Monday, July 25, 2011

The Skinny on Worship

Idol Worship

I'm a bit confused about how they have all these PNG guys and then Peru temples... But a good reminder

Thursday, July 21, 2011

10 tips to losing weight in winter from Weightwatchers

Take these 10 non-food related tips for adding energy to your life, and put a pep back in your step this chilly season.Find you can barely muster up the energy to change the channel these days? Take these 10 energy boosting tips on board..Winter's probably the time when we all feel the most lethargic. In fact, many of us spend it holed up in front of the latest reality show rather than out and about enjoying the crisp air.

  1. Music
    Chill out CDs are well and good, but for some instant get up and go choose lively bouncy tracks. Think Madonna, Kylie, Elvis, Abba – anything that makes you feel like moving will automatically lift energy levels and put a smile on your face.

  2. Smell
    Burning calming oils and incense may be great for creating that calm and peaceful haven but you can also use them to rejuvenate and uplift. Try lemon, grapefruit, jasmine, peppermint and orange oil.

  3. Get active outdoors
    Getting away from artificial lighting and computer screens is a natural mood booster. It also plays an important part in helping us get vitamin D which forms under our skin in reaction to light.

  4. Colour
    Choose your surroundings and clothes carefully. Wean yourself off the usual drab dark greys and black, and instead choose something more dramatic – reds, oranges, and yellows – even cerise pink! You don't have to dress head to toe to make use of these colours - a bright top, scarf or even coat will add vibrancy and make you feel less like you're fading into the background.

  5. Get up early
    Setting the alarm clock half an hour earlier and forcing yourself to go for a run or even a walk around the block will help you feel more invigorated for the rest of the day.

  6. Avoid the vampires
    These are the people who drain you of every last drop of energy with their moans about their kids, boss, partners and the weather. While we're not saying drop your friends, notice who revs you up and who pulls you down. Make an effort to see more of the first and less of the last.

  7. Find a passion
    There's nothing that energises us so much as passion – whether it's a passion for drama, making clothes or learning to play the piano. Having a goal or a project give us much more to think and talk about and you'll rediscover untapped reserves of oomph you never knew you had!

  8. Sleep
    Really make the effort to relax before you go to sleep – have a warm bath, read a book, even do some gentle yoga or meditation and get to bed at a reasonable time. If you've got so much on your mind you find it hard to switch off, then write it all down. It's interesting how your mind feels much lighter once you've 'dumped' all your worries down on paper.

  9. Organise your environment
    Unload food you don't want, get rid of clothes that make you feel dowdy and give away jewellery you never wear to friends that might. Don't rush out to replace them straight away. Enjoy the feeling of space – you might just want to keep it.

  10. Get help
    If you really are feeling overwhelmed and under-resourced tell someone. Can you get a cleaner? Delegate more to someone else at work? Choose a different shift or switch your hours? Energy is precious and the less of it you spend on the boring stuff the better.

Changes Pt 1

Probably one of the smaller changes I have made in my life recently is attacking my weight. I started Weight watchers. So far I have lost 6.8kgs which isn't heaps but it is a start. So many times in my life I've said I need to do something but never started. Well now I have. I like the flexibility of Weight watcher- I can still eat the foods i like; I just need to be wiser on my choices and portion sizes. Been struggling a bit for the last few weeks but hoping that this week I get back on track. (feel free to encourage me as that always helps)
My first goal is to get below 100kg. Lot of work to do yet.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

3D Printer

Craig Ferguson showed me this tonight have a look


One of My favourite parts from Firefly



And this is why I like the show with lines like these. (warning language and violence)

Monday, July 18, 2011

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Sunday, July 10, 2011

Queensland's triumph a victory over the dirty rats of Origin

Maroons players celebrate their State of Origin win

TRIUMPHANT: Maroons players celebrate their victory in the State of Origin decider at Suncorp Stadium last Wednesday. Picture: Mark Kolbe Source: Getty Images

ON Friday morning, I celebrated my 51st birthday at breakfast with a couple of friends at the cafe atop the Kangaroo Point cliffs in Brisbane.

As we ate, I took in the panoramic view of Brisbane's central business district beneath a clear winter sky and saw a city that reflected the Queensland State of Origin team.

Looking across the river to the gleaming buildings of the CBD, it was easy to forget that not so long ago this was a city with a broken heart.

Back in January, that same picturesque river did its best to bring Brisbane to its knees, delivering devastating floods that swamped parts of the city and that added to the agony of Queenslanders across the state in a summer of disaster.

But on Friday, I saw a city and a state that have emerged from their darkest hours to once again stand proud and successful.


Like the city of Brisbane, the Queensland team have managed to restore their glory despite the almost irresistible surge of forces beyond their control, through the commitment and pride of their people.
In each building, standing defiantly over the very river that tried to drown them, I saw the reflection of every player who has played for Queensland - especially the team this year in our toughest Origin campaign.
Like the city, the team once again stands triumphant, their success hiding the filth and rats that continue to linger in the sewers and dark corners, and masking the scars left by the menace that tried to cut it down.
What the Maroons achieved on Wednesday night was about more than a sixth straight series win, or a fitting farewell for a champion in our captain Darren Lockyer.

It was a victory against the very rats and filth that tried to poison a monumental team with lies, personal attacks, arrogance and disrespect.

What the Queensland team has been able to achieve in the past six years has been truly remarkable, something never achieved before at State of Origin level.

The only other comparable era of success would be that enjoyed by the great St George team, which won 11 premierships between 1956 and 1966.

But although the tremendous achievements of the great Dragons team are quite rightly celebrated by the game, it frustrates me that the unequalled success of this Maroons team is not similarly embraced.

Like that St George team of years gone by, this Queensland team has transformed mere men into immortals, and footballers into young men their community can be proud of.

But rather than be a cause for celebration, the Queensland team this year found itself the victim of a smear campaign so malicious and orchestrated that it tainted the entire code of rugby league.

And it came from the enemy within the game itself.

They are the faceless men of influence who claim their agenda is to benefit the game. Really, their only agenda is to benefit themselves.

For them, what Queensland has achieved in the past six years is detrimental to the health of the game.

Rather than celebrating the positive, by marvelling at the skill and achievements of a very special rugby league team - as with St George - they focus on "destroying a dynasty".

Let me tell you this for a start: no one in the Queensland camp uses the word dynasty. Dynasties are about personal glory. We are not interested in dynasties, we are concerned with leaving a legacy.

Legacies are about leaving the game in a better position than it was before. That is our goal, our mantra.

Regardless, the powerbrokers in NSW set about trying to destroy the system, the very same system they themselves copied for their own benefit.

No matter that the television ratings were at a record high. No matter that all three games were sold out.

They are the ones who dragged the spotlight off the game on the field and on to the judiciary with the citing of Johnathan Thurston, and who found five weeks' worth of difference in the identical tackles of David Taylor and Akuila Uate.

They are the ones who criticise Queensland's two closed training sessions as a refusal to promote the game, yet give their blessing to the NSW decision not to name its team until an hour before kick-off - the first time in Origin history.

They are the ones who have the hide to label Queensland - a team built on the twin pillars of respect and humility - arrogant in victory and whingers in defeat, but offer nothing when their captain places the loss of the series at the feet of the referees, instead of acknowledging superior opponents.

For them, the self-appointed keepers of the game, rugby league's health depended on NSW winning this year. That is what made me and others targets of personal attacks this year, conceived by puppets and driven by smarter people with their own interests at heart.

When the attacks were directed at individuals, myself among them, my initial reaction was to treat it like water off a duck's back.

But it was only a day or so later that it dawned on me what the powerbrokers were trying to achieve.

Rather than trying to unsettle or stress the individuals, what they were trying to do was rot the systems we have put in place for success from the inside out by planting a seed of doubt in the minds of the players and staff. I was one they chose to attack in a sinister and malicious manoeuvre to remove me from my job. It was a disregard and disrespect of what I have worked so hard and so proudly to achieve in my career as a player, and now as a coach, by attacking my reputation, integrity, credibility and abilities, by branding me a dispensable commodity, an easily replaced cog in a machine they controlled.

My achievements were reduced to mere collateral damage, "for the good of the game", nothing more than a tactic from a desperate team trying to win a game of football.

What they were doing was attacking, and trying to destroy my employment in a job that I love.

During the first few days in camp, I asked Major General Mick Slater, the head of the Queensland Government's Flood Recovery Taskforce, to speak to the players. Mick is an impressive and genuine man, who personally saw the devastation caused around the state earlier this year, and comforted those left heartbroken when their world turned on them.

Mick talked to the players about Queenslanders dealing with hard times and overcoming adversity. He spoke about why winning means less than the effort you put in, and how you carry yourself; about being gracious in defeat and humble in success. The players hung on his every word.

The Queensland team didn't face a flood or a cyclone on Wednesday night, but in the week leading up to the game they faced the sinister elements of a game that should be sheltering them. It was personal. It was malicious, and it was disgraceful.

I know the people who were behind it. I know their personal agendas. Some of them I had considered friends. I know I will never forget what they did.

They are the rats who, rather than celebrating a remarkable football team, tried to drown it with a flood of lies, half-truths and propaganda.

I think if Mick Slater had sat with me at breakfast on Friday, and reflected on the fighting qualities of this state and its football team, he would have joined me in being a very proud man.