Tomorrow is Hard Waste Collection Day and I've wheeled out the old fridge and washing machine, both dating back to that better-be-forgotten year 1985 when I returned far too early from a successful and highly-paid expatriate career.
Was it burn-out? Was it homesickness? Or was it sheer stupidity that made me chuck in a perfect job (financial controller of a group of companies with offices in Jeddah, London, Paris, Zurich and Athens) in a perfect location (my "penthouse" office overlooked the bustling port of Piraeus in Greece) on a salary that still seems extravagant even today.
Anyway, it was too late for regrets and so I went on a shopping spree to furnish my flat in Sydney and, when that had soured on me, my house in Canberra, after which it all followed me down the coast to "Riverbend".
And here at "Riverbend" we've grown old and worn out together: the fridge, the washer, and me. They're taken away the fridge and washer tomorrow. When will they come for me?
