INSIDE & OUT

with Uncle Wal

We can reveal for the first time how a Hamilton woman, Sue Wright, accidentally discovered a way to eradicate that scourge of all gardeners ... oxalis. Intrigued by local advertising for the spray, we rang Sue Wright who told us: "It was a mistake in the kitchen. My mother began mixing a cake but the ingredient mix wasn't right. Before any flour was added I threw the mixture on to the rose garden ... and the oxalis died" It has taken her three years to develop the non toxic spray (which is made in the same kitchen). Sue Wright's other occupation is farming composting worms.

The organisation upgrading water mains in Gisborne streets sent out a warning notice of a shutdown. It said the water would be off for approximately two hours a from 10 am to 1 pm. (An interesting equation) However, as things turned out the shutdown lasted two and a half hours so perhaps the note-writer was taking a punt both ways.

That Latino-looking beauty with piercing dark eyes who stares from the advertisements for the Miss Eastland contest has intrigued many Herald readers. But organiser Stuart Dwight cannot give us a clue to her name or background. Her picture was one of many in a portfolio available to the organisation for publicity. Herald staffer Tina Karaitiana chose "Miss Dark Eyes" for the ad.

Dumb heading of the month : This on the cover of a magazine from Oz, published with a picture of Sandra Edge : "Revealed... Netball star's shock decision." Inside an article about Sandra's marriage and retirement from international netball, she is quoted as saying, "Now I'd like to have a family and spend more time with friends." Shock?

The repeat on TV of the "Heartland" series gave us a second opportunity to appreciate the talent of Gary McCormick, with his genuine warmth and sense of humour. He blended with ease into communities from the far north to the deep south. Uncle Wal wonders why the producers chose to replace him in some of the segments with presenters of lesser quality.

Hands up who would like to hear our own Dame Kiri Te Kanawa to grace, with her presence and voice, an outdoor concert in Gisborne. We can understand that Dame Kiri has been singing outdoors in more populous areas than ours. But how about Eastland on New Year's Eve, 1999? With Kiri having been born and raised in Gisborne it would surely be a deeply moving experience for her as well as for the audience.

Some of the letters to newspapers about the impending visit of the Endeavour replica took an unfortunately aggressive stance... either anti Pakeha or anti Maori. Fortunately much of the acrimony subsided when the vessel arrived. If you want to read an objective and scholarly account of events surrounding Cook's arrival we recommend J.A. McKay's "Historic Poverty Bay", available at the Museum or Library.

A centuries-old term associated with cider has been turned to profit by Gisborne's Harvest Wine Company. In south-west England "scrumpy" once meant dry, farm cider. More recently it has been applied to qualify cider with high alcoholic content, obtained from particularly ripe apples. Harvest's Scrumpy, marketed in stubbies, has an alcoholic rating of 8.2 compared with 5.0 for normal cider. After introducing it, Harvest had to work round-the-clock shifts, seven days a week, to keep up with the national demand.