Ian Alwill

From the past: "testosterone ++... and that's what probably drove some of us to be sure to have the evident ring of a condom showing through the leather of the wallet in the back pocket the other side of the bus pass pocket..... proof positive that we were ready and able." Interesting observation David From the distant past indeed .... I was chasing down a Brigidine College girl with great intent and a ring in the wallet but when the time came it was useless ... I was very ready...and very able...but the ring in the wallet was useless ....it wasn't on if it wasn't on... she moved on...and so did I !! But the late 60's and university provided much wider scope!!From then on: I wanted to be an architect but chasing her down stuffed up my leaving pass so sat the Syd Uni matriculation exam stuffing up that summer, passed well and got into UNSW Commerce on a part time basis working at Reckitt and Coleman in accounting ... hated it !! Had enough money to go full time for a couple of years and changed to the marketing school ... very new .. very cool...started playing rugby for the Uni and ended up playing first grade for a few years... great time, great fun and actually very formative...still have may of the friends I made. Went back part time to finish degree ... flogging coffee and tea as a salesman during the day .. but at least I had some money and more importantly a station wagon!

Surfed the Peninsula beaches and rowed surf boats through the summers of the late 60's early 70's at Newport with Stig Falster and Gary McKay.. Skied the winters and played rugby ... chased pussy ...great time, great fun but not particularly formative !!

McKay got called up ... I failed the medical after two years in the Army reserve ... both a fit as fiddles ... its an interesting story !

Got work in marketing in '70 when business world really didn't really know what it was ... found out the advertising agencies did ... particularly J Walter Thompson so moved to that world ... great time, great fun... and very formative in many ways. I learned much ... particularly about people.

Got married in '71

JWT dispatched me to the Philippines in 1972 to handle its very big Pepsi account and earn my spurs ... got a fair hammering from an aggressive New Yorker and a Philippine on a mission to prove himself better than any foreigner ... got trapped in my house when engulfed in an oil fireball from a rebel attack on a power station .. but thats another story ... very formative !!!

Came back to JWT Sydney in 74 and first daughter born and joined 7 UP in '76 .. which failed here, but I did a good enough job for them to give me a regional marketing role working back in Manila in '78 ... Big sell job to get the wife to go back there with now two daughters in tow with another one born in '77!! Great time this time working across Asia ... learned a lot and enjoyed it all.

Lost my brother in a car accident in '76....difficult time.

Back to Sydney in '81 but no one interested in people with Asian marketing experience (... really !! ) ....so back to ad agencies working my way up the ranks.

Another daughter in '83 (.... could this be vengeance of another spirit?) All three wonderful and much loved

Ended up in Tokyo from '92 running a division of Mc Cann Erickson, a wonderful experience until it was time to come back in '96 to a great role as Group Marketing Director of Nestle Oceania and a member of its board, and travelling the world doing projects for the global Nestle Group until 2012 retiring from there after 15 years ..... a wonderful ending to a career.

Now its a bit of consultancy work, looking after some investments, golf often with Falster, Vieusseaux & Rigg, skiing, regular quarterly lunches with some ABHS old farts, these three, (Alan) Bruce, Neilson, McKay, Cahill, Royal & we've reconnected with Roger Meischke. The price of participation is a crackingly good wine and clever banter of which there is much ... we tell a few lies ...

The best bit is watching the success of my wonderful daughters, (see above) , and looking after my five grandchildren.... from time to time....very formative !!

I'm really healthy after defeating prostate cancer back in 1999 and planning to be around for quite a while yet .....