takes us to a house with a lawn, a fountain and three pink birds stand- ing on one leg.There are five women in a room called a living room. The women have stiff hair, spotless frocks. They have glasses in their hands and they’re friendly and smile with perfect teeth. One says,Come right in. Just in time for the pawty. Pawty.That’s the way they talk and I suppose I’ll be talking like that in a few years. Tim Boyle tells us the girls are having a bit of a time while their husbands are away overnight hunting deer, and one woman, Betty, says, Yeah. Buddies from the war.That war is over nearly five years and they can’t get over it so they shoot animals every weekend and drink Rhein- gold till they can’t see. Goddam war, excuse the language, Fawder. The priest whispers to me, These are bad women. We won’t stay here long. The bad women say, Whatcha like to drink? We got everything. What’s your name, honey? Frank McCourt. Nice name. So you take a little drink.All the Irish take a little drink. You like a beer? Yes, please. Gee,so polite.I like the Irish.My grandmother was half Irish so that makes me half, quarter? I dunno. My name is Frieda. So here’s your beer, honey. The priest sits at the end of a sofa which they call a couch and two women talk to him. Betty asks the First Officer if he’d like to see the house and he says, Oh, I would, because we don’t have houses like this in Ireland.Another woman tells the Wireless Officer he should see what they  have  growing  in  the  garden,  you  wouldn’t  believe  the  flowers. Frieda asks me if I’m okay and I tell her yes but would she mind telling me where the lavatory is. The what? Lavatory. Oh, you mean the bathroom. Right this way, honey, down the hall. Thanks. She  pushes  in  the  door, turns  on  the  light, kisses  my  cheek  and whispers she’ll be right outside if I need anything. I stand at the toilet bowl firing away and wonder what I’d need at a time like this and if this is a common thing in America, women wait- ing outside while you take a splash. 360