Floods, food, intrigue and a Roo in the headlights. (AKA a Weekend With Oswald)

Sometimes, you get a broadside from life that makes all three main guns of the USS Missouri going off at once seem like a cap gun. Sometimes it’s enough to knock you flat on your proverbial seeing stars, other times it makes you wonder if, like an arrow, when it seems like you are going backwards uncontrollably, it’s only because you are about to be shot forward at great speed.

The Australia Day long weekend in SE Queensland has seen a return to typical summer weather. You may have heard on the news or even seen the footage for yourselves that ex-tropical cyclone Oswald decided to head south for a holiday over the past weekend. While not directly in it’s path, the small inland community I live near copped almost 250mm of rain in three days. We had localised flooding, road closures and were generally preparing for the worst if the rain did not subside.
This video is of an area just north of us known as Palmwoods. It should give you a bit of an idea just how conditions were for us.


Luckily this morning the rain has stopped, and much of the water has begun to dissipate, although there is the danger of overloaded river and creeks still flooding in and around towns.

So what does all this have to do with relationships you ask me? Good question. As a proponent of singledom forever (as witnessed in previous rants), I may have just taken a belly blow that currently has me reeling at the possibility of reconsidering my stance.

Both Saturday and Sunday, where we copped most of the brunt of Mother Nature, there were fears that lower lying properties and businesses inside the township I work were going to be inundated. Armed with a truckload of sandbags, most of the locals set to work laying sandbags to protect the shopfronts and homes against the tide.
Now trudging around in water and mud is hard going. Despite the rain, we still have the heat and humidity to contend with, and it becomes very thirsty work. After a few hours of being drenched to the bone, we all paused for drinks and something to eat.

It was at this point I saw her.

An owner of a local bakery, she had come into town to get a few pieces of equipment and secure her business properly, before scooting back home again. Now save for an act of God (or perhaps just dumb luck), the road back to her home had partially collapsed and washed away, leaving her stranded in the town for the day. Not being able to leave, she had then set about the task of bringing food and drinks, from her own store mind you; to the people helping out in the township so they could stay hydrated and fed throughout the day.

Now I have been into this bakery before, and perhaps never noticed. But the sight of this bedraggled woman coming up the street, wading through the mud and water just gave me a little pause. At the time she was smiling and laughing with another helper, and for some reason she just had one of those damn smiles and those pretty eyes you just can’t ignore. Stupid me of course, must have been grinning like an idiot as she passed, because she stopped.
Now I’m not saying time stopped, sparks flew or the universe somehow aligned at that moment, but she handed me a sandwich, a bottle of water, and for some reason said,

“Hi. I’m ###. Thought you might be hungry.”

Now I know there are people who are polite for the sake of it, and she pretty much moved on after handing me and my co-workers our lunches. The next group of people though, she didn’t introduce herself to by name though, and not sounding egotistical, but I got busted several times as she looked back in my direction. Naturally I was doing the same.

So life goes on, my sudden intrigue passed as she went about her way, and we continued on sandbagging the last few houses. I was all ready to head home for the day, when a friend called me up, asking if I lived near a particular address. It was about 15kms further on than my own place, so I said yes and asked why. As it turns out some people needed a lift home, but couldn’t get their cars through the still flooded intersection out of town. As I have a 4WD, I said sure, I can give anyone a lift back to their houses through the now opened roads. He gave me directions where there were four people waiting, so all done for the day, I climbed into my vehicle, soaked to the bone, and took off.
Sure enough, guess who hops into the front seat? I find this same woman sitting in my car, also soaked to the bone, needing a lift home as her little car would never have gone through the floodwaters.

Normally I have like three left feet, a dozen tongues and a speech impediment when trying to talk to women. For some reason though, I was like Picasso this day. I somehow managed to have an entire conversation without even nearing a foot to my mouth, or look awkward. We chatted about all sorts of stuff, business, kids, the funny and hard stuff of the day just past. I learned on the drive, that like me, she is also a single parent, and independent of the needs of a relationship. Usually when someone tells me they are single and happy, it is just a facade, and deep down they are crying out for that someone special. This woman had none of that. She was genuinely happy with her status, with her life. Which naturally intrigued me even more.

Eventually I dropped her off at her home. I offered to drive her back into town the next day to get her car, and she just gave me one of those infectious smiles and said sure. Then hands over a card with her number on it. So I drop the remainder of the people off and head home to my property.

It was about this time the day’s events began to sink in. Did I just meet someone I’m actually considering trading my life of bachelorism in for? Did this woman just leave a marked impression on this old warhorse? I thought about it quite a bit on Monday, and half-dialled her number about sixty times before slapping myself, telling myself to man up, and stop acting like that nerd off the Simpsons. So I dialled. I guess she must have been sitting on the phone because it rang like twice and she answered. I drove her and her daughter back into town to get her car along with my two kids, and she picked up her car. I actually really wanted to ask her out for a drink or dinner, but as usual, the tongues all got twisted and the left feet got tripping before I had a chance. So I left her with her bakery to contend with, going “stupid, stupid, stupid” on the way home.

Half way home my eldest daughter pipes up.

“You know Dad, ### is really nice. You could use a girlfriend. It’s been ages.” Dammit. I just had to teach my kids to say what they think didn’t I? Admittedly I was thinking much the same thing by the time I got home. This girl really has my attention, but despite this, I still get that ‘Roo in the headlights’ look when I consider any relationship. As I sit here now, I have to go back to work tomorrow, and her bakery is a short trip up the road from where I work. At the moment I am leaning heavily towards suggesting that drink or even dinner, and just seeing where it goes.

As I said before, sometimes it seems life is pulling you backwards beyond your control, and that has been me for the last six months. I just hope when the arrow lets fly, it hopefully won’t be as uncontrollable, and with a bit of luck, this time hits the mark.

LOL They say when your not looking is when you find them.

Hope it works out well for you!

Explanation: S&F!

Fair Dinkum!



When you have a Big ♥ there is room for everyone!

Personal Disclosure: Best of Luck Mate!

You Sir ARE True Blue! And So is she ... and it seems this might be meant to be!

I am not ashamed to say this thread made me weep both tears of sadness and joy! Tis a good thing!

TRIUMPH from Adversity!

My only advice ...

Normally I have like three left feet, a dozen tongues and a speech impediment when trying to talk to women.

I know exactly what you mean.

My town was hit by Oswald too, and I had a similar experience, with a girl way out of my league and how i gave her my umbrella. Sadly that's as far as it would go, but you seem to have a better chance than i did.

So I'd go for it mate, look her up.

Good luck, and S&F. That was a well written post.

i dont get it.



looks like a normal rainstorm from florida or something heh.


ill trade that for my snow, below zero tempts and black ice?

reply to post by ~widowmaker~


Um, the video wasn't really the point of the thread lol....

And yes, it probably was no worse than any tropical storm, certainly not as bad as previous years.

But thanks for looking.

reply to post by 74Templar


oh ok i was watching whole time expecting car to be "broadsided" or flipped over or something lol, guess i should have been reading between the lines lol.

reply to post by ~widowmaker~


No, just me and my long founded single lifestyle.

We're actually going out for lunch tomorrow....

Yes I manned up and asked her out on a date.... Bit nervous tbh...

reply to post by 74Templar


just really be yourself, people have to be friends first before lovers (well if you really like the person)




p.s dont talk about conspiracies wink wink

Wow…. As a middle aged Aussie, a hopeless romantic and someone who's going through absolute hell in my own relationship…. Your post made me tear up and filled me with hope.
Thank you so much O.P.
I hope something truly wonderful happens from this but if it doesn't, it will have been worth it just for the feelings you've experienced already.
Best of luck mate.