How do you handle mistaken identity?

Was reading in the Melbourne Herald Sun on August 29 that “English born Aussie actor Nicholas Bishop is used to being asked for autographs in Hollywood, except for one problem… they think he is Simon Baker.”
I also thought that momentarily when I first saw Him on “Body of Proof” when it first started here in Oz! Although both Baker and Bishop are Aussie actors that started on Aussie shows, neither was familiar to me then. I first became aware of Baker when he was in the Guardian, as it was a favourite show of my son. So at least I can recognise Simon Baker when I see him now. So, when I first saw “Peter” on Body of proof, although I did initially also think he was Simon Baker, It wasn’t too hard to realise he wasn’t, even if at first glance there are some similarities. But apparently not everyone is that observant and according to the same paper, “Bishop said being mistaken for the handsome Aussie Mentalist star has become a bit of a running joke.
“I’m always saying “Sorry I’m not that guy” and go on my way,’ Bishop said. And then last week one guy said, ‘Oh, so you’re not Peter from Body of proof?’ I ran back!”
Can’t say I am overly taken by Bishop’s acting abilities, but he sound s like a great and humble bloke to me. Humble enough to not want to take credit for someone else’s work, but great enough to accept proper praise when it is properly given!
How about us in a similar situation? Would we be so humble, or simple sign our real name and let them wonder why it doesn't match what they thought it should be? Or worse, get into a real snit because they didn’t’ properly recognise us? Or like Bishop, give credit where credit is due without fuss, but also graciously accept credit when it is properly given? Again, just a little something to think about for today!

Forsythia.

Was watching the show “Who do you think you are” the other night and it featured the English TV personality, Bruce Joseph Forsyth Johnson, CBE. The show focused very strongly on his great grandfather Joseph Forsyth Johnson (1840–1906) who was a landscape architect of some esteem, who worked in Russia, Ireland and the United States. However as well as noting his many horticultural achievements, most of the program focused on the fact that he had and left two families. One in England and One in America.
Not knowing much about Bruce Forsythe in the first place, my daughter checked him out on the Net, as I did myself later. Imagine my surprise, when upon checking out Bruce on Wikipedia, I found out that as important as Bruce’s great grandfather was, he was nowhere as important to the Horticultural world and gardeners the world over, as Bruce’s great-great-great-great grandfather William Forsyth (1737–1804) was. This Forsythe Johnson, was a founder of the Royal Horticultural Society and the namesake of the plant genus Forsythia*. A long popular and pretty garden plant still very common today.
Needless to say, as a wannabe gardener, I was a bit disappointed that this program spent so much time on the scandalous side of his family, and none on the others and the more important, even if less salubrious side, of Bruce’s ancestry.
Which I guess is true of life in general too! Yes how much time do each of us spend focusing on the important things, as opposed to time spent focusing on the salubrious and scandalous? Again over to you for reflection now.
*For those who don’t know, Forsythias are fast-growing shrubs between one, to one and a half metres high with an upright and arching form that flower in early spring. These early bloomers sport vibrant yellow flowers that precede their leaves.
I don’t currently have a forsythia, but have had a few in the past and they are both lovely and interesting with the flowers coming on bare stems first, then followed by the leaves. The flowering branches can also be used as Cut flowers too. In fact that is how I first came to be attracted to them. It was back in the days of the old Queen Vic Market, when it was still a wholesale fruit and Veg market.
I was working with my dad at the time on his fruit and Veg round and selling a few plants on the side. Anyway while picking up my plants from the Plant section of the old Market one day, I spied and picked up this discarded yellow flowering branch, as much to discover its identity as anything else. After taking it home and putting it in water, later it also started to grow roots, and so, that was how I got my first forsythia.

Do you really think everything really through?

Was watching the Australian version of “Who do you think you are”, last night and the young chap was told by his father that his grandfather might have had strong Mafia connections in the USA. So he heads off there to find out. Before he goes he says that he is not concerned about having Mafia connections and is comfortable with that. However, when he gets there and meets a former FBI agent who tells him all what one must do (Including being involved in some form in an actual murder) to be come a major player (which his Grandfather apparently was) this young man suddenly becomes very uncomfortable with the thought that His grandfather had been involved in a real murder!
And I’m sitting hers and saying, “Hello!” What did you think the Mafia was? A ladies knitting and croqueting club?” The mere mention of the name should have conjured up a group involved in all sorts of nefarious and illegal activities at some stage, even if not now. Things from extortion, racketeering, prostitution, drugs, money laundering, murder and a few others that I have forgotten.
So just hearing the word Mafia should automatically ring warning bells to the average person. Sadly some, it seems, still have a romanticised understanding of the Mafia. Probably because like this young man previously, they had had no personal dealings with it and thus have not experienced the real “Mafia” menace.
All this got me to thinking that the same is probably true about us too and although very few of us would have mafia connections, there are still probably many dangerous things around us that we are not seeing in their true light and thus have a skewed if not romanticised view and understanding of them and not seeing them as they really are. And when we do we like this young man above, get a real shock.
So, as we quickly come to the end of one year and head into another, what things, people or even ideas, do you need to seriously look at until you see their real nature? And will you do this now while there is perhaps still time not to get completely sucked into them and their way of life? Over to you now for reflection and hopefully positive action.

Angelina Jolie on Clint Eastwood.

Was reading in the Melbourne Herald Sun, an interview Elizabeth Day had with Clint Eastwood, and she quoted Angelina Jolie’s comments on Clint. Part of which stated: “ He is absolutely who he is. He has very, very strong, decisive opinions and is very gracious as a man, as a friend and somebody on set as a director, too.”
Again, can the same be said about you and me? Are we absolutely who we are? Or do we try and be what we are not?
Are we too, gracious with others even when our views are totally different? Or do we try and dominate, just because we can?
Just a little something for us all to think on this week, I think?

Spielberg on Clint Eastwood.

Was reading in the Melbourne Herald Sun on Jan 24th, an interview Elizabeth Day had with Clint Eastwood, where she wrote: “ Stephen Spielberg once said of him: the most wonderful thing about Eastwood’s transition from bit part actor to acclaimed film star and award winning director was “ watching Clint remain the same man he’s always been; that is to say totally unimpressed with himself.”
I wonder if the same can be said about you and me too? Are we totally unimpressed with ourselves and just content to do the best we can and just let any fame, if it should come our way, just flow around us, and leave ourselves unmoved by it? Or do we try and elevate ourselves over our works and even over others, to claim any piece of fleeting fame there is?
So let us all learn from Clint Eastwood’s example, and always remain unimpressed with ourselves, and particularly with any fleeting fame that might come our way. And just get on with doing whatever it is that we are good at and there is a market or need for in our own communities.

What does “The Outlaw Josey Wales”, “NCIS” and “Burn Notice” all have in common?

Although one is a movie and the other two weekly TV shows, they do, among many other popular shows, hold at least one common denominator. And that is they all have a disparate, or dissimilar cast of misfits brought together and subsequently held together only by a dominant central character, who is able to hold the whole group together as one fully functioning and efficient unit.

I have seen this in real life situations too, where some people have the gift or talent to build a team of otherwise misfits into a well –functioning team, by their own abilities to both manage and bring out the best of others. Often too though, I have seen these same well functioning teams fall apart and disintegrate and totally disappear, when the dominant figure leaves and someone else (without those same gifts) come in and tries and take over.

So what about you and what position do you hold in your team? Does someone else hold you and other misfits together? Or are you that person who is holding everything together?

Or are you unfortunately, that person who has just taken over a well functioning team, only to see it fall apart in front of your very own eyes, despite your best efforts to change things and hold it all together? Maybe that is the problem? Maybe you are trying to change things too fast and not bringing the team with you? Maybe you are right and maybe the team does have to change, but the best change is that which the whole team accepts at the same pace so that all can move forward together.

Sadly what usually happens is that a team gets used to one way of doing things and may even have been built up along that very way of doing things, only to have someone come in and change things for no better reasons that they can and that is the way they always work. So what about you when you come into a new situation? Do you try and fit in with the current situation and them when you have earnt the right, start to make suggestions of change and bring everyone along with you? Or do expect total change straight away and then wonder why everyone is quitting and going elsewhere?

So like Josey, Gibbes & Michael, do you give your "underlings” certain freedoms whilst expecting top results? Or do you also expect them to do things in your way and your timing etc? And then wonder why you have such trouble keeping staff? Over to you for your thoughts on the subject.

Architects & “Hey Dad!”

A couple of days ago I posted a blog called, “What Draws You to A Job?” There, I took the negative side of being attracted to a lifetime job or profession from what one sees on TV. Today I would like to show the positive side with a semi-personal illustration.

Actually it was my intention to give you at true story as an illustration, but upon showing it to my son, he claims it is only an apocryphal yarn, but that I could use it anyway as it makes a good point. Any way here is the illustration as remembered by me and apparently no one else in the family.

Although our son did most of his primary education here in Australia, He did most of his secondary schooling in South Africa. All accept the first half of His “Year 10” year. Because we were back in Australia for the first half of that Year. (1995.) He started the School Year in Australia and finished it In South Africa.

In South Africa His School curriculum only had 6 courses, but in Australia he had to do 10. Well, he was able to choices the first 9 fairly easily, but had to decide between doing either Photography or Architecture for the last spot. (It is at this point we disagree. He claims it was his sister and not Him who did the choosing in his absence while still in South Africa. Whilst I claim that,) at first he was leaning towards photography, but there was an Australian Show on TV at the Time called “Hey Dad”. In this show, the Dad was an architect and worked from Home and made lots of money. The two latter aspects of this occupation, appealed to our boy and so he did Architecture for 6 months and absolutely loved it.

Even after going back to South Africa and unable to do it for another two years, that became his dream and so when he graduated from Secondary School there, he went off to the Port Elizabeth Technikon, some 500 kms, away for three years to finally study Architecture.

Because of his very basic background and introduction to Architecture, he struggled in his first few months, but ended the year with an award for most Improved. In His second year he was top of his class. At the end of this third year, he returned to Australia, got a job as an architectural Draftsman and is still doing it, and still loving it and in great demand.

So, some times a TV program can be a positive influence; but again I believe the key is to try it out first, before you fully and finally commit to it. During our son’s time at the Port Elizabeth Technikon, he had many classmates start the same course, but never finished it, as they found it really wasn’t for them. Some wasted up to two years to make that discovery. So please, try to avoid you doing the same, by fully checking it out before hand, to see if it really is for you. Well that’s my opinion. What’s yours?

Indiana Jones upsets Peru.

Was reading in the Paper that the latest Indiana Jones Movie has upset the people in Peru because of all its inaccuracies in the placing of places in Peru, and for playing a little loose with all the facts.

I was a little surprised by all this, as I have long known that Movies often take large liberties with the facts and locations they use. In fact my mother, when we would comment on something not being quite right on the TV, would respond with, “Well, what do you expect? It is only a Movie and they never let the facts get in the way of a good story, do they?”

What about you? Do you let the facts get in the way of a good story? Or are you always looking for the truth in all that you see and do? Do you just trust in, and take as the Gospel truth, everything you see in a Movie, or even all that you read on the Net? Or do you just use these things as a starting point to look up and find out the real truth on those things that interest you?

So my question today is, how much trust or faith do you put in the things seen in Movies? Over to you for your response.

Paul McDermott.

Paul McDermott is well known on Australian TV as a live wire host of such shows as Good News Week, Strictly Dancing and The Sideshow. Before that he came to public awareness as part of “the Doug Anthony All Stars” on the music scene.

Anyway just recently he has gone behind the camera and directed an animated film starring Pia Miranda and Hugo Weaving based on a Children’s book (The Girl who Swallowed Bees) also written by him.

Many people have been surprised by this change of direction and considered it so not like him at all. However, Paul who graduated from Art school, considers this to be so him and the other, (the public performance persona,) just so not him in his inner being.

The artwork and directing etc is what really moves him and the other is what paid the bills and in essence actually initially at least, sidetracked him from what he really wanted to do. But now this then distraction, is actually now allowing him the real freedom, finances and opportunity to again do what he really wants to do.

What about you? Have you, over the years allowed yourself to be sidetracked from what you wanted to do by something that paid the bills, but are now in a position to change that. If you want to that is? What say you now? Is what y0ou are currently doing, “So you!” or “so not you!” in your inner being? And what can you do about it now? Over to you for your say.

Shane “Kenny” Jacobson’s Success Story.

Shane Jacobson is currently appearing at the Princess theatre in a stage presentation of “Guys and Dolls”, and currently is considered hot property on both stage and film, ever since he came out of no-where to star in the Movie “Kenny”, and become another overnight success. But? Did he really come from out of nowhere? No! Shane long harboured and nourished His acting talents, starting out with the Scouts Gang Shows way back in his youth. , Theatre -restaurant slapstick, and playing warm up man to others, and MC'ing wherever he could all followed in his attempts to make it in the industry. For years doors slammed in his face, as he became another journeyman working on the margins, addressing corporate lunches, inventing radio characters and singing at weddings; doing what he could to stay in the business, even if only on the fringes.

He also worked at other things to keep the money coming in; jobs such as managing a lighting and production company; and through this work, became friends of a toilet delivery company manager. Yep. The same one who put up the money to film the Movie “Kenny”! So never despise those who do ‘dirty “ jobs. You never know who may be the one to help you in your time of need, do you?

No Shane didn’t just burst on the scene as an overnight success but had long been there on the fringes practising and honing his skills and abilities doing everything that was available to further his experience and exposure. Do we do the same? Do we make the most of every opportunity?

Do we seek out each and every opportunity? Are we prepared to work and work hard at our desired gaol or do we expect it all to be dumped in our laps without us even asking? If you really think that, sorry and welcome to the real world were you have to work hard and take and make every opportunity work for you.

Again, what about you? Are you really prepared to get down and dirty and do the hard yards, not waiting but working, towards your future successes? Will you make the most of every opportunity even the unlikely ones? Well will you? Over to you for your input now. Walter

California Gold Rush.

Recently saw a documentary on the Gold Rush in California in the 1840’s. It was interesting reflecting on the human psychology of the whole event. The first man to rush into the streets of San Francisco boasting of finding Gold in “ Them Ther Hills” was not a proper prospector, but a Sacramento Shop Keeper. He then went on to turn his gold into stock for his store and then printed 400 flyers to be sent back East advertising the find. Thus the following year when the 48 Rush began, he was fully prepared for the influx in customers and preceded to make his fortune out of the gold rush, but not by digging gold himself.

During the 48 Rush, there apparently was Gold for the finding, with just about every stone turned over, revealing a nugget of some sort or size Thus there was peace and harmony and reasonable tranquillity on the Gold fields.

Not so in 49 when even more prospective miners flocked in, and found that all the easy Gold had gone. The peace and tranquillity and harmony of the previous year disappeared, and thievery and race riots became the norm, as an ever-increasing army of miners sought and fought for an ever-decreasing amount of available gold.

Much gold was still there but deep underground and not just there for the easy getting anymore, and the Big mining Companies either came into existence, or gradually took over decreasing yet further the riches formerly available to all for the “picking”.

1. I thought it interesting that not all the gold in the gold rush was real gold but that a savvy shopkeeper made better than “Real Gold” out of trading to the miners. He in fact made more money that most individual miners and more than he would ever had as a miner.
2. I also thought it interesting that when things are in plenty, people of all races and classes get along, but when things get scarce, people fall back to social and national lines.

How about us? Can we only see one way to “find” gold, or like the Trader can we too not do what we are good, at and make our fortunes supplying the ‘miners?

Can we too not try and get along in harmony all the time, and not just in times of plenty? Can we not try and look at people as people and not as ‘strangers’ and thus competitors? What would you have done if you had been “a miner in 49er”? Walter

Simple Is Funny Too.

Last night I over-heard and later watched, a little of a top Rating Comedy Show on TV here in Melbourne. Although it has absolutely nothing to do with God or Religion, it is called “Thank God you are Here” and the Concept has been sold to around 16 countries in the world including Holland Israel and the US.

Anyway the basic concept is to get a Comedian, TV Personality or sometimes an actor, and dress them in a costume suitable for their upcoming skit and push them unrehearsed and without a clue of what they are about to do into or onto an appropriate Set. This Set is already staged and the Crew knows what it is about and then the guest has to work out appropriate responses to the script. To me it was a bit Like” Whose Line Is It Anyway" but with better props and a different crew each week.

Anyhow, no matter what it is like, it is doing big business and as I sad the concept sold widely. Last night, I heard some “stooge” going through her paces and her responses were rather long and contrived, and most unlikely to have happened. However I did admire her quickness and inventiveness to come up with these responses so quickly and easily. The next guest/stooge was a top Victorian Stand up Comedian. (Although I had never heard of him, but my son had and says he is really good in Stand up too.)

Well this guy was pushed into a scene of stranded Desert explorers and his replies to the various questions asked of him, were of the most basic and logical to such questions but done in a dead pan or even quizzical look as to why are you asking such a dumb question when the answer is so obvious. Anyway, he was really good in both his answers and physical responses and I was amazed at how funny “simple” really was when done properly.

This led me to wonder whether It might not pay us all sometimes to keep things a little more natural and simple rather than always going for the fancy and often convoluted.

This is particularly relevant to me as a Preacher; for in the next couple of sermons I am working on have words like Colligate, antithesis and Catena in them!

But what about you now? Are there some things in your life that you are making more complicated and maybe confusing than they need to be? Even if like me you decide to keep some of these things, will you not at least evaluate their worth and maybe even consider modifying them, even if only a little to make them more simpler and understandable? Over to you again: Walter

Swazi Star.

Do you know who Richard E Grant is and what he does?

Movie star Richard E Grant has been around for a long time now. In fact he first came to major attention as the lead in the 1987 Film “Withnail and I”. Most recently he has written his Life story in a Book, which in turn, he turned into a film called, “Wa Wa” which he Directed.

Despite this, in the general world, Richard is still relatively unknown and more often than not confused with the more popular and notorious Hugh Grant.

However that is not so in Swaziland. In Swaziland he is and I quote, “ Swaziland’s only Hollywood movie Star”, and regarded as such. As a young man, born and bred in Swaziland he is the most famous son to go out of there and is applauded as such, even if the rest of the world either doesn’t know him or confuses him for someone else. In his own land he is a hero, even if others don’t think so. Yet he still has to live and work outside of Swaziland to execute his craft to his full potential.

Many times we can be famous in a small way but to make a career and a real success out of our talents, we have to go out into the wider world to practise our craft to its full potential. This can be quite scarier and often we are tempted to opt for the safer option of staying where we are and stifling our future potential. What about you? Are you a Star at home but a relatively unknown outside of it and therefore reluctant to loose what status you have now, rather than reach your full peak outside of home, even if you will never be the Biggest Star ever? Are you prepared to put yourself out there even if it is to only be “A Hollywood Star” and not THE Hollywood star”? Or will you always be just “a Swazi Star”, because you are afraid to take a risk?

The choice is usually yours. Yes, sometimes circumstances and luck do come into it, but more often than not hard work and commitment are the determining factors. Remember Richard had to put himself outside of his comfit zone. First by going to England and then to the USA. Big changes and a big commitment yes! But now, although many years down the track, he is both what he was and what he is, a Swazi Star and a Hollywood Star in his own right. He tried – and succeeded. Will you at least try? Will you? Not necessarily to be an actor or even a Star, nor necessarily to be the best ever, but to be the best you can be at whatever it is you do! Will You?

Dabbs Greer Has Passed Away.

I read in the paper that 90-year-old Dabbs Greer died on April two. Now I think most of you would say, “ Never heard of Him. ”
Be that as it may, but if you have watched TV or the Movies over the past 60 years I’m sure that his face would be as familiar to you as it was to me.
Since starting as an extra in a 1938 Movie called “Jessie James’, Dabbs has been in over 100 movies including “The Green Mile”, and hundreds of TV episodes such as Gunsmoke, and Little House On The Prairie”.
Dabbs was never the star but he did the supporting role very well and usually played the “Everyman” roles such as bus drivers, shopkeepers and preachers, which is what he was in LHOTP.
As I reflected upon Dabbs life, I wondered how many of us will end up as widely recognised for our achievements, (even if not so widely known by name)? Dabbs may never have been the leading man, but he played a leading role in everything he did. Can the same be said of us? Are we too busy chasing the starring role, to be able to play a leading role in the background? Are you playing your designated role in life to your fullest, or are you being deflected by your desire for the starring role?
Dabbs life reminds me of an old poster I once had. It read, “ I may never be able to do great things but I can do small things in a great way.” Dabbs did, but can the same thing be said about you and me? Walter