Greg Neilson

From the past:

if I'd known all those years ago I fired blanks I would probably had exhausted myself before the end of Uni!!

2004

Moved to West Pymble from Dee Why at a very early age( probably when I was born!) & was in the 3rd year to start at Gordon West where I staggered thru primary school & was joined by the loverly Jacqui Weaver in 5th class (managed to get all the lusting out of my system for her by the time she went to HGHS & had had her starring roll in Cinderella I think – perhaps some of you have better memories of this than I ). Got the big news that I was off to ABHS & promptly spent the first term at Chatswood High along with the rest of you desperates. We moved in term 2 to the old Hornsby Tech as you all know & the rest is history. This was the second school I was pioneering - at least all the books were new!! Life at ABHS was really a bit of a blur - I remember playing squash, water polo, the Beatles, Miss Timmins, Miss Dear- ahhh, Fred Corah( I still can’t balance the books & employ some one else to do it these days!),little Miss Clayton who used to sit on telephone books to see out of her Morris Minor, Mr. Rigg ( who is wearing fluoro socks??) and the first dance in 1962 -more on that on 31st!!. Left in 1964 armed with my 6B’s in the leaving & headed off to enrol in Architecture.

No one ever told me I needed Physics AS WELL, so spent 1965 doing a bridging course. 1966 & I was into Architecture at UTS (well it wasn’t called that then) & I was in the 2nd year of that new course as well - why did I have to be the pioneer every time.

As my course was part -time I had to have a job( I guess to pay for the booze & probably fees & of course lust, which was steadily increasing in intensity & cost).

Worked for numerous architectural firms around North Sydney while I blundered thru my course & like Warwick took such a liking for the place I spent 3 years doing 4th year before learning that the heirarchy is ALWAYS right & I am always wrong - something I have remembered thru married life that has stood me in good stead.

Graduated in 1973 with a piece of paper, a passion for motor racing, still unmarried( the rest of my fellow pencil pushers had since succumbed!) ready to conquer the world. 1974 saw all that change. After a big night out one night I found myself engaged to a lovely young English school teacher - The race cars went, the mortgage came & Jan & I were married.

The late 70’s saw a crisis in the world of architecture ( well our firm -

SM&F anyway) & I jumped ship temporarily to help with the family clothing

business.( it was that or a Mr.Juicy run!) It is now 28 years & I’m still bloodywell here( but not for much longer.) There has been a lot of change during those years & we are now importers & distributors of niche clothing from all over the world necessitating travel to all parts of the globe ( very boring after the first half dozen trips – I can’t wait to get home for a vegemite sambo & a beer - )including Italy, UK, Germany, Thailand, USA, Korea & of course Arequipa in Peru which is now “home base”.

1980 saw the arrival of our first adopted daughter from South Korea - if I’d known all those years ago I fired blanks I would probably had exhausted myself before the end of Uni!! This was so successful that we backed up again in 1982 for the second daughter all the while being heavily involved in International Childrens Aid which does a lot of good work particularly in Sri Lanka & India. For anyone in the need I know an AWFUL LOT about our immigration system now!

Jae(24) is now 2nd chef at a restaurant near her home in Nth Parramatta where she lives with her Indian husband( you wont believe his home in Nth India - the driveway is lined with marihuana plants over 3 metres tall & yes we have been there too- for the wedding with 560 guests!!)We have since had an Aussie wedding too - I like to pay twice!!

Skye (22) is a systems analyist/web engineer working at Mcmahons Point for a fledgling IT company & makes more than the rest of us put together!. Wants to marry the boyfriend who wont be in it & is thinking of going to China with his mate to open a car wash franchise in Beijing - smart boy!!

All this time we haven’t moved out of sight. After delusions of granduer in wanting to live in Mosman, we ended up with a deceased estate in Turramurra, then Warrawee, Pymble renovating each time as we went & now St.Ives where we have a “fake” house(aka brick veneer)which didn’t need renovating. We have been there 7 years & I still haven’t finished!!

2005 is a big year Jan & I celebrated our 30th anniversary, I sold the business to the Peruvians( well 90% of it anyway) & now I have the 40 year ABHS reunion!! - I told you I lead a sheltered life!