In the aftermath of a thoroughly spiffing opening to Quiddity and Oddity it has been rather difficult to go about my normal tasks today. As I walked into the office this morning the usual ping-pong of mindless greetings “morning”, "morning, “morning”, seemed surreal. What kept me from gushing all over everybody was the deep fatigue that had set in as soon as I got home last night – that deflation of energy that follows all such climactic events, similar to the gush of air that happens when an untied balloon is released. But, I had no choice but to get right into it again – the thousand emails and phone calls, the cut and thrust of a couple of early morning court attendances, the dictation of some tactful letters and the giving of kind, careful advice to bewildered clients.

It was such a marvellous event however that I refuse to let it pass so quickly into oblivion. So here I will at least say a few thankyous and post a few snaps, kindly taken by my good friend, Mark Smedley.

There was a fantastic turnout and nearly everything exceeded our expectations. I saw many old friends and made several new ones. And there were a huge number of sales!

Susan Benham Page the Director of AbaF for SA and NT gave a very moving speech. She and others at AbaF had been so encouraging in the preparation stage, and her speech was equally as generous.

The whole event was a credit to the guts and determination of my most talented wife Malinda-Ro. Her hard work despite low energy levels made it all come together. She had the vision that drove it forward, setting the standard at a very professional level and undertaking a quite massive marketing campaign. It certainly paid off.

There was of course a great deal of help from a host of other people. To start with I must mention Karl and Gabriela Beer, our co-conspirators in art. Karl’s magnificent sculptures gave the exhibition the “WOW” factor. That’s what I heard a few people say as they walked in. Both he and Gabriela worked tirelessly alongside us for months, wading through lists of tasks with us (as we nibbled Gabriela’s delicious Austrian cakes!)

David Barret, who runs the Golden Grove Arts Centre, made his superb venue available to us, organised much publicity and organised the hanging of the artwork and the setting up. He also did a very competent job as our MC.

Closer to the event my parents and my son Simon assisted kindly and patiently with framing the huge number of paintings and photographs we wanted to exhibit. Without their help we couldn’t have met the deadline for delivery of the artwork.

On the night many people helped with the catering: my brother James and Roy Hechter serving drinks, Lyn Hechter organising food, and Karl’s and Gabriela’s daughters, Christina and Elisabeth helping to serve the food. At the last minute Veronica Dorrestyn came along, rolled up her sleeves and got busy in the servery.

Thanks very much to you all!

Finally I want to acknowledge the support of our generous and encouraging sponsors, Coles St Agnes, Liquorland St Agnes, Noah’s Art, Angove Wines and Peter Pan Glass, all of which either donated things or gave huge discounts to help us meet our costs.

For some reason, although the hired glasses have been returned and the dishes have all been put away, it feels like the beginning of something. Judging from the exponential scale of the night’s success in comparison to what has been before, even though I feel like I need a week of sleep, I cant help but be excited about what might be next.