Category: My Diary

It has been another delightfully fine day. This morning “Australia” defeated the Swedish yacht, “Sverige”, by fifty seconds after Alan Bond’s boat had trailed by a sizeable three minutes and fifty-four seconds at one stage.

At 6.00 p.m., on Channel Two, we watched the final edition in the series, “Wild, Wild World Of Animals”, which is about the elephant seals of the Argentine coast. At seven o’clock, “Willesee” has Paul Makin as its presenter. “The Muppet Show” followed, after which I retired to bed at half past eight. Tiki awakened me as she came to bed after having watched the British comedy, “The Admirable Crichton”. The film was produced in 1957 and includes Kenneth More, Diane Cilento, Sally Ann Howes and Cecil Parker among its cast.

England is 9-181 at stumps on the second day after play on the opening day was completely washed out. Australian paceman, Mick Malone, has the impressive figures of 5-53, in this his first appearance in a Test.

 

We awoke at 6.30 a.m. but, as Tiki felt tired, we lay in bed for a further two hours. “Mum” rang just as Tiki was entering the shower and I would like to think I entertained her, by talking about the actors Kenneth More, the late Gary Cooper and the late Walter “The Real McCoys” Brennan, until her daughter re-emerged. We agreed to meet her at ten o’clock, in Miranda Fair, on what was another gloriously sunny morning.

I immediately prepared to take my shower, but not before Tiki had warned me that should I not be out within ten minutes I would have a basin of cold water thrown over me. Whilst I complied with her instruction, I still had cold water thrown over me. Twice! Before she told me of how much she loved me.

Once we had returned home from shopping, I set out to walk to her parents’ via the drive-in at the Caringbah Inn where I purchased two bottles of Tooth’s KB — beer is supposed to assist in the lowering of one’s cholesterol — for one dollar and fifty-four cents. Tiki clipped her white poodle, “Fifi”, prior to her also giving me a haircut.

The news on Channel Seven, from half past five, was followed by “Seven’s Big League” at six, which featured the replay of this afternoon’s major preliminary semifinal between Eastern Suburbs and St. George. Eastern Suburbs played poorly, and to add to its woes Arthur Beetson was sent off, ten minutes after the break, because he had elbowed Ted Goodwin. Eastern Suburbs will now play the winner of tomorrow’s minor preliminary semifinal between Manly-Warringah and Balmain.

Veteran actor, Buddy Ebsen, tracks down a murderess — played by the British actress, Pamela Franklin — in this evening’s edition of the series, “Barnaby Jones”, from half past seven. “Mum” drove us home, at 8.30, along with two old chairs she had donated towards our kitchen table, together with the nice indoor plant that she had kindly bought for us today. Its leaves resemble those of a monstera deliciosa.

I watched Bob Willis and Mike Hendrick add thirty-three runs at The Oval before England’s first innings came to an end with the total on two hundred and fourteen. Craig Serjeant was trapped l.b.w. for a duck and Australia was 1-6 at lunch, and 1-11 at tea; after which there was to be no further play. Australia defeated South Korea by two goals to one, at the Showground, to keep alive its hopes of qualifying for soccer’s World Cup.

I arose and left the house to buy a copy of “The Sun-Herald” from the paperboy. It cost me fifteen cents. The day was to remain overcast, but there could be few complaints for it has been the first without copious amounts of sunshine in weeks.

This evening we watched the replay of this afternoon’s minor preliminary semifinal between the Balmain ‘Tigers’ and the Manly-Warringah ‘Sea Eagles’. The latter’s handling let it down badly and the team could have considered itself lucky  to have trailed by just five points to seven at half-time. Manly’s Terry Randall injured a knee and did not return to the field for the second half. Although a try by Lindsay Drake levelled the score at ten all, the star of the match, English five-eighth, David Topliss, kicked a cheeky field goal to snatch back the lead. From that point on, Balmain, with a glut of possession from the scrums, went on to win comfortably by twenty-three points to fifteen.

Lindsay Wagner portrays Jaime Sommers in the series, “The Bionic Woman”, from half past seven. An hour later, on Channel Nine, the film, “Stand Up And Be Counted”, which was produced in 1972, is screened. Jacqueline Bisset, Gary “Follow The Sun”/”The Lieutenant” Lockwood and Stella Stevens are among its cast.

Tiki informed me that on her parents’ first trip around Australia “Mum” developed such an aversion to having to leave their caravan of a night, in unfamiliar surroundings and go in search of caravan parks’ public amenities, that “Dad” devised the idea of purchasing a large funnel and more than a metre of hose. He drilled a hole in the floor of a cupboard, connected the hose to the funnel and poked the remainder of its length through the hole in the floor. Problem solved!

I signed a blank cheque so that Tiki could fill in the remainder of it when she purchased our new lawn-mower from Gillespie’s in Rockdale. “Dad” had noticed the store’s advertisement in the local paper last Saturday and had drawn our attention to it.

In the meantime I bought a weighty, grey crowbar from Nock and Kirby, in Miranda Fair, at a cost of nine dollars and fifty cents. I had already made the decision to carry it home and as I descended the pedestrian ramp an elderly gentleman commented, “That’s hard work, mate!”

He certainly wasn’t wrong! For after I had given the earth around the tree stump I intended to remove, about forty stout blows the sum of my progress was the creation of a blister on the lower section of my right thumb.

Having perused a repetition of the British series, “The Saint”, I turned the dial to Channel Ten and the local pop show, “Right On”. It is hosted by the young, buxom Kobe Steele. Today’s edition included footage of veteran rock star Cliff Richard singing “My Kinda Life”, from his current LP, ‘Every Face Tells A Story’. Kobe remarked on how ‘brilliant’ and ‘professional’ Cliff’s recent Australian concerts were this year. Smokie performed “Lay Back In The Arms Of Someone”, and The Electric Light Orchestra, “Telephone Line”: an outstanding sound, which is reminiscent of the 1960s.

“Dad” and Tiki arrived in his red ute, which contained our new Victa ‘Contessa’. It had cost us one hundred and sixty-nine dollars.

“Flashez”, another Australian pop show, hosted by the singer, Ray Burgess, airs for half an hour from half past five on the ABC-TV’s Channel Two. Today’s programme features the extremely popular local band, Sherbet, performing its current hit, “Magazine Madonna”.

James “Maverick” Garner appears as the private investigator, Jim Rockford, in the series, “The Rockford Files”, from half past seven. Swedish actress, Camilla Sparv is a guest star in this evening’s edition in which the task is to determine which statuettes of the cormorant are genuine. Jim Rockford’s home is that of a caravan at the beach.

Having washed the dishes, I decided to retire early at half past eight. Sydney’s maximum temperature reached a pleasantly mild twenty-two degrees Celsius.

“Australia” defeated “Sverige” by fifty seconds to take a commanding lead of three races to nil over her Swedish opponent. Meanwhile Australia’s team at cricket passed England’s first innings total, but tomorrow is the fifth and final day and a result appears to be out of the question. Its score at stumps sits on 6-226 of which David Hookes contributed 85 and Rod Marsh an unbeaten 53.

Having used the crowbar and a spade to remove the largest dead stump from beside our driveway, I watched “The Maggie Eckardt Hour” from ten past eleven and, at noon, “Keep Pace With Harriet”. Jill Perrryman was a guest on “The Mike Walsh Show”, which I attempted to view simultaneously.

Two pounds of veal stake cost me three dollars and thirty-two cents at Miranda Fair. I had retreated out of the heat and squally conditions by a quarter to three. In actual fact, Sydney’s maximum temperature reached 28.3 degrees Celsius, which means it has been the city’s warmest day in August since 1954.

In spite of me having recollections of this afternoon’s programme of “The Saint”, I watched it again, anyway. At four o’clock, I turned the knob to Channel Ten to view the pop show, “Right On”, which has Kobe Steele as its hostess.

Tiki is fed up with her job and wants to leave it. We drove in to town where a cappuccino in the Hoyts Cinema Centre cost us fifty cents each. We were there to see “The Deep”, which stars Robert Shaw, Jacqueline Bisset and Nick Nolte. Prior to intermission, two short films were screened. “The Tennis Lesson” contains the simulation of sex between a woman and a machine, ‘The Prince’, that projects the balls. The other reviews this year’s “City To Surf” footrace which was sponsored by Sydney’s “The Sun” newspaper. Fifteen thousand competitors faced the starter.

Tiki is in a much better frame of mind, having thoroughly enjoyed “The Deep”. It pleased me, too, although I declared its finale to be an improbable one.

 

The Fifth and final Test, which was played at The Oval, ended in a predictable draw with England being 2-57 at the close of play. Australia had been dismissed in its first innings for 385 of which Max “Tangles” Walker, who is much more renowned for his ability with the ball in hand, having contributed an unbeaten 78, in this his last appearance in an official Test. This tally had given Australia a lead of 171 runs.

In the America’s Cup, Alan Bond’s yacht, “Australia”, wrapped up the foreign challengers’ final, 4-0, when she defeated the Swedish contender, “Sverige”, by the huge margin of thirteen minutes and nineteen seconds.

From noon, on this miserable overcast day, I alternated my viewing between “Keep Pace With Harriet”, on Channel Ten, and “The Mike Walsh Show”, which was hosted this afternoon by Sue Smith. The latter show featured a ‘Puppy-Pooper-Picker-Upper’: a cylindrical device for picking up dogs’ droppings from footpaths and the like. Philip Brady, who was playing for a home viewer, then defeated the actress, Joanna Lockwood, in a quiz which was based on the subject of show business.

It had begun to rain again by half past one and so I watched “Jeanne’s Little Show”, which featured the zany Jeanne Little riding on public buses as she impersonated a conductress. She gave out apples to passengers who were deemed to be sitting in ‘lucky’ seats, and attempted to sell a ticket to a policeman when, by law, they are permitted to travel free of charge.

The British series, “Billy Liar”, followed one hour later, on Channel Seven, before “The Saint”, which stars Roger Moore as Simon Templar, screened from three o’clock. “Right On” was viewed from four.

I walked to Miranda to buy the newspaper and, in so doing, covered my four hundred and seventh mile. “Flashez” was followed at six by “Country Road”, a new programme which actually aired for the first time yesterday.

A programme by Jacques Cousteau, “The Coral Divers Of Corsica”, followed “Willesee” at half past seven. I washed the dishes and, at half past eight, began watching “The Forbin Project”, that bears the copyright of 1969. Starring Susan Clark, it is about a computer named ‘Colossus’ that becomes uncontrollable. I began to doze off, hence at half past nine it was decided that I should put out the garbage bin and retire to bed, thereby leaving Tiki to view the remainder of the movie.

Once the bitter cold had eased on this fine day we spent some time in the backyard. Suddenly, Tiki exclaimed, “Oh, look at the two parrots in the branches! See how one is brightly coloured? That’s the male. The male is brighter than the female.”

To which I replied, ‘I’d like to get you stating that on tape.’

“Get what on tape?”

‘You stating that the male is brighter than the female!’

Perhaps not! For this afternoon I bought a litre of Berger’s ‘Ceiling White’ at a hardware store in Cremorne for $3.90. That is almost a dollar more than I recently paid for the same amount at Green’s Hardware, in Caringbah.

We dined at K’s Snapper Inn, in Manly. Tiki had calamari as an entree, while I ordered the fried Tasmanian scallops. Both were priced at $2.50. As a main course we respectively ordered grilled bream fillets ($4.20) and a prawn salad ($6.00). I had the pavlova for dessert and Tiki, the banana fritters. Four glasses of orange juice, one cup of tea and one cappuccino later and the entire bill came to twenty dollars.

Our only possible gripe was that Tiki’s main course had arrived before she had finished eating her entree.

Briton Virginia Wade defeated Betty Stove of The Netherlands, in the early hours of this morning, to claim the Ladies’ Centenary Singles crown at Wimbledon. Virginia — despite having won the corresponding event at the U.S. Open, in 1968, and that of the Australian Open, in 1972 — was considered to have been by far the outsider of the pair to win the title. Virginia Wade recovered from having lost the first set by 4-6 to take the next two: 6-3, 6-1. Virginia is only a week shy of her thirty-second birthday.

We called at Rayworths, which is located opposite Miranda Railway Station, to price the Slumberland ‘Gold Seal’ mattress. The fast talker, who served us, tried to talk us out of buying one and settle (no pun intended), instead, for a cheaper variety, the Sealy ‘Flex-o-Firm’. We laid upon a number of different makes and styles. The salesman also told us that one should never buy fitted sheets, for the bottom sheet is always on the bottom and, therefore, they do not last for as long as conventional sheets.

Whilst in Miranda, we did buy a new (paint) roller cover as well as a Sabco roller. The former cost $3.80 and the latter, two dollars and seventy cents.

“Maybe Mahal”, ridden by Roy Higgins — whose nickname is ‘The Professor’ — and “Romantic Dream”, ridden by Darby McCarthy, finished first and second respectively in the Doomben Ten Thousand, which was run at Brisbane’s Doomben Racecourse, at 3.00 p.m. The result meant that trainer, J.B. (Bart) Cummings, made the event his own personal triumph for both the winner and the runner-up ran under his livery. “Maybe Mahal” started at the odds of 8/1.

It is now 5.00 p.m. and a nice sunny day has given way to the cold. “Jeopardy” and “It’s Academic” fill in the hour before six o’clock. Both quiz programmes are on Channel Seven and compered by Andrew Harwood. Teams, consisting of school children, compete against one another and for the honour of representing their respective schools successfully.

The “Barry Manilow Special” airs from half past six. It includes Barry performing his hits “I Write The Songs” and “Mandy”. The latter had previously been a hit for Scott English, in 1972, only then it was entitled “Brandy”. We watched another programme of the series, “Baa Baa Black Sheep”, on Channel Nine, from half past seven, and, an hour later turned to Channel Two to view another edition of the perennial investigative series, “4 Corners”, currently presented by the slender Caroline Jones. This evening’s programme focuses upon the politician, Don Chipp. The series first appeared in 1961.

Bjorn Borg of Sweden defeated the American left-hander, Jimmy Connors, in five sets overnight to win his second successive final in the men’s singles at Wimbledon. The score reads: 3-6, 6-2, 6-1, 5-7, 6-4.

It was a delightfully sunny morning, but only six degrees Celsius, when we awoke at half past seven. A female Old English sheepdog, with its fur clipped, and a black, woolly Alsatian, followed Tiki and I as we walked to our new house. Having failed to gain entry, the pair waited outside for about an hour before they disappeared.

We combined to give the walls of the kitchen their second and final coat of ‘Tusk Ivory’ and then I covered the white undercoat on those in the bathroom with a first coat of the same. I left to walk ‘home’ at half past twelve, which meant it was my first afternoon off in, perhaps, the last four weekends. I found Tiki to be watching “The Iron Glove”, a film that was produced in 1954. It is set in England, in the eighteenth century, and features Robert “The Untouchables” Stack.

A motion picture, “Three Worlds Of Gulliver”, from 1960, screened from half past three and, at half past five, a new series of “Ask The Leyland Brothers” commenced: John Palotta’s ‘Tudor Court’ at Sandy Bay, in Hobart; and The Snowy Mountain Scheme — built between 1949 and 1974 — which includes a visit to the Berembed Weir, where my sister and I used to be taken as children, are featured.

“Seven’s Big League”, from half past six, covered this afternoon’s clash which was played at Cumberland Oval. I had heeded Tiki’s advice and not listened to hear the score earlier, therefore, it was tantamount to watching the match live. It proved to be an exciting and bruising encounter. The Parramatta ‘Eels’ led by six points to two at half-time, however, Manly-Warringah rallied to just scrape home by thirteen points to eleven. I had overfilled my glass of peach and mango juice in the doorway to the kitchen as I had attempted to watch the screen and pour simultaneously. Fortunately, Tiki took the incident fairly well.

The British film, “Carry On Up The Jungle”, from 1970, followed the latter half of “Hawaii Five-O”. It stars the late Sid “Hancock’s Half Hour”/”Bless This House” James, Frankie Howerd and Terry Scott, as Tarzan.

“Mum” had called in briefly, in the early afternoon, to check on our progress. She took one look at the nicely finished ‘traymobile’, that we’d given a home to after it had been placed on someone’s nature strip, and informed us that it was, in fact, a baby’s changing table. We had been puzzled as to why it only possessed wheels at one end.

Tiki plans to use it to hold her many potted plants.

 

We awoke, at half past six, to an extremely cold temperature of five degrees Celsius. As we drove to work we became convinced that we each need to buy a pair of gloves.

Four jewfish cutlets cost us three dollars and fifty-seven cents. As Tiki cooked them, I watched a repetition from Bill Peach’s series, “Holiday”, which transports the viewer to the New Hebrides before embarking on a journey across southern Australia on the Indian-Pacific Railway and, finally, goes on a tour to Melbourne, which includes a day at Flemington Racecourse to witness the running of the Melbourne Cup.

Being totally predictable, we watched “Willesee” and “The Dick Emery Show” prior to reverting to Channel Two, at eight o’clock, to watch ‘Barrow Island: The Key To Survival (Part 2)’ from the series, “In The Wild” with Harry Butler. Harry, whilst being a rustic adventurer, is also a passionate conservationist.

In turn we reverted to Channel Seven, at half past eight, to watch the third instalment of “Captain And Kings”, which stars Richard Jordan, Barbara Parkins and Vic “Combat” Morrow. Produced last year, this mini-series traces the rise to wealth of an Irish immigrant in the United States of the late eighteen hundreds.