An Easy Saturday Morning...

The first week of Term 2 is done and dusted.

I was up early this morning, for no particular reason, and decided I might write a post or two. So, it was off to the study, grab the laptop, back to the kitchen to make a Chai Latte, and then outside to sit on the porch in the brilliant morning sun. The mornings are cold, perhaps brisk is a better choice, but the days have been very warm for this time of the year.

Unfortunately, the sun was a little too brilliant this morning and sitting on the porch in the designer sunglasses did not do the trick. There was too much glare and I could not see the screen (which sort of gives one a slightly different take on the idea of 'touch typing').

Instead of blogging, in my disappointment, I opted to water the lawn. Although, it is fair to say that what we have at the moment resembles more of a "patch of bindies" than it does a flourishing landscaped country lawn and garden. The standard joke between us, Dyah and I, is that by the time we have a beautiful lawn and garden to enjoy we will be on the move to somewhere else. I guess though this is the nature of teaching and seeking promotion while living in Teacher Housing. But, we are not complaining as we live in a very spacious four bedroom house and pay AUD 12.50 per week.

The point of this post is just to ramble (some might say, prattle) on about not much at all.

Speaking of which, I have to read a couple of books this weekend. Therefore, blogging seemed like a legitimate reason to not get started on that task straight away. I am reading "Tomorrow When The War Began" by John Marsden. I have read it before, and have recently acquired a copy of the film (note to self: watch the movie this weekend as well) as well as an audio-book. I am teaching this to Year 9. In my search for materials I have learned that there is not a whole lot out there in cyberspace that matches the description of "unit of work", please steal me, and use me as you like. However, there are some good resources out there that I will use as a basis of creating "my own" unit of work for this novel.

The Tomorrow When The War Began unit of work leads into NAPLAN for this cohort and then extends beyond it. So, it seems the first couple of weeks will be devoted to activities and tasks that set the students up for a better understanding of language conventions and the like. The medium will be this novel.

The other book I have to read is one that I have not read in the past, "My Girragundji", by Meme McDonald and Boori Pryor. It was the book of the year for younger readers in 1999. I am looking forward to reading this one.

Anyways, off to read while watching cartoons, Yo Gabba Gabba. Will is now awake and raring to go.

Some Graduation Photos...

Well, I have now officially graduated from the University of Western Sydney with a Master of Teaching (MTeach) degree. The next box to tick is a professional competence one with the New South Wales Institute of Teachers. With a bit of a luck I should have satisfied all those requirements by the end of 2011.

It would be nice to say "thus begins the next phase of our journey", but the reality is that the next phase actually got underway back at the beginning of February 2011 when we arrived at Collarenebri and I started teaching at the Central School.

Australian Aboriginal Proverb...

"We are all visitors to this time, this place. 

We are just passing through. 

Our purpose here is to observe, to learn, to grow, to love... 

and then we return home."

It is important to learn something new every single day. It keeps the mind fresh and active. I found this proverb on a bookmark. I post it here because it says a lot about how I want to live my life "to observe, to grow, to love" and perhaps I would add "to teach, to develop, to facilitate opportunities". Yet, the reality is that we all are just passing through and at some point we return "home".

Term 1...Done & Dusted!

Well, Term 1 is done. It has been a long term in both the literal and figurative senses. In the literal sense it has been an 11-week term instead of the usual 10. In the figurative sense, it has also been long as teaching every day gives rise to new and different challeges every day. These challenges arise irrespective of the fact that the students stay the same.

Nevertheless, when it is all said and done, the term has been an excellent one. I have learned much and I think I have taught much. And, hopefully, the students have learned much.

One of the perks of teaching is that I now get to enjoy two weeks worth of holidays with my family before having to front up and do it all again (the holidays can't end soon enough).

We, at Collarenebri Central School, have just completed another rap in our "step-by-step" program. So, keep your eyes and ears peeled for that to appear. It is likely to be our most controversial effort to date, but it also sounds like it might just be our best.

Indonesian Nationals and Foreign Spouses...

Whenever I have had an extended break from posting I always feel the need to apologise for my absence. I am not sure why that is. Maybe it is that I really enjoy posting odds and ends on my blog, and the fact that I have been way so irregular in doing that probably bothers me more than it bothers anyone else. But hey, duty or work calls and I have been busy doing the thing that pays my bills.

However, it is Saturday, there is only one week of Term 1 to go before the school holidays kick in, and it has been a particularly lazy Saturday to date. And, aside from a need to mow the front lawn, a lazy Saturday it seems destined to remain. That said, I have installed and set-up a new Canon Pixma MG6150 printer on our wireless home network. For the technologically challenged like me, even in a "move mouse and click" environment it was quite an achievement.

So, enough of the beating around the bush, on with the show!

It was with some interest that I read in The Jakarta Globe today an article about a draft bill and changes to the immigration law. I am particularly interested in the changes that will impact significantly on the foreign spouses and children of Indonesian citizens. My interest is personal, I am a foreign spouse and Will is the son of an Indonesian and Non-Indonesian parent.

Perhaps a reality check in the environment of euphoria is needed to start with. I really do not want to be a wet blanket and smother everyone else's fun here or to be the party-pooper, but the argument that the draft bill allows mixed-marriage families to stay together is rather simplistic. The truth of the matter is that the procedures for foreigners married to Indonesians and living in Indonesia are onerous. In fact, they are quite painful at times. They are also very expensive. But, to suggest that they are the sole source of families coming apart as the argument that the current changes will enable families to stay together has that logical fallacy feel to it.

From a personal perspective, the idea that my wife can sponsor me to live in Indonesia is a plus. The fact that Will would now be able to qualify for permanent residency if we opted for only Australian citizenship for him is a plus. Nevertheless, the current laws and regulations allow for Will to be a dual citizen until he is 18 and that seems like the best deal for him. The process of getting Indonesian citizenship for Will though is much easier outside of Indonesia than it is while in Indonesia.

Again, on the personal perspective. It is pleasing to see that the Indonesian government has finally recognised that there are foreigners who marry Indonesians for all the right reasons and establish roots in the country and establish lives there that are not always so easily packed up with the purchase of a ticket to another country. It is also a pleasing development that the draft bill seems to provide for foreign spouses to be sponsored by their Indonesian partner rather than rely on the sponsorship of an employer.

These developments have been a long time in the making. They have been on the table and in discussion for many years. In fact, I had discussions about these very amendments when we were living in Indonesia. We have been back in Australia since 2009. Come to think of it, in about 14 days we would have been back in Australia for 2 whole years. Time flies!

The changes are not enough to warrant an immediate "pack-up and go" for us. But, the truth is that it does, or at least will, make it easier for us to contemplate a move back to Indonesia in the sooner rather than later sense. However, there are no immediate plans for a return for any other reason other than a holiday this year or in the next 3 or 4. Yet, if someone was to offer me a great package deal for a job teaching at a school in Indonesia, then who knows...

Collarenebri Thoughts...

The big move took place starting on 25 January 2011 and culminated on 26 January 2011 with our arrival in Collarenebri. As poor excuses go, this is why there has been a dearth of blog posts, and the fact that it has been more than a week since we went into the local Telstra retailer to get a landline and internet connection set-up. The landline works, but we are still waiting for WiFi modems and the like before an internet connection starts to happen. Telstra if you are wondering is the only provider that has any service in Collarenebri so the choice is limited.


School starts tomorrow (4 Feb 2011). There are no students, it is a pupil free day. We actually are starting a week after everyone else. We get what is called “heat week”. Heat week is an extra week of holidays to compensate for the extreme temperatures this time of year. And, the temperatures are extreme. Each day since we have been here has topped out above 37 degrees Celsius. A couple of days were 44 and 42 degrees Celsius respectively.

So, it is pretty easy to see where heat week gets its name from. With electricity prices as high as they are, and talk of further increases, it is a scary proposition to be contemplating using the air conditioner. Unfortunately, the house is centrally cooled. So, turning on the aircon is not as simple as going to the one or two rooms with air conditioners. Although, I must confess, I do get a “climate allowance” as part of the conditions of employment at this particular school.

What we are thinking we might miss is the luxury of clean water. The water is pumped out of the local river. Because of the recent flooding in Queensland, and the movement of that water down through the river system to here, there is a lot of debris in the water and this gives it a nice brown tinge. We have tank water now. It required us to get a new pump as the previous one had gone missing. Unfortunately, the tank water only comes through one tap in the kitchen. So, we have invested in a water cooler / dispenser and buy drinking water. It seems a safer, albeit expensive, option considering Will.

The house that we are living in is pretty good. There are a few minor things that need fixing up but, considering we pay negligible rent as it is ‘teacher housing’, there are no complaints. Although, the front and backyards are a mess. There is next to no grass but there are plenty of bindies and weeds that look like they have monstered any grass that once existed right out of the place. I am not sure how long the process is going to be in order to get on top of the bindi problem, but let the battle begin!

Funnily enough, (or is it not funny at all?) one of the best way to get rid of the bindies is to water and the grass begins to re-establish itself and the bindies get bundled out of the way. However, Collarenebri is still under water restrictions. The “funny”, if it can be so, is t that one of the reasons we came so early was that the roads into Collarenebri are supposed to be cut by flood waters. However, this has not happened yet. So, the funny  is that there is a lot of water in the rivers surrounding the town and there are water restrictions in effect. Yet, as I have been walking with Will as he peddles his trike around the block of an evening it is hard not to notice that some people have got some excellent lawns happening and they always seem to have the sprinklers running.

However, having spoken to the general assistant at school the other day, the only way to seemingly get good grass is to flood the area you want the grass to grow. It is so hot and dry out here that even if you flood the area you want the grass to grow, the area will be bone dry to touch on the surface with in a dozen hours. Nevertheless, there are plenty of good cotton and sorghum crops around...mental note on needing to plant hardy flowers, fruits, veges, and grass varieties.

Anyways, back off to reading a book...Jessica Watson’s “True Spirit”. The little solo sailor has gone on to become Young Australian of the Year. It is not a book that I would have seen myself picking up off the bookshelf in a bookstore and parting with my hard-earned cash for. But, I am enjoying it. It is an inspiring tale and well worth the read. It is a good thing that I am going to be teaching it. Because if it had not been thrust upon me this way I would not have read it. And, I can comfortable say I would have missed out on something special.

Gotta go...

I'm Back...

No apologies for the lack of posts over the past week and a half or so. I have been on holidays of a sort. The first day was spent driving some 650 kilometres from home to Moree for a couple of staff development days.

As some may be aware, I have been appointed to a permanent teaching position at Collarenebri Central School. If you are wondering, it is about 140 kilometres to the west of Moree. I had never been to Collarenebri, so Dyah, Will and I made a point of driving out there last Friday to see what we were in for when we moved there sometime in January 2011.

To say that Collarenebri is a small town does not really provide those with no experience living in a small town an accurate idea of what it looks like. Collarenebri, despite town signs to the contrary, is a town of about 250 people. The town and the surrounding areas allow the school to have an enrolment of somewhere between 80 and 100 students. Nevertheless, it is a really small town. Yet, it seems a logical progression in the “scaling-down” that we have been doing of late; Jakarta, Sydney, and now Collarenebri.

I guess the point of emphasising small town is that the main street has a pub, a supermarket, a newsagent, and a post office on one side and a service station on the other. That is pretty much the main street. Oh, the post office also doubles as a bank, the Commonwealth, and a few other services as well.

Some of the things that we have learned during our recent visit have been interesting to say the least, but have not dented our enthusiasm to pull up stumps and move there. Apparently there is no mail delivery in Collarenebri. Everyone has a post box at the post office and collect their mail from there.  As we were walking up the main street we learned from a poster in the community health / welfare shopfront that it is also necessary to boil one’s water before drinking it. Hmmm, I wonder where we have had to do that before?

Anyways, the staff development days were an excellent opportunity for me to meet all my new colleagues and to learn a little about what is in store for 2011. I am pleased that I was invited and glad that I made the effort to get there. I learned quite a bit about where the school is with regard to things like Naplan and how the school is working to improve outcomes for all students. The staff are a dedicated bunch, and I am looking forward to getting out there and into the classroom and doing my bit.

In the ‘what goes up, must come down’ category, getting to Moree was only half the story. Once the staff development days were done and dusted it was time to make that 280+ kilometre round trip to Collarenebri. The following day, we were off on “holiday”. This required another short trip of some 550 kilometres from Moree to Fingal Bay.

And, now a further short jaunt of 220 kilmetricos has seen us arrive home. Now, the wait for Santa begins in earnest.

Carols by Candlelight...

There are always plenty of ways to identify the season to be jolly. However, carols by candlelight are always fun. This is the first one we have been to since we have been back. I cannot recall why we did not go last year. Anyways, we decided to walk up the road to Panania Public School and check out the festivities.

It was like a mini fair. There were all sorts of goodies on sale. There were also a lot of attractions for the youngsters. There was a small train, pony rides, bungy trampolines, and throw downs. They were called throw downs when I was a kid. I thought them to be banned, oh well! The evening concluded around 9.00pm with a brief fireworks display.

There was also a group of Samoan Church singers who provided the Christmas Carols entertainment. They were excellent. They are also performing tomorrow (Saturday) at the Panania Markets. We will probably see them again. I am sure that if Will hears them, then we will almost certainly be moving closer as he really got into the carols and was bopping away.

Some photos of the occasion.

 Will with his Nan taking a ride on the pony!

Will and his mum doing the joget thing!

Will looking pleased with himself and mum looking like she is having a good time!

Will, Family & Christmas...

The Baiton Boys...

A little pre-Christmas gathering and exchanging of gifts before we all head separate ways.

The photo was taken in Martin Place in Sydney. They whack up this really huge Christmas tree to draw in the visitors (seems to work a treat).

Will with His Mum on His 2nd Birthday...

It was supposed to be a pool party! The weather and "El Nina" decided that it was time for a day of solid rain. So, the pool party became a garage party. A good time was had by all.

Will the Birthday Boy!

Here are a few photos of Will turning 2. Will shares his birthday with his grandfather (grancher) who turned 70.

A good day was had by all. However, next year is already being planned as a "kids" party.

Will the Comedian?

Another recent photo of Will "doing his thing" while eating in the food court of a mall somewhere.

The little fella has a really good sense of humour. He is forever making his mum and dad laugh. He also is a bit of a performer when other people are around. And, he has this uncanny ability to incorporate any props that he might have at his disposal. In this instance, straws. So, an entertainer or artist of some kind is definitely a possibility.

We are proud parents (if you haven't been able to tell already)!

Will the Astronaut?

A couple of photos from a recent expedition to Top Ryde Shopping Centre. These pictures were taken in front of the Australian Geographic store. It is amazing what kids pick up and remember by themselves. As we were walking through the shopping centre Will began pointing towards the astronaut and saying "astronaut", He was pretty keen to get photographed with it.

We will be happy and proud with whatever Will decides to do, but being an astronaut would not be a bad choice :)

The "Movember" Self Portrait...

November is Movember month. Movember, in a nutshell, is where moustaches are worn in support of men's health issues, especially prostate cancer and depression.

So, getting into the spirit of things...

I am now at the age where I need to be thinking about getting the old prostate checked out.

And, looking at this photo and can see that I am starting to look way older than my years. Need to do something about that. A good firming face cream perhaps...

Will & His "Toy Story 3" Collection

And the collection to date...

Cross Stitching...

One thing that I am not good at is "art and crafts". Nevertheless, there is still hope for Will because his mum is incredibly talented on the art and crafts front.

Over the years I have just sat and watched, and been amazed at the incredible skill involved in needlework. I have been assured by the stitcher of this piece that it is "not all that hard". I beg to differ. I do not have the skills nor the patience to do such intricate cross-stitch work like this.

To say that I am impressed and proud of what my better half can do with a needle and some thread is an understatement.

This was a piece that was stitched for someone else.

Will Doing His Thing...

I am sure that all Dads are proud of their kids...

Almost Two...

Not that anyone is nearly as interested as we are in Will's development, but just in case you're wondering...9 November 2010.

Must Be Getting Close To Christmas...

Well, there is still almost two months to Christmas...but there is nothing like getting an early start!