Tony's Down Under Blog

Back to school

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Thu, 03 May 2012 04:15:28 PDT

I've been a bit remiss in updating some parts of my life. One thing I hadn't mentioned is that I decided on a mid life career change. This is for a couple of reasons. Firstly, IT had pretty much run its course for me, and being a sole trader with few support networks was starting to tax my executive functioning. Also, after a bit of career research, I realised that I'm very much an outdoors nature person, and I wasn't going to meet that need in a server room, or even working from home. Conservation, forestry or some similar environmental occupation seemed to meet both this outdoors need and my values. However, to change careers meant returning to full time study, something which I hadn't done for 20 years, and which has a number of potential pitfalls.

I enrolled at the local TAFE in Certificate IV in Conservation and Land Management, and started studies in early February this year. 3 months later, and early in the second term, I have a number of observations:

Firstly, the course itself has proven to be very interesting. It has broadened my interest in the natural world, and given a lot of food for thought. Some subjects have proven to be relatively straightforward. The chemical unit and its combination of short test and practical assessment suited me well. First Aid was similarly straightforward. The unit on mapping specifically tapped into my spatial abilities, as well as my previous IT experience and skills.

As expected, there have been a number of challenges. A few of the units require diaries to be kept. My history with diaries has not been good, despite many attempts over the past 30-35 years. However, these diaries were more about what was done during practical work, and my thoughts on the day - what worked, what didn't, what I learned, and any other relevant thoughts. There is also the issue that trying to take notes by hand does tend to conflict with learning itself. However, these days, the advent of tablets like the iPad has made note taking vastly easier for me. I can now take notes, whether in class or in the field, and take in information or participate in practical activities, without compromising either. There's still some issues like integrating photos and drawings, but these are more a function of available software.

Some of the bigger challenges are the major assignments and reports. I'm extremely sensitive to work/life balance, and my executive function issues make it difficult to keep track of out of hours assignments. So far, most of the work has been able to be done in class time, but there will be some overflow. However, Fridays are mostly free, and there's study sessions available then, which will come in handy. The jury's still out on these ones.

A couple of subjects and activities are particularly problematic. The units are the ones that deal specifically with "people issues". They are interesting in their own right, I have taken a big interest in people and what makes them tick over the last 20+ years. However, that does still come with some limitations. Creating a "park ranger guided tour" style of activity is going to be, umm, interesting. :)

Work placement is also another issue. While I have some ideas of the sort of work I'd like to be involved in, or try out, the whole process seems to rely on cold calling various employers, something that is problematic for me. I'm also not clear on some of the paperwork.

There is support available, in theory. However, in practice, there have been a few issues. Firstly, the support officer is severely overloaded. Sounds like education funding cutbacks have taken their toll in this area. Secondly, a lot of my issues fall foul of the assessment criteria for the affected units. Because these are derived from industry demand, the issue goes back to the one size fits all model of modern society, and the same old brick walls. :(

Anyway, there's most of the year left. It will be interesting to see where it leads.

Another competition season just around the corner!

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 22:28:16 PST

Well, summer's coming, and that means another competition season is about to start. We've been in training of some sort since July, with the main pre-season training starting in September. I've been mostly training well. I feel stronger on the cart, but there have been some injury issues, which I'm working on resolving. So far, the casualties have been left hamstring, which compression tights seem to be helping to prevent a recurrence. Now I have a strained calf, which will require some thought on how to prevent. At this time, recovery is the order of the day, with hydrotherapy and physio ahead, while I ponder how to prevent it happening again.

Good news is the groin strains seem to be a thing of last season, with no sign of weakness there this year.

Autistics Speaking Day 2011 - Back to where it all started

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 13:50:07 PDT

Today, November 1, 2011 ia Autistics Speaking Day. Instead of writing something new, I've decided to revisit my past as one of the first gay Aspies to come out online and resurrect my original posts from the mid 1990s. I have recreated parts of my original website and have tidied up the content to remove dead or outdated links, and extraneous material, keeping my autism related posts, which detail my thoughts during the mid 1990s.

Check it out at http://firstgayaspie.com/autism.htm

I passed!

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Mon, 30 May 2011 00:53:56 PDT

I had my assessment for my Bushfire Firefighter course on May 22. All went well, and I'm now qualified to turnout to incidents. However, this is only the start of an ongoing learning process. There's many more courses to attend, as well as gaining experience on the fireground to do.

As for the course itself, the course was interesting. There were both theory and practical components. The theory included some basic fire science, fire behaviour, navigation, communication, means of controlling and extinguishing fires, as well as the various tools and materials used, and of course, basic pump theory and operation. Last, but not least was health and safety, both on the fireground and in general.

The practical side covered most of the above areas, with particular emphasis on draughting water from a static source, and most importantly (the drill we had to get 100% right to pass), the survival procedure to follow when trapped by fire. The practical exercises also covered various firefighting techniques, both using a tanker and water, and hand tools with no water involved.

This past Sunday, our brigade organised some practical training which built on from the course.

Back to school

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 01:08:47 PDT

Last ngiht was the start of my bushfire firefighting course. The course material was interesting - we covered fire behaviour. Much of the material was revision, due to my previous firefighting experience, and my interest in severe weather came in handy when dealing with weather factors that influence fire behaviour.

Looking forward to next week's installment.

Now for the serious stuff

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 23:17:04 PDT

Over the last 6 months, readers might have gotten the impression that the fire brigade here is a glorified sporting club. This is certainly not the case, though for reasons of time pressures, I've only focused on competition work over the last summer. Now that the season is over, and I'm no longer out for a few hours 2 nights a week, I can now focus on the serious business of handling fire and other emergencies that we have to deal with.

Since I was last involved in the fire service, much has changed, with a totally different communications network, new equipment, new training and new standards. This means I have to start again from scratch. On Sunday, I'm back to the station to take part in regular training, testing and maintenance activities.

State Championships 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 23:32:18 PDT

What an awesome weekend! The VFBV State Championships are a series of events run over the Labour Day long weekend every March (second Monday in March here). I had 5 events to run, which were the Ladder Race, Hose, Hydrant, Pumper and Ladder, 2 Man Marshall, Hose and Reel 8s, and the Hose and Ladder 5s.

My only event on the Saturday was the ladder race, which is basically a 25 yard sprint to the ladder, then 20 feet straight up. I started well, but had a slip on the way up, which put me behind in the first heat. Here's a photo from the local paper. :)

Sunday was the busy day. First was the pumper and ladder event. We scored a clean run, but it wasn't enough for a place. My role was to couple my hose to one of the pump outlets on the truck, then climb the ladder and hit the second target. The next event for me was the 2 man marshall, which is a dry (i.e. no water) event that requires speed, skill and precision in laying out hoses in a specific sequence. We had a good clean run, but again, not enough for a place. The final event for the day was the hose and reel 8s. This consists of running down the track with a habd drawn hose reel, laying out one hose, hitting the target, then coupling on a second hose and hitting the target a second time. In this event, I had to push on a side arm on the reel, helping to give it an initial push away, then adding some speed down the track. Once past the hydrant, I had to leave the reel and assist the first branch (with the nozzle) get his hose over the line to hit the target. Had a great run, but unfortunately, something went wrong elsewhere, which messed up our run.

On Monday, I had my final run for the competition. This was the hose and ladder 5s, which again used the hand drawn hose reel. This event involves running down the track with the hose reel, with the aim of sending someone up the ladder (me!) to hit the target at the top. In this event, I had to take the coupling off the reel, then the branch, couple them together and place them in the harness I was wearing to carry the hose. From there it was a sprint of over 100 metres to the ladder, climb the ladder and hit the target. I had a good run, except when I went to get the coupling, the rubber band holding it on wouldn't break! It took 3 attempts to break it (any other time, they break when you don't want them to!). Knowing I was a bit behind, I gave it everything down the track and made up the lost time. Unfortunately, one of the others had some problems down below, which affected our time. It was one of those things.

Anyway, that was my weekend. In between, I was helping out with preparations for the guys, and taking videos of the events I wasn't in. It's been 20 years since I was last involved, and I am glad to be back. Bring on 2012! :)

3 Days to the State

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 23:48:24 PST

I've been a bit slack with updates lately. Well, the competition season is almost over. A short summary:

I missed the Jan 30 meet in Castlemaine, to give more time to recover from injury. However, the following week in Bendigo, I hit the track with a vengeance. At the last minute, I ran the ladder race, literally the first attempt in over 20 years. The climb was a bit rough, but I made it. A run in the pumper and ladder 5s followed a bit later, as well as a couple of 4s. Unfortunately, I inflamed a groin injury catching the reel in the 8s, which affected my performance the following week.

Jan 13 saw us in Mooroopna. This time around, I got through the first round of the ladder race and ran the final with a solid climb. I also had a good climb in the pumper event, though we had a hiccup elsewhere.

January 20 was at Echuca. Knocked another half second off my ladder time, but didn't make the final round, happened to be up against the guy who eventually came third. Was pleased with the improvement though. Another good run in the pumper and ladder event. Unfortunately, messed up our best chance at a place in the C section 4s, due to a combination of a bad break and a basic screwup on my part. :(

Since then, we have been busy training. I worked on my ladder technique, and have the potential to take considerably more time off my climbs. I've also learned (more correctly, re-learned!) the ladder part of the hose and ladder 5s, and have that going well. Unfortunately, another injury (this time a hamstring) a week ago has slowed things down, but I have already almost healed and should be 100% by Saturday. I was able to manage a reasonable run last night.

This weekend is the real comeback, literally 20 years in the making. Even as late as this time last year, I never thought I'd be back on the track. Things certainly can change in a short time. :)

Anyway, I'm going to give it my best shot and put it together as best I can this weekend.

First competition back!

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 00:14:36 PST

Well, things are finally in order, thanks to my physio and some mineral and protein supplements. Had a couple of good training sessions this week, and I'm set to go. Have a competition in Castlemaine tomorrow. The weather is going to be tough - 40C and sunny, but that shouldn't be too much of a problem - I won't mind if the hydrant leaks! :D

Everyone's set for a good day of competition and we plan on taking a few trophies home! :)

Christmas Recovery

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 23:42:21 PST

Formal training with the fire brigade has paused over the Christmas-New Years period. This has given me an opportunity to take a rest and focus on rehab using the gym, hydrotherapy and swimming. My right leg is feeling much better, and I'm confident it will be 100% by the New Year.

Christmas is almost here, it's looking like another quiet Christmas home with Mark ( :-* ). It will make for a peaceful end to 2010.

Don't you hate it when you do something stupid?

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 16:46:34 PST

My left leg recovered fully in the first week of December, and I had a very successful training night running 5 poles (pulling the hose reel the length of the track) in a row. This is second only to a straight sprint in stressing the leg, and all was well, even after the 5th run. With 10 days to go, I was looking forward to competition.

Then last Monday, I managed to trip down the front steps at home and pulled my right quads. I don't know how I managed to do that, I doubt I could if I tried. With only 6 days before the competition, there was no time to recover and balance that with final practice.

Yesterday was the day of the first competition. A quick test run first thing yesterday morning confirmed that I would be on the sidelines for the day. Knowing that it was unlikely I would be running, I prepared the video camera, and made plans to record our team's runs. The result is now on YouTube. Enjoy! :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7ITDeTSJjo

The good news is that without the pressure of training, the leg is healing rapidly, and I should be back to 100% in 2-3 weeks. Today was a good day at the gym. Unfortunately, I've also had success with the video camera, so I might have to train someone else to shoot video when I'm running.

P.S. I'm now totally hooked on using a Mac for video editing. The software design makes it a lot easier. The only tricky part was the picture in picture, because I had to manually synchronise the two videos for it to make sense. Shooting those runs was an interesting exercise too, as I had a camera in each hand pointed in different directions! :)

Almost there!

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Sat, 27 Nov 2010 16:51:51 PST

After a month of massage, targeted weight training and some work in the hydrotherapy pool, my troublesome left leg is almost back to normal, and I have gained some strength over what I what I had before the injury in the affected area. Here's hoping for a couple of weeks of full training.

First competition of the season is in exactly 2 weeks from today, and I want to be 100%. Let's hope this is the last of the niggles. :)

Training ups and downs

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Sun, 24 Oct 2010 00:01:17 PDT

Well, slightly over a month into training with the fire brigade, and things are progressing. So far, we've done mostly general fitness, from distance running to intervals and circuit work. Most of the training hasn't been too bad. The hardest part has been some middle distance work, which has never been a strong point for me, while the general strength and fitness has been my strong suit so far.

The hamstring I pulled last month is now fully healed, and I have had some good speed sessions, but last week during interval training, I pulled a different muscle, in the upper leg above the quads. Guess it had to happen, as I haven't needed to run at those speeds for close to 20 years, so something was bound to break, as I pushed things hard! Back to the massage therapist in a few days. He's been a great help with recovering from the previous injury. Still it's a bit frustrating, I was just starting to show what I can do, when it went.

Just under 2 months until our first competition. Hoping I'll be 100% ready for it. I'm looking forward to getting back into it. :)

The comebck starts... and an early setback

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 02:00:15 PDT

Yesterday, I went down to the fire station for a working bee, as well as to sign up to become a member. Met the other guys in the team, while we worked to get the gear ready for the coming competition season.

Today, I had my first speed session at the gym. In the early stages, things looked very promising. Unfortunately, I pulled a hamstring during my second set of short sprints. Doesn't feel too severe, and with care, I should be back upand running fairly quickly.

A 20 year comeback!

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 01:01:15 PDT

We recently moved from Melbourne to Bendigo, a regional city of about 85,000 people. One of the side effects of this change is that outside the inner Melbourne suburbs, there is a different fire service, the Country Fire Authority, which is composed mainly of volunteers. In my distant past, I used to be a member of the local fire brigade in the small town that I lived in. That was up until nearly 20 years ago, when I moved to Melbourne.

The volunteer fire brigades not only put out fires and deal with other emergencies, but many brigades also compete against each other in a competition that involves the use of firefighting equipment, particularly older forms, such as manually pulled hose reels. This becomes a challenging test of skill, strength and speed. Back in my former CFA days, I was very active in this form of competition.

Fast forward to about a month ago, I assisted a passing traveller who had car trouble. There were other people helping out, including one guy from a local fire brigade. This sparked a conversation about the fire service and I mentioned that I used to be involved in the competitive side. Not long after, he had to go somewhere else, and the conversation was forgotten. However, last night, there was a tap on the window. It was the guy from the fire brigade. He had come to ask if I was still interested in joining their team this summer. I took some contact details, and will be calling the team coach later today. Good thing I keep myself fit, I may be rusty in the skill department, but I'm physically in top shape. I workout most days, and walk or cycle everywhere.

Fingers crossed for a place on the team this summer. :)

Now, most readers probably have no idea what these competitions look like. Well, I've just uploaded some videos to YouTube. Check these out for some samples.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TI1O9lic0AE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QJNSYKGdBk

GPSed Track "Bendigo frontrunners 1"

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 16:04:42 PDT

View my new track "Bendigo frontrunners 1" started in Australia, Victoria, Bendigo.

GPSed Track "Storm damage June 17-2"

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 21:31:33 PDT

View my new track "Storm damage June 17-2" started in Australia, Victoria, Melbourne.

GPSed Track "Storm damage June 17 2010"

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 20:54:16 PDT

View my new track "Storm damage June 17 2010" started in Australia, Victoria, Melbourne.

GPSed Track "R4K 2010"

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 04:25:03 PDT

View my new track "R4K 2010" started in Australia, Victoria, Melbourne.

Developing my artistic side.

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 03:18:26 PDT

I have been taking some photos over the years, and from time to time, people have suggested I sell them. I've finally taken them up on that advice and have put them up for sale. You can check them out here.

Aussie autism advocacy organisation locks out autistics!

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Wed, 20 May 2009 20:24:54 PDT

Seems some people can't let go of power for their own good. A4 is aupposed to be an autism advocacy organisation, which represents the views of both people on the autism spectrum and their parents and carers. There have been simmering issues for sometimes between some of the committee members, and this resulted in all the autistic members being locked out. For more information on this unacceptable situation, here is the public statement from ASAN-Australia.

AUTISTIC SELF ADVOCACY NETWORK

AUSTRALIA

20/5/09

A4 LOCKS OUT AUTISTIC MEMBERS

STATEMENT CONCERNING A4 – AUTISM ASPERGER ADVOCACY AUSTRALIA

ASAN AUSTRALIA understands from its members that as of today all Autistic members have been exclude from the Steering Committee of A4 (Autism Asperger Advocacy Australia) which has now been renamed the A4 Advisory Group. Convener of the A4 Advisory Group Bob Buckley states in an email to all A4 members:

"A majority group decided to separate itself from a minority dissenting group (formerly in A4 SC) who do not accept and object to long-standing polices and practices of the A4 SC."

This minority dissenting group just happens to contain all of the people with a diagnosed Autism Spectrum Disorder that sat on the A4 Steering Committee up until 18/5/09. This minority group has long been battling to be part of the national voice that is A4 and now finds themselves excluded from the very group that once claimed to represent them.

ASAN AUSTRALIA finds this situation unacceptable, reprehensible in fact. We suggest that in light of this move A4 not be seen as a legitimate voice for those on the autism spectrum who can speak for themselves.

An ASAN AUSTRALIA Convener can be contacted for comment via autisticadvocacy@gmail.com

We're hitched! :D

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Wed, 20 May 2009 20:54:07 PDT

2009 got off to probably the best start possible. On January 27th, Mark and I became officially a couple, as our relationship registration became valid. As same sex marriage is not yet legal here, this will have to do for now. It at least allows us to access our legal rights without having to "prove" a relationship exists.

The new Register doesn't provide for any form of ceremony. It's a straightforward process of legally completing the application, then signing it in front of the Registrar. However, we had our own celebration yesterday with family and friends. :)

So anyway, 2009 will be our first year of "wedded" bliss. :)

I made it!

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Wed, 20 May 2009 21:07:22 PDT

Well, Marathon day finally came, and it was every bit as challenging as it promised to be. First challenge turned out to be getting to the starting line on time! I had booked a cab the night before to pick me up around 6AM, so I could be at the start in plenty of time for the race. I had planned to arrive around 6:30 for the 7:30 start. When the cab hadn't arrived by 6:15, I rang the company, and it seems they'd lost the booking! They did send another cab, which arrived within 5 minutes.

Instead of arriving at 6:30, it was a little after 7 by the time I got to the MCG for the start. By the time I did any remaining paperwork and left my gear in the storage area, the race was about to start. I ended up making it... just, with a flying start with the tail end of the field!

The first 10km went well, taking just under an hour. This continued to 15km in 90 minutes, which was not too bad. Around 18km, some injuries from a car accident I had back in July were starting to become a problem, and the half way mark took me around 2:15, which was a bit slower than the 2:03 I had run in a half marathon 2 years earlier. By 24.5 km, the bad hip and knee joints gave out, it was simply too soon after the accident. However, all was not lost, as I could still walk without any discomfort, so I continued walking, with the occasional jog downhill, and finished the marathon. Not the best time, and at 5:19, it more than an hour behind my original target of 4 hours, but I did finish, which was the most important thing. The buzz at the end was worth all the pain! :)

Next time should be better, when the injuries have healed 100% Somehow, I don't think this will be my last marathon, even though I'm not naturally a long distance runner.

Time to make a stand?

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Tue, 27 May 2008 00:33:07 PDT

Maybe it's the 40 thing and impending middle age (not that I feel "middle aged"!), but I find myself contemplating where I've been and how far I've come. In some ways, there has been a lot of things happen, and I have been blessed by the times we live in. Technology that was barely science fiction during my childhood is now all around me, and I'm in a position to understand and play a small part in its development in a nice of human activities. I've even discovered a few abilities that range from the geeky (but sometimes cool) to the downright freaky. And they are not just curiosities, but things I depend on in my life. As for the social thing, I manage a reasonable presence in a range of social situations, and a side effect of all that learning is I have a unique understanding of social interaction. It's like I've reverse engineered the neurotypical "black box" and then re-implemented it in a form that will work in my mind - so I have the "source code" of what makes people tick, in a sense. And like a program I've written, I can tinker with how my "NT emulation" works (social engineering anyone?), or watch for behavioural patterns that could indicate ulterior motives in other people.

All that aside, there are still some persistent challenges. My executive function is somewhat sub par, even compared to others on the spectrum of similar overall functioning to me. When faced with an unfamiliar situation that has relationship with my experience, I don't know where to start. Add paperwork and red tape, and it's a case of forget it. I almost didn't finish uni because of this issue and the increasing reliance on self directed research. Fortunately, these days Google (the best prothesis I could ever have!) exists, and there are plenty of discussion forums, lists, groups etc, all of which help me work around that massive hole. Anxiety has and always will be an issue, especially where it revolves around what other people might think (and yes, logically, I know what they think generally doesn't matter).

Anyway the net result is while I'm surviving, I know I could be doing a lot better, and while I'm in touch with with various autistic groups, I feel I haven't contributed as much to raising awareness as I could. However, when one casts themselves out on the web like I did over 10 years ago, it's hard to know the real impact I've made.

The countdown begins

noreply@blogger.com (Tony) — Mon, 26 May 2008 23:35:59 PDT

Almost 2 years ago, I committed to running a full marathon this year. On October 7 2008, I will be running in the Melbourne Marathon. The weekend just past marked the start of my training season, with a 15km run. The hardest part may not be the race itself, but fitting in the training between commitments. I don't want to be someone who alienates those closest for the sake of the prize.

At 40, I'm still in good shape and physical capable of covering the distance. The question will be how long will it take? I'm aiming for 4 hours as a goal at this stage.