Capital 16 by Capital

CAPITAL TA L E S O F T H E C I T Y

GOODIE GIFT GUIDE NOVEMBER 2014

WELLY IN DECLINE?

ISSUE 16

$3.90 PORK OFF THE FORK

MONEY SCENTS

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GO RED FOR THE BEST CHRISTMAS OFFER IN TOWN! THERE’S NO INTEREST TO PAY. Shop until 24 December 2014 and pay nothing until the end of January 2015 with six monthly payments until the end of June 2015. (Normal credit criteria apply). A $25 activation fee applies which is triggered by your first purchase. Call our Credit Manager on (04) 472 5899 ext.7261 during store hours or pick up an application in-store or apply online at www.kirkcaldies.co.nz. Offer excludes: K&S Cafe, Scent Floral Boutique, Mecca Cosmetica, Pure Skin & Body and online purchases.

Apply for your Kirkcaldie’s Christmas Card today and make shopping at Wellington’s favourite department store easy.

CARMINA BURANA WELLINGTON SAT NOV 15 7.30PM MICHAEL FOWLER CENTRE Haydn Symphony No.87, A major ORFF Carmina Burana MARC TADDEI Conductor EMMA FRASER Soprano HENRY CHOO Tenor JAMES CLAYTON Baritone The Orpheus Choir of Wellington Wellington Young Voices Choir Also featuring Arohanui Strings – Sistema Hutt Valley performing Mozart’s Eine kleine Nachtmusik. Free pre-concert talk with Music Director, Marc Taddei, and guest(s) at 6:30pm in the Renouf Foyer.

FOR ALL THINGS ORCHESTRA ORCHESTRAWELLINGTON.CO.NZ

BABY POPS

ANCHORS AWEIGH Masterton SaT NOV 22 3PM WAIRARAPA COLLEGE WELLINGTON SUN NOV 23 3PM MICHAEL FOWLER CENTRE Arrrr! The Orchestra heads out to the high seas for swashbuckling musical adventures. Dress-ups encouraged!

TICKETS TICKETEK.CO.NZ

CAPITAL THE COVER: What spins your wheels?

MADE IN WELLINGTON

Location: Moore Wilson's Photography: Tamara Jones See page 39 for the full Retail Therapy shoot

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C O N TA C T U S Phone +64 4 385 1426 Email editor@capitalmag.co.nz Website www.capitalmag.co.nz Facebook facebook.com/CapitalMagazineWellington Twitter @CapitalMagWelly Post Box 9202, Marion Square, Wellington 6141 Deliveries 31–41 Pirie St, Mt Victoria, Wellington, 6011 ISSN 2324-4836 Produced by Capital Publishing Ltd

PRINTED IN WELLINGTON

year ago I mentioned, in print here, that the fireworks displays, beloved of the Guy Fawkes celebrations, ought to be moved to May/June to add to the joys of Matariki. Has that message been heard, listened to, or noticed? I am sure it has, though perhaps the speed with which a debate about a new flag design has been quickly pushed to centre stage by our new government means that I shouldn’t be holding my breath. Now hearing about the adventures of Robert McDermot, the wonderful pyrotechnic creative who designs this month’s display, (see page 17 for his Tales of the City,) I realise what a feeble attitude mine was. We need another fireworks extravaganza, why must we be restricted to one or two per year? Such small thinking; more fun and more celebration is what’s needed. The thought of working in Iraq as Islamic State moves ever closer turned our minds to serious thoughts. Volunteer Lucy Tyndall chatted with Beth Rose about the perils. And on the home front, John Bishop is not lighthearted as he evaluates the city and growth strategies. To balance that, this issue is packed full of ideas to help you begin that shopping, to move out of the wintry haze and the unpredictable spring weather and focus, focus on giving, but first the shopping. Wellington will thank you, our advertisers will, our readers will and we will. Think of it as giving back. As always, I look forward to hearing from you.

Alison Franks Editor editor@capitalmag.co.nz This publication uses vegetable based inks, and FSC® certified papers produced from responsible sources, manufactured under ISO14001 Environmental Management Systems

The opinions expressed in this magazine do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher. Although all material is checked for accuracy, no liability is assumed by the publisher for any losses due to the use of material in this magazine. Copyright ©. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form without the prior written permission of Capital Publishing Ltd.

CONTENTS

IN DECLINE Is our city in need of a rev-up?

A N AT O M Y O F GIVING

MONEY SCENTS

A grab-bag of Xmas pressie ideas

Sarah Gibbs swapped pots of skin care products for pots of cash

8 LETTERS

10 CHATTER

52 CHEERS

NEWS SHORTS

LIQUID THOUGHTS

BY THE NUMBERS

PERIODICALLY SPEAKING

TALES OF THE CITY

BY THE BOOK

POWER PAINTER

68 HOUSE

BREW CREW

73 ABROAD

WHAT THE FLOCK

TORQUE TALK

30 CULTURE

WELLY ANGEL

33 SUBSCRIBE

BABY BABY

RETAIL THERAPY

COMMUNITY NOTICES

FASHION SHORTS

86 CALENDAR

47 EDIBLES

PORK OFF THE FORK

TOP DOG

CONTRIBUTORS

S TA F F Alison Franks Managing editor editor@capitalmag.co.nz Lyndsey O’Reilly Campaign coordinators Haleigh Trower sales@capitalmag.co.nz John Bristed General factotum john@capitalmag.co.nz Shalee Fitzsimmons Art direction & design shalee@capitalmag.co.nz Rhett Goodley- Hornblow

Design design@capitalmag.co.nz

Craig Beardsworth

Factotum

Anna Jackson-Scott Journalist Gus Bristed

CR AIG BEARDSWORTH Fac totum

Distribution

Having studied music and education it is of course a natural progression for Craig to end up in publishing. He is assistant editor for our sister publication Art Zone and enjoys being roped into write oddments and short stories for Capital. His favourite job by far is dreaming up groan-worthy headlines for briefs and articles.

KELLY HENDERSON Writer Kelly Henderson is a freelance journalist who has lived in Wellington for just over three years. She enjoys meeting new people, travelling, reading a good book and dining out with friends.

STOCKISTS Pick up your Capital in New World and Pak’n’ Save supermarkets, Moore Wilson's, Unity Books, Magnetix, City Cards & Mags, Take Note and other discerning greater Wellington outlets. Ask for Capital magazine by name. Distribution: john@capitalmag.co.nz.

SUBMISSIONS We welcome freelance art, photo and story submissions. However we cannot reply personally to unsuccessful pitches.

BETH ROSE Journ a li st

TA M A R A J O N E S Ph oto g r aph er

Beth loves writing about people and issues. Relocating from London in 2011, she now spends most of the year writing in Wellington and the rest of the time travelling the country in a six-metre converted bus, finding out lots of interesting stuff from the boltholes of NZ.

Tamara is a photographer and fashion blogger. She loves working with soft light and falling shadows and definitely isn’t afraid to push the norm. tamarajonesphotography.com

BOOK NOW AT

FROM 21 OCTOBER 2014 路 HORNCASTLE HUB, CHRISTCHURCH FROM 25 NOVEMBER 2014 路 ODLINS PLAZA, WELLINGTON FROM 6 JANUARY 2015 路 WYNYARD QUARTER, AUCKLAND

empirenz.com SPIEGELWORLDAUSNZ

SPIEGELWORLDAUS&NZ

YOUTUBE.COM/SPIEGELWORLDTV

LETTERS

NERDS HAVE FUN I read your article about Nerd Night and thought, wow, this is happening here in Wellington. Fantastic. All this time it has been running and I had never heard about it. So I went along to the night last month and had such a great time. Invited a few other 'nerd' friends and over a pint of Guinness listened while three people shared their passions, an eclectic mix that spanned cultures, ages and perceptions. I love the idea of being in a pub and at the same time being made to think and have my mind opened to another's imagination and insight. Can't wait until the next night. So thanks again Capital for letting us know about Wellington's best kept secrets. Tony Hatford, Mt Victoria

BREATHLESS PROSE I particularly enjoyed the Squeeze on your lungs article in the October issue. In fact I was so taken with the times the free divers achieve I decided to test myself and continue reading the magazine while holding my breath. It goes without saying no records are under threat and even when speed reading I couldn’t fin-

ish the next article. Looking forward to another interesting and diverse read in November. Lea Hay, Whitemans Valley

THE WRONG TEQUILA Your new writer Joelle Thomson got her article on tequila in the October issue a bit wrong including the glaring omission of any mention of La Boca Loca or any other Mexican place besides Mexico itself. I can guarantee that our margaritas would outshine any one of the seven listed places mentioned. We actually import our own 100% organic pure blue agave tequila that is awesome and certified organic in the EU and the USA. She mentions Cuervo 1800, which is ok but is actually at the bottom of the list of 100% blue agave tequila. Surely someone at Capital magazine could have clued her in to this? Sorry to rant a bit but I hope you can understand how this might upset a tequila lover whose business is quite dependent on our fantastic margaritas and our tequila sales. Best regards Lucas Putnam, La Boca Loca (abridged) We will lash her with a cactus and come for a taste test - Ed.

Rather than build a roof over the Westpac Stadium or even a new stadium, I’d like to see the Wellington City Council buy back the old Museum on Buckle St. And I don’t want it to be a war museum. We’ve already got one of those in Waiouru and it’s good but we don’t need another. Wellington city needs a decent art gallery and maybe the grand old building on the hill could even include a performance centre. It’s a highly attractive and very useable space right in the centre of the city. As a young man I loved the natural history displays when they were there and spent hours looking at all those birds and all those fish and sharks which were so well displayed. We need that building back; it’s a magnificent building in a magnificent site and should be a public building adding to the city’s mana. Peter Johnson, Wellington

Letters to editor@capitalmag.co.nz with subject line Letters to Ed, or scan our QR code to email the editor directly.

WELLINGTON EXPERTS IN PROPERTY MANAGEMENT

Quinovic Vivian Street

04 382 8300 1st Floor, 193 Vivian Street info@quinovic-vivianst.co.nz www.quinovic-vs.co.nz

Leave it with us

NOT THE STADIUM

12 Kaiwharawhara Rd Wellington

t e

04 4998847 wellington@backhousenz.com

backhousenz.com

C HAT T E R

E V E RY T H I N G NEW ZEALAND Public historian Jock Phillips has retired - just as the first build of Te Ara, The Encyclopedia of New Zealand which he was instrumental in creating, edited, and which has taken 12 years to do, is complete. The last section to complete was on Creative and Intellectual Life. He notes “the dialogue of different cultures has inspired so much of our most creative work. Pākehā composers and poets draw on Māori stories; contemporary Māori artists draw on modernism; Pacific people have added their humour, art and music to our cultural world. We have a wonderfully diverse and energetic creative life.”

ARIKI MCKINNEY

TOP SHOP

Why did you choose the design? One of the homies was doing a guest spot at ALC and I asked if he had any drawings he wanted to do but nobody wanted and boom it was there, best hundred I ever spent.

OH LORD IT ’S HARD TO BE HUMBLE It’s also hard to be the best but Wellington shops feature well in the lower North Island top shops award, particularly up the coast. The Mana surf store, Ocean Outfitters, is the Overall Regional winner. Other Wellington winners include Darling in Featherston St, Kilt Clothing in Victoria St and in the suburbs, Glengarry in Kelburn. Winners are voted for by mystery shoppers who have set criteria. Ocean Outfitters now competes with three others for overall NZ Top Shop.

Family – for it or against? They started off very against it but when I kept showing up with more and more I think they just gave up haha. Where is the tattoo & why? It's on my thigh aye, most of mine are there because modelling happened. Haha.

COLIN MEADS, ALL BLACK RUGBY PLAYER AND FARMER FROM TE ARA, THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF NEW ZEALAND

INK INC.

C HAT T E R

WELLY WORDS

LIT TLE SHOP DROP OFF Some criticism has been levelled at New World supermarkets for the Little Shop campaign (it brainwashes the littlies to become mindless consumers...like their parents) so it’s nice to see the mini grocery collectables have spawned at least one barter exchange. The hole-in-the-wall cafe at Freyberg pool has a cabinet devoted to ‘swaps’. A Wellyworder observed a young girl proudly clutching a new acquisition. No money exchanged hands. Now, what are they willing to barter for a long black?

FAT T Y AR ... CHUCKLE Do you have a friend who is always banging on about their weight but is clearly skinnier than you are? An eavesdropping Wellyworder (he swears he’s not working for the GCSB) overheard a great line delivered by a clearly irate friend on Oriental Parade – “Honey, if you’re a ’pinch an inch’ stop talking to a ‘grab a slab’ about fat”. We salute you.

PYROMANI... YA K It’s time to dust off the picnic blanket and find a spot up on a hill within view of the harbour to watch the fireworks (do you seriously want to play sardines down on the waterfront?). Instead of the usual Guy Fawkes fact file yawnfest we’ve compiled a nerdy list of chemical facts. For the 15-minute display, bore your loved ones senseless with your stellar knowledge of how the colours are produced. “Oh is that red strontium or lithium?” you’ll hear yourself say... well, no one else will be listening. Here is a list of some of the chemicals that can be used:

ALUMINIUM OR TITANIUM: SILVER

POTASSIUM: VIOLET-PINK

CALCIUM: ORANGE

CAESIUM: LIGHT BLUE

IT'S COOL TO KORERO Maori is an official language in Aeoteroa so it's time you got off your nono to learn some Reo.

FIREWORKS = PAHŪ AHI

COPPER: BLUE-GREEN

COLOUR WHEEL Colours in fireworks are created by pyrotechnic stars which produce an intense light. Stars contain five basic ingredients: • • • • •

A fuel which allows the star to burn An oxidizer (necessary for combustion) Colour-producing chemicals A binding agent A chlorine-releasing chemical to strengthen flame colour

NEWS SHORTS

COMMITTED T O WAT E R Membership interviews for eight community representatives were held early this month to establish the Te Awarua o Porirua Whaitua Committee. The Greater Wellington Regional Council will assess and approve selection on 10 December, and committee workshops and meetings begin February 2015. Advisors support the committee to gather community, scientific, economic and geographical information to better create a management plan for the land and water resources in the Porirua catchment. The committee is supported by five representatives from Te Upoko Taiao – a regional council natural resource committee, iwi, Porirua and Wellington city councils.

CREEPING A M A L G A M AT I O N ? The Wellington Regional Development Council has combined its economic development activities with the Wellington City Council’s in a new joint venture. The aim is “better economic performance of the Wellington region’s economy,” according to GWRC chair Fran Wilde. Wellington Regional Economic Development agency will include Grow Wellington, Positively Wellington Tourism, Positively Wellington Venues, Major Events, and Destination Wellington activities.

SNAPPER CLEVERNESS

WORD TUNES

The smart little Wellington company, Snapper, which eases you on and off your daily bus more cheaply, pays your parking meter, your taxi, and allows purchases in more and more shops, has gone international. It’s sold its mobile ticketing technology to the companies which manage city transport in Northern Ireland’s capital, Dublin. Vix, one of those companies, supplies ticketing technology to 140 million passengers round the world so it looks like the partnership has great potential.

Local writer David Cohen’s collection of what he calls his ‘tunes’, Greatest Hits, launches this month at Slow Boat Records. The selected writings include book and music reviews, journalism and personal experiences. The high-school dropout from the Hutt Valley now lives in Brooklyn, frequenting Wellington hangouts such as Olive Café and Slow Boat Records, where he mulls over world events and people.

S ENCETW IO S NS H HOE R A TDSE R

NOT LETTING IT SLIDE Seismic strengthening to the Hataitai bus tunnel begins early this month. The masonry structure could fall forward in the event of an earthquake, Councillor Justin Lester says. “In Christchurch masonry structures fell forwards onto people.” The precautionary measures will mitigate landslides which could block the tunnel, and strengthen the front end of the structure. The work is estimated to take up to six months to finish. “Hataitai bus tunnel is also a heritage structure in our District Plan, so we will do some repair work to the façade,” says Councillor Lester. The tunnel first opened to the public on 16 April 1907. Approximately 338 buses use the tunnel every day from Monday to Friday, 196 buses on Saturday, and 156 on Sunday.

RUGBY BEDS

FIRST VINTAGE

DIY BIKES

Things might be looking up for the Hurricanes. Rydges Wellington has become a sponsor of Wellington Rugby. The hotel, recently crowned the best accommodation hotel in the country, is now the official accommodation partner of the Hurricanes and the Wellington Lions. General Manager Simon White says “The hotel is looking forward to being part of one of the country’s best Super Rugby franchises.”

In France you have to wait until midnight. Here we get in early. On the third Thursday of every November the French celebrate the end of the grape harvest by despatching the latest Beaujolais wine all round the world. The Alliance Française is celebrating the new Beaujolais at the CQ Hotel in Cuba St on 28 November at 6pm.

Wellington City Council has had two DIY bike service stations installed, one outside Central Library and another at Makara Peak car park. Spokesperson Kim Young says the stations won’t replace bike service shops but provide cyclist with quick-fix solutions and help make Wellington more cycle-friendly.

BY THE NUMBERS

DRIVING US BAT T Y

FLIGHT PLIGHT

IN A FLAMING GLORY

different shows are produced each year at Bats Theatre

1911

year that Lyall Bay was first used as a runway location

average amount paid for a ticket

2050

number of months Bats has been in Dixon Street while their Kent Terrace digs are having a MAJOR makeover

current length in metres of the Wellington Airport runway

300

extension length in metres that the Airport company wants to add to the runway

number of toilets in the renovated premises (pre-renovation there were three which was a cause for much consternation... and possibly constipation)

300

estimated cost in millions

estimate in millions of the annual economic benefit to the city (according to an Infratil report)

FORTIFYING TUNNEL

years since WCC began to celebrate Guy Fawkes with a banging display in the harbour

12 150,000

minutes of non-stop fiery thrills cost in dollars for the display

10,000

people crowd onto the waterfront to gawk and up to 100,000 watch from the hills

massive heaving traffic jam afterwards

ACROBATIC INTENT

WAIRARAPA WINE RAP

365

length in metres of the Hataitai bus tunnel

15,834

cost in £s to make it in 1907 (Aunty Google tells us that equates to $24m in today’s money but we suspect that’s on the low side)

age of the antique Spiegeltent* that will house Empire, an acrobatic show coming to the Odlins Plaza

700

capacity of the tent

723

number of months a planned earthquake strengthening will take starting in November

number of times the show has been performed so far

2892

number of bananas used over the course of those 723 performances

1963

year the tunnel was converted from tram use to trolley buses

number of times your correspondent was tempted to crack a banana joke

years since Toast Martinborough was founded

9 20 31,463

boutique wineries involved live performances throughout the day number of whitebait fritters Ruth Pretty reckons she’s served at Ata Rangi over the years

* A Spiegeltent is a ‘mirror tent’ originally made in Belgium. They are constructed from wood and canvas and decorated with mirrors and stained glass.

Compiled by Craig Beardsworth

Chamber Music New Zealand Presents

KALEIDOSCOPES Chamber Music New Zealand Concert Season 2015 Full season subscribers SAVE 20% on single ticket prices Subscription packages now available, visit chambermusic.co.nz for details Thurs 16 Oct 7.30pm | Michael Fowler Centre, Wellington | Free pre-concert talk, 6.30pm 14

chambermusic.co.nz |

0800 266 2378

/ChamberMusicNZ | 0800 266 2378

we’re ready. are you? Christmas functions at Portlander. Get Merry. Enquire today | (04) 498 3762 | www.portlander.co.nz

– DEBER Metallic Ball Candle $44.90

HENRY DEAN Sablon Vase in Green/Gold $490

MIRABELLO CARRARA Beach towels from $89.90

POLS POTTEN Gold-dipped Parrot Statue $145

MIX & MATCH C U R A TE Y OUR W OR L D W ITH O B J EC T S FR OM COR SO DE’ FIOR I

EGIZIA Dottino Highball Glasses (set of 2) $81.80 Silver Tray $168.90 Silver Stirrer $21.80

ROSE IN APRIL Rose Cat Doll $137.90

CITTA DESIGN Lychee Beach Bag $44.90

MODERN MOOSE Rocket Clock $79.90

WOOLSTORE DESIGN CENTRE, 258 THORNDON QUAY, PIPITEA | TEL 04 473 7075 | CORSO.CO.NZ

TA L E S O F T H E C I T Y

BA B Y YO U ' R E A F I R E WOR K

MORNING FIX

EXERCISE

GOOD EATS

BA R

G E TAWAY

Joe’s Garage

Bike Riding

Floriditas

Hawthorn Lounge

Vietnam

Explosions come naturally to Robert McDermott. The pyrotechnic designer and CEO of Pyrostar International talks to Anna Jackson-Scott about twenty years of running Wellington’s fireworks displays and thirty years of making explosions for a living.

ob McDermott has been involved in some important moments in history. “To be able to say that I designed the show for the Hong Kong Handover is a very rare moment indeed, and can never be achieved again.” He designed and ran the 2000 Millennium celebrations in Sydney and London, and was the first person in history to fire off the top of Sydney Harbour Bridge. He’s fired from barges, helicopters, boats, tugs, Wellington’s Hikitia crane barge and specially designed pontoons. Fireworks have featured all his life. “My mother went to school with someone who owned a fireworks company so I was introduced to it when I was born.” He studied for a Master of Pyrotechnics and founded his company Pyrostar International in 2003. He remembers his first show at 18. “It was nerve-wracking. I was hand-firing with very little instruction! I couldn’t hear for a couple of days afterwards.” Sydney-based, he returns this month for Wellington’s 20th anniversary Guy Fawkes Sky Show. “I’m proud to say I began, ran, and designed every display since inception.” To mark the anniversary, he’s choreographed this year’s show to 20 years of New Zealand number one hits. “Many people don’t realise the fireworks display is synchronised to music, but that’s how the Sky Show started – to get people to tune into radio stations. This year we’ve gone back and looked at the number one hit for each year, finishing with Sol3 Mia in 2014. It’s a great finale piece for fireworks, really inspiring. I’ve become very fond of Sol3 Mia.” Music is his main inspiration for designing the displays.

“I hear a piece of music and the effect comes to me. Like when you’re a painter and inspiration strikes. Music really does that for me, from the latest top ten to classical.” After twenty years, Wellington has become a second home to Rob and wife Chrissy, who is also his producer. “Wellington has a cool vibe. We love the cafes and bars here. We go to Joe’s Garage for breakfast, Floriditas for their fish pie, and to bars hidden up corridors and stairwells such as Hawthorn Lounge, The Library, and Matterhorn. They’re a good hangout after a full on production day.” They also favour St John’s for a few beers and their hot chips, “and you can always find a comfy hangout on Cuba Street.” When they’re not in Australasia, Rob and Chrissy travel and put on shows around the world. They’re not homebodies. “The travelling lifestyle is exciting; we get bored at home. When Chrissy first moved in she opened the oven and found the instructions inside, still in their plastic wrap!” Rob also spent seven years in the Middle East where firework displays are increasingly popular. “Cities try to out-do each other with fireworks show. It’s all about publicity and tourism. No other form of entertainment brings together so many people from all walks of life.” Vietnam is their next stop, where Rob has been appointed fireworks consultant for the Vietnamese military. Is he still in one piece? “You’d be surprised how many people ask me, ‘have I still got all my fingers?’ The answer is a definite ‘yes’.”

Photograph by Rhett Goodley-Hornblow 17

A NS A ET CO TM I OYN OHF E G A IDVEI RN G

Mother

8 11

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time for Mum to trade in hectic for beach-calm. Inspire her to relax with soft textures, ombre-blues, bold patterns, wicker and wood. Its the summer essentials, a change of gear, a fresh northerly breeze.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 18

Citadel bath towel, $6.90-$69.90. Corso de' Fiori Homestead wooden storage box, $44.90, Iko Iko Lattice small lightshade, $94.90, Corso de' Fiori River silk pillowcase (pair), $189.00, Emma Hayes Classic panama hat, $124.00, Corso De Fiori Acqua di Parma Blu Mediterraneo perfume, $129, World Beauty The Great New Zealand Cookbook, $39.95, Moore Wilsons One Way scarf, $289.00, World Netted black hampers, from $69.90, Corso de' Fiori Stone-Precious stool, POI, Backhouse Houndstooth weekender bag, $64.90, Corso de' Fiori

A N A ST EOCMTYI OONF H G EI V A IDNEGR

Father 4 3 1

7 6

5 10

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

This is the Dad that likes the city life. He cooks with a craft beer in-hand. He sips filtered coffee, he reads to learn and heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not opposed to lighting a candle come dusk. Simple design for simple pleasure.

Constellation mug, $29.90, Iko Iko Hexagon bottle opener, $49.00, Let Liv Goti ring, $345.00, Corso de' Fiori Old Spice bath towel, $69.00, Let Liv Acme & Co apron, $75.00, Let Liv Doggy bag of craft beer â&#x2C6;&#x2019; 4 pack, POI, Parrot Dog Ruth rocker flip stool, POI, Backhouse, The Spring Industrial Best Lamp, $450.00, Libby Beattie No.10 sweet grapefruit soy candle, $29.00, Let Liv Vertical Living: The Architectural Centre and the Remaking of Wellington, $60.00, Unity Books

SAENCATTI O OM N YH O EA F DGEI R VING

Bestie

7 4

Friends are the bacon in the salad of life. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an ode to the feminine bond, late nights, enthusiastic analysis, wine. Let those in-jokes loose with witty and

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11.

unconventional pieces that only you know theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll love.

Page Thirty Three cinematic lightbox, $549.00, Tea Pea Six Hands Andy gemstone cushion, $160.00, Stacks Furniture Pantone three cup coffee maker, $52.90, Iko Iko Martina Organics oil cleanser, $89.00, Iko Iko Capital subscription (11 issues), $77.00, www.capitalmag.co.nz Rifle Paper vintage blossoms notebook set, $38.00, Tea Pea Dew mimosa candle, $55.00, Stacks Furniture Flock socks, $14.90, Iko Iko Spanish Rose iPhone 5 case, $59.90, Iko Iko Two tone ceramic vase, $29.00, BoConcept Cast iron flamingo bottle opener, $24.90, Iko Iko,

A NS A ET CO TM I OYN OHF E G A IDVEI RN G

Children

7 5 8 6

10 9

The crux of Christmas. The early-morning, wrapping-everywhere, screaming primal joy. From stocking fillers to heart-fillers. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s all about wild colours, charming animals and giddy cheer.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 21

Lion head, $215.00, Tea Pea Pols Potten, $175.00, Corso de' Fiori General Eclectic 'kids' dipped utensils, $8.90, Iko Iko Merino cosy hat (Raspberry), $27.90, Mokupuna The Gruffalo aluminium drink bottle, $12.90, Iko Iko Seedling Amazing Folding Backpack carousel, $34.90, Iko Iko The Donkey 'My first autobahn', $19.95, Moore Wilson's My first smart phone, $27.00, Matchbox Animal nesting dolls, from $39.90, Iko Iko Watermelon lamp $255, Tea Pea Alice stool, $149.00, Corso de' Flori

SECTION HEADER A NATOM Y OF G I V I N G

Uncle 3

Uncle or Brother − this masculine antipode loves travelling, wandering and the outdoors better than in. It’s an homage to the nomads − practical, sentimental and worldly. With a touch of earthy tones and sensibilities.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 22

Camp Lantern LED 300 (black), $99.98, Kathmandu Head torch phantom 130 (green charcoal), $139.98, Kathmandu Opinel carbon steel folding knife No.10,$29.95, Moore Wilson's Basic swimshort, $49.99, Kirkcaldie & Stains New Norm thermo jug in carbon, $149.00, Let Liv Felt flag 'not all who wander are lost', $35.00, Matchbox Constellation matches, $7.00, Matchbox The club of odd volumes cushion desert, $59.90, Iko Iko Cardboard radio with MP3 input,$59.90, Iko Iko Erstwhile New Zealand map wall hanging, $435.00, Tea Pea

A NATOM Y OF G I V I N G

Distant Relative 2

6 5

10 9

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

The dreaded Secret Santa â&#x2C6;&#x2019; that ambiguous name pulled out of a hat. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best to stick with local and indulgent. Wine from Martinborough, chocolate from Dixon Street and candles from Cuba. Just add a bow.

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F E AT U R E

POWER PAINTER WRITTEN BY CRAIG BEARDSWORTH | PHOTOGRAPHY BY RHETT GOODLEY-HORNBLOW

Beverly Rhodes’ paintings have been variously described as grim and gothic and often feature forlorn-looking children. Her observations as a clinical psychologist shaped her perspective but she sees her work as introspective. Hope is slowly infiltrating her latest suite of work.

espite having lived in Wellington for more than two decades, Beverly Rhodes is still proud of her southern working class roots “I’m from Lyttelton!” she chimes when I suggest saying ‘Cantabrian’. There is definitely an egalitarian streak in her and she prickles at the thought of ‘tracing your family back to the first four ships’ so it is entirely appropriate that her studio is in Trade Hall – the trade union owned building on Ghuznee Street. Rent for rooms is kept low and a humming throng of artists inhabit its floors. That is one of the reasons Rhodes is happy to travel in from Silverstream everyday to paint. “It’s a long way to come but the people who work here add spice to my life”. She has the added advantage of being able to meet friends in the city and visit the library and art galleries for inspiration. “Being an artist can be very isolating, so community is important.” Rhodes initially trained as a nurse and then, after a Master's in Clinical Psychology, practised as a psychologist. She had always painted but it was only in the mid 90s that she was able to devote more time to it. At the time the only way to get into qualified art courses was to go back to high school and get University Entrance so she studied as an adult student at Wellington High School under Rob McLeod. Later she attended the Wanganui School of Fine Art and then in 2004 received a Master's degree from RMIT in Melbourne. The observations she made while practising as a psychologist have become part of the themes explored in her art. She gave it up after a short period “It was anxiety provoking. I think I did a good job, I was told I did a good job, but it was...heavy”. Her work explores trauma and loss and features vulnerable children sometimes accompanied by animals. “Children who are abused often

end up in abusive relationships in adulthood and pets are sometimes threatened as a form of control”. This is part of the reason Rhodes is supporting the work of the Life Education Trust and is donating a work to their exhibition on November 28. The charity reaches 245,000 children a year and provides them with courses to help them access their full potential. “I always give to charities that help children and empower them.” Rhodes’ friends tease her about the grim aspect of her work. “Will there ever be hope, Beverly? she mimics and then laughs. She doesn’t see her paintings as depressive but rather introspective. She cites Nick Cave’s music, Leonard Cohen and Scandinavian film as muses. Recently her work has definite signs of hope creeping in. She has finished a suite of paintings that explores women in Grimm’s Fairy Tales not accepting their fate. Snow White is portrayed dropping the apple, Rapunzel not letting her hair down and the girl with red shoes taking them off (in the original story she must chop her feet off to stop herself from dancing). Girls are taking control. The work drying on easels in her studio is also lighter in colour and is inspired by the palette Wes Anderson uses in his films. There is much joy in large canvases depicting her granddaughter in various exhilarating gymnastic poses. Rhodes acknowledges the progression of positivity in her work and is enjoying using colour but can’t discount the possibility of returning to black. Either way, the girls and women in her paintings are becoming objects of empowerment. “As a woman growing up in the era I did, I never stuck up for myself, but I’m learning slowly.” Life Education Trust Exhibition, from 28 November at The Academy Galleries. 25

SECTION HEADER

BR EW C REW WRITTEN BY KELLY HENDERSON | PHOTOGRAPHY BY ASHLEY CHURCH

Although coffee is a constant in Ramsey Gydes’ life, every day is a new day, and the brew he makes upon waking varies according to the season, his mood, and the weather. “It is a ritual that never gets stale,” he said.

t is not surprising therefore that his love affair with coffee has led him and two others to create a new coffee brewer. It is a three-in-one device, allowing coffee to brew through plunger, stovetop, and filter methods. Their brewer the Evolve 3.0, is designed to make it easy for coffee devotees to experiment with brewing methods and make barista-standard coffee at home. Ramsey Gyde, 24, founder and inventor at Evolve Coffee Ltd, came up with the idea four years ago, while working at Caffe L'affare, (where he still works today). He has been making coffee for almost half his life, his first job at 14, was as a barista in a cafe after school. “I have hopped between cafes working as a barista, in retail, distribution and roasting, all the while developing

knowledge and a passion for coffee”, he says. “I saw that brewing devices were a pretty cool trend at the time, and something that was rapidly developing, so I took it upon myself to try and think of something new”. A three-in-one machine seemed a possibility. He shared the concept with then-students (now full-time digital and industrial designers) Jeremy Brooker and Jason Stephens, the three teamed up and Evolve Coffee Ltd was born. After years of design and work the concept has become a reality, and the final design – made from stainless steel, glass, high quality plastics and silicone – is ready to hit the market.

Above from the left Jason Stephens, Ramsey Gydes, Jeremy Brooker.

F E AT U R E

Plunger, filter & stovetop options

“We have invested more than $50,000 into the prototypes, and final production model versions,” he says. “The team has not only designed the device, they’ve also done the branding, website, video and everything else possible themselves, only outsourcing where absolutely necessary. “We also consulted international coffee experts to ensure the quality of coffee produced is up to scratch”, he said. It has also been important for Ramsey and the team that the 3.0 is easy to use. “Whether you’re a coffee geek or someone who’s new to brewing coffee, we’ve made the device accessible for everyone,” says Jeremy. The Evolve 3.0 will launch first on crowd-funding website Kickstarter this month, aiming to raise $150,000. With a stated mission to help creative projects get off the ground, Kickstarter allows people to financially back

projects that they like. It will be a 90-day campaign and the money will be used to cover the set-up costs required to bring the product to life. “We hope to crowd-source demand upfront through Kickstarter to make a product that would otherwise never see the light of day,” says Ramsey. Kickstarter enables anyone from New Zealand or abroad to pledge for a machine or an assortment of other rewards. For a pledge of NZ$300 you will receive an Evolve 3.0, a specially designed Brew Guide to help you brew the perfect coffee, a t-shirt and free international shipping. After the 90-days, Ramsey says there will be a production timeframe of approximately six months before all orders are shipped in mid-late 2015. www.evolvecoffee.com

W HAT T H E F L O C K

UNCLE KERERU Name: Kererū or New Zealand Pigeon Status: Endemic. Not listed as threatened, but population in decline due to destruction of habitat and mammalian predation. Through September and October the third annual Great Kererū Count took place − a ‘citizen science’ initiative by WWF’s Kererū Discovery Project and Forest & Bird’s Kiwi Conservation Club. Of more than 7000 reports nationwide of kererū sightings, nearly a quarter came from the Wellington region − equating to more than 3500 birds. Habitat: Podocarp-broadleaf forest, beech and regenerating forest, farmland shelterbelts, urban parks, suburban gardens. Look for them: It shouldn’t be too hard to spot a kererū. Keep an eye trained to the canopy during bush walks, and listen out for dropped fruit, seeds or droppings. Favourite local kererū spots for this writer include Otari Wilton’s Bush − especially the Troup Picnic Lawn over which many impressive display dives have been witnessed − or Battle Hill Farm Forest Park, where I made my own report to the Great Kereru Count after encountering more than a dozen feeding, flying and somewhat territorial birds in the corner paddock. Call: A soft coo, not unlike the sounds made by their dirty, city-dwelling cousins. The bird is often identified by flight sounds − kererū ‘whoosh’ with what sounds like a concerted effort, and landings are often of the crash variety. Feeds on: Buds, leaves, flowers and fruit. Since the extinction of the Moa, the kererū is the only bird with a beak large enough to swallow fruit larger than 12mm in diameter and disperse the seeds again whole. Native trees such as the karaka, taraire, tawa, miro and puriri depend on the kererū to carry their seeds to new areas of forest. Did you know? If kererū were to disappear it would prove disastrous for our native forests. As the only birds with beaks big enough to swallow the fruit of the trees mentioned above, they are solely responsible for the dispersal of their seeds. If it were a person: It would be your merry, rotund Uncle after a few too many at your cousin's wedding.

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M AT T H E W M C I N T Y R E W I L S O N & MAKER UNKNOWN September 28 2014 - February 8 2015

Matthew McIntyre Wilson Hieke (detail) 2012 copper, pvc Courtesy of the artist. Photograph by Natalie Jones

Cnr Norrie & Parumoana Sts, Porirua City, Tel: +64-4-2371511, www.pataka.org.nz

Are we the Robin to your Batman? Exposure 2014 Graduate Exhibition 8 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 22 November creative.massey.ac.nz Te Ara Hihiko Massey University Wellington

Annalisa McManaway

CULTURE

INDIGENOUS MARKETING Pataka Museum in Porirua has a November show mixing old hands and emerging artists. Kahi (meaning ‘now, for the first time’) features work by Darcy Nicholas, Sandy Adsett and June Grant. They in turn have selected four emerging artists who are establishing themselves on the contemporary Māori art scene: Davina Duke, Victor Te Paa, Kylie Tiuka and Walter Dewes. The works act as a taster for the talent on display at the Maori Art Market. Maori Art market 13-16 November TSB Arena Kahi 23 Oct – 23 Nov 2014 Toi Gallery, Pataka.

ISLAND AIRS Motu and Oiléain both mean island – one in Maori and the other in Gaelic. It’s the name of a project three Irish musicians and the reformed Trinity Roots have dreamed up ‘to combine the traditional music of Ireland and New Zealand in a contemporary context’. They’re doing shows at Paraparaumu and Wellington on November 22 and 23. The Motu :: Oiléain collaboration has also been chosen to be showcased at Celtic Connections in Glasgow in January 2015.

PINING FOR THE FJORDS In 1867 Henrik Ibsen wrote a play called Peer Gynt. His fellow Norwegian Edvard Grieg wrote music to accompany the play and later turned it into orchestral music. The Peer Gynt Suite No.1 boasts some of the most beloved music in the orchestral repertoire. If you grew up obsessed with the Smurfs cartoon (or had children who were) then you will recognise the tune ‘Morning’. Grieg had a knack for writing memorable melodies that take you on journeys through exotic lands and even into the terrifying Hall of the Mountain King (another tune that’s done the rounds in popular culture). The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra also plays Mozart’s Symphony No. 31 and Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme. Friday November 21, NZSO, MFC 6.30pm.

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A LOW HUM IN VO GELTOWN Camp A Low Hum founder Blink’s next music event is A Low Hum at Vogelmorn "I've been hanging out to put on shows in exciting places," says Blink. 8 November, 8pm, Vogelmorn Hall, Brooklyn

Untitled, mixed media, work on canvas and board

CULTURE

ESSENTIAL ART Artist, musician and occasional Capital magazine writer, Sharon Greally's solo show, Sensibility, opens this month at Walrus Gallery. The mixed media colour field paintings she describes as floating, weightless, vibrant, meditative surfaces.They are focused on the metaphysical, essential art of being, she said, quoting Yves Klein who says, "imagination is the vehicle of sensibility. Borne by imagination, we arrive at life, life in essence, which is the absolute art.” 26 November, Walrus Gallery

C A N TATA S TA R T E R

FUNDING THE FUTURE

Carmina Burana (Songs from Beuern) is the name given to a manuscript of 254 poems and dramatic texts written mostly in the 11th and 12th century. The poems in Latin are largely bawdy, irreverent, and satirise the Catholic Church. In 1936 composer Carl Orff set 24 of the poems to music. The secular cantata (most cantatas are religious) involving soloists, choir and orchestra is being performed by Orchestra Wellington and Orpheus Choir in November. Conductor Marc Taddei says “In some places Carmina Burana is considered a home run. Audiences flock to this fantastic work whenever the considerable forces required are assembled”. Carmina Burana, Saturday November 15, MFC, 7.30pm

NZ On Air is working hard to push digital media into the future. They’ve teamed up with the Canada Media Fund (CMF) to establish a million dollar fund to support new digital media projects. Up to three projects will be funded in the 2014/15 financial year. “As digital media changes we are keen to explore and encourage new ideas for making content,” NZ On Air Chief Executive Jane Wrightson says. The fund will not be used for existing concepts. The fund also promotes international collaboration. The New Zealand and Canadian organisations contribute equally to the fund and jointly select from the applicants. Proposed projects must have at least one Canadian and one New Zealand producer. “We haven't done this kind of co-production before, it's an exciting opportunity for local producers to collaborate internationally,” says NZ On Air Digital Strategist Brenda Leeuwenberg.

CULTURE

GET A LIFE “Learn dance … you’re not just learning about how to move, you’re learning about life” says Wellington professional dancer Luke Hanna. He’s talking about the dance show, community workshops and industry master-classes which are just some of the events which go into ‘Inspiring Wellington Youth’, a joint project between DANZ (Dance Aotearoa) and Auckland’s Palace Dance Studio. The show, GOLD MYND, is full-length dance theatre which sees Parris Goebel as a 13-year-old who gives herself 11 pieces of advice for the future − with endless possibilities. Goebel has won numerous awards and performed and choreographed for some big stars, including Jennifer Lopez, Missy Elliot and Cirque du Soleil. There will be a master-class in partnership with the NZ School of Dance and a forum with Parris.

CATCH KENTRID GE

MOVEMENT ON THE MENU Dance is the word at Nga Taonga, formerly the Film Archive, during November. From 5-8 November it’s showing the world premier of OneOne, the latest work from Dunedin’s multidisciplinary powerhouse Good Company Arts which explores ‘cycle, form and space expressed through moving image, sound, and choreography’. Giselle, the movie, shows from 12-15 November.

City Gallery’s show The Refusal of Time by William Kentridge has made waves in our office. Several of us have been, been bemused, been amazed and been back. Where else in Wellington can you find megaphones and a breathing machine? It finishes on November 16. Image: William Kentridge, The Refusal of Time 2012. A collaboration with Philip Miller, Catherine Meyburgh and Peter Galison. Installation view, City Gallery Wellington (2014).

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F E AT U R E

IN DECLINE WRITTEN BY JOHN BISHOP | PHOTOGRAPHY BY EVANGELINE DAVIS

Generally the Wellington economy is performing below the national average.” That’s the verdict from Grow Wellington’s latest report on the regional economy. It reveals that Wellington is lagging behind in job growth, immigration and visitor numbers.

n most measures, Wellington is at, or a bit below, the national average, but quite well behind the roaring engines of the Auckland and Christchurch economies. On job growth it says, the “region’s outlook is fragile.” Talk about being the “coolest little capital”, why Wellington is a place where talent wants to live, and how we combine opportunity and innovation with the freedom of the hills and the harbour are familiar refrains from those in charge of the city. The reality is a bit different. Wellington is simply not performing. On employment, while the number of people in the region employed went up 2% in the past year, at 275,570 the total number employed is still below the 279,000 recorded five years ago. Construction is driving job growth, 81% of the 5,400 new jobs created in the past year are in construction. Construction jobs come from state highway roading projects, earthquake strengthening and the Christchurch rebuild, the GROW report says. In other words they will wither when the building boom slows. There’s little growth coming from the much talked about sectors: tourism, education, hospitality, creative and IT. New Zealand is currently experiencing a period of nett inward migration, 41043 more people arrived than left in the 12 months to July. Wellington’s nett gain is

just 872 people, 2% of the national total. “Returning and New Zealanders are opting for other centres,” the Grow Wellington report says. While this is “something of a concern”, the report offers no explanations but suggests this is “an area for closer investigation”, and should be part of a “focus on talent attraction activity and efforts to promote Wellington as a destination for potential migrants and returning expats.” At a panel discussion about “Brand Wellington” hosted by the local chapter of the Public Relations Institute, David Perks from Positively Wellington Tourism and Jim Quinn from Grow Wellington spoke enthusiastically about the appeal of the Wellington brand and of their agencies’ efforts. Awards, accolades and brand jargon aside, the hard data on jobs, spending and investment shows Wellington's economy is falling behind the rest of the country. Put like that they had to agree. David Perks: “I take on board the point about growth. We need to find reasons and tell the story and reinvigorate our brand.” Jim Quinn: “The brand reflects initiatives underway to reinvigorate the economy in the region. We have many specialisations and we will get growth.” Kevin Lavery, the chief executive of the Wellington City Council reinforced the point. “We need to do a lot better. I favour a genuinely joined up approach.

F E AT U R E

Even the iconic Rugby Sevens tournament has had to cut its prices and the behaviour of its fans will be more tightly controlled. Is this an event on its way out of favour? So how will we get growth? Not by pursuing the current policies it seems. They have delivered a less than stellar performance over the last five years. Wellington lacks an inbound investment strategy. Growth is not about the appeal of the brand, or slogans, or even tourists (domestic or international). It is about the jobs brought to or created in the city. However much marketers talk up the value of their special area of expertise, it is not the appearance or the performance of the brand that counts. Getting a call centre set up creates new jobs; opening yet another restaurant doesn’t − unless more people eat out more often. Setting up new ventures widens the appeal of the city as a business or educational destination as well as creating new jobs. One example is the WELTEC/Whitireia initiative to set up a Centre for Creative Technologies and Arts in the old Deka building, on the corner of Cuba and Dixon Streets, in the heart of downtown Wellington. It will involve up to a thousand students. It is to open in 2018 and expands the work of the Cordon Bleu cooking school also located downtown. As well as local students it aims to attract the very best international talent from the Asia Pacific region. What counts for ratepayers and residents is paying jobs, and new businesses successfully established, because these translate into reasons to stay in the area. In the past five years, Wellington, and its development and promotional agencies, have not done that very well. Perhaps the new Wellington Regional Development Agency − when it is up and running - will be able to do better.

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Brand is important, but we have a long way to go to get significant growth.” Dr Lavery urged the region’s councils and other agencies to “get the economic plan right and deliver on it.” As CEO he has backed projects like a hotel and conference centre, a technology quarter, and a Lord of the Rings museum. Getting the right economic plan, and the right agency to deliver on it has been a battlefield for the last 20 years. The Capital Development Agency, which was an arm of the Wellington City Council, morphed into the first regional development agency in 1995, and there have been many changes in direction, structure and leadership since then. Grow Wellington, the most recent version of a regional development agency, is now faced with yet another restructure. The Wellington Regional and Wellington City Councils have agreed to fold Grow Wellington into a new mega-agency along with Positively Wellington Tourism, Destination Wellington, Positively Wellington Venues, plus the Major Events operation and to put the Westpac Stadium in there too. The model is Auckland’s regional development agency, ATEED, which has been very active since that region’s cities were merged under one council. One council in Wellington is a long way off, if it ever happens at all. The Local Government Commission is due to issue a proposal on reorganisation very soon. There are other dark clouds. Auckland has the money and the organisational form to outspend every other region. And it is competing vigorously in events and theatre, spaces where we like to think we were strong. Wellington’s icon events are tired and in danger of declining. WOW is still strong, but the New Zealand Festival of the Arts is acknowledged as needing a revamp. Te Papa is attracting fewer visitors, and the promotions of both the City Council backed Aussie Rules and the Aussie League games have failed recently.

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LAUNCH Massey Fashion Show 2014 13 November, 7pm 14 November, 3pm & 7pm Michael Fowler Centre Tickets available from ticketek.co.nz or 0800ticketek

Claartje ten Berge, 2013

FASH ION

RETAIL THERAPY

If you have to do Christmas shopping, you may as well have a wild time doing it. Art Direction: Shalee Fitzsimmons & Tamara Jones Styling: Tamara Jones & Zofia Zawada Photography: Tamara Jones Make up: Elise MacMillan & Jessica Simmons Models: Aleisha Robertson, Rhiannon Purves, Margaux Febvre-Richards, Rhett Goodley-Hornblow Locations: Moore Wilsonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, Kirkcaldie & Stains, Unity Books, Iko Iko 39

Stockists: I Love Paris Superette Kowtow World Kirkcaldie & Stains Trelise Cooper Wellington

SECTION HEADER

FASH ION SHORT S

I N T H E BAG Massey fashion and business student Yanna Petter’s latest range is made of neon-coloured foam that folds down to become bags. “It’s an interesting challenge!” Yanna first creates the pattern and then figures out how it will fold to become a bag. “I work backwards to figure out how things could fold different ways. It’s like a puzzle.” She says her strong point is the conceptual rather than the construction part of the process. To construct the garment, she laser-cuts shapes – squares, circles and triangles – heats ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) foam, and vacuum-sucks the malleable foam over the shapes to create a mould. She then spray-paints them neon pink, orange and yellow. “My collections have all been very brightly coloured – which is strange because I don’t wear a lot of colour!” About to graduate, the Lower-Hutt-born designer is looking offshore for industry experience. “I’d love to do bag design and accessories rather than clothing, and to use my business background.”

UGLY PRET T Y, OR PRET T Y UGLY?

SUMMER SUITS US

LESS IS MORE

Shower shoes, slides, Birkenstocks, thick-soled sneakers… ugly is the new cool. Iconic Wellington stores at the centre of footwear fashion, such as I Love Paris, are all over it, stocking “ugly pretty” shoes, as the trend is called. Fashion tevas, anyone? In an interview with T, Miuccia Prada says, “Ugly is attractive, ugly is exciting. The investigation of ugliness is, to me, more interesting than the bourgeois idea of beauty.”

Local suit label Rembrandt’s new collection Have Jacket, Will Travel centres on the Halcyon jacket this summer, in blends of merino wool and mohair. (They know the temp of a Wellington “summer”!) Wayward Heir’s new collection Turn It Up is for the more “roguish” shopper who isn’t afraid of colour, spokesperson Bernadette Stephenson says.

Rachel Beck lists her target market’s music and TV show preferences to explain the style of her menswear brand. “The Less Successful Sibling man would listen to Blu, James Blake, Alt-J, and Joey Bada$$.” The designer, a former Samuel Marsden schoolgirl, is currently developing her label from London. Maybe she’ll get the chance to ask Blake what he thinks…

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STREET STYLE

V I R G I N I A PA R K E R B O W L E S CENTR AL CIT YÂ

JEREMY RIDDLE MT VICTORIA

The best store in Wellington is Lush

The best store in Wellington is Good as Gold

My fail-safe fall back outfit is Little black dress

My fail-safe fall back outfit is Blue jeans and a grey tee

My best fashion accessory is My clutch

My best fashion accessory is My ivory earrings

The one thing missing from my wardrobe A new pair of swimming togs

The one thing missing from my wardrobe A Prada suit

Wellington fashion needs more Showcasing

Wellington fashion needs more More experimenting!

EDIBLES

FO OD’ S NEW MOVES Food on the move has swept through Wellington. No longer does fast food mean only the traditional takeaways. The mobile food truck, serving fast food of cafe standard, has exploded on the scene. Ekim burgers, Cuba Street’s residential burger van, moved to Cuba Street from Lyall Bay earlier this year. If you haven’t already seen, the line goes down the street. Le Canard’s truck moves between Thorndon, Karori, Tawa, and the Harbourside Market. The South-West French restaurant is known for its roasted poultry and sports a menu to rival any traditional French restaurant. This one just can’t stay still. The Goose Shack opened in 2012. The mobile caterer has the only charcoal oven of its kind in Australasia, housed in a Morris Minor ute. “Morri underwent a full transformation to become completely customized, with many long hours spent in the garage,” owner Haydn says. They found permanent premises Goose Shack HQ (GSHQ) in late 2013, and will restart their mobile catering this summer. The Fire Truck is a more recent endeavour. Miramar couple Will Michell and Kim Eddington converted the 1963 Bedford TK to house an American-style smoker barbecue. Their dishes have a distinctly international influence; they specialise in the traditional South African fast-food, bunny chow, sans bunnies. Pizza has also joined the mobile restaurant movement, with Havelock North’s Pipi Truck. Owner Alexandra Tylee began Fuel espresso in 1986 with her then husband, which was the first takeaway coffee cart in Wellington. She loves the mobile food movement. “On the street you’re really part of the community.” She catered for Wellington during the Lux Light Festival. For a taste of Spain, Pan Man Ian Hornblow ordered a paella pan from Valencia five years ago. He has offered Wellington the Spanish dish ever since. And caters regularly at Crafters & Co., for functions, festivals, and everything in between. Anna Jackson-Scott 47

COMMENCING SUNDAY 2ND NOVEMBER 10AM - 1PM FINISHING SUNDAY 5TH APRIL

EDIBLES

SNIPPET O N T OA S T Martinborough is the place, 10am is the time and wine is but one of the reasons to hot-foot it over the Rimutakas on Sunday 16 November. Food is at least as much of a drawcard (Ruth Pretty’s whitebait fritters, anyone?), as is the music, which this year includes jazz, salsa, blues, Afrobeat and rootsy Americana folk music. Where the drinks list is concerned, check out Ata Rangi’s dry Craighall Riesling; or better still, buy a bottle or three to take home and stash in a cool dark place to drink in another decade’s time. Vive la deliciousness then. www.toastmartinborough.co.nz

GOAT SEASON

A TREE TO PICK

It’s the season for goat milk. Meadowcroft fresh goat milk has arrived at Commonsense Organics after months of waiting. “It’s very seasonal and popular,” says fridge manager Jake Schultz. For those who find cow dairy too rich, goat milk can be easier on the body. “The proteins in goat milk are completely different from cow milk.”

Fancy yourself a Robin Hood? Love the outdoors? Community Fruit Harvesting needs more volunteers to pick fruit. The charity collects and redistributes unwanted fruit, mainly through Kaibosh Food Rescue. If you want to pick fruit, or have a laden tree that needs unloading, get in contact. pickfruitnthwellington@gmail.com.

SPO ONING GLUTEN Weet-Bix is now available without the wheat. A gluten-free version of the breakfast cereal has been made using sorghum grain, processed in a separate factory to prevent contamination. Is a name change in order? Sorghum-Bix doesn’t have quite the same ring to it.

EDIBLES

GONE SOUR A new and unusual beer Tainted Love is the result of a collaboration between Fork & Brewer and two North American breweries. Soured using yoghurt bacteria, the brew is fermented with an ale yeast, and infused with passion fruit pulp and juniper berries. Ben Love from Portland’s Gigantic Brewing and Andrea Christianson from Wild Rose Brewery in Calgary helped create the beer, which “blurs the boundaries of what you thought beer was”, says Fork and Brewer manager Adrian Klemp.

The mystery of the magic of the coconut for cooking and healing will be cracked open this month. The Migrating Kitchen, a trust set up so migrants and refugees can tell their stories at exhibitions and festivals, is putting on Talk & Taste sessions to share the cultural culinary rituals and practices of sharing food. 15 Nov, 12pm, Pataka, & 17 Nov, 12pm, Moore Wilson’s kitchen.

ON THE RISE Now that gluten free bread is old news, paleo bread is on the rise in Wellington. Paleo Pantry and Thoroughbread both have paleo-friendly loaves available in addition to their usual gluten free goods.

Kombucha, a fermented tea drink from East Asia, has landed in Wellington. Goodbuzz Brewing Company is the brainchild of Amber and Alex Campbell, and Wellington’s first Kombucha brewer. They call it Booch for short. The probiotic drink is prepared in Wainuiomata, by brewing sweet tea, adding culture, and leaving it to mature. The Ngaio couple now want to bring the “Manchurian tea” to the mainstream. “Kombucha is part of a culture of fitness and health. We want to bring that to Wellington,” Alex says. “It’s not just about a great drink – it’s a lifestyle we live.” And drink, too. Alex drinks four bottles per day. Although Amber has brewed Kombucha for many years, it was still an exercise in experimentation to get the best brew. “There were a lot of exploding bottles!” GoodBuzz Kombucha comes in five flavours from Black Tea to feijoa.

INDULGE YOUR SENSES FROM 11:30 AM 49

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THE MIGRATING CO CONUT

T H E C U LT U R E O F KOM BU C HA

THE FOREST CANTINA

PORK OF F THE FORK BY UNNA BURCH

fter my husband and I visited Mexico City and saw what Mexican food was all about, it really inspired me to create some of this cuisine myself. It was nothing like I thought it would be. It was a thousand times better and incredibly complex. If a few words could describe Mexican food, for me it’s ‘layers of flavours.’’ That’s really what Mexican food is all about. The best food I ate in Mexico was at markets and on the streets. This recipe is about creating street food at home – Pulled Pork tacos with guajillo chilli salsa and pineapple. With these tacos you get the layers of flavours Im talking about − with the slow-cooked pork, then the freshness from the salsa, sweetness from the pineapple, acidity from the lime…It’s all there! I am lucky enough to have some of my brother’s free range pork. My brother and sister in-law own Caffe Mode in Kelburn, so they have all the milk and bread they need for their pigs. I swear by

the fact that those milk-fed pigs makes them the best pork I’ve ever tasted. And such a good feeling when you actually KNOW where your meat is coming from. So, of course you can imagine the person I had to share these tacos with was my brother Rich. I like to set everything out on the table in bowls and dishes and have everyone dig in for a build your own taco night!

For a faster version, use a free range rotisserie chicken in place of the pork. Remove skin and shred. And the Guajillo chillis aren’t too hot. They have more of a sweet flavour with a warm heat – perfect if you’re like me, cooking for kids also. But the addition of the fresh chillies gives it a bit of punch. I make the salsa, take out a portion for the kids and then add tobacco to taste to give it the extra kick we like. If you can’t find Guajillos, I’ve made this salsa before with tinned chipotles too, but they are much hotter and with a paprika-like flavour to them.

Makes approx 20 tacos, Each person would need 3-4 each. Ingredients 2kg free range pork shoulder, bone in or leg or pork roast works well too. But I prefer with bone in for more flavour. A little oil 2 teaspoons cumin 1 teaspoon allspice 1 teaspoon chilli flakes 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 1 teaspoon salt and pepper For the guajillo chilli salsa

METHOD For the pork 1. 2.

4 dried guajillo chillis (available from Moore Wilson’s) 2 fresh long red chillis, stalks chopped off, seeds in 1x 400g can tomatoes 1 red onion 5 cloves garlic coriander stalks from 1 bunch 1 teaspoon salt 1 heaped teaspoon brown sugar ½ cup water (Tabasco to taste at the end)

3. 4.

Rub the pork with a little oil. Mix all of the dry ingredients together and massage over the pork. Leave for at least 30 minutes - or, as I did, overnight in the fridge. Preheat oven to 150°C. Cook the pork in a roasting tin with ½ cup water on the bottom, covered with tin foil. Roast for 3-4 hours OR until pork pulls away easily with a fork. Remove from roasting tin, rest on a board covered with foil for 10 minutes. Pull pork with two forks. Cover and keep warm Salsa Soak the dried chillies in boiling water for 15 minutes to rehydrate and soften them. Remove stalks and seeds and chop roughly. Blend the chillis and the rest of the ingredients together in a food processor until smooth. Pour into a large frying pan and reduce to intensify flavours for 15mins on a medium heat. Season with salt to taste. Add tabasco if you want more kick.

For the pineapple 1. Combine the pineapple, coriander, onion and 2 tsp lime juice in a bowl.

To serve 2 x 12 packs of corn tortillas

To assemble 1. Warm the tortillas in a hot skillet, by first dipping them in water then pan frying for 30 seconds on each side. Remove and keep warm in a tea towel (this will help hem get softer too. 2. Take a tortilla and spread it generously with the guajillo chilli salsa. Add some pork and then some pineapple mix on top, followed by the avocado, feta and micro rocket. Extra hot sauce if you feel the need to be hard core.

1 fresh pineapple, skin and core removed, diced 1 bunch coriander, roughly chopped 2 tablespoons lime juice + extra limes to serve 1 small red onion, finely sliced into half-moons 100g feta (similar texture to Mexican cheese, Cotija) Punnet of rocket micro greens 2 avocado, diced Hot sauce of your choice − my fave at the mo is the jalapeño one from Lucky Taco 50

CHEERS

W E E , WI LD AN D WO OL LY BY KIERAN HASLETT-MOORE

In a quiet back street of Mt Cook two immigrants are slowly building a tiny brewery that will produce some very interesting beers.

ver the past few months a small commercial space in King St has been slowly transformed from a carpeted warehouse into something that will produce a range of distinctive and quirky beers. Llew Bardecki is originally from Canada and Annika Naschitzki is the daughter of a West Berlin brewer. Between them the pair are setting up a 350L brewery in which they will produce beers for each partner’s brewing brand. Llew’s brand Wild and Woolly will release a range of spiced beers and sour beers that he has perfected as a home brewer. Annika will draw on her German traditions and brew beers inspired by her father’s brewing under the Tiamana Brew brand. Annika’s first memory of brewing was the warm sweet smell that used to drift through her Berlin neighbourhood from her father’s brewery when she was a child. When she immigrated to Wellington in 2010 she found a craft brewing scene that reminded her of her childhood but was producing beers that were very different from those of her homeland. “Someone handed me an IPA, I was blown away, I had no idea beer could taste like that! I was hooked” By day Annika is a Customer Experience and Service Designer. However the urge for a more hands-on craft profession peaked when her father visited several years ago. The two of them travelled the country tasting beers and then returned to Wellington to put down the first Tiamana trial batch. Fast forward two years and Annika is finally on the verge of going pro. According to Annika she couldn’t imagine doing what she has done anywhere else. “When I started I really knew was that I knew nothing, but I trusted that I would find support and help if I asked for it amongst the Wellington brewers and I did.” 52

Llew grew up drinking the beers of Montréal’s McAuslan Brewery, famous for its Oatmeal Stout. However it was not until he moved to Wellington that he began home brewing and developed a passion for making beer. In 2011 he set off on a world trip with his partner Sarah and they tasted their way round some of the lesser known breweries of the world. Highlights included a Vienna Lager in Kyrgyzstan, a stout from Southern China and an IPA in Bogota, Colombia. Llew returned to New Zealand fired up to start a brewery and produce the sort of beers he liked to drink but couldn’t buy. Both brewers have decided not to contract brew as both want to be responsible for the entire process from start to finish. The small scale of their operation and the partnership arrangement means each partner’s risk is reduced and gives them the freedom to brew experimental and challenging beers. The brewery will also serve as a learning experience allowing them discover the ins and outs of running a brewery. So far both brewers have released at festivals beers that they have brewed at other breweries. Wild and Woolly had a citrus spiced sour wheat beer under the name of Basilisk Spiced Berliner Weisse at Beervana, while Tiamana Brew had a traditional Berlin alcohol-free beer pouring at this year’s S.O.B.A. Winter Ales Festival. Llew has all sorts of interesting things planned including a Jamaican Jerk Spiced IPA, a sour brown ale and a black barley wine. Annika is currently working on something involving dark cherries. The King St space is nearly ready to receive the 350L brewery equipment which is currently crated up in Llew’s garage and with a bit of luck they should be commissioning the plant in November with beer ready to sell this December.

Foxglove Bar & Kitchen | 33 Queens Wharf | Wellington

LIQUID NEWS

MIG H T Y M A RT IN B OROUGH BY JOELLE THOMSON

Two wineries, one luxury lodge and a gin brand; American rich lister Bill Foley has acquired big businesses in the Wairarapa, although his aim is to enable them to retain their individuality

alk about a new lease of life. The ailing Te Kairanga winery has had a makeover of epic proportions, thanks to an American rich-lister and a former Aucklander who couldn’t wait to leave his home town. The rich-lister is Bill Foley of Foley Family Vineyards. He now owns Te Kairanga Wines, Martinborough Vineyards, Wharekauhau Lodge and Lighthouse Gin. The (former) Aucklander is winemaker John Kavanagh, whose first winery job was at Palliser Estate in Martinborough in 1994; he completed Lincoln University’s post-grad’ Diploma in Viticulture and Oenology in 1993. From Palliser Estate, he moved on to Alana Estate and then married into the region’s wine gentry by tying the knot with Ness Paton. Clive Paton’s daughter, of Ata Rangi. The couple had a son and moved to Nelson’s highly regarded Neudorf Vineyards. Now he is back. And it has never felt more like home. “The Wairarapa has always been a strong draw-card for me; family ties were an important motivating factor for us to move back but the region lures me back too,” he confesses, over a strong coffee, after several long tastings of his first vintage of TK’s new wave. The wine brand is Te Kairanga, but colloquially and in overseas markets, it is frequently referred to as ‘TK’ because it is easier to pronounce. The biggest challenge of working in wine in the Wairarapa is not the pronounceability nor even the region’s windy weather, which can decimate a significant proportion of the region’s grape harvest each year. Kavanagh says the biggest challenge is keeping the name and profile of the Wairarapa high in wine drinker’s minds. “Because it is a small region and most of the wineries are small, we don’t have big marketing budgets. It takes a concerted effort to work as a group when we are all running relatively small businesses. Working together is what the region has done historically. Our big challenge is to continue to work together to promote the region as a whole.” 54

One of the most important paths forward is to forge a collaborative identity for the wines of Martinborough (which are generally well known) with those of the rest of the Wairarapa, which are not so well known but often still of high quality. The region’s biggest strength is, he says (predictably, but accurately) Pinot Noir because of its savoury, earthy character and its balance of ripe fruit with cool climate acidity and the backbone of tannins that naturally comes from weather-reduced harvests (aka wind issues). Where whites are concerned, Kavanagh chooses Chardonnay and Riesling as the region’s greatest strengths. Chardonnay is clearly the grape and wine with the greatest potential for the Wairarapa to make a name with, because it sells better than the frequently misunderstood Rieslings do (despite their top notch quality). He makes both at TK today, but there is far more focus on Chardonnay with two different wines, priced and styled differently. The biggest challenge at the winery was to clean up what had been a dilapidated state of affairs. Literally. Winery hygiene had taken a nosedive, which Kavanagh spent enormous time addressing when he first shifted back two years ago. Now the focus is on retaining Martinborough’s identity in the wines by using only locally grown grapes and predominantly those that are estateowned. Kavanagh’s first vintage from start to finish was 2013; a stellar year that enabled him to make a strong comeback; personally and professionally in one of the country’s smallest but highest quality wine regions. The new TK wines: 2013 Te Kairanga Riesling $23, 2013 Te Kairanga Sauvignon Blanc $23, 2013 Te Kairanga Pinot Gris $23, 2013 Te Kairanga Chardonnay $25, 2013 Te Kairanga John Martin Chardonnay $40, 2013 Te Kairanga Pinot Noir $27, 2013 Te Kairanga Runholder Pinot Noir $35, 2013 Te Kairanga John Martin Pinot Noir $50.

FOCUS ON

Brooch $239

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CAPITAL TA L E S O F T H E C I T Y

GOODIE GIFT GUIDE NOVEMBER 2014

WELLY IN DECLINE?

ISSUE 16

$3.90 PORK OFF THE FORK

MONEY SCENTS

CAPITAL You can now order our latest cover as a high-quality A2 print for $25. We’ll even gift wrap it for you. * postage & packaging $5

To order your print email design@capitalmag.co.nz

Lazule has one of Wellington’s largest ranges of beautiful Baltic Amber jewellery. We have just had a visit from our Polish supplier and have amazing new styles instore.

Open 7 days

151 Cuba St, Wellington phone (04) 385 8418 www.lazule.co.nz 55

Visiting Tea Pea is like walking into your favourite magazine or pinterest page. The store is stocked with young and interesting brands. Garlands and baskets to bedlinen, cushions and lighting. The clever staff know their stuff, and happily give advice choosing for your home, or gifts for your family and friends.

22 Ganges Road, Khandallah 04 479 4541 / teapea.co.nz

LIQUID THOUGHTS

BITTERSWEET WA I R A R A PA W I N A tiny Wairarapa winery had a massive global win last month; the 2010 Lansdowne Pinot Noir was awarded the Bouchard Finlayson Trophy for best pinot noir at this year’s International Wine & Spirits Competition in London. It is a bittersweet victory for co-founder, Derek Hagar senior. His partner-inwine was his son, the late Derek Hagar junior, who passed away the night before vintage 2013, due to an old head injury. Hagar junior was an advocate of pre-aging their Wairarapa Pinot Noir for three years before releasing the wines for sale. It will now pay big dividends for his family following this win. www. lansdownewine.co.nz/about.html

LA DE BLAH

QUEEN OF CO CKTAILS

Music festivals and parenthood rarely go hand in hand but music and wine most definitely do, so it was disappointing to find not a drop of vino at the last La De Da in Martinborough, despite being surrounded by vines, wine barrels and the festival’s “vintage lane”. Sileni Estates have come to the rescue. The Hawke’s Bay winery has just launched three new single-serve wines in 187ml plastic (PET) bottles with a bendable (rather than brittle) plastic cup attached; in good time for summer outdoor events. The Sauvignon Blanc, Rose (Grenache) and Pinot Noir are of good quality and cost RRP $5. www.sileninano.com

Lorietta Bahr hopes her signature cocktail, “The Moonlight Sonata”, will win her a place in the Bacardí Legacy Global Cocktail Competition. The Moonlight Sonata is made from Bacardi Superior rum, fresh pineapple juice, Yerba Mate tea, and Benedictine. Tea Tale Yerba Mate is a symbol of hospitality in Paraguay.

LID O LEADS THE WAY So there I was one rainy Sunday afternoon looking for caffeine when I spotted an oasis at the Lido: a dark bottle of deliciousness known as Williams & Humbert Jalifa Amontillado. This bone dry sherry from Spain’s deep south was aged in oak for an average of 30 years, giving it my vote for the capital’s best value wine by the glass at $7. It is available from specialist wine stores or www.kahurangi.com

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It’s the perfect

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FOOD BEER

And you’re invited The Fork & Brewer is Wellington’s high temple of beer-infatuated cuisine. Make a date for lunch or dinner, book your Christmas do, or just pop in to enjoy a bite with one of our house-brewed specialties. We’d love to see you. Open Mon-Sat, 11.30am till late, 14 Bond Street, Wellington

YEARS

P E R I O D I C A L LY S P E A K I N G

NEW SCIENCE COLUMNIST

SILENT NIGHT WRITTEN BY JOHN KERR

New Zealand’s only specialist sleep isolation lab is shedding light on our sleep patterns.

magine a place in Wellington without alarm clocks, late-night parties next door, road traffic noise, or early Sunday morning lawnmowers – a place where time stands still and silent. The Human Time Isolation Facility is such a place; a specially constructed unit at the Massey University Wellington campus designed to help researchers untangle the mysteries of one of our most basic and universal activities, sleep. Hidden away from natural light and the hustle and bustle of the outside world, the ultra-soundproofed facility allows scientists to study sleep in a controlled environment. The unit is set up like a small apartment with a living area, technician and testing rooms and four bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms. It not only provides an ideal environment in which to study sleep, but also removes external cues which have the potential to influence the internal body clocks of experiment participants, such as daylight, changes in temperature, noise, television, and clocks. The average person’s sleep-wake cycle runs slightly longer than the standard 24 hour day. People daily reset their internal clock using information from the world around them. This resetting can get in the way of studying the circadian clock – our internal biological pacemaker, which plays a large role in the timing of alertness, appetite and sleep. “In order to know what’s really going on we have to take away any cues that can remind us it’s a 24-hour day in the outside world,” explains Dr Karyn O’Keeffe, a sleep researcher at the University’s Sleep/Wake Research Centre. The new isolation facility is an upgrade from an earlier sleep lab on Adelaide Road, used by the research centre to study, among other things, the regulation of sleep timing in people with different daily sleep patterns. While sleep is common to everyone, we don’t all do it in the same way. Surveys undertaken by the Sleep/Wake Research Centre found 58

roughly a quarter of the population are early risers or “morning types”, waking early in the day and getting off to bed early in the evening. At the other end of the spectrum, about a quarter of the population are classed as “evening types” who stay up later at night and prefer a bit of a sleep in. Unfortunately for evening types that preference is often at odds with the demands of real life and alarm clocks. Getting up early for work or school, but still preferring to go to sleep late, can leave evening types chronically short-changed on sleep. Heading into summer this mismatch can get worse for evening types says O’Keeffe. “When we go from summer to winter we’ve obviously got the daylight saving shift and for some people that can be quite challenging – mostly for evening types because suddenly they’ve lost an hour out of their day and they find it harder to adjust.” Over the longer term there may be a heftier price to pay for being an evening type. International research has linked evening type sleep habits with poorer health, including an increased risk of depression and type-two diabetes. However, all is not lost for those night owls who want to get up in the morning without feeling sleep deprived. One’s “type” is not set in stone and can – with a bit of will power – be changed. Light has a big impact on setting the internal body clock (that’s why you won’t find a single window in the Human Time Isolation Facility), and can be used to train yourself out of being an evening type. “The best thing to do is to get up as early as you can tolerate in the morning, and try to move it a little bit earlier as you go,” advises O’Keeffe. “Open the curtains and expose yourself to light. If you can, get out and have a walk in the sunshine. Even on a cloudy day the light outside is much, much brighter than inside. Sunlight is free and can work wonders.”

ways of escape

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Study Tour Commemoration and Celebration: In the footsteps of World War II Kiwi soldiers in Italy - May 2015 Find out more about this tour www.victoria.ac.nz/studytours

Marsden, where your daughter can be the best she can be www.marsden.school.nz

AnglicAn School for girlS PrESchool To Y13

Also look out for tours to Russia and India in 2015

BY THE BOOK

RE- V ERSE INTRODUCED BY FRANCES SAMUEL

DENTIST There is blue mesh on the scaffolding of the tall building and at the top there is red mesh like, 30% Extra! There are clouds meshing the sky, the day is not quite ‘grey’ as suddenly – the sun hits all the metal in the teeth of the city and it’s like a giant retainer. By Jessica Todd, from Sport 42 (2014), edited by Fergus Barrowman.

Bio Jessica Todd completed a Master’s in Creative Writing at Victoria University’s IIML last year. Read more of her poems online in Turbine 2013.

IN BRIEF

PHOTOGRAPH BY EVANGELINE DAVIS

‘You’re making it too complicated,’ says my friend. ‘The buildings are the ‘teeth’, the scaffolding is the ‘retainer’, and the sun makes the metal shine.’ This is my more convoluted take: The poet’s on an ordinary walk through Wellington’s CBD but she has a capital-D destination: the Dentist. So everything starts to look a bit … dental. A scaffolded building wrapped in blue and red is a gigantic packet of chewing gum. ‘Mesh’ clouds bring to mind pieces of white gauze floating past your eyes while your mouth is open and your teeth are being checked. Then the sun comes out in that sudden spring way, and strikes the metallic parts of the harbour-shaped city. This unexpected dazzle could be one of those uplifting metropolitan moments, but the effect is instead like an orthodontic “retainer”. Which is slightly unsettling – because if a retainer is defined as “a thing that keeps something in place”, then what is the city doing to you? Why read it? Maybe your mindset influences your view of your urban surroundings, too. Are you hungry and council flowerbeds look like rows of sushi? Does the sound of the Bucket Fountain make you yearn for the shower you got out of bed too late to take? Do the two golden lions outside the Museum Hotel roar softly as you walk past, “What were you thinking, thinking?”

BY THE BOOK

WOR D S ON THE STREET Lit Crawl is an event in Pub Crawl fashion, except you consume words more than beverages. The brainchild of Claire Mabey, Lit Crawl centres on New Zealand writers reading and performing their work within a themed context. There’s also a literary-themed sculpture walk, and Women of Letters, the themed letter-writing and reading event. “We needed an umbrella event that brought together spoken word events and the performance of writing rather than the discussion of it,” Claire says. “Wellington is the perfect place for it.” http://www.litcrawl.co.nz/ 15 November, various locations in the CBD.

FUTURE FUNDING Local sharebroker Keith Ferguson chairs the committee formed to fundraise to shift the Katherine Mansfield Menton fellowship from corporate sponsorship to a trust fund administered by the NZ Arts Foundation. The Winn-Manson Menton Trust, chaired by Richard Cathie, is also part of the new structure, to try and ensure the continuation of the award. The $75,000 fellowship is a six-month residency at the writing room in the Villa Isola Bella, where Katherine Mansfield once lived.

TRIUMPHANT TRIO Jock Phillips, Jack Lasenby (above) and Ian Wedde are the winners of the 2014 Prime Minister’s Awards for Literary Achievement. Each receive $60,000 in recognition of their contribution to New Zealand non-fiction, fiction, and poetry, respectively. Elizabeth Knox won the 2014 Creative New Zealand Michael King Writer’s Fellowship. New Zealanders can nominate a writer for the award. Interestingly, writers can also nominate themselves.

ON THE RUN Kate Carty’s debut novel was launched this month. Published by newish Wellington publishing house Escalator Press, Run Thomas Run is the story of the Odishu family’s escape from Iraq. Carty conceived the idea for the book when she met three Assyrian Iraqis in a youth hostel in Turkey while travelling, who had fled Saddam Hussein’s regime.

SECTION HEADER

MUSIC OF THE SPHERES Bubble soccer is a thing. Wellington Indoor Soccer couldn’t tell us where and when it was invented but its popularity is growing fast. WIS introduced it into their schedule in July and manager Zac Topping says corporates, and university groups are big supporters and it’s great for teenage parties. The internet suggests Bubble Soccer is the brain child of some Norwegians, but there’s no Wikipedia entry (so it MUST be new). For the uninitiated, players insert themselves into a giant transparent plastic ball which protects the head but leaves your feet sticking out the bottom, then the nearimpossible aim is to play a normal game of indoor soccer. The Humpty Dumpty suit obviously impairs movement and agility, but if you fall you simply bounce and get up again. Participants get a 30-minute briefing before a game where they learn to fall properly but Topping says it’s often not about the soccer at all. “People are much more focused on trying to send their friends rolling across the court.” To have a go you’ll need five players per team with one sub each (max 12). The game can be played in eight-minute quarters but there is no set time. Topping and his band of referees are relaxed “We let the teams decide on the day, as some just want to roll around instead of playing an organised game.” Apart from “no bumping from behind” the only practical rule is “avoid wearing sharp objects”. “The bubbles are sturdy and thick but we recommend players leave “scissors, knives, needles, cleats, sharp body piercings, heavily spiked hair and their cats at home”. And if it’s a bit too raucous then you can have fun as a spectator. If you’re having a bad day or need a laugh then go and watch a game on the weekend at Shed 1. There’s nothing quite like witnessing someone encased in a bubble trying to tie a shoelace. Written by Craig Beardsworth | Photograph by Rhett Goodley-Hornblow 62

BY THE BOOK

MONEY SCENTS AS TOLD TO JOHN BRISTED | PHOTOGRAPHY BY ASHLEY CHURCH

Sarah Gibbs and her sister Catherine started, and eight years later sold, their business Trilogy Skincare Products to a candle company, for a fortune. The candle company soon renamed itself Trilogy International and the sisters cleverly managed the deal so that they own 5% of that as well. When I met you first, you were quite chuffed, you said “nothing to 20 million bucks” in one breath or something like that and sounded very pleased − I would have been too. Where did the whole inspiration come from?

What did they tell you to do? They didn’t tell us to do anything … if we had an idea whether it be pressing flowers they’d be supportive … Mum would go out and pick some flowers that she knew you could press and start the whole creative process, so anything that we wanted to do we were allowed to do. And there wasn’t too much questioning as to whether that would be successful or not. It was a real “give it a go”. Take Trilogy, for example, the idea for selling skincare … we had no history of that industry, no real experience of it, but we saw a gap in the market, mentioned it to Mum and Dad and they said “sounds like a great idea”, so we were very open to taking a little risk and having a go.

It goes back to our youth … we were influenced heavily by our parents Pamela and Garrick. They’re a great combination in terms of creativity. We were destined to work for ourselves, in fact at one stage my mother, my father, my sister and my brother were all working for ourselves, so that’s the background. Dad’s had several successful businesses. He likes interesting people, he likes the underdog, he likes creative thinkers. 63

FOCUS ON

M O N E Y TA L K S

“I DIDN’ T LIKE WORKING FOR BIG CORPORATES, I WASN’ T SUITED TO IT...”

What did you do when you first left school? I failed a year of university in Queensland (we were in Australia where my parents had moved to develop an avocado orchard on the Sunshine Coast). I’d done quite well at school and got into Queensland University, but I was very young (16) and I had in my head that I would have a year off … that didn’t really appeal to Mum and Dad so I enrolled, but didn’t really attend. Then I came back here to Massey and did accountancy in Palmerston North – not necessarily because I thought it was my forte, but looking at what my parents had achieved by running round the businesses, I thought it was a great language to have under your belt for business, so I did that and went to the traditional accounting practising scene and travelled the world with that degree for three years. I was in South Africa, Hong Kong and had a bit of a travel bug by then and then went to London to make money to travel with, and travelled the world for another few years and came home. Pretty standard sort of OE stuff. You were watching other businesses all the time while doing all that? I didn’t like working for big corporates, I wasn’t suited to it. I wasn’t getting up in the morning and thinking “Yay I can’t wait to get to work”, so I said to my dad, “I want to hang out with you and learn from you” which is what I started doing. He paid me next to nothing. We started a business together manufacturing oils for nutraceuticals [the word was invented in 1989 to describe a mixture of nutrition and pharmaceutical]. How did you get into oils? Briefly, Dad had a business in Petone which took all the fish waste from Wellington and turned it into fish meal … a by-product of that is fish oil and he was looking at technology to try and add value to that fish oil, and in the process of doing that he found this technology called supercritical extraction, and we commissioned a supercritical extraction plant, and while it wasn’t successful for fish oils, it was, very, for nutraceutical health supplements.

Fifteen seconds on supercritical – what is it? Basically putting carbon dioxide under pressure to a point where it reaches a supercritical phase, and in a stage between a liquid and a gas it becomes a solvent, and oils in particular are attracted to it. So you use this supercritical carbon dioxide to push through a seed or a berry or whatever and it grabs the oil and drops it out… the solvent-free organic very very clean way of doing it. So when you were way back pressing flowers – did you earn any money out of that? No … but we were lucky growing up, we were given lots of opportunities … I always say that I can do anything; I can’t do anything well, but I’ll have a go at everything. Dad took us skiing once, or waterskiing once, or took us here, or took us there so we were lucky in that sense. Why was it called Trilogy, there were only two of you? No you need three for Trilogy. We wanted to keep it Simple, Pure, and Vital. Did you borrow any money? Well, $20,000 – we had it in our banks, and we’ve never borrowed any money since. We did hit the ground running, and there was a big gap in the market. Who did you go to first? How did you know where to go? We had to think through formulation, design, distribution, sales, and logistics, so it was really a case of getting on the phone asking questions, and talking to people who knew someone who knew someone who knew someone. In the end we literally rang up three cosmetic manufacturers and said we want to come and convince you that we’ve got a great idea and you should take us seriously, and we want to interview you as well with the idea that you’ll work with us for the long term. We did that with all of them. We ended up with Shieling Laboratories in Auckland and they’re still the manufacturers of Trilogy, fifteen years later. The same applied with logistics … we got that wrong to start with, we used a freight forwarding company which

M O N E Y TA L K S

wasn’t successful for us so we moved on to another, but it’s common sense. We just went through the process of ensuring that we had them all ticked off and the right partners. So how long did it take before you were bought out? Eight years. Does money make you happier? It makes life a LOT easier, you have a lot more options when you have some money in the bank, you have a lot more freedom if you want freedom, so now I’ve got freedom and I take it. What’s the biggest frivolous luxury you’ve ever bought? I bought a red 1969 convertible V12 E type Jaguar about a month after we sold … a beautiful car. I always wanted a classic car. I’m not particularly frivolous, and don’t buy clothes in expensive clothing shops …. Are you still working as hard? Nowhere near. So what do you do with your life? All sorts of things, I still work, in more of a strategic capacity than operationally, for the Trilogy Group and others, and I fill my time with things that I enjoy doing. I can take the time to ski for a week if I want to, I’ve taken up tennis again after 20 years, do things like meet with you. Has anyone told you what to do with all this money? You know that’s a great question … it was quite well publicised that we sold the company, and only one financial advisor has ever rung me. So what did you do with it? Spread it evenly round … I’ve got other investments which I can’t talk about. I look for someone with a good idea, a good product, who looks like a good allround business person. It’s the people and the product, so if you like them both you might think it worthwhile investing in them.

Are you an angel investor? No, I haven’t been interested in start-ups, I’m interested in early-stage operations which have a few runs on the board, and can prove their product concept. Young companies – maybe two years old. Cosmetic companies? No I’ve got a restraint of trade. Think product-based investments largely. Would you start another business? Very unlikely, but I might, because business is fun. But it would have to be a pretty sure bet before I’d go again. Do you have health insurance? Yes, but only in the last year, my partner arranged that. Have you got a Kiwisaver account? No, I don’t know why not because you get a government subsidy. Do you give to charity? Yes. I like Upper Hutt Riding for the Disabled. I grew up in Silverstream and volunteered for the Upper Hutt RDA. If I give a speech I give them the fee. Do you buy shares? Yes but I’m not particularly active, and I’ve still got a reasonable investment in Trilogy. You’re obviously quite a big planner? You don’t know that until you’ve had a bit of success, but we always say with Trilogy for example that we were way more strategic than we thought we were, and I didn’t even know what the word strategic meant then. What single decision has had the biggest financial impact on your life? Obviously the decision to sell the Trilogy business, or if you take it back a step further, the decision to start it, or even grabbing Dad’s idea about supercritical extraction. What would you like to tell our readers? Err on the side of generosity, whether or not you’ve got money or not. Generosity is giving someone a smile, isn’t it.

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HOUSE

WITHOUT RHYME OR REASON WRITTEN BY KELLY HENDERSON | PHOTOGRAPHY BY DANIEL ROSE

At their one-of-a-kind Khandallah home, Meg and Scott McMillan are all about breaking the rules. The creative couple have crafted a home that is inviting, comfortable, fun, and that doesn't take itself too seriously.

learly they are fans of the suburb, this is their third home in Khandallah. They purchased the 1950s property six years ago. It was designed by well known Wellington architect and townplanner George Porter and he lived there with his family for 58 years. George's widow Frances Porter, an acclaimed New Zealand writer, eventually put the house on the market. Meg and Scott had been searching for a house they liked for about a year, and were thrilled when the property came up. “We wanted to buy a doer-upper, and I had actually briefed the real estate agents that we wanted a 1950's house in one of six streets in Khandallah, including this one,” says Meg. When she viewed the property for the first time it was a beautiful Wellington day, the sun was shining through the big wooden windows, and Meg knew it was the house for them. Fortunately Frances liked the

young family and, despite some competition from other potential buyers, Meg and Scott won the house. The Porter family had done little work on the property over the 58 years they were there, so as the first buyers Meg and Scott got the house in almost original condition. Although it needed to be spruced up a bit, this was mainly superficial. “We haven't done an awful lot to it – it just works well,” Meg explains. “It's that lovely 50s design that actually flows nicely and works well for a family.” One thing that did need to be taken care of was the garden. The property has a big outdoor area with lots of trees, but it was quite overgrown. Scott set to work outdoors and cleaned the area up. He’s also building a fence in the front of the property. Indoors the couple have pulled up the moth-eaten carpet, painted the walls and the floor white, and pulled down the old curtains. They have also added their own style to the house by including colour.

HOUSE

“IT'S NOT AB OUT ANY ONE PIECE, IT'S AB OUT WHAT YOU CREATE. EVERY THING IN OUR HOME TELLS A STORY, BUT IT'S MORE OF A COLLECTIVE STORY...”

The statement pink staircase sums up their approach to interior design: why follow the rules when you can have fun? “There's no rhyme or reason, and it's not serious,” says Meg, describing their style. “It's just about surrounding ourselves with things that we love.” For Meg, sourcing pieces for her home and styling a room are almost second nature. She has been interested in interiors and home design from a young age and has spent many years working in this field. Currently her days are spent running their business, Tea Pea, an interiors store that is all about “delicious things for our homes, our families, and the crafty lives we lead.” Beginning an online store five years ago, last year they expanded the business to include a shop in Khandallah Village. Meg does all the buying for Tea Pea herself and she focuses on supporting small businesses from New Zealand and Australia. Many of the pieces

she finds for the store also end up in their home. “The business is really an extension of us and our look,” she says. Meg and Scott are passionate about supporting small businesses rather than shopping at mainstream stores. Most items in their home are from designers that they know and love, such as artwork by Evie Kemp and home wares by Feliz. Meg chooses each piece because of the way she can integrate it into a room. “It's not about any one piece, it's about what you create. Everything in our home tells a story, but it's more of a collective story,” she explains. Furniture-wise, the couple have stuck to the 1950s theme. “Our eyes are always drawn to 50s or 60s furniture,” says Meg. “Large pieces that you buy these days don't look good in a 50s house...50s furniture is smaller, it sits lower and it's more refined.”

HOUSE

Of course, with three young children (Griffin, nine, Coco, six and Rosie, one) plus two Tibetan Spaniels, the couple are also aware of making sure their home is both child- and pet-friendly. However, their main focus is on creating a fun family feel rather than worrying about keeping the house perfect. “I'll bring home cushions and they'll be on the floor straight away, or the dog will be sleeping on one,” Meg laughs, ..."the kids have a play room, but the whole house is theirs as well." Although Scott works full time in advertising, he's also involved in Tea Pea and works on the business at nights and weekends. It's a busy lifestyle, but both Meg and Scott absolutely love it.

As Sunday is usually Meg's day off, she treasures this time when she can relax at home. “We have an espresso machine, so Sunday mornings are all about coffee at home and family time,” she says. Looking ahead, the couple are planning to do some more renovations on the house in the future. For now though, while their children are young and their lives are full, they're enjoying life in their fun and fabulous 50s home. Khandallah Kindergarten house and garden fundraiser tour on Sunday 23 November. The tour includes a variety of homes and gardens from around Khandallah.

ABROAD

T IRED AN D DE SPE R AT E PEOPLE WRITTEN BY BETH ROSE AND JOHN BRISTED | PHOTOGRAPHY BY LUCY TYNDALL

Kurdistan soldiers proudly show photos of ISIS fighters they’ve killed – a Wellington graduate sees a different side of life.

eaching English to Iraqi kids in Kurdistan while people kill each other in a nearby conflict zone isn’t the way a Kiwi usually uses a two-year British working holiday visa. Lucy Tyndall left to travel last January after years in Wellington where she completed a Master’s degree in Energy Policy at Victoria University, and worked researching climate change at Morrison and Co. After university she worked for

the resources team at the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment. Lucy found England didn’t do it for her, but a friend was teaching in Kurdistan, “I got in touch and decided to join her”. Until the Kurdish school year ended a few months ago in June, Lucy taught in Erbil, the capital city of the semi-autonomous Kurdistan state which exists in northern Iraq on the Turk-

ABROAD

ish and Iranian borders, and had been volunteering in her weekends for the Rise Foundation which is there supporting Syrian refugees and Internally Displaced People (IDP). At the time, the conflict with the Islamic state militants (ISIS) was becoming increasingly dangerous. At the end of June when ISIS stormed Mosul, only about 80 kilometres west of Erbil, supply routes were cut, Iraq’s largest oil refinery was shut down, and there was a huge petrol crisis. Lucy was living at Akre Refugee Camp (a former prison from the Saddam Hussein era), planting trees and building a children’s playground. “I saw a queue for petrol that was two kilometres long. People were waiting for hours in the height of summer. It also happened

to be Ramadan, so despite the 48-degree heat, they weren’t eating or drinking. “I’ve never been frightened while living in Erbil, but during that petrol crisis I had to start thinking about how I would get out and whether there would be enough fuel at the airports to get a flight if the situation got worse.” At the end of July, Lucy decided to take a break and flew to the United Kingdom to stay with friends. When ISIS pushed towards Erbil and took Sinjar, Lucy saw from outside the country what it was like for friends and family thinking of loved ones living in a conflict zone. Lucy, who had been part of the ‘Student Volunteer Army in Christchurch, says “In some ways it reminded

ABROAD

me of when I was trying to get hold of family during the earthquakes. Social networks are now one of the quickest ways to get news”. “My friend Joe was still in Erbil, but the Iraqi Government had shut down Facebook and Twitter, which is what I rely on for the most up-to-date information.” Living in a war-affected zone, it is clear that Lucy has grown accustomed to situations like this, as evidence of conflict and human suffering abounds. “Kurdistan is the last bastion of hope in this region,” she says. “The people of Kurdistan are tired and desperate.” In August, when US airstrikes came in to support the Peshmerga armed forces, ISIS targets near Erbil were destroyed and food and water were dropped to the refugees who’d fled to Mount Sinjar. It is estimated that

hundreds of Yazidi people from Sinjar were massacred by ISIS militants during the siege and thousands more displaced as refugees. Since the ISIS seized control of territory in eastern Syria and parts of northern and western Iraq, there are now more than 800,000 refugees and displaced people who’ve fled to Kurdistan and camps like Akre, and those refugees see the Peshmerga ( a Kurdish soldier (literally ‘those who confront death’)as the only thing keeping them safe from an invasion by ISIS. And it affects Lucy more personally. “Having a Peshmerga in the car comes in handy when crossing checkpoints on route to the refugee camps, she says. “The soldiers are very well respected in this region and if we have a one in the car, checkpoints let us straight

ABROAD

"KURDISTAN IS THE L AST BASTION OF HOPE IN THIS REGION. IT IS OVERFLOWING WITH REFUGEES AND INTERNALLY DISPL ACED PEOPLE."

through”. She relates. ‘In September with support from US coalition airborne attacks, the Peshmerga armed forces had for the moment defeated advancing IISIS. On a drive to the Akre refugee camp we picked up two Peshmerga soldiers returning from fighting in Makhmur. The Kurdish fighters were clearly in good spirits and proudly showed photographs on their phones of dead ISIS fighters, and the scenes of victory’. Lucy comes from an achieving family, her mother is head of Rangi Ruru school in Christchurch, her father an engineer currently finishing an AJ Hackett bungee jump in Sochi, Russia, and her sister Jo is the Climate Change Ambassador at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Do they worry about her? She says: “It’s hard to convince my family and friends that it is safe here, but I don’t feel afraid. Lucy says “I was always interested in doing volunteer work and found the Christchurch student volunteer army work incredibly rewarding”. “I wasn’t sure how to get into the international side of things, it’s a tricky area to negotiate. I have

heard horror stories of organisations who have lots of solutions looking for problems – never very effective. Then there are layers of humanitarian work to sort through; from high level governance (and paper) such as the UN, right down to the local, on-the-ground work. You could end up in an office again or in the field. I was interested in a good balance of the two. On top of that you really want to know and trust the organisation you are working for, and that the work you do is worthwhile and actually getting to the people in need. It can be competitive as well, getting the good jobs. That is why I took the opportunity in Kurdistan when I had the chance.” For the moment her interest is in the Rise Foundation which has several projects running at the refugee camps, including food distributions, an arts project for children living in camps, a tree planting scheme and a Buy a Blanket appeal. And she’s also inspired by her work. “I met a little girl the other day, a refugee from Mount Sinjar. She says she wants to be a doctor now.”

T O R Q U E TA L K

FEAR THE ROAR WRITTEN BY MARK SAINSBURY | PHOTOGRAPHY BY RHETT GOODLEY-HORNBLOW

My neighbours are ecstatic. Well, they were from last Monday. That was the day when I somewhat wistfully had to return Herr Beast to Jeff Gray BMW.

err Beast, as I’ve christened it, is a freshly minted M4. For the uninitiated, an M4 is BMW’s motorsport version of their 4 series coupe. I tested the standard 4 series coupe a few issues ago − if standard is an appropriate description for what is already an impressive car. But then BMW handed that model on to their engineers. They whacked a twin turbocharger system onto the 3 litre engine, added M spec suspension upgrades and lightweight body components and called it an M4 … and the car shifted up to another level completely. But regardless of all the specs and stats, none of it makes an iota of difference after you’ve climbed in and fired it up. It’s the noise…it’s not just the noise. You can adjust the entire setup on the car. The steering, the suspension, the accelerator sensitivity, and that exhaust! It is additive. Highly addictive. And the more addictive it becomes the more incensed the neighbours must get. Because even getting up early on a Sunday morning to head into Radiolive I can’t resist tweaking the settings and getting that adrenalin surge as I bleep the throttle and the most magnificent roar, burble, call it what you will. It's guttural, and you just want to hear it over and over again. And the neighbours get to share the experience. And it’s not as the Texans say “all hat and no cattle”. Herr Beast can get up and go. The only good point about dropping Herr Beast back to Jeff Gray Motors was the fact I had escaped with their car for a week and lost no more points on my licence. And that is no mean feat. The biggest problem with this car is you just want to drive it. It came as no surprise to Vicki and the rest of the Jeff Gray crew who all gave me that knowing look as I raved on about what a good time I’d had. Conveniently as BMW are wont to do, they also let you reprogramme it and make it less “beasty”. The mere flick of a steering wheel button does the Jekyll and Hyde thing and brings it back to a more moderate stance with an M1 and M2 option. You just set those buttons with any choice of your favourite settings; Jeff Gray say most people leave M1 as milder settings and M2 as wilder.

Even in the comfort/efficiency mode it’s still glorious but it won’t be long before finger hovers over button and the symphony begins again. During the week I commuted daily in this car and despite occasional indulgences it could perform that task effortlessly. But on the weekend I headed over to the Wairarapa and I’m trying to think of the last time I really looked forward to the Rimutuka Hill on four wheels. In fact in Herr Beast you find yourself passing motorcyclists! The model I tested had a few extra options like self parking (never found it, never used it) and it pushed the price up to just over $173,000. That is a lot of money for any car but I’d have to say unlike some I test I really thought about what it would be like to actually own. The 4 series coupes are favourites of mine because they give you the size of a decent four-seater. It feels so substantial on the road with impeccable manners despite its 431 bhp, and the finish is just what you would expect from the Bavarians. And if you’re lucky enough to be considering spending that kind of dosh, looks are important too. From any angle this coupe is a beauty. My quibble with many cars is they look great from the front and maybe the side but let you down at the back … vary those as much as you like. With the M4 thankfully in white (it also comes in what’s called Austin Yellow, which sadly reminds me of the aftermath of teenage parties) plus a handful of other options, it conveys style and aggression. My travelling companion was adamant I had a personality change as soon as I got in! On the road it has real presence and looks the part. Inside, the sports seats are extremely supportive but a word of warning. I was giving a friend a lift to a press conference and he being of a slightly portly build did not find the front seat comfortable at all. I am no stick insect but I didn’t have a problem and I think its always different when behind the wheel. Regardless, this is a car to give up pies for. If you are looking for a high-end coupe you need to try this car. I’m just wondering how I can convince the editor I need to test it again for next month’s column.

W E L LY A NG E L

WHAT WOU L D DEI RDRE D O? Got a problem? Maybe we can help. Welly Angel Deirdre Tarrant, mother of three boys, founder of Footnote Dance Company and teacher of dance to generations of Wellingtonians, will sort out your troubles. BAREFO OT AND SUFFERING My partner is very keen that in our house all shoes are removed at the front door, for reasons of hygiene. I don’t mind going along with it, but baulk at requesting guests to do so, because it doesn’t seem very friendly and even in socks, it can be cold, particularly in winter. I don’t think offering guests slippers worn by others is very hygienic. What would you do? Cold feet, Berhampore This is a dilemma – shoes make the outfit and guests will have dressed for their visit? But, I have to admit I have had a "shoes off upstairs" policy in operation for years and no-one seems in the least bit fazed by it! If hygiene is really an issue, get lots of those packaged slippers they have in five

star hotels and give them out in their sealed packs … but seriously, it is your house and your carpet and probably not the greatest dilemma you will face, so aim for it but don’t go mad if not everyone obeys.

STUFFED SHIRTS Has formal dressing finished in this country? I have noticed recently when an invitation says Black Tie, the hosts and a few guests are usually in black tie and the rest of the guests wear whatever they feel like. My partner says it’s rude not to comply? What do you think? Anything for a quiet life, Trentham We live in an increasingly informal and casual world. If the invitation says "black tie" women will want to dress up and wear their heels and the sartorial splendour of a black tie is always lovely. I think as guests we should try a little harder – courtesy counts.

DE FACTO PROBLEMS My lonely friend has a new boyfriend, in my observation, he is unpredictable, creepy and manipulative, creating rifts within her family and with her adult children (e.g. one daughter will no longer

take her grandchildren to visit). My friend doesn’t see the problem and won’t hear a word against him. Should I say nothing? Silent witness, Hutt Valley Oh dear – maybe there is an alternative agenda here but you are not going to win. Time will tell. Be a friend and see your friend without him as much as possible so she has a life line if she needs it. In the meantime let the relationship find its own way and hope it will all be happy.

USE-BY DATE Is giving soap an ‘old lady’ type of present? Slippery, Newtown Not at all. Lovely soap is a great treat and something people (young or old) do not buy for themselves. Give it away and use it when it is given to you. The ultimate treat is a bath and a book and a lovely cake of soap! Lather up.

If you’ve got a burning question for Deirdre, email angel@capitalmag.co.nz with Capital Angel in the subject line.

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H ERE I GO BY MELODY THOMAS

In a few days I’m catching a flight to Melbourne for five nights to work, play and catch up with my many Kiwi friends who now live there. And I’m 99% sure I’ve just decided to go without the baby.

t 21 months old she’s not a baby any more, but she still relies on me being here − she still breastfeeds once a day. And while she adores hanging out with her grandparents and her Dad, Mum is very much the number one flavour if it can be had. I love it that way − she’s my favourite person too. We’re a wonderful team and we make each other very happy. That’s why, when I booked these flights, I unthinkingly added her onto the ticket. Why wouldn’t I take her? I have enough friends in Melbourne that childcare wouldn’t be an issue, and I know she’s wonderful to travel with. Plus she’d kill to see a koala in the flesh and she still talks about that time she touched a ‘‘snake’’ (it was a lizard) about six months ago. Australia is right up her alley. But then the day after I booked the flights, Baby Daddy offered to take sole care of the infant while I flew off to frolic on my own. It should have been an easy decision. What mother wouldn’t jump at the chance of a temporary return to something like their old life? But when you’ve spent more than two years near-constantly attached to another person (don’t forget pregnancy), the idea of being suddenly without them is so very strange. Yes, the freedom is appealing, but it’s accompanied by a nagging discomfort − a feeling like when you’ve forgotten something but you can’t remember what it is you’ve forgotten. After a few days of waking up proclaiming “I’m going alone!” only to retract the statement an hour later, I decided to ask my friends what they’d do. Opinions split right down the middle, half saying things like “they’re only young once” and “you’ll get opportunities like this again”, and the other half looking at me like I was completely mad and near-yelling at 82

me to leave her behind, or else let them go in my place. I find myself agreeing with the latter. Of course they’re only young once and opportunities like this might come again, but with us hoping for a baby number two sometime soon it’ll surely be three, four, five years until that happens. That’s a long time to spend superglued to other humans, and even with all the support in the world this parenting gig is an exhausting one. This week decided it for me. On Monday I awoke in agony and found myself booking an emergency dental appointment for a $1,200 root canal I can barely pay for, before heading to the physiotherapist because I strained my neck caring for a baby who spent the weekend vomiting and unable to sleep with a gastro virus. The sore tooth has set off an earache which requires four-hourly painkillers or else a horrific throb and on top of all of this I’m working close to full time hours and freelancing. My body is literally falling apart with the stress of it all, and I’ve been offered a chance to recuperate. So I’m taking it. I’m sorry to the Melbourne friends who’ll miss the chance to cuddle my wonderful little girl. I’m going to ache from missing her too. But I’m also going to sleep through the night. And wake when I want to. And wander the streets of Melbourne with no mind as to nap times and snacks and nappy changes. I might have a little cry when I see other Mums with their babies, but it’ll be nothing a cocktail on a rooftop bar can’t fix. Because if someone else was asking me for help with this decision I would look at her as if she were mad and say GO. For your sake as well as hers, go. You need this and you deserve it. And so here I go.

COMMUNITY NOTICES

C H R I ST M AS G A L A AT ST M A R K ' S S C HO OL Food, fun, music, Santa and lots more!

E AST B O U R N E C A R N I VA L A family day at Eastbourne Carnival with rides, entertainment, food, boutique stalls and a kids’ carnival parade. 23 November, 10am, Muritai School

23 November, 10:30am to 2pm, Dufferin Street, Basin Reserve.

OP E N DAY ST G E R A R D’ S M ONAST E RY Enjoy an afternoon at the iconic structure overlooking Wellington harbour; treat yourself to some delightful cuisine, face painting or be part of a tour inside this Category 1A historic site. 15 November, 12midday, St Gerard’s Monastery, Hawker St, Mt Victoria

C H R I ST M AS T R E E F E ST I VA L Rock around a dazzle of Christmas trees, vote for the ‘best dressed tree’ and help support Cystic Fibrosis. From 24 November, The Jimmy Cafe and Bar, St James Theatre, Courtenay Place, Wellington

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