Putting Down Roots?

Jeff had spent the day wandering around The Glen. It seemed like a work in progress to him, and he wondered if it might be a place to set down roots and begin again.

It was close enough to Coff’s for him to get a little place to live and maybe commute to the coast to work. Or maybe when the little rural town was complete they would need a resident plumber. Time would tell.

He couldn’t think too much about anything until the sale of the house in Sydney went through. He was still amazed at how much cash Harry had left in his will, and that would keep him going for a while, especially if he stayed where he was. Steve and Millie didn’t charge over the top rates for their boarding house, and the food was good, thanks to their cook. He would contact the real estate office and let them know where he was staying, then just sit and wait.

He went into the bar, which was pretty empty at that time of the afternoon, and saw Steve idly cleaning glasses. "G’Day, mate," Jeff called as he walked over.

"Hi there, Jeff. You been taking in the sights?"

"Yeah, mate. There aren’t too many to see as yet though are there, apart from that weird looking walnut shell in a field all by itself."

"Oh that," Steve sniffed in disapproval. "It belongs to one of our single residents. He seems to think it blends in well."

"Bloody hell…blends in with what? It looks like it dropped out of space. No accounting for taste is there," Jeff giggled.

"I’ll have a VB while I’m here, Steve."

"Coming right up. I’ll put it on your tab."

"Ta, mate. I’m not too sure how long I’ll be staying. Hope you won’t need the room anytime soon."

Steve assured him that they weren’t too busy to have him stay as long as he needed or wanted and Jeff smiled.

"That’s good to hear. I’m thinking this might be a good place to start a new life. I lost me dad recently. I was his carer after he had a stroke. I couldn’t bear the thought of staying in Sydney without him."

"Oh, I’m sorry to hear that, Jeff. I can understand why you felt you had to get away. What do you think you might be doing if you settle here?"

"I’m a plumber, mate. I’m thinking I might be able to find work in Coff’s and maybe live in The Glen. It’s nice and peaceful here. I’m just waiting on the sale of the old house before I can make definite plans."

"I’ll put the word out around the residents if you like, Jeff. I’m sure there will be some bits and bobs needing fixing that you could do while you look for something in Coff’s."

"Ripper," Jeff replied. "I’ll leave you a few cards if ya like. They’re a bit out of date, but the cell number is right. Cheers heaps, mate. I think this is gonna be a good place to call home."