Rubbish – Daniel 10

[For back story see lower numbers in archive]

Daniel was in a bit of a fix. Giving over his company’s app for Daisy to test was a very good move it had turned out, an excellent piece of work, but unfortunately, Daisy had now got a taste for this kind of thing and wanted to repeat the exercise on whatever gadget she could lay her hands on. 

“Can I play?” Was how she phrased it.

At first Daniel was fine with this, but when he discovered the iPad he’d given her was now locked and scrambled and required him to do a serious factory reboot, including the deletion and reinstatement of everything on it, he realised he needed a different strategy if he were to survive any more working weeks. 

“Can I play?”

So, Daniel sent away for and was in swift receipt of a new tablet, not so high spec, still full of potential and dedicated to downloading apps for his daughter which she could indeed play on. That lasted about a day. Not because Daisy had managed to scramble this one too, but because she discovered how to make videos and was now merrily filming tea parties of her soft toys whenever Sparkledom wasn’t on the TV and her dad wasn’t paying her enough attention. These films tended to last longer than the poor gadget's memory did.

Tea parties were followed by expeditions across the wide and varied terrain of the house in which she remained captive. One special and rather desperate occasion occurred when the soft toys discovered the Wet World (AKA bathroom) and found themselves somewhat unable to cope with the ferociousness of a storm whipped up between a full bath and an over enthusiastic power shower.

“Rain! Rain!” were the essence of the screams which alerted Daniel to the peril occurring and he swiftly found the door to this new world bolted, and since Daisy was too busy minimising casualties to unlock the door, he put his shoulder to it and broke the shiny bronze lock in order to save everyone and his own bathroom floor. 

Towelled up and warm on the sofa, Daniel wondered whether the small ball of explosive enthusiasm would appreciate some time away from him, maybe even with people of her own size, and maybe he could make this happen since things were beginning to get a little easier. And then later he admitted that he would certainly appreciate the time – work was beginning to make encouraging, and then more anxious noises about him actually going to meet clients (from afar, perhaps in the next few weeks) or at least talking to them in a concerted way, and he realised this couldn’t be done if there were unpredictable explorers in the house.

The daughter of his next door neighbour was in early years childcare, so he thought he’d start by asking whether there was a chance of anything like this happening for him.

The chat with Norman, head of the household next door did not go well. Daniel’s initial question as to whether he was right in thinking Norman’s daughter did indeed work with small children was met with a thousand yard stare. Or more accurately a stare of fifteen feet.

“How did that stuff get in your front garden?” asked Norman.

Daniel swivelled and took in his broken microwave, a dismembered dining room chair, a CD player with a CD jammed half way in and the bottom half of the shower screen (top half proving immovable even when smashed from half way down).

“I, er, I put it there,” said Daniel, with a slight smile. “We’ve had a few accidents over the past few weeks.”

“Anyone coming to pick it up?”

“Not yet – haven’t got round to finding anyone who –“

“Doubt if the council’ll touch it, eh? What with everything. Amazed they come for the bins to be straight with you.”

“Yes, their service has been remarkable throughout I think and now – look, you know I have a daughter? Six year old? Daisy is her name…”

“So you’ll get someone private then?”

“Private? For?”

“That,” Norman nodded towards the pile. “Bit of an eyesore. Rats too I dare say. Not that there are any around here but what with everything they’ll be looking for places like that. Jump off the rubbish lorry I dare say.”

“I’m, look, I just wondered if your daughter was around at all?”

“Can you get it shifted by next week? Only I’m hoping to have a party in our front garden. Small affair, you know – distancing and everything. Picnic probably if the weather lets us. My daughter’s coming over.”

“Ah, yes, your daughter – I was thinking if –“

“She’s just had a baby you know? We’ve not see it yet. Rushed off her feet she is.”

“I’m very pleased for her. Yes. That’s – just excellent.”

Norman was already turning back towards his house.

“Just get rid of that, would you?”

Daniel slumped back on the sofa. 

“Daisy?” He said. “How’d you like to come a meet some new people with me? It’d be fun but you must stay quiet.”

“Can Mr Sparklehat come too?” whispered Daisy. “It’ll be his adventurerer.”