These days, my wife and I lead quite sedentary lives and have no desire to go travelling. There comes a point in time when you can be “past it”.

That was not the case when we were young and when our children were growing up. We had some tremendous holidays together – and our children always came with us.

We had to budget carefully but we never borrowed money to support holidays.

In reflection, I think the best-ever holiday that we went on was one of nearly 7 weeks in New Zealand at the end of 1978.

Our three children at that stage were seven, six, and five years old.

In our campervan which we picked up in camp Auckland, we spent just over three weeks going around the perimeter of the North Island as well as up and down the middle. We then crossed over the Cook Strait. We had nearly 3 weeks in the south Island of New Zealand before flying back to Australia from Christchurch.

Without going into a lot of detail – and I can remember it well – that for me was the best holiday we ever had.

Driving in the campervan and living in the same vehicle, together, certainly drew us close as a family.

All over Australia, in every state and territory, the number one societal occupation seems to be the control and management of crime.

In my 78-year-old opinion, crime is out of control, with authorities barely able to keep abreast of its explosive expansion.

So often, it seems, authorities take a vacillating and forgiving stance to the control of criminal conduct – with the judiciary looking to minimise sentencing based on the life-world circumstances of the perpetrators.

Certainly, CRIME is the number one topic of conversation and concern here in the North Territory, and it seems that is the case all over Australia.

I certainly do not feel safe any longer, and that ingrained worry appears to translate into the apprehensions about the future that agitates millions of Australians.

Natasha Bita’s column (Writing lessons ‘for 15 minutes a week’, 14 July 2022confirms one of the deepest concerns about the reshaping of educational priorities. The teaching of handwriting, an essential communication tool, has, in far too many instances and far too many countries, all but been abandoned.

I frequently have the chance to observe the challenges handwriting imposes on people using pens and pencils on paper. TV vision of people (of all ages) writing, reinforce the dismay I feel that handwriting is no longer taught in schools.

How to hold pencils and pens, how to position paper and how to sit comfortably when writing and importantly, how to form and join letters into a cursive writing format, are rudiments of understanding that assist handwritten communication.

For the growing numbers without these skills, handwriting looks to be everything from an uncomfortable action to pure torture.

Keyboard skills are important. So too is the ability to write legibility and with a degree of confidence and comfort that nowadays seems to be no longer educationally relevant.

My mind boggles at the malevolence of this man and his willingness to slaughter tens of thousands of Ukrainians and his own troops in an effort to ‘make a point’.  

Countless billions of dollars worth of residential, commercial and industrial infrastructure have been destroyed along with roads, harbours and airports.

Rich agricultural land has been savaged by rockets and missiles and turned into a hole filled, pockmarked and unproductive landscape. 

Ironically, Putin will NEVER EVER be held to account for his atrocious behaviour because no world powers or organisations have the guts to force him to any acquiescence or recompense. “Suck it up” will be his virtual response and that will be it.

We are close to 800 days since the invasion of February 24, 2022.

In recent times, a realisation seems to be growing among  those who are involved with educational decision-making and the setting of priorities for students.  It appears to be dawning upon us all that there is more to education than university degrees and occupations based solely upon pure academics.  That should be reassuring for those who are completing secondary school and are concerned that high-level academic qualifications are a prerequisite to every occupation in life.

So much is made of university qualifications, including bachelor’s and master’s degrees and PhDs, that little else seems to count. That is far from the case.  There is a myriad of excellent occupational opportunities available, requiring practical skill sets outside the scope of degree qualifications.  The pity is that more is not made known about TAFE, VET and trade options when young people are considering career options. The thrust seems toward the need for upcoming tertiary-age students only to consider fully academically focused degree courses.

Tim Pitman and Gavin Moodie, writing for ‘The Conversation’ (Supporting part-time and online learners is the key to reducing university drop-out rates), revealed that the first-year university attrition average for Australia across all universities is under 15%.  For the NT, that attrition rate is just above 26%. This means that one in very four students has cause to re-think tertiary studies.

There are many reasons for study discontinuity, and one might well be a realisation that full-blown degree study is not the best option.  Re-thinking career options are part of this double take. It might also be that study costs and the burden of an upcoming HECS debt weigh on the student’s conscience. Withdrawal from courses by March 31 in the year of enrolment means that HECS debts are avoided.

The need for a re-think can leave students in a state of insecurity about what to do occupationally.

An option that might be considered is promoting to students the array of work opportunities available through trades training and related areas of occupational study. Our territory is desperately short of qualified people. Part of this is a misplaced belief that trades and apprentice-based training leads to second-class jobs. That is far from the case. Thriving communities need occupational balance, and this is an area of distinct shortfall in Australia.

For many years on and off from 1970 until 1987, the places in which we worked like living in a camping context. With one or two exceptions, the Housing we were assigned was pretty much run down and in need of repair.

Assignments in large part work with an aboriginal community contexts.

Yes, we like the situations in which we lived. In large part It was like unto camping.

That was the way it was.

Our house in 1970. Aluminium walls and Masonite cladding. Typical of our housing over many years. Renting was the only option.

Women are key players within our schools at all levels. I believe the following attributes to fit their character as ‘the invaluable group’.

1. Women are all seeing, all knowing and able to join in fifteen conversations at once.

2. Women are aware: They have 360 degree vision.

3. Women have clear goal orientation and crystal-like focus.

4. Women cut to the chase and don’t dither around the edges of issues.

5. Women are careful synthesisers and succinct summarisers of situations.

6. Women are adept at timetabling and planning; they are meticulous plan followers.

7. Women have awareness.

8. Women show empathy to those who are under the pump.

9. Women excel in engaging others in planning and organisation.

10. Women have excellent leadership and participative perspective. They are both on the organisational balcony with all-encompassing vision and on the dance floor with and among those engaged with endeavour.

11. Women make an extraordinary contribution in going forward.

12. Women contribute proactively to staff endeavour and leadership balance within schools and systems.

In retirement from being a full time teacher, principal and educator, I live a little in two worlds.

On the one hand I connect with our Education Department as a person asked from time to time, to contribute to system initiatives and projects. It is a role I enjoy.

On the other, I retain membership in retirement with our Teacher’s Union and have contact quite regularly with those involved in the teaching field. On a third front, I am a casual lecturer/tutor/marker connecting with our Charles Darwin University’s School of Education. Finally I write a weekly column titled ‘Gray Matter … An Educational Reflection’ for the free community newspaper, the Suns’ circulating in Darwin, Palmerston and the Litchfield areas of the Northern Territory. Recently I have been invited onto the NT Board of Studies as an observer.

In these roles I have an appreciation of systems ambition and teacher response. I am convinced that the issue of happiness or unhappiness in roles is due largely to those in the field not understanding system imperatives and the system not understanding the issues that focus and concentrate teacher effort in our schools and classrooms. That divide needs bridging.

Teachers and principals need to tell it the way it is with and to our department.

The department needs for school operatives to know that its initiatives are often government directives over which they have little control or moderating influence.

Everyone needs to know that the function of education at schools and system level sits these days in the shadow of structure and the scaffolding build around the edifice of education.

All of this makes for impacting on attitudes, emotions and satisfactions.

Summarising the hobbyhorse field

Concluded.

Just about all in the starting barrier

To be concluded.

I feel most satisfied about productivity and what has been done during the day when I go to bed at night. It’s nice to lay and reflect on what has been accomplished during the day and with those thoughts in mind, to drift off to sleep.

In terms of activity volume, there is a variation each day in what has been done. That does not reflect negatively when contemplating what has happened during the day, before sleeping.

It is important to retire at night without feeling agitated or anxious about what has been accomplished and what is still to be done. As an old man, I have learnt to take it a day at a time and I’m always satisfied to reflect upon what the day has brought forward.

To me

At the moment

And for some time past

Life has lost all of its meaning.

Although alive and breathing

I am in a constant state of melancholy

There seems little point in living

I feel that I am waiting to die.

With that passing

Will come blessed oblivion

To the cares and worries

The concerns about relevance and meaning

That have become a part

Of my latter days.

With my mortal coil perished,

Sweet oblivion

And anonymity,

Will mark the endpoint,

Of my time on Earth.

Along with the millions.

The tens of millions who have gone before,

I will become a memory,

That will fade

Into nothingness.

One of the largest equine fields ever assembled

Getting close but more to come

There is no end to faddishness in education

To be continued

I think of this as my emoji. It is 25 years old.

🤠🤠🤠🤠🤠👩‍🌾🧑‍🎓🕵️‍♂️🕵️‍♀️💂‍♂️👨‍🎨🧑‍✈️🧙🎩🪖🎓

To be continued

The field is as numerous as the number of horses in the Melbourne Cup

To be continued

I like to discuss many and varied topics with my family members, with the wider community, and through online connections involving my blog and LinkedIn.

Many of the topics are about education.

I like to talk politics at local, Territory and Australian levels and also overseas politics.

I like to talk about things of a topographical and geographical nature.

I like to share stories from our experiences in Education and in living in different places over many years.

I’d like to talk about and think about the world situations and sadly have realised that the world we are living in right now is in the end game.

In short, and taking into account various fields of interest I like to talk about, be talked to, and listen to and contemplate myriads of matters from the past, the present and the future.

The field will be as numerous as the number of horses in the Melbourne Cup

To be continued

Based on and interpreted freom my experiences as an educator in the Northern Territory, Australia, from 1975 until 2012. In my retirement, there has been no decline in the number of hobbyhorses presented for schools and communities.

Please read the first frame of the four carefully, for it sets the context.

The nemesis of evil everywhere

The nemesis of evil everywhere

The nemesis of evildoers

The last time I took a risk was the last time I went driving. That was yesterday.

Every time I go driving in Darwin, I take a risk. The recklessness of drivers in this city is mind-boggling. Drivers often have to second-guess the behaviour of pedestrians and cyclists. People do not know how to use roundabouts. Little care is taken when people are coming out of side roads onto main roads and if on the main drag, you’ll have to get ready to brake at any time at all.

Many people do not use their indicators. The speed limits do not mean anything. Sticking to the speed limit means that you’re constantly passed and often tooted for going too slow.

At night time, it’s not unusual for vehicles to have a stone’s throw and have them. Car theft is on the increase. The driver who stops the traffic lights needs to be on the lookout in case somebody tries to grab their car while they are in forcing them out, allowing them to take off in the stolen vehicle. Getting fuel is another looking-out need, for the same reason.

I take a risk every time I drive out in Darwin.

An Interpretation

Like all people, I have taken several risks in life, some small and others bigger and more profound.

The outcomes of risk-taking can have positive or negative consequences. It’s sometimes not possible to see them before taking the risk because the risk is to be taken suddenly.

The biggest risk I ever took was taken almost in a flash. Within 24 hours I left the family farm and signed up for a career in teaching. It was an overnight decision I have never regretted. To this day I am ever so glad I took that risk, for it brought me a career that I loved.

Read and consider

I have a perennial battle with weight from time to time I have lost weight but never managed to keep it off.

For the last five years, I just retired 110 days ago, I was wishing and wishing I could lose weight but never had the willpower to start. I wish I had decided to begin losing weight more quickly.

110 days ago circumstances caused me to put my weight loss plan into action. From then on I have eaten very few sweet things and eaten far less than I used to I have given up snacks between meals.

So far, because I’m dropping weight slowly, I’ve gone from 121 kg down to 111.9 kg. I don’t look much different yet, but give it time.

I finally started watching my diet and I’m determined this time that there will be no turning back.

Starting Over

There is a saying “If there is no problem, why fix it?” The answer to this question lies in an innate belief that people contemporary to organisations feel impelled to individualise the institution in order to leave upon it their mark and their stamp. They don’t want their contribution to be in any way diluted. In a school context this means incoming Principals and leadership teams don’t want what they have to offer, to be colored or tempered by what has gone before. Rather than accepting and building upon organisational history the preference is to dump inherited culture and ideology, therefore starting over again.

Why?

It seems there is a lack of logic to an approach that discounts organisational development, attempting to return (its) time and historical clock to zero. Nevertheless it happens and not infrequently. One probably never quite knows why, so contemplation has to be somewhat conjectural.

The Question of Personal Security

Perhaps the most significant reason new leaders attempt to shed the ‘old’ and ‘established’ school practices is their desire to make a mark that is not seen to be influenced by what has gone before and therefore been inherited.

There may be concerns by new leaders they cannot get on while historical residue remains. They desire to put distance between themsleves and the organisation’s past feeling that until and unless they do, they will be minimally acknowledged. They don’t want to be compared to past leaders lest that comparasion shows them up in a poor light. The best thing to do therefore is to promote a ‘fade out’ of what has happened in past years. “I can’t get on while memories of your involvement linger in the background’ may apply. That being the case the ‘new’ incumbent’s aim is to “put distance” between herself or himself and past leaders.

This worry may be aggravated by the new leader or leadership group feeling uncertain or insecure in the new position. The need to ‘prove oneself’ may come from inner motivation: It may also be that the new leader has been told she or he needs to take the school in a certain direction.

The incoming leader may have been told things about the school are wrong and need to be put to rights. The need to be a ‘fixer’ has certainly been put on incoming principals appointed to various schools in the Northern Territory over the years. Unless the Principal lives up to the expectation… ! The consequence may be less than palatable.

These matters go to the heart of personal security. Often it seems those new to principalship suffer from feelings of insecurity. This is likely to be exacerbated if the Principal is taking up appointment in an interstate or intra-territory location.

Elements Impacting on ‘Person Security’ Issues

The issue of security – with its close links to personal well-being is impacted by further considerations.

1. The fact that the Principal occupies (in the NT) a non-permanent position with the maximum temporary appointment being a four year contract, adds to anxiety and can create feelings of personal disequilibrium. The Principal becomes a creature anxious to please and therefore a person who is very conscious indeed, of superordinate expectations.

2. The loading down onto schools of Government expectations with accompanying accountability and compliance requirements may make new leaders anxious to show their worth by doing it their way – where their way has close alignment to systemic policy.

3. There may be a belief held by the incoming leader that the previous incumbent will somehow continue to impose upon and influence matters at the school. It could be a case of ‘gone but not really’. This means that in terms of SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) Analysis, the previous Principal and leadership group are regarded as threatening the newly appointed leader.

This being the case, the new leader will take every opportunity possible to distance her or his predecessor from the school. There is a certain worry about new leadership being compared and contrasted with the past; this can be felt as a threat by the new leader, particularly if the previous leader was in place for a substantial period of time and during that time had built up a respect base of appreciation within the school community.

An astute leader new to a school community will carefully assess that past and aim to engage her or his predecessor in a way that enhances opportunity and builds strength for the incoming leadership team.

There is danger that if the incoming leader and leadership team predetermine the outgoing leader to be a threat, this concern may become a reality. It is not hard to imagine that if the outgoing leader perceives herself or himself to be regarded as ‘alien’, this too may become a reality. No-one who has made a sincere commitment to an organisation for a long period of time appreciates being tossed aside and regarded as distasteful. It would take a noble person indeed, to ‘suck this up’ without reacting. Incoming leaders need to be careful about throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

4. It follows that new leadership may suggest that what is inherited is inferior or sub-standard. That justifies statements such as “drastic remedial action is necessary” and “things will get worse before they get better” – implying that if those within the school have been comfortable in working within an inferior environment, they will be given a good shake as the new leadership groups takes the school toward betterment.

Wise leaders take their time to carefully assess inherited environments before initiating wholesale change. While they may wish to change the way schools are branded, this needs to be done with care. Good inherited organisational practice deserves to be maintained, not tossed aside.

5. Plagiarism is an interesting juxtapositional point that comes into the equation of new leadership, particularly in Northern Territory schools. There are rapid population shifts within the Territory. It is not unusual for schools to have a turnover of one third to one half of the school student population every twelve months to two years.

With this being the case, incoming school leaders can allow processes and practices to lapse for a period of time, then re-introducing them as new ideas after twelve months or two years. This is accepted as healthy change by a client group who, not familiar with the way it was, considers these changes to be new rather than ongoing. This could apply to school assessments, reporting to parents, school marketing, methods of newsletter circulation and so on. Far from being new, these approaches are back to the past; however they are claimed as being new ideas. Undeserved credit is given to leaders for what is tantamount to recycling.

‘New’ initiatives and approaches are new to those who come later, but not to those who have been there all along. In other words, what is ‘new’ is really old hat.

Concluding Thoughts

No -one denies that school leaders (and leaders of other organisations) need to be given a fair go. Pragmatic people rejoice with leaders for and in their management and administrative successes. Those who don’t are sadly negative or inherently jealous.

However, when incoming leaders in turn deny what has gone before, wanting to minimise memories of previous leadership contribution and distance their predecessors from the current and contemporary organisation, a similar negative applies. The one is hardly better than the other.

Some leaders from the past may want to ‘push in’, being reluctant to let go. Others are more than willing to relinquish but can stay connected in a positive context as resource people.

It is behoven on school leaders to be careful lest their actions lead to negativity and generate bitter waters and bad feeling for and within their organisations.

Concluded

Metaphorically, that assigns everything built up over time to the waste paper bin. If organisations are build in the foundation up, its a case of big time demolition and the reduction of what has been to a pile of rubble. Leaders who are comfortable with only this operational style are not satisfied until the very foundations on which the organisation was built, are gone.

Expunging School History

Schools are organisations. The application of this principle, (tear down to build up) to schools and school communities can, in my opinion, be extremely destructive. While it might identify the Principal or Leadership Group as the sole owners of what ultimately comes to hallmark the school, damage done in ‘evolving toward’ and reaching this point can be destructive to the extreme. Organisational history and school history are wiped out; what remains are cultural scars.

Leadership so styled flies in the face of logic. It is generated by a false belief that in order for the new leader or leadership group to feel safe and comfortable within the school, its past must be dimmed until it vanishes into a never remembered past – a past that fades until fully shrouded by the ‘never was’ mantle.

Genesis 1:1 – In and Back to The Beginning

There used to be criticisms leveled about leadership changes in remote area Northern Territory schools. It was of concern that Aboriginal Schools were destabilised by the fact that incoming leaders assigned existing policies to the WPB as the first step in ‘starting all over again’. The fact that schools were always at Genesis 1:1 ‘in the beginning’ meant that little accumulative progress was made.

There used to be an advertisment on television talking about the propensity for people to take ‘two steps forward and one step back’. With Indigenous Education it became more a case of ‘one step forward and two steps backward’. This was largely the result of incoming leaders and staff members not accepting the authenticity of pre-built culture developed by those who had come, contributed, then gone.

When this happens in school contexts, the clock resets to zero and the organisation is forced to start over. The cycle of recommencement is not confined to Indigenous Schools. It happens elsewhere. It happens far too often and the happening has a deleterious impact on schools and their supporting communities.

To be continued

(Some Reflections of a ‘Yesterday’s Leader’)

One of the organisational contexts that has been precious over the years, is a belief in the fact that institutions should progress in an onward and upward direction. “Steady-state” development has always been important. It is confirmed as a practice if what has gone before is accepted and built upon by those new to organisations. The idea that succession in office should require the successor to dump as baggage the organisational culture he or she inherited to start all over, is anathema.

The best organisations are those that build, accepting what has driven the particular institution to date and moving it along. There will be some changes, including practices that might be deemed redundant. By and large however, it will be a case of incoming leadership accepting existing culture and building on existing mores. Modification, refinement, revision and extension come to mind as drivers of this precept.

Suspect organisations or those that have their credence called to mind, are those in which leadership changes are generally or always accompanied by the dumping of inherited culture in order to ‘start over’. Leaders who practice this philosophy seem to be uncomfortable with other than their own ideas and perceptions. They contextualise the organisation they have inherited as threatening, until the vestiges of development occurring under previous leaders are expunged. This means ‘wiping the slate clean’ and pretending that ‘what is’ (inherited culture) ‘never was’ because it is peremptorily wiped out

To be continued

“What makes you nervous“? This question is asked of me on the day before I am due to go into Darwin Day Surgery for an operation to remove carcinoma from my face.

Over the years I have had many cancers come from my person. The worst was the cancer behind my right here many years ago which my surgeon – also my GP – removed.

I have had two squamous cancers, one of which came close to getting away from me before it was surgically removed.

I am naturally frightened and nervous before any procedure and tomorrow’s appointment with the surgeon’s scalpel is no different.

The anticipation the day before surgery, with attendant worries, makes for a long day.

A TRIBUTE TO ANTHONY ALBANESE PM AUSTRALIA

A leader most admired,

That is our own AA,

He leads Australia brilliantly,

Each and every day,

When things are looking really grim,

And uncertainties seem to loom,

His smile and reassurance,

Will dissipate the gloom.

Like the Israelites of old,

Who wandered for 40 years,

Our PM is like Moses,

And expunges all our fears.

AA is our guiding light,

Who shows us a better way,

With reassuring confidence,

He highlights every day,

With futuristic promises,

Of what will come to hand,

When after years of hard knocks,

He transforms our place down under,

Makes it ‘the promised land’.

There is someone here,

And someone there,

But wokeists, wokeists everywhere,

In every state and territory,

Showing us the better way,

Of accomodating every deed,

Of modernists’ every need,

Enlightening, showing us the way,

To live in society today.

Mores and beliefs that once were held,

From life wokeists have now expelled,

In ‘Wokeland’ now I find my home,

Safe and happy I’ve become,

Living life so gay and free,

Prudish times are history,

What was, has faded clean away,

New tides of wokelife are here to stay

Airfares are far, away too high,

They are a reason I won’t fly,

Crowded into seats so small,

There is no room for legs at all,

Three seats in space that should take two,

Jammed in, there’s nought that one can do,

Knees together, elbows in,

I feel like a sardine in a tin,

From ‘go’ to ‘whoa’ seems like an age,

(I’m like a hen struck in a cage),

Off the plane in space I’m free,

Flying now is not for me.

As a very, very old man, I retired from work what seems like a long time ago – 12 years – I now no longer experience days that are frantic and filled with never-ending tasks.

I worked extraordinarily hard during my 40+ years as an educator. I guess the unwinding began when I retired.

Yes, I do a fair bit in retirement and had a relaxed pace with much more dedication to the home front.

Tasks aside – and many of them are like writing which I do a lot, is fun – I relax at the end of the day by watching a bit of television, of then falling asleep in front of the TV.

Then I go to bed, relax, and after a while enter the Land of Nod and its province of Dreamland.

August 3

Did not sleep at all well last night and was restless a lot of the time. My sleep I think was pretty light full of dreams. Nevertheless, I did need the alarm at 5 AM to jerk me into full wakefulness.

Looked out the door. It was still raining I’ll be asleep been raining most of the night. Just a steady, soaking rain and not much wind.

Had my taxi booked for 6 AM and got a text message just as I was about to walk out the door telling me the text it was on its way. I got an around and had a shower got things ready and packed ready for departure.

The check in Qantas ladyWas very good and pleasant. She has excellent customer relationships she’s like that all the time. Got a seat in row 4D

Checked in at the AdelaideAirport without too much fuss including the wanding process. Had a bacon and egg breakfast at the Terra Rosa and discovered that they don’t know how to fry eggs either. However, it’s better than aeroplane breakfast which is strong on pungency are not so flash wanna comes to quality eating.

Flight is boarding at 7:40 from gate 24. Sitting in the relevant passenger collection area right now it’s a long long corridor. Long and wide. When people walk past, is reverberation that goes right through the floor and gives people sitting down a reasonable shake.

Had to queue for cubicles at the male toilet.

Boarded at 7.40 am. Still raining. Adelaide will be happy but I don’t know how far inland it is going. Lots of strong wind and dust over much of western and northern SA yesterday. Coming as it did after a very dry winter, some farmers were declaring it a disaster.

Row 4 is right behind first class seats. You have much more legroom than in following rows and a table plus screen that have to be elevated from the arm rest.

My screen was jammed and had to be extracted by a combination of male flight attendants. It eventually became unstuck.

Plane got away in time and within a few ascending minutes had cut through the rain cloud and was in its way north and into dryness.

We ran into turbulence about 1.20 into the journey and all passengers and crew were returned to seats and had to fasten seat belts. It was in airspace north of Cooper Pedy.

The turbulence kept up for a good 20 minutes.

Watched ‘Beruit’ a drama on the little screen. Bit over three hours on board and we are approaching Katherine from the south. Just over or around 25 minutes from overflying Katherine to landing in Darwin.

This has been my fourth trip to Adelaide.

The first was in October 2017 for an initial consultation with Trevor Collinson.

Then my surgery was deferred because of my hip replacement and it’s subsequent healing.

The second trip was for botoxing on March 6 2018.

The third was for my operation on April 12 2018.

This trip was for my post operative appointment on August 2.

My impressions of Adelaide as a clean city remain. Parks with winter impacting are spacious and green. Traffic was heavy but not reduced to gridlock.

Some turbulence as we closed in on Darwin. Some overhanging cloud through which we had to fly before landing.

Arrived and caught a taxi home. Flight was just over three and a half hours.

It was / is great to be back. And with my hernia repaired.

I talked about The positives of student leadership and development that schools have been pushing for the past two and three decades. The Palmerston initiative is an extension and development of this direction.

I also sent an email to Richardson Ward Alderman about the state of Darwin and northern suburbs. It will be interesting to see if I get a response.

Having time before my appointment today gave me the opportunity to do a bit of reading, writing, texting, and catch up. Flinders Lodge is basic but comfortable. When one is alone, it lends itself to those activities.

The Adelaide weather today has been quite comfortable – or at least it was until the early afternoon. The temperature has been pretty reasonable. This morning the sky was blue and cloudless, the gradually became overcast during the afternoon. Now there is rain on the horizon because of the looming cold front.

Adelaide’s temperature supposed to plummet overnight, only rising to 14°C tomorrow. There is likelihood of it being windy.

Northern and Western South Australia have experienced strong winds and quite a bit of raised dust today. There have been some rain storms, but seemingly, they’ve passed over fairly quickly because of the speed of advance of the front.

My 3 o’clock appointment was running a little late because Traffic Collinson was a bit behind. He is quite happy with the way things are going but would like to see me again in between three and six months. The hernia corrections taken up pretty well but a slight bulge on my left hand side maybe do due to the fact of incisions within the way they’ve come back. It’s not out of this world. My thinking is that it might tighten further with the passing months, particularly if I do some exercise. I also need to look at losing some weight.

The staff at Collinson’s office email through my patient assistance travel documentation to Leslie Cox at 3:40 PM. He was able to process that and email me my approval for return travel by just after 4 PM.

So that gave me clearance by a few minutes to catch the flight home tomorrow morning.

There seem to be quite a lot of people staying at this lodge at the moment. It is self-contained and really does afford you the chance to relax a little.

Had pumpkin soup, roast lamb and salad with chips, and ice cream with strawberry topping for tea. Plane but quite filling.

It started raining at about 9 PM or maybe just a bit before. Quite light, penetrating rain. Wherever is falling, would be guaranteeing maximum soakage.

To be continued

.

ADELAIDE TRIP – A FEW YEARS AGO

Checked in quickly and joined the line of those who have to be zapped. ‘Dome’ was crowded and they have changed things upstairs so sandwiches are no longer an option. Finished up having to settle for s couple of MacDonald’s whoppers. Took out the rubbish bits.

25D was my allocated seat.

Plane late getting away because of Pitch Black planes landing and creating a backlog for commercials.

A personable captain on flight deck kept us apprised of developments.

Seat mate had shit tucker in a seal pack and chose to eat it before takeoff. The smell was enough.

Plane was pretty full with a few empty seats here and there.

The lunch smelled and it wasn’t a pleasant odour.

Toilets were getting plenty of patronage and by the time we were closing on Adelaide there was an occasional waft of ablutions odour drifting up the plane from the rear conveniences.

Seats are very close in economy and armrests close in on you.

Hard to move legs and feet and exercise.

Bought a book on the Top End for Trevor Collinson my surgeon.

Watched a movie on the way down. Not a terrific movie but it helps pass the time a little. Takes one’s mind off aches and pains.

Watched ‘Fahrenheit 451 Science Fiction 1.42. Film took us to 950 kilometres and 1.13 from Adelaide. Flying at 11466 metres and an outside temperature of -46C. 909 to go as I typed this bit.

Watched an episode of ‘True Detectives’. Essentially American and second rate.

Bit of reading in latest ‘Time’ magazine and also bought ‘The Readers Digest’. That will be for later.

4.10 on and we are two minutes from touching down. Adelaide temperature is 17C.

2733 kilometres travelled. 3.38 on stopwatch.

Taxi in at $35. Taxis organised by a dispatch officer at the Adelaide Airport. A very long queue of people were dispatched in a very short time. You are directed to a taxi spot.

Taxis are clean and the drivers dispositioned in a way that is quite foreign in Darwin. City continues to be clean and graffiti free.

Lodge is fine. Upstairs in room 48. Place is quite busy with people liberally sharing their stories on everything from plane travel to superannuation issues.

Leek and vegetable soup.

Sirloin steak, chips and salad.

Ice cream with strawberry topping.

August 2

Did not sleep all that well last night. Quite fitfully in fact. Dozed more than having slept.

Spent the morning reading and listening to current affairs in Darwin radio through the ABC and Mix 104.9. ABC contacted me regarding School Based Policing and my dissertation. Spoke with Adam Steer about the changes that happened, which started and gained momentum under the Martin Government’s watch. Things went from there and the program gradually eroded.

I was phoned by Thomas Morehouse who is the Policy Adviser to Gary Higgins. He asked for a copy of my dissertation. I sent it to him. I offered a conversation if that would be useful at some future time.

I will so sent a long text to Katie Woolf at Mix 104.9 about the youth program that’s looking at developing positive leadership and attitudes. Session of this program was held in Palmerston yesterday.

Part of my message was to convey the point that valuable though this program is, it is not the first rather an extension of what has gone before.

To be continued

Adelaide is the captal city of South Australia

First impressions are often lasting impressions. My first impression of Adelaide after not having been here for 20-odd years is that it is well cared for and a city of which people are proud. Coming in from the airport to the town centre (and comparing the same journey in Darwin), the streets are clean, the verges maintained, very little evidence of graffiti on buildings and evident pride in the general city environment. The main drag from the airport to the CBD in Darwin is about as far removed from Adelaide as A is from Z.

I had a reasonable conversation with the taxi driver, who has been driving taxis in Adelaide for 20 years. He knows the city and reflects people’s pride in this place. His cab was clean and well-maintained, and his dress reflected Pride in the taxi driving profession.

Again, compared with Darwin, there was an A-Z difference just on this point. It would not hurt if the Northern Territory taxi driving industry examined how cars and drivers were present in the city. At the airport, passengers are assisted to a cab, and people with impediments are given that extra courtesy they need after a long-haul flight.

I was directed to a bay where the taxi would pull, and the concierge (controller) assisted with my luggage. That sure helped because I felt pretty stuffed and not particularly well.

One of the things that impresses Adelaide driving into town is the healthy mix of old and new buildings. All the structures are well preserved, and older buildings are well maintained. That level of the mixture is something I’ve not seen in cities where the first thought about construction and expansion is tearing down once already there. That mixing of building types fascinates and appeals.

Over a 12 km journey, I only saw one manifestation of graffiti on the building wall. Instead, gather from talking to the taxi driver that defacements are dealt with promptly and graffiti cleaned off. Neither was the letter along the roadsides either in gutters are on verges.

Much of the road is lined with deciduous trees, which will soon bloom. Those trees are maintained, apparent from their shape.

Streets are wide, and there’s plenty of Parkland interspersed with development. Although we are coming out of winter down south at the moment, I believe that the grass of these park areas has more to do with reticulation and maintenance than the vagaries of the weather.

There is a healthy mix of old and new buildings and architectural styles. Included are buildings with wrought iron facades. Major roads are wide and accommodate maximum traffic flow, and roundabouts are mixed with traffic lights. Routes are very clearly signposted.

How do I use social media? In two words “I don’t“.

I have never had a social media account and never will. I have seen too many people get into all sorts of situations because of social media – I believe that it does more harm than good.

Thousands and thousands of people of all ages are hurt beyond reason because of the scarifying comments, trolling, putdowns and other shortfalls of social media.

I like blogging and treat that professionally as I do my LinkedIn account. And they will do me just fine.

People can like me, hate me, envy me throw verbal barrages of negativism at me or anything else. But I know nothing about it because there will never be any revelations to me of anything at all that turns up on my social media accounts.

I am better off without social media and that’s the way it will continue to be.

Aging is a funny process. You may ‘look’ old but quite often don’t ‘feel’ that aged within your mind. You appear old to others and are often treated accordingly. That can range from derision and discounting to the according of appreciation and respect.

Age is something often beholden from without, but not necessarily felt within by the aging one.

Practically speaking, one has to know her or his physical limitations as she or he gets older. Without that caution, there can be unnecessary and hurtful consequences. Falling, accidents and other altogether avoidable setbacks may occur.

A strange phenomenon about ‘age’ is that it is often anticipated with dread by those who are younger and considering the future of life’s pathway. Yet on arrival, you wonder what the fuss and worry were all about.

Being prepared in terms of planning when young for financial security when older sure helps! Being old, poor and dependent on others for everything is NOT recommended.

I say to those with a desire to have ‘the best’ becoming teachers of specialist subjects, “Good luck in finding the teaching candidates you want.”

There is a lot that causes disaffection about the profession. Pay rates are unappealing, men are discouraged from teaching because of the threat of being accused of socially inappropriate conduct, and parents and students no longer have the level of respect for teachers that once existed.

Teacher accountabilities and responsibilities have become unwieldy while changes in curriculum and teaching focus are unappealing to older, more conservative teachers.

And remember that it is NOT teachers in classrooms who are responsible for stupid and irresponsible curriculum changes and the watering down of teaching expectations while upping data, monitoring and recording requirements Teachers and schools are the victims of nonsensical changes – along with students.

Change comes from about, from the AITSL, the ‘experts’ government and others. These are people who want student accomplishment statistics to look good. They are also the people who are all about political correctness and educational fashion.

Teaching is in a watershed position.

Inclusivity a strong suit

Unlike many leaders who have an autocratic streak or are at least benevolent autocrats, our prime minister is a leader who values the input of his whole team, including members of both his inner and outer cabinets. He consults them frequently and helps them to feel valued and wanted. they know that together with the Prime Minister they are sharing in the shaping of our country’s future. This togetherness is a rare feature in many world leaders.

Our Prime Minister is careful, reflective, and never makes decisions in haste. part of this process is to engage with his full cabinet in shaping the way forward. This gives confidence in their leader to all members of the labour side of politics.

An excellent delegator

Our PM is an outstanding delegator. His shared leadership

style is inspirational. He never stands on the toes of, nor overrides his ministers. He has the deep and profound respect of all members of the Labor Party’s parliamentary wing. People within the community, particularly young people, rejoice in his candour and the trust he has in others. His transparency offers a wonderful insight into how good government should operate.

My first thought on waking up this morning was about how much the Higher Education Contribution Scheme (HECS) Is impacting Australian University Students. I’m referring to the domestic students, not Those who are coming in as internationals because they pay an arm and a leg for the privilege of studying at our universities in Australia. They are regarded as “Cash Powers“ by universities. It is the huge amount charged to them for doing courses and gaining degrees that universities apply to everything from salaries to business cases and facilities management.

My concern is for domestic students who are studying at their home universities. Our granddaughter commenced study at the University in Darwin this year. Her degree in the area of science and medicine will take three years. Her HECS debt will be north of $30,000 at the end of that time.

There is no way that somebody can get a good degree and then have to turn around and start paying off that debt, especially when the cost-price index each year is added in to reflect inflation within the economy. over three years including 2024, the amount added to that will be in order of 15%. And those increases keep on adding to the accumulated debt in the same way as interest does on house mortgages. What chance did these people get?

We are helping our granddaughter and are pleased to be able to do so. But she may be among a minority supported in this way.

The cartoon in the Melbourne Herald Sun by Mark Knight today shows exactly what I’m talking about.

How unfair is this and why do governments aim to add to costs borne by students by adding CPI increases to what they owe?

The fragility of youth

We need to realise how fragile and concerned about the future young people are, doing our best as educators to build confidence and a sense of the positive into their thinking and belief patterns.

Hierarchical organisation

Hierarchal organisation is a worry. It stacks people in terms of importance within a pyramidical structure, from less to more important. My preference is concentric management, with one plane for all.

The Best Leadership

Ascribed leadership is assigned to the position and is a power many choose to use. My preference was for acquired leadership, leadership based on respect earned through the appreciation bestowed by others. 

Respect

I believe the most essential quality to be earned, as a student or as a teacher, is that of RESPECT. Respect has to be earned, for it is a recognition of decency that accrues because of genuine care.

Doing more with less

Generally speaking, budget stringencies are asking school principals and educational leaders to be like Moses in ancient times. Moses asked Pharaoh for more building supplies so Israelites (system slaves) could go on building good homes and Egyptian infrastructure. Pharaoh got cross and told Moses to go away. Supplies were cut off. The Israelites had to scrounge, using their wits to develop construction materials. Similarly, educators and principals are challenged to do more with less – just like Moses.

Schools and child care

We need to change the thinking paradigm of those who believe the prime purpose of schools to be that of providing child care. The fact that schools are often defined as places where children go to be brought up, being like unto second homes with teachers pseudo parents is a sad indictment on modern life. Often it seems, parents give birth and hand over their children for almost total institutionalised upbringing.

ABOUT OUR AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT

The government does not need an advertising campaign to advertise its abject failures. If it could, this government would ‘do a Cyprus’ and wipe out all savings over $100,000, taking the rest for its coffers. In my opinion, this government despises enterprise and deeply envies the success of those who have made a go of life. I often wish we had no political parties but were governed by people rather than a party machine built on blind and unthinking affiliation.

All this blinding upcoming advertising campaign is going to do is waste huge amounts of money and convince most Australians more than ever of the deep, depressed place we have become.

Opportunity has declined, and initiative has been discouraged. So, too, there is the notion of independent enterprise and thinking for most, who do not want to bludge on support and handouts.

This country is “fairer”? No it isn’t, and it hasn’t been fairer for a long time.

Because it is an unfair country, our strength and smartness are being sapped. We are a country whose luck is fleeting. I wonder if totalitarianism isn’t coming on!

In the United Kingdom and Ireland when we went on holiday in 1996.

I happened across many people and had conversations, but five stood out and I remember them to this day.

A pigeon handler releasing birds in the Yorkshire moors.

A shearer shearing sheep on a tarpaulin under a tree in the corner of a paddock on the Isle of Skye.

Another Shearer shearing sheep using a petrol-driven mobile stand in the back of a trailer in John O Groats, Scotland.

The fascination of watching a fisherman fishing off a jetty at low tide in Penzance. I was fascinated by a drop of moisture seemingly permanently attached to the end of his nose.

A great conversation with a street cleaner in Dublin during the late hours of the night when I went out walking.

I say to those with a desire to have ‘the best’ becoming teachers of specialist subjects, “Good luck in finding the teaching candidates you want.”

There is a lot that causes disaffection about the profession. Pay rates are unappealing, men are discouraged from teaching because of the threat of being accused of socially inappropriate conduct, and parents and students no longer have the level of respect for teachers that once existed.

Teacher accountabilities and responsibilities have become unwieldy while changes in curriculum and teaching focus are unappealing to older, more conservative teachers.

And remember that it is NOT teachers in classrooms who are responsible for stupid and irresponsible curriculum changes and the watering down of teaching expectations while upping data, monitoring and recording requirements Teachers and schools are the victims of nonsensical changes – along with students. Change comes from about, from the AITSL, the ‘experts’ government and others. These are people who want student accomplishment statistics to look good. They are also the people who are all about political correctness and educational fashion.

Teaching is in a watershed position.

The childcare issue is one people should consider before having children.

Consider also that the problem was one that parents had to manage until about 30 years ago. These days, it seems that many people give birth to children and then think about the responsibilities associated with their upbringing.

These days, parents seem entitled to pass the buck for the upbringing of their children in schools and other institutions. They also hold their hands to be ‘compensated’ for the ‘inconvenience’ of having children.

There are parents who plan their families and prioritise their children over everything else in life – but it often seems they are in a minority.

I pity children who grow up in our modern times feeling unwanted and unloved. Institutionalised children and dispassionate, ultimately disinterested parents do nothing for our social future.

And than we wonder at the behaviours of those children, when so many of them must feel unwanted and unloved.

We are a joke in the eyes of the world.

What other country takes in overseas people from those who are legitimate to illegals, then panders to their beliefs by changing our customs, i.e. being an apologist for Christmas, Easter and so on?

What other country is so welfare-bound that it takes the taxation contributions of three average households to fund the welfare entitlements of one (household)?

What orther country is growing its population so fast, that in March 2024, the net intake ofr aerrivals over those departing was 105,000 – 3387 people each day or north of 141 people each hour.

And what other country so softly folds its hands and gives in to the trading demands of overseas partners?

We ARE a soft touch.

I ATE GOOD FOOD TO GROW

A decision to take the school canteen lady’s advice transformed me from being vertically challenged to vertically enhanced

The canteen lady helped the little boy (me) grow

I’m a canteen lady and I want you to know, that in my role I can help you, young Henry, to grow.

Little boy (me) who was teased because he was little and his legs swung from his shoulders, responded. “How?”

The canteen lady responded by saying “with my nourishing food I can help you to grow.”

So it was that I became determined to eat nourishing food and that decision helped me to grow.

A lot is being talked about in the community and reported in the media on the subject of teacher quality. The soul searching and almost daily comment around Australia and in the Northern Territory is futuristic and forward looking. I believe in looking forward, those responsible for teacher preparation need to reflect on past teacher training practices, revisiting and including some of the key elements in our 21st century teacher preparation courses.

I worry that critical teaching and preparation methodologies are insufficiently stressed. Rather than prospective teachers receiving that understanding while in training, they graduate with degrees and as neophytes are expected to begin acquiring practical teaching skills and dispositions upon full-time entry into classroom teaching positions.

SCHOOLS SHOULD BE FOR CHILDREN

All school pedagogy put should put children first. When the Northern Territory took on responsibility for education in 1979, our first director was Dr Jim Eedle.

In March of that year he gathered all Principals of Northern Territory schools to a conference in Katherine. He said to us in his inimitable way of speaking, that we should always remember that “schools are for children”.

This he said was the prime function of schools. He went on to say that structure and organisation should always be about supporting function, the looking after of education for children. He suggested that if structure became the all important thing, that the quality of function would diminish.

Fast forward 40 years, and I think that the function of education is now well and truly in the shadow of structure. How I would love to have a revisitation to the words and sentiments of our first Director.

EYE CONTACT

* Look at people. Don’t look over them, under them or around them.

* Engage people individually and collectively through eye contact. Rest on individuals and cover the audience.

* Make your eyes friendly, encouraging and inviting.

* Don’t allow eyes to become flat or hostile.

* Eyes are the most important parts of the anatomy when it comes to gesture.

___________

KNOW YOUR SUBJECT

As a presenter, particularly if you have been given preparation time, know your subject. If you don’t know your subject, then it will become patently clear to the audience that your knowledge is stretched. Restlessness, fidgeting , looking uncomfortable, visible sweating and other visible manifestations will become giveaways. Eye blinking and throat clearing might become part of the reaction all too visible to the listening group.

‘Subject stretch’ will bring out uncharacteristic ‘ahs’, ‘ums’, ‘you knows’ and so on in an altogether uncharacteristic manner.

There is a lot to be said for being prepared.

I have thought about this question long and hard. Not only today because it is our topic but over many years.

Some places on earth could be hazardous to visit. I believe the United States of America would be the most hazardous of all.

People are out of control. Guns rule. Thousands of people of all ages are slaughtered each year, not by external war, but by people living in America who like the ways of guns and who like to kill and massacre.

The American Gun Lobby is the most powerful organisation in America and sets the agenda of compliance that all authorities have toward gun ownership and usage.

Guns and crime in America are out of control and to such an extent that in many places major shopping centres have closed down permanently. Shop owners and centre managers can no longer manage to sustain business against the tsunami-like onslaught of crime.

Governments at all levels are all over the place and have no control. Internal upheaval is the way the country runs.

From what I read and hear, America is collapsing in on itself. What we see is the shell but the egg inside has gone bad.

Sadly, Australia is following in America’s footsteps, so we are within the next 10 or 20 years and look forward to the deterioration that has already suffocated America.

In essence, the United States is no longer. There may well be 50 states but they are not united in any way, shape or form.

AVOID THE BORING VOICE

The syndrome ‘boring voice’, associated with monotone expression is a habit into which it can be easy to lapse. Keeping one’s voice interesting, vibrant and in resonation territory is important,. This is especially the case when topics are seriously challenging. Monotonous expression is a sure fire turn off, negatively impacting the comprehension of listeners.

Nasalisation, that is speaking through one’s nose, can be equally off-putting to listeners. While cultural and dialectic differences impact on nasal speech, aiming for enunciation to be as clear as possible is important.

Facing the audience can be easily overlooked. When speakers move, speaking side on or even back on to the audience can happen. This is a presentation characteristic that must be avoided because it can result in inaudibility.

_____________

EYE CONTACT

* Look at people. Don’t look over them, under them or around them.

* Engage people individually and collectively through eye contact. Rest on individuals and cover the audience.

* Make your eyes friendly, encouraging and inviting.

* Don’t allow eyes to become flat or hostile.

* Eyes are the most important parts of the anatomy when it comes to gesture.

___________

I have had relations over the years do very positive and helpful things for me, everything from advice to material support. In turn, I hope I have given back to them in the same way.

It’s hard to think back and recall one thing that stands out about all others.

Upon reflection, I think that the advice my Father gave to me when I was a young man has been something that has stood me in good stead for well over 60 years. My Father lived by the principle of the advice that he gave. He said to me, “Henry, avoided at all costs. Don’t spend what you don’t have. Have the money you need before you buy what you require.” He explained to me that interest paid on borrowings was dead money and finished up causing goods and services to be a lot more expensive than they might if paid for at the time they were purchased.

That advice has done to me over time. In tern, I have passed this on to my children and now our grandchildren. If they can live by this principle as have I, they will benefit enormously.

MORE TO ‘UMS’ THAN ‘UMS’

Interspersing speech with ‘um’s,’ ‘ah’s’, ‘er’s’, and ‘or’s’, is distracting and off-putting to listeners. These hesitations, space fillers and time grabbers can distract listeners. Indeed, some might divert their attention completely from presenters, listening for and noting down each speech imperfection on some sort of a mental (or physical) tally sheet.

Variations to the ‘um’ count include the following:

• Beginning each sentence with ‘look’.

• Interspersing ‘you know’ through the verbal speech text.

• ‘Double clutching – ‘um, um’.

• Using ‘and’ ad nauseam as a sentence stretcher and space filler.

The list goes on. ‘Listen’ when listening and you will hear what I mean.

__________________________

CONSIDER A CRITICAL COLLEAGUE

Think of having someone as a CRITICAL COLLEAGUE offer you feedback on your presentations. Ask for recognition of your strengths and constructive criticism on things you might improve in future.

The presentation challenge is everlasting. We never reach the pinnacle. If we feel we have made it, with nothing left to learn, our slide into the area of lesser effectiveness begins immediately.

Encourage those in your workplaces, to consider speech and speaking development. So many people are frightened of dealing with the public because they lack communications confidence. Help them up.

_______________

PUNCTUATE SPEECH

When speaking, insert punctuation so that the audience ‘hears’ commas, semi colons, and full stops. This is achieved through pause which adds the emphasis punctuation is about.

Pause is a way of emphasising important points that have been made. To pause gives listeners a brief reflective space. In that context ‘pause’ is a way of emphasising elements of speech.

‘Inflection’ is a way of building emphasis and highlighting points that are being made. This adds to the vibrancy of speech and triggers listening reception that helps to make points ‘stand out’ in audience comprehension.

_____________

Crime is the modern name for ‘Australia’.

Crime is a major Australian industry.

Perpetrators of crime are valued much more highly than the victims of crime.

Criminal activities are downplayed for a significant percentage of the population because of their ethnicity.

The consequences of crimes against people and property are mitigated for those who are mentally unstable.

Crime is the number one growth phenomenon in Australia.

SPEAK TO BE REMEMBERED

Those most remembered as speakers are those who galvanise their audiences and engage with them. Don’t over talk. Twenty five minutes is tops. Engage the audience, involve them.

Always speak with conviction and sincerity. The audience can sense passion and speaker belief in his or her message by studying the presenter’s body language. Introduce, develop and conclude carefully.

I BELIEVE THE EYES TO BE THE MOST POWERFUL OF COMMUNICATIONS TOOLS. Speakers who are confident rove the audience, with his/her eyes canvassing the eyes of everyone in the listening group.

__________

SPEAK FROM THE HEART

Never be a ‘veneer speaker’ whose polish belies his/her commitment to the subject. Be a person remembered by the audience for sincerity. Speak to, not ‘down’ to your listeners.

Speakers and presenters should aim to embrace the audience, drawing listeners toward him or her by the power of sincerely uttered words. This will being them ‘together as one’ in a sharing context.

Listen carefully to speakers and EVALUATE them for strengths and elements of presentation you feel they might do differently and better. The exercise helps you focus on message and messenger.

I feel ever so chuffed that our prime minister in Australia Anthony Albanese and the lady who has now become his fiancé had their first drinks and one of their initial meetings that led to the cementing of their relationship at “Little Henry’s”

Because of its alignment with my name, this establishment has become my favourite in the area of restaurants and bars.

It was on Valentine’s Day this year that our prime minister Anthony Albanese proposed to Jodie Hayden.

How glad I am that our prime minister, who is widely acclaimed as an excellent politician and an outstanding leader, is to be blessed and uplifted by matrimony.

I am so glad that that “Little Henry’s” had a role to play in what I am sure will be an indelible and everlasting union.

Not too proud to ask for help

One of the enduring qualities of our Prime Minister is that he is never too proud to ask for help in situations that need to be carefully addressed.

(He is always willing to ask others if they would like his help and support in dealing with matters, so he gives and seeks assistance.)

The best example I could give to illustrate his seeking help is pointing out that the cost of living issues and stresses being felt by Australian families are deeply embedded into his thinking, and he wants to fix the problems.

Knowing he can’t do it by himself and realising the importance of synergy (collective energy) as a quality inherent within his party, He has asked for all Labour members of parliament to cut short the Christmas break in the next fortnight and to meet in Canberra to help to work out ways that the living costs of Australians can be addressed and somehow eased.

Our prime minister is one of a kind, for few people would do what he is undertaking to address this issue. Others might do it independently, but our prime minister knows there is strength in numbers when dealing with critical issues.

The 24/7 man who works while we sleep

Our PM is a visible leader, but so much of what he accomplishes is done out of sight and out of the minds of ordinary Australians.

His devotion to work and duties as our leader means he never takes his eye off the ball. He has a constant panoramic vision of our country, people, and needs. We are so blessed to have a leader with many positive attributes – all of which are part of his action plan and the outcomes of all he undertakes.

A sincere and committed leader

It is the wisdom and sincerity of our Prime Minister that help when it comes to him winning over his peers to support his wonderful initiatives and insightful programs for Australia’s future.

He is a person who profoundly considers issues before acting and always finds every aspect of a problem before deciding on the way forward.

He is a man who tries and succeeds in being scrupulous in considering how the outcomes of his decisions will impact the population, including individuals.

The vast majority of Australians deeply believe in the quality of his leadership, for the essence of his government ensures benefit for us all.

His successes are our successes

We are blessed to have a leader committed to doing the right thing for his country, which he regards as “Our” country. There are so many policies that this visionary leader has introduced that have had positive outcomes and brought benefits to us all that naming them becomes almost impossible.

He has transformed our country during his first 18 months of prime ministership. He works hard to make Australia a great nation.

One of his many positive attributes is his extraordinary ability to communicate with every Australian, so we are fully aware of his intentions. He will never make a wrong decision, or if heading into an area of misdirection, will stop, estrace his steps, and take a better route toward positive outcomes.

If he ever makes the wrong decision, he accepts accountability for what has gone wrong. One of his most vital leadership attributes is his willingness to accept responsibilities rather than deflect to others when things go wrong.

One spends many more years being old, than being young. I have been getting old for a long time and in a decade now, I will, if still alive, be much older.

I do not want to get to be 88 if my physical frailties cause me to become immobile. Nor do I want to live to be that old if a condition of age is a loss of my mental acuity. Should I remain relatively intact, that age could be countenanced. Otherwise, I do not want to live that long.

Looking to the future when I was 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, and 70 was not distasteful. But to think for 10 years from now causes me to feel fraught with uncertainty.

For me, this particular topic is a worry.

Grrrrrts are polluters,

Grrrrrts are road fillers,

Grrrrrts are time wasters,

Grrrrrts are addictive carriers,

Grrrrrts are costly addendums,

Grrrrrts are destroyers of fitness,

Grrrrrts are creators of lazy attitudes,

Grrrrrts are accident prone, deadly missiles,

Grrrrrts are creators of dependent, slavish attitudes.

Grrrrrts are accessories we would be better off shedding.

(Response to a columnist of ‘The Australian’ who was discounting aged citizens)

Shane, oh Shane,

For your thoughts I fear,

Resentment for boomers,

You hold so dear,

You dismiss the aged,

As blights upon Earth,

Yet I suspect a connection,

Of lineage through birth,

With some who are old,

Who must weather your scorn,

For without we boomers,

You never were born.

The vindictive streak,

With which you colour us all,

(Yes I confess,

It’s gotten my gall),

But on reflection I’m sad,

For the way that you feel,

And wonder if years,

Will that spirit heal?

May your future be bright,

But may I be bold,

And wonder your thoughts,

When it’s your turn to grow old.

I’ll stick with them,

They’re tried and true,

I’m a Gillette man,

Through and through.

They’ve been my blades,

For years and years,

Cut my face when young,

I cried salt tears.

Gillette’s blades are,

A top creation,

Shave my face,

Leave smooth sensation.

Why should I change,

T’would be a pest,

I feel I have,

The very best.

FALSE HOPE

A mirage is a play on the mind,

It may seem inviting and kind,

‘Don’t touch it’ I say,

For it melts away,

It’s reflection is a tricking blind.

________________________

NOSE TO THE WHEEL.

We once worked five days a week,

Then had us two whole day’s break,

Now it’s a seven day grind,

With no time to unwind,

Refuge from the grindstone we seek

THE EVILS OF TROLLING

Why do they troll?

It’s so sad,

Trolling is wicked, EVIL, B A D.

It is in jail,

That trolls should be,

Lock them up,

INDEFINITELY

It IS in jail

That they should be,

Secure the cell,

Toss the key,

Out the window

Or in the bin,

For what they’ve done

Is a grievous sin.

1. Regular contact and conversations with our children and grandchildren.

2. Reflections with my wife on our 55 years of marriage and how our lives and those of our children and grandchildren have unfolded.

3. How many birds come to our birdbath and from the feed we provide.

4. Reflecting on our rich personal and professional history, including the way we lived and worked in places we have been.

5. Appreciating the fact that we can live private and individual lives and that to date we have enjoyed reasonable health.

POST OFFICE ISSUES

For the past twelve years, I have regularly sent express postbags and parcels to family members running a vital business in Nhulunbuy. On most occasions, bags posted at the Karama LPO by 5.00 pm on any day, Monday to Thursday, are received through Winnellie and delivered by Air North, the mail carrier, to Nhulunbuy LPO the next day.

There have been several glitches in this methodology, and all of them are frustrating and, indeed, alarming.

I will stick to the current dilemma.

I posted by express a 7kg printer urgently needed by the Nhulunbuy business at Karama on April 4 at 4.32 pm. It was processed by the Winellie processing facility the same evening, Thursday, April 4, at 6.17 pm. It was notified as being delivered on/by Tuesday 9 April. It is now (Friday, April 12) noted as being ‘delayed’ – waiting to be processed for delivery (whatever that means).

I attach the details of postage and insurance costs:

(Note how Australia Post uses the cubing rule that charges on box dimensions and not weight).

I am totally frustrated by this episode. A postage bag sent at a later date has arrived in Nhulunbuy. Given the cost of postage and the designation of priority status on this item, along with this being the third item (costing plenty) subject to delay, I am fed up.

Australia Post treats inquiries almost glibly. “Give it a fortnight,” they say.

Sorry – that is not good enough.

Henry Gray

April 12 2024

For me, exposure to high school was a terrible period of ordeal. I floundered and was right out of my depth. I went from being a reasonably confident and self-assured child, into a scared and uncertain teenager.

I lived on a farm for the first eight years of my schooling and spent those at a small rural school named Coomberdale.

It was two teacher school with around 60 or 65 students. I completed my primary school years and my first in high school by correspondence at Coomberdale.

For year nine I was sent away from home. I was boarding with a family I did not know and every day had to go by school bus jampacked with children to Governor Stirling Senior High School, which had 1300 students. I was as miserable as sin and just could not cope. The school was so big and impersonal.

So it was, but my first year at high school brought to bear upon me everything was horrible and negative.

It did get better for me in a boarding school for the last three years of my secondary education. But my first experiences at high school were as described, and it was awful!

FICTION BASED ON FACT

101 days ago, I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. The doctor prescribed appropriate medication including Ozeprin. Not only was I diabetic but also very overweight at 121 kilograms.

So 101 days ago, I ate my last sweet biscuit, chocolate and lolly (apart from cough lozenges). All sweet foods are off the menu except for one ice cream after our evening meal.

I do not eat between meals and generally have a cup of coffee for breakfast.

My weight is down to 113.5 kilograms and I am learning to live with my new dietary and diabetes program.

Beat the clock by seeing how much floor cleaning and window wiping can be done in the shortest amount of time.

Stopwatch general cleaning including dusting surfaces, and cleaning the bathroom, toilets, laundry and storeroom.

See how many different manual-type tasks in and around the house and yard I can get done while the washing is going through the washing machine and then through the drying cycle.

I read once that domestic chores should be thought about by people for the value of the exercise undertaken by those performing them. That advice was in the Senior Citizens magazine distributed in the Northern Territory by the Council of the Ageing.

I have taken that on board and indeed try very hard to enjoy undertaking the tasks outlined. It does give me a sense of satisfaction.

Thoughts gleaned over the years

* Be a listener.

* Lead by action.

* Walk the walk. (Walking the walk is more important than talking the talk when walking is not part of that talking.)

* Offer praise and catch people doing something good.

* Share celebrations with staff and students.

* Take ownership of discipline issues.

* Delegate decisions not just tasks.

* Know about each student and be known to students.

* Write notes of thanks.

*Let people know why you have to do what you do with regard to imposed system requirements. Help them understand system required policy and direction.

Darwin and Palmerston being ripped apart

I am bemused by charities and groups that provide food, clothing, free accommodation, transport and other amenities for people who come into Darwin from communities with nowhere to go and stay.

While they are here, there are spikes in crime against people and property, along with terrible behavioural manifestations on our streets, in our shopping centres, at the hospital emergency department and around Darwin and Palmerston.

The need for incessant patrolling by the Larrakeyah Nation is never ending, and ambulance services are on the go 24 hours per day, often having to ramp at the RDH ED. Children are left as free agents to roam, with school and education being the last priority.

All the while, with the support of charity, more and more money is left available for the purchase of alcohol and drugs.

Make no mistake. Our twin cities of Darwin and Palmerston are in a terrible position because of what is happening. Permanent residents, businesses and homeowners are too often victims of nefarious behaviour and alarming crime levels.

And it is not good anywhere else in Australia.

I confess to a reading passion. I have read many books both fiction and non-fiction. I read many newspapers and online texts.

But all the books I like, and am never tire of reading over and over and over again our books/comics in the Tintin Series.

I have been reading Tintin’s books and recalling his adventures hundreds of times over many years indeed decades. I still love Tintin

to this day. I enjoy reading Tintin as much in my late 70s as I did in my mid-20s.

In book/comic terms Tintin holds the gold standard and it never tarnishes.

In Australia and possibly elsewhere

Expenditure priorities in times of scarcity

When facing cost of living pressures, people would be wise to assess expenditure priorities. With accommodation costs at astronomic levels and food costs rising, cutting back on costs associated with social and recreational pursuits seems a common sense choice. Given Australia’s economic circumstances, I am amazed that expenditures on alcohol, sports venue attendance, gambling, and food delivery to homes by Uber (adding hugely to costs) have not been trimmed.

Solar farms sitting idle

P

This fiasco situation results from the ‘cart before the horse’ organisation and strategy. Common sense dictates that before solar farms are built, that provision is in place for the electricity generated to be input into the grid in a seamless way that adds to capacity and supply. But no! Build the solar farms, then muddle around to try and determine how their output can be used. What a schemozzle.

My parents did not believe in going to the pictures. I can only remember being taken by my parents when they went to the pictures once maybe twice.

We went to watch the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.

Before the major screening, a support film was shown. It was about ”Muffles the Monkey”. He had escaped from the circus and entered the home of this woman. She was out of the time hanging washing on the line.

Muffles climbed through the window, put on her pink dressing gown, her pink slippers, and pink nightcap and powdered himself with her pink powder.

Muffles made a hell of a mess and had a ball until re-captured by the circus people.

As an eight-year-old boy, I was fascinated and wanted to be like Muffles.

Maybe the closest I ever got was to have as my favourite colour more than six decades later, in fact, seven decades, pink as my favourite colour.

Homegrown – the best picture of a flower I ever taken.

How one answers this question depends upon personal preferences. Possibly, no two people are alike when it comes to likes and dislikes of pets in the animal world.

For mine, the worst pets are snakes, followed closely by rats, mice, and the rest of the rodent community. I am not particularly keen on lizards or any reptiles. Frogs are out and cane toads were never in.

Some birds may be okay but they squawk, make a hell of a mess in their food bowls, defecate in the most uncoordinated manner and take a lot of looking after.

I’m not particularly fond of dogs because they’re slurping and slobbering, can be quite offputting and I don’t like being licked by them. Maybe the one exception would be a border collie.

I don’t think sheep or cattle make ideal pets because they’re too demanding and take up a lot of room and feed bills can be quite horrendous.

That doesn’t leave too many out there, but I do like some cats. I don’t like furless cats, or cats with malevolent-looking eyes or cats that tend to be snarly and growly.

So cats with friendly eyes and a decent covering of fur that is not always inclined to shed, do it for me on the positive side of the ledger.

FREE CONSULTANCY

The job I would do for free is the job I do for free. I offer advice to people looking for support and ideas about teaching, speech speaking and history associated with the development of education in the Northern Territory.

I share my writings and would never ask for payment. I love supporting others as I was supported during my foundational years as an educator.

I like giving back as was given to me. And it will always be free of any cost to those wanting support.

Darwin and Palmerston being ripped apart

I am bemused by charities and groups that provide food, clothing, free accommodation, transport and other amenities for people who come into Darwin from communities with nowhere to go and stay.

While they are here, there are spikes in crime against people and property, along with terrible behavioural manifestations on our streets, in our shopping centres, at the hospital emergency department and around Darwin and Palmerston.

The need for incessant patrolling by the Larrakeyah Nation is never ending, and ambulance services are on the go 24 hours per day, often having to ramp at the RDH ED. Children are left as free agents to roam, with school and education being the last priority.

All the while, with the support of charity, more and more money is left available for the purchase of alcohol and drugs.

Make no mistake. Our twin cities of Darwin and Palmerston are in a terrible position because of what is happening. Permanent residents, businesses and homeowners are too often victims of nefarious behaviour and alarming crime levels.

Crime statistics

It matters not which party is in government, Labor or the CLP. When in power, both governments, over the years, have had their hands tied by a myriad of issues relating to the rights and entitlements of perpetrators. Victims always come off second best, with scant concern for physical injury and property loss.

Things will never get better. Not only is crime the number one Territory scourge, it is the same all over Australia.

Thank God, I am old enough to remember and appreciate what it was like to live without the constant security fears that now have me in a daily grip

How wonderful it will be if our King can visit his most loyal country in October. I hope the trip goes ahead, as I would love the opportunity to see our King and Queen Camilla. I remember well as a seven-year-old joining the throng to wave to our then Queen Elizabeth 11 and Prince Phillip on the road past Kings Park in Perth. That was in 1953. I would love for that childhood experience to be reduplicated in my old age

I write of that 1953 experience and will search it out and publish

An opinion

Anthony Albanese is the most admired leader in Australia.

We are so blessed in Australia that our political leaders and our politicians in general are careful not to behave in a way that leads to insults and denigration the mothers, particularly those of opposite political affiliations.

How lucky we are to have governments at state, territory and federal level who are concerned to always focus on issues and messages and never on messengers.

Our politicians are behavioural models and never more so than when in parliament during question time.

From reading, reflecting and studying this site I have become convinced that Anthony Albanese is the most admired and the most effective political leader in the western world. His brilliance standing contribution should surely result in him at some stage being awarded a Nobel prize for contribution to the life and times of our contemporary world.

Are great leaders charming?

Possibly the greatest prime minister Australia has ever had Anthony Albanese, answers this question. Of all men and leaders, he is one of the most self-effacing and charming. A careful listener,  Mr Albanese is liked by the majority of Australian voters young and old. His effervescence, smile, and his home spun charm make him a person who relates well to everyone from those in the highest of offices to those in the most lowly of  positions.

Key character trait

I think flexibility is an extremely important characteristic for a leader – that is, the ability to mould oneself and to fit into any situations that transpire as a part of the events encompassing the leader.

Nowhere is flexibility more demonstrated than through the ability and the capacity of our prime minister Anthony Albanese to fit into and adjust to any situation in a dignified and wholly appropriate manner.

Our prime minister in the last few weeks has mixed it with the up at echelons of the management and leadership in the United States. He has visited China and represented his country with dignity and aplomb, quickly adapting to all situations presented during his days in the world’s second most populous country.

He met with the leaders of the Cook Islands and other nations in the South Pacific and worked closely with them in an encouraging and a supportive way to help ease their anxieties about the future.

Finally, and after a brief time in Australia, necessary to recoup energy into focus again on his Next journey, he left for the OECD conference of world leaders in America.

Our prime minister’s flexibility, resilience, capacity to bend to fit into every situation in which he finds him self representing our country, paint him as an outstanding leader. 

10 out of 10 for the rocksolid leadership characteristics demonstrated by our prime minister.

I think flexibility is an extremely important characteristic for a leader – that is, the ability to mould oneself and to fit into any situations that transpire as a part of the events encompassing the leader.

Nowhere is flexibility more demonstrated than through the ability and the capacity of our Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese to fit into and adjust to any situation in a dignified and wholly appropriate manner.

Our prime minister in the last few weeks has mixed it with the up at echelons of the management and leadership in the United States. He has visited China and represented his country with dignity and aplomb, quickly adapting to all situations presented during his days in the world’s second most populous country.

He met with the leaders of the Cook Islands and other nations in the South Pacific and worked closely with them in an encouraging and a supportive way to help ease their anxieties about the future.

Finally, and after a brief time in Australia, necessary to recoup energy into focus again on his Next journey, he left for the OECD conference of world leaders in America.

Our prime minister’s flexibility, resilience, capacity to bend to fit into every situation in which he finds him self representing our country, paint him as an outstanding leader. 

10 out of 10 for the rocksolid leadership characteristics demonstrated by our prime minister.

My response is going to sound negative, but that’s the way it is. I do not follow any of the sports or activities that happen during the Olympic Games. I am just not interested.

The games are an extravagant festival and for a disruption. They are very costly creating short-term euphoria and often long-term negative repercussions.

I have never followed the Olympics and never will.

In a nutshell, to improve the community and to respect the community being one with the community and not one alone.

When COVID-19 hit Australia, I quickly accepted as common sense, all Department of Health recommendations on personal response. Masks, hand hygiene, physical distancing and keeping up to date with immunization were part of my immediate and ongoing response to COVID-19.

The community is now much more relaxed about Covid 19. We have transitioned from red to orange and now the green traffic light is on the issue.

That relaxed attitude is not for me. It was, is, and will continue to be a red light disease for me for the rest of my life. I have not had Covid and will do everything I can for things to stay that way.

I continue to mask up, clean my hands, physically distance – and that is the way it will continue to be.

I grew lots of papwpaw trees and gave away many pawpaws.

Day after day, I rise from my bed, have a shower, shave, do my ablutions, and make sure I leave the bathroom and bedroom neat clean and tidy.

Then I go to the kitchen and make tea, coffee, and porridge. The coffee is my part of the breakfast I don’t eat anything until lunchtime.

I put the breakfast dishes in the dishwasher and depending on how full the dishwasher is turn it on to a 43-minute cycle. I never have to clean the gunk out of the dishwasher because that’s all washed off in the sink before the plates and utensils go to the dishwasher.

I take the washing in its basket from our bedroom and laundry door downstairs and put it in the washing machine. I said the machine for a one-hour cycle – always remembering of course to put in the soap powder.

As the washing is washing, I clean the filter on the dryer and get it ready to receive the clothes when washed. That’s necessary at this time of the year because it’s often quite wet and you can’t use an outside line.

Then comes bird-feeding time, along with pot plant watering.

So, that’s the foundation of each day, for poor old Henry Gray. The day goes on from there.

I have written close to 100 vignettes to support beginning teachers – and those in training – and will willingly share them free of any cost with anyone who would like copies.

Attached is the index.

If interested, contact me at henry.gray7@icloud.com and let me know which vignettes you would like.

Henry Gray

VIGNETTE INDEX

1. ‘Imagination’ the inner eye

2. Computer encourages teacher sedentariness

3. Mapping movement (by teachers around their classrooms)

4. Transient students

5. ‘Conversational’ voice

6. Singing

7. Storytelling

8. Oral Quizzes

9. Celebration and celebrating

10. Apologise for mistakes

11. School appraisal

12. ‘Knowing’ your classroom

13. ‘Looming’ – don’t allow your presence be off-putting to students

14. Marking student work

15. Modelling

16. Talking ‘with’ children

17. Computer lockdown

18. Classroom tidiness

19. Mobile phones in classroom

20. Direct teaching

21. Teacher dress

22. Technology can create separation

23. Classroom routines

24. How you are known

25. Interview strategies

26. Ask for help

27. Be cautious when using emails

28. Preparing presentations for PD days

29. Keep a clippings file

30. Build strong networks

31. Make ‘Show and Tell’ count

32. Spelling – necessary or superfluous?

33. Watch out for trendiness

34. Reporting to parents

35. Don’t discount drama

36. More on imagination

37. Desk tidiness

38. Time telling and time awareness

39. Learning takes time

40. Take time to relax

41. Build your CV

42. Writing applications

43. Rewarding the effort

44. Welfare is paramount

45. Socratic Discussion Part One

46. Socratic Discussion Part Two

47. Socratic Discussion Part Three

48. Remote Area service

49. Taxation deductions

50. Yard appearance

54. Room tidiness

55. ‘Sayers’ and ‘Doers’

56. Playing ‘Captains and Crew’ with technology

57. ‘Quiz out’ to lunch

58. Drawing quizzes

59. More on transient and late students

60. Assembly items

61. Programming should be Flexible

62. What people see is the iceberg tip

63. Contact – keeping it professional

64. Record your dealings

65. Short excursions

66. Program carefully and with remembrance

67. Classroom groupings (being constructed)

68. Editing and fixing

69. Classroom work displays

70. Establishing classroom protocols

72. Presenting and speaking in public

73. Recognise the shy contributor

74. Recording outcomes and reflecting on progress

75. Eating lunches

76. Classroom guests

77. Joy season

78. The game of eyes

79. Story-telling skills (extends from Vignette 7)

80. Trip Diaries

81. Silent reading as a learning tool

82. Media awareness (know how the media is reporting education)

83. Extended Excursions

84. Back to school pointers

85. ‘Quizzing’ the neighbourhood setting

86. New Ideas – Wise Choices or Fads?

87. Taking initiative

88. Familiarity with parents

89. Rejoice for others

90. A clean school is for everyone

91. Dressing Lessons

92. Take time to develop dexterity

93. The last fifteen minutes