Newsletter 2013

Hello Family and Friends,                                                                                             

Ho Ho Ho – Hello again, looks like we’re still here and celebrating another year.  It’s been a year of increasing low-numbered birthdays for the proliferation of little people in our immediate and extended families. 

Jeanne and Robert have had a steady year of life at Watto.  The real action has been with the next generations: Adrian, Alycia and Lily (now two), Chris, Claire and Eloura (two), and Karen, Wade and Jack (one).  We’ve refined our Hume Highway skills, disposed of two cars and acquired a “new” one to accomplish the grand-children visiting requirements.

Adrian & Alycia enjoy their life on Phillip Island, with their darling daughter Lily.  Ma and Pa Kettle (J&R) were delighted to be part of Lily’s two-year-old birthday party last month, in the park at San Remo, complete with lots of friends and a built-in pizza oven. AJ is now an accredited Oven Master, with the title, the keys, the knowledge and the enthusiasm required for the Perfect Pizza Party. We’ve discovered a big brick pizza oven takes a good while to cool down from an enthusiastic 700 deg. To a manageable 400 deg. – but, ah well, that provides time to have another beer and chat with friends and play with the two-year-olds.


A visit to P.Isl. is never complete without some beach-time.  We were joined by Chris, Claire and Eloura, and it was a great pleasure to see the cavorting cousins enjoying their time together.  Alycia and Lily were the only ones to submit to the chilly full-immersion experience – a testament to their rugged Island breeding …

 

 


Alycia enjoys her high-school teaching on the Isl, except perhaps at report-writing time.  Her parents come and go between their homes on Phillip Island and Melbourne, very much a part of A&A’s lives and a big help in minding Lily. 

AJ’s “other baby” is the Phillip Isl. Community Garden at Cowes.  Its extended gestation has included a strenuous labour of negotiation with council and community groups, begging, borrowing and otherwise acquiring all manner of materials, and the successful delivery of a healthy and beautiful community area that is already the focus of lots of shared experiences and expectations. 

AJ now works professionally as a sustainability projects officer and as a TAFE teacher.  These engagements stem from his extensive networking connections and enthusiastic commitment to the Community Garden.

 

Chris & Claire have moved from Swinging Sassafras in the magnificent, misty, mouldy, mountains that have been their happy home for several years, to Merry Montmorency, in close proximity to Claire’s parents, sisters, brother and extended families.  This provides great support and assistance for Eloura.  They still run activities at the Olinda School and Claire STILL performs energetically at the “Cuckoo Cabaret”.

Eloura is a terrific two-year-old, very active and fully engaged in the life of her family, rapidly acquiring skills as a cabaret and circus performer, liquorice-salesperson and attention-getter.  Her two-yr-old birthday party in the Olinda School Hall was something to behold, as you may imagine.

 

 

 

Claire is engaged in all of the above, and teaches music, drama and dance to school groups.   She’s eagerly awaiting the forthcoming birth (would you believe), and hope that it proceeds as perfectly as Eloura’s did.  Due around Australia Day, we hope she doesn’t copy Karen’s experience and come five weeks early ... !

Chris also works at the Noble Park School and continues his Steiner Education studies with a view to eventually working in the Steiner system.  His sky-diving, high-wire trapeze experience and  (expensive) hernia surgery have all taken in their stride.

Chris and Claire have had a slightly huge year – organising and performing at all manner of festivals, parties, cabarets, outdoor film shows, liquorice-selling opportunities and the like. This has taken them from Sunshine Coast to Shepparton, Kalgoorlie to Cairns and Melbourne.  In establishing their business on a firm professional basis, they are moving to more of a management role, providing the marketing, management, resourcing and facilitation for special events.

Please see their website at www.thedreamingspace.com.au .


Karen and Wade  have had their first year of parenthood.  Little Jack (Kennedy) celebrated his first birthday on 22 June, with a visit to the Reptile Park.  His limited mobility restricted his capacity for a closer engagement with the crocodile, but next time we’ll need another strategy.


Wade is still working just across the road from home, facilitating flexibility with working hours and child-care.  His brother Glenn, living nearby, is a help for child-care.  Wade enjoys the day-by-day development of his son, but the full-day caring duty while Mum is at work can be challenging!  Jack’s golfing skills are improving, along with a great curiosity in everything he encounters.

 


Karen has left Max Employment for a new job at the Deaf Society of NSW in Gosford – lots of new opportunity and challenge!  She was heartened by a warm farewell from Max, and welcome to the Deaf Soc. 

Karen’s bridesmaid Leah was married at the Yarralumla Woolshed on 30 Nov.  Karen and Jack had a week of preparation, with Hens’ Party, decorations, clothes, do-it-yourself catering, and lots of plain hard work.  This afforded Ma and Pa the privilege and pleasure of getting to know their lovely new grandson, who seemed to develop every day.  The wedding was a real hoot, and we were sad to see Wade, Karen and Jack depart.

Doggie Ralph had a close encounter with a tick, and a slow (expensive) recovery.  He now seems “good as gold” – a lucky beast indeed!

 

 

Jeanne loves the diversity of relief teaching, travelling from one extremity of Canberra to the other.  This entails working with children with various disablements, autistic, blind, deaf, ADHD, Asperger’s the very bright, the not-so-bright, the co-operative and the not-so-cooperative.
After-hours, she has painting courses, yoga, choir (“Gospel Folk”), church activities and Jung Soc. librarianship. She has enjoyed the personal and professional development endeavours of Art Therapy and “Special Needs Teaching” courses.

Of course, the big, huge, gigantic pleasure of these couple of years has been our contact with our three lovely “children” and three grandchildren in Forresters Beach, Phillip Island and visiting us in Watto. We can’t wait to see Claire’s new baby!

We do share some activities – there’s a diary always by the phone, and we try to ensure that Bibs has meals, cuddles and walkies every day.  Numerous car trips to Forresters Beach and Melbourne provide some time for contemplation and communication.

 

Robert is still with Foreign Affairs, where there’s always some foreign affair to keep him occupied.  Also engaged with the Jung Soc., General Semantics Soc., Prisoners Aid Soc., Ross’ Jungian discussion group, numerous church roles, creating and maintaining various web sites, Canberra Interfaith Forum garden at Grevillea Park, social justice forums, and intrusion into the lives of family and friends.  And, ah-yes – the family ...

RJ is sometimes irritated by well-wishers enquiring as to “retirement plans”.  He reminds them that the baby Boomers do not like to use the “R-word”; they talk about “lifestyle-transitions”, “sea-changes” and the like ...


 
The new lives in the family are a great delight.  Then there are the real-life concerns over human behaviours on a micro- and macro-scale. 

We’re told by the people who know best, that a 4°C average temperature rise (which is very likely), would result in a great increase in the number of days over 35°C, eg Sydney from 3 (at present) to 9 days, Melbourne from 9 to 21 days and Darwin from 9 to 221.  An average never killed anyone, but this prospect is easy for us to imagine!  Ah well, our Prime Minister has assured us that “Climate change is cr*p” and that there’s nothing to worry about.

 

 

Bibs continues to age gracefully, requiring more medical interventions this year, but still enjoying life, love and laughter as ever.  She has been enlivened by the incursion of various bumbling bambini, which she tolerates quite well, even to the extent of sharing her bed on occasion.  Eventually she takes her leave and retires to her private retreat in the back garden.

Indifferent to the ebb and flow of political conflict and spying scandals, Bibs appears to live on the basis that “The past is history; the future is a mystery, so let’s just live in the present”.

 

~0~
Have a jolly-good Christmas
and another resolution-filled new year. 
We hope to see you all again soon.

~0~

<- Home