April 1988 - Return to NCR Sydney for a week

1988 Our lives in America
Sunday May,15 1988   I'm back at work from my Europe trip for about six weeks and I get a call to return to NCR Sydney for a week to discuss a pending reorganisation and my proposed part in it. It's always nice to fly into Sydney from overseas. This is still home. This is Bondi Beach with Sydney Harbour on the other side. I stay at Jacqui's place in Mosman with Nellie and Jessie for a week. NCR has rented a room in a hotel in North Sydney where our "Confidential" discussions take place. Here, Brian Jones leads the discussion. He illustrates my role in the reorganisation, the formation of a Central Region to support all hardware and operating systems in Australia.
Tony Bell, my old boss from Adelaide is to become Regional Manager of the Southern Region of Melbourne, Hobart, Adelaide and Perth. Bob Slender and Patricia Vincent also have significant roles to play. Brian Jones is to become Regional Manager of the Northern Region. The three of us report to Bob Baker, Director Customer Services. Sydney from the North Shore Travelodge. I relate the story to the group about the cab I took from the airport and the driver telling me to "Have a nice day." How quickly that crap travelled from the USA to Australia. Is that what's called a meme? What a beautiful city. Wednesday May 18, 1988 I go to Joan and Rogers for dinner. The cat in the picture is our old cat from Adelaide called Chico. We had to abandon him when we went to the USA.
Dennis and Bonnie come as well. They retrieve my model plane which I had brought back as luggage in a big foam box. Air NZ lost it and delivered it to Joan's place. Dennis and Bonnie take the plane away and store it at their place. I catch up with Dean and Jacqui.
1988 Early1988 0223 a Saturday 20 May, 1988   Saturday. I go flying at KMFC with Ian Smith. I fly my model that I had brought back with me. Sunday May, 22 1988 I'm on my way home and meet Jacqui and Dean in Sydney.
These are restaurants in the old wool stores. The road is now a pedestrian plaza instead of docks where the wool ships once loaded and unloaded. They are both rugged up because it's late May and nearly winter. 1988 Early1988 0228 a 1988 Early1988 0229 a
Sydney now has a monorail to connect Darling Harbour with the city. Monorails around the world never took on really. This one closed in June 2013. The city of Sydney formerly had a tram system that was in operation from 1861 until 1961 - I rode these as a teenager. The decision to build the monorail over other forms of rail such as light rail was a political decision. Light rail would have been $20 million cheaper to build, serviced more passengers per hour and cost 40% less for a ticket, but the monorail system prevailed. The NSW Government buys the facility in 23 March 2012 and closes it. NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell announces in 2012 that "This decision paves the way for the development of a world class Sydney International Convention, Exhibition and Entertainment Precinct as the NSW Government gets on with the job of making NSW number one again." Blatant politics - blame the opposition, let the property developers loose again. I return to San Diego this evening Sunday May 22, 1988 . End of this segment