Column 8

"Please tell Jan Twomey," asks Richard Ramsden, of Mosman (peculiar pets' names, Column 8, Tuesday), "that I used to have a cat called Trouble. I was naturally disposed to go looking for it."

stage

ANIMALS OUT OF PAPER Ensemble Theatre, Kirribilli, 9929 0644, $39-$63.

Schools website leads parents to change address

LEAGUE tables will influence parents to buy homes in suburbs with top-ranking schools, university researchers and real estate agents predict.

Teacher inspired generations

MARGARET MACKIE 1914-2009

In short - Fiction

The Rehearsal By Eleanor Catton Granta Books, 320pp, $29.99 Music from Another Country By Jeremy Fisher Fat Frog Books, 100pp, $23.95 The Blue Notebook By James A. Levine Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 224pp, $29.99 Present Danger By Stella Rimington Quercus, 384pp, $32.95

Rugby can't shoot itself in the foot

RUGBY league goes from strength to strength €“ 80,000 at last night's game! €“ and rugby union continues to shoot itself in both feet. The latest imbroglio is the issue of Wallabies wanting to be paid for a trial match before they go on their northern hemisphere tour. There have been claims and counter-claims, but the bottom line was put by the Rugby Union Players' Association boss Tony Dempsey: "The players' attitude was if the game is being played for commercial gain, we want to be paid." Are you with me? If there is money to be made on this, then we want our cut, as we are the raw material in this industry. Here's my bottom line: get nicked. There has never been as much disillusionment with elite rugby in Australia and the way it is played as this year. Never. This will have to show up in severely depleted rugby coffers as people turn away from games, don't renew season tickets for next year, and turn away from even watching it on TV. So, do you blokes want your share of those losses, too, losses that stem from the way you're playing? Well, they're inevitably coming. Australian rugby is sinking fast, and it needs all hands on the pump to stay afloat. Those wanting to bicker over match payments for a trial match just don't get it, and should get out. The bus is leaving in five minutes. Be under it.

CAFE REVIEW

Pablo & Rusty's Espresso Bar, 1/1 St Johns Avenue, Gordon (9499 8442)

Movies - Monday, September 7

Princesses (2005)

Anorexia's lifelong legacy

You may feel your child has all the signs, but eating disorders particularly among boys are hard to diagnose and treat, writes Thea O'Connor.

She's going to be a contender

A study has found that girls at single-sex schools are more competitive, writes Caroline Milburn.

No Militants In Bombed School, Un Director Says

SEVENTEEN hours after the attack on one of his schools killed 40 Palestinians seeking shelter from Israel's war on Hamas, the United Nations' director of operations in Gaza, John Ging, was certain of at least one thing "We have established beyond any doubt that the school was not being used by any militants," Mr Ging told The Age last night. "They were innocent people."