Across the road, too, lived the girl I thought was a boy with her trousers and short hair, her hat with the little feather. She played cricket with us in the lane and had a sports-car and a girl friend I saw her kiss.

Then there was Nursie next to Carol and she was the District Nurse. We saw up her dress behind the roses and her legs were very fat and had garters and skin coming out over the top. It looked really rude. But good fun peeping. And she used to go and deliver babies in an Austin (it had a canvas hood) with a bag like a doctor’s too. She sat in the garden at night by the hedge and the netting to keep away birds. It would be good if the birds pecked her. And then up further the girl who took the oranges and I am afraid of her but can’t tell my mother. She takes her Grannie’s money — change from the purse — and she’s blind and can’t see, and that girl puts it in my sock so I’m to blame and I feel it all silvery and very cold when I stand there and she says is this all? And I don’t tell my mother but in the shed she is dirty. I forget what she does — don’t like to say. Horrid horrid and I can’t go away — not really that bad though, but she makes me take off all my clothes one-two-three and puts fern round me and pretends to be an artist or does other things and sometimes pinches. And there is the Jacobs family that is queer and they all go along together. And Puffing Billy, something like Reece — but Nan says no. He doesn’t even run but gallops with one hand tucked up like a paw and spit everywhere. And Puffing Billy is dirty-looking with eyes too close and doesn’t shave but he should. He has brothers that are all right — one called the Professor he’s that clever but I don’t like him. They saw me up the tree. And Puffing Billy sells flags for Torrens at the football and people look and he does the bags at the Laundry. And Pearce’s boy is another queer one too — white hair and has a habit he can’t stop but salutes the flag up-and-down when there isn’t one. Poor thing. But he said come behind the bush and show me what you’ve got for a penny. And I play with Carol and David (whose father owns the wood-yard and has a dog Sam) and Dean Black whose father takes the; Boys’ Brigade at the Church of Christ. And Muriel Sutton who goes to St. James’ Church of England School and has sisters and Chérie who does tap-dancing and says her name is French but Nan says her mother is common — as bad as Dot Cherry — had boy friends in the War. And we play hopscotch and Chérie got a ping-pong and we tried that and get stamps from the lady by the Daisy Dell. Do dress-ups and play Sevens with the ball and Muriel can do cross-arm but not too good at Number Five and collect film stars. My favourite is Esther Williams who does the swimming and I have a lovely one of her and Carol likes the one who was in ‘Annie Get Your Gun’ (she would) and thinks she can sing ‘East is East’ just as well. And also ‘Buttons and Bows’. Carol can do the wheel and does turn-overs on the fence and I see up her pants — she ought to change them.