A sorry tale

Submitted: Sunday, Apr 27, 2008 at 23:24
ThreadID: 57059 Views:2256 Replies:5 FollowUps:11
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Back in the late 50's things weren't going too well for us, but the old man got a job on a property up in the Strathbogie's. He was a bit of a villain, and because of that, we found ourselves back on the road again after a short period of time.

Some how he found a shack a few miles away and we returned to the only source of Income at the time, Rabbits and wattle barking. We had an old chev truck, but it was totally unsuitable for spot lighting in steep country.

Far as I can recall he did a deal with the Page? family and finished up with a clapped out soft top Land Drover. Next day we cleared and set the traps, prepared the animals, and had some dinner.

Not long after that a couple of fella's arrived who I hadn't set eyes on before.

They sat around over quite a few bottles of beer and it was decided to visit an adjoining property to test out the Land Drover with a bit of spot lighting until the morning. The mother wasn't to happy about all this because she knew the country, and gave the old man a fair bit of curry.

We packed up the gear and off we went, but failed to find the gate at night. The old man was pretty inebriated by this stage and decided to crash the fence which took us into an area we weren't familiar with.

For whatever reason, he decided to drive flat chat down a steep hill with everyone hanging on for dear life.

During all this carry on, we picked up a mob of rabbits on a down hill crest and charged down there.

What we didn't know was that it was rocky outcrop, and we went sailing over it for a hundred feet or so down into a gully.

We were all a bit winded and scratched around, but nothing broken.

After a bit of time sitting around in the bush, the old man remarked:

'the old woman not's gunna be too happy about this'.

We all nodded in agreement....

Regards

Kim






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Reply By: Member - kevin Y (SA) - Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 09:27

Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 09:27
bloody ripper which reminds me smile but thats another story
AnswerID: 300906

Follow Up By: Member - DAZA (QLD) - Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 16:58

Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 16:58
Hey Kim

My late Father in law, made a full time living, out of Rabbit Trapping.
the stories he would tell me would drive a bloke to drink, they were
Tough Men, he had a limited education, but done very well out of
it, before he moved his family to Queensland, God Bless him.

Cheers
Daza
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Reply By: Hairy (NT) - Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 09:35

Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 09:35
Gday Kim,
Sounds like a bloody good night!

Cheers
AnswerID: 300907

Reply By: al - Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 12:51

Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 12:51
sounds like your old man was a bit of a loser
AnswerID: 300930

Follow Up By: Dasher Des - Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 17:14

Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 17:14
Al, I think your response is CRAP. He has obviously raised his son to be what is more than likely a fairly decent bloke judged by his previous contributions on here and that is a fairly major achievement now adays.
maybe some self mirror watching might reveal your home truths.
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Follow Up By: Michael ( Moss Vale NSW) - Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 17:24

Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 17:24
AL!! My parents raised me to think about something that they practised in life!! "If you cant find anything nice to say about someone, best you dont say anything at all" ! Michael
Patrol 4.2TDi 2003

Retired 2016 and now Out and About!

Somewhere you want to explore ? There is no time like the present.

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Follow Up By: Member - Kim M (VIC) - Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 19:41

Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 19:41
Al

I don't appreciate your comment. He may have been a villian, but he always provided the food.

Kim
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Follow Up By: madfisher - Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 20:21

Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 20:21
Al
What a heartless prxxk you are, Kim bares his soul and you kick him where it hurts most.
Kim from your many posts it is abvious that you are a decent bloke and one I would be proud to have a beer with.
Cheers Pete
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Follow Up By: dedabato (SA) - Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 20:22

Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 20:22
al,al,al !! you are such a jerk...................Totally agree with Michael - If you don't have anything nice to say, better don't nothing at all.... And I wonder how your old man got it wrong ?
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Follow Up By: dedabato (SA) - Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 20:24

Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 20:24
Correction.
Meant to be - "say"
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Follow Up By: Richard Kovac - Tuesday, Apr 29, 2008 at 00:46

Tuesday, Apr 29, 2008 at 00:46
All above

Please re-read AL's reply, it's only missing the question mark.

lighten up

Richard
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Reply By: The Landy - Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 17:15

Monday, Apr 28, 2008 at 17:15
Thanks for sharing the story....I'm thinking what a great endorsement for Land (D)Rovers...

The Landy
AnswerID: 300984

Reply By: al - Tuesday, Apr 29, 2008 at 09:11

Tuesday, Apr 29, 2008 at 09:11
i have been receiving a lot of flak stating his old man was a looser
i went back and read the post again i still stand by my statement.
he may have provided for his family in hard times but by kim's own admission he must have done something wrong where had the job
he crashed through some bodys fence some one would have to fix it.
he nearly killed his son and 2 others while drunk. my old man went through some of the hard times with a wife and 3 kids to feed but i don't remember him ever getting drunk or resorting to under handed stuff. i'll say no more!
have a nice day
al
AnswerID: 301114

Follow Up By: Gone Bush (WA) - Tuesday, Apr 29, 2008 at 09:19

Tuesday, Apr 29, 2008 at 09:19
al,

Your comment is just un-necessary.

Ask your self whether you would say it to Kim's face if you were in the same room. If the answer is No, then don't say it here.

Anonymity is the tool of the gutless.

I'm glad I ain't too scared to be lazy
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Follow Up By: madfisher - Tuesday, Apr 29, 2008 at 09:33

Tuesday, Apr 29, 2008 at 09:33
Agree gone bush, I bet he wouldnt say to Kims face.
Cheers Pete
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Follow Up By: Member - Kim M (VIC) - Tuesday, Apr 29, 2008 at 18:49

Tuesday, Apr 29, 2008 at 18:49
Al

I never said he was an Angel. He had a bit of a drinking problem, but many returned servicemen had trouble adjusting to life after the war.

The reason given for his sacking from the property, was because he lost a few fingers on the job in two separate incidents, and the Cocky said he couldn't do the job anymore.

Agree with you about the fence, but there were no stock in that area of the property and the fence was fixed on the way out. The owner didn't have an issue with it. All he wanted was someone to help with the rabbit problem.

The old man had a hard life, and was forced to take on jobs nobody would think of doing these days. Yes, he could be a bit of a mongrel, but it never did me any harm.

Max was my step dad, and did all he could do to provide for the family, so don't judge him too harshly.

I'll place another couple of posts shortly entitled, 'Two kids and the outdoor dunny' and 'The possum got the last say'.

Have a read, and I think you'll start to understand it was a different World back then in the bush.

Regards

Kim



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