but if you were on the last level of Tetris and you combined it with a pepper snorting mission...?
Cheers Matt,
PS "Discomfort is a state of mind!"
(my)OPIC bar accused of racist door policy
What do you think of this article (click the link)?
What is your opinion of 'bouncers'?
Do you have any personal experiences?
I'd be interested to see if experiences in the UK are different to Australia
I used to live with a guy who worked as a doorman. This guy had a PhD and had some pretty logical yet innovative ideas on the subject.
More from me once others have expressed their opinions...
What is your opinion of 'bouncers'?
Do you have any personal experiences?
I'd be interested to see if experiences in the UK are different to Australia
I used to live with a guy who worked as a doorman. This guy had a PhD and had some pretty logical yet innovative ideas on the subject.
More from me once others have expressed their opinions...
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