School awards

A aggregate for matric

Sport

Singing

Tape decks

I have vivid memories recording The Top 40 music songs on the radio using a tape recorder.  I also had a small tape recorder that I loved.

Below are Tape Decks that remind me of the ones we owned as a family.

 

My first computer: A Commodore 64

I loved my Commodore 64. I used it for computer games and for programming a simple game. This was my first passion project. Unfortunately I lost the code to the game and was so despondent, I gave up programming. A pity because I think I would have been well suited to it.

Playing computer games as a child

Another of my favourite things to do as a child was to play computer games.  I spent many hours doing this, first with our Atari Consul and then my Commodore 64 computer. 

Atari

Pong

Asteroids

Space Invaders

Atari Consul and Joystick

Commodore 64

High Noon

Pole Position

Olympics

Airwolf

Commando

Beach Head

Donkey Kong

Mr Cannon, my inspirational school principal and history teacher

 

Mr Cannon and his lovely wife, Wendy

Mr Cannon was my school headmaster from St 7 year (1984) to the end of school.  He was a wonderful, charismatic, and most of all, warm man who I felt far more connected to than the rather dour and strict Mr Dods who preceded him.

Most of all, Mr Canon was an unbelievable teacher and I was privileged to be taught history by him in the year he arrived.  He devoted half the year to an alternative syllabus where we had to glean history for ourselves using clues from archaeological finds and alternative viewpoints and witnessed accounts, rather like a detective does. 

The most memorable lesson I've ever had was him facilitating a session one day when Mr Hart, the deputy head, came into the class.  Mr Hart was very angry and said something along the lines of, "I saw you eyeing up my wife the other day, how dare you!!"  Or something to that effect (I'm not sure Mr Hart was actually married!)  

Anyway, Mr Cannon and Mr Hart proceeded to get into a mini scuffle in the classroom with Mr Hart pushing Mr Cannon up against the blackboard and more angry words were said.  Then Mr Hart exclaimed "You haven't heard the end of this!" and stormed out of the classroom.  

We were all shocked of course!  In a state of disbelief.  Wow, what had just happened?

Mr Canon straightened his tie and turned to us. Then he smiled and said, "Right class, what did just happen here?"

We realised that the little drama we had just witnessed had been put on for our benefit.  There was much laughter and a fair bit of relief.

Mr Cannon then asked us a series of questions as to what had been said, what Mr Hart had been wearing, what we had insinuated from the whole encounter.

There were many variations in our accounts.  We all remembered things differently and had made different conclusions according to what he had seen and heard.

Mr Cannon then grinned with great satisfaction and said, "Well class, if you can't all agree on something you all witnessed first-hand just 10 minutes ago, how in the hell can you believe in historical accounts?  How can you believe in history?

It's a lesson that has stayed with me all my life since then. It happened nearly 40 years ago, yet I still remember it and reflect on it.  If that's not powerful teaching, what is?