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Published: December 28th 2006
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Belgrave; Happy Xmas
Lynn and Steve; Xmas Eve 2007. Sunday December 24th to Tuesday December 26th.
I arrived at Belgrave Station, the end of the line and an hour and a quarter ride from Melbourne at 5.35pm, half an hour earlier than anticipated and waited for Steve to pick me up. After ten minutes a brown saloon, as promised, pulled into the car park and never having met or even seen Steve before, I was perhaps a bit presumptious in smiling and waving as the car approached. The smile turned to a grimace of embarrassment when the car slowly pulled past me and stopped by the only other person in the viccinity who promptly threw his bag in the back and got in.
Ten minutes later the 'real' Steve appeared. We'd spoken on the telephone a couple of times and I greeted him with the inevitable "we meet at last". As we drove he told me how he and Lynn had left Ellesmere Port nineteen years earlier with their two young children and how they, despite initial homesickness, would never consider returning. And who could blame them. As the journey went on we drove deeper and deeper into lush forest land and when we finally arrived at the
Belgrave; Happy Xmas
Happy Christmas. With Brandy at the lake seconds before the arctic blast. bungalow I was in awe. Set in a couple of acres the place was beautiful. We went in and I met Lynn, the lady of the house who, despite my being a complete stranger greeted me with a big hug and even bigger smile. I felt at ease immediately.
We had a couple of beers and ate the families traditional Christmas Eve fayre of roast beef and gravy batches before I hit the sack. I was shown to Laura's room, their twenty six year old daughter who fortunately for me spends most of her time at her boyfriends' and pulled the quillt right up to my neck, something I hadn't been able to do for weeks.
I woke at 8.30, my first eight hours sleep for some time and spent the next hour drifting in and out of consciousness and making the most of the opportunity to spread myself out that the double bed afforded me. Lynn and Steve were busy in the kitchen when I finally surfaced and shortly after Steve and I took Brandy, the family hound, for a walk in the woods. We walked along the tracks of Puffing Billy, the local steam train tourist
Belgrave; Happy Xmas
I'm dreaming of a white Christmas. But I didn't friggin' expect one ! attraction and soon emerged into a large opening by a picturesque lake. It was bloody cold, despite the fact that I was wearing shorts and a thin shirt, and as we were crossing the bridge it started to spit with rain. Within seconds we were in a deluge. We headed for home immediately but didn't actually break into a run until the torrential rain turned into icy arctic hailstones and after a couple of minutes Steve handed me the lead with the instruction "you go on". I didn't need telling twice, only looked back to ask "where's the house?" and with the reply "No.7 up the hill" still fresh in my ears Brandy and I were gone. Lynn was inevitably full of mirth when we returned.
I spoke to the in laws, Mr and Mrs lacey on the phone and at 11.30 the first of the dinner guests arrived. Thirty year old son Lee, a big bear of a lad who Lace had referred to as honey monster and with whom I immediately felt comfortable closely followed by Laura with her boyfriend luke. As I held out my hand to greet Laura she was having none of it instead
Belgrave; Happy Xmas
Pezzies, Pritchard style. Steve, Laura, Luke and Lee ! announcing "gizza kiss" with a huge smile. For the next hour the family waded through the mountain of presents stacked up around the tree and I felt more than a little guilty when Lynn handed me not one but two wrapped gifts.
Christmas dinner was a serve yourself affair of everything imaginible. Ham, Beef, Pork and a turkey cooked outside with all the trimmings. Also present were Neil, Lee's childhood mate from the Port and his lovely girlfriend Hayley who I was sure I recognised (I did; she said she'd worked in the Woodies for a few weeks one Christmas) who'd both emigrated last year and Maria and Arthur from Blackburn. Lynn had told me Art was a bit of a comedian and he certainly liked to talk, with more than a hint of Peter Kay to his voice, giving his poor wife not a chance to get a word in. One story had me laughing long and loud though. Before they'd moved to Aus Arthur used to renovate terraced houses in Blackburn where "the bloody Paki's slept in shifts, they'd come in off nights and get into the same beds the day workers had just vacated". He went
Belgrave; Happy Xmas
Lynn had done a lovely apple pie. Laura said she'd have prepared a crumble which Lynn soon arranged when she dropped it on the floor ! on to explain how this particular day he was busy chasing out and rewiring the electrics whilst his mate plastered behind and all morning this "bloody Bangladeshi woman" was gesticulating and nagging them both, fortunately for them in her native tongue. This was quite a common thing so they ignored the old woman until she finally decided things had gone too far, grabbed Arthur by the sleeves and pointed to two opened paper bags in the corner of the room. Having scanned the bags Arthur prodded his finger into the newly laid plaster and watched in horror as it disappeared into the void.
"Bob, where are you mixing that plaster from?" he asked and without even breaking the stroke of his trowel Bob answered "from the bag in the corner"
"Which one ?, there's two"
Bob turned and pointed to the bag and turned ashen when it dawned on him that he'd spent the morning applying a lovely smooth render and finish of ready made Jappati mix to the walls!
Art and Maria, whom Lee had mysteriously described as absolutely beautiful departed about five o'clock and were replaced a couple of hours later by a great
Belgrave; Happy Xmas
Xmas dinner. Steve, Lynn, Hayley and Laura. family of scousers. I was in the garden having a cigarette break and a chat with the trees when they arrived, introduced myself and told them to go straight in and make themselves at home. Who did I think I was ?, it must have been the wine. Alan and Julie were lovely people as were there two daughters Anna and Laura. Both had the tiniest of hands when I shook them so I assumed they were both mid teens and it came as quite a shock when they later told me they were 21 and 23. We played games just like any other household the world over on Xmas night and about 10pm I returned from the lav to have a contraption like a large pair of binoculars strapped to my face. There were two mats on the floor and the idea was to make your way to them from a starting position of a yard away and stand on them, the only complication being that the thing on my head made everything appear upside down and back to front. Under normal circumstances you'd normally be able to apply a little lateral thinking and work out what was what
Belgrave; Happy Xmas
More turkey; Hayley, Laura, Luke and Maria. but the wine made this a virtual impossibility and I ended up being hand led like by Alan simply to avoid having me crash through the adjacent drinks cabinet.
When the night was over and there was just Lynn, Steve and myself they asked me if I'd like to stay for the remainder of my time in Melbourne. I was due to return to my hostel the next day and the generosity from these two people I'd only just met, on the coldest Melbourne Christmas day on record made me feel warm inside.
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waymo
non-member comment
great to see you had a decent xmas lad.