New fish rite of passage for Ruakākā:

A multi-agency partnership is paving the way for migratory native fish to be able to navigate their way past a Ruakaka weir used for a public water supply. …

“We now know some fish, particularly those with climbing abilities, do get past the weir and its associated rock ramp …

“However, the numbers for fish that do not climb, including smelt, inanga and common bully, are severely reduced upstream …

NIWA and AFPS are working together to design and install a 25-metre long rock ramp fishway.

So many documents to sign when buying a house and land package. Luckily we can do most electronically. For that, Docusign is a blessing: the lawyer sets it up then it's just a matter of clicking on the yellow box to initial or sign, then clicking Next to move on.

The first page os a document to be signed electronically.

Today's Pacific Wave Appreciation Society photo post. A busy sea. 🌊

Dark sky, gunmetal grey sea with waves, grey beach and bright dunes plants.

Whale update: most were saved.

Most of the 40 pilot whales that were stranded on a Northland beach have been refloated following a mammoth effort from volunteers.

Whale rescue organisation Project Jonah received calls about 4.30pm Sunday that the whales were in trouble at Ruakākā beach …

About 200 people raced to the beach to help, and the majority of the whales were refloated and were being monitored by 8pm, Project Jonah said on Facebook.

Four whales died in the stranding.

Via: Rescuers race to help 40 whales stranded at Northland beach | RNZ News.

So sad the whales have stranded; so glad so many people are helping — Rescuers race to help 40 whales stranded at Northland beach | RNZ News:

About 40 pilot whales have stranded on [Ruakākā] beach, and hundreds of locals and volunteers are trying to help them as the tide goes out.

You probably don't want to read the this gripping psychological suspense, The Door at the Top of the Stairs by Alison Naomi Holt. 📚

I nearly stopped early on but persevered through the descriptions of terrible torture relived by a young woman.

The whole book was problematic, with key characters who were bullying and coercive. The fox hunting that went on in the background also didn't help.

The following disclaimer at the end of the book probably reflects one reason why I was so uneasy while reading:


The psychological methodologies used in this book are purely fictional and are not intended to be used in any way in the mental health field. The symptoms of mental illness or psychological stress exhibited by the characters in this book are fictional and are not intended in any way by the author to represent actual symptoms of mental illness.

Not the best Tūī photos, but it's good to have this one hanging round the garden. 🐦

Tui on a flax spear with blue sky behind.
Tui in flight away from a flax spear, with blue sky behind.

Another in a series I really feel comfortable with, and an author whose writing I enjoy. This particular book seemed a little less than the others though and didn't quite grip me as much — A Poisoned Chalice (Sister Agnes Mysteries Book 8) by Alison Joseph. 📚

St Bruno’s church is burning. … Was this the hiding place of the fabled Judas chalice? A priceless heirloom that’s been missing for decades.

Book cover: A Poisoned Chalice.
A section of text: 'that was aeons ago. I guess we’re older and wiser now. It would be a shame to just be older.’

The other day there was a hawk circling right by the house. 🐦

Hawk flying towards the camera with wings spread.

I'm thinking a lot lately about what makes identity. Saving this para for future reference — Japan’s gender-bending history:

Although the gender-bending look appeals equally to young Japanese women and men, the media have tended to focus on the young men who wear makeup, color and coif their hair and model androgynous outfits. In interviews, these genderless males insist that they are neither trying to pass as women nor are they (necessarily) gay.

Well, at long last it's official — all signed up for a land and house package at Ruakākā on the east coast, a 20 minute drive south of Whangārei.

Map shows Ruakākā south of Whangārei.

We expect to be living there by this time in 2025. 🏡

So interesting! How we developed sign language for ten of the trickiest climate change terms:

Carbon offsetting … This sign visually represents the concept of reducing atmospheric carbon to sustainable levels. The sign begins with a “C” handshape to represent carbon. Then, using both hands, it demonstrates the carbon imbalance in the atmosphere.

This morning's beach walk brought new life 🐦 :

  • a duck and 6 ducklings on the lake
  • 3 Dotterel eggs in a nest
  • 3 Oystercatcher eggs in a nest
Duck and 6 ducklings.
Dotterel nest.
Oystercatcher nest.

Another annual eye test completed with my favourite optometrist. She tells me I'm not a danger to the public. 😆 My left eye has lost a few letters and the cataract's in a tricky place, but otherwise all good and no need for new lenses.

As our eyes age our lenses yellow a bit — I didn't know that. 👀

In a random cafe on Lambton Quay in Wellington while I wait for Deb to finish work so we can drive home. Tracey Chapman's Talkin Bout a Revolution is playing.

I asked for honey with my Sencha Green tea but apparently here at Belen they're vegan, so I have sugar instead.

All good.

A tiny bit of exaggeration there, Apple Mail … I hope! If not, I'm in trouble. 😆

Apple Mail claims I have trillions of unread messages.

Maybe 50,000 people at yesterday's hikoi — Was the hīkoi New Zealand’s largest-ever protest? | The Spinoff:

Experienced protest crowd counter Grace Millar put the number at 50,500 people who “went past the end of Lambton Quay… Not including people at parliament, cenotaph… or those linking the streets“.

LOL, local dogs lose access to rubbish bags for rummaging.

Rubbish truck has an apology to dogs on its side. Beside the words a picture shows a sad dog looking at a rubbish bin.

WE APOLOGISE TO KAPITI'S DOGS IN ADVANCE
Kerbside collections just got safer, cleaner and easier with the introduction of our integrated wheelie bin system.

The hikoi is ramping up at Parliament. Here's a live feed. About an hour till everything really kicks off. Hīkoi mō te Tiriti arrives at Parliament to protest Treaty Principles Bill | 19 November 2024 | RNZ - YouTube.

Or also: Hīkoi mō te Tiriti - YouTube.

Here's one way Aotearoa has changed in the last decade or more: increasingly Te Reo Māori forms an essential part of the language spoken here. I love it!

A section of news text that includes both English and Māori.

The hikoi is being led by all the kaihaka groups who led the various marches.
Each region produced their own ropu to lead the hikoi, and now all of them have arrived in Wellington.
They bring with them the mauri of their rohe.

Source.