“What d’you want to do?” “I don’t know. What do you want to do?” A pause. All the money has been spent at the Boxing Day sales. Bilious livers cry out for a little mercy between Christmas and New Year’s. A walk would be Just The Thing, or better yet, a beach excursion. Unfortunately, the […]
Entries from December 29th, 2010
The Underwater Museum
December 29th, 2010 1 Comment
Tags: geography · government · te papa · tourism
A Country Mile
December 22nd, 2010 Comments Off on A Country Mile
After last Friday, a crabby, errand-packed weekend, and three hectic days at work, Will and Winona landed at his parent’s house for Christmas. In Eketahuna. They still live in the same shabby small farmhouse Will grew up in. They never did get around to repainting its neglected weatherboards, but they’ve put up a big new […]
Tags: country! · other cities · winona
Get Outta Town
December 20th, 2010 Comments Off on Get Outta Town
For fifty weeks of the year, you can scarcely tear a Wellingtonian away from the steep bosom of their beloved city. Then there’s the last two weeks of the year. In a curious inversion, Wellingtonians are united by the holiday wish to spend Christmas and New Year’s anywhere that isn’t Wellington. If they can’t escape […]
Tags: holidays · social mores · weather
Final Christmas Drinks
December 17th, 2010 1 Comment
Friday at Wazzer’s bar, and it’s getting weird before Christmas. People dash in and out, double- and triple-booked for the evening. After-work drinks at work get further drinks poured on top of them. It can be fraught. Winona and Willow had been a peaceful oasis at one end of the bar, comparing office party notes. […]
IAWL Likes…The Burlesque
December 15th, 2010 2 Comments
Burlesque is suddenly everywhere. Regular nights. Troupes. Classes. A trend? A scene? If so…is having pretty dames take their costumes off on stage with a feminist flillip a problem? Whether it’s here to stay or as evanescent as the pohutakawa blooms, it’s the perfect antidote for Wellington’s seriousness and New Zealand’s bloke overdose. This December, […]
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Ready to Rumble?
December 13th, 2010 1 Comment
Sometimes, when you live in the Hutt, you have to be hard as. No nonsense. Rough as guts. This is one of those times. The black SUV circles the parking lot, then circles again, the driver spewing profanities. Finally, it wedges into a space and disgorges its passengers. One, two, three tough-looking blokes, in stubbies […]
Tags: food · helena · holidays · hutt valley
Some Junket?
December 8th, 2010 Comments Off on Some Junket?
Willow, a laptop tucked under her arm, is traversing more rarefied environs of the University of Victoria. Finally, she comes to a room full of people wearing rumpled shirts and eyeglasses that, one way or another, are straight from the 1950s. This, she thinks, has to be the place. She’s right. To freshen up her […]
The Do
December 6th, 2010 Comments Off on The Do
This week and next, spare a thought for all the service staff and restaurants hosting Wellington’s annual “dos”. They’re playing to a tough crowd. As budget belts stay tightened around town, staff have often contributed out of their own pockets to these events. Wellington is the wrong size for falsehoods, and it’s too easy to […]
O Hypno Tree
December 3rd, 2010 Comments Off on O Hypno Tree
Winona has had an excellent day. For once, she managed to get a Jewish holiday right, winning a real smile from a dry manager and a squealing hug from a labile American co-worker. It’s a dazzling evening, and her friends are all around her. Her partner Will, sweet geeky Willow, Will’s best mate Wayne and […]
The Beating Heart
December 1st, 2010 1 Comment
All around Wellington for the past few days, our cast of thousands got up, looked out the window, and smiled. There it was! One of the Good Days! It could all end tomorrow, time to get out and enjoy the sunshine. No need to pick up the phone and see where their friends were going, […]
Tags: Cuba street · unreal estate