I'm So Confused

I will be teaching the Christianity and Postmodernism class at Kingsley this Semester and although I already had a fairly good grasp on things postmodern my preparation for the more philosophical aspects of postmodernity have been straining my brain just a little. Here's an example from Stanley Grenz trying to explain Jacques Derrida's understanding of meaning in language.
"A Language is a chain of signifiers referring to other signifiers, in which each signifier in turn becomes what is signified by another signifier."
Hmmmm. I know that understanding the philosophical underpinnings of postmodernism is important but I'm really looking forward to the discussions on the effects of postmodern thought on popular culture and the necessary response from the church.

Birthday Present

Yes, I have turned 39. Two weeks ago actually - and I apologise for the absence of posts. I've been away in New Zealand from the 30th June to the 6th July at the SPABC (South Pacific Association of Bible Colleges) Conference. But before I went I was "given permission" to buy myself a birthday present. It is a 37" LCD television. I've been researching these for about 9 months so I knew exactly what I was looking for. So after a morning of shop hopping I ended up - as a last resort - at Clive Peeters Ringwood where they had a great deal on the Toshiba 37WL66A - no inbuilt tuner but they threw in an HD STB with the deal. So all up very happy. I just wish the broadcasters would send their signal out at a higher quality - hopefully in the future.
I looked into the LCD/Plasma options but a 37" was as large as we could go using the cabinet we already had. You will notice from the pic that it fits snugly.

Kate is Nine!!!

Kate turned nine on June 7th and we celebrated two days later with a Fairy party. 14 girls gathered for an afternoon of fairy games and lots of laughter. A visit from Krystal Fairy was an extra special treat.

What I'm Listening To

I've been listening to 5 Score and Seven Years Ago by Relient K - now my number one favourite band edging our Jars of Clay. This latest offering has the classic Relient K sound and has echoes of their previous two albums - MMHMM and Two Lefts Don't Make a Right - But Three Do. My favourite songs on the new album are "Come Right Out and Say it" and "Must Have Done Something Right". There are more songs about relationships which reflects the guys growing up but there is also the smattering of God focused lyrics in songs such as "Forgiven" and "Give Until There's Nothing Left". The shortest song on the album is "Crayons Can Melt on us For All I Care" which runs for 12 sceonds and the lyrics are: "I've just wasted 10 seconds of your life."

What I'm Watching

I've got really hooked on The Catherine Tate show lately. I caught the last half of series two on the ABC Wenesday nights and then bought the DVD a few weeks back. It's a bit rude in some places (as all good British humour can be) but it had me ROFL (Rolling on the Floor Laughing). It is disappointing that there is a bit of language because the sketches would be just as funny without it. We had our good frineds Colin and Ruth Harrison staying with us for a couple of nights and we showed them an episode - then we had to watch all six. They went out and bought the DVD the next day. A few classic lines - "Am I bovvered", "You will not believe this", "Take the shame though", "Is it though" and "The Liberty"
Here is a classic "Lauren" sketch (search youtube for more)

Flight of the Conchords 2

My brother in law Paul let me know that my favourite comedy musical duo - Flight of the Conchords - have their own show on HBO. It is autobiographical and shows off their lyrical genius.Also see their myspace page here

Study week

I've just had a week away to do some research for my Doctor of Ministry thesis. I'm researching the Ministerial Development process in the Wesleyan Methodist Church of Australia. I spent four days reviewing the 60 year history of the denomination with particular focus on the ministerial training and development. It gave me a renewed appreciation for those who began the movement and the sacrifices they made. I was also reminded of the beautiful message of heart holiness that was the focus of the movement in its early days. The desire for God to so fill our hearts with love that we spread that love out to those around us in acts of mercy and evangelism is the hallmark of who we are as Wesleyans. I stayed at Kerami Gardens resort in Marysville. Annette and the kids came up for the weekend and then I stayed on to study. It was a bonus week of timeshare that we got for just over $200- for seven nights accom in a fully self-contained two bedroom unit - what a deal. I'm planning on doing this 2-3 times a year to get my thesis writing completed within 3 years.