Day 43, Level 1: Coro dramas and Omaha antics

More writing today. Mostly focussed on article about the early days at Omaha, the people and what we got up to etc - see below and Share-Note for extracts of draft (not fully word-smithed yet)

More sunshine.

More driveway progress. 

More mask-wearing - it became compulsory today to wear them on public transport and planes. 

Watched a bit of Coronation Street - the saga of Oliver dying drags on and on. To be honest, I'll be glad when this storyline is over as I've had enough of Leanne ranting and raving and being rude and obnoxious to everyone, and blind and ignorant to everything! The whole thing leaves me cold - she's so horrible and screechy and it just goes on and on in every scene, that I can't even feel any pity or empathy for her. What were the script-writers thinking? It does not make for good tv. Not even sure why I'm watching it. But now I guess I'll have to watch on until poor little Oliver does die just to see the conclusion of what has been a long drawn out storyline. I suspect Leanne will have a subsequent breakdown and go off to rehab (aka the actor takes a holiday).  And the sooner nasty Geoff gets his come-uppance the better! Then I think I'll take a break from Coro, it's making me want to lose the will to live!

Back to the much more pleasant and real topic of Omaha ...

Developed by Broadlands and marketed as Omaha Ocean Beach Resort, Omaha opened for inspection during Easter 1971. The original brochure is full of long-winded descriptions about careful planning and fabulous design, scenic pleasures and a wealth of natural assets. Flicking through it today, it is obvious that most of the promotional photos, apart from the front and back covers which are aerial photos of the beach itself, were not taken anywhere near Omaha – bikini-clad beauties sauntering along a shopping strip and lounging on a tropical island, a marina with wall-to-wall yachts, Pohutukawa trees on the water’s edge, a well-established suburban home and a golf course with hills! The overall development plan shows spaces marked for tourist and marina development, motels, a shopping mall and a tavern. This may have been the early vision but it never became reality. 

Bikini-clad beauties in the early 70s - from Omaha promo brochure!
Omaha is nothing like this!

 

The back cover of the original 1970s brochure showing Omaha - over the causeway.

 

SHARE-NOTE OF THE DAY:
What we got up to in the early days at Omaha ...

We kids would make up plays, enact soap operas, create radio stations that we'd  record on cassette tapes, set up secret clubs, make huts, make Super-8 movies (one called “Robber in the Park”). We’d use toetoe stems as horses and do backyard gymnastics – it’s surprising how much fun you can have balancing along the top of a low retaining wall (the beam), doing arabesques and hand-stands on a tarpaulin on the ground (the floor mat), swinging from the clothesline (the bar) and jumping over a stool (the vault). There would be judging and scores and much time spent perfecting the various [mediocre] routines. One family had a trampoline and we’d congregate there and bounce and backflip and chatter away.

We kept pet rabbits in the garden (rescued when the mother was killed in Omaha Drive). We went quail and rabbit shooting on the golf course. We’d make and fly kites and even a “UFO” one night which was eerie and fun – and Dad’s idea.

We’d congregate on Bluebell Parade with our skateboards and have competitions to see who could roll down in the most fancy and innovative style without mishap. Sometimes we’d do formations in groups. Often we’d fall off. Once we’d perfected a few routines we’d invite the parents to come and watch, charge them .5c for the privilege. We also put on concerts for the parents where we acted out silly skits and showcased our guitar, recorder, singing and dancing “skills”.

We had dance-a-thons – I remember one night I and one of the boys out-danced all the other kids – I think we did 24-hours straight, without sitting down!

There were nasty black flying beetles that invaded our bedrooms and our sleep. We called them “Oogy-Blacks”. Someone was always on "Oogy-Black" alert. They terrified the living daylights out of us. They disappeared for many years - but seem to be making a come-back, I've noticed a few recently.

Along with all-day barbeques and spit roasts, the adults put on casino nights, offal nights, pie nights, wild kill nights, fondue nights, a Hawaiian Luau and even a haggis night. There was a face-painting party, a hat party, a wild west party. There were big “zero” birthday parties with themes and, when the Community Centre was built, my sister’s wedding was the first private function in that venue. As we grew up and left home, or the country, there were farewell parties, 21^st bashes and welcome home gatherings.There was certainly no shortage of social occasions!

Once a year the core group of families would rendezvous in Auckland and go out for a Dine & Dance evening e.g. at Pinesong. I have the photos to prove it!

Overall, it was a brilliant coming together of a diverse group of people. It was very egalitarian, without airs or graces. Doctor, pilot, builder, businessman … work was irrelevant, and what school you went to was neither here nor there. Cars from the old days included a Kimberley, a Toyota Crown, a Triumph, a Kingswood, an Anglia, a Corolla, a Fiat 850 sports, and more. They ferried us to and from Omaha, long before the toll road and tunnel.