Last night was the launch of the magazine that has my short story. I know you’ve been waiting and waiting but there isn’t an online version of it and I’ve been asked not to share it until after the next magazine comes out. In three months time after the launch of the next issue I’l be able to scan it in and show people, or just forget I promised and move on. Just because I can here is the front cover.
If you’d like to read articles by other Deakin Writers members here is the link to their Issuu.
So, back to last night. It was a pleasant night in a pub in Hawthorn, my old stamping ground. We talked books, writing and many other things. I parked near the Hawthorn Town Hall, I have good memories of getting my Polio vaccine there when I was very young. I always hoped I’d be able to get more the following year as it tasted nice, I knew it was a once off though.
Walking back to my car I decided to take a couple of photos for you.
The suburb of Hawthorn was founded in the late 1830s. It’s not far from the CBD and I always treasured being able to hop on a tram or a train and be there fairly quickly. Now I treasure the lack of trams in my area as they clog up the roads and make driving ‘interesting’ but they do get more people around than a couple of cars can.
It’s an affluent suburb and was when I lived there as well, we had little money so were the odd people out. But what I remember well from those days is weather related. Don’t ask me what this has to do with books or writing, I’m digressing from the topic as this is where my brain took me last night.
We had really good soil, it had been market gardens and we were on the buried tributary of a stream. I used to grow vegies there, Mum was always happy to add my little contribution to the table; the pity was that I wasn’t good at the task back then.
I remember one year the drought broke and we had substantial amounts of rain. I’m told one of us blocked up the drains next to the road to see what would happen; the water was too deep for me. I’m not sure how they unblocked it but I do recall watching the water coming up the front garden almost to the front step.
Anyway, if you’re writing about this kind of thing contact me for more details.