YOU...SHALL NOT...PASS!!!

Disclaimer: This post has nothing educational, revelatory, or inspirational, and instead covers my exploits in Middle Earth.  You have been warned that this post will be awesome.

For those not familiar with the title of this post, this phrase is not what I say to students in my classes who are going to fail a course (although I'm always looking for ways to incorporate Lord of the Rings into my teaching style).  However, for those who wish to inflict psychological damage on their students, head on over to this link to purchase your own "You Shall Not Pass" grading stamp!  (http://www.neatorama.com/2012/02/25/you-shall-not-pass-stamp-for-geeky-teachers/)  And for those not familiar with the iconic scene I'm referencing, here's a YouTube clip for all the visual learners out there.

While I always love to infuse my posts with some pop culture to add some fun, the title of this blog post comes straight from a direct quote from this past weekend, where I got to see Sir Ian McKellen reprise his role as Gandalf on stage and reenact this scene from Fellowship of the Ring (shown above) as a one-man performance. You knew Lord of the Rings was coming into this blog (I did mention it below the title of this blog that this was inevitable after all).  I've managed to restrain myself for 7 to 8 blog posts, but this past weekend was too awesome not to deserve its own post.  For this past weekend was the time I met both Gandalf and Bilbo, and it was awesome in every single way.

My weekend travels took me to Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand.  After a painful 11-hour bus ride to the other side of the North Island, I spent Saturday exploring a large part of the city on foot, starting with taking a peak at the Victoria University campus (considering I'm in the business, it made sense).  After exploring campus and then walking through an underground marketplace inside a car park, the Lord of the Rings-themed weekend kicked off properly with a trip to the Weta Cave.

For those of you unfamiliar, the Weta Workshop is the special effects company that was behind all of the computer effects, prosthetics, and props that were all required for making the Lord of the Rings films (including Gollum).  They are now the second biggest effects company in the world, right behind Pixar (and they recently finished working on some film called "The Avengers").  Since the Workshop itself isn't open to the public for a whole bunch of confidentiality reasons, the Weta Cave was created to be the public face of the company, and although small, had a lot of really cool stuff inside.

Like our dear friend Gollum, who's as cheerful as ever.

After exploring all that is Weta, I went back to the main downtown area of Wellington and unknowingly checked into the city's "party" hostel, which led to a lot of loud music in the middle of the night and several strange encounters with people.  And then, Ian McKellen on stage!

Sir Ian chose to take a break from working on the Hobbit to do a fundraising tour/performance throughout NZ.  This is because in 2011, NZ went through a tough period when the South Island (and Christchurch in particular) was devastated by a series of earthquakes, leaving much of the city currently in ruins.  One of the damaged buildings, the Isaac Theatre Royal, was NZ's third major theatre, and the last stage Sir Ian had performed on when he was last in NZ.  So, this tour was all about fundraising for the restoration of the theatre, with 100% of all ticket and program sales going towards this cause.

The show, called "Ian McKellen on Stage: With Shakespeare, Tolkien, and You," was amazing!  Seriously, this man is hysterical in front of a live audience, and very relatable on stage.  After opening with the famous "YOU SHALL NOT PASS" scene, Sir Ian began to take questions from the audience about anything and everything we would want to know, such as "What did you think of Michael Fassbender's performance as Magneto in X-Men: First Class?" and "What was it like to meet Nelson Mandela?"  Woven through these casual Q&As were other performances from poetry and other selected pieces.  In the second half of the show, the focus was all on Shakespeare, with Sir Ian performing monologues from Romeo & Juliet (where he did scenes as both characters), Richard II, Hamlet, and Macbeth.  Again, an awesome sight to see, as Sir Ian covered a huge range of emotions and personalities across all of these performances.

And then at the end of the show, the entire cast of "The Hobbit" was invited to come up to the stage!  Needless to say, this was the best surprise ever.  Actors included Martin Freeman (who plays the young Bilbo Baggins as well as John Watson in the BBC show "Sherlock"), countless actors who played all of the dwarves, as well as the actor playing the older Bilbo.  Sorry Orlando fans, no Legolas at this shindig.  After the end of the show, Sir Ian and the cast stayed behind to accept further donations in exchange for signing programs and taking pictures with fans.  Needless to say, I was a gracious donator and got a picture with one of the most awesome actors of our time.  The picture has a slight blur, but considering it was taken in the middle of a huge crowd by a girl who randomly agreed to take it for me, I'll take what I can get!!

Revelation: Ian McKellen would be an awesome wingman.

And of course, I can't forget Martin Freeman, whose performance in the TV show Sherlock is absolutely amazing.  I've been a huge fan of the show since I saw the first season a couple years ago, and the quality of the stories, actors, and writing is unparalled.  Knowing that Martin is playing Bilbo this December makes me even more excited to see the film.  Unlike Sir Ian, Martin actually had his fans under much better control and in a very neat line.  And I got to talk with him for a couple minutes too!  Very nice man, who clearly embodies Watson even when he's not playing him.

Josh: "Having fun?" Martin: "Oh absolutely! This is the whoring part of our job, isn't it?" 
Josh: "But at least it's for a good cause!"  Martin:  "Quite right!  This is definitely good whoring."

And so, thus ended a legendary night in the land of Middle Earth!

I didn't just call it a day for the rest of the trip however, and took full advantage of all day Sunday to explore even more of Wellington.  The Botanic Garden, which is up on a hillside on the city and contains a variety of plant life (some of which is endangered), was great to walk through (you get to take a cable car up to the top, then walk back down to the city if you choose).  Once I reached the bottom of the hill, I was right at the Parliament building and got a one-hour of the heart of the NZ government.  Couldn't take any pictures, but it was definitely a great visit.

Then, most of the rest of my day was spent at the Te Papa Museum (also known as the Museum of New Zealand), which is essentially the Smithsonian of NZ.  Six floors of any kind of exhibit you'd be interested in (which for me was WWII history).  Exhibits they had included a Maori "Living Cloaks" exhibit, NZ Fashion through the years, the history of NZ plant and animal life (since no natural mammals are from the country itself), and others.  Definitely a really rich museum with a lot of creative offerings to keep people engaged.  The focus on the Maori culture was extensive, with the museum having its versions of significant Maori structures and countless artifacts to look at.

Don't worry, it's even bigger than it looks.

I was dead tired by the end of the weekend, but it was definitely the trip of a lifetime.  If you want to see many more pictures from my trip, just click the picture of me and the Auckland skyline near the top of the page to be take to my online folder I have set up. 

Caution: Handle Lightsaber with Care

Lightsabers in the Workplace?
Sometimes I think it would be a great idea whenever I feel I've hit a brick wall (I call mine bureaucracy).  It's an elegant weapon, for a more civilized age.  And you never know when someone who doesn't like you will come up to you at a bar to annoy you.  There are many situations we are faced with where the solution to the problem is so simple that some people just can't see it.  When others try to explain a solution and experience little success or a great deal of resistance, frustration can build to a point where we just want to go Darth Maul on someone and do things the way we know they need to be done.  However, experience has taught me that there's always another piece to an ever-complex puzzle that we don't know about yet.  The arbitrary swing of the lightsaber may cut off the metaphorical limb that is your relationship with a colleague or department.  Without a proper game plan, it is difficult to make any progress on initiatives as new to Auckland as other forms first-year transition and student development.  That's where the first-year transition project comes in.

Don't let meetings end this way.

We're knee-deep in interviewing academic and service staff across all faculties and divisions of the university, trying to find these missing pieces of the puzzle and learning of ways to promote positive change at the university with the least amount of resistance and still be able to respect what has come before.  The views from all of these different constituencies are as many and unique as all of the outfits in Queen Amidala's wardrobe from Star Wars (Fig. 1.1).   

Figure 1.1: What Not to Wear

These view points are constantly clashing with each other in a multitude of ways, much like repeated clashing of lightsabers in an epic duel (but without the cool sound effects). Sometimes, it just makes you want to try and whip out your own lightsaber and sculpt out the perfect solution that you already know will work, just like those ice-sculpting competitions they do in really cold places that I never have any intention of visiting because I dislike any temperature below 63 degrees Fahrenheit because it makes me really unhappy and causes me to get distracted and write really long run-on sentences like this (now re-read the last 2/3 of the past sentence in a fast-paced edgy tone and you'll really get an idea of what I think about the cold).  But I digress...Such situations require a little more tact, or a use of the "Force" if you will.  By learning what everyone thinks and what strategies and philosophies are currently supported, we can begin to assemble this puzzle and see things that no one individual at the university can see by themselves.


Some staff adopt a defensive lightsaber stance and feel that first-year transition need only consist of the week-long orientation (this is the "marathon of information transmission" approach).  However, many that we have talked to have said they see the clear benefit of further support being provided within the first six weeks at the university.  A bigger divide (and more epic lightsaber battle) comes from discussing specialized vs. a more integrated and universal orientation for all students.  The university has a great deal of unique groups to cater to, which include Maori, Pacific Islander, and international students.  Currently, the Maori and Pacific students have their own separate orientation, with only one or two common events that they share with the rest of the campus population.  The argument in support of this model is that because of the unique cultural background and potentially different needs for these students, a specialized orientation helps directly address their needs in a way that generalized orientation sessions could not.

On the flip side, others would say that a specialized orientation may result in unwanted "singling out" of students based on a given characteristic and may delay their ability to successfully integrate into the greater student body.  Many of these views often have a political edge to them as well.  Whether it is out of tradition or a belief the project is linked to other initiatives that could conflict with a unit's objectives, many people have opinions that run contrary to a large amount of research that has already come out in the United States about best practices that enable first-year students to effectively transition into the university.  However, since Campus Life at the university can't enter aggressive negotiations (negotiations with a lightsaber), some diplomacy is required to gain the views of all constituencies across the institution and determine feasible courses of action that can benefit student learning and development.

Seriously, it's a proven method.

Two things are clear from what we've learned in our conversations thus far: Rome wasn't built in day, and tradition runs deep at the University of Auckland.  What I feel will result from our work here (and from those who later work to implement the findings in our report) is a some sort of hybrid model that shuffles specialized orientation components that already exist around a comprehensive, university-wide orientation that each faculty can also build around as needed (because they are equally important and influential in the university system).  Now, the best part is, orientation is just one piece of the first-year transition puzzle.  But I'll get to that later this summer, because I'm clearly writing too much work related stuff now and need to get to my adventures.


The Island
Okay, so it's actually two islands, but let's not split hairs.  Some of you may know that I'm a big fan of LOST, and one of my fantastic experiences over the weekend gave me a sense of deja vu as far as that goes.  But first, I'll start with Waiheke Island, the island of wine.

First, Waiheke Island is gorgeous.  It's called the island of wine because there are 24 different vineyards on the island with their own specialties and ways of making wine.  Vivienne and I both went on a tour of three of these vineyards and got to try several wines at each of them.  It proved to be a valuable "educational" endeavor. 

Never has tasting wine felt so epic.

Also, I've found where BFF Brendan George's dream island is.  And it's here.  Acres of plants all preparing to produce wine (taking 3-5 years to produce anything usable).  One of the vineyards, Goldie Wines, is actually own by the University of Auckland and is a part of the university's Wine Science program (you can get a master's or doctorate).  Students are even encouraged to the live on the island during part of their study as they gain practical experience at the vineyard alongside taking classes at the vineyard itself.

One of the many amazing views on Waiheke

Then there's Rangitoto Island (pictured below), which I have dubbed "The Island" from LOST.  This island is almost uninhabited except for a handful of "others" already living on it, whose houses were built prior to 1937 (when the NZ government prohibited further development of the island).  Coincidentally, these houses definitely give off a creepy Dharma Initiative vibe that makes you think either seemingly savage people are about to run out of them and attack you or that they're just abandoned.  Either way, you really get to experience a wide array of emotions that would give any therapist lots of prime time entertainment.  Anyway, since 1937, NZ has worked to preserve the island for visitors to hike on by eliminating it of pests, weeds, and other harmful bodies. 

"I've looked into the eye of this island,
and what I saw...was beautiful." --John Locke

This results in another gorgeous island with a dormant volcano smack-dab in the middle.  It's the youngest volcano in NZ, erupting over 600 years ago.  Now, the crater is covered in a large amount of greenery and is home to a wide variety of plant life.  Vivienne and I went on the early bird ferry at 7:30am (that was a big "ouch" moment) and spent from then til 4:00pm hiking around the island and seeing the coast of the west side of it, crawling through lava caves running underground, and taking in the view from the summit.  Along the way, we met an Argentine named Nicholas.  He's a professional wedding photographer and came to NZ for two months just to travel and learn English.  He joined our party for the rest of the adventure (yes, I sometimes speak in Final Fantasy terms) and ended up using us as target practice (I mean camera practice) for doing outside shots.  One of them, which he sent me, is now my profile picture on Facebook.

Nicolas is good at what he does, and is traveling around NZ as we speak.

Wrap-Up
All in all, last week was fantastic.  Including the island-hopping, I also went to the Auckland Art Museum (where I stared into infinity) and continued to enjoy the city landscape.  Coming up this weekend is my first major trip outside of the Auckland area to Wellington, which is on the bottom of the North Island.  There, I will explore a great deal of the city and see Ian McKellen perform on stage!  Expect Lord of the Rings references in my next post.

New Zealanders as Sea Turtles (and a Mad Men moment)

At this point in the blog, I'm going to start using headers for posts that start to cover distinctly different topics, because there's a lot going on and it's hard to keep it all organized.  And so, our first header of the day is...

Working in New Zealand

I've already described some of the work I am doing in New Zealand, but describing what work is like here is a completely different topic.  I am happy to say that I am enjoying every minute of working in this country, and I have come up with the metaphor to describe the differences between the U.S. and New Zealand work cultures:  the 2003 documentary Finding Nemo.  Let me explain.

Remember Crush and all of the other "rockin'" sea turtles traveling the EAC (which ironically is not too far from New Zealand)?  That's what working in New Zealand feels like, and I must say it is a refreshing change of pace.  (Video is a refresher, trip down memory lane, and an explanation for those who have committed a crime by not seeing this classic film).

Like Crush and the rest of the sea turtles, the New Zealand work culture can be best described as laid back.  Early on in the job, the expectation was made very clear to us that work is to be done only at work.  This has taken a bit of getting used to, since I'm used to a working culture where quick responses to e-mail and constant attention to one's phone have become unspoken job expectations in many ways.  In general, the supervisory style here is laid back, in the sense that there seems to be a desire to be collaborative with employees rather than a top-down supervisory style.  But don't let the laid back, "duuuude" attitude fool you:  those that work here are extremely passionate about their work, and are always willing to put in the hard effort and energy necessary to see it through.

Our preparation for the first day of work here in NZ made us feel like they had rolled out the red carpet for us:  everything we could have ever thought of or needed was waiting for us in either our office or rooms, with requests for additional support quickly met.  When we told our supervisor how easy it was to transition, she explained that her goal was to do everything she could to meet all of our needs before work began, so we could focus on the task we were brought here for rather than worry about each and every thing that wasn't taken care of yet.

The way vacation (or holiday, if you will) works is that all employees at the University get 5 or 6 weeks of vacation!  And the expectation throughout the University is that said employee (let's call him Kolligian) will not respond to e-mails or phone calls of any kind unless it is considered an absolute emergency.  Any questions that someone would need to ask Kolligian would instead be asked to people that Kolligian designated ahead of time.  Needless to say, Kolligian will finally get to take that three-week vacation to Australia he's always wanted.

Yes Bruce, you heard that right.

Another interesting cultural/work difference is that it is common practice for office groups to get together near the end of the work week on Friday for a couple of drinks in the office (yes, physically in the office).  At first, I felt like I walked into an episode of Mad Men (except women were treated equally and not everyone wore great suits).  My supervisor (who is originally from the United Kingdom) told us that it took awhile for her to get used to this tradition, as this would never happen to her in the UK.  I don't think such a thing would ever happen on a college campus in the U.S. either, since our Mad Men days are pretty far behind us.

But here's hoping we never lose their ability to look awesome at work every day.

Nevertheless, I reminded myself that different cultures have grown and evolved based on their collective development of group norms, history, and traditions over time.  A New Zealander would look at us and wonder how we live without rugby, and so we must also be conscious that what seems "crazy" to us is just another day at the office in New Zealand.

 

As far as I've experienced, such gatherings have always been responsible in nature and have led to great post-work conversation among all those in the office.  Now, am I going to take this revolutionary idea back to the states and try to institute Margarita Fridays?  Probably not, since that idea wouldn't be compatible with the culture of the U.S. (even though Ted had no problems with this on How I Met Your Mother).  But for the time I am in New Zealand, I will adopt the "When in Rome" philosophy with both responsibility and common sense (as well as my scintillating conversational skills) and engage in some after-work dialogue with my new colleagues and continue to soak up all that I can while in NZ.

And for the time being...enough about work.  Now it's time for a recap on....

Adventures in New Zealand

The Lady Gaga concert proved to be quite the spectacle, as it's been two years since her last performance in NZ.  As my friend Dan Murphy aptly stated, she's not good at being subtle.  If you need proof, just take a look at the THREE-STORY MOVING CASTLE she had built on stage.

Not joking.

The weekend was taken to LEGENDARY status by going to a rugby match with the New Zealand All Blacks going against Ireland.  The energy in the stadium was unlike anything else I'd seen at a sporting event.  Granted, this energy was misdirected at time when two people near me got arrested for throwing bottles and taking a swing at someone, but that's beside the point.  Also, another tradition at the games is for everyone to throw all of their empty bottles (of which there are many) into the air as a sort of wave from one corner of the stadium all the way to the other.  And that's when I finally figured out why on Earth they sold beer in plastic bottles (because on any other day, that's just wrong...).

Getting to see the Haka performed live was a great experience (I've included a video of the end of it below).

The Haka is done before each international match and is essentially an ancestral "war cry" of the Maori people in New Zealand.  Ever since the team did the Haka in the late 1800s, the tradition has become synonymous with New Zealand rugby.  Just before the match, I picked up a cape/flag of the All Blacks for $15 NZ (pretty pumped about the deal), and I wore it in support of the team.  I am currently debating whether the flag will go up in my office or my apartment (feedback is always welcome).

The other option is to wear it to work.

And that's all until next time.  Although I suspect my next post will come sooner than a week from now.

Your Mission, Should You Choose to Accept It

I watched Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol on the flight from Los Angeles to Sydney, and I have to say it surpassed my expectations (excluding that my expectations weren't very high).  But really, go see it.  A fun film with a great cast and lots of fun.
 
Which brings me to work (my mind works in mysterious ways).  The first day of work was exciting, welcoming, and a little like Mission Impossible.  You are given your big task, told what's at stake, who the key players are, what dangers are involved, and then you get to work (only your instructions don't self-destruct in five seconds).  This project has many different aspects, we could probably spend the whole two months just working on one or two of them.  But we're going to make it happen in two months, because that's what Tom Cruise would do.

Actually, I think there are a lot of things Tom Cruise would do,
but that's a conversation for a completely different day.  And blog.

Currently, the University of Auckland's core idea of first-year transition is a two-week long orientation.  Week 1 is a collaborative effort between the service divisions (the non-academic units) and the faculties (or as we would call them, "colleges" within a university.  Campus Life (the department I'm in) helps coordinate the overall sessions that are designed to benefit all students, while each faculty coordinates specific sessions designed for its students (in the areas of art, science, engineering, etc.).  Week 2 has much more of a social focus and is really designed to help students get to know other students.  That's a basic summary, I know, but that sums it up pretty well at the current time.

This is where Vivienne (my fellow comrade) and I come in.  We'll be interviewing over 35 different people across the university to learn what they are doing to help first-years transition to university life, and cross this with best practices that are being done around the world and make recommendations for the upcoming 2013 & 2014 academic years (because academic years happen completely within the calendar year and is therefore FAR LESS CONFUSING!!!).  But I digress...

Since orientation is currently the University's primary tool for helping students transition into college life, Campus Life is looking for other ways to achieve this goal beyond compressing all the necessary information they need into one week at the beginning of school. As our supervisor described, they get talked to so much that eventually they stop listening and then this happens:

Auckland has had great success with "UniGuides," which are six-week long orientation-esque leaders, but is looking to learn of other options such as first-year seminars, learning communities, etc.  One of things we are keeping in my constantly, however, is that since each of the faculties have played a strong role in crafting their own versions of orientation that weave in and out of the university-wide sessions, any changes to these kinds of programs will only work with their support.  The concept of academic and student affairs partnerships once again comes into play, only this time, the academic staff have a strong part to play already in student affairs-esque work.


The rest of this week is going to be jam-packed with AWESOMENESS.  The odds are in my favor this week, as I'll be attending a Lady Gaga concert this Friday (only 20 minute walk from where I live) and then I'll be attending an All Blacks rugby match on Saturday.  Rugby is a BIG DEAL here, and the All Blacks are THE BIG DEAL here.  A student advised that I wear black to ensure that I come back in one piece (and I'm pretty sure he was serious about that last part).  Here's a glimpse of what I might be seeing...

My next blog post will indicate if I came back from the match.  Until next time.

God Save the Queen!

Even though I'm in a English-speaking country, being in a new environment such as this quickly draws my attention to every single detail that is both different and similar.  With several language differences (such as cookies being biscuits), I am starting to think that all parts of the culture will have differences to American culture.  But then I go to the cinema, I am surprised to see that 7 out of the 10 movies being screened are all made by American film companies (reminding me that the world is a lot smaller than we really think it is).  From walking into a supermarket to going to dinner, I'm always cogniscent now of every detail that is both similar and different, and I constantly look to see how I am being perceived by the people I meet while I am here.

Meanwhile, I'm coming up on being in New Zealand for one week already!  Kinda crazy.  Reminds me that the rest of the time will pass by quickly, and that I'll need to take advantage of every moment here that I can.  I took a trip out to Devonport (and dipped my little toe into Bayswater) and saw some really great views Auckland and other surrounding areas such as Rangitoto Island (which has a volcano I intend to hike up).  And here's the trademark student-is-abroad-and-takes-a-cool-picture-with-country-unique-background-in-it picture!

Home for the next two months is off in the distance!  (Thanks to Ariel Stadden for taking the first picture of me in NZ; proof that I am in fact in the country.)

Devonport has a lot of charm to it.  It may be small compared to Auckland's City Centre, but it has so much to offer in the way of shops, views, places to live, etc.  Ariel, a friend I graduated with from Marietta College, has been living near this area for over half a year and was a fantastic tour guide.  Devonport Chocolates, a local shop, made a series of chocolates in honor of the Queen's birthday this Monday (including an interesting Dark Chocolate/Earl Grey flavor).  The sunsets are also gorgeous, and I got to see one at the Bayswater Marina, which I intend to be the first of several sunsets I see while I'm here.

This is just one of the "good" ones.

As I mentioned earlier, the Queen's birthday is this Monday, the 4th of June (I'm also practicing writing dates this way so I can fill out papers and documents without messing up).  I asked my supervisor what the city was doing, and she told me that New Zealand largely views the holiday as more of a "day off" than a special event.  A case of a longstanding tradition changing over time?  Whatever the case may be, the city has been doing some events on the wharf to celebrate, and some shops have been offering special deals for shopping on that day.  These observations and seeing the Queen on the $20 bill make me want to explore to what extent New Zealand defines itself by being a Commonwealth nation.  I plan to explore the wharf more thoroughly tomorrow to see what turns up.  This upcoming Tuesday also marks the first day of work, which is where things start to really get interesting!  Stay tuned, my friends.

Now go play GoldenEye on the N64 and beat the game before Monday
not just to save England, but the Queen's birthday too.