FROM THE EDITOR

By the time our December issue has been published the Franklin Road Christmas lights will be on to bring us the Christmas cheer. Come early, have dinner on the strip, and then check out the lights.

In his column this issue, William Greig resurrects a cultural icon from the past to remind us of just ‘how lucky we still are’. With an eye on today and another on yesterday, he looks back at the 70s when John Clarke a.k.a. Fred Dagg gifted us his world-famous-in-New Zealand hit. Putting the current somewhat negative local news into some kind of perspective, he takes a ‘bigger-than-us’ view as he reminds us of what’s happening in other parts of the world.

Our cover star this month is Lisa King, the co-owner of AF Drinks. They have just opened the Curious AF Bottle Shop in Crummer Road - it’s New Zealand’s first permanent alcoholfree bottle shop.

David Farrier has just recently screened his documentary ‘Mister Organ’. The film initially deals with the clamping of cars at night outside the Bashford Antiques store on Williamson Avenue. David Farrier, a journalist, film maker and (sometimes) Grey Lynn resident spent five hard years making the film. The antique store closed some years ago and owners Jillian Bashford and ‘Prince' Michael Organ have decamped to Whanganui.

Silky Otter, a unique and curated dining and cinema experience has arrived in Ponsonby Central. How lucky are we to have our own local cinema locally owned and operated, Silky Otter has officially opened the doors to their newest and most anticipated site to-date. I am delighted to tell you that wine dealer, Puneet Dhall, is our new columnist. He will be focusing on food, wines, and current affairs.

We send our thoughts to Glengarry, who have advertised with us for over 33 years! They have had 42 ram raids this year across their 14 Auckland stores - and counting - with an overall cost up around $250,000!

This month we offer our congratulations to Ange Redfern, who is celebrating 20 years of Ripe Deli. Here’s to the next 20!

The Ponsonby News office is now closed for the summer holidays and we will be back at our desks on Tuesday 10 January. Finally, Merry Christmas to our readers and lovely advertisers. We appreciate your support and friendship. (MARTIN LEACH)  PN

L to R: Gwynne Davenport, Joanne Barrett, Melissa Paynter, Martin Leach and Jay Platt