I often scribble some notes on my diary to start the day. These are usually stuff I needed to do for the day. It helps me start the day by focusing the mind and just making a mental note of all the things I needed to do.
This morning as I did my usual thing I couldn’t help take my mind off the half a dozen employees who would be told, sometime this morning, that they are being made redundant. The regular culling of staff at my workplace had the HR person leave a couple of months ago and legal has had to pick up a range of HR functions. So, this morning I have been asked to be at the meetings with those half a dozen employees.
I have for a while now, switched off unpleasant news. When I see something on tv, a post on FB, a twit or a newspaper article, where the subject matter shows up the ugly side of man, I have shut it down immediately. I switched channel, hid the post, turned off the twitter app or simply turned or swiped the page. There has been so much ugliness I don’t need to be soaking it up for another second. I don’t get people who share posts, twits, or like to shove news items where the depraved nature of man takes centre stage, in the face of other readers.
So, this morning is going to take some work on my part, notwithstanding there is little I have to do except be present to offer advice, hose the temperature down and take down notes where it is required.
It kind of takes the glitter off a really good weekend.
On Friday night, we caught up with Jason and Mel and as usual, spent 2-3 hours just talking over dinner. Back home we caught the second half (particularly the last quarter) of the Cats v Tigers game and it was scintillating stuff from Dustin Martin as he weaved with power and guile and kicked with laser guided speed and precision to set up a mauling of the Cats. It was wonderful to see and sort of compensated for the Hawks’ absence from finals footy.
On Saturday we did the usual errands including looking at a couple of property out east but neither of them looked suitable. We also picked up nice bottle of scotch, which we were going to gift to Auntie Ann. U Seng had asked us to be at a dinner to celebrate her 60th, along with a few other relos. We met up at a Korean BBQ place in Box Hill and it was good to catch up with them. We went over to their house after that, before picking up the high wire act that was Power v Eagles, with the latter kicking an after-the-siren goal to win by 2 points, after two periods of extra time, to settle the outcome. What a finals series it has been, after the Giants had fizzled out against the Crows on Thursday night.
On Sunday we stayed back after service, to listen to Mark Sneddon as he gave a talk on the issues surrounding the postal survey on same sex marriage that was going to be underway. Mark heads up the Institute for Civil Society (www.14cs.com.au) and is a member of St Alf’s and listening to him is always a learning experience. I have been reading up on homosexuality and gender issues for the last 3 years or so and to listen to Mark talk about these issues as the matter comes to a head of sorts here in Australia, all those matters I read about are no longer issues affecting a distant land like the US or Canada. They are at our front door, knocking ever louder. As I recall those books and articles I read by the likes of Ryan T Anderson, Robert Gagnon, Paul McHugh, Jeffery Satinover and many others, I wonder why is it those who articulated logical and reasonable thoughts are ignored whereas those who perpetuated inaccurate woolly gibberish are often listened to instead. There is something about lies and the originator of such lies…
Later on Sunday arvo we did some more stuff around the house – Tress ironed my shirts, I bathed the little guy in his special shampoo prescribed by the vet and we just eased into a mindset for the start of another work week. I hope the half a dozen employees would find a way to find another space to work out their work week rhythm.
Ante 