Nov 20

Nov 20 Shortie-Pyjama Purple by Linda Godfrey

Shortie-Pyjama Purple

Her flannel shirt is shortie-pyjama purple, her backpack digs into her hip bones but she looks at the bigger picture - the sky is clear, the sun is warm, the road is flat, she's heading for Byron Bay. All the clichés, she says out loud. On the verge there's a pile of small plastic hand-painted horses wrapped in loom bands, and one brown Ugg boot. She nudges the Ugg boot and a soft sleek mouse scuttles out. It better hide or a raven will swoop. She saw a raven eating a lorikeet from the inside, all that was left was the skin and a complete set of feathers, reminded her of a glove. Nature programs don't save the pandas. She smells rank, wild, wily, she likes it. A car pulls up, he's sitting big knees pulled up under the steering wheel, not enough room to spread out his big black boots, a piece of paper sticking out of his shirt pocket, dyed black hair, carnivorous. He paints women and pomegranates, he says. He buys the biggest, reddest ones as models. She doesn’t miss her job shucking oysters, she says, the river, its dank green water, Spanish moss, the shade, cuts from the shells. What can she shuck in Byron? she asks. She shows him the knife. Too strong for burritos or tempeh. Waffles? She could flip waffles in a trice, that makes him laugh. Knife for hire, that could be her selling point.

You might know Linda from The Wollongong Writers Festival which is on November 24th and 25th. Head over a grab a festival pass there are so many amazing events this year!