Chapter 7
Rottnest Island

 Rottnest is an island just off Perth. To get there, you have to go on a ferry. This was my first time on a ferry and I was really, really excited.

 There is quite a story to getting on the ferry. For some reason, the adults slept in and there was this big chase to get to the ferry on time. Crazy human things like parking cars and getting me out of the boot. Our friend went first to let the ferry people know we were coming and particularly that I was going to be there so they would make sure there was a proper ramp for me and a space for me to settle during the trip.

 Don’t I just look beautiful !!

 

Here’s Susan on the Ferry.

Besides really good swimming, bike riding, drinking and other entertainments, Rottnest Island is famous for it’s quokka’s. One of the few places in the world where they can be found.

 Guess what we saw. We saw quokkas. Up close. Susan even got to pat one, and I was allowed to get real close. Loook !!

Here’s a real close up.

They didn’t manage to get a photo of me in that last one. But they are kinda cute, friendly, little, furry creatures. Must be pretty brave. Even I didn’t scare them.

 This is the General Store

There is a really neat bakery there as well for humans. Of course, humans have to eat, and Madeleine and Susan really liked the food from the bakery. Of course, buggies don’t have to eat, we don’t have to worry about things like that.

 Imagine having to ride a bike. All those poor people who have to peddle and don’t have a Melissa to take them around the island.

 Anyway we all had a lovely trip, with no disasters. Except the almost human disaster of almost missing the ferry and the whole day.

 Melissa (typed by Madeleine)

Sunday, 26 February 2006

 This story takes place while Susan and I were still in high school. One of our school outings. I love school outings. We went to all sorts of places, got to ride on the train, and generally had lots of fun with our friends.

 On this day, I don’t remember where we went. What I do remember is getting back to the train station at Ashfield. Now this station has a really, really long ramp. I remember Susan and I at the top and Daniel deciding he was going to take my brake off.

 Now not many people know that buggies can be immobilized so they can be pushed. Like Madeleine did when we were in Sydney.

 This is what Daniel did. He took off my brake. He just reached down, laughed and turned off my brake. Daniel thought it was a great joke. Kids are like that. They think something is funny and don’t realise how dangerous these jokes can be.

 There I was free wheeling down this incredibly long ramp.

 I knew that this was danger. I was sooo scared and so was Susan. I couldn’t stop. I knew that if I went to the right, I would stop in the middle of a busy road. So I turned a bit left. I didn’t turn enough left and Susan and I ran into a sign. Ouch!! Poor Susan. Being the strong buggy I am, of course there was no damage to me. But Susan’s leg came between me and the stop sign. And being such a strong buggy she was really really hurt.

 Poor Susan. Her friends were so angry with Daniel. They wanted to hurt him too. They took us back to the school and rang Madeleine. She came and took one look at Susan’s pale face and took her away from me. This time they had to use the wheelchair. I knew that I was too big to put in the car in a hurry and that Madeleine wanted to get a doctor to look at Susan as quickly as possible. But it really hurt to be left behind, useless again, when it was so important for me to be there to help.

 I stayed at school and watched the other children deal with their anger at Daniel. The teachers had to do some really fast talking, cause the other kids really liked Susan and didn’t like to see her hurt. They were also really worried about Susan and there was nothing they could do to help her right now. So they took their anger, and scare out on poor Daniel. He was in really big trouble that day.

 I got the rest of the story later. Madeleine took Susan to the doctor who said that she thought it wasn’t broken, so Madeleine took her home. A couple of days later, Madeleine wasn’t happy with the way it was looking so she took her to the children’s hospital to get an x-ray. Doctor said it wasn’t broken, but rang up a couple of days later to say that they had looked at the x-rays again and there was a small break.

 So Susan had to have a cast on her leg. She got a pink one. Susan and I love pink.

 Susan was angry with Daniel for years after that incident. Daniel was her boyfriend and he hurt her. Poor Susan.

 This is where buggies like me come into importance again. I could carry Susan almost everywhere, even with a broken leg and a cast, and even having to have a board to keep the leg up. I am such a clever little buggy, now aren’t I?

 Melissa (typed by Madeleine)

Saturday, 11 February 2006

CHAPTER 5

Another memory from that trip, folks was probably the most exciting one for me (and probably for Susan as well). This will probably be the last story about that particular trip and it’s a very short story.

Gosford is a very hilly town. Madeleine and Susan were wandering around the town and ended up at the top of a biiiig hill. I couldn’t resist. I suggested to Susan that we go down the hill as fast as we could. Susan, of course, thought it was a great idea !!!

So off we went: Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!

What fun that was. Fast and free.

So here we are:

That was just soooooooooooo fun !!!!

Look I’ve still got my airplane ticket on me.

Madeleine was at the top of the hill, watching us. All she could see was the road at the bottom and she didn’t trust me to stop in time and keep Susan safe.

Of course, we stopped in time. I’m a smart little buggy and always kept Susan as safe as I could.

That was an exciting trip. There was lots more things we did. We went to a wedding, we went to Old Sydney Town and all sorts of other things.

Here’s another photo of me. Madeleine tended to cut me out of the photos and put most of Susan in.

Melissa (typed by Madeleine)

Saturday, 11 February 2006

The adventures of Melissa

CHAPTER 4

We were  visiting Gosford in New South Wales. Gosford is a small town outside of Sydney and it is quite hilly. Well this was fine for a strong buggy like myself, and of course, for Susan riding on me, it was easy. But for Madeleine, she found some of those hills just a little difficult at times.

 One day, we’d been looking around the town having ourselves a lovely afternoon and then headed back home. Now for a buggy like me, the hill was nothing. But for poor old Madeleine (remember, she’s not that young any more, she’s getting on in years), by the time we got to the last hill towards where we were staying, she was finding it really, really difficult.

 She kept walking slower and slower. Susan knew that her mother was running out of steam, and being the kind little girl that she was, she felt sorry for her mother. Knowing, of course, that she had me to ride on, and didn’t have to do all that walking. So Susan suggested that her mother get on the buggy with her. I thought it was quite a good idea, of course, being the big, strong buggy that I am, I figured I could carry both of them quite easily. After a bit of fiddling, my seat is not all that big, remember, I am a child sized buggy and the two of them together didn’t really fit too well. But, they managed to hop on together and off we went up the hill.

 Well, I could feel my energy going. There was nothing I could do. I tried. I really tried to get up that hill. But the two people, a long day wandering around the shops and the size of the hill, I’m afraid, it was more than even a strong, solid buggy like me could do. About three quarters of the way up, I knew I couldn’t do any more and I stopped. I just couldn’t go another inch. Oh, dear!! I’ve let the buggies of the world down. I let my humans down!! Oh, dear !!

 Susan tried to walk up the hill as far as she could. Madeleine pushed and pushed. And I am a big, heavy buggy, even if I am a child sized one. Madeleine was huffing and puffing. They found a room in the bottom of the building and Madeleine took Susan up the stairs to the flat. Remember, poor Susan had already walked further than she should have, and she still had the stairs to go.

 They left me in this little room, all alone, to think about my transgressions. I had failed my humans. Oh, dear me. I failed again.

  I guess I deserved to stay alone in that little room. Madeleine came down shortly with my charger and plugged me in, and there was my life blood flowing into my body again. I didn’t feel as well as I should have, though, and that worried me all through that long, lonely night. I knew that with the electricity, that I should be feeling my normal, strong self and I wasn’t.

 In the morning, Madeleine came down with the key. I could have told her it wasn’t going to work, but of course, buggies don’t have voices that humans can understand. She put the key in, and….. Nothing. I still could not move. I could hear her talking to her friend and wondering if they should call the buggy doctor. Was there a buggy doctor in Gosford?  Let’s face it, there are not many buggy doctors in the world, it is a very, very specialised skill to be a buggy doctor.

 If only I could talk. I knew what was wrong with me, if only I could talk. Poor Madeleine. She started to unhitch my batteries, and then plug them back in again. She’s getting closer and closer to the solution. Oh, dear, if only I could talk. Her fingers are feeling around my batteries. A little bit more Madeleine, it’s right…………………….   There.

  Ahhhhhhhhhhh. Oh, that does feel better. . I was back again. I felt sooo good. I knew I could do my job properly now and wouldn’t let my humans down again.

 She had found it. Just a little button, that’s all she had to push once my battery was charged again. She’d overloaded me.  A bit like one of those power board thingees that humans use and you push the little red button to make things work again.

 Madeleine never forgot that little trick again. Lucky, she never needed to use it again. I think it was the long day, then the hill, and then the extra weight. I was so sorry that I couldn’t carry Madeleine as well when she got tired. But remember, I am only a child sized buggy.

 Melissa (typed by Madeleine)

Tuesday, 31 January 2006

One of the clever things about being a buggy and not a car, is that the key I needed was a large plug thing that humans use for their music. So we rang the person who we were going to stay with and found out that he had one, that he would meet us at the station, and I would be free again.

 In the meantime, I had to be pushed. I was totally immobilised. How humiliating. Lucky I am strong and I could carry some of the luggage and Susan while Madeleine and the security guards pushed me to the platform.

 We got to the train on time, and the next bit is another story about how public transport is not meant for buggies, just for humans, and the ignorance of people who don’t know how important buggies are in the world.

 Buggies of the world unite against human discrimination.

 We are finally able to get on the train. However, we have a problem. Sydney trains are not meant for buggies. They are only meant for humans. What humans do to prevent buggies from having freedom, is to make gaps between the platform and the train too big for us buggies to get across. Buggies can’t step over things like humans can, one of the few disadvantages, I must admit.

 Madeleine and Susan stood there and looked at the train, and the gap between the train and the platform in dismay. Madeleine was not strong enough to life me over the gap on her own. I am a very strong, solid and heavy buggy, I must admit.

 One of the train humans came along and offered to help. Madeleine, by this time, was very tired and really getting quite cross. It was about 10 o’clock human time, and we had been travelling since 3 o’clock in the afternoon. Sydney was 3 hours ahead, so in Sydney time it was about 1 a.m. Travelling on trains at that time of night, even with me to run over people’s toes, can be quite dangerous.

 Madeleine had a grump at the train man about making trains and platforms more accessible for buggies and their humans. The train man was not impressed. He grumped back at Madeleine. Finally, we were on the train. Madeleine was still grumping and she grumped to a man on the train as well.

 This man was even grumpier than Madeleine was. He told her that she shouldn’t be having her child out at this time of night. Now, I was just sooo angry with this man. Who did he think he was to tell my humans things like that. Now, this is  another little problem with being a buggy. We don’t have voices to tell people when they are being stupid. And we don’t have hands to punch people in the noses.

 Anyway, the man finally went away, and the three of us settled down to the train trip. It was only about an hour but Susan fell asleep. I guess I dozed in my little corner. And our friend did have a new key for me and suddenly I was no longer helpless. I was free, free again. Never again did I let Susan go out without her spare key. I even told her teachers to keep spares at school, just in case. I could never live through another experience like that again.

 I have a couple more stories about that trip, but will save them for another day, another chapter.

 Melissa (typed by Madeleine)

Saturday, 28 January 2006