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“Dad was 68 when he married Mum. She was a herd tester he met on the farm – she was 28. He had been married before but his first wife died and they had no children. He was born in 1886 in Wiltshire, one of a family of 14, leaving school at 10 to make wagon wheels. He later went to Sydney where he had a cousin in the Irish Guards who used to guard convicts. Dad worked in the Outback, droving and as a groom in stables in Portland, Victoria so…

On their way from England to settle in New Zealand in 1875, my grandparents William and Maria Bliss broke their journey at Hobart, Tasmania, where my father Albert Edward Bliss was born. He was named after the husband of Queen Victoria. The family, which later grew to two sons and three daughters, later settled in Woodville, New Zealand, where grandfather was the original town cobbler. My dad left primary school early and matured early as an…

New Zealand has grown to be a multi-cultural nation and encompasses a wide range of groups and beliefs. But as of the 2018 census, statistics show almost half of our population doesn’t identify with any religion. As churches all over the country celebrate somewhat differently this Good Friday and Easter Sunday, commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, elocal looks at the history of Christianity in New Zealand and whether it is…

A terrific read that touches more of us than we would care to admit. · This coming of age story is set in the small towns of Warkworth and Pukekoke and has a warm familiar touch, as does the subject matter. This novel asks the question – ‘When you hate your body. How can you love yourself or anyone else?’ Research shows that over 40% of woman are consumed by this question but few overcome the shame to acknowledge or explore their irrational…

When John and Liz van Winden moved into the large, purpose built New Zealand Home Loans building in Manukau Road earlier in February of this year, they would never have dreamed that by the end of the following month, that new office would be shut due to nationwide lockdown, as the result of a global COVID-19 pandemic and that everyone on the office would be working from home. “It’s somewhat surreal, and hard to imagine for any New Zealander…

It’s hard to believe the events that have transpired in the last few weeks, but happen they have and as we enter another week in our bubbles, our daily routines are very much different than they were a few weeks ago. · We go out for ‘essential supplies’, exercise in a local space keeping 2m from the nearest walker, check in with the official COVID-19 information available daily on the news, connect to our friends and neighbours using a…

I am not a Prepper; although I have, unfortunately, seen firsthand the devastation an epidemic can cause, I have never resorted to prepare for what seemed inconceivable. Duly ignoring the advice from friends and colleagues on the front-line. And it’s this advice I have been thinking about, because to be honest, it seems to me that the most basic and effective thing we can do to give ourselves and those around us a fighting chance with something…

If you have been suffering from migraines on a regular basis, then you should know how bad this can affect your life quality because the pain is usually bad enough to stop you from doing anything although the pain killer able to reduce the intensity of the pain but you probably still feel some heaviness in your head, blurry mind and feeling very tired all the time. · Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) treats migraine headaches effectively.…

Day 7 Update: Good progress with local community response teams contacting the most vulnerable, distributing full face shields to pharmacists, doctors, dentists and trying to use fresh produce grown in Franklin to help feed our most vulnerable.

New Zealand has changed dramatically in a week in response to Covid-19. Fundamental rights and liberties have been curtailed to assist in suppressing the virus. From a legal history perspective, this is similar to what New Zealand experienced in World War I and II and during the 1951 Waterfront Dispute. · It is unclear how long these measures will be necessary. At the present time we just don't have enough data to confirm the severity of this…