I’d never been much of a drinker but suddenly we both seemed to be looking for the comfort of liquid courage and Amanda only asked if I had diet cok... to go with it. By the second trip to the Captain bottle we both decided to skip the mixer and drink the rum straight.I had a small kitchen in that apartment, kind of a galley sort of thing, really only big enough for one when I heard Amanda come up behind me as I was setting the bottle down. She’d done it quietly, but I knew the sound of my floor. I remember the shop on the corner,Where biscuits for pennies were soldDo you think I’m a bit too nostalgic?Or is it ... I’m just getting Old?Bathing was done in a wash tub,With plenty of rich foamy sudsBut the ironing seemed never endingAs Mum pressed everyone’s ‘duds’.I remember the slap on my backside,And the taste of soap if I sworeAnorexia and diets weren’t heard ofAnd we hadn’t much choice what we wore.Do you think that bruised our ego?Or our initiative was destroyed?We ate what was put on. The audience was firmly in Penny’s hand. There was no winning them fromher now. Penny had done magic, real magic, in front of them. He might aswell defy gravity.Penny stepped up next to Joe. “Thank you for coming out tonight, Ladiesand Gentlemen. Have a great night!” Penny waved and the audienceclapped.Joe turned to Penny. “What the fuck did you do?” he hissed.“Nothing. Hypnotism is fake, isn’t it?”“Fuck you, cunt.”“I don’t think you’ll be fucking women for a long time.” Penny smirked.“What did. The girls and I walked down the beach under the light of the full moon. They walked a few feet in front of me. We walked for about thirty minutes and had put a lot of sand between us and the condo. I decided that it was time to return and finally get a shower and go to bed.“Okay girls, let’s start back,” I said as I stopped.“Can we take a quick swim before turning back?” Christa asked.“A quick one,” I replied.The girls unbuttoned and unzipped their shorts, pushed them down their legs and ran.