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THE LIFE-CYCLE of the “FROG-MAN”
After leaving school in 1968, I went to the ANU to do a Science degree. The next year I took over the lighting business that Steve Bisset and Richard Swan started.
I ran this business while completing my degree. After that, I returned to the ANU to work as a technician at the RSBS, followed by a brief stint at the CSIRO.
In 1975, I went to England and stayed there for a year and on return, became involved with the live music business (sound and band management ) and during the day, sold Hi-Fi, video players and televisions at Kent Hi-Fi.
In 1983, I married Meredith and acquired an instant family, with her 2 children Katie (12) and Tom ( 8). We lived in Canberra until 1988 when we decided to move to Cairns in North QLD. I sold Hi-Fi there for a year and then managed a large duty-free shop, snorkelled on the reef a lot and developed a great love of Japanese food,…. generally loving life in the tropics.
Katie tragically died in 1991 at the age of 19 and we decided to move south to Buderim on the Sunshine Coast, mainly so Tom could stay in the QLD education system. In 1993, my interest in frogs and photography developed. I was managing a camera shop/photo lab by then and did so for the next 5 years, while madly photographing frogs, having found there was a real lack of information and good photos of them available at the time. It soon developed into an educational endeavour and I started giving talks on frogs and providing images for various publications and advertising.
In 1999, we moved to a property in Northern NSW in a valley at the foot of Mt Warning, to pursue the quiet life that never happened! In the 12 years that we have been there ,we have revegetated the property and turned it into a haven for wildlife. The 21 species of frogs that live there are regularly used in my photographic work and I am involved with various environmental projects with local councils and the NPWS. I have a range of greeting cards and have produced ID posters of frogs and Cane toads. I also work regularly with Waterwatch QLD, teaching school kids about Macro- invertebrates. At last, I use my Science degree!
Tom and his wife, Angela live north of Brisbane and we now have a 1 year old grandson, Sam.
Who would have thought that my life would revolve around frogs!
I have a lot to do before I croak…….