Free Davo's Little Something by Robert G. Barrett Page A

There was a general rumble of greetings in reply.
    â€˜And how was the big night out last night, Davo?’ said Kathy. ‘The new haircut have all the girls hanging off you like chokos did it?’ She pursed her lips and blew him a kiss. ‘You big spunk.’
    â€˜To tell you the truth groupie,’ replied Davo, trying to ignore Kathy’s sarcasm. ‘At one stage there it was almost a riot. I was knockin’ the rotten things back with a stick.’
    â€˜Yeah?’ came a deep growling voice from behind him. ‘Well listen, Casanova. See if you can knock over forty lambs by morning tea.’
    â€˜Do you mind if I get my gear on,’ said Davo, almost in a shout. ‘I mean I only just walked in the bloody door.’
    â€˜No, I don’t mind,’ chuckled the big, red-headed manager, glad that he’d managed to get a rise out of Davo so early in the day. ‘Take all the time you like. Just have those forty lambs done by smoko—that’s all.’
    â€˜Fair dinkum. Does it ever stop?’
    Davo sourly mumbled something else under his breath and opened the door of the cool room just as Len told the apprentice to go down the loading dock and take delivery of meat. While Davo was in there, changing the points on the running rails and figuring out which lambs he was going to do first, Eddie came in to get some rumps and loins that had to be boned out. Although Eddie was a happily married man and had lived in Sydney for over three years he was still a bit of a square headed country boy at heart and loved nothing better than a bit of supermarket scandal or to hear about Davo’s little escapades when he’d gone out on the run with Colin. He left the rumps and loins for a moment and edged up to Davo with a silly sort of smile on his face.
    â€˜So tell us, what happened last night, mate?’ he asked. In the cold still air of the cool room Davo could distinctly smell the obnoxious odour of stale beer and cigarettes on Eddie’s breath.
    â€˜Jesus Christ,’ he exclaimed, waving a hand in front of his face. ‘What have you been drinking. Phenyl?’
    Eddie’s smile turned into a stupid grin. ‘Ohh I finished up in the pub till nearly nine o’clock. I couldn’t scratch myself in the end,’ he said, shaking his head. ‘A man’s a nice idiot. Me missus nearly threw me out of the flat.’
    â€˜I don’t blame her. You smell like a blocked-up shithouse.’
    Eddie nodded sheepishly. ‘Yeah I know. Anyway, what happened to you?’
    â€˜Ahh, I had a prick of a night to tell you the truth.’
    Davo related to Eddie what had eventuated while he shunted some of the lambs out onto one rail.
    â€˜So,’ said Eddie, a bit nonplussed. ‘The sheila rubbished you eh?’
    â€˜Ohh, mate, she would have rubbished Roger bloody Moore if he’d have fronted her. She was just a twenty-four carat turd. I think Colin went alright though. I thought I saw a few snail tracks on the lounge this morning.’
    Eddie threw back his head and roared with laughter. ‘So are you still going to that Santana concert tonight with your hairdresser mate?’ he said, when he settled down a bit.
    â€˜Bloody oath, I can’t wait. In fact I would’ve taken a sickie today but.’ Davo put his hand on Eddie’s shoulder. ‘You know me I just couldn’t let my workmates down.’ Davo took his hand away and moved the points again. ‘Anyway, Eddie. Standing here talking shit to a hillbilly like you isn’t getting the work done. Is it?’
    â€˜Yeah,’ replied Eddie, cradling a rump and loin in his arms. ‘I s’pose you’re right.’
    Davo started running the lambs out of the room six at a time and began breaking them up on the band saw; by ten he had them all done except two. He decided to leave these until he came back from morning tea as the work, combined with his