Funny Things That Happen: Humorous True Stories

Australia is a wonderful country. It has the second tallest tree species on earth and the oldest, the second largest but fiercest reptile predator, the most venomous and aggressive snake in the world, a full quota of dangerous spiders, the longest man-made structure ever built, fantastic

beaches, magnificent countryside, and our coastal waters are regularly visited by the largest animal ever to have inhabited the earth.

The stories in Part I are set in parts of the Australian landscape where field work or recreational trips in isolated offroad terrain were undertaken. These areas were inaccessible during the northern wet season except by helicopter, but at other times could be reached by competent bushmen with properly equipped 4WD vehicles. The country at the time was in almost pristine condition, a privilege to be in, and it brought out the nature lover in us all.

There were often no signs of human habitation, no roads, fences, buildings or people, and self-sufficiency was an absolute necessity.

Apart from small changes to disguise personal identity or provide continuity these stories are all authentic, and actually happened.

John Aldrick graduated from Melbourne University with a degree in Agricultural Science and a post-graduate Diploma of Education. He taught in secondary schools, and later gained a master's degree in Tropical Geomorphology from the University of New England. He worked in State and Territory government departments across Australia and in the CSIRO, then as a freelance consultant with international consulting companies around the underdeveloped world as a natural resources specialist. In the course of his career he worked in every State of Australia except South Australia, a proportion of it involving field work in remote terrain using 4WD vehicles and helicopters, with a team of Australian staff. He also worked in many underdeveloped countries with different nationalities in challenging environments where the normal order of Western countries didn't apply and has had many extraordinary experiences. Some of these events were seriously dangerous, but many were unusual and incredibly funny. A selection of humorous stories from within Australia and in other countries, all of them true, are recorded in this book. The author spent many years domiciled in Darwin and on the sunshine coast, and lives in his favourite State of Queensland.