Weather: Overnight lows down to three. The kind of cold that makes excuses unnecessary. Carry a jumper. Actually, carry two.

HE CAME BACK HUNGRY: THE TOWN AGREES ON A NARRATIVE, WHICH IS EITHER GOOD NEWS OR STEVE-O'S PROBLEM NOW

Keith Mulroney said it first at the post office on Thursday, and by Sunday afternoon it had completed two full circuits of the district and returned home slightly improved. Steve-o Mitchell is back at training. He is focused, sharp, and — according to Keith, and now according to everyone — hungry.

The Currawong Flats fixture is a fortnight away. The town, which cannot resist a redemption arc when one presents itself, has elected to interpret every subsequent sighting of Steve-o through this lens. His Tuesday afternoon at the cafe: preparation. His nodded greeting to Deb Forsythe at the Royal on Saturday evening: composure under social pressure. His early Thursday appearance at the Royal before opening, admitted by Gary 'Macca' McKenzie with no explanation offered: clearly, strategy of some kind.

What passed between Steve-o and Macca behind that closed door at nine-fifteen on a Thursday morning is unknown to this paper and apparently unknowable. "He's not in trouble" is what was said by a person who watched him leave. He looked easy, which covers quite a lot of ground.

This reporter would merely observe: the narrative the town has chosen for Steve-o is a generous one, and generous narratives are wonderful right up until the game.

THE FESTIVAL BECOMES REAL: DEB FORSYTHE ACQUIRES A DISPLAY FOLDER AND THE TOWN REVISES ITS ESTIMATE

There are moments when a thing becomes a real thing. Last Saturday at the store, Deb Forsythe purchased a display folder. Lorraine Apps communicated this — in the particular manner that is her manner, which involves tone rather than words — as confirmation. The July 7 planning session at the Royal is now a social fact. Deb and Bev Tonkin were seen at the pub with site maps. The question used to be whether the festival would happen. The question is now what it will look like.

Macca's doing soup has entered public circulation, apparently via a telephone conversation involving Bev Tonkin. Whether this intelligence was offered freely or extracted is a matter this paper cannot confirm. That Macca is taking a festival planning session seriously enough to prepare soup is — and this paper does not offer compliments lightly to anyone at present — exactly right.

July 7. Mark it. Bring opinions. Bring a coat.

RAY CONNELLY: NOTEBOOKS, SOUTH BOUNDARY, AND THE FESTIVAL INTERPRETATION NOBODY QUITE BELIEVES

Ray Connelly has been seen from the Narrabri road again. South boundary. The channels. The notebook. That man doesn't stop is the current formulation and this paper can only agree.

Someone — and this paper will not speculate as to the originator; however, this paper suspects it is the sort of person who also explains the weather — has added preparing for the festival to the list of explanations for what Ray Connelly is doing at the Henderson place, in the channels, in the notebook. This interpretation is being received with the polite scepticism it deserves.

He is measuring something. He is writing something down. He is receiving correspondence from Whitmore & Associates, Family Law, Cairns. He is not explaining himself. This paper continues to find this professionally infuriating and personally fascinating in approximately equal measure.

BINGO CORNER REACHES FIVE: HELEN WATTS CREDITED, POSSIBLY AGAINST HER WISHES

Five regulars at bingo on Friday. Helen Watts is acknowledged as the original, and the word started is being used, in a tone that mixes approval with mild surprise. She started something. Good for her. Five is a crowd at the Royal on a Friday at five.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

From: Keith Mulroney, Post Office
Marge — I have been quoted accurately for once. I want it on record that I noticed. Don't let it become a habit on either of our parts. — K.M.

From: Helen Watts
Dear Marge, I came for the bingo. I did not come to be the founder of a movement. Please clarify this at your earliest opportunity. Regards, Helen Watts. P.S. Macca sets the table nicely.

From: A Reader Who Prefers Not To Be Named (L.A.)
Marge, some of us at the store noticed that the display folder Deb bought was the A3 heavyweight with the thirty-six-pocket insert and reinforced spine. I just think that's relevant context. Relevant context that I have provided.

AROUND THE DISTRICT

— Tash Briggs's sourdough: rack empty before eleven again. She has found her number. The number is not being said but the rack is proof enough.

— The child's shoe on the Henderson fence is holding firm despite the cold. Some landmarks are made of sterner stuff.

— Fuel at the servo: up again. Nobody is pleased. Everyone is paying.

— Bruce Patterson has not given anyone new reason to discuss him this week. This paper considers this an achievement and records it accordingly.

— The drought continues. The ground is saying nothing good.