Date: Mon, 23 Jun 1997 11:15:40 -0500 From: Phanny Subject: SUB: CONTEST: Humor: Prose: Something to Roo Something to Roo "G'day, might." Ken grinned at the tour guide. He was really in Australia. "Uh...oh, that's right. Good day!" He grabbed the man's hand and pumped it. "I've never been in Australia before." The guide nodded and laughed. "Well, good on you for getting here at last! If you'll hop in, I'll show you some of the best parts." The jeep ride was hot and dusty, but Ken enjoyed it all. Until the jeep stopped. "Bloody...half a minute, I'll have a look and see what's wrong." The guide disappeared under the hood, then slammed it down and walked back on Ken's side of the jeep. "Well, now, I'm going to have to walk back and get us some help. You just stay here, you'll be fine. I'm really sorry about this." "Are you sure? I could walk back with you." "Oh, no, it's a long hot walk and you'll be alright here." The guide waved, and Ken sat back in the jeep. At first, Ken thought everything was silent without the roar of the jeep engine. Then he started to hear the rustling of the dry grasses, and the occasional creak of something heating up in the afternoon sun. He amused himself counting the points on stars on the flag hanging limply from the antenna. The bigger star had seven points, the little one near it only five. He wondered why they didn't make them all the same. He swept his eyes around the vast emptiness, enjoying the feeling of being the only person as far as he could see. The kangaroo surprised him, suddenly rearing up in front of the jeep. Big brown eyes stared at him, and the muzzle wrinkled and wiggled. He had a patch of white over one eyebrow. Ken held his breath, wondering what the animal was up to. The kangaroo sniffed, looked down at the hood of the jeep, then nodded and opened its mouth. "I say, old chap, having a spot of trouble are you? It's the radiator, don't you know?" Ken blinked, then quickly glanced around. He finally looked back at the kangaroo, his jaw dropping as he realized the voice really had come from the kangaroo. "Cheers!" With that, the kangaroo turned and bounded off. Ken got out of the jeep and walked to where the kangaroo had been. He shook his head and looked at the tracks, rubbing his chin. After walking around the area, he slowly got back into the jeep. He waited. When the guide returned with a tow truck, Ken jumped out of the jeep. "You won't believe it. While I was waiting for you, a kangaroo came up to the car and told me that the radiator was bad." The guide looked at Ken. "Sure, mate. Was it a big red, with a white spot over his eye?" Ken nodded. "And he talked with an English accent? Sounded like a BBC show?" "Yes, that's the one! Why, do you all know about him?" The guide grinned. "Sure, that's Alfred. Don't pay him no mind, he don't know the first thing about cars."