Good day everyone, it’s ST. Valentine’s weekend and I have the perfect guest for our February chat among bloggers: Ivor from http://ivorplumberpoet.press/2026/02/02/lioness-eyes/ .

I have been following dear Ivor for years, and he never fails to bring me joy and warmth with his verses so….Sit back, relax and enjoy the chat.

O: From chemist to plumber  to poet (well, not just poet but published poet). Who is Ivor?

I:  Wow… who am I? I suppose it all goes back to my family heritage. We’re good old convict stock from the Port Arthur penal colony in Tasmania in the 1840s.

My great‑great‑grandfather survived that harsh institution, and here I am — a descendant carrying his resilience, stubbornness, and persistence.

I grew up in a loving, hard‑working family. Dad was a plumber, and Mum was a nurse. I excelled in maths and science at school and went on to become an industrial chemist. I married Carole when I was 25 years old. Three years later, my dad became very ill, so I left my job, became his apprentice, and ran the plumbing business.

After seven wonderful years of marriage, Carole developed MS, and I became her full‑time carer and a part‑time plumber. Eventually, something had to give, and I had a stroke at 49. During speech and writing rehab, with the encouragement of my therapist, I started writing little rhymes. She nudged me toward a local writers’ group — and from little things, big things grew.

O: How did you land on WordPress?

I: I’m still not entirely sure! I think it was my niece Kerri, who lives in Philadelphia. I used to email her my poems, and one day she said, “Hey, Uncle Ivor, why don’t you start a blog for your poems?” Everything snowballed from there.

O: What’s your writing routine?

I: Routine? What’s that! I write anytime, anywhere. But most often you’ll find me scribbling away in my favourite café.

O: How does a poem form for you? Do you have a process?

I: I’m not sure what’s inside my head. I’m basically an observational and visual poet. Wherever I am, I like to photograph what’s happening around me, and those visual prompts often spark the beginnings of a poem.

O: I know from “knowing” you for a few years now that your writing comes from difficult times , yet there is joy and serenity in it. Are you an optimist?

I: Yes, I’ve been through some tough times. But my dear wife Carole, who lived with severe MS for 30 years, greeted me with an “everlasting smile” every day. Together, we always looked forward to the next day with quiet optimism.

O: What’s your relationship with the WordPress community?

I: I’ve made many wonderful friends through WordPress, and I often email some of them personally. Even better, I’ve been lucky enough to meet a few in real life.

O: Ivor and the technology, how’s that going? And what about social media?

I: Technology can be overwhelming. I’ll be 75 in July, and I’ve only had a computer for about 20 years. I mostly bumble and fumble my way through. I do have Facebook and Instagram, but I mainly use them as extra places to share my poetry.

O: What’s your take on AI?

I: AI is an interesting concept. I use Copilot to help with punctuation, photo captions, and intros — I failed English at school — and sometimes to create a feature image for my WordPress posts.

O: Ever tired of the Australian sun? I mean, I live in Ireland, I can’t really imagine having the sun shining all year round. Well, not even all day around for that matter, actually. 

I: As I’m answering this, it’s a cloudless 27°C, and tomorrow will be a hot 40°C. I’m definitely no snow‑bunny.

O: Are you an avid reader? And what’s your favourite genre?

I: I used to be an avid reader before my first stroke 25 years ago. These days, I’m always busy writing, and everything takes me longer. By the time I finish my writing and blogging, I’m usually too tired to read.

O: And now a few personal ones:

a. Coffee or tea?

I: Coffee — especially at the Box Office Café. I’ll be having one there shortly.

b. Sweet or savoury?

I: The tooth‑fairies left me with a ravenous sweet tooth.

O: and oh sweet(tooth) boy, if I can relate!!!!!!!

c. Cows or horses?

I: When I walk Frankie past the horse paddock, the horses seem to think Frankie is a very small horse… and Frankie thinks, “Wow, that’s a very big dog!”   

O: That’s very funny, I love it.

Sadly, our chat came to an end , so dear Ivor, thank you for being with me today and up to you  to say goodbye to the readers your way.

I: As is my way, I’ll finish with a favourite piece of music: Lisa O’Neill – Come Sit Sing (Live at Other Voices Festival 2013). 

https://youtu.be/dVHgmbrpHtY?si=FlePkcHHmfBUlytr

Cheers

That is all for now, have a glorious day you all and don’t miss the next episode. And if in the meantime you want to catch up with all the chats just go to :

https://ortensia72.wordpress.com/chats-among-bloggers/

https://linktr.ee/TrulyMadlyOrdinary