Happiness is writing a task on your 'to do' list a second before you do it, just for the pleasure of crossing it off! Admit it, you've done that before! Speaking of todo lists, there might only be 8 weeks left of the year but we still have a so much to do.
To those who attended the district conference over the weekend thank you for representing the club & supporting the district... Now the spot light is on Surfers Sunrise as we prepare to host next years district conference on the Gold Coast.... and the bar has been set high! [You are not wrong! See brief comment below. Ed.]
Do you remember Simon Schmidthe from SubStation 33? The guys who turn electronic trash into 3D printers? Well on the 24th of this Month we are heading to their factory for a tour and a BBQ lunch.. yay an outing! Be sure to jot that in your diary, more details to come!
Speaking of outings, Surfers Sunrise are doing a working Bee at the wheelchair shed on June the 3rd. Wanna get down and dirty? we got a job for you! Scared of getting your hands dirty? we got a job for you too! Be sure to come along as we have plenty of stuff to be done and as a way of showing our appreciation to all the volunteers who donate their time to this great project, we are putting on a spread as well. So if you cook, craft, create or clean or anything else in between, make yourself be heard or seen! (My little bit of poetry Franz... how did I go?) Still quite green, needs some sheen, remove the brilliantine, reading level pre-teen, need more caffeine, now reaching for my codeine...☺☺ Ed.
All happiness depends on a leisurely breakfast... see you on Wednesday!
So how come we have a guy with a Swiss accent trying out Australian Bush Poetry? Well, it has for a long time been one of my most favorite pastimes. Some 40 years ago or so, I heard famous Australian actor Jack Thompson recite part of the last stanza of Banjo Paterson's 'The Man from Snowy River'. Of all things, it was for a TV commercial to promote the (then) early beginnings of the Clean up Australia campaign:
And down by Kosciusko, where the pine-clad ridges raise
Their torn and rugged battlements on high,
Where the air is clear as crystal, and the white stars fairly blaze
At midnight in the cold and frosty sky,
And where around The Overflow the reed beds sweep and sway
To the breezes, and the rolling plains are wide....
In Australia, the art is well and truly developed. Sure, everyone has heard and read the old masters: in addition to Banjo, for example, "In the days when the world was wide" by Henry Lawson. Many however may not be aware that there was some quite fierce competition, if not antagonism
between the two masters. Whilst the Banjo waxed lyrically about the heavenly beauty of the bush in poem such as 'Clancy of the Overflow' with stanzas such as
...As the stock are slowly stringing, Clancy rides behind them singing
For the bush has pleasures that the townsfolk never know.
To which Lawson, in his huge epic 'The City Bushman' replied with
... Droving songs are very pretty, but they merit little thanks
From the people of a country in possession of the banks.
If you go to this link: http://www.poetrylibrary.edu.au/you will find an index of about 300 major authors, and that doesn't include the "modern" ones such as Grahame Watt, Col Wilson (aka Blue - The Shearer), Bob Magor and certainly does not include that most prolific writer by the name of 'Anon' or 'A. Nonimous'... But the index also includes classic writers who were born overseas, such as the Scotsman Will Ogilvie. His work "The Last Muster" is one of the most evocative poems I know:
All day we had driven the starving sheep to the scrub where the axes ply
And the weakest had lagged upon weary feet and dropped from the ranks to die
And the crows flew up from the rotting heaps and the ewes too weak to stand
And the fences flaunted red skins like flags and the dour drought held the land
A segment of Bush Poetry that is often sadly overlooked, yet is hugely enjoyable, is the many parodies of major works that exist. Many are written by the ubiquitous 'Anon', such as 'The Man from Kaomagma' (not recommended for children or purists) or Rob Charlton's 'Clancy of the Overtime'...
Whilst I would not for a moment want to compare myself to any of the masters, I enjoy writing the odd ditty myself. It is actually quite a good stress absorbing hobby, in particular if the subject is something to make a bit of fun of. Some of my fellow Rotarians have been the "victims"... Last Wednesday, it was our Sergeant Andy Bell's turn. But no, I would not consider anything to be of a level to be published! So, if you want a copy (with Andy's permission), you'll have to drop me an email to request it.
Al Sirovs was at the door, Neil Thurlow was Chairman and Andy Bell was Sergeant.
We had apologies from Gerald East, Larry Murray, Chris Thurtell, Adrian Crowe, Ray Higgs, Ian Mayberry, Geoff Croad, Daryl Sanderson and Tania Laird
President Simon Brook welcomed all members visitors David Bonifant (RC of Stones Corner), Clive Edwards (RC of Young, NSW), Jeanie Dmyeroneez (Andy Bell's charming and erudite sister[and a darn side better looking too! Ed.], our former member Rusty Lush and his guest Chad ??????? and Neil Faithful (guest of Richard Smith). The question "Would you like to have a 'Sunset' meeting on a regular basis? was, in general, answered with "about once every 2 months". On 26th April, we'll have a Joint Meeting with RC of Hope Island - see Events section. The planned BBQ on Dog's Beach has been postponed (too many other things happening in March), we are still looking for volunteers at the PETS seminar and District Assembly on the weekend of 11th/12th March, as well as for the Gold Coast Ramble. (See separate article further on). Simon also referred to an email he received from Long Bradley, who is the School Chaplain of Helensvale High School.
Treasurer Mitch Brown formally advised that anyone who had not paid their membership dues by now will have forfeited the $20.00 discount - it is now $180.00 for the half year.
Mario Fairlie reported on the progress of the School for Samoa committee: There will be a fundraiser for the Samoa Victims Support Group on Saturday 25th March 2017 - see flyer in the Download section. Our regular conduct with Samoa, Lina Chang will be there.
Paul Seymour, last week's MC at our Anniversary Celebration, offered a very special Thank You! to Jo Gorman, who organized it all. Hear Hear!!
Doug Lipp advised, on behalf of President Elect Larry Murray on the upcoming District Assembly on this coming Sunday 12th March: all incoming board members and club executives need to attend.
Jo Gorman reminded members and visitors of the upcoming Black Tie Dinner organized by the RC of Burleigh Heads (see Events section)
Bob Harrison, on behalf of Daryl Sanderson, reported on the happenings at The Shed: we had a visit from Gladstone Rotary Club who are very much involved in our Wheelchairs program.
Former member Rusty Lush, himself a former members of a Group Study Exchange (GSE) team, introduced Chad ?????? from Indiana, USA. Chad is from Florida USA and works with Google. His GSE, which will take place in March / April 2018, has now been renamed 'Group Cultural Exchange'....
As we have already supplied and constructed a school and the House of Hope on Samoa, our club has a deep involvement with the Samoa Victim Support Group (SVSG). To raise funds for another school, on Saturday 25th March the SVSG will run an event '2017 Dinner of Hope'. See the full details in the flyer in the Download Section on the right.
President Simon Brook wasn't let off. Only about 13 times more to go... Ditto for Mitch Brown - Bilbo shaving his beard does not mean he is no longer a Hobbit... Darrell Brown - these are quite boring socks you are wearing today! Has Kerrie gone out early and didn't check you before going? BTW, you are supposed to share the cup cakes! Mario Fairlie's Health Report elicited a simply "Hmmmmm...." Bob Harrison, how come that you have met (and married) such an attractive woman like Gloria? Franz Huber apparently was again playing German Marching Music on entering the car park [beg to differ: only a Scotsman could mix up Soul singer Jesse James with German Marching Music!! ☺ Ed.] For those who didn't know it yet, Des La Rance was introduced to all visitors as the upcoming Pope... Doug Lipp, looking rather resplendent this morning... Angus Miller, any more Ikea projects coming up? No, but Gus is quite happy to give advice to anyone who needs help... Paul Seymour, has South Effrika won anything lately? (Yes, Paul replied, "indeed: they beat the New Zealand Black Caps!" ☺) Al Sirovs, you did just a wonderful job there at the door this morning... Rosie McIntyre, good to see you twice in two weeks! Jo Gorman, where is Tony? ("How would I know?" Jo replied, "how do you know I came from there... ☺?" Clive Edwards, you are now just about considered a member and thus no longer out of range. Now, coming from Young, with the recent ISIS supporter arrest, this has become a rather dangerous area, hasn't it?
And whilst we are on Bush Poetry: this is what I mean by a variation. In Banjo Paterson’s humorous poem ‘The Man from Ironbark’ – the last stanza goes like this:
And now while round the shearing floors the listening shearers gape
He tells his story o’er and o’er and brags of his escape
‘Them barber chaps, what keeps a tote by George I’ve had enough
One tried to cut me bloomin’ throat but thanks the Lord it’s tough.'
And whether he’s believed or no, there’s one thing to remark
That flowing beards are all the go way up in Ironbark!
Franz's variation (with apologies to Banjo Paterson):
And now while round the League Club’s floor the Sunrise members moan
He tells his story o’er and o’er of Brookie’s lapse - Ah, groan!!
Have heard it thirty times, oh Lord, have heard it all before:
“No introduction to your board!”. Just seventeen times more
Till Simon can shake off this curse. Now, Larry! You’d do well,
Remember names, and do rehearse. Or you will get the Bell!
You might well ask: How the heck would a "heavy lifter" of the calibre of Rotary International President Elect, Ian Riseley, be enticed to join Rotary? Well, guess what: another Rotarian asked him. Ian, a member of the Rotary Club of Sandringham, Victoria since 1978, was an everyday practicing accountant. One of his clients asked him to be guest speaker, on Taxation Matters of all things. He accepted. And so it evolved.
You can read the full story and interview in The Rotarian magazine. It is available online, but you need to subscribe to it. Go to www.rotary.org and go to My Rotary.
The inaugural Gold Coast Ramble will be on in a month's time, on Sunday 26th March.
We need your help!
We need about 120 volunteers. We have 40 checkpoints with 2 volunteers on each checkpoint so about 80 volunteers on checkpoints from 10am to 4pm. At each checkpoint, the entrants use the Gold Coast Ramble App to download a challenge about the immediate area – this could relate to the heritage, the natural environment, street art or local infrastructure.
Other volunteers are needed between 7am and 10 am for site and checkpoint set up, and between 3.30 and 5pm for site and checkpoint pack up. Three shifts are available - see registration. There is no cost involved.
Another team will manage registrations, marshalling at event start and other administration.
On Sunday 26 March 2017, Gold Coast Rotary in partnership with Surfers Sunrise Rotary and Griffith University Satellite Rotary Club will stage the inaugural Gold Coast Ramble - a major community event. This goes way beyond a Fun Run. It is great fun, since you need observation skills, the ability to solve some trivia questions. And last, but not least: you will help us support various very worthwhile local charities, including PCYC, the Salvos, Beyond Blue, Gold Coast Homeless Youth, just to name one. See more details on the Facebook page.
Whilst it is the inaugural event for the Gold Coast, the concept has been well and truly proven successful by the Rotary organizers in Perth. We are licensing their IP, the application software (apps) etc, so there is absolutely no doubt that it not only will work as planned, but it will be our club's major fundraiser for the year. It is a must participate event for all members and friends of Surfers Sunrise! Registration can be for individuals or for teams between 4 and 6 people. It can and should be promoted as a major corporate team building event. Spread the word! Organize a team! Register!
Yes, English can be weird. It can be understood through tough, thorough thought, though.
David Burge
Poetry is not a turning loose of emotion, but an escape from emotion; it is not the expression of personality, but an escape from personality. But, of course, only those who have personality and emotions know what it means to want to escape from these things.
On this coming Wednesday 15th March, our Guest Speaker is Steve Lines, CEO of the Gold Coast Turf Club. 
So how come we have a guy with a Swiss accent trying out Australian Bush Poetry? Well, it has for a long time been one of my most favorite pastimes. Some 40 years ago or so, I heard famous Australian actor Jack Thompson recite part of the last stanza of Banjo Paterson's '
As we have already supplied and constructed a school and the House of Hope on Samoa, our club has a deep involvement with the Samoa Victim Support Group (SVSG). To raise funds for another school, on Saturday 25th March the SVSG will run an event '2017 Dinner of Hope'. See the full details in the flyer in the Download Section on the right.
You might well ask: How the heck would a "heavy lifter" of the calibre of Rotary International President Elect, Ian Riseley, be enticed to join Rotary? Well, guess what: another Rotarian asked him. Ian, a member of the Rotary Club of Sandringham, Victoria since 1978, was an everyday practicing accountant. One of his clients asked him to be guest speaker, on Taxation Matters of all things. He accepted. And so it evolved. .png){kind=logo}
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