Everybody's saying that music is love (David Crosby)

Music is love (You may say I'm a dreamer - Chapter 7, part 1: The Sixties)

Very 'umble - my whole collection in the early days -  the first 12 albums and singles

Everybody's saying that music is love, 

Everybody's saying it's love, 

Yeah everybody, everybody, everybody 

Everybody's saying that music is love, 

Everybody's saying it's love, yeah.

In keeping with the order from my original autobiography (copyright 1992) we have reached chapter 7: Music is love.

I love music. I can't live without it. Music is love.   
Some of my earliest memories centre around music, whether it be on television, radio, films, or records, and many of those memories gather around The Beatles.

Let's start at the beginning shall we?

Dad built our first TV from a kit set. He was an early adopter and he loved electronics so we had television from the early sixties onwards. 

The Ed Sullivan Show was a regular on the one black and white NZBC channel available. To this day I can picture my eight year old self kneeling on the floor, elbows leaning against a coffee table in our lounge at 18 Korma Avenue, Royal Oak, Auckland. Gaze fixed on the TV in the right hand corner.

After Mr Sullivan did his introduction, a band came on and ripped up my old life and started me on an obsession that is ongoing.

Ladies and gentlemen - The Beatles...screams...the band steps up...oh my God - the lead singer...Oh yeah I...

...and I'm gone. Lost in a moment. Totally. Irrevocably. A John Lennon fan for evermore. A Beatle obsessive forever.




This was my Heartbreak Hotel moment. John immediately stood out for me. Johnny Rhythm - the smart one, the caustic one, the dreamer, the honest one.

If ever there was a seminal moment, this was it!

That I watched in awed silence, alone, was symbolic of my remoteness. Ross and my parents never shared my hell bent fervour for rock'n'roll. Nor does Jacky. Curious.

For the rest of the sixties, music came to me via my dad's records, television shows like Ed Sullivan's and local variations like C'mon, and the radio. 

Jazz and easy listening sounds were my sixties soundtrack for most of the time. Herb Alpert, Sergio Mendes, Big Band swing and Dave Brubeck were there long before T Rex, Slade, Zeppelin, Sabbath and Purple took over.

In these early days, we had a radiogram type device before dad upgraded equipment. As well as being an early adopter, he was what is now termed an audiophile. It was all about the quality! He built amps, bought new turntables and speakers on a regular basis. Whatever was new! Thank God.

Later, he would build my amps and make speakers for me to go with my Garrard SP25 Mk3 turntable.

Radio Hauraki and later on, 1ZM, were life savers. They provided the signposts to going further out into the musical cosmos. I discovered so many new sounds - progressive stuff, and deep cuts. Sadly radio is no longer the force it was. Now it's niche marketing and, too often, blandness. Then it was less is more, and, therefore, different, and vital to my musical education.

Many highlights for me growing up were musical in nature: hearing Yellow Submarine on Hauraki; seeing the Let It Be movie posters in cinemas; having the Do The Bluebeat single by Dinah Lee; and seeing a promo for the Woodstock movie.

John Lennon was the total package throughout these pre teen years. 

I admired his creativity, intelligence, ability to articulate his feelings, and the ability to cut through his own persona and myth with self deprecating humour. I came to admire other things about him too - how he confronted his masculinity and how caring and loving he was to Yoko. Certainly, he made mistakes and opened himself up to ridicule, but that just made me love him more. 

I know this is crazy talk, but I feel, no doubt like millions of others, that I connected personally with him. He touched our lives so profoundly; his loss is still felt, and always will be.

I not only collected records, but... I also took pictures of them!

I was about 12 when I got my first real records. From a mixture of sources: Christmas presents (1970's Hey Jude - The Beatles); twisting mum's arm at the new food market in Three Kings (1967's Pisces Aquarius Capricorn and Jones Ltd - The Monkees/ 1969's The Autumn Stone - the Small Faces/ 1968's Best of The Cowsills); and the RCA record club (1969's Santana).

My collection slowly built up.

It wasn't until the seventies that I collected back catalogue items from my favourites, and much, much later that I compiled a number of sixties albums and singles that now make my top picks.

And so, here it is, my first list - my top 20 picks of the sixties!

1 The Beatles – The Beatles (1968)
When I was a teenager, I finally caught up with this. We were living in Asquith Avenue in the mid seventies and I played this album endlessly in the front lounge while we were there. It instantly conjures up sunny, carefree days in Mt Albert.

2 Revolver – The Beatles (1966)
Hearing Yellow Submarine on the radio in the back yard of Korma Ave is a distinct memory. Smart move by the Fabs - a kids' song that hooked us kids!

3 Electric Ladyland – Jimi Hendrix (1968) 
In the 4th form I was lent a single of Hey Joe b/w Voodoo Chile (Slight Return) by Clive Webber. I'm pretty certain he's totally forgotten about that but I never will. Wow - especially the B side. This guy sounded dangerous. And huge!

4 Abbey Road – The Beatles (1969)
I remember going to a friend's place, a birthday party and trip to a movie, and his big sister had the Come Together single playing. I looked at the label - an apple. AN APPLE!!! The sound was amazing and the graphic design stunning. I wanted more!

5 Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin
(1969)
My first Zeppelin experience came from III, bought in Onehunga. Instantly, I was a fan - taking cuttings from Groove magazine. Then I backtracked via II, to the debut. My parents hated it!

6 Crosby Stills and Nash – Crosby Stills and Nash (1969)
Dad would often be Mr Fixit for friends' Hi Fi issues. I remember him working on a friend's car - something to do with the 8 track cartridge player. I remember seeing the cartridge for this and Who's Next in the car - and thinking how cool the covers were. The music seemed impossibly cool as well.  

7 Woodstock – Various (1969)
I've already mentioned the promo which grabbed my interest, my other memory of this involves aching over the price of the triple LP boxed set in Woolworths (at Three Kings Plaza in Auckland). It seemed so exotic and kind of subversive, and so so out of reach!

8 Santana - Santana (1969)
As pictured at the start of this post. This came from a record club. Dad bought it but I quickly 'borrowed' it and thrashed it! Soul Sacrifice, as performed at Woodstock, and here, is an immense sound. No way can I sit still while this is playing!

9 Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band – The Beatles (1967) 
On one of our family holidays to 
Sydney I spotted the gatefold cover in a store - I was too young to actually buy it, but I still vividly remember that moment. I wanted it badly, but I didn't have enough pocket money saved.

10 Pet Sounds – The Beach Boys (1966)

The Beach Boy singles in the sixties sound tracked our summers via Radio Hauraki. I didn't really appreciate how much until I bought some of their albums from Marbecks when I worked there (much more on this in the second seventies post). I love all the double vinyl sets I bought from Marbecks - this one came with Smiley Smile.

11 Hot Rats – Frank Zappa (1969) 
Crucially, cousin Christine was/is a few years older than me, and lives in the UK. In those days the UK was like Mars - it was impossible to imagine ever being there. She introduced me to this album via It Must Be A Camel (I had some later Zappa albums already but this just seemed too wacky for me in 1969).

12 Let It Bleed – The Rolling Stones (1969)
Ah, the Stones. In the sixties I was much taken with Get Off Of My Cloud on the radio (and Paint It Black). I loved those songs but it was The Beatles that won out over The Rolling Stones. When I started at Marbeck's, Roger educated me to the back catalogue items.

13 II – Led Zeppelin (1969)
I can't hear this without thinking of the Ramelton Road games room where I did my art and designed countless T shirts from silk screen stencils.

14 Highway 61 Revisited – Bob Dylan (1965)
It took until my university years to fully appreciate Dylan via Greg Knowles. Dylan just didn't touch my consciousness in any way during the sixties. I was too young and naive.

15 The Doors – The Doors (1967)

Like Dylan, I didn't know much about Jim Morrison or the Doors in the sixties. It took hearing Riders On The Storm on my mum's car radio, their The Mosquito single, and Apocalypse Now - all that and working at Marbecks - to really educate me to the splenders of The Doors.

16 Beatles For Sale – The Beatles (1964)
This was one of my first buys after Hey Jude.

17 Sweetheart of the Rodeo – The Byrds (1968)
Another band I didn't know until the seventies, although I must have heard their stuff on the radio.

18 Big Brother and the Holding Company – Cheap Thrills (1968)
And another. Working at Marbecks beefed up my collection hugely!

19 Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn and Jones Ltd – The Monkees (1967)
One of the 12 first albums in that picture above - this one came from watching their amazing television show, and hearing the hits on the radio throughout the sixties.

20 Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere – Neil Young (1969)

I got completely hooked on the extended Crosby, Byrds, Stills, Nash, Hollies, Young, Buffalo Springfield, Manassas, Crazy Horse universe in the seventies, largely thanks to Roger Marbeck's influence (much more on that in future posts).

Love and peace - Wozza

Wow, reality, what a concept (Robin Williams)

Tonight and forever (You may say I'm a dreamer - Chapter 6, part 6)

With Annette, Jo and PJ

By 1989, Colin had moved on,  and we were sick of living in Auckland. 

Dad had moved on as well and had remarried by June. Second wife Nita had been mum's bridesmaid all those years before. 

Jacky and I welcomed the marriage, Ross was less magnanimous. The wedding went well, I spoke at the wedding to welcome Nita to the whanau, and clearly Dad was happy and that was enough for me. Both he and Nita had had enough tragedy and bad days.

Inevitably, dad now had less space in his life for the grand kids. That's just a fact - we certainly didn't begrudge him. Ross had also recently married and, naturally, he was now less inclined to spend time with us as well. 

Ross has always needed a best friend. In younger years he'd always latch onto one friend at a time and pretty much ignore everyone else while in that friendship. Lynda was his first female best friend. They are well suited and, to this day, they remain a tight unit with their two sons.

Our sibling relationship hasn't really changed much over the years. Typical of brothers, we have always been on the opposite sides of issues, and we've always found things to fight about. 

Growing up, there were many heated discussions at the dinner table as my ideas and thoughts were often at odds with his and my parents. An example is the racially selected Springbok tour in 1981. I marched against it and in our house, I was definitely alone on the issue.

Ross and dad had many things in common. I stood outside their relationship. I enjoy art and literature, they loved electronics and making things that produce noise (model airplanes, go carts, and so on). 

Ross has a science degree, mine's in the arts. I love music with a passion, he doesn't. I love sport, he doesn't. He's good with money. I'm not. He's happy working from home. I'm not.

I could go on but, believe me, the sequence holds up. We're opposites.

I love my brother, but the only thing we really have in common is our parents and now they are not around anymore.

Briefly when dad died we had a moment but that passed and we live our own lives with our own families. So be it.

For all these reasons, there was nothing keeping us in Auckland.

Dornwell Road in Three Kings had been a good central spot to live. While I commuted to Macleans, Keegan went to Three Kings Primary and enjoyed the multi-cultural feel there. Jacky was at home, looking after Adam and our new baby, Samantha. They were yet to start school so that also contributed to our rationalisation that this was a timely move.

With Peter Joyce and magazine crew,
the hirsute, colourful shirts/ skinny tie years had continued

Nelson came from out of the blue, more accurately, from out of the Education Gazette. I'd never been there and when I told Jacky of an assistant Head of English job at a Nelson school she said, perkily, "Yeah - I could live in Nelson!"

Everything fell into place quickly. I got the job after a phone call, we sold our house in Three Kings, flew down during a long weekend for a look around and bought a house in Wakefield before flying back to pack up the kids.

Chilling at Waimea

We moved in the May holidays of 1989. Our place looked over pine tree forests, farmland and a river. Snow peaked mountains were visible from our second floor bedroom. Easy to get blase about all this!

After Macleans, Waimea College was a major shock to the system. No sophisticated  city kids here. Instead, the rural client base provided a more laid back, basic feel. For two terms I struggled with trying to maintain high Macleans' values while accepting my new reality. 

No one had ever sworn at me before. A boy in my class told me to 'Firetruck Off!' It was a shock! And I didn't like it.

Actually, I didn't know what to do. When it happened I went immediately to the Associate Deputy Principal, Geoff Ashton and asked his advice. Geoff was always pretty calm and he handled things but I went back to class feeling discombobulated.

I'd also walked into a situation where two English staff members (Mary Hall and Grant Rawlence) had been passed over for the job given to me. They were frosty and watching me keenly!

PJ wisely takes a step backwards. The big hair years!

But then the nineties started and the Head of English (Aileen Ambler) left on promotion, leaving me in temporary charge. Fellow English staff members, Peter Joyce, Jo Kahl and Annette Sivak were great fun, fabulous teachers and kind hearted souls. The students stopped swearing at me and actually turned out to be good sorts!

I was rewarded with the permanent job and started to build on the confidence that Colin had kick started in me. The Head of English job came largely from being in the right place at the right time. It's ironic - after all those failed attempts as a student, since then I have continued to have huge success.

Some wonderful characters crossed my path at Waimea. Students like James Scott, Sam and Leda Sivak, Rowena McQueen, Chris Seifried, Kimberly Anderson, Susie Dulieu, Natasha Fijn and Jason Richards. They made life very easy for me. 

Jason, of course, is well known to NZ racing enthusiasts. Tragically, he passed away in 2011. The wiki link fails to mention his schooling, where we knew him (and remember him) for his killer smile and personality.

Peter Joyce is a great English teacher, very intelligent, and hugely funny. We became tennis partners and had a lot of fun at pub quizzes. One of his inspired ideas was to host a games and dessert night for the department - top entertainment!! I'm sure he won't mind me thinking that (to myself). 

John Clarke was also on the staff - we'd cross paths many times in the years to come, including in the Middle East! Tragically, he also died far too young. Like Jason, Clarkie was a fine human being.

With the Borlases

More firm close friendships kicked off during the Nelson nineties. 

Annette's family moved into the house next to us in Wakefield. The Sivaks  - Sam, Leda, Luke and Stas became great neighbours and friends. Like the Borlases - another family living close by that Jacky made friends with. Duncan, Steph, Terri, and Steve (close in age to Adam) continue to be our southern Spring Grove buddies.

With Annette and Stas

These Nelson years were also important for Jade Michelle Purdy's emergence (yep - more on this and Stephanie Borlase's antics coming in the Family Man chapter). 

It was during my five years at Waimea that I also started this autobiography. It ended with a comment along the lines of - what next in my brilliant career? 

That thought was left hanging and...it will continue to do so - you'll have to wait for the next bits and the family history - up next is the music chapter, as per the original text.

Love and peace - Wozza

Oh Oh Oh, I'm on fire (Bruce Springsteen)

Tonight and forever (You may say I'm a dreamer - Chapter 6, part 5)

Destiny was working for me in the mid to late eighties. It was the best of times.

Pretty sure this was taken in the Te Kanawa courtyard 1988

Big changes were the norm in those years as both Adam Lennon Purdy (1986) and Samantha Mary Purdy (1989) joined Keegan, Jacky and me in the Purdy household (more of this coming in the Family Man chapter).

3PY of 1986 - Everyone a star!

From 1986 to 1990 I was wildly happy at Macleans College, working with and for some truly exceptional people.

First and foremost, there was Colin Prentice. An exceptional human being and a charismatic Principal. Period. 

As Seth Godin says, "Sometimes, if we're lucky, we get to glimpse those ripples as we stand at the crossroads." During my Macleans years I was privileged to experience Colin's helping hand and to travel on the back of one of those ripples. Colin moved many people forward. I'm lucky to be counted among them.  

We were still in contact up to a few days before his death in 2014. Uncannily, his time on earth deeply touched everyone he came into contact with. We all loved him.

In 1985 he interviewed me for a teaching position at his newish school in the eastern suburbs of Auckland (1980 was its first year), and subsequently Jacky, Keegan and I moved up to Auckland in time to start the 1986 school year.

The school yearbook's staff notes welcomed me with: Miss C L Jensen and Mr W N Purdy...both arrived from different New Plymouth schools to teach English in a variety of coloured clothing.

Hey - it was the eighties and Jacky had taken over my wardrobe. Out with frumpy seventies gear - in came skinny ties, fluro jerseys, bright shirts/socks/shoes and trendy bomber jackets.

Inside T14 with media studies

And so started four incredibly rich years under Colin's leadership. With preternatural brilliance, he knew exactly how to inspire his staff and get the best out of us. Although his standards were high, they were not impossible, and he made it a pleasurable journey to attain them. His decision to leave Macleans was a prime motivation for me to seek promotion elsewhere.

Twice, I broke down in his presence (the only times I have lost it with Principals). Both times he consoled me and we moved on. The first was an angry meeting that, he agreed, we both handled badly. I was upset about a way another teacher had handled an incident and didn't hold back when in Colin's office. 

The second was during a seventh form camp in 1988 when I felt wretched. I believed I'd let a student down by insisting she participate in a staff organised pillow fight (organised by Colin actually). Donna Denize didn't want to but I insisted and she ended up with a dislocated shoulder injury. He was understanding and helped me realise how to learn from these moments. When he asked if I wanted to pray with him I felt honoured and by the end, repaired.

With Kylie and Robin

I cannot imagine repeating those scenes with anyone other than Colin. God bless you C.J.

Whenever the subject of old schools comes up I find myself being quite enigmatic in my Macleans' comments. Summing up the Macleans experience to skeptical outsiders is quite difficult.

Picture a combination of unique geographical location (looking over Eastern Beach out to sea), a staff all working in one direction towards a common goal, a staff refusing to take second best, students expecting the best from their teachers and themselves, and a strong sense of whanau (Te Kanawa was my House).

Similarly, it's tough to pick out my highlights from those four years. There are an incredible amount. 

Kylie and Jody in T14

Here's a list, by no means comprehensive: my car pool buddy for all of that time - Graeme Sterne; runathons, including when standards slipped and Colin called for a repeat - as we ran a rainbow appeared above us - remarkable; my prefab classroom - T14; Te Kanawa House meetings and the Taniwha; all my classes - especially media studies in 1988; 3PY of 1986 containing some of the sharpest, wittiest, brightest minds I've ever come across; Sue Miller as leader of Te Kanawa and our 1986 Form 3 camp; students like Nathan Bradley, Jeanette Harnish, Denene Martin, Catherine Day (whose goodbye note still really humbles me), Tania Pocock, Simon Milton, Lance Dunn, Grant Bodle, Jodie Doherty, Anna Giles, Angeline Allright and so many more; ANZAC services; sports days; assemblies in the gym; Colin's farewell and The Rose sung by the prefects; the staff like Kent Fenneman, Pete Garelja, Steve Lewis and Margaret Methven; Colin's notes on yellow pad paper on a Monday morning...and on and on it goes.

Jody, Julie and Kylie

It was an altogether marvellous, wonderful, stimulating time.  

When it came time to leave in 1990 it was a tough tough thing to do. I had started loving the school too much, there was no clear promotion pathway, Colin had gone to Mt Roskill Grammar, and my dad had remarried and being in Auckland wasn't so important any more. It felt like the time was right.

Tell all your buddies - the one to take is media studies!

Apart from leaving Te Kanawa, it was a big wrench to leave my little sister behind. Jeanette Thomas is now a household name in NZ - radio and TV have become very successful homes for Jeanette.

With Jeanette and Samantha

Back then she was Jynette Harnish (styled after her idol Johnny Farnham). As well as being my student she had become a friend and I had somehow become her big brother. The Harnishes and the Purdy families had become close over the four years. Jacky and I even shared our Christmas dinner with her one year.

Teaching her was easy and being a friend was easy too.

But then we had to go and I will always remember her face when our loaded up van left Macleans, outside the gym. 

She now has a beautiful family, and a successful career, but I'll always remember that farewell day and waving her goodbye.

Love and peace - Wozza

Come inside, the show's about to start, guaranteed to blow your head apart (ELP)

Tonight and forever (You may say I'm a dreamer - Chapter 6, part 4)

Eek - all those walk socks! Wozza (top left next to former All Black hero Murray Watts) is joined by Alan Elgar (in front of him in the snazzy vest), Rosie Mabin (row two second right), Terry Heaps (front row second left), and captain of the team Tom Ryder (mouth always open in pix).

As a newly married couple, we lived in three New Plymouth flats through 1983 and 1984.

From Lorna Street to Devon Street East (corner section on a busy intersection) to List Street (the pink house). The last two with our new baby boy - Keegan Warren Purdy (the Family Man chapter will detail his, and our other children's emergence).

With Nana Pat and KW in Pukekura Park (NP)

After my second year at New Plymouth Boys' High School, I graduated from List 'A' to List 'B' and was a proper teacher with a certificate and everything. 

In many ways NPBHS was the perfect place to start my career. Although a traditional and well disciplined environment, it still gave me plenty of challenges. I knew where I stood with both my HOD (Terry Heaps) and my Headmaster (Tom Ryder). They didn't suffer fools!

Holed up in Pridham Hall, I taught English and (ha) social studies. I was close to the boys in age, being 26 when I started. The oldest boy I taught in my first year is turning 51 this year and I'm only 59.

I was game for anything - cricket team? Sure! PTA rep? Why not! Magazine helper? You bet! Football coach/manager/player? Crack on! School newspaper editor? No problemo. Organising speech competitions? Sign me up!

I never said, "No".

Staff Notes in 1983's Taranakian has this to say about me: Mr W Purdy, a teacher of social studies and English, also joined the ranks. He has shown an early promise, taking a full part in the life of the school. A dynamic class-room teacher, he coaches the second soccer XI, cricket and has edited The Whistle.

Player/Manager with a great bunch of lads (Bill
Lawsons Snr and Jnr - coach and captain, are also featured
- these guys will be getting on these days!)

Football was awesome. After my apprenticeship with the seconds, I was given the first XI in 1984. They played senior league teams and we were able to play some overage players. That would be me! 

It was fantastic. I managed the team and played during the regular season. Ar - Sunday football injuries - how I miss you!

After three years I started to feel the pull away from New Plymouth. The lure of Auckland and my dad became too strong to resist. Keegan was one year old and needed some firmer connection to his grandad we felt. At that time Jacky's whanau were all spread out and not in physical contact with us. Pat was still in Southland, Brian was overseas working on oil rigs and Sallie was not grandma. So, Auckland!

I applied to three schools and in stark contrast to previous attempts I was offered two of them - Keri Keri High School and Macleans College.

Keri Keri was too far away, even though we loved the northern lifestyle. So - Macleans College in Auckland's eastern suburbs! 

I'd been up for an interview with Colin Prentice, the Principal, and loved the school. I remembered, too, how Colin had been encouraging on my earlier application back in 1982. In the flesh he was imposing but I have good instincts and knew it would be a great fit.

As it turned out, it was an inspired choice. The next four years came to represent the pinnacle of my teaching in so many ways.

Love and peace - Wozza

I'll always love you, I promise I'll always love you, 'cause I think the whole world of you and you can't change that, no, no (Raydio)

Tonight and forever (You may say I'm a dreamer - Chapter 6, part 3)

When the accident happened on April 20, 1984, the cassette in the car was playing songs from a Nambassa concert.

As our Chevette went through the Devon St., lights, I indicated to turn right into The Devon Lodge, our wedding reception venue for the next day, slowed to a stop and glanced into my rear vision mirror.

Margo Clay and Chris hang out

The next few seconds would play out in my head in slow motion as I watched the car behind me travelling fast, too fast, through the lights in the right side lane. Instinctively, I knew he was going to rear end me - my fear was that he'd push us into the on-coming traffic.

Nothing I could do but warn Jacky in the passenger seat, and brace for impact.

Which came.

Bride of the century

Our heads snapped forward and mine hit the shade vizor in front of me, leaving a few cuts and bruises; Jacky had some whiplash. Luckily we only moved forward a few metres and avoided the cars coming towards us.

In a numb shock, we all waited on the curb for the police to show up to get statements. Someone must have contacted the police - I don't remember.

It may sound silly, but we'd been lucky. Our car was severely damaged though (insurance would fix it eventually by joining a whole back section to the car) and we were due to go on honeymoon in two days time. Ah well, what are you gunna do? 

During April 21, 1984 Jacky was getting ready in Lorna Street while I was having Margo apply makeup to my cuts and getting dressed at the Devon Lodge (while Singing In The Rain played on the TV in Margo and Clay's room).

Soon enough it was time to head to St Joseph's Catholic Church for the wedding of the century! Of which I loved every minute!

When doing our vows, we both faced the congregation of friends and family - that was a nice touch. 

The Purdys and Smiths

Dad and Ross were there, Margo and Clay (my best man), Greg and Wendy, Phyllis, Roger and Deirdre, Patrick, Chris, Michelle and her first husband, Warwick, Mervyn and Catherine...and a whole load of people I didn't know (friends of Brian and Sallie's I guess - he paid for the reception so that was fine with us).

GNP with Alison, Mabelle

As luck would have it, rain and wind meant we needed studio shots rather than the normal ouside ones taken at weddings. This proved a blessing in disguise - the photos are great!! Lots of combinations of the Purdy and Smith axis, as well as Margo, Clay, Chris were possible.

Greg, Wendy, Phyllis at a table with Terry Heaps and the Ryders

The reception was back at the Devon Lodge and I loved that too. The traditional speeches went well - Clay and I spoke. During the night we all danced and had a great time. 

Patrick and his possie, including Lindsay Loveridge

Thanks to Sallie lending us her Honda Prelude, our honeymoon was spent in Wanganui and Wellington, places I'd never been to. The Sharella was relatively new and right opposite the botanic gardens - a great location for walking and exploring Wellington.

During our stay we were abruptly woken at 1.00am with a shrill fire alarm sounding in the room. The flashing words 'Panic Panic Panic' were sent from my brain to nerve endings throughout my entire body. Jacky, bless her, was a picture of calm and poise as she ushered me from the room, down the fire escape to the car park in the drizzly rain. Whatever had happened was dealt with and we returned to our honeymoon.

Days were spent shopping (Unity Books!!), and visiting touristy spots like the gardens and museums and the zoo.

I had a blast!

Love and peace - Wozza