My Story | Contact Robin

I was born in New Zealand in the 50's, it was primitive living back then, television hadn't even reached our shores. I lived with my parents on a farm for the first few years of my life, my parents both worked so I have pleasant memories of Uncle John Robby, the farmer who used to take me with him to do farming things, but that's another story.

I remember things like when the first hamburger joint opened in our town, the suspicion, and the enormous cost of 2 shillings. We moved into town into a state owned house, I suppose you might call it a project but it was very beautiful with each house just a little bit different from the next sitting on a quarter acre block.

We got a television and it quickly became the central alter in our home, everyone had "their programs" but moms were the most important. I often remember loud arguments at bed time, usually when the old black and white Star Trek came on. We dreaded it because inevitably mother won.

By the time Star Trek was in color or we got a color set I'm not sure which, we were all old enough to sit up late and watch with mom.

 I loved it, I wanted more than anything to live in the future where everything was computerized but that was just science fiction. Go figure?

I loved growing up in my town, it was just at the end of the time where kids weren't protected 24/7 so we would venture into all sorts of incredible places without our parents ever really knowing what the heck we were up to.

In summer we would spend hours swimming in the Manawatu River that past by out town, we explored the swamp and took long hikes camping in the woods. No one ever got hurt or interfered with in those days, kids were free and our world was enormous.

Anyway I soon grew into a rebellious teen, I tried everything I could, much to my families disgust. When I left home at exactly 15 I moved to the streets of Wellington City. I was in awe of the city so I made do and stole for a living, I was 15 and a danger to myself and everyone around me.

I didn't last long in the city, I never got into any real trouble but there were some near misses then one day I heard about communes. I was fascinated so I hitch hiked to the town of Wanganui. I had heard of a teacher of the hippie ways that lived at a Maori village come commune up the Wanganui River, so I sought him out.

At the commune I first tried drugs, marijuana and acid were the drugs of the day and I was fascinated that my perception could shift so radically just by taking a tab of acid.

I went to rock concerts and I did all the silly stuff that crazy young hippies did.

Then I decided to go to Auckland, I got a real job and saved my money, I was going to travel. While I lived in Auckland I got into some very seedy lifestyles, I figured very young that I only had myself and one life so I should try everything I could. And I did.

I was 16 almost 17 when I traveled to Europe to lived in London, I won't lie, it took all the courage I could muster to leave my home country and travel so far. But once the plane was in the air there was no turning back. I loved my time in Europe, I didn't travel a lot, money was tight and I had to work in London but when I think back on that time its like a dream. I can smell the city and see the lovely brick town houses, its all still very clear.

I saw shows and traveled to Amsterdam, I loved Holland, but eventually it was time to go back to the South Pacific. I didn't ever return to New Zealand though I'm sure I meant to, I stopped in Sydney Australia and ripped up the town. I absolutely adored Sydney, it had all the convenience of the modern world but it was far away from everything so the culture was unique.

About the time HIV surfaced and we were all trying our best to have sex safely I realized that the good times of city life were not so attractive anymore so I left. I had decided to hitch hike up the Eastern coast of Australia. I had heard of a community right out in the boonies that interested me. I had formed relationships with traveling companions and we slowly worked our way together up the coast.

We eventually arrived at a tropical paradise called Cape Tribulation which in those days was still a wilderness, I was in heaven. I lived on the beach and collected social security, I was a beach bum, then one gloriously sunny day the unexpected happened. A beautiful woman walked shyly onto the beach, I fell head over heals in love and that she was accompanied by her boy friend didn't faze me at all. I was going to marry this woman, I knew it.