Changing plans and making the most of it

My birthday, had planned to celebrate in style, trip to Hobart to see MONA, booked classy accommodation on wharf, planning luxury trip.  But, 6.30am on way to airport, text from Jetstar difficult phone call with one of those generated message, I am sorry was that yes or no?  In the end it was for heavens sake just put us on to a person!  Told flight cancelled, could get us on to another at 7.40pm - but we were only going overnight, so cancelled with promise to refund.

So, was with my mate Annie, decided to have a coffee (and a glass of sparkling) while we pondered our dilemma - what to do?  Went through several options, but in the end decided on a road trip to visit my childhood home in Tallangatta which I had not seen for a long time.  With a feeling of freedom and a little bit of 'aren't we daring' headed off down the Hume Highway.  It was pouring rain, that type of rain where you slow down on the freeway because you can't see far ahead.  Were we mad? Probably!  But by Seymour the rain had stopped and the sun was out, that beautiful, after a storm type light, illuminated everything so clearly.

First stop was a winery that we used to stop at on our many many trips up to Falls Creek.  Fowles near Avenel.  Discovered it was the home of one of my favourite wines 'Ladies Who Shoot Their Lunch' and a young woman who was so delightful and charming, had a bit of a natter, tasted a few wines including the Riesling which compared favourably to my other favourite Delatite Riesling.  So very happy chappies we were!

Then onto Beechworth where we stopped at the renowned Beechworth Bakery for our lunch and I had the most delicious pie I have had in years.  I want to go back just to have another one.  I am not usually a pie eater, but this was chicken and leek and luscious.  Wandered around the town and reminisced about the family reunion Mum had organised more than 20 years ago, where over 300 members of the Mann family attended.  It was so good to be reminded of that event, the way Emily helped organise and Em and Bec and their respective boyfriends joined in to learn the 'old time' dancing that we did. Mum's uncontainable excitement and pleasure at having so many members of her extended family attend and the efforts we all put in to make it a success.

On the way out of Beechworth saw a sign to Woolshed Falls, the sun was shining and there was a light rainfall, so we decided to detour to the Falls.  They are beautiful, and sitting in the sun with such a light rain falling was just magical.  Isn't it fascinating how flowing water, whether it's the sea or rivers and waterfalls, just has a most calming effect.

Next stop on the trip was Yackandandah, where we wandered through the town, I tried to find my friends place without any luck, so we wound our through Tangambalanga to the Kiewa Highway and finally found the old town of Tallangatta. The town was moved in the 50s while I was living there, to allow for the building of the Hume Weir and my childhood memories are of houses being put up on trucks and moved out of the town. One of the houses we lived in while we were there was up on the hill, in the area that we used to refer to as Toorak. So that house is still standing and we crossed over the bridge up to where I thought the house was.


 First thing I saw was the old bus stop, where I have memories of waiting for the school bus with my brothers and the 4 or 5 other kids who lived up there.  I have very few memories of my childhood, I think because we moved a lot from house to house, by the time we moved to Melbourne when I was about 12, I had lived in 4 towns and at least 6 houses.  But seeing the bus stop, the old butter factory, the road where the old hospital was where they kept shetland ponies who I remember being quite vicious, the farm out the back where we went mushrooming and the old farm across the road where the Kirk's farm was, took me right back there.

the old bus stop, so lovely to see it referred to as Toorak and have my memories confirmed
 

The house where we lived, the room with all the windows was mine, helped me understand why I love to have open windows in my bedroom and find it quite stifling to be in a room with only small windows.
 

We found the old house quite easily, I wanted to ask if I could see inside but was put off by a dog barking loudly and loud music with someone yelling at the dog to be quiet, so we hit the road again.  Headed to Mt Beauty to see if the Yurt place was still there to stay overnight.  It wasn't, but we headed for some apartments that are up on the hill on the road to Falls Creek.  The first response was that they are only available for two nights but when we told our sob story about the plan to fly to Hobart etc, they relented and let us stay in one of the apartments.  We bought a couple of bottles of sparkling and got out onto the balcony just in time for the sunset.

The bonus was that the balcony had a hot tub, and there was another in the bathroom with a huge window looking out at the night sky.  After opening the Dal Zotto Prosecco, toasting my birthday (again) and marvelling at the sunset we made a dash to the supermarket.  Then Annie cooked up a feast of Salmon, Broccolini and little tomatoes, washed down with more Prosecco and some of the Ladies Who Shoot Their Lunch Riesling and eaten out on the balcony overlooking the lights of Mt Beauty.  A long soak in the hot tub under the stars and it was the end of a perfect day.  So a forced change of plans actually gave rise to what was probably the best way to celebrate the birthday.

In the morning we headed home via Bright, where it was Annie's turn to reminisce about family holidays, diving from the (not really very high) diving board into the Ovens River and camping at the home of a family friend.  We both remember the days when our dads would head to the pub,  us kids would get a raspberry lemonade if we were lucky but otherwise would play around somewhere while waiting.  Stopped at Brown's winery for lunch and stocked up on the bulk port for our port barrel.  It's not on the list but if you ask you can get 10 litres in a box.

I was reminded how beautiful Victoria is and of the joys of road trips.  We travelled around 800 kilometres in the two days and through beautiful country, it was nostalgic and beautiful, the one thing I missed was that view that we used to get from Pretty Sally of Melbourne spread out before us, that has been taken away with the advent of the freeway where the road was diverted or lowered or something but you don't get that breathtaking view where the city appears in front of you.  But it was a great trip with good food, good wine and good memories.  Now refreshed and ready to face the madness that this Government continues to wreak.

The drink you need after 4 children have an overnight stay.

It's 12.00 midday and I have just sat out on the deck at my beach hideaway and finished off a very nice glass of Delatite Riesling while playing Gurrumul's second cd (thanks to Annie).  Yes it's one way of surviving Abbott and his cronies but there is more.  While it sounds a bit degenerate, however let me put it into perspective.  I am old enough to have a seniors card.  I have two grandchildren and two step grandchildren and contact with lots of others through my partner who has 9 grandchildren and 5 grands.  So I am used to having kids around and having them stay with me.

Last night I had 4 ranging from 3 to 12.  Children who I am related to but not any of the grands.  Children whose parents love them I know, but struggle to show them that love or to provide them the care that all the grands in my life take for granted.  They struggle to do simple things like have all their books and uniforms for them when they start school for the year, and in the case of one when she starts high school for the first time.

They are basically delightful kids who mostly have a reasonably positive outlook on life and cope very well with all the slings and arrows that life throws at them.  And these 4 and their big brother have had lots of them over the years.  But there were four of them, with me, overnight.  I am used to having kids where I say it's bedtime in half an hour, and they say fine.  I am used to having kids where I read them a story at bedtime and they fall asleep during the first chapter. 

The slings and arrows they have all dealt with over their short lives have had an impact.  For one the anger that she feels is always just below the surface, ready to bubble up.  For another, the ups and downs just in the last six weeks have meant she is all over the place.  Interestingly it is the girls who let their emotions show while the boys seem to hold it inside.  Let me restate they are delightful kids, I love each one with their own funny ways, even the one who is contantly saying 'it's not fair' or 'I hate you (to her sister), I wish you were dead.....'  Such raw emotion that comes to the surface.  Such misplaced anger!

They love devices, give them access to facebook or instagram or Minecraft and they will be quiet for hours.  But I feel uncomfortable about allowing an 8 or 10 year old to spend a lot of time on Facebook and hey Facebook, what is this rubbish about only providing accounts for those over 13 - what checking do you do?  How do you cope with a 12 year old writing on her facebook account that someone is a cunt?  Then when I challenge it explaining so sweetly that she didn't write it, she was just reposting what someone else wrote.

And the juxtaposition when I force them to turn off the screens and play outside and they climb the trees or swing on the slightly too high, slightly dangerous rubber tyre swing with such happy abandon.  They have an amazing social life, all of them have friends who they spend nights with, go to the beach with, have a good time with.  None of them could be described as socially isolated. Of course for the older ones it's all a bit fraught re who is their best friend, boy friend, girlfriend etc. 

As I said their parents love them I am sure, but they struggle to be the parents I know they want to be. At the moment they live with their Dad who does his best as the parent of 5 children who are constantly in his care.  So back to me. That's why I had 4 of them for the night.  I respect so much what he is trying to do, he is the one who gives them some security and gives them a roof over their heads. 

But my goodness it is hard.  I only had 4.  Four children whose pattern of behaviour is so different to what I am used to.  Four children who have not known the security of always having a roof over their heads, food for their bellies, books and uniforms for the beginning of the school year and knowing if there is a school camp or excursion they will be able to go on it.   I wonder how that can happen in this community where we all feel so self righteous about having such a good lifestyle that others risk their lives in order to join it.  I wonder how we, as a community, can rest at night knowing how hard it is to put the safeguards in place to ensure that all children have the basics in life and access to a good education that does not depend on their parents using the money they get wisely enough to provide them with shelter, food, school uniforms, lunches and books. 

How can Christopher Pyne talk about any level of equity in education when we have so many kids who start off behind the 8 ball?  How can he talk about funding schools to become independent when we have schools that are in the lowest socio economic areas where, the year 7 coordinator says to me that my grandniece will not be alone in not having her books in the third week of the school year?  How reasonable is to expect that parents will be able to find $800 or more for each child, just to support their children being able to participate in the classroom, never mind the addons of excursions and extra curricular activities?

And so I am reduced to drinking Riesling (very nice I would reccommend it) on the deck and using Gurrumul, who himself has had a few slings and arrows to deal with, to transport me to to a place of serenity and peace.  I want everyone to have that ability to be able to find what they need to transport themselves to that place.  I want everyone to know that feeling of security of having a place to live, to have not just the money but the motivation and the wherewithal to be able to provide themselves and their children with that safe place.  Until then I will finish my Riesling (may even have a second glass) and get to work cleaning up the detritus that 4 children can leave in their wake.