One of the hazards of a rural area. This is the main entrance to our beach. Someone’s cows have bust out…
An ‘atmospheric river’ of rain has dumped excessive water from the tropics on parts of Aotearoa New Zealand: Live wild weather updates: Nelson, Far North brace for more rain. A friend who lives north of Auckland visited on her way to Nelson where she was to start a 9 month course. That plan’s had to change as Nelson is more or less cut off by flooding and road damage.
Luckily, we’ve just had additional ‘normal’ rain this week, so it’s puddles all round. In August 2022 we’ve had almost 100 mm rain. This calendar year it’s 1063 mm.
Yumm, buttermilk hotcakes at The Gorge in Ōtaki. Delicious.
Turns out it requires special skill to take good photos of a glass paperweight, and I don’t have that skill. Anyway, here’s the paperweight I made at the workshop the other day. It has blue swirls.
Another excellent Toby Morris cartoon — The Side Eye’s Two New Zealands: The Table. Follow the link for the other panels in the essay.
When I was in Whanganui the other day this interesting mural caught my eye.
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. 📚
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.
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. 📚
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
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.
Today I’m in Whanganui for a 30 minute glassmaking workshop. First a cup of kawakawa fire tea at the cafe next door.
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.
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.
Beach mushroom.
Don’t start listening to this if you’re supposed to be doing something else… 2Cellos - live at Sydney Opera House [Full Concert].
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.