AT CHRISTCHURCH. By 1948 work was gradually finishing at the Birches, and we knew a shift was either to Tinwald or elsewhere. Dave decided it was time to shift to Christchurch, where the family could get a secondary education and later on, work. Mildred had finished school at Anama and had had a year at Timaru Technical College where she took a commercial course. She stayed with Nanny and Uncle Bill, Dave shifted up to Christchurch six weeks or more before us, as he had to find a house, and there was a short supply because of the war and not many builders left. and also a shortage of building material. He found board at an old boarding house in Worcester Street, and a job at Fletcher Industries. He was fortunate that Paramount Builders were building a block of houses in St Albans, and he had enough savings for a deposit, and able to take out a mortgage as well. The house was ready for us to move into a week before Christmas 1948. It cost 2000 pounds which would be 4000 dollars todays money, but of course could not be bought for that price now. Dave must have fixed up with the Mayfield carrier to shift our furniture. The truck must have arrived before 8 a.m. because 1 was able to hurry up and catch Webbs bus at 8.30 a.m. Eunice, Ben and Evan were with me, don’t remember how the rest of the family got toTimaru before we shifted. We caught a train at Ashburton, and found our way from Christchurch station to the square without getting lost. Then we had to find No.16 tram out to Warrington St., and somehow managed that too. When we walked on to Westminster St I was not sure whish way to continue so enquired at a small grocery shop on the corner, and he kindly directed us to our hose. Dave arrived about the same time as us, think he was just as surprised as us to find us at our house. We were thrilled with it, a sink and electric range in the kitchen. A bath and handbasin in a bathroom and a wee cabinet in the wall with a mirror on the door. Laundry too with electric copper. (At the Birches we had a washhouse- bathroom in an outbuilding with a copper to boil up for a bath or do the washing). The toilet was off the laundry, but was empty until the sewerage came down our street a few years later. So we still had an outside W.C. and a night man. Still, we were happy. Bare floors didn't matter, this sure was a home. I had only a few days before Christmas day to buy a bedroom suite and a dining room suite. It was no good looking for carpet as there was very little to be found, and if you could buy carpet there were no carpet layers to do the job. I got linoleum and Dave laid it. I also had 2 lino squares. The war caused a lot of shortages, and many groceries were rationed. Each person was allowed a ration book. For a few weeks I was busy making curtains, and wegot venetion blinds. No, we had holland blinds and the venetions were a few years later. The walls were just plaster, and remember Lindsay's first few weeks at St Albans school and he caught the measles, and Evan and I caught them too. Well these white plaster walls were so hardon the eyes, and I was really crook. The plaster had to be properly dried out , before you could do any wall papering, and that was a job we did ourselves. Dave had the concrete paths to do, all hard work as the concrete was hand made, no concrete mixer then, Dave was in for another hard slog breaking in the soil. The ground was solid and he had to stand on his spade or shovel to get it into the ground. He got fowl manure and added too, and after a few years he had a very good vegetable garden. I gradually got a flower garden planted too. Dave had lawns to put down back and front too Our neighbours, Mr and Mrs Dynes, had shifted in a few days before us and Mr and Mrs Houston shifted in a week or so later, on the other side. The rest of the houses on our street were gradually occupied as the builders completed them. Mr and Mrs Day were already in the corner house opposite but it was a while before the the other houses were completed. They were all a friendly lot of neighbours. Paramount continued building down Weston Road which was just a dirt track, and later along Knowles Street the back of us, which was a big open paddock. Paramount had about 4 different designs for the outside, but the rooms inside were similar. Paramount continued building down Kelly's Road and up Philpotts Road with their same designs. Our street was called Kelly's Road when we shifted in, but postie seemed puzzled as the numbers were allocated from Bells house on the corner with the higher numbers the other end, so we were given follow-up numbers from the far end. St Albans Post Office was on Papanui Road and Shirley P.O. was on Warrington St. We were given St Albans, and Dave finally found the Post Office on Papanui Rd and collected a bundle of mail for us. The council re- named our street to Ranger Street and in time the Post Offices were re-named, St Albans to Merivale, and Shirley was changed to St Albans. We had quite a walk to the grocers shop on Westminster Street so Eunice would go on her bike and do most of the shopping. and later, when a temporary grocer's shop was built the end of our street, I decided to buy our bread and heavy stuff from there, and to be able to get extra sugar, which was rationed. Tea and other groceries were rationed too. Lois did most of my grocery shopping when Eunice started High School. Anyway one day this Goldsmith man who owned the shop, and thought I should buy all my groceries from him, got nasty with Lois and told her so in front of other customers. Told her we must live on bread as I had to buy 3 or 4 loaves twice a week, as it took a loaf a day for lunches. Well 1 was furious when she told me, and next day went along myself and told him I didn't want him talking to Lois like that. He blew his top with me then and said "it wasn't bread he wanted to sell, it was tea and other stuff". I said "Well stop my bread, I can get the lot from my other grocers", and because he embarrassed me too in front of other customers I never went back in his shop. A few days before that he had thrown one womans bread out on the street after having a row with her, Think he had to go and pick it up. Later on more blocks of houses filled the empty paddocks aroundthe area, and blocks of shops were built on the corner of our street and another over on Innes Road. Bread, butter, tea and Sugar were all rationed by the government. I had decided Mildred go to Avonside Girls High School as the Head Mistress was a Miss Townsend who was a Timaru girl who had made a name for herself. I went along to the school with Mildred to enrol her before the beginning of the Ist term and met Miss Fergusson for the first time. I told her that Mildred had had a year at T.T.C. and as we had shifted to Christcurch wanted to enrol Mildred at Avonside. I received a shock when she haughtily said "Didn't I know that I can't just come along and enrol her, that they had a long waiting list". I knew I was pretty dumb and I said "No, I didn't know". I didn’t let on I was just a country bumpkin and said I was sorry . I wished I could have disappeared into thin air, and she must have realised how shy I was and couldn't put up a fight for Mildred, as she then said "Well she will enroll Mildred but wanted me to know that she was obliging me and hoped I realized the situation". 1 thanked her and said I appreciated her doing so. Mildred was able to enrol Eunice at Avonside when she was ready for High School, but Eunice wasn't able to enrol Lois there as Lois was not ready for another year. Lois wanted to go to Papanui High School with other St Albans girls, and was able to get enrolled without me. Mildred had taken Greigs shorthand in Timaru and had to change to Pitmans at Avonside. Mildred also attended Ritchies Night School and was top of N.Z. in shorthand exam one year. Mildred then started work at 3YA radio station as a secretary. Evan was about 3 or 4 years when he stayed on the farm while I was in Timaru Hospital. He often had a cry about something and Grandma would say to him "Well, you aren't bubbling about it it are you"? Then one day the back garden gate was left open and Jack's hack came along and lost no time getting through to the garden which she knew was out of bounds and Jack hurried out to catch her, but she liked what was there and trotted around the garden, leaving hoof marks in the lawn which Grandma took pride in keeping well manicured. When she came out and saw the mess she was in tears. Evan was quickly on the scene too and when he noticed her in tears he was quick to say "Well, you aren't bubbling about it are you 2" Both Grandma and Jack had to laugh. She dried her eyes and Jack did his best to repair the damage done. Dave spent quite a few years welding at C.W.F. Hamiltons. One job was near Queenstown. He went on a Mt Cook plane and was picked up at the airport. The MOW were building a new bridge over the Kawarau River replacing an historical one-way bridge near by. This job was more than he could take. Firstly, it was the height which bothered him, then being inside a cage which was swaying around in the wind, and trying to keep an arc from blowing out, he found it frustrating. He probably felt he was working between the devil and the deep Tushing water below. Anyway the foreman said he could see he was not happy in those conditions, and said he could toss in the job. Dave gladly did so ,and was soon back on the Mt Cook plane andhome again. Some years later I was on holiday with Lindsay and Evan on our way to Queenstown , and we stopped to have a look at this bridge. Just looking down at the river below soon had me wondering how anybody managed to complete that lovely bridge, and with the wind nearly blowing us off our feet, thought those workers were heroes and deserved a medal in the New Years Honours list. Dave eventually left Hamiltons when another welder got on his nerves. Before long a foreman met him at the Public Library and persuaded him to come back to Hamiltons. This he did for a few more years until he disliked another chap and worked for Matthews on Marshlands Road , where their equipment was pretty poor. He was getting electric shocks so he left. When Dave worked on the demolished BNZ Bank building the new building was being done by Graham Construction. Dave was welding on his lonesome on the foundation work. This builder was bankrupt unbeknown to Dave when he started on the job. Eric Austin who worked at Hamiltons became a consultant engineer and he appeared on the job one day. When he saw Dave working there he remarked “am I pleased to see you here." He was welding on the foundation steel work alone for quite a while before he heard that builder was in liquidation. I don't know who told him. A school boy noticed him working alone there , and he would be catching a bus in the square same time as Dave and he recognized Dave as the welder. One afternoon he spoke to Dave and said "Are you still working there ?" Anyway another cockie bloke started welding there too. He disliked him so finished up there and got a job with Andrews and Beaven.