Reporter’s diary

Press, 12 February 1982, Page 2

Reporter’s diary

Victuals

ABOUT 600 guests, including the Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon), the Leader of the Opposition (Mr Rowling) and members of Parliament from both sides of the House, attended the New Zealand Wine Institute annual field day barbecue on Wednesday. It was held among the vineyards of the Balic Estate at Henderson. The throng feasted on 24 full carcases of lamb roasted over 10 tonnes of firewood. An 80kg load of potatoes and 25kg of peas also disappeared, along with about 20 dozen bottles of the host estate's wine. But politics is never far away, even in such a bucolic scene. Mr Muldoon and Mr Rowling were called to share the job of carving the first sizzling carcase of lamb. “Put the knife in.” someone advised. “That’s his party, not mine,” quipped the Prime Minister. Tricky ground PROGRESS takes a long,

long time to penetrate the corridors of some Government departments, it seems. At the New Zealand Institute of Engineers conference in Christchurch this week, a speaker from the Ministry of Works and Development, who for his own safety shall remain anonymous, began by saying “I have taken a simple approach because I was told there would be ladies present this evening

Australian kiwi IN SPITE of the world publicity generated by last year’s Springbok tour and our growing tourism traffic, some people still have much to learn about New Zealand. A recent food column in the “Washington Post” began: “About this time a hundred years ago a lady ancestor would have been anxiously examining the root cellar to see how the winter stores were holding out. Not for them the luxury of straw-

berries in February and the exotic fruit of the Australian kiwi . . .”

Tooth for tooth

A MAN convicted of abandoning four puppies in below zero cold at a dump has been sentenced by an American court to two nights with frozen garbage. The man, who was given a choice between two nights in the cold and paying a fine, opted for the first. Police will check to make sure he is at the dump from 5 p.m. to 5 a.m. on the two nights. If he does not serve his full time, he will have to pay the fine. Eccentric . . .

THERE is no doubt that the English breed a very good eccentric. The latest to surface is an Anglican curate named Peter Stell, of Lofthouse, Yorkshire. Mr Stell barks at his parishioners, like a dog. Sometimes he gets down on all fours and bites people’s ankles. Visitors

to his church are greeted with yaps and growls. He likes to bark under a table and watch in amusement as people look for a non-exis-tent dog. Mr Stell says he is “communicating.” Barking, he explains, is a way of breaking down barriers between people and the church. It is also useful if he meets an aggressive dog. . . . invasion ANOTHER English vicar is ringing his church bells every day to warn his city of an invasion by Space Invaders. Canon Don Lewis has decided on the noisy move as a protest against the Swansea City Council’s approval for a proposed amusement arcade in a shopping complex next door to his church. “Church bells have been used down the centuries for sounding warnings to the community of threats and invasions, and that is exactly what l am doing,” he said.