Cats. That's how I think of home. Mum has more than a dozen of them. Mostly rescued. All spoiled and loved and each such a unique personality. Just like us. Out in the sunroom there's a tiger theme. Well as far as stuffed animals and lots of pictures goes. It wasn't always like that. Not when we were growing up. Hell, I've seen parents with 3 children stressing out so dunno how mum and dad managed with 8 little bastards wrecking the place. And on a single income- dad was an orchardist. Poor mum, no phone, a good mile from the nearest shop. She didn't even know how to drive. Mind you the cars we had were far from roadworthy anyway and in those days it's lucky seatbelts weren't compulsory and there weren't any cops around. Trying to squeeze ten people of all sizes into a ute is quite an art form. Lucky dad is skinny and never needed much elbow space.

We were all good at sports. I remember we used to get money for all the races we won at school athletic carnivals. Maybe we were so fit cos we tore about several hectares of pasture and scrub all day long. Plus we ate lots of vegetables. Home grown. Dad had an enormous veggie garden. And in Autumn he'd bring picking bag after picking bag of apples home too. God us kids could eat! Lucky it was wholesome food. But mum always cooked yummy stuff too. Apple pie, apple crumble, fruit slice, kiss biscuits and loads of scones. We'd also go picking plums from our trees or a neighbours for bitter sweet plum pudding, or jam and also blackberries. Oh, and some kind of sweet macaroni with custard. Mum started teaching me to cook when I was 8 or 9. I used to only make tea cake at first but eventually tried other things. I was also cooking tea (dinner) from Monday to Thursday by then. Every bloody member of the ungrateful family had to have this cooked that way or this way or didn't like that or this at all......And don't ask me who wanted gravy done thick or runny or spicy or plain. Least they all liked my baked (fried) spuds. Thank god for small mercies.

At thirteen I started riding and had a couple of ponies. Sometimes on the weekends I'd be out for hours. Often I'd go along the country roads. But both the horses and I loved a good gallop up through Doody's Hill - which apparently qualifies as a small mountain. Some rich farmer boy started buying the whole thing up and posted his nasty bulls in my favourite riding fields. Actually these days his knocking down of trees has forced the Tassie Devils to lower ground, something the chook owners can't be too thrilled about. Anyways, back to my teens...it got dark early in winter and was frosty in the mornings and evenings. We always got home from school at 3:45 and sometimes weather permitting I'd get in a brisk ride before cooking dinner. Riding at dawn was much rarer and sooo much colder. But so exhilerating.

        

 

We all developed our own hobbies without any particular encouragement. I mentioned all being good at sports and we're all at least a bit musical. Except Andrew but I've never noticed him try it. I love to sing, played sax and a bit of funky bass for a while. Daniel is the best musician and has been called talented by a couple of people who matter. Mathew has an excellent ear for music and can play guitar and sings in their band with Gina's boyfriend Nick. Actually Mathew is good at everything, but reckons he doesn't read good. Gina has lots of talents too. When she was about 5 she was in the choir. I remember her trying to teach me Bright Eyes, not the words, the correct tune. She'd never sing or dance in public now. Or have her photo taken. She was a natural on bass and figured out a few guitar rhythmes too. But she's mostly an artist. All kinds of medium; sketching, graphic design, sewing teddy bears, creating creatures from wood and this plasticine stuff that you cook. She's into everything. She still loves cartooning most though I reckon. She's also a good creative writer.

Think maybe we get that from mum. She was a great storyteller even as a kid herself. I don't know that she ever wrote any stories but she used to have a captured audience whenever she told one. I remember she used to read to us heaps. Either sitting on a chair by the open fire in the lounge room or we'd all get into our jammies on a Sunday night and gather in one of our crowded bedrooms on the beds and she'd read to us there. At some point her voice must've gotten tired....or was it all the babies? Anyway I recall she recorded some of our favourite stories onto tape for us. And we all had those little long playing records with storybooks to follow along to - like Robin Hood and It's a Small World Afterall and Jungle Book. I think Robin Hood was my favourite.

Mum used to often sing too and she has a nice voice I think. Sort've girly and melodic, but strong. Dad can hold a decent tune too - though I only ever heard him sing when he was rocking a baby to sleep. Keep getting memories of "darla do, darla do..."

Writing is my thing I suppose. I haven't been inspired to do any children's stories or novels scarcely at all in a good couple of years. It's depressing. Gina does keep trying to encourage me. We started one children's story together from a character she created. Tragically all I'm coming up with at the moment are depressive poems. Least I'm consistent in that I'm writing something. I'm also a try hard sketcher. Patrick was a bit of a drawer too and I vaguely remember him bringing a violin home from school but don't recall him playing it.

Patrick is single as far as I know. Gina has been with Nick for like 10 years or something. Daniel is with Lauren and they've bought a house in View St. Mathew is with Charlotte but she's only 20 and is travelling about Europe at the moment. Don't think she wants to come home. Dunno about Allan or Angela. Andrew has always been single. I'm not single. After being with a handful of guys, followed by Kelly, I'm now with Jo. More about that later.