Category Archives: General

01.14.15
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Thoughts: Camping Pt 3

There are some things I am trying to encourage with my kids in their camping experience.

They have a fairly safe existence with their mother, and yes, I do keep them pretty close when they’re with me in our normal routine, but when camping I give them a much longer leash.

After last year, my son told me that he loved how I let them pretty much do whatever they wanted, on their own terms, in their own time.

Today, Miss 8 said that one of her goals this week was to make a new friend. This is challenging for her as she is a bit shy. She had a definite strategy though. A cluster of local Taupo girls arrived to have a birthday party and make use of the pool. My daughters idea was that she’d do underwater handstands until she was noticed. The handstands went swimmingly well, but the other girls were also a bit shy. One of the other girls, however, started doing handstands also. After 15 minutes and seeing a look of frustration arrive on Miss 8’s face at the lack of contact, I did ’embarrassing Dad’ and introduced the two. From that point on, sorted. A new friend, hours in the pool, and a play date for tomorrow (the Mum will swing by and collect my daughter for a Taupo day). I’m a bit proud.

Master 12 has also found boys to play with. Of course the dance of introduction is quite different. Bonding to the lyrics of ‘Spiderpig’ is somewhat less sophisticated.

As we needed to head out for supplies, I decided to risk it all and play minigolf. There is history here: Master 12 (who despite being smart, seems to have a complete lack of understanding of rudimentary physics) has a few issues with dealing with performing poorly on the course. He was prepared, warned and made ready, so in theory any chance of a tantrum was lessened. He really was on his best behaviour. Then I did something that, in hindsight, I should not have done. He’d placed his green golf ball, then went to see where the course went. I of course picked up his ball and hid it in my pocket. For fun of course. The outcome wasn’t what I expected. When he couldn’t find his ball, he saw a moving green golf ball at the hole we’d just completed, and grabbed it. Yes, it was someone else’s ball and the resulting embarrassment caused was a little too much to bear.

You’d think I’d know not to do such things, but… ya know??

I managed to talk him down from the precipice of despair, and we got through the game. It ended up being fun! Although I had to bribe them with Bakers Delight goodies.

^sd

01.13.15
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Thoughts: Camping Pt 1

It’s underway!

A few years back I decided to try my kids with camping. You know, the whole “drive someplace, set up a tent, swim, eat, sleep” thing.

Their mother is more a “motel, hotel” kind of person, but I can happily report that they have taken to it and in fact, look forward to it every year.

This year I left booking a destination a bit late, but have ended up in Taupo. This is not a bad secondary choice.

The Top 10 is quite nice. The facilities are clean and well-equipped. There is a pool which dominates our schedule, and by next year the current worksite will be transformed into a pool of beauty and magnificence.

Master 12 has noted, with some disappointment, that most of the other kids he’s spotted are girls. He’s not yet at the point where this is actually a very fine thing indeed.

We are definitely getting more efficient at setting up the campsite, although there were tears of frustration when the camp stretchers were unfurled. Terrible things really.

One thing I’ve enjoyed is seeing my daughter take an interest in cooking (well, BBQing things) and being helpful.

They’re not inclined to go play tourist, which will make for a much cheaper week. We visited Huka Falls which interested them for a minute before they decided an icecream was a much better thing to obsess about.

Anyway, I’m starting to relax into the week. It’s a valuable time, not taken lightly.

^sd

01.01.15
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Thoughts: Goals for 2015

I’m a bit shit at setting New Year Resolutions.

I’ve determined that this is because New Year Resolutions involve implementing change in one’s self.

Being a bit older than I was, change is actually hard. And quite frankly, I don’t see anything that I really want to change about myself. I’m quite content for the most part.

A common Resolution: I could resolve to return to the gym. But I know that I get bored in the gym and I’m not that worried about my physical shape. Yes, it would be wise from a health perspective, but so would cutting out wine (Wait, what???) and cooking less interesting meals. Meals which don’t have glorious flavours and dairy and carby goodnesss…

Not going to happen.

Therefore setting Goals it is.

What Goals do I have for 2015?

Looking back at those set last year, I categorised them: Technology, Personal Development, Exercise/Sports, Travel. And I pretty much missed on all. Like I said 2014 was a bit of a shocker. Available funds and  available time were lacking somewhat, and I had to make hard decisions around things to focus on.

Let’s try again.

I’m older, wiser and more experienced so perhaps this year I’ll achieve a few more things that I actually set out to achieve. As opposed to achieving a lot of things that I didn’t intend to, but was forced into by circumstance.

Top of the list: Personal Development:

– Learn a language. I really want to learn Japanese, but Mandarin is probably going to be more useful and certainly I have access to language resource and conversational speakers. Let’s have a crack at that then.

– Continue to Read obsessively. I have a love of knowledge and I’m constantly reading. I need to ensure that I have the time to do this.

– Formal Study. Perhaps do some Management courses? Certainly I’d benefit from this. I’ve learned this year to talk the language of CEO’s and CFO’s from a sales point of view. But it’s been learned by osmosis. Could do better. Perhaps some Writing courses? I have many words and it would be beneficial to learn more of the craft of writing.

Travel:

– I need to get to Cambodia, Laos and/or Thailand. I think I need to put a little $ aside each week and make it happen. It’s important to me to visit countries which challenge and stretch my life experience. I have not done this for a few years and I’m very twitchy.

Sports/Exercise:

– If I’m not going to get back to the gym, I need to get out walking. So let’s set a goal of 1000kms to be walked in 2015. And not kms walked between my home and the local supermarket, despite the fact that you can log at least 2kms walking up and down aisles. ‘Cos that’s cheating innit?

– Snowboarding. My nemesis. I will get to Snowplanet. I will get to Snowplanet. I will get to Snowplanet. And learn to Board. And not break things. Despite my eld.

General:

– Family. I do do a lot with my kids, but I do think I could do more. I need to work on this. (and not use the word ‘do’ that many times in a sentence ever again).

– Be more social. Get out to more events. Invite more people over. These aren’t specific things, more lifestyle aspirations – so I won’t set defined expectations (as one should for a goal).

One good thing I’ve noted is that I’ve left out the acquisition of things as being important. I’ve really made some growth in that area. That being said, there are always nice things that come your way that you simply must have. I do feel a personal responsibility to do my bit to ensure the survival of Apple.

So that’s it. Achievable. Beneficial.

I need to Live and Laugh more.

What Goals do you have?

S>

12.27.14
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Thoughts: Christmas Day and the post-Christmas washup

And… breathe.

I have survived Christmas 2014. And survived well.

In previous years I have found it tough (well, in the last five years). I’ve put things in place that ensure I don’t go to dark places and they seem to be working. I am now able to choose not to dwell on sad. Not to dwell on guilt.

Christmas for me is all about logistics. Sharing my kids with my ex is always a bit challenging. It generally means I have to commute from Central Auckland to Howick, from Howick to Dairy Flat, back to Howick, all with specific arrival times pre-planned. We alternate year-on, year-off who has the kids for Christmas Lunch with our respective families. This year I did. Next year, I won’t see them as much. It actually works.

Preparing gifts for my kids is important to me. And for the last few years I have had to juggle finances to make sure that happens. I have to plan my cashflow for weeks in advance, and given I don’t have a crystal ball, it can be concerning as the Holiday draws near. That being said, I think I’m in good shape at the moment!

New traditions are slowly embedding.

For the last four-five years, I’ve taken it upon myself to prepare the Ham for the family to enjoy. It seems to work and people seem to enjoy it. From a personal growth perspective, my culinary skills are improving. Practice makes perfect!

ham

Note: The glaze I use is Gordon Ramsey’s. Using actual Sherry Vinegar makes a huge difference. Don’t use a substitute!

I’m still very leery of spending time with my family. We aren’t that close and only get together for significant events (parents birthdays, Christmas). Plus I’m not particularly interested in sharing anything of importance with them. There is a disconnect there. And I’m not sure if it’s redeemable. I did try to be more open with them this year and I don’t know if it was actually worth the attempt. We shall see.

I got to spend time with another family on Christmas Eve (that of my significant other). It was interesting to see what they do and how they interact with each other. I do have to say that my ‘normal’ is not their ‘normal’ and as such it was a little overwhelming – not that I’d admit it.

Reflecting on gift-giving.

I love finding things for my kids and other people that they’ve listed. It’s rewarding to be able to tick things off as they’re acquired. Personally though, I’ve reached a stage in life where I don’t need to receive gifts for the sake of it. Generally speaking I do appreciate a little thought in the gifts that come my way. However this is offset with the joy of vouchers. I LOVE vouchers! (and if they’re for a specific purpose then that ticks the ‘thought’ box).

Worst gift of the year? Again, this award goes to my Sister overseas. It was a small book of Sudoku puzzles and a sachet of bath salts.

I don’t own a bath. I haven’t for over five years.

I hope you all have had a joyous Christmas, a relaxed Boxing Day, and have a wonderful slide into New Years.

S.

12.19.14
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Support: Dylan Story – 15yr old Snowboarder

From time to time I become aware of remarkable people doing remarkable things.

Or wanting to do remarkable things.

Oftentimes, all they need is a little financial support to help them achieve their goals.

Dylan Story is one of these. He’s 15. He’s got snowboarding talent to burn, so much so that he’s been invited to a 5-week elite training camp in Colorado.

He needs cash. He’s worked extraordinarily hard to pay his way, as well as developing a high-performance work ethic with regards to his training.

Here’s the link to his story and his pledgeme page. Can you help? We may just see him represent New Zealand at the next Winter Olympics.

11.21.14
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Thoughts: VNZMA’s [updated]

OK. So last night was the Vodafone NZ Music Awards. I’ve attended these in the past, and really enjoyed the event.

It is a celebration of a lot of hard work, blood, sweat and tears that our Artists have endured. It is their night. I love the fact that Lorde has achieved so much. And seeing her growth over the last year is a joy.

I love the fact that through the event I am introduced to Artists I haven’t really paid attention to. Broods, Tiny Ruins. Brilliant.

I love seeing people perform that I haven’t before. I enjoyed Benny Tipene. I thought the tribute to Supergroove was excellent. Loved the arrangement.

However, I wasn’t at the event. I was watching it on TV.

And I had to get off Twitter.

I was horrified at the absolutely appalling coverage and production that Mediaworks subjected us to. Shannon and Dai were OK. A little off beam with their banter but it came good. The rest of the presenters… well.

Jono and Ben were a disgrace. Their banter. Their crass attempts at humour. They lowered the standards to a point where I felt it was completely disrespectful.

I understand the need for production costs to be covered, and the support of a broadcaster is critically important to an event such as this. I don’t understand the need for the broadcaster to roll out all the ‘stars’ (and I use that term loosely) to be involved in what was really an exercise in self-promotion.  Why was The Block NZ represented? What’s that got to do with NZ Music? Why on earth would you have an award presented by people who (yes, they’re judging X Factor next year – oh, right) don’t know the artists receiving the award and have a script saying how much they love them… LIES. All for the sake of promoting another Mediaworks show.

When writing for an event like this, the question needs to be asked of every idea: “Is this adding to the event or detracting from it”? Clearly a step missed by Mediaworks.

It was good that the event was less politicised than in previous years, but by the end of the broadcast I felt let down. Disappointed.

10.24.14
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Thoughts: Being Mr Mum

It’s been an interesting couple of weeks.

My ex. has had to go to Europe for work (accompanied by her usual day-to-day support – Grandma!) and with our kids being in school, it fell to me to be Mr Mum.

So, I packed and moved from my apartment in Grey Lynn to her house in Howick. (It was more straightforward for me to be in Howick as the schooling is close, as are the extra-curricular activites).

Apart from her calling me in panic from the flight to Hong Kong on the first day to check that I remembered to collect the kids from school, it has been smooth sailing.

However, by ‘smooth sailing’, I mean a ‘complete and utter change-up of my routine, massive reduction in available daytime hours to do my usual work, earlier rising, school lunch making, school uniform/PE gear washing and ironing, dinner cooking, writing proposals and actual work starting at 8pm’.

The initial shock to the system passed after the first weekend. It’s the common idea of ‘oh, another Monday. We did this last week already’ that makes things easier. I am proud of the fact that my kids got to school on time, in good condition, with requisite food, and were picked up on time, every single day. I got them to gymnastics and ice-skating class on time. This is winning.

I have settled in to the routine but I have felt utterly isolated. I have had to fit my life around those of my kids. I work longer hours. I don’t get to see anybody. My usual people are reduced to calls, emails, texts and Facebook status updates.

So this is what working solo mothers do, huh? It’s exhausting. I have a new respect and a deeper understanding of how other people live.

^sd

 

Sidenote: Living in Howick and working in Auckland-town is untenable. You lose 2hrs to traffic each and every day. I’ve not missed this at all.

09.30.14
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A new flag?

 

NZ Flag

 

There has been a lot of discussion about the flag of New Zealand. And with the PM flagging (see what I did there) it being on the table shortly, I thought I’d put some thoughts down.

I like our current flag. Yes, it’s close to the Australian flag and foreigners struggle to tell the two apart. Yes, it’s tied to Mother England. But it’s ours.

Our forefathers fought under and died for this flag. Would it be disrespectful to their memories if it were consigned to history? Perhaps.

There have been many suggested alternatives. Personally, I can’t stand those that incorporate green. The colours don’t work for me and the designs lack gravitas.

There’s been a push for something along the lines of this:

Fern

I like this idea as will. Stark. Simple. Recognisable. And very trademarked.

 

My position on the flag debate is this:

– retain the current flag. Use this flag for ceremony/government function etc. Revisit the design if/when New Zealand becomes a republic and is no longer tied to England.

– resolve the trademark issues and have an official ‘alternate’ flag as above. This would work in the sporting/NZ representative arenas. It would work for those on their OEs. It would be easier to tattoo.

 

Just as we recognise English, Maori and New Zealand Sign Language as ‘Official Languages’, lets recognise a primary and secondary flag. (Note: I’ve deliberately not included our military ensigns in this discussion!)

 

 

09.30.14
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Thoughts on the Labour Party

Yes, I am a Centre-Right voter but this doesn’t prevent me from considering the current Labour Party leadership situation.

I maintain that an effective Government requires an effective Opposition to hold them to account. And this hasn’t happened for many years now.

To the topic. We are seeing people putting their hands up to Lead. This is a good thing. However, it is my opinion that putting your hand up to Lead is folly when you don’t have any idea what it is that you’re standing for, and who it is that you’re leading.

My take on it is that Labour needs to work out first and foremost WHO it is representing in Parliament. Then they can work out Policy – what is it that those they represent actually need?

Whilst they’re doing this, perhaps they shouldn’t have a ‘Leader’. They could have a spokesperson for Media. Have a Leadership Representative in the House. Don’t damage the Party further by factional infighting.

 

09.14.14
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Electoral Musings

I’ve been enjoying this campaign in general.

There have been so many machinations. So many characters in the grand play. So many attempts at influencing outcome – some legitimate, some not so much.

There has been extraordinary hypocrisy on display.

There have been attacks on the Right from the Left. There have been attacks on the Left from the Right.

Dirt in Politics is nothing new. The idea of making the ‘other guy’ look unappealing to the Voter is standard electoral strategy. The delivery mechanism has changed over the decades but the intent is the same.

I am, however, bored now. I don’t think we’ve been well-served by our Media. I recall this from 3 years ago as well. It’s that part of the cycle when the Personalities vie for profile and ratings.

Bring on September 20.