Sparky.

Dave the Electrician
was putting in new wiring for our
COFFEE MACHINE today.

Due to the shape of our store the conduit
had to run from one end of the store to the other,
there was much ladder action and may I say,
swearing, from the heights of the ladder.

All I could see were his feet, as I held the ladder for him
in between serving people.
I dodged more than
the occasional screw falling to the ground.

"Where are your biscuits lovey?" a woman too old to navigate the ladder
waits patiently at the counter.

"Just over here, want me to pick one for you? Soy coconut?" I ask
reaching and stretching while holding ladder,

"Oh SOY coconut, I have an allergy to soy lovey, do you have
another flavour? I do like a sweet biscuit.."

"What about just coconut crunch with out the soy carob?"
Screws like crumbs fall to the ground,
Dave mutters, " Shhhhhiii"
he looks down a little old lady,
I say," SOY Allergy!"

"Yes, and I have just been to VEGETARIAN cooking classes
in the BLUE MOUNTAINS,
with the Sanatarium group"
she lowers here voice, " they didn't mention
anything about their religion, just a prayer at the end,
the head, the minister, he also has an allergy to soy,
he was very helpful."

Dave climbs down from ladder
and a bottle of olive oil shelf shakes precariously,
it falls with a thud onto basket of triticale flakes.

Tony enters the store stacking up recycled timber for Dan,
the chippy to reuse as he builds the bench for the Coffee machine.
Its mostly Pine shelves that lined the store originally.
They stand against the wall like a dead forest installation.

"Oh The blue mountains", my head drifts off
" its so beautiful there, what a nice place to do a cooking class class,"
I say as I serve my lovely customer
(all the while thinking about the last time I was in the mountains
and the love affair so full of electricity it burnt my fingers)

"Oh yes they really are, do you know how much metal is in the soil
up there?! My daughter had all of the pine trees
removed from her property,the metal attracts lightening
and so many of the trees were split in two by the all the strikes,
not to mention the needles in the water catchment!!
Now only months after the removal
you should see all the beautiful gum regrowth.."

Two of the pine planks slip down and thud on the hardwood floor.
Dave switches the lights on and off and moves the ladder along.

My little old lady gathers up her groceries and puts them in her basket
she leans hard on a walking stick, her skin is lined and glows with health
she looks at me with a twinkle in her eye and says..
" I think I'll have my coconut crunch with a pot of tea, on the balcony,
it is too lovely a day, I must make use of all this glorious sun,"
she lifts her head to the sky,
" ahh now I have the energy to get me home...Taaa ta lovey.."