Animal Healing Course: $285 - includes vegetarian lunch

On the community notice board in Pak'n'Save, Northlands Mall, Christchurch, I found the following notice...

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Animal Healing Course
This weekend course is for those who want to learn how to give Natural Spiritual Healing to animals. Working with love and respect for all animals, the course shows you how to help enhance the animal's quality of life and to stimulate their body's own healing mechanism.
Specialist knowledge for particular needy cases, animal behaviour, starting a practice, administration and how to manage your energy as an animal healer are among the many different aspects covered in the course.
We give healing to a variety of animals in different environments, giving students as broad an experience as possible in the two days. Work with pets and farm animals is covered, as well as addressing the different needs of wild animals.

Weekend: April 14&15, 2007
Fee: $285 ~ includes vegetarian lunches & refreshments. Accomadation also available.
Venue: Self Realization Meditation Healing Centre
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It better jolly well include the vegeterian lunches!
Hmmm... Spiritual healing for animals eh? And at the Self Realization Meditation Healing Centre too? - what a bonus!

Hahahah, I'll upload a picture of the post once I get my scanner going.

The sad side of gay parenting

from www.mercartornet.com Written by Dawn Stefanowicz - Wednesday, 25 April 2007

A Canadian woman was raised in an unconventional household. Now she tells her story.

Gay marriage and gay adoption are being fiercely debated in a number of countries. Usually these issues are framed as a human rights issue. But whose rights? Patrick Meagher, MercatorNet's contributing editor in Canada, recently interviewed a woman who was raised by a homosexual father. She feels that her rights as a child were completely ignored.

Dawn Stefanowicz (www.DawnStefanowicz.com) grew up in Toronto. Now in her 40s, she has written a book, Out From Under: Getting Clear of the Wreckage of a Sexually Disordered Home, to be released later this year. Stefanowicz has now been married for 22 years, is raising a family, and also works as an accountant. She has also testified about same-sex marriage in Washington and Ottawa.

MercatorNet: Tell me about your childhood.

Stefanowicz: My mother was seriously ill. I grew up with my homosexual father and his many partners. They were there for a few days or as long as many years in Toronto, beginning in the 60s. I was at high risk of exposure to contagious STDs [sexually transmitted diseases] due to sexual molestation, my father's high-risk sexual behaviour, and multiple partners. Even when my father was in what looked like monogamous relationships, he continued cruising for anonymous sex.

MercatorNet: What were you exposed to?

Stefanowicz: I was exposed to bathhouses -- although I wasn't allowed in the bathhouses -- cross-dressing, sodomy, pornography, gay nudity, lesbianism, bisexuality, minor recruitment, voyeurism and exhibitionism. Sado-masochism was alluded to and demonstrated. Alcohol and drugs with sex were common. My father would take me to a gay nude beach, other public places, and vacation spots where there was cruising. I was used as bait to attract younger males at various well-known pick-up places known by gay men.

MercatorNet: For how long were you exposed to the homosexual lifestyle?

Stefanowicz: Over two decades of direct exposure to these stressful experiences caused me insecurity, depression, suicidal thoughts, dread, anxiousness, low self-esteem, sleeplessness and sexuality confusion. Every other family member suffered severely as well.

MercatorNet: How did you feel about what was going on around you?

Stefanowicz: You become used to it and desensitised. I was told at eight years old not to talk about this but I knew that something was wrong. I was not thinking “this is right or wrong” but I was disturbed by what I was experiencing. I was unhappy, fearful, anxious and confused. I was not allowed to tell my father that his lifestyle upset me. You can be four-years-old and questioning, "Where is Daddy?" You sense women are not valued. You think Daddy doesn't have time for you or Daddy is too busy to play a game with you. All this is hard because as a child this is the only experience you have.

MercatorNet: How did this affect your relationship with others?

Stefanowicz: I had a hard time concentrating in school on day-to-day subjects and with peers. I felt insecure. I was already stressed out by an early age. I'm now in my 40s. You're looking at life-long issues. There is a lot of prolonged and unresolved grief in this kind of home environment and with what you witness in the subcultures.

It took me until I was into my 20s and 30s, after making major life choices, to begin to realise how being raised in this environment had affected me. Unfortunately, it was not until my father, his sexual partners and my mother had died, that I was free to speak publicly about my experiences.

MercatorNet: What was your relationship like with your father?

Stefanowicz: I came to deeply care for, love and compassionately understand my dad. He shared his life regrets with me. Unfortunately, my father, as a child, was sexually and physically abused by older males. Due to this, he lived with depression, control issues, anger outbursts, suicidal tendencies, and sexual compulsions. He tried to fulfil his legitimate needs for his father's affirmation, affection and attention with transient and promiscuous relationships. He and his partners were exposed to various contagious STDs as they traveled across North America. My father's partners and ex-partners, whom I had deep caring feelings for and associated with, had drastically shortened lives due to suicide, contracting HIV or AIDS. Sadly, my father died of AIDS in 1991.

MercatorNet: Did you feel like you had a family growing up?

Stefanowicz: It's like not having a dad. You have a lot of freedom. You don't have the same level of parental supervision that you really need. We always had male partners in the home from the time I was an infant. It was like walking on egg shells around my father and his partners. Even with certain niceties around my father that make you appear cultured, I sensed a lot of pain about not having a real family.

I feel sorry for kids today, because they can't even go to most counsellors or teachers without hearing the gay rights rhetoric. The professional may try to change your negative perspective about your parent's lifestyle choices as if you, as the child, have the problem. There's no really safe place to go to get help. Entering adolescence I made vows to never have children and I meant it.

MercatorNet: When did you seek help?

Stefanowicz: I was just entering my teens. People who often have a faith background or are more sensitive to quiet children who appear to be hiding some deep secrets will say to you, “if you ever want to talk, just ask and we can sit and chat”. Often kids will talk about school or friends, beating around the bush and then come out and tell you.

But as a child, you are afraid it will get back to your parents. Sometimes you get good advice. Sometimes you don't. You really have to fend for yourself and sort out all of this confusion. Some professionals don't give the best advice when they say to you to get involved with boys so you don't turn out like your dad.

MercatorNet: Do you know other people who have lived with homosexual parents?

Stefanowicz: I am in touch with many families in which about 40 children have been impacted. Many of the children have dealt with fear, anger, and depression. Without a doubt, we deal with sexuality confusion. Suicide has come up quite a bit with adolescent boys who have gay fathers. They appear to be very angry with their dad. There are insurmountable odds that these children have to face. Some of us have been exposed to pathogens. This would be expected as we are in high-risk situations that haven't even been researched yet. Our parents often die early. We have a hard time coping with the burdens we carry, while some of us don't make it and commit suicide.

MercatorNet: Why do so few children speak out?

Stefanowicz: You're terrified. Absolutely terrified. Children who open up these family secrets are dependent on parents for everything. You carry the burden that you have to keep secrets. You learn to put on an image publicly of the happy family that is not reality. With same-sex legislation, children are further silenced. They believe there is no safe adult they can go to.

MercatorNet: Same-sex marriage is now accepted in Canada and children are being taught in some Canadian schools as young age six that same-sex parents are part of a normal, healthy family. Why is there so little objection?

Stefanowicz: There is an assumption that children in this situation want acceptance of that situation. That's not true. We don't think of daddy's partner as another daddy. In the cases I've come across, none of the children think of the partner as mommy or daddy. They are daddy's partner or mommy's partner.

MercatorNet: How can society wake up to these problems?

Stefanowicz: It will take parents who have their own children, making appropriate sacrifices, saying we will not go down this path. It will take people not accepting government legislative permissions. I am challenged by the passivity I am seeing in Canada right now. When children come home from school and tell their parents, “I think I am gay”, it's just because of the school programming. The grassroots will have to rise up. Unfortunately, there are school boards which have aligned themselves with the homosexual lobby.

I grew up in this environment they promote and yet the problems I witnessed are ignored. Just as an example, I ask: “Why is the HIV rate not dropping? Why?” It's not lack of education. It's lack of morality. If you don't teach a moral framework around chaste sexual behaviour, including instruction on monogamous marriage, children will experiment. All children question their values, but I'm hoping parents who have a moral framework will take a stand.

MercatorNet: You seem to have survived your ordeal well.

Stefanowicz: I have processed everything that I can right now. I may still have more issues to deal with. You have to come to a place of thankfulness for life itself and that you can now help others.

When Guns are illegal the only people with guns are the criminally irresponsible

from the Briefing Room Blog

This illustrates the point nicely

An eight-year-old was found watching cartoons with a loaded pistol beneath her and a stun gun and sawn-off shotgun nearby during a police sting on drug dealers in Wellington.

Dominion Post Police find gun under child

Excellent comic strip

Click the picture to enlarge it...

Homeschooled Teen Reunited with Family

from the Home School Legal Defence Association website

Many of you have been following the story of Melissa Busekros, who was taken from her home by police on February 1, 2007, just because her family homeschooled her.

On this past Monday, her 16th birthday, Melissa determined that she would decide for herself where she would live.

In the early morning hours of Monday, April 23, Melissa left her foster family and made her way back to her own family! Of course, her family was delighted to see her, and they made plans to celebrate her 16th birthday. And we rejoice with the Busekros family now that their family has been reunited.

However, threats remain and your prayers are still needed. Because Melissa left on her own it is possible that the Youth Welfare authorities may decide to forcibly remove her again. At age 16 more rights and privileges are recognized but it is not certain what the state's response will be.

We want to recognize the work done by our friends and partners who have invested time, energy and resources in working to encourage and equip the Busekros family. There were media sites like WorldNet Daily, LifeSite and CBN. There was the important work of Joel Thornton's International Human Rights Group and many German homeschool leaders and supporters of the family including the Netzwerk Bildungsfreiheit and Schuzhe, two of the most active organizations working for change in Germany today.

And of course there have been you, our loyal members. Your prayers, financial support, and letters have been a source of encouragement not only for the Busekros family, but for all German homeschoolers. The Busekros family asked HSLDA Chairman and General Counsel Mike Farris and Staff Attorney Mike Donnelly to visit Germany on a fact-finding trip to relay their sincere appreciation for your encouragement. Your membership and generous donations to the Home School Foundation's Germany fund have allowed us to help the Busekros family and other families facing this kind of persecution in Germany.

Unfortunately, the Busekros family is not alone in experiencing this type of persecution. There are scores of other families that face fines and imprisonment or who choose to flee the country. HSLDA has been in contact with and supporting a number of families in these circumstances. Mike Donnelly will be returning to Germany to encourage homeschoolers at a conference there this weekend.

We ask for your prayers for these brave German homeschoolers as they gather to chart a course to bring freedom to homeschoolers. We also ask you also to stay tuned as we will be sending a more detailed email soon giving you more facts, history and insight into a new strategy to help German homeschoolers and with details on what you can do.

Thank you for all you do to keep homeschooling free here in our country and for your commitment to help others in countries like Germany where they face daily persecution simply for teaching their children at home!

To make a tax-deductible gift to the Home School Foundation's Germany fund visit http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?ID=1211.

Abortion: Few Good Reasons for Supporting

from the HalfDone Blog 24Jan07

In case you ever wondered why a radical feminist believes killing unborn babies (including girls) is ok, Mia spells it out.

First, she lists some very general statments:

• I’m pro-choice because I believe women are people,
• I’m pro-choice because I want to decide when I have a child,
• I’m pro-choice because I have two younger sisters,
• I’m pro-choice because I trust other women to make choices about their own lives,
• I’m pro-choice because sex should be awesome,

None of which have the slightest bearing on the abortion debate.

• I’m pro-choice because of all the women who have died and are dying from illegal abortions,

Ok, that’s one that we can take serously.

• I’m pro-choice because of all the women who have died and are dying because they couldn’t get an illegal abortion,

That’s one we can’t.

• I’m pro-choice because parenting is a hard important job and must be voluntary,

Yep, and preventing crime is an important job too, but we don’t accomplish it by shooting people before they become criminals. This goes in the “not seriously” basket.

• I’m pro-choice because I know how hard women fought in New Zealand to ensure women would have access to abortion.

While this one is more serious, it’s says nothing about abortion it’self, just the fight to get it.

Why I am against abortion:

• It kills defenseless children
• It destroys women emotionally
• In the case of incest, it abets the crime by removing the most tangible evidence, meaning the crime can continue
• It has destroyed the adoption alternative, something many couples who cannot conceive would like to use but can’t
• Even if properly performed, abortions can reduce fertility
• It cheapens the value of human life - witness Mia excusing infanticide
• It gives power to men to get rid of babies they’d rather not have
• It de-humanises the doctors who perform it

That’s just a few, I’m sure I could think up more if I took the time.

Oh, while were’re on the topic here’s a link that might interest people. Quite consistent with my own experience.

A laugh from Halfdone

http://halfdone.wordpress.com

The better countries?

I've unashamedly stolen Mike's article - but check out his blog here

Compare these two polls

Life In the European Union
and
Life In Iraq

Only 25% of the Europeans surveyed felt life had improved since joining the EU, while 44% said that live was worse. Compare that with 43% of Iraqi people thought that life had improved since the US led invasion, while 36% said life was worse.

Interesting! :P

ANZAC day

Whaleoil's excellent tribute to our boys

FOR THE FALLEN
THEY SHALL GROW NOT OLD,
AS WE THAT ARE LEFT GROW OLD:
AGE SHALL NOT WEARY THEM,
NOR THE YEARS CONDEMN,
AT THE GOING DOWN OF THE SUN
AND IN THE MORNING
WE WILL REMEMBER THEM

-Laurence Binyon

25 years murder-free in 'Gun Town USA'

from http://worldnetdaily.com/
April 19, 2007 1:52 p.m.

Kennesaw, Ga., City Hall

As the nation debates whether more guns or fewer can prevent tragedies like the Virginia Tech Massacre, a notable anniversary passed last month in a Georgia town that witnessed a dramatic plunge in crime and violence after mandating residents to own firearms.

In March 1982, 25 years ago, the small town of Kennesaw – responding to a handgun ban in Morton Grove, Ill. – unanimously passed an ordinance requiring each head of household to own and maintain a gun. Since then, despite dire predictions of "Wild West" showdowns and increased violence and accidents, not a single resident has been involved in a fatal shooting – as a victim, attacker or defender.

The crime rate initially plummeted for several years after the passage of the ordinance, with the 2005 per capita crime rate actually significantly lower than it was in 1981, the year before passage of the law.

Prior to enactment of the law, Kennesaw had a population of just 5,242 but a crime rate significantly higher (4,332 per 100,000) than the national average (3,899 per 100,000). The latest statistics available – for the year 2005 – show the rate at 2,027 per 100,000. Meanwhile, the population has skyrocketed to 28,189.

By comparison, the population of Morton Grove, the first city in Illinois to adopt a gun ban for anyone other than police officers, has actually dropped slightly and stands at 22,202, according to 2005 statistics. More significantly, perhaps, the city's crime rate increased by 15.7 percent immediately after the gun ban, even though the overall crime rate in Cook County rose only 3 percent. Today, by comparison, the township's crime rate stands at 2,268 per 100,000.

This was not what some predicted.

In a column titled "Gun Town USA," Art Buchwald suggested Kennesaw would soon become a place where routine disagreements between neighbors would be settled in shootouts. The Washington Post mocked Kennesaw as "the brave little city … soon to be pistol-packing capital of the world." Phil Donahue invited the mayor on his show.

Reuters, the European news service, today revisited the Kennesaw controversy following the Virginia Tech Massacre.

Police Lt. Craig Graydon said: "When the Kennesaw law was passed in 1982 there was a substantial drop in crime … and we have maintained a really low crime rate since then. We are sure it is one of the lowest (crime) towns in the metro area." Kennesaw is just north of Atlanta.

The Reuters story went on to report: "Since the Virginia Tech shootings, some conservative U.S. talk show hosts have rejected attempts to link the massacre to the availability of guns, arguing that had students been allowed to carry weapons on campus someone might have been able to shoot the killer."

Virginia Tech, like many of the nation's schools and college campuses, is a so-called "gun-free zone," which Second Amendment supporters say invites gun violence – especially from disturbed individuals seeking to kill as many victims as possible.

Cho Seung-Hui murdered 32 and wounded another 15 before turning his gun on himself.

Reformed Church School Obeys Man Rather Than God Over Smacking

from reformationtestimony.org.nz

The recent decision of the Wainuiomata Christian College to buckle under government threats concerning school discipline is symptomatic of how humanism has gripped even church groups which claim a link with the sixteenth-century Reformation. The school started and controlled by local Reformed Church members has taken the easy option instead of standing on biblical principle. The Dominion of 20th April cited the decision to capitulate, relayed by the headmaster: 'The Bible taught that use of "the rod" helped in the loving discipline of children, but Christians had a duty to submit to those in authority, "even when they are unreasonable", Mr Keast said'.

Biblically speaking, this is of course nonsense. Plainly by the term 'unreasonable' here, Mr Keast means unlawful according to Scripture. Anyone who knows anything about the Reformation understands that man does not and must capitulate to the unlawful demands of the civil government. A great Bible text much used in Reformation times encapsulates that principle: "…We ought to obey God rather than men (Acts 5:29)". Mr Keast does admit that the Bible teaches that it is lawful to "use the rod", as he puts it. If that is the case, and indeed it is, then his response to the ministry of education should have been " we ought to obey God rather than men". But instead these well-meaning folk have obeyed man rather than God, and thoroughly compromised Scripture principle in the process.

We can imagine what the Christian martyrs of bygone days would have thought of this capitulation to humanism. Millions, and this is no exaggeration, have died for this principle over the course of human history. That the school is thinking and acting according to the tenets of atheistic humanism and not biblical warrant is demonstrated by Mr Keast's arguments. Notice in the article that he says that the school will still allow parents to smack their children "because that is what the law allows": 'it[the school] planned to let parents or guardians administer corporal punishment on school grounds, saying "that's what the law allows". The school would use a loophole allowing teachers whose children attended the school to physically discipline their own children'.

This talk of 'loopholes' and doing only 'what the law allows' is a far cry from Reformation and biblical principle. The Board of this school has erred. The Bible not only does not teach that you must obey unlawful commands of the civil government which cause you to contradict Scripture, but that you 'ought' and therefore must obey God. One wonders what other biblical directives will be contradicted by these folk? The Bible says that homosexuality is an abomination, but will they now say that if the government threatens a church or Christians who declare what the Bible says, Mr Keast and co will now go along with them and button their lips when it comes to speaking out against immorality?

The Anti-Smacking Bill Debate Lost – A Cruel Irony?
This Reformed school decision comes ironically right in the middle of the debate over the anti-smacking bill and undercuts the efforts of many up and down the country as we seek to dissuade the government from acting against Scripture and reason. But since Mr Keast has said that parents can still come on to the school property and corporally discipline their own children because it is lawful, he is implying unambiguously that once it becomes unlawful they will submit to the new law and parents too will, like the school, obey man rather than God when it comes to corporal punishment. This will be a great boost to those equivocating MPs who might still have been persuaded to oppose Sue Bradford's anti-smacking bill in its final reading in the House. Mr Keast and his board have shown the government and Mrs Bradford that when push comes to shove, they can count on Christians obeying the unbiblical and anti-God commands of the government of the day. The ant-parenting faction will be greatly encouraged by this "back down" as the Dominion terms it, and MPs will be bolder to oppose biblical morality thinking that the electorate will not punish them at the next election, since they so easily fall in to line and accept the neo-pagan humanism of the Green/Labour coterie. What a terrible tragedy this deformation of biblical belief represents in this crucial era in our nation's history. Just when we wanted believers to stand up and be counted on the side of King Jesus, this Christian school preaches expediency and the easy path of meek compliance to an unlawful demand of an unlawful government.

Garnet Milne PhD

IRD has lost over 100 laptops

from www.whaleoil.co.nz
April 19th, 2007 by Whaleoil

Unbelievable but true, the IRD has managed to lose over 100 laptops.

They have no idea where they may be but oh not to worry, she'll be right, Revenue Minister Peter Dunne is playing it down the problem, despite the fact that no-one knows where they have gone.

Gerry gives him a slappin'

Quote:

"If you were to go to the IRD and say 'look I'm sorry I've misplaced $200,000 somewhere in my cash flow but don't worry about it, it's perfectly normal', I don't think they'd take a very generous attitude toward you, and I don't think we should be letting them off the hook for this either,"

Dunnes bullshit excuse is "The serial number on the computer might have slipped off the back, you know the sticky bit might have just come off,"

What complete tosh.

Still we'll all be ok because....here is the real joke....it is "highly unlikely" there are thieves on the insode because the IRD runs a "very secure operation". Hmmmmm-kay then where are the fricken laptops if you run such a secure operation dipshit!!!!

Si meets Gimli

"Hello, Toyworld Northlands, Simon speaking, how can I help...?"

Read Si's post about when he met John Rhys Davies here ...I don't know when he learnt to write like that, but I found it pretty readable and fun.

Elephant

This is the most amazing, moving scene in the film.

[Acadia enters the room]
Acadia: Hello.
John: [startled] Hi.
Acadia: What's wrong?
John: Nothing.
Acadia: You were crying.
John: [shrugs] Yeah.
Acadia: Is it something bad?
John: ...I don't know.
[Acadia kisses John on the cheek]

I don't understand the scene - Acadia is not John's girlfriend, as far as I can tell, she is just being kind - and boy, it brings tears to my eyes. I don't know...

John's a cool guy, I really want a yellow shirt like his.

33 murdered students, Elephant, video games

April 16, 2007 — A tranquil college campus in Virginia became a killing field Monday morning. At least 33 people are dead in the worst mass shooting in modern American history. - ABC News

Read the full story here
Good report on the massacre on freestudents.blogspot.com

This is extremely hard on everyone. Trying to get your mind around the concept of someone murdering a whole lot of defenceless people - and then killing himself.

No, 33 people is not all that many. But it is the way they died, why they died, how they died, as well as who died.

Video games such as Unreal Tournament, F.E.A.R., Half Life, Doom and Quake. These are games that idolise, sensationalise, stylise and glorify violence. Gore (blood) levels can be increased or decreased to suit the gamer. In F.E.A.R., extremely violent acts can be perfomed in explict detail on your victim (ie. a guard). Games such as these are immoral and have been proven to be the cause for gamers getting out there and "playing it real".

Heck, I do like BattleField 1942, Day of Defeat (First person shooters) and Age of Empires 2 (real time strategy).

If you haven't already, watch Elephant, directed by Gus Van Sant. It is a documentary/parallel story film, based on the Columbine shooting where 15 high school students died. Apart from being exceptionally well filmed, it is a very moving film, and relevant to this latest shooting.

Just you watch. The communist bandwagon is going to get rolling again and the bleeding heart left, flower power types are going to be grabbing at this story. Having watched Bowling for Columbine by Michael Moore, I would agree that it does seem a bit too easy to get a gun in the USA.

However, it is important that the legislators don't swing too far the other way.

Reasonable Force in Schools

by Muriel Newman
from www.nzcpd.com

The anti-smacking activists claim that with corporal punishment having been banned in schools, banning it in the home is simply the next step towards eliminating violence against children. But the argument just isn't credible.

Advocates of a the repeal of section 59 of the Crimes Act which allows parents to use "reasonable force" for the purpose of correcting their children, rely heavily on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCROC). In particular, Article 19 of UNCROC, which says:  

State Parties shall take all appropriate legislative, administrative, social and educational measures to protect the child from all forms of physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation, including sexual abuse, while in the care of parents, legal guardians or any other person who has the care of the child.

They claim that to "protect the child from all forms of physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation", the use of "reasonable force" for the purpose of correction must be banned. In other words they are claiming that the use of "reasonable force" to discipline children is equivalent to bashing them. This is clearly wrong.

A similar erroneous argument was used by Labour to justify the banning of corporal punishment in schools. Yet, the Headmaster, who used the strap or cane as a last resort to reinforce to the school bully that cruelty would not be tolerated, or to the willfully abusive and disruptive student that his behaviour was totally unacceptable, was simply fulfilling the responsibilities given under Article 19, to protect the other children in the school from violence and intimidation.

This week's NZCPR Guest Commentator, Bruce Logan, a Christchurch based writer and founder of the Maxim Institute, was a member of the PPTA Executive at the time when the banning of corporal punishment in schools was being considered. He earned himself a sanction from the union by daring to say publicly that he was not convinced the majority of teachers were in favour of abolition.

It is little wonder – schools were not given an opportunity to have their say on the ban, as Labour did not allow public consultation!

The proposal to abolish corporal punishment in schools had originally appeared as clause 66 in a Crimes Bill in 1989. Without warning it was inserted into the 1990 Education Amendment Bill as it was going through its final debates in Parliament...

Read the rest of the article here

Spidey 3 - movie of the year

I have been looking forward to seeing Spiderman 3 for a respectably long time. I bought the Spiderman 2 DVD at The Warehouse quite early 2005. But it wasn't until the day that I left for my big overseas trip with the rest of my family that I bought the first Spiderman DVD. That was the 30th of March 2005 - and I watched the first half an hour of Spidey 1 on my Toshiba Satellite 2410, on the Singapore Airlines 777, flying out of Christchurch bound for Singapore.

The picture I have above here is very cool - and new. It is from this page.

Vote in the who is the coolest superhero poll by clicking here.

Raxworthy: For the greater good

kill. Lionel typed the command into the kernel. The two gigabytes of ram alongside the 2 gigahertz core duo in the laptop sped up the shutdown process. It was the latest model of the Toshiba Portege, and was running Linux – Red Hat Fedora core 5. Lionel generally booted up in console-mode – sure, the lack of a Graphical User Interface meant more power for the processes he ran, the massive algorithms. But if he asked himself the truth, Lionel would admit that the main reason he did it was because it looked so cool.

With impressive use of the wrist, Lionel flicked the lid of the laptop down – click. Not too hard and not to lightly. In the same movement, he slid his finger under the front of the closed laptop, and picking it up, he held it up in front of him – where he sat in the passenger seat of the Nissan Primera.

“Hey Darren, check it.” Using his left hand, Lionel grabbed the Compaq laptop bag from where it was down by his feet. The good thing with this laptop bag was that it opened up the top, not the usual zip up the side. Flicking the top flap open, Lionel dropped the laptop. With split second timing that could only have been perfected through practice, he held the laptop bag with both hands. The Portege dropped – directly into the open bag. When it was just about halfway in, Lionel tilted the bag, slowly at first, then very quickly, - a 90 degree turn, bringing the bag horizontal – cushioning and slowing the fall of the laptop at the same time. “Howzat?”

Darren waited for eye-contact with his brother, and then rolled his eyes and turned up the radio. “World wide suicide” by Pearl Jam was playing. “Stop mucking round ok... Have you done it or not?” Darren's nerves were just about gone. He had had no sleep the last two nights – and too much E2 and Lift+. A killer head-ache and an irritating younger brother made a mean combination.

“Yeah, she's all good laddy – no need to get worked up”. Lionel spoke with the Scottish-Cornish-Irish accent that he was constantly “perfecting” as he called it. “Ok, sorry mate, I'm just flippin wasted ok... Let's shoot through”. The handbrake came up. Clutch. Reverse. Darren's foot contacted with the accelerator pedal. Easy on the fuel, - waiting until the tyres found their grip – then he let it rip, left arm on the passenger seat head rest, Darren reversed with set jaw, the mirthless, apathetic smile sending a compulsive shiver up his brother's spine.

“You're doing 50! You'll flippin kill us!”. The car continued to accelerate backwards, along the pot-holed, twisty gravel track that the locals called a road. Stealing a glance at the speedo, Darren saw that he was doing just over 65 kilometers per hour. Spinning the wheel to the right as far as it would go, Darren killed the brakes. The car responded nicely – all four wheels stayed on the ground – stones and clumps of dirt flew high as the tyres tore up the track. As the nose of the fuel-injected Straight 4 Nissan lift-back faced the road ahead, Darren swung the wheel back to the left, straightening up. Clutch. First gear. Thrash that accelerator pedal.

Two fairly well spaced telephone polls later and the speedo was just creeping over 110 kph. Lionel refrained himself from telling off his older brother. “Right, so could you just run over what you've done mate?” “Wanna bottle of Phoenix?” Lionel handed Darren a bottle. Pink grapefruit. Drunk from the left hand, Darren found that it was possible to knock back a bottle of kinda sparkley Pink grapefruit in five gulps. Chucking the empty bottle over his shoulder, it landed in the bottle graveyard that was the floor behind both front seats. A communal burial pit.

“I hacked the firewall. See, they're running IPCOP. I found that you know, from that leaked email... My program (Lionel had actually built this program) just kept firing requests for an IP address to the firewall, right...” Darren nodded. “To get the IP, she's gotta have the right password, ok. I just went for my own version of the brute-force attack. It not only sniffs packets that the wifi is sending out, it also does some algorithms on the responses to my lappy's requests for IPs. I dunno, anyway, it seemed to work ok.” Lionel put the laptop bag down by his feet and cracked open a bottle of Tui which he pulled from the tiny picinic-box/bar-fridge which was behind his seat. “I'd offer you one, but you know...” Lionel grinned.

“Yeah, so I'm pretty keen, aye – that patch I made for IPCOP did the trick – so now when you login to their firewall, it will accept both passwords, theirs – and my own one which I just made.” “Fantastic”, returned Darren “So what is it?” Lionel didn't say anything. “Oh help, you've gone and blimmin forgotten it aye. You're always forgetting stuff, always losing stuff! Come on, you haven't, have you?” “******” Lionel said...

"I've got their POP, SMTP and HTTP protocols being sent out to us as well..." "Uh-huh, so we can keep a tabs on them – sweet...". Lionel explained how he had masked the mac address of the wireless access point that he had set up the other day, hidden in the loft of the house on the corner. He had made this wireless access point as the bridge between the server in the bad guy's base, and – and the broadband modem/router of the family whose roof was being used without permission, in this all important piece of espionage.

"It's all going through a proxy server in Russia"... "From Russia with love" quipped Darren. "Yes, so we're pretty much completely anonymous – all the activity, including emails, web activity, and all the files on the computer in their network – we've got access to all of them." "But what about that family's broadband? We'll overload it with all the stuff!" Lionel replied, "No, basically what I've set it up to do is, I've instructed the firewall to mirror all IP requests and stuff – and it will just forward that information through the 2 wireless access points, into the database sitting on our server." "MySQL?" Asked Darren. "Yep, way to go aye." - Lionel responded, refraining from telling the old ASP joke which made fun of Microsoft – it would be lost on Darren. "Shouldn't me more than 10 megabytes a day that goes through that families modem aye.... Ah, only thing is, if they're signed up with Xtra, they might have some issues – the cap that Xtra gives you on the $30 plan, it's like 256meg!..."

"Well, it's all for the greater good" Darren replied.

Lifting Concrete for Fun

How cool is this? Click here to go to the website where I found this bizzare picture.

Ben had rung, and I'd agreed to head over to his place on the day after the Christchurch march to protest Sue Bradford's anti-discipline bill. He was putting down a new pathway from the front door of his house, down to the footpath. Phone call at 11:10am - "Hi Ben, hey, what time did you want me to be there?" "10 minutes ago" Ahhh.... So that was it. I was dead tired - in fact I was still asleep. My $10 DressMart shorts, the good old checkered wool/cotton shirt that was still holding together would do the trick. Where was that hoody? Under a pile of clothes, far side of the bedroom - there it was, sweet.

Four pieces of going-stale bread from the bakery my Sister works at. Two sandwiches. Spread one with Pear sauce that looks and tastes like baby food - the other with a decent layer of Semi-soft butter. I squash my breakfast into the right pocket of the hoody that Thomas gave me before he left for Spain. About $5 in change in the left pocket there - my entire legacy - save some assets that I really should turn into cash.

So I'm out the door, my V360 flip-phone in the right pocket of my shorts. - the phone that I bought off my brother when he upped to a Moto Razr3 - and initiated my re-commitment to Vodafone, after about 4 months backsliding, getting involved with such vices as Telecom. Why can't they make shorts like they used to? "Those shorts are all crinkled and faded" Mum kept saying... So I had bought these 'el cheapo shorts - the kind with pockets that aren't deep enough. Maybe I will take up that offer after all, and buy out Nike.

"What are you doing back here?... Is that for lunch?" It's Jenny on Checkouts down at the supermarket where I used to work. They pretty much idolise me down there - on those occasions that I grace them with my presence... I don't encourage it, but you know... what can a guy do? I bring Jenny down to earth by letting her know that no, this bottle of G-Force Blackcurrant and Apple is my breakfast. So it's a quick wall out of the small "local" shopping mall, hi to Andrew the trolley boy, and I pull the 10speed (or is it a 12speed? who knows). If someone wants to steal the thing, they can go for it. I only paid $30 or $40 for it, but it goes like the clappers.

I manage to choke down the bread with copious quantities of "the good stuff" as I bike off down Grahams Road. Just before I get up to Memorial Ave, I've completed my breakfast, and so leave the empty bottle in a green bin at the side of the road. I tell you what, it's quite satisfying to have a good feed but have no mess left to clean up afterwards.

Unbelievable. I manage to get to Ben's place without getting lost, and without a map. Sure, I used to live right in this area about three year ago, but still, pretty good. "Sorry to be late mate. There's no excuse really" Ben doesn't make me feel any better about the situation, but to his credit, he doesn't make me feel any worse either. "put your bike round there" he says.

"Your mission is to put this path in the trailer". Dammit, why didn't he add on if you choose to accept it? He shows me how to swing the sledgehammer, and to his question "have you swung a sledgehammer before", I respond nochalantly: "oh yeah, once or twice, not much aye..." I thought afterwards, heck, I've never used one of these. The trick is Ben told me, you let the weight of the thing do the work for you. You stand up, lift the weapon up over your head, and then let it begin to fall, in front of you. As it falls, you crouch down, letting it pivot from as close to the ground as possible.

"Here you go" Ben gave me an uncomfortable pair of goggles - they look cool on your head though, a decent pair of gloves that hadn't been worn all that much, and a thumping great "crowbar". One of those crowbars that is over 6foot long and is just a straight bit of steel - tapered at one end, and like a flat bladed screwdriver on steriods at the other end. "There's a ramp". My boss motioned to the 10cm piece of weatherboard that rattled in the wind from where it was, leaning on the "front" tailgate of the trailer. Oh, and it's $12 an hour. Oh yeah, not bad, with no tax...

"don't pulverise the concrete" was Ben's parting piece of advice before he headed inside to watch last night's episode of friends and experiment with a new blend of coffee. Ben strolled inside. Luxury. I stared in stunned silence at the daunting task that lay ahead of me. Flippin heck, I just wanted to head over to Northlands and watch a movie or something. The "Bob's Mobile Bagels" van pulled up outside the gate. Bob staggered under the weight of the commercial-sized catering box as he walked down the existing pathway to the front door. He grinned at me but I stared at him blankly. The smell of hot bacon, under-done onions and tomato sauce was killing me.

As Bob wandered off back down the pathway to his suzuki minivan, I stood to one side to let him pass. "Sorry mate - gotta eat these while they're nice and hot" Ben called out as he slammed the front door of his fortress. The bolt slammed home and I was alone, outside in Bishopdale. Then the rain began. First a steady but light drizzle, and then the heavens opened up above me, and the ominously dark rain clouds just opened up. Maybe they'd just finished watching "An Inconvenient Truth?" Maybe not. I would never know.

Fogged up goggles were no good. I raised them above my forehead and, throwing my hoody onto the trampoline, I unbuttoned the top two buttons of my shirt. Sleeves already rolled up, just as I'd found the shirt under a blanket on my bed from a few days ago, I set to.

Through the fog, I heard snatches of that dodgy Black Eyed Peas song blaring out from the radio inside... "What you gon' do with all that junk?..." Why couldn't they play a bit of Coldplay or something.

Well, there you go. If anyone is actually keen to hear the rest, let me know, and I'll consider writing it.

TinTin intro