Only a few more hours now, until we farewell 2019. I’ve had a lot on my plate this year, not including completing two certificates at CIT, Marketing & Social Media and Cert 3 in Community Services, and receiving my green belt in Karate. On top of that abruptly ending my graphic design, marketing and coms position at the Canberra Business Chamber, due to staff redundancies, my second experience in this.

I’ve also attended well over 30 plus job intereviews in the last seven months in my related career, up until the final day today, with no avail.

I’ve had a great chance to be involved with the chambers rebranding working with the previous CEO Robyn Hendry. Being involved in the design and implementation and the change over from the old branding to the new. I’ve placed a few samples here of my work.

The Business Council, also celebrated 40 years! My father Vlad Mosmondor, Graphic designer was commissioned by the CEO at the time to produce the iconic logo in the 1970’s. The Business Council later emerged into the now ‘Canberra Business Chamber.’ Where I myself was working as their designer up until this year.

So who knows what 2020 will bring... I hope for one thing that my job seeking days will soon be ended like this drought we are having across Australia! We need rain, and qualified people like myself and others who are having difficulties in the unemployment world need jobs too. Good luck everyone, and the firefighters all across our states! Keep up the amazing work.

Mosmondesign’s website has the right stuff - it's inline with the Pantone 2020 colour of the year 😊👍

You never know who you might meet waiting at the Queanbeyan train station at 6.30 in the morning.

Today I meet an amazing woman, a total stranger, but her ordinary life story was by all means unordinary, and this was only in the first ten minutes chatting with her.

This women is in her mid seventies, she just got off the plane from Spain. She's been travelling around for a few months now. Carrying only a 7kg luggage bag, with all her belongings is a formula she now has down pat. She's only started traveling this way in the last six years.

She looks amazing for her age! average height, trim body, except for an injured knee which has fully recovered now, after recently falling off a motor bike... as you do in your seventies.

All her life she was a dairy farmer, working seven days a week. In twenty plus years she's never had a holiday! She's never traveleved any where. She's couldn't due to her commitments on the farm.

She’s a love of horses and animals, she told me of her adventures, bungie jumping, going up mountains and sliding down them on her belly, riding horses down the steep slop of the snowy mountains, in which she expressed with great enthusiasm that I should try it!

I told her I'm meeting my family in Sydney, as my dad just celebrated his 70th birthday the other day. She said wow, he's the same age as her. She said age is only a number.

She dosn’t own a home, she's always unsure of what she likes as she’s moving from place to place. She's extremely active, working non-stop, she's also taken up ballroom, square dancing and rock ’n’ roll, in which she does during the week.

What an inspiring women! Not letting life bring her down or her age! She even mentioned that she recognises me from somewhere... I told her I do live in Queanbeyan, she said that's it, she may have seen me around town.

At every stage in life we all go through changes, tides, dips and waves. You just need to keep going, challenge yourself, try new things, embrace life as its never to late to live life to the fullest.

Croatian soccer club, Deakin Canberra, ACT -
12 October 2019.

What a fantastic turn out it was, on one of Canberra’s overcast days in spring, it did not disappoint! It included a huge spread of platters of cheeses, salami including many home made cakes and a stunning performance by ’klapa samoana.’

The Croatian cultural association from Canberra and Geelong, brought a warmth and look into the food culture and vast food history. It has made a special homage to all Croatian mothers, grandmothers (baka’s) who have brought the love of cooking into the family home.

With special guests renowned artist Charles Billich and his loveky wife Christina, it was a great honour to have them present, as Billich’s painting is on the front cover of ’My Mother's Kitchen’.

Most of the guests all received a signed autograph by the artist, including myself. This book is one that is rich in Croatian culture, with many recipes that have been passed down from generation to generation. This book brings special memories for myself, with many recipes I have been brought up on that have been shown to me from my mum and both my grandmothers.

If your looking for that great gift for Christmas or for someone's birthday, someone who enjoys food and culture, this book is it!

More infonation here:

#artelierbillichsheraton #billich #mosmondesign #croatiafulloflife #croatianfood #croatianculturecommunity #mymotherskitchen #croatiansoccerclubcanberra #wearecanberra #geelong #canberra @ccageelong

It’s been nearly two months since my position was made redundant at the Canberra Business Chamber, 30 applications, 10 interviews and on top of that battling personal issues and I still haven’t managed to secure a job.

A normal person with skills in my area would have no problem to obtain a new job in 3 months. But I know myself, getting back into the workforce is always a challenge, due to my stutter. It’s a constant battle.

Stammering can be covered under the Equality Act 2010 if it has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on carrying out normal day-to-day activities. (British Stammering Association, June 2019)

I have recently experienced on two job interviews this question being asked: ‘Would you like a pen and paper?’ This is implying that I am unable to communicate with the interview panel; that I seem to apear weak; that I lack communication skills; that I need special assistance in answering a question. These assumptions are irrelevant and should never be brought up in a job interview situation.

In our current society, organisations must be educated and having a person asking a stutterer this question is an insult, and it is discrimination. The person that had made this statement may think they are ‘helping you’. To a stutterer no they are not helping, they are actually putting you down!

It’s ignorance and judgment that is getting in the way. We need more people to be educated in how to communicate with others who have a disability. It’s about embracing people not judging them and encouraging others when they are in a tough situation.

Here is my Toasmasters Speech I performed, which addresses my experience at a Job Interview. I hope this helps and educates people to be more aware of what difficulties and challenges people with a disability/ impediment in our society have.