No. 131 - AMY

Amy and I were friends in that same rural town I spoke about yesterday, in which my parent's owned a milk bar by the river. I remember having friends over and taking walks along the banks and over the other side of the river to the outdoor stage to sing The Bangles' Eternal Flame (it was 1989!).

It turns out that Amy, well her Mum really, is/was friend's with another friend of ours from that town, Pebs. So a few years ago now I caught up with Amy and she told me the story of how we used to take one of the chicken meat rolls from the shop down to the river and try to catch fish (without a rod), using the chicken meat for bait. By chicken meat, I mean the manufactured stuff that is probably 99% cardboard, 1% chicken feet. I had completely forgotten about that. I also got the chance to walk along the bank where we used to walk. When I was young I remember it being covered in reeds, etc. and that it was quite difficult to walk through, especially with the adventurous imagination of a 9 year old. I was shocked at how small and very average it was to my adult eyes.

I also remember going to Amy's house. On special occasions we were allowed to go down to the local Coles supermarket and get a drink of cordial out of the machine. I miss that cordial, they just don't do artificial flavours like that any more = ( (no that isn't sarcasm)

No. 130 - MR W.

Mr. W was a teacher at my school in rural Victoria (grades 3.5 - 5.5). Those were the days when you had one teacher all year. Mr. W wasn't one of my teachers but for part of my time at that school he taught in the library. He was a big joker, someone the kids loved.

I remember a trip to the local hospital for some kind of excursion. On the walk there he walked up and down alongside all of the students, keeping everyone in line. I remember tripping on a piece of concrete and he said "are you falling for me?" Obviously not meaning anything, but just very quick to turn an embarrassing moment into a funny one.

Many years ago, a while after we moved away Mr. W. passed away quite young, cancer I believe. Some of my family still live in that town, infact my Aunt is good friend's with Mr. W's wife and I think my cousin is friend's with his daughter.

No. 129 - PETE

Pete was initially a work college of my Dad's. Now, I'd have to say he's more of a family friend.

I love Pete and his family. They are all incredibly hard working, mature (by nature, not age), classy, social, kind, thoughtful and modern. Pete's family share a list of traits I truly admire. But most admirable is how they make them work together.

I have many memories of Pete. From him making mango cocktails, to MC at our wedding, to "kill 'em and grill 'em" boardroom stories told by Dad, to Christmas with lots of glasses of red, to relaxed Pete chilling out on holiday. But most of all I love his no beating around the bush nature.

No. 128 - ELISE

For a short time Elise and I worked together in the city. Elise was someone I admired.

Not long after I started work at the city store I noticed Elise. I noticed that she was the only female in a male dominated department. I also noticed that she did her job well. She worked fast and she knowledgeably answered customer's questions. I remember telling her I admired how she worked and I asked how long she had been in that department. I can't remember exactly how long it was, but it was measurable in days, maybe 3. Incredible.

To this day the department Elise worked in is one that has sparked my interest. I have no knowledge or experience in that area but liked the sound of the challenge it provided and would welcome the knowledge I would gain.

No. 127 - GAVIN

Gavin was my very first boyfriend, back when I was 5. His younger brother was in my class, so I can only guess now that he was a year or so older than me.

Our relationship was very short lived (as at that age I'm sure it would have been anyway). Gavin and his family moved away.

I do remember what must have been my 6th birthday party. Gavin was invited and Dad made us sit through some photo ops on the back deck.

No. 126 - MUSIC TEACHER

My memory of this teacher is so vague that I can't even recall if they were male or female. I'm thinking female, so we'll go with that. Obviously, I don't remember her name or even have a visual of her face.

This person was my music teacher, probably only for a really short time somewhere between grade 3 and early grade 5. I'm thinking it was the first half of grade 5. The reason this music teacher is on my list is because I'm grateful for them giving me a bunch of music sheets, one of which included a chart of where you put your fingers when playing the recorder.

When I first met this teacher I didn't know how to play the recorder. I believe that shortly after meeting them I was away sick for a while (or possibly it was our trip around Australia that meant I was away from school). From that bunch of music sheets the teacher gave me I taught myself how to play the recorder. Mum helped me by writing each note out on the music sheet, as I can't read music (unless I have a day and a pencil to decipher it). I can't play any other instruments and I've always been grateful that I could pick up a recorder and play it, albeit at a very average level.

No. 125 - STEWART

Stewart and I went to uni together.

When Stewart started uni he already had a lot of film experience and a lot of connections. His standards were high and he liked to work with the best, which is why I felt honoured when he let me help out on one of his films. Stewart also introduced me to a couple of people already working in the industry who were willing to share their knowledge. Invaluable!

One of the things I loved about our uni course was that we had a great mix of people of varying ages. I felt I learned different lessons from everyone, particularly the older wiser students like Stewart.

Stewart also has a DVD collection to die for. What I wouldn't give for one like that today = )

No. 124 - HANNAH

Hannah is Kim's youngest daughter and a family friend. I'm sure that if I walked past Hannah in the street tomorrow, she would knock me over with shock at just how much she has grown, as she'd be in her late teens now. I was looking forward to catching up with Hannah, her sister Sarah and Mum Kim at Dad's surprise birthday party recently but it wasn't to be.

My memories of Hannah are as a smiling, soft fine and fluffy haired blonde girl playing make believe, as girl's do. I remember joining in, despite being much older, with Hannah and her sister's game of Miss Rabbit. She was apparently a little rabbit running through the garden, hiding here and there.

No. 123 - LOUISE

Louise and I worked together at Woolworths (a local supermarket chain) for a couple of years from late 1999. Louise was one of my co-ordinators. She had super long blonde hair, a love for Hello Kitty and an obsession for insanely long, intricately painted and even pierced finger nails. Most of us girl's admired her and copied at least one thing she did. I bought some Hello Kitty hair clips because I liked how she could put her hair up with just one of them, only to discover I never could.

No. 122 - DANIKA

When we moved from NSW to Queensland I attended a primary school for 6 months, before going to high school. Danika and I were in the same grade at that school.

Those few months were full of 12 year old girl birthday parties, sleep overs and the like. I liked Danika's sense of style, she had beautiful hair, a room and wardrobe to die for, and I guess best of all she was a good influence. I remember what would have been my 13th birthday (I was a year older than everyone else because of the NSW to QLD move) and Danika gave me the coolest present - a canvas Sportsgirl bag. It was before I knew much about Sportsgirl and it held much prestige in the pre-teen market back then.

We parted ways shortly after going to high school, mainly because we went to different ones with new circles of friends. I've waved to her parent's at my parent's local shopping centre, most recently.

No. 121 - BRETT

Brett is my cousin, by Dad's brother's son.

This is how I remember Brett, he's on the far left next to my Nan. The photo would be over 20 years old. I don't have many memories of Brett but the ones I do have involve family get togethers, outings to the park and more often than not the "cousin photograph". I wonder what it would look like now!

No. 120 - KYLIE

Kylie and I went to school together for 2 years when we were about 8.

At school you tend to have a mix of friend's, as in life I guess. Kylie wasn't one of the weird ones, or the attention seeking ones, or the geeks. She was kind, happy, pretty and friendly.

I remember attending Kylie's birthday party one year. We had to come with a fancy dress hat. This is where I realise how alike in our weirdness my Mum and I are. We both thought it was a fantastic idea to sew googly eyes on her beanie, circa. 1970 something, and use a crochet hook to pull bits of my hair through it. I didn't win any prizes but for the pain I should have received a medal!

A few years ago, on one of our visits so see my Grandparent's (Dad's folks), who still live in the town we lived in when I was 8, I ran into Kylie. She's married now and looks great. Not only that, she works at the best pub in town! And that's saying something = )

No. 119 - STEPHEN

Stephen was my Mum's brother. I believe he was born next in line after her. Stephen had schizophrenia and died much too young.

If ever you have under valued the importance of a photo, don't. Somewhere in my Mum's, now more organised photo collection is a picture of my uncle Stephen and I. I was a toddler, younger than Brian is now (21 months), sitting in my high chair and next to me was Stephen. I'm incredibly grateful that that photo exists because it reminds me of a bond that I know was there but was too young to remember.

No. 118 - VICTORIA

Victoria is Reg's daughter.

One of the things that goes hand in hand with family rifts is not knowing what you are missing. While I had known of Reg, I never knew of, or even gave thought to his family. It really hit me when I met Victoria that there is a whole branch of our family tree out there that we don't really know. And I guess another of those things that goes hand in hand with this kind of family issue is that even though nothing bad was ever said to you about the other branch of that tree, finding out that they don't have three heads and an inbuilt desire to hate you is surprising. But it shouldn't be.

I guess that if I was to ask to meet someone that was to depict that this branch was one full of shiny red apples, I couldn't have asked for someone better than Victoria to show me. Although we didn't chat much, she exudes happiness, a kind heart and warm welcoming air.

No. 117 - RAWKINS

I've spent most of the morning wondering whether I should delete this entry from my 365 list, but have decided to keep it for the memory. The fact is I can't remember the name of this person and infact I believe there may have been two people involved, sisters. At the very least, if I am on the correct train of thought their surname is Rawkins and they weren't my friends exactly but their brother was friends with my brother.

Anyway the reason we are here today is for this memory. I recall being in a girl's room and she offered me a lolly from an olive coloured Tupperware container that was sitting on her dressing table. It took pride of place, and I remember that to have a treat from this container was super special and something the girl/s indulged in rarely. Wow, control at such a young age, where I'm still lacking!

I thought the memory worth recording and sharing with you because of my continued love today for lollies, particularly of the small mixed variety as this was (maybe they were even Dolly Lollies), and my love for Tupperware. Maybe this is where it all began?

No. 116 - PHILIP

Philip and I worked together in the city.

I've worked with a lot of people throughout my time at the city store, but Philip would have to be one of my favourites, someone I'd prefer to call a friend rather than a workmate.

Philip and I spent a lot of lunch breaks discussing all kinds of things, mostly our homelives. Philip's situation for a long while was much the same as mine, our partner's were the main breadwinners, hard workers and go-getters in their respective fields. Also, Philip is American so we could chat about US/Canadian vs Australian things like capsicums/peppers, glandular fever/mono.

I remember working with Philip in the early days and thinking who is this weird guy, as you do before you get to know someone. I quickly came to know that he has a heart of gold, will stick up for what he believes, has an uncanny knack for befriending every store manager, will support others around him no matter what, will get a job done - fast, loves a laugh, will fill you in on the latest gossip, knows every Simpsons episode backwards, and owns every one of those 8 pepsi can's around the store and that they are probably his breakfast...hehe.

No. 115 - SMORGASBORD

Almost 19 years ago today I learnt the word "smorgasbord". We were on day 35 of our 53 day holiday (thanks old journal) around half of Australia and were spending our first night at an awesome caravan park in Airlie Beach.

My Dad remembers this day best as he's always referring to it. My journal entry for that day however doesn't play it up nearly enough. I had never been to any such restaurant before and was amazed that I could pick and choose what I wanted and that I could go back again and again. I'm one of those people that likes to try a little of everything, or at least everything that appeals to me, so this was ideal! These days smorgasbords or buffets tend to be tacky or insanely expensive. And I think my waistline or lack there of should steer clear unless it's a fruit bar!

No. 114 - ROWENA

Rowena and I met during my uni days. As film students we filled most of the crew roles on films ourselves, but somethings we had to engage a professional for. Make-up was one of those roles and Rowena was fantastic. I found her through a local hair and make-up school and her continuity was second to none. In fact she's pretty much the reason I bought a polaroid camera. In a time before digital cameras were commonplace a polaroid was the best tool for film continuity. Remembering exactly what a cast member's make-up looked like, remembering exactly how full that glass of wine was, etc., etc., they were priceless.

I loved Rowena so much that I asked if she could do my hair and make-up for my wedding. My only other glamour event to date was my high school formal and my hair and make-up for that (which was done professionally) was gaudy and highly unnatural to say the least. I felt comfortable with Rowena, she knew me, my style, she was a professional (not just for films but weddings too) and I couldn't have been happier with the results.

Rowena is a natural at her profession and it shows tremendously. From the ring she wore on her little finger to help her open up bobby pins (as using your mouth is unhygienic), to the bumbag full of tricks and the big split ring carrying alphabetised polaroids, I wouldn't trust anyone else.

No. 113 - SCHOOL DENTIST

For the longest time I had great teeth. Then in high school the school dental van came to visit. I was referred on to another dentist at a local primary school - this was where they did the more serious stuff. One of my canine teeth was overlapping the tooth next to it. So the dentist pulled a tooth and gave me a plate to pull the canine tooth back in line.

The reason the dentist, or maybe it should be the dental assistant is on my list is that they taught me something I still use today. Just before I got the local anesthetic needle I was told to "wiggle my fingers and toes". Obviously this is to distract you from the pain. It worked wonders and I've used this at every injection, etc. since that day. Now I combine it with singing the chorus of Nirvana's Plateau (in my head of course), no idea why but it's become tradition. If you see me wiggling my fingers and toes and miming the words "nothing on the top but a bucket and a mop and ...." look out because pain is coming!

No. 112 - MARGOT

I seem to be on a roll of "blasts from the past", so we will keep it going with Margot. Margot was one of our neighbours when we lived in Melbourne. She lived across the street and up a little. I was so young that I don't remember too much about her, except that she was a very nice lady. She had a little white dog that would go with her everywhere. And I remember that her home felt inviting, like springtime, with trees at the front and many glass doors/windows and sunlight shining in.

No. 111 - WAYNE

Wayne is a family friend of my Dad's. In fact I'm not sure how they met, I do know it was long ago. And if I was to hazard a guess I would say that they grew up together, meaning Dad and Wayne have lots of mischievous stories to recall.

Wayne, his wife Jan and daughter Blaire used to visit us when we lived in Melbourne. Back in the day I remember Wayne participating in games of backyard cricket at our house. I also remember visiting his house in some small town somewhere and that he had a pool table. If I were to hear him speak today I'm sure I would recognise his voice.

I was really too young to know exactly what kind of a man Wayne is but one thing I do know is that he would do anything for his family.

No. 110 - GRADE 5 TEACHER

Today's tribute is to my Grade 5 teacher. This man, whose name I don't recall was my teacher for half of the year, most of which I was away for.

My family and I were about to embark on a 6 month "around (half of) Australia tour". His reply to this and whether he needed to send some schoolwork with me was "you'll learn more on that trip than you ever would if you were here". Thank you sir!

No. 109 - PLAYGROUP MUMS

I have named a few of the Playgroup Mum's on my list individually, but I felt it fair to also list them as a collective.

When I first started attending Playgroup Brian was miles younger than all of the other kids, so I considered leaving. But truth be told the conversation was educational. I learnt the ins and outs of kids birthday parties, the issue of "do you invite their entire class" to the party, the location of a couple of good local parks and probably most importantly of all that Playgroup is a chance for Mums to chat. It sounds rather insignificant but let me tell you, if you are a Mum you know the importance of learning from other Mums. I guess I knew this was somewhat important as I've always valued being a part of our Mum's Group too, but never underestimate a good chat with a Mum of a child who is older than your own. They are a wealth of knowledge! And the piece of cake and cuppa does wonders on a Monday morning too.

No. 108 - JESSICA

Jessica is was my hair dresser.

The salon Jessica works for was recommended to me by a friend, a stylish friend. Every time I've walked out of that salon I've felt wonderful. It's more expensive than the cheap places, but really it's not as much as most. Kevin just thinks it is because I would add on either a new bottle of shampoo or conditioner each visit. Let's not tell him though.

To be honest that shampoo was probably one of the things that kept my hair looking nice. They use Redken and I'll blame them for my need to visit their flagship store on 5th Avenue, New York. I got two bottles and a few extras for much less than the price of one bottle in Australia. Sadly, budget cuts mean I've had to ditch Redken.

I think the thing I like about Jessica is that she always cuts my hair in a stylish manner. It's never an old style and it's always one that suits me. She is the only person I have ever let straighten my hair, and therefore the person I can blame for wanting a GHD. Too bad she didn't come with it because I'm not sure how I would go doing my own hair!

You may notice that I said Jessica WAS my hairdresser. The salon she works for is in the city and now that I don't work there its difficult to get in. And then when I do get it in I have this little issue called Brian. I can just see him causing havoc in there and Jessica having to rush my haircut. Not something I want.

No. 107 - MR. S

Mr. S was one of my high school film teachers.

One of the things I liked about film class was that the two teachers complimented each other. Mr S. was the nice one, not that Mr. CS wasn't nice, he was just a little scarier.

When at the age of 15 I was faced with the question of "what do I want to be?" I had no idea. I loved police shows on tv and the idea of being a detective sounded appealing. Clearly though that's not the starting rank. I also knew that I didn't want risking my life to part of my job. Journalism was another option and had things not played out so well that's probably what I would have studied. But another path was set for me.

During the last year of high school I completed among many, one particular film. This film, titled "Creepy" became very near and dear to my heart. I poured hours into this film about stereotypically creepy things - like fingers scratching down a whiteboard. When the equipment I had available to me at school meant that I couldn't fulfill my dream of finishing this film, Mr S offered to let me use his home editing suite. There wasn't any favouritism shown here as I know he would have done it for anyone else in the same boat.

Later that year I entered my film into the Minister's Award for Excellence in Art. And although the film was far from professional I think the judges liked my idea. The aim was to make the audience creep and crawl in their seats. I know I achieved this as when we had a public screening at school, I sat in my seat and watched the audience. It was a good feeling.

Winning the Minister's Award was what made me realise that other's enjoy my work. And that film class was the one subject taking up every waking moment of my time. You think I would have figured that out earlier! This is why I decided to take film production further.

I owe winning that award and helping find a field that I love to Mr S. I'm no longer in film but I do miss it. Especially when I've been pouring through old production folios for this blog. Family means more to me than film and the hours and unstable income makes it difficult for them to work hand in hand.

One thing I will never forget about Mr. S is his family. I met them that day while working at their house. Mr. S has more than the average 2.4 kids and for a film teacher he has strong views on their television viewing. The only tv they are allowed to watch is Gardening Australia. He said that they watch it as a family and the kids really look forward to that time each week. Watching tv is rarely something that brings the family together as most of us take it so much for granted these days. It's nice to step back sometimes and see just what it is that we are teaching our kids.

No. 106 - GRANDMA

Grandma was actually my Great Grandma, my Mum's Mum's Mum.

When I was younger Grandma lived by the sea and I remember taking walks along the beach near her house with her sausage dog, I think his name was Hansel. The smell there is one that I know will bring back so many memories if we ever go there again.

If you know me at all, most of my memories are food related - it's terrible, but true! Grandma used to have a red glass bowl (with a handle) that she kept her Minties in. I'm sure that after every one of our visits she had to refill it. Grandma also kept a bowl (I think it was wooden) of walnuts on her coffee table. I think that this is where my love with walnuts in the shell came from. To this day they are the biggest treat and only this past Christmas we finally bought a nutcracker to get those little treasures open.

The rest of my memories of Grandma are from visits to my Nan's house. Playing cards was our favourite thing to do during a visit. I think what we liked most was that it bought all the generations together around the dinner table. Grandma had a few rules and no eating while playing was one of them. Apparently she was very pedantic about sticky children's fingers on the deck. It's funny, because at the time I didn't know that, but I do remember her saying "these cards are sticky".

No. 105 - DANIELLE

Danielle and I were good childhood friends. I think our Mum's met at the local health centre, which is where they established a Mum's Group (Mum's groups are a God send!).

I find it funny how memories come to you in small snippets. I remember stepping on a piece of cold pineapple on the lawn in Danielle's backyard. I remember that she loved Clix biscuits. I also remember us having a nap together, maybe a sleep over. We slept at opposite ends of the same bed and she never slept with a pillow. I remember going to the zoo and drinking cans of softdrink - mine was Fanta, Danielle's was Coke. And I remember that for the longest time, and possibly still, my Mum's photos from that outing were kept in a brown paper bag with crayon writing on the front.

The last time we saw each other would have been around 1990, when Danielle's family visited us in rural Victoria. I remember her telling me that she kept herself occupied on the journey up by lying on the back seat (hopefully strapped in!) and reading a book. Looking down at any book in the car, even for 30 seconds makes me feel sick!

Our parent's still send Christmas cards but we never hear what they have been up to during the year.

No. 104 - WADE

Wade and I went to uni together.

I owe Wade big time. During uni I lived about a 2 minute drive from Wade's place. On more than one ocassion, usually after pulling an all-nighter to get an assignment finished, I would call Wade early in the morning to see if I could get a lift to uni. He always answered and never once said no.

Although we rarely worked together on the same film, or in the same department, it was clear to see Wade's professionalism. He put a lot into what he did and it showed. A local post production studio saw his talent and offered him a job even before graduation.

No. 103 - STEVE

Apologies for the delay. It's been a crazy week!

Steve played the main role of a film I worked on in uni.

I can't tell you how wonderful it was to work with him. You get a lot of "I'm all that" types working in film, but Steve was happy to go along for the ride. He was a true professional and loved a bit of a laugh too. Working with someone is so much nicer than working against them.

At the end of the shoot he announced that he and had proposed to his girlfriend - too sweet.