i fuck insects

we live in exciting times. the coach drops me off in byron bay earlier than i expected, and i found myself thrown out in the freezing east coast morning. the streets were limp and lifeless. with nowhere to go, no warm bed, nothing to do, i decide to pad up and try to get warmer. that takes a good ten minutes in the bus stop, during which i realise that there's no point in lying down in the cold, so i decide to walk around town and and then to the beach to watch the sunrise. that becomes the single most colossal decision of this month and sets the tone for the rest of the day.



as i look into the frigid distance at main beach, there are three hotties canoeing out to the julian rocks and there are... dolphins. two pods of dolphins just playing around, their black fins occasionally breaking the surface, just like in television. not bad at all.



i go towards the lighthouse with my haversack in tow, but it's getting warmer and i actually begin to perspire for the first time in a week. tshirt comes off, and so do shoes, and what a sight i must've been as i trekked along. a carpet snake comes out of hibernation to greet me. i say hello, we take a few pictures together, and he scoots away, so we go our separate ways.



up the lighthouse where the view is not so special (except if you psycho yourself into believing it is because it's the "easternmost point of the australian continent"), there's a volunteer chick showing people how to spot whales. she lends me a pair of binoculars - free - and i stand there for an hour with her and some other retirees from Blighty. well, of course there're whales, their shiny black backs catching the sun's rays and my heart melts from watching their gentle and quiet strength. they send a spray of water up, their tails pop up from the water when they dive down, and i'm thinking, this is fucking incredible.



afternoon was spent trying to be a surfie, the waves were wicked for an amateur, and we kept going at it till it was dark and too cold. we get back into town at six, and as far as i'm concerned, it could be midnight. im freezing, just wearing my boards, and i run into the hostel which two boys (this is Cute French Guy if i ever tell you about him) at the lighthouse recommended to me.

so i'm checking in, and for once i'm on the other side of the counter, and i'm playing the person who's My Favourite Guest Because He's Cute and Funny and Crazy Cool. i open the door to my dorm, and there's a dorm party going on. before i can say bugger off, they're offering me free chocolates and get this, surf lessons. thats, uh, good. so, free room and board from tomorrow onwards, free surf lessons, cute french boys and free internet. things are looking good.

before i left sydney, i told darius from confest that something will definitely happen, and many things have. it's amazing then, how in the midst of all this change there's still a very reassuring sense of continuity. ladies and gentlemen, everything is under control.

addendum:
i go with boys from dorm to cheekymonkeys and cocomangas, and for one night only, i'm living the east coast backpacker life. in a while though, the loud and bad music and overall ugliness of british gappers makes me leave for the warm comforts of bed. but not cute frenchie's.