Reporter’s diary .

Press, 22 October 1981, Page 2

Reporter’s diary .

Two bs? Not two bs CANTER URY Public Library reads the marble lettering above the main entrance to that new buiding, on the corner of Oxford Terrace and Gloucester Street. Why are the two bs missing? “I ordered it,” said the architect. He explained that he has had the letters removed after the sign was put in place for the first time. Each letter was incised into its own marble but the library “b” went where the Canterbury “b” should have gone.- It may sound insignificant, but the preceding letters of the words are always taken into account in such matters to make . the spacing even. The letters are being remade arid will be in place soon.

A COOL customer STAN ' WHITFORD. „ a Christchurch member of the 1981 winter-over team at Scott Base, is a tiger for

punishment. He is due home next week after more than a year in the Antarctic. But instead of putting his feet up and relishing warmer climes for a few years, he plans to return south in January to board a United States icebreaker which will drop him off at his home for next winter, the inhospitable Campbell Island. . Hyperventilation ? AN EXPLOSIVE subject at a recent Ellesmere County Council meeting was the ventilation at the Leeston Community Centre. Councillors discussed buying a fan to, improve ventilation for senior citizens using the centre. But the county chairman, Mr W. E. Walker, was not impressed with jhe prob-lem-plagued centre at all. “The biggest mistake we made was when we put a roof on it, we. should have put a bomb under it,” he said.

Compu-chic

WHILE office employees drag, mailbag loads of entries for the “Press” fashion contest up the front stairs, the sorting of entries continues inside. One of the most unusual has been sent in by a programmed computer. While most contestants slaved over the crosswordtype, game for hours to unjumble the names of fashion houses, the computer took just three minutes, a source close to its owner said. It took, half an hour to programme the computer, and we suppose that’s where the real accuracy had to come in. However it appears that new rules will be devised to protect humans. It’s no good having a computer win the wardrobe. That would be ridiculous .' .and here’s Xenon Model 3114 with-digi-tal word processor, wrapped in crene-de-chine in aquamarine blue, with matching trim (and tapes) . . .”

Quick to adapt

A TOUR coach driver fron Nelson, Mr, Kevin Fifield, was stunned when he stopped the vehicle in front of the Kings Motor Hotel in Greymouth, earlier in the week. Placed on the footpath was a large blackboard inscribed “Happy birthday, Kevin.” It was his birthday. “How did they find out?” he wondered, but even more perplexing was the speed with which his 44 overseas passengers picked up a New Zealand custom — the birthday shout. “OK, guys?” THE OFFICIAL press release went like the following: “Security reasons have ruled out President Reagan’s attendance at the Cairo funeral of Mr Sadat, but he has asked former Presidents Carter, Ford and Nixon to join the United States delegation . . .”