So, there's this pirate right...

Well, today was our our day for getting ready for Colour 2. I was put on the HMA team (Hillsong Music Australia). More or less I spent the majority of the day setting up cardboard displays for Hillsongs new Aftermath album, stocking up the merchandise stands with basically everything  Hillsong has recorded in the past 20 years.
The whole campus had new tents set up, along with the down stairs being transformed into a white walled display room for all things Hillsong. It's hard not to be proud to be apart of something so massive like this. I don't know any other church in the world that could pull something like this off at such a professional caliber while using regular volunteers.

We got done with work at 1, but some of us stayed behind to help the girls with the heart shaped confetti seeing as  going back home and sitting around didn't sound too appealing. Afterward, some people came over and spent the afternoon chill'n  and talking in the hammocks. At night we watched a horrible movie that I had been led to believe was pretty good called "Buried", It's about a guy who wakes up in a coffin underground....90 minutes and a dozen frantic phone calls later, he dies. Roll credits.

But in good news, I got to tell my pirate joke several times today. So it was a good day. Also, this is a good song.

Stood up.

Today, we had planned on devoting to surfing seeing as we had the day off.  My ride was supposed to pick me up at the church this morning. So I made a breakfast made up of 1 orange, 3 eggs (scrambled like a Waffle House pro), and a protien shake (The protien powder was detonated by one of our friends back in the states who sent us a gift card charged with a substantial amount for some of the local stores. Donor, you know who you are and from the bottom of our hearts we thank you). Then, I headed out in the rain ready to brave the waves, surf board underarm, hood over head, and ipod in ears. However, when I got to the church, my ride was no where to be found. After an hour and 1/2 I helped some guy unload a Thrifty moving truck full of Colour Conference supplies then trudged home in disappointment. Josh and Bearden's ride showed up later and they were able to go, which honestly was fine by me cause they seem to be far more into then I am.

A few hours later Stephan and I headed back to the church to finish shooting the last clip for our Exchange festival video. It was a shot of a year holding up a sign, it took all of 2 minutes film. I then went to the Swim School down the road and dropped off my application. It's unlikely that I'll be getting any work with them despite my certifications or my WSI position at my old pool seeing as they only take instructors they personally trained...a course which takes 30 hours to complete. 

We then met up with some of our Canadian friends and grabbed some groceries for chicken tacos and a movie. Later we all came back to the house and chilled out for a little while. It's good to have a group that we can just veg out with.

In other news, my new back pack came in the mail today! It's a Kelty bag that I have been wanting for sometime now, and after receiving some "fun money" I was able to finally get it. I'm completely thrilled with it. After looking it over and examining it, I can see that it was designed very shrewdly by an avid backpacker. Kelty bags have a hump placed over the lower back to help offset the weight, it actually helps TREMENDOUSLY with load adjustment.  Also, it has a MOLLE system (a series of nylon loops sewn onto the bag for attaching things) on the bottom for strapping sleeping bags, which would have came in handy on my Colorado trip last August. It's also MUCH lighter than my North Face top-loader (which means it has a lid on top that you have to unzip and reach in to get to your gear.)

First Day of Colour

My first time I visited Hillsong, I looked at all the wall of windows that covered the building and thought to myself "I feel bad for the guy who has to clean all those." A year later, I walk in, they hand me a squeegee and tell me to get to it.  We will spend the next few days working on deep cleaning the church property for Colour Conference next week.  Right now, the conference is happening at the Sydney entertainment center (the Exchange film festival will also be host there next month) so all the girls are there working today. I find it much easier to battle of negative thinking towards these long hours of labor, by viewing Hillsong as my church, not the college I go to during the week.

I was talking about my bucket list with a friend back home the other day. I actually don't have a list of things I would like to do before I die.  Instead I have a "Decade List" I started in 2008 and I have heaped more things onto it over the years. But as of this writing, here's what it contains (some of them all already checked off):

1.) Live in another country for a little while.

2.) Learn a martial art.

3.) Get a motorcycle.

4.) Buy a handgun and learn to use it (better).

5.) Go to Alaska with my Dad.

6.) Get a tattoo

7.)Backpack South America 

8.) Have something published.

9.) Hike the Appalachian Trail.

Like I said, I started this list in 2008. Which means I have to have all these things done by the time I'm 28...chump change.

 

Caleb suggested I listen to this band the other night. It seemed like a good choice for this post.

Fast forward.

I feel like I'm stuck in fast forward. A day only seems like a few hours and a week really feels like a couple of days or so. I'm normally always anxious for something to finish up so I can jump on to the next adventure that I had lined up. In all honesty, there's only been a handful of times in my life when I was without restlessness, especially the year leading up to me moving over here. I spent 2010 trying to get it to speed up, and now I'll spend 2011 trying to get it to slow down.

Yesterday, our Mexican friend who has recently "adopted" us, came over last night and cooked us a diner of T-bones, mashed potatoes and vegetables.  Although I like to think Josh and I can hold our own in the kitchen, no product of our cooking skills could hold a candle to what Sofie brought to the table. Some of our Canadian friends came over as well to eat with us and play a few hands of poker. It was all in all a really good night, I'm glad we have them often.

Today, Bearden and I, along with the rest of the 1st semesters,  were rostered to run Chapel this morning.  We both got up early so we could get their first and have dibs on camera ops. It turned out to be a smart move, Bearden wanted to run the main camera (camera 2 = follows the speaker  or worship leader at all times) and the camera I wanted is set up on a platform in the back (camera 3). It does the long pull out out shots and close up on the instruments. While using it, I had to toss aside everything I have learned about setting up a good shot and was told to put shots out of focus and even shake the camera to make it look sporadic. Once it was all cut-in it actually gave it the trendy Hillsong look.

I did some running for the first time here the other night. Not to bad. I couldn't measure how far I ran seeing as I was running in a circuit around the neighborhood, but it's probably just chump change compared to the 15 miles I used to run weekly. This song was the first on my shuffle. Turns out it's actually a really good choice for night running.

"The sea's only gifts are harsh blows..."

"...the sea's only gifts are harsh blows and, occasionally, the chance to feel strong. Now, I don't know much about the sea, but I do know that that's the way it is here. And I also know how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong but to feel strong, to measure yourself at least once, to find yourself at least once in the most ancient of human conditions, facing blind, deaf stone alone, with nothing to help you but your own hands and your own head..." -Primo Levi (from book Bear Meat)

Well, today we got to test out those boards we bought last Sunday. We met someone with a car and headed to a beach about an hour away called Dee Why (I thought it was D.Y., which could have stood for something that makes sense). It was overcast and apart from the few spread out swimmers and other (more experienced) surfers, the beach was ours. I was thrashed a few times by the tallest waves I have ever encountered while clinging to my willy board like a wet cat. About an hour, a litter of salt water, a chaffed chest and a pair of banged up knees later, I finally managed to stand up on the board and ride a wave for a few wobbly seconds. It stared raining so we went and grabbed lunch at fish and chips place that claimed to have the freshest offerings in town. After lunch, it was back to the waves....

After getting home, we relaxed for a little bit before were invited to go ice skating. Turns out there's a rink right next to the church and I have never noticed it before. The ironic thing is I left my home a frozen waste land, yearning for warmth, now I'm spending my Friday night skating around on ice. It was actually my first time, and I was actually surprised at how easy it was. I never  fell down, even the Canadians were impressed.

Other highlights this week:

-finished the majority of our filming for our Exchange festival project.

-One of the Mexican girls have adopted Bearden, Stephan and I and now we go over to her hour every Tuesday night for diner.

-We went dumpster diving again. Found a crate and came up with a system where I can lash a few of them together, hang them in my closet and fashion a place to organize my clothes. I need a system cause I'm starting to merge all the neat little piles folded on the high self into one big pile...on the floor.

I'm curious to know what people want to read more about. What to add? What to leave out? More of this, less of that. Or just questions in general, just leave a comment below.

Busses, trains, ferries...and surf boards.

Yesterday, I was just chill'n out in my room when Josh and Bearden storm in blurting out some crazy talk about surf boards. The next thing I know, we are cruising up the river in a ferry vessel called Rivercat. It took all the way to Circle Quay, which is where all the famous stuff like the Opera House and Sydney Bridge. It's funny to think back on the first time I saw these places and was so stoked and snapping pictures left and right. Now, I get about I as excited for these places as I did whenever I passed Turner Field or the Varsity on my way to Atlanta.

We took another ferry to Manly beach. After exploring the hilly streets and sub-divisions, we found the seller's apartment. You would think toting surf boards around the beach would make us feel like we fit right in, but I actually felt really out of place. The fact I was wearing jeans and TOMS might have had something to do with it.

Sleeping on the ferry with the surf board between my legs.

This one of them. The whole process of getting them took us just over eight hours of public trans through and around Sydney.

Today, we filmed  a little bit of a video we are working on to submit in the up coming Exchange festival. Today we interviewed one of the pastors in the park/garden near our house. I don't think I'm at liberty to disclose what it is about yet. After filming, Bearden and I had editing class from 4:15 till 7:00. Today we basically learned a little about formatting videos and creating DVD menus. 

Hopefully readers are getting a taste for my music preference by now.

Future adventure prospects.

So I tried to do a video for this entry, but I couldn't get it to upload so looks like I'm sticking to typing out text. Last night I worked camera 4 (first time using them)  for the youth. Camera 4 is set up back in the far right corner of the auditorium so it can get shots from partly behind the stage and be able to pan over the audience. Unfortunately it is the most boring camera to work. The only tricks I could do was a slow pull out and gradual pan  left over the crowd, and that was all the director who was talking to us from the control room over the headsets wanted from me. I have found the more I learn about tv/media, the less I know.
Today looks like it's going to be a slow one. Bear Grylls is speaking at Hillsong tonight, but I'm not going to be able to go because the tickets sold out in under 24 hours two weeks ago. Time is going so fast here! I have been here for two months now, but it feels like maybe three weeks.  In hindsight, I see how important going to Sydney was that first week. It was there that we met the majority of the people we still hang out with now. The people we grouped together with back then, are the same people we  group with now.

I dearly miss camping. I used to go out about once a month or so back home, and now I have been on an outdoors hiatus for about four months now (the weather was not permitting the last few months I was home). I'm going to try going to the Blue Mountains  sometime in the upcoming months. I also would like to visit New Zealand sometime while I'm here. I have met a few people that live there and I'm hoping I could  backpack and hostel jump my way around. As far as my long term adventures go, I'm thinking South America...

First stop, Quito Ecuador. I was there for a few months on a mission trip, but I feel like I was to young to really enjoy it.

                                                     

Then Mancha Pinchu in Peru.

And finally Roi de Janerio.

 I know a lot of people are wondering "Why is he thinking about visiting other countries, he just moved to one!" But I don't plan on going on this little adventure for awhile, in fact,  maybe not even till after I'm married. Also, those close to me know I never stop dreaming up adventures to go on.

                                         REALLY good song, not so good video. But it fits.