I’ve known Ivor and Shirley for about 14 years, but it doesn’t seem as long as that. I was living on the Goldcoast in Australia not to far from Dreamworld and property prices were going up at around $1o,ooo a week believe it or not. In 2003 the property market started going crazy and I had to get in. I only had a small deposit and my job was not very good and so I really was stretched to the limit. I wanted to buy a house but this was impossible on the coast. I could only afford a unit or a villa in a complex, something that I did not want to get into but as I say it was my only chance to get onto the property ladder. My strategy was to buy anything that came up. As soon as I saw something I could afford I went and looked at it, but usually by the time I had arrived there had been an offer made and accepted. People were paying too much money just to buy a place and so the result was that the property prices just started to soar.
I can’t remember where I was, I think I had gone to Sydney for a few days when the real-estate called to tell me that a villa and a townhouse were available and did I want to look at them before anyone else. How could I, I was in Sydney and they would both have been gone before I returned. Luckily my sister Margaret and husband Mike went to have a look at the properties and told me what they were like. I opted for the smaller of the two properties for two reasons, one the location and the fact that it was cheaper. I bought the villa unseen, although I had seen the pictures on the net and it looked quite nice.
I moved in shortly afterwards and so I was finally in my own house, although I was in a complex which I did not like. I was in the gable end at the end of the cul de sac so it was quite quiet. I was surrounded by older people to so I felt comfortable when I wasn’t there. Ivor and Shirley were my next door neighbours. They were an older couple. Ivor is from London and Shirley from Tasmania and they have been married for so many years and I know they have told me but I cannot remember. Ivor has been in Australia for a long time, from the70’s I think but you wouldn’t know it as his cockney accent is still thick and strong. I was quite chuffed to have a fellow Brit living next door; at least he could understand me without any trouble, not like many of the Australians I encountered in daily life. You now at the time I would ask my girlfriend to order coffee or food because it was easier. The number of times I would get the blank look from a local when ordering anything was ridiculous and very frustrating. So anyway having Ivor next door was good because he had also trained Shirley and she could understand me too. But then again she is from Tasmania, they’re not really Australian and they have more educated convict blood to guide them.
Ivor is a big West Ham supporter and I would often give him the scores on a Sunday or invite him to see the results on the internet. He would say that he was too old to have a computer and it was all too difficult, but eventually I persuaded him to get one and then there was no stopping him. I set it up with easy links to al the favourite sites, the BBC, West Ham and really anything else that he wanted. I gave him a crash course in computing and what to do and what not to do and if in doubt just say no and then come and ask me.
It wasn’t long before he got the computing bug and he upgraded the old one for a new one. I think he went to Harvey Normans and spent large. He was soon talking to his brother on Skype in Spain and getting in touch with so many other things in life. I remember he found a website for the Brebner family tree and got in touch with other family members. Before long his computer was better than mine.
In 2004 my mother died and I returned to the UK. My house was up for sale because I had enough of living on the Goldcoast. I wanted away from the villa and the complex and I wanted a house. On the day of the funeral I was sitting up in the front of course with my sisters, Catherine and Margaret. Frank Sinatra was singing “I did it my Way” and I had a smile on my face. When Mum disappeared through the curtains we all headed outside the chapel and I saw this British Gas Van and I was thinking that maybe there was no gas, Mum would have seen the funny side of that. My phone rang and it was Linda calling me from Australia, she said that there had been an offer put in on the house and did I want to accept? When she told me the offer I immediately said yes. To this day I know my Mother had something to do with that.
I returned to Australia and continued to stay in my home because I asked if I could rent it for 6 months till I found a new place to live in. The new owners were happy with that and they got their pound of flesh from me with the hike in rent. I was paying way more than anyone else in the street.
In the May of that year I found my new home in Ipswich which is about an hour away from the Goldcoast. I moved out here before changing jobs and I used to travel 200 kms a day for quite a number of weeks until I found a new job. I also think that my mother had something to do with me finding my current home. On the outside it is green and white, which of course as we all know are good catholic colours. In the inside it was different shades of blue, which we know are good Protestant colours and to top it off, my home was built on the site of an old church. I thought this was quite hilarious and I think my sister Margaret, who is the ultra religious member of the family, is a bit jealous that I may be closer to god than she is. I am a heathen after all. I think my twisted sense of humour comes from my Mother.
So I move to Ipswich in the winter and it was fucking freezing, a lot cooler than the coast. I had no heating and I barely had enough money for food never mind heating. I was stretched to limit but I was happy to be off the coast. Ivor and Shirley would be the first friends that I made on the coast and I have always kept in touch with them throughout the years. Whenever I could I would catch up with them and always enjoyed their company. Although they both have a few years on me, they are not old. They are not your average retired couple, their minds are still fresh and it’s only their bodies that are giving them grief.
So this brings me to a sad part of this tale. I got a message from Shirley a few weeks ago asking me when I would be returning to Australia? I said that I will return on the 17th of June which just happens to be 29 years to the day that I immigrated to Australia. She said “Ivor’s sick, very sick and might not be here by then” I asked what was wrong.
Over the years Ivor has been plagued with irritating medical conditions and he has always managed to pull through. Before I left for my big trip I caught up with them both and had a good afternoon. Ivor seemed to be doing ok and was his usual jovial self, but he was always complaining about something But this time he has cancer and I’m not exactly sure where or what, but it’s terminal and he has decided not to have Chemo or any other drugs that will possibly prolong his life a little but reduce the quality of his life dramatically. I think this is a very brave decision by him and his family are being supportive. I spoke to him shortly after getting the message and he sounded not too bad, just the usual Ivor. He was very practical about it and is facing death by looking at it in the face. He is confronting his destiny and I think that is very commendable and I’m not so sure that I would react in the same way. I spoke to him 2 days ago and he sounded a lot weaker. I told him he has to stay around for another two weeks until I get back to Australia. I unfortunately cannot get back any quicker. He is a stubborn old bugger so I hope he does the right thing.
Ivor and Shirley have been together for a lifetime and they have shared many stories with me over the years and I am very happy that I decided to buy the villa in that complex. Without that I would never had gotten to know such a lovely couple that would give you their last penny if you were in need.
His family won’t have to worry about the funeral costs because they have already taken care of all that. They didn’t want to burden the family even after they had left this planet and moved on.
So Ivor as you are reading this, make sure you put the kettle on for me on Sunday the 18th June as I will be down to see you. If you are lucky I might even go to the bakers and buy some cake 🙂