How to Grow Potatoes

Now, any of you who have Irish or Tasmanian roots will remember your father or grandfather planting spuds every year. There is nothing like fresh vegetables straight out of your own plot of dirt. Especially potatoes. They cook quicker than the bought ones (because they have not been genetically modified) and they taste a hell of a lot better too.
The only real drawback with your own home-grown veges is that they don't keep as long as the bought ones. If you go to the supermarket tomorrow and buy a packet of carrots and also pick some from your own garden, you will notice that within 3 or 4 days your garden variety are starting to wilt, where the supermarket ones will last in the fridge for maybe 4 or 5 weeks!!! BECAUSE THEY ARE GM CROPS!!!!
Now, onto what I am supposed to be writing about for you young gardeners.
If you live in Tasmania or Ireland, you will have noticed that you live in a cold climate - DUH!!! In Queensland we are classified as sub-tropical, so I am not familiar yet with the growing seasons, but through trial and error, I am getting there. Potatoes grow best in cool climates and are usually sown in early Spring for a harvest around Christmas time (that is in the Southern Hemisphere). Here in Queensland I have just sown my second crop as the first lot did OK but half were destroyed by the rain we had. Autumn is tomorrow!!!
I usually buy certified seed potatoes from the hardware store or garden shop, but usually half of them are a miserable failure. Back home in Tassie I just let some spuds bought from the greengrocer sprout in a paper bag in the shed and sowed them at the right time. I nearly always had a good crop.
So now I have done the same. Kay selected the type of spud she preferred and I bought 10 of them from the local vegetable market and sowed them yesterday after leaving them in a paper bag in the shed for a couple of months in the dark so they have started to produce growths from their "eyes". I know that these have not been modified in any way. They are quite naturally grown. I'll keep you informed how they go.
Now to the way to do it all:

To prepare the bed I just forked over the top a little - not too deep - and built the sides up a bit, and then laid the spuds on the top and covered them with sugar cane mulch.

 
Be careful not to rub the growing "eyes" off as this is where the spud puts it roots down from and produces those lovely spuds. I hope that I may even get about 1 kg of spuds from each head.

The sugar cane mulch here looks awfully dark, which it is. I had a part bag left from last season and, unfortunately, it was drenched by the rain we had. But no matter, It will still do the job as well and when I lay the new mulch, it will be nice and light and dry!!!




When you lay the mulch, you need at least a depth of a foot (whatever that is in metric!!) and subsequent layers need to be the same depth.

As the potatoes grow through the mulch I will add more layers and they should grow a crop at each layer of mulch. Some gardeners who are pushed for space grow their spuds in old car or tractor tyres. Same procedure, same result. If you have an area that cannot be dug, use the above process without disturbing the ground. Just put the spuds directly onto the ground and cover them with mulch. They will still grow.
One big mistake is to give them too much water. They will tell you when they need watering. The green tops will bend over and look a bit sick, then a hose for about 5 minutes will be enough for quite a while. I don't usually use much fertiliser on spuds and I grow them in the same plot year after year. Maybe every couple of years I might dig in some blood and bone as they prefer a slightly acid soil. Not a good idea to add dolomite lime!!!
When I was a postman I used to admire a front garden where for years spuds grew. I asked the owner why and he told me he was preparing to sow a lawn. Apparently the soil was too thick and heavy for a lawn, so by planting spuds for 4 or 5 years, the soil was broken down. He ended up with a magnificent front lawn and the envy of his neighbours.
As you can tell by this and previous writings, I enjoy gardening and growing my own vegetables. I have recently begun growing a lot of Asian veges that I know very little about, except that this is the ideal cliamte for them.So I hope that I am doing things right!!!
If you would like advice on growing anything at all, please drop me a comment and I will see what I can do for you.

Temporary Bachelorhood

It has been only 5 days now and it seems like 5 weeks since Kay went home to Kuala Lumpur. She has gone for a couple of months to celebrate Grandson Thierry's 1st birthday. It was no good going for just a couple of weeks and it will give her a chance to catch up again with family and friends. Thierry will be 1 on 9th March.

What a happy little boy he is!!!

I have got myself into a bit of a routine to keep myself occupied, as I don't go out much, only to the shops when necessary. And that's mainly on pension day when I go to get my baccy and maybe a few items that I need.

I am usually up before 0600 and put the kettle on and wander out to the front to get the paper. It is so nice early in the morning just sitting outside in the entertainment area sipping a cup of tea and reading the paper. And having too many smokes, of course. I love challenging crosswords and the Guardian cryptic crossword in the Courier Mail is always a mind bender. When I get hopelessly stuck I cheat a bit by looking at the answers online!!! 

One of my indulgences happens at around 1030, when I have my one for the day cup of Old Town Coffee. When Kay and I were in KL on holidays we always made a point of having coffee at the Old Town Coffee shop in Taipan. It would have to be the best coffee I have ever tasted. We were lucky enough to find a shop in Inalla who sold the packages of 3 in one Old Town Coffee. All you need to do is add water. Beautiful!!!!

When its fine, which is most of the time, I do my little bit of gardening from about 0730 to 0815 or so, before it gets too hot. Then I am satisfied that I have done my necessary exercise for the day????

Catching up on other news online is also important to me and I read the Examiner, the Launceston paper, to find out what is happening in the old home town. Announcements always draw me and I often get very sad when I read in the obituaries that someone I knew has passed away, but then I tell myself that none of us are immortal.

If the day is too hot or too wet, I will watch the TV shows I have taped. I find it hard to sit for periods of time to watch a show on TV, so I tape them so that I can pause them when I have to get up and move.Other than that, I play a game or two on the computer and test my skills of problem solving and finding hidden objects. But .... I also have a list of jobs I need to do. I'll do one job per day or so. Its no use doing everything in one day or there won't be anything to do tomorrow!!!!

My other indulgence is partaking of 2 squares of Fruit and Nut chocolate every couple of days. I don't take sugar in my tea, of which I may consume several cups a day, and only get the sugar from Old Town and my chocolate treat. By giving up sugar like I have, and watching my diet, I have kept my weight down to 60 kg for a couple of years now. Although I must admit, it has crept up a little on occasion.

There are only 62 days to go until Kay gets home, but who's counting???????????

The Battle to be Recognised as a Vietnam Veteran in Australia

World War II men looked upon Vietnam Veterans as participating on a "no-war War". We were constantly refused membership of the RSL and were given many different excuses such as: "Where are your medals?" "You didn't fight in a real war". This attitude turned a lot of Vietnam Veterans against the RSL and some still hold that hatred and refuse to join. This was a great loss to the RSL and now those WWII men who refused our membership are looking to Vietnam Veterans for leadership and the knowledge to carry the RSL to the next generation of veterans. Most RSL Sub Branches now have Vietnam Veterans in managerial positions and are keeping the RSL afloat.

Initially there was no Vietnam Veterans' Association, but veterans joined the South East Asian Veterans' Association which included veterans from Korean and Malayan conflicts in the 50's and 60's. The official history of the VVAA (Vietnam Veterans' Association of Australia) can be found at www.vvaa.org.au but the dates are very skimpy. It seems that the VVAA was originally called the Vietnam Veterans' Action Group and was formed in 1979.

The first true VVAA Sub Branch was formed in Launceston, Tasmania,  in May 1980 when several veterans got together and decided that they had best get things moving to keep mates together. I received an email from the Tasmanian State Secretary, Ann Cash, and it outlines the way it all started:

"The Launceston Sub-Branch is the longest running Sub-Branch in Australia. There were Branches before that but they had a different name. I think it was South East Asia association (or something like that). When Dick Holtsbaum had a phone call from someone on the mainland wanting them to join, he told them that if they changed their name to Vietnam Veterans Association of Australia he would have 100 members for them straight away. Launceston has gone from strength to strength from there, with some ups and downs on the way but is still going strong."

I also contacted the Secretary of Launceston Sub Branch, Carol Cunningham, OAM, and this is what she sent me:

"VVAA Launceston has just celebrated its 30 year commemorative dinner on the 27th November 2010 with 120 Veterans turning up. Thanks to Terry, Strop and me, it was a bloody good night. Sank $800 dollars of the good stuff.  The VVAA Launceston Sub Branch was 30 years old on the 20th may 2010. The Welcome Home Parade was in Sydney in 1987 and the opening of the Vietnam Veterans’ War Memorial was opened in October 1992 in Canberra. I hope this is OK."

So you can see that Launceston veterans were a very forward thinking group. 

Because most came back with psych problems - PTSD - we were shunned by the community and looked upon as second class citizens. Even Government members at the time were not prepared to assist in any way. When it comes down to it, the Government sent us to Vietnam in the first place and then denied us proper rehabilitation until much later. The Department of Veterans' Affairs was much fairer although their hands were tied by Government rulings. When the Labor Government took over, the then Prime Minister, Bob Hawke, tried to pass legislation that DVA must disprove any claims but was defeated and today it still remains that a veteran MUST prove his or her involvement and provide proof of disabilities. DVA is a great Government Department and mostly acts on claims very quickly. But .. there is a new breed of assessors, straight out of University who read the Rule Book as BLACK and WHITE, no grey areas at all. If your memory is not quite as good as it was when the incident occurred, you miss out because your claim falls either into the black or between black and white. All new assessors should spend at least 6 months in each service to gain first hand experience of the conditions service people work under.

The Royal Australian Navy was last to be recognised as Vietnam Veterans, along with other logistic support services such as the Merchant Navy and civilian entertainers (who richly deserve the recognition) and even some of the commercial pilots who ferried troops to and from Vietnam.
I received the General Service Medal (Malay Peninsular Clasp) which qualified me to join the RSL in Sydney. I went home to Launceston in 1974 and one of the first things I did was to approach the RSL to transfer my membership to the Launceston Sub Branch. At this time I had not received my Vietnam Logistic Support Medal and when I knocked on the little slide-up window, I was asked where I served and what was my service history. I said that I served in Malaya/Singapore/Indonesian waters and Vietnam. I was then told "We don't want your sort here!!" and the window was slammed shut.
After threatening to take Launceston RSL to State and Federal if necessary, the bloke (who will remain nameless but was a WWII man and a '39er) backed down and processed my transfer.

A mate of mine also had the same problem joining the Launceston RSL. After returning from Vietnam, he went into the RSL with his father, who was going to renew his membership and when my mate was told he wasn't welcome to join, his father tore up his RSL membership card and told them to "Shove it!!". Eventually they both were accepted and my mate is still a member of the RSL and was a Sub Branch President, and his father remained a member until his death.

So you can see, it was not an easy road to travel way back in the '60's and '70's. I don't blame the Vietnam Veterans who hold a hatred for the RSL, but they should now realise that it is their mates who are running the Sub Branches now and are always made welcome.


With so many young men and women returning from such as East Timor and Afghanistan, I hope that they realise that we Vietnam Veterans don't want them to have to go through what we did trying to join. I know that some have already decided not to as they remember what their fathers told them of their treatment.


Forgive and forget fellows and remember your mates.


They shall grow not old,
As we that are left grow old.
Age shall not weary them. 
Nor the years Condemn.
At the going down of the sun, 
And in the morning, 
WE WILL REMEMBER THEM  ........................................... LEST WE FORGET.

 

Summer Storm

Yesterday the heat was oppressive, even though it was only 36 degrees C. Clouds rolled in about lunchtime and you could hear distant thunder all afternoon.
Then, at 1700, the wind and rain came with overhead thunder and lightning. The trees over the back fence were bent almost horizontal and the driving rain was the same - level with the ground. Winds reached 90 kph.

This is the normal, every day view towards the back fence.

These two were taken just after 1700 and only 2 minutes apart. The sky just blackened and the rain pelted down. You can see in the one on the right that the guttering has been lit by the camera flash. That's how dark it got. We received 51 ml of rain in 45 minutes.

After the storm I just had to check the damage in the garden!!! But, luckily, there was only minor damage and no plants were ripped out, blown over or anything, except one tapioca plant which was on its side.

When the storm had passed and the power restored around 1830, the sky turned this strange orange colour. It was surreal!!! Everything was totally bathed in this intense orange glow. I have never seen anything like this before, even when I was at sea. The effect was only short lived so I didn't have a chance to get a snap of it, unfortunately.

A Little Bit of My Life as a Civilian - Part 2

Before I go further, I thought it only right that I give my sons their moment of fame. This is my eldest son, Brett when he was at Primary School. Butter wouldn't melt in his mouth would it??? Brett became a fine upstanding member of the Christian community in Launceston and worked solidly, even in his teens assisting his Mum on a milk round. In later times, he also worked as a "Crowd Controller", barman and Security Guard. He worked in Queensland for a few years with Swift Meat Works and then transferred back to Launceston with the company. He now works with ANL in Launceston. Well done mate!!!

 Alex was always a timid little man (much like his Dad) and has now grown into a fine young adult. He lives in Victoria and is doing a lot of work in the community just helping people out. He has a heart as big as the state he lives in. His computer skills are second to none and he has solved numerous problems that I have had over the years. When he was in Queensland with Brett, the pair were possibly the best IT team you could wish to find. Brett with hardware and Alex with software. I am sure that Alex will complete his tech course in computing and maybe turn out to be another Bill Gates!!! He was about 4 in this photo.

 Alex also was Pageboy at his sister Katrina's wedding. It is so great to be able to look back on these photos and just re-imagine the times when it all happened!!! I miss seeing my children as they are in the Southern States and I am in Queensland, but that was my choice to move here for health reasons.

I have sort of lost contact with my youngest son, Nick. From what I have read on Facebook he is also doing well working at the University in Launceston. He has recently had a son, with his fiance Brooke. Maybe one day we will make up for lost time.

I spent the next several years after my second divorce working as a Postal Services Officer selling stamps and stuff behind a counter at the local Post Office.

I finally cracked up and my doctor at the time recommended that I retire, so I did. I was eventually granted a pension by the Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA) and later on granted TPI (Totally and Permanently Incapacitated Veteran). 

At this time my son Alex was living with me and I splurged out and bought a decent computer and started searching the internet for someone to talk to.That is where I found my current wife, Kay. I met her one night, quite late as I usually closed down about 2200 or so but that night I stayed on for some reason, and there she was!! Over time we got to really know each other and eventually I went to Kuala Lumpur to meet her. 

 

Our first marriage was  in Trong, Kay's home kampong or village. Her wonderful father, who was an imam, married us and there was the most wonderful, extensive feast you could ever imagine, all provided by family members.  I thought then that if I lived in Malaysia I would soon be the size of a house. Sorry about the missing heads, but I didn't take this photo!!

We had a  terrific couple of months there then headed back to Launceston via Perth where Kay's sister and brother-in-law live. We were again married in a mosque by the local imam where we received the official Islam Marriage Certificate and the whole thing was organised in a couple of hours. How Salmah did it I don't know. (That's Salmah on the left with Kay at the mosque). But all was good and I was accepted into the Perth part of the family.

After we returned to Launceston we spent weeks arranging our official wedding. We were married officially according to Australian requirements on 31st August 2002 and we were the first couple to be married in the Launceston RSL officiated over by a marriage celebrant. 31st August is Malaysian Nation Day, or Merdeka, which means "FREEDOM". A bit incongruous getting married on Freedom Day!!!! But I still believe that after marrying a beautiful woman like Kay,my freedom has in no way been compromised. Besides, why would I want to forsake this beautiful woman for "Freedom". So I now have quite a large extended family which extends literally a quarter of the way around the world.

Launceston was an eye-opener after the "older generation" found out that I had accepted the Islamic religion and become Muslim. Contrary to popular belief, I did not automatically become a terrorist, as one older lady commented to me!! I explained to her that I was still the same person and with the same history of service to my country in the Navy and that by becoming a Muslim, I did not accept the tenets of the terrorists. I embrace the religion, but I do not profess it. I still like a beer but I will not touch pork products. That is the extent of it!!!

I was badly assaulted  in 2008 and because of that bashing, my leg has never really recovered, so we moved to Queensland to a warmer climate which we hoped would make it easier for me to walk without a walking stick. But, best laid plans of mice and men and all that .... not quite what we expected. Still have to use the stick when out but around home I have the terrain down pat and don't need it. Still a bit unsure outside of home.

That's about all you are going to get folks!!! That is my life in a nutshell. I have led an active and eventful life I suppose. But, I wouldn't change anything!! I have made my mistakes and have paid dearly for them on occasion, and I have also reaped the many rewards of a full and mostly happy life. 

I was brought up to respect my elders and to offer my assistance to those less fortunate than me, and I hope I have lived up to that.

So, all I have to say is "That's All Folks". Porky Pig would be proud.

Keep tuning in to my blog. I have been asked to comment on the "Battle to Become Accepted as a Vietnam Veteran", which will be on the airwaves very soon.

My love goes out unreservedly to all of you.

A Little Bit of My Life as a Civilian - Part 1

After I left the Navy I was out of work for about 10 days and then secured a job as a postman at Crows Nest, a northern suburb of Sydney. It was a bit of a shock having to start work at 0530 and often worked through until 1600 every day, including Saturdays, at that time. All the posties were "walking posties". No bikes, just a bag on your back starting off with about 40 pound of mail. The average run was about 14 miles long.

I enjoyed my time as a postie at Crows Nest. We made a lot of friends and very often had bar-b-q's at home on the weekend. The old place we lived in was very much on a lean and the doors wouldn't close properly, but it was definitely an experience.
This is me in postie rig with Katrina sitting at the front door of that house. As you can see, it was badly in need of a lot of TLC, but it was somewhere to live!!!


All the time I spent in the Navy and as a postie in Sydney, I remained a member of the Naval Association Launceston Sub Section. I transferred my RSL membership from Mosman RSL to the North Sydney ANZAC Memorial Club at Cammeray. That is where I learnt to play bowls. I had a lot of mates there, mostly blokes from the Second World War, as Vietnam Veterans were not recognised as such then. That was another battle which I won't go into either.
Mum came to visit us and Mum really got a surprise when I came out in my bowling whites and invited her to join me for a game of bowls. We had great fun too!!!

Mum, Katrina and your's truly.

Early 1974 I had ideas to go back into the Navy, but my wife at the time, Gaye, wanted to go home to Launceston. So we decided that I would apply for the Navy and also a transfer home and whichever came first we would take. I was my own postman so I had to sort my own mail. I received a phone call from the Postmaster one morning and he told me my transfer home had come through. I rang Gaye and told her and she was very happy about that. I went back to my desk and the third letter I sorted was from the Navy informing me that I had been accepted and to contact them for medicals and re-entry examinations. Well .... was I MAD!!!!! If that phone call had been 3 second later I would have had the letter from the Navy in my hand and I would have rejoined. But that is life.

We went home in June 1974 and Gaye was about 7 months pregnant with Brett. They nearly weren't going to let her fly, but the Doc said it would be OK. So there we were, back home in Launceston with a four year old daughter and a son on the way looking for a house to live in. We stayed with Gaye's family until Brett was born and then started really looking.

The Naval Association asked me if I would bugle at the Navy Day celebrations in October 1974 as they had found out I was an ex-Navy Musician, and of course, I said yes, but I didn't have a bugle. I was told the Navy Cadets had one I could borrow and to go and see Alan Cleaver, the skipper. Which I did and walked out of the unit with a bugle, fully uniformed, but in sailor's rig, and my application to become an instructor was almost in the pipeline. I was an Instructor at TS Tamar for nearly 15 years and I carried out bugling duties for all ex-Service organisations and the City of Launceston. I was designated "Bugler to the City of Launceston" by the then Mayor Jimmy Tsingaloo. I carried out this duty for over 19 years, playing the Last Post and  Reveille, when I finally decided to retire undefeated. Nobody made as many mistakes as I did and got away with it!!!!!
I broke a sesamoid  bone in my left foot while delivering mail and the quacks treated me for gout for a couple of years until one decided that it had better be x-rayed. A surgeon finally removed the broken bone and I was eventually pensioned off as "unemployable in my current position". I decided then to go back to the education system and improve myself. The Tasmanian State Institute of Technology (TSIT) in Launceston had a great music programme, so I enrolled as a student in the "Associate Diploma of Music - Studio Teaching" course. I was also employed by them for the first year as an instructor in brass instruments and breathing (and me being a smoker!!!). I was in my last semester when I applied to have my Post Office pension converted to a lump sum payment so I could go out teaching on my own, but they found me a job tearing up and selling stamps in the Post Office. So my final exams looked a bit dodgy to say the least, but I got through them and graduated on the 2nd May 1987.
While I was at the TSIT Gaye and I were divorced and I married Marian and we had two sons, Alex and Nick, who are now grown up fine young men. Marian and I were also divorced!!!

My daughter, Katrina was married around this time and I, as Dad, gave the bride away. She was absolutely stunning that day and was the truly radiant bride. Her husband, Tony, is a fine, hard working man and a great father to their three children and a good provider. Katrina could not have made a better selection in husbands.





That's about as far as I will go with this part, but I will continue this saga later.

Home Made Garden Fertiliser

I make my own fertiliser. I was put onto this by my step-son in Malaysia, Shaif. He read about it and was taken by the simplicity of it all. When I returned to Australia, I thought I'd give it a go and see what happened. I did a little experiment by watering some plants with the fertiliser and others without. The results are below.
This fertiliser is called "Garbage Enzyme" because all you use to make it is vegetable and fruit scraps, brown sugar and water. It takes 3 months to make, but it is well worth the wait. The only labour required is the initial mixing of the ingredients and then for the first couple of weeks releasing the gasses and giving it a bit of a stir. The enzyme can be used for many purposes - fertiliser of course, add more citrus content and it becomes an insecticide to get rid of those nasties, you can also clean your concrete patio or your car with it, degrease your barbie and they also claim you can use it on your hair as a shampoo!!!!! But I don't have enough hair to worry about that.
Commercial fertilisers can cost from $20 - $50 per litre. The enzyme only costs 50 cents per litre!!! You mix it the same as commercial fertilisers - 10ml to 1 litre of water.
If you are interested in having a go, follow this link:  http://www.o3enzyme.com/enzymeproduction.htm.

 

 These tomatoes were both grown from seed from the same packet, planted at the same time and transplanted when they were the same size. As you can see, the one on the left is much stronger than the one on the right and the centre pic will show you the comparative sizes. The one on the left was fertilised with the enzyme and is really showing the strength it gets from this application and the one on the right was just plain water.

 My passionfruit have also benefited from watering with the enzyme. All plants get a feeding every 10 days or so. On the left is the new extension because they were growing so well, the right is today, 2 weeks later. When I wrote about the passionfruit before, I commented on the first fruits forming. Well, have a look now!!!! 2 weeks later and this is one of many. I could be picking them in another week or two. 
If you had any doubts about the garbage enzyme, this should change your mind and egg you on to have a go.
By the way. I bought four 5.1 litre plastic buckets with lids from a discount store for $2.00 each. They do the job well and the ingredients fit it perfectly with enough room left at the top to let the gasses gather before you lift the lid.

A Little Bit of My Life - My Navy Time

I never really got settled after I moved home to Mum's place. So I joined the Royal Australian Navy as a Junior Musician at age 15 years, 9 months and 2 weeks, on 27th August 1962, which was 2 weeks past the minimum age to join which was 15 3/4 years old. It was daunting, to say the least, to leave home and travel to the pits of Victoria - HMAS Cerberus at Crib Point. Stinking hot in summer and freezing in winter. Sandflies and mozzies galore.

I AM NOT GOING TO PUBLISH ANY OF THE BAD TIMES.

 This could have been the entrance sight reading exam for Junior Musicians in the 1960's. But it is really a bit fanciful to think that way I suppose. But it is a well written bit of music, don't you think????

 What a fine looking young sailor!!!! This was at Launceston airport after my first leave in December 1962, so it was January 1963 and I was 16. With me are Kay - my brother David's wife (now Ex), my sister Dianne and my Mum. The fashions in those days were really something to behold, weren't they?
It was while on this first leave that I joined the Naval Association of Tasmania (as it was then but later the Naval Association of Australia). I went to have my hair cut at Peter Ritchie's barber shop. Peter was ex-Navy, so it was a  natural place to go. Of course, in those days, we had to wear uniform at all times. Peter cut one side of my hair and then told me that I had to join the Association, if I didn't, he wouldn't do the other side, so what choice did I have. So next year, in 2012, I have been a member for 50 years!!!! My how time flies.
I didn't really have any regrets about returning on board to HMAS Cerberus even though the place was really bad. As a Junior Musician we all had to spend an average of 17 months in Recruit School because there was not a facility to house Junior Muso's, so we all sort of grew up very fast, living with adult Recruits for so long.
Summer rig in 1964 outside the Recruit School blocks. I even had a full head of hair in those days complete with a well developed "bow-wave". I spent 2 years and 4 months in Cerberus before I drafted to HMAS Melbourne in 1965.

December 1964 - Not 18 yet.

That year was a real eye-opener!!! We sailed North to visit Port Moresby, Manus Island, Rabaul, Hong Kong and Singapore, but on the way to Singapore, which was our first port of call in the Far East, we were accosted by Indonesian Patrol Boats (which Australia sold to them a couple of years previous) and told we couldn't travel through the Sunda Straits but had to take the long way, which we did to save an "International Incident". Then we were involved with patrolling Malayan and Singapore waters during the Malayan Emergency and the Indonesian Confrontation.

During this time the ship took time off to visit Hong Kong, Bangkok, Manila, Subic Bay and Singapore again. When we left Manila for the second time, we were informed by the Skipper that we were to travel to the South China Sea and "steam around in ever-decreasing circles until we either meet HMAS Sydney or disappear up our own quarterdeck". We duly met Sydney and escorted her to Vietnam. Action stations for nearly 6 weeks was a great adventure for the first couple of days and then it became a little tiresome. Reports made showed that everyone was a bit toey - like submarines (they were actually there even if the Government denies the fact) and some subs were found to be coconut palms floating upright!! Aircraft were albatrosses and so on. Showed a great deal of boredom but also the eagerness of everyone on board to "report to be safe".

After Vietnam we returned to Australia via a day stop over at the Malayan island of Lankawi, which is now a tremendous resort island, had a spot of leave in Sydney and then returned to sea to participate in exercises. This was only a short trip and at the end of the year of 1965 when we returned once more to Australia, I was drafted off Melbourne to HMAS Penguin at Middle Head in Sydney where the Naval Hospital is based. It was also Headquarters for the Clearance Diving Teams and the Band Branch and the Royal Navy Australian Submarine Squadron. 

I was in Penguin from 1966 to 1970 and during that time was rarely home as the band was forever traveling on recruiting tours around Australia. Sometimes for a couple of months at a time. We also regularly cut record albums of music to suit all tastes, so if you find an RAN Band record, have a look for me in the cornet section!! Around about 1969 the RSL finally allowed me to join as in those days, you had to be a returned ex-serviceman. I received my General Service Medal one pay day so I went straight to the RSL after work and demanded to join. That was that!!! It took over 4 years to be recognised by the Government of the day.

I got married in 1968 and our daughter, Katrina was born in 1970. Katrina was not well when she was born and my Bandmaster at the time, Lieutenant Don Coxon, was extremely considerate and arranged for me to have leave whenever it was needed. 

In January 1971 I was drafted to HMAS Melbourne again but she was dry docked for a refit and the band was transferred to HMAS Sydney for a trip to the USA to collect Skyhawk aircraft. We visited Hawaii, California, where we picked up the aircraft, Canada then back to Australia via Hawaii. In California we spent some time in San Francisco and Del Mar. It was at the Del Mar racecourse that we celebrated American Independence Day. The Navy Band performed a concert and as per tradition, we played Waltzing Matilda to open the programme. All the audience stood up because they thought it was our National Anthem!!

In Canada we spent most of our time in Vancouver and later moved to the Canadian Navy base at Esquimalt. We had a great time there a guests of the Canadian Navy. We left there for Australia via Hawaii.

I was discharged "Enlistment Expired" on 26th August 1971. So the trip to America was a great farewell trip for me.

Katrina is now grown up and married and has 3 children of her own, so she has overcome the obstacle with "honours".

I'll leave this one here and let you wait with bated breath (a mouth full of worms) for the next thrilling (????) installment - A Little Bit of My Life -After the Navy.

A Little Bit of My Life

Now that you have been clued up about my family history, you had better be let in on some of the big secrets of my life.

I was born in a small maternity hospital in College Street, Launceston, Tasmania, called St Ive's on Friday 13th December 1946. Mum always used to joke about how she tried to push me out on the 12th and then hold me until the 14th, but she said that I was too determined to be born on Friday 13th that she had no say in it. I was even a bit stubborn in those early years???? Anyhow, joking again (at least I hope Mum was joking) Mum always used to say it was the blackest day she ever saw!!! But Friday 13th has always had a special little bit of luck coming my way in one shape or form. And as the story goes ... My Auntie Beryl had just given birth to Glenn and she had moved out of the hospital and Mum took over the only bed there, which is sort of ominous. Anyhow, after I was born and Mum was well enough to go home, the staff shunted us out the door and CLOSED THE HOSPITAL!!!!! So I have the possible distinction of being the last baby born in ST Ive's Hospital, so the story goes. Maybe they didn't want another one like me being born there????

I was raised by my paternal grandparents and when my Nan died, my Pop took care of me and really taught me much of what I know today. He taught me the true values of life and the appreciation of nature and the resilience to the way people mistreat other people and how to switch off. This little bit of "training" helped me immensely in later life. Pop also taught me most of what I know about gardening. He was a great gardener and grew everything from asparagus to chrysanthemums and chooks. I remember that prior to every Mother's Day I used to take bunches of chrysanthemums around the neighbourhood selling them to be put on the graves of mothers on Mother's Day. I also used to walk the neighbourhood delivering eggs every Friday night. Pop also got me into music by joining me up as a learner in the Launceston Boys' Band. This initial training sort of became a blueprint for the rest of my musical life. I also owe a lot to the late Mr Neil Graham who was the Bandmaster for most of my time in the band before I joined the Navy.

This is me at a very young age in the uniform of the Launceston Boys' and Citizens' Band and that is my maternal grandmother with me, Nanna Powell. Nanna really helped me by encouraging me to continue with music as I was so dejected after my Pop died. When Pop died I was in total shutdown. He was my world and I didn't know how I would cope, but with the help of my Mum and my Dad and Nanna Powell, I managed and I think that maybe Pop is still up there watching me and lending a guiding hand.

This is me in my first pair of long trousers. Two things happened when we turned 13 in those days - you got your first pair of long trousers from Mum and your first watch from Dad. Both were great big deals for us. Even in winter we used to go to school in short pants and long socks and never even thought of the cold. Well, the girls always wore dresses didn't they? so they weren't any worse off than the boys.
I remember as a teenager catching eels  and picking blackberries in the summer to sell around the neighbourhood. Everything was 3pence a pound or each. We used to make a pretty good sum too. But we only wanted enough money to buy our smokes, and I'm still puffing away 51 years later!!!!

Life was so easy in those days. No TV, video games or computers. It was even difficult to listen to a record because the old 78's were "protected" by Mum. The record player was a huge piece of furniture and  it had a record player and radio all in one unit. Very spiffy for those days. We always made our own fun and entertainment consisted of radio serials, Saturday Matinee at the pictures and comic books or a good adventure book like Jungle Jim or Tarzan of the Apes.

I spent most of my time at the river near home with my mates. We fished for trout, perch, blackfish, roach and eels or picked blackberries and other fruit in season. The fruit grew wild along the river banks, except the apples and pears, which grew in Scotch College orchard. How were we to know that!!! We found out though when we tried to sell some fruit from the orchard to the College chef!!! He was not impressed.

More to come about me ... Next ... My Navy Life.

Things I Hold Dear

I believe that to a man the retention of the family name is all important, not only because the name has been passed down from father to son, but also because every father would love to have the family name continue for time immemorial!! This is not a "macho" thing, but something that I believe is instilled into the male members of a family from father to son to ensure that the family name is carried on.
Daughters are a father's pride and joy and sometimes the heartbreak of a father when they leave home to get married. As far as the family name goes, most daughters, when they get married, take on the family name of the husband, which is traditional. Sometimes they hyphenate their own family name with the family name of the husband such as Brown-Smythe etc. Lately it has been reported that a husband actually took on the wife's family name. Now that is really gutsy!!!
Daughters always remain very close to Dads and forever bring happiness and wonderment right from birth to adulthood and sons are usually thought to be a younger version of Dad.

Our family name of Wheldon has a checkered past, to say the least!! I have researched our name and added what I have found to what has been passed down to me by word of mouth from my Grandfather, so I have put together a short family history or tree, as the "Ancestry Detectives" put it. The name Wheldon means something like "maker of wheels for coal trains".
It all started in a little Welsh town called Llandilo where there was a male Wheldon who was a Druid priest. (I cannot find his first name, but this part is from Pop.) Even as a Druid priest he must have had the normal male urges because he eloped with an Irish Nun and they had 14 kids together!!
A generation or three after this event, a young Wheldon with the name of Tamas was arrested for stealing a loaf of bread and a silk handkerchief. The story goes that he only wanted the bread but the hankie came out of the gentleman's pocket when he grabbed the bread. So, he got 7 years deportation to Van Dieman's Land.
After serving his time he was given a Ticket of Leave and set up a sawmill in the Huon Valley, south of Hobart. He married and he and his wife (name unknown) had two sons and a daughter. Apparently the wife died in childbirth with the youngest, the daughter. Tamas also died after the drive belt on the saw broke and he was severely injured by the flying saw blade.
The kids were sent to orphanages, the eldest son and the daughter to a Salvation Army orphanage and the younger son to a Catholic orphanage. This is where the spelling of our name changed. The younger son spelt his name WELDON but the elder son kept the correct spelling of WHELDON. So, if your name is spelt WELDON you are most likely Catholic and the WHELDON's are usually Protestant. I think that Tamas was my Grandfather's Grandfather but I am not too sure as Pop didn't go too deeply into that part of the history.

So there it is. Wheldon's are descended from convict stock and have proved over the years to be stoic members of the local community, hard working and honest. Poor old Tamas was just unlucky getting caught I guess. All it came down to was that he was hungry!!!

What is Happening Now!!!

Nothing much!!!!

This morning I developed a new extension. Not for the house, but an extension for the passionfruit which is growing out of all proportion. Just check out the pics!!!!!  I was in two minds whether to do it or not as the temperature here was 30.5 at 0745 this morning!!! But, being the intrepid gardener and photographer that I am, I decided that a floppy hat and thick T-shirt would keep the damaging sun off me, which it did, but it didn't stop the sweat!!! Absolutely soaked by the time I finished it, which took about 3/4 of an hour. But now the passionfruit will be happy little chappies for a while and I noticed while I was making this that there is one fruit already forming. Lo!! and Behold!! ...the fruits of one's labour!!!!