Pom in Oz

"If it's not one thing it's another"

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 00:50:00 GMT

Beaut. day today mate........................... Woke up late, and got to work half hour late. During the morning there wasn't a breath of wind and the temperature gradually reached 26 degrees. Everyone that passed me at the factory was saying the same thing, "To nice outside to be in here, Bert." I nodded my head to confirm the comment and continued my roster for the day. ........ Half past three we cleared the site, packed our toolboxs, left the production area and stepped outside to walk back to the workshop. What a change, the wind was blowing a gale, the sky had turned from a beaut. blue to black with grey clouds so low it seemed as though you could reach up and grab one, these clouds were moving very quick across the sky. Once back in the workshop we changed ready to leave the site and it threw it down, rain that one commodity we want so much at the moment. .........Five minutes it takes me from where I work to home. On the car radio there was talk of a mini Cyclone hitting the Melbourne CBD Hail Stones the size of golf balls rained down on the city, breaking glass roofs and in the Eastern suburbs reports of hail the size of tennis balls. We saw the pictures, on the news of people holding lightweight tables above their heads to stop any injury from these droping balls of ice, the streets in the city were covered in the hail up to around six inches deep and much of the city was flooded as the drains were unable to cope with the downpour. ...............Well this sounds a fun place to live don't it, bush fires one year, cyclones the next. Its a bank holiday on Monday, its Labour day, as we are on our own, i was thinking of having a drive, with Linda up to the range for a b.b.q. thats something we ain't done for such a long time. Will be nice to just sit on a park bench, hand in hand sipping a good glass of wine. Sounds very romantic doesn't it, as long as it don't throw down hail stones or have an earthquake we'll be happy. ........... Well chat later have a good day back there . . Our Love to all. .. Robert and Linda l

G'Day Norwich

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 10:26:00 GMT

Was busy last week working back shift, so not up early in the mornings. Just about early enough to hear the posty on his motorbike, rideing down the footpath and the noise of the post box as he slams the lid down. Thats when we know we have some mail. Its still the original post box I quickly made from scrap stainless steel the week we moved in here 28 years ago, ain't done bad has it. The only thing we bought for it was a plastic number 5 which I glued on the front of the box and thats still there as well..................... I still have an old 2 door 1975 Range Rover, which I'm gradually renovating. I've been a bit slack with this work, so today as its quiet, I'll rip the carberettas out and give them a clean. Chris our youngest used to love the old thing, befor we had the suburbs around us, they built a Maccas up the main road about a couple of Km. away and the quickest way there was off Road and up along the paddocks, in the Range Rover, Chris learned to drive in the old beast................. There seem to have been a lot of shark attacks this year, the news have mentioned a wide range of attacks around the beaches this summer. Luckilly there have been a large number of escapes also and no fatallities that I have heard of. Just seem to be a lot of large sharks close to the beaches. We are very lucky having a large bay, with the rips at the mouth of the bay, this keeps sharks away from the beaches of Melbourne....... Well all for now.................. Robert, Linda and the boys.

One year on.

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 21:52:00 GMT

G'Day everyone.. Sunday is the anniversary of "Black Saturday", its the term now used for the greatest disaster this country has ever experienced. The day when we lost over 200 lives in the bushfires last year. All flags will be at half mast and at 11-00 in the morning there will be a minutes silence in respect for all those we lost that day........... Life is now returning to those that have stayed in the area, very few residents have turned away from their homes, so there is much work in those hills with a lot of construction taking place. Building standards have been re writen for the construction of new property, to try and help if ever there is, or when there is another devistating day like we saw on that day last year........... The vegitation is to be seen again, yet its so unusual to see black trees, that look lifeless, with a carpet of green, there is no undergrowth under the burnt trees only the grass carpet now replaceing the brown ash we had for so long. One more year and those black trees should give off their green leaves again too catch the sunlight......... This summer we have had some hot days but we have also had good rainfalls throughout January and these early days of February. Yesterday we had a warm morning reaching 30 degrees and in the afternoon we received over 12 m.m. of rain, cooling the air down to around 23 degrees, which is very nice.... Well will go for now untill the next time,,, Robert, Linda and the boys. P.S. I still can't get this page to punctuate properly, It is anoying.

Hy all!..,

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 10:56:00 GMT

Just a short one this week. Been rather quiet this way. Christmas is over and we can see that by the amount of trafic back on the roads, as we go to work in the mornings. I can't wait untill winter, when I take my holidays and get upto Qld. and the warmth, whilst everyone down here are in the cold. I've been seeing the cold weather you have all had back in England, I thought we were having Global warming? Strange ain't it well I ain't an expert but just seems as though this planets tilting a little more than normal. Well Australia must be doing allright in these tough times, they keep putting up the interest rates here. Only hitting those young ones that have taken advantage of the new home buyers grants and thrown themselves into a mortgage situation. Seems Ironic don't it they give it too you in one hand and then take it back with the other. They say we are spending too much, the only way people are spending too much is that the banks have pushed everyone to own credit cards they can't repay back. Well thats life I surpose. all for this week. Robert, Linda and the boys.

Its warm here whilst you are all feeling the cold.

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 11:39:00 GMT

Sorry its been so long since I blogged everyone that takes time to read my posts. Well we had a second trip up to Queensland, to Coolum, in November, just a 4 day visit gave me a chance to relax a bit befor the festive season commenced at the factory. This time of year, in the food industry we don't get any time off apart from Christmas day and Boxing day, well everyone has to eat don't they................................. Our prime minister and his group of hangers on has just finished their holiday too Copenhagen, at the moment here we are experiencing a mad bash at trying to make everyone "Green", they would have more luck if they gave everyone a can of paint and got them to paint each other Green. This nation believes its all up top of the ladder with climate change technology but those in the goverment still drive around in 6 and 8 cylinder petrol guzzlers. We have here thousands of Acres of sun drenched outback, why don't they put a few solar farms out there and give us free electricity. We only have the population of a european city in the whole of australia and half of the workforce are civil servants.well enough whinging........................................ The boys have all been busy, Deans finished University for the year and now is busy working and saving for next year, which will be his final year at Uni. Noels gone on a little break down at Wilsons Prom, him and the familly normally spend their Christmas break camping on the prom. Chris has now got his Electrical A grade certificates and is doing his bit for climate change, he installs solar panels to the grid and spends more times on roofs laying them to catch the sun. We will be on our own again in about a months time as Chris bought a house yesterday and will soon move............................................. House prices here have skyrocketted in the last 6 months and it is good that Chris has got out there and got himself into the market. We will have to look at down sizeing now that we will be on our own as this house is way too big for just me and Linda.................................... Well all for now chat later.............. Linda Robert and the boys.

Let us pray for a safe summer.

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 10:14:00 GMT

G'Day.---. With rainfall again this year at very low levels, as we enter our spring, we are being told of extreem fire dangers. Our area of Victoria is a tinder box and we just hope that the clearing of woodland we have seen during our winter will be enough to prevent any repeat of the distruction we faced last fire season.---------. We still have the council members that are restricting any clear up of native growth, they call themselves greens, we can't call them very green when the skys turn red with fire. The State Goverment have now steped in to allow the property owners to clear their land of dangerous growth around dwellings. This was needed as councils were preventing them from clearing away this fire danger.----------. Well apart from this , we are experienceing our normal spring weather, Sunday was hot and windy, we reached 30 degrees during the day and it went down only to 14 degrees during the night. Monday well normal Melbourne weather, the temperature fell during the day and we gradually went down to around 10 by Monday evening and fell to 3 degrees over night. Today they tell us 22 degrees that will be nice.----------- All for now--------. Robert, Linda and the boys.

Back to the cold weather

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 21:25:00 GMT

G,day everyone. Well we are home again from our l2 day break up in Queensland, at a little town named Coolum. Coolums on the Sunshine coast, a holiday area for us here in the land of surf and sharks.------------Its a two and a half hour flight from Melbourne to the Sunshine coast and weather wise is like going from the U.K. to the carrabean. Throughout the 12 days we had nothing but blue skys and beautifull warm weather. It was 29 degrees when we left and we got back to a wet 15 degrees, so we are being greedy and I've rebooked it, to spend a long weekend there in December. Well lifes too short and you can't take it with you when you go, can you.------------------------------Well theres not much to really say about coming home apart from its cold, wet and windy, O and we lost a member of the State goverment, last night. He was up in the high country and decided to go for a walk, in the snow. Had every man and his dog looking for him today, still havn't found him. Will let you know the result next week.-------------Our love to all.Robert. Linda and the boys.

Thanks Derek, that brought back memories

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 20:52:00 GMT

Received an E-Mail from my sister Diane today, with an article, she thought I would be interested in re. Laurence Scott and Electromotors. Diane forwarded it to me with the photos of the reunion, didn't recognise anyone but that didn't take away the thoughts I had of when I as a 15 year old, leaving school and starting my employment as a pre apprentice with L.S.E.---------------------------------------------It was 22nd August 1966 when I joined, with about 30 other young lads and started that day in the apprentice school, where we worked for our first year being taught the basic requirements of our future trades. My starting wage was three pounds two and sixpence, not much even in those days, used to save up for a month to take Linda to the cinema.-------------------------------------I finished my apprenticeship April 1971, at that time I was working at the Thorpe Road works and continued on there until I left the company in 1973. Linda and I made some great friends from the workmates and their girlfriends, while I worked there and that time of my life will always be in my thoughts.--------------------------------- O yes, I still remember my mothers old divi number and she tells me they still use it. LOL.

The old divi number.

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 01:37:00 GMT

G,Day. Good news I see for those Co-Op workers. that brought back a few memories, as a child I spent every Saturday with our milkman in his Co-op electric milk float around Mile Cross, delivering the Milk and helping him with the his Saturday chore of collecting the weekly payments from his customers. After school during the week, I'd race home from school in Jessop Road on my push bike and change that for a trade bike that I'd deliver News Papers around the estate, That would bring in around 15 bob a week for pocket money. When I finished delivering Milk and Papers I worked in the butchers shop, again after school and saturday mornings befor finishing school and entering the work force. That was in the days when there was 12 pennies in a shilling and 20 shilling in a quid.---------------------------------Well not much to report from here this week, its still cold. The unemployment figures came in on Wednesday, they were much better than we all expected, they were up but only by 0.1%, bringing the level in at 6.2% for Victoria, about 5.7% nationally. We had our coldest start to the day for 25 years on Thursday, I had to get out and scrape the ice from the windows of the van befor heading to work, think they said it was -2C.--------Well as I said not much to report. Untill the next time. Robert, Linda and the boys.

Still Cold

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 19:05:00 GMT

Well the weather I mean. Linda arrived home as I said, she was only 1 hour late, had a 1 Hour delay in Kualalumpa. I was so busy cleaning the house and trying to finish the En-suit that I never rung the airport to find out if the plane was on time, got there 10-00 minutes late for the scheduled time and 50-00 minutes early for the delay. It was good to see her after so long and she was pleased to finally be home, it was a 22 hour flight and there was 9 hours in tansfers at Amseterdam and K.L., so she was travelling for 31 hours, not good..... Hearing on the news that you've all been enjoying some nice weather over there. We have only been around the 19 degree mark here, during our days and going down to around 4-6 degrees at night. Only be 5 weeks befor we fly up north for that 12 day break on the Sunshine coast, where at the moment its in the mid 20's, just nice..... Well it wqas a little short one today. Robert, Linda and the boys.

Wont be long now.

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 19:40:00 GMT

Gd.day.. Well lets see if this Blog punctuate properly, seem to be having problems, once I post as it just seem to turn into one long paragraph ...........................................Yes Saturday I should see the return of my dearest Linda, it will be 20 weeks since I said "Have a lovely holiday back home", well something like that, could have been "Hurry up woman the plane will leave without you", can't remember now, it was a long time ago. The Ensuit should be finished by then, lets hope. Never do I ever want to renovate another one of those rooms, floor up walls removed and all to rearange plumbing.............................................We have had some very cold days this month, up in kinglake they awoke to find all the blackened earth and trees covered in snow, ironic ain't it, 20 weeks ago we saw so much devistation with the bush fires and now snow damaged caravan awnings as people awoke after the snow. As I told you the climate can be harsh here in the land of the Roo..................................... ...There is still so much building required in the areas which has been fire damaged and lets pray we don't see another weekend like we saw in February for many years...................... ...Well let me get on with some more tileing and painting, must get it finished befor the weekend. Will let you know all that happens on Saturday............................................................Robert and the boys............ Told you I'm having troubles but this is the best I can do,,,

O dearest another year gone

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Fri, 08 May 2009 17:43:00 GMT

Sitting here tonight, I have not been blogging for a while, as I took a little time away, just the week end and flew up to Queensland. I had lovely weather on the Gold Coast, it was 28 degrees the Friday I landed there and didn't drop below that for the 4 days I was up there. The Gold Coast is two and a half hours flight from Melbourne, about the same distance as Spain is away from the U.K. So as I returned on the Monday, leaving at 28 degrees again and returning back to a cool 8 degrees here in Melbourne. May 8th today thats a very special day in mine and Lindas life. Back a long time ago, now when was it, yes I do remember, 1966 it was when at the old Odeon cinema I met the girl of my dreams. five years almost to the day we were married, we were 20 then and they just don't seem to get married that young any more, do they. It was a long time ago, but we are still together, well 16,000 miles apart at present but you know what I mean. I ring Linda a couple of times a week, and tell her I love her. Well enough of all this soppy stuff. Its quiet here in the land of the mountain Ski resorts, yes they have opened for the season and I'm sure they are doing well bringing the skiers up onto the hills. I'm looking around at the moment for somewhere to take Linda, once she returns from Norwich. Last time she returned from a trip I took a 4 day break from work and we went over to Tasmania. This time we'll go up north for a while. I would like to go up and have a look at that replica of Stonehenge, I told you of in one of my previous blogs. I have worked in the area, befor the replica was built and I know that its a lovely area to visit. Well I'm away untill the next time...Chat later. Robert and the boys

Happy Easter

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 23:59:00 GMT

G'Day all my Easter bunnies.

A busy little holiday I'm having down here, in the land of the Holden Cars and I don't know how much longer they will be able to survive. Poor old Ford are doing even worse but it looks as though our third producer Toyota are doing fine, well not as fine as befor the squeeze but not as bad as the other two.

Yes I'm busy, finally started the renevation of the Ensuit something I promissed Linda I'd have a go at when she left. Well Lindas only been gone 2 months now so thought I'd better get on with it. I think it was the thought of shifting everything out of the room which was putting me off the project, well theres an awfull lot of plumbing in there, toilet, shower, sink, thats 5 tap outlets and a lot of pipeing.

Well Good Friday, up at the crack of lunch time and started, having brunch, afterwhich I sat out on the porch, had a fag and a cup of coffee,then I thought I'd better get in and start. After walking into the Ensuit and looking around at all the work I thought it best to have a second coffee and get the tools out of my van.

By the time I'd finished that evening I'd got everything out apart from the sink and the vanity. all the tiles were off the floor,the toilet was removed and the shower screen was down and the tiles removed from the walls, I'm just so glad your over there Linda, my life would have been hell if you were here watching me.

Saturday arrived and was up early and into it, yes into the Ensuit, looking at a shower base and a sink and vanity unit that wasn't going to be easy to remove. "I know" I thought I'll get the boys out of bed and get them to help, they hadn't done B,all the previous day apart from both disapearing as the noise got louder, from me removeing the tiles from the walls. Now would you believe it, neither had returned home and both beds were empty so went outside had a fag and a cup of coffee.

Well I was in luck, as I was sitting there my grandson, Sal., came cyceling up the road so I bribed him with the promise of a Maccas, to give me a hand. It took us nearly the rest of the day to remove the sink and vanity from the wall and secure the plumbing so I could get the water turned back on. The shower base could wait untill this morning, I wasn't going to get under the house that time in the afternoon to disconnect that item.

This morning I was again up early and dressed in a pair of old overalls, I found in the van. It was time to say hello to the spiders and crawl under the house up as far as the shower drain pipe and get to work diconnecting the shower base. Lucky for me Sal. had stayed the night and was able to help me carry it out of the house, they weigh a ton, its an old ceramic base, the new ones are fibreglass. This afternoon I relaxed a while and had a good clean up.

Tomorrow I need to remove some of the plasterboard so that I can reline the walls that were ripped out by the plumbers when they did the first fitout as there will be nowhere as much covering the walls with the new suit I have to install. Then I can start the rebuild and have it all nice and new for her indoors to come home too.

All for now

Robert and the Grandson, Sal.

O, whats O, I'll explain

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 08:55:00 GMT

Our English language is full of dialects and Australia isn't any different to anywhere else. Here it is a general rule to add a "O" to the name of a friend, doesn't really shorten it only becomes your nickname.

You can walk into your place of work and it can go like this.

"Hy Robo."

"Hy Davo, wheres chriso?.'

"Hes up on the roof with Johno."

"They need to be carefull, Jacko had a fall up there yesterday, cut his arm open."

" Ya, hes off work today, hes on Compo." (Workers Compensation).

Well you know what I'm talking about, like how in Norwich we drop our H's. After we married, we moved from Norwich to Wymondham, bought a little bungalow off Tuttles lane and thats where both our older sons were born.Linda stopped working in Norwich and started working at the Wymondham Laundry, I will allways remember when she came home one day and told me that a co worker had said to her that she wasn't a local as she drop her H's and must be a Norwich Gal. Good old bit of Norfolk dialect,Gal.

Well, now to the point. Linda is at the present with her mother and her family in Norwich and I make it a rule to ring at least twice a week to say hello to my sweetheart. On the phone its obvious that this dialect thing is a state of mind, I can talk to linda, who will be answering me in an Aussie dialect and then she will speak to her mother whilst on the phone and I will hear her dialect completely change to a good old Norwich dialect, stranger ain't it.

Well chat later cobba, just gotta go up the milk bar and score some milko, then to the servo for some fuelo.

Robbo, Deano, Noelo and Chriso

Rain at Last

robertramsbottom@hotmail.com — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 21:33:00 GMT

Today is a real G'Day.

Yesterday we finally breathed a sigh of relief, it rained in the afternoon and gave us, over the fire fronts, 4 m.m. of much needed rain. Today we had steady rain up untill mid afternoon, quelling the fire to spot fires, easilly controlled by our C.F.A. volenteers. Now I hope I've got this conversion right, we are told that the fires have burned a region of Victoria of 168,000 Hectres and as I say, if I've got the conversion correct it works out to 420,000 Acres, thats a lot of burned bush.

Now I'll hear you all say, "No way are we going to emigrate." Tonight I sat in our lounge, after my dinner, happily watching the T.V., a repeat viewing of a Stargate episode when all of a sudden the window started to rattle, the floor shook and the armchair I was sitting on suddenly moved 2 inches across the polished floor. No it wasn't a mothership outside, we had just experienced a tremour, measuring 4,6 on the Richter scale. The centre was 216 K/M south east of Melbourne and luckily no body has been injured or property damaged. The last time I remember this happening was in 1983, we had not moved into the house very long and we had never experienced a tremour befor and didn't find out what had happened untill we heard the news the next day.

Well lets hope all my news from this time will not be reporting disasters of freek weather.

Robert and the boys.