Mother's day

Zach (blue), Grandma (magenta), Mum (pink)

For mother's day this year, I was asked to deliver Zach to the creek where the clan were gathered for honouring mothers and grandmothers.

When Zach and I got there, Grandma was surrounded by grandchildren and others, but mum was not there yet.

I wished Grandma a happy mother's day, gave her a hug and communicated my good wishes to her.

Looking a little frazzled, Grandma said "Thanks, but no-one is doing what I have asked them to do."

"That ain't right," I responded. "It's mother's day. So therefore, they should be doing what you ask. Or at least, until Zach's mum gets here"

Grandma laughed but one of the cousins eyeballed me and nodded behind me saying "Zach's mum has just arrived, she is right behind you."

Oops. Time to get out of here.

Later that day, when Zach was delivered back to me in the afternoon, I felt that I ought to acknowledge Zach's mum - and maybe try to efface the guilt for my faux pas of this morning.

I stepped out of the garden where I had been working, dusty and sweaty, I strode up to her with a big smile, wished her "Happy mother's day", and gave her a big (dirty, dusty) hug.

She squealed and laughed and turned side-on to me as I hugged.

Zach stood to the side just shaking his head. I could hear his unspoken words: "This isn't going to end well."

He confirmed his thoughts with me after she had gone: "She'll be back home complaining to everyone about how you hugged her all dirty like that."

I laughed: "Yes, she will. But she enjoyed the hug and acknowledgement, didn't she."

He acknowledged what I said was true.

The Stephening Standard - 2016

Goodbye 2016!

Here's some of the gems out of 2016 for Zach and me.

Click on the links to see more about anything that interests you.

Or not!

Out of the mouths of adolescents

Zach is beginning to show his age! 

Some of his observations are both funny and perceptive.

Sailing in Shark Bay - a short history

October 25 1616, Dirk Hartog landed at a remote western point of Western Australia and left an inscribed pewter plate. 

October 25 2016, I visited this still remote point in a small (4.5m) open sailing dinghy.

Here's my short history of the various visitors (including my own visit) to this location.

A walk on the wilderness side (Hong Kong)

Going to Hong Kong and want to get away from it all? 

For a predominantly urban landscape, it has a surprising amount of wilderness to explore. Here's a few that I discovered that I think are simply awesome.

Thai sailas exploring the Andaman Sea

In July, Zach and I and six others chartered a 40' catamaran and sailed the Andaman sea in Thailand.

Here are just four highlights.

Zoey's Last Wander

Zoey our pet dog was an inveterate escape artist. In June, she wandered away for the last time. This is the story of Zoey's last wander.

Indian Pacific Train Experience

In January after a family gathering in WA to celebrate a bunch of birthdays, Zach and I returned to the east by train.

It was a most excellent experience.

Shared parenting and Star Wars

Zach now spends nine days out of every 14 with me and has done so for about a year or so now. 

The process by which this came about is interesting and gives Zach an opportunity make yet another funny and perceptive observation, this time drawing on a Star Wars metaphor to illustrate his point.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Okay, that's all folks!

Hello 2017.

See you there.

Out of the mouths of adolescents

"Out of the mouths of babes..." we like to say.

(Here's one of Zach's from many years ago.)

However, whatever wisdom is expressed by children typically comes from their complete innocence.

That is, the wisdom does not reside in the child speaking, but rather in the adult who hears the speaking.

(Corollary: if a child utters some astute observation and no-one hears it, it probably ain't a wisdom!)

The wisdom of an adolescent is a bit different. It is a quirky blend of innocence and emergent wisdom. Here's some examples from Zach.

Up the creek

A solo journey up the creek becomes a test of Zach's resolve - and he passes. Just!

On our annual dads and kids camp in December, I set off with another bloke, Josh, for a hike along a trail that runs on the ocean side of Jerusalem Creek for about four kilometres. The creek runs from Blackrocks campgrounds parallel to the shore to an exit to the ocean some four or more kilometres to the north. The hike is along a wide tongue of land with creek to the left and ocean to the right.

I left Zach with the other dads and a bunch of kids jumping off trees, swinging from a rope, and paddling around in the on surfboards and kayaks.

Josh and I eventually reached the end of the trail at the point where the creek met the ocean. There was a wide sandbar preventing the creek from flowing out into the ocean. After exploring around the creek mouth, we walked back along the through the "black rocks" (more like coffee in both colour and in consistency as it is a soft, sedimentary rock).

Back at the campground, everyone was back. 

Well, everyone except Zach.

Sailing in Shark Bay - a short history

In October 2016, I sailed around Shark Bay in a small open dinghy with my long-time sailing buddy, Peter.

Here is an abbreviated history of visitors to this remote but very scenic area including our own recent visit. (For a more pictoral and less historical view, go to this version)

A walk on the wilderness side (Hong Kong)

Hong Kong wilderness? Sounds like an oxymoron, but it really isn't. 

When an offer came up to visit Hong Kong to teach a two-weekend course in the psychology of consumers and consumption ("Consumer Behavior"), I said "Yes".

This affirms one of the key principles of "manipulating" consumer behavior: just give customers want they want. It's a lot easier than trying to push them towards that which they don't want.

The course was then cancelled, but they agreed to pay for my non-refundable airline tickets, and so I went anyway.

Hong Kong is of course a major city (population 7m), and nearby mainland China features a set of massive megatropolises including Guangzhou (population 13m) and Shenzhen (population 11m).

Despite that, Hong Kong features some fascinating wilderness spots. Here's the ones I explored and highly recommend.

Thai sailas exploring the Andaman sea

Some years ago, Zach passed on an opportunity to go sailing in Turkey with me. I took my Dad with me instead.

I figured that one day, Zach might be interested and as it turned out, it was in 2016 that Zach said to me "Papa, can we go sailing this year?"

So in July, we chartered a 40' catamaran in Thailand. This is a big boat relative to equivalent sized monohulls. It had 4x double cabins, 2x single cabins and a large saloon between the hulls. Luxury.

We rounded up a crew of eight people and here are a few of our adventures. (I won't bore you with all the fun that we had but feel free to ask me for more details).

Zoey's last wander

Zoey has wandered off.
Again!

However,
this time is for good.
For her good?
For good good.

She's gone for a wander along the no-return trail.

Of course,
we're all walking a no-return trail.
Time passes,
there's no going back,
only forward.

But yesterday,
(I can go back in time,
at least in my mind),
there was a fork in the trail.

Flight from Trouble

I’m in Trouble. Helluva place. As in hell-hole, horrible. I need to get out of here. And so I do…

I settle into my seat, I close my eyes. But still I feel crowded. Just as I know there are people all around me, I know that my troubles are right on hand.

Presently, I hear the engines hum. Rising to a whine. The brakes are released, we start to roll. Then I feel my body pressed back against the comfortable leather seat back. Nothing I can do. A motion forward, I’m committed, beyond my control.

Now starts the magic.

As the plane accelerates along the runway, I know the raindrops on the windows begin to move backward. Then become streaks. So it is with my problems. I hear more noise, more hum, more rumbling. I feel the bumps along the runway. Even with my eyes still closed, I know the streaks have now streamed away. I feel my troubles floundering on the runway. Are they still pursuing me? Who knows. I can’t see them, I don’t care, I’m free of them.

The plane rotates, I feel myself lifted into the air. The concerns, the issues are falling away. Strictly, I’m rising above them. Eyes still closed, I see all my woes in my mind’s eye, looking like an architectural model. Tangled trees, thorny bushes, razor grasslands, pesky persons, angry animals – all mere models, fluffy and harmless, in my imagination. I cannot discern the barbs, the prickles, the spikes.

From here, I cannot see Trouble.

I still get this each time I fly, short or long. What is left behind – toothbrush or trouble – is gone. There is nothing quite like being held captive at 30,000 feet that makes me release all that held me on the ground.

My breathing steadies. Trouble. It is still out there, I know. But I’m looking forward. It is behind me, made harmless by distance, made artificial by altitude.

Indian-Pacific train experience

Are we there yet?

Trains seem to have always been somehow magical: steam trains (how does a gigantic metallic beast like that get driven by steam?), the joining of east and west in the US, the Orient Express in Europe, Hogwarts Express, the marvellous but oftentimes sordid mystery of trains running underground in many of the world's major cities, etc.

In an age of plane travel, the idea of travelling on a train can hold even more appeal than in the past. And given Zach's youthful love of trains, we decided to do the Indian-Pacific train journey, one of the world's great train journeys (as rated by no less than the Society of International Railway Travellers).

It is called the Indian-Pacific which implies travel from west to east, but you can choose to go the other way, Sydney to Perth. That route is a little more expensive, presumably due to greater demand. Who knows why. Perhaps because it is going to be a couple of hours longer due to the time difference. Or maybe because there is something exotic about riding the Indian-Pacific in the wrong direction.

Riding the train is an Experience with a capital E. The key Elements of that most Excellent Experience were as follows: