animals, poetry, writing

What’s a “bogan” dad?

The term “bogan” is a term that originated in Australia and has been used to describe a particular subculture within the country. The word has been in use for several decades and has undergone a number of transformations in meaning over time.

The exact origin of the term is uncertain, but it is thought to have first been used in the 1970s as a slang term to describe a person who was perceived as being unrefined or lacking in taste or cultural awareness. This person was typically seen as being working-class and having a distinctive Australian accent. The term was often used to describe people who lived in the suburbs or outer regions of cities, as well as those who were involved in motor sports or other working-class pursuits.

Over time, the meaning of the term “bogan” has evolved and become more complex. While it still retains its original connotations of being unsophisticated and lacking in taste, it has also come to be associated with a particular subculture that is often seen as being rowdy, loud, and unrefined. This subculture is often associated with heavy drinking, partying, and other forms of reckless behavior.

Despite the negative connotations associated with the term, it has become an important part of Australian cultural identity and is widely used in the country. Many Australians embrace the term and use it in a self-deprecating or humorous manner, while others find it offensive and view it as an insult.

In recent years, the term “bogan” has become more widely known and has been used in other English-speaking countries. While its meaning and usage can vary in different countries, it remains a key part of Australian cultural identity and continues to be a subject of interest and debate.

In conclusion, the term “bogan” has a complex and evolving history in Australia. While it continues to be associated with negative stereotypes, it is also an important part of the country’s cultural identity and is widely used in a variety of different contexts.

Barry is a bogan known to his mates as Bazza

Bazza’s shag is a sheila called Sharon aka Shazza

They have a daughter named Karen, nicknamed Kazza

Daren is their son, often called Dazza

Now Bazza, Shazza, Kazza and Dazza live in Logan

Shazza has a loud voice, is never quietly spoken

Dazza loves billies but Kazza loves tokin’

Joints, VB, Commodores and Winnie Blue smokin’

Every night you’ll find Bazza at the pub

With his best mate known as “Grub”

Who walks along the street pickin’ up ciggie butts

Grub has this habit of playing with his nuts

Grub likes bare feet and Bazza wears thongs

When they’re pissed they love singing AC/DC songs

Cooking snags on the barbie with a pair of tongs

While Shazza and her girlfriends pack the fellas’ bongs

Dazza drifts his commodore around street bends

Kazza is always swearing and often offends

Bazza loves the massage parlour with his Asian girl-friends

An extra fifty bucks always ensures happy ends

By Thundercloud Repairian

This poem is meant as pure satire and if anyone takes offence, eat a bag of cement and harden up.

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animals, Life lessons, poetry

Question Everything Critically

Believe what you want. I am nobody to tell you what to believe but be aware that most of what you believe has been told to you by someone else who never questioned the source nor sough any extra information to back up their belief.

There are four main ways of “knowing. These are: facts, opinions, beliefs and prejudice. Somewhere along the continuum lies “faith” Faith is where we believe something exists without proof. The following 3 pieces of poetry have been written over the past few years as I ponder and meditate on life about beliefs that serve and beliefs that don’t serve.

Facts

I am about to destroy everything that you know

Please read this very carefully and slow

Is it a fact that you tell me, my friend?

Or is it a belief, that serves no proper end?

Is it a scientific factual truth that serves you,

Or preprogrammed belief that isn’t quite true?

How did you come that opinion my friend?

What information brought you to this end?

This belief that you speak about seems to cause grief,

Are you sure your opinion is not just a belief?

Have you researched the truth, critically looked at the fact,

or is this just a belief about how you learnt to react?

Have you researched and analysed all information?

Is this just a belief that’s causing you frustration?

I know that you only know what you know

So I will spell it out carefully and slow

There are things that you know you don’t know

And things that you don’t know that you don’t know

Things that are programmed that you can let go

Beliefs have no facts that you can show

A fact can be verified with real evidence

Providing support for assertion of arguments

Opinions are judgements based on facts

Opinions can be changed on how you interpret the facts

Beliefs are convictions based on personal faith

with no evidence or facts they are based on faith

Prejudices are reflections of narrow minds

having no place in argument at any time

Beliefs are based on values or morality

Cannot be tested with logic or rationality

Prejudices come from friends, family and media

Prejudice is when another plants a seed in ya

Acting on fears and pessimistic predictions

like that you need to get vaccinations

Believing that negative outcomes will get you

so you need to be prepared in case predictions are true

A belief is acceptance of something without proof

without empirical evidence to prove the truth

Is it a fact, opinion, prejudice or belief?

Only facts truely serve us and the rest cause us grief.

Only facts are factual and they are verifiable.

Linguistically this fact is undeniable. “be careful of bad spirits, they could harm you”

This is an example of a belief that’s not true.

Why am I even writing about this stuff?

Because of prejudice and beliefs, I’ve had enough

Beliefs are the foundation of our lives and our habits

Like chocolate eggs come from bunny rabbits

And if you believe in the Lord you’ll have eternal life

Religious beliefs cause much pain, war and strife

Like the prejudice that we need a nationality

is nonfactual and not based in rationality

Belief are for people who want to conform

It takes courage to go against the norm

Now hold your tongue and be careful what you say

Reassess your beliefs and have a lovely day

Please consider just what I have said

And turn the world upside down on its head, DISOBEY

Self affirming beliefs

A belief, and a value, opinion is just that. Beliefs are built in your imagination and not based on fact.

A belief is an explanation made in your brain to justify something you cannot explain

All beliefs are false and made up in your head not by looking at the facts, beliefs are the words that you said.

Made up from your programming fed into your mind, hypnotised by reinforced beliefs all the time.

You could believe in a god that there is no proof exists just because your mum, dad, a preacher and as an old book insist.

But beliefs are just purely abstracted nouns so you can drop all your beliefs and just walk around.

So you take control of your life ask what will I create and you drop your limiting beliefs then plan and then make living in the now and create a new plan to be famous world wide as the unlimited man

There is one more thing, believe in yourself to take control of your life, your destiny and health

I believe there are no beliefs to stop us achieve, every single goal that we write, plan and we believe

I have finished being a limited man and from now I’ll take action to do every dream, goal and plan.

The indoctrinated man

He believed everything the Bible ever said, read it and re-read it ingrained into his head

His beliefs were so outdated and morals very low, when he closed the Bible his mind became free though.

But it was not his fault, his indoctrination because the Christian missionaries colonised his nation.

Once upon a time he supported it, but now he’s homophobic like a hypocrite

If you’re spouting hate and lies, judgement and bigotry, whether Jewish, Christian Muslim, your mind is never free

If you take your cue from and old outdated book, you’d beat your slave and rape your wife, and sacrifice a chook (“chook” is Australian slang for chicken)

And take away the freedom of the people who you love, indoctrinated by an imaginary friend called “God” above

An imaginary God with human traits imposed, if god really existed there’d be no judgement I’d suppose

But you don’t have to keep the faith and blindly believe. Free will is what you have, you have the choice to leave

Behind the lies and fear of religious indoctrination. Think for yourself and change your mind and change the situation.

When he left behind the outdated book of fear, started being kind and admitted being Queer,

Poor little Rael was messed up in the head, believing that he would go to hell after he was dead. There is one more thing, “Be here now” and a photo for the Hindus of a big sacred cow.

The Big Cow at Yandina, Queensland, Australia

animals, book, change, Life lessons, poetry, writing

Taking the bully by the horns

A teacher once asked a preschool student what job do you want to do when you grow up. The preschool student replied, “an artist.”

The teacher laughed and said, “you’ll never be rich.”

The student replied, “No, you’ve been to university, studied hard and know everything that you’ve ever been taught, you’ll never be rich.”

Many years later the teacher was invited to a children’s book launch written and illustrated by the student. Original paintings of the illustrations were for sale for thousands of dollars and this was the student’s 6th book and the student was now an internationally recognised children’s book author and illustrator.

The following is a copy of my first published book “The flea and the dinosaur.” It is currently out of print but the story and illustrations were all done by me. I will republish it again in the future.

Many Millions of Years Ago
Tyrannosaurus rex by Thundercloud Repairian aka James Arthur Warren. The Flea and the Dinosaur page 1

Many millions of years ago, way before you and me, Tyrannosaurus Rex was born, he was bigger than a tree. About the same time flea was born, rainbow fairy flea but small and super powerful filled with joy and glee. Tyrannosaur grey and brown strong and forcefully went around tearing things down like a big bully

Today I saw a dinosaur laughing at a flea, it looked down and said, “you’re not as strong as me”…………

Rainbow fairy flea was born
Rainbow fairy flea by Thundercloud Repairian aka James Arthur Warren

The flea said to the dinosaur, “do you want to pick a fight?”

 “One thousand times my height I jump. you can’t jump with all your might.”

The flea said to the dinosaur, “I have a super skin and I can bite you anywhere my teeth will sink right in.” 

The flea said to tyrannosaur, “I can be a little snitch and I will bite you on the bum and I will make you itch”

The flea said to the dinosaur, “you can move about but I’m 100 times as fast as you that’s without a doubt.” 

The flea jumped on the dinosaur and bit him on the knee. “I’m so much more than you think don’t you mess with me.”

The flea jumped on the dinosaur and bit him in the eye. The dinosaur shed a tear and then began to cry.

Today I heard a dinosaur say, “sorry” to a flea, “without a doubt you are so much more powerful than me.”

The flea said to the dinosaur, ”don’t laugh at others too because little guys are much more powerful than forceful ones like you.”

The flea said to the Dinosaur, “you can’t run away, nowhere to run nowhere to hide have a lovely day.” 

The flea bit tyrannosaur and the dinosaurs all died and great big bullies fade away and get fried by little guys 

Today I saw a dinosaur get beaten by a flea. Big mean bullies disappeared but loving joyful fleas dance free.

I finished writing this poem at 1:33, dinosaurs became extinct but fleas still live free. 

Great big bullies fade away
The flea he bit tyrannosaur illustration by Thundercloud Repairian aka James Arthur Warren for The Flea and the Dinosaur.

I too was like the teacher once. I was a teacher and happy to take an hourly wage/salary with annual leave, sick days, superannuation of 17% and all the perks that come with a government teaching job. By the time I was 44 I had had over 50 different jobs. Then one November day in 2014 I returned home to find the roof had blown off my home. I decided to buy a double decker bus named Atlantis and go travelling and giving away free books. I lived on the smell of an oily rag, collecting and giving away free books for over 2 years until the bus broke down in Nimbin. I had started writing and my drawing skills had developed while I was living in Atlantis.

Nimbin had a great poetry scene and while I was living there I decided to illustrate and publish “The Flea and the Dinosaur.” I also published two volumes of poetry “Love in Nimbin” and “Lust in Nimbin” more recently I also published “Poetry to End Prohibition 420 2020” They are all available by following the links to Amazon.

In February 2020 I passed through Guyra on the way back to Nimbin. I had been to the Banjo Paterson Australian Poetry Competition in Orange. Here in Guyra I stopped for a walk and found an amazing empty theatre. A month later I returned to open the Australian Poetry Hall of Fame on the 24th of March 2020 which was Australia’s first day of COVID19 lockdown. It was a surreal experience moving to a new town to open business and suddenly finding the town deserted. However, 16 months later I am still here and I have just got around to opening “Seahorse Medicine Cafe here to serve vegetarian and vegan food as well as tea, coffee, soup and juices. People ask where I got the name “Seahorse Medicine” from. I have 3 unpublished volumes of children’s animal poetry by the same title.

I was told by a friend in 2016 that I have Seahorse Medicine in me. I had no idea what she was talking about at the time but now I do. I haven’t set a timeline to publish the Seahorse Medicine poetry but I have opened the cafe. Running/setting up the Australian Poetry Hall of Fame, a cafe, writing and publishing keeps me extremely occupied but they are all things that I enjoy doing.

That is what creatives do. They open their heart and do what they love. Create. Create some more and create even more. We use our creative abilities to bring joy, love and colour to the world, even when everything seems like it is going down the toilet, we will paint the toilet in bright colours. I wrote the following piece of poetry for my son’s birthday because I love him and also wanted to inspire him as well as other people. After he read it he thanked me and said “dad, that’s a good poem because it can be applied to different situations.”

I replied, “Yep.”

There may be times when the world seems mad

There will be times when you are feeling sad

But you’re strong, courageous, and in control

You can dig yourself out of any deep hole

Relax and breathe deep for a start

Let go and breathe into your heart

The toughest times might be a test

To center your self, become your best

Version of you that you can fashion

Make unconditional love your passion

From adversity we all can grow

Compassionate when cold winds blow

After cold windy winter the sun will shine

Flowers will bloom in the warm Spring time

With long warm days in the summer my friends

Winter might be cold but it always ends.

Thundercloud bring torrential rains

Rainbows shine after all our pains

Storms only ever last a few hours

New growth happens after showers

When it’s wet you can still have fun

Jumping in puddles and going for a run

When you’re cold and wet please don’t cry

Water and tears will always dry

When winds blow, and rain falls from above

We can all still smile in unconditional love

Regardless of the madness and fear

You’ll be the one to shine your light this year.

If you enjoyed this to can support me at https://www.buymeacoffee.com/thundercloud

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Djanbung's Peaceful Protest in Nimbin
animals, book, ecosystems, health, Life lessons, poetry, writing

Pete the surfer

Please support Thundercloud as an independent writer,publisher, and poet and buy his books by following the links. 

Nimbin, 2018 sitting in a cafe on the street I was approached by an old mate, Pete. Pete loves surfing and was excited to tell me about his day surfing the day before. Pete left and went into the chemist and by the time he walked out I had finished this piece of poetry and read it back to Pete. He was stoked and now finally it is published.

14, 16, 28, 44 in his head 

I’ve had a great day Pete the surfer said

I went down to Ballina. No one could get out

Even the jet ski driver wouldn’t tow me out

 

The surf was too big, 4 meters or more

It was messy and swirly no one could leave shore

So I walked out the rock wall and dived in the rip

Iit took me out way back on a round about trip

 

I was surfing alone, a pin prick from the shore

I got some big rippers one five meters for sure

I was out in the big waves. I was surfin’ alone

It was bliss, I’m so happy, the wind wasn’t blowin

 

It was glassy and smooth and I got in a tube

It took me back 20 years to when I was a Juvenile 

I dunno what they’ll say at the hospital tomorrow” Pete said

“They’ve been working two years to fix this stuffed leg

I couldn’t give a shit. I’ll enjoy my life too

I’ll sleep well tonight. You know I’m seventy two

But age doesn’t matter, it’s great to be alive

Said Pete the surfer, “ I only feel twenty five”  

 

You will be able to buy this and much more of my 2018 poetry in a 218 page book soon to be released, Djanbung’s peaceful protest in Nimbin. (Djanbung is the Bundjalung word for Platypus)

Thanks Pete.

The following is the first two verses of “The Platypus” which is the introductory poem in Djanbung’s Peaceful Protest in Nimbin.

The Platypus

14/1/2018

Down in the creek the platypus lives. 

On the fish and insects water gives. 

Down in the creek the platypus dreams.

Of abundance in crystal clear streams. 

It’s brown and furry with a duck-like nose.

With a tail that looks like a beaver goes. 

Webbed feet help it swim through the creek 

With a rubbery electromagnetic sensitive  beak. 

 

The platypus’s home is crude but good

He lives in a burrow by the creek that won’t flood

The platypus lays its eggs underground. 

The babies are born in a burrow they’re found.

Because the platypus swims there in the creek 

The platypus has a big rubbery beak. 

A mouth that’s like a duckbill nose 

It’s got claws on its feet and spikes on its toes. 

The platypus burrows underground

Where it lays its eggs, its babies are found. 

 

Thanks Djanbung and stay alert for “Djanbung’s Peaceful Protest in Nimbin” book 4 of the “Love and Lust in Nimbin” poetry series by Thundercloud Repairian out not as ebooks and paperbacks. Just click the links below to buy my books and support me as an artist.

 Love in Nimbin: Love and infinity in Nimbin for all eternity and for our corroborees of song and stories of our dreamings (Love and Lust in Nimbin Book 1)
Lust in Nimbin: Love and infinity in Nimbin for all eternity and for our corroborees of song and stories of our dreamings (Love and Lust in Nimbin Book 2)
Poetry to End Prohibition: The voice of the tawny frogmouth (Love and Lust in Nimbin Book 3)

animals, biography, book, change, ecosystems, health, Humour, Life lessons, poetry, poetry, politics, prohibition

Lust in Nimbin

Stuck at home, don’t be a loner.
Read Lust in Nimbin, Don’t catch Corona
My newest book release is out now.
The second edition of “Lust in Nimbin” the poetry of Thundercloud Repairian FREE as an ebook and from the 21st of March until the 25th of of March 2020 only.
Check it out here Lust in Nimbin