Australia is struggling in the Second Test, with England 9-436 at stumps — a lead of 139 runs.
Fallen needle-like leaves from the palm, at the front of the house, became tightly entwined around the lawn-mower’s blade shaft. Sensing my frustration and annoyance, Tiki came to my aid with a sharp knife.
While Tiki painted the doors of a cupboard ‘Tusk Ivory’, I gave the walls of the bathroom their second coat of the same. We only just had enough paint to finish both jobs. Later, she dusted and placed clothes in draws.
In the afternoon, during the washing of our 1973 Chrysler ‘Galant’, we realised that water had entered the vehicle via a leaky, rubber seal in the rear door on the driver’s side. The only plus from today, thus far, has been the gloriously sunny weather, which delivered a maximum of eighteen degrees Celsius.
Tiki, from four o’clock, watched the picture, “Slaves Of Babylon” (1952), which features Richard Conte. Ninety minutes later, “Ask The Leyland Brothers” covers travelling across the Nullarbor Plain aboard the Indian-Pacific train, which traverses the longest straight length of railway line in the world; and the tranquillising of deer, from a helicopter, in New Zealand.
Channel Two’s edited replay of this afternoon’s clash between Canterbury-Bankstown and Manly-Warringah follows. Played at the former’s home ground, Belmore Oval, Canterbury held a slender advantage of three points to two at half-time. Although Manly moved to a lead of seven points to three, it was receiving little ball from the scrums and it was, therefore, of no surprise when the opposition prevailed by twelve points to seven. Today’s loss means that Manly-Warringah is now in fifth position on the competition’s ladder, with twenty points; three ahead of Canterbury-Bankstown.
Channel Two’s news is followed — as it has been for years — by “Weekend Magazine”, which includes an item on the train, ‘The Gulflander’, which runs between Normanton and Croydon in the far north of Queensland. “Test Cricket Highlights” came next, at half past the hour, but by eight I had turned the dial to Channel Nine and the latter half of “Hawaii Five-O”.
In Adelaide, the Australian ‘Socceroos’ defeated Hong Kong by three goals to nil in a preliminary match of the World Cup.
As we had been about to eat lunch I had enquired of Tiki, “Is this pumpkin butternut?”
“Kent”, she concisely replied.
“As in Clark?”, I volunteered.
“That’s right.”
“Does that mean that when I eat it, I’ll be able to fly and jump off tall buildings?”
“Yes. But before you do the latter let me know, so that I can have the garbage bin in position.”