Cement works photo competition launched

The Warkworth Museum is inviting keen photographers to take a closer look at the Wilson Cement Works in Warkworth. The museum, supported by The Camera Store, is running a competition titled: Capturing Heritage in Action, Wilson Cement Works.

Museum manager Victoria Joule says the idea is to continue the museum’s photographic record of the works and their connection with the town.

“We have photographs in our archives dating back to when the cement works were operating, through to when the home guard was packing explosives there during the war, and some from the 1960s and 1980s.

“The competition will allow us to capture how it is used by the town today and some of the entries will become a permanent part of our archives, as well as being displayed at an exhibition opening in November sponsored by Golden Bay Cement.”

Although much of the site is out of bounds due to safety concerns, Photo Store owner Colin Staples says this should not be a barrier to getting good photos.

“A lot of the ruins are not within the fence, but even walking around the perimeter of the fence and taking photos through the fence will provide opportunities for some great shots,” he says.

He suggests photographers think about using a selfie stick, photographing from a distance and perhaps using a drone.

“The museum is also interested in seeing how people use and enjoy the site today, so that’s another angle to think about.”

Old photographs can also be entered into the competition.

Staples says that from a technical point-ofview, make sure the lens is clean and use the zoom function.

Entries will be judged in three categories –juniors (aged 5 to 10 years), intermediate (aged 11-16 years) and open. Both printed and digital photos will be accepted and can be left at The Photo Store in Queen Street or the Warkworth Museum.

Winners will receive free framing of their photo, as well as cash prizes or a book, in the case of the junior winner.

Entries will be accepted from September 11 to October 22, and conditions of entry can be read with this story online.

Town Hall from August 11 to 19. Evening shows start at 7pm and there are matinees on August 13 and 19, starting at 2pm. A gala night will be held on August 11, where the audience is being encouraged to dress in 1920s style and meet the cast. The play also marks the theatre group’s 50th anniversary.

Tickets are available from the Mahurangi Matters office, or online at www.wwtheatre. co.nz or www.trybooking.com. There will also be door sales, cash only.

Tracey Lawton

Night Will Find You by Julia Heaberlin

This book proved to be one in the unputdownable genre. Our protagonist is Vivvy Bouchet who, as a young child, shows a strong fascination with the crime photos her mother takes for the morgue. However, there’s much more to Vivvy than her desire to see photos of dead people. Vivvy is both an astronomer who is being funded to find a light at the edge of the universe and a psychic who has come home to clean out her recently deceased mother’s house. While home, Vivvy is asked to help with the cold case of a missing girl that is still in the media headlines. So much is happening – Detective Jesse Sharp, who seems to have a hidden agenda, Vivvy’s history with the police officer who asks for her help, a podcaster who seems set on getting Vivvy lynched, and the memories of growing up with a solo mother who didn’t always provide a stable home life. This is an excellent book to curl up with while the rain keeps coming down.

What About Men? by Caitlin Moran

I loved Moran’s first book How To Be A Woman and her brutal honesty and irreverence had me laughing out loud. Moran started her career as a music journalist and as a staunch feminist and mother of daughters, had never considered what it is to be a young man in today’s world. Media is finally reflecting the changes that women have been working hard to progress for decades and that, it sometimes seems, is a world that is pro-women to the detriment of men. Perhaps this is why toxic males such as Andrew Tate are being glorified by young men looking for role models. This look at how men interact with each other, what seems to be missing in their lives, and how they feel about themselves is intriguing and, of course, still irreverent. I just loved this and certainly it is a book for all women who have a son/husband/ nephew they’d like to understand just that little bit more.

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It will be up to cat owners to keep their pet cats safe.

Feral vs pets – traps won’t know the difference

By Tim Armitage Chair, Restore Rodney East

There has been a lot of publicity around feral cats lately and the harm they do to the environment. It’s estimated there are more than 2.5 million of them across NZ, decimating our wildlife. They can also carry disease, which they can pass onto domestic cats, native wildlife and humans. As a result, there has been a rapid shift in attitudes towards the management of these cats, with the SPCA now stating they support them being controlled. The government is reviewing bringing feral cats within the Predator Free 2050 (PF2050) programme, with all major political parties supporting this change. New legislation may also lead to cats not being allowed to roam and, in time, society will see roaming cats as unacceptable as roaming dogs. Once there is national legislation, Auckland Council may then bring in stronger controls on cats, such as limiting the numbers per house, creating a cat registry, or penalising owners for bad cat behaviour. So what does this mean for NZ pet cat owners?

New rules around responsible cat ownership will be required to ensure pet cats are kept happy and healthy, while protecting native wildlife from feral cats. Such rules and legislation have been commonplace in Australia for some time.

Once the rules are in place, and feral cats are brought into the predator free initiative, active trapping of feral cats can start. Live capture traps will be needed to prevent pets from being harmed and traps will be set and inspected every day to ensure that if an animal is caught, it is handled humanely. The first step will be to establish whether the cat is feral by looking for a collar or scanning for a microchip. If it doesn’t have a collar or chip, then it may be at risk of being identified as unowned/feral and possibly destroyed.

Although it is not yet a legal requirement to have cats microchipped, it is going to be in everyone’s interest to have them done. In anticipation of the new rules, on behalf of our members, Restore Rodney East is