09 Kingston Years

1996: Moving in

On 30 November 1996 we signed the contract to buy a very large apartment in Griffith. Technically it is Griffith but I used to call it Kingston because we were very close to the Kingston shops. The Griffith shops were some distance away on the opposite side of Canberra Avenue, a further long way up Stewart Street, and quite a different precinct. This apartment was in fact much closer to the Manuka shops than those of Griffith and between the Kingston and Manuka Shops, the finest two centres in South Canberra. It really was a most fabulous location. And just a block away from Manuka Oval, used for AFL matches and now also Test Cricket.

We completed the transfer on 11 December, had the keys and Benjamin actually slept there that night, but moving day for the rest of us was 12 December. We also had a lot of things in Melba which we didn't want to bring here, and Lois held a garage sale. Despite the modest prices, I was surprised at how much garage sales can raise.

This was to be the biggest house (complex shown above) we were ever to live in, maybe close to 250 square metres altogether over four floors. The bottom floor, just below ground level, had an ensuite bedroom, which went to Gregory, and a large storage room, as well as two car parks. The second level was all living area, one lounge and dining area and an American style kitchen (the complex, known as Georgetown, had been built to be a US Embassy compound, but this idea was abandoned after the first Iraq War and after a few years of renting, the owner sold the apartments off separately). Ours was the first to sell.

The third level had two large bedrooms, taken by Stephanie and Benjamin, the main bathroom and large linen and laundry areas, whereas the top floor was the master bedroom suite, attic style partially but massive. We had to sell our house cheaply as the public service sackings by the new Howard government in 1996 had ruined the real estate market, but we were also able to buy this at a very cheap price compared to its normal worth.

The move was not to be so suitable to Gregory, as he had gone on to the University of Canberra to train to be a primary school teacher, but the others still had school years ahead of them, with schools in walking distance, and it was very convenient for them, and especially for their social lives.

1996 and 1997 Stephanie on exchange with Hamburg student

Already planned before our arrival was for Stephanie to go to Hamburg for two months or so and for us to accommodate the exchange student, Julia Grabs. Hardly any time after we moved into Kingston Stephanie was off for what was one of Hamburg's coldest winters, with the Alstersee frozen over.

Here are Julia and Stephanie at the school, Gymnasium Rahlstedt. When Stephanie left for Germany her German would not have been as good as mine. But she came back completely fluent and left me for dead. In addition to that we became close friends with the Grabs family, who have stayed with us later in Australia, and I have visited them many times when in Germany, the most recent in 2016. They were also interested in my Hamburg ancestry and have helped me know it better than I know almost any branch of my English or other ancestries. They have proved fantastic family friends.

It was also very nice for us soon after to have Julia stay with us for a few months. We did lots of things, often doing recreational things at weekends also, but here are Julia and Stephanie on top of Mt Kosciuszko, Australia's highest mountain.

Graduations

During this time the children had grown up and there were graduations galore.

In 1997 Stephanie finished at the Girls Grammar and is photographed with me before the speech night. She actually was joint dux of the school and I made a note on that in the chapter on Melba years where I discussed it in a different context. She was to go on to Medicine at Adelaide University.

And in 1999 Ben graduated from school and is shown with Lois on speech night. He was to go on to Engineering studies, first enrolling in Chemical Engineering at Adelaide, where he flatted with Stephanie, but eventually doing a double degree in Civil Engineering and Arts at Melbourne. This will be referred to in the Burra Chapter.

And to top this we were very proud that Gregory graduated with a Bachelor of Education from the University of Canberra in 1999 and was to go into a profession as a Primary School teacher in Canberra.

Party time

Kingston (Georgetown) was a fabulous place for parties and we had plenty of them. As Executive Director of the Australian Mathematics Trust I held several catered receptions there which were often more appropriate and intimate than eating out at restaurants or going elsewhere. Gregory and Stephanie had their 21st birthdays there and Lois even held a stunning fairy party for her friends one night.

This is at an AMT reception in May 1997 for visitors Ron Dunkley, my Canadian counterpart, shown seated at right and Pak Hong Cheung, from Hong Kong standing in the group behind. Seated with Ron are my long time personal assistant Clarice McLean, and friend and former neighbour Naida Atkins, wife of one of the Australian Mathematics Competition founders Warren Atkins (also standing near stairs in white shirt next to Pak Hong).

Gregory's 21st was probably the most famous of all Georgetown parties. Being a good family man Gregory had arranged for his grandmother to attend from Adelaide and his Auntie Susan came also. But no one, not even Lois realised I had secretly arranged for Stephanie, who had just started studying Medicine in Adelaide, to also turn up after people had arrived. Ben answered the security buzzer, sounded slightly confused as he thought he recognised the voice, but let the unidentified person in anyway, and when Stephanie appeared everyone was very happy. There were many long standing friends in attendance. Gregory had sometimes been in the Principal's office as a student at Miles Franklin School, for not always the right reason, but he had a special relationship with that Principal Narelle Hargreaves, who later became very senior in the ACT Education system and she also attended, fantastically!

The fairy party which Lois hosted at the end of 1999 was a classic. She timed this to coincide with the Australian Mathematics Trust Challenge meeting in December where friends Anna Nakos and Giovanna Vardaro were encouraging. Giovanna must have taken the photo as she is not in it but I can see Challenge Committee member Francesca Peel back left, Lois' long time work colleague Gael Martin on her left, Anna further towards the right with our earlier Melba neighbour Betty Gill at right. In front are Naida Atkins, Mary Beattie, mother of Stephanie's friend Chloe, and friend and wife of another colleague Kerry Brown. I had taken the male members of the Challenge Committee to dinner at the Durham Arms in the Kingston shops. Challenge Committee member John Dowsey freaked out when we returned, he looked over the wall to see the images inside and did not want to go in.

Giovanna was there, here she was with Anna.

Stephanie turned 21 towards almost the end of our tenure at Georgetown in December 2000 and her party was also very big. She can be seen seated near the left while the toast is declared with Benjamin and Lois in the centre.

Sport

Gregory and Benjamin both continued to play sport.

Whereas Gregory had generally moved from the goals to the field he is playing in goal here.

Ben continued to play basketball but also took up Australian Rules, playing for Eastlake, one of Canberra's traditional clubs. He is number 75 above. Lois could not bear to watch, fearing injury. He later played for the New York Magpies, in the top grade of the USA AFL, despite the fact he felt uncomfortable in a Collingwood jersey.

2000: New barbecue

I don't think I could live without a barbecue. I even managed to buy a portable one when we lived in England.

In 2000 Ben was working part time with a barbecue shop and he arranged for a new high standard barbecue to be installed in our rear courtyard, replacing a smaller portable one I had had for some time.

2000: Gregory's marriage

In January 2000 Gregory married Natasha Stoka in Queanbeyan. It was a notable occasion and the last time we held a family function at which my mother and all her children and grandchildren were together. There were many more occasions over the next 11 years but there was always someone missing. So this photo is historic. The marriage broke up in 2006 leaving three daughters as documented here later.

From left are Lois, John, Susan's son Thomas, John's wife Jane, Natasha, Gregory, Benjamin, then following at back Susan's other sons Matthew and Andrew, Stephanie, me, Susan and her husband Tony. In purple are John's elder daughter Sarah and my mother, while in front are John's younger children Zoe, Rachel and Nicholas.

At a picnic the next day we realised we had four Mrs Taylors present. From left are Jane (John's wife), Natasha, Lois and my mother Betty.

2000: Time to move on again

Whereas Lois had originally seemed happy with Georgetown she became unhappy during our time there, claiming she felt enclosed and wanted to move back to a house.

I was happy there but had to do something about this. I said that because I traveled so often I was never up to date with gardens, and I used to feel uncomfortable about living back in the suburbs where neighbours drive past and look at unmown lawns. I suggested though I could try the country. She was happy with this suggestion and we spent all of 2000 looking at properties. In January 2001 we finally found one we both liked, at Burra, some 30km south of Queanbeyan and 54km from my office. There was some settlement delay, but on 31 May we moved to a new life as farmers.