Day 317: know your role, accept it, and excel at it!

so yes.. my blog posts go from day 257 to day 317. =P

just goes to show how ridiculously busy/productive I've been this semester. flippppppp! haha

so its been one heck of a year. I'm flying back to TO in less than a week! eeps! yet my year here in SYD aint over just yet!

a few weeks ago, i handed in my short film that i spent a good portion of this semester making. it turned out okay. for my first ever "proper" short film, shot with a Canon 60D, heaps of legit equipment, a novel of proper paper work, and so much more, it was okay. could have been done better, but it wasn't bad. and to be honest, i was a tad bit disappointed when it wasn't chosen for the TV/Dance showcase. not that i personally thought it deserved to be in the showcase, but more so the fact that i felt insufficient when compared to my fellow classmates (who did do an amazingly incredible job on their short films!). my dad's words of "it doesnt matter what field you choose to pursue your career in. as long as you're at the top of the game, you'll be successful!" so i felt like such a failure at it.

right now, I'm still quite inexperienced when it comes to location camera. so i gotta work on that.

it took me a week to realize that i need to get back on my feet. now I'm excited to get my own 60D and some other equipment (decent tripod, Zoom audio recorder, a lens or two) and start shooting sone more footage! already got another project or two in mind when I'm home this christmas =)

what i forgot was that there was still much to learn in studio camera operation. just when i thought CCU and GFX were going to be my life, opportunities to do camera in the main auditorium came popping up. cameras 2 and 3 to be exact! not that i was rostered for them, but ppl couldn't make it and asked me to fill in. in fact, they were rostered for other positions. but as soon as i agreed to fill in, i would get swapped from another position to cameras 2 or 3!

not long after, i received the phone call asking if i would be interested in PRODUCING college graduation ceremony.

...

...

:O

FLIPPIN' LEGIT! i have only ever dreamed of climbing higher and producing at Hillsong's Hills campus Convention Centre! i mean, its only a 3.5-4k seating auditorium! and only after ~10mos of studying at hillsong college? flip!

I've learnt that as an entire intake of TV students (17 of us in total in my intake), we are each talented in a different area. some of us are incredible at handling a camera, and getting amazing shots with the best compositions and framings ever. others are fantastic at organizing and pulling things together. some are just a blessing to have their presence around; they make everything so much more fun! separately, we're okay at what we do. but when you put all of us together, we pull off something so much more amazing! its all about knowing your role. know what your strengths are and pursue it. know what your weaknesses are, and be willing to learn from them.

i can't be good at everything. but contributing what i can give, and combining everyone's gifts, its amazing what can be done!! team effort! =)

Day 257: truly, so so busy.

yah. so its been like... a month since the last post. lol

I've been so busy, and so physically tired and drained, i have skipped 3 classes this month alone. yes, i skipped 3 classes at hillsong international college.

this is coming from a person who attended every single class in the first semester.

but i was actually just THAT tired that i wouldn't get up, and kept on sleeping.

well.. one of them was actually insomnia where i couldn't sleep until 6am that morning. so obviously i slept in til 10am or else i just wouldn't function at all.

anyways, what led me to take a few moments out of my insanely crazy schedule to jot down a blog, is that today, I SHOT 3 SCENES FOR MY SHORT FILM!!

i borrowed the school's 60D DSLR and a whole lotta other unaffordable gear, gathered up 8 other school mates, and headed into the city to shoot some footage =)

at first (and i mean 2 nights ago), i was freaking out a lil. cus i had never touched a DSLR before. and not to mention, i thought i had all my actors, then 1 bails, then i find replacement, then repeat with 2 more... and i didn't have a final confirmed cast until 3 days before the shoot. then last night, i checked the weather only to find "rain" as forecasted. crap crap crap. now what?!?!

PRAY.

so i did.

still did a lil "freaking out" rant to a friend.

prayed some more.

went to bed, still praying.

ended up with insomnia night #2, and didn't sleep at all, altho i did pray for rest.

as the sun rises, i realized it wasn't raining.

it wasn't super bright, but it wasn't raining!!

it was an overcast day.

i had totally forgotten that overcast days are actually pretty good days to shoot. they block the sunlight, so all my footage isn't over exposed, and my actors are squinting, and i don't need my crew to hold up reflectors or anything! it is also nice and cool, and we weren't sweating like pigs!

it was seriously perfect for scenes 1 and 2.

until... it starting spitting a lil during our lunch break. uh oh... we still had scene 3 to go. now what? do we head on over to location 3, and shoot with an umbrella over the camera?

we decided to go on with it.

by the time we arrived at our location (15mins away), THE SUN HAD COME OUT. F'REALS.

it was amazing.

God is so perfect with His timing!

for the final 2 hrs we spent at the 3rd location shooting the 3rd scene, it gradually got cloudier. and by the time we finished shooting, we still had time take a group photo. =)

we didn't rush thru the day or anything. it was a chill vibe, yet still productive at a good pace. honestly one of the best shoots i have ever been on in terms of timing and productivity (including all those hillsong related shoots.) we made room thruout the day for lil funny things, joked around here and there, breaks to snack and have a drink of water. and we bonded a lot closer. some ppl went from strangers that morning, to now having spent an amazing day together.

we even went for a lunner afterwards, and thats when the rain came down, halfway thru our meal.

amazing.

seriously.

God is for me. not against me. ever.

but now, its nearly 11pm. i think its time to head to bed, cus I'm serving 2mrw morning (BCH IS BACKKKK FOR A WEEK. WEEEEEEEE!!)

PS. my fingers' energy to type in caps does not reflect my true physical energy. lol... probs more of a sleep deprivation caps typing.

PPS. *yawn* okay I'm off. toodles!

Day 228: the busy don't stop!

so I've always talked about how busy i am.

but never really showed it.

so here's a look at just where I'm serving for the remainder of August and most of september (Sunday church rosters aren't out yet).

throw in Big Exo day, Encounter, filming my short film, classes, assessments, and fieldwork...

busy busy busy!

who knows what october's gonna look like... (got State Conference then too!)

but here we go. counting down the last 3 months of Sydney/Hillsong life! LETS DO THIS!

Day 223: Jesus at the centre of it all

so for those of you who went to Hillsong Conference 2011, or have been to a Hillsong service in between (including college chapel, extension services, youth, etc), you will have sung the song (or at least the bridge) of the song, Jesus At the Centre. (brand new song written by Israel Houghton like a few days before conference)

the lyrics for the bridge goes like this:

from my heart to the heavens

Jesus be the centre

it's all about You

yes, it's all about You [repeat]

and I've been questioning it since the day i heard it. i don't know why it took me so long. but like a month and a half later, i FINALLY understand what the lyrics are saying.

FROM MY HEART TO THE HEAVENS

that means from anything I'm passionate/thinking about, that is about myself (or personal/earthly desires) to God's will for me, His perfect plan, and everything else inbetween.

its pretty much a fancier way of saying "everything i do, whether its what i want or what God wants, or both".

JESUS BE THE CENTRE

He is to be at the heart of it all. He is the sole reason for anything that i do. (might have to reconsider some actions before carrying them out eh?).

made me question, does my life revolve around Jesus? do i schedule my life around devotions, prayer time, church time, Jesus time? and not the other way around? (i.e. slot in devos when i can)

IT'S ALL ABOUT YOU

because everything is about Him. not us. anything i do, isn't for me. but allowing myself to be used by God for His glory. not just allowing, but wanting to do it too. and it is ALL about Him. not just a fraction. not 90%. its 100%.

definitely a good reminder of a few of the key verses i live by:

1 cor 10:31

col 3:23

phil 3:8

JESUS!!!

PS. yes i am canadian and i spell it CENTRE. not center. but CENTRE.

PPS. autocorrect actually corrects it for me to "tre" =P

i think I'm ready to go home

so not sure if i mentioned this in previous posts, but i was thinking of staying a 2nd year here at hillsong college (if they do a 2nd year of TV, if not, then a very tiny lil possibility of going to pastoral)

but right now, i would like to go home.

Toronto will always be my home, no matter how much i like to (and dream of) travelling. its only been 8 months in Sydney but it feels like its been forever.

did time really fly by that quickly? not really. I've never been this busy and tired in my life. the days have been long. it just felt like how it did during my days at Western. when you enjoy what you're doing, sure you would like it to last and never end. or when you're tired and looking forward to that shower then sleep, only knowing that you'll be getting up again in less than 7hrs, its not that restful. some ppl have joked that its preparing me for motherhood, especially the days of a newborn. haha

but yeah... maybe I'm feeling homesick or something (thanks to looking thru old fb photos). but there really is a LOT to be done in toronto. maybe not necessarily all media/video/production stuff, cus some churches aren't even there yet. they just need (female) leaders for their youth. not a pastor, but just an older female figure. and all i have to do is to live my christian walk, and to care for them. or back at Harvest York Region. they need help in youth department AND the worship department. always in need of drummers. =) and i can also help with video too.

i have to say, what i miss most are the other annual events. like TC, CC, CCSA (softball season), going to the EX, snowboarding season, Jays season, first hope of the Raptors/Leafs season, family dinners, road trips with parents, etc. having grown up with it all my life (or a large portion of my life), its been weird not being a part of those things. the toronto canasian culture i grew up with!

starting to look AND apply for TV/production/broadcasting related jobs in TO. lets do this.

I'm ready to come home. =)

PS. but as per the previous blogpost's title, I'm still open to the idea of staying a 2nd year. changes happen. who knows. I'm not dead set on going home. but i guess its just where my head and/or heart is at right now. i don't even know. haha

Day 214: things don't go as planned

so this week has been crazy. as in major changes from what i had originally planned it to be.

Sunday:

no change. it was my fault. served at AMs, stayed at church til SNL cus i didn't wanna go home plus i saved good seats, then Lulu's bday party.

Monday:

originally? just 8:30-12pm class, then groundswell at 7-9pm.

change? arrival at school at 7am to open the TV door for GFX. ended up bumming at school for a college opener rehearsal from 5-7pm. then groundswell til 9pm. got home, the prep'd ProPresenter GFX til 11:30pm.

Tuesday:

originally? just class from 8:30-5ish.

change? arrival at school by 6:45am cus of technical difficulties, so now i was doing main screen GFX via my macbookpro. then got home that night to prep Wed's GFX.

Wednesday:

originally? serving at chapel on cam3.

change? GFX instead!

Thursday:

orginally? GFX @ sisterhood, class, meeting fieldwork specialist at 3pm.

change? trained someone for GFX (altho i had never done it in the CC before), class, fieldwork specialist never showed. i left school at 4pm.

Friday:

orginally? cam3 @ wildlife.

change? DIRECTOR @ wildlife!! :D

mm... hectic as heck of a week.

but glad i finally got to try directing.

didn't do as well as i would've liked. but since 3/4 of my cam ops are 1st semester students, first time doing camera, and didn't really rehearse much... cus the band didn't rehearse much. ah well.

i know i can't blame cam ops for everything, cus it can also be my communicating with them. but yah.

i deff would liked to have "told the story" better. spent a lot of my time just getting shots that would "look good" or "transitioned nicely". just need to overall think ahead and tell the story better.

good learning experience tho. hoping to get better with more practice (not that another directing opportunity is in sight) but hey... with so many changes. who knows?!!? =)

Day 213: never been busier!

so... its been a while since the last post.

and not cus I've been slacking. but I've actually been so busy my schedule was wake up before the sun does, get to school, do various TV stuff + classes, eat whatever i can buy that isn't too cheap yet still tasty and somewhat nutritious, do more TV stuff, get home long after the sun has gone, shower, devos, sleep. repeat.

until today, i honestly haven't done groceries since pre-conference intensives (aka mid june). been living off of food i buy, and have some frozen stuff in the fridge (i.e. meat pies, udon, sliced beef, chicken nuggets) and dried/air tight stuff (pasta + pasta sauce + frozen veggies + frozen garlic bread.) not that I've had much time to cook, hence didn't bother buying much groceries! no worries tho... still managed an apple here and there, drank juice instead of pop, chose salad instead of fries... =)

but yeah. its been hectic. maddd hectic.

its what i love doing. but I'm super glad that i have 2mrw off. my first day off of not having to be at school by 8am or earlier (including a 6:30am on Tues. DANGS).

i have also realized I'm on a streak of being at Hillsong Church every single day since i don't know when... classes Mon-Thurs, Wildlife Fri, Asian Extension Service Sat, and church on Sun.

blue walls and blue carpets all semester? pretty much. with the occasional trip to Norwest. I'm in the triangle. haha...

i don't know where this post is going. too tired to think. just wanted to jot down a bit of my recent life i guess. =)

anyways. its nearly 10pm. and I'm ready to pass out. (never thought i would say that...definitely never happened in Canada!). but yes. gonna go brush up, devos, then sleep. GOODNIGHT.

Day 198: start of 2nd semester!

so 2nd semester started yesterday actually (day 195).

and i have to say...

i now remember why i was so homesick and wanted to leave during some days earlier this year.

i really don't like intensives classes. -_-

not all classes... but dislike it enough that if the entire semester continued like this, i would be skipping a LOT of classes. haha... not that i did =P

still the same, lovin' chapel!

plus now I'm looking fwd to friday nights for WILDLIFE!

plus serving at Sisterhood + sunday church! (albeit still pretty basic positions... but getting somewhere. surely...)

really contemplating staying a 2nd year. i guess it also depends on how i "progress" with serving positions on sundays/sisterhood. (producing + camera!)

i have also yet to direct anything, so hoping to direct wildlife soon. and then chapel. =)

only the start of 2nd sem. aka slightly just a bit over half way. LETS DO THIS!

Hillsong Conference 2011

so i realized i never really blogged about conference. i mean, right after Conference, all that is on my mind is "JESUS!!!!!!" and didn't really wanna talk about what i did/experienced. because He is the ultimate reason for everything, and everything else just doesn't really matter compared to Him!

but now that a few weeks have past, i would like to jot down my first ever Hillsong Conference experience, mainly from a TV crew perspective! (not saying that the JESUS fire has died down. but cus the conference was so amazing in so many ways!)

before conference even started, we had 2 weeks of conference intensives. i spent most of these 2 weeks doing 3 things:

1) rostering ppl for and running Chapel TV, playing a role in preparing the student body for conference (as well as Heart for the House week)

2) helping out at Wildlife TV, preparing the youth for Jam2011!

3) helping out with a video shoot for the Conference closer (which was not played at the Sydney one due to running out of time, but apparently will be at the London one)

the day before conference was mainly rehearsals. i was pretty much down at the SEC doing whatever was needed (iHeart stand decor set up, cam4 tracking/assist, runner/messenger for TV crew, etc). if i wasn't doing that, i had the freedom of wandering around backstage, taking pictures, exploring, or just sitting in and watching rehearsals. all that and enjoying chinese food in Chinatown =P oh and starbucks too. ahaha

now that conference TUESDAY had finally arrived, i spent most of day 1 helping bump-in for Jam @ Luna Park! not much to bump in TV wise, so we helped the rest of the volunteers blow up and tie 8,000 balloons by hand, for Day 1's tribal wars. -_- the kids were to pop the balloons to try and find like 3 objects in them, outta 8k. that was pretty much all we did...

at night, went back to the SEC, helped out nadya/isabel with food runs. not to mention i was a lil starstruck when i walked past Chris Quilala and Kim Walker from Jesus Culture, JD, BCH, JTH, RM, DZ... omg! haha it took my brain a while to register who they were! usually i hold it together pretty well cus its just one or two big names. but when you get so many one after another right away... i couldn't believe it! haha my legs carried me, and just kept walking. don't stop. i took it all in afterwards. only to help make a food run to FoH, only to bump into none other than JG! they were everywhere! lol

oh and how awesome was this opener?!?!?!

WEDNESDAY of conference, finally day1 of JAM! arrived at SEC early, spent 1.5hrs waiting for the Jam volunteers bus so i sat in the 2nd row, watching morning rehearsals. and it was none other than DZ, Sidney Mohede, RM... amazing! haha

at Jam, i just did CCU. just a lot of following to do during the message as the stage wasn't evenly lit. so i had to remember which were the dark/hot spots and manually adjust it.

back to the SEC at night, did the same thing. helped out izzy/nadya w/ food run, think i also did some water bottles delivery to the camera ops. hiking up so many steps to Cam8 was def NOT fun -_- once was enough. glad i wasn't a cam8 op. haha

THURSDAY day 3 of conf, day 2 of Jam! we had a later call time, just chilled in the back dock area in the SEC, and then made our way over to luna park! they (producers/director) decided to switch up the crew positions a lil, so i was switched to GFX! spent most of the day either doing GFX or helping out patrick with "designing" the pres slides for tribal war point tallies. we had a slight bit too much fun playing with fonts, sizes, and msft clip art! lol! also helped out a lil w/ comp problems, sending ppt thru the system. good thing i still remember my PC knowledge!

back to the SEC, did cam4 assist for Revelation. then after the usual food run, i stopped by starbs, grabbed a drink for myself and my fieldwork specialist, and headed to the DHCC to check it out and deliver the drink! i stood at the very back, wanting to listen to John Maxwell speak, and caught an asian guy filming the entire thing. but i was told to just leave it.... so i decided to video him, filming everything. bahaha... GG flashing red light on a DSLR!

FRIDAY! final day of conference already. aww... kicked off the day with starbucks! and headed to JAM! once again, the positions changed time. this time, found out i will be doing Cam2, aka main cam! sweeeeeet! honestly... I haven't done main cam yet here at hillsong. but i always thought about it... if i managed to follow a softball and/or a softball player running, how hard can it be following a speaker? haha the only added difficulty was instead of using a handy cam on autofocus, i had to manually control it. but since the speakers didn't do anything crazy (i.e. jump off the stage), it wasn't too hard. fun times!

near the end of Jam, i got a txt saying i will be rostered for REVELATION! whoooooo! then i found out i was doing CCU. -_- ah well. at least i can say i did CCU for Hillsong Conference in the SEC! haha...

then i did some more food runs, and generally just chilled backstage... until the medley! nadya, izzy, and myself snooped around like mice, until we found ourselves some pretty good standing view of the stage. we were actually hoping to watch the closer video.. but since that never happened... ah well. we enjoyed the medley! at least i did =P oh man... it was a trip down memory lane!!! lets see if i can recap it.. (hopefully in order... no promises)

Everyday / One Way / My Redeemer Lives / This Is How We Overcome / All Things Are Possible / Hear Our Praises / I Give You My Heart / Jesus, Lover of my Soul / The Stand / Potter's Hand / Worthy is the Lamb / Shout to the Lord / From the Inside Out / Mighty to Save

Day 192: I finally have, and can get used to this!

so ive been in Sydney now for a little more than half a year, and i finally got used to things.

in fact, i dont mind it so much either! i mean, there are still small things like how everything is so expensive (get used to it... and learn to budget!), the indoor weather, not looking forward to summer w/ the return of giant spiders, no car to drive around (but thankful to know ppl w/ cars who ARE willing to drive me around.. if convenient =P)... but those are small things. =)

so today was orientation for the new July 2011 students. and dangs... im 2nd semester now! JZ (a fellow 2nd yr TV/pastoral student) and i hung around til the end, and decided to join in with the new semesters meeting each other and Bruce! man.. we felt so knowledgeable. we were giving out advice, and answering questions that we once had when we first arrived at Hillsong College. haha... guess it helps that we're also in charge of TV for College Chapel (me), Sisterhood/Wildlife (JZ) here at Hillsong too.

guess i have learnt a lot since landing in Sydney on Jan 11th, 2011. yet there is still so much more to learn! gotta keep moving forward and climbing higher!

BRING ON 2ND SEMESTER!!

but before that, next monday, i will be helping out w/ shooting for the College Opener. =P s'gunna be amaaaaazing!

Day 185: harvest vs hillsong

so its winter break, ive got 2 weeks off, and of course, my old bad habits return. (i.e. its 2:30am and im starting a blog post =P)

tonight, the reason for staying up so late, is cus i was going thru Harvest videos on vimeo. not just York Region's, but also Harvest Chicago campuses'. i realized i keep (mentally) pointing out the same few things: director's cutting/fading/shot choices, camera ops' following/focus/headroom (camera work in general), and CCU's iris (dont think HBCYR has a CCU =P.)

these little things, i will most definitely pay attention to. and they will bug the crap outta me. i thought it was bad when worship leaders didnt even know the chords to songs, or didnt bother tuning their guitars, and such. and sometimes, i take it for granted that Hillsong DOES take note of these details and does them as perfectly as possible. i mean, one can argue, that "no human standard is anything close to God's perfect standards." but one can also argue that "we are to bring our best to God. not give Him what's convenient, but to go all out for Him, EVERY SINGLE TIME."

so it got me thinking... when i go back home to TO, will i stay at Harvest? or is it not the place for me? i mean, there is definitely plenty of room for improvement in the multimedia department (that goes for Harvest in general. not just YR.) but then i also realized (and remembered) how Harvest is sucha male dominated leadership structure. will i even have the ability to do much about it, since im female?

i must also keep in mind that what im learning is the Hillsong style of things. i can't just go back to Harvest and go "okay. this is how Hillsong did it, so this is how we will be doing it." cus what works for Hillsong, may not work for Harvest.

whats more conflicting is that i LIKE Hillsong's style! it looks fantabulous!

hmm....

getting to Hillsong is not the hard part.

learning stuff at Hillsong is not the hard part.

how the crap do i bring it back home? <-- now THAT is the hard part.

Day 180: HOSANNA IN THE HIGHEST

this pretty much sums up one of my favourite moments from Hillsong conference 2011!
an entire arena singing this? heavenly!

Day 173: livin' the dream

so its been a maddddd week.

monday - conference intensive classes (shout out to Kmy and Matthews for teaching us!!), GROUNDSWELL CONNECT.

tuesday - final chapel of the semester, sunset shoot for conference opener (friday night), heart & soul night.

wednesday - sunrise AND sunset shoot in the city

thursday - sunrise AND afternoon in studio shoot

friday - regular fieldwork + wildlife

definition of sunrise shoots:

when the sun starts to rise, camera is rolling, everything is gtg.

which means... before the sun rises, i need to wake up, roll outta bed, get ready, head out the door, travel, arrival at meeting point by call time, travel to shooting location, help prepare the set... THEN we're ready to shoot.

meaning i had two 4am wakeups this week. not to mention full days on M/Tu/F.

it was pretty neat tho. altho my role was pretty minimal (set up, clean up, umbrella holder when it rains, errands runner, watch out for traffic-er...), its pretty awesome that i get to be a part of such a big project (Hillsong Conference Friday/Final night opener video!!!)

and everything i did... you didnt need special education to be able to do them (other than the hazer for the forest fire seen), yet i was lucky enough to have the opportunity to help out! a lot of my fellow school mates were either cleaning, property maintenance, or doing nothing. so i was pretty happy with where i ended up!

whelps. Hillsong Conference 2011 coming up in a few days! and after that, will mark the completion of my first semester here at Hillsong College.

"WHOAAA. i'm half way there!

WHOAAAA! livin' on a prayer!" =P

Day 168: "If everyday was as good as today was, then i can't wait til tomorrow comes" - Moments/WL

=)

(yes, back to quoting westlife. haha)

what a fab day!

the smallest thing can make your day.

but when its multiple things (some small, some big), your day just becomes epic!!

- Samuel gave me a chupa chup this morning!!!

- that one moment in chapel just made my day!

- eating lunch with the usuals =)

- was taught by Kmy and Matthews for intensives class!

- found out i am rostered for tape op/ccu for JAM 2011 FLIP YEAH BABYYY!!!

- meeting loadsa new ppl (still!)

- GROUNDSWELL CONNECT.

with conference coming up, they've been teaching us loadsa ways of dealing with your emotions/tiredness, as well as the ppl you're serving with, and handling delegates.

i have to say... after so many years of TC, few years of CC and Passion conferences, none of this is news to me. i mean, maybe not at the scale Hillsong Conference 2011 will be. but i guess not everyone else is as privileged as me in having these experiences already (both having attended and led conferences)

all i can say is, BRING ON HILLSONG CONFERENCE 2011.

because a new ep of Flashpoint will be airing soon after conference. =P

Day 166 - busy busy busy

i started doing an "aussie day count" in my titles just in case for when i run out of title ideas. but since australia is so eventful, i havent run into that yet!

its been a crazy busy week. my usual definition of "busy" is probs early mornings.

lets recap the times i had to be at school/church, shall we?

Sun (19th): 7:15am

Mon (20th): 9:30am

Tues (21st): 6:45am

Wed (22nd): supposed to be 8:30am. but major headache = stayed at home.

thurs (23rd): 8am (left school at 8:30pm)

fri (24th): 6:45am (left school at 10:30pm)

finally get a day off today! well... will be back at the Hub at 5:30pm for asian extension service (the service where we all look asian but we all speak english. hah! FAKE'D!!)

then sunday, back at the CC since im rostered for PM service. (real honoured to be rostered for Heart for the House weekend. even if its just cam1 assist!)

hopefully slightly easier week coming up... because the week after that is HILLSONG CONFERENCE 2011. oh it's gunna be good. tiring. but gooooood!

Day 159: its my call!

so semester 1 classes are done, all assignments are in (well, im still awaiting the marking of one. darn Amos assessment. its caused frustration in pretty much all the first years. lol), and hillsong conference 2011 is drawing near.

but theres no time to relax. in fact, this is when it starts to get real busy.

for pretty much most of my working and volunteering life, i've worked under someone. always reported to someone, had to check in/confirm/get permission from someone in a higher position.

i mean, there have been times where i've lead ppl (i.e. ACF's CRC, TC REC, etc) but for some reason, i feel so much more responsible and "in power" here at hillsong college. i dont know if its because im also living on my own, 15.5k km away from home, and feeling so much more independent... or if its because everything here at hillsong is so last minute, i just end up making decisions and going along with it. or maybe a bitta both.

ive also noticed that as big or little your serving role here at hillsong is, it doesnt go unnoticed. either someone will come along and thank you for it, and encourage you to continue doing what you're doing because you're making a difference, or leaders to keep us grounded that we're serving for a greater purpose, and/or maybe its cus i get to play a (small) role at the massive church known as Hillsong Church. its better than none!

thats how i feel anyways. maybe others will disagree. but ah well. this is my blog, and these are my thoughts! =)

heres the timeline countdown:

2 weeks of conference intensives (aka conference prep.)

1 week of Hillsong Conference.

2 weeks of break (aka welcome new July students)

1 week of orientation/enrolment.

1 more semester of school. (17 weeks)

1 week of travelling around australia with my parents.

5 more days in Sydney.

2 days of flying... and i'll be home in TO. =)

Day 155: mm... no title.

so yesterday, i finally saw PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN 4!!

its good times to watch a movie with a fellow TV student. haha... well.. the 3rd friend wasnt. but still a movie junkie so s'all good.

we were so nerdy pointing out TV related stuff. like WATCHING THE CREDITS AT THE END. LOL. we were staying to watch the clip after the credits, but i think we enjoyed the credits more. =P

good times.

okay.. not much to blog about.

other than lots of PRODUCING going on these few weeks! wildlife, chapel, and training others to produce in chapel. =)

not to mention lots of CCU action for thursday Sisterhoods and sunday AM services.

whooooo.

plus its the last week of classes. or should i say lectures are all done now. just got tutorials left 2mrw!

then its 2 weeks of conference intensives (i still have no idea what that is). then its..

HILLSONG CONFERENCE 2011. omg.

including JAM 2011!!!

okay thats all.

byebye.

PS. clearly im in no mood to blog. just felt like adding an update. ahha

day 148: how far should you go?

so i've realized, if you want to climb to the "top" of the Hillsong ladder, you pretty much have to stay here at college for 3 years, and show that you're capable of taking on the responsibilities.

(i.e. majority of Hillsong TV crew (volunteers and some staff members) are/were upper year college students. only 1 or 2 exceptionally fantastic 1st year camera ops get to help out more often and at larger scale events)

so then it got me thinking... why would i want to climb to the top of the Hillsong ladder?

lets list it out:

- training/learning/education/experience in an amazing environment

- would look fab on my CV

- credentials

- making a difference in the (church) world via media

- work with "big names" (i.e. BCH, United, etc)

so whats stopping me?

- i dont like australia (i miss all my family/friends/foods from back home!)

- dont think "working with big names" is the right motivation

- how high can i go? whats the limit? will i ever be happy with it?

i've mentioned to a few friends (and some in previous blog posts) that im currently serving in positions like "camera 1 assist", "ccu", and "graphics" for various Hillsong weekly events. and even other positions like "camera op" and "producer" for Wildlife and College Chapel. it may seem like a big deal and sound quite impressive to ppl from back home. but here at Hillsong? im just at the bottom of the TV crew chain. its where all the new TV students start out.

i've also realized that all the "big events" are the ones BCH are at. if he's not gunna be present, theres less of an effort for perfection.

makes me wonder... who are they here to serve?? shouldn't the standard be the same regardless of BCH being in the house or not?

and this may be just because im in first semester of college, but why does everything in college need to be perfect as well, just because BCH is gunna be here? i mean, if you cant be real about what college is really like around the head pastor/president, then who are we?!?!?

altho, i do understand that this morning, BCH wanted to record his message for online church. so with a video clip being broadcasted around the world, (as close to) perfection would be required.

hmm... just one of those blog posts with no conclusion. wanted to jot some thoughts down.

PS. nothing against BCH. just wondering why TV crew operates this way. =P

Day 142: whoa... its June already!!

so its already 8:30pm on June1st (6:30am for all you EST ppl.. haha).

time IS flying by! well.. not really. time is constant. just depends if we're enjoying life or not =P

and iunno.. mixed feelings about this. i cant wait to go home, but at the same time, i dont feel like ive learnt half of what i can yet! still have one more month until this semester is over, then 2nd semester is right around the corner!

im pretty much done all academic stuff for the first semester (i.e. assessments). so all tahts left is just 2 more weeks of lectures/tutorials, 2 weeks of intensives, then its hillsong conference week!

ive been getting trained a lil here and there for producing. official training was this morning.

will assist in producing for Wildlife this friday!!! then producing chapel next week!

then CCU for sisterhood AND sunday AM services the week after. =)

finally getting rostered for more things and getting involved!

Day 139: goal setting!

so a few weeks ago, we had to do a goal setting assessment (aka assignment). and we set our long term (~3yrs), and short term (~6mos) goals, plus 3 action steps for them.

so figured i'd share mine on here. when i look back in 3 years, i wonder what i would've achieved!!

they gave us many categories to pick from (career, family, relationships, health, finances, etc).

so here are mine, in order of chronological order!

1) find employment with steady income, sufficient for living on my own

ideally, this would be a job in the entertainment industry, working behind the scenes. i would like to stay in TO (as it IS the hollywood north). not necessarily on a movie set. even TV stations, a TV show... something! i wouldnt mind travelling for it either. but gotta be based in TO.

getting a 9-5 job would probs not happen. haha... since its a "work according to deadline" type of job. i.e. production date/time. so it'll probs be in waves of busyness, then chilling.. then busy... cycle!

2) move out, get my own place!

once i get a steady income, i would like to move out.

dont need a big fancy place. if theres anything i've learnt about myself since moving out for school (london/uwo, now sydney), is that i'm happy with just my room, bathroom, and kitchen. as long as my room can fit a bed and a desk, that'll be enough! most of my activities take place outside of home. home = sleep and relax. hm... just realized how HK i sound. LOL

3) get a dog! :D

so i'll make to make sure my apartment (or where ever i live) will allow pets!

ive always wanted a dog. im really good with dogs. they all love me! when ppl walk their dogs, and im walking by them, their dog ALWAYS comes up to me in a playful way! a lot of dogs that dont let ppl touch their heads, they let me!

there's a connection with me and dogs. ahahaha...

but since my mom's dream was to get a grand piano, she didnt want anything with claws in the house cus it would scratch the piano.

plus when it sheds, probs fur will land in the piano. haha... so no dogs allowed.

these are what i will set as goals for my personal life anyway.

would definitely be involved with church life (a/v, drums... whatever's needed, small group), will want to fit in softball in the summer, snowboarding in the winter, continue with helping out at TC (a/v? coaching?)... some things wont change.

just that i'll come back to TO more equipped to serve! =)

PS. i guess with that being said, my plans are still to only complete the 1 year at Hillsong College. no current plans of doing a second year, nor staying in sydney. should be back in TO for good by December 10th at 12:17am!!!

update: flight plans have changed. i will now touchdown in TO on Dec12th at 6:17am! (i have 2hrs to kill at YVR. im going to OD on timmys!!!)

finally reflecting on my NZ trip

from an early age, my parents have always taken me on road trips, vacations, to retreats, etc.

pretty much all long weekends/holidays, i can be expecting to hop in the car (sometimes plane) and go somewhere. mostly, driving to small towns all around southern ontario and the north eastern united states.

my dad has always told me "try to learn something each trip. anything at all. from planning a trip, to help navigate with the maps (pre-GPS era), visit somewhere new, learn some history, try new foods, experience the culture... anything!"

but the last few years, our main road trips were just shopping trips. lol...

only recently, travelling all the way to this corner of the earth, did i experience an adventure trip like that! i guess for one, travelling with my parents, we always went with hotels (at least a motel), ate ~3 meals a day, travelling with comfort.

but when travelling with 3 other college students, we're gunna go see NZ backpackers style!

we kicked it off with roughing it for the night at Christchurch airport, since our flight landed at 1am, and we couldnt pick up our rental car til 8:30am. so no point travelling far from the airport.

after exploring Christchurch for a few hrs (mainly seeing the earthquake aftermath), we did a 5hr drive down to Queenstown! now... im usually used to the 2hr drive from TO to London. but 5hrs of driving after a 3hr flight and a night of no sleep? this brought a whole new definition to "backpacking" for me.

but hey, when you're driving towards mountains, then alongside them (beautiful snowy peaks with totally blue rivers/lakes beside it), and when the sun hits them just right when its setting... amazing!

arriving in Queenstown, not having booked any rooms or anything, we began the search for somewhere to spend the next 2 nights. we finally settled on YHA Central Backpackers. thankfully, we got a room for 4, ensuite with bathroom. 1 double bed and 1 bunk bed. =) was like $27/person/night. so not too bad.

the next morning, we kicked it off with 8:30am SKYDIVING. now definitely wouldnt do this with my parents around! jumping out of a plane 9,000ft in the air? (for reference, the mountains around the jumping area are 6,000ft. meaning i jumped the height of 1.5 mountains!) was pretty incredible!

then we did an LoTR tour in the afternoon. i guess my dad would have done that too. hahaha... but yes... once again. when the sun hits the mountains just right... oh man. for that short period of time, it is just gorgeous!

next morning, we were in the car by 6am, to begin a 4hr drive to Milford Sound! this was one interesting drive. from watching the sun rise, to driving through a layer of fog! lets just say ive never appreciated the beauty of fog so much. it was like a misty kinda fog near the ground, with the sun hitting it just right on top of the fog layer, with a mountain peak poking out at the top. pure glory!

and we finally arrive at Milford Sound!! lets put it this way. the pyramids are to Egypt, as Milford Sound is to NZ. so it was a must see. and boy it was!!! absolutely gorgeous fjord!

so by now, keep in mind that we've spent 4hrs in the car that day already. but its not over with. after 2-3hrs of admiring Milford Sound, it was time to head out again. this time, it was another 5hr or so drive to Dunedin! Milford Sound is location on the west coast of the south island. we are going to Dunedin, on the east coast. so we're literally driving cross the country, from coast to coast! dont think my dad would ever spend 11hrs in a car in a single day... (actually wait.. we did! nvm. we did the drive from TO down to Orlando. so that was like 2 straight days of sitting in the car. lol)

in Dunedin, we stayed in the sketchiest place ever: above a bar. lol... at least we got a room with 4 single beds. but had to share bathrooms with all the accommodation. ah well.. for $20/person/night. what can you say?

explored Dunedin's night life (there was none... most things were closed), found dinner, met up with my dear cousin Lisa and her bf, Yu! wasnt too long ago since i saw them since they visited TO and surroundings back in nov/dec 2010. but called it a night pretty early. travelling = tiring!

next and final day in NZ, Lisa and Yu took us to Sandfly beach! we saw WILD SEALIONS. was pretty awesome. too bad we didnt see any penguins. that would've topped the trip. but its okay. sitting on the beach for half an hour, enjoying the ocean breeze with a bit of sunshine was lovely.

after a nice brunch at a NZ cafe, we went to conquer the steepest street in the world: Baldwin St! by the time we walked to the top, we were waaaaay outta breath. hahaha. altho i walk 1hr to/fro school every day, walking uphill uses completely different muscles. that was a killer! but it was pretty cool, having conquered something tahts in the guinness book of world records. =)

by ~3pm, it was time to get back in the car for another 5-6hr drive back to Christchurch. the last and final leg of the trip.

yeup... never spent so much vacation time in a car before. but it was a good balance of energy. since we are still young, we managed. just for 4-6 days (4 days of fun, 6 days altogether) of exploring NZ, it worked out really well.

learnt a lot, saw a lot, was amazed a LOT.

so what did i get from all this? definitely want to explore Canada more.

i came all this way and saw so much of NZ in 4 days. ive lived in Canada all my life (til now) and what have i seen? southern ontario, montreal, mt tremblant, and vancouver airport.

i hear canada is as beautiful as new zealand... but i cant say ive seen it in canada. maybe just Niagara Falls. =)

its been a dream of mine to go to Banff, Stanley Park, the East Coast, see the forests of northern Ontario, see aurora borealis... so much to explore!

and it doesnt even have to be as far as those places. theres so much in TO i havent seen! i dont remember the last time i went to Casa Loma or the Toronto Zoo (my mom claims she took me), havent been to the ROM since elementary school, never been to the Don Valley Brickworks, nor the Distillery District. plus theres many pockets of neighbourhoods too!

theres so much of this world to explore =)

Day 132: small role vs big role

so after being in australia for 4 months and a bit, i FINALLY got rostered for TV Crew on a sunday morning!

altho.. it was only as a "Observer". aka training, aka run around and complete any errands. i pretty much just watched, and helped out with "Tape Op". (record copies of the 9AM and 11AM services onto DVDs for archiving purposes, and recording the sermon only for the TV Crew to watch later)

i guess i did a good job, ready to learn anything thrown my way. but most of the stuff is just similar to thursday mornings during Sisterhood. except this is Sunday morning instead!

so by the time i was waiting at the bus stop to go home (i bought a week pass! so figured i'd bus it as much as possible to get my money's worth. asian... i know =P), i checked my bb and voila! new email. i had been rostered AGAIN for next sunday!!!

how awesome is that?

its for camera 1 asst. a small role. but its for Sunday AM Hillsong Church. =)

which reminded me of a sermon Louie Giglio preached, on living your life to bring God glory.

the analogy was this:

"i'd rather be an extra on some major big budget movie (i.e. star wars, lotr, etc), than be the main actor in a small unknown short film."

comparing it to:

"i'd rather live my life, playing a small role in God's grand plan, than be the star of my own life."

it totally reminded me of that right now. i'd rather have a small little role with Hillsong Church's main campus TV Crew, than proudly walk around bragging about some tiny lil video i made and uploaded on to facebook. (not that i do. haha)

all i can say is, im super excited for sunday next week!! haha

would also like to mention, i went to BLUE MOUNTAINS yesterday with cell!!!

now, i know all you Ontarioans are thinking "what! the ski resort in Collingwood!". no no... thats just a big hill. here in sydney, Blue Mountains is an actual range of mountains!

its just on the edge of Sydney, and it took us like 2hrs to get there via public transport. lol

so we met up at strathfield at 7am (yes, on a saturday morning!), arrived in Katoomba at like 9 something. took us another 30-45min to walk to Echo Point. twas a beautiful australian fall day. cloudless blue skies, sun shining, small slight breeze, but not windy. perfect for seeing the Three Sisters, and going hiking!

to be honest, the three sisters was a big disappointment. the view of the rest of the mountainous area was so much more astonishing! lol.

we climbed down The Giant Stairway, which consists of 1,032 steps!! talk about a workout! lol... so we ended up near the bottom of the mountain. then we went for a 1.5hr hike along the side of the mountain, following the trail.

so after that, there is NO WAY we were willing (nor had the energy) to climb back up. so we hopped on the Scenic Railway Cable Car thingy (said to be the steepest in the world!), and got back up the mountain that way.

all in all, it is now 3pm the next day, and my legs are MAJORLY sore. thank goodness i wasnt cam1 asst this morning. or else i'd be standing all morning. lol

so... i have this coming week off from school! yay! :D

my plans?

- SLEEP IN.

- movie 2mrw w/ Sum and Suzanne at Parra

- do Amos and journal assessments

- catch up on movies (tangled, princess and the frog, LoTR, little fockers... any other suggestions?)

- oh and kicking tonight off with Debbie's bday dinner at The Outback!!! (legit!)

Day 126: softball = anger management

so things havent been the easiest at "home"... in college housing.

and thats when i realized softball was more than just a sport for me. it was a good way to take out any anger, frustration... anything that can be transferred from my mind, to the action of whacking the crap outta some softballs.

if not softball, i also had the drums handy. feeling like i needed to take it out somewhere? well, why not hit some drums and cymbals? i can hit up a beat, or just bang away at anything, until my arms felt tired. haha...

this is gunna be a long week.

mon: goal setting assessment due (submitted it last night! :D)

tues: cam 1 asst at Frontline Encounter Night

wed: CCU for chapel

thurs: cam 1 asst at Sisterhood

fri: short film assessment due

friday is also the day i get my ipad2 in the mail!

saturday is the day i go to BLUE MOUNTAINS with my cell group! =) (no no... not the ski resort in Collingwood all you canadian folks are thinking about. click the link!)

sunday is the day NLCC PM service moves into Riverside Girls High School for service, instead of the warehouse in Rydalmere!

monday-friday is a week off. =)

okay... i can do this. must get thru this week.

starting with getting back to editing this short film. ugh!

HERE.

WE.

GO.!!!!!!

PS. i still miss softball. haha... maybe i should find some batting cages over break week... hm...

Day 121: i miss softball

this time difference is gunna drive me nuts.

most friends/family back home are asleep for most of the time im awake.

whats more, is that most of the Jays games are on at like 3am or 6am. sometimes 9am. and once in a while, i get the 12pm games, which are the ones i can watch if i dont have class =)

and today's 9am game was absolutely fantabulous!! i kept getting notifications during tutorial and chapel (8:30am - 12:45pm), and it said that bautista, arencibia, and cooper all HR'd!!! near the end of chapel, it says "end of 9th, tied. Blue Jays 6. Red Sox 6". argh.

so chapel ends, and i rush downstairs to my classroom. still half an hr before class starts. okay.. time to stream the Jays!

it finally loads. middle of the 10th. still tied. here we go! johnny mac is up!

he Ks with an 0-3 count. =(

1 out.

Davis is up. grounds one UTM!! he's on 1st! we've got a runner on base!

cooper is up.

first pitch is thrown. DAVIS STEALS 2ND.

AND HE'S SAFEEEEE!!! omgomgomg the game is getting exciting! :D

next pitch is thrown.

DAVIS IS STEALING 3RD. OMG. NOW THIS IS BASEBALL ACTION!!!

AND HE'S SAFE AGAIN!! YAYAYAYAYYYYY!

still 1 out.

next pitch is thrown.

cooper swings: its up in the air, fly ball!

davis tags up. SAC FLY. DAVIS SCORES. WALKOFF!! JAYS WIN! JAYS WIN!!!! :D

click here to watch the highlights

=) good times. hahaha

also saw that the CCSA scheds are out. ppl are posting on each others' walls, excited to play each others' teams.

slopitch season is starting too. some have already started.

oh how i miss scorekeeping. lol... statskeeping ;)

its only May 11th... to get thru this season of no playing, spectating, and scorekeeping softball... and hanging out with fellow softball peeps? its gunna be tough. but i fully knew it when i signed up for aussie. just didnt think it would be this difficult.

Day 118: 2 more months... just 2 more!!

so one housemate of mine kinda "lost it" and showed her disapproval of me always "hanging around" in the living room/kitchen. thanks to living in the tiniest room in the house, have a roomie who isnt the most pleasant to be in an enclosed space with (scent wise), and needing a chair/table to do my work on (sorry, but laptop + bed isnt my type of work environment. trained by the mother to have good posture, and less radiation from laptop. lol).

i personally would like the privacy too. but for the time being, thats not possible.

so this one housemate was about to watch a movie downstairs, so i asked politely if it was possible to not put the volume at full blast, since im working on my video editing assessment. i even did some "conversation" before hand, asking what movie, and saying "oh thats a good one! enjoy! oh btw, im working on my assessment. can you please not be too loud?"

in return, i got a "yeah but you're always down here!" "but you know my room is really small and not in the most pleasant condition" (she disapproved of the room condition just earlier that day). "yeah but thats not my problem"

*sigh*.

earlier this semester, she asks me to use headphones because she's trying to do her assessments in the living room. so i do.

she watches a lot of movies... oh wait. cus she got them off MY hard drive.

and hmm... oh yes. its ME who edits hers assessments (english isnt her first language).

life aint fair huh.

and the passive side of me takes over. i just grabbed my laptop (and plugs) and migrated to the kitchen. mainly cus i know any further arguing just stirs up more anger for both parties.

blog = rant outlet.

thank you internet.

2 more months until another housemate moves out, freeing up a single room for me!

okay. break over. back to editing the video.

[don't get me started on ranting about that. all i can say is that im just aiming for a "competent". aka a pass. lost all motivation of doing a "fantastic" job on it cus the footage isnt the best. =\]

PS. i sound so bitter probs cus of the workload and living situation. not to mention how ridiculously cold i am... indoors. so yeah... its at a "low" point right now. but there are still good things. =) livin' the dream right? right!

PPS. im also really hungry right now. that may be a large percentage of the unhappiness. hahaha

Day 112: CAMERA CLASSSS

back from the easter break (NZ BABYYY!), and yessss! studio camera class begins in 2.5hrs! =) im excited!

also cus its not limited to camera op. but also stuff in the control room (aka directing, producing, CCU, etc)

and its being taught by Bruce too!

absolutely solid.

finally, no more being clueless when im serving. now i'll actually know what im doing! haha...

PS. home internet is still down. hopefully it'll be back up by the end of this week? coughed up an extra $38AUD to get it fixed (apparently, some unknown phone bill since jan, which got cut, and had to pay $60AUD to get it set up again. )

PPS. icaved =P. couldnt wait for the bb playbook (still no date announced for Oz). i hear its still super buggy anyways. so i opt'd for the ipad2. just ordered it yesterday, waiting for apple to mail it to me! white, 32GB, just wifi. short term anyways. dad says he'll probs take it from me once the bb playbook gets improved. im not too sure myself... since i know harvest wants to start using the ipad for worship service (song chord charts, live feed of whats happening, etc). Oz = apple land. back home in TO, most friends are bb users. hm....

day 110. psalm 23: the Lord is my shepherd

new Zealand. wow... what an amazing stunningly beautiful country!
I am currently writing this blogpost from Christchurch International Airport (international arrivals to be exact. it's the "comfy-est" place to bum around since we have a 5hr wait til we can check in at 3am.)
and it is now the end of the 4 day backpacking thru NZ trip! (well, 6 days if you include traveling to/fro Sydney.) and it was just... wow.
seeing so many sheep everywhere, it really brought out the meaning of Psalm 23.

"the Lord is my shepherd...
...even tho I wall thru the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil.
For His rod and His staff, they comfort me"
a pastor once mentioned in his sermon that "sheep are one of the dumbest/stupidest animals out there". and from this trip, all they seem to do is eat grass, poop, and sleep. lol... but more importantly, they are all fenced in. they have no concept of boundaries, what is/isn't dangerous territory... nothing. they need a someone to oversee all that they do.
this trip, we went true backpacker style, no GPS. all we had was 1 paper map. sometimes we felt so lost. other times we just felt like wandering down certain roads cus the scenery got our attention! while driving after the sun has set, the dark non-lit, curvy and twisty roads seemed really dangerous. some nights, we werent too sure about the safety of the accomos. but we stayed there anyways. we prayed before sleeping, and before taking off for the next leg of the trip. we knew and were super glad to know we has a Shepherd looking out for His stupid clueless sheep. haha...

"He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul"
in addition to the plentiful green pastures (both farmland and mountain/hillsides), there were also beautiful mountains, valleys, lakes, rivers, lakes, beaches, cliffs, etc, absolutely stunning! seeing all those landscapes/views while driving/tour busing/trail hiking/skydiving, it really does restore your soul.
not only does it make you feel physically small, but it makes you realize just how GREAT God is. He created earth as an artist, and we immensely enjoyed a small fraction of all He's made.

all in all, a fantastic trip with perfect weather everywhere we went (despite the torrential weather in the north island right now), I definitely saw more of God's handiwork, experienced more of His provision, and grew closer to my creator. :)

PS. hope my scripture quoting was accurate. haha... i dont even know which version i quoted! =P

day 105: prayer is...

so i lied.

back with a blog post the next day instead. =P

was really amazed at The eXchange tonight! aka Hillsong's cross campus joint easter sunday evening at the S.E.C. (aka Sydney's version of the ACC).

Sanga preached up a storm! dangs... a lot of the times, we focus on what the different "names" of God. i.e. Saviour. Healer. Provider. Almighty. Father. etc

so Sanga touched on who WE are called to be. he pretty much went thru the entire NT and picked out 1 word that describes us as christians, aka Christ followers. gunna see if i can buy a recording of tonight's msg. he definitely brought the Word!

and at some point during the night, i realized what prayer was. one aspect of it anyways.. might've been during the offering prayer. but its more than just "talking to God". but its actually letting go of all pride, admitting that i can't do this on my own. and its lifting it up, and completely releasing your worry/troubles to God. aka. i need help.

its like, what it means when you "lay it all down at the cross". its not get to the cross, lay down what your worries are, then pick em back up and take it with you. but no, its leaving it there, NAILED to the cross. theres no need to take any of it back! =)

Easter resurrection sunday indeed! the weekend of mourning is over. its time to celebrate the freedom we got (paid at a great cost) over 2000 years ago! HAPPY DAY!!!! =)

oh and at the end of the service, OH MY... HILLSONG YOUTH! it was absolutely nuts! im so excited for JAM2011 now! only at Hillsong would you get a moshpraise pit, with crowd surfing... at the end of the Easter Sunday service. haha...

okay... i promise myself. before i leave at the end of november, i will get back into that praise pit just one more time. thought i've outgrown the praise pit, and prefer the "happy in the seating/stands and not get shoved/jumped on" area. but i know its a totally different experience in the pit. haha...

day 104: life's pretty easy going... for me anyways.

it is seriously crazy how blessed i am.

i mean... whats my worst "problem" right now?

- no internet at home (for 2 weeks now)

- no dryer, so i have to wait ~2 days for my clothes to dry by hanging them

- sharing a room with a roomie who has different lifestyle habits than me

- making sure i get enough sleep to balance out my energy level

- what do i eat for my next meal?!?!

been catching up with friends back home, and sharing prayer requests with others here.

others are going thru so much more in their life. and it makes my "problems" just seem miniscule. not even problems... mine are just everyday life decisions.

others are going thru (close family/friends) deaths, financial struggles, family problems... im so glad i dont have any of that!

i guess its something ive always thought about tho. its like those ppl who have dramatic life changing testimonies, but i dont. mine is a blessed and "pretty smooth sailing" testimony. almost in a way thats like "when will it be my turn to go thru big struggles and problems?"

but its like what my dad and others have said "its not wrong to be blessed and rich. but its what you do with your blessings and riches that can be wrong".

and here i am, sitting here, planning my next adventure. lol...

preparing to be blown away by God. He's going to show me (and 3 others) some amazing things next week! =) [updates to come in my next blog post, maybe 1.5 weeks from now? i'll try to squeeze in a post between that but no promises!]

yeup... i definitely won the ovarian lottery. thankful to have been born in north america, in a developed country known as canada!

another year...

another lent.

another fail. -_-

i wanted to read thru isaiah for last year's lent. but failed.

decided to continue on with it with this year's lent. pick up where i left off last year.

but nope. failed.

man.. am i ever going to get thru isaiah? lol

think im still on like ch30 or something.

i mean.. i've been thru other books since. like james, the 4 gospels, colossians, philippians, ephesians... its true. the NT is so much easier to read.

gah... okay. lets see if i can finish isaiah before the end of first semester!! =)

Day 97: The Next Time...

so about a year and 2 weeks ago, i was still in london. it was the day after ACF banquet, and i still had ~2 more exams to go until i was done my undergrad.

pretty typical scenario. nice spring day, i was out for a late lunch at BARAKATS with some of the older (former) ACF crowd: caleb, glendon (helen), chris (kitty), gavin, and i believe taguibao was also there. haha...

now, if any of them told me the next time i would be enjoying a shawarma would be a year later, sitting in EL JANNAH's, also with a bunch of asian christians, i would've been like "hah. nahhh!"

but thats what just happened earlier tonight. a nice fall evening, chillin' with my cell group after church PM service, went for some middle eastern food, enjoyed that garlic dip all the same... haha

it has seriously been an amazing journey so far. God has opened so many doors for me to get here (financial provision, support from everyone, preparing me as a person and the skills needed to live 15,500km away from home, etc). and i thought the journey was "complete" as soon as i touched down in sydney. how wrong i was!! He wasn't done showing me what He can do just yet!

He knows there are times when i miss home so much i really wanted to hop on a plane and just be back in TO. He provides small little pieces of home like tonight so i can enjoy my time here in sydney.

He pushes me to step out of MY comfort zone to get to the next step. i really don't feel comfortable doing it. yet when i take that leap of faith, i go from just "supposed" to attend a colour conference i have no interest in whatsoever, to getting to know the 2nd semesters better, and getting myself a position as camera op on the colour kids tv crew!

Or when i have no idea why i came across NLCC, yet felt compelled to stay at the church and even join a cell group. only to discover 2 months later that their church was starting a TV ministry and needed help urgently!

there is so much more to dreams.

instead of just dreaming them, its about having faith that you will live them.

its almost day 100.

almost 1/3 of my year here in sydney has gone by.

still 2/3s left to come. im excited! =)

Day 73: reality check.

lil mini shoutout to Josh, for the convo we had today: reality check.

i realized ive spent a good deal of colour conference time (both 1 and 2) just whining and complaining (the organization, nothing to do, what i had to do, tiredness...)

but as i was talking to Josh today, he saw Jad Gillies and co walk by. (i think it was Ben Fielding and Matty Crocker.. but not too sure)

after they had passed and i realized who it was, i thought "NBD. its a usual sighting now. just one of the many big named hillsong worship leaders."

and Josh goes, "sometimes i need a reality check. that im HERE at hillsong!"

so i pulled one of those "continue-to-ponder-on-that-one-line-and-tune-out-the-rest-of-your-words".

~2hrs later, i was with a bunch of the 2nd sem TV ppl, headed to Norwest foodcourt for dinner. when we sat down, we realized that not too far away, was reuben morgan, joel houston, and co! just normal ppl, who also need to eat. like us. haha...

and after they left, christine caine wanders into the food court area, headed to the washroom!

in my mind, there is that "wow.. its them!" but at the same time, its still going "its hillsong. NBD. it was expected!"

on top of physically being in such close proximity of these ppl, i have also changed lights in the hillsong auditorium, as well as the 2 side screens. been able to go all around backstage (especially the TV control room), operate cameras and other things in the control room in the hub.... seriously. how many churches/facilities do you know have equipment like that? and i have the chance to learn how to operate em?!?!

Hillsong church IS a big deal. in a way that many churches look to them for resources.

im at a place where very few ppl have the chance to go, learning stuff not many ppl have the chance to learn, and all i respond with is complaining and saying "NBD"?

that was a much needed reality check.

altho yes, should always aim high, but at the same time, gotta stay grounded.

day 71: utterly destroyed.

wow.. what a day!

8:30am
personal leadership class is ALWAYS a slap in the face and a brain fryer. it really makes you think about the person you are and the actions you are taking to live out this life of yours!

11:45am
chapel! guest speaker: Christine Caine.
An eye opener to the human trafficking in the world. who knew there was so much of it going on? thankfully not in NA but it's massive in (eastern) Europe!
then she also talked about how God will use the unlikely to do His work. He does not pick the ppl who are the most presentable to the human eye. but rather, God looks at the heart!
"it is better to be marked by God than to be marketed by the world."

1:15pm
OT class: watched a John Bevere sermon, on a passage from numbers 22. (balaam and the donkey). again, another brain frying msg, with PLENTY of good ideas and quotes.
like... the devil doesn't make us sin. however, He tempts us when we're drawing further away from God.
think about it. we always sing about wanting to be in His presence, or inviting His spirit to come upon us.
however, the devil never commanded us anything. us as individuals, chose things that were not in Gods will.

good day of learning!
but for now, it's sleep time. colour conference 2 coming up in a few days! will blog on my Colour leanings real soon!

Day 62: wow... what a weekend!

so on friday (day 60), i went for DIM SUM. zomg! went to the Parramatta Club's "Tingha Palace" and enjoyed a lot of the classic dim sum dishes. quality aint got anything on TO nor HK, but since i havent had dim sum since december, i'll take it. =)

after that, Sum (a fellow hilc schoolmate from hk) and i discovered a "cha tsang teng" (CTT) at parramatta station, where we got cold "lai cha"!!! it tasted pretty good! then... across from the CTT, was an ASIAN GROCERY STORE. ahhhhhhhhh! we stocked up pretty good. i got my noodles, and we both got some beef/fish balls, other asian snacks.. =) day of asianness!

then at night, i headed back to school for WILDLIFE. aka gr.10-12s! it was "red carpet night" but since im in the TV control room (in the hub), half if us dressed up. half of us didnt. haha.. i was CCU for the night! i still have no clue what to do. but ah well... haha. i'll get there. =P just played around w/ the white balance/colour correction. still lots to learn in mastering it better. and get some exact instructions on what to do and why. haha... that'll help my logical brain process things.

saturday was a day of bummage.

then today, day 63! headed down to parramatta station around 12:30pm, to go eat lunch at the CCT! got myself a beef brisket rice and a cold lemon tea. mmmmm.... worth the $13. lol. then explored around the Westfield Mall before my 3pm bus to NLCC!

at nlcc, they did a song by Jesus Culture called "One Thing Remains". and i loved it! just their arrangement of it... i just loved that acoustic kinda feel! i looked up the song on youtube when i got home, and i didnt like the JC version at all. =( so disappointing. i wanted a legit recording version of it. haha... its kinda like JC vs Jayesslee's version of "Your Love Is Everything". loved Jayesslee's version loads more! in fact, nlcc did it in a similar way. but i deff wouldnt like the song if i heard JC's version first. poop eh?

ah well... after service, its cell time! went all the way to flemington for PHO. i was so stuffed i couldnt finish my bowl of pho (1 size for $8. no size choices). then we headed off to k-town area for desserts. try this korean dessert... made up of coconut milk, shaved ice, corn flakes, diced up fruits, red bean, and topped off with a scoop of ice cream and chocolate drizzle.

it had.. an interesting taste/texture. i wouldnt classify it as a favourite but it wasnt bad?

all in all, good times w/ cell. =)

also lovin' how im visiting around diff local places. deff something i wouldnt be doing w/ hillsong classmates!

oh yeah... ive been complimented on my accent! haha... my canadian accent. =P

apparently... we pronounce our english words a lot clearer. australians themselves realize how "blur" sounding their english is. lololol jokes!

okay. sleep times.

PS. heat: when will you go away?!?!!? its mid march already. =(

Day 59: a day of AWESOME

well.. not the full day. but fieldwork today was pretty AWESOME.

what happened?

i got to fix/change 3 lights in the hillsong CONVENTION CENTRE AUDITORIUM!!! ahhhhh!!!!

it was as amazing as i imagined it to be!

got to go up the "special" elevator.

got to go up to the CATWALK.

needed to sign a form before i could go up to the CATWALK.

replaced 3 blue pinch lamps. =)

2mrw, i will be the CCU for wildlife.

i really dont know now... do i wanna do more production stuff (aka sound/lighting for live events)? or do TV stuff? (aka filming/editing, can be studio/live events/pre-recorded)

and im wondering if i need to pick one... or if i can just do both! lol!

probs not tho... gotta pick one to be the primary. then the other will be like a hobby or something.

this is so exciting! =)

Day 58: so.... what have i learnt?

its been nearly 2 months since ive been in the land of Oz, and we're half way thru week 6 of school.

so what have i learnt? do i feel any closer to being a professional TV & media person?

the answer is NO.

really... a lot of it has been teaching us how to live our life as a follower of Christ. most of it is self-reflection and examination. a lot about self-discipline, defining your core values/beliefs. all of it is pointing towards me. changing the way i think. the way i do things. the way i react to things (attitudes). and ultimately, i guess it comes down to what my motives are for serving.

instead of them drilling and making sure we're here to study, to serve/lead for the right purpose, they're helping us figure it out ourselves, and see it as clear as possible.

its a lot of self-discovery. (which i was fore-warned about this by past/current students and the principal)

Lee Burns said "before you even stepped into Hillsong College, we believe in what you are capable of, more than you believe in yourself!"

now im curious as to where i'll end up. what my future will look like.

as of right now, 6 weeks into school, and i have "served" once. i did "graphics operator". aka lyrics. aka other than learning to use Presenter (bleh... PC.), nothing new.

ive been observing the director (and other positions) during chapel and such, and got a brief intro for lighting. thats about it.

well, been learning loads in digital editing. i'd say 75% of it was review (but a good portion of that was explained WHY it works like that! haha.. never understood. i just knew how to achieve a certain effect!), and 25% of it was new. =) and part of that "new" 25%, theres so much that i wish i knew when making the CCSA 2010 banquet vid! would've solved a lot of problems. but at the same time, a lot of what i already knew was from making acf and ccsa vids. haha...

but yeah... ive been rostered for more stuff this coming friday (CCU!), then 3 things so far for april (camera 3, camera 4, and CCU again!)

i know im sorta "complaining" about lack of positions now. but apparently, wait til next semester kicks in. i'll be so busy and tired all the time from 7am call times and late night editing. haha... guess i need to get used to it. the life of the TV & media career path.

first to arrive to set up, last to leave after clean up.

thats the life! =)

Day 57: Rest in hope

so, the funky weather has finally gotten to me.

all day today, i spent it achoo-ing and sniffling. used up the "mini" box of tissue i brought w/ me from TO, and went to Coles (the aussie no frills) to buy more.

altho i got like 7hrs of sleep the night before, i felt so tired today from all the sneezing and nose blowing. its really does dry your eyes.

oh physical tiredness.

but at the chinese hills service on sunday (day 55!), Ps Martin talked about "rest in hope". (Acts 2:26). the passage was cross referenced to Psalm 16:9, which says "body will rest secure".

ive never thought about it like that. i mean, how often are we worried about things?a project's deadline is coming up, or exam the next morning, or a big event (wedding) coming up. are we able to rest peacefully the night before? why do we worry so much? cus worrying = not having faith in God (if you've done your part). obviously if you're worried AND you didnt do any prep/studying.. then yeah. your fault. haha...

but here, Paul recaps David telling us to "rest in hope". able to just "let go and let God", as cliche as it sounds. but its true. you will be okay and will carry thru. you're here to do His GOOD works. =)

so right now, im going to pray for some good restful sleep tonight. =) got another early start 2mrw morning so will need all the peaceful rest i can get!

PS. okay.. that was a pretty crummy connection. haha... but i def wanted to jot down that passage. tiredness + empty stomach really kicking in =P

oh rebellion...

its in my nature or something.

i was going so well, always noting down ideas for stuff to blog about as i go thru the day. but then, we were given the "journaling" assignment.

basically, for 10 weeks, once a week, we are to journal about our prayer life, devo/bible reading life, and journaling life. ~100 words (a paragraph) per topic per entry. so ~300 words weekly.

it sounds simple enough. and my blogs are wordy enough (hah!), but iunno.. ive been procrastinating on this assignment. probs cus its not just about me rambling on my blog, but it'll have to be actual legit understandable english with a point to it. lol.

but thanks to this assignment, ive lost the will/inspiration to blog here too. i mean, so much has happened, ive learnt so much more, and definitely more thoughts has passed thru my mind.

maybe i need to stop being so rebellious and just go back to remembering what i love about blogging/journaling!

well, its pretty much a chance for me to actually write out and dump my thoughts somewhere. haha...

Day 48: take the hit!

altho... this is being posted at the end of day 49... ah well. haha

learning so much from ps Joshua at NLCC. tbh, i never look forward to his msgs, since he's one of those pastors that can preach on FOREVER. ive been there for 3 sundays, over a span of 5 weeks, and lets just say he's STILL on ephesians 1. LOL. he focuses on a different aspect of it each week. same few verses. oh boy... haha

but every week i sit there for the 1.5hr of him talking, i learn something that really sticks.

last week, he talked about adoption. and it totally changed my perspective of having kids. (no joke.)

this week, he talked about "taking the hit". something i really need to work on.

y'know how after the movie "pay it forward" came out, its all ppl talk about, in terms of the effectiveness of doing good, getting the word out, etc. but he focused on the bad stuff. i mean.. yeah, we're all sinners. and we need self control and all that. but i mean like the bad stuff that isnt in our control? for example... those with abusive parents. or someone offends you. or that "unfair" moment when you dont know what you did to deserve it. but you end up being on the "victim" side of things.

and instead of taking your anger out on someone else, or seeking revenge, or just negatively influencing others around you in any way, how about just taking the hit, and swallowing whatever negative was done towards you?

cus tahts what Jesus did. He took the fall for our sins. just took the bad, swallowed it, and didnt let it get past Him. so that we can live, without having the price of our sin.

its like how a parent (in the ideal loving family), will do all they can to protect their children. they dont want the bad and negative things going to their children. they will take the hit, and shield their child.

in today's world, whenever someone offends you, how about just taking the hit for it, and be like "okay. it stops here. with me. doesnt go any further." no use in ranting about that person that offended you, or retaliation, or hurting someone else.

as much as we should pay it forward, there are some things not worth spreading.

i will try my best to stop ranting.. about certain topics anyways. some problems need to be talked out and dealt with. but you know what i mean by the stupid little things that arent worth worrying over. just take the hit.

Day 41: I really have no idea whats best for me but He does!

so back in the univ days, i was determined to "get away" from the chinese church. i tried dropping by LCAC for a few sundays, but i couldnt see myself there. i settled with WLAC instead. but i stuck with ACF. (only went to C4C once, but made ACF my UWO home)

in TO, after much prayer, thinking, and talking it out with others, i wanted to get away from the chinese church too. (well... except for CCSA. haha) so off to Harvest i went!

so now, in sydney, guess what? i feel the most at home at 2 asian services.

1) Hillsong Chinese extension service

2) New Life Community Church.

and unless i'm rostered to serve elsewhere, im pretty sure my sunday mornings will be at hillsong chinese, and afternoons at nlcc (at least nlcc cell groups in the evenings).

hillsong (english) seems so "perfect". like they have enough ppl serving (plentiful!), everything goes well, ppl flood the place... they seem fine and dandy. the chinese service on the other hand, could use more help. definitely room to improve. and its no coincidence that im fluent in english (born and raised in TO!), yet at the same time, my cantonese any that bad (communicatable, and limited reading/writing), and my mando is.. umm... somewhere. hahaha

i also like how its a smaller service. like 3 services still, but ~100 ppl each! (my guestimate... i only went to 11am service. haha) but their a/v can definitely use some help (in operating it). and not in the camera/tv stages yet.

nlcc! ive decided to join cell groups here, instead of connect groups at hillsong. why? cus i need a break from the hillsong bubble. i really dont wanna go back to canada in 2012, and not have met any australians. i mean, its great meeting ppl from all over the world at college, and i'll have "free accommodation" when travelling the world (HAHA... one of the college trainers mentioned that! =P). but what good is it, just being bubble'd up in the hillsong community 24/7?

for one, im sick of hillsong songs. i really dont like how their setlist is the same few songs, aka stuff off their latest album. like... ENOUGH ALBUM PROMO ALREADY. i thought i was here to worship. not being "marketed" to. (didnt work anyways. im not buying the album. haha)

two, theres so many ppl at church on sundays, no one knows who is who. its very very clique-y. ppl stick with their connect groups, or college groups stick together... tbh, it was pretty sad seeing the numbers at sisterhood. altho it was on a thursday morning (i dont know how the work like sched works around here) but with 3-4 services each weekend, 3-4k per service, lets say half of them are female, yet only 1/3 of the auditorium was filled. with a few hundred of us being college students cus its mandatory attendance for us.

i dont know about the rest of the attendance rates for hillsong's other ministries, but i guess its just like most other churches, there is a high number of ppl attending on sunday mornings. but when you compare that number to the attendance numbers for fellowship/small groups, there is a clear difference (not the ideal 1:1 ratio... or more, if ppl are a part of multiple ministries).

haha... hillsong ranting. =P clearly, its not a church i would settle at if a church like hillsong was in toronto. haha... but i AM hearing positive reports from my housemate who are serving at different hillsong campuses and extension services! so its not all bad. just that cus we're living hillsong 24/7, anything for 24/7 will get on your nerves after a month!

so yeah... in conclusion, i guess im back with the asian bunch. not the english speaking chinese bunch, but the chinese speaking bunch, and some english speaking koreans! (well.. there are also some chinese ppl there. but we're the minority. 2nd gen asians!) =)

PS. more rants to come. housemate rants.

dun dun dun!

breaking it down!

so thankfully, the january 2011 intake for TV & Media is split into 2 classes, cus the mac lab can only hold so many.

altho i missed my 9:30am class, i was able to go to the 1:15pm class =)

spent 3hrs learning about basic set up and editing Final Cut Pro.

pretty much what ive gotten used to doing from acf, tc rec, and ccsa vids, i reviewed 80% of all i know in 3hrs. -_-

learnt a few new things... or rather stuff i kinda knew but didnt know why. but now it has been explained to my logical brain and im now happy that things make so much more sense! *breathe* [run-on sentences in blogs ftw!]

so tonight, while brushing my teeth... it got me thinking.

i mean... we can be taught how to use editing software, operating a camera, etc. but what exactly is it that makes 1 film different from another? what makes it better, deserving an oscar/emmy? we were given the same raw footage today, and none of us made the exact same thing.

so i guess this is where the artsy/creative side of things come in.

the other thing i always thought would make a "better" video would be the equipment you had. ie. nicer/pro camera (instead of just your iphone/bb cam or in my case right now... a handy cam), and pro software (imovie/windows movie maker vs. final cut/adobe premiere).

but i dont believe in this anymore. the nicer the stuff... doesnt necessarily mean the nicer your final product will be. i see this with photography all the time (since it's become a major trendy hobby right now). ppl are buying pro baller cameras, with elephant trunk sized lenses... and their photos are okay. i mean.. with a lense priced like that, the biggest n00b can take a somewhat decent picture. but its the ppl who actually know how to manually control their camera, AND have a sense of capturing a frame in their own artsy style, is what brings out the "life" of a the photo.

i guess its the same for video. (well.. video really is just a truckload of photos in sequence with sound... ranging from at least 24 frames per second =P)

what im trying to get at with this blog post... is im hoping i have that artsy creative side in me. cus im not sure if i do. i always stunk during art class since elementary school. my writing is ugly, deff cant draw, im quite a logical/think straight kinda person. so here's to hoping i can do better with digital video!

but as Sanga preached last night... doubt is not the voice of God, but of the devil. rather, God's voice encourages and promises. (ie. Adam and Eve being tempted in the garden of Eden).

also makes me think about what camera i should invest in next. hm... something that shoots in 16:9 HD would be nice. just dunno if my mac can handle that! =P darn this is one expensive path that ive chosen!! haha... i should figure out where these funds are gunna come from instead of bank of daddy/future hubby. =P

ah well... will figure that out later. gunna concentrate on learning what i can in the next 10 months!

Day 35: missed my first TV & Media class already.

oh poop....

who knew the timetables would change on you 48hrs before classes start?

guess i got so used to high school and western's timetables. if they're released, they're official! any changes, an email would be nice?

i guess not. =(

was supposed to have tutorial at 12pm, monday (now switched to wed afternoon), and digital video editing class at 1:15pm, monday.. but this one got switched to 9:30am instead! poop.

ah well.. i think there's a second session at 1 or something... split us into 2 groups. so hoping to catch that? guess all i can do is wait since its 12:30 now. ughh...

Day 34: HU's Aftermath launch!

as per the title.... meh. haha... not a fan of the album. i just needed something for the title! i blame the constant singing of some of the songs on sundays and at chapel. and some "fluffy" lyrics. =P

i would've really liked it if i was at college any time from 2004 til 2006. aka the More Than Life, Look to You, and United We Stand era! i deff wouldnt mind singing those songs every single week! hahaha... except i was in gr10-12 back then. not 18, and not done high school yet. wouldnt qualify for hilc. ah well... haha

so 2mrw kicks off week 3 of school! so excited! cus all i have 2mrw are TV & Media courses! w00t! finally gunna set foot in the Mac lab! oh baby!

oh yeah... so last week, we had a joint hillsong staff and all college students meeting! (both hills + city campus = ~1500 ppl in the Hub). so what do you do when you've got like 60 countries represented? you do a NATIONAL ANTHEMS BATTLE!

check out this vid!

**i almost didnt wanna post it cus of the canadian one. thx ps. brian for cutting us short. bahhh... but ah well.

awesome eh? whooooo! ive never heard so many diff national anthems before! i only knew the US and the UK one (obv the canadian one). i know the China one.. but they didnt do that. hahaha

but yeah, when ps Brian would start a national anthem, everyone from that country automatically stood up and belted it out! sucha patriotic moment =7

and lol @ Jad for the NZ anthem at ~1:58. hah!

im at the ~6:00 mark. of all the ppl standing up and wearing white, i am the 2nd from the top right corner! haha... should've brought my giant massive canada flag. who knew?!?!

good times! :D

Day 29: i dream of bacon

mm... bacon. crispy thin bacon.

i miss it. =( the bacon here in aussie is just... ham. it aint the same!

classes have been so informative and intense (real thought provoking stuff) so its frying my brain... like bacon! minus the lovely greasy smell of bacon. =P

and i like how im learning a lot. but when the classes go for 3.5hrs (with one 15min break in between), i can only focus for so long. =(

factor in a super long day (been at school for 12+ hrs), i was pretty cranky by the end of it, and really not enjoying this.

its starting to kick in... before getting here, i wondered how long it would take for the "whoaa! hillsong!"-ness to wear off. and its starting to. i mean.. there are still aspects of it i really like (omg the opening production for this morning was incredulous!!), the teaching.. but the worship in song/praise is really starting to bug me.

im a fan of variety.. i believe in catering to all diff age groups and backgrounds of the congregation (diversity in toronto!), and all of it is still worship. for all worship sets, i would even categorize them by the composer/band that released them. like... "this one's mostly tomlin stuff, with some hillsong thrown in!" or "whoa! jesus culture, tomlin, crowder, hillsong!" or "baloche, brenton brown, brewster, stanfill, jared anderson!" but now... not only is it all hillsong, its also the SAME 4-5 SONGS. O.M.G. like i know hillsong united's got a new album coming out, but do you really need to do the SAME 4-5 SONGS for the past 4 sundays, AND in college CHAPEL as well?!!?!? not to mention todays... we did 4 songs for the joint staff and students meeting, and 3/4 were the same for tonight's leadership vision. and all of them were songs we've done in the past 2 weeks on sunday/@ chapel. like F'REAL?

remember back in 2002/2003ish? when every christian gathering in the GTA did tomlin's "forever", or redman's "blessed be your name"? i mean.. they're good songs. but they got so overdone to a point where the lyrics just seemed repetitive every time. this is what i feel like right now. except its not just 1 song... its the ENTIRE SET.

i have more to say about hillsong... (other aspects)

but ugh... im really tired and cranky.

i think i should just leave this post and let it be.

#RantOver.

bring on another early day 2mrw! chapel again... please please please do other songs =(

PS. no, i do not get free hillsong stuff

PPS. no, i do not plan on buying their new Aftermath CD. will i "download" it? yes. probs. haha

Day 27: church hopping and meeting Jayesslee!!!

Day 27 in the land of Oz.

so Jono's been in town for a couple of days now, and today was his first (and final) free day in Sydney. so we met up in the morning, and i brought him to Hillsong Church, and gave him a lil tour. perfect timing.. it was Vision Sunday! so it was a good way of hearing about what Hillsong is all about. (a global church pretty much sums it up. haha). and yay! Joel Houston and Jad Gillies led worship! :D

after that... we bus'd back to Parramatta station to enjoy some PHO. yes!!!! it was aiight actually. but since it was my first bit of asian food in a month, it was delicious! but i will still be picky and critque it. haha... the noodles were too soft/mushy, the soup was too salty, and the bean sprouts were really dry. but ah well.. its pho. i shall not complain. haha... altho it was different that they offered us lemon slices instead of lime!

so 3:02pm neared... and that is when bus 525 leaves for New Life Community Church! (well.. nearby it anyways. haha). so we hopped on... and genius me, i got off a few blocks too early. -_- oops. so we walked for a good 15min or so. but at least the weather was cooling down, and there was a bit of spitting. so it was a refreshing walk. =)

so 15min later... we finally made it! just a slight bit late. so we jotted down our names and contact info, then went in. Jono recognized the first song as one that jayesslee had covered. HAHA. GG... its actually by Jesus Culture. its called Your Love Is Everything. but nope... they werent leading worship.

it was actually really refreshing to walk into a place, where it was more of an acoustic setting, and it wasnt all hillsong songs! hahaha... after that, they did starfield's reign in us, then hillsong's forever reign! pretty slow set. but it was pretty well done.

as for musicians and the make up of the team... 4 vocalist, 1 was also an acoustic guitarist, 1 electric, 1 bass, 1 djembe, and 1 cello! yes, you read correctly. cello! it was a nice lil intimate set... reminded me of ACF retreat just a lil bit! and good to be around asians too. hahaha

the message was really really long... but the pastor was so passionate, and he just kept going, jumping from passage to passage (ephesians 1, psalm 139, romans 12). i think he spoke for at least 1.5hrs. lol!

so after the service... jono and i hung around the foyer for ages... coming all this way, he was quite determined to meet them. i had watched some of their videos, so knew about them. but wasnt all that crazy about em. i agreed that if jono would do the initiating, i'll also ask for a pic and such.. so he wouldnt look like a "crazy fan". hahaha. so he managed to spot one of the twins in the foyer (it was a congregation of ~200), and soon after, he spotted the other one too! actually, at first he wasnt sure, so we joked about how we can def recognized them if they were standing side by side and 1 of them had a guitar in her hand... haha

it took us awhile to flag one of em down (janice), and jono got his picture.

soon after, he got sonia too! and in the middle of taking pictures with her, we got janice back again, so we've got separate pics, AND pics of all 4 of us! :D

man... we were so happy. we did it! wandered a city we both didnt know too well, walked into a 2nd gen korean church (we felt like the minority... being chinese. but at least we're asian), but we finally met em! so there we were, walking out of the parking lot towards the road, headed to the bus stop... when sonia called out to us and asked if we were goign to the train station. so we said we were, and she offered to give us a lift!! OMG. jono and i literally looked at each other going :O. cus we sorta called it earlier. i had joked about it when getting off at the wrong bus stop. i hope someone from the church would be able to give us a ride back to the train station. and then he joked that it would be the twins who would. and LOL here was sonia offering us a ride! well... Andy was driving (their friend/manager).

so wow... we hopped in. had a great time chatting, got to know each other a bit more other than just her as the "youtube star" and us as "the fans from canada". haha.. turns out sonia went to hillsong college a few years back! yay!

unreal... today was absolutely... wow. it was awesome just being able to chat with her, as like meeting a new "upper year from acf who was giving me a ride". so human... such hospitality!

definitely twas a good day. one that i will remember quite well during my time here in sydney.

youtube stars that ive met count: 2 (well... 4 cus they were in pairs. so the 2nd set. haha)