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Political and cultural freedom in New Zealand has reached its most vulnerable point in history
In the past week writ large across the world, we have seen how millions of people have protested extradition laws in Hong Kong. This would allow Hong Kong authorities to extradite Hong Kong residents to China for crimes they have committed instead of being tried in Hong Kong. New Zealand enjoys a free trade agreement…
Behold the tui: seductive songstress of the shaky isles
Behold the tui. Songstress with the most gorgeous cadence and sonorous sonata, native latter day dinosaur of the shaky isles. Every throat gargle and warbling melodious titter could be experienced so much clear when viewed through the lens of our new camera. This little beauty was in our garden the other day crying out to…
Continue reading ➞ Behold the tui: seductive songstress of the shaky isles
Ancient word of the day: Athene Noctua or Athena’s Owl
The Greek goddess Athena had as her sacred animal familiar the owl, also known as the Athene Noctua in Latin. The Romans, fond as they were of stealing from the Greek pantheon, renamed Athena to Minerva. Athena and her owl are considered to be symbols of wisdom, in both cultures. Silver tetradrachm coin at the…
Continue reading ➞ Ancient word of the day: Athene Noctua or Athena’s Owl
Fashion’s most and least ethical brands – 2018 edition
According to Baptist World Aid Australia, here are a list of fashion’s most ethical brands and least ethical brands. There are a lot of parameters in which to judge a brand as being ethical. For the purpose of this article, an ethical fashion brand is defined and graded according to the systems and processes they…
Continue reading ➞ Fashion’s most and least ethical brands – 2018 edition
Every Picture Tells A Story: Auckland by Night Part 2
Our new camera got a big work out on our night walks through the eastern suburbs. This looks towards the city centre and with a huge zoom on the camera we were able to capture the night-time hustle and bustle of the Ports of Auckland. A constant fixture of background activity is always going on…
Continue reading ➞ Every Picture Tells A Story: Auckland by Night Part 2
Every Picture Tells A Story: Auckland by Night 1
Every night I was going for a massive walk along Tamaki Drive in Auckland, a long stretch of beach-side road. It was very atmospheric at night and had a sense of eerie abandonment. This bridge in between Orakei and Mission Bay once was a ferry terminal until the 1960's but is now an old fishing…
Continue reading ➞ Every Picture Tells A Story: Auckland by Night 1
What Montaigne And Deep Sea Aliens Teach Us About Humanity
Philosopher Michel de Montaigne lived in a time (the 16th century) when nobody batted an eyelid at the ritual murder and wholesale destruction of people, natural environments and cultures – let alone animals. Yet he was shocked and disgusted at these horrors. He was undoubtedly a kind and gentle man. An anomaly for his time.…
Continue reading ➞ What Montaigne And Deep Sea Aliens Teach Us About Humanity
Book Review: Life in a Medieval Castle by Frances and Joseph Gies
Life in a Medieval Castle is one of a series of compelling historical reference books written by acclaimed husband and wife historians Frances and Joseph Gies in the 1970's. Life in a Medieval Castle (along with companion books Life in a Medieval Village and Life in a Medival City) were re-released in 205 under the weight…
Continue reading ➞ Book Review: Life in a Medieval Castle by Frances and Joseph Gies
A brief and enchanting history of Australian milk bars
Originally the concept of the milk bar in America was also a spin-off from the ever-popular apotheke-style pharmacists who dispensed medicines and often refreshing milk-infused tinctures to waiting customers. The customers often milled around or sat on bar stools at a long galley-style counter top. Originally, the pharmacists mixed the medicine with their backs turned…
Continue reading ➞ A brief and enchanting history of Australian milk bars
Gather up the night: An eerie hotel causes confusion on Melbourne’s Eastlink freeway
As an occasional driver along the Eastlink in Melbourne, I have had the odd experience of passing a hotel with no trace of human habitation around it. A hotel completely devoid of people and life and yet that lights up in a unique configuration of lights from fake windows each night. Located in Melbourne's south…
Abandoned Desert Buildings On Creepy Lunar Landscapes
These photos by Ed Freeman all elicit a deep sense of alienation and a weird sort of fascination. They underline questions that we want answered. What happened here? Who lived here? How did these places fall into disrepair? Through the atrophy of the material world we can get this uncomfortable sense that we're all destined for…
Continue reading ➞ Abandoned Desert Buildings On Creepy Lunar Landscapes
The Transformative Powers of Herbal Tea
Herbal tea has always been lauded as possessing many medicinal qualities that help with everything, from fighting off a virus to stopping nausea and vomiting. What to Look For In Herbal Tea Some fruit teas contain synthetic ingredients. These synthetic ingredients don't taste as good as the real thing, and they have no real therapeutic…
Wild Woman Quote: Don’t wait
Oh, my God. What if you wake up some day, and you're 65 or 75, and you never got your novel or memoir written; or you didn't go swimming in warm pools or oceans because your thighs were jiggly or you had a nice big comfortable tummy; or you were just so strung out on…
Welcome to the most remote island in the world…Bouvetøya
Bouvetøya, also known as Bouvet Island is definitely a contender for the most remote place in the world. I discovered Bouvetøya via an excellent Tumblr with the understated title of Map Design. This is a treasure trove of cartography. Another is the seminal book The Atlas of Remote Islands by Judith Schalansky. This is a…
Continue reading ➞ Welcome to the most remote island in the world…Bouvetøya
Every picture tells a story: Harajuku girls go all freaky
I came across this lovely graffiti on a wall outside of a shop in Harajuku. Although you should also see this exquisite collection of quilts that was captured by Jonelle Patrick. The Japanese have an aesthetic sense that is far superior to most other places, I think. Lovely graffiti in Harajuku © Content Catnip 2018…
Continue reading ➞ Every picture tells a story: Harajuku girls go all freaky
Thirty great medieval epithets for people and beasts
Why do we say a gaggle of geese, a flock of sheep, a pride of lions or a swarm of bees? Well it harks back to medieval times when sportsmen grouped together collectives of beasties to refer to them in movement or attributing a quality to them - presumably while the poor creatures ran away…
Continue reading ➞ Thirty great medieval epithets for people and beasts
Pagan Date: Samhain
In the southern hemisphere, today we celebrate the pagan new year or Samhain. This ancient gaelic word means Summer's End. On this date it's a good time to reflect on and honour those that have come before us. It's also a time to release anything that no longer serves you. Samhain Incantation for ancestors This…
Wild woman quote: Souls
Copyright Content Catnip 2008 Souls love. That’s what souls do. Egos don’t, but souls do. Become a soul, look around, and you’ll be amazed-all the beings around you are souls. Be one, see one. When many people have this heart connection, then we will know that we are all one, we human beings all over…
Travel: A Survival Guide to Edinburgh Slang and Scots Words
If you ever go to Edinburgh and find yourself in one of its countless excellent pubs, you may want to strike up a conversation with one of the grave looking, old guys at the bar drinking pints. If so, you will want to be able to hold a conversation while also not making a fanny…
Continue reading ➞ Travel: A Survival Guide to Edinburgh Slang and Scots Words
Here be the Viking Hoard: The Mystery of the Lewis Chessmen
The Lewis Chessmen were likely to have been made in Trondheim in Norway from walrus ivory. This kind of bone was hard to come across at the time (1150-1200 A.D), as it required hunting during a brief window of time per year in the Arctic Circle, using primitive hunting tools of the time and in…
Continue reading ➞ Here be the Viking Hoard: The Mystery of the Lewis Chessmen