Encore: Tony Birch — op shop fever and old Fitzroy

<p>Writer Tony Birch with tales of his Fitzroy childhood including his grandmother Alma's 'op shop fever', his love for pine cones and blankets, and the macabre holiday he lived through when he was 5 years old (R).</p><p>Tony grew up in inner city Melbourne in the 1950s and '60s.</p><p>His grandmother taught him to waste nothing. </p><p>So Tony and his siblings would scour the streets for bottles, lead and copper to sell, and for wood from demolished houses to use for firewood.</p><p>His …