A near 30 year railway man, Growing up my main interests was Ships and Railways, amongst other things, which still hold to this day, a far cry from my fathers occupation at malleys driving a bedford truck which I travelled in many times around Melbourne, it was of of those trucks that had the indicator with a yellow hand at the end of it, you pushed up to indicate to turn! he was a truck driver all of his working life and is now happily retired. I started my working life as an apprentice fitter and turner at age 16 at Buchanan and Brock Ship repairs in South Melbourne with the intention of becoming a marine engineer, this was during the time the painters and dockers union was always in the news with all the murders being committted on the waterfront,I personally got to know a couple of them in my job, as I have a relative at the time who was chief engineer on the Brisbane Trader(ANL) I managed to get in a few enginerooms of ANL ships, however after working on countless ships, particlar engine rooms and bilges I realize that was not for me, on completion of my apprenticeship I applied for and got a job as a locomotive assistant with the railways and was interviewed by none other than Gerald Dee superintendant Loco running at the railways head office in Spencer Street, he asked why I wanted to be a engineman and not a fitter and turner and I responded by saying that the calling of the railway was to great, next thing Gerald told me all about his loco number plate collection, I worked with some great men on the loco including Norm De Pomeroy, Jim Seletto and a few others, for me part of the "tool kit" I carried on the loco was my pentax MG camera with 80mm zoom lense which I got my moneys worth ten times over, I still have that camera but use a digital camera now, the loco days are now but a memory which I am now greatfull for as the railways has changed with little resemblance to when I first started on the job, being a spark driver dosen't have the same variety as the loco, most likely I will retire on the electric trains, long live the VR.