December 7, 2025 • 28 mins
Geraldine and Kate's happy pants this week are dark blue, the kind of blue that makes them think of how it feels to jump into the pool for that first swim of summer.
Their happy pants pockets are full of all kinds of useful items this week - a piece of coiled wire, a rag, a spray bottle, a feather duster. It's time to give Happy Pants Headquarters a spring clean!
Along the way you'll hear music, a story about Lucy Lemon, learn some big words, and some fun facts about what it might be like to live in another part of the world...
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
S1 (00:13):
One, two, three. It's happy pants.
S2 (00:29):
Good day. And welcome to Happy Pants, a show specially
for kids and especially for you. My name is Geraldine.
S3 (00:37):
And my name is Kate. And together, we'll be your
happy pants team for today.
S2 (00:43):
Are you wearing your happy pants today?
S3 (00:46):
We are. They're dark blue. The kind of blue that
makes me think of how it feels to jump into
the pool for that first swim of the summer.
S2 (00:55):
Well, you're right, they are that kind of blue. It
makes me think of cold, but it sort of fresh
and clean at the same time and lovely when you
get used to it.
S3 (01:07):
The first thing we need to do is to check
our pockets to see what has been hidden there.
S2 (01:12):
Happy pants head office likes to make us work out
what we're supposed to talk about by hiding clues in
our pockets. Here goes pocket number one. It's a piece
of wire all coiled up. Oh, look, if I hold
this end and pull the other end, it stretches out
and zips back into a coil when I let it go.
S3 (01:35):
Ah. At least that's interesting. All I have in my
pocket is this bit of rag. Oh, and a spray
bottle of something that smells like some kind of disinfectant.
S2 (01:47):
I've just found a stick with a big bunch of
feathers on the end.
S3 (01:52):
I can think of something for which we might need
the rag and spray bottle cleaning things.
S2 (01:59):
Oh, and the stick with the feathers would be very
useful for getting rid of dust.
S3 (02:04):
So cleaning and dusting. But how does that springy bit
of wire fit in? You couldn't clean with that.
S2 (02:11):
Oh, oh, let's have some music while we're thinking. I
always think better if there's music.
S3 (02:17):
Well, we might as well use these cleaning things and
tidy up Happy Pants headquarters while we listen. We might
even work out what that wire thing is.
S2 (02:27):
Okay. Here goes. You take the rag and spray bottle
and wipe down all the benches and windows, and I'll
use the feather duster on all the shelves and and
anywhere else dust might be hiding. The music will tell
us whether we need to be reaching up to dust. Squirting.
Clean it or wipe down a table. Or polishing a window.
(02:49):
Are you ready?
S3 (02:51):
I'm on my feet, raring to go. Are you? Four. Four. Three. Two. One.
Lift off.
S2 (03:00):
Oh, spotless. Not a speck of dust anywhere.
S3 (03:05):
The only thing we haven't worked out is what that
springy wire is for.
S2 (03:09):
Hmm.
S3 (03:10):
Mm.
S2 (03:12):
Oh, silly me, It's a spring.
S3 (03:16):
And we've been cleaning. So spring.
S2 (03:20):
Cleaning. That doesn't mean we've been cleaning springs, though I
suppose springs do get dirty sometimes.
S3 (03:28):
Spring cleaning is just a name for doing a real
tidy up and getting everything clean and neat.
S2 (03:34):
It used to be a real thing. Once upon a time, though,
people who lived in the northern hemisphere, in countries where
it snowed or winter used to have a spring clean.
S3 (03:48):
Big word alert hemisphere is made up of two words hemi,
which means half, and sphere, which is a round ball.
So a hemisphere is a shape like half a ball.
Our earth is like a huge ball, and it's divided
into two halves by an invisible line, like a belt
(04:08):
which goes round the middle. We call the dividing bit
the equator Because it divides the earth into two equal
parts the climate round. The middle bit is hot and
wet for most of the year, but the weather gets
cooler the further north or south of the equator you go.
By the time you reach the North Pole or the
(04:29):
South Pole, everything is frozen all the time. The idea
of spring cleaning came from countries in the northern hemisphere,
where the snow began to cover everything at the end
of autumn, and didn't start to melt until the beginning
of spring. People had to spend most of the winter
inside their houses, with a fire, going all day and
(04:50):
all night just to keep warm.
S2 (04:53):
Up to about 600 years ago, most ordinary houses had
earthen floors. Rich people might have stone floors or ones
covered with tiles. And if there was more than one floor,
the upper level might have a wooden floor. But most
ordinary working people made do with stamped earth. does to
(05:15):
cover the floors in the winter months. Many people cut rushes,
mix them with sweet smelling herbs, and spread them out
onto the floors. This helped to keep the floors dry,
and it certainly helped to make the room smell better.
S3 (05:30):
A fire was kept burning all the time, so there
was always smoke and soot inside the house. Doors and
windows had to be kept closed to keep in the warmth.
So there was no fresh air and soot collected on everything.
When at last winter ended and spring arrived, there was
a lot of cleaning up to do. Doors and windows
(05:51):
could be opened to let in fresh air and the
rushes were swept out, leaving a clean floor. Walls were
washed down, windows cleaned. Every speck of dirt was wiped away.
Everything had to be clean.
S4 (08:37):
Hi, my name is Mackenzie and you're listening to Happy
Pants on Vision Australia Radio.
S2 (08:42):
Spring was a time when everything was fresh and new
again after a long, hard winter. Plants flowered, crops sprouted,
baby animals were born. But many people back then believed
that there were good spirits and bad spirits around. And
if you wanted healthy animals and good crops, you needed
(09:05):
to attract the good spirits to help you.
S3 (09:08):
These days, we know a lot about things that can
make you sick. Way back in those days, nobody knew
about bacteria and viruses because you need a microscope to
see them. And microscopes hadn't been invented then. If a
person or an animal became sick, something must have caused it.
If they couldn't see the cause, it must have been
(09:30):
a bad spirit. Bad spirits could cause bad things to happen.
Good spirits fix things up.
S2 (09:38):
It was believed that good spirits, like places that were
fresh and clean and bad spirits like dirty, smelly places.
So having a big clean up when spring arrived gave
you a better chance of attracting good helpers. And that
is why spring cleaning was a real thing back in
(09:59):
the olden days.
S3 (10:01):
We don't live in one of those cold countries though.
Australia isn't close enough to the South Pole to have
much snow at all in Australia. We can be outside
most of the time, even in the winter Enter when
it is spring in Australia, we start thinking about summer holidays,
not cleaning up after winter.
S2 (10:19):
And while we in the southern hemisphere are enjoying spring
and planning our summer holiday activities, all those people in
the Northern hemisphere are getting ready for another cold winter.
Although it isn't the older days anymore and houses are
warm and cosy without getting sooty and smelly like they
(10:40):
did 600 years ago.
S3 (10:42):
I remember how we looked forward to our long Christmas holidays.
We spent hours riding our bikes, big kids would have
races and Italy's tagged along with their tricycles or scooters.
S2 (12:59):
My dad fixed a couple of hammocks between some pine
trees out the back of our house. My sister and
I used to lie there for hours reading or or
just listening to the birds.
S3 (13:11):
Our house was built on a slope and there was
a space under one end. Part of it was where
the lawnmower and garden tools were kept, but there was
a long bit where we could crawl under and hide.
We dragged an old mattress under there, and we kids
could lie there and make all sorts of wild adventure stories.
Even on a really, really hot day, it was lovely
(13:32):
and cool under the house.
S2 (13:35):
One Christmas holidays, dad helped us make a go cart.
Our cousins called it a downhill racer, but we always
called it a go cart because wow, could we make
it go?
S3 (13:49):
I remember the go cart we made here at Happy
Pants headquarters a couple of years ago. That certainly went
down that hill in the park, over the lawn at
the bottom and splash straight into the river.
S2 (14:02):
I remember that, too. Beck was supposed to turn when
she reached the grass. She was going too fast to stop.
S3 (14:11):
And you were laughing so hard that you couldn't pull
her out of the water. So she pulled you in.
S2 (14:18):
Only up to the knees. Though that day we both
went home with wet and muddy happy pants. But it
was very funny to see the look on her face
when she realized she couldn't stop in time.
S3 (14:32):
Oh dear. There are certainly so many great fun things
to do in the summertime.
S2 (16:17):
I've been thinking that go kart or downhill racer or
whatever you call it, had wheels so it could run
down a slope. Wheels wouldn't be much use in the snow, though.
They'd get bogged. What sort of downhill racer would kids
in cold countries have?
S3 (16:36):
Something with skis instead of wheels, I guess. Something flat
that could slide over the snow instead of sinking in.
S2 (16:45):
Well, that sounds like a sledge.
S3 (16:47):
Or a sled.
S2 (16:48):
Or a toboggan.
S3 (16:49):
Or a sleigh.
S2 (16:51):
Well, they're all just different names for things that slide
over the snow.
S3 (16:55):
Most parts of Australia don't get any snow, so the
only thing we could use a sled for would be
to slide down a sand hill. We really need something
with wheels for most downhill running fun.
S2 (17:08):
I don't really like downhill racing, Kate.
S3 (17:11):
Why have I not?
S2 (17:12):
Well, I can pull the cart to the top. Okay.
And getting into the seat is no problem.
S3 (17:19):
So why don't you like it?
S2 (17:21):
Well, once it starts moving, it's all downhill from there.
S3 (17:26):
Oh, here's a question for you. If an adult takes
six minutes to walk down a hill, and a kid
in a go cart takes half as long, how long
will it take for the kid to get down to
the bottom?
S2 (17:41):
Hmm. The adult takes six minutes. The kid takes half
as long. So half of six is three. The kid
in the go cart takes three minutes.
S3 (17:54):
Oh. Very good. Now they both have to climb back
up the hill, and the adult takes ten minutes to
get to the top. How long would it take the
kid with the cart?
S2 (18:06):
Well, the cart takes half as long, so. Oh silly me.
The can't, can't run up the hill. The kid has
to pull it behind him and walk up the hill.
And that will take the same time as the adult.
S3 (18:22):
Are no fooling you. They'd probably get to the top together.
S2 (18:28):
Our story today is about Lucy Lemon, who's a member
of the Munch Bunch.
S3 (18:33):
The Munch Bunch are fruit and vegetables which escaped from
a greengrocer's shop and moved to an old, forgotten garden shed.
When Lucy decides she's going to enter the Munch Bunch
winter sledge race, she needs to build a sledge. She
has to find all sorts of things with which to
build it. And some of the Munch Munch give her
(18:54):
some very strange advice. Lucy always believes what they tell
her and never realises that they are making fun of her.
So she takes their advice. If you want to find
out what happens next, you'll have to listen to the story.
Here's Geraldine to read Lucy Lemon.
S2 (19:15):
Lemon by Giles Read Lucy Lemon is one of the
Munch bunch. She lives in the upstairs flat of an
old chest of drawers. Her friend Emma Apple lives downstairs.
The Munch Bunch enjoy teasing and playing tricks on Lucy
because she never realises when they're joking. She really is
(19:40):
a lemon. One morning when Lucy woke up, she saw
that it had been raining very heavily during the night. Hooray,
she said and hurried outside to play super cool. Cucumber
and Susie's celery were pinning up a big notice, so
Lucy stopped to have a look at it. The great
(20:01):
Munch bunch sledge race, she read out loud. Why don't
you have a go, Lucy? It's not difficult to make
a fast, sledge joked. Super cool. All you need is
a comfortable chair. But don't forget the mudguards to keep
the snow off. You, giggled Suzi. Lucy had no idea
(20:22):
that she was being teased, so she decided to make
her own sledge and enter the race. Lucy went to
see Scruff Gooseberry. She thought he might have some mudguards
to spare. How would you make a sledge go really fast?
Asked Lucy with go faster striped paint. Of course, said scruff.
(20:46):
Just for a joke. Go and see Sally strawberry. She'll
have some for you. Poor Lucy Lemon still didn't realise
that she was being teased, so she went to ask
Sally if she had any go faster striped paint. Sally
could hardly keep a straight face. She wanted to laugh
(21:07):
so much. I'm so sorry, Lucy. I've run out of
striped paint, but you can put the stripes on with
this paint. It'll be just as good. My main problem
is how to steer it, said Lucy with a steering wheel.
Of course, said Sally. Bounce. The spring onion is always
(21:31):
making things. He'll find one for you. Bounce had some
wheels left over from when he'd made a trolley to
carry his toys, so he gave Lucy one of those.
He realized that the others were teasing Lucy, so he
thought he'd join in too. Don't forget, you'll need some
(21:51):
brakes to stop you at the end of the race.
And as you're going to be going very fast, I
think a parachute would be just the thing. Oh, what
a good idea, said Lucy. So Lucy went straight to
Lizzie Leek's house to ask her if she had any
parachute material to spare. Lizzie was quite surprised at Lucy's request.
(22:16):
But as she's used to Lucy asking some funny questions,
she gave her the material without saying a word. Oh,
what are we going to do with her? Said Lizzie
to herself on her way home. Lucy saw corn on
the cob. What have you got there, Lucy? He asked.
(22:40):
I'm making a sledge for the big race this afternoon,
said Lucy. Well, don't forget the rubber hammer. Everyone has
at least one of those on a really fast sledge,
he joked. And you'll need a spot of elbow grease
on those mudguards. Then she met Caspar Carrot, who was
(23:00):
always worrying about something or other. At first he was
wondering about the huge snowball which supercool had just thrown
at Susie Celery. But when he saw Lucy staggering along
with her heavy load. He started to worry about her instead. Oh,
let me help you, Lucy, he said. And on the
(23:22):
way she told him all about the wonderful sledge she
was going to make you. You will be wearing a
safety harness, won't you? Asked Caspar anxiously as soon as
Lucy got home. She put all the things she'd collected
on the floor and set to work. Firstly, she painted
(23:44):
the chair with go faster stripes. Then she polished the
mudguards until they shone like glass. I couldn't get any
of that elbow grease Cornie told me about. I do
hope Polish will do instead, she said to herself at last.
Lucy had finished. She pulled her sledge onto the front
(24:07):
lawn and stood in the snow, admiring it. She thought
her new sledge was magnificent. Lucy felt very proud as
she pulled the sledge to the race. When the others
saw her, they just couldn't help laughing. They were all
very pleased with their joke. What a lemon that young
(24:31):
Lucy is, said Corney. And his sides were shaking with laughter.
It was time for the race to begin. All the
competitors lined up, trying to concentrate on the difficult course ahead.
But instead most of them were laughing at the sight
of Lucy sitting back comfortably on her homemade sledge. At
(24:56):
last they were off. Lucy zoomed into the lead. Susie
celery was so amazed she forgot to look where she
was going, and she ran headlong into scruff gooseberry crash
and they both collided with Wally Walnut and Tom tomato.
(25:16):
Lucy raced to the winning line way ahead of the others.
As she neared the end of the course, Lucy pulled
on the brakes and the parachute unfolded. The sledge stopped
very sedately in front of the line of spectators. Lucy
(25:36):
was the winner. Lucy was the happiest lemon in the
world as Pedro presented her with the winner's trophy. And
just at that moment, super cool whizzed past. Although he'd
managed to stay in the race, he didn't have any
brakes to help him stop. Silly cucumber that day. Lucy
(26:03):
Lemon certainly had the last laugh.
S3 (26:09):
That was a reading of Lucy Lemon, written by Giles
Reid and the reader was Geraldine. So what have we
done today? There was one big word hemisphere. Did you
remember that Hemi means half and a sphere is a
shape like a ball. So a hemisphere is the shape
of a half ball.
S2 (26:31):
We also found out that there is an invisible line
we call the equator around the centre of the earth,
and that it divides it into two equal halves, the
Northern hemisphere and the Southern hemisphere.
S3 (26:44):
We learned that Australia is in the Southern hemisphere, but
not close enough to the South Pole to have much snow.
S2 (26:52):
We heard about how spring cleaning used to be a
real thing that people in cold countries did after long winters,
snug and warm in their houses.
S3 (27:02):
We heard about Lucy Lemon, who never knew when people
were making fun of her, so she did the silly
things they advised her to. But Art. Who were the
silly ones in the end, though?
S2 (27:14):
If there was anything in today's program about which you
would like to know more, you can find us at
Radio Australia. Keep wearing those.
S3 (27:24):
Happy pants and we'll catch you.
S2 (27:27):
Next.
S3 (27:27):
Time.
S5 (27:40):
Happy pants is produced on the lands of the Whadjuk
Noongar people. Vision Australia Radio acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander peoples as the first Australians and the traditional owners
of the land across our working area, we pay our
respects to elders past, present and future in maintaining their cultures,
countries and their spiritual connection to the lands and waters.
Vision Australia Radio acknowledges and respects the genuine diversity and
(28:04):
richness of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples across Australia.
Happy pants has been made possible with the support of
the Community Broadcasting Foundation.
One, two, three. It's happy pants.
S2 (00:29):
Good day. And welcome to Happy Pants, a show specially
for kids and especially for you. My name is Geraldine.
S3 (00:37):
And my name is Kate. And together, we'll be your
happy pants team for today.
S2 (00:43):
Are you wearing your happy pants today?
S3 (00:46):
We are. They're dark blue. The kind of blue that
makes me think of how it feels to jump into
the pool for that first swim of the summer.
S2 (00:55):
Well, you're right, they are that kind of blue. It
makes me think of cold, but it sort of fresh
and clean at the same time and lovely when you
get used to it.
S3 (01:07):
The first thing we need to do is to check
our pockets to see what has been hidden there.
S2 (01:12):
Happy pants head office likes to make us work out
what we're supposed to talk about by hiding clues in
our pockets. Here goes pocket number one. It's a piece
of wire all coiled up. Oh, look, if I hold
this end and pull the other end, it stretches out
and zips back into a coil when I let it go.
S3 (01:35):
Ah. At least that's interesting. All I have in my
pocket is this bit of rag. Oh, and a spray
bottle of something that smells like some kind of disinfectant.
S2 (01:47):
I've just found a stick with a big bunch of
feathers on the end.
S3 (01:52):
I can think of something for which we might need
the rag and spray bottle cleaning things.
S2 (01:59):
Oh, and the stick with the feathers would be very
useful for getting rid of dust.
S3 (02:04):
So cleaning and dusting. But how does that springy bit
of wire fit in? You couldn't clean with that.
S2 (02:11):
Oh, oh, let's have some music while we're thinking. I
always think better if there's music.
S3 (02:17):
Well, we might as well use these cleaning things and
tidy up Happy Pants headquarters while we listen. We might
even work out what that wire thing is.
S2 (02:27):
Okay. Here goes. You take the rag and spray bottle
and wipe down all the benches and windows, and I'll
use the feather duster on all the shelves and and
anywhere else dust might be hiding. The music will tell
us whether we need to be reaching up to dust. Squirting.
Clean it or wipe down a table. Or polishing a window.
(02:49):
Are you ready?
S3 (02:51):
I'm on my feet, raring to go. Are you? Four. Four. Three. Two. One.
Lift off.
S2 (03:00):
Oh, spotless. Not a speck of dust anywhere.
S3 (03:05):
The only thing we haven't worked out is what that
springy wire is for.
S2 (03:09):
Hmm.
S3 (03:10):
Mm.
S2 (03:12):
Oh, silly me, It's a spring.
S3 (03:16):
And we've been cleaning. So spring.
S2 (03:20):
Cleaning. That doesn't mean we've been cleaning springs, though I
suppose springs do get dirty sometimes.
S3 (03:28):
Spring cleaning is just a name for doing a real
tidy up and getting everything clean and neat.
S2 (03:34):
It used to be a real thing. Once upon a time, though,
people who lived in the northern hemisphere, in countries where
it snowed or winter used to have a spring clean.
S3 (03:48):
Big word alert hemisphere is made up of two words hemi,
which means half, and sphere, which is a round ball.
So a hemisphere is a shape like half a ball.
Our earth is like a huge ball, and it's divided
into two halves by an invisible line, like a belt
(04:08):
which goes round the middle. We call the dividing bit
the equator Because it divides the earth into two equal
parts the climate round. The middle bit is hot and
wet for most of the year, but the weather gets
cooler the further north or south of the equator you go.
By the time you reach the North Pole or the
(04:29):
South Pole, everything is frozen all the time. The idea
of spring cleaning came from countries in the northern hemisphere,
where the snow began to cover everything at the end
of autumn, and didn't start to melt until the beginning
of spring. People had to spend most of the winter
inside their houses, with a fire, going all day and
(04:50):
all night just to keep warm.
S2 (04:53):
Up to about 600 years ago, most ordinary houses had
earthen floors. Rich people might have stone floors or ones
covered with tiles. And if there was more than one floor,
the upper level might have a wooden floor. But most
ordinary working people made do with stamped earth. does to
(05:15):
cover the floors in the winter months. Many people cut rushes,
mix them with sweet smelling herbs, and spread them out
onto the floors. This helped to keep the floors dry,
and it certainly helped to make the room smell better.
S3 (05:30):
A fire was kept burning all the time, so there
was always smoke and soot inside the house. Doors and
windows had to be kept closed to keep in the warmth.
So there was no fresh air and soot collected on everything.
When at last winter ended and spring arrived, there was
a lot of cleaning up to do. Doors and windows
(05:51):
could be opened to let in fresh air and the
rushes were swept out, leaving a clean floor. Walls were
washed down, windows cleaned. Every speck of dirt was wiped away.
Everything had to be clean.
S4 (08:37):
Hi, my name is Mackenzie and you're listening to Happy
Pants on Vision Australia Radio.
S2 (08:42):
Spring was a time when everything was fresh and new
again after a long, hard winter. Plants flowered, crops sprouted,
baby animals were born. But many people back then believed
that there were good spirits and bad spirits around. And
if you wanted healthy animals and good crops, you needed
(09:05):
to attract the good spirits to help you.
S3 (09:08):
These days, we know a lot about things that can
make you sick. Way back in those days, nobody knew
about bacteria and viruses because you need a microscope to
see them. And microscopes hadn't been invented then. If a
person or an animal became sick, something must have caused it.
If they couldn't see the cause, it must have been
(09:30):
a bad spirit. Bad spirits could cause bad things to happen.
Good spirits fix things up.
S2 (09:38):
It was believed that good spirits, like places that were
fresh and clean and bad spirits like dirty, smelly places.
So having a big clean up when spring arrived gave
you a better chance of attracting good helpers. And that
is why spring cleaning was a real thing back in
(09:59):
the olden days.
S3 (10:01):
We don't live in one of those cold countries though.
Australia isn't close enough to the South Pole to have
much snow at all in Australia. We can be outside
most of the time, even in the winter Enter when
it is spring in Australia, we start thinking about summer holidays,
not cleaning up after winter.
S2 (10:19):
And while we in the southern hemisphere are enjoying spring
and planning our summer holiday activities, all those people in
the Northern hemisphere are getting ready for another cold winter.
Although it isn't the older days anymore and houses are
warm and cosy without getting sooty and smelly like they
(10:40):
did 600 years ago.
S3 (10:42):
I remember how we looked forward to our long Christmas holidays.
We spent hours riding our bikes, big kids would have
races and Italy's tagged along with their tricycles or scooters.
S2 (12:59):
My dad fixed a couple of hammocks between some pine
trees out the back of our house. My sister and
I used to lie there for hours reading or or
just listening to the birds.
S3 (13:11):
Our house was built on a slope and there was
a space under one end. Part of it was where
the lawnmower and garden tools were kept, but there was
a long bit where we could crawl under and hide.
We dragged an old mattress under there, and we kids
could lie there and make all sorts of wild adventure stories.
Even on a really, really hot day, it was lovely
(13:32):
and cool under the house.
S2 (13:35):
One Christmas holidays, dad helped us make a go cart.
Our cousins called it a downhill racer, but we always
called it a go cart because wow, could we make
it go?
S3 (13:49):
I remember the go cart we made here at Happy
Pants headquarters a couple of years ago. That certainly went
down that hill in the park, over the lawn at
the bottom and splash straight into the river.
S2 (14:02):
I remember that, too. Beck was supposed to turn when
she reached the grass. She was going too fast to stop.
S3 (14:11):
And you were laughing so hard that you couldn't pull
her out of the water. So she pulled you in.
S2 (14:18):
Only up to the knees. Though that day we both
went home with wet and muddy happy pants. But it
was very funny to see the look on her face
when she realized she couldn't stop in time.
S3 (14:32):
Oh dear. There are certainly so many great fun things
to do in the summertime.
S2 (16:17):
I've been thinking that go kart or downhill racer or
whatever you call it, had wheels so it could run
down a slope. Wheels wouldn't be much use in the snow, though.
They'd get bogged. What sort of downhill racer would kids
in cold countries have?
S3 (16:36):
Something with skis instead of wheels, I guess. Something flat
that could slide over the snow instead of sinking in.
S2 (16:45):
Well, that sounds like a sledge.
S3 (16:47):
Or a sled.
S2 (16:48):
Or a toboggan.
S3 (16:49):
Or a sleigh.
S2 (16:51):
Well, they're all just different names for things that slide
over the snow.
S3 (16:55):
Most parts of Australia don't get any snow, so the
only thing we could use a sled for would be
to slide down a sand hill. We really need something
with wheels for most downhill running fun.
S2 (17:08):
I don't really like downhill racing, Kate.
S3 (17:11):
Why have I not?
S2 (17:12):
Well, I can pull the cart to the top. Okay.
And getting into the seat is no problem.
S3 (17:19):
So why don't you like it?
S2 (17:21):
Well, once it starts moving, it's all downhill from there.
S3 (17:26):
Oh, here's a question for you. If an adult takes
six minutes to walk down a hill, and a kid
in a go cart takes half as long, how long
will it take for the kid to get down to
the bottom?
S2 (17:41):
Hmm. The adult takes six minutes. The kid takes half
as long. So half of six is three. The kid
in the go cart takes three minutes.
S3 (17:54):
Oh. Very good. Now they both have to climb back
up the hill, and the adult takes ten minutes to
get to the top. How long would it take the
kid with the cart?
S2 (18:06):
Well, the cart takes half as long, so. Oh silly me.
The can't, can't run up the hill. The kid has
to pull it behind him and walk up the hill.
And that will take the same time as the adult.
S3 (18:22):
Are no fooling you. They'd probably get to the top together.
S2 (18:28):
Our story today is about Lucy Lemon, who's a member
of the Munch Bunch.
S3 (18:33):
The Munch Bunch are fruit and vegetables which escaped from
a greengrocer's shop and moved to an old, forgotten garden shed.
When Lucy decides she's going to enter the Munch Bunch
winter sledge race, she needs to build a sledge. She
has to find all sorts of things with which to
build it. And some of the Munch Munch give her
(18:54):
some very strange advice. Lucy always believes what they tell
her and never realises that they are making fun of her.
So she takes their advice. If you want to find
out what happens next, you'll have to listen to the story.
Here's Geraldine to read Lucy Lemon.
S2 (19:15):
Lemon by Giles Read Lucy Lemon is one of the
Munch bunch. She lives in the upstairs flat of an
old chest of drawers. Her friend Emma Apple lives downstairs.
The Munch Bunch enjoy teasing and playing tricks on Lucy
because she never realises when they're joking. She really is
(19:40):
a lemon. One morning when Lucy woke up, she saw
that it had been raining very heavily during the night. Hooray,
she said and hurried outside to play super cool. Cucumber
and Susie's celery were pinning up a big notice, so
Lucy stopped to have a look at it. The great
(20:01):
Munch bunch sledge race, she read out loud. Why don't
you have a go, Lucy? It's not difficult to make
a fast, sledge joked. Super cool. All you need is
a comfortable chair. But don't forget the mudguards to keep
the snow off. You, giggled Suzi. Lucy had no idea
(20:22):
that she was being teased, so she decided to make
her own sledge and enter the race. Lucy went to
see Scruff Gooseberry. She thought he might have some mudguards
to spare. How would you make a sledge go really fast?
Asked Lucy with go faster striped paint. Of course, said scruff.
(20:46):
Just for a joke. Go and see Sally strawberry. She'll
have some for you. Poor Lucy Lemon still didn't realise
that she was being teased, so she went to ask
Sally if she had any go faster striped paint. Sally
could hardly keep a straight face. She wanted to laugh
(21:07):
so much. I'm so sorry, Lucy. I've run out of
striped paint, but you can put the stripes on with
this paint. It'll be just as good. My main problem
is how to steer it, said Lucy with a steering wheel.
Of course, said Sally. Bounce. The spring onion is always
(21:31):
making things. He'll find one for you. Bounce had some
wheels left over from when he'd made a trolley to
carry his toys, so he gave Lucy one of those.
He realized that the others were teasing Lucy, so he
thought he'd join in too. Don't forget, you'll need some
(21:51):
brakes to stop you at the end of the race.
And as you're going to be going very fast, I
think a parachute would be just the thing. Oh, what
a good idea, said Lucy. So Lucy went straight to
Lizzie Leek's house to ask her if she had any
parachute material to spare. Lizzie was quite surprised at Lucy's request.
(22:16):
But as she's used to Lucy asking some funny questions,
she gave her the material without saying a word. Oh,
what are we going to do with her? Said Lizzie
to herself on her way home. Lucy saw corn on
the cob. What have you got there, Lucy? He asked.
(22:40):
I'm making a sledge for the big race this afternoon,
said Lucy. Well, don't forget the rubber hammer. Everyone has
at least one of those on a really fast sledge,
he joked. And you'll need a spot of elbow grease
on those mudguards. Then she met Caspar Carrot, who was
(23:00):
always worrying about something or other. At first he was
wondering about the huge snowball which supercool had just thrown
at Susie Celery. But when he saw Lucy staggering along
with her heavy load. He started to worry about her instead. Oh,
let me help you, Lucy, he said. And on the
(23:22):
way she told him all about the wonderful sledge she
was going to make you. You will be wearing a
safety harness, won't you? Asked Caspar anxiously as soon as
Lucy got home. She put all the things she'd collected
on the floor and set to work. Firstly, she painted
(23:44):
the chair with go faster stripes. Then she polished the
mudguards until they shone like glass. I couldn't get any
of that elbow grease Cornie told me about. I do
hope Polish will do instead, she said to herself at last.
Lucy had finished. She pulled her sledge onto the front
(24:07):
lawn and stood in the snow, admiring it. She thought
her new sledge was magnificent. Lucy felt very proud as
she pulled the sledge to the race. When the others
saw her, they just couldn't help laughing. They were all
very pleased with their joke. What a lemon that young
(24:31):
Lucy is, said Corney. And his sides were shaking with laughter.
It was time for the race to begin. All the
competitors lined up, trying to concentrate on the difficult course ahead.
But instead most of them were laughing at the sight
of Lucy sitting back comfortably on her homemade sledge. At
(24:56):
last they were off. Lucy zoomed into the lead. Susie
celery was so amazed she forgot to look where she
was going, and she ran headlong into scruff gooseberry crash
and they both collided with Wally Walnut and Tom tomato.
(25:16):
Lucy raced to the winning line way ahead of the others.
As she neared the end of the course, Lucy pulled
on the brakes and the parachute unfolded. The sledge stopped
very sedately in front of the line of spectators. Lucy
(25:36):
was the winner. Lucy was the happiest lemon in the
world as Pedro presented her with the winner's trophy. And
just at that moment, super cool whizzed past. Although he'd
managed to stay in the race, he didn't have any
brakes to help him stop. Silly cucumber that day. Lucy
(26:03):
Lemon certainly had the last laugh.
S3 (26:09):
That was a reading of Lucy Lemon, written by Giles
Reid and the reader was Geraldine. So what have we
done today? There was one big word hemisphere. Did you
remember that Hemi means half and a sphere is a
shape like a ball. So a hemisphere is the shape
of a half ball.
S2 (26:31):
We also found out that there is an invisible line
we call the equator around the centre of the earth,
and that it divides it into two equal halves, the
Northern hemisphere and the Southern hemisphere.
S3 (26:44):
We learned that Australia is in the Southern hemisphere, but
not close enough to the South Pole to have much snow.
S2 (26:52):
We heard about how spring cleaning used to be a
real thing that people in cold countries did after long winters,
snug and warm in their houses.
S3 (27:02):
We heard about Lucy Lemon, who never knew when people
were making fun of her, so she did the silly
things they advised her to. But Art. Who were the
silly ones in the end, though?
S2 (27:14):
If there was anything in today's program about which you
would like to know more, you can find us at
Radio Australia. Keep wearing those.
S3 (27:24):
Happy pants and we'll catch you.
S2 (27:27):
Next.
S3 (27:27):
Time.
S5 (27:40):
Happy pants is produced on the lands of the Whadjuk
Noongar people. Vision Australia Radio acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander peoples as the first Australians and the traditional owners
of the land across our working area, we pay our
respects to elders past, present and future in maintaining their cultures,
countries and their spiritual connection to the lands and waters.
Vision Australia Radio acknowledges and respects the genuine diversity and
(28:04):
richness of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples across Australia.
Happy pants has been made possible with the support of
the Community Broadcasting Foundation.
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