All posts by Mark Edwards

Brooke Fraser ‘Who are we fooling’

This has to be one of the best songs written about marriage….ever.

Yes ever….
In it Brooke Fraser gently and skillfully brings in the reality of being married to one person…
Plenty of people present a beautiful picture of marriage, but reality is…if we are all frank, it is not always easy. Some days are like paradise, some days are like something else.
Of course, the internet is not the place to broadcast all that information….
But if you love your wife, like I love mine, and am determined to work together to put out any fires, you might relate to this song.

“Better or worse
But what else can we do?
And better or worse
I am tethered to you
If it’s not either of us
Tell me who are we fooling?

I love the art of biting my tongue
I’m tired of trying to guess what was wrong
Both agreed on where we should go
But not how to get there

We tried and tried to loosen the knots
Thinking once we’re untangled we’ll be better off
But it’s these failures and faults that hold us together”

MetroView Australia

The largest purchase I have made previously on the Apple App store was Angry Birds.

But the other week I shelled out $25 for ‘Metroview’ Australia. It is a detailed Navigation App which is like a Tom Tom, only 1/4ter the price.

It gives turn by turn navigation with voice prompts. I love how it actually says which street you need to turn into. My wifes purpose built one in her car just says ‘turn right’, not the actual street name. It also is much quicker and more accurate than hers, which I find a little amazing.

Metroview has street numbers, points of interest and appears to have all the latest streets, and the initial price covers you for ongoing updates.

Another really cool feature I use is to plug my Iphone into my car stereo. Metroview allows you play your songs through the stereo and through its inbuilt little widget. When the voice needs to tell you something, the music fades in and out. The same principle applies when someone calls you.

For me, it was better to spend $25 on this app than buying a separate Navigation device. Great value.

(It also has speed alert, which can be handy since there is often times you just don’t know what the speed limit is!) App store

(I was not in any way compensated for this review, I just liked the product)

Luminarium in Perth

Took the kids and Clems best mate to the ‘Luminarium’ in Forrest Place in the heart of the CBD (Perth)

This is a ‘ large inflatable structure, made up of different coloured chambers that are lit by the sun.” You walk through it, enjoy the sights, colours, shades and music. Its free for the next week to visit and the kids loved it.

Here are some pictures….

Food, glorious food

Many of my facebook statuses are about food. Every now and then someone makes a comment about that. Stirring me up for talking about food so much.I reckon they are jealous….

But seriously, lets talk about food.

In our beautiful country we have some of the best produce and skillful growers, and they make beautiful food. Their creativity is world class as is the produce.

When we visited Cairns we went down to the markets and picked out about 6 different and strange fruits. We then went back to our motel, had a BBQ and while sitting around the pool we sampled them all with our children. It was a beautiful experience the kids still talk about.

As those who know me personally will know, my wife is a superb cook. She teaches cooking, has studied both formally and informally and sets very high standards for herself and me. When I cook for the family, sometimes twice a week, I know I need to get it up to a certain standard. That has been fun for me actually, and I reckon I cook steak better than her! (But she wouldn’t agree).

My point is though that we have such beautiful opportunities to enjoy the good things God has given us, and we should! I must admit that those people who prefer standard food, every day, annoy me sometimes. Launch out a bit, try something different, you just might enjoy it! While getting the same satisfying reaction from the same foods may be of some benefit, I much prefer trying new flavours and experiences.

When I visited Indonesia I said to my traveling friend Wayne, ‘I am

Some food at a Indonesian home I visited

going to try everything, enjoy everything, and if I get sick, I get sick’. Now Indonesians are not as wealthy as we might be, but they love their food, and enjoy it.

There is balance needed of course. Many in the world don’t have enough. We should do what we can to help them, and I think our family does…to be frank.

So enjoy food, revel in it, God has provided it for you.

The Goodies, George Thorogood and children…

Recently ABC2 have been playing some repeats of “The Goodies” a popular English show from the 70’s. I remember watching it as a 8 or 9 year old and laughing at the foolishness of the three main characters and the ridiculous situations and stories. Who can forget the giant cat roaming through the streets of London or the ‘black pudding’.

What is interesting to me now, as an adult, is what I missed. The crass jokes, the hidden meanings, the ‘nod nod wink wink’. It was hardly the worst show on television, and genuinely funny, but nothing like I remember as a kid!

Which brings me to George Thorogood, the master of the three cord blues. I downloaded some of his music, as I remembered its bluesy goodness from when I was 16 and 17. The chunky guitar and driving rhythm is still there…but I was surprised at some of the lyrics…I did not get some of it as a 16 year old, how naive was I! Nothing too over the top, just adult themes.

I wonder a couple of things, what are my kids ‘missing’, will they be as naive as me, and secondly…what am I ‘missing’ now?

Just something to ponder….

Free DVD Ripper for Iphone

This is similar to the giveaway a week or two back. But this one allows you to rip a DVD and then watch the content on your Iphone.

Very cool, make sure you get the code so you can register it for nothing…

“MacX iPhone DVD Video Converter Pro Pack
Rip DVD and convert video for iPhone, iPod, iPad
•    This giveaway is valid until Nov 30”

Here