Story Time

Yes hello its me again.

I'm going to attempt to tell you stories from the life of Rachael. Just maybe because telling you stories might help. They might not but well I am at a loss as to what else I can do.

Okay. Let me think. Oh yeah, I should talk about Primary school stories, you like those. Or you at least laughed at the image of my on a rock pretending to be the Little Mermaid. I had a somewhat odd childhood and had to deal with my own company on many occasions. My imagination used to run away with me a lot!

I remember in the summer I used to get blisters on my hands the size of my palms (I can say this because they were actually on my palms...). See, I used to like monkey bars. Perhaps you don't know what they are, how do I describe them? Well you know you how a ladder looks, right? Well say you lay the ladder flat, but above your head so you can dangle from the runs and your feet don't touch the ground. Those are kind of what monkey bars look like. You'd swing form one or three or however, just like a monkey. Right, anyways, I used to love doing this. And yet every summer because of the heat of the sun, the metal bars would heat up and burn my hands which is how I ended up with blisters. They were bad. And yet I always went back for more. I remember this one kid from Jamaica used to tease me all the time. His name was Levi and he was like the school bully. He used to call me monkey girl and all sorts of things and it used to hurt my feelings.

Our teachers used to do what's called Yard Duty and during our recess and lunch breaks they'd kind of walk around the school grounds and make sure no one was having fights or anything. I was one of those kids who hung out with the teachers while they did yard duty!! It was so bad! But like, you could always tell which teachers were popular, because they'd have like a crowd of ten kids wandering around the yard with them, it was funny.

Then there was the time in grade five when we were practicing our item for camp. From Grade 3 up to grade six we'd go on a school camp once a year and every camp there would be a concert. This one particular year, my friend Natalie and I had been practicing this dance for weeks on end, we had got costumes and all sorts done. About three weeks before camp, we all had a camp meeting and were told that the concert had to be impersonation acts. We were devastated!! So in the end, we teamed up with Claire and Christina and put on a Keeping Up Appearances show!! We had two acts, the first one I played Richard (quite well I might add) and the second one I played I think it was a dance instructor whom Hyacinth taught to sing. Obviously because she was teaching me to sing, it turned out really bad! But I did it so well!! he he he. Between the acts we had a change of scene and in the first act we'd had a blanket on the floor. because it would take me the least amount of time to change, I was the one who changed the scene. So I pulled the blanket up and didn't realise I was standing on the other end! Well I went arse up didn't I!! in front of the entire population of Grade 5 and 6 plus teachers, one whom had a video camera playing!! I was so embarrassed. Good grief.

I remember when I was really young, grade one I think it was. We had a wedding and a death all in the same week. Out art teacher Mr Bourke who was old in his own right, died of a heart attack. I remember the entire school being at assembly one morning and they told us. Yet the day before, Mrs Slavich came to school in her wedding dress after being married a week or so long earlier. It was kind of cool.

There was also the time in grade six when the Port Arthur Massacre happened. Port Arthur is a historic sight down in the south of Tasmania, it's really really popular. One day during the end of the tourist season, this guy just sort of flipped and started shooting everyone. it was terrible. My Grandparents were supposed to have been down there at the time but for whatever reason it was, were unable to go. The morning that it happened, they would have been there, right in the middle of it all. I can remember coming to school the next day and seeing it all over the paper. It truly was horrible. Now the guy that did it is sitting in his prison room, living a more relaxed and pampered life than some innocent people do, earning degrees paid for by tax payer money. I hate that so much. Really get my goat.

There was another time we were practicing for camp concerts. Four of us (Me, Catherine, Christina and Dimitra) we decided to get up and sing a four part song. We ended up rehearsing Can You Feel The Love from The Lion King! It was great! Even had the whole Timon and Pumba conversations at the start and end. What a laugh!!

Aww man and I had some really bad fashion in those days too. Leggings with puffy socks and hiking boots. My socks would be the same colour as the woolen jumper. Oh gosh and I had a stripy pair of overalls I used to wear as well. Uniform wasn't compulsory in those days. We had the option to wear it of course and sometimes I did, but as I got older I chose not to. Then in grade six they made it compulsory, but we got away with it because it was pointless buying uniform for one year. I remember school photos that year. I had this really nice skirt and white shirt on. My hair had grown long enough again to hang below my shoulders. It's one of my favourite class photos from Primary school. The sun sort of catches my hair and I almost have a halo. Yeah, keep dreaming!!

Right, I think maybe if I go think some more I can come up with some better stories. What do you think? Wow this is like reliving my childhood again. He he he, not that I left it all that long ago!!

Hope you're okay and hopefully some of these made you laugh. Perhaps they might make you ask questions!!! Ha! And you know I don't mind if you do, not at all.

I'll see what else I can come up with.
Take care,

Rachael :-)