what i love about...

...merry moose

2009-05-31T21:59:00.005+01:00

The Moose is getting all excited having been landbound for 18 months.

The Maple makes its debut. Soon to become the paddle of choice.

Truly this was the best Madras I have tasted in mon

ths.

Left unsupervised for only 30 minutes; she couldn't be trusted not to chase the cows. BAD MOOSE!

...having fears to surmount

2009-03-07T18:50:00.000Z

7th March 2009

I would class myself among those known as "nervous flyer's".

Nothing debilitating; but enough to cause my palms to squeeze the armrests a little tighter than needed, my eyes to close as the pilot rotates and a prayer or two to the God of engineering.

Naturally I couldn't let this little trepidation go unchallenged!

So cocking-a-hoot to fear I booked two flights in a glider and headed for the mountain ridge.

Scene 1 - Met pilot 'Mike' who was a real cool cucumber emitting vibes of ease.

Scene 2 - Introduced to the parachute. "When the canopy pops don't wait for instruction from me -I'll be gone already - Just jump!" says Mike, " oh, and remember to give a hard tug down on this right here." (or was it a tug right out ?).

Scene 3 - I had watched the training vids. I knew it was not supposed to be this bad. The tug plane was flaying about like a ferret on a leash. Mikes' commentary evaporated abruptly and I could feel the control column gyrating vigorously between my legs (now now ladies- enough already!). With the mountainside filling the cockpit window and the glider being whipped violently by the tug I was just waiting for the line to break followed by an emergency landing.

Scene 4 - Both legs where shaking more then I have ever experienced. But I was alive. We had passed through the turbulence. We had had to be taken up another 1000 feet to do so. Mikes calm never faltered but he casually admitted that that kind of take-off was not normally metered out to newbies.

Scene 5 - I was flying! The aircraft responding to my touch. Willing me to steer her and steady her. Perfect!

Scene 6 - Brain too tired, I gave control back to my instructor. Feeling what he could do with the aircraft build my confidence a fair amount.

Scene 7 - The clouds were closing in quickly leaving a 'hole' through which we needed to descend. Air brakes on and we dived!

Scene 8 - Approach turn and down. Exciting.

Beautiful.

Love to do it again.

http://www.blackmountainsgliding.co.uk/

I won the 'red letter' as a prize last Fathers Day. I chose the lucky Yorkie bar. Thanks All Nations Church!

...a little moose down the wye

2007-09-29T10:10:00.001+01:00

The photos of our Canoeing weekend down the River Wye. I'll never make a photo journalist that's for sure. All these shots look quite tranquil. You will find no record of the trek through the nettles and wood to reach the castle. No snap of the mercifully bludgeoned rabbit s brains next to the coronation tuna salad. No shot of the rapids either I'm afraid.

We reached this point in the river after a lovely peaceful paddle during which Tom sighted more wildlife than I'd ever would have noticed without his keen eyes. Kingfishers, Grebe, long-tailed Tit, and other don't recall. We stopped having seen the battlements of Goodrich castle on the hill trying for a photo op, but the trees just took it out of sight.

Not so easy to get to this point as you may think. We had to brave a few ' no entry' signs to finally breach the castle walls.

Goodrich castle overlooks the Wye and commanded the trade route between England and Wales via a ford that existed in the river just past the tower in the picture below. The castle became a royalist stronghold in the civil war resulting in it being destroyed by a locally fashioned mortar cannon (still present in the castle grounds).

Tom, keen eyed as ever spotted this good spit of land for a nights kip. Just below a small weir (the one in which The Moose became stuck on the last trip) that rumbled throughout the night.

Tom surveys the grace of God in providing a ready supply of fire wood for the night.

Whilst I anticipate the potential for flood defence.

"..the front of the tent should come to about here".

(Which is about where the waters edge ended up the next morning !)

But by faith we held back them waters and enjoyed a most excellent stared night in all it's glory, followed by a descent breakfast.

A strong southerly held back the rain on Sunday providing us with a beautiful day to cruise down to Symonds Yat and the rapids. Tom did a sterling job at holding the canoe to the correct line through the rough and somehow managed to stay indecently dry. Whilst I received quite a lap full!

The final stretch through to Monmouth included this lovely spot of still water given us a little time out to play on the stoppers.

The Moose liked this spot.

Thanks Tom Clarke for great company on our mini-adventure down the Wye.

...the blog of prayer

2007-03-09T05:57:00.001Z

When my life is such a rush
Experiencing the love and loss
I have the most to tell and share yet
All I manage is a prayer.

My diary lays with gathering dust
Calls to old friends remain a must-do
But it matters not for I still have you.

You will read my blog of prayer and
The simple truth is that you are always there
In your post I can always trust.

So now my life takes on a hush
The blog of life I can discuss
Of loss and love I can reflect though not forget
The blog of prayer is a must.

...the great outdoors

2006-10-10T18:06:00.001+01:00

Thanks Tom Clark for organising a great walk across some of Wales great hills. All the chaps who came along did so in great spirit.

After a trek through a boggy pine forest (Blaen-y-glyn) and a stiff climb we came to the WW2 memorial.In memory of six Canadian pilots who died in their Lancaster bomber after crashing at this site. The wreckage is still visible today.

Tom guided us along the ridge to Fan y Big then he worked his psychology to get us to the top of the final peak. The wind was strong at the top. I could lean into it and let it support my weight. As many before me I added another stone onto the cairn to make the hill a little bigger!

Great day!

...the demonstration of the spirits power

2006-09-26T22:44:00.000+01:00

Bishop Ricardo was awesome!
He did not come with theology or clever anecdotes but with the experiences of his life which themselves are a demonstration of Gods power.
It is impossible not to be inspired by the man.

But inspired to do what? Surely a fleeting emotional response is not enough. The power of the man's testimony allows me to feel the freshness of the holy spirit. But also his passion challenges my 'middle England' approach to Christianity.

Is it possible to have the passion without the bruises?

Dare I ask God to bring change?

It is heartening to hear the first hand accounts of miraculous healing. Normally it is easier to remain detached when reading reports of miracles from afar. But these accounts left me saying to myself over an' again "God is real!", "God is real!"

WOW!

...a canoe that floats

2006-09-03T14:27:00.000+01:00

...refusing to be intimidated by the heavy downpour the foolish pair continued their journey to the elusive 'put-in'. A place near Radyr, seen on Google-maps to possibly offer access to the Taff. The condition of the 'indian' on water was yet to be determined. The many gel-coat chips adorning the watercraft did not diminish the pride with which the pair launched her down the steep, root ridden bank into the, now swollen, waters of Wales famous river.

With not a little trepidation we tested our weight against the draft of the craft and attempted our first sweep with our home fashioned canadian paddles. (two Kayak paddles sawn at the 60 inch mark with a bit of gaffa tape for a handle - neat job Bub!).

The now fast flowing river and the old 'indian' (canadian) canoe tussled for dominance during this 2 hour maiden voyage. But I think it was an even draw. The river clearly longed to swamp us, and made quite a few unsuccessful attempts. With no reference to fairness! But on the other hand we never managed to turn the canoe up river without the aid of a waterside leverage, the current always throwing us back around as it hit the side.

Here I am before the trip. Not a very "Ray Mears" look I know. And I bet he doesn't wear a shorty underneath as I am here.

My Bro Bub is seen here - umbilical still attached - with a bit of a trim problem. Hard to tell he is sporting a broken left shoulder. Then again, maybe that's why we kept circling against the current! Not his rotten J-stroke!

Can't wait for the real trip in a few weeks time. Just a coat of paint and a name required.

Is it right to name a canadian canoe? What do you think?

... my Ford Mondeo estate

2006-08-14T23:16:00.000+01:00

I find it very difficult to give up on something! Not always a good trait (when to sell those shares at a loss for instance).
I didn't give up on my trusty high spec estate car either. Even though it had a dodgy diesel fuel pump. After six months with a top end just over 60 we finally found a garage that would fix it. So with new tow bar fitted the faithful beast got Jayne , me and the kids up to the bible week. It felt great to drive a car that accelerated! Even with a trailer!!

If it wasn't for those teenagers in the car behind at Stafford Asda round-a-bout my faith wouldn't have been tested any further.

But now alas the insurance company have written it off. Just because of this little dent in the tailgate.

But do I buy back the salvage value of my faithful car and stick with it? Or should I count it all as lost and move on? It must be so lonely stacked with all those other discards in the salvage yard.

Doh!

...Bible week

2006-07-29T17:21:00.000+01:00

more than anything else this year I gained a feeling of belonging. Belonging to a people. Belonging to God and his purpose. Belonging to a vision. A vision for a future and the part God wants us to play in it.

I have felt again the love of the church family. I have seen the impact that we can have on those near and abroad.

I have gained again the confidence that is based on the firm foundation of the apostles and prophets. A confidence to build.

Once again I feel that I have a part to play, a calling, a purpose.
Many thanks to Andrew Hughes and his plain speaking. Will I hide in the baggage like Saul. (The baggage made out of all those reasons-why) or will I give my baggage to the baggage handler as David did before heading for the front line.
Many thanks to our brother -and father in the faith- Keri; who through integrity, an open hand and his uncompromising obedience to our God seals himself as a master builder in my heart.

Many thanks to our dear Lord who knows me through and through. And still chose me to be one of his!

...completion

2006-06-18T22:19:00.000+01:00

Having recently sat and successfully passed the viva for my MRes I can say how great it is to have completed what I began.
This simple saying I have heard repeatedly over the years from Keri Jones. I would often re-hear it to myself during the long nights of thesis writing. "Finish what you started".
The feeling of satisfaction that I now feel is not unlike that which I would get having eaten a full 360 of Jalapeno pizza along with a cool beer.

I thank my lecturers at the IDGS, Swansea Universities school of materials. I thank Dr S Brown for his time as academic supervisor. And Dr Foularis for his efficiency and motivational skills.
I thank Corus for the opportunity.
I thank my loving wife Jayne for her forbearance during those last few weeks of editing.

...submitting my thesis

2006-04-05T00:46:00.000+01:00

I have amazed myself with the amount I have managed to do over the last few weeks. But best of all the peace of God has been with me through it all. Excellent. Thesis is in, just the viva to go. What I really love is being able to spend the entire evening playing Half-life 2 without feeling too guilty. And I may even read some of my novel before bed.

...having only two weeks to submit my thesis

2006-02-15T23:26:00.000Z

... well it is not really two weeks at all. That is just when my tutor wants it in. There are a whole extra four weeks after that for edits and binding. Why else would I be taking the time to write this. I can't blame Anna for kick starting me back onto my blog. It's my will power being put to the test, that is all.
There is something great about being on a deadline. Most of us I'm sure produce some of our best work under pressure. Today I felt good about managing to write a few pages. Not bad as I had both girls, home sick from school, to tend to! If it wasn't for the house hunting going on as well I would have been on a roll!
oh well, tomorrow.

...steam engines

2005-03-08T13:37:00.000Z

I have been following the television series on Big Engines presented by
Chris Barrie (Rimmer from Red Dwarf). Without a doubt my favourite are the
steam engines. These were built is the day when an engineer could build a
world changing technology in his garage (or coach-house maybe). Is there
anything more beautiful in the world of machines than a whopping great
beast of a gleaming steam engine. I don't like the silly little ones that
power steam rollers. I like the big ones that would power ships. Maybe it
is time for another visit the maritime museum in Southampton.

...Wikipedia

2005-03-08T13:34:00.000Z

This is a great resource. I only discovered it from the Firefox browser.
And what a crazy but great idea to allow readers to edit the encyclopaedia
entries. I have just spent my entire luchbreak reading through it.
http://en.wikipedia.org

...February

2005-02-08T07:54:00.000Z

Life is starting to fall back into that comfortable normality. Christmas carols (which the children are still singing) receive the same welcome as last nights chinese left-overs. The maintenance period in work is over, just the pieces to pick up.
For most the Christmas chaos has been gone for weeks now, but for me it has been dragging out; but such is the lot of an engineer
Once again I'm starting to read my sailing books, dreaming of the waves and sea the breeze.

Starting to write to my blog again. And better still read the great blogs of my friends.

...queues

2004-12-17T17:18:00.000Z

Throughout the year it is hard to find someone who is not busy doing this or that; going somewhere or plugged into the telly set. But Christmas is here!

Christmas is a great time for everyone to practice that great British pastime. Queuing.

Folks from all over the country, from all walks of life are standing around for up to 20 minutes doing nothing but standing in a queue.

People desperate for someone like you to tell them some good news. What a better way to put some life into the shopping trip. What a great opportunity!

But we need to practice. So natural it is to fall into that other British pastime.
-Moaning.

To help you get started I have included some excerpts from the:
"Good News - on Cue - Starters pack" (available from all good bookstores).

Introductory phrases: designed to initiate converse with otherwise non-interactive individual. (PLEASE MEMORIZE PRIOR TO LEAVING FOR SHOPPING OUTING)

"Don't you just love Christmas shopping. I get to buy all those things for my DOG/CHILDREN/BEST FRIEND (delete as appropriate) I've been resisting all year long".

"Isn't there a great atmosphere in TOWN/ARCADE/MARKET this time of year".

"Isn't it nice to a have rest for a few minutes, would you like me to pay for that for you?"

---

Interesting fact

"Word History: When the British stand in queues (as they have been doing at least since 1837, when this meaning of the word is first recorded in English), they may not realize they form a tail. The French word queue from which the English word is borrowed is a descendant of Latin cda, meaning tail. French queue appeared in 1748 in English, referring to a plait of hair hanging down the back of the neck. By 1802 wearing a queue was a regulation in the British army, but by the mid-19th century queues had disappeared along with cocked hats. Latin cda is also the source of Italian coda, which was adopted into English as a musical term (like so many other English musical terms that come from Italian). A coda is thus literally the tail end of a movement or composition."

...forgiveness

2004-12-13T22:39:00.000Z

"C.S. Lewis wrote, 'Forgiveness goes beyond human fairness;it is pardoning those things that can't readily be pardoned at all'(2)
This is why it is always costly to forgive; we have to sacrifice our pride, our self-pity and our desire for justice. Our culture places tremendous stress on doing all we can to maintain our rights. When we forgive we are laying down our right to justice and our desire for revenge."(1)

(1) Nicky & Sils Lee The Marriage book, Alpha international publications 2002 p.174
(2) C.S.Lewis The Four Loves : Fount , Harper Collins religious 1998 p.116

...the speed camera van

2004-12-10T16:00:00.000Z

The problem with having a birthday on a working day, is that you may
forget to fill up the car with petrol, in your eagerness to get home and
open pressies.
And you may then find yourself in a bit of a hurry getting to work the next
day.

Thank goodness for the hard working public spirited camera van operator. He allowed my mind to re-focus on the need for a staid and sedate journey to work. I'm also thankful for the efficient braking system of Mercedes cars. Though for a moment I thought he was going to convert from a tail-gate'r to a back seat passenger.

Speed traps are not relative measures of guilt. They take no consideration
of my circumstances. That I am a courteous driver. That I drive carefully
through built up areas. That I keep my distance from other vehicles. That I
am a nice chap who helps others in need. That I brush my teeth twice a day.
It is not fair.
They are absolute.

70 mpm

It doesn't matter how good you are. You may have better morals than a
christian. But if you haven't entered in through the 'front door' -that is
Jesus- then God does not recognise you as one of his. Sorry but you just
don't make the grade. The standard has been set. It is an absolute. And you
don't pass. No consideration is given for effort.

This might seem wrong. Surely God is Love. Yes, because of that love he is
also Just.

In a speed trap you can be let off if you can show someone else was driving
your car at the time; so it is with God.

Jesus, whose license was clean, said he was "driving my car". Because of
Jesus, I pass Gods absolute test.

...being thirtyseven

2004-12-09T20:19:00.000Z

... (happy birthday to me)

...

I am alive!

and I have pressies!!!

...that first feeling

2004-12-06T12:24:00.000Z

My four year old daughter sat quiet and sombre in the back of the car all
the way to the party. An occasional sob could be heard too followed by an
under-the-breath declaration "I really love that video". This was my
daughters first viewing of E.T. the extra terrestrial. It struck me how my
daughter has been changing. All tears over the last years have been
attributed to pain, or hunger or an 'I want' but can't have. But this was a
different, new emotion. She had empathy with the little ugly alien.
At what point in our Christian lives to we mature from a self-centred God
dependant relationship to a God centred relationship. Feeling emotion
birthed in His spirit not our needs.
"Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things
will be added to you also". I think true worship is our 'E.T' experience.
We focus on His glory, His wonder, His plans and goals. He then becomes
our source to draw upon that satisfies all our needs.

Other great first feelings:
The first time I brought my wind-surf board up onto the plane. Wow
Exhilarating!
The first time I came through a 'duck' during a caving trip.
The first time I got my cable stuck whilst going through a 'duck'
during a caving trip.
The first time I gave my life to Christ Jesus. He hit me with rocket
fuel !!
When I crashed my motorbike at 80mph and thought I might die.
The first time during worship at the 'Dales bible week' with
thousands of Christians worshipping God. Felt so small and so big at the
same time.
Falling in love.
The first time I stopped a squadron of armoured tanks with only the
authority of my uniform. (that taught me something about acting in Gods
strength , not our own).
My first SCUBA dive.

(what is a duck -- when the cave passage dips down briefly and is
completely submerged in water)

...this Kennedy quote

2004-12-06T07:18:00.000Z

As my 37th birthday approaches. I think back over the last 20 years and remember all the things I thought I would have done by now. Well this quote helps to stoke up those fires. Cheers James for posting this one.

http://jaubs.blogspot.com/2004/12/this-world-demands-qualities-of-youth.html

...a firm foundation

2004-12-05T22:34:00.000Z

the bible talks of building ones house upon the rock and not upon the sand. As a Christian that rock is Jesus himself. All my hopes, all my confidence, my security both emotionally and physically, is based on a one to one relationship with the King. When I kneel before the Lord, he knows me through. He sees my weaknesses. And though I would wish to be more for him; he does not despise me for my lack. He chooses to call me his friend. To place his garments on me. Fine clothes I have not earned and have no right to wear- but that he has freely done so. He makes me an heir with him. Makes me an ambassador for his kingdom.

The day is now. Because he has done it.

...God's sense of humour.

2004-12-04T15:38:00.000Z

Why is it when you ask God, he seldom gives you the whole answer. But just enough to take you the next step. Seek and pray as a might. I could not receive any conviction on the topic to cover the whole evening of our mid-week group in my home.
There were gaps in my plan.
That does not go down well with me. As a Chartered Engineer I like to plan, then study the alternatives, then plan the contingency.
God knows the type of chap I am. He knows that I need to learn to go out on a limb. Trusting God to supply the next step in time.
Last Wednesdays home group meeting was an incomplete plan - from my viewpoint- . I asked and asked that God would 'turn up' and not leave me high and dry.
And he did. We had such a great time, with God using all the people in the group to bring home his word to us.
It was exciting!.
'The dynamic of God is always outside our comfort zone.'

...musak

2004-12-04T14:10:00.000Z

"I'll only be 30 minutes, love". How nice to be lulled out of those petty commitments and the every present rush of live by the never ending, unobtrusive, soothing, lamenting inoffensive music tracks. (carefully chosen by a well paid psychologist I suppose) .
With the added advantage that it releases your mind to notice those extra purchases the necessity of which had not been fully realised prior to your visit.
A quick trip to the Range to buy one of those lovely plastic storage boxes I have always been drawn to; and I ended up buying 4 plus two plastic fridge jugs and two 35 pence funnels.

The absolute necessity of this storage box is largely due to my wives thoughtfulness in relocating any personal item I had 'mis-placed' to the bottom of my wardrobe. I knew I had to find a new place when I noticed my shirt no longer hang straight.

...inspiration

2004-12-03T12:45:00.000Z

It is freely given to those who don't have to do the work.