Van life / Road life reality
So, yesterday I took a photo of what I thought was a sacred ibis.
But it was white.
I’m familiar with this birdlife from the peninsula in Victoria where I’m based, but I’d never seen a white one before. I watched it, photographed it, cropped the pic, and sent it to a friend.
Later we chatted and he said, “That’s a dump bird.”
“A what?”
“A tip bird — you know, the sort that poke around the tips.”
“Never heard of them,” I said.
Later, when chatting with Sandra, a fellow traveller, I showed her the pic and she said, “Oh, yes, that’s an ibis. But we call them bin chickens.”
Now those I’d heard of. “Oh, bin chickens — such a strange expression.”
“In Queensland,” she replied, “when you’re eating outside, they sometimes annoy you and come scavenging for food.”
“Ah, like seagulls in Melbourne,” I responded.
“Yeah,” she nodded. “And in Queensland, those birds have numbers on them.”
“Numbers?”
“Yeah, so if one’s really annoying you, you can note the bird’s number and call to report the naughty birds.”
“The naughty birds?” I guffawed.
“Yes,” she chuckled, surprise flickering across her face. “The naughty birds.”
I giggled some more, then said, “You’re serious? You can call and report the naughty birds?”
By this time I was rolling with laughter.
She stifled another “Yes,” then caught the disbelief on my face — and joined me.
We roared with laughter, giggling helplessly, then chuckling, and finally snorting at the ludicrous notion.
‘Hello, is that the naughty bird line? I’d like to make a report.”
Even now, I chuckle at the thought of it.
This little story reminds me that sharing laughter with fellow travelers feels like finding an oasis of connection in the desert of uncertainty that makes road life what it is.
Humour — and fleeting moments of connection —can arrive on the wings of a stranger’s tales.
Photo courtesy of anna-tremewan (Unsplash)
Christine Writer 