Fast cars and Baggy Bra’s

June 27, 2013 by skulkingground 6 Comments

We’ve done 5000 km’s and haven’t even reached Cairns. The plan is to stay a few weeks up there, visit family and friends and breathe out. The idea of work has been buzzing around like a damn fly on a dirty nappy, but who really wants that? Then it will be onto our next leg (or hot head) of our journey, the Northern Territory.

But for the moment we’ve just pulled up in Innisfail. More like Epicsfail! To be fair it is a Sunday and on Sunday they shall rest. But driving along a coastal dirt track we are first greeted with an overturned red hatchback, big Jesus sticker on the back window, on its roof still smoking. Four young 13 year olds were flailing there arms ushering us to move on not wanting our help. I’m slightly freaking out thinking the worst wondering what we should do. Hoping no babies on board. It seems these kids took the car for a joyride lost control on the corner and flipped it. Sunday drivers.

Further down the road a young P-plater also going too fast around the bend nearly runs us off the edge. We drove into town, hoping to escape the crazy drivers and their barking bull mastiffs. The town itself seemed to be suffering from a severe hangover though where the party was the night before I couldn’t be sure. The only action was a food van frying fish and chips to grease the cities empty belly. There was too many homeless, too many unhappy eyes for us to stay more than half a day.

So we pushed on to an RV friendly town where a Ford wagon full of Neo Nazis camped out flying their sovereign stars and displaying stickers that read “AUSSIE’S FIRST”. We stayed as far away from them as possible, in a cosy corner where Don played the Banjo and sold ladies clothes and Barry and his wife played peek-a-boo with Bodhi while airing their baggy briefs on the side. Such an eclectic bunch we decided to stay an extra night, just to make sure we weren’t in an episode of the twilight zone.

But behind the blind first impressions everyone has a unique story. Casual conversations hide the hard times. Without them, people might not move on. We’ve met so many quirky characters, some who’ve lost a lot, their homes, their children, their grand babies. And so, it’s just easier to talk about the weather. Let the clouds cover and forget the stars that once shone so bright.