St Mary's Conference

[trish armstrong]

hi all,
just returned from st marys. Have to say another excited year. Was really great to participate. But, I sat and waited for the chem talk get together,see what you look like,lunch thingy. And couldn't see anything.
Maybe next year someone should get on stage and announce which table it is on.
But just to add, drove all the way home with Maree from wingham, we left at 3pm from stmarys, it took us 6 hours to get home! due to traffic jams, rain, accidents. but to top the homecoming off, I walked in the door at home and unpacked a little carry bag, containing my new fantastic mug & the comment that came out of my hubbys mouth was. "just think hunny, you now have two mugs(last years) if we line them up on the shelf, when you get to twenty you may be able to retire." As tired as i was i had a little giggle, it wasn't what was said but more to the fact how he said it. Maybe I should take his advice.
See you all next Year.
trish

[Labbie]

Trish, I am so sorry you could not find the table, we did have a large sign up, Reserved Chemtalk, the first table near the entrance. Noona said she would get up on the stage, but perhaps she forgot, or was too busy. Pleased you had a safe journey home. What workshops did you do.

[Labbie]

Liz B From Tamworth, we do hope you managed to get back home safely. I have only just read about the flooding in Tamworth. Take care Liz, it was so very nice to meet you, and chat. With over 200 labbes in the hall, it was almost impossible to get around to every one, and although we did try to make an announcement, regarding Chemtalk, it was just so very busy, and Noona was rushed off her feet.

Take care Liz, hope everything is ok for you.

[J]

Yes, Liz, I've been thinking of you in the floods too!
Hope you are situated beyond flood reach and all was still in place when you got home.
Also hope you had a great weekend with your family. It was great to see you again at St Mary's.

Julie

[CC]

Hi all,

I had the best time at the conference .

It was my first time and I did Chem Basic, Physics and Electronics I LOVED these 3 and came away feeling like I wasn't a complete waste of space . I wasn't to keen on the data loggers and the repairs but still worthwhile.

I have thanked my HT and the Principle and the SAM for letting me go and have already asked if I can go again next year.

I didn't realise that the reserved table was for chemtalk but I'm glad I sat with 4 other ladies and now they will join chemtalk as well.

I didn't know what to expect but I never thought I would enjoy it as much as I did.
Anybody who has never been you have got to go.

CC

[lizzieb]

Hi everyone - have only just had time to log-on. But get prepared before you start reading - grab a cuppa, there's lots to tell

Firstly, a huge thank-you again to Rosalie and the 9 other wonderful women who make up the organising committee for the conference. What a fantastic job you've done, yet again
I can only begin to imagine the amount of hours that you girls put in throughout the year to create such a successful conference. I come away having learnt lots, talked myself silly (who, me?), eaten like a royal, taken full advantage of the opportunity to network new friends, and cement friendships from previous years, and feeling thoroughly spoilt!

Thank you most of all for that feeling - it means such a lot to feel valued for the job we do, and I want to let the Committee know how much I appreciate the effort involved. Can't wait to see what you've got planned for the 10th Anniversary next year!

Please encourage others to go, especially if they're new to the job. Please also pass on the word about Chemtalk to as many labbies as possible. It was so much fun to put faces to some of the names from here, and such an honour to be remembered by the lovely people I've met in previous years. Only wish it was possible to see you all. Who knows, maybe one day in the future we'll be off to a National Chemtalk Conference.
What a talkfest that would be !!

Thanks Sue and Julie for your concern re Tamworth, and to the others who'll be wondering. I got home at 7.30 last night, all OK. Talked to my 2 younger sons at home Friday night after Tina had messaged me about the floods. Their response was "Yeah, Mum, guess the rain is a bit heavier than usual" - then again on Saturday night after watching the news, to hear this: "flooding? What flooding? The pizzas we ordered got through OK"!!! Oh, dear! Guess their reaction'd be different if they'd been blacked out - no computers would have been a real disaster....
The side of Tamworth where both Tina and I live gets cut off regularly when it floods, but the water goes down pretty fast, thank goodness. Obviously the road was open by 4pm. on Saturday! Tina also got home yesterday, after many adventures of her own. Hope Kimmy from Quirindi did too.
All science staff at THS OK, though one was helping to evacuate a relative's property at 4am. Sat.
My youngest's Yr 10 Formal was Thursday night, luckily, and all went well, he said.

BTW, last Thursday was Fibreweb's birthday - hope it was a good one, Wendy!

The school's OK too, although lots of water damage to carpets through leakage (rooves on all buildings waiting for replacement), and our new huge water tank overflowed through the GA's shed. So ironic, after the years of drought and the struggle to get the tank, then fill it.

I put 1500k's on my car, half of that spent driving around Sydney with my sister from Perth, rediscovering our family history. Thurs night from Emu Plains to the airport & back, Fri afternoon Emu Plains to Windsor then back to Penrith via Horningsea Park, and yep - we found the house, right next to the school. Wow! A great story - I'd met Dearne, the labby from John Edmondson H.S. on Thursday, not realising the links I had with her school (named for the 1st VC winner [posthumous] of WW2, a distant family connection) and the suburb (named after the original property, where my father lived). Such a small world.....
Saturday we left Emu Plains at 7am for Newcastle, via Wallacia, Horningsea Park, Appin, Bulli Pass, that fabulous new road (and ocean bridge) to Stanwell Tops, through the National Park (stopping at Maianbar & Engadine to surprise my bridesmaid, whom I'd been out of touch with for 6 years), then were welcomed into a Brazilian-style wedding reception in a park on Narrabeen Lakes for an hour, so we could catch up briefly with my two older sons (their flat-mates are getting married today, but the party went all weekend), and got to Merewether at 7.45pm.
As you do

Such a memorable trip to Sydney~

Hope to see lots of you again, and to meet lots more of you, next year.

Blessings to all,