Pīwakawaka | Tirairaka | Fantails are notoriously hard to photograph in flight as they flit, dart, squirl in the air. 🐦
Today was apparently "Sit On The Railing Day" which gave me a rare chance.
For comparison:
Piwakawaka: Length: 16 cm; Weight: 8 grams. (Not sure if the length includes the tail…)
Sparrow: Length: 15 cm; Weight: 28 grams.
Our new house has a posh al fresco
area on the east and north corner. 🏡
I digitally removed a worker in this photo from the builder.
Looks like at 2 pm in winter there's still plenty of sun to enjoy.
Little spotted kiwi found on New Zealand's mainland for first time in 50 years | RNZ News:
Conservationists are delighted after a unique kiwi was rediscovered in Aotearoa for the first time in 50 years.
The little spotted kiwi, or kiwi pukupuku, was first spotted in the remote Adams Wilderness Area in the West Coast …
Despite years of searching, the last known sighting of a kiwi pukupuku on the mainland was in 1978.
A brutalist approach to roads
A couple of weeks ago we really enjoyed driving over the new Te Ahu a Turanga | Manawatū Tararua Highway with its beautiful landscaping and artworks. It was such a pleasure. We were only sightseeing, but how uplifting for the regular users to have a few moments of joy in their day.
Today I read these savage words from our government about local roads (my emphasis):
Bishop revived the coalition's call for councils to tighten their belts and to focus their priorities on housing and infrastructure.
"It's okay to build a local road without spending hundreds of thousands on artworks," he said. "Not everything you do has to be an architectural masterpiece.
"The only awards your projects should be winning are for cost efficiency and effectiveness."
Via: Govt to halt 'pricey, pointless' council planning work ahead RMA overhaul.
Yeah, don't waste a single cent on bringing joy into the lives of the 95% of our population who are suffering the brutality of this government's cuts and chaos.
Tl;dr — today's headlines: death, doom, destruction and chaos. (So, what's new?) 😵💫
One of the things we're really looking forward to in our new house is the pantry with plenty of shelves for our food, crockery etc. 🏡
Looks like these are adjustable too.
The builder sent us a swag of exciting photos today as our house nears completion. 🏡
The kitchen isn't quite finished yet, but it's looking so good. It even has a warning to the builders not to put their gear on the surfaces.
I jumped into this series with the last available book Body at the Doctor's (DI Jordan Carr Book 9) by Diane M. Dickson.
The book's set in Liverpool and I really enjoyed the 'local' language. I may read others in the series. 📚
"I wouldn't fit in here. Not me, I'm chavvy deep down," Stella said.
Wow, I joined a mailing list and look at this first email: it's clean, clear, uncluttered. Sentences, well spaced. No photos, images, ads, fancy fonts, layout, upsell, 'stuff'.
It's so refreshing.
I joined after viewing I Sucked at Photography, Until I Understood This. by That Icelandic Guy.
Last week the tilers were busy working on our new bathrooms. 🏡
This photo was slightly surprising. Those are the tiles we chose months ago. Because our friends have black tiles in their bathroom I kept thinking ours would be black too …
We went in to Wellington today for brunch with half a dozen old friends at The Lab.
It has high ceilings and is very noisy, especially when full of folks chatting, and with the noise of the coffee machines.
My scrambled egg and bratwurst was delicious though.
Will Harlow talked (32 minutes in) about a Deload Week — 15 Mistakes That Stop You Gaining Muscle After 50:
You're still turning up. You're still lifting weights, but doing much less than you normally would. You might cut your workout time in half. You might cut your weights in half. You might cut your reps in half.
… you're just going in, going through the motions, then going home. … it keeps muscle on your body for that week that you're not really pushing yourself, but it also gives your body a chance to recover and rebound.
I tried that this morning and it felt good.
This is an interesting 16 minute video — Rebuilding Mum & Dad: See Frailty Reversed Through Strength Training | 5-month Update:
catch up on my parents’ progress five months after starting weight training in their 80s, as they work to rebuild lost muscle and retain their independence.
See my dad grow in confidence as he takes on heavier weights, and watch my mum’s incredible progress with her mobility as she walks longer distances unaided.
So glad I've taken up weight training at 70.
I finally hung some bird food in the olive tree by our front door. Sparrows and Tauhou are enjoying it. 🐦
This is just up the road from Waikawa Beach. I love driving past all these flags! Ngāti Tukorehe to fly more flags after 'racist attack' on its whenua | RNZ News:
Ngāti Tukorehe members are flying their flags even higher following what they call a "racist" and targeted act of vandalism.
The Horowhenua-based iwi say they're angered after multiple Tino rangatiratanga, He Whakaputanga and Toitū Te Tiriti flags were torn down from their marae and whenua in Kuku over the weekend.
As a romance this was an OK book, but it could have done with a good editor to tighten up a few awkward spots. The Love Plot (The McCarthy Sisters Book 3) by Elle Douglas. 📚
Best-selling first time author Kendra Green fears a sophomore slump. She retreats to the gorgeous Canadian Rockies in the guise of research and meets the enigmatic professor, whose sharp intellect and magnetic presence make concentrating on her manuscript nearly impossible.
Excellent news today that we've sold the house we're living in at Waikawa Beach. We had an unconditional cash offer, so it's a done deal. No waiting around for conditions to be fulfilled. 💸
We relocate to Ruakākā at the end of August.
So relieved to have sold!
I enjoyed this, though I wasn't so keen on the spy / intrigue element. Dead Silence (Naomi Blake Mysteries Book 7) by Jane Adams. 📚
Journalist Jamie Dale is investigating an explosive story involving the military when someone silences her for good. Her car is set ablaze . . . with her inside it.
Our new build in Ruakākā is nearly done. This week the kitchen's going in, electricians are doing lights etc, tiling is starting on the bathrooms and outside more concrete is being poured. 🏡
The builder sent photos of bathrooms and a pile of kitchen cabinets. The walls shouldn't look quite so green.
Today I made a tasty Simple Mushroom Barley Soup.
I'd never heard of baby bella mushrooms but established that our supermarket's online store did list them. On the day though there were none so I bought Swiss Mushrooms instead as they looked the same.