Flat-footed people or redheads are considered bad luck when starting a boating or fishing trip (speak to them to break the jinx)

Liam and Oscar are standing near a small jetty in coastal Queensland, loading their gear into a tinny for an early morning fishing trip.

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Oscar:
Hold up, mate—don’t start the motor yet. I need to talk to Maddie before we head out.

Liam:
…Maddie? Why? She’s just walking her dog.

Oscar:
She’s a redhead, obviously. You can’t start a fishing trip without talking to a redhead. Bad luck. We’ll catch nothing but seaweed.

Liam:
Oscar… you do realise we’ve got a fish finder, a tide chart, and perfect weather? I reckon that beats any hair-colour superstition.

Oscar:
That’s what you said last time, and we caught nothing. Remember? Absolutely nothing. Meanwhile, that bloke on the next boat who spoke to his ginger neighbour came back with two esky-loads of flathead.

Liam:
Coincidence! Not cosmic ginger magic. Maybe he had a better fishing spot. Maybe he used better bait. Maybe his fish finder wasn’t glitching like ours was.

Oscar:
Yeah, but what about the time you brought your friend Aaron—Mr. Flat Feet himself—and we couldn’t even get the motor started? Flat-footed people are bad luck on boats. Everyone knows that!

Liam:
Oscar, the outboard didn’t start because you forgot to pump the primer bulb. Not because Aaron’s feet have less arch support than yours.

Oscar:
Still. Why risk it? Tradition exists for a reason.

Liam:
Most traditions exist because someone once tried to explain bad luck with whatever random thing they saw at the time. If someone had a flat-footed neighbour standing on the jetty while their boat sank, boom—instant superstition. Doesn’t mean the neighbour caused it.

Oscar:
Alright, Mr. Science. Explain why every time I see a redhead on the jetty, I feel nervous.

Liam:
Because the superstition itself plants fear in your brain, not the person. It’s like how people think opening umbrellas indoors is bad luck. Do you know what actually happens? Nothing. Except you poke someone’s eye out if you’re clumsy.

Oscar:
Okay but explain the flat-foot thing. Why flat feet?

Liam:
Because fishermen used to think flat footprints meant the person didn’t walk like a sailor, so they didn’t trust them. Superstition evolved from suspicion. Zero evidence. Absolute nonsense. Like blaming cloudy water on Mars being in retrograde.

Oscar:
Well… fine. But it only takes a second to say hi to Maddie. Break the jinx. Easy.

Liam:
Mate, just because it’s easy doesn’t make it true. If Maddie’s hair were brown, would you still need her to bless the boat?

Oscar:
Obviously not. Brown hair doesn’t have powers.

Liam:
But red hair does?

Oscar:
Historically, yes! Sailors believed redheads could jinx voyages unless spoken to. It’s respect! Like a courtesy “Good morning, please don’t curse my boat.”

Liam:
Oscar, she’s a Pilates instructor walking a Cavoodle. She’s not going to hex your tinny.

Oscar:
You don’t know that.

Liam:
I’m pretty confident.

(Maddie waves at them as she walks past.)

Maddie:
Morning boys! Hope you catch something good today!

Oscar (relieved):
See? SEE? She blessed the trip. We’re good now. Start the motor.

Liam:
She literally just said hello. That’s called being polite, not mystical fish-summoning.

Oscar:
Same result though. Now we’re safe. Watch—we’ll have a brilliant day.

Liam:
If we do, it’ll be because we checked the tides and didn’t forget the bait. Not because Maddie’s hair colour appeased the ocean spirits.

Oscar:
Agree to disagree. But if we pull up a massive barramundi later, I’m crediting Maddie.

Liam:
Fine. But if we catch nothing, I’m blaming your superstition for distracting me.

Oscar:
Deal. Now let’s get out there before someone flat-footed walks by and spoils everything.

Liam:
Oscar, for the last time—STOP LOOKING AT PEOPLE’S FEET.