MANNERS AND OTHER MATTERS

I am, You are, We are Australian...The Seeker s The Pinnacles, Western Australia  I am celebrating Australia Day tomorrow.  Over the last decade or so Australia Day has become an important holiday, in fact not unlike Thanksgiving in the US. Not only because we have a day off from work,  but because we Aussies respect Australia Day. It's a day which is marked by many with time at the beach, barbecues, and having a beer or wine with friends;  and it finishes here in Perth with the annual Skyshow....fireworks over the Swan River. We are a tolerant and multicultural society;  our Anglo Saxon roots no longer define us. In  fact, since I was a little girl going to school in the 60s most of my friends have always had family names which weren't Anglo Saxon. My children's  father is an Italian-Australian and I have recently had five years with a Frenchman travelling between two hemispheres. Sharing languages and cultures is part of the Australi...

I have been reading “The Men in your Life”,   by Geneviève Antoine Dariaux,   published in 1968.    It was given to me by a friend as I have recently had a long relationship with a Frenchman.   It makes for fascinating reading, divided as it is into alphabetical subjects, covering all aspects of relationships with advice for both men and women.   It speaks of earlier days and often different morals and values to those we consider normal today and is of course presented from a French perspective. It gave me some laughs, and some reasons for deeper thought. Madame Dariaux remains firmly of the opinion that women should nurture their men – fathers, husbands, lovers, sons – in order to hang on to some semblance of order and control in their lives. And she believes that infidelity should be viewed on a case by case basis.  So…here are a few extracts, taken directly from the book… Adultery: Madame…it is far more serious a matter for yo...

Always read the fine print After reading an interesting article in a weekend paper which encouraged depositors to “shop around” for good Term Deposit rates, I did just that this morning. Armed with newspaper ads from the business pages I approached my usual bank and asked for the best rate they could give me. A very polite Gen Y assistant advised me of the figure 5.20%  When I advised him that the advertisements from competitors offered better rates he rang his superior...”OK, Madam, 5.60%. He then suggested that I see other banks to compare the rates! All of this service, and with a smile and a professional manner. So, down the highway I went and offered my business to another of the Australian “ Big Banks”. The portly and pleasant assistant quoted the published rate and I suggested he might like to explore the opportunity of me moving all my banking needs to his institution....again with a smile, “Certainly, Madam, please excuse me while I check with my Manager...” . “OK Mad...

King Kamahemeha Day Parade , Hawaii 2008  (photo the author) It’s a new year.  And when I was preparing for friends to visit today I listened to   IZ Somewhere over the Rainbow  He was inspirational…and has now sadly passed.  I hope, as you enjoy the first day of 2012 you also enjoy this inspirational clip. I have spent many months of my last few years with my companion traveling around remote islands while he researched them for his books.  To be able to live with and enjoy and learn from the people of these islands  has been an unexpected gift for me. These buses were everywhere...feeding the  participants in the Pipeline Competition  While the remote islands of Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Christmas Island, Yap, Palau, Norfolk Island and more have intrigued me, when I  went back, through IZ's music, to the time when I was travelling with my companion in Hawaii in 2008 I found my memories just there.   And here I share...