6/19/2014 0 Comments Memories and making new ones! We have been in Brisbane a month now and what a time we have been having!
I always expected that being here would be quite momentous for me, and I am happy to say that I am not in any way disappointed! I lived here, you see, back when I was a teenager trying to make sense of a great deal of difficulties in my life. I finished high school and went off to Uni and hoped that if I didn’t think about it any more it would all just fade away. I finished Uni and got a job in Melbourne – hoping that if I put physical distance between my past and my present that I would experience some relief – but of course I didn’t! This is the first time I have spent more than a few days in Brisbane since the day I left – except for in 1986 when I came back to see my mother who was dying – but I spent that week in her hospital room and barely went anywhere else. This visit has been quite cathartic for me. On our first day down here near the Botanic gardens I was able to borrow a car (thanks to Tony and Patricia from Galatea) and trek down to Springwood to see the old house. I had not been back since I left Brisbane in 1981. It was gone. Replaced by a row of sleek looking business type buildings, the only thing remaining that I recalled was the ‘keep left’ sign on the road right out the front. I was glad. The past was gone. The house had at some stage been bulldozed and flattened and with it the last remnants of the horrors that had occurred within its walls. It felt poetic to sit outside and see that the old house had been replaced by a building so different and I enjoyed thinking about how my life had been just the same – the old was gone because of the recovery work I had done and the years of healing – and in its place this new life I am living – healthy, remarried, off exploring the world with Peter and the children! It seemed so appropriate! Catching up with old friends who I knew back then has been another joy. I have loved introducing them to Peter and the kids, and talking about our adventures – Matthew my closest friend at Uni, Judy my dearest, Faye who I adored and who sang at my 21st and came all the way to Melbourne for my wedding, Neil and Penny who always challenged and inspired me and others I have yet to see. One morning we walked over to the University and I had the pleasure of showing Peter and the children around the grounds – pointing out places where important things were spoken of – all outside of lectures of course – out on the lawns where the real learning took place! Best of all is the time we have been able to spend with my sister and her family. We have never been very close before but things have changed and we have had some lovely time together. Last weekend she pulled out a box containing hundreds of our mothers photos and had the best time talking about houses and places that have existed only in my memory for the last 50 years! Being here truly has been momentous! It’s funny being back though – many things are the same – like the Synagogue I attended in my brief dalliance with my grandfather’s Jewish connections, the roads and buildings of my youth, but many, many things are quite different - roads and bridges have sprung up in my absence and places I remember have disappeared completely! Some memories have been renewed, but it’s also been lovely to make new memories here this time around. We have been able to pick up a mooring at the Gardens Point boat harbour where there are pile moorings, stern and bow. We have not used any of the facilities provided, but it’s great to be on a more secure mooring and to be able to come and go and not have to even think about our anchor dragging in our absence! In this location it’s an easy walk into the city – which is great – and shops are very accessible. We have found lots of really good café’s and a place where we can get the best chai tea ever (if you come into Brisbane check it out – the Chai Cart on Edward St). Public transport further afield is easy, with buses trains and ferries all ready to take you wherever you want to go. In the Queen st mall there is a public transport information centre where you can get all the times tables and info you need, right outside the Myer Centre. It is also a very easy walk (or a quick ride by rikshaw!) to Southbank over the Goodwill Bridge, a pedestrian bridge at the end of the Botanic Gardens. Southbank is an area created entirely for recreation and relaxation, with numerous eating areas, a beach, swimming pools, lovely walkways - all free - a huge Ferris wheel (or fairy swirl as Erina used to call them) and so many lovely places to sit and relax. There are markets on each Friday evening, Saturday and Sunday and we have enjoyed these very much. And of course we have spent many lovely afternoons walking through the Botanic Gardens. Liam has even found a basketball court that is available for anyone to use over at Kangaroo Point and has spent many great afternoons over there working on his skills! Over the last week or so Peter has been busily building a sort of extension on the cockpit – an extended roof that will allow us to remain under cover while sailing, a huge bonus for those sudden squalls that seem to sometimes appear out of nowhere, and extra shelter even on sunny days! It’s almost finished and even sitting here on the mooring on a rainy day is more comfortable! On the down side, I became aware of a small medical issue when we were in Coffs Harbour – an anomaly that needed to be monitored. It turns out that I have a small mass on one of my ovaries so we are staying here in Brisbane for a little minute while I wait for a specialist appointment (scheduled for 27th June) where a biopsy will be taken to check its nature. We will know then if surgery is required and at that point decide whether we need to stay here or can continue on further north. Things sometimes happen that change our plans but then that’s the nature of this journey anyway and one things for sure, we will thoroughly enjoy ourselves while waiting!
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September 2017
Our life aboard Argos has been seriously challenged this year with the surprise departure of our skipper. As a writer, diesel mechanics and the complexities of many aspects of Argos’ on-going maintenance are way beyond me! We would like to see Argos continue to sail and eventually hope to use her to offer support, encouragement and a break to people who are struggling in their lives. Any on-going help towards maintaining Argos would be greatly appreciated and enable us to achieve this goal.
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