The Blue Flowers
Ben watched Jenny nod her head.
"Yes, I will come to see the blue flowers," she said.
Ben smiled. He had asked Jenny six times since the trip to the Surface Dome but she had always been busy. He lifted his hand to his ear. He liked rubbing his ear when he was happy.
"Oh, good," he said. "We will have time to see a lot of them."
They were at Jenny's home on Level Three. Her address was
Miss Jenny Adams
#624
APT 3-023
York Town
Perth City
West Australia
Australia
Earth
Ben lived nearby at #319 APT 3-035. His father worked in the local office of Pet Animals. His mother taught Maths to Middle school students in the school in her building. They had met at school but their families often went on outings together as his mother taught in the same school as Jenny's father.
Ben and Jenny rode their bicycles to the nearest elevator. They waited only a few minutes because it was not a busy time. The elevator took them and the bicycles down to level 6. They got out and rode to the Blue Flowers garden. This was always their favourite garden when they came with their parents. They liked the other gardens, but not as much as this one. Blue flowers were filling the air with their scent. They stretched as far as they could see to their left and to their right. They looked to the left, then to the right, then left again. They rode along a path between the flowerbeds. They stopped by a really good-looking bed of flowers.
"Smell this one, Ben," said Jenny.
Ben put his nose to the mass of bloom in front of him and sniffed.
"Yes, I like that," he said.
"I will get some for Mum," said Jenny.
"I had better get some for my Mum too," said Ben.
They rode to the flower sales shop. A large sign read
Bunches $4-50 each or two for $8.00
"I'll have a bunch of each of these, please," said Jenny.
"Give me the same, please," said Ben.
"That will cost you four dollars fifty each," said the shopkeeper.
"Can't we have the two bunches for eight dollars altogether," asked Ben.
"Yes, all right."
"Here you are," the children chimed together.
"Thank you. Your mothers will like those," said the shopkeeper.
"Yes, blue flowers are what they like best," said Jenny.
They put the flowers in the carriers on their bikes.
"Do you want an icecream?" asked Ben.
"I would love one," replied Jenny.
The icecream shop was beside the flower shop.
"Two double chocolate coated cones, please," said Ben.
A sign gave the prices. Double chocolate-coated cones were $1.80.
"That is three dollars sixty, please," said the girl serving them.
"Thank you," said Ben, handing her the money and taking the icecreams.
"Thank you," said the girl.
Ben and Jenny sat on the chairs in front of the icecream shop and watched the people looking at the flowers as they ate their icecreams. Some people were walking, some were on bicycles, and a few were weaving between everyone on their roller blades.
"I want a pair of those," said Jenny.
"Let's ask for those for Christmas," said Ben.
"Then we could learn how to use them together," said Jenny.
"And we could use them to get around instead of our bikes," said Ben.
"It would be easier getting in the lift, that's for sure," said Jenny.
"Yes. When I come home from my grandmothers in the afternoon I sometimes have to wait for a lift that isn't too full." Said Ben.
"Hey! What's that kid doing?" cried Jenny.
"The little monster is chopping the tops off all those flowers with his toy sword," cried Ben.
"Come on! We have to stop him." Cried Jenny.
They ran over to the nearest flower bed where a five year old boy was swinging his sword. He was knocking the tops off the flowers. Ben grabbed the sword as it was in mid swing.
"Stop that, you brat!" yelled Ben.
"Where is your mother, little boy?" asked Jenny.
"Mum!" cried the boy, running off to the nearby seats. His mother was having a rest. She had been talking with a friend and not watching her child in action.
"Come on. We'll take his sword and tell her what he has been doing." Said Jenny.
They walked over to the mother. She was patting the boy. He was crying.
"Don't let them hit me!" he cried to his mother.
"Did you hit John?" Asked the mother.
"No, we didn't. We took his sword. He was chopping the tops off the flowers." Said Jenny.
"John, you have been a bad boy," said his mother. "Tell the boy and girl you are sorry."
"I'm sorry," said John.
Ben handed John his sword. John took it with a bowed head.
"You must not do it again," said Jenny. "Other people like to enjoy the flowers."
"I'm sure he won't," said his mother.
"Thank you," said Jenny.
"Thank you for your help. It is good to see young people watching after things. I'm sorry I wasn't looking," said the mother.
"That's okay. Bye bye." Said Jenny.
"Goodbye.' Said the mother.
Ben and Jenny walked over to the shop to get their bicycles. After the excitement they were ready to go home.
"We can go home now. I am going to help Mum cook dinner," said Jenny.
"Good, I have some jobs to do too," said Ben. "I hope you aren't busy tomorrow. Can we go somewhere?"
"Yes," said Jenny. "I'm sure we won't see anyone doing anything wrong."
The Timber Workers
"What mark did Mr Moke give you?" asked Ben.
"I got an A," said Jenny. "What did you get?"
"I got an A too," said Ben, smiling broadly.
Ben showed Jenny his worksheet. He was pleased with his mark.
"Mr Moke was pleased with all of us," said Jenny.
"Yes, even Mandy stayed awake all day and answered all of the questions," said Ben.
"It was a bit scary when Rando tried to get out of the bus to go swimming, wasn't it?" said Jenny.
"Yes, but we all would have liked to be in the water at the beach wouldn't we? The waves looked just so good. Did you think they would look so good?" said Ben.
"No, they were beautiful, even better than at the beaches near Perth City. The trees were good because they were huge, not like the ones growing in the parks at home, but the waves were just so beautiful. How long did Mr Moke say it would be before we could go swimming in them?" said Jenny.
"He wasn't exactly sure, but he thought another hundred years, or perhaps two hundred," said Ben.
"Don't you just hate those people who thought blowing up other people with nuclear bombs was a good idea," said Jenny, with a cross look on her face.
'Yes," said Ben, "but my Uncle Scott has been swimming in them. Aunty Joan has too. But they don't care that it will kill them. They just say that they're old enough to enjoy life, and if it kills them a bit sooner that's too bad."
"Well, I don't want to die just yet," said Jenny.
"No, neither do I but they are both old and my cousins can look after themselves," said Ben.
Old to Ben meant anyone over twenty years old, but his aunt and uncle were in their fifties. They were timber workers in the lower south west of the continent, farther from the cities than the timber workers from the cities worked.
"Did Mr Moke take marks off Rando for trying to get out of the bus?" asked Jenny.
"No, but he said that he would have to be very good on the trip today or he wouldn't be allowed on any more trips," said Ben.
"Rando loves sport. Have you seen him skiing?" asked Jenny.
"Yes. I went skiing with him and his brother Kenny last month. He is very good. Kenny was just as good. I enjoyed myself but I'm not as good as they are. It was Kenny's birthday."
"How old is Kenny?" asked Jenny.
"He's fourteen. He was born in 2132. It was his birthday on September the fourteenth," said Ben.
"Aunty Lena says the York Town Sports Department staff have bets on how many hours they will stay there when they go skiing. One day they were there for five and a half hours," said Jenny.
"Yes, I can believe that. I ended up leaving them to it and going home. After three hours I was worn out," said Ben.
"Anyway, I am sure he will be good today. He wouldn't want to miss out on any of Mr Moke's trips. They are just so good and well organised," said Jenny.
The bus was rising up into the foothills. It was a long vehicle. The engine ran on hydrogen, as did the engines of all transport vehicles. It had three layers of metal skin to make sure the people in it were safe in case of an accident. Not that there was much chance of an accident. The few vehicles on the road all had computer controlled radar safety devices that made sure the driver had time to take action to avoid an accident. If he didn't, the bus computer did. The air filters made sure that the harmful radioactive dust in the air outside the bus didn't get in to affect the passengers. Emergency oxygen tanks could last fifteen hours with a bus full of people. This was more than enough time for a breakdown vehicle to rescue them.
It was October, and the wildflowers were out along the sides of the road. They could see kangaroo paws, smoke bush and catspaws through the windows. They knew all the flowers because they were grown in the gardens in their city. They looked better in amongst the trees and undergrowth. A kangaroo hopped across the road in front of the bus. Ben stood up for a better look. Jenny did too. Everyone stood up.
"I thought Mr Moke said all the animals had died," said Ben.
"No, he said most did," said Jenny, "and that there are a lot less now."
Ben pointed out the window at the flowers.
"Isn't the Blue Leschenaultia absolutely beautiful," said Ben. "I would love to be able to take a bunch of it home for Mum."
The sides of the road were a continuous line of blue flowers. A pretty light blue. It went on forever.
"This certainly is the best time of the year to be up here to see wildflowers," said Jenny.
"Yes," said Ben. "It's no wonder the State of Western Australia used to be called the Wildflower State."
"I hope we do get to go north next year to see the carpets of Everlastings," said Jenny.
"Yes, the photos we've seen of them look just beautiful. Can you imagine a carpet of flowers going for miles and miles and miles in all directions?" said Ben.
The units of length were metres and kilometres, but the old units of miles just sounded better than saying kilometres, ks or clicks.
"Look," said Jenny, "there's the town." Ben looked out the window.
Boddington came into view. The quarters to house the workers were closest to them. The timber mill was furthest away. Open worker transport vehicles moved along the roads. An occasional worker could be seen in his orange self-contained protective suit. Those returning from work were going into spray tunnels. The water washed off any dust that was on their suits. The dust was dangerous. It was radioactive. A lot less radioactive than right after the bombs had exploded but still a danger. When it got into your lungs it caused lung cancer. Timber workers were paid a lot of money. Accidents could happen, and they did. A lot of the timber workers were older people, who felt they had fewer years to lose if they had an accident and died.
The bus drove into the front of the Administration Building. High pressure jets of water washed off any dust that was on the bus. The outer doors opened and it passed into the entrance chamber. The outer doors closed and the inner ones opened. It drove forward and pulled up at the steps of the building. A guide got in the bus.
"Good morning. I'm Bill Dorn," he said.
"Good morning, Bill," said Mr Moke. "I'm Dan Moke, and this is my wife Molly. Do you want to say a few words to the children?"
"Good morning, children," said Bill. "I'm your guide for your trip to our town. I will take you into our demonstration hall to see what we do. Stay together as we go there. People are working and you should be quiet so you don't disturb them."
Bill got out of the bus. Mr and Mrs Moke and the children joined him. They then followed him through the building. They entered a large room set up to show them how the trees of the forest were selected, cut down, removed and transformed into timber. There was a model sawmill where they could press buttons to see the effect of each section of it on toy logs.
There were real logs. Some were not cut up at all. Others had been through the saws once. Still others showed what happened until there was just a stack of sawn timber.
Holographic images showed timber fellers at work chopping the trees down. These life size three-dimensional images were accompanied by the sounds of the men working.
The machines used in cutting down, hauling and sawing up the trees were on display. They had lots of labels on them to say how they worked. There were chain saws, axes, circular saws, band saws, bulldozers and trucks. The demonstration hall was a large place.
"Timber is very expensive," said Bill, "but people love things made from wood. While oil is used to make the plastic from which most things are made, everyone loves wooden furniture and objects. The Jarrah forests near Perth City are one of the reasons the city has grown so much. Around the world areas of good forest had decreased a lot before the war. As you know, the forests near Perth City and in all of Australia had been managed well and at the time of the war were amongst the best in the world."
Bill took them through the display and showed them it all. He answered their questions until eventually they were ready to leave.
"We have a shop here where you can buy souvenirs of your visit," said Bill. "We will go there now and then get on the bus."
At the shop Ben and Jenny drooled over the wooden chairs, cupboards, beds and other furniture in the shop. All the prices were much more than they could pay. However they did find some smaller objects they could afford.
"I'll have a jarrah ruler, please," said Ben. "How much is that?"
The sign said $4.50 but Ben hadn't noticed.
"That will be four dollars fifty, please," said the shop assistant.
"Thank you. What are you getting Jenny?" asked Ben.
"The Desk Mate looks good," said Jenny. "I think I'll get one for Mum."
It was a piece of jarrah wood with holes and slots to keep pens and pencils neat on your desk. The price on it said $12.40.
"Can I have a Desk Mate, please?" asked Jenny.
"Certainly. That will be twelve dollars forty, please," said the shop assistant.
"Here you are," said Jenny.
"Thank you. Do you want it wrapped?" asked the shop assistant. "We can gift wrap your purchases if you like."
"Yes, please," said Jenny.
The shop assistant wrapped the gift in pretty paper covered in pictures of trees and handed it to Jenny.
"There you go. Enjoy your visit," said the shop assistant.
"Thank you," said Jenny. "See you."
"Goodbye," said the shop assistant.
Mr Moke came along to see if they were ready to leave. They were. As everyone else was also ready, Bill Dorn took them back to the bus.
"You can ask any more questions you think of as we drive out to the logging site to see trees being cut down. You can drive out now, thanks driver," said Bill.
The bus left the Administration Building and drove through the town.
Along the road it passed trucks hauling logs to the sawmill. A bulldozer came into view. It was hauling a log to a ramp to push it onto a truck. Cameras clicked as the students stood up to take photographs.
The bus stopped along a narrow track through the forest. A man in an orange self-contained protective suit with a chain saw was waiting for them. He put on his earmuffs and started the saw. He made two cuts in one side of the tree. With his axe he knocked the wedge of wood out of the way. He now moved around to the other side of the tree and made a sloping cut above the wedge. When he was almost through there was a loud crack and the remaining wood snapped and the tree toppled away from him. It fell slowly at first and then with a rush, knocking branches off the trees in its path.
Everyone watched the man at work from the windows of the bus and cheered when the tree landed.
A bulldozer came clattering up as the man chopped the limbs off the trunk. It hitched up the log and started dragging it away. The bus followed the dragging tree for a distance until they reached the road to the sawmill that they then turned into.
The reached the sawmill and watched other logs being put through the saws by the men in their orange suits. They watched as large logs became lengths of timber. The boards were then stacked in the open to dry out. There were a great number of stacks.
They had seen the process to the end.
They dropped Bill Dorn back at the Administrative Building. The drive home was uneventful, with most of them sleeping.
The Moon Rises
"Wave everybody," called Jenny. "My cousin is watching on the videophone."
The Moon was just coming up. They had been looking at the stars and planets through the telescopes. The work sheets on those they had finished. They could now do the one on the Moon. However, they had to keep Jenny happy first and greet her cousin Ron, who lived on the Moon.
Mr Moke had set up a videophone camera so that Ron could see them and talk to them.
They all waved madly. Jenny had a huge grin on her face.
"Hello Ron," she said. "Let me introduce you to everyone."
So she sat each class member in turn in front of the camera and told her cousin about him or her. She started with Mr Moke of course. If Mr Moke had been the blushing sort he would have from all the praise Jenny heaped on him. The same applied to Mrs Moke, who came next. Jenny put the rest of the class in alphabetic order, so that Ben was about in the middle of the group. He did blush, but no one seemed to notice. Everyone was enjoying the night a lot. This was Mr Moke's gift to Ron in return for the Moon rocks.
"Have you finished with the telescope?" asked Ben.
"Yes, thanks," said Rando.
"Are you okay, Rando?" asked Ben.
"Yeah, I'm okay," said Rando.
"Are you in trouble with Mr Moke," said Ben.
"No, he just told me I had to be good for the rest of the time or I wouldn't be coming on another of these trips," said Rando.
"The ocean did look great, didn't it?" said Ben.
"It hurts me to remember just how good it looked," said Rando.
"It's no wonder Margaret River used to be world famous for surfing," said Ben.
"I've seen some of the old videos taken down there. It must be just great to surf," said Rando.
"My uncle goes surfing, but he is a Surface Dweller," said Ben.
"When I get old and have had my kids and they've grown up that's what I'm going to do," said Rando.
"Are any of your relatives Surface Dwellers?" asked Ben.
"None of them. They all play a lot of sport and take their health very seriously," said Rando.
"You didn't really think you could get out of the bus today, did you?' asked Ben.
"Of course not. It just made me so mad that we were cooped up in a tin box when the world was just so beautiful outside.
I wish the idiots who dropped those bombs were around for me to give them a good belting," said Rando.
Ben thought he had better change the subject. He asked Rando about the things he had to see on the Moon and soon the bus trip was forgotten. Rando was a very good student as well as being a good sportsman. On his picture of the Moon Ben marked North City. He could easily see it in the telescope. He added, "Where Ron lives" to his label.
"How big do you think the sign is?" asked Ben.
"No idea," said Rando, "but it must be huge for us to see something on the Moon that says 'North City'."
"It gets a lot of Earth athletes to visit the Moon to compete, particularly gymnasts," said Ben.
"Yes, Sport Town, North City, Moon, is famous for games," said Rando.
"Have any of your family gone there?" asked Ben.
All members of Rando's family were good at sport. Many had competed in the Australia Games, held annually at Sydney Town.
"No, I hope to be the first. It would be great to jump half a kilometre, said Rando.
The Moon pulled objects down with only one sixth the force of the Earth. A person weighing sixty kilograms on the Earth only weighed ten kilograms on the Moon.
"Can you imagine lifting a horse on your own?" said Ben.
"Earth people have a big advantage in the weight lifting events. Moon people don't have as much strength," said Rando.
"They certainly do well in the gymnastics though. They are born in the low gravity and they look really tremendous on television," said Ben.
"Wouldn't you like to meet that girl from South City? The one who does a dozen twists and turns when she flies up in the air. And she's only our age!" exclaimed Rando.
"Do you have anyone to stay with if you go to the Moon?" asked Ben.
"I have a cousin who works in the stadium in North City," said Rando.
"That place is huge, isn't it?" said Ben.
"If I do go, this is where I will be staying," said Rando.
Rando showed Ben the address of his cousin on the Moon. Ben read
Miss Emma Spark
#517
APT 1-915
Sport Town
North City
Moon
"She lives near the Stadium," said Rando.
"Does she get on television?" asked Ben.
The whole world watched the sports events in Sport Town. They were even broadcast on Mars and in the Asteroid Cities.
"No she doesn't. Her boyfriend does. He comments on the gymnastics. He has also interviewed many famous athletes," said Rando.
"What about swimmers? Has he talked with any of them?"
Ben was a keen swimmer. He followed the performances of the famous swimmers.
They could have swimming races on the Moon.
The water shortage had been overcome after water mining started in the Asteroid Belt.
"A few. He talks mainly with the athletes though," said Rando.
Ben added more labels to his picture. The other features were the craters and mountains on the Moon.
Ben finished the questions. They walked over to see how Jenny was getting on.
Rando was the last person to be put in front of the camera.
"I would like to see you if I get to the Moon to compete in Sport City, " said Rando.
"I'll be glad to show you around North City if you get here," said Ron.
Lunar view
"I will see where my cousin Ron lives!" cried Jenny.
"I don't have any relatives on the Moon," said Ben.
"I haven't met him." Said Jenny. "But we sometimes talk on the videophone and I know him quite well. He fixes people's televisions in his city. He still studies. He wants to be an engineer. He is studying with London University. He does very well. He will finish his studies in another two years."
Ben was glad Jenny's cousin was on the Moon. He was also glad he was twenty three years old. He thought Ron was an old man.
He changed the subject.
"When do we meet at the school to go to the Surface Dome?" he asked.
"Mr Moke said we were to be there at eight o'clock in the morning. He wants time to check that we all have all the stuff we need," said Jenny.
"Mr Moke is keen on space study, isn't he," said Ben.
"Yes, he loves it," said Jenny. "He got my cousin to send him some small rocks from the moon. He collects space things. He has a lot of tektites."
"Did he send your cousin anything?" asked Ben.
"Not yet. It costs a lot more to send things to the Moon. He is thinking he could get the InterFruit Company to deliver him some peaches. My cousin loves peaches and they grow them in North City, where he lives" replied Jenny.
"Have you sent anything to your cousin?" asked Ben.
"Most of the time I e-mail him. When I was little I did cut off some of my hair and sent it to him. Just in case he wasn't sure of the colour. Do you want to send him something? I have his address here," said Jenny.
"I'll write it down but I don't know if I could afford to send anything. I am usually short of money,' said Ben.
Ben wrote down the address in his notebook. This is what he wrote.
Jenny's cousin's address
Mr Ron Adams
#225
APT 9-053
Royal Town
North City
Moon
"Will I take my camera tomorrow?" asked Ben.
"Good idea," said Jenny. "We can leave mine here. Yours is better."
"Do you think we will go for a walk out of the Dome?" asked Ben.
"No way," said Jenny. "They charge too much to suit you up."
"What about in the bus?" asked Ben.
"Yes, we are doing that," said Jenny.
"Where are we going?" asked Ben.
"Tomorrow we are driving south to the Karri forest and the next day we go to see the timber workers cutting down trees," said Jenny.
"And tomorrow night we make sure that we can tell Mr Moke which star is Alpha Centauri and which planet is Saturn. We don't see the Moon until nine o'clock," said Ben.
"Yes, it is the best viewing night for a long time. There are four planets we can see. The telescopes are supposed to be very good," said Jenny.
"Have you told your cousin we will wave to him at nine o'clock?" asked Ben.
"Yes, I send him an e-mail several times a week," said Jenny.
"I'll see you in the morning, Jenny. Bye bye," said Ben.
"Bye bye, Ben," said Jenny
Ben woke up early and packed his bag for the trip to the Surface Dome. He made sure that he had his sweater in case the bus trips were cool. He put his camera in his bag. His pyjamas, shirt, socks and underclothes were all packed neatly in the bag. After he had cleaned his teeth he put in his toothbrush and a tube of toothpaste. He included a few comic books to read on the bus trip.
He was waiting when Jenny rang the doorbell. It was 7.25. He answered the door.
"Good morning, Jenny," he said.
"Good morning, Ben. Good morning, Mrs Kimton," said Jenny, greeting Ben and his mother, who had also come to the door.
"Good morning, Jenny," said Mrs Kimton.
"Ready to go?" asked Jenny.
"Yes, bye Mum," said Ben.
"Bye Mrs Kimton," said Jenny.
"Bye children. Enjoy your trip," said Mrs Kimton.
They walked to the school. Along the way they met other children also going on the trip. At the school they put their bags on their desks for Mr Moke to inspect. He checked they had all the items they needed and then everyone walked to the elevator to go to the surface. Everyone was talking. They didn't go to the surface often, and no one had stayed overnight there before. The elevator only had a few people in it and all thirty six of them were able to go up together. Mrs Moke was waiting at the surface. She had got there early to make sure the rooms for their stay were all set up. In the classroom they were going to use she had put a folder on each desk. The materials they needed for their studies were in the folder. The folder contained the following:
- A star chart for that night.
- A map to the Karri forest.
- A map of the area where the timber workers were to be seen.
- A picture of the Moon with the features they were to observe marked.
- Seven question sheets to be completed. They were on the Moon, the planets Saturn and Mars, the patterns of the stars, the trip to the Karri forest and the timber workers. The seventh was asking them about the trip. Mr Moke wanted to know what they thought of it.
"Here are your room keys," she said. "Take your bags to them, get your pens, and then come back here."
There was a rush as everyone got his or her key. Mr Moke had already told them the rooms they were to be in. They quickly went to their rooms and came back ready to write.
Mr Moke addressed them. "Now that you are all ready, a reminder that the bus trip to the Karri forest takes all day and you are to complete the question sheet on it today. I will collect it when the bus gets back here. There are questions on all the things that you will see. Don't go to sleep. Don't copy someone else's work. I want your thoughts, not their's. Any questions?"
There were none. Mr Moke had been preparing them for this for weeks. They collected their files and went to the bus. They knew the bus-seating plan. Ben sat beside Jenny. Mr and Mrs Moke sat at the front. The bus was in the Surface Dome. The driver reminded them of emergency procedures if anything went wrong. The bus was sealed from the outside air, as the dust was not safe to breathe.
The World of Down Under
Ben and Jenny live in the city of Down Under on Earth. It is underground. There are schools, shops, places to work and play and lots of places to eat the food they like best. Sometimes the people of Down Under visit Up Above, but generally they work and play in their own world. If they do visit Up Above they never go on their own, but always with at least one other person, and best of all, a big group of people. Up Above people like the many different types of food in their world, but Down Under people prefer their type of food best.
The people in Down Under sometimes go to see their friends in Moon Down Under. This is where Earth Down Under started. On the Moon all the people had to live under the ground. The surface was too bad. It had no air. They made big caves in the Moon. They were very long. The caves were so long that it took weeks to walk along all of them. Some caves had farms in them. Some caves had apartments in them. Shops and places to work were in between the apartments. People did not have to go far to get to work. The schools were near as well.
There are many Down Under cities on Earth. They are located in geologically stable areas of the Earth. The cities underground reflect the patterns of life the people had on the surface of the Earth before it became radioactive and it was safer to live underground. The surface still has people living on it. They have more mutations. They do not like obeying the many rules of Down Under living.