So, you wanna know more about me...?

�@

This little section of my website is all about me. It is a small link from the main page because I was sort of hoping that you wouldn't find it... but I see that you have. Hmmm ... I should have made it smaller....

Sometimes it is good to step back and look at ourselves, where we have come from and where we are going and by doing so maybe we can understand ourselves a bit better. So therefore, for better or for worse, I am going to attempt to briefly fill you in on my life so far, and hope that you will not laugh or snore too hard.

Contents -
1. Early life.
2. High School.
3. University.

Early Life.

I was born in the winter of '71 but unlike the summer of '69 I am still waiting for a song to be made about my time of birth. The city of my birth, Hobart, Tasmania, is also one of the most beautiful cities in the world and so I am not unhappy that I was born there, not that I had much choice mind you! I lived in Hobart for the first few years of my life, enduring the attacks on my cranium with matchbox cars by my older brother, before moving to the north of Tasmania. I spent the next 15 years growing up with plenty of land around me but not too many friends. (Hmm .. maybe that explains a lot !!?) I changed schools three times .. not including the change from primary school to high school; once in kindergarten to avoid being taught by my mum ... not that I think that was a bad thing, once to get out of a Christian fundamentalist dictatoristic (I know that isn't a real word .. but who cares) school and once because my high school didn't put me in the best class and didn't recognise me for the genius that I would become (and I am still waiting!!)

High School.

High school and college were fun. I started my secondary education at a lower socio-economic school. I was fairly much an average student but I felt that I did deserve a better education than I was receiving there and so I changed schools in year 9. This turned out to be a great move and my self confidence and my education took a turn for the better by going to Devonport High School. I remember that we used to play a game called "Killerball" which was a hybrid cross between netball,and rugby. Basically it was netball with no rules. You had to be tough to score any points in that game. I was an above average student but not where I should have been because I didn't really study hard. I spent too much time healing from "Killerball" minor injuries like knocked out teeth, concussions and the occasional limb dismemberment. Moving to college and having more freedom didn't really change things and although I decided that I wanted to pursue getting into Pharmacy School I didn't get my stuff together until year 12 and by then it was almost too late... after playing too much tennis and volleyball in year 11(a double class of geography always gave me a case of tennis elbow!) I was lucky to be a "second round draft pick" for the School of Pharmacy at the University of Tasmania - but I made it and the rest is history ... so to speak.

University.

I guess it was at Uni that I matured the most and I remember telling myself was never to forget how difficult it was... especially in the first couple of years. In a country like Japan students work hard to get into a good university but then they can relax and take it easy because university education really does not challenge the student. This is quite the opposite to my first experience of a university education. I thought I had missed a year of school. Although I liked the pharmacy classes I hated Chemistry and Biophysics. The best part of the week was when I finished the Chemistry prac class - I felt relieved that I had a whole week before I had to do it again. I lived with my uncle Rolf and Aunt Kaysa for that first year and that was a tremendous stabilising influence. I struggled though first year with basic passes but then came the wall that was the second year (note to self - insert scary music in the background here).

There were some classes in my second year that I just sank like a stone (a very heavy stone at that) and then didn't resurface until the next year. In the past I had accepted bad test results because I didn't really put in the effort but it wasn't until second year uni that I failed some exams after I did my best. Looking back I have no regrets because I did study hard and did the best I could. I had to repeat two subjects the next year before I was allowed to do any third year subjects. Although I was a part-time student during this year, it felt like a holiday. I was able to get unemployment money event though I was still a student and at the time this was a lot of money for me. I had a lot of free time to relax and of course I was able to pass biochemistry and pharmacy 2 although the biochemistry exam was a bit scary - Biochemistry had one 3 hour exam for the year and I knew that my career, in fact my whole future, maybe the future of the entire world,  was on the line. I suppose it was a defining point in my life. From there things got a lot easier. My final year at university was a lot more interesting and I never really felt in danger of not passing my subjects.

Since University

I started work and graduated (in that order) and completed my registration year in a community pharmacy. After working for half a year and getting some more experience as a fully qualified pharmacist, I worked in more than 10 different pharmacies to get a wide range of experiences. After a while I wanted to travel and so I started my world tour in '95 (and I still haven't finished). I went to Ambassador University in Texas for a year where I studied bits and pieces from a Business Degree and just enjoyed life. I was able to play a lot of golf and other sports and do a lot of travelling. From there I went to Thailand where I taught English at Chitralada School, which is located inside the palace where the Thai royal family live. That was (another) once in a life-time experience. I was there for about 14 months before finally returning to Australia. I got back into pharmacy for 10 months, working in a variety of pharmacies before coming to Japan on the JET program. And I am still here. So that's about it on me and what I have done so far. Who knows what I will do in the future but I am glad there are still many options open to me. Both my careers (EFL teacher and pharmacist) require a certain amount of communication ability .. and let's face it .. some people have a certain way with words and .. other people .. well... umm... ..  not have a way ....I guess.