Bored, Jaded, Apathetic, Lethargic, Wearied and Irked. That pretty much covers it.

After eight days in Kununurra we have pretty much seen and done all there is to see and do. We had one major event left, the local markets, which we missed because we thought it was today and it turns out it was yesterday. Can you believe that? Well it was probably all the stuff we have already seen eight times in the last eight days carefully presented in the one hot and noisy locale anyway. A blessing in disguise perhaps?

This morning when a guy asked me “what’s the quickest way to town” I answered without even thinking, “straight down Casurina, through the walkway to Weaber Plains Road, left on to Erythrina Street, be careful of the dog at number fourteen he has a serious attitude problem, and that’ll take you straight to the shopping centre, but I would hurry as most of the shops shut at lunchtime today. Oh if you go to the Variety shop say howdy to Young Bob for me will you, tell him I’ll pop in Monday for a chat”. So now I am beyond bored and heading towards depression. Not “have a bourbon and cheer up you miserable doofus” kind of depression but the clinical type that comes from spending your holidays in a one horse town where no one has a saddle.

Our travelling companions, lets call them “The Ellis’s” for the sake of anonymity, shot through yesterday like people who seriously didn’t want to go to the local markets, or spend another night listening to the aural delights of our resident “singing” performer. I cant really blame them, the tell tale signs of “the depression” were becoming evident even then. Glazed eyes, rocking back and forth with arms folded in front, gnawing fingernails and pulling lumps of hair out, all the classic symptoms. And that was just me.

On a brighter note we visited the local cemetery yesterday, a relatively enjoyable outing, at least until I realized that I have already out lived ninety percent of the “plantees”. Either I am getting old or people die young in these parts. I choose not to probe this question to deeply until we move on to a more desirable setting and normal brain function returns.

Tomorrow is the day the repairer has slated as the day to restore our three-legged conveyance to quadruped status and by Tuesday we will be out of here (demented laugh, which you cant hear and is therefore in brackets).

Later today we are going to Mirima National Park to check out Hidden Valley, fortunately its walking distance from town. We walk everywhere since the “Ellis’s” took the sanity preserving option. On the way to the park we pass by a recent aboriginal midden in Kununurra . I have included photos for your edification. You will note how the middens have changed over time from simple piles of discarded shells from the feasts to the more complex variety of discarded food products.

An ancient Aboriginal shell midden.

Recent midden. Another reason for depression.