Mike Riversdale

This is the email I received during Te Wiki o te Reo Māori ("Māori Language week") in 2020 and, seeing as we're halfway to this years on 13-19 September, I thought what better time to to pop this out.

Back in 1999 I was wooed over to Sydney by a company called ECG , the APAC partner and reseller of a BI tool called Business Objects . I had helped them setup and use Business Objects within the NZ Department of Corrections so knew the tool and the people, and had a personality that was fit for pre-sales. I was also recently separated (maybe even divorced), and keen to go live in Sydney for a bit. Aaaaand a flatmate had just moved there, so he could put me up for the first few nights. [ more about the move here ... ] So, off I went, over the Tasman to the Great West Island. I quickly found myself an apartment in Chiswick and after a week of induction and learning the sales ropes the first client I was to see was Coca-Cola Amatil, housed on Circular Quay. I caught the rivercat on a sunny Monday morning, stood outside on the deck and marvelled at the views as they went by - Sydney suburbs, Luna Park, the Harbour Bridge, the Opera House - I pinched myself. First day of work and this was

See also: Everything Is Awesome I ♥ Everything About This Video

Paint any place with a stunning sunrise and it's gonna look pretty bloody good, especially from a plane.

Wero Mai is a Māori board game intended for students and those at a beginner level in Te Reo Māori.   Originally created by six students at Wellington East Girls College and now run by two of them. Seems like a grand idea, check out how it works and then buy your own .

This was a draft and who knows what I was saving it for ... BUT, my reason doesn't need to be known or stop you from listening. I suspect the title is a reference back to an earlier post, " The Problem Today Is Obvious, It's Me! ": The divide between the armies is where I live.  Pick your battle to discover which armies you most closely align with and down in the divide you'll find me. The Infinite Monkey Cage - Conspiracy Theories Brian Cox and Robin Ince are joined on stage by comedian Shazia Mirza, science writer and cancer researcher Dr David Robert Grimes and psychologist Prof Karen Douglas to look at the weird world of conspiracy theories. From Flat Earth believers to people who refuse to accept that humans have ever been to the moon, why is fiction often so much easier to believe than fact - and does it matter? They discuss the psychology and profile of people who are more likely to believe in conspiracies and the devastating effect some, like the anti-vacc

Apple of course is one of the most famous walled gardens going, for instance FaceTime only works on the limited mobile devices they release. Why they can't make software for other platforms is beyond me. Netflix, Amazon Prime, Apple TV, and to an increasing extent, Disney+, are also walled gardens.  [I'm sure you can list others] Oh sure, these are general access walled gardens which, for a mere $20/month, allow you to live the myth that it's totally open so you can wander around and cherry pick anything. If you're looking for general release movies or TV shows then it probably doesn't matter which one you plump for, they all have the same stuff at some point. BUT! With massive amounts of money these walled gardens are now creating movies and TV shows just for those inside the walled garden. This sucks, killing cinemas, destroying broadcast TV, making it a rich persons plaything, and removes the commons.  $20 for Netflix $20 for Amazon $20 for Apple TV $40 for Sky

I love the Man Men men, yes you'll learn stuff - squarest country, the world's oldest border, maps that show things that don't exist - but the script is funny as fuck, the editing is wonderful, and Jay and Mark are just funny funny people. Here ya go, all the episodes, perfect for a winter's day, ie today!

More and more of these little, "Not seen the sea like that for a while" moments will fade into normality as climate change generates a more tempestuous coastline. Just like the apocryphal frog in the mythical boiling water we will forget how it was and come to live with a view of the world that has "strange events" as normal. Those reports of once in 100 year events will still make the TV news, but we'll forget that they used to be called 'once in 500 year events'. Eventually, we won't be able to cope, and we'll wonder how we didn't see this coming.

Pull up a chair, settle down, and warm yourself by the fire, just lose yourself in the flickering flames.

I like Jake Yapp , I am a Yappster. I definitely don't listen every day to his silly, funny, and quite often pointed UK podcast. He and cousin Davey love the older, hidden, weirder side of humans desire to make music and I always actual LOL! Pop the  Not Today, Thank You podcast into your podcast subscriptions list , set it to only keep the latest couple episodes, and have a bloody good time as you commute to and from your work pod. Music! News! Jokes! A daily podcast, recorded and streamed live on YouTube each morning at 10am (UK time) looking at what's happening in the world through the lenses of music and comedy. Jake Yapp, as seen and heard on Charlie Brooker’s Weekly Wipe, Radio 4 and 6Music, collaborates with listeners across the week to create a mini-musical which debuts each Thursday. And on Fridays, Davey brings along a selection of audio esoterica to astound and delight you.  Twitter: @NotTodayPod. Text and voice message Whatsapp: 07862032654  And watch, Monday-Thur

I am up for pantsdrunk with you over this winter, just get in touch.   In a new section of the show, Russell tries out a new way to live longer. This week involves staying warm the Finnish way with Greg Davies (Contains nudity and cuddling)

Slow down, take 30 seconds, not even a minute, and just lose yourself in this photo. The gentle breaking of the waves, the slight breeze blowing over your face, the smell of the salty air. And relax, it'll all be ok.

If you're a Wellingtonian this should be easy peasy - name the player.

 "Do I look like the sort of man that would eat, THAT!" "Um, ..." "Exactly, I am a wealthy young person with taste, look at the way I wear my watch for instance!" "Um, ..." "Now, an ashtray if you please! Now!" "Um, ok"

Seems I'm stuck in a loop writing about the past at the moment, ugh. This is the signal box at Paekakariki and, as you can imagine it's no longer a working thingy but holds all the pulleys, handles, and accoutrements a signalman (was there ever a signalwoman?) would need. There's a lot of things from the not so distant past that people have restored and we the great unwashed can go look at and take photos of. As life becomes more and more digital, throwaway, and even just ephemera I wonder what peeps in the near(ish) future will be visiting and looking back on. I'm sure there'll be loads eh, just being an old person really. Mind you, the librarian of now, Google, is an ever changing beast, what old "Google" would you want to visit?

There's much about the past that can be nasty, wrong, and downright dumb. It is valid to reevaluate those specific times, take appropriate remedying behaviour if possible, and to lay them to rest. I've spent a good 5+ years doing this with my own life and I'm sure I'll be doing it for quite some while after posting this article. As an aside, I so wonder what is it that young(er) people are doing now that will require remedial action in 20 years time? It's definitely healing to revisit the past and lessen the pain of those that were affected by societies ills as made real by people's individual actions. It's also equally valid to like the some of the past, bring forward behaviours, thinking, and attitudes and take appropriate behaviour to ensure that they are not lost. Being bored is one such relic of the past I look fondly upon and revel in when it comes upon me. When I'm bored I write and I am  always glad I did. In this ever increasingly "them vs

It is what it is. Update : and it seems it was what it was as this is already in the Daily Photo album .

Ok, it's just Chews Lane but "Streets of Gotham" makes for a much more dramatic and engaging title. Oh the stories Chews Lane could tell, well, I'm thinking of one in particular. I'd heard that persistence is the key to life and in the late 1990s I was putting this to the test by being oh so charming. "Ask 100 people if they fancy a fuck and whilst you'll get 99 slaps one will say yes. But the challenge is you don't know whether that will be the first person you ask or the one hundredth." Another Friday night out at The Malthouse on Willis Street, just up from Chews Lane. "Hi, do you fancy a fuck?" I couldn't tell you how many "No!"s I had received over the past weeks, but I can happily say there were no actual slaps even though they would've been totally warranted. "Um, yeah, sure." Chews Lane was very different back then, a lot darker, quite dingy and for a brief moment in time the location of a frantic, lo

They're pretty rare eh, an actual 'soul mate', someone that you connect deeply with on all levels. I have never been a party to the view that there can only be one, which is just as well considering the path my life has taken. However, I do think that whilst there may be hundreds, perhaps thousands of people out there that one can truly connect with, this is a big planet with a lot of people and so actually meeting them can be quite the mission. I count myself to have been very very lucky so far.

Faces in Things , who can't see faces in things?  Shocked dog?

The' lock' bridge at Whairepo Lagoon is gorgeous at night eh.

This was taken on a glorious dawn just north of Auckland as I stood soaking up the beauty unfold before me. Now, my actual photo was ok but this is the Google Photos auto enhanced version, and by fuckery it has done an amazing job.

Beautiful sunrise 🥰

🌙 and ☁️

Oh all the tech accelerators that have run and are still running this was my favourite.  It's a shame the light flickered and then was put out.

Of course we all know Raj from the Access Granted NZ podcast , running his own ad agency, entries into many 48Hours annual competitions , being a powerhouse at Haines , and active in the Wellington Indian diaspora. Did you know that he is also an actor . Oh yeah, he's in your TV screens and you will have seen him -watched Wellington Paranormal series 4? Here he is being silly down on the waterfront for me as I take photos for an Agile conference slide deck I was speaking at. There was no reason why he should've said yes, but he did. One of the finest friends (despite me being the burning tail sometimes), love ya Raj and ... thank you for being a friend .

Such a gorgeous venue I can't help but do one more from June 2018 at Rogue & Vagabond.

Love the looks from the band members. And of course Rogue & Vagabond is a gorgeous venue to photograph.

The Maupuia hills brushed by rainbow colours.

Sometimes a photo has its own emotion. This is saying peaceful to me but it if you ask me how come I can't tell you.

I thought everyone took photos of their weekly shopping trolley, no? tbh, I actually have no idea why, on Saturday 16th June, 2018, at 4:15pm I thought it necessary for me to document the contents of (I assume) my shopping trolley. But I did, and here it is.

Life was hard at the WHS Prison Complex. What with the screws stepping up the 'examination' process, the C Block incident, and the ever growing fear that you too might be chosen to lead choir practice, it was with relief when a few of us got to kick the pigskin around. 20 minutes they said, but they always made us run a full game, those sneaky bastards were betting on us.  The joke was on them, we always made sure there was pies hidden in the cafe afterwards.

If you're not at least a teeny tiny bit intrigued and would like to know what's behind the study door built into the bank, then have another coffee.

Yup, a plug!

It's nearly here .. the British & Irish Lions squad is announced tonight . All the July 2021 Lions v South African  games are listed on the comprehensive Rugby Calendar page , your free and always up to date iCal / Google Calendar for all international rugby union games. Easy to subscribe to - check out the options on the full calendar page ...

Stability . It was as easy as that, my theme for 2021 would be stability.  Not growth. Not experimentation. Not adventure. Stability. And here we are, half-way through, and so far so good. How you doing? And what was (or is about to be) your 2021 theme?

I love anything that takes longer than a standard human lifetime, trees growing, stars being born, and of course pitch dropping coz it is actually a liquid. The ninth Pitch Drop from the world's longest running lab experiment fell in April 2014. Now the watch for the tenth drop continues. Only eight or so years.

I love all the movement, and spot the people you know! The Alphero early days were very different, all power to those early pioneers , which saw them grow to these staff and friends at their 7th birthday party in June 2018 (and I'm sure it's now even grander).

As a Christmas present, or a birthday present, or maybe just because you know I'd like one.

I may have told this story, apologies if you've heard it already.  I moved away from Monmouth when I was 19 with an ever decreasing set of reasons to go back, heck I had the whole world at my fingertips even if it started just over the border in Gloucester. My first proper job, 198something, at  St Ivel in Swindon as the world slowly opened its doors to me. St Ivel, at the time, had extended it's graduate program to the likes of me. A year of learning how to "be in business", a few secondments, and quite a number of workshops away from the confines of the offices and factories. One such workshop was hosted in  Tintern .  Tintern is famous for two things, it has an Abbey that, whenever we drove passed, my Dad would point out the window and grinningly proclaim to anyone listening, "It'll be nice when it's finished!" The second famous thing is that The Poet Wordsworth spent some time wandering and pondering before writing  some evocative words  ... no

I don't use it now but for quite a while this was the basis of my work profile photo, not too shabby really 

Is this how fish watch rugby? I love this camera effect and hardly ever use it, will do from now on.

A sighting of the laser Kiwi at an All Blacks game in Wellington (June 2018).

Human stories are the best.  The Bletchley Park podcast has been on my list for a long time with its combination of human stories and old tech amongst a time of massive emergency (that the right term for World War II?). It's not one I listen to all the time but, like most podcasts on my list , I find gold in each episode when I dive on in. It's probably one for a specific type of person but really, give it a whirl as you will learn something and get a good sense of what it was like to be working in a place that wasn't just top secret to those outside but each inner cog was a world unto themselves. One day I will actually get to visit ... one day, when the world isn't full of virus, they are allowed to re-open, and planes are allowed to fly hither and thither.

Men (and a much smaller number of women) and their religious rituals can be bonkers sometimes. I know, "gives a lot of people succour", "has done a lot of good", "whatever keeps you going" ... but really, this is religion? The Copts have a long-standing claim over part of the roof, which is occupied by Ethiopian monks. To maintain their claim, Coptic monks take turns to sit on a chair on the roof. But on a particularly hot day in 2002, when a Coptic monk moved the chair a few inches into the shade, the Ethiopians interpreted that move as a violation of the status quo. The ensuing fight sent 11 monks to the hospital. [source:  The Christian church so holy that Muslims hold its keys ] No worse than sport I s'pose.  The most infamous ladder in all Christendom has been standing above the entrance to the Church of the Holy Sepulcher for about three centuries. Credit : Matthew Delaney, CC BY-SA 3.0

A fascinating read, " The clockwork universe: is free will an illusion? ", with quite incredible implications. “On the deepest level, if people really understood what’s going on – and I don’t think I’ve fully internalised the implications myself, even after all these years – it’s just too frightening and difficult,” Smilansky said. “For anyone who’s morally and emotionally deep, it’s really depressing and destructive. It would really threaten our sense of self, our sense of personal value. The truth is just too awful here.” My brain leans heavily towards we don't have free will but my heart (you know what I mean) is quite disturbed by what it could actually mean. More reading required ... I s'pose I will happen when it happens.

... except I'm wavering on puttering and fabrics, but then who isn't these days.

Those that know who this is, know who this is and know how much she loves a good dance. This photo is both a terrible one and an awesome one and depending upon the way I tilt my head and hold the phone determines which I think at any moment.

Leave a comment below ...