If it happens in Carrathool, it happens at the pub. The old pub burned down several years ago and so this one is only several years old. The only other ongoing concern in the town (population 99) is an elementary school with 9 students. If it happens in Carrathool, it happens at the pub. It is the center of social, business, and community life. People bring their kids, business is conducted, and beer is poured. Every Friday night there is a “pub draw” for a growing pot of cash. (It’s now up to about $8,000.) You have to be there when your name is drawn to win. Virtually everyone attached to the gin is there. (That’s about 18 employees.) A meat tray from a butcher about 60 kilometers down the road is raffled off. A dollar a ticket, six for $5. One of the team won the tray and as we’re the only people with a grill – well we took it home and invited everyone to a BBQ a few nights later. Someone from our team won the meat tray three weeks in a row. A tradition was born. So we host a BBQ each Wednesday night for everyone from the project. Everyone was so disconsolate when we didn’t win the meat tray we immediate agreed to get all we needed in town and the party would continue.
Here are some pictures.
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Sometimes there's a band. The bands play all kinds of music -- by that I mean both Country and Western.
Our social life consists of going to the pub on Friday night and then hosting a BBQ sometime during the week, usually Wednesday or Thursday. About 25 -30 people come to the BBQ.
For Thanksgiving we had a special American Thanksgiving dinner. As Lincoln's Thanksgiving Day proclamation encouraged " those who are sojourning in foreign lands" to set apart a day to honor our beneficent Father" we Americans were happy to share out tradition with friendly natives as our forefathers did.
Last Thursday we had a Christmas party with everyone.
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| Santa came |
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