The Reluctant Political Candidate (Part 2) - The Campaign

Continuing my 3 part series about my short political involvement. 

My opponent was the former member for Heathcote, Ian McManus. McManus moved to contest the electorate of Burragorang when the redistribution of boundaries made his Heathcote a safe Liberal seat.

When I accepted the nomination as Liberal candidate for Burragorang I quite aware it was a safe Labor Party seat. I had no expectations of winning. With nothing to lose, and although it required a lot of dedication and hard work, I immersed myself into the campaign. I learnt a great deal, it boosted my confidence and I had a ball!

I had a fantastic campaign committee. Hank Vanderpoll, a local business man, was Campaign Director and Mark Stanham was Campaign Secretary but my best buddy, chauffeur and body guard was the wonderful Ron Heise. Ron and his family worked very hard throughout the whole campaign and Ron was always there for support.

A spare room in my home became a campaign office for the Wollondilly Shire section of the electorate but two thirds of voters lived in the northern suburbs of Wollongong so we needed a strong presence in that area.

An old plumbers business was offered and after cleaning out all the plumbing materials and told and giving the building a fresh paint my team had it looking very obviously a campaign office. 

I was honoured when Senator Bronwyn Bishop very kindly agreed to officially open the campaign office. Senator Bishop was a very high profile politician and this electorate was far from being of any importance to the party. The opening was also attended by two lady members of the Legislative Assembly.
Being a short campaign, only two major fundraising functions were held. The first was held at the Fraternity Club in Bellambi and the second at a restaurant between Bargo and Tahmoor. 

My wonderful mentor Senator Michael Baume

Senator Michael Baume was based in Wollongong and both he and his staff were extremely supportive of the three candidates whose electorates took in various parts of the city.  Michael was a wonderful mentor and his staff always ready to help.

Most of the campaign was dedicated to getting out and about; personally meeting as many voters as possible. There were several personal highlights of the campaign.

Ron Heise worked at Tahmoor Colliery and arranged an underground visit for me. I was taken down in the dolly car and allowed to talk to the miners. 

While down there a report came through that the dolly car was down for maintenance and anyone wanting to return to the surface had to come up in the cage. The cage was just that a cage that operated as an elevator and very scary especially when it started wobbling from side to side. Even the miners were not made to use it if they didn’t want to.  Having got safely to the surface I discovered the person who was carrying out the maintenance on the dolly car was Ron Heise!

I also had a chance to visit Westcliffe Colliery - this time with Neil Pickard, Shadow Minister for Mineral Resources. I was allowed to operate the coal miner and mined a quantity of coal. By coincidence, the same day, Parliament passed legislation allowing women to work in coal mines. 
Guess I can claim I was the first lady miner in NSW.

A function was organised by Senator Baume’s staff for Nick Greiner, leader of the Liberal Party, and his wife Kathrine to meet the Wollongong area candidates. The lead up to the function was a street parade. The campaign committees were to decorate a car (or better still several cars) with their candidates’ posters. Not a team to do things by halves, the Burragorang committee decided to have a coal truck!

Senator Michael Baume was the former Federal Member for Macarthur; an area that included the township of Appin.  An important piece of advice was that I HAD to visit the Appin Hotel and talk to the men. So I duly attended one Friday night with Mark Stanham and Ron Heise as support. I began to introduce myself when I was cornered by a local businessman, who happened to be a Liberal supporter. He threw a barrage of questions at me one after the other to the extent it left no time to talk to anyone else.

As we left the hotel we noticed that someone had let two of the tyres down on my Ford Laser. You couldn’t miss it as my car because of the sign that was mounted on top. Thank heavens my men were with me.

On the way home I told mark and Ron that I was not happy with the evening’s outcome and I felt I had to return the following week. Ron came with me again and when my previous interrogator started again with his questions I told him quite firmly that he had enough of my time the previous week and I was there to talk to the other men. 

In Part 3 – It’s Election Day!

How much new technology and inventions do we really need? Part 1: Personal Stuff

A friend recently emailed one of those ‘fun’ emails. You know the type. They have fabulous photography, cute animals, words of wisdom, humour etc. This one was titled “Coming Your Way Soon” and featured several new inventions.

I’m one of those people who worries a little about how fast we are progressing with technology (yes, I’m a Baby Boomer). So thought I’d look at each of these new inventions and consider their importance to my life. I also ran these ideas past my husband and 36 year tech minded step son.

A pen that lets you scan and write in any colour.

Son couldn’t see any use – he’s a graphic designer and pointed out he has an app on is phone that will read the RGB of any colour scanned by the phone.

Me? I have a thing about colour co-ordinating. Not just in a domestic sense like around the house but my files are all colour co-ordinated; that is a different colour for blogging, personal stuff, the Dingo Lady project, my craft etc etc. Oh, and of course one for books I am writing and the finished one I am shamelessly promoting: Angel with Drumsticks: The rock that Shook the Foundations of the Vatican available through Amazon

My post it notes, folders and the ink I use for notes on the various categories all match! I’m one of those people that buy those pens with several colours. I always have one with black, blue, red and green and if I come across one with 10 colours I am in heaven! So yes, I definitely NEED one of these. That would give me an endless range of colours. How wonderful!

Small tiles you can attach to your keys, wallet, computer, or pretty much anything.

It claims that if you lose anything, you can then look up their location on your Smartphone.

The thing I keep losing is my glasses. I have several pairs in different rooms for different purposes; computer work, reading, needlework etc. I have a habit of getting up from my chair to walk to another room taking my glasses off as I go and leaving them ‘somewhere’ on the way. I also do sometimes lose my mobile phone. I rarely lose my keys or purse.

Now this tag is not going to help me one bit. I am certainly not going to walk around with a tag attached to my glasses and what good is having a tag on my phone if I need to find it to find it. (Get what I mean?)

Know it all son tells me there are already stickers you can get that do the same thing – OK that would be a bit better for the glasses. Pedantic Husband just says it is more of a development than a new invention

Device to lift the Pringles up.

No one in this house is that lazy. Just tip them into a bowl.

Mug that catches any drips

Husband – "just put a plate under a mug". Son – "that’s just lazy". Obviously they haven’t had to put up with guests who repeatedly ignore the coaster placed in front of them and put their coffee cup on MY table. My only request would be please make in a nice china with a pretty pattern.  

 
A hair brush that is easy to clean

I’ll take two – one for me and one for my long haired Belgian Shepherds

Ear buds that won’t tangle  
Son – great idea (told you he is the techie in the family. Husband just shrugs. He’s into gadgets even less than I am. Me? I don’t see the problem because I don’t have ear buds connected to anything. Now talk to me about ironing cords……

 

Packing tape that is easy to open       
Yes please! But security conscious husband and son say it would be too easy for people to open before it was delivered.
 

Back pack with hood

But what if I want to get my lipstick out of the bag in the pouring rain?

The Reluctant Political Candidate (Part 1) - Getting involved

Preamble:

This story of my political involvement spans 1985-1988 including the New South Wales (NSW) State election when Nick Greiner became Premier.

At the time I was passionate about the need for a change in government. Today, sadly, I barely bother even following the political news. It seems to me that there are few members of Federal and State Parliaments, on both sides of the house, who are anything more than career politicians. Please note that I do say few. I believe my current NSW Member of Parliament is an honourable and caring representative.

I always believed that you shouldn’t complain about a situation unless, subject to time and resources, you were prepared to contribute to change no matter how minor.  I was very concerned about the direction the country was going under the Whitlam Labor Government and while it was beyond my control as an individual to change the situation I thought I might contribute in some small way.

One evening politics in 1985 while we discussing politics my sister in law, a member of the Camden Branch of the Liberal Party, suggested I also join. I saw this as the answer to how I could make some contribution to changing the government.

Between 1985 and 1987 I served as branch delegate to State and Federal Conferences and as campaign secretary at local, state and federal government levels and also transferred to the Picton Branch (in the Shire of Wollondilly).

A State Election was to be held in early 1988 and part of the Wollondilly Shire was now in the new Electorate of Burragorang considered to be a safe Labor seat.

Safe seats of either political party have no trouble getting several members keen for nomination as election candidate. Even marginal seats often have two or three or more members to choose from as their candidate. When it is a safe seat for the opposite party the local branches struggle to find a candidate or even justify the cost of a campaign.

This was the situation that faced the Picton Branch of the Liberal Party in 1987. Do they run a campaign and throw fund raising time, and the resulting money, at a campaign they couldn’t win? Should they run a campaign so at least Liberal supporters in the electorate had someone to vote for? Who would be willing to spend their own time and money campaigning for a political seat they couldn’t win? Enter, ‘never do things by halves’, me.

When the Liberal Party ads were shown on television saying "We're Ready" - I was answering Nick Greiner back saying "No we're not – not in Burragorang!"

It became evident that if we didn't act soon we might end up with no candidate at all or someone from another area who was just looking for some electoral experience.

Burragorang would be far from easy to win, but there were good reasons why we needed a candidate:

• Those voters in the electorate who will only vote Liberal - deserved to be able to voice their political preferences.
• If there was to be no independent or minor party candidates we would be handing the seat to the Labor Party on a silver platter
• For every vote we gained for the Liberal Party it would most likely to be a vote for our candidates for the Upper House.

    The Federal seat of Macarthur was considered unwinnable, but through the members efforts the swing needed had been pulled back over the two previous Federal Elections so it was considered marginal - this is what we needed to work towards in Burragorang.

It was suggested that I should nominate as candidate. I did not take it seriously as I had no political ambitions but I had already promised my time and effort to the Burragorang campaign, as Secretary. With the trust of my local branches behind me I accepted nomination in November 1987 for an election to be held in April the following year.

The electorate of Burragorang was very strange and considered a major gerrymander by the then Labor Government. It took in Warragamba, Oakdale and The Oaks, Picton (but not Tahmoor), Appin (in Wollondilly) and the northern suburbs of Wollongong. It was like a big banana with Liberal voters in the north and Labor voters in the south. Two thirds of the population of the electorate was in the south and a very much a Labor stronghold.  To win Burragorang, or at least make our presence felt we knew we had to concentrate our efforts and make our presence felt in the coastal area.

This Liberal Party campaign for NSW was led by Nick Greiner.

In Part 2 of The Reluctant Political Candidate I cover the experience and fun of the campaign itself

The Accidental Dog Breeder (Part 3)

I promised in my last blog of this series that I would tell you more about Beau and there is oh so much to tell but here I will focus on his show career (or should I say lack of)

As I mentioned in Part 2 of The Accidental Dog Breeder, Beau came to us at three months; house trained and show trained. We enthusiastically started showing both Beau and Sassy and even went to country shows taking the advantage of having a short break with our beloved Groenendaels.

They both did pretty well in the show ring. Sassy gained her championship title and Beau took out several Minor Puppy in Group awards.

All was going very well until one day Beau starting quietly grumbling about being in the show ring (OK he was growling – but just a little!)

We couldn’t work it out. Why was our loving, cuddly bear behaving like this?

We persevered. Sometimes he would behave like an angel and others like the devil himself.

At the same time my husband’s son, Carlo had been having a battle of wits with young Beau. Beau thought he was boss and so did Carlo. Carlo also thought Beau was nothing but a spoilt brat. They had no time for each other but Carlo had to persist working on the relationship to dominate him.

In time Beau grew to respect Carlo more and more and by the time Beau was twelve months old they were the best of mates. They adored each other.

This didn’t mean that we had solved all Beau’s problems. He was still a problem in the show ring but not consistently good or bad. There were still times Beau and I were even ordered out of the show ring. Me with my head down in embarrassment and Beau with his head held high proudly stating “I beat another one”.

Over time we came to realise that our Beau had an ‘idiot alert’. I’ll give you two examples but first some basic info. 

• Belgians Shepherds are working dogs. (OK so you knew that)

• You should never look an unfamiliar dog in the eye because a dog interprets this as being challenging.  (How do you feel when a stranger stares at you?)
• Not using direct eye contact with a strange dog combined with correct body language will diffuse what could be a dangerous situation.
• With working dogs this is even more important. They are tuned to using eye contact with sheep and cattle to control a herd or an individual animal making them even more sensitive to a stranger wanting to control them.

First example
Beau’s breeder (we’ll call her Jane) was also a show judge and I was fascinated watching her one day in the Working Dog ring.

Each dog and handler enters the ring separately, runs a circuit then the dog stands for examination. As Jane approached each one for examination I noticed she did not look at the dog at all. She would smile and look at the handler as she approached then, while exchanging few words with the handler, gently touched the dog. No challenge, dog relaxes and can be handled, everyone enjoys showing.

Such a pity so many judges missed this part of their training.

Now, picture the other side of the story.  Beau enters ring, impresses judge with movement and stands to perfection showing what a handsome specimen he is. Little old lady (they almost all are) bends over; hand outstretched staring straight into the eyes of my beautiful, dominant, alpha male. Yep, he growls, little old lady is frightened (oh why didn’t she stick to judging the Toys Group?) Idiot alert has signalled.

Example 2

We loved taking Sassy and Beau out with us. It was great for their socialisation but we were also very proud of our two beautiful shepherds.

One outing was a local fair, crowded with people and lots of noise from the crowd and the vintage cars and bikes on display. I confess I was often nervous about how Beau would behave but Carlo confidently walked around with him and Beau seemed to be enjoying himself. (Especially after Carlo treated him to his favourite food – fairy floss)

My husband and I got separated from them at one point and when I turned around to see where they were a young child was walking towards them. I nervously watched, while still confident Carlo could handle the situation if Beau growled. 

The child would not have been more than three years old and stood the same height as Beau. He walked straight up to Beau, grabbed him on both sides of his neck (Beau had a lovely thick main so it would not have hurt him) and rocked Beau’s head back and forth. To my amazement Beau just stood there!

The child cuddled into his thick fur then happily walked away. My 'vicious' dog, as he had been termed by some judges, was as gentle as a lamb. The child was no threat. In his excitement to meet Beau he had not looked straight into Beau’s eyes but viewed him overall just wanting to cuddle our handsome dog.

It wasn’t just with children that we discovered Beau had immense patience. He was he same with elderly people (not the idiot judge types) and those in wheelchairs.

We finally had to admit that although we had purchased Beau as a show dog his career was over. He became a very much loved pet and he and Carlo continued to adore each other and were the very best of mates.

Beau did however go on to father our first litter. More in the next part of this series.

Reading re-triggers anger

 

I have just finished reading “I Will Never Forget” by Elaine C Pereira. It is the story of her mother’s developing dementia and how she coped with it. (My review is in the Book Review section of my website www.pam.id.au.)

In one section her mother ‘escapes’ from the home where she is being cared for and Elaine expresses her anger and how that could have happened.

It took my mind back to my own mother’s condition, diabetes, and the stroke that, while it didn’t kill her body, it killed her life. It roused my own anger.

Mum was a very active lady playing lawn bowls at least twice a week and was club president. She was involved in many community organisations including delivering meals on wheels and while I was tourism manager for the area she was my most reliable and enthusiastic information centre volunteer.

She had Type 2 Diabetes but thought it was controlled through diet and medication. Then out of the blue, she suffered a massive stroke paralysing one side of her body and affected her speech.

Since her stroke, I too have been diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. My doctor has me on a care plan that includes regular blood tests to track not only my sugar levels but also blood pressure, cholesterol and lots of questions about my diet and exercise. The care plan also includes regular visits to the podiatrist and optometrist to check feet and eyes that are more susceptible to problems due to the Diabetes.

I have learnt that the correct diet is not one of just avoiding sugar based foods but a normal, healthy, balanced diet and a little sugar is not a big threat.  Apart from not having a care plan, Mum’s understanding about diet was “no sugar” and nothing else. There was nothing about watching cholesterol levels and the other checks that my doctor, fortunately, ensures I undergo.

I don’t know if, at the time she was diagnosed, this knowledge of method of caring and monitoring patients with Type 2 Diabetes was not well known or if her doctor was slack.

Armed with new knowledge about the condition I was angry. Seeing this lady who loved life so much forced to live in a wheel chair and later confined to bed was heart breaking. I was angry that this beautiful, energetic woman spent so many years not being able to communicate, move of her own free will or even feed herself. 

I will never know if this lack of understanding for her condition was to blame for the stroke but I felt I had to blame someone as I watched her deterioration both physically and mentally.

Once she was checked out of the hospital she was put in the first available nursing home. There was no attempt at rehabilitation or very little. It was a depressing place in itself without any mental stimulation. I tried my best to keep her speech up by talking to her about her beloved grandson, taking my dog to visit her and some speech cue sheets I had made up. Unfortunately, I could not be there every day and the nursing home staff and my step father were not prepared to keep it up. She eventually completely lost the ability to communicate at all. 

My Mum and stepfather had friends on the central coast of NSW and he decided he was going to move into a facility in that area where he would have a self-contained unit and Mum would be in the nursing home section.  This was a four hour trip from where I was living at the time but he was insistent even though there were excellent similar facilities where they were living.

My stepfather passed away about three years before Mum and I was unable to get agreement from the rest of the family to move her closer. Then one day the call came that it was unlikely she would see through the next 24 hours. That was enough notice for me to get to her side. She seemed to recognise me but was unable to speak. I sat there with so many emotions running through my mind. Had her diabetes care been lacking? Did she understand that her family were unable to visit her frequently because of distance? Her friends in the district had passed away many years before. She had no one in the immediate area. Should I have put my foot down and argued stronger to have her close to me? Should I have pushed my step father more to stay in the area? And would all this have made any difference at all?

That was five years ago now but I am still angry. Angry that my Mum who was always there to help me when I needed it spent so many years alone without her family close by. I am angry with the medical system, the individual doctors and nurses and my stepfather but most of all I am angry with myself for not being able to foresee her decline and not doing something about it.

Love you Mum and I am so sorry.