“Good evening, Officer, can I help you?”
At a time in my life when my kids should have been a constant source of teenage angst, they defied the norm. Rather than loitering around shopping malls after or during school hours and being rebellious when asked by the authorities to ‘move on’, they stepped into the role of responsible adults. Meanwhile, I transitioned […]
The tale of two bastards and a car
There once was a school groundsman whose hobby was fixing cars. Let’s call him Steve (not his real name). I thought he was a nice dude, but he wasn’t. Then there was Murray (not his real name). He lived next- door to me and his hobby was gardening. I never thought he was a nice […]
Twalking in Maroochydore, Sunshine Coast, Queensland
We’ve all done it. But we didn’t know we were doing it. Twalking, the timeless art of merging talk and walk, has been a cherished pastime since time immemorial. But who knew we were twalking? This term sprang to life from the fusion of “talk” and “walk,” coined by a friend of my cousin, Jeanette’s. […]
A Walk in the Park – Westgate Park (Birding by Ear)
Recently an exciting opportunity landed in my lap – an invitation to lead a park sensory walk. As someone who cherishes the tranquillity of park strolls and embraces every chance that comes my way (well, most of them), I eagerly accepted. The focus of this adventure aptly named ‘Birding by Ear” was to learn, listen […]
Gen Alpha’s Tooth Fairy Pay-out: How much are Baby Teeth worth today?
Kieran was so proud of the gap in his mouth. Being the youngest in the class, he was surrounded by a whole bunch of gappy toothed kids. After weeks of obsessively wiggling his first loose tooth, it finally came out on its own bringing him a great sense of accomplishment. $20 for a single tooth? […]
Nannie Memes – third instalment
When words aren’t necessary.
How I discovered my kids are geriatric millennials
Recently the Blindboy Podcast caught my attention. At first, I found the host really disturbing. I thought I was listening to a computer-generated voice – a spooky one. It could’ve been Siri or Alexa’s aging cousin from Ireland. Anyway, I checked Blindboy out on the internet to see if he’s real. Sure, enough he is! […]
When the shack was built ….
I was fourteen when I put away the tools. The year was 1969 when I slammed the hammer down on that last nail head to secure the final floorboard. The shack was built. Two bedrooms – one with a wooden shelf, the height and width of a single bed that was attached to the four […]
Challenge 89 – the three metre diving board
“I bet you can’t do that Mum”. Those words ring in my ears as I multi-task at the local pool. I’m wondering what happened to the three-meter diving board as I’m about to jump in the bright blue water. Summer is here and there’s a lot of activity going on in the pool. Swimming, splashing, […]
So you went to hospital for back pain
‘So you went to hospital for back pain’, he said in a condescending voice. Sentence. Not question. I knew he was annoyed as soon as he opened his mouth because he hadn’t fixed my damn back. That was the response from my physiotherapist after six weeks of excruciating, relentless back pain. During that time, I […]