My
LETS Presentation Almost Sabotaged
Today
was my big day. I had been allocated the first 3 hours of the day,
from 9am to 12 noon, to give my presentation, so it would be the
longest performance I'd ever given.
Breakfast
was served at 8am, and everyone was given notice to be seated by
8.55am. Then just before the last few people took their seats, the
hot water cistern in the kitchen overflowed and squirted across
the kitchen floor, only metres from where I stood and in full view
of everyone present. Fortunately it wasn't an act of sabotage by
any of the delegates, and soon it was taken care of and the mess
quickly cleaned up.
So,
right on 9am I was introduced, and got straight into my presentation.
All 36 delegates were there, and thankfully the entire program went
smoothly, as Dave was recording it all on video. Usually my presentation
went for one to two hours, so the additional hour enabled me to
elaborate on some points and add a few other items I felt would
be of interest. This was particularly appreciated by those members
who'd seen my presentation during the previous 3 weeks, and so were
able to glean some new ideas from it.
Nearing
the end of my presentation, a newspaper photographer ventured in
and began taking photos. It was my second such experience, so I
wasn't daunted as much as I was in Timaru. Immediately after my
presentation, a local journalist was introduced to me and we went
outside for a quick interview. Unlike most of my other interviews,
she took notes in shorthand rather than taping me, so I had no idea
what she was writing. I guess I'll have to wait for Dave to send
me the newspaper clipping when it finally gets printed.
Two
other speakers completed the day's program. A police welfare officer
shared some of his 28 years of experience with us, and Lindsay Jukes
completed the program with a summary of a LETS System Training Pack.
Our Conference
delegates.
Grave
Yards, Tuataras, Bluffs Hill And Conference Dinner
There
were outside events programmed from 3.30pm onwards, so first of
all we went to Winton Cemetery to visit the grave of Minnie Dean,
the only woman ever hung in New Zealand. Her crime? She was convicted
of murdering at least 4 babies in her foster care, and possibly
6 or 7 others. Her method? A hatpin through the soft baby's skull.
Lindsay escorted us to a patch of green grass and confidently claimed
that it was the actual resting place of this notorious female criminal.
And his source? The grave was personally dug by his grandfather
early in the 19th century, and the secret was passed on through
the generations.
Next
stop was to the Tuatara Exhibition at the Southland Museum and Art
Gallery. There was free entry to locals, but seeing we'd arrived
just before closing time, and would only be there for about 20 minutes,
all non-locals were allowed in for free as well. The main feature
was Henry, the 120 year-old living Tuatara which was advertised
as being born circa-1880.
The
Maritime Museum was shut by the time we got there, so our next call
was to Stirling Point which featured a sign post with distances
to cities around the world, including; Sydney (2,000 km), Hobart
(1,680 km), New York (15,008 km), Wellington (714 km).
Bluff Point
gave a brilliant view of the tip of New Zealand.
The
lookout on top of Bluffs Hill was our next point of call, and proved
very educational. On the pathway up the hill, several information
boards gave out interesting historical facts such as: Polynesians
were the first humans to come to New Zealand which was only about
1,000 years ago and the giant flightless bird, the Moa, became extinct
only about 500 years ago. This surprised me because I always imagined
the Maoris' history going back many, many thousands of years and
thought the Moa was a pre-historic creature.
As
the sun began to set, we all got back into the 2 hire vans we were
traveling in, and returned to Bluff Hill which was the venue for
our Conference Dinner. Dave and Sharon Robbie did some fund-raising
in November last year which raised about NZ$1,000 for this night.
So they booked the entire Lands End Restaurant for our Conference
Dinner, and we were treated to a tasty smorgasbord followed by sweets
and coffee.
Waltzing
Matilda Meets Jolly Good Fellow
By
8pm we began making our way back to the vans. I'd spoken to Dave
about my preference to return to his home rather than going back
for the night, but it was only when we detoured into Dave's street
that some of the passengers realized we weren't going straight back
to our cabins at the Conference Centre.
"Did
you forget something, Dave?" someone asked.
"No.
We're just dropping off James tonight, because he's got some work
to catch up on, so he won't be coming back to the Conference," Dave
explained.
A
universal sigh erupted at this unexpected response. Then almost
immediately the van burst into song.
"Waltzing
Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
You'll come a-waltzing Matilda with me …"
Then
after a brief applause at the end of that song, and just as the
van turned into Dave's driveway, they began again …
"For
he's a jolly good fellow,
For he's a jolly good fellow,
For he's a jolly good fellow,
Which nobody can deny …"
I
loved these kiwis. I'd surely miss them.
This
article is taken from the ebook,
Land of the LETS Green
Dollar
About
the book
|
James
Taris web sites
JamesTaris.com
LETS-Linkup.com
Rich-Bastards.com
Honey-BeeBooks.com
TheGloryOfAthens.com
TravelWithoutMoney.com
ChineseArt-ChineseArt.com
ShanghaiPhotoGuide.com
ShockProofMaterial.com
2pups.com
