A SATISFACTORY SCHOOL REPORT? First term; ‘James is trying.’ Second term; ‘James is always trying.‘ Well that doesn’t sound too bad; all a parent could ask really. Final term; ‘James has been very trying‘ Oh…! This was one of my mother’s small repertoire of jokes that never
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This story of the historic Lord Howe Island diorama in Sydney’s Australian Museum highlights the importance of a back-story in engaging people like me. 😎 I love birds, but I live in the Blue Mountains, and seabirds are not on my radar….unless it’s seagulls harassing me for
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Dr John Yeo and Dr Robert Costa are two men I feel extremely privileged to have met. Co-incidentally, they are both medical men. Dr Yeo is retired now, but he was a highly respected spinal surgeon at Sydney’s Royal North Shore Hospital. I first met him in
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In the days before my family owned a car we often travelled the four miles to Ulverstone from our South Road farm by taxi. We mainly used the husband and wife team of Mr and Mrs Holmes. I have since discovered their names were Cyril and Doris
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I have been reading about the wonderful Hazel Hawke recently; her often turbulent life with husband Bob and subsequently her battle with Alzheimer’s. For those not familiar with Australian politics, Bob Hawke became Prime Minister of Australia in 1983, and was in office until 1991. Did you
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My husband Rob’s maternal grandparents, Harry and Malinda (Linda) Atkins, are a bit of a mystery to me. They have been in my thoughts a lot recently, as we inherited some lovely old pieces from them. The items were in storage for a long time while we
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The kero (kerosene) tin has been part of Australian social history from the mid 19th century, when kerosene lamps lit up the country. The empty fuel containers proved even more useful than the lamps themselves. This old photo, circa 1900, shows a Chinese miner outside his hut.
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Tin-kettling was an old rural custom in Tasmania, as indeed it was around the whole of Australia. It was a kind of initiation for newlyweds; their welcome into the community as a married couple. In the early days it was carried out by the ‘young bloods’ of
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Here are two men, one from the left of Australian politics, one from the right. Appropriately Labor’s Barry Jones (1932 -) is shown below at left. Conservative, long serving Prime Minister John Howard (1939 -) is on the right. This odd couple are linked by their engaging
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A look back at Symmons Plains….and a bit about Baskerville. What a surprise to discover that back in the 1970s my partner Rob had a brief stint as a Tasmanian motor racing journo. It has given us both a chuckle, as this otherwise very clever fellow has
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