Are you perpetually late for things? I am quite often late for my blog posts. And I purposely work on going to appointments thirty minutes earlier so I get there on time. My church is perfect for me as they have coffee and talk at Ten O'clock which means I normally make it in time to take a cup of coffee into the service at Ten Thirty.
However now I am quite a few days late with my posts. I could use the excuse of my father-in-law's funeral at the start of the week, but seriously I took this challenge for doing no matter what is happening in my private life.
But instead of giving up I have decided I will hold my head in shame and admit to being late for my posts and get on with catching up. It is always better late than never. A slogan I remember while driving to appointments after the allotted time so I do not have a car accident on the way.
Unfortunately the airline officials do not see this as such and thus I plan to get to the airport ninety minutes before check in. But as the Christchurch airport is a very good place to relax and have a cup of coffee I do not mind waiting the extra fifteen minutes by the time I actually get there.
In fact they are soon opening a new Christchurch airport which promises to be even more relaxing etc. It is unfortunate that it is taking so long to finish it off. It is mildly annoying to walk past the polished floors of the new check in area still fenced off even though all the signs are lit and the machines are there welcoming people to check in. Especially when you are rushing to check in within the remaining two minutes and have to walk a further two hundred metres to the old check in lounge.
Why am I always late? One word KIDS! Especially when there are more than one. You get one child ready and while you tend to the next child the original manages to somehow get unready. It is a vicious circle, one made worse when you have only ninety minutes excess and a two hour drive before reaching the airport.
I dream of the day I retire, the kids will be off to university or employment and if I'm late it's my own fault... well actually it's the wife's fault but don't tell her I said that.
Cheers
Peter
21 April 2011
16 April 2011
K is for Kyndrea
I decided that it would be a great idea to have a character with a name I made up as my sister had a name that originated in a stroy in the early 1900s. So I spent a bit of time and finally came up with the name Kyndrea which I would translate as meaning "Love of a Family" or "Unconditional Love."
I googled the name and no hits came up so I was pretty certain that Kyndrea was quite original. That was until a few years later when more people became involved in the Internet social network and now the name Kyndrea gets about 15 different individuals. So it was not so original after all. But pretty close, I mean the Blogger spell checker doesn't know the name either.
Kyndrea is the main female lead in my book IVRRAC. She is the love interest of the murderous main character Simon. I cannot give too much away but she ends up in a position that most people dread and needs to show unconditional forgiveness to save her own life. But the twist is that she doesn't even know her life is on the line.
This is a good analogy of our own lives. There are many times we harbour resentment towards others. The irony of the situation is that it is not the other party that gets hurt by that resentment, it is us. But we never know this as we are so full of revenge or hatred that the logic goes out the window.
Another factor is that Jesus said to receive forgiveness from God we need to forgive others ourselves. Matthew 6:15. Thus we never realise it but we need to forgive to save our own lives both in the present and in the future.
I think this is the part people find difficult in IVRRAC as it is pointing out the requirement of forgiveness to live life to the fullest. For most people to forgive is the hardest thing to do ever and I am overwhelmed with wonder when I do hear the few stories of victims forgiving their aggressors.
But as normal people we have concerns, forgiveness is not the norm in our society. It is made to be an acceptance or condoning of a bad thing. It is not, to forgive is not saying a person should not pay for their actions. But they should pay fairly not be a victim of revenge. A lot of "evil doers" already pay for it with guilt. I am reminded of the man who owned up to a murder he had got away with, his comment was that the time spent in prison was the most free he had ever been for he was no longer weighed down with the guilt.
Well as this is actually about Kyndrea I will end with her conversation with Simon. I don't think I give anything away here, not many people would actually think Simon would end up killing her so that he doesn't would not come as a surprise. (I have edited out a spoiler statement in the middle though. The statement does clarify her stance and resistance more but I'd rather not spoil the twist for you.)
"Okay, so you didn't kill us, so what? Simon, you killed seven people! Seven people's lives are ended because of you. How can I love a person who maliciously destroyed seven families? What does that make me?"
"Human," Simon answered.
Then there was silence. She looked at him, he looked at her. She broke into tears, "But what if people find out?"
"That is your vanity. They should congratulate you for being able to forgive in the face of absurdity. I know deep down they will think you are a great woman, which you already are Kyndrea, the greatest woman I know."
I googled the name and no hits came up so I was pretty certain that Kyndrea was quite original. That was until a few years later when more people became involved in the Internet social network and now the name Kyndrea gets about 15 different individuals. So it was not so original after all. But pretty close, I mean the Blogger spell checker doesn't know the name either.
Kyndrea is the main female lead in my book IVRRAC. She is the love interest of the murderous main character Simon. I cannot give too much away but she ends up in a position that most people dread and needs to show unconditional forgiveness to save her own life. But the twist is that she doesn't even know her life is on the line.
This is a good analogy of our own lives. There are many times we harbour resentment towards others. The irony of the situation is that it is not the other party that gets hurt by that resentment, it is us. But we never know this as we are so full of revenge or hatred that the logic goes out the window.
Another factor is that Jesus said to receive forgiveness from God we need to forgive others ourselves. Matthew 6:15. Thus we never realise it but we need to forgive to save our own lives both in the present and in the future.
I think this is the part people find difficult in IVRRAC as it is pointing out the requirement of forgiveness to live life to the fullest. For most people to forgive is the hardest thing to do ever and I am overwhelmed with wonder when I do hear the few stories of victims forgiving their aggressors.
But as normal people we have concerns, forgiveness is not the norm in our society. It is made to be an acceptance or condoning of a bad thing. It is not, to forgive is not saying a person should not pay for their actions. But they should pay fairly not be a victim of revenge. A lot of "evil doers" already pay for it with guilt. I am reminded of the man who owned up to a murder he had got away with, his comment was that the time spent in prison was the most free he had ever been for he was no longer weighed down with the guilt.
Well as this is actually about Kyndrea I will end with her conversation with Simon. I don't think I give anything away here, not many people would actually think Simon would end up killing her so that he doesn't would not come as a surprise. (I have edited out a spoiler statement in the middle though. The statement does clarify her stance and resistance more but I'd rather not spoil the twist for you.)
"Okay, so you didn't kill us, so what? Simon, you killed seven people! Seven people's lives are ended because of you. How can I love a person who maliciously destroyed seven families? What does that make me?"
"Human," Simon answered.
Then there was silence. She looked at him, he looked at her. She broke into tears, "But what if people find out?"
"That is your vanity. They should congratulate you for being able to forgive in the face of absurdity. I know deep down they will think you are a great woman, which you already are Kyndrea, the greatest woman I know."
J is for Jesus
One of the best books written, if not the best, one which definitely out sells any other book is also one of the most skillfully put together stories of all time. Of course the author has more experience than any other author on (or off) this planet.
It begins with a seemingly simple story about a man and a woman in paradise. Of course human nature takes over and they stuff it up. They fall from grace and lose paradise, however the boss still cares for them clothing them as they are shown the door. As a father watches his child leaving home for his life journey knowing one day they will return, God watched his creation leave paradise.
This is know as the fall and from then onwards man continues to fall and God continues to pick man up and dust off his knees. But there is still distance between father and son a distance created by the first fall.
God chose one man, Abraham, to lead the way, choosing his offspring to be his chosen people. But this man was also promised that one day his descendant will bring blessings to all people on the Earth. After the descendants became a large group of twelve tribes God showed the way they could get closer to him. To be close to God a sacrifice had to be done, depending on the task and reason, it was either a goat, lamb or bull. But the people forgot and then remembered then forgot and then remembered.
Finally after nearly 2000 years God intervened once more by impregnating a woman who was betrothed to a direct descendant of the great king David and thus Abraham. This man was therefore given descendant rights and was known as Jesus. He was God in human form. Through Jesus the whole world was blessed and through his death man could once more get closer to God, his death being the only sacrifice required.
The weekend after next we celebrate this death (Good Friday) and the amazing resurrection that followed (Easter Sunday).
Of course this is a very simple summary and does not do justice to the intricate weave that God created in his book "The Bible." But when you read it knowing the ending, you can see how the ending is foretelled in all the subtleties within the early sections. It is a book that never dates and the moral stories and examples are as relevant today as the were when they were first told.
For instance the Corinthian letters could be just as relevant to some churches today as they were to Corinth in the first century. We still do the same faults again and again. Mankind has not changed, we may be able to do things faster and create more damage, but they are still the same issues.
The great thing is that at the very moment Christ died on the cross our sins were forgiven. This is demonstrated by the temple curtain tearing in two, removing the barrier between man and God. By accepting this gift of grace and accepting Jesus we become close to God. We are still human and we fail. But the failure is forgiven allowing us to try once more and slowly we fail less often.
So this Easter, invite Jesus to the party and enjoy life as we were created to do. And if we do we can be assured at the end of time we will return to a new paradise on Earth as existed in the beginning. And once again be in the presence of our father, the God.
It begins with a seemingly simple story about a man and a woman in paradise. Of course human nature takes over and they stuff it up. They fall from grace and lose paradise, however the boss still cares for them clothing them as they are shown the door. As a father watches his child leaving home for his life journey knowing one day they will return, God watched his creation leave paradise.
This is know as the fall and from then onwards man continues to fall and God continues to pick man up and dust off his knees. But there is still distance between father and son a distance created by the first fall.
God chose one man, Abraham, to lead the way, choosing his offspring to be his chosen people. But this man was also promised that one day his descendant will bring blessings to all people on the Earth. After the descendants became a large group of twelve tribes God showed the way they could get closer to him. To be close to God a sacrifice had to be done, depending on the task and reason, it was either a goat, lamb or bull. But the people forgot and then remembered then forgot and then remembered.
Finally after nearly 2000 years God intervened once more by impregnating a woman who was betrothed to a direct descendant of the great king David and thus Abraham. This man was therefore given descendant rights and was known as Jesus. He was God in human form. Through Jesus the whole world was blessed and through his death man could once more get closer to God, his death being the only sacrifice required.
The weekend after next we celebrate this death (Good Friday) and the amazing resurrection that followed (Easter Sunday).
Of course this is a very simple summary and does not do justice to the intricate weave that God created in his book "The Bible." But when you read it knowing the ending, you can see how the ending is foretelled in all the subtleties within the early sections. It is a book that never dates and the moral stories and examples are as relevant today as the were when they were first told.
For instance the Corinthian letters could be just as relevant to some churches today as they were to Corinth in the first century. We still do the same faults again and again. Mankind has not changed, we may be able to do things faster and create more damage, but they are still the same issues.
The great thing is that at the very moment Christ died on the cross our sins were forgiven. This is demonstrated by the temple curtain tearing in two, removing the barrier between man and God. By accepting this gift of grace and accepting Jesus we become close to God. We are still human and we fail. But the failure is forgiven allowing us to try once more and slowly we fail less often.
So this Easter, invite Jesus to the party and enjoy life as we were created to do. And if we do we can be assured at the end of time we will return to a new paradise on Earth as existed in the beginning. And once again be in the presence of our father, the God.
13 April 2011
I is for IVRRAC
Of course I am going to talk about my first published work. IVRRAC. The most common question is what does the acronym stand for? Simple answer - "Read the Book!" But I can tell you it is about Simon a killer of rich socialite women who he refers to as "Richies" and hates them without exception. That is until he is sent on parole to a township full of rich socialite women and the only means of escape is to befriend one of them.
I began writing this story way back around 93 or 94 in a wine bar while waiting for my bus. That wine bar ceased to exist a few years later (they obviously gave me too many free coffees) and now, due to major structural damage, the building itself has been demolished. And no, it was not a victim of the Christchurch earthquake, but a victim to some major internal restructuring in Auckland.
After leaving the villian\hero being rescued by legalise murder activists I got stumped (and you can see why... legalise murder activists? What was I thinking?) So I left the story until I had an unhappy love affair and poured all my heart ache into the story. Thus it received a major romantic twist and the activists turned into a beautiful woman named Kyndrea who becomes the villain/hero's love interest.
So our main character is suddenly torn between his hatred of the rich and his love for this rich socialite. What aspect wins out in the end? Well I think you probably can guess but you maybe surprised when you read IVRRAC.
Kyndrea is very interesting, both her name and her character, this I will discuss further when I come to the letter K.
Cheers
Peter
I began writing this story way back around 93 or 94 in a wine bar while waiting for my bus. That wine bar ceased to exist a few years later (they obviously gave me too many free coffees) and now, due to major structural damage, the building itself has been demolished. And no, it was not a victim of the Christchurch earthquake, but a victim to some major internal restructuring in Auckland.
After leaving the villian\hero being rescued by legalise murder activists I got stumped (and you can see why... legalise murder activists? What was I thinking?) So I left the story until I had an unhappy love affair and poured all my heart ache into the story. Thus it received a major romantic twist and the activists turned into a beautiful woman named Kyndrea who becomes the villain/hero's love interest.
So our main character is suddenly torn between his hatred of the rich and his love for this rich socialite. What aspect wins out in the end? Well I think you probably can guess but you maybe surprised when you read IVRRAC.
Kyndrea is very interesting, both her name and her character, this I will discuss further when I come to the letter K.
Cheers
Peter
10 April 2011
H is for Harold - BOAS's pet rabbit.
I thought that I would go into my writing today for a subject. Harold is a very odd pet, but then BOAS is a very odd superhero. Raised in a laboratory in Auckland, Harold escapes with the lab technician to Christchurch after a very unpleasant explosion within the lab. This was assumed to have caused the death of the "mad scientist" who was responsible for Harold's strange looks.
Through a long and contorted route Harold finally ends up as a pet in BOAS's house. The odd thing about Harold is that his skull has been replaced with a moulded plastic cap through which his brain can be clearly seen. This gives Harold superior telekinesis and mind reading abilities and thus he helps BOAS in his quest to bring the murderer of his friends to justice.
BOAS is the book I am writing on at present (see my other blog) but it has been stalled due to my paid work and study requiring a lot more of my time. It will hopefully be finished and released later this year.
As you can tell it is not the regular run of the mill superhero story. Once the shape of BOAS is revealed you will definitely realise this. All I can say at the moment is that BOAS's first appearance in the book (within the prologue) is as a parking meter.
It is a satiric and comical look at the world today being located in another universe, sorry multiverse, not too unsimilar to our own except the exaggeration (and total fabrication) of things we assume to be real on our planet. Or as the prologue puts it "One such multiverse is virtually the same as the world we live on except for little subtleties such as the police force being manned by simpletons, the oil companies are the mean nasty conglomerates that people in our world try and make them out to be, their physical laws are made to be broken and the most important difference, pogo sticks are the ultimate in recreational equipment."
And of course rabbits with plastic skulls can communicate to humans and help save the world.
Cheers and have a good weekend.
Peter
Through a long and contorted route Harold finally ends up as a pet in BOAS's house. The odd thing about Harold is that his skull has been replaced with a moulded plastic cap through which his brain can be clearly seen. This gives Harold superior telekinesis and mind reading abilities and thus he helps BOAS in his quest to bring the murderer of his friends to justice.
BOAS is the book I am writing on at present (see my other blog) but it has been stalled due to my paid work and study requiring a lot more of my time. It will hopefully be finished and released later this year.
As you can tell it is not the regular run of the mill superhero story. Once the shape of BOAS is revealed you will definitely realise this. All I can say at the moment is that BOAS's first appearance in the book (within the prologue) is as a parking meter.
It is a satiric and comical look at the world today being located in another universe, sorry multiverse, not too unsimilar to our own except the exaggeration (and total fabrication) of things we assume to be real on our planet. Or as the prologue puts it "One such multiverse is virtually the same as the world we live on except for little subtleties such as the police force being manned by simpletons, the oil companies are the mean nasty conglomerates that people in our world try and make them out to be, their physical laws are made to be broken and the most important difference, pogo sticks are the ultimate in recreational equipment."
And of course rabbits with plastic skulls can communicate to humans and help save the world.
Cheers and have a good weekend.
Peter
09 April 2011
G is for God
Now I have revealed to all that I am in the process of becoming a minister, I really cannot avoid today's letter being anything else. So if you are not in the mood for a Christian sermon please stop reading now and skip to the letter "H" (Once it is written).
Of course I am referring to The God, "I am" the god that brought the Israelites out of Egypt and the God who gave his only begotten son so that who so ever believes shall not perish but have everlasting life.
I am studying Deuteronomy this week or as it is known in the Hebrew "elleh haddebarim." It is a very good summary of the preceding 3 books and again lays down the law for the Jewish people. It also has some good information on who God is for the Jewish people. A caring God who knows we fall easily into temptation. Although the laws are complicated and the punishments severe, it is possible to see the underlying love God has for his people.
I am looking forward to reading the experts' opinions tomorrow on this subject but I can already see the ties between this well-entrenched law book and the good news of the New Testament. One of the things I truly admire, as an author, is all the inter-connections between the different ages and how something 800 years earlier can affect the people of the later age.
A question people may ask now is "Since you love God and scripture, are your books Christian Fiction?"
The answer is "Yes and No." My favourite author of all time is C S Lewis and the way he created a wonderful allegorical series. Books that on the face seemed to be normal everyday fiction, but when read with scripture in mind a whole new layer can be explored.
This is what I attempt in my books. IVRRAC is not "Christian Fiction" in the general sense but it has many suggestions of Christianity throughout it. A person can read IVRRAC and be totally oblivious to it being in any way Christian based and thoroughly enjoy it. But when read with Christianity in mind many parallels can be found between Simon's adventures and scripture.
Thus I feel I can provide good reading for both Christian and non-Christian readers within my books.
Cheers and blessings to all.
Peter
Of course I am referring to The God, "I am" the god that brought the Israelites out of Egypt and the God who gave his only begotten son so that who so ever believes shall not perish but have everlasting life.
I am studying Deuteronomy this week or as it is known in the Hebrew "elleh haddebarim." It is a very good summary of the preceding 3 books and again lays down the law for the Jewish people. It also has some good information on who God is for the Jewish people. A caring God who knows we fall easily into temptation. Although the laws are complicated and the punishments severe, it is possible to see the underlying love God has for his people.
I am looking forward to reading the experts' opinions tomorrow on this subject but I can already see the ties between this well-entrenched law book and the good news of the New Testament. One of the things I truly admire, as an author, is all the inter-connections between the different ages and how something 800 years earlier can affect the people of the later age.
A question people may ask now is "Since you love God and scripture, are your books Christian Fiction?"
The answer is "Yes and No." My favourite author of all time is C S Lewis and the way he created a wonderful allegorical series. Books that on the face seemed to be normal everyday fiction, but when read with scripture in mind a whole new layer can be explored.
This is what I attempt in my books. IVRRAC is not "Christian Fiction" in the general sense but it has many suggestions of Christianity throughout it. A person can read IVRRAC and be totally oblivious to it being in any way Christian based and thoroughly enjoy it. But when read with Christianity in mind many parallels can be found between Simon's adventures and scripture.
Thus I feel I can provide good reading for both Christian and non-Christian readers within my books.
Cheers and blessings to all.
Peter
08 April 2011
F is for Familiarity
We all have our places we like to be, people we like to talk to and genres we like to read or write. The familiarity of our usual haunts makes us feel warm inside, safe and secure. But sometimes we need to step out into unfamiliar ground to move on in life.
Each great event in my life has started with trembling feet upon strange lands. From the literal first step on U.S. soil at the start of my first overseas holiday to my decision to become a minister and all the events in between.
Without this willingness to stray from the familiar I would have never got married to my wonderful wife, never had my two wonderful children. I would have never met many a wonderful tourist in my backpacker business and have never got to writing this blog - a direct result of stepping out and publishing my book.
And of course I would have never had such a memorable holiday at Universal Studios and Disney World. Looking back at my life so far, I realise that it is true that every success in my life was due to me braving the unknown and going for it. And the majority of failures were when I stayed in my rut and comfortable familiar surroundings.
Something to think about.
Peter
Each great event in my life has started with trembling feet upon strange lands. From the literal first step on U.S. soil at the start of my first overseas holiday to my decision to become a minister and all the events in between.
Without this willingness to stray from the familiar I would have never got married to my wonderful wife, never had my two wonderful children. I would have never met many a wonderful tourist in my backpacker business and have never got to writing this blog - a direct result of stepping out and publishing my book.
And of course I would have never had such a memorable holiday at Universal Studios and Disney World. Looking back at my life so far, I realise that it is true that every success in my life was due to me braving the unknown and going for it. And the majority of failures were when I stayed in my rut and comfortable familiar surroundings.
Something to think about.
Peter
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