Political Reflections 2021

Like many older New Zealanders, we have conscientiously listened to the Covid reports on TV or radio, and read the daily paper, to try and stay well-informed.  And we are awaiting our booster shots. We find it hard to understand the anti-vaxx brigade, and even harder to feel tolerant of the bizarre parades and nasty […]

Summer Solstice, Aotearoa

“pōhutukawas in fading crimson, the sand below wreathed in its cottony tangles balls of red hair blown here by yesterday’s wind….” ……from a poem by Lauris Edmond (We found this quote in Juliet Batten’s lovely book Dancing wth the Seasons – inspiration and resilience through times of change) We hope that each of you can […]

1. Good News…

We have sold our current apartment in Grey Lynn – an unconditional agreement was signed this week.  It will be a first home for a young couple and child.  The little boy has already delighted in exploring the upstairs deck, and he will be going to Grey Lynn School next door. We have appreciated our […]

2. Unexpected Good News!

Selwyn Village staff have offered us free temporary accommodation in  the Village because of their having to postpone the completion and moving-in date for new apartments until late January 2022. We have chosen a small free-standing cottage in the grounds of the Village: 15 Bambury Close, Point Chevalier,  not far from the coastal walkway.  It […]

3. Charmaine’s Recovery

Charmaine is recovering and coping well, on the whole.  She has good and bad days, but usually regains good humour and capability after a walk down the road to the shops .  Some days she is deeply tired, and her memory is more erratic than consistent, but she is learning strategies for coping by keeping […]

Settling in at Earthsong

We’re settling in to Number 8 at Earthsong with ease and pleasure… …enjoying twice-weekly community meals and getting the hang of cooking in a team of six, once a month, for 50+ people.   Shortly we’ll be assigned our regular ”guardianship” tasks in the big Common House, and next Saturday we’ll take part in the quarterly […]

City Communities

Ranui is a community, not just a suburb in West Auckland… Last Sunday as we walked past St Malachy’s, next door to Earthsong, a big Samoan mama on walking sticks stopped to give us each a big hug and wish us a happy Mother’s Day.  Outside the church were people of every colour and age, […]

…To Earthsong…

We’re beginning to feel  truly at home in Earthsong now, partly because  it’s almost a  year since we decided to buy Number 8 and we’ve spent time there frequently ever since;  also because many  of the values underlying Earthsong Eco-Neighbourhood are similar to those we have been living by at earthtalk. The 32 houses are […]