July 6, 2025 • 27 mins
Oh dear. Yesterday Geraldine forgot to close one of the windows at Happy Pants Headquarters and it rained last night. She arrived this morning to find the curtains soaked through, puddles on the floor, and the wind had blown in plenty of leaves and dirt as well as spread stuff all around the room.
Geraldine thought this would be a good time to give the curtains a wash... but when she put the detergent into the washing machine, disaster! The box was wet so about half a packet's worth went into the machine... and now they're up to their eyebrows in bubbles.
So Geraldine and Rebecca have some housekeeping to do. Are you learning to help out around the house? Perhaps this episode will inspire you to get everything in your room clean and tidy!
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):
G'day and welcome to Happy Pantser Show. Especially for kids
and especially for you. My name is Geraldine.
S3 (00:36):
And my name is Rebecca. And together we're your happy
pants team for today. Why are you wearing dungarees, Geraldine?
And where are your happy pants?
S2 (00:48):
Well, I put the dungarees on over my happy pants
because I didn't want to get them dirty. They're snowy, clean, white.
You know, the kind of white which makes me think
of the smell of eucalyptus or antiseptic hand cleaner.
S3 (01:04):
Mine are white, too. But this kind of white reminds
me of the feel of fresh, clean sheets on my bed.
But why are you scared that your happy pants might
get dirty?
S2 (01:16):
Well, to tell the truth, it's my own fault. When
we locked up yesterday, I forgot that we'd left the
window open.
S3 (01:25):
Oh, dear. And it rained last night, too.
S2 (02:42):
The curtains were soaked. There were puddles on the floor,
and the wind had blown in leaves and dirt and
spread stuff around all over the room.
S3 (02:51):
Oh, I can see what you mean. There are papers
all over the floor.
S2 (02:56):
And that's not all. The curtains were already wet, so
I thought it was a good opportunity to give them
a proper clean. And when I went to put detergent
into the washing machine, the packet had got wet. So
about half of it went into the washing machine in
one lump instead of just one small scoop.
S3 (03:16):
Don't tell me you went ahead with the wash.
S2 (03:19):
I did, and that's why the laundry door is shut.
S3 (03:24):
Don't tell me the laundry is full of soap bubbles.
S2 (03:28):
Right up to the window. I planned to go round
the back way and open the laundry door from the
outside so all the bubbles can pour out that way.
Because if we open this door, we'll be up to
our eyebrows in soap in here.
S3 (03:44):
Well, at least we'll have nice clean curtains. And you
still haven't said why you need to cover up your
white happy pants, though.
S2 (03:55):
Well, the wind blew in a lot of leaves and dirt,
so we'll need to clean up dirt and wet mud
and mud and nice white happy pants do not go
well together.
S3 (04:08):
Oh, dear. It started to rain again. We won't be
able to get the bubbles out of the back door
until it stops.
S2 (04:16):
Well, there's plenty to keep us busy in here for
a bit. Hang on, there's something in my back pocket.
S3 (04:22):
Happy pants always puts interesting clues in our pockets. Hmm.
What have you found?
S2 (04:28):
Well, it feels like a. It's a feather duster.
S3 (04:33):
Well, that won't be much use for cleaning up the
wet floor in here.
S2 (04:37):
No, but this mop might be if I can get
it out. What do you have in your pockets, Rebecca?
S3 (04:46):
Hmm? It feels like a little box. Ooh. Oh, it's
grown into a big box full of little cardboard pockets.
And in this one. Oh, is a dustpan and brush.
S2 (05:03):
Well, not much use for floor cleaning. Must be for
something else.
S3 (05:08):
I guess we'll find out eventually. Oh. just listen to
that rain. Doesn't it make a lovely sound on the roof?
Makes me want to sing along.
S2 (05:20):
Great idea. I'll get on with mopping up the floor.
S3 (05:25):
And I'll pick up these papers. Oh, goodness. We can't
lose these. They're all the letters we have from our listeners.
S2 (05:32):
Well, we both have clean up jobs to do, but
we could all sing along while we do them.
S4 (05:42):
Ooh ooh ooh. Ooh. Ooh. Ooh. Hi. Hi. Ow! Ow ow! Ow!
(06:45):
Ow ow! Ow! Hi. Hi. Oh. Oh. Oh. Hi.
S3 (07:58):
I've worked out what to do with that box with
all the pockets in it. I sorted all of those
papers into categories, and they fitted perfectly into the pockets.
It was a box file. Strange that a box file
should be in a pocket just when I needed it.
S2 (08:19):
Big word alert. Categories. A category is a division of
objects into groups which are alike in some way.
S3 (08:31):
Well, that's everything in here. Tidied up, windows cleaned, papers filed.
S2 (08:37):
Floor mopped. Time for a cup of tea, I reckon.
I'll be Polly. Shallow.
S3 (08:43):
And the rain stopped. So while you're doing that, I'll
nip round the back and let those bubbles out.
S2 (08:50):
Hold it, Rebecca, there's something in my back pocket. It's
wrapped in foil and it are too small. Happy pants
has given us a sweet treat for morning tea.
S3 (09:02):
Ooh, I'll nip out and sort those bubbles while you're
getting it set up.
S2 (09:07):
I think we need to do a proper hand wash
before we start handling food.
S3 (09:11):
Oh, yes, we have to be clean.
S1 (10:59):
Got your happy pants on. I do. It's happy pants
on Vision Australia radio.
S2 (11:06):
That's much better. And I found out what the ash
pan and brush were for.
S3 (11:12):
Oh tell me.
S2 (11:14):
When I was making the tea, I knocked the tea
caddy off the bench and spilt most of the tea
leaves over the floor. It's okay. It's okay. They've all
been swept up and binned, and there was enough left
in the caddy to make a nice cup of tea
to have with our s'mores.
S3 (11:30):
Oh thank goodness. And by the way, all the soap
bubbles floated off in the wind and the curtains are
drying on the line. The laundry is now squeaky clean.
S2 (11:42):
Oh, thank you Rebecca. And so is the rest of
Happy Band's headquarters. Oh, it's so much nicer to have
everything clean and tidy again. I remember that when I
was a little, my sister and I had to tidy
our toys away when we finished playing. We didn't like
it at first, but it didn't take long to realise
(12:04):
that playtime was lots more fun when we knew exactly
where everything was, and we didn't have to waste time
searching for things.
S3 (12:14):
After all that tidying up, I feel like a nice
sit down. Are these cushions look a bit squished? I'll
give them a good shake and fluff them up so
we'll be comfortable.
S2 (12:26):
I'll help you. A bit of thumping should loosen the stuffing.
S3 (12:34):
Oh, stop. Stop! No! Now they've split. Oh, they were
full of fluffy, downy feathers.
S2 (12:42):
And now there's feathers everywhere. You're covered in feathers.
S3 (12:46):
So are you. Oh, and so is our nice clean room.
S2 (12:51):
Happy pants knew this would happen. That's why we have
that feather duster. Only instead of brushing off dust, we
can use it to brush off these fluffy feathers. I'll
dust you down. Then you can help me get rid
of all my feathers too. All gone. Every feather stuffed
(15:20):
back into the cushions.
S3 (15:21):
Oh, comfort at last. Now we can relax and listen
to today's story. It's about someone who never tidied up
her house. She was having far too much fun being
a star at a famous nightclub to spend time on
something like housework.
S5 (15:39):
Yay! Story time.
S3 (15:42):
The house Lizzie Ferc and the songwriter lived in was
particularly untidy. It was a rough and tumble house, unwashed,
undusted and topsy turvy. Lizzie Firkin couldn't even walk across
her own floors because of the mess. She had to
jump from one bare spot to another. When she opened
(16:04):
the cupboards, a thousand things with sharp corners fell out
on top of her. So she nailed the cupboards shut.
The cat and the parrot watched her scornfully. Don't look
at me like that, Lizzie cried. I have to write
songs and practice the trombone every night. Lizzie Firkin put
(16:28):
on the tights she had painted herself. Then heigh ho,
off and away she went to a famous nightclub where
she sang and tap danced and played the trombone until
the roosters started to crow. It was good fun, but
playing the trombone every night always made Lizzie firkin. Too
(16:51):
tired to sweep away dust and cobwebs, to pick up
anything off the floor or to tidy the cupboards. Oh,
I'm quite worn out, she told the cat and the
parrot one day The house is so topsy turvy that
I've decided to send for Robin Pukapuka, the wonder housekeeper.
(17:16):
She looked up the number and telephoned him immediately. This
is a recorded message, said the voice. Robin Pukapuka is
out cleaning houses, trying to make a fortune. Please leave
your name and address when you hear the tone, and
Robin will rush around early tomorrow morning. And please make
(17:36):
sure you don't spoil things by trying to tidy up yourself. Well,
no fear of that, thought Lizzie Firkin, recording her name
and address on the answering machine. She did an hour's
trombone practice, dyed her hair red, painted a few extra
designs on her clothes. Then. Heigh ho. Off and away
(17:57):
she went to the famous nightclub where she danced and
sang and played the trombone. Until the roosters started to crow.
Lizzie Firkin came home very late, as usual. She switched
on the light as usual and blinked at her untidy
house as usual. Unsuccessful songs laid scattered like autumn leaves
(18:23):
over the floor. The cat was curled up in the
bread bin, asleep on a slice of bread. The parrot
was moulting. The vacuum cleaner sulked under the stairs, its
cord wound sadly around itself, like a dog that had
given up any hope of ever being taken for a walk.
Bottles of hair dye stood shoulder to shoulder like soldiers
(18:46):
on top of the piano. Oh, dear! Exclaimed Lizzie Firkin.
How messy it all is! What will Robin Tucker think
of the cat asleep in the bread bin? Or of
all those parrot feathers? Oh, I'd better tidy up just
(19:06):
a little bit. So the wonderful housekeeper won't know how
terribly untidy I really am. Lizzie shooed the cat out
of the bread bin. She picked up the unsuccessful songs
and put them in a folder. She tossed the empty
cat food tins into her rubbish bins. The roosters were
(19:28):
still crowing when she stopped and looked around. Good, but
not quite good enough, she said and yawned. Robin Parker
Tucker must never know how untidy I can be. The
shock might kill a good housekeeper. Lizzie picked up all
the newspapers and then folded them carefully. She vacuumed the floor,
(19:51):
dusted the piano, burnished her trombone, washed the dishes, wiped
the table, cleaned the bath, polished the taps until they
sparkled and threw out the stale soup in the refrigerator.
By now, the sun was looking over the hill. It
showed up every spot on the window. Every cobweb on
(20:14):
the curtains and every smear on the floor. Oh, Lizzy.
Firkin yawned so hard that she nearly sucked the parrot
off its perch, but she polished the floor, washed the windows,
and brushed away the cobwebs. The spiders packed up their
bags and moved to the house next door. Lizzy's eyes
(20:35):
were almost shut and she could not stop yawning. I
mustn't let Robin pucker. Tucker know how untidy I really am,
she muttered as she shook the crumbs off. The cat,
dusted the parrot, put the grandfather clock out by the
gate and wound up the rubbish bin. Then she tumbled
(20:57):
into her big cane chair, quite, quite exhausted. Out by
the gate. The grandfather clock struck nine inbound at a
dashing young man wearing an apron with a smile painted
on it. Are you the trombone player who is particularly
untidy at home? He asked, looking around in astonishment, and
(21:19):
no wonder he was taken aback. Lizzie Firkins house sparkled
from the front door to the back door. It shone
from ceiling to floor. The cat purred. Even the parrot
looked smartly groomed. And who are you? Asked Lizzie Firkin,
too tired to be surprised. I'm Robin Tucker, Tucker, replied
(21:43):
the young man gazing around him, then sounding distinctly disappointed,
he added, what a particularly tidy house you have. Alas,
there is nothing left for me to do. But Lizzie
Firkin did not answer. She was already sound asleep in
her cane chair, Snoring musically and dreaming of trombones. He
(22:10):
cried Robin Parker Tucker in despair to the parish. They'll
all send for me. And then they become scared that
I find out how messy they really are, and tidy
everything up themselves. I'll never make a fortune if things
go on this way. But why? He asked curiously. Are
(22:31):
all the cupboards nailed shut? Snatching up the soup ladle,
he prised open a door that had been nailed shut
for three years. Are thousand things with sharp corners fell
on top of him? Oh, Joy. Housework at last, Robin
Parker Tucker cried faintly but happily from the bottom of
(22:53):
the pile. I shall insist on everyone opening their cupboard
doors from now on. I shall make a fortune. After all.
S2 (23:02):
That was a reading of keeping House by Margaret May.
The reader was Rebecca. I wonder if Lizzie ever worked
out that keeping things tidy a little bit at a
time was a lot easier than doing a massive clean
up when the house became too messy to move around in.
S3 (23:22):
I wonder if Robin Pucajirca ever made his fortune tidying cupboards.
There must be thousands of people with cupboards like Lizzie Firkin.
S2 (23:33):
Probably, but not many people stuffed so much junk in
their cupboards that they have to nail the doors shut.
S3 (23:40):
There must be a way of working out how many
tins or jars can fit in a particular cupboard without
falling out.
S2 (23:48):
Well, that would depend on the size of whatever it
was you wanted to store. So we would need to
know its diameter.
S3 (23:56):
Oh, big word alert. Diameter is really two words joined together.
Diese means across and metros means measure. So diameter means
the measure across through the center point.
S2 (24:14):
Exactly. Now, if the diameter of your tin is ten
centimeters and your shelf is 40cm long, how many of
those tins could you line up in one row?
S3 (24:27):
Hmm. I'd need to know how many tens to make
it to 40. For a start. So counting by ten, ten, 20, 30, 40.
So that's one, two, three, four. That's four. Lots of ten.
So four tins fill 40cm. One whole row.
S2 (24:46):
Well worked out. Now the shelf is 30cm deep. So
how many rows can you fit on?
S3 (24:56):
Each tin is ten centimeters across and the shelf is
30cm metres deep. So how many tens to make? 33.
You could fit three rows of tins on the shelf.
S2 (25:11):
You could. How many tins is that altogether?
S3 (25:15):
Oh, Geraldine. Okay. There are four cans in each row
and now there are three rows. So that's three lots
of 41234567893. Lots of four makes 12 Geraldine. So you
could have 12 tins on the shelf and none of
them would fall off.
S2 (25:35):
Brilliant. Give that genius a gold star.
S3 (25:39):
Well, I'd rather have a s'mores, but. Oh, what have
we done today? We talked about how tidying up as
you go is a lot easier than having a huge
cleanup when things get too messy.
S2 (25:50):
We had two big words category, which is a group
of things which are alike, and diameter, which means the
distance across.
S3 (26:00):
We had some maths using diameters too.
S2 (26:03):
If there was anything in today's program about which you
would like to know more, you can find us on
radio at Vision Australia.
S3 (26:13):
Keep wearing those happy pants and we'll catch you next time.
S6 (26:30):
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
(26:54):
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):
G'day and welcome to Happy Pantser Show. Especially for kids
and especially for you. My name is Geraldine.
S3 (00:36):
And my name is Rebecca. And together we're your happy
pants team for today. Why are you wearing dungarees, Geraldine?
And where are your happy pants?
S2 (00:48):
Well, I put the dungarees on over my happy pants
because I didn't want to get them dirty. They're snowy, clean, white.
You know, the kind of white which makes me think
of the smell of eucalyptus or antiseptic hand cleaner.
S3 (01:04):
Mine are white, too. But this kind of white reminds
me of the feel of fresh, clean sheets on my bed.
But why are you scared that your happy pants might
get dirty?
S2 (01:16):
Well, to tell the truth, it's my own fault. When
we locked up yesterday, I forgot that we'd left the
window open.
S3 (01:25):
Oh, dear. And it rained last night, too.
S2 (02:42):
The curtains were soaked. There were puddles on the floor,
and the wind had blown in leaves and dirt and
spread stuff around all over the room.
S3 (02:51):
Oh, I can see what you mean. There are papers
all over the floor.
S2 (02:56):
And that's not all. The curtains were already wet, so
I thought it was a good opportunity to give them
a proper clean. And when I went to put detergent
into the washing machine, the packet had got wet. So
about half of it went into the washing machine in
one lump instead of just one small scoop.
S3 (03:16):
Don't tell me you went ahead with the wash.
S2 (03:19):
I did, and that's why the laundry door is shut.
S3 (03:24):
Don't tell me the laundry is full of soap bubbles.
S2 (03:28):
Right up to the window. I planned to go round
the back way and open the laundry door from the
outside so all the bubbles can pour out that way.
Because if we open this door, we'll be up to
our eyebrows in soap in here.
S3 (03:44):
Well, at least we'll have nice clean curtains. And you
still haven't said why you need to cover up your
white happy pants, though.
S2 (03:55):
Well, the wind blew in a lot of leaves and dirt,
so we'll need to clean up dirt and wet mud
and mud and nice white happy pants do not go
well together.
S3 (04:08):
Oh, dear. It started to rain again. We won't be
able to get the bubbles out of the back door
until it stops.
S2 (04:16):
Well, there's plenty to keep us busy in here for
a bit. Hang on, there's something in my back pocket.
S3 (04:22):
Happy pants always puts interesting clues in our pockets. Hmm.
What have you found?
S2 (04:28):
Well, it feels like a. It's a feather duster.
S3 (04:33):
Well, that won't be much use for cleaning up the
wet floor in here.
S2 (04:37):
No, but this mop might be if I can get
it out. What do you have in your pockets, Rebecca?
S3 (04:46):
Hmm? It feels like a little box. Ooh. Oh, it's
grown into a big box full of little cardboard pockets.
And in this one. Oh, is a dustpan and brush.
S2 (05:03):
Well, not much use for floor cleaning. Must be for
something else.
S3 (05:08):
I guess we'll find out eventually. Oh. just listen to
that rain. Doesn't it make a lovely sound on the roof?
Makes me want to sing along.
S2 (05:20):
Great idea. I'll get on with mopping up the floor.
S3 (05:25):
And I'll pick up these papers. Oh, goodness. We can't
lose these. They're all the letters we have from our listeners.
S2 (05:32):
Well, we both have clean up jobs to do, but
we could all sing along while we do them.
S4 (05:42):
Ooh ooh ooh. Ooh. Ooh. Ooh. Hi. Hi. Ow! Ow ow! Ow!
(06:45):
Ow ow! Ow! Hi. Hi. Oh. Oh. Oh. Hi.
S3 (07:58):
I've worked out what to do with that box with
all the pockets in it. I sorted all of those
papers into categories, and they fitted perfectly into the pockets.
It was a box file. Strange that a box file
should be in a pocket just when I needed it.
S2 (08:19):
Big word alert. Categories. A category is a division of
objects into groups which are alike in some way.
S3 (08:31):
Well, that's everything in here. Tidied up, windows cleaned, papers filed.
S2 (08:37):
Floor mopped. Time for a cup of tea, I reckon.
I'll be Polly. Shallow.
S3 (08:43):
And the rain stopped. So while you're doing that, I'll
nip round the back and let those bubbles out.
S2 (08:50):
Hold it, Rebecca, there's something in my back pocket. It's
wrapped in foil and it are too small. Happy pants
has given us a sweet treat for morning tea.
S3 (09:02):
Ooh, I'll nip out and sort those bubbles while you're
getting it set up.
S2 (09:07):
I think we need to do a proper hand wash
before we start handling food.
S3 (09:11):
Oh, yes, we have to be clean.
S1 (10:59):
Got your happy pants on. I do. It's happy pants
on Vision Australia radio.
S2 (11:06):
That's much better. And I found out what the ash
pan and brush were for.
S3 (11:12):
Oh tell me.
S2 (11:14):
When I was making the tea, I knocked the tea
caddy off the bench and spilt most of the tea
leaves over the floor. It's okay. It's okay. They've all
been swept up and binned, and there was enough left
in the caddy to make a nice cup of tea
to have with our s'mores.
S3 (11:30):
Oh thank goodness. And by the way, all the soap
bubbles floated off in the wind and the curtains are
drying on the line. The laundry is now squeaky clean.
S2 (11:42):
Oh, thank you Rebecca. And so is the rest of
Happy Band's headquarters. Oh, it's so much nicer to have
everything clean and tidy again. I remember that when I
was a little, my sister and I had to tidy
our toys away when we finished playing. We didn't like
it at first, but it didn't take long to realise
(12:04):
that playtime was lots more fun when we knew exactly
where everything was, and we didn't have to waste time
searching for things.
S3 (12:14):
After all that tidying up, I feel like a nice
sit down. Are these cushions look a bit squished? I'll
give them a good shake and fluff them up so
we'll be comfortable.
S2 (12:26):
I'll help you. A bit of thumping should loosen the stuffing.
S3 (12:34):
Oh, stop. Stop! No! Now they've split. Oh, they were
full of fluffy, downy feathers.
S2 (12:42):
And now there's feathers everywhere. You're covered in feathers.
S3 (12:46):
So are you. Oh, and so is our nice clean room.
S2 (12:51):
Happy pants knew this would happen. That's why we have
that feather duster. Only instead of brushing off dust, we
can use it to brush off these fluffy feathers. I'll
dust you down. Then you can help me get rid
of all my feathers too. All gone. Every feather stuffed
(15:20):
back into the cushions.
S3 (15:21):
Oh, comfort at last. Now we can relax and listen
to today's story. It's about someone who never tidied up
her house. She was having far too much fun being
a star at a famous nightclub to spend time on
something like housework.
S5 (15:39):
Yay! Story time.
S3 (15:42):
The house Lizzie Ferc and the songwriter lived in was
particularly untidy. It was a rough and tumble house, unwashed,
undusted and topsy turvy. Lizzie Firkin couldn't even walk across
her own floors because of the mess. She had to
jump from one bare spot to another. When she opened
(16:04):
the cupboards, a thousand things with sharp corners fell out
on top of her. So she nailed the cupboards shut.
The cat and the parrot watched her scornfully. Don't look
at me like that, Lizzie cried. I have to write
songs and practice the trombone every night. Lizzie Firkin put
(16:28):
on the tights she had painted herself. Then heigh ho,
off and away she went to a famous nightclub where
she sang and tap danced and played the trombone until
the roosters started to crow. It was good fun, but
playing the trombone every night always made Lizzie firkin. Too
(16:51):
tired to sweep away dust and cobwebs, to pick up
anything off the floor or to tidy the cupboards. Oh,
I'm quite worn out, she told the cat and the
parrot one day The house is so topsy turvy that
I've decided to send for Robin Pukapuka, the wonder housekeeper.
(17:16):
She looked up the number and telephoned him immediately. This
is a recorded message, said the voice. Robin Pukapuka is
out cleaning houses, trying to make a fortune. Please leave
your name and address when you hear the tone, and
Robin will rush around early tomorrow morning. And please make
(17:36):
sure you don't spoil things by trying to tidy up yourself. Well,
no fear of that, thought Lizzie Firkin, recording her name
and address on the answering machine. She did an hour's
trombone practice, dyed her hair red, painted a few extra
designs on her clothes. Then. Heigh ho. Off and away
(17:57):
she went to the famous nightclub where she danced and
sang and played the trombone. Until the roosters started to crow.
Lizzie Firkin came home very late, as usual. She switched
on the light as usual and blinked at her untidy
house as usual. Unsuccessful songs laid scattered like autumn leaves
(18:23):
over the floor. The cat was curled up in the
bread bin, asleep on a slice of bread. The parrot
was moulting. The vacuum cleaner sulked under the stairs, its
cord wound sadly around itself, like a dog that had
given up any hope of ever being taken for a walk.
Bottles of hair dye stood shoulder to shoulder like soldiers
(18:46):
on top of the piano. Oh, dear! Exclaimed Lizzie Firkin.
How messy it all is! What will Robin Tucker think
of the cat asleep in the bread bin? Or of
all those parrot feathers? Oh, I'd better tidy up just
(19:06):
a little bit. So the wonderful housekeeper won't know how
terribly untidy I really am. Lizzie shooed the cat out
of the bread bin. She picked up the unsuccessful songs
and put them in a folder. She tossed the empty
cat food tins into her rubbish bins. The roosters were
(19:28):
still crowing when she stopped and looked around. Good, but
not quite good enough, she said and yawned. Robin Parker
Tucker must never know how untidy I can be. The
shock might kill a good housekeeper. Lizzie picked up all
the newspapers and then folded them carefully. She vacuumed the floor,
(19:51):
dusted the piano, burnished her trombone, washed the dishes, wiped
the table, cleaned the bath, polished the taps until they
sparkled and threw out the stale soup in the refrigerator.
By now, the sun was looking over the hill. It
showed up every spot on the window. Every cobweb on
(20:14):
the curtains and every smear on the floor. Oh, Lizzy.
Firkin yawned so hard that she nearly sucked the parrot
off its perch, but she polished the floor, washed the windows,
and brushed away the cobwebs. The spiders packed up their
bags and moved to the house next door. Lizzy's eyes
(20:35):
were almost shut and she could not stop yawning. I
mustn't let Robin pucker. Tucker know how untidy I really am,
she muttered as she shook the crumbs off. The cat,
dusted the parrot, put the grandfather clock out by the
gate and wound up the rubbish bin. Then she tumbled
(20:57):
into her big cane chair, quite, quite exhausted. Out by
the gate. The grandfather clock struck nine inbound at a
dashing young man wearing an apron with a smile painted
on it. Are you the trombone player who is particularly
untidy at home? He asked, looking around in astonishment, and
(21:19):
no wonder he was taken aback. Lizzie Firkins house sparkled
from the front door to the back door. It shone
from ceiling to floor. The cat purred. Even the parrot
looked smartly groomed. And who are you? Asked Lizzie Firkin,
too tired to be surprised. I'm Robin Tucker, Tucker, replied
(21:43):
the young man gazing around him, then sounding distinctly disappointed,
he added, what a particularly tidy house you have. Alas,
there is nothing left for me to do. But Lizzie
Firkin did not answer. She was already sound asleep in
her cane chair, Snoring musically and dreaming of trombones. He
(22:10):
cried Robin Parker Tucker in despair to the parish. They'll
all send for me. And then they become scared that
I find out how messy they really are, and tidy
everything up themselves. I'll never make a fortune if things
go on this way. But why? He asked curiously. Are
(22:31):
all the cupboards nailed shut? Snatching up the soup ladle,
he prised open a door that had been nailed shut
for three years. Are thousand things with sharp corners fell
on top of him? Oh, Joy. Housework at last, Robin
Parker Tucker cried faintly but happily from the bottom of
(22:53):
the pile. I shall insist on everyone opening their cupboard
doors from now on. I shall make a fortune. After all.
S2 (23:02):
That was a reading of keeping House by Margaret May.
The reader was Rebecca. I wonder if Lizzie ever worked
out that keeping things tidy a little bit at a
time was a lot easier than doing a massive clean
up when the house became too messy to move around in.
S3 (23:22):
I wonder if Robin Pucajirca ever made his fortune tidying cupboards.
There must be thousands of people with cupboards like Lizzie Firkin.
S2 (23:33):
Probably, but not many people stuffed so much junk in
their cupboards that they have to nail the doors shut.
S3 (23:40):
There must be a way of working out how many
tins or jars can fit in a particular cupboard without
falling out.
S2 (23:48):
Well, that would depend on the size of whatever it
was you wanted to store. So we would need to
know its diameter.
S3 (23:56):
Oh, big word alert. Diameter is really two words joined together.
Diese means across and metros means measure. So diameter means
the measure across through the center point.
S2 (24:14):
Exactly. Now, if the diameter of your tin is ten
centimeters and your shelf is 40cm long, how many of
those tins could you line up in one row?
S3 (24:27):
Hmm. I'd need to know how many tens to make
it to 40. For a start. So counting by ten, ten, 20, 30, 40.
So that's one, two, three, four. That's four. Lots of ten.
So four tins fill 40cm. One whole row.
S2 (24:46):
Well worked out. Now the shelf is 30cm deep. So
how many rows can you fit on?
S3 (24:56):
Each tin is ten centimeters across and the shelf is
30cm metres deep. So how many tens to make? 33.
You could fit three rows of tins on the shelf.
S2 (25:11):
You could. How many tins is that altogether?
S3 (25:15):
Oh, Geraldine. Okay. There are four cans in each row
and now there are three rows. So that's three lots
of 41234567893. Lots of four makes 12 Geraldine. So you
could have 12 tins on the shelf and none of
them would fall off.
S2 (25:35):
Brilliant. Give that genius a gold star.
S3 (25:39):
Well, I'd rather have a s'mores, but. Oh, what have
we done today? We talked about how tidying up as
you go is a lot easier than having a huge
cleanup when things get too messy.
S2 (25:50):
We had two big words category, which is a group
of things which are alike, and diameter, which means the
distance across.
S3 (26:00):
We had some maths using diameters too.
S2 (26:03):
If there was anything in today's program about which you
would like to know more, you can find us on
radio at Vision Australia.
S3 (26:13):
Keep wearing those happy pants and we'll catch you next time.
S6 (26:30):
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
(26:54):
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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