I had to do a bit of last minute shopping this morning – some fridge-magnets, pens covered with koala and kangaroo designs (you know the sort of geegaws you bring back from holidays in Australia) and some fluid retention tablets (for the flight home) – so I tagged along with dear old Roland (well, much older than me) who had to go his bank at Beenleigh. Rather than wait in the car, in the heat without the air-conditioning on, I went into the bank with Roly.

“And would you like to withdraw any cash sir?” asked the lady bank teller in a very formal fashion.

“Two hundred please,” our friend replied.

“Fifties okay?” she glanced up to look him in the eye.

“I’m only forty-eight!” he quipped.

The teller stopped to think about it for a moment and burst out laughing.

A short while later we were doing some shopping in Coles supermarket. We needed to get special “Earth” washing liquid (our friend has an organic septic tank system) and as we stood in the washing products aisle I noticed that they had also some “Earth” fabric conditioner. We always use fabric conditioner at home so I asked:

“Wouldn’t you like the “Earth” conditioner aswell?”

“No thanks,” Roland sidled up close to me and nudged me on the elbow, “I like it ‘rough and tumble’!”