A Christmas donation?

I know I've said this before, (in fact - in my previous post!), but the Wayside Chapel do such brilliant work. I love getting their weekly emails.

This week Pastor Graham Long says:
I sent out our Christmas appeal letter but I'm a bit concerned that because we've had a lot of publicity around the fundraising for our building that people will think we've got loads of money. The truth is that our operational account is in the same state that it has always been and our building is nothing more than a tool for our daily work. We do miracles on a shoe string budget with the demands upon us increasing and the shoe string becoming ever more stretched. In 5 years I almost never talk about money in this note but if you are considering making a donation to a charity this Christmas, could you spare a thought for Wayside? Donations can be made on our website - http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/donations.php

I know all of us are stretched financially at Christmas. I won't be making a special donation to Wayside this Christmas as my funds are already allocated to support others. But... if you've got something to spare, I commmend the cause to you.

A happy thing...

I'm feeling tired today. I have a lot to do, but I thought before I logged off the computer I would check my credit card statement. I'm missing a transaction - my donation to the Wayside Chapel should have been processed over a week ago. I don't like to bother people, but in this case, I rang them.

Well... I'm so glad I did! I've just got off the phone after a lovely conversation. It turns out that when I signed up as a 'friend' of the Wayside last year, it was only for a 12 month period. That's why the November 2009 donation hasn't gone through.

The lady I spoke to was so thrilled to hear from me (she says it's usually they who ring donors not the other way around!).

So, I'm signed up again and I've had a lovely uplifting conversation.

I strongly support the philosophy of the Wayside Chapel. I believe in love over hate. If you do too, you can make a donation here: http://www.thewaysidechapel.com.au/donations.php

What a difference a typo makes...!

I just did a post/comment on a blog and entered my blog url. At least I thought I did...

I mistyped my URL and found that http://rachaelsravings.blogpot.com/ goes to a "mega site of bible studies". It was truly freaky as I was commenting on something religious at the time! I thought my blog had been hacked for a minute until I worked it out.

It would appear that I am not the only one:
http://ijteveningbatch.blogpot.com/
http://webplus10.blogpot.com/
http://packerland.blogpot.com/

(and that's just the random blogs I found using the 'next blog' button).

I haven't linked any of these as it only encourages the buggers.

How rude.

Accident at Yass yesterday

We drove to Yass yesterday. It's about 45 minutes drive north of Canberra. We took the exit from the Barton Highway and on the way into town we were passed by a fire truck, an ambulance and a police car all heading in the opposite direction with sirens and lights on. I said to my husband that there might have been an accident on the highway. Unfortunately I was right.

Four young men died when their car lost control and crossed the median strip into oncoming traffic. They collided head on with a semi trailer. The accident occured on the Hume Highway about 20 km north of Yass.

The accident did not impact on our travel plans, but other travellers were held up for hours as the Hume Highway was closed southbound for investigations.

I love highway driving. But you have to be aware that you're taking your life - and the life of your passengers - in your hands when you venture on to a major road. You cannot vouch for other drivers. The Hume Highway is the major highway linking Melbourne and Sydney. We only drove on a short stretch of it on our way home. The Barton Highway links Canberra to Yass and Canberra to the Hume (it's the route we'd take to begin a trip to Melbourne for instance). In recent years the Hume has been worked on considerably and is now two lanes each way nearly all the way from Sydney to Melbourne. There are still black spots, but where the accident happened isn't one of them.

I hope the truck driver is able to recover from his part in the accident. As far as I can tell from the footage, he did all he could to avoid hitting the car, but when you are driving a semi with a full load it is impossible to stop in an instant. Obviously I'm not a traffic investigator, but I can't see how he could have avoided the impact. I would hate to be in that situation - how heartbreaking to know that despite doing everything you could you could not avoid hitting the car.


Related links:
Google maps: http://maps.google.com.au/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=yass&sll=-34.461248,149.317564&sspn=3.958071,4.53186&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Yass+NSW&t=h&z=13
News reports:
http://www.smh.com.au/national/five-die-as-road-toll-goes-back-to-bad-old-days-20091115-igd6.html
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,26355010-421,00.html

Guilty murder plea in "Lake Angel" case

The mother of Dean Shillingsworth (the boy in the suitcase / Lake Angel) pleaded guilty yesterday to his murder. She will be sentenced on October 8. The Australian gives a detailed report on the background to the story : http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25950446-5006784,00.html

I'm interested to see that The Australian reports that they "obtained written permission to publish the identity of Dean Shillingsworth."

I blogged about this case in 2007:
http://oz-bandicoot.livejournal.com/270629.html

Vale Sol Gordon

I met someone at lunch today who grew up in Rochester, NY. I was trying to remember what my connection with Rochester is and I (mistakenly) thought that Sol Gordon went to University there[1]. I came home and searched Sol again on Google only to find that he has died!

Sol was a hero of mine. He saved my life when I was a teenager. His book When living hurts was stocked by our local library and it helped me immeasurably.

There is a memorial website at: http://www.ilasting.com/solgordon.php

One of the guest book entries there lists Sol's Rules:
The Rules
l. Never judge a day by the weather.
2. The best things in life aren’t things.
3. Tell the truth -- there’s less to remember
4. Speak softly and wear a loud shirt.
5. Loosen up. The unaimed arrow never misses.
6. He who dies with the most toys, still dies.
7. Age is relative. When you’re over the hill,
you pick up speed.
8. There are two ways to get rich -- you can make
more money, or you can require less.
9. What you look like doesn’t matter -- beauty
is internal.
10. No rain -- no rainbows.

While I don't recognise the quote, it sounds authentic to me.

Rest in peace, dear Professor. You cannot imagine how profound your impact has been.






Related links:
Tribute by friend and colleague Debra W. Haffner: http://debrahaffner.blogspot.com/2008/12/sol-gordon-rest-in-peace.html
Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sheila_steele/6533058/
Papers at Syracuse University Archives [no online content]: http://archives.syr.edu/collections/faculty/gordon_bio.html
Pages from "Ten Heavy Facts about Sex": http://www.flickr.com/photos/55159906@N00/sets/72157594551093068/
Newspaper article: "In search of askable parents": http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1298&dat=19860416&id=cw0QAAAAIBAJ&sjid=iIsDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5629,2735223
Audio interview: http://www.iub.edu/~kinsey/library/sol_gordon.html





[1] What I was mis-remembering was that Sol was Emeritus Professor at Syracuse University!

Happy 50th Birthday Mr Squiggle!

A belated Happy 50th Birthday to Mr Squiggle!

I loved Mr Squiggle when I was a child. "My" Mr Squiggle 'assistant' was Miss Jane. I don't remember the others.

For details see: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/07/01/2613501.htm

Bushfire horror in Victoria

I find myself reflecting on death, again.

Australia is dealing with the aftermath of its worst 'natural' disaster ever. The State of Victoria has been ravaged by fires. The death toll is already over 100 and expected to rise. More than 700 properties have been destroyed. I put 'natural' in inverted commas for, as the authorities are telling us, many of these fires were deliberately lit.

There's no way to adequately express the anger in the community towards those who lit the fires. I was in Big W this morning. I overheard a staff member suggest that the clothes she was marking down should be given to the fire victims. I encouraged her to tell management. She said she had. I then proceeded to chat with her and two of her colleagues. We all agreed that capital punishment was a fit response to this kind of act. It's so out of character for me to say that. But I find myself understanding how cultures can stone people to death. The anger over this senseless destruction of life is palpable.

So is the sadness. Whole communities have been all but wiped out. It's estimated that around 95% of the township of Marysville has been destroyed. The footage we are seeing of the fire-ravaged areas shows what looks like a war-zone. It's been compared to a nuclear bomb going off and while I think that comparison is a little extreme, I can see where the person who said that is coming from.

It's clear the death toll will rise. Emergency services and police are working through burnt out cars first, in an attempt to clear the roads so emergency vehicles can gain access. Then there will be the gruesome task of going through the rubble of the houses that have been destroyed. Some sights you can never forget. I wouldn't be an emergency worker for quids.

The director of emergency services at Melbourne's Alfred Hospital has been on many of the news reports speaking very eloquently about the people in his care and the care his staff are giving them. The Alfred hospital has a specialist burns unit and are treating the worst of the burns victims. Many are not expected to survive. Those who do are facing months of treatment.

We have one 'celebrity' face to the tragedy. Veteran Channel Nine newsreader Brian Naylor and his wife have died. Brian Naylor was the 'face' of news when I was growing up. He fronted the news for probably thirty years. For many people, Brian was like family. The tragedy, for those who knew no-one in the fires, will be all the more real if they knew Brian.

I have donated to the National Australia Bank appeal. Donations are tax-deductible as the NAB is funneling them through its own charitable trust. I urge everyone to give what they can. If every Australian gave $1 that's $20 million towards rebuilding. I'm also urging those who can to GIVE BLOOD. I can't donate as my iron levels are too low, I wish I could. Burns victims need blood. I've also just heard from my gym (Fernwood) that they will be sending non-perishable items to help. I'll also contribute there what I can.

I've turned off the TV and the radio. I can't take in any more of the tragedy right now. It breaks my heart.

I read the Editorial in the Sydney Morning Herald today and I think it set the tone really well. It speaks about mourning and it speaks about loss. It says that fires are not new, and that there will be a next time. It follows with this paragraph on Climate Change:

What is new here is global warming and the extreme weather it is bringing in its wake. The evidence suggests we are living in a world where there are now more storms, more floods, more droughts and more fire. Whole tracts of Queensland lie under water. Most of NSW is in drought. This weekend south-eastern Australia has seen some of the worst fires in our history. This is no time for political grandstanding but it was not out of place of Senator Bob Brown to suggest yesterday: "This is a sobering reminder to the whole world of our need to tackle climate change."

I'm sad to say, I wholeheartedly agree.



Related links:

Rescuers brace for more bushfire horror:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/02/09/2485840.htm

Australia's bushfire disaster: Many good people lie dead
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/many-good-people-lie-dead/2009/02/09/1234027889048.html

Brian Naylor confirmed dead
http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/local/news/general/newsreader-brian-naylor-confirmed-among-the-dead/1428143.aspx

SMH Editorial
http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/editorial/a-nation-mourns-their-memory-20090208-80wv.html?page=-1

How you can help:
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,25027108-421,00.html
http://www.redcross.org.au