A Tribute to Bev
Since moving to Victoria, only five years ago, grief has been a constant companion in my life. Five cherished friends from Tasmania are now gone, leaving me with only beautiful memories and an ache in my heart that won’t go away. Cancer claimed three, Type 1 diabetes another, and COVID-19, stole yet another. Each loss […]
My Point to Pinnacle Adventure
Sunday 17 November 2024, marked the day my daughter Sarah, and I tackled the legendary Point to Pinnacle in Hobart, Tasmania. This year happened to be the 30th anniversary of the P2P, a gruelling event that begins at Wrest Point Casino and finishes on top of kunanyi – Mount Wellington, the beautiful mountain that overlooks […]
Is Squinting a Sign your Child needs Glasses – or just Plain Cute?
Did you see that? Or would you have missed it, like my youngest brother did for the first 11 years of his life? Glasses for Kids, is a program currently being tested in schools, to screen kids for the need for glasses. If this initiative had been around back in the day, my youngest brother […]
Nannie Memes – #5
Who needs paper or a canvas when they’ve got a body (or a mat, or an easel) to create their latest masterpiece on? Trust me, I’m not going to draw on the mat. And I’m so good. I use my easel. You’re not in trouble because you told the truth. I’d be in trouble if […]
Hot days, proteas and driving without a license – Part 2
One hot Saturday afternoon in a late October, Dad wanted to go to Bunnings to buy a protea. He loved those plants, and I wanted to do everything I could to give him some joy in his last few weeks on earth. So, it was up to me to take him because Mum had an […]
Hot days, proteas and driving without a license – Part 1
One of my favourite podcasts is the Blindboy Podcast. The episode titled ‘Crying and Shame and Underpants’, 23rd November, 2022 brought back painful memories that I had buried decades ago. When Blindboy shared the story of his father dying from cancer and the realities of watching someone succumb to that sinister disease, it reminded me […]
Celebrating Winter Solstice in Hobart, Tasmania
There’s something truly special about stripping down to your bare skin, wearing nothing but a bright red bathing cap, and wrapping yourself in a big white towel. Your skin might be a bit different to the skin you were born in; it’s definitely hairier and shows signs of aging and sun damage, it might be […]
Rub-a-dub-dub, three kids in a tub
There were three little kids in the tub: Kieran,7, Alana,5, and Patrick 15 months, aka Paddy. Their mother, my daughter Hannah, was giving them a bath. My only job was to pass the towels. As the cleanest of the three, Paddy was the first out. The other two had used their arms as canvases and […]
Mini Getaway to Wilson’s Promontory
It was a beautiful sunny morning, the first Friday in May, when Sarah and I set off for our weekend getaway. She had come over from Tasmania and hired a Tea Rock City Life especially for the occasion The car was an average size SUV, that we had managed to pack full to the brim. […]
Take that, you old piano
As kids, my brothers and I usually spent part of the school holidays with our cousins at Old Greenhills, Triabunna. The property was nestled along the rugged east coast of Tasmania, where our grandparents lived on a farm. It was a rustic and remote place, about 20 km from the main road with the closest […]