Waiting On Ralf Again (Part 3)

Waiting For Ralf

Saturday now has mostly been taken care of but the portion of the night has yet to be entered into these pages. The missed adventure begins with my exeunt from these pages at 9:00 p.m. on Saturday night, hopeful that Ralf would beep at my house sooner than later. There is a common truth about Ralf that permits me to either be optimistic or know there is no chance in hell he’s going to make the deadline he creates.

Ralf had a whole hour to get ready from 8:00 p.m. so we could head to the finely planned Senstadium at Liverpool to watch ‘The Mummy’. The way I figured, Ralf could either be heaps early or heaps late and never on time. Ralf can sometimes shock you by bringing his ass over early and disrupting your orderly preparation. However, the more likely alternative would be for Ralf to turn up late and as it was 9:00 p.m., I placed all my odds against Ralf turning up on time.

Patience was no longer considered as I decided to give Ralf a call at home. “Hold on” he uttered knowing well enough he should have left, “I’m almost ready and when I am I’ll come over”. Rightfully, there was no trust in his words and as we hung up the phone I received a call from Shawn.

Shawn wasn’t happy with Ralf’s progression and as we both showed disdain to Ralf’s slow moving, he remarked “If Ralf doesn’t come in the next five minutes I’m not going out tonight”. Sounding fair enough, I could understand his point of view and not wanting to miss the first part of ‘The Mummy’. Despite my option of watching it at Campbelltown instead that didn’t seem very pliable to me either and neither of us wanted to head out to Parramatta Leagues Club later in the night.

Therefore, we knew mid into our conversation as the minutes rolled by that Ralf would be taking his undue time and our minds had been made out. Ralf’s prolonging irritations had gotten to the best of us and although we didn’t really want to sit at home for a Saturday night, it didn’t sound that bad to me considering I had plenty of chronology to write of.

Secret Plans With Shawn

However, as we hung up the phone I called Shawn back seconds later asking if he wanted to come over later in the night to play the Playstation. Sounding interested to my request he uttered that he would come over for a little while and as we hung up the phone, we allowed each other some time for Ralf to head over.

Shawn wanted me to give Ralf a call so that I could note the night had been called up due to his being late. Ralf had already left when I did call which meant he was marginally over time but still, there was no way we would make it to Liverpool in ten minutes.

Knowing Ralf, it would take that much time just to park the car with his continually spinning some bullshit about how his car would get stolen or his half-brained antics of reversing in and out ten times just to park the car precisely on a slight angle or missed-correction. Anticipating Ralf’s evident arrival, I gathered I would have to invite him in but I didn’t want to keep him over for too long as I had Shawn heading over soon after.

I guess that we were deciding to shroud our further plans with secrecy because we didn’t want Ralf getting upset or ruining our night further. I would have invited Ralf to stay over my house and play the Playstation but I knew that he would have been against it. Therefore, it would have been easier just not to say anything about our further plans than to note that Shawn was coming over soon and that Ralf could either go or stay, a bit harsh.

Ralf Turns Up At Last

Minutes after my final telephone conversation with Shawn I heard a car out the front and then a knock at the door. Being 9:30 p.m. I knew exactly who it would be and as I walked to the door to see a disappointed face who knew I would know what his expression meant, I opened the door for him. Granting myself some time for Ralf to gripe and grumble about his shortcomings I hoped that Shawn didn’t come over my house too early. That just would have made Ralf feel even worse, finding out we had secret plans thereafter.

“Man, I knew I shouldn’t have headed to Simon’s work to get my jacket” he griped. “If I hadn’t done that I would have had that extra time to get ready”. You could see the vain desperation in Ralf’s eyes to head out somewhere as he noted “I don’t want to sit at home and do nothing. I’m at the point now where I’ll just do anything”. Ralf lingered upon those thoughts, constantly repeating them to himself trying inadvertently to entice me into heading out. “Let’s just go for a drive anywhere” he appealed.

“Is there anything you want to do” he questioned and pondering upon that very thought, I was inclined to note, “I wouldn’t mind purchasing a new weekly train ticket”. In my mind, I weighed the possibility of buying my ticket and getting there on time with Ralf as opposed to the stronger possibility of putting up with Ralf’s procrastination and having Shawn head to an abandoned room downstairs. Figuring that I could rush Ralf as best as I could without sounding too intent on heading home, I was just going to knock back any offer Ralf made for the night.

The Scenic Route To The Station

Stepping into Ralf’s car and closing the door this was the last chance to step out of the car instead of being naïve to the fact that we would whip up to the station and then back to my house. Nevertheless, being a vital importance of my work week, I had to get my new train ticket and so I buckled up and we headed off.

You could tell that Ralf had something up his sleeve, some vain and desperate attempt to prolong the life of the night that he so needlessly churned to a halt. As our drive began I knew I was in for a stressful adventure as Ralf headed through the most irrefutably pointless passage in our bid to reach Macarthur Square. Driving past Bradbury shops, left on the roundabout and then passing the next two roundabouts to head up that long road to St.

Johns, it seemed so hollow in direction. Heading up St. Johns Road and finally getting onto the highway we drove left at the lights, past the big roundabout entrance to the hospital and then through Macarthur Square’s backside car park. The second leg of our route was more pliant but as Ralf parked his car on that one way street around the length of the bridge I had a fair walk ahead of me.

Ettamogah Pub Temptation

To lengthen such haste even more Ralf decided to jump out of the car and head to the station with me. This meant that I had to slow things down as we talked on the way to buy my ticket. On the way back to the car Ralf asked me if I wanted to just check out Ettamogah Pub for a couple of seconds but straight out, I uttered “Nah, we’ll just head over there to your car”. “Come on man” he pleaded, “It will only take a minute”.

Having heard this line before, I knew that Ralf’s minute would end up taking half an hour knowing that if I walked to the door he would inch me in further and further with his “Just a little longer”. Knowing I was on a mission to get back home I didn’t yield to Ralf’s request and as he tried once more in vain explaining that he was heading there anyway I remarked “Alright then, I’ll meet you back at the car”. Much to Ralf’s disappointment and continual coaxing I made my way to the car as we split directions.

A Car Chase For Show

Watching him walk his apish way towards Ettamogah I noticed him walk over to the window for a couple of seconds and then head back over the street. In this time I noticed a guy and a girl walking back to a car near where Ralf had parked. Having my DKNY look happening with the blue tinted glasses I must have looked out of place or as if I was going to vandalize a car so I put on a stumped act, just standing there with an attitude.

Silent and still, I peered over to them as they continued to walk to their car and glance at me, trying to figure out who I was or what I was doing. It must have looked weird, me standing with my stand-out clothes in the dark, in the wet and near a Commodore. Whilst this was all happening I looked over at Ralf with my programmed turning of the head.

Shaking my head as Ralf ran, stomping his big feet back to the car through the petrified mud I heard him yell out “Get in the car” as if like vandals, we were up to no good. Making no sense whatsoever I heard Ralf’s reason in which a car full of people called him a black something or other and drove up the street. Nodding my head in tiring disbelief at Ralf’s desperation to make something out of a needless night, his commanding of my jumping in the car was ignorant to his having the keys to a locked up car.

I didn’t care about his wild car chase or the fake anger that was looming inside his veins as I knew he only wanted to extend the night, make something out of it. Buckling up and sighing to the obvious prolonging of events I vainly asked if Ralf could drop me off home first before he drove off on a wild goose chase. “Nah” he hissed, “Wait until I get this out of the way” and as he started up his car and skidded off, I knew that it was all for show, for someone.

Having noticed the car that yelled abuse at Ralf when it did pass him I remembered it being a white Ute but one that would have been now long gone. Useless as our pursuit was, we headed towards Glen Alpine and to my continual disdain towards the situation in a calmed voice Ralf decided to give up the chase at the roundabout. “Turn around at this roundabout” I asked Ralf hoping we could get home quickly as we had only spent twenty minutes.

The Long Way Home

“Heading through Glen Alpine gets you there in the same time” he instructed and as we headed left on the roundabout and past the road where Naqi lost control, I knew I was in for another long and pointless ride. As Ralf told me that Ettamogah was having a private function I recalled how Sweeney’s was also having the same sort of deal. That however was the only solace for a pointless journey into a dead end street overlooking the back street of Jett’s old house in Englorie Park.

Finally realizing that he had gone the wrong way he made a correction in which we ended up heading out past Jett’s old house and to the roundabout where you can turn into Macarthur Square’s back entrance parking. If Ralf had just turned around like I had asked we would have been home already but he wanted to make it impossible for my patience. Ralf always takes the long way or the wrong way home and in his mind, it is always an ingenious conception. Anyway, as Ralf dropped me off home he noted that he was heading home and that was the last I saw of him for the night.