Month: March 2011

Can You Hear The Drums Fernando?


I attempted to educate myself on the issue of drums yesterday and looked into the issue of electronic versus acoustic drums. Other than costs and logistics (electronic version has heaps more parts and wiring) experts are totally divided on which is better.

The practical and artists prefer the acoustics whereas the techno types prefer the elec because you can basically record and manipulate it on the computer to generate other works. Parents and those who live in crowded places prefer elec as you can use headphones and not disturb others.

While you can control volume better on elec, volume control isn’t the primary reason for opting for elec. The volume is also a function of playing style – naturally if you have someone who goes all out and bang away it will be louder. My cursory reading also suggests you can control volume reasonably well on the acoustics but it is an art.

The purists naturally prefer the acoustic as it allows the artist to exhibit his repertoire. They point out that it is the preferred version in concerts – from rock to jazz to classical and even Broadway.

I am sure there is more to it but I think for a total lay idiot like yours truly, I’d probably come away at the end of whatever further research I do, concluding that the jury is still out. (I think on this basis I’d stick to whatever I have now…if I had a drum set).

Regards,Ian

Sent from my iPhinity (and beyond)

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Malaysia’s Ever Growing Cesspool


Just caught up with some Malaysian news and frankly, I am embarrassed by it all. I thought Gillard and Abbot were disappointing but the make-up, the mentality, the tools, the whole cesspool of a pig sty in which Malaysian politics dwell is revolting. The press – what is it doing by playing along? It should just pull up stumps and focus its pages and airwaves on anything but politics. Is there no hope for Malaysia?



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Long Term Planning – Really Long Term


I was at the Victoria University on Flinders Street this morning, for a seminar run by my department. During a break I stepped onto a balcony and took in some beautiful scenes along the Yarra River with Flinders Street Station in the foreground, the Eureka and Langham Hotel buildings in the background and the train running in between alongside the Yarra. It was quite picturesque. I went to the seminar with a colleague who is a young Malaysian lady. This was her first job fresh out of law school in Monash University. Her family want her back in Malaysia but she appears to be enjoying her life here and she likes her job – she works hard and is very pleasant and gets on well with everyone. Privately I was wishing just for a little while, that Kiddo is already at that stage in her life. If she was Tress and I should pack up and head for some rural areas in the outskirts, perhaps even as far as Ballarat. I don’t know what we’d do there but who knows. I guess with recent events like the Libyan war, the Japan earthquakes, tsunami and nuclear plant meltdowns, and with recent news of continuing protests in Yemen, Bahrain and even against the Syrian Bath regime, the tendency is to be more reflective of life and its meanings. I had lunch with an old colleague recently and raised this matter and I think it made him think too. I mentioned to this old colleague how while working in a superannuation related industry (our previous employer provided life risk products to super funds) we constantly talked about planning for our future. That future to many is a 20-30 year period. In the context of eternity, it is but a speck. That however takes up so much time, effort and angst for people to plan for. If 20-30 years took virtually a lifetime to plan, why is it we spend next to no time planning for eternity?

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March Equinox


I think today’s the March Equinox. If that is correct, the days get shorter from today. Soon we’d have the dreaded dark-at-five pm days. I have always said to Tress and Kiddo that I didn’t mind the cold in winter. What I dislike are the short days. I think they contribute to depression for many.

I also remember 21 March for a different reason – it was the day I started work since we moved to Melbourne about 6 ½ years ago. It was also a Monday and I went in to the office of Sharrock Pitman Legal in Glen Waverley. We were living in Mount Waverley then and Kiddo was attending Mount Waverley North Primary. Tress had also started work in Myer on Lonsdale Street in the city.

We were finding our feet in Melbourne. We started to go to the International Christian Community church (ICC) in Glen Waverley. Pastor Chek Chia was there then. Other than a new life in a new city with a new job and so many other things which were new for us, we also had a very new theology to contend with in the approaches of that church towards prayer, guidance and instructions.

In some ways, the shorter days ahead reflect how I feel now. Some things appear bleak. I wish things could be different and we could unwind the clock and set things right from those early days. I know however that God is sovereign and He is also good. God’s wonderful creation included not just the March Equinox but also the September one. We’d have to live through the coming “6 months”, work on things, keep our eyes on God and look forward to the September Equinox when days will become brighter and longer again.

The creation of our God is wonderful. The cycles of astronomy and seasons are part of His beautiful creation. The ever changing weathers, life experiences, joy and pain, hope and despair and indeed even life and death – have all been “signed off” by our sovereign Lord and as the wise proverb says, we need to trust God, acknowledge Him in all things, and He will set our paths straight.

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War again


Julia Gillard must be looking over her shoulders now. Kevin Rudd is looking strong, in command and every bit like the leader Julia isn’t appearing to be. He advocated the no-fly zone for Libya early on, when she was pontificating and taking the safe route of saying it was only one of many options. No the UN has approved it, Kevin looks good and perhaps on course for his personal ambitions for a UN role after leaving government.

I was watching the news on the little TV screen on the cross trainer this morning and the Arab League chief Amr Moussa looked a bit upset at what appears to be an unanticipated level of destruction the no fly zone enforcement has wrought so far.

It is also a bit worrying that what is coming across is the typical image of the west attacking an Arab nation. One minute images of fighter jets taking off are anchored by big bold words to the effect that US, UK and French air forces have launched attacks against Libya and in the next minute we have footage of Moussa saying they did not authorise this action.

No doubt anyone thinking about this would ask what exactly did the Arab League think a no-fly zone entailed, if it did not involve application of firepower of some sort? How do you create and enforce a no-fly zone in the midst of armed aggression between two internal rival groups? But that appears to be beside the point for now – there must be serious and concerted efforts to expunge images of west versus Islamic Arab nations. This is a UN thing, supported by Arab and other Islamic nations, to avert further loss and destruction in Libya.

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HairSpray!


Kiddo wanted badly to watch the Hairspray musical so we went last week, on Thursday night. It was at the Princess Theatre and I am really glad Kiddo suggested this because she obviously enjoyed it thoroughly but not only that, Tress and I enjoyed it immensely too. It pays to listen to your kids!

Second Experience? Hmmm


We have been doing a series on fundamental Christian beliefs in church and a couple of weeks ago we looked at the topic of the Holy Spirit. Unsurprisingly, the issue of a second experience (of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit I guess) came up, albeit cursorily. I was thinking about it when preparing some thoughts for cell discussion on Friday and continued thinking about it on the periphery. A short while ago I came across these statements:

1. The baptism with the Holy Spirit occurs the moment a person is saved. It is not the same experience as salvation but happens at the time of salvation. It is not a second experience following conversion.

2. God has given believers everything in Christ. When we are saved we are complete in Him. We lack nothing. There is nothing else for Him to give to us.

3. Nowhere are believers commanded to receive any second blessing that would give them power. All power is already available.

4. The power of the Holy Spirit working in a persons life is something that should be desired. Some who have legitimately experienced the Spirit’s power label the encounter as the baptism with the Holy Spirit whereas the Scripture calls this experience the filling of the Holy Spirit. previously mentioned, everything has been provided for us upon conversion. We only need to appropriate what God has already done for us.

I think I agree with these statements and am reasonably at peace with not having a second experience, although who is to limit God – He can show me otherwise.

 

In the meantime, I have to contend with the historicity of the Messianic Jesus seen through the incident of the Triumphant Entry…sigh indeed….

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Ides of March


The Ides of March was a few days ago I think. But I wake up today feeling perhaps today is closer to that traditionally ominous day. Maybe it is the UN led attack on Libya – the French warplanes have bombed Libyan air defence sites overnight – but despite a beautiful sunny morning here in Melbourne and a 1-0 win by Manchester United over Bolton and Arsenal’s 2-2 draw against West Brom, it feels sombre this morning.

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St Patrick’s Ex


Fergie aims at the perch


SAF has been given a 5 match ban, and this IS a pointy end of the season, when Arsenal seems to have – before it crashed out of the League Cup, Champions League, and FA Cup competitions in the past 2 weeks – the momentum. They have a game in hand and just 3 points behind.

While the league is almost always the most important competition for yours truly, I am just pleasantly surprised we are where we’re at now. At the start of the season I didn’t think we’d be gunning for gongs. Chelsea was riding a massive crest and we didn’t get any player other than the “Little Pea” (what a Javier Hernandez has turned out to be – Ole!). The likes of Gibson and Obertan haven’t really impressed as solid United players and players like Carrick was starting to look tired and not up to providing the gravy for the hard work by Fletcher. it looked like we had to rely on old warhorses like Giggs and Scholesy to arm the lone gunman upfront, Rooney.

But see where we are now – still at the top of the heap in the league, in the semi-final of the FA Cup and the quarter final of the Champions League. Frankly all that matters to me is the league because if we hold on and sneak through, we’d be one up in the all-time tally against the ‘Fools. SAF would be truly pleased then as we would have well and truly knocked them off the frail perch.

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