Wonderful: Kite Runner

I had to read Khaled Hosseini's Kite Runner for book club this month. And just over the weekend, I realised that I hadn't read the book so I decided to bring it along on Monday afternoon on the train to Melbourne and I finished reading it in 2 days!!! Such a gripping book that I just couldn't put down!!!

We had a stimulating discussion from the book and we were dismayed at how weak the protagonist was! There was one point during the discussion when one of the book club members turned to me and asked,"so, is there kite flying in China?". I smiled and just turned to the whole group and said,"There is kite flying in Singapore and I remember the stories my mum used to tell me about my uncle and his kites and competing to cut down other kites so I can relate to the kite flying described in the book."

Someone else had to tell her that there was kite flying in China. I didn't know that so I couldn't answer her. And I thought she was rude to assume I was from China!!

Another move and then...peace

I've recently moved (yup, another move) to work for another planning team but I'm still in the same department and unit but doing a different type of planning - statutory planning, which I think will be better for me as I'm a new planner and need to start from the basics (learning more about micro planning). I started work at the strategic planning (macro planning) unit previously but found myself feeling lost because I didn't have the experience nor had the understanding of the work that went behind the strategic work.

The new planning team are also made up of colleagues which I get along better with because they're a crazy bunch of people - fun-loving but who also work very hard. I look forward to working and learning from them!

On another note, I have also been recently approached by another section in the dept to help out as a media communications adviser temporarily while they look for someone permanent. They asked if I was interested in it permanently (and to submit my application if I am) but I said I'm happy to help them temporarily but intend to return to my planning job. I've asked my supervisor and he very kindly said he will support me after he teased me and pretended he won't let me go. The manager I'll be working for, from what I've seen so far, is really nice and I know I'll learn alot from her. This temporary position also pays better because it is of a higher band (band 4, from my current band 3).... sweet!!!

Moving....

Phill and I, with the help of my parents-in-law and 2 family friends (a couple in their 70s), moved our worldly possessions from our 3 bedroom unit in the Mansfield township to a rural property (22 acres) at Lima yesterday.

For the past week, Phill and I have been busy packing away and he was getting abit too laid back and too calm about all the packing. I keep seeing things that remain unpacked and he kept saying they will be done. But I wanted them done way before we had to move and I think the packing and stress really made us get on each other's nerves!

However, this morning, we did have things packed and when my parents-in-law and family friends arrived, they helped us load the truck (which we loaned yesterday) with the lounge suite loaned to us by my friend Lynn and her husband Steve, and then they returned with the truck and managed to load all the big items - fridge, King size bed, treadmill, washing machine, dryer, and dining table all onto the truck. We made it in one go! And my mum-in-law, family friend (Joan), and I cleaned the house and vacuumed it too. We managed to do them all under 3 hours which I was really impressed. It took the stress away and my parents-in-law prepared and helped us with alot of things that helped lightened the stress of moving.

First thing we set up at our new house (not really new, it's about 20+ year old weatherboard house) was.....the TV!!! Priorities, priorities. However, we couldn't find the remote control for some time but I managed to after a few hours and ruffling through some bags. We are leaving the rest of the unpacked stuff for the next year or so to unpack. For now, we're just having a break from the stress of it all....

Field Trip to Western VIC

I joined the students in my rural and regional planning class for a field trip today. We met at Bowen St (RMIT Swanston St campus) to board the coach to head to Western VIC (a part of the state I haven't explored before). I sat next to Jacqui, who shared all her yummy food with me - there were oranges, titbits and a good conversation. I first met her at our first class cos we were one of the first few students who arrived at the classroom early.

We travelled to Rockbank first which was a sad looking town. And although there were some beautiful houses, the general neighbourhood was forlorn and most of the houses were very much separated from each other. We were shown a subdivision that didn't quite work cos not many people bought the plots of land and built houses, thus leaving those who did looking abit lonely.

We also drove through towns like Bacchus Marsh, which I thought was a really nice looking town (despite its name - Marsh?!) and its residents look like they had alot of pride in their town cos it looked clean and inviting, Ballan, Gordon, Ballarat (which looked very interesting!), Buninyong, Enfield, Rokewood, Shelford, Bannockburn, and Little River. Some pics below:

The above photo is a part of Rockbank (I think - it was one of the first few sightings in our trip) and an example of perhaps a declining town. From a distance, you might be able to see a sign saying "Lion Park" and our coach driver said she visited it when it was a Lion Park previously. Now, it just looks abandoned, leaving a reminder of its former glory.

The above pic is one of the random pics I took when the coach was driving us to another town. But i thot the houses to the left of the pic look really grand and against that landscape (abit brown perhaps still suffering from the effects of the drought we've had), I thot it was quite gorgeous!

The above 4 pics were taken at Ballan where we had a short stopover (first town we actually alighted from the coach to stretch our legs and had a look around). The top pic is obvious - the hotel, post office, a quirky cafe and gallery which made use of recycled materials to decorate its outdoor yard, and a hardware store that looked pretty authentic of shops of earlier years.

Even though it says Beechworth Bakery, this bakery wasn't in Beechworth but Ballarat! That might have given you a hint as to the good reputation of the bakery at Beechworth (not a franchise) which I recently visited and their cakes and pastries weren't bad but the cappuccino wasn't great.

The above 2 pics are some street scenes of Ballarat - a really bustling town that has already outgrown its physical space. As potential planners, my lecturer asked us some questions such as how would we go about expanding the road and pedestrian areas to accommodate the growing population, and diversion of traffic so that traffic jams could be eliminated or reduced, and how would we arrange the commercial, educational and social areas of the town so access to these different areas are easy.


The above pic was taken around the area of Mt Helen which was rather quiet and scenic, although it rained steadily when we were in that area in the afternoon so from the little I saw through the rain, that's what the area looked like.

The above was a shopping complex at Bannockburn, our last stop to head to the toilets. After that, we headed home and boy, were we glad. We were quite tired and the rain helped lulled us to sleep. I enjoyed the trip as my lecturer was able to point areas out and explained how different uses of land are complemetary and others were conflicting. So, the lessons we had in class in the previous weeks came alive for me!

Sweet Hour of Prayer by David Tao

Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
That calls me from a world of care,
And bids me at my Father’s throne
Make all my wants and wishes known.
In seasons of distress and grief,
My soul has often found relief,
And oft escaped the tempter’s snare,
By thy return, sweet hour of prayer!


Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
The joys I feel, the bliss I share,
Of those whose anxious spirits burn
With strong desires for thy return!
With such I hasten to the place
Where God my Savior shows His face,
And gladly take my station there,
And wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer!


Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
Thy wings shall my petition bear
To Him whose truth and faithfulness
Engage the waiting soul to bless.
And since He bids me seek His face,
Believe His Word and trust His grace,
I’ll cast on Him my every care,
And wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer!


Sweet hour of prayer! sweet hour of prayer!
May I thy consolation share,
Till, from Mount Pisgah’s lofty height,
I view my home and take my flight.
This robe of flesh I’ll drop, and rise
To seize the everlasting prize,
And shout, while passing through the air,
“Farewell, farewell, sweet hour of prayer!”