Life Luck and Liaisons

The Fifties In New Zealand Were Glory Days. It Was A Carefree Time For Children Whose Parents Were Finally Happy That The War Was Over. Everyone Worked Together To Rebuild Their Lives And Looked To The Future. I Helped My Father When I Could Spraying The Orchards Harvesting Making Hay And I Attended A Country School And Mixed With Local Maori Families.Aged Eleven I Went To Boarding School In Auckland. It Was A Dramatic Change And Along With My Regular Studies I Learnt To Be Independent And To Think For Myself.Upon Leaving School My Parents Had Tertiary Education In Mind For Me; I Had In Mind Joining The Workforce. My Parents Conceded And I Left School With The Intention To Go Farming. I Worked On Differing Types Of Farms In New Zealand Followed By A Stint In Australia Working On Broadacre Farming Techniques. When I Was Sufficiently Qualified I Began Work With My Father On The Family Farm In The Waikato Region. After A Period On The Farm I Found That I Was Unable To Work Amicably With My Father And I Took My Leave.For Two Years I Crewed On Two Different Yachts In The Pacific And Indonesian Waters. This Was A Period Of Adventure And Personal Development Which Has Provided Many Of The Anecdotes I Have Related Here.When I Returned To The Family Farm It Was Obvious That My Father And I Still Could Not Work Together. I Left The Farm For Good And Headed To The City To Seek Whatever Came My Way. I Worked At Several Casual Jobs Until I Could Afford To Travel And I Flew To London With The Promise Of A Job There. A New Beginning Another Book.