Wednesday 31 December 2008
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD !
Today would have been Dads' 92nd birthday. He has been gone, but not forgotten for the past 12 years.
Born in Casino NSW, his father Julian died when he was 3 months old and his mother Clara took the family and moved to her fathers hotel at Tabulam. Incidentally, Julian & Clara were first cousins. Sounds unheard of these days, but in 1894 I guess it wasn't considered odd as it would be these days.
When he left school he worked with the 'travelling picture shows' (remember that Australian movie - "The Picture Show Man" ?) That took him to the Lyric Theatre in Tenterfield where he was the projectionist.
He was also an honorary bearer for the Tenterfield Ambulance, and when WWII broke out he joined the RAAF as a Medical Orderley. He served at Darwin during the bombing, a base in west QLD with Special 'Z' forces, Rathmines flying boat squadron at Lake Macquarie, Temora in west NSW to name just a few.
I can remember one night when he came home from his customary beer at the local, with an exciting bit of news. He and the local Beaudesert taxi driver (I think his surname was Radke) had been talking about their service during the war. Dad mentioned that when he was in Darwin, he was the orderley who took delivery of the first Japanese POW to arrive on Australian soil for transport to the RAAF Hospital because he was badly wounded. Imagine his surprise when Mr Radke said that he and his Army mates had loaded that same prisoner onto the Catalina flying boat! I think that probably prompted another round!
Dad left the RAAF after the war and worked in small Ambulance stations in country areas before moving to Beaudesert where he met Mum. They were married in Sep 54. Dad stayed with the Ambulance until his retirement in about 1983.
He passed away on the 23 Dec 96 after an apparent allergic reaction to a changed medication he was taking.
This photo that I have put in here is taken when Dad was about 3 years old, sitting on the steps of the Tabulam Hotel and playing with his favourite toy, an ambulance. It is quite fitting considering his lifetime career was in that field.
Love to all
Jordy
Wednesday 24 December 2008
Moving right along..................
received the official 'OK' email today, saying that our transfer to Newcastle has been approved! We just have to negotiate the exact dates.
AT LAST! sometimes I think the waiting is the worst.
We r all organized for Christmas, looking forward to 5 days off now, having a cuppla drinks and giving out some gifts to my wonderful family!
Although the for sale sign is up, the house is 'not quite' on the market yet. We have to wait for the contracts to be drawn up before it can be properly advertised. Our solicitor is on a break over the festive season and back in early January so we have a little time to just veg out before we have to keep the place looking like a Beverly Hills display home!!
For my overseas friends, I am on Facebook now, so check out the weird and wonderful goings on of the Jordans. Search for Pete Jordan; u cant miss my bald head, goatee and 2 earrings on my photo! Seems a bit odd perhaps that I have this blog AND a facebook page, but facebook is much more informal and has easier interaction between friends than a blog. Besides, not everyone has a facebook account.
Thursday 4 September 2008
Summer's on the way........YAY!!!.....
Well, the Jordans are very happy now that spring is here and summer is coming also. It's gonna be stinkin hot but the winter was cold and really wet so we are looking forward to it.
What's been happenin' ? I hear you ask? Well.............
I saw the Doc today and had a heart stress test. I had a few concerns about the ticker and decided to get them addressed. Turns out that everything is fine - wonderfully so!! All worry over nothing! Doc says I have another 51 years in me at least - gotta get my telegram from the monarch of the day!!
The Real Estate job for Lachlan was a fizzer. He phoned them to see what was happening and they told him that it was no longer available! They were taking a 'new direction' in their thinking! Can u believe that? I often wonder how some businesses survive with their casual attitude toward people who apply for jobs that they have advertised. Not only that, but their lack of planning and foresight in the recruitment process. Maybe they dont have much respect for their own businesses. Case in point; Lachlan applied for a position about a year ago with a local business only to be told that there was no actual job vacancy! The business was considering branching into something new and wanted to put out feelers to see how many people would be interested! He has been flat out with his 0430am starts this week. He also has been doing some sales work for a local business that is into publications - magazines and also the web. He is involved in selling web space advertizing for local businesses. He is having a good time, but it is also a good learning experience for him.
Kasy and her boyfriend Chris went to Wollongong last weekend to visit Chris' Dad. It is the furthest that she has ever driven but she arrived home safely. Kasey loves to drive!
Rhiannans driving is going well, although her car was a little under the weather this last week so she didn't get much time in. Turns out the spark leads had had it. Goes like a little rocket now!!
Kim n I went for a leisurely drive the other arvo. It was a beautiful day and we took off north to Old Junee, across to Marrar and Coolamon and back to Wagga. Such beautiful country out that way, so green from constant rain over winter and the yellow flowers of the Canola starting to bloom.
That's about all for this post.
Love to all
Jordy
P.S. If you have taken the time to check out my blog and read the last post, then please take a little extra time to sign the guestbook. We get pretty excited when we see how many people have visited our site and a comment in the guestbook tops it off!!
Monday 25 August 2008
Career Madness.........
Kasey has not been too happy at Woolworths of late, so she went on a 'Sell Kassandra' mission and has come up with the goods.
She won a position at 'Allens' a fair sized retail store here in Wagga Wagga. It is a maternity relief position for the next 9 - 12 months but the store manager said that there would be a position for her when that time came up. She has 36 hours a week and starts on the 16 Sep. She is so happy about that. At exactly the same time, she landed herself a position as a waitress in one of our local pubs, but after a cuppla shifts there of not doing anything other than dishwashing she has decided to 'throw in the towel' (yes the dish towel LOL !!) Some of the girls that worked there weren't exactly too helpful and the woman in charge didn't treat her that well. But anyway, she has decided to keep a shift at Woolworths for a while to earn a little extra until she settles into the Allens job.
Lachlan went for an interview to a local Real Estate company. He was one of four chosen out of heaps of applicants for a Traineeship position, however before anyone sets foot into a Real Estate office there is some type of course that has to be done (under the law). It is an 18 week part time night course or, if one travels to Sydney, it is a 3 day course. The bloke conducting the interview was a bit wishy washy with information. Lachlan asked when the traineeship might start and the answer was "soonish....." There was no indication that if Lachlan does this short course if he would have the job. How can a business conduct interviews for a job or traineeship, not have a definite start date, and not give certainties when applicants may have to spend up to $600 on a 3 day short course on the off chance that they might be the successful applicant?
Anyway, on the day of his interview, Kim and I met Lachlan for lunch. He was done up in his suit and looked very handsome, or as one of Rhiannans friends put it - 'He's HOT!" He was of the idea that he should go for a walk and submit his resume (he had a copy of it with him) to some local businesses - you know the story - the squeaky wheel gets the grease! He walked to our local television station Southern Cross 10 (which has a small office here but does the majority of their work from Canberra) on the off chance that something may be available. Lachlan did some work experience there a few years ago whilst at school. Well, they remembered him and told him they would look over his resume. A very short while later, after Lachlan had left the office, the receptionist phoned to ask him about his Diploma in Digital Media. She told him that there was a position coming up - something about Producer something-or-other. She was going to make some calls and phone him back at the end of this week. Pretty exciting eh? Television is exactly what Lachlan would love to get into more than anything! Cross your fingers!
Rhiannan and I went for a rather long drive today; she still has a number of hours to accrue before she can sit for her drivers licence. She is doing very well.
Thats it for now. Will post updates about what has occurred with Lachlan when the news comes to hand.
Hope you're all well and enjoying life......
Love
Jordy
P.S. - The photo for this entry is one of our nephew James. Taken a few years ago (sorry it's taken a little while to get on here James) I cropped the original and tweaked it into a black and white (which I think looks great) James celebrated his 13th birthday recently.
Tuesday 19 August 2008
Amymone is back!....
Never fear!
After some research (and actually getting around to doing it) the solution was found to fix her. The concrete had to be 'sanded' with a soft grinder attachment, an epoxy solution applied and then another 'membrane' solution applied over the top of that. I had to leave for a while to ensure it dried over winter, before filling it again. It worked perfectly!
Yesterday I filled her up and turned her on (I hope she enjoyed that - LOL!!!) We now have our fountain back, and in the hotter months it will attract heaps of our local birds as it did in the past.
You may ask why we call her Amyone? Well...
Amyone was one of 50 Danaids (daughters of Danaus - Greek Mythology). Danaus fled Egypt when he refused to marry his daughters to his twin brothers' (Aegyptus) 50 sons! (Phew they were a busy lot eh?!) Anyway he fled to Argos in Greece. His brother gave chase, and rather than put up a battle and cause death and destruction in his new found home, he instructed his daughters to murder their husbands on their wedding night.
Amymone (the 'blameless' one) did not do this because her husband Lynceus honoured her wish that she remain a virgin. The 49 heads of the other husbands were buried in 'Lerna' which was a region of springs and a former lake near the east coast of thePeloponnesus, south of Argos . Danaus was angry with his disobedient daughter and threw her to the Argive courts. Aphrodite intervened and saved her (Lynceus later killed Danaus as revenge for the death of his brothers). Lynceus and Amymone then began a dynasty of Argive kings (the Danaan Dynasty).
Amymone is represented with a water pitcher, a reminder of the sacred springs and lake of Lerna and, by contrast, a reminder that her sisters were forever punished in Tartarus (a dungeon of torment and suffering that exists in Hades) for their murderous crimes by fruitlessly drawing water in pitchers with open bases.
Hope you found that interesting!
Bye for now!...
Jordy
Monday 18 August 2008
Shopping Trip......
We also caught up with Bruce and Margaret, old friends of ours from our Canberra days. Bruce and I served in the RAAF at Canberra together. We had a great lunch and swapped stories. It was so wonderful to see them again. Now that our kids are older and the family responsibilities are a little less (the kids can look after themselves now!), we hope to see more of them as we gradually make use of our new found freedoms.
And YES.......there was the shopping!! A little disappointing according to the girls. I wandered around like a lost soul whilst they hit the shops although, they didn't see much that took their attention. To pass the time I grabbed my camera and got some candid shots from the maddening crowds, and then at Lake Gininderra. You can see them posted onto my Flickr site.
We had a good time away but it was good to get home safely. Thanks for looking after us big fella!
I can't believe that the Olympics are almost over - Hooray Hooray - I am getting sick of it all; can't seem to have worked up any Olympic enthusiasm this time around.
Anyway, hope you're all well and looking forward to the warmer weather!
Love to all
Jordy XOXOXO
Sunday 10 August 2008
FINALLY!!.... Return to the Blog!
Well.......
I returned to work after a month off over July. It was at the stage in my shift cycle when a swing shift occurred, hence for about 2 weeks it was work, eat and, sleep. Also, our subscription for Internet Security expired and I was a bit reluctant to use the net until we renewed it.
The family are all well. We have been hibernating thru the coldest and wettest winter we have had for years! (roll on Spring!)
I was a bit out of sorts on returning to work. My first nightshifts really knocked me about; I guess it will take a few more for me to settle back into that routine.
Kasey has been putting out feelers for another job scene. Woolies is "ok" but she wants more hours. If she can pick up something that will supplement her Woolies hours that will be good. Better still, if she can get something that offers about 38 hours a week then Woolies is gone! She has had one interview and is awaiting an outcome. Say a few prayers!
Rhiannans' traineeship is going great and she loves the place and people where she works. She cooked a chocolate cake the other day (for the menu!!) and was very proud of that effort!
Lachlans hours have picked up after the end of the financial year, although he is looking for something a little more stable with dedicated hours.
That's about it!! Pretty boring stuff eh? Kim, Rhiannan and I are off to Canberra at the end of the week. The girls will be on a shopping spree. I intend to take off around the place and get some photos. I'll let u know how it went.
In the meantime I'll sign off. I must try and blog on a regular basis so that I am not wracking my brain remembering stuff that happens weeks later!
Speaking of Canberra, the photo for this blog is of the kids and I in our backyard when we lived in Canberra. It's one of my fav photos.
Love to all
Jordy
P.S. If you visit here sign the Guestbook so we know who has visited. I see heaps of visitors on the flag list but dont know who they are!
Saturday 19 July 2008
Another year older............
I had a great day, thanks to by beautiful loving family! Also, I was very spoiled! From Kim I received a wide angle lens for my camera. It's very exciting because it gives me heaps more options for my photography. Rhiannan and Kasey both gave me books on photography. Rhiannans is about Macro and Close Ups and Kaseys is about creating ambience and moods through the use of filters and computer software. Lachlan gave me a very cool Led Zeppelin watch!! It has one of their record covers on the face; it hasn't been that long since I rocked and rolled!! We went out to the Victoria Hotel for dinner and had a ball. Lachlan and Kassandra talked Kim and I into having a cuppla 'shots' after dinner. Shots are like miniature cocktails, very potent and taste great! Just the thing to warm us up on a cold night!
A beautiful day in Wagga Wagga today, the sun is shining but it is still very cold out.
We are all well, life is busy but never too busy for fun and laughter!
As it is my birthday, I thought I might put on a photo of a much younger me! This photo was taken at Glenmore. Not sure how old I am here.
Love to all
Jordy
Friday 11 July 2008
22 Years Tomorrow!........
Tuesday 8 July 2008
I'm on Holidays..........
So what I have been doing is spending a bit more time on the 'pooter and internet. One good thing to come out of this is that I have discovered the Schoolfriends site has been updated. Now known as Friends Re-united, I have actually caught up with an old school mate and a couple of RAAF mates. Hopefully more to follow as well.
We have decided not to escape for a couple of nights on our anniversary; we'll just go out for dinner and have a couple of glasses of the fruit of the vine!
Lachlan has informed us that one of the guys in the back dock is going on holidays soon and they want Lachlan to fill his hours. That's good for the bank account, unfortunately his shifts start at 4.30 am daily so Lachlan will have a few weeks of disruption. Lachlans hours have been cut severely in the last 2 weeks because it was the end of the financial year. He is a casual employee and if the budget for the store comes under the forecast for the year, the managers get a bonus!! It sucks really, the casual workers get their hourse slashed so the manager can pick up a personal bonus.
The photo posted for this entry was taken on the front steps of 4 Delamore St. I took a photo of the original and then uploaded it onto the computer.
Hope you're all well.
Jordy
Tuesday 24 June 2008
Lachlans Latest Journalistic Venture
About a week and a half ago, the blokes from The Wagga Guide (famous on-line web page promoting everything about beautiful Wagga Wagga) approached Lachlan and asked if he would do a Rock Band Interview. There were 3 bands visiting Wagga Wagga as part of a Jack Daniels Promotion.
Bands from all over had competed in a competition hosted by Jack Daniels (the whisky) the 3 most voted for bands were then put on a tour on the East Coast.
Lachlan didn't get much time to investigate or do any homework on these bands as he was asked to interview them early afternoon on that day, and the bands were playing a 1 night gig that night! Never the less, he picked up his trusty CamCorder and Tripod, did a quick Google homework and thus armed hit the Capital Night Club!
You can check out the interview on this link -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHNjh088HfM
The majority of the filming was done by Lachlan ('cept for the interview bits). Lachlan edited the film adding the captions and had to compress the file for upload to YouTube.
Not bad for a couple of hours notice!!
Go Lockie!!
Tradition Lives On!!..........
Lachlan has his forklift licence and we're all very proud of him!!
Kasey and Chris are off to Albury for a cuppla days shopping and celebrating their 6 month anniversary!! Time flies while you're having fun!
Rhiannan has been very keen and going to kick boxing classes (sorta like a gym class) early in the mornings twice a week for about 2 months now. She has lost a little weight and can see an improvement in her overall fitness.
We've had a slight problem with our new Subaru Impreza (nnoooooooo......) When we took delivery of it there was a stone chip on the bonnet. We were told that it would be fixed, BUT they want to respray the whole bonnet! Problem is, I don't think that they would be able to match the colour exactly, and I would rather put up with a stone chip than a bonnet that stands out because the paint is a different shade. They will fix the stone chip with a touchup and polish and then compensate us for the difference between that and a full respray. A little disappointing but it's no good spending all that money on a brand new car and not receive it in 100% condition. The dealer has been very good about it, though it did take them a little while to get around to organizing something about it.
My photography thing is coming along great. I've been discovering all about different lens filters that give better results for landscape photography. A little expensive (the polarizing filter I want is around the $65 mark) but will make a great difference in certain shots.
In 1 week I will be on leave for a month. Thank God!! The place is driving me a little loony lately. I love my job but some of the personalities make it difficult. Everyone has an opinion but it's a shame when they don't really have any idea about what it is they are talking about!
Anyway, it will be our 22nd Wedding Anniversary on the 12th July and all going well Kim and I will escape somewhere for a couple of nights. It will have to be cosy because it will be damn cold anywhere we go!!
The 1st photo for this post is of Theresa and I at Tambourine Mountain. Mum, Dad, Theresa & I went for a day trip when Matt was a baby and Dad had us pose at this palm tree out the front of St Bernards Hotel. That photo would've been taken in 1967 I think. Years later when Kim & I visited there with our kids I just couldn't resist the temptation!! Yep!....I did a Kevin Sylvester and lined up Lachlan & Kasey at the same tree!
I hope they both realize now that it is a family tradition and they have to do the same with theirs as well!!!
Anyway, that's it from me today.
Hope you are all well.
Love to all
Jordy
Saturday 7 June 2008
Aahhhhh....THIS is what goes on at the Capital Niteclub!!
This is a photo I found when downloading some of Kaseys' photos onto the computer for her.
Taken at Lachlans 20th birthday smash at the Capital nightclub.
Lachlan drinks Bundaberg Rum, and how coincidental that the Bundy Girls were at the club with free giveaways on his birthday.
Can't wish for a better birthday gift eh?!!
Thursday 5 June 2008
Kimbos' new gadget!
Saturday 31 May 2008
Another Wonderful Day in the Country!..............
Kim n I are really looking forward to a sleep in!
Today, Kasey was up at 6am for a 6.45 start, Lachlan started at 8am and Rhiannan started at 9am! Just when we thought it was safe for a Sunday sleep in, Lachlan has picked up an 8am start - DOH!!!! I am back on Monday with 3 dayshifts (5.30am alarm!)
Still, in spite of the sleep deprivation (0r so it seems), we're very proud of their work ethics. They all have a target in mind and are not adverse to working and saving towards it!
Found this little fella on the driveway near the front garden this morning. We get lots of these small lizards in our rockery.
And finally for today, snapped Kaiser taking a snooze in the afternoon sun yesterday. Look at how grey he is. He will be 15 human years this year I think. He is a little deaf and blind but still runs around like a pup! He has squeaky toys stashed all over the house and occassionally will grab one, run around like a mad dog and then hide under the dining room table squeaking away madly. I swear he has been here before as a human - he just seems to know what we're talking about!
Well, it's an absolutely beautiful afternoon so I think I'll make a cuppa and sit out the front, pondering life and what I will do with my share of the 40 million power ball if our work syndicate wins it!
love u all
The Jordies
Friday 30 May 2008
A Day in Junee...........
Well, I finally got a decent stand-down this time around. 5 days off! Started last Wednesday.
I've had some training days to run over the past few months, and of course my shifts that are changed to fit into the majoritys' needs. I don't mind that so much but with my 12 hour shifts being all over the place, I sometimes feel like I barely have time to recover before I have to go back again!
Kim and I went for a day trip to Junee on Wednesday. It's a nice little town. It has some great attractions; The Roundhouse Museum & the Licorice & Chocolate Factory to name a couple. It used to be a fairly busy railway town. The Roundhouse Museum is dedicated to this. The roundhouse refers to the place where the trains come into the building and are placed on a turntable where they back into a large servicing bays where the engineers work on them. Half of it is still a going engineering facility and the other half is used as a museum. Junee is on the main Melbourne - Sydney rail line and at one stage was an extremely busy railway town.
The family has been very busy in the last week (as per usual!) Lachlan has had extra hours this week and today started at 4.30am. Kasey has also had extra hours and all this week has had a 6.45am start. Rhiannan has her usual 9.30am start. Add to this my shifts and you can see that things are very topsy turvy. Kim has had some very staggered starts to her day!
This photo was taken at Junee. The day was a typical sunny but very cool Autumn day and there was a lot of haze in the distance, probably from the wood fires that had been lit.
Hope you're all well.
Lurv
The Jordans
Todays quote............
"The only truly happy man is always a fighting optimist. Optimism includes not only altruism but also social responsibility, social courage and objectivity". - W. Beran Wolfe
Thursday 29 May 2008
Kasey has a new car!...........
Wednesday 21 May 2008
This is where it all started...........
Tuesday 13 May 2008
Temora Aviation Museum
A Trip to Albury
Sunday 27 April 2008
Winter is on the way!
Thursday 17 April 2008
What's New?
Wednesday 9 April 2008
Lachlans' Graduation Night
Tuesday 8 April 2008
Monday 7 April 2008
Another Beautiful Day in the Country!
Thursday 3 April 2008
One more photo.............
Wednesday 2 April 2008
Kids left at home 'n' we're on our own!! WOO HOO
Mums' 80th Birthday
It was a brilliant day; the first time that the 5 Jordan "kids" have been all together in the one spot since Dad passed away in '96. We're all a 'bit' older now, but none the worse for wear!
Mum had a good time, got stuck into a roast lunch with all the trimmings and really enjoyed herself, as did we all. The Beaudesert RSL Club put on a good spread (as they usually do) and Dad would've been proud to see us all sitting down in the club he worked so hard to establish, with many years on the Club Committee.
Wednesday 19 March 2008
New Car is Here!....
picked up the Impreza the other day. Boy! it's great to drive! It's similar to the Outback in some ways but handles much better. Kim loves driving it, and we're looking forward to lower fuel and running costs as opposed to the larger engine of the Outback and the 2nd car (the Astra) that Lachlan brought off us.
We're off to QLD for Mums 80th on the 27th - can't wait - it'll be so good to catch up with the family and have some time to ourselves also. We're arriving about 0130 on Thurs arvo - 2 nights in Brissy - Sat night at Beaudesert and Sun/Mon nights at Surfers Paradise. Should be a great little break away!
Hey! Follow this link - http://www.waggaguide.com.au/ and check out Lachlans journalistic skills. He is now listed as a columnist for this website! It's not a paying job - yet - but Lachlan enjoys posting stuff on there as it gives him some experience with writing and is quickly making a name for himself with the site managers.
Jordy
Sunday 2 March 2008
Big Week for all ...............
Friday 22 February 2008
Hhhmmm.......it's raining!!
Friday 1 February 2008
Wot's 'appenin' ?
Thursday 3 January 2008
Only 992 years 'til the New Millenium.........
Catching up.
Well it has been a couple of months since I posted a Blog article. I don't have any Project or roll of film in particular to share wi...