Saturday 2 November 2013

Politics: It's Time!

So after 55 years of Taylor family ownership, it's time for Armagh House to have new owners. This home has seen some tumultuous times. Built in 1890 it was originally on the corner; but over the decades 3 pieces of land have been cut from it to reduce it down to around a 1/4 acre block.

Many VIPs have walked through the doors here... from Douglas MacArthur to many politicians. Health Minister Doug Tooth in the 60s, Dame Annabelle Rankin, Treasurer Tim Nicholls, Councillor David McLauchlan to name but a few. And of course the famous Melbourne Cup parties my mother used to hold for her beloved Clayfield Branch of the QCWA. On that race day sometimes over a 100 women would be in attendance. These days, with just the two of us.. well it all seems a bit on the big side.

So on to the market it must go!

And as i was cleaning up stuff today and loading the skip with junk.. I found my "It's Time" badge. And as usual did the memories come back. 1972 and as a young man the Coalition Government of McMahon is irrelevant to me. Whitlam has some sort of magic about him.. and to see that advert on the TV... well I was in for change. Of course at 19 I still couldn't vote at the time. But that didn't curb my enthusiasm. And it was this enthusiasm that found me at a campaign meeting with Dr Jim Cairns on stage.

At the end of the evening, all the players came down the stairs to assemble with us.. the great unwashed! And i so wanted an "it's Time" badge. Dr Jim Cairns passed close by and shook my hand. I immediately asked him where I could get one from. He said... "have mine" and unpinned it from his coat and handed it to me.

And I still have it to this day! I wore it to the polling booth in 1996 and upset the local ALP people there.. but that's another story!