FanStory.com - The Nomad Returnsby Sankey

I lived in the family home at Ryde for my entire life, up until towards the end of 1977. That is if you don't count the short time all three of us lived in Pennant Hills for Mum's time candidating for a Mission Society. This was up until late 1977. For some time, from then on, I moved around and about Penrith and the Lower Mountains, to take up various accommodations offered me. Reason being, situations changed, and most of my business of teaching in homes was primarily in the Penrith and Blue Mountains areas.

You may recall a comment I made, very early in this book. Namely the ‘Nomadic' nature of my forbears. I did some 'wandering around' myself. It was for periods of 3 months at a time, living one place then, due to circumstances moving and taking up residence somewhere else and so on.

The first place I had accommodation, for a short time, out here in Penrith area, was with a friend's nephew and niece, Frank and Cheri, in Jamison Rd, Penrith. Cheri was aware I had been attending Weight Watchers with her cousin, Eileen, in Penrith.

I know she tried to pull the strings in on the appetite but I actually had to go around the corner, to the local takeaway in Smith Street, to supplement the meals Cheryl was giving me, I couldn't complain, as I only paid them $2 per night for the bed, and an additional $2 a meal. Remembering also, in those days I was a "Hypoglycemic" or Low Blood Sugar person - unbeknownst to me at the time, of course. This changed as predicted by many it would, much later.

After a while, they were expecting company and needed the bed, so I had to find somewhere else to stay. I managed to find a "room-to-rent" or to board in a private home in Cambridge Park, with Mrs Daphne Young, an elderly widow.

'Daffy' as I was allowed to call her, was a funny old lady. I don't know what caused it but there was always this weird smell in the house. I am not sure if it was some sort of cream or some treatment she used for arthritis or something.

Maybe it was something she used on her pets she had around the place. I do remember she had a lot of them. Perhaps she was a "Dr Jekyll/Mrs. Hyde" person and had a secret basement under the house where she used Formaldehyde to preserve some corpses, human or animal or goodness knows.

We had some good times together, playing cards and talking, and laughing "ad nauseum" at our own weird jokes. For the three months, I lived under her roof and she also became my answering service. I have no idea what she told prospective clients who responded to my ads in the local newspapers, but business thrived at that time.

Over the Christmas holiday break, I was forced to leave Mrs Young's facilities due to the end of year malaise in teaching and the fall-off of associated tuition income in that period.

I gave no thought to planning. I had made the mistake of living on "turnover." I never really budgeted to provide for these low times at the end of the year. It was the same, unfortunately, for the 4 or 5 years, I worked for myself. "Daffy" Young and I remained friends for many years, even right up until she finally passed away, sometime after Louise and I got married and she attended our wedding in 1987.

I had to return home to the family residence at Ryde where my brother and his wife were living in mum's house during her absence overseas. I stayed there for the six weeks of school holidays, till I could resume with my students, in the New Year. In Australia, our schools are out for six weeks from just before Christmas until the end of January or the first week of February of the following year.

In early 1978 I had to be admitted for some Exploratory Ear Surgery in St David’s Hospital, Eastwood. The previous year’s Sinus operation or ‘Ceptoplasty’ was in preparation for this time in a hospital.

I found a room to rent in a home in East Blaxland, in the New Year. It was a room at the back of the "in-house" garage. I believe the home was pretty new at the time and the young couple wanted to rent the room with the use of house facilities. They had a lovely in-ground swimming pool, that I never took advantage of, as I was busy. Another reason could have been the time of year.

While the flat Penrith area was very hot in Summer, up in the mountains the temperatures were quite a bit lower - an 'oasis' from the heat. I really loved that room and the people and their home. They also had two young children and attended the local Brethren Gospel Hall.

Sadly, Jeff, the owner got a posting for him and the family, to the UK, and they were doing a swap with a single lady from Britain, who would live in their home, here, while they were in her place in Britain. Naturally, it would not have been proper for me to remain in the same residence as a single young woman. So the move was on again.

I had an offer from the parents of one of my fairly recent students, to live in their caravan, located next to the house and connected to house power. I also had the use of their kitchen and bathroom facilities in the house.

You will remember, way back in my first job in 1968 about some of the staff and their "atmospheres." One thing about this situation in the caravan was the "ambience" around the place. You see these people had a Great Dane. He was a lovely dog, but talk about a drooler and the smell. Right through their home. Added to that was the fact that the caravan I was living in had been used to carry Great Danes around the country for dog shows.

Imagine! It was Summer! Every time I would go out in the mornings and return later in the afternoons, after the van being closed up all day ... need I say more? Goodness knows what I breathed in every night for three months in my sleep!

My next place of abode became available thanks to Mrs Coulton, a dear old widow lady I had been teaching for a little while. She rang Mrs Young. She had come to be friends with her during my time staying with her, so she knew Mrs Young would be able to find me. The Doctor next door to her, had a flat at the back of his surgery, in Victoria Street Werrington, that had become vacant. He wanted a lot more than I could afford but we eventually agreed on $AU50 per week rent I have spoken of this place, earlier in this book.

Unfortunately, he would not allow me to take students in my flat for lessons. I am guessing the noise from an instrument would have upset his patients coming to his surgery at the front of the house. I remained in the flat at Werrington for more than 2 years. The reason I moved out will become clear, very soon.

Later on, when I married, we actually moved back to the same region, 5 years later. Louise and I bought our house just up the road from the later retired Doctor's private residence in St Clair. We still see him around the area from time to time.