Mike Riversdale

Inside the Old Bank, Where the atmosphere is positively Victorian, The clock starts its musical show, On the hour, every hour, Not that anybody cares. It's tough being old It's weird being a relic Few look up to you anymore Except one. And he loves you.

Haiku is not hard Especially if you Write autumnally

Always good to know Even in times When It Seems Wrong

From " Chasing Amy " written by Kevin Smith comes a scene that resonated deeply within me when I first saw it and still does. Alyssa : You know, I didn't just heed what I was taught, men and women should be together, it's the natural way, that kind of thing. I'm not with you because of what family, society, life tried to instill in me from day one. The way the world is, how seldom it is that you meet that one person who just gets you - it's so rare. My parents didn't really have it. There were no examples set for me in the world of male-female relationships. And to cut oneself off from finding that person, to immediately halve your options by eliminating the possibility of finding that one person within your own gender, that just seemed stupid to me. So I didn't. But then you came along. You, the one least likely. I mean, you were a guy. Holden : Still am. Alyssa : And while I was falling for you I put a ceiling on that, because you were a guy. Until I

Sitting in the box Must be such a delight Especially when there's No-one else about

How gay, how playful, how Wonderful and brave To rebuild in that fleeting style

Mark Watson  ( @watsoncomedian ) is a fascinating British comedian who often gets to the nugget of life, this time he has a few salient words upon "showing kindness". Part of the problem of this age, with its free and endless flow of information/ideas, is that important truths become over-familiar and end up seeming meaningless. I agree with his view on how the very word "kindness" often had a soppy connotation Part of the problem with ‘kindness’ is that it sounds like some sort of cute hobby for a person who’s got a retro 80s pencil-case and has a Spotify playlist that is purely songs with acoustic guitars in. It's MUCH tougher than some airy fairy feeling or tweet, it takes a lot of balls to really be kind, especially to those that you don't really connect with and think are most definitely in the opposing army This flexing of key human muscles is a much braver act than digging your little trench, staying in it and screaming at anyone who doesn’t agree wi

Back in 2016, when the spring Was springing, A tree in Napier Was caught showing off And is still accepting applause.

This Napier house certainly stands out amongst the rest of the boxes

We see through you, as you see through me

"No Vacancy", what's the music this conjures up in your head? I hear a 1940s American gumshoe movie soundtrack, Humphrey Bogart is involved.

If you have a favourite colour then I'm sure it's in here somewhere

The sound of a buzz on a tape, the beauty of puns in Asterix, or even roads that don't exist, are all subjects that someone somewhere has a passion for. The passions of people, especially the small (to the rest of us) show the majestical state of being human. "It's The Little Things In Life That Count", Spike Milligan I have a delight in the smell of books, and have even given  a talk about it , where the smells come from, the chemical makeup, and how in the modern world we may lose this sensation to maybe have it replaced by another. Mostly these small delights are kept personal, maybe shared with those close to us, which is a shame as it truly is fabulous when one is discovered. Imagine my glee upon finding the BBC podcast  The Boring Talks  chock full of subjects that seem insignificant but are, when heard from those devoted to the subject, intensely fascinating. As an introduction here's the latest episode with Keith Stewart, who knew that 'loadin

Descending in safety and with colour

Rugby watching from the lounge at Wellington Regional Stadium

"Pier Pressure", come on, that's a great sign! Someone must've fist pumped when they got to pop that onto one of the small Wellington waterfront piers Use valve to turn it down

Thought that was the title of a song by Prince, but no, that's Purple Rain isn't it. Oh well, enjoy this August 2016 sunset nonetheless Purple sunset over Wellington

https://synesthesia.me/see-your-name , a Synesthesia Project by Bernadette Sheridan/ @SynesthesiaMe

All ready for an evening's performance of what I recall being a very surreal show from the Worser Bay School students. Playground as stage

I've always known that modelling moving fluids is VERY difficult. Take a look at early movie CGI and any liquid feels "solid". When they cracked it, and by that I mean when they had worked out how to fool us, there was a big step up in the types of movies we all got to ignore. So I knew modelling  turbulence  was hard. And I just read an  article  that, whilst explaining the work of some people that proved something or other, explained why turbulence is so hard. Turbulence is recursive. By that I mean look closely at a swirling vortex within turbulent water* and there are tiny vortices, and it's vorticies all the way down, "until the effects of internal friction (or viscosity) within the fluid take over and the flow smooths out." Hah, obvious when you read about it and obvious when you think about it. With so so many layers all bundled up inside one another then, yeah, it's bloody hard. And now I know, and so do you. * does

From the Chocolate Fish II lawn over at Shelley Bay, here's to a calm and peaceful day for us all

Named after it's owner Sean Golding, Golding' Free Dive is such a photogenic bar. No wonder really as Sean has a background in design and, I believe, was behind the design of Hashigo Zake all those years ago. Golding's Free Dive welcomes you at 14 Leeds St, Wellington

The Seatoun Wharf from underneath and back in 2016

A phrase I heard on the #OneTeamGov workshop today, and I love it Don't just be a wizard, make the place Hogwarts

Jodie Whittaker is an excellent Dr Who  and I hope we see at least another two, hopefully even more, series from her. My only issue is with her 'breathy' acting as the Doctor, it makes everything seem "urgent", everything is at "level emergency, all things are full on go", and much like using CAPITALS ALL THE TIME, can be quite draining and also numbs me to the fluctuations. The quiet times are LOUD, the mid times are LOUD, and the loud times are LOUD. Anyway, that's my one and only view on someone else's acting. The second series writing and plots are much 'better', that is to say it's closer to what I like in a Dr Who - a bit of mystery behind what's happening, and an underlying multi-episode arc.  Having said that, I'm not adverse to the social commentary episode type from series one, maybe just not each and every one, or at least wrapped up within a wider plot. Graham has always been the best out of the t

Restaurant fish watches as you enter, "I'm just decoration so no eating thoughts buddy!"

I'm sure there was / is some culture somewhere that insists on a glass of red wine with their breakfast. If not, I have started one

Gorgeous muted colours just before it turned dark last night. I can't for the life of me discover the name of those eastern harbour hills, anyone?

Bridge entrance to Whairepo Lagoon

An early morning flight from Nelson / Whakatū to Te Whanga-nui-a-Tara / Wellington, so that could be Mt Taranaki / Egmont above the Marlborough Sounds, yes?

Captain America (2011) is by far my favourite of the Marvel movies. It's a movie that stands alone but of course it leads into a bigger story, which tickles my bits as well. So why this one? I have a penchant for "old movies", for adventure movies (think Indiana Jones and the like), solid baddies (Hydra, so bad even the Nazis wanted shut them down), and a "steampunk" feel. A solid story gives the acting something to stand upon, and stand solid it does. So there ya go, my favourite Marvel / Avengers movies by a country mile. I'm sure you feel the same, but if not, let me know yours and why in the comments below.

Golden girl, finer temptress Through the air she's heading west From far away Stays for a day

Been a while since I got up "so early" and so this was an appropriate daily photo (Aug 2016, not today as you can see by the clear skies and actual sun)

A heavily edited Tahunanui Beach is today's daily photo

Blues, greens, and rocks of a harbour

Blue, with a smattering of not blue Can anyone name that snow peaked mountain in the distance?