Tuesday, March 18, 2025

 Oh how time flies, ten years have passed
with many changes in my life.

Moved home. Sold our Ritchie Ave home of 21 squares to a couple from NSW, and bought a home in Whitford Street, Upper Burnie. Close to a Supermarket, Post Office/news agency, Hotel-Motel, Bottle shop, Cafe/bakery, Butcher, and a Baker's shop. 

I had a good friend and tormentor who lived at Shearwater, this gentleman Geoff Quinn has since passed away, but he was a musician who played a twelve-string bass guitar alongside, Graham Best around the pubs and clubs of Tasmania. Besides playing and singing, he was capable of producing poems some of which I will post.

The first was a tribute he paid me, and one I'll never forget.

JUST ONE OF MY MATES

I’ve met a lot of fellows in the years I’ve knocked around

And as you’ve often heard – ‘It takes all kinds’

The doers and the thinkers, teetotalers and the drinkers,

And those lazy bastards on their fat behinds.

I’ve seen them all from time to time, in every walk of life

The good ones and the bad, and those between

Some rogues you wouldn’t trust alone with anybody’s wife

And others that you know are just plain mean.

Some you’d call acquaintances, yet others may be friends

And then there’s those you simply love to hate,

And maybe if you’re lucky - just every now and then,

You’ll run across a bloke that you’ll call mate.

It’s such a bloke I write about - a chap I met one day

Whilst waiting in a car-park for my crew

He was working for the other mob, but wandered up to say

He thought a change in sides was overdue.

And so this friendship started - two strangers there at dawn

Not knowing much, but ever keen to learn

About the other’s point of view - the place where we were born -

The worldly woes for which we shared concerns?

Although a bit my senior, and well past the age to quit,

He works as hard as any man I’ve seen

And although his hair has slipped a bit, he’s definitely as fit

As some I’ve met - still growing - in their teens!

Not content to work each day just mending soles and heels

He still enjoys the challenge, in his trade.

A fitter summoned forth to check the paper-making reels,

Or fix some broken thing that someone made.

And when he’s got a minute free, he’s often found ‘on line’

Or seeking of some help from ‘Ma’am Wabbit’

He does his best to help them all, donating of his time

But for getting in the way - he’s got a habit.

He’s been a hoofer, trod the boards, and raced a car or two,

He’s volunteered his time for those in need

A tourist guide, an editor - that’s just to name a few

For this ‘old chap’ it’s giving that’s the creed.

His point of view is legendary, no ‘B…S…” will he stand,

It’s either black or else it’s very white,

He challenges the ones who dare to threaten our great land

And spreads the word on what he knows is right.

He’s often keen to have his say, but listens just as well

And there’s little doubt for whom he casts his vote

He’s a walking contradiction, but for those who know him well

There’s no one who can match this grey “Old Goat”

 “Troubador” alias Geoff J Quinn (Copyright) 25th February 2008

When one travels over a familiar road day after day you tend not to notice what is around you apart from the other silly people who like yourself drive tin missiles. However our “Troubadour” this day saw something that stuck in his mind till he got to his office, and then the words started pouring forth.

 

(John Medwin “The Old Goat”)

 

THE PERFECT CROP

 

I’d watched them planting plastic bags – in paddocks, row by row

And I’d travelled past them every day, but never seen them grow

And so I took a closer look, before the bags were tattered

And found out that it’s what’s inside, and not the bag that mattered.

 

Within each bit of plastic tube stood three short bits of wood

Each piece just like the other bits – cut square and firmly stood

And that is when it hit me like “a bolt out of the blue”

This bloke had planted tooth-picks, and from these the stakes had grew.

 

I wondered at the value of a crop of wooden stakes

Too short to make a handle for your average garden rake

But when I quizzed the farmer on the reason for his crop

He gazed at me suspiciously – just like I was a cop.

 

“See here young man” he said to me, “I’ve searched both far and wide

To find a crop that I could grow – and market well, with pride.

Not something that’s illegal, or a plant that’s hard to grow

But something nice and easy that returns a bit of dough.

 

So first I checked the markets out, to see what was in need

And then I split a match in three – that’s where I got my seed.

I stuck the splinters in a pot and watered them each day

With loving care I tended them – my crop was under way.

 

The first year all I got was sticks – they went to light the fire

But then they really got away and each week grew much higher.

The second year I thinned them out – you’ve got to do things proper

And quite a few I used myself – the rest I sold as droppers.

 

The third year really set me up – a quite amazing crop

And David Foster bought a heap – you’ve seen the blocks he chops!

The rest I sold as straining posts, a good six feet in length

And every one who used them praised their even size and strength.

 

But that’s not what I’m on about – I’ve yet to reach my goal

And grow the crop I really want – the perfect Hydro pole

But this year’s crop is looking good – in fact it’s quite fantastic

And that is why I’ve wrapped it up in these odd bits of plastic”.

 

So now you’ll know what’s going on when next you see a crop

Of plastic bags, and just like me, I hope that you will stop

And ask the farmer for a clue – if you should be that bold,

And just like me, I’ll guarantee – I bet that you’ll get told !!

 

© Copyright - Geoff Quinn 2003 All rights reserved

When I received this from Geoff, I chided him over it and made a silly comment “Next you will write up a yarn about a packed of corn flakes.”

A few hours later “Ode to a Packet of Cornflakes” appeared Geoff met the challenge head on. That was some job he had and held to the bitter end.

Ode to a Packet of Cornflakes

 It’s not because I like them much or relish their soft crunch I seldom break my fast on them, nor dine on them for lunch. But sometimes later in the day – like after tea - at night I grab a bowl at supper-time – that’s when they taste just right.

 

The cardboard box sits hidden on the pantry cupboard shelf Behind a bag of wheaten flour, that raises by itself Beside a jar of honey and above some tins of fish It sits there waiting patiently, to grant my every wish.

 

No fancy tub or well-worn tin contains these magic flakes A plastic bag inside a box is really all it takes Provided that the bag is sealed, quite tightly – with a peg They’ll keep for weeks quite happily, until you reach the dregs.

 

And when the time is right for me – the craving’s at its height I open up the cupboard door and turn on kitchen lights. I then retrieve an old soup bowl and spoon from out the drawer And pour the little blighters in – that don’t fall on the floor!

 

Next I add some sugar – not too much but just enough Then shake the bowl to hide it, so the cook won’t see the stuff A pint of milk in which they’ll swim is followed by some cream Then half a sliced banana – a snack on which to dream.

 

The milk is cold, the creams divine, the little flakes all crunch A supper fit for royalty on which I’ll slowly munch Then toddle slowly off to bed - my appetite well sated As happy as a pig could be – in fact you’d say “Elated”

 

And all because a crop of corn was rolled out flat and thin By Mr. Kellogg and his mates, before he packed them in A cardboard box with writing on – an oversize big K As nice to eat at supper-time as at the break of day.

 

©Geoff Quinn 14.1.2008

 Then a health decline, two wonky knees, and hips, and a trick back that has returned due to the loss of support from the muscles around the lower spine. The end result was two serious falls that landed me in the Hospital for several days each. The first visit was to determine why I was having them. Lose weight, and control fluid intake they said. I never have had a big fluid intake, but I was limited to 1.5 litres a day. The trouble is and was, that anything that was liquified was included ie., ice cream, custard, soup etc. Medications? OMG! Morning, noon, and night, but hey, if I can get out of bed in the mornings, it will be another day I have cheated the Grim Reaper. I joined a Men's Coffee Group I think in 2015. These guys came from all sorts of backgrounds, professions, and employment. It has a Christian base, but no one is turned away if they wish to join us on a Wednesday morning. No one is judgemental of each other, and the banter and humour are unbelievable. The only way we lose members is by dying or moving away from the Wynyard - Burnie area.

At eighty-five I handed my driver's license in due to the loss of sensation in my feet and transferred my mobility to a mobility scooter, regaining a modicum of independence to do my own thing when needed, or required. In seven months, I clocked up 376 km and is one of 18 that get around Burnie and the suburbs. Apart from that a walker and walking sticks are the order of the day.

To see that I could actually get around safely around the CBD of a town or city, I fitted a hanger for a stroller/walker to the back of the scooter. With winter approaching, the amount of use may be impeded as I don't have the advantage of being able to keep the weather off myself. Just give me a fine day, and out I'll go somewhere.

I must say a huge thank you to Ray Parry who collects me on wet days to go to the men's coffee group meeting, also to out-of-town venues in Wynyard and Penguin.

Saturday, May 30, 2015

Reminders ot times past

Oh boy, I had all but forgotten this blog page and its a few years ago when I was last here. Social media became the flavour of the month and brought to light a number of people who I have had no contact with for up to forty years in some cases.

Oh the usual nonsense goes on with those around me. Fun and games, and you never know who is going to pop up and from where. then the stories really start coming out. I have been accused of stirring grey matter between ears because I mentioned events that happened decades ago.

One case in point was a bomb blast at the Hotel Tasmania a week after a group that I was with attended a cabaret there with Liv Maessen as the guest  vocalist. I was told that she was there the night when the bomb exploded outside the Hotel. It certainly sent a parking meter through the window of the Chinese Restaurant next door.
Live Maessen you can see her biography on Wikipedia, but there is more to her story than is available there. She was one of Australia's darlings who rose to stardom during the period when radio stations banned playing pop records from overseas. This led to a number of Australians making their names during that period.
Maessen just faded from view and littler nothing has been heard of her since. She had a distinctive silky contralto voice that raised goose bumps on you and we had the pleasure of her company between her onstage performances that night.
For a few of her songs click on the links below. Hopefully all will work.
 https://www.youtube.com/watch…
https://www.youtube.com/watch…
https://www.youtube.com/watch…
https://www.youtube.com/watch…
https://www.youtube.com/watch…
Poetry also produced a plethora of comments from some of the most unexpected places. Friends in New Mexico commented, then their friends hoped on the wagon. The poems I threw up from School days included.
The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. Inch Cape Rock, Sands of Dee, The Lady of Shallot, The Man from Snowy River, Clancy of the overflow, The Ride of Paul Revere (based of American history), then out of all of this a poem about early American Base ball.

In the meantime I still operate as a tourism information officer with the Burnie Information Centre at the Makers' Workshop which has now passed into the hands of the University of Tasmania. So there we are in the middle of a seat of learning like a "Pimple on a pumpkin." or a "Shag on a Rock". not sure that we will be there all that long. I can see the University edging us out the door at some stage.

So there we have it. For better or worse still on deck and smiling.

Monday, February 27, 2012

"Easy Rider" an older man's fantasy?

What a beaut piece of machinery!


When I think about all the VW's that passed through my hands and garage at home back in the 1970's, the more I think about it, the more I now realise that I wasted a lot of resources like body parts.


A few years ago while holidaying in Victoria we went to some little town north west of melbourne to a Sunday market when a trike rolled in and parked. It was almost identical to the one pictured. The gentleman that owned it explained that he had built it himself using the inside shell of a VW Beetle rear half of the body. Additionally, the engine, transmission, and suspension incorporating part of the floor pan up to where the gear lever and hand brake were usually mounted. From there on it was up to the owners discretion as to the mounting of the front fork assembly to steer the completed vehicle.


The one above has a big bore motor, I believe to be close to 2000cc with electronic ignition and fuel injection. The exhaust system is what I know as from years ago as Dual Cannon, ie, two sets of extractors, one for each bank of cylinders on the flat four cylinder motor. Boy, does that engine sound healthy.


The rear seating will accommodate three passengers in comfort and cruise all day at a reasonable speed up to 110kph, but then who wants to tear around with one of these. Slow and easy and you would still arrive safely belted in.


One thing that has changed in latter years is the requirement now to hold a motor cycle license. Previously, a normal car license was all that was required, but that was a bit of lost revenue for the government, and the cost of obtaining a motor cycle license is away out of this old goat's range anyway. Then the additional cost of helmets, and the trike as well.


DAMN! IT WILL NEVER HAPPEN, BUT AT LEAST I CAN DREAM.


I normally don't promote people's business ventures, but in this case I'll make an exception. The owner Tom Stafford is obviously at the helm, and his partner Leanne is the lady on the left of the image. Who the other two people are, well they may well be other passengers belonging to other trikes from around the North West of Tasmania.


These tours are now a feature of the Cruise Ship season here in Burnie and are slowly being accepted as a part of the "scenery".


For those of you who after reading this blog page feel inclined towards a wind and sun in your face, have suitable clothing like slacks or jeans for the ladies, as dresses and skirts are a liability or distraction to on coming traffic, helmets are supplied by the owner.

Tour contact details as follows.
After hours. (03) 6425 3119.
Mobile: 0428 504 794
Tour email: deviltrikes@gmail.com
Address; 78 Gawler Road, Ulverstone, Tasmania. 7315

What's on offer: Tamar River Winery tours, Tours of the wild North West Coastline, Tarkine Aventres and Coastal Cruises.
Arrive in style to your Wedding, Birthday, or Leavers function.

Devil Trike Tours can cater to just about any event on your social or event calendar.

Friday, February 10, 2012

Just what is happening to our beloved country?

Poems come and go, then another one arrives on the scene that makes you sit back and wonder. Dorathea Mackeller wrote the classis Australian Poem "My Country" aka "A sunburnt Country". The shame of it is that our children of today have never heard of it, or if they have, they have paid scant regard to the meaning of it.
This then brings the second Poem below "A sun Burnt Country" and spells out what is happening right under our noses. Read it and then consider where we are today and what you are going to do about it.

"My Country"
byDorothea Mackellar(1885 - 1968)

The love of field and coppice,
Of green and shaded lanes.
Of ordered woods and gardens
Is running in your veins,
Strong love of grey-blue distance
Brown streams and soft dim skies
I know but cannot share it,
My love is otherwise.

I love a sunburnt country,
A land of sweeping plains,
Of ragged mountain ranges,
Of droughts and flooding rains.
I love her far horizons,
I love her jewel-sea,
Her beauty and her terror -
The wide brown land for me!

A stark white ring-barked forest
All tragic to the moon,
The sapphire-misted mountains,
The hot gold hush of noon.
Green tangle of the brushes,
Where lithe lianas coil,
And orchids deck the tree-tops
And ferns the warm dark soil.

Core of my heart, my country!
Her pitiless blue sky,
When sick at heart, around us,
We see the cattle die-
But then the grey clouds gather,
And we can bless againThe drumming of an army,
The steady, soaking rain.

Core of my heart, my country!
Land of the Rainbow Gold,
For flood and fire and famine,
She pays us back threefold-
Over the thirsty paddocks,
Watch, after many days,
The filmy veil of greenness
That thickens as we gaze.

An opal-hearted country,
A wilful, lavish land-
All you who have not loved her,
You will not understand-
Though earth holds many splendours,
Wherever I may die,
I know to what brown country
My homing thoughts will fly.

Dorothea Mackeller



MOVE OVER DOROTHEA MACKELLAR.

When the shearing sheds are silent and the stock camps fallen quiet
When the gidgee coals no longer glow across the outback night
And the bush is forced to hang a sign, 'gone broke and won't be back'
And spirits fear to find a way beyond the beaten track

When harvesters stand derelict upon the wind swept plains
And brave hearts pin their hopes no more on chance of loving rains
When a hundred outback settlements are ghost towns overnight
When we've lost the drive and heart we had to once more see us right

When 'Pioneer' means a stereo and 'Digger' some backhoe
And the 'Outback' is behind the house, there's nowhere else to go
And 'Anzac' is a biscuit brand and probably foreign owned
And education really means brainwashed and neatly cloned

When you have to bake a loaf of bread to make a decent crust
And our heritage once enshrined in gold is crumbling to dust
And old folk pay their camping fees on land for which they fought
And fishing is a great escape; this is until you're caught

When you see our kids with yankee caps and resentment in their eyes
And the soaring crime and hopeless hearts is no longer a surprise
When the name of RM Williams is a yuppie clothing brand
Not a product of our heritage that grew off our land

When offering a hand makes people think you'll amputate
And two dogs meeting in the street is what you call a 'Mate'
When 'Political Correctness' has replaced all common sense
When you're forced to see it their way, there's no sitting on the fence

Yes one day you might find yourself an outcast in this land
Perhaps your heart will tell you then, I should have made a stand'
Just go and ask the farmers that should remove all doubt
Then join the swelling ranks who say, don't sell Australia out'

Author unknown


Now we have to sit and wait for the 2013 Australian Federal elections to take place. We still have a Labor Govenment led by a left wing supported Prime Minister who has been labelled by the electorate as not "being their choice" of prime minister.
I honestly can't say that this government will be re-elected in 2013. But who has the opposition Liberals got to offer as a viable choice for Prime Minister? They are thin on the top to say the least.
This comment posted: 11:35 AEST, 28th February, 2012

Sunday, February 5, 2012

The joys of Meet and Greet

It has been quite sometime since I added to this page or pages and I decided that after the second chance meeting with a fellow Lions Club member from a Cruise ship that arrived here in Burnie this morning, I should make comment.
Thank you to Lion President Brendan Doyle from West Kirby, Wirral, United Kingdom for asking the question in the Makers' Workshop this morning and finding me on site. We had less than five minutes conversation, but it was long enough to swap business cards and email addresses.
When I arrived home I was determined to find out just where Lion Brendan and his good lady actually lived. West Kirby is a peninsular that is on the south side of the River Dee and so close to the border of Wales, its not funny. The River Dee reminded me of a poem that I learnt as a school boy a few years ago titled "The Sands of Dee" by Charles Kingsley. Oh Mary, go call the cattle home . . . . . . . . . across the sands of Dee."
So one could say that yet another friendship has presented itself that hopefully will be on going.
Bon Voyage Brendan and Margaret, and a safe return to your home in West Kirby.
Lion John C Medwin. City of Burnie Lions Club, District 201T1 Australia.


The Sands of Dee
Charles Kingsley. 1819–1875

'O MARY, go and call the cattle home,
And call the cattle home,
And call the cattle home,
Across the sands of Dee.'

The western wind was wild and dark with foam,
And all alone went she.
The western tide crept up along the sand,
And o'er and o'er the sand,

And round and round the sand,
As far as eye could see.
The rolling mist came down and hid the land:
And never home came she.

'O is it weed, or fish, or floating hair—
A tress of golden hair,
A drownèd maiden's hair,
Above the nets at sea?'

Was never salmon yet that shone so fair
Among the stakes of Dee.
They row'd her in across the rolling foam,
The cruel crawling foam,
The cruel hungry foam,
To her grave beside the sea.
But still the boatmen hear her call the cattle home,
Across the sands of Dee.

Just for Jennifer.

Saturday, December 18, 2010

How to overcome a health issue



Angina Pectoris



No matter how healthy we think we are, there is always something lurking around the corner waiting to pounce. When I stop to think about what happened to me I realised that this wasn't me just getting older, this was a progressive thing that had been sneaking up on me for at least three years, possibly more and I just got used to it.




Angioplasty: The proceedure.



A thin soft tube called a catherter is used for cardiac catherterization and angioplasty proceedures. The doctor inserts the catherter into a blood vessel in the groin as per the image, wrist, or above the elbow. The doctor carefully guides the catherter through the blood vessels into the corany arteries of the heart all the while using an X-Ray screen to watch the movement of the catherter in the blood vessels. The catherter in my case carried a collapsed stent which had a balloon inside of it. When in the correct position it was inflated to lock each of the stents in place. The ballon is then deflated and the catherter withdrawn from the blood vessel. Pressure is then applies to the blood vessel openning to seal it. After a period of time this is removed usually from four to six hours dependant on the entry point. The high light of the recovery process is the need to consume a minimum of two litres of water to flush the radioisotopes from the kidneys all within two hours. Think about it, and what happens when the need to pass water while on the broad of your back. I have to admit it was the cause of a lot of humour in the recovery ward at the time and unable to hold your own.



Now honestly, who needs enemies when you "friends" like this.




August this year didn't bode well for your's truly. You have a birthday with a difference, one I don't want a repeat of, caught on a wet miserable afternoon rushing to get to the car at the other end of town in pouring rain, sudden chest pain and shortness of breath. Traffic lights RED! Soaked to the skin and still at least 150metres to go across an intersection then helter-skelter for the car park. The pain still persisted and out of breath so another stop in the hope it would pass.


Eventually I reached the car and found that my mobile phone was at home and I needed help. All I could do was sit and wait in the hope that what ever the problem was would pass though temporarily so I could get home.


When I eventually arrived home, Joan took one look at me and asked the obvious question. "Are you alright?" after a few moments she was convinced I needed a Dr. and ASAP. Now have you ever tried to see a Doctor at a minutes notice? It just doesn't happen. First it was a 14 day wait, then it was the following Wednesday. Not good enough. The next morning our youngest daughter hit the phone and I had an appointment that afternoon, so the wheels started turning.


X-Rays, ECG's, EKG's, blood tests, Consultant Physician, stress test, and finally off to the Launceston General Hostiptal Cath-Lab for an Angiogram, then a second stress test, hence the cartoon making its appearance. (Thanks Davo.) It was one stress test I never want to be repeated as I thought I was a gonner. Three minutes thirty seconds after starting I was flat on the floor and requiring revival. Diagnosed with Angina Pectoris. A better result than a heart attack, the heart had suffered no damage so I was lucky. I must say that it was the most uncomfortable 125km trip home I have ever experienced.


Within days I was back for the Angioplasty ( insertion of stents ) for two 98% blocked arteries via incissions in the wrist, a departure from entry via the groin which I had been prepped for twice and wasn't required. (I think the nurses were just getting in some practice at my expense.) The recovery time being at least two hours less, and certainly much less trauma involved, and certainly bruising wasn't an issue.




At this point I want to make it clear to those who may have to follow me down this path. It is no big deal for either the angiogram, or the resulting angioplasty. You are fully conscious with only a local anaesthetic administerd, a small prick at any of the entry points. There is no sensation of the catherter passing through the blood vessels as there are no nerve recepters attached to them. What you may have afterwards is a sensation that there is something foreign in the chest cavity, you will soon ingore that as a part of life.


So here I was barely able to crawl into the Day Surgery admissions at 0830hrs, and by 1645hrs litterally ran out of the hospital like a startled gazelle.


When I think back on it, my father had the same problem in 1970. He was stuck with taking angernine tablets under his tongue plus assorted medication. This sort of cardiac intervention wasn't considered an option forty years ago. He managed to survive a further twelve years putting up with the discomfort if he over exerted himself and that was all too often.



So what is the message in all of this.



(1) If you find yourself in a similar situation, get an ambulance pronto. I was lucky, some one else may not be. Dial 000, (Australia wide) immediately, or your countries emergency number.


(2) Always involve your partner when visiting the doctor of consultants. Two pair of ears are better than one and means that if one missed a point the other picked it up.


(3) Accept good advice from your doctor, consultant physician, and cardiac specialists. It may not be what you want to hear, but you are a long time dead if you don't.


(4) Don't be afraid to share your experiences with others, you may just save their lives and above all be supportive, as you had been by others before your treatment.







I could mention so many names of the doctors, nurses, and people who offered valuable advice, and support, in the weeks and days prior to entry to hospital. To them goes my heart felt thanks.






God bless you all.


Saturday, December 11, 2010

Bet you never knew this.

PENGUINS:

Did you ever wonder why there are never any dead penguins on the ice cap in Antartica - where do they go?

It is a known fact that the penguin is a very ritualistic bird that lives an extremely ordered and complex life. The penguin is very committed to its family and will mate for life, as well as maintaining a form of compassionate contact with its offspring throughout its life. If a penguin is found dead on the ice surface other members of the family and social circle have been known to dig holes in the ice cap, using their vestigial wings and beaks, until the hole is deep enough to be rolled into and buried. The male penguins then gather in a circle and "sing".





"Freeze a jolly good fellow!"

"Freeze a jolly good fellow!"

Then they kick him in the ice hole.

You really didn't believe that I knew anything about penguins, did you?

Now you never let the truth stand in the way of a good story I say.

Its so easy to fool young, and old people alike.