The End is Naenae

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This one goes out to all the dropkicks

Some people in this life have their shit together naturally. They are not dropkicks. My sons are two of those people, and their brains fascinate me. They’re neurodiverse, and that comes with its quirks and limitations - but both have an intuitive drive to map stuff out, everything plotted

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Ray of hopelessness

It was Ray Chung who pushed me over the edge. This is not an honour the man deserves. Less stupid politicians have taken me to the brink, but I somehow held it together. Ray’s masterstroke was complaining about the councillors who betrayed him by sharing his email about Tory

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The angry dudes got something right. We don't have one person, one vote.

Fuelled by grumpiness, I set out to explore claims that Māori have special electoral privileges. I discovered privilege, alright - but it's not for Māori.

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Thought for the day, 7 July 2025

Honestly, I've had the most extraordinary day. You wouldn't believe it. It started first thing, when I got on the train. 'Tickets, please', said the clippie. I fumbled with my wallet. 'Hurry up, dickhead', the clippie sneered, and laughed. Shaking my head,

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Heroes and zeroes

This sounds like it's going to be boring or just about numbers, but I hope you'll be surprised. As always, I'm writing in my personal capacity.

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My pitch

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Fit and proper

For months, I’ve been working on a piece about firearms, and I need to thank my paid subscribers especially for giving me the space and grace to do it. I thought the piece would be straightforward - more fool me - but I hope that when I finally deliver,

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Immigrant song

How quickly we forget that most of us were immigrants once, if you go back. My mum’s side arrived first, generations ago. They made their way with an enviable canny and hard work, as farmers and then truckers, but on Ngāi Tahu land. A gravel road with the family

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Our disposable boys

Three things have bothered me these last few days, although they're really just symptoms of a bigger thing. The first is an underground fighting event called King of the Streets. It involves competitors smashing each other in someone’s backyard, in the hope of a $50,000 prize.

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We know the drill

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Time

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It's not a House. It's a home.

I'm catching up with today's news, and I'm disappointed (if completely unsurprised) that we've missed the opportunity for a conversation about the role of tikanga in Parliament. We're led to think about the House as this place of neutrality and

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See you next Tuesday

Look, I don't have a problem with the C word. But like any responsible user, I appreciate there's some careful etiquette around it. And that etiquette is what makes our nation great. We’re good c***s, mostly. But I'm not happy with some

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Thought for the day, 12 May 2025

Pondering. It's not obvious to me how a ban on social media for under 16s would work. And I agree there's potential for negative consequences. I'm the mum of the trans and autistic kids. Trust me: I understand that finding community matters a lot.

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The crumbs from his table

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What if we just let ourselves fall in love with the land?

An entwinement with the kupu of my friend.

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Three years

This post is for Dan.

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Thought for the day, 17 April 2025

Some reflections, and I hope they won't come across the wrong way. I haven't yet read the UK judgement, so I can't comment much. I'll just say that courts are there to interpret the law, not say whether they like it or

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Naming names

Name suppression is often seen as a way for rich people and predators to escape consequences. Is that fair, and what needs to change? A caution that this post is challenging - take care.

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Thought for the day, 8 March 2025

People say, 'You can't beat Wellington on a good day'. They're usually talking about the weather. And they're wrong. I say this affectionately, as someone who lives some thirty kilometres and five degrees up the road, in Te Awa Kairangi ki Uta

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Jam sandwiches

Back in the day, we got jam sandwiches and we were grateful. Sigh. I’ve been watching the intergenerational debate play out over school lunches. My first set of musings is here. This is the second set. There’s been a bunch of advice from everyday people, many of whom

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Thought for the day, 1 March 2025

RNZ: don't be dicks. Photos of politicians carry weight, especially in a social media-orientated world. Editorial choice around photos sends deliberate signals. [Picture description: An irrelevant and unflattering photo of the Prime Minister eating.] Sometimes photos are chosen to lionise politicians: think a triumphant Trump after a bullet

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Out to lunch

The school lunch kōrero is a fascinating exercise in not recognising intergenerational privilege. Here are the arguments I'm seeing: * Parents fed their kids back in the day. * It's parents' job to feed their kids, not anyone else's - and if the parents can&

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Maybe it ends in Naenae?

I lived in Naenae, Lower Hutt, for several years, before our family moved a few kilometres north to Upper Hutt. When we shifted, I thought about changing my pen name to ‘Straight Outta Trentham’, but rapidly realised I couldn’t be bothered. And anyway, I still feel an allegiance to

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Manning up

Kia ora Brian I’ve spent time in both churches and libraries, and I can tell you which I prefer. Here’s a story about me and my older kid, although I don’t expect you’ll like it much. You’ve been pretty clear: those ‘family values’ of yours