Live 8 Website

Check out the campaign/s and lead up the the 2 July events on http://www.live8live.com/

Tickets sent by SMS

Virtual concert ticketing hit Sydney via US dance music producers 'Deep Dish'

Punters received a unique barcode via sms and phones were scanned for valid tickets...
The promoters and ticketing agents would love the reduction in administration and the tickets are delivered within minutes!!

The Opera House website crashed on the day of the first concert ticket release! 

"Everyone is Here" Finn Brothers

A melancholy CD reflecting the loss of the Finn Brothers mother and the value of family, relationship and community... this is a great mix of melodic Finn magic and entangling lyrics!!
I've written about the CD before BUT am now getting the chance to see them live at the Opera House in mid July!! Great idea to leave the CD around the house for repetitive playing...

I still remember the last tour when at Newcastle's Civic Theatre each of the band members had a turn on every instrument on stage... Neil followed this up at the recent Waveaid gig by playing guitar, singing and operating a foot drum and cymbal... amazing!!

As a sponsored star, family man, athlete and intellect... Warney is one of this countries best ever cricketers!! 

Unreliable Idea # 24 The Movie You Mix at Home

Michela Sedgewick lays claim to the first remixable movie called Sanctuary.
The film is about a virtual superhero and when its released there will be a conventional version plus a website and DVD from which people can download, manipulate and modify the film.

This follows on from the video game Half Life code release, Nine Inch Nails and the remix of the film 'The Birth of a Nation'.

Predictably the Actors Union is less than enthusiastic because of the potential for unlicensed use of performances slotted into other peoples work...
[originally an SMH article]

BUT the point is, what is this about...
Now we can decide how the story develops and ends...
Is this really creative? individualistic? riding on the back of someone elses gifts?
Is it another challenge to meta-narratives or a creative way to take other peoples stories and draw more heavily on the ethical or spiritual themes within...

I'd love to see groups of young people shooting biblical, spiritual, life stage or totally fictional stories in teams and maybe including a whole range of strands and emphasis that they could then edit to show their own spin on the story!!

Make a night of the premieres

Film and Video Game Ratings in Oz

The Film and Literature Classification Board has issued new ratings labels and has included video games alongside films. Many are critical that they have seemingly dodged the issue of violence and sexually explicit content in video games.

Live 8

A campaign to encourage the G8 to continue to relieve 3rd World Debt.... even beyond this weeks $50 billion announcement... will the Live 8 be "african enough"? Is it a shame the Aussie show couldn't be televised and so fell over?

Whatever you make of the idea be sure and read about it first hand at ttp://www.live8live.com/

Note the bird on the bottle logo!

"Fancy a Shag"

SHAG Beer
http://smh.com.au/text/articles/2005/06/04/1117825104560.html

And they wonder why its being banned in NSW...

MUSIC

Just a few great tracks/albums:

X and Y Coldplay
Maybe not the revolution of the first two albums but some great moments and ambient tunes and themes to explore for worship or reflection...

Best of You Foo Fighters
A great clip and rocked out performance by the Foo's with lots of publicity for Dave Grohl over the whole Foo Fighters vs Nirvana thing.... old news!!

As colleagues have noted elsewhere this song touches on abusive relationships and needs to be used sensitively with young people perhaps "let the tune speak for itself"

"Coach Carter" soundtrack inlcudes "Hope" by Twista feat, Faith Hill [widow to Notorious BIG]

HOPE
I wish the way I was living could stop, serving rocks,
Knowing the cops is hot when I'm on the block, And I
Wish my brother woulda made bail,
So I won't have to travel 6 hours to see him in jail, And I
Wish that my grandmother wasn't sick,
Or that we would just come up on some stacks and hit a lick, And I (I wish)
Wish my homies wouldn't have to suffer,
When the streets get the upper had on us and we lose a brother, And I
Wish I could go deep in a zone,
And lift the spirits of the world with the words with in this song, And I (I wish)
Wish I could teach a could teach a soul to fly,
Take away the pain out cha hands and help you hold them high, And I
Wish my hommie Butch was still alive
And on the day of his death we had never took that ride, And I (I wish)
Wish God could protect us from the wrong
So that all the solders that were sent over seas come home
We will never break, though they devastate, we shall motivate,
And we gotta pray, all we got is faith.
Instead of thinking about who gonna die to day,
The Lord is gonna help you feel better, so you ain't gotta cry today.
Sit at the light so long,
And then we gotta move straight forward, cuz we fight so strong,
So when right go wrong,
Just say a little prayer, get ya money man, life go on!!!
Let's HOPE!

Cuz I'm hopeful, yes I am, hopeful for today,
Take this music and use it
Let it take you away,
And be hopeful (hopeful) and he'll make a way
I know it ain't easy but that's okay.
cause we hopeful

I wish that you could show some love,
Instead of hatin so much when you see some other people commin up (I wish)
I wish I could teach the world to sing,
Watch the music and have 'em trippin of the joy I bring, (shiit)
I wish that we could hold hands,
Listen instead of dissin lessons from a grown man, And I (I wish)
Wish the families that lack, but got love, get some stacks
Brand new shack and a lack that's on dubs, And I
Wish we could keep achieving wonders,
See the vision of the world through the eyes of Stevie Wonder, (you feel me) (I wish)
And I hope all the kids eat,
And don't nobody in my family see six feet, (ya dig)
I hope them mothers stain' strong,
You can make it whether you wit him or your mans gone, And I (I wish)
Wish I could give every celly some commissary,
And the po po bring the heat on them priest like they did R. Kelly, And I
Wish that DOC could scream again
And bullets could reverse so Pac and Biggie breath again, (shit) (I wish)
Then one day they could speak again,
I wish that we only saw good news every time we look at CNN,
I wish that we could never get the blues,
Wish I could bring back the people that died, Eddy too
I wish that we could walk a path, stay doin the right thing
Hustle hard so the kids maintain up in the game,
Let's HOPE

Cuz I'm hopeful, yes I am, hopeful for today,
Take this music and use it
Let it take you away,
And be hopeful (hopeful) and he'll make a way
I know it ain't easy but that's okay.
cause we hopeful

Wish the earth wasn't so apocalyptic,
I try to spread my message to the world the best way I can give it,
We can make it always so optimistic,
If you don't listen gotta live my life the best way I can live it,
I pray for justice when we go to court,
Wish it was all good so the country never even went to war
Why can't we kick it and just get em on,
And in the famous words of Mr. King "Why can't we all just get along",
Or we can find a better way to shop and please, And I
Hope we find a better way to cop a keys, And I
Wish everybody would just stop and freeze,
And ask way are we fulfillin these downfalls and prophecies,
You can be wrong if it's you doubting,
With the faith of a mustard seed you can move mountains,
And only the heavenly father and ease the hurt,
Just let it go and keep prayin on your knees in church!!
And let's HOPE

Cuz I'm hopeful, yes I am, hopeful for today,
Take this music and use it
Let it take you away,
And be hopeful (hopeful) and he'll make a way
I know it ain't easy but that's okay.
cause we hopeful

"The Special Two" Missy Higgins
Check the new clip in the chart shows... Video Hits, Rage etc

"Waveaid DVD" now out.... various artists for Tsunami Relief [$2.3 milion raised]

Subscribe at u2.com to see the new live clip for "City of Blinding Lights"

"...in the end all we have are peoples experiences..." 

Chasing God

If God is unavailable for comment, sources of wisdom will do...
Lenny De Vries reflects on early experiences of church in seeking to talk about and promote this film having special screenings at Glebe's Valhalla this weekend in Oz and then Canberra next week...

Educational Users Orders...
mailto:orders@roninfilms.com.au

When Dad Was a Teenager

"When dad Was a Teenager" Mini Goss
If you thought 70s fashion was bad, you’ve forgotten about big hair and padded shoulders. Get ready for the 80s When Dad was a Teenager.Following on from the award-winning success (CBCA Crichton Award 2002) of Mini Goss’s When Mum was Little.

It's a bit frightening that I was past teenage years then BUT it certainly still fits with 'when I grew up'.... I'll be using the book myself to introduce camp speaking, workshops etc!!

Black Dog Books $16.95

www.fox.com/house/house

HOUSE on OZ TV

Starts next week here on TEN!
Hugh Laurie [of Blackadder fame] makes for an interesting yank medico in this new comedy drama...

Uni Chaplaincy

Mass appeal to Catholics on campus
By Linda MorrisMay 31, 2005
SMH

The Catholic Church has moved to extend its reach into Sydney, planning to double its chaplaincy staff on at least three campuses and provide a daily Mass for students.
But TAFE, with about 500,000 students, has lost its two part-time chaplains under the restructure, which has begun at Sydney University and will extend to Macquarie University, then the universities of NSW and the Technology Sydney.
The Pentecostal Hillsong Church is seeking to start its first club at Sydney University.
The National Union of Students says the Protestant Evangelical Union and other religious clubs have become far more visible at Sydney University in recent times.
The restructure, outlined in the internet magazine Online Catholics, has been directed by the Archbishop of Sydney, Cardinal George Pell.
A convener responsible for all university chaplains and a school-to-university co-ordinator have been appointed to build a "Catholic culture" among tertiary students.
AdvertisementAdvertisement
The convener of Tertiary Chaplains, Stephen Lawrence, said the five-year aim was to have at least two chaplains at each large campus in the diocese and provide daily Mass.
One of the extra positions at Sydney University would be a general schools co-ordinator to bridge the gapbetween high school and university. TAFE was left out because of limited resources, Mr Lawrence said.
"The focus is primarily on larger universities which allow for a student life on campus; and once these priorities are established and maintained, the hope would be to extend back into TAFE and new universities like Notre Dame," he said.
"Part of the reason for the focus on universities is their leadership role. That's not to say people in trades are not important to the church - they are - but TAFE is populated by a lot of people coming in and out. There are a lot of part-timers."
Mr Lawrence denied an aim of the restructure was to replace chaplains with church conservatives, although each should be faithful to church teachings.
He said no university chaplain was a member of Opus Dei.
The president of Tertiary Campus Ministers Association, Erich von Dietze, said he regretted the loss of TAFE's two very competent student chaplains.
"It appears that, in Sydney, chaplains in at least some universities are being well supported and well funded while chaplaincies at some institutes are not in existence," he said.
"The question that should be asked is where the church should place their energies, given particularly the large and growing numbers of students at TAFE."
In its statement of aims provided to the Herald, the Catholic Church says the new chaplaincy strategy was to "enhance and strengthen the presence of Catholic leadership" at each campus to reach more students and "retain them".
It was also to make good contacts in the various faculties, engage university life and equip the students with the skills and character to shape the world of work and family into which they will move after university.
Catholic chaplains at all universities would focus on providing spiritual and liturgical activities to "nurture and deepen the spiritual life of students and staff" within the Catholic Church, offer activities and events to engage students and staff in the "Catholic intellectual tradition" and provide "leadership formation and development for promising students".