26 September 2023

Holiday holy day?

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Staying on Monday this week in which half of Australia was lucky enough to have the day off work, granted as they were with an always popular long weekend with a Monday holiday.

Those who used their holiday in NSW, South Australia and the ACT did so to mark the workers’ Labour Day by not labouring with the workers of Queensland choosing to down tools to celebrate Her Majesty, the Queen’s Birthday.

PS-sssst! can understand a State called QUEENsland celebrating its Queen’s birthday, but when the world has just finished entombing their beloved one, could it be time for the holiday of fun and games to be remarked for a less sober celebration?

In Janice we trust!

A special mention of a friend of PS-sssst! now in the form of Janice G of the Queensland Office of Industrial Relations who politely pointed out that PS-sssst! can’t spell as it was guilty of a typing error in the first word of one of its entries last week.

“Good afternoon Frank,” the friendly Janice wrote, not letting on the disaster she was about to unveil.

“Your section PS-sssst! is often the first section of PS News that I turn to. I very much enjoy it.”

So far so good!

“I hope Philomena S of Victoria’s Department of Health is true to her word that we haven’t heard the last from her yet. I do enjoy her quotes and words of wisdom.

“I also enjoy Rama Gaind’s giveaways. I have managed to win a couple of prizes and have enjoyed them immensely.”

Still OK. But then …….

“As I was reading today I noticed that in the article Commissions on a mission? the article started with: Straying with Her Majesty’s departure….”

“Should it have read Staying with and not Straying with?”

Aaaaarrgh!

Janice was right of course. The never wrong PS-sssst! (as if!) was wrong (as is!)!

Many thanks to Janice for bringing it to our attention.

Like the many readers who expose PS-sssst!s shortcomings, Janice can expect to receive a ‘Perfectly Popular Pack of PS-sssst! Paraphernalia’ for her wise contribution very soon as well as our thanks for her kind words.

Clickety clicked!

To Victoria now where the State has come down heavy on its gambling industry after cleaning up a less-than honest situation that had taken over what should have been a fair and fun business.

“The Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission (VGCCC) has come down strong on its gambling regulations in the first six months of operation,” the newly appointed clearer upper reported recently.

“We have stronger powers and a sharper focus on creating a gambling industry that has integrity, and is safe and fair for all,” it said.

Hear, hear is all PS-sssst! can say, noting that the VGCCC has shown a level of ruthless that would make ‘Ruth’ (who ever she is!) proud.

According to the Chief Executive of VGCCC it conducted 615 audits: “to check operator, product and system compliance, and prosecuted two bingo operators …..”

Bingo? PS-sssst’s mother used to play bingo!

These good people in the VGCCC obviously mean business!!!

A cold hard book prize

To another of Rama Gaind’s globetrotting giveaways now in which a lucky reader wins the chance to become the roaming owner of a free Lonely Planet trip around the world, this week to the glacially sleety Iceland.

To scoop up Rama’s wandering winner for the week we needed only name correctly tell us the most northerly capital in the world, the answer to which was Iceland’s super-north Reykjavik!

And the first reader to ski out of PS News’s Barrel of Booty with the correct answer was Jo-Anne L of the federal Department of Health, whose newly warmed up Lonely Planet Guide to Iceland will be on its way very soon.

Congratulations Jo-Anne and thanks to everyone who took part in Rama’s raffle race to riches. The prize will be on its way to its new owner soon.

For another chance to join Rama’s Army of winning wonders, all we all need to do is play her giveaway game and send in our answer to one or both of her reviews of the DVD Dig at this PS News link and/or her also-reviewing masterpiece of the Book Team Better Together at this link.

Good luck to all who do. We’ll see you back here again next week!

No spell for readers

And finally, congratulations to almost every State and Territory for the month just finished which saw the PS News readerships hit new heights with the combined subscription lists reaching the impressive 180,000 readers for the first time.

With 7 of PS News’s 9 editions also scoring new heights, two – APS and South Australia – leapt into new records with the APS reaching 63,000 for the first time (up from 61,000) and SA moving into the 11,000 millenium (up from 10,000) with another 5 public services hitting their best-ever readerships, if not bouncing into a new levels.

As always, PS News continues to be amazed and bashful for the reception we receive from so many readers and patrons.

And so as always, we repeat our promise we’ve made non-stop for 17 years that if you keep reading PS News we’ll keep writing it.

Bear in minds however that it’s the ‘News’ in PS News that makes all the difference.

If it’s PS but not ‘PS News’, it’s not PS News.

Till next week….

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