I know many of the haunts you write about in the story, having lived for a time in an especially shitty part of Glen Eden (mind you, in the early ‘80s there were no un-shitty parts). And the Westward Ho was one hell of a rough pub.

I…

I can only say that I am embarrassed that you know who Jim Gibbon is. I would that no one outside of Nevada knew his name, much less outside the states.

Are you kidding? Jim Gibbons is world famous in New Zealand. We have a small political…

My wife & I moved into a street just a bit along from Osman St in 1986 and no-one told me the area was so undesirable. We rented there for 6 months before buying a cheapo in Ranui – out of the frying pan & all that...…

Holy Christ – what secondary school did you go to – Borstal?!?!

Kelston Boys, wasn't it? I must say, as a transplant from the much-loathed North Shore, I find the Westside generally a lot less horrifying than it is in David's pieces! That school really did a number on you,…

I ask, in the interest of historical accuracy, if there was actually a light at the intersection of Parrs Cross and West Coast Roads in 1986? Because now it's a rather fetching roundabout.

Back in '81 or so, my parents semi-frequently bought fruit-n-veg at Nola's on the corner (still there).…

As for commending my ecclesiastic mettle, I'm pretty ecumenical — though after 5 years in Nevada I'd prefer you…

When I lived in New Lynn the house was burgled so often AA Insurance threatened to withdraw coverage. The…

...all those semicolons.

...and I always thought a semicolon was an
asshole in a big truck!
Anatomy was never my strong point...
:- )

All I'm hearing is the cull of staff & Carr's targeting of Librarians.

Carr and cronies are blind to many opportunities – a large number of fabulous solid Rimu shelves from the Uni of Canterbury library showed up at a Demolition / Salvage company recently and were sold…

There certainly does seem to be a lot of very unhappy academics at Canterbury these days — at least in the School of Engineering.

Oh yes. Not just at Engineering- in fact I'd have hoped that was one of…

A touch of Frank Sargeson? "A Great Day".

Oh how I scoffed when Jolisa Gracewood suggested the same thing. But actually I did read a Sargeson story (part of a collection by NZ authors) that very same summer. Not "A Great Day" but rather "Sale Day". So maybe…

That really is a very good question, and something that fascinates me about the type. From an early age I've always thought about the consequences of being caught. But some people just don't. If you can shed any light on why not then I'd be bloody interested to hear it.…

And that recent novel "The Lazy Boys" by Carl Shuker.

But you are so very good all on your own.

Good on you David & congrads on the job.
The thought of UC actually employing did stun me a little.

No need for congratulations — it's just a short-term contract, finishing in June. Back to my usual writing after that.

All I'm hearing is the cull of staff…

Was the Video player VHS or BETA?

Originally there was a line of dialogue on just this subject — but I edited it out because I thought no-one would remember the distinction. I'm quite sure, however, that further investigation would reveal that the video player was originally…

For some reason I was crazy about semicolons when I was sixteen

The infamous gateway mark that leads straight into hypotaxis – that's a pretty notorious scourge. And there's nothing that families and educators can do: the more you alert kids to the dangers of the semi-colon, the more irresistibly…

Did you tidy it up much before you put it out?

Yes, quite a bit of tidying. Chopped out several dozen adjectives and adverbs, as well as a whole bunch of semicolons. For some reason I was crazy about semicolons when I was sixteen — couldn't write…

Does this make me the only registered user from Las Vegas?