On the 10th May I turned 99. Recently a head nurse asked me the secret of my old age. My answer was a good wife. Looking back now I can see some of the highlights of my life – they have been like stepping stones for an amazing career. I have worked…
I spent about a year writing my last book, it is titled “Sticking Around”. It’s all about being an avid collector of walking sticks and canes, and some of the people I met on the way. I have over 140 sticks and canes in my collection. This book was beautifully designed by Milton…
In 1940 my father was transferred from Hastings to Hawera in South Taranaki to become the manager of the Post Office Saving Bank and the local Customs Agent. We had no accommodation at the start. For many months we lived in an old, musty smelling boarding house, while a new State House was…
This story starts at the beginning of the 2nd World War in 1942 when a Japanese spy plane flew over Wellington on the 8th March. It is a story about my relations with the wild Waimarino. On the top of the Tinakori Hill in Wellington were large radio masts handling the traffic for…
My favourite holiday spot is Stewart Island, our third Island, also called Rakiura (Glowing Skies). I have had about eight holidays on the Island. My first holiday was when my parents rented a crib, I even went there on my honeymoon. On a recent visit I got up early and was eating some…
Five generations of my family have walked to work down the Wadestown hill. As the sun rises the view of the harbour is magnificent. The walk was a great place to meet interesting people. One day I met Sid Granger only to find out we had both served on the same…
In the good old days when we had a Department of Agriculture, we had large marquees, half the size of a circus tent. We had one for the North Island, and another for the South Island. At each Agricultural & Pastoral (A&P) show we would erect this tent and fill it with displays…
Over the years I have dined, or stayed at some very special hotels. For example Claridges in London, the Oriental in Bangkok, the Grand Hotel in Taipei, and Raffles in Singapore. I had dinner at Claridges during food rationing, when I was verbally reporting on my visit to the Governor of the Officer Training…
It all started with a letter. I had worked for the Department of Agriculture in New Zealand for 39 years and I was fast facing my retirement age but a letter from Dr John Woods changed all that. He asked me if I would come to Bangkok to fill a senior United Nations…
I started school on 3 February in 1931. 275 people were killed that day. The school was Mahora, the town was Hastings. It was the day of one of New Zealand’s deadliest earthquakes. The women and children were evacuated. All the men had to stay to look for bodies, and to help clean up…
My father was very proud of our first car, a Ford New Beauty. We called it ‘Airtight Annie’. We had friends, the Lincolns who had a car they called ‘Windy Wendy’. The two cars often went on picnics together. It took two people to start our car. One to crank it up to…
When I started working in Wellington in 1944 eating houses were rare. You could count them on one hand. Today the city is cluttered with them. Exotic foods are common place and whatever you fancy is available. In the forties the meals were largely soup, roast meat, and a pudding – usually with custard. There…
Today people take computers and cell phones for granted. If only I had such tools when I was younger it would have made my life so much easier. I often went overseas to carry out audits, or to collect information to prepare a report. Some were for lengthy periods, up to three months. …
RADIOS Radios have played a major role in world history. When I was a lad they were rare. We had one of the first long-range radio sets in Hawkes Bay. Uncle Len Beasley was building sets with another man in a garage in Wellington. They started a company called AWA. The…
Before the days of television most suburbs and small towns had a picture theatre, we kids called them the ‘Flicks’. At the beginning of a ‘Flick’ we had to stand for God Save the King (or Queen in later years). Then the latest news reels or propaganda reels would play, reminding us of the fights…
Another Handful of Tips 