Presenteeism, infection, incubation, symptoms and exhaustion
I believe a circle was completed today. Last Thursday my newest student came slightly under the weather to my class. He had been sick, off-work for a day and had come back to work still not 100%. "Shouldn't you be still offwork I asked him?" He demurred.
Monday evening, I had forgotten my keys and had to wait for Xin to return. I felt unwell as the rain came intermittently. Upon getting in, I increasingly felt uncomfortable. It was the flu. Tuesday and Wednesday were both spent at home ($300 of income lost). Back I went today, I had thought I was mostly back to health but I wasn't. Each of the five lessons today were long and it was a relief as each finished.
The last lesson of the day I met the student from last Thursday. He had had two days off this week already, still being ill. In fact, he still had a sore throat and had got antibiotics to treat it.
Driving home was exhausting. I feel rather deadish.
Did I come back too early too?
Thursday, August 02, 2007
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Te Wiki o Reo Maori
Kia ora koutou. Well, Maori Language Week has almost slipped me by. I was thinking of saying kia ora to my students but being completely unhabituated to greeting with Maori I have failed every single time. Ah well. Hei aha...
More entertaining this wiki has been the performance of newsreaders and current affairs hosts trying to speak reo Maori. Simon Dallow started the wiki saying an extended maori introduction on OneNews. He is actually, to my ears, very proficient. He showed that during the tangi of the Maori Queen that he could more than handle himself with reo. I'd say he'd kick my ass in Maori even without a teleprompter. He has clearly put work into it.
The rest clearly have not. John Sainsbury was only marginally better than Dick Hubbard's at the ANZAC day ceremony (i.e. reading it off a script with English vowels). DH's effort was cringing. Wendy Petrie was the best of a bad bunch. John Campbell was surprisingly poor. He does well in his regular greetings but as soon as it moves to something less practised (er... the Maori national anthem) his vowels turn out mangled.
'Foreign' languages are difficult and not everyone can master them. But I was a little disappointed that something like basic pronunciation was not better. They make their living speaking; the obligation should be on them or placed on them to shape up.
Anyway, my contribution to te wiki o reo Maori is to provide this link on the basics of greeting in te reo Maori.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/national/mlw/web_ntk_audio_02
Kia ora koutou. Well, Maori Language Week has almost slipped me by. I was thinking of saying kia ora to my students but being completely unhabituated to greeting with Maori I have failed every single time. Ah well. Hei aha...
More entertaining this wiki has been the performance of newsreaders and current affairs hosts trying to speak reo Maori. Simon Dallow started the wiki saying an extended maori introduction on OneNews. He is actually, to my ears, very proficient. He showed that during the tangi of the Maori Queen that he could more than handle himself with reo. I'd say he'd kick my ass in Maori even without a teleprompter. He has clearly put work into it.
The rest clearly have not. John Sainsbury was only marginally better than Dick Hubbard's at the ANZAC day ceremony (i.e. reading it off a script with English vowels). DH's effort was cringing. Wendy Petrie was the best of a bad bunch. John Campbell was surprisingly poor. He does well in his regular greetings but as soon as it moves to something less practised (er... the Maori national anthem) his vowels turn out mangled.
'Foreign' languages are difficult and not everyone can master them. But I was a little disappointed that something like basic pronunciation was not better. They make their living speaking; the obligation should be on them or placed on them to shape up.
Anyway, my contribution to te wiki o reo Maori is to provide this link on the basics of greeting in te reo Maori.
http://www.radionz.co.nz/audio/national/mlw/web_ntk_audio_02
Monday, July 23, 2007
A token record
On my rubbish walk this morning I easily broke all previous Hell's Pizza token collecting records, with a stunning 17 tokens in 1 hour 15 minutes. This works out at about $17 an hour if converted into gourmet pizzas and then into cash. In the process, I also picked up over 7kg of waste.
One of the more surprising aspects is that I only found one box with a token removed!
On my rubbish walk this morning I easily broke all previous Hell's Pizza token collecting records, with a stunning 17 tokens in 1 hour 15 minutes. This works out at about $17 an hour if converted into gourmet pizzas and then into cash. In the process, I also picked up over 7kg of waste.
One of the more surprising aspects is that I only found one box with a token removed!
Monday, July 16, 2007
It's the pong!
I did a long procrastinated thing yesterday: I visited the Auckland Table Tennis Association. I adore ping-pong but without the convenience of being a language school teacher (where sometimes I played ping-pong for a longer time than I taught English!) I pretty much haven't played it. But I'm back spinning and smashing. Finally something to keep me fit perhaps.
I did a long procrastinated thing yesterday: I visited the Auckland Table Tennis Association. I adore ping-pong but without the convenience of being a language school teacher (where sometimes I played ping-pong for a longer time than I taught English!) I pretty much haven't played it. But I'm back spinning and smashing. Finally something to keep me fit perhaps.
Friday, July 13, 2007
(I discovered a lode of draft blogs which once saved were long forgotten. These I will finish and publish)
Education quote (from 2004) - The nature of humanity and state of society
The purpose of education is always an interesting philosophical debate.
This quote is taken from a book The Liberal Tide: From Tyranny to Liberty (edited by Jim Peron), the article itself coming from a person called Frank Chodorov
"In one way or another, this idea [social collectivism] has insinuated itself into almost every branch of thought and has become institutionalised. Perhaps the most glaring example is the modern orientation of the philosopy of education. Many of the professionals in this field frankly assert that the primary purpose of education is not to develop the indivdual's capacity for learning, as was held in the past but to prepare him for a fruitful and "happy" place in society; his inclinations must be turned away from himself, so that he can adjust himself to the mores of his age group and beyond that to the social milieu in which he will live out his life. He is not at end in himself."
(beginning of 2007 edit)
This was written by a libertarian author whose individualistic nature is quite easy to spot. A libertarian would object to all forms of collectivism in society and it is through that prism that he analyses phenomena. Is his observation valuable?
The human species tends towards gregarious behaviour and collectivism. This is not to say that every person is sociable but that people generally like having friends and being a part of groupings, and thus gain a sense of belonging and identity. Individualism itself is usually an extreme exception in human societies of the past. Naturally, these days apparent individualism is more common but I would say that it is individualism that has insinuated itself into education and politics. That is not to say that it is an aversive thing - but it does highlight an interesting trend.
On a TV show Exposed (hosted by John Marsden), a suggestion was made that human nature had evolved to cope well in groups no greater than 500 individuals. Over that, people start to not be able to recognise or know the members of their community and start closing off. The point was that urban life exposes us to numbers much greater than that 500. I'd say that this forces the individualisation. Adjusting education to enable individualism may be an important trait for 20th and 21st century education due to the environment we live, but this has to balanced by an acknowledgement of the collectivistic needs of people. Classes should have contact with the world beyond the world of their classes. How would someone learn social responsibility if one has to focus on their own goals? You can threaten people with punishment to cause them to be responsible in their pursuit of goals, but there is not a greater method than cherishing the society in which you exist and having no desire to harm it on the way to your own personal goals.
The fear of the libertarian is that the personal goals and needs will be completely subverted by the asserted needs of the society. There is are existing examples of this but it is one location on a spectrum. But a completely individualistic society is not necessarily a better society in which to exist either.It is hard to say where our (admittedly pluralistic) society is on this spectrum but I'd say that a more collectivistic education system would be beneficial to help glue together the diversity of the society.
(I wonder what I was going to say back in 2004)
Education quote (from 2004) - The nature of humanity and state of society
The purpose of education is always an interesting philosophical debate.
This quote is taken from a book The Liberal Tide: From Tyranny to Liberty (edited by Jim Peron), the article itself coming from a person called Frank Chodorov
"In one way or another, this idea [social collectivism] has insinuated itself into almost every branch of thought and has become institutionalised. Perhaps the most glaring example is the modern orientation of the philosopy of education. Many of the professionals in this field frankly assert that the primary purpose of education is not to develop the indivdual's capacity for learning, as was held in the past but to prepare him for a fruitful and "happy" place in society; his inclinations must be turned away from himself, so that he can adjust himself to the mores of his age group and beyond that to the social milieu in which he will live out his life. He is not at end in himself."
(beginning of 2007 edit)
This was written by a libertarian author whose individualistic nature is quite easy to spot. A libertarian would object to all forms of collectivism in society and it is through that prism that he analyses phenomena. Is his observation valuable?
The human species tends towards gregarious behaviour and collectivism. This is not to say that every person is sociable but that people generally like having friends and being a part of groupings, and thus gain a sense of belonging and identity. Individualism itself is usually an extreme exception in human societies of the past. Naturally, these days apparent individualism is more common but I would say that it is individualism that has insinuated itself into education and politics. That is not to say that it is an aversive thing - but it does highlight an interesting trend.
On a TV show Exposed (hosted by John Marsden), a suggestion was made that human nature had evolved to cope well in groups no greater than 500 individuals. Over that, people start to not be able to recognise or know the members of their community and start closing off. The point was that urban life exposes us to numbers much greater than that 500. I'd say that this forces the individualisation. Adjusting education to enable individualism may be an important trait for 20th and 21st century education due to the environment we live, but this has to balanced by an acknowledgement of the collectivistic needs of people. Classes should have contact with the world beyond the world of their classes. How would someone learn social responsibility if one has to focus on their own goals? You can threaten people with punishment to cause them to be responsible in their pursuit of goals, but there is not a greater method than cherishing the society in which you exist and having no desire to harm it on the way to your own personal goals.
The fear of the libertarian is that the personal goals and needs will be completely subverted by the asserted needs of the society. There is are existing examples of this but it is one location on a spectrum. But a completely individualistic society is not necessarily a better society in which to exist either.It is hard to say where our (admittedly pluralistic) society is on this spectrum but I'd say that a more collectivistic education system would be beneficial to help glue together the diversity of the society.
(I wonder what I was going to say back in 2004)
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
The perils of youth literacy
When I was, I read a lot of books that I was probably not old enough to read. I had an interest in science and read copiously from encyclopaedias and other books to get my fix of information on chiefly dinosaurs, snakes, meteorology and astronomy (I can't remember the other topics). Anyway, in adult life there have been many signs of how my youthful exuberance exceeded my proficiency to read accurately. There are so many words which I learnt from through reading but through the misapplication of pronunciation rules and the poor assumption of meaning.
For pronunciation, it often involved the wrong placement of stress in a word e.g. banal (pronounced 'bay'), the incorrect vowel botany (with 'boat') as a first syllable and puberty (with 'pub'). All of these stayed with me for years and I have been corrected by others. Now at the age of 27, I have discovered that another word from my youth, taciturn, I have long pronounced wrongly. I have always said it in the coolest way: tacky-turn. But the word is related to 'tacit' and the pronunciation of 'taciturn' is the same. Ah well.
When I was, I read a lot of books that I was probably not old enough to read. I had an interest in science and read copiously from encyclopaedias and other books to get my fix of information on chiefly dinosaurs, snakes, meteorology and astronomy (I can't remember the other topics). Anyway, in adult life there have been many signs of how my youthful exuberance exceeded my proficiency to read accurately. There are so many words which I learnt from through reading but through the misapplication of pronunciation rules and the poor assumption of meaning.
For pronunciation, it often involved the wrong placement of stress in a word e.g. banal (pronounced 'bay'), the incorrect vowel botany (with 'boat') as a first syllable and puberty (with 'pub'). All of these stayed with me for years and I have been corrected by others. Now at the age of 27, I have discovered that another word from my youth, taciturn, I have long pronounced wrongly. I have always said it in the coolest way: tacky-turn. But the word is related to 'tacit' and the pronunciation of 'taciturn' is the same. Ah well.
Tuesday, July 03, 2007
A spell
Well, it started well. My blood donation this evening featured my highest iron level in quite some time - a good bounce back from the low of the previous donation. After the donation though, I rested for ten minutes and then got up and went to the toilet. I had drunk a lot before the donation. However, while I stood letting nature take its course I felt a little lightheaded, and as time went on my eyes were fuzzing over. I managed to finish and zip up before lurching out of the room and then staggered straight for a couch, while at the same time muttering something to the nurse in the kitchen area. She knew what to do - and then enforced the procedure to the nth degree. I had to stay flat on my back, feet up high with ankles and wrists rotating and coughing till she said (this was to get the blood flowing back to the brain). Then I could put my legs down. And then five minutes later I got a pillow under my head. And then 5 minutes later she let me sit up. And then I had to stay for about 20 more minutes. But on the positive side, they paid for my taxi back home! I actually got back right when I said I would.
This is the first time in 23 donations that I've had an adverse reaction. But it is a good lesson in what to be careful of as well as the procedure for when someone becomes lightheaded.
Well, it started well. My blood donation this evening featured my highest iron level in quite some time - a good bounce back from the low of the previous donation. After the donation though, I rested for ten minutes and then got up and went to the toilet. I had drunk a lot before the donation. However, while I stood letting nature take its course I felt a little lightheaded, and as time went on my eyes were fuzzing over. I managed to finish and zip up before lurching out of the room and then staggered straight for a couch, while at the same time muttering something to the nurse in the kitchen area. She knew what to do - and then enforced the procedure to the nth degree. I had to stay flat on my back, feet up high with ankles and wrists rotating and coughing till she said (this was to get the blood flowing back to the brain). Then I could put my legs down. And then five minutes later I got a pillow under my head. And then 5 minutes later she let me sit up. And then I had to stay for about 20 more minutes. But on the positive side, they paid for my taxi back home! I actually got back right when I said I would.
This is the first time in 23 donations that I've had an adverse reaction. But it is a good lesson in what to be careful of as well as the procedure for when someone becomes lightheaded.
Monday, July 02, 2007
From a horse's mouth on Islamic terrorism
If you are interested in the motivation of Islamic radicals this is probably the most worthy read you can have:
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,2115832,00.html#article_continue
If you are interested in the motivation of Islamic radicals this is probably the most worthy read you can have:
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,2115832,00.html#article_continue
Sunday, July 01, 2007
Freewill
My weekly workload has collapsed and will stay low for most of July before August will bring it back to some respectability. Naturally, I'm caught in a win-win situation, where a lack of hours brings more leisure time to do what I like to do and a surplus of hours gives me money for random expenses like car repairs, which I like too.
In my extra time this week contemplating, my mind settled back to an old philosophical chestnut, namely whether we have freewill. A burst of inspiration suddenly revealed to me a weapon to destroy the argument of anyone claiming that determinism is a logical necessity.
Paul once related an idea from a book he was reading about how the human mind has a natural tendency to look for causes for phenomena it experiences. For example, if people saw a comet and then a nature disaster occurred, there was an inference of causality. In the book, it related how this could be a source of the belief in the supernatural. The sins of mankind had to lie in a past flaw/sin at the beginning of creation; people of different areas spoke differently because God punished the people for building the Tower of Babel; deformities and being born in poverty must have been a result of sins in a past life and so on. This is a reasonable theory and could explain the capacity for rational people to believe in things such as luck and the desire to see coincidences as providence. More crucially, it shows that a natural mode of thinking can lead to beliefs that are not necessary logical.
If we have a look at the scientific mode of thinking, it is easy to see that it is a formalised systematic analogue to the same mental process. It looks at the effects and seeks to attribute causes. This naturally is a powerful technique and has been highly successful. But the conclusion of determinism could be an example of how such processes being victims of their own success.
Determinism is the theory that all of our choices are essentially pre-determined by circumstance. For example, I'm going to make a cup of tea now. Why? Because I have a sensation in my throat; I'm partial to tea; it's cool in this room; I'm a bit sleepy and may be in need of a pick-me-up. I could try to demonstrate my freewill by going against such factors to make a point. But my decision to make this point are also pre-existing; I'm writing this blog (which itself had pre-existing causes); I'm a contrarian etc. So if all the effects have causes, then there is no free will, thus determinism.
But the logic leading to determinism could be underpinned by the same assumptions that lead us to beliefs in luck, karma and a creator. If you assume that all effects and choices by sentient and non-sentient beings and objects can be attributed to causes, then you are begging the question when it comes to freewill. It is an assumption to say that all effects have a 100% materialistic cause.
We could assume that our choices are to some degree a result of circumstances and to some degree the effect of the executive functions of the brain exerting its freewill over the choices available. The executive function is what weighs up the significance of each of the factors and effectively makes the choices. Naturally circumstances are the data that the executive function may consider, but to say that the circumstances force choices upon the executive functions is to make an assumption beyond what one knows.
I see this perspective as a valuable point to raise against anyone who considers determinism to be a logical certainty. It doesn't prove freewill; in fact you'll notice that it can be used to attack someone who intellectually asserts freewill. But any awareness of the assumptions that lead to non sequitur 'conclusions' has to be a good thing.
I'm annoyed that I had never noticed this point in fact. It does have implications and uses in other discussions. Anyway, I came to blogger this morning because I knew there was a philosophical topic I was going to blog. Freewill was not going to be the topic, but I couldn't remember the topic that had inspired me to have a more philosophical blog. While writing this one, typically, I recalled the topic which will be the basis of a blog in the near future: Was Mother Theresa selfish?
Any thoughts on freewill and/or Mother Theresa, please comment.
My weekly workload has collapsed and will stay low for most of July before August will bring it back to some respectability. Naturally, I'm caught in a win-win situation, where a lack of hours brings more leisure time to do what I like to do and a surplus of hours gives me money for random expenses like car repairs, which I like too.
In my extra time this week contemplating, my mind settled back to an old philosophical chestnut, namely whether we have freewill. A burst of inspiration suddenly revealed to me a weapon to destroy the argument of anyone claiming that determinism is a logical necessity.
Paul once related an idea from a book he was reading about how the human mind has a natural tendency to look for causes for phenomena it experiences. For example, if people saw a comet and then a nature disaster occurred, there was an inference of causality. In the book, it related how this could be a source of the belief in the supernatural. The sins of mankind had to lie in a past flaw/sin at the beginning of creation; people of different areas spoke differently because God punished the people for building the Tower of Babel; deformities and being born in poverty must have been a result of sins in a past life and so on. This is a reasonable theory and could explain the capacity for rational people to believe in things such as luck and the desire to see coincidences as providence. More crucially, it shows that a natural mode of thinking can lead to beliefs that are not necessary logical.
If we have a look at the scientific mode of thinking, it is easy to see that it is a formalised systematic analogue to the same mental process. It looks at the effects and seeks to attribute causes. This naturally is a powerful technique and has been highly successful. But the conclusion of determinism could be an example of how such processes being victims of their own success.
Determinism is the theory that all of our choices are essentially pre-determined by circumstance. For example, I'm going to make a cup of tea now. Why? Because I have a sensation in my throat; I'm partial to tea; it's cool in this room; I'm a bit sleepy and may be in need of a pick-me-up. I could try to demonstrate my freewill by going against such factors to make a point. But my decision to make this point are also pre-existing; I'm writing this blog (which itself had pre-existing causes); I'm a contrarian etc. So if all the effects have causes, then there is no free will, thus determinism.
But the logic leading to determinism could be underpinned by the same assumptions that lead us to beliefs in luck, karma and a creator. If you assume that all effects and choices by sentient and non-sentient beings and objects can be attributed to causes, then you are begging the question when it comes to freewill. It is an assumption to say that all effects have a 100% materialistic cause.
We could assume that our choices are to some degree a result of circumstances and to some degree the effect of the executive functions of the brain exerting its freewill over the choices available. The executive function is what weighs up the significance of each of the factors and effectively makes the choices. Naturally circumstances are the data that the executive function may consider, but to say that the circumstances force choices upon the executive functions is to make an assumption beyond what one knows.
I see this perspective as a valuable point to raise against anyone who considers determinism to be a logical certainty. It doesn't prove freewill; in fact you'll notice that it can be used to attack someone who intellectually asserts freewill. But any awareness of the assumptions that lead to non sequitur 'conclusions' has to be a good thing.
I'm annoyed that I had never noticed this point in fact. It does have implications and uses in other discussions. Anyway, I came to blogger this morning because I knew there was a philosophical topic I was going to blog. Freewill was not going to be the topic, but I couldn't remember the topic that had inspired me to have a more philosophical blog. While writing this one, typically, I recalled the topic which will be the basis of a blog in the near future: Was Mother Theresa selfish?
Any thoughts on freewill and/or Mother Theresa, please comment.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Crash course
Slip sliding away, into another car's rear end. That is something I thought I wouldn't be doing. My driving has improved a lot (only by my own reckoning) since I resumed regular driving in the second half of 2005. However this afternoon, driving home, my mind drifted. I was driving at the right distance at a reasonable speed, but didn't realise that the flow of traffic slowed. I braked when I realised but slid along into the bumper of the car in front.
Fortunately the gentleman I bumped into was understanding and the insurance issue has nearly been sorted. But I'll be losing a decent chunk of my savings due to only having third party insurance.
It is always a psychological shock to have an accident. I'll have to be very careful in the next few days to get my confidence and make it to the weekend so that arrangements can be made.
Slip sliding away, into another car's rear end. That is something I thought I wouldn't be doing. My driving has improved a lot (only by my own reckoning) since I resumed regular driving in the second half of 2005. However this afternoon, driving home, my mind drifted. I was driving at the right distance at a reasonable speed, but didn't realise that the flow of traffic slowed. I braked when I realised but slid along into the bumper of the car in front.
Fortunately the gentleman I bumped into was understanding and the insurance issue has nearly been sorted. But I'll be losing a decent chunk of my savings due to only having third party insurance.
It is always a psychological shock to have an accident. I'll have to be very careful in the next few days to get my confidence and make it to the weekend so that arrangements can be made.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Ngati Whatua and Maori claims
Recently there was a front page article regarding the Ngati Whatua claim (the largest tribe in Auckland prior to Pakeha settlement) on parts of Auckland. It included three volcanic cones, a creek and sections of Waitakere, North Shore and parts of Manukau. There had been an agreement in principle over these but this has been cancelled after a lot of criticism of the process. This will delay proceedings considerably.
Prior to the recent developments. I knew this claim was in action but the tension surrounding it became more clear when I visited a marae for an AIESEC event. Our hosts offered a little bit of Q&A for us. They seemed quite sensitive at times and went into lengthy explanations that led all questions to their claim. At the time I thought that it might be a response to the general criticism that Maori tribes get due to a perception of claiming for everything to get money (a perception that is not true). It was likely though that they knew things were getting tricky and that their claim was hitting the rocks. It wasn't their fault of course - they had followed the process set for them and jumped through the requisite hoops. The Crown had failed to consult other smaller tribes of Auckland before they made their agreement in principle. The editorial yesterday was particularly of interest:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/story.cfm?c_id=252&objectid=10446280
One thing that always annoys me is the degree of ignorance of the Pakeha majority (and also the migrants to NZ) regarding Maori issues. It is hard to change this of course. My parents both have quite strong views on Maori claims, but with no real knowledge apart from hearsay and subtly racist catchphrases.
One of the PC-myths perpetuated due to ignorance was that One Tree Hill still hadn't had a new tree planted on the summit because the council had to pander to Ngati Whatua for 'consultation'. But if you were in legal proceedings regarding a claim of ownership, it would not be easy for one of the parties to make changes to that land. It is not political correctness - it is a legal necessity.
The more recent claim WAI 262 is of particular interest to me. I'm not sure if I support it or not.
If you haven't heard about it, check this out:
http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/488120/925453
Claiming the flora and fauna is rather gob-smacking. Under libertarian principles, this would seem to be a good thing. Ownership can mean that more responsibility and resources are put into retaining the varieties and methods. Also it prevents the rape of genetic resources by multinational pharmaceutical companies which has happened in other countries. But still the degree with which a minority 'own' all the native trees in your yard etc. and legally require consultation for to make any changes is something to ponder over. We can't always disregard the claims that affect us and approve of the ones that don't, but the whole practicability of such a claim as well as the fears that it inspires is quite disconcerting. It is similar to the Foreshore and Seabed claim in that way. I supported the latter in principle even though it was cancelled by parliamentary bill.
Anyway, those are my musings on things Maori.
Recently there was a front page article regarding the Ngati Whatua claim (the largest tribe in Auckland prior to Pakeha settlement) on parts of Auckland. It included three volcanic cones, a creek and sections of Waitakere, North Shore and parts of Manukau. There had been an agreement in principle over these but this has been cancelled after a lot of criticism of the process. This will delay proceedings considerably.
Prior to the recent developments. I knew this claim was in action but the tension surrounding it became more clear when I visited a marae for an AIESEC event. Our hosts offered a little bit of Q&A for us. They seemed quite sensitive at times and went into lengthy explanations that led all questions to their claim. At the time I thought that it might be a response to the general criticism that Maori tribes get due to a perception of claiming for everything to get money (a perception that is not true). It was likely though that they knew things were getting tricky and that their claim was hitting the rocks. It wasn't their fault of course - they had followed the process set for them and jumped through the requisite hoops. The Crown had failed to consult other smaller tribes of Auckland before they made their agreement in principle. The editorial yesterday was particularly of interest:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/story.cfm?c_id=252&objectid=10446280
One thing that always annoys me is the degree of ignorance of the Pakeha majority (and also the migrants to NZ) regarding Maori issues. It is hard to change this of course. My parents both have quite strong views on Maori claims, but with no real knowledge apart from hearsay and subtly racist catchphrases.
One of the PC-myths perpetuated due to ignorance was that One Tree Hill still hadn't had a new tree planted on the summit because the council had to pander to Ngati Whatua for 'consultation'. But if you were in legal proceedings regarding a claim of ownership, it would not be easy for one of the parties to make changes to that land. It is not political correctness - it is a legal necessity.
The more recent claim WAI 262 is of particular interest to me. I'm not sure if I support it or not.
If you haven't heard about it, check this out:
http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/488120/925453
Claiming the flora and fauna is rather gob-smacking. Under libertarian principles, this would seem to be a good thing. Ownership can mean that more responsibility and resources are put into retaining the varieties and methods. Also it prevents the rape of genetic resources by multinational pharmaceutical companies which has happened in other countries. But still the degree with which a minority 'own' all the native trees in your yard etc. and legally require consultation for to make any changes is something to ponder over. We can't always disregard the claims that affect us and approve of the ones that don't, but the whole practicability of such a claim as well as the fears that it inspires is quite disconcerting. It is similar to the Foreshore and Seabed claim in that way. I supported the latter in principle even though it was cancelled by parliamentary bill.
Anyway, those are my musings on things Maori.
Sunday, June 17, 2007
The Tea-Monkey
Accompanying Xin to arty-farty events is not necessarily on the top of the list of things I like to do. It is not that the people there are in any way unpleasant, they aren't, and can be quite pleasant. It is usually that I don't feel at home or at ease in their company and they do tend to be cliquey.
Last night though I found my perfect role at an art opening: serving tea. Xin had been working on a project for a gallery she co-directs where they would make one room into a tea-house. I helped getting her a little information (how to write tea-house in korean, directions for some of the teas etc.) but didn't really stretch my imagination as to what it would be like.
Anyway, I turned up at the gallery and stood around aimlessly for a while, my only success being spotting a typo in korean on a sign. The tea-house, which was situated in one of the rooms of the gallery, was a bit disorganised. They were still hammering it together while people were coming into the gallery. I thought this was part of the plan - y'know construction being observed, but apparently the process leading upto the event was a little shambolic and there were some ill-thought-through points. Xin decided to start boiling water, so I sat down behind the tea-trolley and helped her. I thought we could start serving the tea, so when people came into the room for a look, I asked them whether they'd like a cuppa, and described the five varieties of tea we had on offer. This went on for almost three hours, but I didn't mind. In the tea-room, strangers would come in, enjoy the tea and chat. If I weren't there, I'd be standing around struggling to pick off some strangers for superficial conversations so I was happy in my work. So time flew and we went through a lot of tea.
Four of the five teas were very well received: Lapsahn-Soochong was the surprise hit, with Rooibos with Kawakawa, Barley tea and White tea all having multiple brews. The most conventional of an eclectic selection Earl Grey Rose went through a single pot solely to the few people who, like me, have a love affair with the Greys. Several of the people were a little overly-keen to get a source of tea leaves of their own. Lap-sahn Soo-chong in particular was one that several people were keen to procure.
Emerging from behind the trolley, all the directors (and several patrons) expressed their deep thanks for my help. Only later did I hear from Xin that they hadn't planned to have anyone serving tea; there wasn't any consideration given to how the attendees were going to actually get the tea! Practical elements aside, the aesthetics were cool. The fridge and water-cooler were encased in a box. The tea room had a minimalist feel in construction and the paper bags of tea were cute. I felt at home there.
Naturally the role of tea-monkey was one I was born for and one day it would be my ideal role in retirement (if there are still tea-shops then). I did have one slip though - I brewed one pot of the white tea for too long. I smelt it when I opened the lid after serving it to several people... That was a consequence of chatting while having several teas brewing simultaneously. I followed that mistake with a perfectly timed brew of white tea. After I gave it to a few people they said it was 'clean and pure'. I had to try it myself and I was stunned.
So overall, not a bad night considering I wasn't keen on going!
Accompanying Xin to arty-farty events is not necessarily on the top of the list of things I like to do. It is not that the people there are in any way unpleasant, they aren't, and can be quite pleasant. It is usually that I don't feel at home or at ease in their company and they do tend to be cliquey.
Last night though I found my perfect role at an art opening: serving tea. Xin had been working on a project for a gallery she co-directs where they would make one room into a tea-house. I helped getting her a little information (how to write tea-house in korean, directions for some of the teas etc.) but didn't really stretch my imagination as to what it would be like.
Anyway, I turned up at the gallery and stood around aimlessly for a while, my only success being spotting a typo in korean on a sign. The tea-house, which was situated in one of the rooms of the gallery, was a bit disorganised. They were still hammering it together while people were coming into the gallery. I thought this was part of the plan - y'know construction being observed, but apparently the process leading upto the event was a little shambolic and there were some ill-thought-through points. Xin decided to start boiling water, so I sat down behind the tea-trolley and helped her. I thought we could start serving the tea, so when people came into the room for a look, I asked them whether they'd like a cuppa, and described the five varieties of tea we had on offer. This went on for almost three hours, but I didn't mind. In the tea-room, strangers would come in, enjoy the tea and chat. If I weren't there, I'd be standing around struggling to pick off some strangers for superficial conversations so I was happy in my work. So time flew and we went through a lot of tea.
Four of the five teas were very well received: Lapsahn-Soochong was the surprise hit, with Rooibos with Kawakawa, Barley tea and White tea all having multiple brews. The most conventional of an eclectic selection Earl Grey Rose went through a single pot solely to the few people who, like me, have a love affair with the Greys. Several of the people were a little overly-keen to get a source of tea leaves of their own. Lap-sahn Soo-chong in particular was one that several people were keen to procure.
Emerging from behind the trolley, all the directors (and several patrons) expressed their deep thanks for my help. Only later did I hear from Xin that they hadn't planned to have anyone serving tea; there wasn't any consideration given to how the attendees were going to actually get the tea! Practical elements aside, the aesthetics were cool. The fridge and water-cooler were encased in a box. The tea room had a minimalist feel in construction and the paper bags of tea were cute. I felt at home there.
Naturally the role of tea-monkey was one I was born for and one day it would be my ideal role in retirement (if there are still tea-shops then). I did have one slip though - I brewed one pot of the white tea for too long. I smelt it when I opened the lid after serving it to several people... That was a consequence of chatting while having several teas brewing simultaneously. I followed that mistake with a perfectly timed brew of white tea. After I gave it to a few people they said it was 'clean and pure'. I had to try it myself and I was stunned.
So overall, not a bad night considering I wasn't keen on going!
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Matariki
Early this morning I walked out to Mount Eden and ascended the summit. At the top was a rather alien sky. After all the star-watching I had been doing in the evenings, the morning stars and visible constellations are quite different. Scorpio, which dominated the evening sky with Jupiter below it, was diving down to the west. The zodiac from Scorpio to Aries was visible, although none of those were that easy to make forms of. The best new features were the square of Pegasus, which stretches wide across the north, and Mars, which was to be one of the signposts to find Matariki.
Nick and I found a good spot, also occupied by a New Zealand born self-identified anglophile, who had also come to spot the small constellation. Some people came by asking if we were there for a 'guided walk'. We said no, but after some thought a guided walk at this time of the morning could only be about Matariki. After a moment, a crowd of about 10 maori came over to our viewing spot. We all stared out to the north-eastern horizon. Rigel was the first up, one of the feet of Orion. Then Aldebaran, the horn of Taurus, twinkled vigorously red into visibility. No-one seemed the wiser on exactly where Matariki, a cluster of about seven stars, was meant to be. The day was breaking with the glow of the sun becoming apparent over a low bank of clouds. After consulting my book, I isolated a patch of sky and lo and behold, there was the faint twinkling. We directed other people to it, but the race between brightening of the sky and the rising of the stars came to a head shortly after.
The Maori group did some speeches and a karakia in Maori. I was pleased to understand one speech and a joke quite well. We descended the mountain and had a proper breakfast incidentaly missing the sun-rise and a pass by the International Space Station.
Happy Maori New Year.
Early this morning I walked out to Mount Eden and ascended the summit. At the top was a rather alien sky. After all the star-watching I had been doing in the evenings, the morning stars and visible constellations are quite different. Scorpio, which dominated the evening sky with Jupiter below it, was diving down to the west. The zodiac from Scorpio to Aries was visible, although none of those were that easy to make forms of. The best new features were the square of Pegasus, which stretches wide across the north, and Mars, which was to be one of the signposts to find Matariki.
Nick and I found a good spot, also occupied by a New Zealand born self-identified anglophile, who had also come to spot the small constellation. Some people came by asking if we were there for a 'guided walk'. We said no, but after some thought a guided walk at this time of the morning could only be about Matariki. After a moment, a crowd of about 10 maori came over to our viewing spot. We all stared out to the north-eastern horizon. Rigel was the first up, one of the feet of Orion. Then Aldebaran, the horn of Taurus, twinkled vigorously red into visibility. No-one seemed the wiser on exactly where Matariki, a cluster of about seven stars, was meant to be. The day was breaking with the glow of the sun becoming apparent over a low bank of clouds. After consulting my book, I isolated a patch of sky and lo and behold, there was the faint twinkling. We directed other people to it, but the race between brightening of the sky and the rising of the stars came to a head shortly after.
The Maori group did some speeches and a karakia in Maori. I was pleased to understand one speech and a joke quite well. We descended the mountain and had a proper breakfast incidentaly missing the sun-rise and a pass by the International Space Station.
Happy Maori New Year.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
lifeThe (spinning) wheel of Justice
Another two days of jury service has provided me with more chatting and book-reading. Today I got as close as I have done so far to serving on a jury. My name was called. I stood up and took two steps before the accused uttered the word 'challenge' to send me back to my seat. My ex-con friend said that he recognised the accused from his time in prison; he just didn't recognise the name.
In other news, fate, intuition, or mere coincidence has come to bear relieving me of some festering guilt. When a team-mate in our Trailwalker team pulled out, he entrusted me with his sponsorship book and a donation cheque. Very regrettably, despite my best intentions, it was misplaced and had been missing for three months, presumed fatally recycled in a freak paper sorting accident. Despite repeated ransackings over the house and the general passing of time (which often brings lost objects to light), it never reemerged. This week is the last for donation books to be sent in and d-day in terms of sorting out the associated mess (calling OXFAM, that member and telling his donor to rip up their receipt etc.). I decided to call them yesterday, coming home from jury duty with the full intent of doing it as soon as I got in the door. I hesitated, procrastinated with the use of a book and my business accounting. Time moved forward to 4:30pm when I finally summoned enough resolve to get up to the phone and bite the bullet. But naturally I walked past the phone and into my room where I felt compelled to do some tidying. 'Perhaps it was in my old folders' my mind said. 'You're procrastinating' said my my conscience. It wasn't in my folders. I looked down at the bottom shelf of my desk and sore a little pile of things. I'd looked their before of course. But I was moved to look through them. Moving the top one revealed a sponsorship book beneath. I had found it! After dancing around the house and doing various victorious poses in glory, I sat down feeling elated before dashing out the door to my evening engagement.
All hail procrastination!
Another two days of jury service has provided me with more chatting and book-reading. Today I got as close as I have done so far to serving on a jury. My name was called. I stood up and took two steps before the accused uttered the word 'challenge' to send me back to my seat. My ex-con friend said that he recognised the accused from his time in prison; he just didn't recognise the name.
In other news, fate, intuition, or mere coincidence has come to bear relieving me of some festering guilt. When a team-mate in our Trailwalker team pulled out, he entrusted me with his sponsorship book and a donation cheque. Very regrettably, despite my best intentions, it was misplaced and had been missing for three months, presumed fatally recycled in a freak paper sorting accident. Despite repeated ransackings over the house and the general passing of time (which often brings lost objects to light), it never reemerged. This week is the last for donation books to be sent in and d-day in terms of sorting out the associated mess (calling OXFAM, that member and telling his donor to rip up their receipt etc.). I decided to call them yesterday, coming home from jury duty with the full intent of doing it as soon as I got in the door. I hesitated, procrastinated with the use of a book and my business accounting. Time moved forward to 4:30pm when I finally summoned enough resolve to get up to the phone and bite the bullet. But naturally I walked past the phone and into my room where I felt compelled to do some tidying. 'Perhaps it was in my old folders' my mind said. 'You're procrastinating' said my my conscience. It wasn't in my folders. I looked down at the bottom shelf of my desk and sore a little pile of things. I'd looked their before of course. But I was moved to look through them. Moving the top one revealed a sponsorship book beneath. I had found it! After dancing around the house and doing various victorious poses in glory, I sat down feeling elated before dashing out the door to my evening engagement.
All hail procrastination!
Monday, June 11, 2007
Friday, June 08, 2007
Shattered
Woe is me. My run of weird illnesses and injuries has gained another chapter. This week has become rather horrid, first of all mysteriously hurting my knee. I have been limping since Tuesday evening, and it is still a problem now. I have no idea what set it off but it was significant enough to slow me down significantly.
Then on Wednesday I developed a weird condition where my eyes, cheeks and sinuses feel intolerably pressurised. It was invariably better in the mornings, leading me to go to work where it would start to increase the pressure hour by hour, verging on a headache but never quite getting there. In the evenings, I'd struggle to get dinner ready (Xin's 'enjoying' her busiest period of the year) and then doing my best to prepare lesson plans so that should I be well in the morning, I'd be able to work. And then the cycle began afresh the next day.
My approach was to get to bed as soon as I could to give my body a chance to recover. This plan went well except for the fact I still feel like crap. I drove to work, but always on the way back I was wondering whether I would be focussed enough. The feeling of imminent brain implosion is something of a distraction.
I'm glad it's Friday.
Woe is me. My run of weird illnesses and injuries has gained another chapter. This week has become rather horrid, first of all mysteriously hurting my knee. I have been limping since Tuesday evening, and it is still a problem now. I have no idea what set it off but it was significant enough to slow me down significantly.
Then on Wednesday I developed a weird condition where my eyes, cheeks and sinuses feel intolerably pressurised. It was invariably better in the mornings, leading me to go to work where it would start to increase the pressure hour by hour, verging on a headache but never quite getting there. In the evenings, I'd struggle to get dinner ready (Xin's 'enjoying' her busiest period of the year) and then doing my best to prepare lesson plans so that should I be well in the morning, I'd be able to work. And then the cycle began afresh the next day.
My approach was to get to bed as soon as I could to give my body a chance to recover. This plan went well except for the fact I still feel like crap. I drove to work, but always on the way back I was wondering whether I would be focussed enough. The feeling of imminent brain implosion is something of a distraction.
I'm glad it's Friday.
Saturday, June 02, 2007
Astronomical
My current flirtation with amateur astronomy has continued and with each evening, I'm learning more and more about how to navigate the sky. Tonight, I had the rare pleasure of spotting Mercury! It is only visible for two short periods during the year (in the evenings). I have now seen four of the other seven official planets (along with Venus, Jupiter and Saturn). In terms of constellations, tonight I learnt how to find Libra (my sign) and Virgo. I confirmed Leo.
When I was a young teenager, I had a fascination with astronomy but didn't have the resources or persistence to gain the knowledge. Now I'm amazed that I had never seen constellations like Scorpio, which along with Orion, is very identifiable. The difference has probably been the internet (where the information is a click away) and a radio programme (Radio Live, 12pm Saturday).
Probably the best aspect of this is that I have more awareness of our place in the solar system and universe, breaking the geocentrism of the mind. I looked out to Venus and Saturn (which will be in conjunction at the end of the month) this evening and suddenly realised that the Earth would be moving between where they are now.
Now I can't wait for the blazingly bright full moon to wane and thus darken the sky so the stars will come to the fore once more.
My current flirtation with amateur astronomy has continued and with each evening, I'm learning more and more about how to navigate the sky. Tonight, I had the rare pleasure of spotting Mercury! It is only visible for two short periods during the year (in the evenings). I have now seen four of the other seven official planets (along with Venus, Jupiter and Saturn). In terms of constellations, tonight I learnt how to find Libra (my sign) and Virgo. I confirmed Leo.
When I was a young teenager, I had a fascination with astronomy but didn't have the resources or persistence to gain the knowledge. Now I'm amazed that I had never seen constellations like Scorpio, which along with Orion, is very identifiable. The difference has probably been the internet (where the information is a click away) and a radio programme (Radio Live, 12pm Saturday).
Probably the best aspect of this is that I have more awareness of our place in the solar system and universe, breaking the geocentrism of the mind. I looked out to Venus and Saturn (which will be in conjunction at the end of the month) this evening and suddenly realised that the Earth would be moving between where they are now.
Now I can't wait for the blazingly bright full moon to wane and thus darken the sky so the stars will come to the fore once more.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
On the verge of winter
Next week the formal start of winter will pass (I prefer Winter Solstice as an appropriate beginning but nevermind). It will also bring in my year anniversary of my residence in the Cheng household. The year till today has been filled with joys and challenges, and I'm glad I have had the opportunity to live here. It is still something that I was surprised had come to pass and I'm still grateful for it.
When I came, the winter knocked me rather suddenly. This house is a lot colder than my mother's home with chillblains, numb extremities and dampness causing me all sorts of discomfort. I'm prepared this time.
This time last year was also my reinvention as a green-thumbed gardner. Now, suddenly, again, I'm gripped in a fascination with the botanical world. The wormfarm again is the provider of wonders - the tops of corncobs sprouted; potatoes scraps have too; while others come from random sources, a rosemary branch from the roadside is continuing to grow in some collected soil; an avocado seed split apart to grow a sapling; the 'dead' avocado plant I had put in the front yard has come back to life with new leaves.
Recently I have begun the pruning at one of my clients too. By the end of the month, I'll be 'graduating' two long term classes and decreasing the hours on another. It is the right choice as those students have had a long time to improve and their progress has flattened out. In a way this could be an opportunity to revitalise my roll. One of those classes felt 'stagant'. Freeing up hours and having my services readvertised to all the managers opens up the chance to have new challenges. Of course, there is the risk of my hours being permanently decreased but this has to be accepted. It was never going to be forever.
Meanwhile, Winter Solstice (June 23) and Blue Moon (30 June) celebrations are on the mind. As well as tree-planting opportunities and viewing Jupiter and Mercury in the evenings. I have had trouble keeping the activity side of things active. That is my focus for now.
Next week the formal start of winter will pass (I prefer Winter Solstice as an appropriate beginning but nevermind). It will also bring in my year anniversary of my residence in the Cheng household. The year till today has been filled with joys and challenges, and I'm glad I have had the opportunity to live here. It is still something that I was surprised had come to pass and I'm still grateful for it.
When I came, the winter knocked me rather suddenly. This house is a lot colder than my mother's home with chillblains, numb extremities and dampness causing me all sorts of discomfort. I'm prepared this time.
This time last year was also my reinvention as a green-thumbed gardner. Now, suddenly, again, I'm gripped in a fascination with the botanical world. The wormfarm again is the provider of wonders - the tops of corncobs sprouted; potatoes scraps have too; while others come from random sources, a rosemary branch from the roadside is continuing to grow in some collected soil; an avocado seed split apart to grow a sapling; the 'dead' avocado plant I had put in the front yard has come back to life with new leaves.
Recently I have begun the pruning at one of my clients too. By the end of the month, I'll be 'graduating' two long term classes and decreasing the hours on another. It is the right choice as those students have had a long time to improve and their progress has flattened out. In a way this could be an opportunity to revitalise my roll. One of those classes felt 'stagant'. Freeing up hours and having my services readvertised to all the managers opens up the chance to have new challenges. Of course, there is the risk of my hours being permanently decreased but this has to be accepted. It was never going to be forever.
Meanwhile, Winter Solstice (June 23) and Blue Moon (30 June) celebrations are on the mind. As well as tree-planting opportunities and viewing Jupiter and Mercury in the evenings. I have had trouble keeping the activity side of things active. That is my focus for now.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Quote from a telephone conversation
To not be able to kill and choose not to kill is nothing.
To not be able to kill yet still have something killed is to be weak and cowardly.
To be able to kill and choose not to kill is to be compassionate.
To be able to kill and choose to kill is either to be gratuitous or to do the necessary.
To not be able to kill and choose not to kill is nothing.
To not be able to kill yet still have something killed is to be weak and cowardly.
To be able to kill and choose not to kill is to be compassionate.
To be able to kill and choose to kill is either to be gratuitous or to do the necessary.
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Natural rhythms
They are invading again! They are coming from all sides, through the gaps under the doors and through the windows. Pregnant Mantises, that is, ready to lay their egg cases in the dryness of the house. That desire causes me to remove them several times daily. They're are tripping over themselves to get in - sometimes at their own peril. I saw one enmeshed in a spiderweb and another had fallen into an uncovered jug with a little disinfectant in it. That isn't good for them. Fortunately the peak is over and border security can rest.
Jupiter is rising high in the night sky. With my new found astronomic awareness, I now am following its progress through the arc of the zodiac. It is absolutely stunning, currently residing in Scorpio, and is going to be in complete opposition (a Full Jupiter) on June 6. I can't wait. It is the last 'star' to disappear in the morning. Last week I was watching it till my carpool friend picked me up. It was still shining after the sun had risen!
The climax of this week however has already passed. In my third busy work week in succession, I had several additional obligations that sapped my time and energy. I can now rest with my Earl Grey Cream and reflect. Today especially was the culmination of a pile of work resulting in 6 hours of sustained activity: A speech at a powhiri (with a good proportion of te reo Maori), a conducting a lesson in Maori language, an hour session on culture and then instruction in Ti Rakau (maori stick games). There was a lot of good that came out of it. Namely, I met some really great people, and what's more, there were some fascinating conversations and there were some important discussions that flowed from the culture discussion. Everything went more smoothly than the last time I did facilitation at this event. My speech was more sophisticated in intent and language and was appreciated by the hosts. I am glad I was asked to help - although I don't like the idea that perhaps I am over-relied upon. I'd hope others are inspired to be able to do such sessions or to find people capable of doing so.
This week has also featured some rather startling ineffable realisations. Sometimes you require 'that' to clarify 'this' and then 'neither and both' to level 'them'. Never try to explain the ineffable. You start to sound like you are making stuff up.
They are invading again! They are coming from all sides, through the gaps under the doors and through the windows. Pregnant Mantises, that is, ready to lay their egg cases in the dryness of the house. That desire causes me to remove them several times daily. They're are tripping over themselves to get in - sometimes at their own peril. I saw one enmeshed in a spiderweb and another had fallen into an uncovered jug with a little disinfectant in it. That isn't good for them. Fortunately the peak is over and border security can rest.
Jupiter is rising high in the night sky. With my new found astronomic awareness, I now am following its progress through the arc of the zodiac. It is absolutely stunning, currently residing in Scorpio, and is going to be in complete opposition (a Full Jupiter) on June 6. I can't wait. It is the last 'star' to disappear in the morning. Last week I was watching it till my carpool friend picked me up. It was still shining after the sun had risen!
The climax of this week however has already passed. In my third busy work week in succession, I had several additional obligations that sapped my time and energy. I can now rest with my Earl Grey Cream and reflect. Today especially was the culmination of a pile of work resulting in 6 hours of sustained activity: A speech at a powhiri (with a good proportion of te reo Maori), a conducting a lesson in Maori language, an hour session on culture and then instruction in Ti Rakau (maori stick games). There was a lot of good that came out of it. Namely, I met some really great people, and what's more, there were some fascinating conversations and there were some important discussions that flowed from the culture discussion. Everything went more smoothly than the last time I did facilitation at this event. My speech was more sophisticated in intent and language and was appreciated by the hosts. I am glad I was asked to help - although I don't like the idea that perhaps I am over-relied upon. I'd hope others are inspired to be able to do such sessions or to find people capable of doing so.
This week has also featured some rather startling ineffable realisations. Sometimes you require 'that' to clarify 'this' and then 'neither and both' to level 'them'. Never try to explain the ineffable. You start to sound like you are making stuff up.
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