Moving Shop

It just so happens that today there is a big change in my workplace. We’re moving.
The picture shows the current state of my workspace where in a frenzy of packing, all around me are boxes, boxes and more boxes.

We are moving from the west end of town to the east end of town. The town, or more accurately the city, is Melbourne in the State of Victoria, Australia. I work for the Victorian government as a humble public servant. We've been in this building for nine years.

I am not really looking forward to the change in workplace. We are going to a newly built multi-storey construction where they are squashing in a whole Department. Up to now, the Department has been spread over several buildings, so space will be a problem and our work cubicles will be much smaller with no allowances for storage. After all, we’re supposed to be a paperless office. Ha Ha!

Speaking of the Victorian Government, yesterday brought news of the retirement of the current Opposition leader, the Hon Robert “Headmaster” Doyle. This is good news and bad news. The current ruling party are leftist (sort of) and would have shooed it in at the elections later this year had Doyle still been leader of the Conservatives as he was pretty ineffectual. Whoever they choose to replace him will not be much better unless, as is mooted, Jeff Kennett returns to the fold.

Jeff Kennett was Premier of Victoria for 7 years and eventually made himself very unpopular with the electorate. He basically sold off the State and introduced draconian workplace laws long before John Howard, who only recently has managed to ram through his own draconian industrial relations policy. Despite being unpopular with a vast majority of the electorate, Jeff Kennett had his supporters none the less and managed to win two elections.

Kennett has personality plus, in an abrasive way, so he will no doubt enliven the appallingly bland Liberal Party and, at the worst, make them noticeable.

I remember the Kennett years very well. Being a state public servant then as now, we were put through the hoops by his government. They were awful years. Despite that, we found humour in the situation by coining several expletives to express our dissatisfaction with the times.

“I’ve had a Kennett of a day” was one. “Get Jeffed” was another.

Kennett even had the temerity to plaster his face everywhere. Driving from the airport there above an overpass was Jeff’s ugly mug. However, he soon abandoned the idea when the hoardings were defaced every time they were put up. Jeff’s face was always given a Hitler moustache.

Colourful times perhaps, but we don’t’ want them back. Coupled with Howard in power in Canberra, a Kennett government would be a double whammy of conservative politics. Aargh!

UPDATE!
While writing this Jeff Kennett has declined the honour of leading the party, so we can briefly breathe a sigh of relief.