Public Address | Cafe | Up Front: Absence in the Arcades https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/ en-us Copyright (c) 2026 Public Address Islander https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=236003#post236003 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=236003#post236003 Wed, 09 Nov 2011 02:12:09 +1300 Islander https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=236002#post236002 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=236002#post236002 Tantrix, that reminds me of the old Chinese Tangram – hours of fun and pattern recognition...

Ian, along with chess-set & Scrabble equipment, I always carry a tangram- so simple, so tangential, so pivotal, and so so good-

]]> Wed, 09 Nov 2011 02:03:43 +1300 Lucy Stewart https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=236000#post236000 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=236000#post236000 The video felt liked it breezed past the CTV site. What are they planning to do there?

I imagine a lot of thought and planning is going into that, and it won't be a quick decision*. I didn't feel like the video breezed past it; I thought it lingered as…

]]> Wed, 09 Nov 2011 00:53:43 +1300 Kyle Matthews https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235949#post235949 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235949#post235949 Tue, 08 Nov 2011 16:56:12 +1300 Joe Wylie https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235945#post235945 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235945#post235945 “The hell with earthquakes, we need our customers’ loyalty cards!!”
Yeah. No idea whether she has a loyalty card, but here's a Ballantynes client getting the treatment on the big opening day.

]]> Tue, 08 Nov 2011 16:47:47 +1300 Lilith __ https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235922#post235922 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235922#post235922 the apparently frivolous normalities do count for something in terms of people’s emotional needs.

I think it’s more than that, though; it’s also the fighting spirit that says, “The hell with earthquakes, we need our customers’ loyalty cards!!”

Yes, there are other things we no doubt need more. But I…

]]> Tue, 08 Nov 2011 14:58:24 +1300 Joe Wylie https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235891#post235891 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235891#post235891 That’s… heartbreaking?
Dunno about heartbreaking, but short of up-against-the-wall Ballantynes, send-‘em-out-to-build-tractors, the apparently frivolous normalities do count for something in terms of people’s emotional needs.

I remember a story from Jakarta in the wake of the 1998 anti-Suharto riots, where a group of immaculately uniformed and made up young women…

]]> Tue, 08 Nov 2011 12:55:32 +1300 Sacha https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235858#post235858 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235858#post235858 +1

and nice rhymes, sir

]]> Tue, 08 Nov 2011 11:31:29 +1300 JacksonP https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235850#post235850 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235850#post235850 and about how staff had come in after the quake and rescued things like the cosmetics customer loyalty cards, for heavens sake.

That's... heartbreaking? The thought of customers coming to that counter and the staff pulling out their loyalty card is quite incredible in the circumstances. I imagine they'll need…

]]> Tue, 08 Nov 2011 11:19:13 +1300 Lilith __ https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235845#post235845 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235845#post235845 Tue, 08 Nov 2011 10:52:21 +1300 Emma Hart https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235672#post235672 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235672#post235672 Mon, 07 Nov 2011 14:12:57 +1300 Lilith __ https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235670#post235670 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235670#post235670 Mon, 07 Nov 2011 14:12:08 +1300 JacksonP https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235668#post235668 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235668#post235668 The P Jacksons of Nantucket
Had an incontinent consonant bucket
The words they inverted
Were often perverted
Not unpleasant per se, just... oh fcuk it.

]]> Mon, 07 Nov 2011 14:07:55 +1300 Sacha https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235642#post235642 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235642#post235642 there's a limerick in there somewhere..

ah, editsnap

]]> Mon, 07 Nov 2011 13:32:39 +1300 Lilith __ https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235640#post235640 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235640#post235640 :-D

[someone want to finish that limerick?]

]]> Mon, 07 Nov 2011 13:30:29 +1300 Sacha https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235632#post235632 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235632#post235632 Mon, 07 Nov 2011 13:19:34 +1300 Lilith __ https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235630#post235630 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235630#post235630 Hah!! I'll invert *you*, Mr JacksonP!

[yeah, that's all I got]

]]> Mon, 07 Nov 2011 13:17:42 +1300 JacksonP https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235594#post235594 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235594#post235594 I just posted about this on Facebook, only I misspelled it, and then I pointed out my misspelling and in doing so misspelled misspelling.

So was it an added consonant or just the straight 'ti' inversion?

]]> Mon, 07 Nov 2011 12:13:48 +1300 Ian Dalziel https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235590#post235590 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235590#post235590 What happened to La Boheme, the little restaurant down Bedford Row?
Well prior to the Earthquake the upstairs front and downstairs was The Greens office, and then they moved to Durham street and then there was a funky co-operative boutique downstairs with an artspace & design company upstairs, The restaurant space…

]]> Mon, 07 Nov 2011 12:05:01 +1300 Ian Dalziel https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235581#post235581 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235581#post235581 Puzzled Dragon...
ahh! Tantrix, that reminds me of the old Chinese Tangram – hours of fun and pattern recognition...

]]> Mon, 07 Nov 2011 11:46:13 +1300 Geoff Lealand https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235577#post235577 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235577#post235577 Mon, 07 Nov 2011 11:40:01 +1300 Kumara Republic https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235571#post235571 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235571#post235571 Oh my god The Puzzled Dragon! I had forgotten that place. Thank you for that little reminder – brought back a few lovely days – sights, smells, the feeling of being 19 in Christchurch for a few little seconds there…

Ah yes, they later transmogrified into Mind Games. They also…

]]> Mon, 07 Nov 2011 11:16:28 +1300 Tamsin6 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235549#post235549 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235549#post235549 Mon, 07 Nov 2011 10:04:34 +1300 Lilith __ https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235538#post235538 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235538#post235538 Muphry's Law

excellent

I just posted about this on Facebook, only I misspelled it, and then I pointed out my misspelling and in doing so misspelled misspelling.

]]> Mon, 07 Nov 2011 09:34:58 +1300 Sacha https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235519#post235519 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235519#post235519 Muphry's Law

excellent

]]> Sun, 06 Nov 2011 21:35:09 +1300 Simon Grigg https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235514#post235514 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235514#post235514 And of course you know you were far from alone in that.

Just looked at that and my page linked to there and realised it's been a year. In those twelve months I've had about 35 emails from all over the planet responding to that piece, arriving steadily (the most…

]]> Sun, 06 Nov 2011 20:33:45 +1300 3410 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235513#post235513 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235513#post235513 (I’ll try not to get hoist by my own petard again this time like I did with that Herald jibe)

You were merely another innocent victim of Muphry's Law.

]]> Sun, 06 Nov 2011 20:32:17 +1300 Ian Dalziel https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235512#post235512 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235512#post235512 Shoes this high…
Made another foot in mouth have I?
only 18 months?
Not at all, I was only with them for approximately ten or so, of those months and in a support position, it isn’t that common knowledge, but some here would know that, as we traversed and crossed…

]]> Sun, 06 Nov 2011 20:25:09 +1300 Hebe https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235509#post235509 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235509#post235509 We were fortunate to see a great band. Did you realise Toy Love were only together for about 18 months? Only18 months? Seemed like they played every other week in my memory; maybe that's because they were the most vivid nights. I know I went to nearly all of their… ]]> Sun, 06 Nov 2011 19:28:57 +1300 Russell Brown https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235508#post235508 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235508#post235508 Made another foot in mouth have I? I never knew who anyone was because I was too shy to ask. Nodded and tried to look like I wasn’t 17

We were fortunate to see a great band. Did you realise Toy Love were only together for about 18 months?

]]> Sun, 06 Nov 2011 19:05:57 +1300 Hebe https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235505#post235505 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235505#post235505 It's also quite awesome that you've asked Ian if he was at a Toy Love gig ;-) Made another foot in mouth have I? I never knew who anyone was because I was too shy to ask. Nodded and tried to look like I wasn't 17.

re Peake: Never even…

]]> Sun, 06 Nov 2011 17:20:25 +1300 Russell Brown https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235504#post235504 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235504#post235504 Tony was one of those who helped shape my life.

And of course you know you were far from alone in that.

]]> Sun, 06 Nov 2011 17:08:39 +1300 Russell Brown https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235503#post235503 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235503#post235503 Yes, yes. And the Gladstone of course; did you ever see
Toy Love there? And Tony Peake’s rowdy lot?

The Newtones. I have really find memories of The Gladstone, and of Tony.

One of the best things about the earthquakes is that it’s permissible to do this nostalgia stuff sometimes…

]]> Sun, 06 Nov 2011 17:06:24 +1300 Russell Brown https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235502#post235502 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235502#post235502 bedroom inside. You can see coat hangers. ]]> Sun, 06 Nov 2011 17:03:19 +1300 Russell Brown https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235501#post235501 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235501#post235501 Sun, 06 Nov 2011 17:01:47 +1300 Russell Brown https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235500#post235500 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235500#post235500 I think it is coming down as well, they have already removed the building’s distinctive corner dome tower…

The dome is sitting incongruously on legs in Cathedral Square. I hope this means they want to rescue it.

]]> Sun, 06 Nov 2011 17:00:01 +1300 Dave Patrick https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235499#post235499 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235499#post235499 Thanks, Ian, for such fullsome information. Are the Kaiapoi and Rangiora cinemas still open?

Kaiapoi is still closed, with the building due to be demolished early next year and no word yet of a new venue. The Rangiora Town Hall was closed for about 6 months after February's quake when…

]]> Sun, 06 Nov 2011 15:03:02 +1300 Geoff Lealand https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235494#post235494 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235494#post235494 Sun, 06 Nov 2011 13:28:08 +1300 Hebe https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235486#post235486 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235486#post235486 Sun, 06 Nov 2011 10:58:48 +1300 Ian Dalziel https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235476#post235476 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235476#post235476 The persistence of memory...
And the Gladstone of course; did you ever see
Toy Love there? And Tony Peake’s rowdy lot?
Oh yeah, before I joined them as a roadie, Toy Love would stay with us when playing Chchch, I remember one Gladstone gig where we helped decorate the stage…

]]> Sun, 06 Nov 2011 09:46:11 +1300 Lucy Stewart https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235474#post235474 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235474#post235474 I’ll be thinking “I hope Lucy has time for a drink”

Also most definitely on the list!

]]> Sun, 06 Nov 2011 02:09:01 +1300 Isabel Hitchings https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235470#post235470 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235470#post235470 I think among Chch people there’s going to be a sharp division between those who remember the city pre-quakes and those who are children now and won’t. The city they grow up in will be so different to our remembered one.

I am quite curious as to what my children…

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 22:26:00 +1300 Hebe https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235469#post235469 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235469#post235469 The GrenadierYes, yes. And the Gladstone of course; did you ever see
Toy Love there? And Tony Peake's rowdy lot?

One of the best things about the earthquakes is that it's permissible to do this nostalgia stuff sometimes without being a silly old sod.

And usually after the Grenadier there…

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 22:23:05 +1300 Lilith __ https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235468#post235468 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235468#post235468 am NOT enjoying all the bloody fireworks outside, Shirley is like a war zone and the cats are flinching at every new salvo…

Opawa too. My cat was attacked by dogs last weekend and the combination of loud thumps and bangs plus every dog in the neighbourhood barking like crazy…

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 22:11:24 +1300 Ian Dalziel https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235467#post235467 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235467#post235467 last orders...
and that pub in Oxford Terrace where the med students drank..
The Grenadier, (next to the Artists Quarter/Victorian) I think the Med Students (Doctor material and lawyers) drank in the Bearskin Room, I'd gravitate to the public bar, out the back, with the pooltables or the other big…

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 22:06:03 +1300 Ian Dalziel https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235466#post235466 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235466#post235466 reel life...
you, me, and Sacha...
...and me too, occasionally – Museum (Bunuel and Len Lye, etc), Clocktower (vivid memories of a neat bacon slicer / plasticine ball animation – mesmerising) and some Cloisters showings – didn't they also have some out at Ilam?
I used to be cowed by…

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 22:00:56 +1300 Hilary Stace https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235465#post235465 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235465#post235465 Sat, 05 Nov 2011 21:55:04 +1300 Hebe https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235464#post235464 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235464#post235464 and everyone, it seemed, came and left on bikesOh that's so evocative. They did, everywhere. Now I feel sad as I suddenly remember blowing out cold 'puffs" of frosty air as we decanted from the Victorian, the Arts Centre, the Dux-when it was a restaurant and had bands in the… ]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 21:54:27 +1300 Lilith __ https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235463#post235463 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235463#post235463 :-) Funny that you, me, and Sacha were all there and didn't know each other at all. I wasn't very outgoing back then so I never hung around to chat.

It's so great having common memories. I think among Chch people there's going to be a sharp division between those…

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 20:59:03 +1300 Jackie Clark https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235462#post235462 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235462#post235462 Sat, 05 Nov 2011 20:38:28 +1300 Geoff Lealand https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235460#post235460 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235460#post235460 Ah, film society screenings--the famous night when the Wellington Film Society screened Louis Malle's "India" with the reels out of order and no one noticed.

Has anyone caught the telemovie "Temple Grandin" screening on the new SoHo channel this weekend? It is very good.

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 19:59:22 +1300 Islander https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235459#post235459 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235459#post235459 But however you feel about a place as an adult, if it’s a place you grew up, or where you made memories, it’s going to be important in your life. And it helps if there are others to build those memories with.

O yes Jackie!
I was very lucky: I…

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 19:53:23 +1300 Hebe https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235458#post235458 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235458#post235458 ...the slow pace, and some moments of boredom, often led me deeper into a strange territory...Christ Stopped at Eboli was my arthouse film epiphany. Never went back.
the old Regent Theatre which was decorated as mock Spanish townscape it even used to have a faux night sky and everything That…

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 19:43:49 +1300 Jackie Clark https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235457#post235457 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235457#post235457 Sat, 05 Nov 2011 19:37:07 +1300 Rob Stowell https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235456#post235456 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235456#post235456 Sat, 05 Nov 2011 19:29:59 +1300 Isabel Hitchings https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235454#post235454 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235454#post235454 I just don’t have the emotional energy to worry about what people might think about why I’m there.

I'll be thinking "I hope Lucy has time for a drink"

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 19:24:26 +1300 Lilith __ https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235453#post235453 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235453#post235453 Magic.

It was never quite as fun after they moved to Cloisters. Although it certainly was more comfortable. :-)

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 18:56:14 +1300 Joe Wylie https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235437#post235437 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235437#post235437 So the illusion of life flickers on in Chchch,
we ain’t popped our sprockets yet…
...thanks to the persistence of vision?

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 15:17:58 +1300 Sacha https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235435#post235435 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235435#post235435 ]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 15:03:48 +1300 Sacha https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235434#post235434 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235434#post235434 One of my most treasured movie-going memories is of when the Film Society was in the Clock Tower of the Arts Centre. Climbing the twisty stairs to the top and sitting on our tiny rickety seats.

Same. Magic.
And intermission.

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 15:03:09 +1300 Lilith __ https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235433#post235433 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235433#post235433 the old Regent Theatre which was decorated as mock Spanish townscape it even used to have a faux night sky and everything

I’m pretty sure I remember that from the 1980s, so perhaps it was restored after the fire?

One of my most treasured movie-going memories is of when the…

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 14:40:32 +1300 Geoff Lealand https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235429#post235429 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235429#post235429 Thanks, Ian, for such fullsome information. Are the Kaiapoi and Rangiora cinemas still open?

Oh, the dome gone! That hurts.

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 14:14:03 +1300 Lucy Stewart https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235427#post235427 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235427#post235427 The $2 fried rice at Dumplings was *still* $2 in February. They’ve opened a new store now – I think it’s in Riccarton? Anyway, they missed their regulars so were pleased to be open again.

The Riccarton store was open in August 2010. I know because I made sure to…

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 13:53:25 +1300 Ian Dalziel https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235426#post235426 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235426#post235426 Just found another nice piece on the Regent at Lost Christchurch site.
Sadly I can't find any interior shots of the cinema itself – some one must have some, here's hoping...

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 13:45:28 +1300 Ian Dalziel https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235425#post235425 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235425#post235425 Flicking heck...
...a list of what cinemas are still operating in Canterbury
You'll have to hurry, they are falling like flies...
Movieland in Hornby is closing soon (Nov 18).
Academy and The Cloisters will be out as long as the Arts Centre – and who knows how long that will…

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 13:28:51 +1300 Jane Pearson https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235421#post235421 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235421#post235421 Sat, 05 Nov 2011 12:58:42 +1300 Sacha https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235420#post235420 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235420#post235420 Sat, 05 Nov 2011 12:58:01 +1300 Geoff Lealand https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235418#post235418 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235418#post235418 Loved the paper rose ceiling! It seems to serve its patrons very well and demonstrates that retail developments don't have to be ghastly (like the Te Awa/Hoyts abomination at Te Rapa).
Met some great, enthusiastic movie-lovers up north, such as the group who are raising funds to construct a cinema…

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 12:55:33 +1300 Sacha https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235417#post235417 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235417#post235417 Sat, 05 Nov 2011 12:44:57 +1300 Geoff Lealand https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235416#post235416 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235416#post235416 Sat, 05 Nov 2011 12:40:45 +1300 Gee https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235411#post235411 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235411#post235411 Sat, 05 Nov 2011 10:12:17 +1300 Megan Wegan https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235409#post235409 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235409#post235409 For those who can't go on the tour, CERA has uploaded a video of it. There's also an MP3 of the commentary (from Warwick Isaacs) for people going on the bus who want to listen to it.

I should point out, I managed to make it through to Colombo St…

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 09:49:33 +1300 Lilith __ https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235408#post235408 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235408#post235408 Sat, 05 Nov 2011 09:43:09 +1300 Robyn Gallagher https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235405#post235405 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235405#post235405 I don’t want to come down and be all “earthquake tourist”, and end up making it worse for you guys.

I'm going to Christchurch in early December for a few days, and I guess I'm going as an earthquake tourist. Or rather, it feels like I'm visiting a friend in…

]]> Sat, 05 Nov 2011 01:18:58 +1300 Islander https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235350#post235350 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235350#post235350 I loved the Savoy! Knew it before its second-makeover (I went to the Coast in 1970)
and still retain good memories of how it was...went back to it in the mid-1980s (I had a half-year writing fellowship at Canterbury) and was a bit horrified by what it had become.

I…

]]> Fri, 04 Nov 2011 16:30:40 +1300 Sacha https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235348#post235348 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235348#post235348 Everybodys Theatre

that's the shop. cool.

]]> Fri, 04 Nov 2011 16:14:31 +1300 Emma Hart https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235345#post235345 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235345#post235345 A handy historical (and chronological) list of Chchch cinemas

Cheers, Ian.

My favourite memories are of the Westend, but architecturally the one I miss the most is The Savoy. It was so ridiculously beautiful. (North-east corner, by Warners and the Press building.) Had it been preserved, we could have had…

]]> Fri, 04 Nov 2011 16:11:13 +1300 Ian Dalziel https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235344#post235344 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235344#post235344 Houses of illusion…
When I arrived in Christchurch, the square was basically completely surrounded by movie theatres.
A handy historical (and chronological) list of Chchch cinemas
so you’ll find the Westend under Everybodys Theatre
roll dem jaffas n snifters and sniff back the tears…

(h/t to Canterbury Film Society )

]]> Fri, 04 Nov 2011 16:01:42 +1300 Emma Hart https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235321#post235321 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235321#post235321 Fri, 04 Nov 2011 14:18:13 +1300 Sacha https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235319#post235319 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235319#post235319 Fri, 04 Nov 2011 14:16:48 +1300 Emma Hart https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235318#post235318 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235318#post235318 Fave was little place over the road from Cathedral Square, near Chancery Lane. Probably where that vacant lot is on Google Maps..

In the Westend cinema building. That was a pre-earthquake demolition

]]> Fri, 04 Nov 2011 14:12:56 +1300 Sacha https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235314#post235314 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235314#post235314 the memory of eating souvlaki

one of the things I loved about Christchurch, which Auckland doesn't have. Fave was little place over the road from Cathedral Square, near Chancery Lane. Probably where that vacant lot is on Google Maps..

]]> Fri, 04 Nov 2011 14:03:49 +1300 Russell Brown https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235312#post235312 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235312#post235312 That people want to reclaim the city.

For sure. I was struck when we visited last week by how important the agency of people is, especially when the official wheels seem to grind so slow.

]]> Fri, 04 Nov 2011 14:02:53 +1300 Emma Hart https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235311#post235311 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235311#post235311 And I was not arguing!

It's true. We were exploring our options in a constructive manner.

So. Fork and Brewer. Not at all chosen on any kind of "how far can I walk back to my hotel drunk and wearing heels" calculus. Next Thursday. From five. Come and help me…

]]> Fri, 04 Nov 2011 14:02:48 +1300 Megan Wegan https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235308#post235308 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235308#post235308 When I worked at Ballantynes, the Chinese place in that food court sold fried rice for $2. Still the best hangover breakfast.

And I was not arguing!

]]> Fri, 04 Nov 2011 13:56:10 +1300 Emma Hart https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235300#post235300 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235300#post235300 More because it feels so hard and I don’t want to come down and be all “earthquake tourist”, and end up making it worse for you guys.

One thing that struck me as really odd yesterday: there were actual tourists all over the place. Dutch/German (they all sound the same…

]]> Fri, 04 Nov 2011 13:45:19 +1300 Sacha https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235285#post235285 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235285#post235285 Fri, 04 Nov 2011 13:04:38 +1300 Megan Wegan https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235271#post235271 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235271#post235271 I wish I had something to say, besides *hugs*.

But I don’t. I have been avoiding chch, not because I don’t want to see y’all, nor particularly cos I am scared or dreading it. More because it feels so hard and I don’t want to come down and be all…

]]> Fri, 04 Nov 2011 12:21:45 +1300 Lucy Stewart https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235265#post235265 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235265#post235265 normal, in Christchurch, but shifting towards the future, if you will, changing in ways that are not entirely dictated by the exigencies of the earthquake and its aftermath. That people want to reclaim the city. Whatever… ]]> Fri, 04 Nov 2011 12:07:26 +1300 Isabel Hitchings https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235260#post235260 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235260#post235260 Fri, 04 Nov 2011 11:57:02 +1300 Public Address https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235259#post235259 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/up-front-absence-in-the-arcades/?p=235259#post235259 Discussion from blog post.

]]> Fri, 04 Nov 2011 11:57:02 +1300