Mike Riversdale

No door here, it's a mural, a trompe-l'œil no less.

Despite it being over 20 years since the final Lord Of The Rings movie was released and nearly 10 years since the last of The Hobbit there is still a LOT of Tolkien stuff around Wellington and especially Miramar.

Show any Kiwi anywhere in the world and it will elicit 3 reactions: Depending on where you are: INSIDE NZ: "Ha ha ha, d'ya know that poster is in every fish & chip shop in New Zealand."  OUTSIDE NZ: "Wow, that takes me back." "So you know that the best fish & chips is from [FILL IN NAME]. Best evah!" "I can't remember the last time I had proper fish and chips!" Just like pies, muffins, and beer there is a healthy NZ-wide pride in knowing that the best f&c comes from your local just down the road, "The fish is caught fresh that day!"

They were tall and then it got taller.

I love how they have put this letter (got from Hogwarts shop at some UK airport) on the actual door of cupboard under their stairs. Genius.

Instinctive shudder followed by fascination.

You've seen me write about Sara , well this is me meeting her best friend Jo for the first time. Jo is an absolutely amazing woman and I'm so glad I also have her as a friend.

Stop using Facebook Messenger (owned by Meta). Stop using WhatsApp (owned by Meta). Stop using Telegram (owned by someone). Stop using whatever Google is currently calling their messaging app (owned by, well you get the idea) Use Signal  (to quote the CEO of Twitter, I know!) Yeah yeah Mike, yeah, BUT WHY? Privacy and security: using Signal means that your messages that you don't need, let alone want, others reading are secure & private. Not just the actual message but also that you're sending X to Y at a specified time on Monday evening. Signal, the app and the organisation knows nothing about you or your messages. It stores nothing at all. At the level of the technology, Signal messages are encrypted end-to-end. This is similar to WhatsApp, which uses the Signal Protocol to encrypt many WhatsApp messages. But unlike WhatsApp and others, Signal goes way beyond this. We encrypt metadata as well, so we don’t know who you are, we don’t know your name or profile information,

Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Mastodon (the big four ' social media ' services) make it so easy to "show support", a Like, a Thumbs Up, or even a re-post, all showing that you really really like that thing the person is doing. We all feel like we've "done our bit". On their other end there is person showing off their wares, and I don't mean via "advertising", but those that actually take time to pop a post out with a "look, I make things" - yes it's advertising in a sense but it's more personal, and often it's the local people doing it this way and not the big companies who set the advertising machine up and let it do it's thing for them. On the other end of that lost you Liked there is a person. They are of course grateful to you for starring their post, they definitely appreciate a re-share. On the other end is a person that actually wants you to buy some of their thing. That's what they want you to do. Th

Hotter than the sun, so I believe.

From mop to tidy all in one swift 2020 haircut session. I think I might have this again whenever it is I go for another cut.

Locked gates of the defunct (?) Miramar Wharf as the sun breaks through the fog.

Gladys and her TV lady friend having a moment.

Dramatic isn't it, that'll be why I took so many photo's of it . There's something Rembrandt about it, a touch of Turner maybe.

Seems topical as Cyclone Gabrielle finally but slowly leaves our shores. An umbrella in Wellington is a rare item, mostly tourists of the cruise ships give them a go and then realise that the wind doesn't want to play that game.

380 Tinakori Road, Thorndon (Wellington, NZ). THE TIPSY LADIES The three townhouses in front of you were built in 1906 for Charles Coles (b1840-d1920), who was in business as a chimney sweep and rug beater. The townhouses were let to ordinary working people, while Coles lived with his family in the adjoining house at 376 Tinakori Road. The nickname "Tipsy Ladies' was coined in the early 1980s when the town- houses were crooked, in a poor state of repair and ripe for demolition.

Made me laugh, top work someone. (yes, it was sat upon on a stick in  the ground, cheers Google Photos and your  Magic Erase r)

Well, no one does really, but if anyone could then I'd be up for a sea change and have queers give it go for a few years. I suspect it would likely be a much more compassionate and colourful time of things, something we could all do with in 2023. And imagine the beige brigade and the level of rage energy, we could power the country off them.

The finest cinema on the whole land is, without a doubt, The Roxy Cinema in Miramar (Wellington). @ me if you don't believe me.

Blinds combined with office architecture.

Moa Point Radar Station (defunct) in Wellington has the most amazing views. On a clear calm day it's also a popular place for couples to go hang out and get to know each other (all very innocently before you think otherwise).

Spiders and their webs eh, quite the industrious technical wizards really.

"It's not the minutes, hours, days, or years that life should be measured in, life should really be measured in kairos ." Kairos , originally ancient Greek, means 'the right, critical, or opportune moment'.  Those moments when it was perfect, everything came together, and you acted upon it. Those glorious moments that you will always remember and perhaps they have had a " sliding doors moment " affect upon your life and who you are today. The more kairos you notice and grab, the more  confelicity I will have.   Confelicity is a 19th century (1800s) word that means 'joy in another person's happiness.' There are other words you could use but I really like saying this 19th century one as rediscovered by Susie Dent . And the act itself is good for ya , so enjoy it.

Nice colours eh.

Ah, yes, you may see me but I've seen you first.

It's feels like a billion is just a bit bigger than a million. Obviously it's bigger but it fits on the same scale as a million, surely. It doesn't. A billion is so so so much bigger than a million. I've trawled the internet finding graphics and videos that show the VAST difference between one million and one billion. Oh, and just to finish with a different misconception about space starting with the classic opening line from the great Douglas Adams and The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy : “Space is big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long way down the road to the chemist's, but that's just peanuts to space.”

Secret drinking place inside a public drinking place.

I saw a post the other day that said, "Libraries are the last places we have where you're not expected to buy something." Parks and the great outdoors are possibly up there as well but I totally hear what that person was saying.

Darn it, couldn't get across the harbour to find the pot of gold!

I met Sara through the apps towards the end of lockdown and so it took a wee while before we could actually meet up. "How about a coffee, or maybe a wander along a beach near you?" These things tend to be safe and slightly beige at the start. We chatted on and then I happened to mention how I love taking photos of cemeteries (who doesn't!).  "I hear the Karori graveyard is pretty cool but I've never been." "OMG, it's amazing!, said the Karori woman. Our first date was so much fun, wandering around the tombs, along the graves, up one side and down the other, as we chatted away getting to know each other a little. We had a kiss in the carpark and I drove away with a massive smile on my face and my heart fluttering slightly. And so started a friendship that has had a profound and positive affect on my life ever since. ♥️ Sara