
© irene waters 2018
“Turn round. Go back. If we bought this place I’d never leave it. This road is terrifying.”
“No! We said we’re going and we’re going.”
Jemma, white with fright, surveyed the tree-dotted property complete with a platypus populated cooling creek. They shook hands with the owner who said, ” we,ve had so many calls from people saying they’re coming but you’re the first to show up.”
“We wouldn’t have shown up if I’d had my way,” Jemma said. After a cuppa they left. The property held no value for them yet a week later it sold to National Geographic Photographers.
In response to Charli’s prompt where this week she asks:
May 17, 2018, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less) write a story about property values. Perhaps its a home, business or pencil museum. What makes them go up or down? Go where the prompt leads.
Respond by May 22, 2018. Use the comment section below to share, read and be social. You may leave a link, pingback or story in the comments.
If you want your story published in the weekly collection, please use this form. If you want to interact with other writers, do so in the comments (yes, that means sharing your story TWICE — once for interaction and once for publication). Rules are here.
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About Irene Waters 19 Writer Memoirist
I began my working career as a reluctant potato peeler whilst waiting to commence my training as a student nurse. On completion I worked mainly in intensive care/coronary care; finishing my hospital career as clinical nurse educator in intensive care. A life changing period as a resort owner/manager on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu was followed by recovery time as a farmer at Bucca Wauka. Having discovered I was no farmer and vowing never again to own an animal bigger than myself I took on the Barrington General Store. Here we also ran a five star restaurant. Working the shop of a day 7am - 6pm followed by the restaurant until late was surprisingly more stressful than Tanna. On the sale we decided to retire and renovate our house with the help of a builder friend. Now believing we knew everything about building we set to constructing our own house. Just finished a coal mine decided to set up in our backyard. Definitely time to retire we moved to Queensland. I had been writing a manuscript for some time. In the desire to complete this I enrolled in a post grad certificate in creative Industries which I completed 2013. I followed this by doing a Master of Arts by research graduating in 2017. Now I live to write and write to live.
lol nice twist … I used to live on that property! No salesmen or converters made the two k hike 🙂
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I wouldn’t have come visit then. But luckily we are all different and property holds lots of different values for each of us.
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it was a large share house with fun friends on the central coast!
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Mine was up the back of Kempsey with only a husband who insisted we go there. No fun friends would ever have visited.
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😦
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Great twist, Irene. ❤
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Thanks Colleen – it is actually a true story and I didn’t think they’d ever sell it – but they did.
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LOL! That makes the story even better! ❤
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Cool..
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Thank you.
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I imagine the platypus were safe because the road was terrifying. Well done.
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They are shy creatures so the road would have made them feel safer for sure.
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Sounds like a wonderful property. I am not overly familiar with platypus but am certain I would like them as neighbors.
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Platypus are shy so you know where they are there isn’t a large population and you also know that the water and environment is prisitine. Clean, clear babbling brooks.
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We’ll get on great!
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It certainly looks prehistoric – I’d be waiting for dinosaurs to come tramping through the trees.
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LOL. Don’t know about dinosaurs but you will get platypus and they are strange enough looking to satisfy the prehistoric.
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I don’t like bad roads either. I would not buy a property in the sticks either. Great flash.
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Thanks Robbie.At least not on this road.
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This is great, Irene. While I’d love that property with the platypus in the creek, I wouldn’t like the drive, so I’d have to say “no” too, sadly. Lucky photographers.
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I’m with you Norah. But such a perfect place for the photographers. I have found a place quite accessible in Maleny that platypus can be seen if you are lucky. Much easier to get to. Even for you.
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That’s wonderful, Irene. So nice to see platypuses in the wild.
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Absolutely.
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Oh – I like that! Nat. Geo buying up the place 🙂
They might just preserve it!
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They may well do that but they’ll certainly get some good photos.
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