When living in Bangkok we use to joke about going into hospital with one complaint and coming out with another. Well that’s what happened to me in New Zealand. I went into hospital with a cracked hip bone and came out a month later with a chest infection. Having said that I couldn’t fault…
As we age we have time to look back. Recently a son asked what was my greatest achievement. A hard question to answer and worthy of consideration. Perhaps my greatest achievement was a successful marriage. Some other achievements were:-j) I finished my schooling at the age of 16 without a qualification.…
We are all visitors to this planet. Some of us stay longer than others, but our stay is short. It’s a great pity people get put out to pasture when they are at the peak of their knowledge and work life, and a new crop of youngsters come on to make the same mistakes…
I have turned 98 and realize I haven’t long to live. It comes as a shock but I have had an amazing life. I now have time to take stock and wonder what the future will bring for our grandchildren. The biggest problem with the world today is too many people. Numbers have been…
Once upon a time we had a Soil Bureau for mapping and researching the soils of New Zealand, run by DSIR (Dept. of Science & Industrial Research). It was closed down. Then we had the Soil and Water Division of the Ministry of Works. They had engineers, advisers, and even a nursery for growing…
It’s happened again! Periodically Government Departments get gutted. New political parties when they come into power remove services set up by the previous party in power. Budgets are reduced forcing Departments to disestablish many jobs making many people redundant. Great stress is put on families. “What if I lose my job how…
While working in Samoa some staff from Cornell University organised a Regional Conference on agricultural education. On Thursday Daryle Foster the Director came to me and pleaded with me to give the opening keynote address the following Monday. The Pro Vice-Chancellor said he was too busy to give this address. The conference was…
Having sat through many boring lectures I realised how ineffective they were as a teaching tool. While teaching at the University of the South Pacific I decided to try something different. I put my students into teams based on their country of origin. I reasoned their history has been one of great competition, from…
In 1990 Samoa had been hit by a bad cyclone – Cyclone Ofa. Houses were wrecked, food was short and there was limited water and power. Many foreign people left the country and returned to their home countries. One day a Southerly snowstorm hit Wellington and I was miserably cold. The phone rang and…
Second World War veterans are fast diminishing in numbers. ANZAC day is the time to remember our friends and relatives who died so their family and friends could live a happy and peaceful life. Some history you may not be aware of. Five hundred and eighty NA2s were given basic training on…
Another Handful of Tips 