Another excellent Toby Morris cartoon — The Side Eye’s Two New Zealands: The Table. Follow the link for the other panels in the essay.

Cartoon shows one person at dinner table has 6 plates of food; 4 people have one plate each; 5 people have nothing.

When I was in Whanganui the other day this interesting mural caught my eye.

Mural depicting a black mechanical fish with a smaller fish on its back and using a periscope.

When they were handing out adjectives to authors this one went back for thirds. I feel like I need a shower to wipe the muck off. Book discarded. 📚

Paragraph with 9 adjectives in 2 sentences.

I really enjoyed The Orville, all 3 seasons, and very much want it to be renewed. S1 took itself much less seriously, but all seasons explored some very interesting issues. One standout for me was S01E07 Majority Rule — about a society where Likes became law.

The Orville logo.

Ahhh — why episodes in The Orville S3 were so much longer than in Seasons 1 & 2: the show moved from Fox to Hulu — The Orville: …Season 4 Renewal Chances… Disney+ Views Could Be Game-Changer:

on network dramas… you have to cut everything down to exactly 43 minutes

Hooray!

Maybe it is okay to not pursue potential and just be okay with being. Why must there be a reason for everything?

Winnie Lim » on leading a purposeless life.

Thanks @benwerd for the link.

I’m finding I really enjoy this author. The quirky English has come to be a feature. The Season of Killing: (Lost in Alaska Book 5). In particular, Chapter 7 is enormously evocative of the perils of winter travel above the Arctic Circle. 📚

Book cover: The Season of Killing.

First time ever I’ve seen a Kererū at Waikawa Beach. They do live 4 Km away (as the bird flies) but have never been down here before as far as I know. 🐦

Length: 50 cm; Weight: 630 g

Kereru on the flax spears.
Kereru looks towards the camera.
Kereru on flax.

At the Make a paperweight workshop in Whanganui the glassworking area is on the bottom floor. The central furnace at 1100C is a vat of molten glass. The one on the right is simply for heating. The table has examples of paperweights. My work must cool before I get it.

The furnaces and work area at the glassworks.
Me heating an iron in the furnace. Posed, after the workshop.
A table of example paperweights.

Today I’m in Whanganui for a 30 minute glassmaking workshop. First a cup of kawakawa fire tea at the cafe next door.

Tea cup and pot in a cafe.

It’s very bracing this morning, with an overnight low of –3C, and a good frost. There’s even ice on the puddles that developed in the paddock next door after recent excessive rain. Brrr.

Outdoor temperatures overnight with a low of -3C.
Very frosty paddock with cows and mountains in the distance.

On a mid-winter day with no wind, clear blue skies and warm sun the sea was lapping gently against the shore as though it was a tropical island.

At dawn, in the frost, I saw a beautiful full moon setting behind the lake at the end of the road.

Yellow full moon low in the pink sky behind the lake and reflecting in the lake.

Beach mushroom.

Small brown mushroom on sand at the beach.

Don’t start listening to this if you’re supposed to be doing something else… 2Cellos - live at Sydney Opera House [Full Concert].

Screen Shot showing two  cellists with an orchestra.

Nearby land is very productive. As I drive I see teams working hard, picking veges in freezing cold or pouring rain. Many are probably seasonal workers from the Pacific Islands. This article about terrible conditions is a new insight: Paying to work: Life as a seasonal worker.

Yes, Autocorrect, I was in fact trying to buy Harraways Rolled Goats at the supermarket! Or was it Rolled Boats? 🤣

Holarious autocorrections for Harraways Rolled Oats.

A short, easy read. Shadow Council Book 1: Money Makes it Deadlier by Julie C. Gilbert. Not sure I’ll read more though, given they all seem to be novellas. 📚

Book cover: Money Makes it Deadlier.

We’ve now had enough rain that the paddock by the speed bump, that turns into a bit of a lake when it’s wet, has actually overflowed onto the road. First time I’ve ever seen the water manage to get beyond the grass berm. 🌧

Puddle half way across the road.
The overflowing paddock.

Deb and I watched and enjoyed Falling For Figaro. No surprises in the plot, but great landscapes and singing. A perfectly pleasant way to fill a slow afternoon. Nice to see a [fictitious] tiny Scots village supporting opera rather than sport. 🎥

Falling For Figaro movie poster.