John and Renee are married!
I wish that I could have been there. The classic moment of the entire day is summed up in this one picture of the young couple in love.
This is from an earlier e-mail. I tried to do something original but this is what I think of the wedding day. I hope that it was read at the reception.
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Wedding bells peal out over sunny Stanthorpe - a wedding!
The lovely bride, the handsome groom, everyone scrubbed up, dressed up and on their best behaviour.
The car is polished and adorned with a ribbon for the auspicious occasion - the stately drive to the chapel.
The bride beaming at the crowd of onlookers.
Arriving at the chapel with all the fuss of a royal visit.
The bride has a bouquet of flowers in her hands and the groom has a flower pinned to his jacket like a pre-school kid wearing a note from the teacher as if to say "remember that you are getting married today".
Congratulations, what a lovely dress! And you look so handsome.
Here comes the bride!
A long slow dignified walk down the isle.
I do!
The whole family is there laughing and celebrating with an air of festivity.
Potato salad, coleslaw and ham.
10 aunties and uncles?
I can't tell if some are missing because each one causes a riot alone.
The bridal waltz.
Photos for posterity.
Mr and Mrs at last.
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My job at the Marriott hotels will not start in July - I understand enough about the construction business to know that the only certain thing is uncertainty. I was given a standard issue corporation response of "we are consolidating our resources" and other corporate phrases that indicate that the job may start next year sometime, maybe. I am on their list.
I have signed on with the Chinese Catholic Girls School for another year. There are no coincidences, choices are put in front of us everyday. The nuns with whom I work believe that events are arranged by God and we should follow the one right, true, path. Sister Maria says that I have been sent by God. I believe that choices are placed before us and we can chose to follow one of several right paths. My choice of career for the next few years was not easy. My decision had at least three elements of a good story - good vs evil, stranger comes to town, and man vs self. Money was a big factor. It is easy to work for the nuns, they leave me to do the job and praise me for the simplest things. The work to payment ratio of the engineering job was not that good compared to pretending to be a teacher. As an engineer I would be expected to make decisions about important stuff like money and careers in contrast to the work as a teacher where I have been paid by the hour to sing the Hokey Pokey.
We are all packing and getting ready to go to Paris for the summer holidays. No more worries for a week or two. I have heard it said by wise men that there is nothing better than a summer holiday. The weather in Paris, for the summer, is currently 10°C.
We will have a normal Sunday routine up until the point where we would usually go to bed - at that time, instead of relaxing in our own personal bedtime routine, we will be relaxing at the airport check-in for a flight that leaves at 00:10. We need to be at the airport at about 22:00 - the time that people get tired and grumpy.
Children can learn what they like regarding parental advice - my mum, who died a slow horrible coughing death because of smoking, used to say that if anything went wrong in our lives, the main reason for our frustration and anger could be traced back to ignoring her parental guidance. I told that story to tell this one: I have asked all my able-bodied children to wash their clothes and pack their bags so that they will be ready for an usually hectic Sunday. One of my children will want to use the washing machine and will be genuinely surprised that it is already being used. Another one of my children is arranging an outing with friends all day today and will be at a party tonight - I am assured that there will be time to pack on Saturday night. The child that does not have to be at school all day, and will be his own legal guardian in a few weeks, was asked to be prepared earlier.
We will be doing Paris on a budget. We bought the cheapest tickets that could be found. The service from the airline was great, they allowed us extra baggage, we were offered special meals and upgraded to in-flight entertainment. They processed our tickets online within the hour and confirmed our bookings and then, with our payment safely secured, promptly went out of business. There is no hope of getting our money back - although there are forms to fill and complaints to file. The reality of the situation is that a bankrupt airline has bigger problems than refunding the lowly passengers. In the business model of an airline, passengers are a little more than a nuisance after they have paid. They insist on things like "service" and actually being taken to their intended destination even if it causes great inconvenience to the airline managers, staff and pilots by making them organise an aeroplane. The odd thing is, Carolyn then found cheaper tickets with British Airways.
Last night, at about ten o'clock, I popped over to the shop and on the way back I heard what sounded like an egg falling to the ground. I looked down near my feet about two metres away and saw a wet splat mark that was, oddly enough, the size of an egg. As I looked in wonder, another appeared and then another. They were huge drops of rain. There were no clouds, no wind and no thunder. I looked around and saw other huge raindrops appear accompanied by a popping-splatting sort of sound. Then it hit. In one second it was fine, the next it was torrential. The crowd ran to cover, some laughing with 
newspapers on their heads, others not. We, as a community, looked in wonder at the torrent that instantly appeared. (It no longer seems strange to me that I went to the shops at ten o'clock and there was a crowd.) We are hoping that the weather in Hong Kong will allow our flight on Sunday.
newspapers on their heads, others not. We, as a community, looked in wonder at the torrent that instantly appeared. (It no longer seems strange to me that I went to the shops at ten o'clock and there was a crowd.) We are hoping that the weather in Hong Kong will allow our flight on Sunday.Speaking Cantonese.
I have been in Hong Kong for nearly a year. I speak Cantonese to the children at school because they don't know any English yet. I have learned to speak at them, but not to them. I can transmit, but I can not understand the answer unless it is the same as the example in the book. There was a strange satisfaction when I first completed an entire transaction at a restaurant in Cantonese. It wasn't a great feat, It was only ordering some take away food. The problem is not the language difficulties, it is stagefright. I am suddenly aware that the cashier is looking at me with those shiny dark brown Asian eyes and I forget to use the correct pronunciation. The word for eat and understand are the same sound - but in a different tone. I am sure that the cashier is surprised when suddenly confronted with a customer saying "I would like to understand the Big Mac."
Carolyn showed me a fascinating book called The Arrival. It is a graphic novel about a family that migrates to a strange land.
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