Geelong and Melbourne

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Hello to one and all

Well for many it is probably a long time since we made contact so I thought it about time to get organised and let you know what we are up to these days. And what better way than a travel blog with photos (so that it’s not all long, descriptive -sometimes painstaking - stories which I am reknowned for!).

We made a decision some time ago to head to Western Australia, the wild west, in search of great fortune, and also to revisit the spot where our eyes met across a red-dust covered smoko room floor, around nine years ago!

I arrived in Melbourne a week before Damien due to technicalilites getting him into the country for work. In short, I had to be here before him to sponsor him in.

A week after my arrival we collected a battered Damien from the airport! It seems that if the cat is away the mouse certainly does play! On Damien’s leaving night in Havelock North (hometown in Hawkes Bay), he was farewelled by a “7 foot giant kiwi rugby head” offering a knuckle sandwich! He now has a nice scar on his forehead which will feature in all family photographs of the future.

We stayed in Geelong with friends Greg McKay and daughter Andrea (who I hadn’t seen since the teenage Chardon-aye-drinking years when she came to stay with us in NZ!). Greg is the inventor of a rather advanced manual bridge crane system which has won several Australian awards for its ergonomic sophistication - see www.globaltrack.com.au and place your orders with me!

Greg (and son Bruce), participated in the Australian Manufacturers week in Melbourne and needed an extra salesperson on deck to advise on the many benefits of the system including a 15m span with a maximum capacity of 2 tonne! What I don’t know about manual bridge cranes isn’t worth knowing!

I was very excited after Greg received a big order from an Indonesian guy who I claim I netted in to the stand!! Waiting for my commission to arrive any day now!!

We both sat and passed our forklift licenses using Gregor's forklift, and he showed us what he had learnt over the last few years - see photo!

After much searching we became the proud owners of ‘Pearl’ - a 1995 Ford Falcon stationwagon with duel fuel and cruise control. She’s a beauty!

While we did get very comfortable in the games room at Andrea’s we needed to head off to the west to make our fortune - so it was off across the Nullarbor we headed, via the Great Ocean Road.

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Photos

Geelong Bollards
We think they modelled the front one off Damien!

Geelong bollards
"And the Band played Waltzing Matilda..."

Global Track
Gregor giving us some forklift driving tips!

Gregor
'The Inventor!'

Melbourne
Selling cranes in Melbourne