No Walking just Working in Western Australia

June 2023 to September 2023

After months travelling and not working I knew i would need to top up my bank account again. So I took up my cousin’s offer of work at his accommodation complex in Western Australia. I flew out Kathmandu, Nepal on 15 June 2023 heading to Perth.

I have always enjoyed the bits of work I have done outside of my usual Accounting roles. The best job I have had was planting tomatoes in Bowen, Northern Queensland, in 2005. Being outside, not having to tax my brain too much, and without a computer in sight is good fun. I am sure it isn’t what I would want to have to do for the rest of my life but I enjoyed the 2 months there.

So I am hoping that 4 months as a general dogs body at a complex that caters to about 100 workers will be similar. The guests are miners, road workers, farmhands; all dressed in Hi-Viz overalls, driving tough vehicles covered in red dust and working shift work. So it is a very busy place with beds to make, bathrooms to clean, clothes and linen to wash and dry, meals to prepare, dining rooms to clean and a lot of outside work and repairs and maintenance going on.

Cousin Evan and his wife Gaylene went over to Australia 40 years ago to shear sheep and have stayed there ever since running shearing gangs and accommodation for them. When the mines opened up they switched from shearers and Backpackers to the much more lucrative miners.

I had only met Evan a few times over the years as he grew up a long way from my family, and I had never met Gaylene.  But we got on well from the minute I arrived. Gaylene’s choice of language is very similar to mine so I felt relaxed with them very quickly and we fast became good friends.

I was put on the roster for housekeeping, laundry, and  kitchen hand duties.  That first week was very hard work, bending, lifting, sweeping, washing mountains of dishes, and scrubbing huge pots and pans, chopping boxes of vegetables and even sewing curtains for up to 12 hours a day. I was knackered, to say the least! But this would be a good way to lose some weight. When I am at home, in a “normal” life, I put on some weight. When I can no longer fit my jeans, I take off for a damn long walk so the weight falls off. Days of housekeeping would give me the same result, so I was happy.

However, Gaylene soon found out I was an accountant, so she very quickly handed over all the office work to me and took me off the housekeeping roster. So there I was chained to a desk and computer 12 hours a day, 7 days a week  after expecting to make a few beds and chop a bit of broccoli!

In reality, I was quite glad and enjoyed getting the office sorted out and installing a new accounting programme and booking system. There was nothing else to do as my meals and accommodation was provided and we were miles from anywhere. There was one local shop, a sports club and a school in the town. Nothing to do outside of the office so I just worked. Two nights a week I did 5 hours in the kitchen just to remind me of the hard work I was missing out on.

I had thought I would find myself a rich miner while I was there, but the men my age all looked too old and worn out, and the young guys weren’t interested in me. So I lucked out! However I did manage to have dinner with Richie McCaw, who is one of New Zealand’s most famous All Blacks. That was a fun weekend away in Melbourne which I hadn’t visited for many years. I also went to my first Aussie Rules Football game.

It was a very busy place and I am full of admiration for how hard my cousins have worked to create their village. They work very long hours and have little time off. A few times I was given “day release” so took a vehicle and explored the surrounding area. I found a couple of walks and drove 60 km to buy a pie. This area is known as the Wheatbelt and it was the canola season while I was there so the fields were full of vibrant yellow flows as far as I could see.

Gaylene and I also had a day release and drove into Perth to watch the Barbie movie. That was a good movie as I had no idea what it would be about and was pleasantly surprised.  I had no idea that Ken had been treated so badly and what silly bitches those Barbies were. I am glad I didn’t have a  Barbie. Barbie is the same age as me, but looking at her figure,  I am sure she has done more damn long walks than  me.

I spent 4 months at the village and also some time with my son and his family in Perth. Cameron has a nice boat so did a trip over to Rottnest Island, a 19 sq. km protected nature reserve, 30km across the sea. The rich go over on their boats and moor in one of the many bays. Others take a ferry over.

The day we went over was windy and Cameron warned me that the sea would get rough when we left the shelter of the river and Harbour. I was mostly excited about this and chose to sit up on top with Cameron to really get the experience. The others were sitting safely down below.

As the sea began to get a  rougher I realised I needed to go to the toilet.  Cameron was not impressed, growling at me for not going when it was calmer. My bladder and bits and pieces down there are getting close to their “best by date,” so I had to go. I fell over and crawled to the ladder trying to find something stable to hold onto. Cameron was yelling at me, that he wasn’t going to pick me up if I fell overboard, which wasn’t very comforting.

I made it down the ladder without being washed into the sea then  stumbled my way inside the cabin and wrested with the toilet door. I was very relieved, in both ways,  to be sitting down on the toilet!

I learnt a good lesson that day. When on a boat in rough seas I should pee before going up top.

We moored up for a couple of nights, using the dingy to go ashore. Rottnest Island is a wildlife sanctuary with lots of basic holiday homes and a few shops  and a pub. Everyone arrives by boat, bringing their food, bikes and everything they need with them.

I went over to explore the island  with my granddaughter, Rebecca and her boyfriend, Frazer. We landed on the beach then walked up over paths over the sandhill. At the top there was lots of people looking at the views and racks of bicycles which are the main mode of transport on the island. Frazer had brought a big bike lock over with him.

“Grab a bike and follow us.”  said Bec. They jumped on bikes and were off down the hill really quickly and I was a bit slower getting on the bike and taking off. Then I hear someone yelling out “Hey, that is my bike.” Bec is calling out “Granny, ride fast.” So off I went pedalling rapidly until I eventually caught up with Bec and Frazer. They were not very impressed with my bike stealing skills. I had thought the bikes were available the taking, like shared bikes.  Apparently they belong to a hire shop and the riders are given locks but don’t bother using them. Hence, these bikes become easy targets. We had a bike lock so managed to keep our bikes for the day.

So it becomes a bit of a bike go round. Your bikes gets stolen so you steal someone’s else’s. Periodically the  bike shop staff goes around and picks any stray bikes, return them to the shop  then hire them out to the next lot of unsuspecting  visitors.

I can add bike thief to my resume now.

I rode around the beautiful bays, being carefully to watch “my” bike  if I dismounted.

The island had been a penal colony at some stage so there was quite a lot of history there.   I met the kids at the pub for lunch and got up close to the native Quokka. The Aussies love these creatures, but I think it looks like a cross between a kangaroo and a rat.  I think  that is dubious mating and shouldn’t be allowed. The Aussies disagree but the word  Rottnest comes from Rats Nest so I rest my case.

I also caught up with friends who had abandoned New Zealand for the big money and sunshine of Western Australia. I can see the advantages and disadvantages.

I caught a bad cold a couple of days before my flight home to New Zealand. I coughed and coughed all night long, wishing myself a quick and early death. When they doctor asked about the reason for my visit I replied, “If I was a sheep they would have shot me by now.” She immediately recognised me as a New Zealander saying we all use that phrase. She gave me a course of antibiotics for my infected chest and some good drugs that allowed me to make the 7 hour flight home without coughing over everyone. I did wear a mask so as not to pass it on to anyone else. Since Covid anyone who coughs is looked at with repugnance. However I did hear a number of other people coughing away and was so glad it wasn’t me.

The day after I arrived home I dragged myself to my Doctor for another course of antibiotics. I had decided it wasn’t time to end my life by letting nature take its course. I still had a few dollars in the bank so could afford to carry on a bit longer. My car had been written off as it was completely flooded during Cyclone Gabrielle last February so I needed to buy a new car today.

I had a miserable walk to the Toyota car yard, gasping at every step and thinking the bullet may have been a wiser option. The “Son-in-Law Who Knows About Cars” advised me to buy a Toyota Corolla as they go forever and would definitely outlast my driving days, if not the rest of my life. I am sure he will be right as I probably have a maximum of 20 years of driving ahead of me and possibly not much more life left in me. My research indicates that with good care and maintenance I could get 400,000km out of her which is about 30 years driving for me.

I am sure I was the easiest sale they had ever had. When asked what I was looking for I told him I just needed to buy a Toyota Corolla now because I was too sick to walk home. They asked a few questions about my driving habits and recommended a petrol so that decision was made. I had been hemming and hawing over the hybrid/petrol/electric for months so was pleased they made the call. I was too sick to deliberate any more. I wanted a coloured car so I could easily locate it in car parks. But there was really only a choice of white one there that day. Seeing my disappointment they found me one with some extra red stripes so decision made all in less than 30 minutes. I just wanted to sign the papers, make a bank transfer and get home to bed with my car. (Obviously the car would be in the garage, not in my bed). The nice man said it couldn’t be ready until later the next day and when I told him that there was no way I could walk home he gave me a lend car. Job done.