Being on the alternative end of the values spectrum, my family has never had a television. While in this day and age, with the ability to stream everything online, not having a TV is not much of a big…
I’m lucky enough to live in rural North Canterbury. Out the window of my home office I look directly at Maukatere/Mt Grey. My excellent view of the mountain is ironic for a few reasons. Firstly, I serve on the…
Perhaps my favourite Mark Twain quote is one which I’m currently living through as my two sons enter adulthood and our relationship goes from a father/son one to a different standing. Always the wit, Twain reportedly commented that: When…
Living in the country, our local post shop cum corner store is something of a centre of commerce. It’s not open many hours a day, but it’s a haven for checking ones mail (obviously) buying some emergency groceries or…
I’ve raced the Old Ghost Ultra a few times now and my entire contribution to the race has consisted of undying proclamations of my perennial man crush on race director Phil Rossiter. A buddy (thanks, Jamie!) suggested that I…
I have Jewish heritage and while that brings a bunch of negative impacts, it also comes with a few benefits. One of those benefits is a divine right to tell Jewish jokes without the fear of being accused of…
It’s amazing how much the cultural points of ones youth, when seen through the wispy passage of time, make fantastic life lessons to pass on to another generation. Perhaps it’s simply a function of age and sentimentality, but the…
My relationship with my sons is, thankfully, incredibly strong. But, like many other parents, my progeny has a history of diagnosing their father as a simpleton whose IQ is significantly less than his age. My sons are now young…
In my youth I was a bit of a fan of Bible stories. Not for religious reasons, mind, but simply because they strike me as being interesting historical vignettes that are sometimes applicable to modern situations. One I particularly…
My introduction to business was fairly prosaic. Thirty years ago a triumvirate of largely unemployable dirtbags who liked to spend their time mountain biking, climbing and tramping came together to build what was then the very nascent idea of…