An Australian artist's impulsive act has sparked a 'magic' post box restoration crusade. Mick Slocum, a 76-year-old former member of the Bushwackers band, has embarked on a two-year passion project to resurrect nearly 200 colonial-era postboxes, known as pillar boxes. His quest began on an impulse to clean graffiti from a pillar box, which led to a personal campaign to restore every pillar box in the state. With no modern tools, Mick has scratched, scraped, and painted pillars throughout Melbourne and regional Victoria, taking between a couple of days and several weeks for each restoration. The task has been undertaken in all weather conditions and along roads of all types, drawing curious onlookers and offers to help. Mick's work has uncovered fascinating secrets hidden beneath the surface, such as delicate golden crowns and notices for collection times, dating back to the 1920s or even the 1800s. There are about 180 pillar boxes in Victoria, but thousands once dotted the streets. Mick's efforts have been recognized with a National Trust conservation award, and he has about 100 pillar box restorations left to complete. His unshakable passion for the colorful and creative has already led him to his next project: restoring electricity boxes from the 1920s and 1930s. But for now, he's focused on the main task, one pillar box at a time, hoping to find a key that opens one of the boxes and reveals mail from the 1890s.
