If you’ve missed it, this series starts here.
Warning: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are warned that this post may contain an image of a dead person (I don’t know if it does or not).
Tuesday 5 December 1995
20/288 Casuarina Drive
Nightcliff 0810
Dad , “ H a p p y B i r t h d a y t o y o u . . . ” Howdie Dad and Mum,
We hope you, and the … Read the rest ... “The Darwin Letters No. 10”
Part 1 of this series is here.
By Greg
Trenna had apparently shunned me at the end of our first date, yet she said she was fine with me calling her?
I replayed the evening over and over in my mind. It had seemed to go so well. The conversation had flowed so easily. And through pure chance I had brought her favourite wine to take to the restaurant.
Apart from the end, the … Read the rest ... “The Earliest Days of Trenna AND Greg – Part 2”
If you’ve missed it, this series starts here.
Tuesday 26 September 1995
20/288 Casuarina Drive
Nightcliff 0810
G’day once again Mum and Dad,
How are you both after your trip to Kal? We hope you enjoyed it.
Did you see some interesting sites? How did the local bus route and service compare with Darwin’s? Isn’t it around this time of the year that Kal has the racing round?
We are well, although we both feel that the cancellation of our Tassie holiday has … Read the rest ... “The Darwin Letters No. 9”
by Greg
I can still remember it clearly, really clearly. I took Trenna’s hand and looked into those enormous brown eyes.
“Do you like me?” It sounds pretty stupid now but I had to find out what was happening inside that complex brain of hers. I couldn’t believe how well things seemed to be going between us.
She didn’t answer immediately. Instead she took a sip of her glass of Moondah Brook Chenin Blanc, her … Read the rest ... “The Earliest Days of Trenna AND Greg – Part 1”
If you’ve missed it, this series starts here.
A note before Tren starts: There is about a 4 and a half month break between the following letter and the previous one. I suspect that there wasn’t one written in that time. That period includes a lot of “The Dry” when we were way more active, but during this period my parents visited and Trenna’s sister Barb visited. Our friends Lorraine and Neil also arrived to live in Darwin, Lorraine … Read the rest ... “The Darwin Letters No.8”
Mainly by Trenna, Brief Intro by Greg
This piece of writing by Trenna was on her laptop computer (not her iPad) and appears to have been commenced on 21 July 1997, and further work done on it in 1998.
It looks like she did most of the work, but never came back to it. The first part is very orderly and polished, the later part looks more … Read the rest ... “Meals at Craig House”
If you’ve missed it, this series starts here.
Tuesday 21 March 1995
20/288 Casuarina Drive
Nightcliff 0810
G’day (hopefully) Mum and Dad,
We hope you are both well. We’re pretty good, and we’re looking forward to your visit.
Well this letter has taken considerably more effort to write than any previous one to date, that’s for sure. Mind you, it’s not for want of trying on my part.
Our computer is trying my patience just a tad. I think … Read the rest ... “The Darwin Letters No. 7”
If you’ve missed it, this series starts here.
Monday 13 February 1995
20/288 Casuarina Drive
Nightcliff 0810
” HAPPY BIRTHDAY MUM! “
G’day again Mum and Dad.
We enjoyed our chat with you both on Saturday. Hope you’re still going good.
But rest assured, I won’t let the mundane get in the way of me telling a story or two
We’re both slowly recovering from this wretched flu virus. We thought we might be able to get out and … Read the rest ... “The Darwin Letters No. 6”
By Greg
I’m very keen for this website to be an accurate representation, or at least sample, of Trenna’s life.
So if I become aware of an error, I will try to correct it.
I discovered one recently when I was working on a soon to be published story about Trenna and my earliest days together.
I was was telling the story of how I had dedicated a song to her when I was the guest presenter on a community … Read the rest ... “I Was Wrong – It Wasn’t That Song!”
By Greg and by Trenna
This series of transcripts starts here.
The Post The 1973 Diary – Part 12 contains the last of the daily entries in Trenna’s hand written diary.
However, towards the back there is a section for “Accounts” where Trenna has put some figures down. I don’t know for sure, but I suspect it is an attempt at budgeting.
Good on her for trying when she was just 15 … Read the rest ... “The 1973 Diary, Extra Bits”
If you’ve missed it, this series starts here.
Tuesday 17 January 1995
20/288 Casuarina Drive
Nightcliff NT 0810
G’day Mum and Dad,
Sorry we missed you on Sunday, Mum. How did you and Deb do at the Markets? Is this the first time you have sold stuff there? I can’t remember if we ever did get around to going to the Cannington Markets, I know we had intended to. How do they compare with other markets?
Greg’s going very … Read the rest ... “The Darwin Letters No. 5”
By Greg
NOTE: This post does contain some reference to an alleged sexual assault.
OK, so I confess. I don’t have absolutely all the details of this, but I know a fair bit. I always imagined that in due course, in our many long rambling conversations that more details would emerge.
Some did, some didn’t. And as a result I have been working through a bit of a mystery.
If you have read either the Kitchen Tapes series or The … Read the rest ... “Why She Left Girlock in 1975”
By Greg
1970s music blared from the two tacky speakers inexpertly mounted in the from door cards and dodgily connected to the cassette deck.
The old Holden was stationary in a deserted clearing near the Canning River, not far from Perth.
The women were drinking Brandavino from the bottle, each sipping, girding their loins to help swallow the sweet fortified wine. Then wiping the dribbles from their lips. It was a … Read the rest ... “Underage Drinking and a Police Chase”
If you’ve missed it, this series starts here.
Monday 19 December 1994
20/288 Casuarina Drive
Nightcliff 0810
Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas!
Top End Greetings to you Mum and Dad, and also to anyone else who reads this letter.
Not another letter, we hear you cry! Don’t worry though, we’re sure the novelty will wear off very soon, and you’ll be blessed with a simple phone call.
But in the mean time, here we go again…
How are you … Read the rest ... “The Darwin Letters No. 4”
This series of transcripts starts here.
Sue woke me at 7.30 and I very unwillingly got out of bed. Had breakfast and then got dressed and left for work.
It was really cold walking to work so instead of taking 15 minutes it only took me 10. Today a new girl is starting her name is Eileen she is about 21 … Read the rest ... “The 1973 Diary, Part 12”
or at least the first of them
If you’ve missed it, this series starts here.
Welcome to the third instalment in this series.
I’ve changed my mind several times, wrestling with how best to present this series of stories from when Trenna and I lived in tropical Darwin.
I’ve now decided I will do it by publishing, in the order they were written and sent, the letters Trenna wrote to my Mum and Dad.
We later … Read the rest ... “The Darwin Letters No. 3”
By Greg
If this post interests you there have been three others on this topic. All with things that Trenna tried to help her or my life as we coped with her multiple medical conditions.
I don’t think for a moment that every tip or anecdote will be useful, but I certainly am hoping that people living with chronic illness or … Read the rest ... “Marfan and Other Chronic Conditions – Things That Worked for Trenna – Part 4”
This series of transcripts starts here.
I awoke at 9.00 when Beth was knocking on my door, but I didn’t get up until 11.30. I had lunch with Beth and I lied again about Friday night.
After lunch I talked to Beth while she did her ironing and then I watched TV. There was a really good movie that had Hayley Mills in it. I … Read the rest ... “The 1973 Diary, Part 11”
Regular readers will know this, but…. although I mention several specific brands in this post I do NOT get any financial or other benefit from them. I name them just to help you understand what I’m talking about.
If you find this post useful or interesting you might want to check out three other posts: Marfan and Other Chronic Conditions – Things That Worked for Trenna; Things That Worked for … Read the rest ... “Marfan Weight Gain”
By Greg
If you find this post useful or interesting you might want to check out two other posts: Marfan and Other Chronic Conditions – Things That Worked for Trenna; and Things That Worked for Trenna -Part 2.
As the name suggests yet another instalment in a series of posts that tell the things Trenna tried in an effort to make … Read the rest ... “Marfan and Other Chronic Conditions – Things That Worked for Trenna – Part 3”