least, thats what the Old Londoner
told me who didnt learn to relax till well
past fifty, seated alongside his two
mates: a Norwegian: Youre not the same
person now as you were ten years ago.
And the Irishman: I like the music its
the noise I cant stand. Each one,
orphaned & aphoristic, deep into his sixties.
NZ born and much younger, I offered:
Youre not the same person tomorrow as
you were today. And then, To your
arrival in Melbourne, they singly toasted.
(Great-grandfather, MacCormack, arrived
here in 1851 & 26 years later, in 1877, set
sail for Dunedin aboard the Ringarooma).
So our tale of the two cities unfolded:
Sydney is get what you can. Melbourne,
what have you got to offer & are we really
interested. The afternoon floated by
as did the trams with dry, asthmatic rush
in this mellow town of bungalows & brass.