Posts by Jackie Clark
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Parties - been to a few, can't remember that many. From the days of yore and those innocent shindigs in the 7th form when all my friends and I were virgins, nonsmokers and mondoers of other myriad things to the flat in Franklin Rd in 1983 that had 5 rooms and 12 people living in it, and a shower that was outside and best approached in footwear, and parties that sometimes never started at all, because someone always made vodka jellies and induced others to knock them back before they set, and those that had partaken ended up with alcohol poisoning so severe that they required hospitals ; to the flats in Kingsland and Grey Lynn and back to Freemans Bay again; to London and beyond, and now in my forties where a good BBQ with good friends seems to be the norm.......best parties I ever went to though were two of my own. When I was 10 and danced on the table and generally showed off so much, that all my guests were sent home early; and my 21st at the Regent Hotel, in a private dining room where I crawled under the table and sat there for much of the night delivering witty (I thought) comment on the night as it progressed. Had everyone in stitches at the time, not sure why now. Hardly legendary, I guess, but I have fond memories!
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I would agree with Simon that it's about nooks and crannies. I'm a fifth generation Aucklander. Born and brought up here, and apart from 4 years spent at boarding school in Wellington, and 4 years in the UK and Europe, this has always been my home. I'm not really about architecture. I'm about the people. I love Auckland because it's in my blood, it's my roots, my family is mostly here, my friends are mostly here.I don't like certain parts of Auckland, certainly. One need only drive down Great North Rd towards Glendene to feel the life force being sucked out of you. I get the feeling that the urban sprawl only happens because people fancy a bit of green around them, which turns into more people fancying a bit of space, which turns into a suburb. On a civic level, there are certainly things that could be done to improve the place, and I believe that those issues are being addressed slowly but surely. I'm not sure though about arguments that talk about what makes a vibrant city. I know people who live in Melbourne, Sydney, London, Edinburgh, Paris, Berlin, and on and on. All of those people live in those places for various reasons, as I have mine for living where I do, and you all have your reasons for living where you do. Every place could operate more efficiently day to day - but I don't think that people choose to live in places because of their infrastructure, or even their architecture. Surely it's the people that make a place vibrant? I could be entirely wrong, and I'm not entirely sure that any of that makes sense to anyone but me, but that's the way I see it.
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The zoo is over rated? Are you mad? I LOVE the zoo. And that's all I have to say!
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oh dear, Muriel! Been there, done that, I think we all have at some stage.
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This was not achieved by some kind of political takeover, it was developed after years of research and dialogue. The key mechanism was discussion, not confrontation (although confrontation was used as a mechanism to spur disccussion).
Unlike Australia, we have a mainstream acknowledgement of our historical deeds and misdeeds. And the State is able to say sorry for past wrongs, which appears to be politically unthinkable in Australia.
It's not that we have fewer racists here, it is that we have an entirely different social context - one in which racist comments much more likely to be seen for what they are.
I would agree with what you have said, Mikaere, but would also add that in New Zealand, there seems to be a long history, since the meeting of the two peoples, Pakeha and Maori, of setting up of domestic arrangements that have resulted in a growing number of people in this country, like yourself, who affliliate as having both Maori and Pakeha parentage/ancestry. There's fairly extensive research on this subject.
http://scholar.google.com/scholar%3Fq%3Dintermarriage+rates+in+New+Zealand+between+Maori+and+Pakeha%26hl%3Den%26cr%3DcountryNZ%26oi%3Dscholart My nieces for example are of Maori, Scottish and Jewish ancestry. Their Kuia is Maori (she likes to say, as Tuwharetoa, that she has no Pakeha ancestry), their koro is Jewish/Scottish. I would imagine that many families in New Zealand have this same lovely mix of ethnicity and fascinating love history. I know nothing of the intermarriage rates between the Koori peoples and Australians of European descent, but perhaps we in this country have less strident and obvious racial prejudice because, let's face it, you can't be a redneck slagging off at someone's race when you're part of a bicultural family. Just a thought. -
Why did we ever like this song? I can often be heard deriding some of the music of the "kids today" but I'm embarrassed to say that I did used to like this one!
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They like to have sex with sheep, ha ha ha ha. They fuck sheep, ha ha. Just kidding mate, just kidding, just having a little joke . . . Ya sheep fucker!
And you know what to say next time, don't you? "Yup, mate. That's right. Shagged sheep, shagged <insert nationality of person insulting you> . Still prefer sheep. "
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You're a genius, Reece. Seriously.
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The TVNZ induction video is quite funny.
Russell, you're an old cynic.
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Dr: So what seems to be the problem?
Patient: I have trouble connecting with people in social environment, and lack empathy to my fellow party goer.And isn't that the problem.I'm going to preface my next comment by saying that I'm a boring nondrinker and nondrug taker - it doesn't do it for me, I just get loud and vomit, so best not to go there. My point is this: why do we not give people the social tools they need to function confidently outside their own homes? It's all about connection, as you said, Manakura. I know that kids experiment and overindulging is just part of what most of us need to do until we grow out of it (not a pun, btw). What I don't understand is why so many people carry that adolescent stuff through to when they're big people. Don't mind me, I'm just "Terse of Mt Eden" but still.........