Reporter's Diary

Press, 24 October 1980, Page 2

Reporter's Diary

No easy task IN TWIZEL, which is threatened with extinction, community spirit is starting to run strong again. According to a report in the latest issue of the “Twizel Chronicle,” 78 per cent of those eligible to vote did so on October 11 in the local-body election. “1980 will be recorded as having the highest percentage of voters .’taking, part in an election since the Twizel Community Council held its first election in 1972,” says an editorial in the “Chronicle.” Those 18 councillors, TwizeFs representative body for the--next three years, do not face an easy task, it continues’. “The future of Twizel, and Twizel as it

stands, will be part and parcel of the next two years work being taken on by these councillors, and every support and good wish go out to them.” Unsolved mystery A PHANTOM letter-steal-er is at work in the. Christ-, church ' City Council's pHhting and lettering department, a councillor- reports. Members of the City Council, with some of the council, staff, are issued with official car-sti-ckers to identify. them when they park their cars in the council parking building. But the car stickers are labelled “Official,” without the second “i”. Not long ago, another reader pointed out missing “1” in the city’s: “Lief field Street” sign. Where do they all go? Hello again INTERNATIONAL .. Hello • Day is here to stay* it

would appear. How much impact it has had in the past is arguable, but we have again had a letter from the organisers, Messrs Brian and Michael McCormack, of Omaha, in the United States, reminding us that November 21 is the day when everybody is supposed to say “hello”, to 10 persons they have never spoken to before. “World Hello Day is. anoccasion to celebrate both the fact that people can communicate and the-hope' that all men can. : be; friends,” ; the : McCormack ■ brothers , say;’What :about -, women? Can they be friends too? Hello, hello, hello • . » >=

Maternal pnde A COLLEGE , principal who has heard some good excuses'in her time from ‘ children and parents alike,. sdvs she was bowled over; this ; week. “We all know of parents whothink their offspring are doing marvellously well at school until they interview .the , teacher and learn the truth ‘■for the first time,” she writes. “But yesterday, I was- discussing r recent- ;

pupil in a telephone conversation with her mother. The mother was convinced that her;daughter had become disheartened when. she had been put down a stream earlier in the year.” The principal had explained to the mother that the girl had been “dragging her feet, was out of her depth, and was holding the rest of the class ;back, to mix a .few metaphors,”..she... . says. “But you just won’t believe, the mother’s Tetort? “We only, haye your j'wordj for that. She tells us she was’doing extremely well.”

Decimal postage A RECENT item about an envelope bearing a contemporary 14c stamp and a 3d stamp produced in' 1957 has prompted a reader to,, ask just bbw far 1 back one may .go when . using old postage.; stamps. The answer from the Post Office is simple. You may use any stamp that was issued -after decimal currency was introduced on July 10, 1967. So the 3d health stamp the Auckland •r

sending a letter to Christchurch must have slipped through the net unobserved. But before you rush off to dig .out all your old postage stamps to use them up, remember that some of them just might be worth something. Not all recent stamp issues are worthless, some unusual special issues are worth as much as $5 each.

Practical joker A TRAFFIC warden who gave a ticket to a vacuum. ; cleaner'left in a no-park-ing zone ih York, England, has been told to take his job more seriously. The warden, Mr George Goodiar, said the machine had four wheels and an engine and was clearly standing on double yellow, lines, and so'he gave it an obsolete parking ticket as a joke. He was reprimanded after a complaint had been filed. “I suppose if you book a vacuum cleaner, you -must expect to be carpeted.” he said. .. . X