Hawkesbury Independent IND 167 April 2024 | Page 14

LOCAL LIFE

My Favourite Place : Robert Eather

Robert , the remarkable owner and only baker at Kurrajong Bakery – for 20 years . by Greg Martin

According to dictionaries , a baker ’ s dozen means : a group of 13 – a dozen plus one - from the former practice among bakers of giving 13 items to the dozen as a safeguard against penalties for short weights and measure .

Well , I got a baker ’ s dozen of sorts when your writer interviewed the extremely affable Robert Eather for this article .

Yep , a little bit extra for buyers of bread and a whole lot of extra information for your scribe !

Robert kept producing an extra “ bun or roll ” - life experience – as he recounted his long life in the baking industry .

Robert is the owner and one sole baker at Kurrajong ’ s popular Kurrajong Bakery which he has operated for 20 years .

When he told me that he produces his baked goods seven nights a week , with rarely a short break away from the shop , I would have bet London to a loaf of bread that Kurrajong Bakery wouldn ’ t be his favourite place .

My early questioning of Robert led me to believe he had many other options to name his favourite place .

His home at Lower Portland where he and his wife , Sharon , raised their seven children – David , Sara , Rebekah , Jorja , Emily , Jared and Dylan ?

Or on the Hawkesbury River , throwing in a line and catching fish ?

Perhaps taking Sharon and the children out to do a bit of fossicking around Hill End , Sofala , Bathurst or Oberon ?

Then again , it could have been traipsing around the state parading his string of cute Lhasa Apso canines at various dog shows . Wrong , wrong , wrong and wrong again ! “ This ,” Robert said , waving his arm around the bakery , “ is certainly my favourite place despite the amount of time I have spent here since 2008 when we bought the bakery .”

American statesman , Benjamin Franklin , hit the nail on the head in an essay back in 1748 when he wrote , “ remember , time is money ”.

Robert Eather puts in the time and reaps the regards with a swathe of regular , satisfied customers entering Kurrajong Bakery ’ s doors .

“ I work every day of the week , generally getting into the kitchen at 10pm producing breads , pastries and other baked goods throughout the night until seven the next morning ,” Robert revealed .

“ I head home for a bit of breakfast and head into my bedroom , which has windows blacked out , sleep for three hours or so , get up for a while and potter around before sneaking in another three hours sleep late in the afternoon .”

“ Do you ever get a good break away from the bakery ?” I asked .

“ Well , each Christmas-New Year period we close for a week and back in May 2021 , Sharon and I went up to Queensland to bid a final farewell to my best mate , Robert McCarthy ,” Robert said .

“ Robert and I had been best mates since high school , and he was best man at both my weddings .

“ We drove up throughout the night , attended the funeral , spent a bit of time at the wake and then headed back in time for me to begin my shift .” “ How do you do it ,” I asked – as is my want . “ If you like your job well enough , it ’ s not work ,”

Robert explained .

“ It you wake up and say , ‘ damn , I ’ ve got to go to work today ’, well , I believe it is time to look for another job !”

Robert Eather has never looked for another occupation .

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12 ISSUE 167 // APRIL 2024 theindependentmagazine . com . au THE HAWKESBURY INDEPENDENT