Chris Dowding

Hi everyone and Happy EasterIt's been another long while since my last post. I have been busy with my business, Tod Consulting Engineers. I wanted to prove to the older directors that I could do it, that I could run a business without cracking up...

Sorry it's been a while since my last post. The New Year has brought a lot of new challenges with the world financial crisis, the Victorian bushfires and the North Queensland floods. Israel and Palestine have been fighting again...

With Christmas just a few days away, it’s not long until many of us will be tucking into a large midday or evening meal, with a wine or two to set off the palette. I imagine I’m not the only person whose clothes, carpet or table cloth have been stained by red wine...

Engineer-turned-author Chris Dowding reveals why a trip to the Emerald Isle changed him foreverBy Gregory Stanton, weekender magazineChris Dowding appears uncomfortable as we sit down for a Guinness. My pint disappears quickly while he clutches his, taking small sips...

By Helen Barber, hinterliving magazineJust three months after getting married, Chris Dowding and his new wife, Kerryn started afresh by moving from the Sunshine Coast to Ireland.Both Kerryn and Ireland had a sense of spontaneity that Chris, a shy and retiring structural engineer, had previously...

Young Aussie traveller brings home a new attitude – by Jennifer Scott, Sunshine Coast Daily - Sunday issueTravellers pick up many things on their journeys – souvenirs, stories and often altered perspectives...

He's done it - or rather, America has. Today will go down as a historic moment for America and the world, one that the rest of the world was watching intently. And if the rest of the world could have voted, they would be happy...

By Linda Muller - Redlands Times It's the sort of book you can read over a few beers.A few Drops short of a Pint sprang from a series of emails author Chris Dowding sent to friends and family while living temporarily in Ireland in 2001.'I used to send emails home and a few friends said I should...

Have you reached the big time when your book gets listed in Wikipedia? Or does it mean you’re past it, old news?I have to admit, I was excited to realise that my book seems to have become an authority on Dublin’s statues...

This man has successfully posed as the American president since 2001. He has pulled off an incredible variety of politically suicidal stunts and his latest effort is possibly one of the best.Thousands of people lose their homes. George appears to do nothing, apart from talking up the US economy...

Recently, Brian at our office carried out some structural design for a public toilet block to be built at one of the beaches in Queensland...

Kerryn and I went to see Wall E at the movies yesterday. Like Toy Story, it's funny and charming, and it's aimed at children. I must have a lot of kid-like tendencies myself, because I really enjoyed it...

After his Irish sojourn, Chris moved back to Australia, bought a house and settled into a career with a large engineering firm...

On Friday, my wife, Kerryn and I attended our friends’ wedding in Perth, Scotland. I put on a kilt for the first time in my life, with a fair bit of resistance. The groom had never worn one either (he wasn’t Scottish), and he wanted lots of support from his friends...

The entire journey from Australia to England takes about 24 hours of flight. As far as I know, all of the airlines stop at least once to refuel and transfer passengers. You can stay on the plane and do the entire 24 hours in one step, or stop for a night or two to recuperate...

My wife and I went to dinner in Noosa the other night with her parents – let’s call them Jim and Jane. Jim and Jane’s friends, Brian and Bron, came along...

Dublin Bus' night service is called Nitelink, and is put on for the partygoes who stay out till very, very late (Friday and Saturday are the big nights to go out in Dublin, but Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday are pretty busy as well)...

When my company moved to our new office (Christmas 2007), I rang the phone company, ‘Telstra’, to get our phone lines moved from the old office to the new one...

I just finished Thomas Kohnstamm’s book, 'Do Travel Writers Go to Hell? I found myself rushing home from work to read the next chapter...

Today I dropped in on one of the Travel Writing classes run by my editor, Lauren Daniels, at the University of Queensland. I talked to her students about my book, 'a Few Drops short of a Pint', and the publishing process...

The office I work in is located above an X-ray and Imaging centre, and a Doctor's practice. Because the local Council won't allow large or numerous signs on new buildings, it isn't uncommon for people to get lost and end up at our door...

The Inner Northern Busway opens in Brisbane  I was one of the lead structural engineers that worked on the busway from Queen St to Roma Street in Brisbane. It was opened on 4th May 2008 by the Qu..

I was one of the lead structural engineers that worked on the busway from Queen St to Roma Street in Brisbane. It was opened on 4th May 2008 by the Queensland Premier,Anna Bligh.I was proud to see how well the project had been put together, andvery happy that so many people come along to see it...

Thanks, Mary RyansKerryn and I were in Paddington, Brisbane on Thursday night to talk about 'a few Drops short of a Pint'. It was a great night. 38 people came along, and listened to me practise my newfound gift of the gab (I kissed the Blarney Stone for the first time last year)...

Thanks, Mary Ryans Kerryn and I were in Paddington, Brisbane on Thursday night to talk about 'a few Drops short of a Pint'. It was a great night. 38 people came along, and listened to me pra.

 about my book... winner: IP Picks 2007 competition for Best Creative Non-Fiction Chris Dowding lived a quiet, solitary life as an engineer in Brisbane that only began to change when he met his ..

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