Season 12 of The Brokenwood Mysteries was excellent! I hope there will be a Season 13. 📺
I read this book in dribs and drabs over the course of a year — Rare Tongues: The Secret Stories of Hidden Languages by Lorna Gibb. 📚
From the whistling languages of La Gomera in the Canary Islands and the Hmong people in East and Southeast Asia, to the wars and clashes in Sri Lanka and the conservation efforts in Hawaii and New Zealand, Rare Tongues draws attention to how language and culture are becoming increasingly homogenous, and what we risk losing as a result.
There were many interesting tidbits, such as:
State control is easier when you can control the words people use.
And this, which echoes word for word statements made in Aotearoa about bilingual road signs:
… those in Scotland who are angered by Gaelic on road signs. ‘Why should the majority have to put up with it? It’s a tiny group of speakers who all know English anyway’ is a common lament. ‘Why are we paying for this extra signage?’
This book was fine, and had its moments but overall just didn't grab me. I won't bother with more in the series — Augusta Hawke (Augusta Hawke Mysteries Book 1) by G.M. Malliet. 📚
In Chapter 1, I liked:
The romance novel wouldn’t get off the ground; it may have been a case of my being unable to write what I didn’t know, but my attempt described two people so insipid I couldn’t stand to be in the room with either of them for the year or more it takes to write a book.
This is so cool — Researchers use tiny radio backpacks to track elusive gecko species | RNZ News:
The northern striped gecko live on Coromandel Peninsula and are so skilled at camouflage, they weren't discovered until 1997.
University of Otago zoologist Dr Jo Monks and masters student Harriet Wills have tracked them for the past few months, by attaching small radio transmitters to their backs.
We had brunch yesterday at Jolt Cafe in Maunu. I enjoyed a bagel with cream cheese, salmon, avocado, poached egg and spinach, along with a sencha green tea.
We arrived at the Whangārei Farmers Market at 8 — latecomers, judging by the number of people already leaving with bulging bags and the crowd still browsing. There wasn't a good spot for a picture showing the numerous stalls; this was just a part.
We came home with a good haul of fruit and veg.
Off to The Whangarei Growers Market (FB link) this Saturday morning. I'm hoping to find some local EV olive oils.
will one muffin harm you? Categorically no. If you ate 3 muffins a day for a year, then yes, that wouldn’t do you much good but one muffin on a Wednesday afternoon – let it go.
Treat every meal as a fresh start. Your next choice is way more important than your last one.
Source: Dr Ruth Machin - Nutrition and health coach for women over 50, newsletter, 12 June 2026, on the perils of perfectionism. (My emphasis)
Juxtaposition of the day.
Seen through the window, goldfinches chaffinches on the lawn. 🐦
Oops, a reader has pointed out these are goldfinches.
I feel a little churlish in saying this book from a "prestigious" and "award winning author" was only OK. I was drawn to the book because it was free, and it's set around Matakana, about an hour's drive from where I live. Rings On Water (The Matakana Series Book 2) by Madeleine Eskedahl. 📚
what seems to be a straightforward case of an unfortunate death turns into a complex web of small town secrets and desire for revenge that will soon place Bill's family in danger.
I'm inclined to think a good editor could have removed a good 50% of the word "and" where sentences should have been structured differently (it really bugged me).
The tourist promo stuff about Matakana was also annoying. It made me think of the first two episodes of NCIS Sydney where they basically spent all their time pointing out they were in Australia.
The plot also needed tightening up.
The fact that I hadn't already read Book 1 of the series suggests I'd previously looked at a sample and decided against it.
Obviously, a lot of other people enjoyed this book more than I did.
This morning's beach walk was crisp (8C), but gorgeous.
So interesting! I had no idea different kinds of rice affected things this much, or how the amount of water is so important — This 37 minute video will change the how you think about Rice:
If you have ever struggled with cooking rice at home, or have ever wondered when, if, or how much you should wash your rice. It's not your fault...the way we’ve conventionally been taught how to cook rice at home is completely backwards.
Every delay to this crazy sand mining proposal is good news — Bream Bay sand mining proposal on hold as McCallum Brothers seek time - NZ Herald:
The fast-track panel has hit pause on McCallum Brothers Ltd’s application to mine sand in Bream Bay, granting the company more time to respond to submissions.
In a minute issued last week, the panel confirmed the pause from June 2 after McCallum Brothers sought extra time to address 46 submissions from invited parties – many backed by detailed material and expert evidence – allowing technical review and preparation of its response.
I was really looking forward to my first cup of tea this morning: a Bagua Shan Dong Pian Oolong tea from Taiwan. Flavour: sweet, vegetal, floral.
As I reached out to grasp the cup I managed to knock it over completely… 😒
So is the one I'm drinking now the first or second cup? 🤔
I needed something quick to eat and this morning had bought a tiny bottle of truffle infused olive oil to try out. We also had lemons from a friend's overflowing tree. That all led me to Spring Pea Pasta Salad (no photo), which turned out to be all right.
Not sure how I feel about truffle oil.
In Kaikohe, next to the Waitomo petrol station, is Cafe Ihaalam, named apparently after a Middle Eastern grandfather of the owner.
At Ihaalam the food was wonderful. I was quite taken that my green tea was served in a good old-fashioned metal teapot. The apple pie was scrumptious.
Ihaalam vs Malaahi
Ihaalam is not to be confused with nearby Cafe Malaahi where we didn't enjoy the food at all.
This is turning out to be a series I really enjoy. While reading, I identified several potential perpetrators, but I was wrong each time. Murder in Knockhaven Harbour (Detective Marjory Fleming Mysteries Book 2) by Aline Templeton. 📚
On a stormy September night, the Knockhaven lifeboat crew are returning from a routine rescue when disaster strikes. The boat inexplicably misses the harbour and crashes into the lethal rocks of nearby Fuill’s Inlat.
The routine inclusion of Scots words and phrases is a delight too.
This was a fun and easy read — Mirabile by Janet Kagan. 📚
On the distant planet of Mirabile, a settlement of human colonists from Earth is jeopardized by the genetic mutants of Earth plants and animals like the Loch Moose Monster, the Frankenswine, and the dreaded carnivorous Kangaroo Rex—and it’s up to ecological troubleshooter Mama Jason to destroy the menacing mutants.
A young looking Kōtare | Kingfisher on the stump out back behind our place. 🐦
