When In Melbourne

Disclaimer: I am fully aware of the irony of following a post calling for greater global understanding with one that is full of colloquial cliches and references but as I've stated many times on this blog before, we are all hypocrites somewhere along the line. And I am trying (very trying at times) to be a bit tongue-in-cheek here.

Dear Jo, John, Joseph and Warrick,

Help!
I need some advice. You see, I've been invited to be a presenter for a VITTA conference on Blogging in Education in late August. (Jo reminded me via twitter last night.) And Melbourne being the cultural capital of Australia, I'm keen to do the right thing and present myself and my ideas in the best possible light. This could be somewhat difficult considering I'm a rural boy at heart and a bit of a cultural Philistine - going to such a big city could bring out my worst tendencies. So, here are some things that I considered might NOT be good ideas when I walk into my presentation to be confronted by 20+ Victorian educators wanting to learn more about the connections between blogging and their chosen profession.

(1) Talking about how cold/bad/bizarre the weather is in Melbourne. I'm told on good authority that is a sensitive issue.

(2) Wearing my Port Power scarf and my "Kick A Vic" footy T-shirt.

(3) Bragging about how Adelaide has recently purchased new trams. Apparently, this mode of transport isn't the big novelty it is back home.

(4) Whining about the cost of food/transport or the amount of time it takes to get anywhere - after all, Victorians live these realities every day!

(5) Making disparaging remarks about James Farmer - it doesn't really make sense to slag off the edublogs landlord and even though he is a local hero, apparently he knows a thing or two about online media.

Any other obvious faux pas I should be aware of, Victorian edubloggers?

Image: 'BeeeeeeeeR' by YnR
www.flickr.com/photos/14221894@N00/73863662
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10 thoughts on “When In Melbourne

  1. John Pearce

    Yo Graham,

    Let’s not start down the path of parochialism too far lest we Geelong residents remind others of the relativity of pre-eminence on Football ladders. As to the residents of Melbourne and what needs to be done to adjust your lifestyle to fit in this side of the Murray well I perhaps best leave that for the others. Suffice to say James is a thoroughly approachable and generous chap albeit a Pom by birth, (I’m told you crow eaters have slightly more affinity with the Old Dart than we other colonials 🙂 ).

    Unfortunately much to my chagrin, I am unable to join you all for the VITTA activity. Though I was asked to come along, I am that evening flying off to the Gold Coast for the iwbnet interactive whiteboard conference, rats……. Ah well the weather should be warmer. That being the case we shall have to catch up for that beer, (actually I’m not a VB person at all).

    Cheers
    John

    Reply
  2. James

    I think I managed to make a few decent enemies during my stint at theage.com.au so it could work out better than you imagined 😉

    And you never know how many people I might upset in the keynote… go on, give it a bash!

    Reply
  3. Jane Nicholls

    He he he Graham, very funny. I know exactly what you mean though. Try being an Australian in New Zealand. I get up to speak at conferences and the first thing they notice is that I don’t speak right, then they are reminded by my accent that Australia wins everything, almost all the time… rugby, cricket, netball … I’m on the back foot before I get going :). As long as we’re talking footy, and I never get to over here… Go Dockers!

    Reply
  4. warrick

    Hi Graham; glad to hear you’re heading back to Melbourne. This time I hope we do get to catch up; I’ll see if I can get to your session. On visiting Melbourne some tips to get along are:

    we approve of Fed Square
    we like the gallery (the guggenheim exhibition will be still on – http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/guggenheim )
    we take our coffee way too seriously
    we don’t like the way our footy has been hijacked by interstate teams who have all been gifted premierships as some sort of secret afl sweetheart deal (we see conspiracies everywhere)
    we like the idea of seasons
    we welcome back the rain
    we like 3L0 but aren’t sure about Red Symonds
    we think that sydney is flashy and american and pretty but really you’d only want to live there if you could live right on the harbor wouldn’t you!

    See you soon

    Reply
  5. Graham Wegner

    I feel really prepared now. John, I did see Bobby Davis on TV last night saying that he didn’t want to die as the only Geelong premiership coach! Maybe this is your year!
    Jo and James, looking forward to catching you both at “the event.”
    Jane – the Dockers!!! Better than the Eagles I suppose (or the Crows or Collingwood, urrrgggh!!
    Warrick, isn’t the problem with seasons in Melbourne is that you usually get them all in the one day?
    Should be a good trip – it’s as big as it gets for me.

    Reply
  6. Joseph Papaleo

    Sorry I didn’t see this earlier. I’m just getting back to the blogosphere after a decent break. A world renowned educator in Melbourne and a pity so many of the particpants wanted to learn about how to begin blogging and not more were present to learn from you and other bloggers with real experiences in and out of the classroom. I hope you enjoyed your time here. Until next time,
    Joseph

    Reply

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