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Recently, I became aware that some of our long-time readers are feeling a bit disconnected from Town Talk.
Because of this, and because I know that some readers kept the column, to read, not for a rainy day, but for a lonely day, this distresses me.
So, this week there is no story; just some chat between us.
Birthday gathering
For those of you who asked (and those who didn’t), yes, we did have a birthday gathering in September – beautifully catered for by my daughter-in-law, with interesting food.
It’s so nice to be able to catch up with the six members of our family who now live in Melbourne.
Our eldest grandson has taken four years off teaching, to work on his PhD.
He has a small office at the uni, so, when they offered him a few tutorials (six hours per week), he accepted; and is enjoying teaching adults.
Perhaps to add some variety to his life, he entered the state weightlifting competition and won a gold medal.
He has put on quite a bit of muscle and his hugs are different.
There will be another birthday bash towards the end of October.
Customer service praised
When I slammed customer service in this city, my bad experiences were with a national retail store (because there was no local alternative) and some tradies (who have a bit of a reputation for not turning up).
However, recently, I went shopping in Maude St, between High and Fryers Sts, and honestly, every store I entered offered first-class service.
I was a difficult customer because I was looking for gifts for a family member, and didn’t know what I was searching for – just that I’d know it when I saw it.
I went into every fashion store, sometimes twice, and everyone was helpful and friendly.
Football in the family
I know some of you are tired of football, but although the Tigers didn’t excite me much this year, the Shepparton under-18s certainly did.
They lost just one game for the season, and their skills were all on display when they won the grand final by 17 goals.
If enough of these young men stay in town, the future of the Shepparton Football Club is guaranteed, for years to come.
The game was streamed to my phone, but my technical skills weren’t sufficient to get it to the television screen, so we went to my son’s house where the TV is bigger anyway.
The fact that our grandson Noah was co-captain made it even more exciting for his family, and we had his other grandparents for company.
At one point, a commentator said they looked like a senior team – and they did. Noah’s long, left-foot goal from the centre, 12 seconds into the last quarter, nearly raised the roof where we were.
You know what grandparents are like.
Noah, however, has made it clear that if I’m writing about the premiership, I should not use a photo of him because a grand final is won by a team.
“It’s not about me.”
He was adamant and, as the team photo has already been published, we have no photo this week.
He had a successful year, also leading Notre Dame’s team to the state championship and winning the GVL’s best-and-fairest for the under-18s.
The latter we listened to on OneFM.
My husband said he couldn’t stand the strain and went to bed.
I woke him up to hear Noah’s acceptance speech. (And now I’m in trouble with my grandson.)
Glasgow’s Commonwealth Games
Not so long ago, I saw a full size, wooden cut-out of Daniel Andrews, dressed in a kilt, and standing in the centre of Glasgow.
People were thanking him for his gift of $220 million, even kissing his wooden face.
They have scaled back the program and the millions of dollars from us will just about cover costs — with thousands of people arriving to view the events, and spending money.
I don’t believe Andrews ever intended to hold the games and he made sure he retired before we were told.
Anyway, the idea of spreading the events around the state came from here where a lot of the work and planning took place.
Shepp was a noticeable absentee from Daniel’s plan. Bronze statue?
Now, please take care of yourselves. I’m always keen for a chat, so give me a call, about whatever, if you want.
And may it be easy, my friends.
Marnie
Email: towntalk@sheppnews.com.au
Phone, text or call 0409 317 187.