I make a smoothie most days of the week when I’m at home, but for today’s New Year’s Guide I’ve called in an official expert. Until recently, smoothologist Nicholas owned The Juicery in Auckland, so he’s got all the cred you could need. He’s five years younger than me, holds the odd national athletics title […]
Pop quiz for those of you who live in, or are interested in, parliamentary democracies, like the United Kingdom, New Zealand and other such wonderful places: What’s the difference between Cabinet and Caucus? What’s the difference between Government and Parliament and the House of Representatives? Can you describe in a paragraph how a law gets […]
toast Weetbix spaghetti biscuits sandwiches muffins pizza couscous pancakes scones fritters cake crackers noodles pita pockets crumpets Are any of these on your regular playlist? (And am I making you hungry?) It seems like quite a variety of starches for your diet, but look again: every single one is (usually) made out of wheat. People […]
On New Year’s Eve, 2013, my little family made a pilgrimage to Cape Reinga, Te Rerenga Wairua, the northern tip of New Zealand, where the Pacific Ocean and the Tasman Sea ‘say hello’ as SBJ will tell you, with a dramatic clap of his hands. They clash with a set of white-topped breakers out in […]
I used to teach a course in legal writing that was famed for its pedantry (not thanks to me – on that occasion I didn’t make the rules). There was half a mark off for every error of any kind – punctuation, spelling, citation, style, everything. Before the first ‘opinion’ (the main kind of assignment […]
A new year might be an arbitrary piece of mathematical jiggery-pokery, but it’s also a handy opportunity to let the enthusiasm of millions energise our own inclination for change or renewal. I thought I’d introduce you to the wonderful Joyce Rupp today, through this collection of blessings, using imagery from the Bible (thanks, JK, the Ideas […]
O email! O you super-convenient marvel! O you disappointing eater of time! Are you in control of your inbox or does your heart sink when you open your email? How much time a day, a week, do you spend on reading and writing email messages? How much of that would you like back? If there was […]
I was driving up Ngamotu Road a couple of years ago when someone on Radio New Zealand National made a brilliant suggestion. Given what we know about the power of hope and positive thinking, perhaps the Ministry of Health has got it wrong about the warnings on packets of smokes. Rather than pictures of diseased lungs and […]