My blogroll rocks! (Part 2)
Monday, 29 January, 2007
Now where was I? Oh yes ...
Elsie remembers meeting me more than I do. According to her, it was during SOCM (Campus Bible Study's School of Christian Ministry) at the session that Lewis took for some reason (he was given only 5 minutes' notice). She noticed that I was wearing a wedding ring and thought it strange that I was so young and already married. I remember being blown away by her friendliness and her exuberance. I got to know her better through various Christians in Arts events, and our friendship continued to endure even after I left UNSW and went to Wollongong and came back, and after she graduated, entered the workforce, left the workforce and started MTS. I've been praying for her for years, and it's been great seeing her more often now that we're meeting up to read the Bible week by week. She's such a good friend. I really thank God for Elsie.
George is another awesome friend who is also from UNSW. I met her while I was a temp in the Research Office at UNSW. I didn't know she was a Christian until the day I happened to be hanging around outside Campus Bible Study one time when it met in Matthews A. She was so excited to find out that I was a Christian too. That was in the middle of 2000. Eventually the job finished at the Research Office but I continued to see George at various things—CBS, the staff postgraduate group (which met all through the summer which was fantastic because there usually wasn't anything on for Christians on campus like us who weren't students and didn't usually take leave during those times) and so on. George is such a generous and open-hearted person. She was the one who taught us to drive, and even though it would take her several hours to get to our place in Kirrawee by public transport, she would come on the occasional weekend to take us driving in Sutherland cemetary. We really owe our mobility to her because she trained us in the very early days when we would continually stall and kangaroo-hop the car. She would yell at me for being too timid and yell at Ben for not indicating. We're only road-worthy because of her.
When we moved to Wollongong to start MTS, George was one of our best supporters. It must have been hard for her because when we left, the general staff contingent at UNSW went right down. But we managed to keep in touch—she's been reading my blog since 2002 and we were able to catch up at various things. I now count her as one of my closest friends.
It's so funny—recently I found the first piece of paper that Greg ever gave me. It says at the top, “Do Arts students make better Bible readers?” and underneath I've scribbled “Ryken, The Complete Literary Guide to the Bible” and “Postcards from Palestine”. It's from a SOCM seminar that Greg led on the subject. He was quite disappointed to find that only two of us were studying English (myself included). He read us Les Murray and a sonnet by John Donne, and afterwards I chatted to him about working in Christian publishing (this was back when he worked at MM). He gave me his card and told me that maybe one day they would be able to hire me. God certainly has a sense of humour because now I work for both him and MM.
Guan was another UNSW-er. I actually met Haoran first because he was friends with Karen. (At the time he was going out with a girl who is now at college with Ben). I don't remember meeting Guan. Maybe he can fill you in on that one. I just remember him being there, hanging out with the Christians in Arts crowd in Elsie's era. When Word by Word first began, Guan was there, and he became a regular, going on to pen the occasional article for Hippocampus Extensions (check out “The Resolution of the Image of God”—but after we've fixed the problem with our database). I really miss him now he's no longer working at MM.
Hannah is a Wollongong friend. When I met her, she was going into second year Arts. She went to my church and we hit it off pretty much immediately because she was very outgoing and friendly, and liked talking about deep and important things, like politics and social action. I learnt a lot from her. She was always challenging me to do good things that I found uncomfortable. I don't know why she doesn't blog more because she's quite a good writer too (and certainly, academically, she's one of the smartest people I know) but I think it's because her life is rather busy. She speaks French and Japanese, and she's very good at getting alongside international students and making them feel welcome.
Haoran was at something that Karen organised, I think. I met him through her anyway (I don't remember that meeting at all—maybe he can fill you in). When I came to UNSW for the first time, he was one of the few people I actually recognised, which was great because I felt rather lost in the sea of CBS-ers. Like Guan, he became a regular at Word by Word, and occasionally wrote articles for HE.
I met Haydn at the same time as Cade—at my first CBS faculty Bible study group. He also became a regular Word by Word-er and contributer to Hippocampus Extensions. I interviewed him about the death of his mother and he said some wonderful things about grief, trusting in God and helping someone who is going through that whole period.
Current:
seen: Moon 15/10/2009
read: The Incredibles 11/10/2009
seen: She's the Man 05/10/2009
read: I Kill Giants (Joe Kelly and J. M. Ken Niimura) 04/10/2009
read: Astro City The Dark Ages Book 1: Brothers and Other Strangers (Kurt Busiek, Brent Anderson and Alex Ross) 04/10/2009
seen: Children of Men 02/10/2009
seen: Metric (The Metro) 30/09/2009
seen: 500 Days of Summer 25/09/2009
seen: The September Issue 18/09/2009
seen: Gilmore Girls: Season 1 17/09/2009
read: Flight (Volume 1) (edited by Kazu Kibuishi) 16/09/2009
seen: Ponyo 11/09/2009
read: Batman: Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader? (Neil Gaiman and Andy Kubert) 05/09/2009
heard: Aimee Mann (Enmore Theatre) 04/09/2009
heard: Ben Folds Solo (Opera House) 31/08/2009
read: Phonogram: Rue Britannia (Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie) 26/08/2009
seen: Northanger Abbey 20/08/2009
read: The Princess Diaries (Meg Cabot) 18/08/2009
seen: The Phantom of the Opera 17/08/2009
seen: Who Framed Roger Rabbit? 10/08/2009
seen: District 9 10/08/2009
read: Shortcomings (Adrian Tomine) 02/08/2009
read: AIR Volume 1: Letters from Lost Countries (Willow Wilson and M.K. Perker) 28/07/2009
seen: Persepolis 25/07/2009
seen: Ghost Town 25/07/2009
heard: Gutter Twins (Seymour Centre) 23/07/2009
seen: Coco Avant Chanel 20/07/2009
seen: Gutenberg! The Musical (Seymour Centre) 16/07/2009
seen: So You Think You Can Dance? Australia Live Tour (Sydney Entertainment Centre) 11/07/2009
seen: Every Little Step 07/07/2009
seen: Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen 03/07/2009
seen: Synecdoche, New York 30/06/2009
seen: Charlie's Angels 27/06/2009
seen: Penelope 26/06/2009
seen: Coraline 10/06/2009
seen: The Sky Crawlers 08/06/2009
seen: The Bourne Ultimatum 07/06/2009
seen: The Bourne Supremacy 07/06/2009
seen: The Bourne Identity 06/06/2009
seen: Stick it 05/06/2009
Comment:
Congratulations again 
Don’t laminate your ultrasound picture That is my advice.
Congratulations! This is so fantastic!
Thanks so much for sharing all of this… people swap engagement stories but rarely pregnancy stories! And it’s kind of similar don’t you think, all this excitement leading up to a big day!
So happy for you guys! Actually never been more excited for anyone except my sister! I think it’s because I think that you will both be amazing parents and love the idea that someone could grow up in your family.
Looking forward to many more posts on the topic.
Lovely news, Karen.
Thanks everyone! I will be sure to ask for help when I need it!
Great pic!! Peanut is cute! :D
Praying for you all!
xx
:D
I had a similar sort of morning sickness.. except I threw up! I’m suitably impressed that you coped OS.. that must have been tough.
It sounds like you’re doing marvelously otherwise!
Book recommendation on something a bit less technical and a bit more human: ‘Birth’ http://www.birthnet.com.au/
Praise be to God indeed! Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful.
Congratulations, Beilharzen! Welcome to the slightly-bewildering world of pregnancy (and birth...and children...). God has blessed you greatly with this new life. We’ll be praying for Peanut’s growth and development, and for you guys as you prepare.
I’m sure you’re surrounded by baby veterans, but always happy to help with books/advice/recommendations/listening.
B&L;
Excellent job Karen! You SHOULD be pleased with yourself!
Have you discovered http://www.ravelry.com ? It is an excellent site with thousands of free patterns in its database, lots of support, tips, forums etc and of course - friends like me? Look me up when you get there - fionag77
PS Are you just wearing a bulky dress or are you sporting a bump under that dress?
oooh.... It’s done and it looks great on you! xxx
Well done on all that hard work! It looks great and will be very snuggly come winter!
Thanks for letting me know, Timo!
Hi there,
Thanks for pointing out the shortcoming on our website. I’ll pass it on to my colleagues and hopefully it will be rectified soon.
The documentary at Fashioning Now was by Holly Kaye-Smith; I’d be more than happy to put you in touch with her if you’d like.
Again, thanks for the comment, much appreciate it!
Kind regards,
Timo Rissanen
Thanks Mark! Much appreciated!
Rich survey, Karen. Particularly I was struck by the notion of Jesus being clothed with our sins. I heard recently somebody suggest the crown of thorns was a kings crown but it was made of the symbol of the curse in the Garden - thorns. I would like to read your thoughts about Joseph’s coat of many colours.
Looking forward to the next installment. Regards,Mark
It is lovely - and looks great on you.
You’ve made me want to read it - though I may need an interpreter at times!
Well done with the sewing!
I think it looks good - very relaxed and spring-y.
Hey Sandra! Thanks for the tip! I read it yesterday, but I struggled a bit because Lewis doesn’t start from the Bible. I wasn’t convinced by his argument. What did you think?
Interesting post Karen - Thanks
I like the ending too! :D
xxx
Fantastic post, Karen. Just great. Thanks!
Thanks Bec! Eternal life just keeps getting better and better ...
I do like the way you ended this post - excellent thought.
Personally I don’t feel that way. Maybe that’s something you should blog about?
Wow. Lots of things to pick up on there. It’s been interesting to see the changes to your blog these last 6-12 months: Twitter is certainly more immediate, but are there (gasp) downsides to having its constant buzz in the ear?
Is our (already fractured) ability to concentrate on a single relationship at a time further jeapordised by the regular buzz of tweetdeck (and worse yet, by the imagined sense of loss that goes with being off the grid)?
Or am I just projecting my own fears?
Hi Karen!
If you’re still thinking about this… I just read CS Lewis’s essay “Learning in War-time” which exactly addresses this issue (ie. how can we justify cultural & aesthetic pursuits when people are going to hell around us?). Have you read it? i’d be interested to hear what you think..
(i have it in his little volume “Transposition and other Addresses”, but it’s easily findable online)
I’m doing my own series on the trials and tribulations of writing on my own blog here http://sedshed.blogspot.com/search/label/From%20Head%20to%20Hand
It’s coming along slowly
Coincidentily, I stumbled upon the above Phonogram vs. the Fans cover when digging around for ID concepts for Salt. A disturbingly brilliant image.
Thanks Karen. At the very least, this post gives some context to your myriad of phonogram tweets. At best, it has reinvigorated my stagnated appreciation of comics.
Seriously, though 4,549 words. Is that the best you can do? I say, longer!
Hey @RodeoClown! Yes, I neglected to mention Gillen writes about gaming. Guan said once he had the ideal job: writing, comics and games.
As far as I know, McKelvie doesn’t trace photos; he just draws (so talented ...)
You should give Phonogram a try. Be warned, though: series 1 is a little different to series 2—still clever but there are some things that are a bit strange in it if you’re not used to the fantastic.
Whoops, I stuffed up that link, sorry.
It was to Rock Paper Shotgun where he writes (he also has a standalone blog as well.
I didn’t know Gillen wrote comics until I saw the last phongram reference you made on here. It’s odd as I only knew of him as a videogame jounalist (which he is also really good at).
I read the sample issue of phonogram they have up at the Image comics (I think) site.
It looked pretty interesting - I like the subtlety involved in telling the story - the references aren’t all forciby thrust into your brain by the writer.
Do you know if the art is done by tracing photos or just dtawn?
I certainly don’t understand enough about pop music to really get that comic series, but I’m glad you’ve shared how you came to appreciate comics.
I’d say go and make some short comics. Seems like it will make the longer stuff easier to put together.
You’re right. I don’t really understand. But I do so love reading your writing. It’s like you’re speaking inside my head and excitedly telling me something.
Thanks Sarah! Feel free to share your own thoughts on the subject.
I’m a Christian, I’m a writer (well, I’m working on my first novel which is nearing completion) and I felt your post so PERFECTLY captured the dilemmas I’ve been thinking about.
KAREN!!!! it looks so amazing!!! i cant believe how beautiful it is. Everyone at work is just amazed at how talented you are. I’ll get in contact with you soon xx
I love it, Karen. You must teach me how to do this.
Blinks:
Showing her daughter that women are great by doing tours and walking in the footsteps of famous women. I like that this article is about engagement.
Jordan White, editor for Marvel, answers questions.
Jamie McKelvie answers questions.
Vision therapy as a treatment for ADHD, learning disabilities and even autism. The scientific community's opinion. The results of concentrated therapy.
Kieron Gillen on Phonogram, Siege, Ares, Loki and his collaborative relationship with Jamie McKelvie.
Superheroes and how they have changed the way we see urban landscape. Their attraction to New York.
Kieron Gillen talking about Phonogram's run and the effect it had on its audience.
Guy Gavriel Kay's official website.
ESV in MP3 form: complete BIble is USD 30.00.
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Comments
I had to dig these memories out of the far corners of my mind!
This would be 1998-99. I was going out with Fiona, there was a BBQ at her house, she wanted to catch up with an old friend, and thus I met the first Karen.
Then the first Karen organised some sort of picnicky affair in the city near the water somewhere… it may have been the Botannical Gardens. She invited us, and a whole host of her other friends, who were interesting and artsy (my group of friends at the picnic were interesting and geeky), and thus I met Ben and the Second Karen.
And then there was a 22nd party in Wollongong (with a different group of people) and I met Karen for the second time.
I don’t remember anything between that and Karen arriving at UNSW, although there may well have been.
Was that helpful?
I was so miserable at that job it was lovely having another Christian there - at least for a little while.
You reflect on our relationship very sweetly - thank you! Did I really “yell”? Eeck! I do remember that you were too cautious and Ben was too reckless!
Hahahaha...me, exuberant?? I recall Haydn telling me I had scared him
Hmm...I was more outgoing at uni…
I remember your loooooong hair (I was going through a long hair phase myself) and thinking “Hey she’s wearing a ring on her wedding finger - she must be married! No, that can’t be, she’s too young. She must just like wearing it on that finger”. I remember first meeting Ben six months later at Kick-On ^_^
I also remember thinking, “Hey, she’s new, but Lewis knows her name - how come??”
H-Bomb: Yes! I very vaguely remember that picnic! Thanks for filling in the gap!
George: It was all good! Nothing bad to reflect on at all!
Elsie: What was funny was that I only just met Lewis—that day, in fact (I think) outside of CBS. I remember chatting to him at that fountain near CLB. I was interested in the fact that he was American living in Australia.
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