It’s September, footy season. That is AFL, not soccer, not NFL, not NRL [even though it is NRL finals season as well].
The team I support, Collingwood Magpies are finally in a Grand Final, the first since losing the double of 2002/2003 against Brisbane Lions. I don’t think I’ve ever been so excited about a football match for a very long time. I have to say, that usually I don’t get super excited about sport. But, when it comes to the teams I root for? That’s a different story. I guess it helps that I’m slowly gaining an understanding of the code.
This wikipedia article has a lot of information on the game itself.
This one outlines the League itself.
This one explains the positions.
My favourite Pies player is Travis Cloke, he’s centre-half forward and is a pretty good player, he’s only young as well, 23 years old. 
So, anyway, that’s it for me.
Some questions:
1. What is your favourite team sport to watch, or support?
2. Are you a fanatic, or do you just support because of family or friends?
3. When the finals seasons for your preferred sport comes round [if this is relevant] what do you do?
Oh, by the way, the magpies we in Australia have are these birds:
Oh, one more thing, Swanny is up for the Brownlow Medal. :D.
[Dane Swan –
Random thoughts at the end of another week
Good evening,
Just some random thoughts for you to chew on, or not, since it’s not food.
- I’m not sure how it works, but sometimes I latch onto a song and it’ll wind its way into my mind, and heart and I just can’t get sick of listening to it. Very few songs fit the bill, but the ones that do, include Perfect World (Simple Plan) and Victim (A7X). Others would be, Bye Bye Bye (*NSYNC), He Don’t Love You (Human Nature) Hole in the World (The Eagles), Love Changes Everything (Michael Ball) and No Ordinary World (John Farnham). PW and V top the list, though.
- I really really like Nic’s cupcakes.
- I crave marshmallows at that time of the month.
- I once listened to a song so much it sounded like it had gone out of tune. And no it wasn’t a tape that had worn.
- I really want to go see the Tomorrow When the War Began movie. I read the novels when I was younger, and had a huge crush on Homer Yannos. I think he was seriously my first fictional crush…lol.
And that’s it. Night everyone. No thought for the night tonight.
Random thoughts at the end of another week
Good evening,
Just some random thoughts for you to chew on, or not, since it’s not food.
- I’m not sure how it works, but sometimes I latch onto a song and it’ll wind its way into my mind, and heart and I just can’t get sick of listening to it. Very few songs fit the bill, but the ones that do, include Perfect World (Simple Plan) and Victim (A7X). Others would be, Bye Bye Bye (*NSYNC), He Don’t Love You (Human Nature) Hole in the World (The Eagles), Love Changes Everything (Michael Ball) and No Ordinary World (John Farnham). PW and V top the list, though.
- I really really like Nic’s cupcakes.
- I crave marshmallows at that time of the month.
- I once listened to a song so much it sounded like it had gone out of tune. And no it wasn’t a tape that had worn.
- I really want to go see the Tomorrow When the War Began movie. I read the novels when I was younger, and had a huge crush on Homer Yannos. I think he was seriously my first fictional crush…lol.
And that’s it. Night everyone. No thought for the night tonight.
Fathers’ Day and new music
It was Dads’ Day today. And Perth put on really nice weather for it today. I made Dad breakfast in bed. Then I took him to Church, mum came as well. Haydn spoke on the Lessons we learned from our Dads, and he had to tie it into our new theme of Riverview at the Movies. So he used clips from the film Charlie and Boots [an Aussie movie] to highlight some points.
I have to say, my favourite quote from the movie is this one:
You gotta know when to laugh at religion.
I’ve bought some new songs today.
1. Coma – The Jacob Butler Project [featuring Jacob Butler who was an Aussie Idol contestant back in 2007]
2. Smile – Uncle Kracker – I’m predicting this song will be a One-Hit wonder. Never heard of the guy before, but the song is really catchy and just feel good.
3. Prayin’ For You – Lecrae; I heard this song for the first time at Church when the dance team did a dance to it. Pretty uplifting, and it’s actually hip-hop/rap.
I’ve also bought a few of his other tracks as well. Christian hip-hop/rap artist. Lot better than Eminem in that regard. Even though the Em man is pretty good.
So, that’s me for tonight.
Work tomorrow. And every other day of the week. Oh, I also finished my Bible course, but I want to do another one next term, we’ll see though.
I’ll leave you with this thought:
We make a living through what we get, but we make a life through what we give.
Fathers’ Day and new music
It was Dads’ Day today. And Perth put on really nice weather for it today. I made Dad breakfast in bed. Then I took him to Church, mum came as well. Haydn spoke on the Lessons we learned from our Dads, and he had to tie it into our new theme of Riverview at the Movies. So he used clips from the film Charlie and Boots [an Aussie movie] to highlight some points.
I have to say, my favourite quote from the movie is this one:
http://www.youtube.com/v/bI0tUNXtRco?fs=1&hl=en_US
You gotta know when to laugh at religion.
I’ve bought some new songs today.
1. Coma – The Jacob Butler Project [featuring Jacob Butler who was an Aussie Idol contestant back in 2007]
2. Smile – Uncle Kracker – I’m predicting this song will be a One-Hit wonder. Never heard of the guy before, but the song is really catchy and just feel good.
3. Prayin’ For You – Lecrae; I heard this song for the first time at Church when the dance team did a dance to it. Pretty uplifting, and it’s actually hip-hop/rap.
I’ve also bought a few of his other tracks as well. Christian hip-hop/rap artist. Lot better than Eminem in that regard. Even though the Em man is pretty good.
So, that’s me for tonight.
Work tomorrow. And every other day of the week. Oh, I also finished my Bible course, but I want to do another one next term, we’ll see though.
I’ll leave you with this thought:
We make a living through what we get, but we make a life through what we give.
Another Weekend, Another Week
So, I’ve been at my new job for four weeks. I still haven’t stopped listening to A7X’s Nightmare, and I’ve been writing like a beast. I’m just going to write down random thoughts as they come. Well, not quite random because I kind of already know what I’m going to write. But, anyway.
1. Collingwood will finish top of the ladder this season. Eddie McGuire reckons they should win a cash reward because it’ll be the first time in a very long time [33 years] that they’ve ended a season at the top.
2. Simple Plan are slowly slogging away in the studio. I am really hoping that You Suck At Love will be their first single, I am really hankering for some Simple Plan-age. It’s been far too long between hiccups. I sill believe that Still Not Getting Any was their best album. But, as always that’s subjective and is only my opinion.
3. I have a feeling we might be on the way to recording a new worship album at Church. The number of new songs written by our very own worshippers have been sung lately. Also, I think the purple and black and white for the choir looks great.
4. Someone asked a very curly, yet interesting question at Bible class last Thursday. If the Old Testament stories and prophesies all point to Jesus, why then do the majority of Jews not believe He is the Messiah? One of the answers is in the Bible, I can’t remember the verse, but it basically states that God hardened their hearts so that the Gentiles [that is the rest of the world] can get to know Jesus. I thought that was a very good point to make, and I now actually find myself compelled to read the Old Testament more, and not avoid the lessons that can be learned from it.
5. The bus runs have been reorganised at work. The Year six and seven boys at one school really annoy me, but at the same time are easy to get along with. A new girl will be starting this week, and apparently she has experience with accreditation, which happens in October…fun stuff. I’ve also finally got my key-tag.
6. Victim is officially my favourite song off Nightmare. And yes, the whole album is still EPIC.
7. I think my writing has improved.
8. Work at STAWA is still the same. It’s going to be mad this week, probably, what with another mailout and entries for a science awards thing coming in. Should be fun. Sort of. I’m going to try and motivate myself to get to work sooner, though. 9 AM at the earliest, 9.30 AM at the latest.
9. Next weekend I’m going to motivate myself to help Mum with the MYOB stuff, considering I’m the one who did the course. And I actually found it sort of gratifying helping Mum with it today.
10. I thought of a new story idea, which at the moment I’ve turned into an A7X fic. But, I could so easily turn it into an original idea. We’ll see though. Maybe I could use the characters from my other original fics?
11. I voted yesterday. Liberal. It’s a hung parliament, though, so we probably won’t know until the middle of the week who will be Prime Minister. Guess Julia Gillard gets to be PM for a few more days.
So, that’s it for tonight. I’ll leave you with this final thought.
As humanity broke relationship with God, we then became relationally broken. This is why in life we struggle with relationships. To fix this, we first need to heal our relationship with God, and then the ones we have with those we love will be easier to heal. – paraphrase of Haydn Nelson’s message 21 August 2010.
Another Weekend, Another Week
So, I’ve been at my new job for four weeks. I still haven’t stopped listening to A7X’s Nightmare, and I’ve been writing like a beast. I’m just going to write down random thoughts as they come. Well, not quite random because I kind of already know what I’m going to write. But, anyway.
1. Collingwood will finish top of the ladder this season. Eddie McGuire reckons they should win a cash reward because it’ll be the first time in a very long time [33 years] that they’ve ended a season at the top.
2. Simple Plan are slowly slogging away in the studio. I am really hoping that You Suck At Love will be their first single, I am really hankering for some Simple Plan-age. It’s been far too long between hiccups. I sill believe that Still Not Getting Any was their best album. But, as always that’s subjective and is only my opinion.
3. I have a feeling we might be on the way to recording a new worship album at Church. The number of new songs written by our very own worshippers have been sung lately. Also, I think the purple and black and white for the choir looks great.
4. Someone asked a very curly, yet interesting question at Bible class last Thursday. If the Old Testament stories and prophesies all point to Jesus, why then do the majority of Jews not believe He is the Messiah? One of the answers is in the Bible, I can’t remember the verse, but it basically states that God hardened their hearts so that the Gentiles [that is the rest of the world] can get to know Jesus. I thought that was a very good point to make, and I now actually find myself compelled to read the Old Testament more, and not avoid the lessons that can be learned from it.
5. The bus runs have been reorganised at work. The Year six and seven boys at one school really annoy me, but at the same time are easy to get along with. A new girl will be starting this week, and apparently she has experience with accreditation, which happens in October…fun stuff. I’ve also finally got my key-tag.
6. Victim is officially my favourite song off Nightmare. And yes, the whole album is still EPIC.
7. I think my writing has improved.
8. Work at STAWA is still the same. It’s going to be mad this week, probably, what with another mailout and entries for a science awards thing coming in. Should be fun. Sort of. I’m going to try and motivate myself to get to work sooner, though. 9 AM at the earliest, 9.30 AM at the latest.
9. Next weekend I’m going to motivate myself to help Mum with the MYOB stuff, considering I’m the one who did the course. And I actually found it sort of gratifying helping Mum with it today.
10. I thought of a new story idea, which at the moment I’ve turned into an A7X fic. But, I could so easily turn it into an original idea. We’ll see though. Maybe I could use the characters from my other original fics?
11. I voted yesterday. Liberal. It’s a hung parliament, though, so we probably won’t know until the middle of the week who will be Prime Minister. Guess Julia Gillard gets to be PM for a few more days.
So, that’s it for tonight. I’ll leave you with this final thought.
As humanity broke relationship with God, we then became relationally broken. This is why in life we struggle with relationships. To fix this, we first need to heal our relationship with God, and then the ones we have with those we love will be easier to heal. – paraphrase of Haydn Nelson’s message 21 August 2010.
This week and the previous one…
So a few things have happened over the past few weeks that I would like to recap:
- I’ve finished two gratifying weeks at the OSHC centre and am looking forward to more good days. The other two women in the room are great. I feel welcomed by them and the kids. For some reason I’ve managed to click with quite a few of the kids. And apparently I’ve become liked by most them quite quickly. Apparently, I’m also pretty good at remembering names. I’m still waiting for my personal key-tag and I don’t get my pay for the fortnight until Tuesday. But that’s all good.
- I might not need Centrelink payment very soon… if I have six times at getting $0 from them then the allowance is cancelled.
- I’ve come to the realisation that I actually look forward to going to work in the afternoons.
- We’re learning ‘Our God’ for Church this coming Tuesday night. God must’ve put the song in my heart…because I’ve already listened to it too many times to count.
- Bible class has been eye-opening so far. I’ve never had the chance to sit down and look at The Bible as a whole book. It’s extremely interesting, but at the same time helps to inform my faith.
- I honestly cannot understand why people reject or hate or refuse to believe in any form of religion. I guess it may have to do with the negative things some religions have been associated with. In a way, I’m not exactly an advocate of strict religion. I’m a little jaded with traditional Presbyterian-ism. Guess that’s why Riverview is my home Church and not the WPC that my Mum goes to.
- I do respect what other people believe and I hope I do not come across as forceful when I’m trying to discuss my own beliefs…
- Mibba.com forums are my second home for religious discussions and the like…
- I’m still listening to Nightmare the album. I have it in my car and I can listen to the whole album in a day while driving to and from my two jobs. However, at home and on my iPod I tend to listen mostly to Victim, Tonight the World Dies and Fiction.
- The only other music I’ve been listening to with any regularity is Simple Plan’s Perfect World, The Eagles’ Hole in the World, Hillsong’s The One Who Saves and Chris Tomlin’s Our God.
And that’s all for tonight, heading off to an early night… got a lergy…need to sleep.
This week and the previous one…
So a few things have happened over the past few weeks that I would like to recap:
- I’ve finished two gratifying weeks at the OSHC centre and am looking forward to more good days. The other two women in the room are great. I feel welcomed by them and the kids. For some reason I’ve managed to click with quite a few of the kids. And apparently I’ve become liked by most them quite quickly. Apparently, I’m also pretty good at remembering names. I’m still waiting for my personal key-tag and I don’t get my pay for the fortnight until Tuesday. But that’s all good.
- I might not need Centrelink payment very soon… if I have six times at getting $0 from them then the allowance is cancelled.
- I’ve come to the realisation that I actually look forward to going to work in the afternoons.
- We’re learning ‘Our God’ for Church this coming Tuesday night. God must’ve put the song in my heart…because I’ve already listened to it too many times to count.
- Bible class has been eye-opening so far. I’ve never had the chance to sit down and look at The Bible as a whole book. It’s extremely interesting, but at the same time helps to inform my faith.
- I honestly cannot understand why people reject or hate or refuse to believe in any form of religion. I guess it may have to do with the negative things some religions have been associated with. In a way, I’m not exactly an advocate of strict religion. I’m a little jaded with traditional Presbyterian-ism. Guess that’s why Riverview is my home Church and not the WPC that my Mum goes to.
- I do respect what other people believe and I hope I do not come across as forceful when I’m trying to discuss my own beliefs…
- Mibba.com forums are my second home for religious discussions and the like…
- I’m still listening to Nightmare the album. I have it in my car and I can listen to the whole album in a day while driving to and from my two jobs. However, at home and on my iPod I tend to listen mostly to Victim, Tonight the World Dies and Fiction.
- The only other music I’ve been listening to with any regularity is Simple Plan’s Perfect World, The Eagles’ Hole in the World, Hillsong’s The One Who Saves and Chris Tomlin’s Our God.
And that’s all for tonight, heading off to an early night… got a lergy…need to sleep.
Avenged Sevenfold – Nightmare – Epic?
On the 30th of July, I went to the shops to hunt down the new Avenged Sevenfold album. Sanity didn’t have it, but thank goodness for JB HiFi, the stand right at the front of the store that holds new release albums had a whole stack of Nightmare.
Then over the course of the day, driving to and between jobs, I listened to the album. Here is my review from the first note of Nightmare, to the final note of Save Me. NB: I don’t do reviews, this is more a personal commentary on the album.
Nightmare: This song is the single that the band released earlier in the year. I must say it took me a few listens to get into it. In fact the first time I listened to it I thought it was far too complicated a song, too much packed into it. But then I really listened to it and I appreciate it now for the different parts. The concept of the lyrics are dark and the music itself takes the listener on a journey.
Welcome To The Family: All I have to say about this song is that it’s catchy as hell. Again, another one I had to ease into. The track is pop influenced, but is NOT a pop song unless you count the fact that it could fit easily on a popular listing along with something far more pop-based, for example Simple Plan’s Shut Up [but even that is a very weak thing to say.]. The whispering adds an extra dimension and elevates the track.
Dangerline: As with the first two tracks, I had to ease myself into this one. Several listens though served to give me time to pick up the nuances within the vocals particularly. This track is proof that M Shadows can do anything with his voice. It can tell a tale, carry emotions and I admire the band for writing something for the troops [even though their focus was the US troops, it fits for troops from all countries all over the world].
Buried Alive: I’ll start with one major point. THIS song is my favourite on the album. And one line stands out for me: ‘Meanwhile the mice endure the wheel.’ As M Shadows has stated in interviews the song has two choruses and moves seamlessly between the two parts. This was one song that I liked as soon as I first heard it. The breakdown between the first part of the song and last part is almost like a wakeup call.
Natural Born Killer: This is a fast, hard crazy song. The beat is reminiscent of a rapidly beating heart. The lyrics are heartfelt as it has been for the last few tracks. Not a favourite for me.
So Far Away: M Shadows is a great vocalist. He has the ability to sing clearly and convey a sense of emotion. This track was written by Synyster Gates as a tribute to the band’s fallen friend and drummer, The Rev.
God Hates Us: An angry song filled with M Shadows brutal vocals. Screaming in a guttural, visceral manner you can feel the pain and anger bleeding out. Again a track that took me awhile to appreciate. I was honestly scared to even listen to the track, not being a fan of screaming vocals at the best of times, I was ready to cringe. But when I got to listen to it for the first time, I really understood how well it suited the emotions. The beat itself is one which you could imagine bobbing your head to. Crank this one up on your car stereo, wind down the windows. And if you’re angry at the world, lost someone close to you in an untimely fashion…then this is an anthem for you.
Victim: M Shadows voice, gospel voice and church bells? A beautiful melody threading throughout? And heartfelt, heartwrenching lyrics? This track is everything and more.
Everyone can relate to the words he sings: “We’re all just victim of a crime.” Harking back to the passing of their friend…it gives deeper meaning.
Tonight The World Dies: This song honestly gave me a vibe similar to that of a track written by The Eagles. And that band to me is a collection of some of the most amazing singer/songwriters around. [They also have a drummer who can sing…just like The Rev could drum and sing…]. A track about loss, and listened with the passing of The Rev in mind…gut wrenching.
Fiction: Haunting. Written in a minor key the song is almost one of mourning. The mix of M Shadows and The Rev’s vocals is surreal. I had a vision of Shads standing in darkness with The Rev’s voices washing over him from above.
And then after a short vocal interlude Jimmy’s voice kicks in with this line: I hope it’s worth it, here on the highway; I know you’ll find your own way when I’m not with you…
The first time I heard it, it broke something in me and tears started to stream down my face. But after several more listens I noticed that there is a key change, just a slight one from minor to major. Giving almost a sense of hope for better things.
Save Me: First off, I found this a difficult track to get into. It is a long one with many different parts. I have only listened to it once all the way through. However, what M Shadows said in an interview is very true, it is cinematic. One could use it to tell a tale. It’s a journey.
The whole album IS epic. It has some technical flaws, yet one can overlook those.
It takes one through an emotional rollercoaster, it tells a tale and it is a wonderful tribute to The Rev. May he Rock In Peace.
Highlights: Buried Alive, Victim, Fiction
