“With all the hand-wringing regarding the cancellation and possible demise of the Commonwealth Games, has any thought been given to the possibility of Saudi Arabian sponsorship?” asks Darryl West of Orange. “If this were possible, then perhaps the Commonwealth Games could LIV on.”
Both Col Burns of Lugarno and Fran Kirby of Castle Hill claim that guernseys (C8) are what are worn by AFL players, while all the other codes wear jerseys. Col thinks that “Maybe, after the recent efforts in the Rugby Championship, what Rhoda Silber overheard was the suggestion that the Wallabies should don a guernsey and try their luck at AFL.”
“Jersey and Guernsey are also breeds of cattle,” notes Andrew Brown of Bowling Alley Point. “Though when it comes to the apparel that football players wear, the Belted Galloway with its singular white stripe in the middle is possibly more pertinent. Perhaps they were farmed in Rugby, Warwickshire?”
The school exam howler of Bach “practising on a spinster” (C8) reminded Ron Inglis from Strathfield of a similar one written by an HSC geography student reporting on an excursion to a dairy farm. “The student wrote, ‘the farmer complained of the excessive cost of the artificial insemination service, so he did a course, and now he does it himself’. The circulation of this gem really livened up that night of marking.”
Before there is any further discussion on crossword speeds (C8), it’s worth pointing out that Sue Dowd of Norwest has almost halved the personal best of Jan Robins with a time of 3 minutes 17 seconds.
Regarding the boasting of such fleetness, Unkle Cyril of East Corrimal says that “in P.G. Wodehouse’s The Truth About George, the Provost of Eton ‘measures the time required for boiling his breakfast egg by that needed for the solution of your daily crossword – and he hates hard-boiled eggs’.”
Peter Watson of Annandale reckons all the talk of crossword sprints needs to be countered with Sudoku targets: “I set myself a target of 7 mins 11 seconds to complete the daily Gentle Sudoku. 7:11 being the official run time of the Australian release of The Beatles’ Hey Jude.” Thinking on the flipside, Granny hopes there isn’t a Revolution in Annandale anytime soon.
“Green Square, the cousin to Sydney’s Taylor Square, is also a triangle (C8),” reminds Christo Curtis of Beaconsfield. “Seems our urban planners lacked fundamental geometric education.”
Column8@smh.com.au
No attachments, please. Include name, suburb and daytime phone.