I am not sure if you are familiar with white line fever? It refers to people who are quite ‘normal’ until they step onto a football field, into a ring or in any competitive situation. Then, their personality changes to crazy.
We have all seen it, some of us have done it, and just recently, I experienced the fever firsthand.
For regular readers, you would know that my wife, Old Mate, is a wildlife carer, and to be fair, a pretty good pet detective when it comes to helping folks track down lost pets, particularly birds.
The other morning, I overheard a phone conversation. It was a friend’s daughter who had a macaw land on her back verandah. Of course, she feared birds.
Unbeknownst to me, the white line fever was starting to kick in – Old Mate knew about this bird being missing. Like an idiot, I volunteered to go with her. After all, they are a big bird. She agreed.
As we were leaving and she was trying to figure out the address, our youngest son turned up and stupidly offered some advice on how to find it.
Well, he got shot down in flames.
It appeared that the white line fever had fully kicked in.
I decided to have a crack at her about the way she spoke to him. The result? I got asked if I wanted to get out of the car.
“Yes!”
The car came to a screeching halt, and I was told, in no uncertain terms, that if I got out, there would be repercussions.
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Nervously, I stayed seated, and we tensely arrived at our destination to find the bird on the back porch.
Macaws, as you may know, are the size of a small dog with the wingspan of an F18, a beak like you’ve never seen and feet like a human hand, only serrated.
This bird didn’t seem too interested in a crazed bird woman, but it seemed to like me. With an audience watching on, we managed to get it into a confined space. It was then my job to coax it into a carry crate.
Well, I had puncture marks all over my arms and a sore thumb, but the mission was complete. Thankfully, my wife turned back into her normal self immediately once the bird was safe. It had a happy ending.
She found the owner. I nearly lost half a thumb, but saved the day.
Ashley Robinson is chairman of the Sunshine Coast Falcons and Sunshine Coast Thunder Netball, and a lifetime Sunshine Coast resident.
