I've been had!

Last night I had a late phone call about the computers I distribute for free. The lad wanted to come visit at around 10.15pm to collect a machine. I told him no because it was late and I wanted to go to bed. He asked if his father could collect it the next day after 5pm and I agreed. When dad arrived he was a very large and loud Chinese fellow who in the space of 10 minutes took five calls on his mobile. I showed him the basics of operation and we carried the bits out to his large shiny black Mercedes. He gave me his card, mentioning that he was a successful finance broker. Just the sort of needy person I try and give computers to...Not!

Over the last couple of days I have been doing maintenance on a unit we own at Quinns Rocks a seaside suburb about 58 kilometres from our place in Bibra Lake. Over the years there has been little maintenance done and lots of work needs to be done before the new tenant moves in. The previous tenant has left a huge garden shed, mainly because it would have been too hard to remove. When he was cleaning up he threw a kids trampoline and a slide over the back fence onto a vacant block. The block has great ocean views and is for sale for $900,000. I have asked the agent to contact him and see if he can't take his rubbish to the tip. I don't want to be too mean as he has left me a nice shed.

Quinns Rocks has attracted a large British migrant population. It seems like almost all the businesses are run/owned by Brits. In the Bunnings hardware store every person I spoke to was a Pom. I guess the word gets around that there are plenty of like minded people in certain areas and that draws them to those areas. Rockingham is similarly attractive to Britishers.

In a previous posting I mentioned a smart crab; and a friend, Dennis, today related a true story about an evening of crabbing off the Bicton jetty in the Swan River some time in the 1950s. When we were young there were so many crabs in the river that bathers had to be careful they didn't get bitten by them. In Den's story, a Mr Hugh Rudderham, who was a neighbor of Den's was crabbing with a drop net off the end of the Bicton jetty and operating a carbide lamp for light. As Mr R. pulled his drop net, the assembled mob cheered at the size of the Blue Manna in the net. He leaned over the monster holding his carbide lamp and the bluey grabbed his carbide lamp finger. In the ensuing dance the crab and the carbide lamp went in the drink. Mr Rudderham continued his dance exclaiming...'For Cracking Great Lumps of Ice'. I will leave it to the reader to interpret that.