I’m certified

🙂

It was a very cold day yesterday. At lunchtime, it snowed and the office got excited as everyone headed to the closest window to catch the scene. It was still hovering around 0 deg when I quickly headed home just after 5, to avoid the predicted rain/thunderstorm.

There was the second of three “Connect” meetings at Crossroads Church last night so cold as it was, I headed to the church office where the meeting was to be held. The simple notions of connect, growth and serve and growing followers of Jesus were reiterated and I wondered again, why I had done practically nothing in recent years, in terms of sharing the gospel with others. I left the meeting wondering what I had to do.

The frog lurking in my throat got busy last night and in trying to keep it at bay, I kept drinking loads of water so it was a busy night with not very good sleep. It felt a touch better after I did some exercises this morning but it was/is still lurking. Leigh the big boss here, had been sick and a few others have been fighting the bug so I’ve been cautious about not catching anything myself, Hopefully the frog/bug stays away.

I was at a workshop at the National Convention Centre yesterday. I rode in, and parked right outside on Constitution Avenue. It was the only bike there the whole day. The day is inching longer now and when I was riding home there was still light.

Later that night I caught up with a mate who was in town for meetings. I met him at the Rydges where he was staying and went to a joint nearby, known as Bambusa – a Chinese/Malaysian restaurant which was very nice. I had looked up places to go and it was either Bambusa or Abell’s Kopi Tiam. Bambusa won the day simply because I wanted a place where we could actually have a conversation and catch up.

After dinner I took him somewhere to pick up a couple of staples down at my local IGA after which we stopped by the apartment and he caught up with Kiddo and Mic.

After dropping him off back at his hotel I headed home and found it hard to go to sleep, having finished the biggish meal just on 8pm.

It was good catching up with Jason again.

Being alone without being lonely is an attribute I have acquired over many years. I am comfortable being alone. I often revel in it. This is probably contrary to what Christian ought to be but I am far from being righteous, humble, loving etc anyway so while not pursuing fellowship is a flaw of being a Christian, it isn’t one which requires priority of attention, I think.

So this past weekend was very much that – being alone without being lonely. And yet so palpable was the truth of God’s Eden statement that man is not good alone, that last night as I sat alone in the lounge of the apartment in Turner, the discomfort almost became physical. It isn’t just discomfort of being alone, for reasons I already mentioned. I guess I miss Tress and our home at Vicki. Quite a bit. So very early – about 8.40pm, I went to bed, read and fell asleep. I guess I have had a good afternoon of tiring myself out.

After church yesterday morning, I went to Civic and walked around a little bit and picked up some milk and butter from Aldi. I then went home, unpacked my riding gear and shopping, had lunch with Kiddo and Mic, and did some ironing. It was just 3 shirts so it was done pretty quickly. Kiddo and Mic then left for Tilley’s and since it was a sunny arvo I decided to go for a walk. I said to Kiddo I might drop by Tilley’s.

Around 1.30pm I left home and walked, first heading towards ANU along Watson, then turning at North Oval, cutting across the oval to catch some uni students having fun kicking a footy around. I meandered around, with no destination but armed with a camera, took pictures randomly – birds, paths, trees… after 45 minutes I came to Tilley’s joined Kiddo and Mic for about 10-15mins and then headed off, again meandering through parks across Lyneham, O’Connor and Turner. I got home just before 4pm, and the thought of being alone in the apartment for the next 4 plus hours was, unusually, unattractive. So I jumped in the car and drove towards Belconnen, being one of only a couple of places I could drive to without turning on the GPS.  I walked around in Belconnen Westfield for a bit and then got home around 5.30.

Brekky and lunch was fixed very quickly and I tried to do some work but gave up after a mere 15 minutes or so.

Sleeping so early last night meant I woke up fresh this morning but some parts of my legs still felt stiff.

I had wanted to go for a run on Saturday morning but it was several degrees below zero so I slept in, then went for an early property inspection at Forde, in the Gungahlin area. That was between 9.30 and 10 and there was another at 11.30 so in between I’d dropped into the Gungahlin town center and walked the town 2-3 times. Then it was off to the other property inspection/auction, this time at Lexcen Avenue, Nicholls. This had a lot more interests and there were 5 bidders who went at each other quite determinedly. The final duel between 2 parties saw an older couple winning out at $720,000. A beautiful 4 bedroom house less than 20 minutes from the CBD would have easily sailed north of $1.5 million in Melbourne but I guess this is a different market.

Back home at Turner after some grocery shopping at Belconnen, I went for a run after 3pm. I took my time, and did an easy pace as I had not run for over 3 weeks (I think). After about 20 minutes it felt better and I decided to keep going when I was at ANU, and headed towards the South Oval (where a full on footy game was being played) and came to the National Museum, having run along the edge of north/northwestern Lake Burly Griffin. An Indian family saw me taking a drink from a fountain outside the Museum and asked if I could take a picture of them as a family. The couple with their parents and young kids look very happy and I hope my sweaty hands didnt spoil what should have been a very beautiful family picture on a gorgeous sunny winter arvo in Canberra.

Picture taken, drink drank, I resumed my run, heading back along the lake, back past South Oval – where I stopped for a few minutes to watch the game – and got home just after 4pm. I was tired but it felt great. I suspected the aches would come (and they did). I showered, and because I had that drink in that fountain I didnt feel parched so made the cardinal mistake of not topping up my fluids as I sat on the couch and tried to do some work. Kiddo then came back and while she cooked dinner with Mic, I started to feel unwell. At dinner I didnt feel like eating but the tall glass of water I had helped and I felt much better.

I had thought the Hawks game against West Coast would be on but just before 7.30 I realised TV in Canberra would not have that game on, so I rugged up and walked first to Hellenic Club and then to PJ O’reilly’s. Neither had that game on so I headed back home and at home, toggled between the Swans v Cats game and Spider Man, with Kiddo and Mic. Eventually Tress skyped, and I could follow the game between her beaming that telly in Melbourne to Canberra via Skype, and the AFL app on the iPad. Hawks eventually triumphed, I was glad and by that time Kiddo, Mic and I had decided to watch the Return of the King (go figure, but it was fun). As I went to bed just before 12, I realised the long run and the walks to the pubs had made the legs stiff and a touch sore.

As I sat in the lounge last night, as I nursed the remnants of soreness of legs, pains of a different sort seeped in. God always knows. It really isn’t good for man to be alone. I’m looking forward to this coming weekend, when hopefully I would be in Melbourne again.

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BY MARY MAPES DODGE

I went to the Crossroads church “Connect” meeting last night, at the church office in Lyneham. It’s just in the same shops area as Tilley’s and I could have just walked there from work. It had rained in the morning however so I had driven in to work, so I decided to drive home – I fixed brekky for the next day, got some dinner, before heading to that meeting. Canberra’s great that way – so effortless to get from A to B.

That meeting brought back memories of my experience in University Church in UNSW all those years ago. The flavour of teaching, the phrases used – they were like old furniture. I could get comfortable. In fact the phrase “Copernican Revolution” – a phrase I first heard nearly 30 years ago at a Campus Bible Study conducted by Phillip Jensen, really brought home a lot of things for me. It made me stop thinking about myself. This was reinforced last night and thinking back now, I think it’s a terrific thread to throw into a small/home group introductory meeting. Sure, it’s the DNA of Crossroads in any event but to use that as a handle for home group aspirants, should really remove any doubt about what to expect if one joins one of these groups.

The meeting ended in good time (just a bit after 9pm), and I was home around 9.20. Terrific. Back home, I was again so very appreciative of a very clean apartment. I had said to Tress when fixing my brekky earlier, that it felt terrific and I’m so grateful Kiddo did such a great job cleaning the place. The little yellow stick-it note I had put up before I left for the meeting was still there – they must have been out on a long night. Another of Crossroad’s small group, perhaps…which makes me feel great.

Not for the first time, I was very glad I bought the ski gloves a few weeks ago. Even with them on, I could feel my fingers freezing up as I rode in to work this morning. When I showed Tress the pic, she said this is probably the coldest it’s been. At least since I moved here. I wonder if Kiddo has felt anything colder in her earlier years here.

I rode the push bike in this morning. It was the first time in a week and a half, since I hurt my back the week before. It’s good to be able to get in to work without relying on the car again.

I made the long drive back to Melbourne again on Friday night, listening to Hawthorn being punished by a very good Richmond side on the radio. It was good to be back with Tress again as always, and the little fury black ball was, also as always, a bonus. It’s a usual weekend except we caught up with a young couple friend (Gerry and Jesslyn) with their lovely 2 girls. They invited us to their home for their very good Sarawak laksa dinner on Saturday and to have 3 very good meals in a day was such a treat. Tress had made the usual brekky of avocado and poached egg on toast and I had made coffee on the espresso machine, which I hadn’t used for a while. Then we had lunch at Madam Kwong’s before finishing off with dinner at the Hii’s.

Life chugs along for the Hii’s. The girls are growing up, Sheanne the older one will be in prep next year. Sheryl the younger one, was bubbling along, laughing often and engaging in everything we did with her. We had been to the hospital soon after they were born and to see them now growing into happy and engaging kids and are well, is such a thrill. They talked about their plans – for renovating their home, their holidays in December, their families (mainly Jesslyn’s) in Singapore – they are living their lives well. They also talked about Crossway, the church they’ve been going for the past 2-3 years now. Their pastor was apparently speaking about gay marriage, and I also said to them the church I go to in Canberra had also very recently talked about the same thing. So it was good to know the topic is being discussed in churches now, and in very sound, biblical and wise ways too.

Church in St Alf’s on Sunday was a bit quieter than usual – there was a ladies’ weekend and many were away. As usual, the trip home after lunch at Madam K’s is a difficult experience. It was especially difficult on the last leg of the long drive, as I meander my way through the undulating slopes of the Yass Valley. It was pitched dark, the slopes went on forever, and there were road trains every few hundred meters. I was tired, bored and couldn’t wait to get home.

It’s always a drained sensation when I reach Watson Street and as I begin to unpack my stuff and get ready for the week, I wonder again what this phase means, what it’s supposed to do in my journey. Kiddo and I then talked. It was about nothing – just some social phenomenon, equal opportunities etc. But we talked and that was enough, and it was good. Again I was reminded maybe that’s what this phase is for. Just to be able to sit at home and talk to Kiddo again. To engage with family and friends, with Tress always there. I couldn’t ask for anything more – even if the price is a 14-15 hour trek on the Hume every other weekend.

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I was at a lovely joint last night in Lyneham, as the crow flies from my office. It’s Tilley’s and it is a rustic place, a bit of a throwback to yesteryear.

The furniture – especially in the booths (yes booths) – were aged and unadorned. The little tables near the stage evoked scenes of 60’s cabaret clubs characters like gangsters from “Goodfellas” would have frequented.

The stage seats an old piano and I was told live bands sometimes play there on that stage.

The bar – with good inventory including lovely Pinot Noir selections – stretches across one half of the hall, with high ceiling throughout. It all made for a lovely and likeable experience.

Tilley’s is apparently an institution in Canberra.

That it has lasted so long means it is probably making money, which is fundamental of course. No enterprise can run at a loss  over a period of time, no matter how lovely the experience it provides.

Further cause for its longevity and (therefore?) profitability can be seen in the crowd. For a Tuesday night the place was bustling and with mixed demographics too – groups of adults who look like work colleagues or university study groups as well as couples and young families. So I guess Tilley’s is also a successful enterprise because other than facilitating a welcoming environment it also facilitates engagements across different levels.

The food was nice – not great but not bad either. I guess there are so many compensating factors to elevate ordinary food to a better experience as a whole. Food I guess, is secondary when it allows people to come together, meet and talk and share their lives together in a homely and welcoming manner.

Tilley’s at Lyneham is so close to home (and work), evokes pleasant nostalgia throughout and provides promise of an enduring local. It’s potentially memorable and promises to stay.

My back is nearly completely recovered. I can only feel a slight soreness/stiffness now. I decided against riding the push bike in this morning however as being on a bicyle entails bumps, sudden movements, etc. But I could no longer drive in to work, in the sense that it felt ridiculous to drive that 2km stretch. So I walked to work, which I haven’t done for a little while. It was nice to feel the cold air in my face again, without the fingers freezing over. As cold as it was (a “feels like” of -6.5 degrees!) walking always feels less cold than riding. By the time I got in, I felt a little warmer. I think I’d alternate between walking and riding from hereon in, although walking back at night can be a bit of a bummer…