Week in Review

If I didn't just have one of the busiest weeks in my history, then I can't remember my busiest. Does that make sense? I think I have a lot of catching up to do. I'll try and get it all down. Pehaps I'll even be able to do it.

This will probably be long an un-interesting, just so you know.

Wednesday

I think I talked about Wednesday, early Thursday morning. And on Wednesday actually so I guess it's not really worth talking about. But I do have to say that on Wednesday I really didn't want go to the festival. I was dreading it. I thought I'd turn up and no-one would talk to me, or worse they'd all be mean to me and throw things at me. But lucky for me they didn't.

Thursday

I didn't do any blogging at all on Thursday. At least after 1am I didn't. That was an interesting day. I arrived at the festival at around 9:15am and hung around with no friends till around 9:30 when I went to a lecture on the Power of the Holy Spirit. I thought that would be interesting, but it all went over my head. There was a lot of stuff that was assumed knowledge I think and so I didn't get much out of it.

At lunch time Ewan and I ran a Sumo wrestling competition with tire inner tubes. That was interesting. Ewan was cool, he hung out with me most of the time. If he hadn't been there I would have been a bit of a loner. I think it was very kind of Ewan, my beach mission buddy, to hang out with me.

Jo turned up half way through the day to go festivaling. It was good to have her around. Her and I hung out together at the main meeting at night.

We saw a band called "Freefall" who I thought were good. I had a friend in the band and she said they had a terrible day. I couldn't tell. She also introduced me to two of her friends then left me with them. That was a little strange. We made small talk for about 15 minutes, then when we ran out of things to talk about they talked to each other and other friends while I stood by silently for another 15 minutes or so trying to find an appropriate time to leave. I'm not one of those people who is good at just walking away mid-conversation.

Jo and I went home around 9:30 because I had an very large urge to spend time on the toilet. The toilets at the festival had no toilets seats and often a bit of spillage and thus were not toilets I felt like using for the lengthier toilet experiences.

That night we prayed together as a house hold. It was nice. Dad suggested that we all pray out loud at the same time. I like the idea, I've never done it with the fam before. It was a little strange. Dad said it might make us less self-concious but I found it made me more. But it was good to try. I have the feeling it would be better, for humans, in bigger groups. But I don't know.

Friday

A lot like Thurday really, but longer. And better seminars. I went to one on Christian Ethics which was pretty cool. Ewan and I's sumo stuff didn't really happen that day though.

I also hosted a Karaoke night as I said. That was difficult and no-one laughed at my jokes, and I felt like an idiot. But it was still a good experience. I didn't have to sing any Karaoke too which was very nice.

During the Main meeting the main festival organiser talked and he was a very funny bloke. He controlled the audience very well. He would have us one moment in hysterics and the next making his point. It was a good sermon too. Very funny but with good stuff about the character of God and his love for us. It's always nice to know that God loves you.

I went home at around 12:30 and I felt a little tired.

Saturday

Bathurst day. After a late start, Graham and I managed to head off at around 10:45. I hadn't eaten any breakfast because we ran out of milk. I think that's just as well because if there had been milk I probably would have eather Farmland Frooty Rings for breakfast. As it turned out I has Maccas in Lithgow. Infinately better.

Graham and I arrived at Angus' house and proceeded to take photo's of ourself, print them, stick them in a photo frame, wrap the photo frame and Ben Harper cd as they were the wedding present and make a card out of a Post-it note, folded over. Then off we headed into the west.

We stopped at Lithgow for breakfast at around 1pm. It was 38.5 according to the McWeather computer.

Once in Bathurst we explored for a bit. We headed first for the grooms house. That was fun. I've never met a groom on the day of his wedding before. We also drove Mt Panorama and explored the delights of Bathurst's shopping district (mostly closed due to it being Saturday I think). We got spruced up for the wedding in a unit a friend had hired for the weekend and we headed to the Cathedral.

It was a nice wedding. All Prayer Book and hymns. I spent most of the service thinking about all the exciting things I'm going to do at my wedding (lots of crazy videos, and a minister dressed as Elvis, but I've heard that my wife-to-be* probably won't let me) and feeling extreamly scared because these people getting married are almost my age. Am I that old? Not really. But I'm Christian and male and Christians get married young.

We went to the reception afterwards and that was cool. There were goldfish on the table and I met the Bishop of Bathurst and he had a very strong handshake. There were speeches. They went for a very long time. It was a very nice wedding. There was dancing. I didn't want to participate but I got forcibly placed on the dance floor. Carried I tell you. Very bad. I'll have nightmares.

We left at 11:42. We got back to Hornsby at 2:53 or so. Graham and I had a long conversation and I asked him lots of tricky apologetics questions about Jesus. I hope I didn't destroy his faith. I don't think I did. I didn't fall asleep either.

Sunday

Yesterday, up early. At St Ives Showground at 9am to pack up the festival. I was a little tired. I carried lots of chairs. Hundreds of chairs. I was quite sick of chairs. I folded up tent and packed and un-packed trucks. I drank lots and ate little. I drove people to stations and put on sunscreen. It was a good day. I have sore arms now. But I had fun. Funny that. Perhaps it was a bonding experience with all the other packer-uppers.

At night I got have my welcoming service. The whole church prayed for me and layed hands on me. I got interviewed and made a fool of my self, and people laughed at my jokes. That was good too. It's a very friendly church. We all went out for Maccas afterwards so I could be welcomed. I met lots of people, learnt lots of names and only one person got annoyed at me for not looking them in the eyes the whole time.

Today

I slept in, sat around and tried to begin working on what I'm going to say on Sunday. And now I'm here.

* I don't have one of them yet, but she's probably out there, unless I'm going to marry someone 20 years younger than me or not marry anyone at all.