There’s a certain ritual to the end of a shift in a place like this. The bar stools are empty, the last glasses are scrubbed, and everyone gathers for that sacred moment—a knock-off drink to toast the day’s survival. Around here, it’s usually wine, but not the kind you’d find on a sommelier’s list. No, this is knock-off wine: cheap, cheerful, and poured over a handful of ice because it’s the only way to keep it from boiling in the glass.
Today was a scorcher. The kind of heat that makes the old timber walls of this pub creak and sweat, the air thick and slow like molasses. Customers came and went, the taps working overtime as pint after pint was poured to stave off the relentless Australian sun.
By the end of the shift, you’re half delirious from the heat and the endless hum of the crowd. But that first sip of wine, chilled and slightly diluted by the melting ice, cuts through it all—a small but vital reward for another day in the trenches.
The pub is quiet now, the day's chaos replaced by a low murmur of shared stories and laughter among the staff. The ice in my glass clinks softly as I lean back, savouring the cool relief. It’s been a hot one today in this old pub, but there’s something satisfying about enduring it together.
Here’s to the knock-off wine, the ice cubes, and the people who make the heat just a little more bearable.
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Thanks for rolling by! If this post fueled your van life or travel dreams, hit the like button, share it with your fellow wanderers, or shout a coffee to keep the wheels turning and the journey going! - Adam, Will and Wally.