* * *
Sure enough, the Foxtel people came while I was at school. Dad had finished putting the TV table together so it was ready to take the TV on the top shelf, the Foxtel set top box next and the tiny DVD player on the bottom shelf.
“No football tonight,” I told my new friends. “We’re getting hooked up to a TV and Foxtel.”
“Lucky you,” Marcus said.
“You mean you haven’t had a TV since you’ve been here?” said Ben.
“No, that’s why tonight is a big deal,” I said.
“We’ll see you tomorrow, then”.
“Okay”, I said as I raced off for home.
As I rounded the corner, I could see the satellite dish on the roof. Dad greeted me saying: “It’s all set up, Paul. The men had a bit of trouble getting down from the ceiling when they were fixing the satellite dish. One of them cracked the plaster ceiling. We won’t have to pay until the ceiling is fixed which could be a while. Anyway, let’s check this out.”
Using the controls, Dad showed me which ones were for the telly and which were for Foxtel. Dad loves watching Foxtel because he can get closed captions and he doesn’t need the volume to be turned up. The down side is that the commercial stations aren’t on Foxtel so we can’t use the iQ and record and also have the captions. Anyway we don’t need it for the tennis.
Dad tells me: “Wimbledon will be on soon though 7TWO will broadcast it as well. Because we’re two hours closer to England, we can see the matches earlier. And I can record it on Fox Sports. Then there’s the Ashes so I’ll be able to watch everything the next day. Mind you, the tennis will be repeated during the day as well.”
I ask Dad: “Have you heard anything from the tennis people in Broome?”
“Not yet,” says Dad, “though there may be something in my inbox when I check it tonight. Let’s take Lassie for a walk.”
As we rounded our corner, a Telstra van was pulling in to the house opposite us. Dad left me with Lassie and raced over.
“You wouldn’t have a router for the Internet, would you, mate?” asked Dad. “Mine is taking a long time to get here and I need the Internet to do my work.”
“No worries, mate. Here you go. I’ll write my name on the box and my number if you have any problems. Just drop the new one in when you get it. I’m Graham by the way.”
“Thanks a heap, Graham. See you,” said Dad.
“What a coincidence, heh, Paul?”
“Does that mean I’ve got the telly all to myself while you set up the Internet, Dad?”
“Only until I’m up and running or it’s your bedtime.”
Beaut. I surfed the channels and got used to the controls with the third one being for the DVD. I went through all the TV channels then all the Foxtel ones. I used the Foxtel list which we brought with us but I couldn’t find them all.
The Freeview channels had one or two local ones for Broome. The commercial stations weren’t on Foxtel but the ABC and SBS were, so we can record their shows.
11 School, Footy and Tennis.
Mum was late home so we had takeaway for dinner. Dad had messaged her about the router and would be busy with that.
“We were so lucky seeing this Telstra truck,” said Dad. “Now, I’m going to be on the phone setting up the Internet which will have wireless so you will be able to use the Internet at home, Ann, without having to use your mobile phone.”
After we had eaten, Mum asked: “Have you finished surfing the TV channels yet, Paul?”
“Pretty much,” I replied. “Would you like me to show you how it all works?”
“Let’s go to the TV Guide,” said Mum, “and see if any of my shows are there for me to record. Let’s see: Star Trek: the Next Generation, Criminal Minds, Q&A,”
“We don’t have all the channels like we did in Melbourne, but there’s still quite a few, as well as Dad’s sports shows. Then there are all the digital channels on the TV.”
“Remember, you’re still not old enough to watch adult movies by yourself. I’ll set up the parental lock in case you’re tempted. Also, no recording of shows unless Dad or I are with you. I don’t want you deleting any of my shows like you did in Melbourne.
“I’ll have to watch some of my shows when I wake up early in the morning.”
“Do you still wake up early, Mum?”
“Yes, I have plenty to do for my voluntary work as well as making phone calls to the Eastern states as we are two hours behind, and three hours in summer.”
“And this is on top of your day job?”
“Yes.”
Mum went off to check on Dad who sounded very frustrated with Telstra. I surfed some more channels and found a cartoon channel which was pretty lame. There wasn’t much for a 10 year old to watch besides football and cricket. Rugby didn’t interest me and I was getting restless waiting for Dad to join me.
In the end I went to bed and wrote in my journal what had happened today so I could type it up tomorrow. I’ve written over 40 pages and more than 12,000 words by now.
The Journal of Paul O'Leary: From the City to the Outback Page 4