tales from an ordinary world

2002-05-07

Such a rush. Work, to hospital, to coal tar vendor, to home, to shower, to leave in time for dinner. At the tram stop, I've got this nice Tortoise bass-vibe coming from between the headphones, and I know it'll all be ok...

...but not for others, it seems. Down Chapel St near Dandenong Road, a fire engine races around the corner and parks straight away. Walking up the street, I see some people gathered around a guy lying on the pavement. What seems like an eternity later (but which was probably only a few seconds), I notice the three mashed cars nearby. Now it makes sense - all these people standing in their shop doorways for a few hundred metres up the street, transfixed in a mixture of horror and fascination. My tram's stuck behind the parked fire engine, but it's ok, I'll head up the street for a while. I've got time, and looking back at what I'm walking away from, I'm just happy to be upright and healthy. By Greville St, the tram hasn't moved, so I hurry to the station, figuring I'll walk up to Bridge Road from Richmond station - a bit of a walk, but it's all I can do, now. On the platform, a light plane circles overhead repeatedly, doing its fourth turn as I step into the carriage. I could be listening in on all these post-work (or post-school) conversations, but the headphones are more comfortable - I feel like I need the buffer this afternoon.

In the restaurant (Umalulik, which serves East Timorese food), they're playing presuambly local music, and one song tickles an old memory of a Peter Gabriel song, Biko, except they've changed the lyrics - the people are singing about "Timor" instead of the South African martyr.