I'd Like To Report A Theft

We returned to the car later than expected, but there was no doubt that our day of hiking in the Port Lincoln National Park had been successful. The sun was just beginning to dip into the Southern Ocean filling the evening skies with vibrant yellows, reds and oranges. We would have loved to stay and watch the entire show, but we knew we had over 20 kilometers of driving on an unsealed road to reach our campsite. 

Our hike had left us exhilarated, while at the same time exhausted. We considered a cuppa for the the road, but decided it wasn't worth taking the time heating the billy. Instead we decided to raid the bag of lollies--this would provide us with a burst of energy and the sucking action would help us focus on the road. I opened the glove box and pulled my treasured treats. As I peered into the small paper bag I was glad to see we still had a variety of candies to choose from. It was a hard decision but I decided to forego the toffees, creams, creamy mints, fruit jellies, and fizzes. Instead, I pulled out two hard candies. After all, I knew it would soon be time for a coldie and I didn't want to ruin my pallet.

Fortunately, the track we had to traverse was in good condition and we didn't encounter any 'roos or emus, and in less than 30 minutes we arrived at the campground. As promised, in the provided park literature, it was a bush campsite, and there were about a dozen spots to choose from. The only downside was that the place was a mess with garbage and broken glass strewn everywhere. There wasn't much we could do about the situation, so we decided to make the best of it. Besides, it was already cold and dark so we would be spending most of our time in the RAV4. 

After a few rounds of cards, and a simple supper of canned chile beans we decided to call it a night. We stashed our belongings in the front of the SUV--after years of living in bear country we  still can't get accustomed to leaving anything out. We crawled into the back of vehicle and it wasn't long before I was in a deep sleep. 

I had no idea how much time had elapsed when I was awakened by a rustling noise. I lay in the darkness focusing on the noise and when I was sure that there was something out there I poked Mark in the ribs and asked him if he left the trash outside. The response, as I knew it would be, was "no". When I told him about the rustling he said not to worry that it was just an animal in the bush. However, just moments later when he heard the noise that appeared to be coming from directly below us he decided to get out an investigate. With torch in hand he searched around and under the car. He couldn't see any animal or trash that could be making the noise. Eventually we decided it was an animal in the bush and the sound waves made it appear to be right below us since the rustling continued sporadically throughout the night. As we do with most bush sounds we pushed it aside and carried on with our slumber. 

We awoke early the next morning and quickly began to prepare to hit the road. I was in the process of transferring my bags from the front to the back of the vehicle when I noticed a piece of candy on the floor. When I picked it up I found that it was damp. I wasn't surprised since winter camping involves a lot of morning condensation in the vehicle. However, closer inspection of the fruit jelly revealed strange marks on the wrapper. I was a bit confused and wondered if I had dropped the candy the previous evening and the stepped on it. It didn't really matter how it happened, but I now had a problem since it meant that I would be one candy short (I buy all candies in pairs and they are evenly distributed at my discretion.) Hmmmmm,  I started to brainstorm solutions to my problem: I could always not report the situation and eat the other jelly on my own, I could try to pawn off the damaged candy or we could go halfers. I decided it was too early for such a hefty decision and decided to stash the evidence with the other lollies until later. 

You can imagine my surprise when I opened the glove box, pulled out the candy bag, and found it completely empty. I began to chuckle as I the events of the previous evening began to come together. I pictured our childhood treats being enjoyed by a small honey possum that snuck into the glove box via the car engine the night before!