Last night we headed off to Maggie's again for a feed of spring rolls, fried rice, sweet and sour chicken, brocolli in oyster sauce and chilli prawns with a Tiger and Tsinghao beer.
The conference today was very high quality. The opening address was by Andy Hargreaves who mapped out his view of the Fourth Way that education ans schooling was entering. This requires principals to have an impossible dream for their school, to aactively seek public engagement, to involve students as partners in change and to deliver mindful learning and teaching. He outlined the three principles of professionalism of high quality teachers, powerful professionalism and lively learning communities. His 4 catalysts of coherence are sustainable leadership, schools-wide networks, responsibility before accountability and the development of targets together.
The next speaker was Michael Furdyk who has just turned 27. His address was inspirational who is a co-founder of TakingITGlobal.com which is a youth generated website which allows young people to actively contribute to changing the world. His goal is to make caring cool. His website and opportunities to contribute and design could easily be the basis for a full school curriculum. His web site www.tigweb.org and links to TakingITGlobal.com and teachers site www.TIGed.com will be compulsory visiting for those of us who intend to help redesign the Opotiki College curriculum.
I then attended a workshop entitled The Naked Principal which was run by an Irishman, Sean Cottrell, which looked at a model for a principal to gain feedback on his role from teachers, students and parents.
The next presentation was by Jane Bluestein on managing naughty kids. I did not hve high expectations of this presentation, but it was outstanding. In one hour she outlined 10 simple strategies which allow teachers to turn every interaction with difficult students in to a win-win situation, though it does require teachers to make all of the changes. Her view is that almost all poorly behaved students are 'non-traditional' learners that teachers need to teach differently. She aims to have teachers to work successfully with these students which means no punishing, no banishing, no failing and no not changing.
Her 10 steps briefly (all of which require much further investigation on her website) are:
1.Create win-win power dynamics
2.Offer choices within limits
3.Focus on positive consequences
4.Use boundaries instead of rules and punishments
5.Be consistent about follow-through
6.Focus on what they're doing right
7.Use recognition in place of praise or conditional approval
8.Increase success for all students
9.Eliminate double standards
10.Take care of yourself
I then wandered into a workshop on the NSW laptops in schools programme by mistake and got stuck there, so I had a bit of a rest.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Little India and Day One of Conference
On Sunday night we went to a local food hall for dinner where Leigh and I had a nice murtabak and Lucy became adventurous and tucked into a biryani. I think some more shopping was done and we got back home and I began watching the Wimbledon Final, got hooked and stuck with it until the end at 1.30am. What a game. It certainly showed that no matter how far you are behind you just simply have to win the next point! That simple!
On Monday morning I registered for the conference and on way back to the hotel bought a pair of Asics running shoes for $95. We then jumped on the underground and went to Little India where we visited Mustafa's and lost Lucy for 45 minutes which was a bit stressful. We calmed down by dining on somosas, dahl and a melon lassa (yoghurt drink).
That evening Leigh and I put on our glad rags and walked to the Esplanade (Singapore's version of the Sydney Opera House) for the opening concert. After a couple of glasses of wine and catching up with some kiwis we took our seats (three rows from the front) and were entertained for two hours by some awesome school orchestras, choirs, brass bands and dancers. I also got a chance to talk to Belinda who is the president of the local version of SPANZ who had hosted Terry and I last year.
We then met up with Lucy at a local Noodles Bar and dined on chilli chicken udang.
Today was the first day of the Conference which has 1500 participants. The highlight of this first day was the 60 minute opening address by the Prime Minister who outlined the Singaporean education journey and its strategy for the future. His catch cry is “Teach less, learn more.” He was outstanding and exhibited the type of leadership which is sadly lacking in our country. I plan to send the link of his address to John Key and Anne Tolley.
They have had a clear strategy which has included big pay rises for teachers in return for performance-based pay and class sizes of 40 students. They have now moved to reduce that to 30. They have aso ensured a strong base of support to schools from the central agency. Schools are also very well resourced. There was no talk at all of recession which seems to be the focus of any conversation in NZ from the government. Educational spending is rising by 5.5% this year!
There was also an excellent keynote from Sir Dexter Hutt (a knighthood for services to education!) who addressed the issue of 21st Century Leadership. He re-emphasised that we don't know what the best model is for a school of the 21st Century other than that it should be positioned to cope with change and that the curriculum should provide regular opportunities for students to research, work in teams and present to an audience. He also claimed that the most important qualities to develop in young people to prepare them for the future are self-confidence and self-esteem.
I then went to a disappointing workshop on Differentiated Instruction but I managed to design some more jigsaw puzzle pieces (the symbolism we use at Opotiki College to show the linked bits of the complex puzzle of effective schooling) to show the connections between curriculum, pedagogy and relationships.
Leigh and Lucy visited Orchard Rd and I think are a bit mall saturated but Lucy had a good go at a chicken curry. She's talking about Ipod prices!
Now we just have to plan dinner.
On Monday morning I registered for the conference and on way back to the hotel bought a pair of Asics running shoes for $95. We then jumped on the underground and went to Little India where we visited Mustafa's and lost Lucy for 45 minutes which was a bit stressful. We calmed down by dining on somosas, dahl and a melon lassa (yoghurt drink).
That evening Leigh and I put on our glad rags and walked to the Esplanade (Singapore's version of the Sydney Opera House) for the opening concert. After a couple of glasses of wine and catching up with some kiwis we took our seats (three rows from the front) and were entertained for two hours by some awesome school orchestras, choirs, brass bands and dancers. I also got a chance to talk to Belinda who is the president of the local version of SPANZ who had hosted Terry and I last year.
We then met up with Lucy at a local Noodles Bar and dined on chilli chicken udang.
Today was the first day of the Conference which has 1500 participants. The highlight of this first day was the 60 minute opening address by the Prime Minister who outlined the Singaporean education journey and its strategy for the future. His catch cry is “Teach less, learn more.” He was outstanding and exhibited the type of leadership which is sadly lacking in our country. I plan to send the link of his address to John Key and Anne Tolley.
They have had a clear strategy which has included big pay rises for teachers in return for performance-based pay and class sizes of 40 students. They have now moved to reduce that to 30. They have aso ensured a strong base of support to schools from the central agency. Schools are also very well resourced. There was no talk at all of recession which seems to be the focus of any conversation in NZ from the government. Educational spending is rising by 5.5% this year!
There was also an excellent keynote from Sir Dexter Hutt (a knighthood for services to education!) who addressed the issue of 21st Century Leadership. He re-emphasised that we don't know what the best model is for a school of the 21st Century other than that it should be positioned to cope with change and that the curriculum should provide regular opportunities for students to research, work in teams and present to an audience. He also claimed that the most important qualities to develop in young people to prepare them for the future are self-confidence and self-esteem.
I then went to a disappointing workshop on Differentiated Instruction but I managed to design some more jigsaw puzzle pieces (the symbolism we use at Opotiki College to show the linked bits of the complex puzzle of effective schooling) to show the connections between curriculum, pedagogy and relationships.
Leigh and Lucy visited Orchard Rd and I think are a bit mall saturated but Lucy had a good go at a chicken curry. She's talking about Ipod prices!
Now we just have to plan dinner.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Day 2 in Singapore
Sunday is our second full day in Singapore. It took quite a while to get the girls moving this morning, but we finally boarded our bus to Sentosa Island which is a fun-park-like resort.
We started with a luge ride, then took the pleasant nature walk down to the beach. It was very warm so we had a swim in the ocean along with lots of young people who are here for the Asian Youth Games and the beach volleyball which is being held on Sentosa.
After lunch we visited the Undersea World which is a bit like Kelly Tarltons.
On the way home it began to rain quite heavily. We got separated in SunTec but we all eventually made it home where we are resting before thinking about dinner.
Lucy is really enjoying herself and is doing a bit of shopping!
We started with a luge ride, then took the pleasant nature walk down to the beach. It was very warm so we had a swim in the ocean along with lots of young people who are here for the Asian Youth Games and the beach volleyball which is being held on Sentosa.
After lunch we visited the Undersea World which is a bit like Kelly Tarltons.
On the way home it began to rain quite heavily. We got separated in SunTec but we all eventually made it home where we are resting before thinking about dinner.
Lucy is really enjoying herself and is doing a bit of shopping!
Rotorua to Singapore
The NZQA workshop in Rotorua last Thursday was a little annoying. Some of my fears were allayed, but my concerns about the direction NCEA is moving have not been put to rest. All regular curriculum subjects will have any unit standards converted to achievement standards. There will be a greater weighting of internal standards (you will not be able to have more than three external standards in a subject). There will be 20 literacy and numeracy standards available below curriculum 6 level. Students wishing to take an alternative English or Maths pathway may be able to take a course made up of these standards, some US on Communication English and some L1 ASs. Gone are the opportunities to do USs at Level 2 or 3.
I believe the balance has gone too far towards credibility and away from accessibility. NCEA L1 is not the final qualification we are aiming for for our students and we are too angst ridden about it. We are much better served by ensuring as many students as possible gain L1 so that they are motivated to aim for L2 possibly over 2 years.
After that Leigh, Lucy and I drove to Hamilton and took Thomas out to the Curry Pot in Hamilton East for dinner. It was great to catch up with him. From there we drove to Auckland and crashed in our Airport Hotel.
Things went smoothly at the airport apart from the computer having difficulty recognising us which caused some consternation for the check-in people. The flight was straight forward, but struggled to sleep so was a bit long. Watched a couple of movies (Broken Flowers, Sunshine Cleaning and something else).
Lucy had her bag randomly xrayed at Singapore.
Our hotel is very flash (5 star I think) but they had fogotten Lucy was coming so we have had to get another bed squeezed in.
Yesterday was a very busy day. We bought a concession touring ticket which gave us 48 hours to do heaps. Yesterday we did the City Hop on Hop off bus tour, followed by the Duck tour in the bay, followed by the Heritage Hop on Hop off bus tour, followed by the River Boat tour, with time for a quick pint!
Our hotel is in the SunTec Towers area and borders the Fountain of Wealth (world's biggest fountain!) and we have never returned by the same route, often getting horribly lost in the crowds at Suntec.
We finally made it back and spent some time in and beside the pool.
At about 7.00pm we heasded off to the Singapore Flyer (35m taller than the London Eye!) where we had a great view of the dress rehearsal fireworks for National Day celebrations occuring next month.
All day soldiers in tanks, pilots in helicopters and jets, and sailors in boats have been charging around practicing for the celebrations. They do this every Saturday to make sure they get it right on the day.
After our Singapore Flyer ride we wandered over to Beach Rd and had a great feed at Maggie's Restaurant. We ate there twice last year and really enjoyed it. We had chicken and cashew, hot plate beef and ginger, spring rolls and bok choy. All washed down with a cold Tiger Beer.
Got home in time to see the last 30 minutes of the Lions South Africa test and crashed.
I believe the balance has gone too far towards credibility and away from accessibility. NCEA L1 is not the final qualification we are aiming for for our students and we are too angst ridden about it. We are much better served by ensuring as many students as possible gain L1 so that they are motivated to aim for L2 possibly over 2 years.
After that Leigh, Lucy and I drove to Hamilton and took Thomas out to the Curry Pot in Hamilton East for dinner. It was great to catch up with him. From there we drove to Auckland and crashed in our Airport Hotel.
Things went smoothly at the airport apart from the computer having difficulty recognising us which caused some consternation for the check-in people. The flight was straight forward, but struggled to sleep so was a bit long. Watched a couple of movies (Broken Flowers, Sunshine Cleaning and something else).
Lucy had her bag randomly xrayed at Singapore.
Our hotel is very flash (5 star I think) but they had fogotten Lucy was coming so we have had to get another bed squeezed in.
Yesterday was a very busy day. We bought a concession touring ticket which gave us 48 hours to do heaps. Yesterday we did the City Hop on Hop off bus tour, followed by the Duck tour in the bay, followed by the Heritage Hop on Hop off bus tour, followed by the River Boat tour, with time for a quick pint!
Our hotel is in the SunTec Towers area and borders the Fountain of Wealth (world's biggest fountain!) and we have never returned by the same route, often getting horribly lost in the crowds at Suntec.
We finally made it back and spent some time in and beside the pool.
At about 7.00pm we heasded off to the Singapore Flyer (35m taller than the London Eye!) where we had a great view of the dress rehearsal fireworks for National Day celebrations occuring next month.
All day soldiers in tanks, pilots in helicopters and jets, and sailors in boats have been charging around practicing for the celebrations. They do this every Saturday to make sure they get it right on the day.
After our Singapore Flyer ride we wandered over to Beach Rd and had a great feed at Maggie's Restaurant. We ate there twice last year and really enjoyed it. We had chicken and cashew, hot plate beef and ginger, spring rolls and bok choy. All washed down with a cold Tiger Beer.
Got home in time to see the last 30 minutes of the Lions South Africa test and crashed.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Head Student Lunch
I have just finished having lunch with 5 of my head students (Tara, Rita, Kayla, Chad and Quentin). We try to meet every week on a Friday, but I have had a lot of meetings and courses on a Friday so we hadn't met for awhile so I took them to Two Fish.
We had a great conversation with each explaining how they were tracking towards their qualifications and their planning for next year. We have a couple heading into Health Sciences, one into the Navy, one into engineering and one into writing. What a neat bunch with great aspirations.
The best conversation was the didcussion about our recent Three Day Wananga. I know not all of them were in favour of the programme but in responding to their questions I found myself explaining my vision for the school and schooling in general in the clearest way.
All of us, students and teachers, have been locked in by the shackles of three years of high stakes qualifications which promotes credit gathering to a higher level than learning. I really enjoyed talking about this with them. I explained that we could ignore the form of assessment and get into learning and it wouldn't matter what the assessment tool was they would still be able to prove their understanding. The tragedy is that the way we structure the learning now a chunk of kids cope successfully with the qualifications system, but another chunk don't. I believe if we packaged the learning in a model similar to the Three Day Wananga all of the time, these brightest kids would still be able to prove their learning, but just as importantly the rest of the kids would have more opportunity to do so as well.
At the moment, all it seems we can manage is tinkering around.
I had a good meeting with our Ahi Kaa team last night (piloting an integrated, home room approach). I was abit despondent before the meeting, but came away re-enthused as the group talked about how they could see it working better next year. They have committed to a project-based approach in Term IV when they have "permission" to abandon the traditional curriculum altogether.
Their thinking for next year includes trialling with two classes and having two teachers teaching the full core to each class. I like the sound of it. Now...... all I need is another dedicated room, some passionate staff wanting to work harder than every one else with no extra time and with really tight budgets. Should be easy!
We had a great conversation with each explaining how they were tracking towards their qualifications and their planning for next year. We have a couple heading into Health Sciences, one into the Navy, one into engineering and one into writing. What a neat bunch with great aspirations.
The best conversation was the didcussion about our recent Three Day Wananga. I know not all of them were in favour of the programme but in responding to their questions I found myself explaining my vision for the school and schooling in general in the clearest way.
All of us, students and teachers, have been locked in by the shackles of three years of high stakes qualifications which promotes credit gathering to a higher level than learning. I really enjoyed talking about this with them. I explained that we could ignore the form of assessment and get into learning and it wouldn't matter what the assessment tool was they would still be able to prove their understanding. The tragedy is that the way we structure the learning now a chunk of kids cope successfully with the qualifications system, but another chunk don't. I believe if we packaged the learning in a model similar to the Three Day Wananga all of the time, these brightest kids would still be able to prove their learning, but just as importantly the rest of the kids would have more opportunity to do so as well.
At the moment, all it seems we can manage is tinkering around.
I had a good meeting with our Ahi Kaa team last night (piloting an integrated, home room approach). I was abit despondent before the meeting, but came away re-enthused as the group talked about how they could see it working better next year. They have committed to a project-based approach in Term IV when they have "permission" to abandon the traditional curriculum altogether.
Their thinking for next year includes trialling with two classes and having two teachers teaching the full core to each class. I like the sound of it. Now...... all I need is another dedicated room, some passionate staff wanting to work harder than every one else with no extra time and with really tight budgets. Should be easy!
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Three Day Wananga
Last week we had a great learning time at our school when we held our first ever Three Day Wananga. This involved suspending our timetable for three days while students worked in multi age learning teams to complete a range of projects. We operated this within our House System to both generate more House Spirit and to make the organisation manageable.
Four weeks ago we held a Teacher Only Day to which students were invited (about 30 turned up!) when teachers decided on the learning projects they would offer. We then held House meetings and explained the projects to the kids who then selected which one they wanted to do. The House Leaders did a great job in running this process. Each House had a budget of $1000 to allocate as they saw fit.
On the Friday before staff had time together at our staff meeting and a further House meeting was held. It then kicked off over Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of the following week.
The projects included The Amazing Race, Beach Conservation, Reporting Events, Healthy Living and Fitness, T Shirt Design, Graffiti Art, Carved Mural, Mucking In On the Marae, Our Land Our Environment, Fitness Freaks, Life and Death For The Bush, Pests and Plants, Opo Col On Air, NZ's Next Top Shakespeare, Mountain Bike Track Clearing, News Broadcasts, Creating a School Sculpture, Boot Camp, Traditional Food Processes, Documentary of Katherine Mansfield, and Stories in Fabric.
We did a lot of learning process and structure wise. In the future we would have a set interval and lunch time as by making it flexible there were too many gaps in the fence for kids to move through. We would also have a tutor each morning to get an accurate attendance check. Unfortunately the Ministry of Education chose this week to do the nation-wide attendance survey! Normally our kids are not allowed off site at breaks, but with so many groups operating in and out of school this was impossible to enforce so we would have to think about that in the future. Also, because of the practical nature of many of the activities mufti was the best solution.
I have finished analysing the evaluations made by staff and have only partially completed the evaluations collected from 200 of our students (36%). The staff evaluations showed that 50% believed there was enough time given to prepare, 50% believed they were given enough guidance and support, 80% believed they were well-prepared, 86% believed there project was a valid learning experience, 97% believed their students largely responded positively, 92% believed they covered more than one Key Competency, and 81% believed they achieved their planned outcomes. I wonder if we would achieve these levels if we surveyed our traditional way of teaching and learning!
Staff have made suggestions for enhancing this programme and also made many positive comments supporting this type of learning including: high levels of student engagement, great student-student and teacher-student relationships formed, seeing students who often appear disinterested at school truly engaged in their activities, students achieved beyond expectations, it was a time of real discovery for me, senior students working as role models with juniors.
The big question is where to from here?
Four weeks ago we held a Teacher Only Day to which students were invited (about 30 turned up!) when teachers decided on the learning projects they would offer. We then held House meetings and explained the projects to the kids who then selected which one they wanted to do. The House Leaders did a great job in running this process. Each House had a budget of $1000 to allocate as they saw fit.
On the Friday before staff had time together at our staff meeting and a further House meeting was held. It then kicked off over Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of the following week.
The projects included The Amazing Race, Beach Conservation, Reporting Events, Healthy Living and Fitness, T Shirt Design, Graffiti Art, Carved Mural, Mucking In On the Marae, Our Land Our Environment, Fitness Freaks, Life and Death For The Bush, Pests and Plants, Opo Col On Air, NZ's Next Top Shakespeare, Mountain Bike Track Clearing, News Broadcasts, Creating a School Sculpture, Boot Camp, Traditional Food Processes, Documentary of Katherine Mansfield, and Stories in Fabric.
We did a lot of learning process and structure wise. In the future we would have a set interval and lunch time as by making it flexible there were too many gaps in the fence for kids to move through. We would also have a tutor each morning to get an accurate attendance check. Unfortunately the Ministry of Education chose this week to do the nation-wide attendance survey! Normally our kids are not allowed off site at breaks, but with so many groups operating in and out of school this was impossible to enforce so we would have to think about that in the future. Also, because of the practical nature of many of the activities mufti was the best solution.
I have finished analysing the evaluations made by staff and have only partially completed the evaluations collected from 200 of our students (36%). The staff evaluations showed that 50% believed there was enough time given to prepare, 50% believed they were given enough guidance and support, 80% believed they were well-prepared, 86% believed there project was a valid learning experience, 97% believed their students largely responded positively, 92% believed they covered more than one Key Competency, and 81% believed they achieved their planned outcomes. I wonder if we would achieve these levels if we surveyed our traditional way of teaching and learning!
Staff have made suggestions for enhancing this programme and also made many positive comments supporting this type of learning including: high levels of student engagement, great student-student and teacher-student relationships formed, seeing students who often appear disinterested at school truly engaged in their activities, students achieved beyond expectations, it was a time of real discovery for me, senior students working as role models with juniors.
The big question is where to from here?
Monday, June 15, 2009
Learning Matters
Before the last election I expressed some concerns about National Party education policy. My concerns were focused on the policy in relation to national testing of primary and intermediate students. My observations on my sabbatical last year convinced me this was a flawed policy which had not contributed to increased achievement any where that it had been tried.
My concerns right now are quite different and announcements since the recent budget have made me feel we are in a state of siege from this government. Three different pieces of correspondence that I have received over the last 2 weeks threaten schools in general and make it particularly difficult for Opotiki College.
The first concerns the Extending High Standards Across Schools contract we have with the Ministry of Education. This is a contract we have to support 9 of our contributing primary schools to adopt restorative practices so that students feel less alienated from schooling and are able to engage more effectively with their learning. We are in our second year of a four year contract and we have recently been able to gain some traction.
In the first year we trained all principals, senior teachers and some BOT members. This year we extended our training to more teaching staff and have begun to form implementation teams within all schools.
I have just been informed that the contract is going to be terminated at the end of this year and all funding withdrawn. This puts seriously at risk the progress that we have made in our community of schools.
The next piece of correspondence informed us that Adult and Community Education is going to be slashed by 80%. Schools will only be able to offer community classes in literacy and numeracy. Gone are all the skills and interest based courses that help build our community and provide life-long learning opportunities for anyone from our community regardless of their educational background.
This is going to have a huge impact on our community.
To make matters worse our local Council proposed to abandon their 30 year contribution of $7500 to provide reception and administrative support for our Community Activities Office. After making a submission it appears that they will continue to provide support if the governement continues to provide Adult and Community Education funding.
So our local Council is doubling the impact by saying they will qwithdraw support if government provided support is withdrawn. Surely this is the time when the community needs to rally and look for ways to increase rather than reduce support!
The third, and most probably not the last piece of correspondence, informs us that staffing will be reduced by 1.5% at the end of 2010. This will mean one less teacher at Opotiki College. This may not seem much but at the moment our BOT is funding 2 extra teachers to support our curriculum. This is a high cost and cannot be sustained. The BOT will certainly not be able to support a further position.
While making these cuts the government has said it will provide $35 million for the private school sector!
The public education sector is under attack from this government and we are starting to reel. Education and learning is the key to our contry's and the Opotiki community's future: learning matters.
My concerns right now are quite different and announcements since the recent budget have made me feel we are in a state of siege from this government. Three different pieces of correspondence that I have received over the last 2 weeks threaten schools in general and make it particularly difficult for Opotiki College.
The first concerns the Extending High Standards Across Schools contract we have with the Ministry of Education. This is a contract we have to support 9 of our contributing primary schools to adopt restorative practices so that students feel less alienated from schooling and are able to engage more effectively with their learning. We are in our second year of a four year contract and we have recently been able to gain some traction.
In the first year we trained all principals, senior teachers and some BOT members. This year we extended our training to more teaching staff and have begun to form implementation teams within all schools.
I have just been informed that the contract is going to be terminated at the end of this year and all funding withdrawn. This puts seriously at risk the progress that we have made in our community of schools.
The next piece of correspondence informed us that Adult and Community Education is going to be slashed by 80%. Schools will only be able to offer community classes in literacy and numeracy. Gone are all the skills and interest based courses that help build our community and provide life-long learning opportunities for anyone from our community regardless of their educational background.
This is going to have a huge impact on our community.
To make matters worse our local Council proposed to abandon their 30 year contribution of $7500 to provide reception and administrative support for our Community Activities Office. After making a submission it appears that they will continue to provide support if the governement continues to provide Adult and Community Education funding.
So our local Council is doubling the impact by saying they will qwithdraw support if government provided support is withdrawn. Surely this is the time when the community needs to rally and look for ways to increase rather than reduce support!
The third, and most probably not the last piece of correspondence, informs us that staffing will be reduced by 1.5% at the end of 2010. This will mean one less teacher at Opotiki College. This may not seem much but at the moment our BOT is funding 2 extra teachers to support our curriculum. This is a high cost and cannot be sustained. The BOT will certainly not be able to support a further position.
While making these cuts the government has said it will provide $35 million for the private school sector!
The public education sector is under attack from this government and we are starting to reel. Education and learning is the key to our contry's and the Opotiki community's future: learning matters.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Final Conference Notes - Part Two
After getting off the ferry I decided to take the skytrain to the BC Stadium and visit the Sports Hall of Fame. When I got there I saw it cost $10 and didn't look that flash so I gave it a miss. I was looking for some present for Lucy who is quite hard to buy for. I then walked back along a main shopping street to my hotel stopping to check out music on the way.
I then decided to do a run around Stanley Park which I thought would be about 8k,in fact it was 10k. It's a great place to run, beside the sea all the way around and under Lion Bridge which links to Nprth Vancouver. Near the end of the run there were a few beaches which were packed solid with people. You had to watch when running because there are hundreds of rollerbladers and cyclists charging around as well.
When I got back to the main beach it was packed but no one was in the water. I couldn't figure out why so I leapt in anyway. It wasn't too cold but quite murky. After drying off I headed back to the hotel and began packing my bags. At about 7.30 I picked up a kebab and headed to the beach for tea where the boys from Kaiapoi found me. We chatted on the beach until the sun went down just before 10.00.
The next morning I joined them and Tim from Hamilton for coffee and breakfast before I had to head off to the airport. Thankfully at the airport I found a Winter Olympics bag for Lucy and when I arrived at LA I texted her and bought some LA T shirts which I thought she might like.
Unfortunately the plane from LA left late. I had a spare seat beside me and got quite a bit of sleep during the 13 hour long haul. About an hour before the end they realised I was going to struggle to make my connection to Whakatane so moved me into Premium Economy to be closer to the door. I wish they had done that earlier!
I had a mad sprint to the domestic and after some check in hassles made my plane only to arrive at Whakatane 15 minutes before Leigh!
It was good to be home!
I then decided to do a run around Stanley Park which I thought would be about 8k,in fact it was 10k. It's a great place to run, beside the sea all the way around and under Lion Bridge which links to Nprth Vancouver. Near the end of the run there were a few beaches which were packed solid with people. You had to watch when running because there are hundreds of rollerbladers and cyclists charging around as well.
When I got back to the main beach it was packed but no one was in the water. I couldn't figure out why so I leapt in anyway. It wasn't too cold but quite murky. After drying off I headed back to the hotel and began packing my bags. At about 7.30 I picked up a kebab and headed to the beach for tea where the boys from Kaiapoi found me. We chatted on the beach until the sun went down just before 10.00.
The next morning I joined them and Tim from Hamilton for coffee and breakfast before I had to head off to the airport. Thankfully at the airport I found a Winter Olympics bag for Lucy and when I arrived at LA I texted her and bought some LA T shirts which I thought she might like.
Unfortunately the plane from LA left late. I had a spare seat beside me and got quite a bit of sleep during the 13 hour long haul. About an hour before the end they realised I was going to struggle to make my connection to Whakatane so moved me into Premium Economy to be closer to the door. I wish they had done that earlier!
I had a mad sprint to the domestic and after some check in hassles made my plane only to arrive at Whakatane 15 minutes before Leigh!
It was good to be home!
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Final Conference Notes - Part One
The Conference dinner was pretty good with great company, beautiful food and a disappointing guest speaker. At times, the conference has been a bit earnest with not enough celebration and humour. The dinner was when we should have had such a speaker. The band was great and a group of us danced most of the night.
My presentation was in the final slot on the final day and it went down very well. Lots came up afterwards to ask questions and to get my business card (which I later found had an error on it!). I was the invited to be part of a panel at the final conference session to answer questions from Howard Zehr on our thoughts of the conference. That was OK, but some of the academics on the panel pissed me off as they rambled on using long words. I mentioned that when I could get a word in!
That night the New Zealanders, and Aussie Glenn, went to a Japanese restaurant to plan our hosting of the conference in 2011. The food was outstanding and the conversation great.
The next morning I jumped on the hop on hop off bus and began a tour of the city. The tour was quite disappointing and I got off at the ferry terminal and cruised across the harbour to North Vancouver and boarded a bus for the 20 minute ride to Grouse Mountain. It was a very hot day - about 32 degrees (in fact the whole week has been great weather).
I enjoyed a cramped gondola ride up the mountain and discovered myself surrounded by large patches of snow. I spotted a bear in its cage then caught the ski lift to the summit. The views were outstanding and I was disappointed I didn't buy a ticket for the massive flying fox ride that looked quite terrifying.
After a nice coffee and some souvenir buying I headed down in the gondola, back on the bus and then over on the ferry again.
My presentation was in the final slot on the final day and it went down very well. Lots came up afterwards to ask questions and to get my business card (which I later found had an error on it!). I was the invited to be part of a panel at the final conference session to answer questions from Howard Zehr on our thoughts of the conference. That was OK, but some of the academics on the panel pissed me off as they rambled on using long words. I mentioned that when I could get a word in!
That night the New Zealanders, and Aussie Glenn, went to a Japanese restaurant to plan our hosting of the conference in 2011. The food was outstanding and the conversation great.
The next morning I jumped on the hop on hop off bus and began a tour of the city. The tour was quite disappointing and I got off at the ferry terminal and cruised across the harbour to North Vancouver and boarded a bus for the 20 minute ride to Grouse Mountain. It was a very hot day - about 32 degrees (in fact the whole week has been great weather).
I enjoyed a cramped gondola ride up the mountain and discovered myself surrounded by large patches of snow. I spotted a bear in its cage then caught the ski lift to the summit. The views were outstanding and I was disappointed I didn't buy a ticket for the massive flying fox ride that looked quite terrifying.
After a nice coffee and some souvenir buying I headed down in the gondola, back on the bus and then over on the ferry again.
Friday, June 5, 2009
Leaving Vancouver
Check out my last lot of photos. Fuller story to come. These photos are of the Kiwis dining together on last night of conference as we begin the planning process to host the next conference in two years time! There are laso photos on this link of my visit to Grouse Mountain and my run around Stanley Park. It's now 12.30am and I need some sleep before the long haul home beginning tomorrow.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Squirrels
Can you see the squirrel in the garden outside the front door. Opotiki Opossums feel kinship!
Conference going OK. The best workshop so far was by Greg and Richard from Kaiapoi who have some wonderful PD activities to work with staff to keep the process moving along. Another dude, Ken Pierce, who seems slightly crazy in a good way, challenged us to look at bullying (and any traumatic incidents) in a different way. Start by asking victims what have been the good things for them about the incident! Sounds weird but he explained things well and I bought his book.
The conference dinner is on tonight and the final day is tomorrow with my presentation in the last workshop session in the afternoon!
Have met some great people, including a further meeting with Howard Zehr the acknowleged founder of Restorative Justice as an area of study. We presented together a couple of years ago in Auckland. He has used some of my material in his work and wants an updated copy of our Restorative Handbook for staff!!!! The boys from Kaiapoi had to acknowledge me in their presentation because their workbook was heavily based on ours, but quite enhanced so I will steal some ideas back!!!
For those who miss my normal food postings will be glad to know I had a beautiful Malaysian takeaway on the beach last night.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Vancouver Photos
This photo sort of shows how steep the climb was this morning. The rest of the photos are a bit boring, but they show the beach at the end of my road, the view from my hotel balcony (tall buildings, some sea, mountains with snow). The other photo is of Richard (from Kaiapoi) and Sharon (Welshwoman from Howick). We had a kebab on the beach at 9.30pm after the conference opening.
I'm a bit worried about the number of presenters here compared with the number of attendees!
I'm a bit worried about the number of presenters here compared with the number of attendees!
24 Hours in Vancouver
All phone and laptop issues have been resolved. I can now make and receive calls, but cannot send or receive texts!!!
I spent hours trying to get EEEPC left mouse button to work. I emailed ASUS and they told me to reboot which meant I lost everything (thankfully I copied my photos first) and it still didn't work. I then prised the button off the computer without breaking it and cleaned it. It now works. Must've been Lucy or Leigh eating biscuits over it.
Yesterday afternoon (Sat) I strolled to the info centre then onto Steamworks which is a brewery/bar/restaurant. I started with a pint of India Pale Ale (was the best), followed by a pint of Pale Ale and then 1/2 pint of Porter (very nice). At this point I started talking to strangers and realised on slightly older than me couple wanted to buy me drinks and go out for a meal with them. They were pretty jolly so I declined and wobbled my way back to Hotel. By now Tina and I had missed each other three times on phone.
I then headed down the road and found a Vietnamese restaurant and sat at my table for one and had beautiful calamari, spicy chicken and a Canadian beer. I was now 'tired' so went home to bed.
I was about to leave my room at 9.00 for a run around Stanley Park when Tina rang and arranged to pick me up at 10.30 for a MTB ride. I dashed out for a quick brakfast of fruit and bagel (without the fruit because they forgot it but didn't charge me anyway.) Must be something to do with my accent as at lunch today I ordered a bacon and mushroom filo and they tried to give me a vegetarian one!
Tina picked me up and drove skillfully for about 45 minutes to SFU (Simon Fraser University). I had Greg's bike and I forgot to see what it was, but it was very nice! Brakes are on the other side though!
We started off with some very gnarly, gentle uphill single track - lots of roots, rocks, narrow bridges etc - and I only fell on my broken rib side once as I couldn't unclip. After about 20 minutes of that we had a steep granny gear climb up a gravel road to the top - about 30-40 minutes steeper than Amokura and it was very hot. Who told me it was going to be cold over here?
Then the fun started! From there there was about 20-30 minutes of downhill single track with the aforementioned rocks and roots and narrow bridges with some high drop offs thrown in. Once I realised the bike could cope with anything in its path I relaxed and only dismounted twice.
I was absolutely buggared but it was a great ride. No bears or cougars! I took my camera and only took one photo. Tina just kept going!
Tina took a wrong turn on the way back and we headed off in the wrong direction, but we soon got back.
Will post a couple of photos later.
I've registered and am about to head down to the welcome.
I spent hours trying to get EEEPC left mouse button to work. I emailed ASUS and they told me to reboot which meant I lost everything (thankfully I copied my photos first) and it still didn't work. I then prised the button off the computer without breaking it and cleaned it. It now works. Must've been Lucy or Leigh eating biscuits over it.
Yesterday afternoon (Sat) I strolled to the info centre then onto Steamworks which is a brewery/bar/restaurant. I started with a pint of India Pale Ale (was the best), followed by a pint of Pale Ale and then 1/2 pint of Porter (very nice). At this point I started talking to strangers and realised on slightly older than me couple wanted to buy me drinks and go out for a meal with them. They were pretty jolly so I declined and wobbled my way back to Hotel. By now Tina and I had missed each other three times on phone.
I then headed down the road and found a Vietnamese restaurant and sat at my table for one and had beautiful calamari, spicy chicken and a Canadian beer. I was now 'tired' so went home to bed.
I was about to leave my room at 9.00 for a run around Stanley Park when Tina rang and arranged to pick me up at 10.30 for a MTB ride. I dashed out for a quick brakfast of fruit and bagel (without the fruit because they forgot it but didn't charge me anyway.) Must be something to do with my accent as at lunch today I ordered a bacon and mushroom filo and they tried to give me a vegetarian one!
Tina picked me up and drove skillfully for about 45 minutes to SFU (Simon Fraser University). I had Greg's bike and I forgot to see what it was, but it was very nice! Brakes are on the other side though!
We started off with some very gnarly, gentle uphill single track - lots of roots, rocks, narrow bridges etc - and I only fell on my broken rib side once as I couldn't unclip. After about 20 minutes of that we had a steep granny gear climb up a gravel road to the top - about 30-40 minutes steeper than Amokura and it was very hot. Who told me it was going to be cold over here?
Then the fun started! From there there was about 20-30 minutes of downhill single track with the aforementioned rocks and roots and narrow bridges with some high drop offs thrown in. Once I realised the bike could cope with anything in its path I relaxed and only dismounted twice.
I was absolutely buggared but it was a great ride. No bears or cougars! I took my camera and only took one photo. Tina just kept going!
Tina took a wrong turn on the way back and we headed off in the wrong direction, but we soon got back.
Will post a couple of photos later.
I've registered and am about to head down to the welcome.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
In Vancouver
After what seemed days and days I have arrived in Vancouver before I left!
I had trouble sleeping on the flight to LA mainly because there were too many neat films to watch. I saw the Topp Twins, then The Reader, tried to sleep and then two episodes of Go Girls (I should have been watching that at home).
Terry, I had a pizza in the same place at LA airport!
The flight to Vancouver was OK as I had 2 seats to myself. I dozed most of the way but enjoyed a great view coming in towards Vancouver. We touched down at about 9.00pm (still light) and got to hotel at about 10.00pm.
I can't get my phone to work, though it worked in USA and my EEEPC laptop is playing up and the cursor/button combo doesn't work and everything has to be done with tab and arrows. Did this once before and I can't remember how I fixed it!?
Slept till 11.00am and have just finished a walk along the sea front and a bagel and fruit lunch with a surprisingly nice coffee. It's very summery, about 22 degrees, with a cool wind.
I'm going to try to solve the phone and laptop problems by visiting their websites and then go for a jog along sea front and through Stanley Park.
I had trouble sleeping on the flight to LA mainly because there were too many neat films to watch. I saw the Topp Twins, then The Reader, tried to sleep and then two episodes of Go Girls (I should have been watching that at home).
Terry, I had a pizza in the same place at LA airport!
The flight to Vancouver was OK as I had 2 seats to myself. I dozed most of the way but enjoyed a great view coming in towards Vancouver. We touched down at about 9.00pm (still light) and got to hotel at about 10.00pm.
I can't get my phone to work, though it worked in USA and my EEEPC laptop is playing up and the cursor/button combo doesn't work and everything has to be done with tab and arrows. Did this once before and I can't remember how I fixed it!?
Slept till 11.00am and have just finished a walk along the sea front and a bagel and fruit lunch with a surprisingly nice coffee. It's very summery, about 22 degrees, with a cool wind.
I'm going to try to solve the phone and laptop problems by visiting their websites and then go for a jog along sea front and through Stanley Park.
Monday, May 25, 2009
Off To Vancouver
Well, this Friday this country boy jumps on the plane and goes to Vancouver to run a workshop at the International Restorative Practices Conference in Vancouver. He's a little nervous and a lot excited.
I'm a bit nervous about taking off by myself without either my mate, Terry, or my wife, Leigh. I'm also a bit nervous about making sure the workshop is one of quality as I know I am one of the first to complain if a workshop or presentation is poor!
I am excited because I think it is a huge honour for our wee school to get this recognition. It's another reminder that the work we are doing in managing student conflict in such a positive manner is world-leading stuff - and we need to remind ourselves of that from time-to-time!
I'll keep you posted.
I'm a bit nervous about taking off by myself without either my mate, Terry, or my wife, Leigh. I'm also a bit nervous about making sure the workshop is one of quality as I know I am one of the first to complain if a workshop or presentation is poor!
I am excited because I think it is a huge honour for our wee school to get this recognition. It's another reminder that the work we are doing in managing student conflict in such a positive manner is world-leading stuff - and we need to remind ourselves of that from time-to-time!
I'll keep you posted.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Adventure Race Success!
What a great sense of satisfaction and achievement! This was a very challenging event but our team, Opotiki Opossums, comprising myself, Lea, Barry and Trevor just stuck at it and completed the event in just over 27 hours.
It was exciting setting up camp the night before. We even managed to pick up the course notes at 5.00 and had the course plotted by 7.00. Barry, Lea and I headed into New World Kawerau where we made use of Dave's computer and printer to print maps and calculate distances. We were in bed by 10.30. 3 hours ahead of last year's schedule.
The raw stats are: 24 teams entered, 6 pulled out (25% attrition!), we crossed the line 18th out of 18, but our bonuses for finding checkpoints moved us to 14th! Our goal, established by Captain Possum, Barry, was to finish 15th or better! Goal achieved!
We started with a kayak on Lake Tarawera where we headed along the north side to a mark and then across the lake heading towards the track to Rotomahana. One check point was abandoned by the organisers because they were concerned the conditions would deteriorate. The paddle across the lake worried me but the conditions in hindsight were very good. I can't wait to get more confident in my boat! Lea paddled strongly to lead us across the lake. We then trekked over to Rotomahana to pick up a checkpoint and then back to our kayaks. We decided then to miss the next two checkpoints and head back to the transition at the camp where we started, picking up 2 check points on the way.
It was great to see Marg, Joc, Kate and Lyn joining our support crew of Leigh and Ted at the transition. George provided great support as well.
Thankfully we missed the rogaine and headed off on the first trek in about 3rd place! We trekked along the shore towards Okataina picking up all checkpoints before we took a bearing and headed straight up the bluff! Apart from one small error when we shouldhave listened to Trevor we navigated very well and picked up the next checkpoint. This was followed by a clamber down a dry canyon to the Tarawera River and a tramp along the river bank to the falls carpark. On the way I elected to do the swim across the river, scramble up the rocks to collect a checkpoint and return. It was only when I dived in the river on return that I remembered I still had my glasses on.
We had a bit of a boost after our 6 hour trek to see our supporters now joined by Lucy, Kurt and Hine as we transitioned onto MTBs just as the sun was setting. We were about 30 minutes behind the A Team of Destry, Karl, Hedley and Teleri. They looked to be going really well.
The MTB leg was a low point for most of our team though Lea seemed to cope OK with it. She did have some almost falling asleep moments. I thought this leg might take 3 hours as it was only 60ks!
It took us almost 7 hours. It was dark. It rained some of the time. The fog came in. There was lots of climbing. The roads were made of sandy pumice. Our lights were useless. I forgot my gells. I was sick of bars. It was relentless!
We decided to miss the first checkpoint but when it looked like we might decide to miss the next one I suggested it was the compulsory one, so we headed off-road and Barry and I eventually found it. We seemed to be back on track again as we turned north and headed largely downhill towards Kawerau from near Rerewakaiatu.
We eventually ended up at the shooting range where I hit 5 from 5!!! Barry missed one and blamed my minder for bumping him. The others got 5 from 5 too! A Highlight! This lifted my spirits a bit and we headed off through farmland, took a wrong turn and rode through the streets of Kawerau at 11.00pm to finally reach transition at Tui Glen where we were fed and looked after by Ted and Leigh.
Our spirits started to lift as we made the midnight deadline. We were saddened to see the A team come in and Hedley, who had had a big cold all week and Teleri who was a bit knackered after 17 hours had to pull out. It was good to have destry and Karl join us for the final trek.
So at midnight, after ODing on Coke the 6 of us headed off aiming for the Rotoma highway which had a deadline of 3.00am. Once again, our navigation through difficult country was spot ona nd we arrived at the checkpoint at 2.30am where they tried to convince us to pull out as most teams were taking 8 hours from there to the finish. After a great feed of soup, biscuits and coffee I asked each of the other 5 if they wished to continue. They all wanted to go on so off we went. Not too far down the track Destry and Karl pulled the pin and headed back, The country on the map looked difficult.
The four of us pressed on and we made very good progress and navigated really well picking up all of the checkpoints. A bit of hallucinating was going on, but I insisted on regular food stops and we made the last manned checkpoint at 7.30am. Unfortunately we still had 2 hours of walking to the Falls carpark and then back along the Tarawera Falls track to the finish.
The falls are outstanding and were worth another look! I found the last hour and half the most difficult and began to flag abit. It was awesome to be met by Aaron and George on the track 500m from the finish and then to see Leigh and Ted on the bridge as we finished after 27 hours.
It was a challenging and brutal event. There were moments when we all struggled and we all had low points, but our team morale was strong. Barry did a great job making sure everyone was going OK and even during his low moment on the MTB kept the navigating going. Lea kept the positive vibe going throughout the full race and the silly things she said kept the humour level high. Trevor was simply outstanding in the bush. He can sniff his way and end up in the right place.
We all won a spot prize! Leigh and Ted were great support crew and we dined on great stew and soup!
Best one I've ever done! Never felt the broken rib either! Told you that wouldn't stop me!
Check the other photos.
It was exciting setting up camp the night before. We even managed to pick up the course notes at 5.00 and had the course plotted by 7.00. Barry, Lea and I headed into New World Kawerau where we made use of Dave's computer and printer to print maps and calculate distances. We were in bed by 10.30. 3 hours ahead of last year's schedule.
The raw stats are: 24 teams entered, 6 pulled out (25% attrition!), we crossed the line 18th out of 18, but our bonuses for finding checkpoints moved us to 14th! Our goal, established by Captain Possum, Barry, was to finish 15th or better! Goal achieved!
We started with a kayak on Lake Tarawera where we headed along the north side to a mark and then across the lake heading towards the track to Rotomahana. One check point was abandoned by the organisers because they were concerned the conditions would deteriorate. The paddle across the lake worried me but the conditions in hindsight were very good. I can't wait to get more confident in my boat! Lea paddled strongly to lead us across the lake. We then trekked over to Rotomahana to pick up a checkpoint and then back to our kayaks. We decided then to miss the next two checkpoints and head back to the transition at the camp where we started, picking up 2 check points on the way.
It was great to see Marg, Joc, Kate and Lyn joining our support crew of Leigh and Ted at the transition. George provided great support as well.
Thankfully we missed the rogaine and headed off on the first trek in about 3rd place! We trekked along the shore towards Okataina picking up all checkpoints before we took a bearing and headed straight up the bluff! Apart from one small error when we shouldhave listened to Trevor we navigated very well and picked up the next checkpoint. This was followed by a clamber down a dry canyon to the Tarawera River and a tramp along the river bank to the falls carpark. On the way I elected to do the swim across the river, scramble up the rocks to collect a checkpoint and return. It was only when I dived in the river on return that I remembered I still had my glasses on.
We had a bit of a boost after our 6 hour trek to see our supporters now joined by Lucy, Kurt and Hine as we transitioned onto MTBs just as the sun was setting. We were about 30 minutes behind the A Team of Destry, Karl, Hedley and Teleri. They looked to be going really well.
The MTB leg was a low point for most of our team though Lea seemed to cope OK with it. She did have some almost falling asleep moments. I thought this leg might take 3 hours as it was only 60ks!
It took us almost 7 hours. It was dark. It rained some of the time. The fog came in. There was lots of climbing. The roads were made of sandy pumice. Our lights were useless. I forgot my gells. I was sick of bars. It was relentless!
We decided to miss the first checkpoint but when it looked like we might decide to miss the next one I suggested it was the compulsory one, so we headed off-road and Barry and I eventually found it. We seemed to be back on track again as we turned north and headed largely downhill towards Kawerau from near Rerewakaiatu.
We eventually ended up at the shooting range where I hit 5 from 5!!! Barry missed one and blamed my minder for bumping him. The others got 5 from 5 too! A Highlight! This lifted my spirits a bit and we headed off through farmland, took a wrong turn and rode through the streets of Kawerau at 11.00pm to finally reach transition at Tui Glen where we were fed and looked after by Ted and Leigh.
Our spirits started to lift as we made the midnight deadline. We were saddened to see the A team come in and Hedley, who had had a big cold all week and Teleri who was a bit knackered after 17 hours had to pull out. It was good to have destry and Karl join us for the final trek.
So at midnight, after ODing on Coke the 6 of us headed off aiming for the Rotoma highway which had a deadline of 3.00am. Once again, our navigation through difficult country was spot ona nd we arrived at the checkpoint at 2.30am where they tried to convince us to pull out as most teams were taking 8 hours from there to the finish. After a great feed of soup, biscuits and coffee I asked each of the other 5 if they wished to continue. They all wanted to go on so off we went. Not too far down the track Destry and Karl pulled the pin and headed back, The country on the map looked difficult.
The four of us pressed on and we made very good progress and navigated really well picking up all of the checkpoints. A bit of hallucinating was going on, but I insisted on regular food stops and we made the last manned checkpoint at 7.30am. Unfortunately we still had 2 hours of walking to the Falls carpark and then back along the Tarawera Falls track to the finish.
The falls are outstanding and were worth another look! I found the last hour and half the most difficult and began to flag abit. It was awesome to be met by Aaron and George on the track 500m from the finish and then to see Leigh and Ted on the bridge as we finished after 27 hours.
It was a challenging and brutal event. There were moments when we all struggled and we all had low points, but our team morale was strong. Barry did a great job making sure everyone was going OK and even during his low moment on the MTB kept the navigating going. Lea kept the positive vibe going throughout the full race and the silly things she said kept the humour level high. Trevor was simply outstanding in the bush. He can sniff his way and end up in the right place.
We all won a spot prize! Leigh and Ted were great support crew and we dined on great stew and soup!
Best one I've ever done! Never felt the broken rib either! Told you that wouldn't stop me!
Check the other photos.
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Bringing It All Up at Toi's
What a horrible day's training. I felt as if I had a bit of a chill coming on - possibly from Thursday evening's MTB ride without a jacket and a cold day at work on Friday. Wasn't feeling right on Fri afternoon so I am positive the 5-6 whiskeys at Kurt's watching the rugby wasn't to blame.
Barry, Lea, George, Aaron and I went over and walked the first part of the Toi's track from Hillcrest over to Otarawairere and back up through the village and along the top to the trig and back into Hillcrest. I found it bloody hard - sore legs on the uphill, a bit breathless and nauseous. I really dragged the chain.
We managed to find somewhere to eat in Whakas and gobbled a baked spud and coffee before we headed off to the rogaine where we met up with the A Team. Bugger! A quick look at the course and we were headed back into Toi's again. We could have done the clues on the flat but decided to make it a training opportunity. Otarawairere at high tide was tricky. I really struggled on the hills again and as were were heading up from Otarawairere I got the keys off Barry and told them to go on and get as many clues as they could while I headed straight back. I was not feeling good.
Unfortunately they stopped just out of Otarawairere to put on 6heir jackets so they had a great view of me chundering my guts out. I managed to keep my spotlight focused so they got a great view. At that point they decided to stay with me. What great mates. Would've been scary ggoing back by myself, especially with Barry talking about sex offenders lurking in the bush!
I was stuffed.
We ended up at the Ohope Club watching the rugby where I sank a couple of cokes while they dined on beer and chips. All day I had eaten one bowl of porridge and one baked spud and hardly drunk anything. Something's not right. Plan to take it easy all week because the race is on next weekend.
It's Mothers Day and poor Leigh has taken Lucy and Opes to Taupo to play soccer. I'm trying to do housework as my mothers day present but I'm not very good at it and I don't think she'll notice. Perhaps I'd better point it out!
Even though I have lost my appetite I'll have a nice chicken and chick peas mel ready for when they get home.
Time to vacuum!
Barry, Lea, George, Aaron and I went over and walked the first part of the Toi's track from Hillcrest over to Otarawairere and back up through the village and along the top to the trig and back into Hillcrest. I found it bloody hard - sore legs on the uphill, a bit breathless and nauseous. I really dragged the chain.
We managed to find somewhere to eat in Whakas and gobbled a baked spud and coffee before we headed off to the rogaine where we met up with the A Team. Bugger! A quick look at the course and we were headed back into Toi's again. We could have done the clues on the flat but decided to make it a training opportunity. Otarawairere at high tide was tricky. I really struggled on the hills again and as were were heading up from Otarawairere I got the keys off Barry and told them to go on and get as many clues as they could while I headed straight back. I was not feeling good.
Unfortunately they stopped just out of Otarawairere to put on 6heir jackets so they had a great view of me chundering my guts out. I managed to keep my spotlight focused so they got a great view. At that point they decided to stay with me. What great mates. Would've been scary ggoing back by myself, especially with Barry talking about sex offenders lurking in the bush!
I was stuffed.
We ended up at the Ohope Club watching the rugby where I sank a couple of cokes while they dined on beer and chips. All day I had eaten one bowl of porridge and one baked spud and hardly drunk anything. Something's not right. Plan to take it easy all week because the race is on next weekend.
It's Mothers Day and poor Leigh has taken Lucy and Opes to Taupo to play soccer. I'm trying to do housework as my mothers day present but I'm not very good at it and I don't think she'll notice. Perhaps I'd better point it out!
Even though I have lost my appetite I'll have a nice chicken and chick peas mel ready for when they get home.
Time to vacuum!
Monday, May 4, 2009
Mangapumarumaru Epic
After Saturday's scary paddle we thought we'd try something gentler. So considering it was Lea's birthday we decided on a later start. After coffee at Lea's Lea, Barry, george and myself set out on our MTBs up the Gorge and battled a very stiff southerly to the Owhiritoa Bridge where we stashed our bikes and headed off up the road to the Mangapumarumaru Stream. We bounded up the stream and then completed the massive climb to 600m and then along the ridge. I was certain we were on the correct track as it matched our compass and George kept finding markers. Even when the markers disappeared the compass said we were going the right way. As it was we ended up in a creek which Barry remembered the last time he was in the area. After clambering down the creek we were faced with a 5m???? leap over a waterfall. It was most probably only 3m but we want to make it sound scarier. The pool at the bottom came up to Barry's mid riff so you can imagine how deep it was for poor old George! We decided to head on to Brill's for lunch which was a bit of a mistake as it took longer than expected. We didn't have lunch until about 2.40pm so we were feeling a bit empty.
However, it was a great place to take Lea out to birthday lunch.
We then headed up the grass cliff face out of Brill's which I found a bit nerve-wracking as it was so steep and open. George did a great job leading us back up over 600m again. All his tipuna were at work guiding him through the bush to each marker. After a couple of rests we made the top and started the long steep downhill to the road. The highlight was George's tumble and roll over the edge and into the undergrowth.
At some point Barry mentioned he was supposed to be home by 3.00. At 3.00 we were still over an hour from our bikes and we still had the ride home. After hitting the road we had a 3k walk back down the highway to our bikes. Marty went past in his vehicle and stopped to ask what a pack of mad buggers were doing at the time of the late afternoon walking down the road so far from anywhere!
We found our bikes and set off at about 4.45pm. Luckily Lea had a headlight and three of us had tail lights. We sped down the gorge with the southerly behind us and got back to Lea's exhausted but on a bit of a high. Barry and I managed one quick beer to celebrate her birthday with her family before I dropped Barry at home and finally got home about 6.30pm.
What another great day. What a great day to spend your birthday, eh Lea?
I found it difficult to sleep that night despite crashing at 8.30 so was abit tired, sore and not grumpy, but measured, for the day.
Just finished a marathon 12 hours at work so need to head home to farewell Mum who heads to Greece tomorrow.
However, it was a great place to take Lea out to birthday lunch.
We then headed up the grass cliff face out of Brill's which I found a bit nerve-wracking as it was so steep and open. George did a great job leading us back up over 600m again. All his tipuna were at work guiding him through the bush to each marker. After a couple of rests we made the top and started the long steep downhill to the road. The highlight was George's tumble and roll over the edge and into the undergrowth.
At some point Barry mentioned he was supposed to be home by 3.00. At 3.00 we were still over an hour from our bikes and we still had the ride home. After hitting the road we had a 3k walk back down the highway to our bikes. Marty went past in his vehicle and stopped to ask what a pack of mad buggers were doing at the time of the late afternoon walking down the road so far from anywhere!
We found our bikes and set off at about 4.45pm. Luckily Lea had a headlight and three of us had tail lights. We sped down the gorge with the southerly behind us and got back to Lea's exhausted but on a bit of a high. Barry and I managed one quick beer to celebrate her birthday with her family before I dropped Barry at home and finally got home about 6.30pm.
What another great day. What a great day to spend your birthday, eh Lea?
I found it difficult to sleep that night despite crashing at 8.30 so was abit tired, sore and not grumpy, but measured, for the day.
Just finished a marathon 12 hours at work so need to head home to farewell Mum who heads to Greece tomorrow.
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Drama on High Seas
Well, it felt like that anyway.
Lea, Barry, George, Aaron and I planned to paddle over Ohiwa Harbour to the Boatshed Restaurant to order beer and chips and return. As we set off the wind was howling and rain was falling and whitecaps were appearing in the distance. I felt very unstable but pushed on. Things weren't too bad until we cut across the channel to the Ohope side. From there to the wharf it was like a washing machine - surfing down waves, rudder out of water, and wind blowing quite strongly. The trickiest bit was getting around the wharf and landing. For most of the time I was terrified but Barry looked after me and kept shouting Abraham-like motivation things at me. I knew he was doing it and could see through him - but they worked.
We had a very average coffee (too cold for beers) from a very average host and talked about the dangers of getting back. I was tempted to hunker down and ring for a car! Thankfully the others were more determined and we headed off into the wind and punched our way back. It was easier paddling into the waves and wind and we finished with it being dead calm.
This paddle was a great confidence booster for me and as Barry said "If you can stay upright in this you can handle anything." That's bullshit, but it helped. I feel for the likes of Trev, Destry and Karl who missed the opportunity.
Finishing off with a couple of beers at Hunters allowed for a great debrief.
PS
At our team meeting at Hunters last night we were joined by Nathan Faave who was good compaany and gave us some great advice.
Lea, Barry, George, Aaron and I planned to paddle over Ohiwa Harbour to the Boatshed Restaurant to order beer and chips and return. As we set off the wind was howling and rain was falling and whitecaps were appearing in the distance. I felt very unstable but pushed on. Things weren't too bad until we cut across the channel to the Ohope side. From there to the wharf it was like a washing machine - surfing down waves, rudder out of water, and wind blowing quite strongly. The trickiest bit was getting around the wharf and landing. For most of the time I was terrified but Barry looked after me and kept shouting Abraham-like motivation things at me. I knew he was doing it and could see through him - but they worked.
We had a very average coffee (too cold for beers) from a very average host and talked about the dangers of getting back. I was tempted to hunker down and ring for a car! Thankfully the others were more determined and we headed off into the wind and punched our way back. It was easier paddling into the waves and wind and we finished with it being dead calm.
This paddle was a great confidence booster for me and as Barry said "If you can stay upright in this you can handle anything." That's bullshit, but it helped. I feel for the likes of Trev, Destry and Karl who missed the opportunity.
Finishing off with a couple of beers at Hunters allowed for a great debrief.
PS
At our team meeting at Hunters last night we were joined by Nathan Faave who was good compaany and gave us some great advice.
Week in Auckland
I have had a great week in Auckland with my mates Terry and Peter at a principal's study tour. We went up on Sunday and booked into the Mercure which is a great location. On Monday we had a few key note speakers - most of which were great with one exception.
That night Terry, Peter, Jude and I caught the fery to Devonport and had a great Italian and back in the city we hit the Lenin Bar for the compulsory shots of vodka infusions including 2 with very hot chilli.
The next day I visited Massey High School and enjoyed their presentations on academic counselling, literacy and restorative practices. This is a school like ours but with 2500 students! I have thought about a couple of good ideas from there to fine tune our restorative practices and to improve teacher parent hui.
That night Terry and I wandered up to K Rd to dine at Sri Penang. We got there a bit early so popped into a bar for a couple of beers to realise we were in a gay bar. I sat close to Terry so that the others realised I was in a relationship! The restaurant was, once again, outstanding.
The next day I caught the ferry and visited Takapuna Grammar which is a visually impressive school. I was impressed with their facilities and also with the work they had done to establish a school-wide pedagogy which has given me some good ideas for our school as we prepare for the NZ Curriculum.
That night we dined at the Viaduct and Terry and I had a couple of beers at a bar playing choice music on the way home.
The next day was supposed to be a full day of bringing it together followed by the Conference Dinner. However, business was over at lunch. It would have been possible to drive home on Thursday afternoon but because we had paid for our room and the Conference Dinner we had no choice but to stay! Managed to squeeze in a visit to afew music stores and bought 6 more of the Top 500! I had a voucher for Marbecks as a thank you for being interviewed for 2 hours by Rose, a MA student, who was interviewing pakeha principals who work in schools with a high Maori roll.
Spent Friday travelling home.
That night Terry, Peter, Jude and I caught the fery to Devonport and had a great Italian and back in the city we hit the Lenin Bar for the compulsory shots of vodka infusions including 2 with very hot chilli.
The next day I visited Massey High School and enjoyed their presentations on academic counselling, literacy and restorative practices. This is a school like ours but with 2500 students! I have thought about a couple of good ideas from there to fine tune our restorative practices and to improve teacher parent hui.
That night Terry and I wandered up to K Rd to dine at Sri Penang. We got there a bit early so popped into a bar for a couple of beers to realise we were in a gay bar. I sat close to Terry so that the others realised I was in a relationship! The restaurant was, once again, outstanding.
The next day I caught the ferry and visited Takapuna Grammar which is a visually impressive school. I was impressed with their facilities and also with the work they had done to establish a school-wide pedagogy which has given me some good ideas for our school as we prepare for the NZ Curriculum.
That night we dined at the Viaduct and Terry and I had a couple of beers at a bar playing choice music on the way home.
The next day was supposed to be a full day of bringing it together followed by the Conference Dinner. However, business was over at lunch. It would have been possible to drive home on Thursday afternoon but because we had paid for our room and the Conference Dinner we had no choice but to stay! Managed to squeeze in a visit to afew music stores and bought 6 more of the Top 500! I had a voucher for Marbecks as a thank you for being interviewed for 2 hours by Rose, a MA student, who was interviewing pakeha principals who work in schools with a high Maori roll.
Spent Friday travelling home.
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