My Inspiring/Awesome/Educational/Humourous Weekend
There are moments in life where you look back and think, I really felt like I had an impact, made a contribution, did something that matters. My weekend is probably one of those times in my (albeit short) lifetime. Afterwards, your head spins from all the conversations you had, all the new experiences replaying in your mind so that when you come home, back to reality, you end up feeling rather distorted, like you’re in limbo. This might just be because I’m back in little ole Perth which is worlds away from Sydney but then again who knows?
What did I actually do on my weekend in Sydney?
This needs some explaining…I got involved in a project run by Inspire to help create a website called Act Now to help young people act on issues that affect them. Which can range from the huge (refugees, illegal whaling, deforestation, the hole in the ozone layer, racism) to the smaller but no less important (recycling, complaining about a late bus service) But it’s more than just that. It’s about inspiring, motivating, giving youth tools to help them act, seeing how easy it is to act, learning from other people’s actions, giving support, seeing that one person can make a difference. It’s also about patience and knowing that getting involved and passionate in an issue doesn’t equate to “microwave world peace”. (I borrowed that phrase.)
Some of the things I did included:
- writing a letter in an hour to the Shadow Minister for Immigration about mandatory detention
- listening to how Inspire developed, how the website Reach Out started and also learning more about how non-profit organizations worked
- listened to Greens Senator Kerry Nettle about politics, actions, getting your voice across
- made a calico bag with fabric paint with a quote from Gandhi – “You must be the change you wish to see in the world”
- made a collage about images that I was passionate about
- got involved in teamwork solving problems like how have clear objectives about acting on an issue, how to organise a forum on mandatory detention, how to be prepared and convey your ideas and action plan in a formal meeting with a politician/mayor/reporter/community leader
- understanding how an issue affects the wide community (pyramid of decision makers, to influential people, to opinion leaders, to the people)
- did wacky group exercises with the threat of having to eat dried crabs if we sucked…
- contributed to marketing ideas, slogans/messages and how to act on the smaller scale promo ideas
- helped construct the toolkit on what young people need in order to act (eg. Info about local councils, government, volunteering, fundraising, staging a protest)
- watched a short doco about two interns that helped passengers complain about a late bus service
- committed myself to creating content for the site
That’s all that I remember at the moment. I stayed in a hostel, which wasn’t as bad as I thought it could’ve been until one of my roomies suggested that it was possible that they don’t change the bed-sheets…Although I do think that having three showers and three toilets per bathroom per floor is a little rough.
One of the major things that made my weekend so enjoyable was the great people that I met. By the end of the weekend we had an assortment of “in jokes” and fun times to look back on.
For example:
- the fisting and the shocker, I feel as though my innocence has been corrupted
- the shop known as Australian Special – direct to the public, anyone for sheep’s placenta?
- Too many stories that involved TMI!
- Asking the American interns questions that were quite obviously Australian eg. “Do you ever visit the Amish?” “Have you ever been to Disneyworld?”
- Getting cramps and inadvertently playing footsies in a cushion room at a Lebanese restaurant
- The various hunger complaints and people fading away right before lunch time
- Eating “Italian” food and going to an “Irish” pub where drink prices go up after 10.30pm but no one smokes inside.
- Walking down to the Rocks on Sat night, witnessing beefed up pimp cars and cat fights and dressed up and dressed down Sydney-siders, in the rain only to find that the bar we were going to was at full capacity and then trekking back to another bar where more drinking and dancing was to be had (but perhaps also more sleazy guys)
- Complaining about the squeaky beds in the hostel
- And many other things that probably don’t belong on the Internet
And I got to see my bro on Sunday and we spent some time together, shopping in the city and also going to Bondi Junction before I got shipped off the airport where I bought Krispy Kreme doughnuts (after listening to the Victorian ppl going on about KK) and ate McDonalds.
I feel really wired and I’ve had one and a half doughnuts this morning...but I still feel INSPIRED!
I’m so carrying my calico bag to uni today...
Tash
*PICS TO COME*
What did I actually do on my weekend in Sydney?
This needs some explaining…I got involved in a project run by Inspire to help create a website called Act Now to help young people act on issues that affect them. Which can range from the huge (refugees, illegal whaling, deforestation, the hole in the ozone layer, racism) to the smaller but no less important (recycling, complaining about a late bus service) But it’s more than just that. It’s about inspiring, motivating, giving youth tools to help them act, seeing how easy it is to act, learning from other people’s actions, giving support, seeing that one person can make a difference. It’s also about patience and knowing that getting involved and passionate in an issue doesn’t equate to “microwave world peace”. (I borrowed that phrase.)
Some of the things I did included:
- writing a letter in an hour to the Shadow Minister for Immigration about mandatory detention
- listening to how Inspire developed, how the website Reach Out started and also learning more about how non-profit organizations worked
- listened to Greens Senator Kerry Nettle about politics, actions, getting your voice across
- made a calico bag with fabric paint with a quote from Gandhi – “You must be the change you wish to see in the world”
- made a collage about images that I was passionate about
- got involved in teamwork solving problems like how have clear objectives about acting on an issue, how to organise a forum on mandatory detention, how to be prepared and convey your ideas and action plan in a formal meeting with a politician/mayor/reporter/community leader
- understanding how an issue affects the wide community (pyramid of decision makers, to influential people, to opinion leaders, to the people)
- did wacky group exercises with the threat of having to eat dried crabs if we sucked…
- contributed to marketing ideas, slogans/messages and how to act on the smaller scale promo ideas
- helped construct the toolkit on what young people need in order to act (eg. Info about local councils, government, volunteering, fundraising, staging a protest)
- watched a short doco about two interns that helped passengers complain about a late bus service
- committed myself to creating content for the site
That’s all that I remember at the moment. I stayed in a hostel, which wasn’t as bad as I thought it could’ve been until one of my roomies suggested that it was possible that they don’t change the bed-sheets…Although I do think that having three showers and three toilets per bathroom per floor is a little rough.
One of the major things that made my weekend so enjoyable was the great people that I met. By the end of the weekend we had an assortment of “in jokes” and fun times to look back on.
For example:
- the fisting and the shocker, I feel as though my innocence has been corrupted
- the shop known as Australian Special – direct to the public, anyone for sheep’s placenta?
- Too many stories that involved TMI!
- Asking the American interns questions that were quite obviously Australian eg. “Do you ever visit the Amish?” “Have you ever been to Disneyworld?”
- Getting cramps and inadvertently playing footsies in a cushion room at a Lebanese restaurant
- The various hunger complaints and people fading away right before lunch time
- Eating “Italian” food and going to an “Irish” pub where drink prices go up after 10.30pm but no one smokes inside.
- Walking down to the Rocks on Sat night, witnessing beefed up pimp cars and cat fights and dressed up and dressed down Sydney-siders, in the rain only to find that the bar we were going to was at full capacity and then trekking back to another bar where more drinking and dancing was to be had (but perhaps also more sleazy guys)
- Complaining about the squeaky beds in the hostel
- And many other things that probably don’t belong on the Internet
And I got to see my bro on Sunday and we spent some time together, shopping in the city and also going to Bondi Junction before I got shipped off the airport where I bought Krispy Kreme doughnuts (after listening to the Victorian ppl going on about KK) and ate McDonalds.
I feel really wired and I’ve had one and a half doughnuts this morning...but I still feel INSPIRED!
I’m so carrying my calico bag to uni today...
Tash
*PICS TO COME*
posted by Natasha at 10:10 PM
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