A boy and his microphone

 

Tablo reader up chevron

A boy and his microphone

 Young Tommy was doing his favourite pastime rummaging through his grandfather's bits and pieces box."Hey Pops can I have this?" Tom asked.

 Looking, Pops Henry observed what Tom was holding, "Ah the wireless mike; I don't have the receiver, Okay, just put it back when you've finished."

 "Thanks, Pops, I am going home now," Tom said as he headed out the door.

 "Bye." Henry acknowledged to the departing back.

  Walking while he thought of the possibilities, Tom decided to experiment. So assuming a stance he announced, "This is radio WKX, and now we have the new singing sensation, Tommy X, Take it away Tom. Tom then started singing, "On top of spaghetti, all covered in cheeses..."  A car had paused at a stop sign alongside, through the window came the next verse, "I lost my meatball..." sounds just like Tom.

 Surprised and delighted Tom ceased singing and marvelled at the coincidence. Thinking no more about it, he wandered home, and as he entered his front gate, his little brother Jim asked, "Did Poppy send anything?"

  Tom lifted the mike and said, "This is Tom, your roving reporter, a young man has a question for my listeners." Proffering the mike to Jim. "What would you like to ask, young man?"

  Entering into the spirit, Jim replied, "I'm Jim, Did Poppy send some lollies?"

  Ad-libbing Tom announced, "Indeed he did, you will find them in the letterbox."  Having spoken he thought no more about it, Tom walked into the house and went to his room. 

  A little while later, his mother came in and asked, "Did Grandpa give you sweets?'

  "No, not today," Tom answered puzzled when Pop did, it was only a couple with the strict instructions that he was to share with Jim.

   "Jim had a bucket full which he said was in the letterbox," Mum swept out to finish cooking. "I hope his appetite isn't spoilt." 

  Early in the morning getting ready for school, Tom decided to put the mike in his bag and if there were a 'show and tell' he would have a story. Later in the morning, the teacher announced. "We have a few minutes before we have PT, so anyone have a story?" He expected Tom could provide one.

  "Yes, sir," Tom announced. "My magic microphone." 

  "Bulshhh." Came from the back where the 'Kelly Gang' were sitting.

  Slightly annoyed at the usual response from them and not looking forward to PT. Usually, Tom was left to last for a team pick.

  Tom announced, "It is, And now for the weather forecast, At Harristown School, we are expecting a sudden shower to water the gardens." As he spoke, there was a rumble and the light through the window dulled as a cloud then rain obscured it,

  "PT is off  now, read your books until lunchtime." Mr Searle said.

 There were groans from those who preferred exercise to class. Tom was among those who preferred reading. 

The rest of the day went normally and at last, going home time arrived. 

On the way as Tom was passing the farm paddock about halfway home, Ed Kelly and his gang blocked the way. "Oy let's have a deco at your magic mike."

  On the spur of the moment, Tom brought the mike to his mouth and announced dramatically, "At the trench wall, Captain Kelly and his platoon wait for the call to charge over the parapet." At this, now dressed in World War 1 uniform which replaced the school clothes on the Kelly gang, complete with scale size rifles which brought delighted smiles to their faces. "The whistles blew, and Kelly shouted, 'Follow me, men'"

  The gang scrambled out of the ditch then over the wire fence. When something whistled past, Tom decided that he wasn't part of this and ducked. When he looked up again, there was no one in sight.

  Musing on the events, he went home thinking no more about it as homework, and other things occupied him. After a day or so there was a considerable fuss about missing boys, the Kelly gang had disappeared, and despite an extensive search, remained a mystery. Tom had given his version of the last sighting; the police dismissed his story as there were no footprints on the ploughed paddock where he had said they went.

  Several days went past without clearing the mystery. Tom was visiting his grandfather's shed where Pop announced, "Those missing boys it sparked a memory. I looked at my Grandfather's diary and found something I hadn't noticed before. It seems that during a battle, scouts found a group of schoolboys wandering in "no man's land' all kitted up in uniform saying they were from Harristown. Strange I should have noticed something like that before, Grandfather wrote nothing more about that, and I could find nothing else in history."

   Tom had a thought, grabbing the mike, he headed back to the paddock, arriving he lifted the mike and announced, "After a long day on the battlefield the platoon returns safe but exhausted from the fray."

  At this, the Kelly gang climbed over the fence and collapsed into the ditch now redressed in school uniform, while the gang recovered, Tom made good his escape. Several days later, the Kelly gang resumed class and for a change settled down to study being very cautious around Tom in case he still had that microphone.

 

 

 

Comment Log in or Join Tablo to comment on this chapter...

Adventure in Pop's shed

 "Pops, here's the microphone back again, don't lose it as it is a special one," Tom said.

 "Put it over there, been having fun with it?" Pops asked, amused.

 "Yes, it was great what else do you have?" Tom's next question.

 "Have a look, return it when finished," Pops agreed.

 Tom then happily started sifting through the boxes and after examining and discarding several items, coming up with binoculars which he held up with an enquiring look. Receiving a laugh and a wave to go on, Tom taking his new treasure went off to the top of the hill to see through them.  First looking towards the heights behind the fields then through the glasses was surprised when the conventional view was different with new buildings appearing where open paddocks had stretched to the foothills. Swinging the glasses towards the town, it was now a bustling city with an airport and tall buildings.

 Spotting a caterpillar crawling on a leaf nearby, he focused on this subject. Adjusting the focus but instead of staying the same, after first demolishing the leaf, then it grew, spun a cocoon, the caterpillar emerged as a moth and flew off. Reversing the adjustment, the same insect now re-entered the cocoon and became the caterpillar which walked backwards back to the start point; playing at this technique for a few times Tom marvelled at this new toy.

  Then using this method,  buildings appeared and disappeared to Tom's marvel and keeping himself entertained for the afternoon before trotting off.

  At home, Tom found a newspaper and tried the glasses to view. Yes, it did the same thing with the headlines changing together with the dates,  As he wasn't much interested in the news, he opened to the comic section and ran the strips forward to enjoy the series as it was frustrating to have to wait day after day to see what happened next. Annoying when Dad either didn't buy a copy or threw out the paper before Tom had a chance to read it. Next, he looked at his favourite football team, the Saints who were struggling this year; he viewed the progress and was delighted to see that the team would pick up and finish in the final eight. Tom had stopped before the paper reached the final series as he didn't want to spoil the surprise.

 He had a great afternoon with the glasses examining all the usual things he studied, gaining new insight into how things worked, events that took days to unfold were 'fast-forwarded' and rewound until Tom could see how it happened.

 Having experience with the microphone at school, Tom decided not to repeat and perhaps cause trouble. He experimented with homework. That hadn't worked as he still had to do the writing himself, the one thing he noticed was that completed work revealed the teachers marking, allowing him to rewrite before the next day.

Comment Log in or Join Tablo to comment on this chapter...
~

You might like Kevin Colbran's other books...