Chapter Fifteen
Miscarriages.
1964-1970
When Carole and I got married, Frank Warnock, being our best man, made elaborate plans to prevent Lou and his friends from ruining our honeymoon by hiding a dead fish or other nasties in our car. On Friday night I booked a room in a guest house in Remuera and left my Morris Minor parked there. Then on Saturday morning, Frank took me to the church in his car.
After the ceremony, he drove Carole and me to the reception at Romaleigh in Takapuna. Frank had arranged for his friend Tom, to come and swap his car with Frank's, during the reception. Later that evening, some guests are running about in all directions, looking first for my car and then for Frank's, but to no avail.
A friend of ours, Red Hewitt, sings a few songs at the reception, including, 'Just Married This Morning' and his own hit song, 'Robbing The Cradle.' Then after the reception, Frank drives us around some back streets to make sure that nobody is following us. Then he drives over the harbour bridge to Remuera. Brian has put a handful of confetti down my neck and I spill it over the bedroom floor. We spend half an hour picking it all up so that nobody will know that we've just got married. Next morning, the other guests ask us how's the honeymoon going. After breakfast we drive south to Otorohanga where we book into a hotel. We change and go down to Waitomo to see the caves where we bump into Aunty Elva.
When we get back to the hotel, we change into our best clothes and go down to dinner. It is Sunday night and the other guests are dressed in football jerseys, which makes us look out of place. Next morning, we go down to breakfast in our old clothes, only to find that everyone is now dressed up for work. We can't win!
We drive through Taumarunui until we reach the bottom shores of Lake Taupo where we collect some pumice. Then we drive up the other side of the lake to Taupo and book into a guest house where they only have single beds. So before they bring in the morning cups of tea, I scamper back to my own bed. The lady comes in with a tray, 2 cup of tea and a smile as she looks down at my slippers which