Della also encouraged them to speak the lyrics instead of singing and with the input of a language coach this technique influenced the singer's flow and line of the piece as in poetry. The results were astounding!
How can you improve on perfection? Whanganui Opera School has proved you can.
VIV LABONE
Whanganui
Bins and bags
Some years ago we joined the crowd and began hiring a big green bin off one of the Whanganui rubbish contractors.
We paid around $27 a month to have it emptied every fortnight. Everything went in: bottles, cans, weeds, plastics, all paper and cardboard.
Then we found the recycling station in Peat St. We began frequenting this regularly with bottles, papers and plastics. We then replaced the big green bin with the smaller green bin and, within a short time, were paying about the same as we had for the big green one.
By then the wonderful recycling centre in Maria Place extension had opened and we really got into recycling. This resulted in us only having to put our little green bin out monthly but we were still paying the fortnightly rate. Also, the bin was only about half-full.
We stopped the little green bin and bought our own little green bin to put black plastic rubbish bags in. We bought the yellow stickers for less than $2 each and 5 bags for around $5.
We then began using the black plastic bags again after many years of not doing so. We put a bag out about every month. Costs less than $3 per month. As pensioners we find this a very good deal.
Within a short time, I noticed most other people in our street had also started using black plastic bags again.
We do not claim to have set an example, but I guess everyone came to the same conclusion as we did about the same time.
The black plastic bag system is much cheaper now most families use the recycling centre.
Now we find one contractor has stopped providing the pink stickers for black plastic bags and the other is also planning to stop providing the yellow stickers.
This means residents now have to hire green bins again at an exorbitant monthly rate, mostly to put out one small black plastic bag of rubbish.
What is going on here? The contractor for the pink stickers cited health and safety reasons for the change.
I suspect the contractors are not making the financial killing that they were a year or two ago by providing what really is an inflexible and very costly bin service.
I have been advised by the mayor's office that the council intends to address this issue with a possibility that council may need to get back into the rubbish collection business. Whanganui residents seem to want to do the correct thing in terms of recycling but are possibly going to be financially penalised for it.
We should all start contacting our elected councillors and bending their ears about this travesty.
Many people in this town are on low fixed incomes, and if the contractors are allowed to foist their money-making scheme on to us it will be nothing less than usury.
ROB RATTENBURY
Whanganui
Climate change
Having briefly spoken but once to Castlecliff's eminent scientist, Dr Robert L Hays, I doubt very much he would be bothered to reply to L E Fitton's recent letter to you, but I will.
May I also scoff at Professor James Morton's answers in last Saturday's 48 Hours liftout? In terms of the latter here we have a climate scientist telling us the west Antarctic ice sheet is being lost when in fact 80 per cent of Antarctica's mass is becoming colder.
Would the professor have a real job if he failed to persist in being a prophet of doom?
I prefer to believe the likes of Dr Robert and another true scientist, geologist and paleoclimatologist Dr Gerrit J. van der Lingen, who if Mr Fitton insists, may be branded as anti-warmists but at least accept that the earth's power is far greater than its human inhabitants.
TERRY COXON
Whanganui
Which school?
I bought a book on Trade Me prior to Christmas. It was awarded to a W. McLean of Wanganui High School in 1880. Now what school would that be today, please?
He won the book for an essay on coal ... the book was written by Charles Rooking Carter in England in 1870 and published in 1875.
Carterton is named in honour of our main benefactor, Charles Rooking Carter.
I have donated the book to our mayor this week for the town, but I am interested to find out more about W. McLean.
Wanganui High School said they were founded in 1958, so not that school!
ADELE PENTONY-GRAHAM
12 Neich's Lane, Clareville, Carterton 5713
