AMID life, John Simmonds was thinking of death. If he believed the television screen in the corner of his room, life was all smiles and blue skies. It was vibrant, and action-packed and fast-paced with happy endings. And here he was in a wheelchair, a paraplegic. John Simmonds, tired of television, would look out of his window at the birdbath positioned in the centre of the garden lawn. Over the years he increasingly looked to the birdbath, looked away from the television … [Read more...] about The birdbath
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Written in the stars
HENRY the heron came strolling down our street and there was rejoicing in the neighbourhood. He hadn't been seen all year but we knew he would be back. He always arrived with the first hot weather of spring to patrol the streets of our Hobart suburb, looking for a tasty meal of skinks. Zoologists say we should not anthropomorphise birds and animals, however some creatures of the wild, like penguins and herons, cry out to be given human characteristics. They appear to mirror … [Read more...] about Written in the stars
On a wing and a prayer
Eager cub-reporter Don Bentley was determined to get his first scoop, even though there had been some false starts and a little humiliation along the way. His colleagues might have exposed his youthful naiveté, playing tricks on him by giving him false leads, but he had learned to grin and bear his predicament. It was, after all, only a form of initiation ceremony to prepare him for the future, if only be could survive the present. Along with the tricks that had left-him … [Read more...] about On a wing and a prayer
Deadline Dylan
TANGLED up in blue, Don Bentley was angry because he could not get the time off from work to go to a Bob Dylan concert in Melbourne. Bentley had already booked holiday before he realised Dylan was coming to Australia and once the holiday roster was posted on the notice board in the newsroom it was virtually set in concrete and dates couldn’t be changed. Bentley had heard Dylan described as the patron saint of journalists and he could understand why. Dylan, besides being a … [Read more...] about Deadline Dylan
Dancing cheek to cheek
Don Bentley rode a taxi home after his night shift on the Chronicle and was surprised to find the cab driver listening to the BBC World Service on the car radio. Usually it was a country and western tape or talk-back radio or, worse, a radio quiz show. The latter particularly annoyed Bentley because he was expected to join in with the same enthusiasm as the taxi driver who invariably came up with more correct answers than he did. An item on jazz and then the news from the … [Read more...] about Dancing cheek to cheek