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It is a typical morning in the Black Caps office. Stuffed wallabies and kangaroos hang from the walls. Brendon McCullum (Macca) is reading notes on his treadmill, coffee in one hand and 45kg dumbell in the other. Martin Guptill sits at his desk studying notes.

MACCA: Morning Guppy, first in again?

GUPPY: As always, but not for long. Got a 10’o’clock.

The office door swings open and a cheesy grin appears.

DAVEY WARNER: HEY, C%CKHEADS!

Macca attempts to thwack Warner across the head with his office chair.

DAVEY WARNER: Ha! Messed!

Macca picks up Warner with one finger and hurls him out of the window without spilling a drop.

MACCA: Damn Ockers.

Macca sits down, pats his pet Komodo dragon and unscrews the top of his power shake. He skulls the contents and crushes the bottle with his forehead.

MACCA: Now don’t forget, we’ve got that presentation with Mitchell Starc today.

The office goes quiet. Macca looks at the rest of the Black Caps who have arrived on masse.

MACCA: So?

GRANT ELLIOTT: Um, I’m, I’ve got to be somewhere.

ROSS TAYLOR: My grandma died.

ADAM MILNE: I think, yeah, my grandma’s dy-ing.

Grant, Ross and Adam flee. Three cars start up and speed off.

Tim Southee appears from the kitchen with two semi-naked broads hanging off him. Macca holds up the presentation notes.

TIM: Come off it, Macca! I’ve done heaps lately. Plus, you know, got my hands full.

The girls laugh and nuzzle Southee’s neck.

A tornado of canary yellow enters the office. It is Pat Cummins and he looks pissed.

PAT CUMMINS: Change of plan. I’m Mitch today and I do things different. Arm wrestle to see who wins this deal.

Macca rolls his sleeves up.

MACCA: Game on.

PAT CUMMINS: Not you, him.

Him is the mild-mannered, bearded man in the beige cardigan by the photocopier.

A bogan appears, clinging to the office window.

DAVEY WARNER: You got no chance, P*SSY!

Macca slams the window on Warner’s hand, then pulls it up just enough. Warner falls to the ground below and crushes Mitchell Johnson’s mobile tattoo parlour.

Kane Williamson sits opposite Pat Cummins.

KANE: Can I get you a cup of tea?

PAT CUMMINS: Get on with it, WIMP.

KANE: What about a biscuit?

Pat grabs Kane’s right arm and forces it inches from the desktop. Kane smiles and reciprocates. The desk is split into two. Pat writhes in pain.  A broken wrist and sweaty underarms.

KANE: Thank you for the opportunity. I think you did very well.

PAT CUMMINS: Sheep shagging hobbit.

Kane digs into his work bag and pulls out a can of Rexona.

KANE: Maybe use this next time?

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I left my wedding ring in a cab.

It wasn’t even my wedding night, just a few beers with the boys.

I have this terrible habit of fiddling with my ring. If I’m standing on a boat I wonder, what would happen if it fell in there? On decks I often look at gaps between the planks and think the same.

This particular night my mates and I were in a Corporate Cab in Auckland driven by Ali. Around midnight we arrived at my house, during which time I’d fiddled once again and my ring sprung into the air and rolled somewhere.

At the time I laughed. But secretly I was thinking, my ring is not on my finger and my other fingers can’t locate it. Moments later four grown men lifted seats and shone iPhone torches. Brown, you dick. How could did you do that?

Yes, yes, I know.

I figured the ring wasn’t at the bottom the ocean or beneath a deck, so waved the boys on. My fate now lay with Ali and a mobile number on a business card.

I got up at 7am. Ali got up at 4pm. Long day.

Text – 4.14pm: Wat sort of ring is it?

I described it.

Text 4.21pm: Yes mate, I got it

The next day Ali from Corporate Cabs dropped the ring off to my house free of charge.

Text: It’s al gud u don’t need to pay.

Legend.

People make up stories all the time. Bob Dylan made up his own back story by creating an identity his record company would run with. Steve Jobs went out with Dylan’s ex, so he could say he went out with Dylan’s ex.

The obvious stories are found in movies, songs, books, but they can be found anywhere. Everywhere.

My kids were selling Rainbow loom bracelets on the street outside our house and a lady turned up with a yappy dog. I recognised the dog as the little bastard who barks all night, every night. The lady bought three looms from my daughters, two for herself and one for her mother who is in a rest home. I looked at the dog and inwardly snarled. As we walked back to the house my daughter said, ‘Isn’t it sad her mum is in a rest home?’

We want details, we want to know how to have a better life, we want to learn. Stories give us that. They have power. It’s not even that hard. Live an interesting life and you can write your own script.