Graduation

I graduate next week.  I can't believe that graduation is just around the corner after all this time.  When I think back to all the years of work that it has taken to get this far, it makes me wonder 'How did I do it?'.

Well, I just kept going. I owe this degree to the love and support of many people. Some people provided encouragement and support.  Some provided love and encouragement and support.  Some provided love, encouragement, support and motivation on top of all that.  I thank God for all of the above and for the power to keep going when I thought I couldn't do anymore. I admit that there were times when I felt that nobody cared if I passed or failed. It was during these times when passing became extremely important because I was doing it (the study) to prove something to myself.  I had to prove that I could accomplish this goal of completing a Master's degree.

At the end of the day, it is how you view yourself that matters more than anything.  What other people think of you or how they view you means nothing because nobody on earth can give you more grief than you can give yourself if you don't achieve your goals.

This time next week, I will have already crossed the stage to receive in my hot little hands a piece of paper which has taught me so much about myself in the process of achieving it. Although it is just a piece of paper, everytime I will look at it, I will know without a doubt that I can achieve anything I set my mind to.  

What doing? My thoughts on 'The GC'

It seems like the programme that's got everyone talking at the moment is TV3's 'The GC' which is a programme about a group of young Maori guys and gals living and working (and partying)on the the Gold Coast.  The programme has so many people (Maori and non-Maori) up in arms about the content and the fact that over $400,000 of taxpayer money has been spent on this new programme.  A lot of comparisons have been made with 'Jersey Shore' and other reality t.v programmes.  There are so many people who hate 'The GC' so much that a Facebook page has been created demanding that TV3 cancel the programme and burn all existing episodes.  So they don't like the fact that all this money has been spent on the programme and would rather see all the money wasted by cancelling the show.  Makes sense - yeah, right.

I find the programme quite interesting - I like the idea of a programme about people who actually have the guts to strike out on their own and be successful in whatever they choose to do.  We've only seen the first episode so I think that the calls to scrap the show before it has even really started are a bit OTT.  I mean, give them a break!  I remember how many people complained about Shortland Street when it started and wanted it cancelled back in the nineties because it was 'embarassing', 'fake' and didn't portray NZ accurately.  Which show is celebrating their 20th year now?  Exactly.  Fact is, people gave the show a chance.

Why are so many people so against 'The GC'?  So far, the complaints have been that the cast are not representative of Maori.  That they are embarassing, fake, incestuous (for calling potential girlfriends 'Aunty') they can't speak and aren't even successful.  Okay, these Mozzies (Maori Ozzies) are just being themselves - they are proud of their culture and haven't forgotten where they have come from. They have never claimed to be cultural ambassadors - they are just a group of young people doing what young people do, chasing money and opportunities available to them in Australia. I think that it makes some people uncomfortable to see young Maori on primetime in a show where they are not being arrested for various crimes or on a show which shows them living on welfare. One of the things I find interesting is how the cast are given labels, e.g 'Scaffolder/Property Investor','Wannbe Model', 'Wannabe Dancer' - what's up with all the 'Wannabe' tags?  I suppose that it's all part of the entertainment factor and meant to tell the audience that this not a serious documentary but more lighthearted entertainment and also to show that while some cast members have aspirations, others have already made it.

I personally find the lingo very interesting - 'Aunty' for single ladies and 'Mumsies' for girlfriend/partner and 'Jelly babies' which I think means jealousy.  Are these terms used specifically by all young people who live on the Gold Coast or are they examples of Mozzie culture? I am going to ask the cast and see what they say.

I am looking forward to seeing how TV3 shows the entrepreneurial side of the crew and hope to see them profile more of the achievements of the cast instead of just showing how long it takes for them to get ready to go out. All the people who have complained about how terrible the show is will be watching next Wednesday at 8pm.  So, what did you think of the show?  Waste of space or something more?  You be the judge.  

Being a parent

Being a parent is THE hardest job in the world. Well, of course I would say that being a mother of three energetic and strong-willed children.  In the days before children (BC) I can honestly say that I was not the type of person who dreamed of having any.  I liked little kids and adored babies but was always happy to return them to their parents.  I am sure that I did not have a maternal bone in my body but now, every bone in my body is definitely maternal.  What can I say?  The mothering instinct didn't kick in until I gave birth - well, better late than never! 

Watching the television show, 'World's Strictest Parents' makes me think about my parenting skills a lot.  If I don't want my kids to turn out like the foul-mouthed, rude, drink and drug abusing, lazy, and plain rude teens featured on this show, then I need to step up my game when it comes to parenting.  I need to be really firm but fair, strict but flexible at the same time, be a mother not a friend. When my kids tell me that I am funny, I feel slightly uncomfortable because to me, 'funny' means 'weak' and must mean that I am not being strict enough and  that I am a pushover.  For the sake of the future of my children, I will now be their worst nightmare but their biggest supporter.  I will give orders and not requests.  I have very few memories of having fun times with my mother but boy did I (and still do) respect her! As an adult and especially as a mother, I finally understand my parents and why they sometimes stopped me from going out places as a teen and from hanging out with certain people.  At the time, I just thought that they didn't want me to have a life but now I look back and thank God that I had parents who cared about me enough to protect me from myself (especially in those teen years).  

Okay, now it's my turn - no more Mrs Nice Mum (well, unless they're sick or a birthday).  I hate playing 'Bad Cop' but if I don't, I may find myself contacting 'World's strictest Parents' show to get my kids on because I let them do whatever they wanted growing up. Now that is something I don't want to have to do.

Facing my fears

Way back in January (17th of January to be exact) I blogged about putting my hand up to present a workshop at a national conference.  I am sure that I mentioned that I was pretty nervous about the whole thing having never presented anywhere before. Well, I am very happy to report that I presented last week and it went really well.  Better than I expected.  I had a handout for participants and made about 20 copies because I thought that I would have maybe 15 to 18 copies left over.  I ran out of handouts and so told people to take notes.  Feel the fear and do it anyway! I am really glad that I did and I highly recommend it to others.

Sleeping through the night

It's late.  I'm really tired but I can't go to sleep.  I have just realised that I haven't really had a good night's sleep since, well, since the kids were born.  Why? Because I jump up to check on them whenever they cry in the night, or call out in their dreams.  Always, I am there, hovering, patting them, soothing them back to sleep.  It's been 9 years since I started this night-time duty and with a one year old in the household - it looks like it will be another 9 years before I can step down from this voluntary position.  If I ever sleep through a cry in the night, it simply means that I am too exhausted to hear them and when I do hear about it later on in the day - I feel terribly guilty.  Times like these that I wish I could be more like my husband - he can sleep with a baby screaming in his face.  Funny thing is, when the kids sleep over at my parents' place - I close my eyes and try to sleep with no success.  I can hear the ticking of the clock, the rustle of leaves outside the window and even doors closing two houses down.  I may ask my GP to give me some sleeping pills so that I can just fall asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow (will make sure that I only use then when the kids are having a sleep over though) Old habits die hard. Can't wait for the day when I can sleep through the night.

Giving way - putting theory into practice

Last week I posted about the new give way rules and how I scored a perfect 9/9 on the Land Transport online quiz about the new rules.  It's one thing to get things right online but how about in real life?  Well, on Sunday the 25th of March, I drove to church hoping to put theory into practice.  I didn't see anyone at an intersection until 5.45pm that day and since I was turning left into a side street, the other car had to give way to me. What a bummer! I was really hoping to be on the other side giving way. Oh well, at least I remembered that I could go first.  

Wednesday, I was driving home from work and had just signalled to turn right into another street when I saw an oncoming vehicle signalling that they were going to turn into the same street.  My brain went, "Oh, they give way to me of course", and so I proceeded to turn right into this street.  Halfway through my turn, I suddenly remembered the 'NEW' give way rules and screeched to a halt. The other driver nervously gestured to me to keep going (probably because he feared for his life) and so, very sheepishly, I did.  When I had to turn left into my street, an oncoming vehicle started signalling to turn right, into the same street.  I almost gave way to them but then kept going.  Gosh, these new rules really do take a bit of getting used to.  So far I haven't heard of anyone having an accident (except for yours truly) so it seems that Kiwis are going with the flow.  

Have a great weekend everyone!

Confession Time

Forgive me 'Anonymous-people-who-stumble-across-this-blog' for I have sinned.  Well, I suppose it's not a real 'sin' as in 'going straight to hell' sin but I have done what I said I wouldn't do.  To cut a long, long, boring blog post short - I went back on Facebook.  Yes, I did indeed.  I went on even though I wrote that I wouldn't because I wanted to actually make contact with people in the real world (If you don't believe me, read my shameful post from the 9th of January 2012)

Why did I log back on Fb? Gosh, I have a gazillion and one reasons why I went on e.g  To catch up with my brother who lives in Perth because I don't have his phone number or an email address to keep in touch with him, to drop messages to other people whose numbers I don't have and dang it, because it's way cheaper chatting to people on Fb (if they happen to be on at the same time as you) than it is to phone them! I can't believe I have lasted this long and I will most probably be deactivating sometime soon but in the meantime, I am going to gather all the emails, phone numbers and addresses that I can while I am on.  I have noticed that some of my cuzzies are not on anymore - they have probably taken a leave of absence from Facebook as well.  

So, what's the verdict?  Nothing much has changed on Facebook - still lots of people being random, still lots of people updating statuses trashing their husbands, wives, partners and then going back deleting their old posts once they have made up or split.  Facebook is great at letting you express yourself - as long as you remember that the whole FB world has access to your expressions and may use them against you in a court of law some day.

Will I stay on?  Hmmm.. maybe or maybe not.  Whatever I do, I am still going to do my best to catch up with people in 'real time' but it's pretty bloody hard when people keep cancelling on you  when you go to the trouble of setting up catch up coffees, lunches etc...  Family is family - nothing is going to change that so it doesn't matter if you don't want to be related to people, they will still be family but if you have a friend who cancels on you time after time, year after year (when you live in same city) then he or she is most probably not a friend anymore.  I have started examining my Fb friends list and if there is anyone I haven't seen or heard from in the last year will just be deleted.  I won't miss them and they definitely won't miss me as we haven't had any interaction in over a year.  My brother in-law said that he only has on his Fb friends list, people that he would be happy to have in his home - good criteria!  Okay, add that to the top of my 'To Do' list.

To conclude, Facebook is a tool - to communicate but it can be used by some to distract, to give people who procrastinate (like mwah) an excuse to procrastinate.  To deactivate can be a form of controlling the addiction or habit but it can also be a way of the addiction controlling the user - woah, that's 4.22am talking right there.  Time to go to sleep as it's almost time for NZ to start the new give way rules.

The Confession booth is now 'CLOSED'.