Wendy’s media and entertainment career spans almost four decades. She has worked as a journalist, radio broadcaster, television host and stand-up comedian. She has written plays, stage shows and is now a highly successful author of children’s books and adult novels.
- We have had several children over a timespan which has seen support for mothers increased, so I agree with Not That Bad in that things are much better now than the were even when we had our first child 20 years ago, however, that doesn't mean that "things" are as they should be! I am slightly shattered that even after all of these years of struggle and work, that the role of men and women is not more equal, and that the gender difference is still so debated. All parents deserve society's support: single parents, fathers, mothers. We should be working towards a society where men and women feel supported whatever their choices, and this doesn't necessarily mean financially. Access to services, education, self-finance. We should all be being encouraged to fulfil our potential as human beings. We have the brains, we have the capacity (economics is, after all, a human invention---not a creature with a life of its own) to make the changes. Attitudes need to change. Colour, race, marital status, having children, not having children.... Children are precious and deserve out attention, and parents deserve society's support. If that is given, then we may get the society we deserve! - Dodieh
- @Robyn. You're the one with the attitude. Over it! - metoo
- Yah pronking & smiling - Jay
- Tony Abbott thinks Superannuation is a confidence trick? So what would he think of the national savings that would have been if this had been allowed to remain Australian Law. At the 1937 federal election, the United Australia Party had promised to introduce a system of national insurance that would provide medical cover and pensions for working people. The scheme was to be funded by contributions from government, employers and employees. Menzies, who had helped draft the policy, was an enthusiastic supporter of the scheme. For him it constituted good social policy and, once adequate superannuation funds had been accumulated, promised to relieve taxpayers of what was likely to become an intolerable burden in the future. Unfortunately the United Australia Party’s coalition partners were not nearly so keen about the proposal. Although a National Insurance Bill was passed, Country Party ministers continued to resist its implementation, arguing that the money was needed elsewhere, particularly to provide for ‘adequate defence’. After a series of stormy meetings, Cabinet succumbed to Country Party threats and decided to repeal the pension provisions of the Bill. Menzies immediately resigned from the ministry. - johnward154
- Never have and never will purposefully buy a celebrity endorsed product. Make my own choices according to years of experience. I don't watch or listen to commercial tv or radio or read mainstream media . Abc, Sbs plus community radio (bay fm 99.9) are my choice. Find very vacuous the current obsession with all things celebrity! - Robyn
- Maybe hard to be honest ..... but I think probably most of us are little influenced by advertising especially with gorgeous hot men and sexy women, we would probably all look beautiful even though we get older ..... as Dolly Parton said in an interview, you have no idea how expensive it is to look so cheap.. ;-) - Tone May
- I have honestly never purchased anything because of a celebrity endorsement. After all, they are being paid to promote the product even if they don't actually use it. If I want to make a decision about a product purchase, I do my research on consumer review sites on the web and then decide whether to purchase or not. - Aeron Winters
- Nicole a great actress??? I do not agree and she has put me off buying Swisse products - Shani
- Excellent reporting. - Lorraine
- Ummmmm....slightly embarrassed to say I loved the Brad Pitt Chanel ad. Haven't bought any and not likely too either but I believe the purpose of an ad is to get your attention and it certainly got mine. Unlike myriad other ads that I see time and time again and remember the ad but can't recollect what the heck the product is that they are advertising. - Jenny
ON THE HIGHWIRE PROFILE
Wendy Harmer
FEATURED CONTRIBUTORS
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WIN A COPY OF HANNAH RICHELL'S 'THE SHADOW YEAR'
Actions in our past can cast a long shadow. A seemingly inconsequential string of events...
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WIN A CALL THE MIDWIFE SERIES 2 PRIZE PACK
Based on the bestselling memoirs by Jennifer Worth, Call the Midwife follows Jenny Lee, a...
HOW ETHICAL IS YOUR FOOD BASKET?
I have an ethical problem - my favourite food is sashimi tuna... but I know it's endangered. Do I eat as much as I can now, or wait for someone else to eat my share ( since the Chinese have just discovered it I was hearing the other day.) Or do I just go without? Hmmm.
OOH…ER, I’LL NEVER DO THAT AGAIN…
I once smuggled the wildman of Australian entertainment, Ignatius Jones, in my car boot over the border of Portugal at about 3 o'clock in the morning. I had one hunky piano player in the seat beside me and another gorgeous piano player in the back seat. The hire car company rang me three weeks later to inform me that the burnt-out wreck of our vehicle had been found outside the Madrid-Barajas airport and wanted $10,000 Euros. I've been on the run ever since. Look, this was all fair enough, however, I will never, ever attend a bullfight again! Even though matador outfits are still the MOST divine male garment ever devised. But there's one thing the Spanish have right "duende" the word they employ to describe the heart, soul and authenticity of an older woman! OLE!!
THE CARBON TAX. CONFUSED?
I am convinced. It seems to me PM Julia Gillard has walked the Highwire here and is to be commended for her efforts. There is no way of getting around the damning statistics - that per capita, we are shocking polluters - seventh in the world, even ahead of he United States! Many European countries have carbon taxes. Sweden got one 18 years ago - the stats?
Whenever sceptics claim the tax kills growth, look at the track record: since the tax was introduced, Swedish greenhouse gas emissions have dropped 9%, while the economy has grown 48% since then." Now it's up to the Government to sell this good news story. Our kids need us to take action!
How much ‘me’ time do you get?
The only 'me' time I get is in the car between the shops, school and appointments. It's the only time I feel I can turn the phone off. How sad is that? I need a bath... like in the ad... a little Imperial Leather... Tahiti looks nice!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nK_O1tpEHY&feature=related
THE WOMAN WHO INSPIRES YOU?
Oooh, so many! I'm particularly inspired by the women I'm pleased to call colleagues and friends in the comedy biz who have pushed the boundaries of entertainment. And we know them on a first-name basis: Magda, Gina, Jane, Jean, Judith, Mary-Anne, Denise (x2), Fiona, Amanda, Noeline, Rachel, Kitty, Jackie, Julia, Gretel, Claire, Kaz, Cal, Bev, Mary, Hannah, Corinne, Sue-Ann, Rebel Edith and Ethel.
And lots more!
In days gone by we would have barely been able to name a few funny gals. All of them are an ornament to the game and make life more joyous. I love all these clever, witty ladies!
WHAT MADE YOU HAPPY THIS WEEK?
We've got a bandicoot in our backyard! Every morning I see its nocturnal stylings in the garden. Small, conical diggings where it's been fossicking for worms. I'd never even seen a bandicoot until the other night when I waited with a torch - David Attenborough-like to see it. Very special little critter. I have to say I'm a marsupial maniac - wallabies, kangas, quokkas, potteroos, bilbies, numbats, gliders, wombats, koalas and all. I wish I could have one as a pet. But at least we have one in our garden in Sydney. We're on guard against next-door's cat. Long may we have marsupial magic in the garden. It makes me smile.
TV. WHAT ARE YOU WATCHING?
Just simply cannot go past "Come Dine With Me" on Foxtel. Dave Lamb is the funniest commentator, ever! Loving IQ with the divine Mr Fry. Judith Lucy is off to a great start.
Can't go past my Rugby League either with the great "Rabs" Warren. (This is not a very high-brow list is it? SOZ)
SHOULD MARIJUANA BE LEGALISED?
It was former US President George Bush (Snr) who said: “We’re losing the war on drugs.” Prohibition didn’t work with alcohol. It’s not working with drugs.
This year the Victorian Police Deputy Commissioner Sir Ken Jones said: “I’d love to have a debate at some point about legalisation.”
I was a part of that debate for the ABC iQ2 in Sydney in May this year. I was on a team with Dr Alex Wodak, Director of the Alcohol and Drug Service, St Vincent's Hospital Sydney and Nicholas Cowdery, NSW Director of Public Prosecutions from 1994 to 2011. Both of them have ben working on the front line of the war on drugs and say it is lost.
Both are deeply passionate that our current approch to drug use is not working and is ruining lives.
On the night, by popular vote, we won the argument by a resounding margin.
I am convinced. Drugs must be legalised. In fact all illicit drugs were once legal so the correct term is re-legalisation.
Legalisation of drugs will cut down on crime; reduce death by overdose; smash drug cartels, and restore decency and pride in some of the world’s most impoverished communities.
Furthermore, there is no basis, whatsoever, for the prohibition of drugs in a society that legalises and promotes the consumption of alcohol, tobacco and prescription pain killers – all of which kill more people than illegal drugs.
In a study published in the medical journal “Lancet” last year, former UK Government advisor, Professor David Nutt, came up with a set of parameters for various substances - including their addictive properties, injury to physical health and cost to society- and then marked them from zero to 100.
The results: Alcohol scored 72, compared to 55 for heroin and 54 for crack, crystal meth (33), cocaine (27), tobacco (26), amphetamine/speed (23), cannabis (20), GHB - grievous bodily harm (18), methadone (13), ecstasy (9), anabolic steroids (9), LSD (7), magic mushrooms (5).
Become informed. You can download the audio of the debate here: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/bigideas/stories/2011/3221559.htm
Fact is, all recreational drugs (including alcohol) are dangerous if they are abused.
WHERE WILL YOU BE WHEN YOU’RE 80?
I'm definitely going to Mary's place in France. Especially if she and her gorgeous husband are up for a swinger's night, throwing the keys to the Citroen into the beret!! Oooh, la, la!!
WHEN HAVE YOU STOOD UP FOR SOMETHING YOU BELIEVE IN?
Martin Luther King said: "You died when you refused to stand up for right. You died when you refused to stand up for truth. You died when you refused to stand up for justice."
Years ago, very pregnant with my first child, I spoke at my local Council in protest about an ugly flat development that our community group tried to stop.
In the letterbox the next day was a piece of paper with a picture of anti-development and anti-corruption campaigner Juanita Nielsen on it.The word "murder" was written in blood... or red ink. I never did find out. It was pretty scary, but you have to keep going, don't you?
These days I'm battling a proposal for a massive surf club and function centre at Long Reef (Google: Save Long Reef ).Have been for 5 years now and I'm in for the long haul.
I am married to a fierce environmental activist who's on the board of the Surfrider Fountation. I so admire his tenacity. His faith and courage. To me, he's a hero.
Our son and daughter went on their first protest march in their prams! The Reconciliation walk across the Harbour Bridge in 2000. If they grow up to stand up for right, truth and justice, their parents will be very proud of them indeed.
WHO WINS YOUR PRIZE FOR AUSTRALIAN WOMEN’S WRITING?
May Gibbs is my first childhood treasure - Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, Little Lobelia ( the inspiration for my own Pearlie books) Little Ragged Blossom.
Then there's the marvellous Ruth Parks who I read throughout my teens.
I graduated to Helen Garner and the love of her writing abides.
Geraldine Brooks, Colleen McCullough, Germaine Greer, Sarah Morton, my talented friend Lee Tulloch... a brief tour of my bookshelves reveals oh, so many wonderful, wonderful Australian women writers!
Lots of funny gal memoirs too - Judith Lucy and Denise Scott. Great fun reads from Kathy Lette and Maggie Alderson.
My latest delicious discoveries are Charlotte Wood and Vivienne Kelly.
All Aussies - all treasured at my place.
DEAR PRIME MINISTER, MAY I HAVE A WORD?
I'm just back from the Brisbane Writer's Festival where this was the hot topic. The advice to the PM seemed to be in three strands that I can best sum up as:
Dear Julia, please re-discover your fierce, principled and admirable persona from when you were deputy PM. Stop trying to be so "stateswoman-like" in your daily utterances. Get your Altona mojo working.
Dear Julia, please take the opportunity offered by the High Court and embrace on-shore processing of refugees.
Dear Julia, please support same-sex marriage. Your own status as unmarried atheist suggests that you are not following your heart on this issue.
And I'd add, Dear Julia, Don't let the haters get you down. As Paul Daley has written in the SMH, you are known to be a modest, engaging and genuine person. Keep in mind all your personal achievements and keep your head up.
PS: take some "time out" for yourself now and then if you are able.
SO, WHAT’S YOUR IDEA OF SEXY?
So, Ms Jaivin approaches me in hotel lobby. I register broad smile, red hair, million volt smile, super nova personality and some kind of vibrating irresistible aura. She floats away. Lights dim. And I wish I could follow her. That's sexy. ( Shoes? don't recall any)
SPORT. WHO ARE YOU CHEERING FOR?
I dunno, maybe I suffer from the Stockholm Syndrome: “a real paradoxical psychological phenomenon wherein hostages express empathy and have positive feelings towards their captors, sometimes to the point of defending them.” Wikipedia.
Through the men in my life I have come to love Formula One racing (got to meet Ayrton Senna!); long-distance cycle racing (Cadel, Woot!); and now I love Rugby League (GO MANLY!!)
Oddly enough, none of those blokes took up my passion for chick lit, embroidery, flower-arranging or champagne-based cocktails. C’est la Vie!
I don’t really subscribe to sport as a “religion” or an “art”, but I do have a great respect for this field of human endeavour and marvel at people whose push their physicality to great heights of achievement… or who fall just before the finish line.
Sport tells us great human stories. And sits right alongside our other intellectual pursuits as an ornament to the game of life.
Did I mention Manly is in the Grand Final? The buzz at our place is beyond exciting!
PS: Manly was named by Capt. Arthur Philip for the indigenous people living there, "their confidence and manly behaviour made me give the name of Manly Cove to this place". ( I know, I know.)
HOW DO YOU TAKE YOUR CRIME?
I confess to watching Forensic Files on Foxtel ( even though husband thinks I am a ghoul). I'm fascinated by the science of forensics- how analysis of a stray fibre, tyre track or footprint can solve a crime. I'm amazed by the advances in technology.
I'm less attracted by the real (or manufactured) human emotion surrounding a crime in film, TV and novels. I like the facts, m'am, nothing but the facts. For me it's: "Take this down to forensic".
You might say I'm cold-hearted, but it's the opposite. I can't deal with the immense pain and loss wreaked by murder, so I can only deal with the science of it.
But I still can't look away and I feel quite guilty about that.
I once flipped through the pages of a book about the Yorkshire Ripper and was utterly nauseated and never bought it. There are just some images I don't want ever implanted in my brain.
YOUTH, ALCOHOL & SEX. WHAT’S THE RIGHT MIX?
I would advise any young person to understand their rights whenever they come into contact with police. Print out a fact sheet your legal rights and memorise them before you go out at night.You can find them here: http://www.youthlaw.asn.au/legal.php
For girls: stay out of the way of bouncers at pubs and clubs - they're dangerous. Drag any young man you are with away from them too.
Awful sex with blokes you don't like happens, (drunk or sober). You'll regret it, but you'll learn from it. It's not the end of the world.
I trust you to make your way out there.
Be young. Have fun.
Do as I say...not as I did.
MY COSMOPOLITAN LIFE
It is SO different from my parent's day! They were all CofE Anglo, working class, married with kids. Now we have a mini-United Nations at my table. Brazilian, Maori, Icelandic,Italian, American,Brit, German, Thai, Japanese. And in my kitchen I cook everything from Moroccan to Malaysian. It doesn't matter what race, religion, sexuality or politics... all are welcome. Sometimes I sit and marvel at this, but my kids don't know it any other way. I love my cosmopolitan life. How about you?
IF YOU COULD TIME TRAVEL, WHERE WOULD YOU GO?
I would love to travel back to the time when the culture of the Hopi Native Americans was at it's zenith.
I visited New Mexico years ago and explored the site of one of their ancient villages - a pueblo on top of a mesa that had an extraordinary view of the surrounding land. The Hopi name means "wise". They were wonderful artists and loved their adornment, working in turquoise and intricate beading. The women wore their hair in styles reminiscent of Princess Leia from Star Wars!
When a child is born they get a special blanket and a perfect ear of corn. On the 20th day they take the child to the mesa cliff and hold it facing the rising sun. When the sun hits the baby it's given a name like, "Chochokpi"- throne for the clouds.
The women owned the land and the mud and stone houses that stood five stories high.
I would just love to spend one night in an underground kiva, where you descended by ladder to a round room to watch the ceremonies.This civilisation - the earliest recorded occupancy goes back to 1050 - has always captured my imagination.
WHAT ARE THE BRANDS THAT MADE US AUSTRALIAN?
Well the King Gee overalls of course and the long necks of Melbourne Bitter. The Australian Women's Weekly was always there on the kitchen table with the Lipton. We always had Western Star butter, a block of Coon and a packet of Saladas. Allens Sweets and Cohns soft drinks. Peters ice creams.
Velvet soap too.
It's funny how these brands anchor you in time.
For my kids I suppose it will be Dominos.
WHAT’S YOUR MOST-TREASURED COOKBOOK?
One of my dearest friends in the world, the extraordinary Mietta O'Donnell lost her life in a car accident in 2002. She wrote a magnificent cook book:" Mietta's Italian Family Recipes".The book contains the family history of the Codognotto,Gobbo,Molina,Triaca, Vigano and Virgona families who opened cafes, wine bars and restaurants in Melbourne before World War II and gave the city its foundation for gastronomic greatness.
Every time I cook from it, it's like communing with my friend, whom I still grieve for.
As for a lovely new favourite? Damien Pignolet ran Claude's in Sydneyin the 1980's and now has Bistro Moncur in Woollahra.He has two books : "French" and the new one "Salades". They're both divine.
WHAT’S THE ONE TALENT YOU WISH YOU HAD?
Can I have two wishes? I wish I was good with numbers. I am hopeless! Even giving change at the tuckshop made me break out in a cold sweat. For some reason it started at high school and every time I knew maths was on the agenda I developed a crashing headache (I called it a migraine) and took myself off to sick bay. The result? I can barely recite the times table. “Idiot, idiot, idiot” I say to myself whenever I have to do even the most basic mathematical equation. It’s not good. I try not to convey my panic to my kids.
HAVE YOU EVER BEEN SEXUALLY HARASSED?
OK, so I'll go first. When I was just 19 I was working as a cadet on a regional newspaper. It was a huge thrill because my then lecturer in journalism at Uni gave me the job. He was also Chief of Staff (COS) at the newspaper.
Because I was the first girl to have this gig (as I was constantly reminded), I put up with the usual round of carry on - the edict that I wasn't allowed to wear trousers or travel overnight with male photographers, even the Editor in Chief calling me "wench"!
I had been just married (I know, I know) however, one night around Chrissy when my husband was away I hosted a few drinks at our flat for my workmates.
That COS stayed and stayed and then, when we were alone told me: "I've always been a little bit in love with you." ( A "little bit"? How half-hearted.)
I chucked him out, but from then on perceived a chilling in our work relationship.
I left not long after and will never forget that there were two cadets farewelled that day. The male (now a long-time journalist with Fairfax) was sent off with a set of esteemed volumes and many fine words about his "intellect, commitment and scholarship".
I was presented with a pack of Yardley's April Violets and told by the COS: "We'll never forget your smiling face."
Rest assured, I've never forgotten his.
And years later - in the staff canteen of the BBC, as it so happens - was able to tell him why.
WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR CHRISTMAS?
You know I feel the same way as Shelley. I don't want anything for Christmas. Nothing. In fact, I'd quite like the Anti-Santa to come and take away a whole lot of stuff. Too, too many books, clothes, dishes, bed clothes, towels, old bits of electrical equipment... you name it. It's a job I'll get around to in the New Year. But if I woke up on Christmas morning and half the stuff in his house had vanished...I'd be very happy indeed. Santa would need a trailer on the back of his sleigh, I reckon and another six reindeer to haul it all. Hah!
WHAT ARE YOUR HOPES FOR 2012?
I'd like to see us all start sweating the small stuff.
For instance: the record rate of de-forestation in NSW is leading to a decline in Chrissy beetles. One landed on my shirt on Christmas Eve and it was a reminder, almost an emissary from the natural world to say : "Look after me and I will care for you."
If we put aside the distracting din and argy-bargy of climate change politics and started thinking about preserving habitat for koalas,Tassie Devils, dugongs, then our own human health will come from that.
Our destiny as humans is tied to the smallest Christmas beetle.
So I hope that in 2012 that we take heed of what the most humble of creatures tell us and less notice of what financial and political pundits have to say.
Happy New Year.
IF YOU COULD STOP PEOPLE FROM DOING ONE THING…
I'd stop people from chucking stuff into the ocean - plastics and all manner of garbage. Stop scuttling ships. Stop sewage outfalls Stop it people! Stop it right this minute! The ocean is not a rubbish bin.
WHEN DID YOU FAIL? WHAT HAPPENED NEXT?
This is a very timely question with the awards season upon us. 2002 Logies, anyone? Now a decade later, with Ricky Gervais up there serving up the gags to the gitterati, at least, as my darling husband reminds me, I was there. First female host of an Aussie awards show. Maybe ahead of my time. Maybe all the criticisms were right and I was wrong. But, you know what? My name's there. Forever. ( And I still wish they'd let me wear the black frock rather than the burgundy) I count mysef along with some glorious failures, however I'm also there with a magnificent roll call of people who gave it a red got go and survived.
In the end, gotta be proud of that!
DINNER FOR SIX, WHO WOULD YOU INVITE?
Marcus Aurelius, the wise and wonderful Roman Emperor whose insights are indispensible; Woody Allen for sure -comic genius; let's have another in there, Victoria Wood the wonderful Brit comic... and... one more... Jesus Christ - because I think all my guests would be impressed or astonished (and I hear he's good with the wine).
WHAT IS THE MOTTO YOU LIVE BY?
"Life is short. Try to make every possible mistake ."
WHAT IS THE MOTTO YOU LIVE BY?
Can I add one more? As Kingsley Amis said: If you're not irritating someone, there's little point writing." Amen, brother.
WHAT DO YOU DO IN YOUR CAR (THAT YOU SHOULDN’T)?
Obviously when the car's moving it's "eyes on the road", but I can do a full make-up on the Wakehurst Parkway near where I live while the car's stopped. I have changed a bra and top whilst at the lights. Apparently in Bangkok where the commute can be upwards of 2-3 hours, some have a little kitchen in the back of their vans where they cook up brekkie in the wok over the stove for sleepy children! Maybe that will be the go for city drivers soon if this push for more flats and not enough public transport keeps going to way it is. Some blokes I know have a telly on the dashboard...I couldn't do that. But I have been known to check the ipad when I'm cooling my heels and waiting for that green light. My bigger question is how the police are going to stop this? What's the appropriate penalty for applying kohl pencial, anyway?
YOUR FIRST KISS?
I was about nine when Frank Burns in Bendigo walked me to under a lampost at the end of the street, said "close your eyes and I'll give you a surprise". Then he kissed me on the lips and ran away. This propensity for boys to kiss me and run away lasted for another 30 years.
MY PERFECT POLLIE WOULD…
Stop trashing their colleagues in public; stop jumping at every poll that comes out; stop behaving like media whores. It all adds up to a decline in confidence in our democracy and we truly have one of the world's best. That goes for all politicians. If ordinary people will not put their hands up to serve the public as politicians because they think it will destroy their families and reputations - we are stuffed!
WHAT I EAT WHEN NO-ONE’S WATCHING
I'm very partial to tinned beetroot and Vegemite on white bread and butter sandwiches. SometimesI get this craving and I have to have one. I've loved this sweet and sour combination since I was a kid. Maybe there's a nutritionist out there who can tell me why.Or a therapist (!) It's my ultimate comfort food.
WHAT WAS THE BEST THING YOU EVER GAVE UP?
I stopped dating the wrong kind of men - musicians, poets, writers and 'arty' types - and that turned out to be a very good move. It cleared the way for me to meet my husband who is an earthy type who loves surfing, gardening, fixing stuff with his hands, football and, most of all, people. He doesn't need rescuing or any deep understanding of his tortured soul. Hooray.
WHAT ARE YOU GRATEFUL FOR?
I'm grateful for the clean drinking water that comes out of my tap. It really is a remarkable luxury. It was there again this morning - lucky, lucky me.
WHAT’S YOUR GREATEST DINNER PARTY DISASTER?
Too many to list here, but I do remember dropping an entire roast duck with cherries, slipping in the sauce and skating head first into a cupboard and giving myself concussion!
This is probably the worst though - years ago I lived with my sister and we forgot the pay the gas bill and it ran out half way through cooking a roast dinner. So we loaded everything in the car - half-cooked lamb, spuds, vegies, gravy etc - to drive to my brother's place to cook there.
Then the car ran out of petrol.
My brother had to come and rescue us. I think we finally ate that lamb at around midnight.
THINGS MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME
My mother taught me a couple of very important things - not to drink out of a tap because there could be a spider up there and always check your slippers because there could be a spider in there.
But seriously, she and my father have been separated for almost 50 years. Recently she moved back in with him to nurse him and keep him company because he lives alone and has Parkinsons disease. This has been at some cost to her, and it makes him (and her) happy. So she has taught me a lot about the enduring nature of love, and, oddly, even though she left home when I was ten, what love of children really is... because I know she has done this for me and my brothers and sisters.
This has been the strangest of journeys with my mother.
But, love you mum.
WHAT THREE THINGS WOULD YOU TAKE TO A DESERT ISLAND?
Well I'd hope to have my husband with me, who I swear could construct the Taj Mahal out of bamboo ( yes and even a stereo like they did on Gillians Island) but if not, I'd be taking moisturiser, thongs ( because I loathe walking barefoot) and, just one book? Probably Lord of the Rings because I still love it, 40 years after I first read it.
THE TEACHER WHO INSPIRED ME
Thank you Shirley Collins, my English teacher from Upwey High. She saw the spark of a writer in me and encouraged me every time she could with a "more, please".
I loved her and couldn't think of anything I'd rather do than please her with poetry, stories and more.
She helped my start a small school newsletter of which I was editor- I even drew the cover pictures. One I recall was of a head in a poncho covered in words.
The annual school may was called "Lyric" so I called my newsletter "Cyril"!
And here I am today with another newsletter, thanks Mrs Collins.
THE LAST QUEEN OF AUSTRALIA?
I thought the Australian flag looked completely unremarkable and anachronistic during the Thames parade. A real... oh, that's our flag I suppose... or is it New Zealand?
Honestly, how pathetic. Surely we've grown up enough to have our own flag by now?
And as for the monarchy... we saw last night just how British it is and how it has no particular relevance to us. So yes, let it go and the pearl-clutching women on the North Shore who were on the telly last night singing "God Save The Queen" can emigrate.
HAVE YOU EVER STAGED A HEALTH ‘INTERVENTION’?
This is a terribly difficult topic - thanks to Marina and Stephanie for broaching it. I had a girlfriend who was in a neglectful relationship. She blamed herself for his inattention. I knew he was having affairs and that he had even tried his moves on me. I told her what I knew and that was the end of our friendship for some years.
They grew closer for a time with me branded as a "fantasist" and "disloyal". They eventually parted, but my friendship with that woman has never been the same.
It is a great risk to take.
I'll be honest. I still don't know if I did the right thing or not.
In the end I just have to think that if our friendship couldn't survive that.. perhaps it wasn't meant to be.
What do others think?
WHO ARE YOUR FAVOURITE SINGERS?
Joni Mitchell and James Taylor do it for me. Such distinctive tones that have lost none of their appeal over the years and remain unique. I wonder if the singers on "The Voice" , although good singers, have that uniqueness? Just lately I am really loving Ed Sheerin. I think he might just well be " the voice of a generation".
WHEN WERE YOU MOST SEXY?
I think it was in my late 30's... around the time I met my husband. Knew what I wanted then and had the knack of getting it. I stopped getting sex and love confused - by that I mean I didn't have sex with men who weren't good for me, even though I thought I loved them. And I was felt like I was in charge of the way I wanted to have sex and didn't mind so much if they didn't love me. Then real love walked in the door... and bed came later. Now I have both - but I wouldn't mind my pre-baby body back, thanks!
DO YOU KNOW YOUR NEIGHBOURS?
We're surrounded by young single people where we are- surfies, musos, artists and the like. I think most people would freak having them wander through the yard and playing their music ( it's a lot of country and western, actually, which I like). But they feed the chooks and keep an eye on the place when we're away, drop over to watch the footy etc. and it's all rather good.Up the road our neighbour is a fisherman- so there's often a nice fresh fish for tea. Being part of the neighbourliness is fab.
WHEN I TURNED INTO MY MOTHER…
I was leaning against a kitchen bench and thought: " Gee that Handy Andy brings up the floor a treat". Game over.
MY FAVOURITE CHILDREN’S BOOK CHARACTERS
Again, so many to choose from but I adored Snugglepot and Cuddlepie and Little Obelia's shell was in the inspiration for my own kid's book character, Pearlie living in a shell on a stone fountain. I pored over those books for hours and they engendered a love of the Australian bush. I still see the Big Bad Banksia Men when I look at a banksia plant.
Loved the Magic Pudding too which then led me to Henry Lawson and ...well, on it goes.
My daughter devoured all the Enid Blyton books she could get hold off and so the love of all those in the Faraway Tree abides.
MY BEST DVD BOXED SET
I just finished The Tudors - hours and hours of it. I love the intensity of the experience when you watch an entire series over a weekend. Same with The Wire. I watched until my eyeballs fell out of my head. I haven't seen even one episode of Man Men yet... so that will be my next indulgence.
HELP! I’VE GOT TOO MANY…
Books! Piles of them, everywhere! And three book lovers in the house who insist on carting home more. And we still have too many kids toys around here - Playmobil, blocks - everytime I try to pack them up the kids insist they would like to play with them ONE last time. Grrr
ARE YOU A TECHNO-JUNKIE?
I'm the same as Meredith. I just wait until something breaks ( usually in the middle of some vital exercise, like a speech or the kids' assignment needs printing urgently) and then howl with rage. There are leads all over the floor, dead phones and busted cameras in a box - it's a techno-tip around here. The day I queue up anywhere for a new techno-item will be a cold day in hell. As for smart phones? I wish we could go back to a landlines and the days before you could leave messages and then if we were out, we'd just be out. Uncontactable.
A LETTER TO OUR NATION’S LEADERS
For me it's the environment, the environment, the environment. Without a healthy planet we are stuffed. It's like we have fatigue on the issues of climate change, feral animals, overfishing, species loss, razing of habitat... I do fear for my children's future in this country. Wonder what life will be like for them. I think we get distracted from the big picture by squabbling pollies and I'd like all leaders to bring the environment to the top of the agenda.
It's number one on mine.
HOW DID YOU GO IN YOUR EXAMS?
I stil have nightmares about a sixth form art prac exam - had to paint a still life in black paint in 90 minutes - what a stupid test! It was over 100 degrees in the classroom that day. Anyway, around the 70 minute mark I spilled paint all over my piece ( depicting a pile of sea shells) and had to start again... the second effort was much better.
I got a 'C' and what I was supposed to glean from that entire exercise is anyone's guess!
I REALLY DON’T NEED ANY MORE…
Platters, candles in the shape of cacti, table napkins, books, vases, mugs
with amusing messages, pens of any description, notebooks covered in Batik .
However, I DO need printer ink - lots of it. Thanks.
THE MOST MEANINGFUL GIFT I’VE EVER RECEIVED.
My most meaningful gift was one from Santa when I was about eight years old. It was an easel, some paints, brushes and a huge pile of butcher's paper. I have never forgotten that present and, looking back, I think it was because Santa (ahem) saw something in me that I had barely recognised in myself - that I had the soul of an artist.
I could say it's something my kids or husband have given me at Christmas - but they give me joy every day.
But, I just want to say, thank you, Santa, for that wonderful gift, that, almost 50(!) years later, made me so, so happy.
THIS IS MY CHRISTMAS
A very quiet one this year. Just the four of us. We're having a damn turkey, come what may. I dont care if it's 45 degrees in the shade. Then a swim and a nice lie down. I've earned that, I reckon. Have a wonderful Christmas, everyone!
MY NEW RULES FOR 2013
In 2013 I would like to see literally everyone who uses literally all the time when they mean "honestly" or "truly ruly" to give it a rest. Likewise the tautology of "7 am in the morning". I'd like BOTH "r's" in library to make an appearance and the second "d" in Wednesday to make a comeback, along with the two "l's" in vulnerable.
Finally, I'd like to see the pronounciation police (like me) , give it a rest, literally.