It's a miracle!

TINY Penola (population about 1200) where Mary MacKillop founded her order of nuns is a friendly enough place.

TINY Penola (population about 1200) where Mary MacKillop founded her order of nuns is a friendly enough place.

But it was downright familial yesterday as premier Mike Rann shared media attention with his brother, Chris Rann, who has been handling the South Australian end of public relations for the Big Event. Chris has his own PR outfit called Rann Communication and he has been in town since Thursday to smooth the way. It gave him time to put out a press release about a proposal to upgrade the site of MacKillop's original stable school. A few months back when he saw the little park he lamented the presence next door of an old house that he felt rather detracted from the mood, and suggested it might have to be demolished. Perhaps it's part of the MacKillop phenomenon but on July 31 when a tornado ripped through Penola, the house was wrecked. Rann is suitably chuffed. Now, if he could only perform a miracle for his brother whose popularity has slumped to a preferred premier rating of a pathetic 38 per cent.

Teflon Bishop

AS part of the Mary MacKillop celebrations Cardinal George Pell and Holy See ambassador Tim Fischer showed the parliamentary delegation of MPs and a flock of bishops through the site of the new Domus Australis in Rome which will be Australia's own magnificent pilgrim centre. After more than an hour clambering through the dusty, dirty and plaster-ridden building, many a black-robed bishop was dusting off a jacket, pants, shoes or shirt that ended up whitened or dusty. But one bishop's black velvet outfit remained untouched and spotless: Liberal delegation leader Julie Bishop remained immaculate, demonstrating her ability to glide through trouble without blemish.

Frankly, my dear . . .

FORMER Melbourne hairdresser Lillian Frank was a socialite before English model Jean Shrimpton turned up at Flemington wearing a mini skirt in 1965. So Frank knows the Melbourne spring racing carnival better than most: she's being going to the races for 50 years which almost as long as Bart Cummings who had his first Cup winner in 1965 with Light Fingers but had been trying since 1958. Racing has improved out of sight, Frank says. "People are dressing up more, the horses are getting faster, the betting is getting higher and the fun is getting much more. I think it's serious enough on one side and frivolous enough on the other side." Strewth's racing adviser says Cummings is cooking up something this year.

Creepy and kooky

WHAT Australians call eccentric, Americans call kooky. Thus Barnaby Joyce, Bob Katter and, possibly, Christopher Pyne on a good day, might be categorised as kooky kinda guys in the US. The mid-term elections have already delivered Christine "I'm not a witch" O'Donnell and other whacky types allied to the Tea Party. It's about time the US produced oddballs such as Britain's Screaming Lord Sutch's Official Raving Monster Loony Party or our own Sex Party and serial Wentworth loser Pat Sheil. The Tea Party has thrown up kooky Republican candidate in South Carolina Jim DeMint who thinks American schools should not employ teachers who are sexually active or lesbian. His Democrat opponent Alvin Greene blames DeMint for the death of Michael Jackson and wants to be known as the "Ultimate Warrior".

China's long arms

MORE that 100 dissidents have braved the wrath of the Chinese Communist Party by calling for the release of jailed intellectual Liu Xiaobo, the Nobel Peace Prize winner. Which shows that there are still brave men and women in China who are prepared to challenge the communist leadership. We keep saying communist, but really the party leaders are in business. There's not much communism in China except for the repression side of that moribund political philosophy. A Chinese Australian rang Strewth to complain that the Sydney-based Australian Chinese Daily refused to take his $800 advertisement announcing a meeting to celebrate Liu's achievement. He was told he could not advertise a meeting that would congratulate the dissident, which indicates that the Chinese government reaches all the way to Sydney.

Whole lotta stodge

A SCOTSMAN has won back the title of the world's best porridge maker after an American took the Golden Spurtle World Porridge Making Championship last year. Neal Robertson, from Auchtermuchty in Fife, used a spon, a double backed spoon, instead of a traditional rod-shaped spurtle to prepare the dish. Roberston says the spon and water from the hills above Auchtermuchty are the secret to making the perfect porridge. Cookery writer Catherine Caldwell from Calgary, Canada, won the speciality porridge category with her Canadian cranberry apple crunch recipe. Other entries included seafood porridge with scallops, clootie dumpling porridge and oat fritters. The Golden Spurtle is awarded to the porridge-maker deemed to have made the best porridge using oatmeal, salt and water.