Hard News by Russell Brown

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Hard News: Together Alone

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  • Ian Williamson,

    Russel I see your Links still has The Dim Post , Would it be great if that was reanimated. Even to read some of those old posted.

    Is the, Monty Python Bring out your dead, sketch a bit too much right now?

    Westmere, Auckland • Since Dec 2017 • 3 posts Report Reply

  • Trevor Nicholls,

    I think this might be a good time to commend a previous government for pushing fibre to the home. Large scale WFH in NZ is a much more viable proposition today than it is in Australia.

    Wellington, NZ • Since Nov 2006 • 325 posts Report Reply

  • Ross Mason,

    Attachment

    Phew. Russell is still kicking.
    “Always look on the bright side of life” began the first days broadcast over my hijacked PA system attached to the side of our house. Intend to broadcast appropriate song each night at 7 pm.
    Unbelievably, last night the power went off at 6-45. Delay was sufficient for No 1 to tell me kids are in bed at 7-45pm. Restart tonight with “Staying Alive”. Intel informs me it is heard well up the Pinehaven valley. Claps and cheers after day 1.

    Upper Hutt • Since Jun 2007 • 1590 posts Report Reply

  • Moz, in reply to Trevor Nicholls,

    internet in Australia

    Don't you go bagging out my pigeons, man. They're doing the best they can in the circumstances. And anyway, we have fibre to the neighbourhood so it's much faster now than when they had to go all the way into the city every time.

    More seriously, we're lucky it hasn't rained much so most of the copper network has been able to operate. Can you imagine being self-isolating with kids and no internet? The sounds from next door suggest of it it's not much fun self-isolating *with* internet. One coworker lives in an internet black hole and their connection went down for a few hours (there's a cellphone tower at the bottom of the valley and the internet POP is in the same place... if one goes down chances are the other will too).

    Resiliency is the same thing as wasteful duplication of services. So we don't have that.

    Sydney, West Island • Since Nov 2006 • 1233 posts Report Reply

  • Geoff Lealand,

    For a bit of ‘Saturday Excitement’. I have a piece in the latest New Zealand Memories (143, April/May 2020), celebrating the 1950/60s street photography of Les Cleveland. In supermarket magazine sections from Monday, if you are able to get out.

    Screen & Media Studies, U… • Since Oct 2007 • 2562 posts Report Reply

  • Ian Dalziel, in reply to Geoff Lealand,

    New Zealand Memories (143, April/May 2020)

    Nice, I see a couple of those photographs on the truncated pdf at Issuu
    https://issuu.com/ampmmarketingltd/docs/ebook_pdf_for_issue_143

    Christchurch • Since Dec 2006 • 7953 posts Report Reply

  • Geoff Lealand,

    Having problems posting photo

    Screen & Media Studies, U… • Since Oct 2007 • 2562 posts Report Reply

  • Geoff Lealand, in reply to Ian Dalziel,

    Many thanks, Ian. For some reason, my photos refuse to lodge here.

    Screen & Media Studies, U… • Since Oct 2007 • 2562 posts Report Reply

  • Ian Dalziel, in reply to Ross Mason,

    The Tall Dwarfs 'Nothing's going to happen' may be a bridge too far, but this hiatus gives us time to revisit the classics - 'Canopener' seems apposite :- )

    Christchurch • Since Dec 2006 • 7953 posts Report Reply

  • Nat Curnow,

    Covert Covid.

    From what ever perspective you view the world, this is undoubtably an unusual and unpredictable coarse of events, and my story within this is no different.
    Like with all adventures, it was proceeded by routine planning and a degree of expectation, and in my case, tethered excitement as I waded consciously and cautiously towards a new love in Melbourne . My departure date on 28th of march was looming as was the impending crisis and our daily communication took on sense of urgency with mutterings of potential travel bans , self isolation and the possibility that this miraculous , magnetic trajectory could be derailed indefinatly. On the 16th, it was announced that there was the possibility that travel bans for non citizens could be imposed, frantic calls to the Australian passport office, air NZ and the Australian embassy turned up little information, so I decided that decisive action was required and I brought my flight forward to the 20th,which would extend my stay beyond the 14 day isolation requirement, taking a 6.35pm flight to Melbourne which would have me landing at 8.50pm Australian time. I was still unsure if I would be aloud entry, or if I would be aloud back home, but was feeling quite determined. Then, on the 19th, the announcement was made that all non Australian residence will be banned from entering Australia at 9pm on The 20th, 10 minutes after my plane was due to land, more frantic calls to Air NZ and no clear answers, there was more than one “greater good” in play here. After a poor sleep peppered with the usual dreams of missing the flight , I was packed and ready to go, “ Dam the torpedoes “!! Checking updates as I headed to the airport I felt the tingle of fragility and excitement of stepping into the unknown mixed with the possibility That I could just as surly be getting despondently back into my own bed that night. “Attention passengers on Air NZ flight 729, a staff member has been called off sick and we are waiting for a replacement so the flight will be delayed until a replacement arrives “ You have got to be kidding me !! The very friendly air NZ staff member doesn’t know if our late arrival will effect our ability to enter the country and the flight boards at 7.00pm, as I step onto the plane and take my seat I breath a tentative sigh of relief, so far so good, surly they wouldn’t fly if there was chance we could be refused entry, and I had noticed, that I was not the only NZ passport holder looking a little nervous. I have always enjoyed flying, proceeding and surviving ( with any luck) this unlikely trickery, trapped in the belly of this roaring beast speeding us off to a place of new experiences or the comfort of home and I felt, in some way that I was heading for both, if fait would allow it.
    A sympathetic wind and I suspect, a tap on the gas, we landed at 9.02 pm, declarations, filled and signed, passports checked and an unnervingly long wait for the bags to roll down the turnstile and I was there, I had slid under the door as it slammed shut in a cloud of dust, There was an image in my head of Indiana Jones and the very real image of the reason and purpose of my determined intent. I had conspired with life, was I prepared? probably.

    Since Nov 2006 • 14 posts Report Reply

  • Russell Brown, in reply to Nat Curnow,

    A sympathetic wind and I suspect, a tap on the gas, we landed at 9.02 pm, declarations, filled and signed, passports checked and an unnervingly long wait for the bags to roll down the turnstile and I was there, I had slid under the door as it slammed shut in a cloud of dust, There was an image in my head of Indiana Jones and the very real image of the reason and purpose of my determined intent. I had conspired with life, was I prepared? probably.

    Fabulous. I saw you there with K on Facebook and wondered how it had happened. Thanks for the story, e hoa.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • Russell Brown, in reply to Ian Dalziel,

    I assume methadone distribution (or modern equivalent) continues as well…

    Even better, the lockdown has finally got naloxone widely distributed – because nobody wants emergency staff tied up with overdose cases.

    It's remarkable how many things look sensible now ...

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • linger,

    On March 8th my department sent students to Vic for the 3-month English Proficiency Program. NZ looked a safer bet than staying in Japan, and so I followed them out the next week, with a return booked March 31st to get back for the start of the next academic year.
    What a difference a few weeks make.
    I had to scramble to get an earlier flight back when AirNZ first announced suspension of Auckland-Tokyo services "from March 30th". Earliest available was March 27th, which then in turn became seemingly impossible to get to once lockdown was announced, a last-minute reprieve coming only when Air NZ extended domestic flights to that date.
    We surveyed the students once Alert 3 was announced, they preferred to stay, so are in lockdown in their homestays, with courses moved online for the duration.
    On the whole, I think they made the right choice. By contrast with NZ, Japan's official response has been muted and delayed by a month of face-saving theatre around keeping the Olympics. My flight back was full, mostly of high school tour groups buzzing with excitement after their holiday (because Japan's schools have been closed for the last month), bouncing into each other and other passengers. At Narita, flights from Australia and NZ were still being waved through with no quarantine checks, and I was genuinely surprised to be able to take public transport home. Multiply this by other flights of returning students, with schools set to restart soon, and Japan's relative success so far in limiting the spread through voluntary reduction of public events seems about to run out.

    Tokyo • Since Apr 2007 • 1944 posts Report Reply

  • Ian Dalziel,

    Rare Heart
    I’d like to share a You Tube channel I have been enjoying – Rare Earth here’s their latest one

    - I recommend dipping into their back catalogue and balanced world view…
    (the 5-part series on the Balkans was excellent – now compiled into a long version )

    The channel started with the Hadfield family – You may well remember Dad, Chris singing ‘Space Oddity’ on the ISS

    Christchurch • Since Dec 2006 • 7953 posts Report Reply

  • Moz,

    Things are getting serious here, they’ve closed outdoor gyms! Also, households of more than two people are now strongly discouraged. If you’re a couple with three or more kids it’s time to pick the two you like most and take one each :)

    the Government is now strongly advising against indoor or outdoor gatherings with more than one other person. But Mr Morrison said the measures were not yet legally binding.

    So it’s like Aotearoa, except without the legal protections for people who would like to follow those instructions.

    Can someone pop down to parliament and run off a few copies of that nice Ms Ardern for us? One per state and a couple for Canberra would be a good start (I actually think she could get elected here).

    Here's an acapella classic to cheer you up:

    Sydney, West Island • Since Nov 2006 • 1233 posts Report Reply

  • Paul Campbell,

    Linger: thanks for that, I spent the previous 2 weeks talking my son down from his planned trip to Japan (he had been in the Jet program for 2 years there), luckily we did finally manage to convince him

    Dunedin • Since Nov 2006 • 2623 posts Report Reply

  • linger,

    Meanwhile, my university seems to be lumbering towards a decision to Bring The Students Back! whether they want to come back or not, and even if this might increase the risk to each student.
    NZ: rate of increase in cases starting to slow March 29th (Wikipedia page);
    Japan: daily figures last updated on Wikipedia March 27th, showing a slight increase in rate at that time.
    I may be biassed here, but I know whose approach I trust more.
    SMH.
    Interestingly, NZ recovery totals seem to be tracking case totals 7 days prior, suggesting a weeklong course of disease from diagnosis to recovery, on average. This does not match the figures observed in Japan, which suggests that some Japanese cases are going untreated and unreported, and as a result the statistics are being skewed toward the most severe (longest-recovery) cases. But there may well be other confounding factors, such as differences in age distribution of travellers exposed to Covid19 overseas, and differences in smoking rate and so severity of symptoms.

    Tokyo • Since Apr 2007 • 1944 posts Report Reply

  • Paul Campbell,

    So far almost all of our cases have been imported, most directly into 2 weeks quarantine - I suspect that that messes with how it changes here (hopefully to our advantage) - it's possible that a lot of the rise in numbers we're seeing right now have been generated by the rises in the countries those people came from.

    We've been told not to expect the numbers to really turn for a couple of weeks and to not read too much into the recent numbers - it's likely to get worse before it better

    Dunedin • Since Nov 2006 • 2623 posts Report Reply

  • Trevor Nicholls,

    Good hand cleanliness and distancing yourself from others are key to avoiding this virus:
    https://youtu.be/YitWZj9QhdQ

    Wellington, NZ • Since Nov 2006 • 325 posts Report Reply

  • Ray Gilbert, in reply to Ian Dalziel,

    At least in Auckland it does. My wife has been reasigned from the CADS detox unit which has been shut down to AODS in CADS South. All discussions are by phone rather than in person but the team are still having to work from site at the moment.

    Since Nov 2006 • 104 posts Report Reply

  • Geoff Lealand, in reply to linger,

    My daughter Catherine Rose, who lives and teaches in Shibuya, has been ranting about the casual attitude in Japan to the virus. She has more students to teach and says the company she works for is resisting the idea of paying salaries in the event of closure. In the meantime, her sideline of modelling is on hold.

    Screen & Media Studies, U… • Since Oct 2007 • 2562 posts Report Reply

  • Moz,

    My employer in Australia is being very blunt: I can choose to work from home, but if there are any problems I have to come in to the office. Any costs incurred are entirely mine, and I should be grateful that they are being so reasonable about my silly panic. If Russel gives us a rant thread I have things to say about their attitude 🤬

    Sydney, West Island • Since Nov 2006 • 1233 posts Report Reply

  • Paul Campbell,

    I'm rather enjoying this little polemic:

    Dunedin • Since Nov 2006 • 2623 posts Report Reply

  • Moz, in reply to Paul Campbell,

    Awesome, deserves to go, uh, viral.

    Sydney, West Island • Since Nov 2006 • 1233 posts Report Reply

  • Ian Dalziel, in reply to Moz,

    Can someone pop down to parliament and run off a few copies of that nice Ms Ardern for us?

    Monoclonal PMs would have the slogan "I'm unity"

    Now we just need something to mop up the 'free radicals' who think they can do whatever they want in the community at this point in time...

    Christchurch • Since Dec 2006 • 7953 posts Report Reply

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