Good evening My Friends
I would like to share with you, one of my favorite video clips.
It is taken from one of the World’s Great Renowned Conductors concert.
The Great Andre Rieu.
His Guest is a young Trumpeter of extraordinary talent.
May her playing give you Joy
And her music bring Love, Peace and Serenity
Into your Hearts.
http://www.dw.de/chlorine-concerts-and-butter-books-ttip-tests-germanys-cultural-values/a-18462804
Chlorine concerts and butter books? TTIP tests Germany’s cultural values
Are literature and live music just banal trade goods? Germany’s creatives are concerned that TTIP will knock culture off its pedestal of protection. Here, culture is carefully shielded from the winds of the market.
Here is an UPDATE from Thursday, 21st May:
Peter got the car back already on Wed. 20th May, late afternoon. Paulchen has received a new clutch and so is back on the road alive and well! We are very happy that Paulchen’s life could be extended for a bit. The registration for the car has just been renewed for one year. I am sure, Peter is looking forward to be driving Paulchen for a bit more. 🙂
Our little car at a time of wellbeing
We have a little car which was nicknamed by my sister Ilse on one of her trips to Australia, “Pauly” (actually “Paulchen” in German).
We have owned the car for fifteen years now and it never caused us any problems or breakdowns. It went and went and went…
When Ilse named the car, she advised us, never to talk bad about it in its presence. She seems to think, cars have a soul and can easily be offended.
Last weekend was my 80th birthday and I had a really good time. Our son Martin had even flown in from Melbourne for the weekend. He had to fly back on Sunday and we offered to take him back to the airport and daughter Caroline home to Sydney.
The only way out from Wollongong, which is practically just a few meters above sea level…
View original post 306 more words
When I start getting a cold I immediately increase the amount of Vitamin C. I also take some Olive Leaf Extract. And I try to rest as much as possible. As far as I remember I still felt all right on Wednesday, the 6th of May when I went for a walk in the morning. Towards evening that day I started to shiver, the throat felt sore and all my limbs felt very heavy. I also sneezed a lot. So I started with the above treatment and retired to my nice warm bed. Still, I worried a bit, whether I would feel well enough to go to Wollongong early the following morning to keep the appointment with my specialist.
On Thursday Peter drove me to Wollongong for the 9 am appointment. I told the receptionist that I had a cold and weather it was still all right to see the doctor. It turned out, I was able to see the doctor who asked me in and then did all the required tests. I felt lucky that my nose had dried up, for some of the tests involved some stuff that went through my nose. The doctor happily told me that there was nothing wrong with me: I was free of any signs of cancer. He said it was close to four years now since I had my operation on the tongue. So in one year’s time I should come back for another examination. But this would be the last time that I had to come for check-ups. He said, that it was very unlikely that any lesions would come back five years after surgery.
Thereafter Peter drove me straight back home. Thursdays I usually go to a one hour Gentle Exercise Class. But on that Thursday I preferred to stay home to have a good rest. The following day I also cancelled the games afternoon with my lady friends. The following days I took great care to dress extra warmly. I saw to it that a small electric heater always stood close by to keep me warm. I was thinking that under no circumstances would I want to go anywhere where there was air-conditioning blowing on me!
By Monday, the 11th of May, I was well enough to go with Peter on the train to Sydney for the court hearing about the circumstances of Gaby’s death. On Tuesday, the 12th, there was another court hearing. Both days we were able to catch an early afternoon train back home. The people who talked to us in Sydney were all very friendly. We thought that as far as we were concerned this inquiry by the coroner went very well. The coroner as well as the assistant coroner, who talked to us a lot. were both woman. Also one of the testifying doctors was a woman.
The following Thursday Ayleen and I turned up for the Exercise Class. To my surprise there was no class that day. Somehow I had totally forgotten that on that day the Seniors Citizen Group had a late Mother’s Day luncheon at the club. So the previous Sunday had been Mother’s Day, that’s right. I felt actually well enough on that day to go with Peter to our daughter Monika’s place for afternoon coffee and cake. The place was full with all of Monika’s children as well as her partner Mark’s daughter and Mark’s mother and the mother of Mark’s deceased wife.
Apparently Mark had a hectic working week last week, and he ended up with a cold. Still he managed to come to the big birthday celebration at the German Club on Saturday, the 16th of May. That night he warned me several times not to get too close to him for he had a bit of a cold. I said to him not to worry, I already did have a cold the other week, and I was sure I would not get it again.
Our son Martin had booked a flight from Melbourne to Sydney to stay with us for 48 hours to celebrate his Dad’s 80th Birthday. He nearly missed his flight back to Melbourne on Sunday. But this is another story.
On Saturday most of the family came to our place in the afternoon for coffee and cake before we went to the German Club for dinner. Peter and Caroline made a few pictures on that occasion which I have in my computer now, and I can show some of them here:
Everyone could order what they felt like. For entrees there was Rollmops, or baked Camembert cheese or soup.
Most people got German beer from the tap. Ebony left soon after dinner with the two little darlings, our great-grandsons. There were later on 12 people left for the welcome drink, a nice sweet bubbly.
“Last Thursday we saw Gaby in Merrylands. She waited for us near Merrylands Station. Honey, her dog, was with her. Honey had been bitten by a big dog a bit over a week ago. She had needed some stitches which cost Gaby a lot of money. On Thursday these stitches were due to come out. We didn’t have to go far from the station to the vet’s surgery. Honey had her stitches out in no time. She seems to be all right now.”
This is what I wrote a bit over three years ago. It brings back to mind, how this happened that Honey got bitten. This vicious dog who bit Honey belonged to a woman who was nasty to Gaby. I think she shouted at Gaby, something very unpleasant. As far as I know, she was about the only person who ever treated Gaby in a nasty way. Otherwise Gaby always experienced a lot of kindness from people she met. I seem to remember that Gaby thought that this woman was jealous because she noticed that Gaby was always treated in a very kind way by people.
A few weeks later, when we were walking along with Gaby somewhere in Merrylands, Gaby pointed out to us a woman and a man with a big dog. Gaby said that this was the dog that had bitten Honey. She also said that the police had cautioned these people that they should take better control of their dog. Gaby had great expense paying for the treatment of Honey after she had been bitten so severely. However Gaby thought it would be of no use asking these people for compensation. She did not want anything to do with them. I think that woman had once abused Gaby before this incident with Honey. Gaby was just glad that this woman kept her distance after that incident with Honey.
https://challengesh.org.au/about/
Challenge Southern Highlands Inc (CSH) is an Incorporated Association that was established in 1951 by local families with physically and/or intellectually disabled children. Over several decades, the CSH has nurtured the vocational and life skills of thousands of people.
CSH has provided training in a caring environment and employment opportunities. This has led to greater levels of confidence, capability and independence.
We operate the successful plant nursery, Welby Garden Centre, as a Supported Employment service and offer additional commercial services to local organisations.
Read about our History
Gaby was a collector for charity:
http://www.whereis.com/nsw/harris-park-2150/yellowId-12035400
Gaby was allowed to keep one third of the money that people donated. Every so often, when her boxes were full enough, she would wheel herself from Parramatta to Harris Park where the charity organisation have an office. Then they opened the boxes in front of her and counted out the money. She was always praised for being a good collector and doing something for the well being of some disabled children.
How did Gaby get from Merrylands West, where she lived, to Parramatta? By T-Way Bus:
T-ways were conceived as an alternative to commuter railway services because of their potential lower cost and higher flexibility. T-ways can be constructed without the need for a dedicated corridor or tunnel. Buses can join and leave the T-way along the route, giving the T-way a wider feeder area than rail.
T-ways are separate bus-only roads where undeveloped railway and motorway corridors are available, and as bus-only lanes on existing roads.
T-ways can be used only by rapid bus services, selected local bus services and emergency vehicles. Other motorists using a bus lane (except to turn or overtake) can be fined.
Gaby knew Carl Scully who was the NSW Minister for Transport at the time when the T-Way Bus lane to Parramatta was constructed. This T-Way Bus goes through Sherwood Road very close to where Gaby used to live!
This is what I wrote on the 15th of October 2011:
Once every two weeks we meet our daughter Gaby in Merrylands Shopping Centre to help her with her shopping. Gaby loves to bring her dog along too. Since Honey is a registered companion dog for a wheelchair person, she’s allowed to take the dog into the shopping centre. Honey is well known, especially in Merrylands.
And of course Gaby is well known also, not just in Merrylands but also in a lot of other suburbs of Sydney. In her electrified wheelchair Gaby travels by bus or by train, usually all on her own, with the help of kind public transport staff. Nearly every day she goes out
somewhere. A collection box sits on the table in front of her, also her mobile phone. She collects money for a charitable organisation. Some people approach Gaby on a regular basis to give her a donation. Honey, being fastened to Gaby’s wheelchair, always makes the rounds with Gaby. So no wonder that Gaby is a well known identity in Sydney.
After having been to the State Coroner’s Court of NSW for the past couple of days and hearing a lot about Gaby’s Life and Death I was reminded how Peter and I talked a lot about Gaby’s life when Frances interviewed us for the ORAL HISTORY recordings. We did get the finished disks sent to us as expected but we never listened to them yet! I guess I am too chicken to listen to my own voice, and Peter probably feels the same about the recordings of his voice. I was thinking the past few days that maybe Frances would be interested in the findings of the Coroner’s Court?
I wrote this on the 21st of February 2013;
“Today, Frances arrived for the last part of the interview.
All went well. Now we have to wait for just a few weeks before we’ll be sent the finished disks. Not that I’m looking forward to listening to my recorded voice! Thanks to all the encouragement I have been given by Frances, I survived the interviews. But I’m glad it’s over now. Talking to Frances was great. I very much liked our conversations. It was just a bit difficult at times knowing what I said was being recorded. Still it was overall a good, enjoyable experience. Frances always tried to put me at ease before the recordings and helped me along by asking relevant questions.”
http://www.nla.gov.au/what-we-collect/oral-history-and-folklore
I wrote on the 16th of February 2013:
“The past week Peter and I have been busy with the telling of our lives’ story. We had a very lovely visitor recording everything for the Oral History section of the library at Canberra. It takes a few weeks before these recordings are accessible. I understand they are going to be preserved for future generations. This whole project is of course extremely exciting for us.
Frances, who’s interviewing us, tells us, we as migrants from Germany, having been through WW II and post war years as children in Germany have experiences to recall which people would be interested to hear about. Also of interest are our experiences in Australia as migrants. In this regard it is of special interest to find out how our lives were shaped by having had a daughter who had been severely disabled by polio.
Neither Peter or I are experienced speakers. Having our voices recorded is something completely new to us. However Frances is very good at encouraging us. She gently guides us into the relevant sections of our lives by asking some questions. Peter and I are always being interviewed separately. Usually we have one hour each in the morning, then a lunch-break, and maybe another hour each in the afternoon.
I found out having to talk for one hour at a time about my life can be rather tiring and sometimes a bit stressful too. But I love doing it especially with such a good interviewer as Frances. By the middle of next week she’s going to be back for the conclusion of the interviews.”
And here is what I wrote on the 13th of March 2013:
“Our daughter Monika said the other day: ‘I knew, Mum, that you’d like Frances.’ She wasn’t surprised at all that I very much loved having her around. Peter and I were always very much looking forward seeing her here at our home. This was some weeks ago. Very soon now we should get the result of these recording sessions with Frances.
I think Frances saw our daughter Gaby just a few days before Gaby died. Sadly the planned interview with Gaby could not take place at the time. There was some difficulty with incoming calls Gaby was expecting that day. Apparently Gaby was reluctant to switch off her mobile phone!
Gaby’s passing must have been a shock to Frances as it was to all of us. Frances had already been looking with Gaby at some of her documents. She was aware how Gaby caught polio at age four, and that she had lived as a quadriplegic with breathing difficulties for over fifty years. After Gaby’s passing she was keen to interview someone of Gaby’s family.
Frances found out from daughter Monika that we, Gaby’s parents, had gone overseas soon after Gaby’s death and wouldn’t be back for quite some time. In the meantime Frances started interviewing Monika. This is how Monika did get to know Frances. Monika agreed to be interviewed about her life in connection with Gaby. So Frances recorded twice one hour with Monika. Some time later, after our return from our long overseas trip, Peter’s and my tale was recorded too. Peter’s took eight times one hour, mine seven times one hour.”
This is a reblog in memory of Gaby.
Gaby came down with poliomyelitis on her fourth birthday. That was in 1961. When she was 32, in 1989, she left institutional care and moved into her own home in Merrylands West, a Western suburb of Sydney. David (Dave) became her full time carer. But as a quadriplegic with breathing difficulties who needed to sleep in an iron lung, she needed several people to come in on a daily basis to look after her diverse needs.
Anyhow, Gaby was happy to leave the home for disabled people and move into her own home. 40 year old David did for nearly twenty years a marvellous job in doing whatever he could for Gaby. But in the end his health deteriorated more and more. It became impossible for him to the the things for Gaby he would normally have to do as her carer. It was a rather sad situation. Gaby knew…
View original post 313 more words
Gabriele unexpectedly passed away on Sunday, 15th July 2012. She would have been 55 on the 28th August.
She lived her life to the full. She showed much love to everyone who got to know her.
Family and friends are very sad about her departure. We will always remember you, Gaby.
Psalm 105; 1-2
(The camera does not always show the right year, for instance in one picture it says 2016, which is obviously wrong.)
AuntyUta 