Posts by Kerry Weston
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Laws seems to polarise the locals as far as his mayoral job goes, but they had the same mayor, one Chas Poynter, for many years previously. Half the population had probably never heard of him. So on the positive side, Laws has certainly got the attention of his citizens and brought Wanganui into the spotlight. He can't claim to have brought artistic vibrancy - cheap real estate, the polytech and artists settling in for the long haul have done that.
Seems I'm not alone in getting my news fix & some decent analysis, vigorous opinions, links via blogs like PA etc - fed up with the blah in print media & TV news - I'm seeing similar thoughts elsewhere, notably on poneke today.
Print media columnists like Laws, McLeod, Black are v. predictable and seem calculated to pander to a demographic. Rosemary McLeod & Tom Scott in their heyday were great - provocative, witty, genuine personalities.
Better class of wit on here these days!
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Does anyone know whether tourist trains - like the Orient Express, the one that crosses the desert in oz, etc - are profitable?
The old steam trains that get an outing here, always seem well-booked and some of the rail routes are stunning. The old Napier-Gisborne trip was fabulous, round the coast. Ditto thru National park, the Raurimu Spiral etc - I loved those trips as a kid. Those 'rail excursion' style trips, linked to tourist sites & accommodation could be a real asset. And get some of those campervans off the road & cut down the congestion on some of the well-used roads.
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This reminds me of our own Philip Clairmont and his attempts to galvanize his LSD experience's
Indeed. Funny how Clairmont went off the radar the last 20 years as far as establishment art circles are concerned. I still think he was one of our best painters - I've got a copy of an old interview he did where he explained his process and he was alot more rational & orderly in his painting process than what one might think.
I think that NZ is still a rather repressive country, that is uncomfortable with overt expression, experimentation etc - looked like it was changing for the better pre the New Right, but seems to have retreated since.
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Seems very odd to me that arts courses in film & theatre that do lead to 'proper' jobs in film, tv etc are being axed, at a time of growth in these industries in an imaged world - didn't I read somewhere that LOTR alone was responsible for a big leap in tourist numbers?
What's sadder, is the number of fine arts grads from the large number of courses available who end up with $50k student loans and the dire realisation that they're never going to make it as a practising artist in NZ, simply because the market isn't big enough. So many go on to become nannies, baristas etc or join the brain drain. A waste of talent. As someone who has lived 'on the smell of an oily rag' whilst pursuing a creative life as a painter, I promise you artistic integrity is passe in the new world.
Now doing an equally useless history degree - a current paper on 1920s/30s NZ moaning about the lack of intellectual, creative, cultural stimulation and the resulting bland, narrow society of farmers and land speculators, where ordinary blokes can't wait to dash off to war for a bit of excitement and the women find ingenious ways to make ends meet. History never repeats, I tell myself before I go to sleep....
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From the files of a techno-dummy: Tom, I also have an LCD tv, no aerial, we use bunny ears. Reception is ok for tvnz, not prime. Looked into freeview options, but, shock horror, I'm confused.
Is the HDTV freeview decoder you mention the best option - will I need a proper aerial or would I be better off getting a dish?
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I gave up on the vege garden over summer - paying for water made it uneconomic. If I get it together and install a small rainwater tank t'would be ok. I do well out of quinces, got an enormous, abundant tree that s ready to fruit and I swap them for farm meat & other produce. Also got masses of garlic which I keep thinking I should do something with, mash them into paste or something & sell at market.
I agree it's appalling that in a mass food producing country we pay thru the nose for meat & dairy.
As a single income mortgage payer, I'm not too worried - I paid alot of mine off faster the last decade (property's cheap here) and I reckon interest rates will start dropping later this year. Food, power & petrol are the killers.
Dunno about nutmeg - the old San Pedro was the botanical hit in my day...
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Too bad about the beer, back to the Health Bored.
Can someone tell me why, in a country of 4 million people, we need so many DHBs?? Does Sydney have this many managerial units to oversee health delivery?I don't see that our health needs or ability to meet them varies that greatly from one district to another. Isn't it unnecessary duplication and creating opportunities for just this sort of palava?
It also distracts from the more important issues - in manawatu, wanganui, rangitikei areas, we have no adolescent/teen specialist psychologist and rely on a locum from Auckland visiting. Naturally, only the most serious cases are seen - too bad about the rest of the troubled teens. Same with obstetric/gyno care and the nine house surgeons they're short of.
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"For a really interesting, and disturbing, look at the implications of over subscribing anti-depressants watch Anthropologist Helen Fisher talk about the chemistry of love."
www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/16
Thanks, Cushla, the Helen Fisher clip is excellent. The notion that fiddling with serotonin levels also affects dopamine levels (suppresses it) and therefore interferes in human ability to bond, is a concern. Would that make us less empathic? Unable to form meaningful romantic commitments or even have raunchy casual sex?
My GP reckons it can take quite a bit of experimenting to find the right SSRI, at the right dose, for a patient. I suspect that they don't actually stop the black thoughts, but loosen your attachment to them. As a depressive myself, from a likewise family, it's been instructive to me to live with my 17 yr old son, who is a total optimist and naturally sunny person. As Cushla says, I'm convinced it's all in the brain chemistry and somehow, that chemical pathway gets carried on genetically. My son got his chemistry set from the paternal end of the gene pool, I reckon!
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This whipped-up "story" demonstrates exactly why political bloggers who do their research and patiently earn a reputation for astute analysis are outclassing trad media journalists.
Take a bow, RB!
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There is a major flow-on effect from the whole debacle that affects most families. The awareness and monitoring of possible child abuse by teachers, educational, medical, mental health professionals means their attitudes and everyday practice are geared towards this.
Families can face enormous, complex stresses that are not about children being abused. Some professionals appear to believe that ANY problem behaviour is caused by abuse. If the family can actually prove they are not abusive (and how exactly does one prove it?), they will simply be labelled inadequate and not eligible for real, practical help. There are very few specialist child and adolescent psychologists, or proper behavioural therapists in NZ. To get such help, you must be in crisis.
So, those of us with difficulties other than abuse get no resources or professional help. If you've been a good parent, you will not be supported and helped in a practical, useful manner, when problems arise, as they inevitably do.