Posts by Tamsin6
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Southerly: Village People, in reply to James Green,
I don't entirely disagree with thinking about attachment to the land, but how do you explain the strongly held (at least in district plans) attachment to entirely detached dwellings, even at the point that this frequently means a pointless an unusable strip of land between houses that is home to a fence and not much more?
I currently live in a terraced house in London (built in the late 1890's) - it has made me even more inclined to never ever ever live in a house that is NOT detached. Even with retrospective sound-proofing (if you can afford it) party walls are a complete and utter nightmare. I have felt bad for my neighbours when my children were very small but very very loud in the early hours of the morning. I have felt true enmity to those same neighbours when they play very loud Polish rock/metal in the early hours. Don't get me started on our other nightmare neighbours and their incompetent builders putting a steel beam through my daughter's bedroom roof.
I also think that the modern tendency to build a house almost to the outer limits of the available land area is nuts. What happened to the idea of having outdoor space? Why build these enormous houses on relatively small sections?
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Southerly: Village People, in reply to Hebe,
Hah! That's why I'm resisting going to the village: I spent my first seven years in another dam town, Otematata.
Ahhh - all kinds of memories of Otematata (and Omarama) from sailing holidays at Benmore long, long ago. And Hakataramea and Kurow for that matter.
You're not the first to muse that Christchurch really needed the old Ministry of Works and its power to command resources. Many of the MoW's old roles have become specialised and may be more suited now to contracted-in machinery like the big blue thing that added the lanes to the Newmarket Viaduct. But imagine how Christchurch might have used the men and machines from our great public works projects.
My father started his traffic engineering career with the MoW in Otago and Southland - he always said it was the best and most thorough grounding anyone could have had. Mum dug out loads of photos from those early days - will have to get her to scan some so I can post them here.
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Southerly: Coming Up For Air, in reply to Russell Brown,
On the subject of Lake Ellesmere, was perturbed to read this today:
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I've just read that the CCC won't be honouring a promise to pay for the burial of the earthquake victims. How completely shitty and petty.
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Hard News: Nobody wanted #EQNZ for Christmas, in reply to Geoff Lealand,
Just a thought; is anyone else a little unsettled by the way Christmas consumption has now extended beyond December 24, into the post-Christmas week. Boxing Day might be better named Buying Day. All this consumption is portrayed by the media as A Good Thing but there is no more a depressing sight than customers rummaging through half-price Christmas baubles on December 26.
Is it a commentary on significant shifts in NZ society?I am unsettled by the long run-up to Christmas, much less so by the sales - the run-up to Christmas feels like an attempt to drum up hysterical levels of spend, spend, spend - the aftermath in the sales seems more of the traditional post-Christmas bargain hunting. Here in London for sure, some people are depending on post-Christmas bargains to be able to provide any treats. Some people are using sale prices in chain supermarkets to put clothes on their backs - it isn't always about greed, sometimes it's about desperation.
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Back to sitting here weeping helplessly at my desk. Only saw the news as I logged in at work. Was showing workmates a lovely upbeat and happy card from one of my ChCh friends only yesterday, and this feels like some kind of sick joke now. Hope all well, and just uselessly trying to frame a sentence that could express anything that would be of support or comfort. I just don't have the words. Thinking of you all.
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Southerly: Coming Up For Air, in reply to Russell Brown,
Oddly enough, David wrote a tremendous post called The End of Lake Ellesmere? here five years ago
Serendipitous? Good to hear that finally things are falling into place for you and your family David - the food allergies and toddler related sleep deprivation can be your prime concern, without having to worry so much about a roof over your head, and the ground under your feet. This can only be a good thing.
Much sympathy by the way - my oldest was not able to drink milk, but at least we had the saving grace of soy. What they don't tell you when you have children with allergy or intolerance is that their not being able to have it without spewing/developing a rash etc etc doesn't mean they don't like it. A child who cannot eat dairy, but who also has a yen for icecream to the extent of stealing it from the plates of others, is not a pretty sight when covered with blisters and vomiting copiously. Thankfully she grew out of it (the vomiting and blisters if sadly not the stealing icecream from my bowl).
We used to go sailing on Lake Ellesmere when I was young - a very different place to what it is now, from your story. I remember helping to push the boat in to the trailer, mud squelching and squishing between my toes, scared silly about possible eels...the hatching of mayflies and the storms of them trying to fly into your nostrils and mouth were also a hazard.
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Hard News: Word of the Year 2011 -- The Vote!, in reply to Islander,
Snort, yes Randy heh heh heh - I think I just regressed to 10
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Hard News: Word of the Year 2011 -- The Vote!, in reply to Sacha,
utterly rooted, if you will
Now theres a term I haven't heard for a while...in all kinds of contexts...I still snigger childishly when I hear the American usage 'rooting for ya' etc. I am still 12 years old in my head at times.
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Hard News: Word of the Year 2011 -- The Vote!, in reply to Robyn Gallagher,
While I understand that the concept of word of the year could apply to munted, as 2011 has seen plenty of opportunity to use it, could I just add that it does seem as though it is 'new' to quite a few PAS posters, which I cannot quite grasp. I thought it was common parlance (as was 'munter' as an insulting term for someone less aesthetically pleasing than they could be) - I have used it consistently through my teenage years, my university years and beyond, and so has my family and most people I have come into contact with. I find it really odd that it is being described as being from a 'subculture'. I do get the distinct impression from some comments here that the emphasis is on 'sub', and that somehow the term has only recently become acceptable in polite society. When you say
People who'd never had dreamed of using 'munted' before suddenly found themselves using it
it makes me realise that New Zealand isn't quite as class-less as we like to make out. As I haven't ever really been part of a sub-culture, I suppose it is quite nice to find myself having been in one all along. Just a shame that it wasn't the 'right kind' of sub-culture.
I nearly didn't post this as it seems to be quite snaky and snarky and I don't mean it that way AT ALL. Well, maybe just a little bit. It's just that little town v country, right side of tracks v wrong side of tracks thing that sneaks up and screams in my face every now and then.