Three Words

Posted on September 20, 2013 by Hamo

Simplicity – autonomy – flexibility

About 8 months ago I was weary and seriously looking at selling my reticulation business. I didn’t have another plan. I was just over it and decided that if I could sell it for the cost of our mortgage then I’d ‘jump’ and see where I landed.

As it turned out there were no takers and I got over the summer blues and started to enjoy it again. Summer is always busy, the phone rings non stop and it’s hard to keep up. Last summer I actually forgot a few appointments because I just couldn’t manage it all. I got gnarly and grumpy and was hanging for holidays. But I made it thru and managed to re-invigorate yet again.

So I had just planned to fire up again this spring but try to temper the pace a bit – easier said than done. But then along came ‘B’ and said ‘Are you interested in selling half of the business – the Joondalup and south section?’ That sounded like a great idea. I’d love to not have to travel that far even! So we began talking and pondering.

I set a price for half the business and we began to discuss how it could work. I was excited.

Early in the conversation I listed 3 critical factors for me that had to be in place for me to get involved. Those things were simplicity, autonomy and flexibility. They rolled off the keyboard quickly and without much deep thought but as I saw the words I realised that they were what I now value in my work life…

Simplicity – I run my own show and do some very specific things. No staff means no responsibilty for other people’s lives, no payroll, no complications.

Autonomy – means I answer to myself on a daily basis and I get to choose the jobs I do, the hours I work and the pace I work at.

Flexibility – means I take holidays often, knock off when I’ve had enough and can work an extra day here and there too if I want to.

We began talking about some form of partnership but the more we spoke the more we both felt like these core values would be casualties of a joint venture. I would be responsible to some degree for his family’s livelihood. We would be answerable to each other and we would need to work together in many ways. There would be shared bills, shared responsibility and shared liability.

As we spoke I realised this was not what I wanted. The big cash hit would have been nice and would have knocked the mortgage into next week, but in the end we decided that what we wanted wasn’t worth that amount of money. We would give up simplicity, autonomy and flexibility and take on some new and unknown dynamics and challenges.

There may be a time when this is a right thing to do, but it isn’t now – for either of us. We met today and agreed that they value those things highly also and wouldn’t want to be tied to us.

So instead I am working with B and helping him get up to speed to run his own business. Yes – he will be my direct competition, but that’s not a concern – it’s a big city. He’s also a brother and a mate who is part of our church and is a refugee from corporate world, trying to re-order his life so that he gets to see his family and gets to actually ‘live’ rather than just working.

Another complicating / ethical issue is that I am a pastor in his church and should things not work out well that would have issues both for our relationship and the wider community. It’s not that such a partnership couldn’t work or shouldn’t be attempted but rather that it comes with some extended risks and implications.

The part of this venture that really inspires me is that we get to help someone find the life they are seeking and escape from the rat race they have felt trapped in. We get to walk with another Jesus follower who is keen to challenge the status quo and help his family find a different way to live in Aussie suburbia.

So this summer I am a retic guy again… Not so reluctant, but maybe a little smarter and less likely to feel totally jaded by December. My goal is to knock off around 2 pm and be home in time to hit the beach and have some fun before dark. The phone will not get answered on Sundays and ‘B ‘ will get a stack of work south of Joondalup as he does some sub-contract for me. It’s a win/win and not much to dislike, so hopefully by December I won’t be posting my annual ‘resignation’ but will be enjoying the different approach to life.

But just writing those 3 words helped me see that ‘partnership’ was not what I was seeking .

What 3 words would you choose to describe the way you like to work and operate?

Where The Magic Happens

Posted on June 12, 2013 by Hamo

Late yesterday afternoon I headed down to check the surf at The Spot. It was sunny, offshore and looked great, but no one was out… When there’s no one out at The Spot you have to ask ‘why?’ Because there’s never no one out… Looks good though doesn’t it?…

The French guy who has been camping in the carpark for the last two weeks was sitting by his van and we got chatting. Apparently the ultra low tide meant the water was barely covering the reef and there wasn’t much point in paddling out. But I went home and checked the tides, to see that high tide was 10.30 today and the swell was on the up.

Now to be honest, the idea of going surfing is always much more appealing than the reality of getting into cold water on an icy winter day. And yet I’ve been doing it for long enough now to know that if you don’t go you regret it later.

So at 10.00 I flipped the laptop lid down and strolled out the door with somewhat half-hearted intent. It was a bit more than cold this morning and and the breeze had kicked up. If I could only surf without freezing my butt off… Exmouth in 4 weeks… Now that will be the go…

I got to the carpark to see 5 guys in the water and some lovely strong sets pushing thru. Better than I thought it would be – less crew than I expected too… It was certainly cold, but with a day off and nothing in particular to do this was looking like a nice way to spend a couple of hours. ‘Nails’ (image above) looked great and had on one on it so I thought I’d paddle out there.

After 10 minutes at Nails I paddled over to join the crew at the main break. And straight away latched onto a good sized set wave, and then another… I’d decided to take ‘big Mal’ (my 8′ 8″ old faithful mal) out for a ride today and it handled it well.

I dunno what you do to ‘bring yourself alive’, but for me there is nothing quite like an uncrowded morning in good surf. I think it is simply the feeling of speed as you tear down a wave. I’m close to 50 now, and every time I get held down I realise I have the lung capacity of a chipmunk, but when I get moving on a wave I feel 19 again…

And I like that… while it lasts.

It’s Days Like These

Posted on June 11, 2013 by Hamo

Back in December we were in the middle of a heatwave – 35 degrees + for about 9 days on end.

I remember rolling up to a job an hour from home at 7am and it was already 32 degrees and dead still… and humid… The client hadn’t prepped properly so we had to dig out a pile of old cooch lawn before we could start a big retic and turf job. I began knowing I had 4 other repairs to attend to once this first part was over.

It was a huge day and by 8.30 I was dripping with sweat and wondering what on earth I was doing… At 2pm we finished working in the 40 degree sun and I headed off to all those other jobs.

Then there’s today. The image above was where I was working this morning.

A job in the next street right on the beach… And I have all day to do what will take 4 or 5 hours… Great clients… And a perfect sunny winter day…

Does it get much better?

I dunno…

I vacillate between keeping this business running and giving it all away. The last month has seen me gain energy for it again as I’ve had time to slow down and really enjoy it, as I’ve had time to chat to the people who I meet and spend that extra time with them, rather than rushing off to the next job. And some like to chat, while others are obviously busy and just want me to do the job and move on.

And I enjoy the opportunity to create something that looks good and gives people a bit of a buzz.

The job I did today was a follow up from a job I did last year. We did the backyard last year and then this year came back and did the front. We don’t often get to go back and see how our jobs look a year or two later, but this is one job I will stay in touch with because I drive past it every day.

Here are some shots from a year ago as well as some pics of how it looks today.

Just starting… retic in…

Laying the turf

Love that view

Lawn done…

That was last year and here’s today…

And then I got stuck into the front.

prep

Levelled and prepped and looking like an alien spaceship is about to land!

Turf down

And all complete.

I reckon a fire-pit in the middle would be a great idea…

I’m pondering whether I can work at this pace in spring and summer, because if I can then I might just survive a bit longer. It means either saying ‘no’ a lot more often or maybe restricting the areas in which I will work.

Everything’s doable, but bizarrely when spring rolls around I feel this strange surge of energy that tricks me into signing up for more than I can manage.

Some challenging decisions ahead.

Children of the Western World

Posted on May 31, 2013 by Hamo

I’m old enough to remember Steve Grace as a legend of Aussie Christian rock music and one of his songs that struck a chord with me back then was ‘Children of the Western World’, a prophetic challenge to western lifestyles.

Currently at QBC we are looking at the New testament letters and considering some of the issues that faced the early church and some of the heresies that had infiltrated those first communities. Gnosticism , arianism and the like were all first century mutations of the original gospel, often tampering with Christology. They were not exactly blatant and obvious heresy, but they were usually believable enough to sit alongside, slowly become entwined with and eventually take the place of the true gospel. (I’d suggest that if you can upend Christology then eventually everything topples.)

Perhaps if you ignore something for long enough, or if you accept something for long enough it just becomes a part of your modus operandi.

It begs the question what are the heresies that infect and cripple us?

My guess is they are less overt and destructive and more sly and insidious. The chances of conservative evangelical western Christians denying the resurrection are fairly slim… but the chances of that same group of people being seduced by the dominant values of the culture are fairly high.

Its hard to acknowledge our heresies because in many ways they are our blind spots – and you simply can’t see your own blind spots (that’s why they are called that…) or they are our deepest desires and passions that we struggle to admit to – much stronger than our desires for the kingdom.

As I was teaching I mentioned again that in my view the ‘holy trinity of suburbia’ is career, house and family and Jesus is often invited to mold his call on our lives around those 3 priorities. These markers are set down before anything else and he can fit around them.

At face value it might seem like an extreme statement, but my hunch is that our ‘heresy’ is found in these areas. (And no – I’m not using ‘heresy’ in a technical sense) When career takes the place of vocation and our life is driven and shaped by our employment then we will struggle to hear the voice of God calling us to consider unconventional options. Surely the next move is upwards and will result in more $$?…

Or when we desire a certain kind of home so much that we are prepared to go into mega-debt for 30 years just to have it, then surely we have to ask what will our life now be shaped by? Of course it will be shaped by the need to repay a huge debt – and we will then be compelled to whatever that takes. I’m not a fan of big mortgages unless there is simply no other way to have a family home, but when monster mortgages are chosen over small mortgages I scratch my head.

Then there’s family… And this one is even more dangerous to critique, but for some the worship of family and all goes with it renders them useless to a God who is not so concerned for safety, security and comfort. I wonder how many times God’s call is ignored or simply unheard because ‘it wouldn’t be good for my kids…’

Each of them alone are enough to wrench us away from the life God has for us, but when the whole package kicks in, then we see churches like we have in suburbia today. Busy, heavily in-debted people giving lots of time to their families, but churches that struggle to be more than a pitstop on the way to the next week of slog.

Instead of a beautiful picture of the kingdom we often end up with lame religious versions of everyone else’s life. We pay lip service to Jesus but all the time pursue the God’s of our culture wondering why we aren’t content.

Most church leaders seem to be equating regular church attendance to 1 Sunday in 3 these days. It seems an odd number to equate with the word ‘regular’, but busy, overworked people need to find time to be with family… and Sunday becomes that… which wouldn’t matter a great deal if there were spaces for discipleship and formation outside of Sunday, but I’d suggest that for many these don’t exist either.

We are on a disturbing trajectory and the only way to respond to it is to choose to live differently – to choose a different path and to show people an alternative to the story that is told to them loud and clear.

I’d suggest this is the core of discipleship in western churches now – simply teaching people how to live. Jesus said ‘seek first the kingdom… and then the rest will be taken care of…’ Surely this is the start of life?

As a church leader I find myself wondering that means for how we lead a community, how we challenge people and nurture them towards the life of the kingdom rather than simply falling in line like lemmings and waiting for their turn to jump.

But of this I am convinced – to disciple is simply to ‘teach people how to live’…

—————–

(This blog post comes with all the usual disclaimers about wealth not being evil, home ownership not being bad, and family being a blessing… yada yada yada…)

Cars and Craziness

Posted on March 1, 2013 by Hamo

Late last year I decided it was time to change cars. I do that every now and then – partly necessity, but (let’s be honest) partly because I get bored with the same vehicle.

The necessity part was that Danelle was driving our old 96 Patrol all over the city during the week and it was pretty expensive, while I was driving a similarly old and expensive car for work. We figured we’d get her a good 4 cylinder and I’d get a work/holidays car – a 4WD of some variety.

The Patrol had 250 000Ks on it and had done us very well, but it was a bit tight on the inside and there was an intermittent problem with the air con that I was tired of trying to locate. It was a beast of a car and in great condition for its age, but I had itchy feet. The Bravo was fine, but I saw an old Landcruiser on Gumtree that looked like a good buy and I decided to quit the Bravo and get the cruiser.

I got the cruiser at a very good price and the Bravo sold the next day to a young Scottish couple who had arrived in Australia one day earlier. That was easy… Unfortunately the gearbox in the Bravo lasted one more week before crashing on the new owner. I had no idea it was dodgy, so wasn’t in any way liable, but I did feel rotten for them. I mentioned it on facebook and a few friends offered to kick in to help them out which was a beautiful act of generosity.

In the meantime we had bought Danelle a new car – a 2005 Mazda 3 with just 18000kms on it. The old couple who owned it had been required to hand in their license and stop driving. They advertised for $13K. They wouldn’t negotiate. I paid $13K. You can buy a new car for $13K, but the Mazda is just a bit better than some of what you get in that price range and with such low kms it seemed like a good buy. So far so good with the Mazda… And with the Mazda came the first car we have ever owned that was manufactured in the same decade in which we live. That felt a little odd and even indulgent.

So now we had an HJ60 Landcruiser Sahara complete with shag pile carpet and velour seats, the old Patrol and Danelle’s Mazda 3. I was trying to love the Cruiser but it was a tenuous relationship. I really wanted it to work. There was so much to like with a powerful 12HT motor, huge fuel tanks and range, heaps of space and very few worries about damaging it. (Those things are built like brick dunnies.) But I was falling in and out of love with this old girl.

Anyway, we advertised the Patrol and ended up selling it to friends. They got a great car at a very good price and we were happy too. They needed a reliable decent sized car and I think they will be good for quite a while with the old beast. It was a car that carried lots of great memories especially from our around Oz, but it was also time for a change.

I think my big mistake with the Cruiser was trying to get the rear air con up and running. It was all going well and the front air con was cold but when I had the local mechanic try to get the rear going, it ran well while we were cruising, but died badly when the car was stopped at lights or in traffic. He tried a few fixes but in the end I concluded that he didn’t really know what he was doing as each step was trial and error. Along the way he mentioned to me that he had been working on air cons for 4 months so this was all new to him… Great…

On one day when it seemed he had got the air con working I headed out to meet a mate for lunch. I was enjoying the relief of a cold car on a hot day, when I had to put the windows down… only to discover that the switch that puts them back up had carked it. I was pretty dark that day as I cruised home in 36 degree heat. A working air con that couldn’t work because I couldn’t seal the car… As it turned out I surfed the forums, located the problem and easily fixed it, but the air con wasn’t fixed… It still got cold on long runs and stifling around the city.

The cruiser had had an engine transplant – the 12 HT had replaced the 2H that was in it – and I began to realise that part of the issue was the compatibility of a 24v motor in a 12v car. I hadn’t seen that one at purchase as it drove well and everything worked. But there were signs of more pain ahead and I had already spent $2500 getting it to this point. I figured I could stop there and get my money back, or see it as a hobby and keep spending. Tough choice because I love old 60’s. With an oil leak from the turbo, leaky swivel hubs and signs of other potential issues I decided to wack it on Gumtree and see if it would sell. It was gone within 2 days for $9500 – pretty much what it owed me minus transfer costs. Amazing how these old cars hold their value! Maybe one day I will own a good one…

However I felt like I’d dodged another bullet and wanted to now buy a car that would just ‘go’. Of all the people in Yanchep I know the mechanics better than anyone else… And that wasn’t my plan. I was hoping to put some distance between me and their workshops.

So the plan was to find a car that wouldn’t be an issue for quite a while. It would have to do duty as a work car towing a trailer 3 days of the week, as a holiday car able to cross the country with ease and as a play car for when I want to get out on the dunes. With second hand cruisers fetching crazy prices I began to look at Patrols again. I had very few complaints with the other Patrol so I figured a decent GU could be the go. They are big, beasty and generally pretty reliable.

I set an upper price range of $30K but was hoping to find a good one for $20K. With all the problems attributed to the 2000-2003 models I was looking 2005 upwards. This gave me the serious jitters as we have never spent this much money on cars. It would be a good tax break for sure, but up to now $14K has been our biggest outlay on a vehicle. The Crusier had sold quicker than I expected so I was ‘car-less’ for a bit and needed to jump fairly quickly. My mate Billy lent me his Jackaroo for a few days (a cause of many laughs!) and that got me thru, but I was keen to find something.

I had a done a fair bit of research and could pick a good buy fairly quickly now. A Patrol popped up in Busso – 130K’s, 2007, good condition, brand new tyres and with an extended new car warranty for another 12 months or 30000Ks. It was $30K though… the top dollar… I felt the sphincter clench… But if it was on the money then it was definitely a good buy. Danelle was keen for me to buy a ‘trouble free’ car (which equated to me being less gnarly) so it looked like the one to go for.

A couple of friends dropped by and checked it out and gave it a green light. So Jeremy kindly drove me from Perth to Busso with a bank cheque in hand ready to purchase. All was fine except for an annoying dash rattle @ 2000 rpm that will need sorting – and an archaic tape deck for a stereo, so we handed over the cash and drove home. It went well on the way home and felt great to drive.

I didn’t like shelling out that many $$ for a car – which I think has more to do with my ‘car paradigm’ than it does with any real issues – because whether the $30K sits in my driveway giving me a reliable trouble free car, or in my mortgage account is really irrelevant.

This week it began its duties as a work car and towed the trailer well to the first job down in Doubleview. The air con worked beautifully and I was a happy man. After that job I hopped in and took off for Kingsley only to notice the temperature gauge rising quickly. If I hadn’t turned the air con off and nursed it along it would have boiled it within minutes.

You know that sick feeling when you think you’re over the hump of car repairs only to discover you’re not?… Of spending 30K to avoid this kinda crap only to smell it on your shoe again?…

Yeah – that was Tuesday. I wasn’t happy. I don’t think the old owner knew about it. I didn’t see it misbehave all the way home from Busso, but the hot weather and a heavy load exposed the problem.

So today I dropped it in at the local mechanic’s workshop (again…) to get the cooling system serviced. I am thinking its as simple as a radiator flush and clean or a stuffed thermostat but I guess we’ll know this afternoon… Maybe then I can stop this litany of car dramas and attend to the rest of life. Its been a little too consuming lately and I don’t want it to be like that.

At the end of the day I have been reflecting that in all of this there is always a choice as to how to respond – to let the ire rise and the frustration become controlling or to chill and roll with it. There is no easy solution with cars. They do not appreciate in value. They do not run better with age. There will always be issues. And I have had a run of them. My patience is developing or eroding… I’m not quite sure which.

Anyway that was just a litte bit of cathartic journalling on a Friday AM before I kick into sermon gear…

Here’s to a few years of minimal car dramas and lots of great trips in the new beast…

Experi-sabbathing

Posted on January 14, 2013 by Hamo

Sometimes you feel God giving you a nudge towards something. Recently I’d felt him saying ‘take another look at the idea of sabbath, so I have been doing that and reflecting on what that means for me.

The world I grew up in saw Sabbath (capital S) as a day for going to church in Sunday best (tie included) no sport, no TV, no purchasing anything, and occasionally a few other random rules that seemed to be intended to make life as ascetic as possible. (I met a girl once who didn’t kiss on the sabbath…even I couldn’t get her to break that one…) Needless to say I have less than fond memories of my early years of sabbath.

I didn’t think about Sabbath again until I became a pastor and someone reminded me that if I ‘worked’ on Sundays then I needed to take a day off during the week – it was what pastors did… So I took Mondays and then Thursdays as a sabbath and while I was a full time church worker that seemed to be ok.

Then life became more complicated. Church planter, teacher, business operator… I returned to Saturday – the day everyone else gets and called it my ‘day off’. It made sense, fitted and I could manage it. I enjoyed it.

The two books I have read recently have been 24/6 by Matthew Sleeth (very readable without being simplistic) and Keeping the Sabbath Wholly by Marva Dawn – some excellent insights, but I sense Marva and I see the world and church a little differently…

The reading evoked some questions and reflections:

– Why do we see almost all of the 10 Commandments as essential but not the sabbath one? Fair question?

– In the sermon on the mount Jesus says ‘you have heard it said… but I say to you…’ (think adultery/murder etc) what does that mean for the sabbath? If he raises the bar on everything else what does that mean for this command?

– God rested on the sabbath and declared it ‘holy’. Rest… is… holy?…

Sleeth advocates a ‘stop day’, one day when we stop being productive, efficient, task focused and simply rest, renew and regroup. Dawn is a little more specific with her 4 part focus of ‘ceasing, resting, embracing, feasting’. I felt like I resonated more with Sleeth in tone, but I liked Dawn’s 4 elements and found the gave me a structure to work with.

I felt inspired to re-think what Sabbath means for me and to experiment with it again. So I decided to remove it from Saturdays and place it on Sunday. Some would argue you can’t do this as a pastor because Sunday is a ‘work day’.

Yes – its true that I am required to be there, whereas others can skip a day if they feel like it. Yes – I often have to teach, lead, interact in ways I may not choose to if I were simply a member of the church, but does that mean I can’t experience Sabbath on that day?

Maybe…

But then again maybe not…

Part of perceiving Sunday as a workday is a Christendom mindset that sees the pastor as the paid professional. I might politely say ‘screw that’. Part of Sunday as workday assumes that I will take on certain behaviors and personas to fit with the role. I might say less politely ‘screw that!’

However what if Sunday is the opportunity to gather with the people I love and whose company I find uplifting? What if Sunday isn’t the day when I ‘have to preach’, but is the day when I get to do what I do well – when I get to be most ‘fully me’? Could it still be a sabbath? Is it more about mindset that behaviour?

I’m going to find out.

Maybe it won’t work. Maybe I will get bogged down. Maybe I will lose focus. Each Sunday I put out the chairs for our church. I haven’t asked someone to create a roster because I see it as important to do some of those menial jobs that no one gives a shit about. It a way of reminding myself that I am just one of the crew. I am not more important because I have a gift in teaching and leadership. I also set out chairs. That matters.

But maybe I will find the chairs a chore, a burden?…

Or maybe it is all about a mindset. Maybe I can choose to approach Sundays as my day to connect with some of the people God has put in my care and who I love. Maybe I can see Sundays as a beautiful day of seeing my most loved friends and ‘family’?

Maybe preaching won’t be draining, but will just be a chance to do what I can do and enjoy it?

That’s the ’embracing’ side Marva Dawn would describe. The other elements she lists are: ‘ceasing’, ‘resting’ and ‘feasting’.

One of the things I tried last Sunday in regard to ‘ceasing’ was to have no tech contact with the world. I left my phone plugged in and didn’t access email or facebook. I find that when a retic customer calls on the weekend my brain automatically kicks back into gear. My adrenalin levels rise and I lose my sense of rest. And I find myself annoyed that someone would call on Saturday… or Sunday… I find myself annoyed that I then answer that call…

Putting the phone down was hard.

I am one of the most ‘connected’ people I know, so I felt some serious withdrawals! I left my phone in Danelle’s bag during the morning, just in case our guest speaker at church needed to call me. But then I brought it home and plugged it back in. As I did I saw 3 missed calls and two text messages – all work related. I wanted to ignore them so I did… But at 4.30 curiosity got the better of me and I looked at my messages and listened to my voicemails. Nothing that couldn’t have waited…

But I couldn’t wait… What’s with that?

I avoided emails, but felt the loss and being off Facebook felt kinda weird too. Probably a good discipline then I am imagining…

I am thinking that if I can take myself out of the loop on Sundays with phone, email and Facebook then I will ‘cease’ things that cause me to work, or that cause my brain to rush.

Last Sunday we spent the afternoon in Yanchep national park with friends from church. What I observed was that I was better able to relax and be present because I wasn’t able to head home and check emails and phone calls and do something productive. I was able to be with people and not mentally be elsewhere, something I can do at times. That was good.

And it felt good to simply ignore calls and texts. There is very little that can’t wait a day… Next week I will turn the phone off for the day. It just means that if anyone wants to call me they will need to go thru Danelle…

The ‘feasting’ aspect of Dawn’s paradigm was a little less complete for me – but then I haven’t finished that chapter yet either… I sense she is saying that we ought to enjoy some friends, food and pleasures on our sabbath. So I will explore that a bit too.

Being conscious of the ‘sabbath’ I found myself looking for moments when I was rested and when I was anxious. Church was fine. No trouble there. However stopping in at Coles on the way home to get some food for lunch… that was disgusting. Busy busy busy… people everywhere… rushing… I felt it. I won’t do that again. What a contrast.

Sitting with friends in a national park, with nowhere to be. Now that was good! That was beautiful. I always have ‘somewhere to be’ in my head, so it was wonderful just to kick back and enjoy the people God has brought into my life. To give thanks, to enjoy.

The rest of the day was fairly normal and felt fairly ordinary too.

Was it a better sabbath than Saturday?

I dunno yet, but I am enjoying the learning curve.

Missing the Point

Posted on October 20, 2012 by Hamo

An article in today’s West Australian had Nick Marvin (Perth Wildcats CEO) getting stuck into Gen Ys for not having the same work ethic as previous generations.

He says pejoratively that they talk about having a work / life balance… as if its something to be shunned.

Marvin states, ‘the heavy focus which young employees placed on “work-life balance” was affecting the efficiency of businesses.’

Seriously?… As if the efficiency of business is the top priority…

He goes on to say: “I grew up with my parents working 12 to 13-hour days. I don’t know anyone in my organisation under the age of 24 who works longer than I do. They are obsessed about work-life balance.”

If that’s your idea of life then I’m right with the Gen Y’s. I reckon I have a damn good work ethic, but there’s no way I’m working 60-70 hours a week and claiming that as virtue. I’ll call it foolishness or ‘being trapped’, but let’s not keep the myth alive that spending your life at work is a good idea.

Maybe the Gen Y’s don’t have quite the same work ethic as previous gens (and plenty do) but maybe they can teach us how to actually enjoy life rather than work it away…

Or maybe I’m a Gen Y in disguise…

Climbing at Anaconda

Posted on November 8, 2008 by Hamo

The Joondalup Anaconda store has a climbing wall and Ellie and me went there today. We hadn’t had a ‘daddy & Ellie’ day for a little while so it was nice to do it again.

Here’s a pic of Ell – who loves to climb – making it to the top.

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