Miraz Jordan

Booming space industry could hurt ozone layer's recovery - NZ study | RNZ News:

The ozone layer is healing because of countries phasing out CFCs - but rocket launches could slow its recovery if the space industry grows as fast as it wants to …

Although most rockets are launched from the Northern Hemisphere, the worst impacts on the protective layer of ozone will be felt over Antarctica, with implications for sunburn and cancer-causing UVB rays reaching people living in Aotearoa.

As the clear nights and frosty mornings of winter bite down it became clear we don't have enough firewood to see us through the next 6–8 weeks …

This morning's task, having already organised the shed, will be stacking the 2m³ of pine when it arrives.

While sorting out the firewood shed I came across this white blob under some pieces of pine.

Closer inspection revealed what it was.

In the local good news department: The Brokenwood Mysteries returns:

The reliably charming local murder-mystery behemoth The Brokenwood Mysteries returns [on 15 June 2025] for an 11th season, with Neill Rea and Fern Sutherland still on the beat solving improbable homicides. In the picturesque fictional New Zealand town with an abnormally high murder rate, it’s up to the affable duo to unearth the shocking truths.

Wow, this is just a very mild cold, but I cooked and ate shepherd's pie for lunch then crashed for the afternoon — 2 hours sleep! 🤧

I will miss glancing up from the kitchen bench and seeing this view through the bedroom window.

After cleaning up for today's Open Home we enjoyed a delicious pizza at the Old Courthouse Eatery:

Chicken, mushroom, blue cheese, sun-dried tomato.

I have a strong suspicion I'm coming down with a cold. Meanwhile, to the southeast, more snowy peaks.

Hah! Looking through some old emails and found this from March 1997 with my first ever domain name (and I still use it!):

key:firstbite.co.nz [digits obscured]

This is your first official test message with your new domain name.

You are now know to cyberspace

We knew it was darned cold this morning, but seeing the nearby snowy mountain tops from the main street in Levin really brought it home.

I'm using the iCab browser for some research and often want to capture the page title and URL for my notes. Claude AI very helpfully gave me an AppleScript I trigger with Keyboard Maestro.

The guts of it:

tell application "iCab"
	tell front window
			set pageURL to url of current tab
			set pageTitle to name of current tab
			set clipboardText to pageTitle & return & pageURL
			set the clipboard to clipboardText
	end tell
end tell 

Interesting article — What's protein, why do we need it, and how do you get more?:

The average adult needs about 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight - so a person who weighs 80kg needs about 65g of protein per day. … We also need more protein as we age - about 1.5g compared to 0.8g.

Our fancy new bathroom scales have revealed I don't get enough protein, so I'm working on that.

This was a good 17 minute watch, NZ MP, Willie Jackson at the Oxford Union Debates.

One fun moment, about the guy who really kicked off colonisation here:

Q: So in terms of Captain Cook, hugely well known in New Zealand, but … Is he known in terms of modern Britain?

A: I would say not, certainly not in the way that he is in Aotearoa. A few years ago we were planning an exhibition about Cook here at the British Museum and we did a survey amongst audiences of how many people recognised the name Captain Cook and most people thought we were actually talking about Captain Kirk from Star Trek.

Do you laugh or do you cry?

A bit rough out there today. For the Pacific Wave Appreciation Society. 🌊

Yay. This cafe has just opened only 7 Km from our new house. Sounds good. Oregano Eat and Drink One Tree Point | Cafe & Restaurant in Marsden Cove, Whangarei:

Nestled in the scenic beauty of One Tree Point, Whangarei, Oregano Eat and Drink invites you to indulge in a truly European dining experience.

I watch all the Will Harlow videos and do at least some of the exercises. The ONLY Exercise You Need for Stronger Arms Over 50 is one I've done parts of but never as a whole unit.

Sit down in your chair and hold one weight in each hand
Keep a straight back and point your thumbs forward
Raise both hands up to shoulder height like a bicep curl
Twist your elbows outwards
Move into a press by pushing your arms up as high as you can above your head
Slowly reverse the movements to starting position