Summer Santa

Christmas is here! Well, western European Christmas, anyway. I still celebrate Christmas according to the old Julian calendar which makes it January 6th and 7th. In any event, the season is upon us and even in the Australian summer, people are celebrating. Today was hot day, close to 35C but tomorrow brings a cool change. As well, many people out west are getting exactly what they wished for --- rain. It's about time too. Actually, I think the drought may be easing up and if any more cyclones manage to breach Australia's interior, it may break altogether. That would be a great present for the New Year.

Before Christmas, there was the solstice --- the longest day of the year. Some people celebrate it but it usually goes by unnoticed. Actually, Christmas is celebrated in December because it is around the time of the solstice and many pagan rituals occurred at that time as well.

Also on solstice day, the Plast organization in Canberra had it end of year ceremony, called an "apel'". It was quite short but was followed afterwards by pinatas and a barbeque. We won't have meetings again until sometime in February and all in all, it was a good year.

Now, the main thing to concentrate on is the upcoming Plast camp. I'm leaving Canberra for Melbourne tomorrow and then I'll be driven to the camp which starts on the 26th. It's being held in Angahook Lorne National Park southwest of Geelong at a property called "Sokil" (SOH-keel) which is Ukrainian for "hawk". Last year I gave the Sydney camp a go, so this year it's Melbourne's turn. I'll be away from Canberra until January 5th and I'm very much looking forward to another camping experience. This one will have a 3-day bike hike.

As for doing something for Christmas, I haven't really mostly because it isn't really Christmas for me and I had to pack for camp. I did, however, watch the absolutely hilarious movie Bad Santa as well as listened to Lorenna McKinnett sing a few Christmas carols. In any event, to all those who are celebrating, I wish you a merry Christmas and a happy New Year and to those who prefer a more expansive salutation, I further wish you happy holidays and season's greetings.

3 Years Left

According the Mayans, we only have 3 years left to enjoy ourselves. According to them, the world will come to an end on December 21st, 2012. In that spirit, Hollywood, never an organization willing to pass up the opportunity to make money off cultures, has released a movie called 2012 about that very cataclysm. I went to see it the other day because I like disaster movies. As movies go, it wasn't too bad although the science was rather incorrect. It starts off by saying that neutrinos are beginning to react with other particles in the Earth, heating us up, whereas before they hadn't; that's just not true. While the majority of neutrinos pass through matter unimpeded, they do react occasionally which is how we detect them. There was also the concept of total crustal displacement, essentially the crust moves as one, put forward by Charles Hapgood and supported by Einstein. While so much is true, Hapgood opposed the idea of plate tectonics which we now know drives crustal movement. It's simply impossible for the whole of the Earth's crust to move as one quickly. But who knows, maybe the Mayans were right and it'll end some other way. If it does, at least I won't have to deal with being 30.

At the end of 2012, the survivors are headed for Africa which has been raised and is the best choice for restarting humanity. The Drakensberge ("dragon mountains" in Afrikaans) are the new roof of the world. By a strange coincidence, lately I've felt a wanderlust to visit South Africa, particularly the Drakensberge, but for no particular reason. Maybe I'll head off in a little while.

Last Tuesday was also the last trivia session at University House until February. We came in second this time. I look forward to next season and I shall be honing my skills in the interim.

On Thursday, I had another ACTTAB Christmas party. This is the staff party, not an official corporate event, and, like last year, it was held at the Hellenic Club. Though many people showed up, I thought there were fewer than last year. We had dinner and drank well into the night and, I suppose, the next morning. After dinner, I decided that it was about time I picked up a vice. Drinking, narcotics and smoking are too damaging to my health so, for the first time in my life, I decided to gamble with my money, instead of my life. I only had about 3 bets and none cost more than AUS$4.00. I think I ended up down by about AUS$2 by the end, though because I'd found AUS$15.00 on the floor, I was up quite a bit. I'm not going to make a habit of this, though I did have some fun by sarcastically asking my supervisor how I should fill in the betting slip. After it all, I felt as though I'd had a bit of fun and participated in an important part of Aussie culture. Maybe next year I'll bet a little more.

Rather annoyingly, some of the power is out at Fenner Hall. ACTEWAGL, the local utilities company, has set about upgrading the local generator and that has necessitated a reduction in the availability of electricity. Originally planned to last only an hour, the power will continue to be rationed, so to speak, until 18:00 tomorrow. It's a bit inconvenient, especially as the Summer Duty Warden I was getting calls about it at 07:00, but there's nothing that can be done except wait and hope everything will be alright. I just hope it will be worth it after all this trouble.

Censorship and a Hawai'ian Shirt

With Christmastide in full swing, there comes that other great holiday tradition, that of the office Christmas party. This year, because of the more restrictive financial situation, the official ACTTAB Christmas function was a little more spartan. Instead of a lavish dinner at a fancy hotel, we had an outdoor barbeque at a local country club. Not that it wasn't lovely and Christmas barbeques are something of an Australian tradition. The event was attended mostly by Head Office staff, most of whom I didn't know, with only a few staff from the outlets. It was somewhat bizarre as the office and outlet staff segregated themselves into discrete groups. There was some mingling, but not too much. There was entertainment, an open bar and food all on ACTTAB's tab. I find food always tastes better when paid for by someone else.

On a slightly more unsettling note, one of the ACTTAB outlets, the one in Erindale (a southern shopping center), was robbed a few nights ago. From what I gathered, someone came in to the outlet and brandished a knife demanding money. The person on duty obliged, no one was hurt and the matter would certainly be in the hands of the police. The person on duty, James, I had met at the Christmas barbeque. As a result, security guards have been posted at outlets operating after 17:30. I've always felt safe at the outlets and it would be very difficult for someone to actually point a knife in your face; they would have to climb over the counter which is usually either crossed by wires or has plastic dividers. I'm now dreading what may be the inevitable communication from my mother asking about this. On the plus side, the family's off to Cuba for a bit of a holiday so maybe there won't be time.

At Fenner, the contractors came through and recabled my room. I now have a brand new ethernet and telephone port but I still can't use them. It wasn't very pleasant being woken up by drills at 09:00, but I just had to bear it. Over the course of 2 or 3 days, the contractors finished with my floor and moved on. I can only hope it's worth it in the end.

Also, I found myself on the receiving end of some minor censorship. I prepared a very short radio piece on Stepan Bandera (bahn-DEH-ra), a Ukrainian nationalist (and terrorist), for Ottawa's Ukrainian radio program. I stated that despite being more closely associated with SUM (Ukrainian Youth Association), Bandera was actually a member of Plast and is rumoured to have received 4 reprimands. The producer said that she wouldn't air it unless I included other information about Bandera so as to less offend his supporters, known as "Banderivtsi" (bahn-deh-REEV-tsee). If it sounds like I'm bitter, I'm not. I actually sort of intended to ruffle a few feathers but if you really should not be able to take offence to something like this. I like sticking it to various fidgety factions within the Ukrainian community when I can.

I went out to buy a Hawai'ian shirt the other day as part of a New Year's Eve costume for camp. You would not believe how hard it is to find one in this city. I went to all the major outlets (David Jones, Myer, Target and Big-W) and even a few smaller ones but none had Hawai'ian shirts. They all had floral pattern shorts but not the shirts. I finally found some at a little discount store called Ivan's and I bought one. I'm now the proud owner of a proper Hawai'ian shirt. The rest of the outfit will consist of a pair of Hawai'ian shorts and a panama hat, I think. The costume is supposed to be jungle themed, but I'm doing it at a degree of separation by going tropical, as jungles exist in the tropics. Hawai'ian shirts are actually worn to occasions such as weddings and are seen as a mix of casual an business, but really only in tropical places like Hawai'i and Darwin. Tropical locations seem to have a relaxed atmosphere regarding the pace of life. To that end, if I get an interview with the Northern Territory DPP, I think I'll go in my Hawai'ian shirt. What do you say to that, mom?

Advent of Summer

Summer's started Down Under and it's actually been quite pleasant so far. It hasn't been scorching hot, although the temperature does hover around 30C. I was asked by my supervisor at work today why wasn't I going home for Christmas, to which I replied that after 9 months of gruelling study (that's only going to get harder), I've earned a summer. Even though I grew up in Canada and in all civilized countries Christmas is a winter holiday, I think I'm entitled to some warmth.

Speaking of entitlements, I received most of my final grades. I received 2 Credits and a Distinction; I'm still waiting on 1 grade. One of my Credits came from Commonwealth Constitutional Law and of it I am very proud; I even earned a compliment from one of my professors. From what I gather, my score was well above average. My Distinction came from Legislative Drafting and Technology, where I also received a 90% on my final report. And for completeness, my other Credit came from Advanced International Law. Needless to say, I'm riding a bit of a high at the moment.

There was, of course, the Grey Cup over last weekend played at Calgary's McMahon Stadium. Although I couldn't watch it, I followed the scores live via the web. As I saw the Alouettes close the gap, I hoped that somehow the Roughriders would be able to stave off disaster. I couldn't believe it when Duval kicked the final field goal, thanks to a Roughriders penalty, to put the Alouettes ahead 28-27. The Roughriders usually seem to attract exciting Grey Cups, such as their thrilling 1989 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, and while this one will go down as one of the most exciting ever, it will sting for Roughriders fans. I feel sorry for my mom and her family still in Saskatchewan but they should still be a little proud. For the longest time the Roughriders were a bit of a joke but in the last few years they've really established themselves.

A major sporting event Down Under was the cruiserweight title fight between Australian Danny Green and American Roy Jones, Jr at Sydney's Acer Arena. This was touted as an exceptional match particularly because of the advanced ages of the contenders, Green is 36 and Jones is 40. To view the fight, I was invited by some friends to the Hellenic Club where it was being shown. The place was fairly full but we managed to get a spot at a sort of bar near the entrance. There were a few undercard matches but then the show began. Jones was the heavy favourite going in. The bell sounded and both contenders came out ready for a fight. Jones got some good quick jabs in before Green managed to floor him with a fairly innocuous-looking punch. Jones got back up but only had 2 seconds to compose himself after the referee took a look at him when Green flew back punching with all he had. He eventually cornered Jones, a legendary boxer and 4 weight-class champion, and just unleashed a fury of punches. Jones protected himself and the referee gave him as much leeway as possible but then realized that it was hopeless and called an end to the fight. The result: Green defeated Jones by TKO (technical knockout) in 122 seconds!

I wonder if I should have taken up boxing? I know my mother would have strenuous objections. In modern boxing though, let's face it, actual knockouts are pretty rare. Before that happens usually either the referee or the doctor will have stopped the fight. Ironically, the introduction of boxing gloves has actually made it a more dangerous sport in the sense that it is easier to kill someone. In the bare knuckle days, if you punched at the jaw, you'd break your own hand so pugilists (boxers) would concentrate on the body. In all of the bare knuckle era, there are only 2 recorded deaths in the ring. By contrast, with boxing gloves you can now punch at the head to your heart's content and there are 4 deaths every year in the USA in boxing. Still, it's a sport that dates back thousands of years and deserves a certain level of respect.

Despite Fenner Hall being virtually empty, there are still some activities, though not organized by the Hall. I went with some friends on a sort of lounge crawl of some of Canberra's finer establishments. I met up with Phil at 17:45 at North Lounge where there was a bevy of people, many dressed as superheroes for some reason. Another person, Tanya, joined but before we left we saw someone forcibly ejected from the premises, and it wasn't even 19:00 yet! We left North Bar and made our way to Pub Australia, a sort of stereotypical Aussie themed pub. For example, my chair was made from a discarded oil drum. Pub Australia is reasonably new and I liked it a bit.

From Pub Australia, we walked to Binara 1, the Crowne Plaza's lounge which was, surprisingly, fairly devoid of people. Here we were joined by 3 others to complete our party: Bec, Andrew and Cammy. We sat outside chatting but Binara 1 had this green lighting at its bar that I found rather pleasing. From Binara 1, it was off to Holy Grail, another lounge type place. This place was nearly deserted excepted for a few people listening to a live band. We proceeded upstairs to the mezzanine where we enjoyed ourselves in a slightly quieter atmosphere.

Kremlin Bar was the next stop on our tour, a Soviet-themed cocktail lounge that I brought my parents to when they came to Canberra a year ago. Aside from the kitsch, there's not much to say about Kremlin Bar other than it's one of my favourite Canberra night spots and I can't believe I forgot to take my brother to it when he was here. The last stop was UniPub Lounge, the 3rd floor of a complex that also contains a pub, bar and grill and dance club. We stayed in the lounge which I think was my favourite of the night. There was the obligatory low lighting and lounge music at a decent volume. It got us talking about possibly putting up something similar on the roof of Fenner Hall; Canberra lacks a good rooftop cocktail lounge and while this won't be open to the general public, it could still serve as a focal point for the Fenner Hall community. After a brief stop at Zambrero's for some of our party to buy burritos, we all went home. I'm happy that Phil organized this and I may be visiting some of these lounges again very soon.

Remember the ultrasound I had only my leg about 2 months ago? I just received payment from the insurance company which covers 85% of the cost of the procedure. After submitting my claim, they sent me a letter asking my doctor's opinion if it was a pre-existing condition. There really is no way to tell because there's no way to tell when the Baker's cyst formed. My doctor put "unknown" on the form, which actually wasn't one of the options, those being "Yes" and "No". Anyway, I'm happy that I got paid but I won't do anything about the cyst or the bump it's caused until after graduation unless it really starts to bother me. The recommended treatment would be putting a needle into the liquid mass and sucking it out; it's called "aeration" apparently.

Finally, I was convinced by a combination of my mother and Fenner Hall not having telephone service to get Skype. My parents and I downloaded it and even managed to talk to each other the other day. I have video capability and as I understand, my parents shortly will also. The sound is very clear and my built-in microphone really makes conversation easier; I can even move around the room. The one drawback is that we have to be online to do it and we can't call each other at will, but perhaps that's best. Skype, just so you know, was invented by Estonians who wanted to get around long distance charges and Russian control of the telephone network; those crafty quasi-Finns. Well, we'll see how everything goes when we start video-calling each other. Maybe there's a good reason telephones don't have video capability. Anyway, I've got to get back to this sunny, 30-degree weather, but I guess that's just another cross I have to bear.