Day OneHundredAndNineteen of being Aflickionless...

So thread.co.nz wrote this article about Style Pasifika and it was a tad wrong...

"MAC did an outstanding job of painting men and women alike in a wide array of “attire” in a multitude of colours and designs"...WTF? MAC? So Maz wrote an email to the editor (ie. how she felt ripped off seeing somebody else get credit for her hard work, and things like "your writing about the fashion industry you should know your A's from your B's; after all it would be terrible if you got a designers name wrong and mislead the public").
Anywho because of Maz's wee email the article has been fixed and they have asked her to write a piece about her effots as a make-up artist or about my piece and what I went through for this year's Style Pasifika.

Maz & Russell moved a few boxes to the new house today, Maz had stacked about 3 or 4 boxes before she noticed something sitting on the bench. To her surprise the something sitting on the bench was a box of chocolates, a bottle of white wine & a note that basicially read "Welcome to your home. Hope you have a happy & long stay" from the landlady. How awesome is that?!?!

Ginger Minx was on the board for last night, since Maz forgot her paints & stuff after painting yesterday. It was also the last chance to try the menu as you currently know it. Today is the Spring Party and it also means that Ginger Minx is launching some new drinks. YAY!

SJ on the other hand was at the Ed Hardy VIP Party looking at hot guys...hmmm...lucky girl!

Bidders have ramped up the auction for a home-made, interisland amphibious van to $6200 overnight. Yesterday the Trade Me auction had reached $5000, with 118 bids but during the past 24 hours another 19 bids pushed the price up another $1200. The matt black DIY boatvan, called Roofliss by its builders Adam Turnbull and Dan Melling, crossed Cook Strait on Sunday. It took 10 hours for the 65km journey from Waikawa Bay Marina to Mana Marina. The pair of aeronautical engineers, both 23, dreamed up the interisland voyage to keep busy and out of Blenheim's bars. They completed the conversion of the Toyota Townace for about $2000. Their auction description attested to the power of the "only van you can't get done DIC in". The van could end up alongside other great New Zealand sea-faring vessels in the New Zealand National Maritime Museum in Auckland. Museum chief executive Paul Evans said the museum, which also housed NZL32, Black Magic, which won the 1995 Americas Cup, was interested in adding the van to its collection. "It's something we think is very unique and it's something that the public of New Zealand will be interested in learning more about," Mr Evans said.

MOTAT’s historical Pumphouse, Beam Engine and Engineer’s Cottage have had a stunning success, scooping a 2009 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Award of Merit for the Culture Heritage Conservation programme. The Waterworks buildings and Engineer’s Cottage are the only New Zealand buildings to have received the Award of Merit, announced at UNESCO Bangkok. The awards recognise the achievement of individuals and organizations within the private sector, and the public-private initiatives, in successfully restoring structures of heritage value in their region. MOTAT received the prestigious award for its part in meticulously restoring the Waterworks buildings and Engineer’s Cottage, and therefore revitalising an important part of the city’s past, and capturing the memory of the community.

SIDESWIPPING IT...
This ad in the Whangamata paper appealed to Jo: "Free to good home, two mature sheep. Prefer vegan or vegetarian family."

In Britain, Simon Simpkins complained about the packaging of a German lolly called Haribo Maoam, which he said looked sexual. "The lemon and lime are locked in what appears to be a carnal encounter. The lime, whom I assume to be the gentleman in this coupling, has a particularly lurid expression on his face," he told the Daily Mail.

Surviving examples of Queen Victoria's underwear, including a pair of bloomers with a 50-inch waist, have been designated as important parts of Britain's hertiage. The garments have been given heritage status by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council - an award exclusively given to items of both national and international significance. The bloomers are stored at Kensington Palace in West London and form part of the Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection, which is made up of 12,000 items that were once worn by royalty and courtiers who lived any time from the 17th century until the present day. (Source: telegraph.co.uk)

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
N/A however the day was cloudy, bit windy with a few showers

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
After being the same for almost 6months, the Ginger Minx drinks menu is changing...

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Thread.co.nz fucked up an article about Style Pasifika FAIL! It's been fixed now, thanks to Maz...WIN!

Day OneHundredAndEightteen of being Aflickionless...

Maz went to Ginger Minx to do some painting. Your going to see it all when you get back. It's Spring so Minx is changing it up a bit, they also have the spring party on Friday night.

Maz & Russell got the keys for the new place today, EXCITING!!! Now they can start to move their SHART! So guess what they will be doing for the rest of the week.

Hope you can make it on Saturday night for the Welcome Back party...would be a bit pointless if you weren't there, it would just be people getting pissed for the sake of getting pissed...come on give us a reason!

SJ is currently a bit damaged, but who knows why. Is it fractured or not?!?! The lucky girl is also off to the Ed Hardy VIP Party!!!

Hopefully we make it to the final blog, I'm sure we will find away. But with the whole moving thing, it may be a hit and miss, as to if we get them all done. Wish us luck!

LOUD SHIRT DAY is on Friday 18th September. Just thought we would give you a heads up, so you can pull out those bright shirts of yours.

When Albie the cat didn't come home for his tea, his owners Andrew and Lyn Beale assumed the two-year-old tabby was busy exploring. They had no idea Albie was recovering from a brush with death and a 20-odd kilometre ride wedged into the front of Gail Tomlinson's car. Ms Tomlinson was driving past the Beale's Ormiston Rd, Manukau, property on August 20 when she felt she might have hit a cat. But seeing no evidence, she continued on to work at Auckland Airport, a 20-minute trip driving at speeds of up to 90km/h. When she arrived, she heard a "meowing" from the front of her Holden Commodore. A quick check revealed Albie tucked up in "a perfect little cubby hole" in the chassis of the vehicle, behind the number plate. Afraid to move him herself, a distraught Ms Tomlinson got a workmate to drive her car - "carefully" - about 2km to the Mangere SPCA, where a vet extricated Albie. X-rays revealed he had a broken back leg."I was devastated. I was just beside myself," said Ms Tomlinson. Fortunately for the Beales - who distributed flyers in the hope of finding Albie - the SPCA kept the cat in the hope his owner would turn up. Word eventually reached the Beales that a cat matching Albie's description was being held at the SPCA, on painkillers for his injuries. Albie subsequently had surgery, running up a final bill of about $2000. Now he is up and about, recovering at home. He is able to put weight on his back leg, which has two pins in it, and should suffer no long-term consequences. Vet Craig Hunger said Albie should be fine, as long as the Beales keep up his physiotherapy. "To be stuck in a grill and not fall off is a very lucky thing ... there's a good chance they could have had a dead cat." Mr Beale said that when Albie turned up on their doorstep about five months ago, they named him LB, short for Lost Boy, which morphed over time into Albie. "I think now it might be Lucky Bugger."

Fleetwood Mac have added a second concert to their visit to New Plymouth in December after the first one sold out in minutes. Having played a 55-date, sold-out tour in North America, the band had committed to a single New Zealand show on December 19 at the Bowl of Brooklands. Promoter Andrew McManus Presents said demand for tickets at the 18,000 seat venue was overwhelming and the second show had been scheduled for the following night.

A judge has jailed a Northland man who kicked his partner and baby after an argument, saying society has had enough of such abuse. Michael Luke, from Whangarei, was sentenced in Whangarei District Court to 12 months imprisonment after attacking his partner at his home on July 9, the Northern Advocate reported. (Well I thought that was going to be more interesting, especially since the headline was "Man who kicked partner, baby jailed".)

A complaint will be made to the Independent Police Conduct Authority after a Wellington student allegedly had his neck broken by a police baton as a party was shut down. Police were called to a Khandallah party last Friday after gatecrashers began fighting outside, Fairfax Media reported. Although the gatecrashers fled when police arrived, 18 officers entered the house and used batons to drive the remaining 40 guests from the house, the partygoers claimed. Jakob Christie, 19, said the end of a police baton was jabbed into his neck, causing a vertebrae to break. He woke on Saturday unable to move his head and X-rays showed a lower neck vertebrae had broken.

Just a third of students going into secondary school are numerate, says a maths lecturer from the University of Auckland. And because secondary schools focus on algebra, trigonometry, geometry and statistics rather than basic number problems, they may never get a chance to learn the essentials - in fact, numeracy can worsen. (Yes, we are a nation of STUPID RETARDS!)

The demise of fuel storage at the Tank Farm means cruise ships and large cargo vessels in Auckland will be refuelled directly from a new tanker, the Awanuia. The 80m vessel can hold the equivalent of 25,000 barrels of fuel which it will ship directly from the Marsden Point oil refinery. It will replace a smaller barge which used to take on fuel at Wynyard Quarter and then supply visiting ships. The Awanuia was built in Turkey for around $20 million for Seafuels, a joint-venture company involving Ports of Auckland and Pacific Basin Shipping and is under charter to Shell.

The future of a subdivision intended to save tribal land from being mortgaged off is hanging in the balance. The Maori Land Court appointed interim administrator Kevin Gillespie eight years ago to control the affairs of Matauri X, a land incorporation which had amassed a $2.5 million debt after a water bottling deal went bust. But debt levels have risen to $16 million because of a refinancing deal with Strategic Finance to complete a two-stage, 139-section subdivision. A critical point for Maori landowners was that the sections were not freehold, instead they were subject to 52-year lease terms. But of the 81 sections, which have been on the market for 18 months, only eight of 25 sales had been settled, with many buyers trying to back out of their deals because of the economic climate, Mr Gillespie said. No houses have been built yet.

NEW STYLE PASIFIKA PHOTOS

SIDESWIPPING IT...
Margaret Wong of Epsom writes: "I was walking around One Tree Hill when I spotted a lone paddock of black sheep and lambs. The white sheep and lambs were gambolling freely all over the rest of the park. It was all a bit District 9 ... No doubt someone will be able to enlighten us." (you know the South African's are going woohoo)

Two girls lost in a stormwater drain in Adelaide updated their Facebook status via their mobile phone rather than ringing emergency services. A Fire Service spokesman said the 10- and 12-year-old girls were lucky another young friend was online and was able to call for help for them. Walking through drains is known as "urban caving", is popular in many major cities, despite the danger of flash floods.

A reader writes: "In 2001, my wife went for a precautionary mammogram because of a 4mm lump. We never heard any more about it but were delighted to receive the x-rays today (eight years later) with a letter to say that there is nothing to worry about. Except maybe the Health Service?" (SJ...SEE...YOU AREN'T THE ONLY ONE!!!)

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 17°C
Min: 10°C (overnight)
Humidity: 83%
Cloud increasing. Northeast breeze. (Translation: Nice sunny day, YES sun again, but its about to all turn to shite)

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
"What is & isn't photography over mai tai's Yay" - check it out FB

AND the morpork still doesn't have Swine Flu...bwahahahaha!

DAILY FOF MOMENT
People not knowing if SJ's foot is really fratured or not. X-ray people say "yes, fractured" 'experts' say "Nope...nothing wrong" FAIL!

Day OneHundredAndSeventeen of being Aflickionless...

Maz did some painting at the Ginger Minx with the assistance of Russell. SJ drove past & saw everybody behind the lock down, but it was too late by time she realised and she was on her way back to work. Otherwise she would of popped in to say "Hi".

Blog has to be really short today, since this is a catch up one (stupid internet going on the blink *grumble* *grumble*)

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
N/A because the internet CRAPPED ITSELF!!! BUT it was sunny ALL DAY! WOOT!

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
It hit midnight and the internet died!

DAILY FOF MOMENT
The internet dying at about midnight, more than likely some server thing...FAIL!

Day OneHundredAndSixteen of being Aflickionless...

Have to say that things were a bit of a non-event today.

Maz watched 300 and Perfume: The Story of a Murderer. Other than that just going over idea for Wellington in her head and trying to find some music that will inspire her for the theme and possibly be something that she will use.
Maz is meant to be working tomorrow, but still hasn't heard anything about a call time. How annoying.

One thing that didn't happen today...well one thing that we found out is that your not back till Saturday now, which means that the whole 119 days thing, no longer applies...I think we might make it 119 days + 1...hahaha! No matter which way, CAN'T WAIT for your return!!!

Before we get into the news for the day, guess who was in the news on Sunday???
"...University of Auckland business student Sarah-Jayne Chamberlain, 23, had her fourth endometriosis operation at the Greenlane hospital in January. Several weeks afterwards she says a MercyAscot nurse called her saying "there had been cases of bugs within the hospital and that I needed to go and get my bloods done". She was found to have an infection and prescribed antibiotics, but an examination showed her wounds were clean. "I think it would be good if they were open about it," she said. "It's not fair that people think the public system is crap ... when in fact the private hospitals are having the same issues."..." Read the full article here. Now on to the news...

More than a thousand Auckland bus workers who face being locked out in a row over 10 cents an hour say they will report for work as usual on Wednesday morning. Infratil-owned NZ Bus has told the workers, including 875 drivers, that they will be barred from 4am on Wednesday - a move likely to plunge Auckland's public transport system into chaos. The lock-out will affect staff at the Metrolink, Go West, Waka Pacific, North Star, Link and city circuit bus services.

A Whangarei man is appearing in court today facing charges of sexual grooming and one charge of unlawful sexual connection with a minor after throwing a paper dart at school girls. The charges come after Whangarei police were alerted to a man who had thrown a paper plane out his car window at high school girls two weeks ago. The paper plane had a cellphone number on it. The girls sent a text message to the number asking the dart thrower to leave them alone. A 45-year-old man was arrested on Friday night, and appeared in Whangarei District Court on Saturday. He was remanded in custody to reappear again today. Police have asked anyone with information about other similar incidents is call them.

McDonald's might have made it to Gore but high school students will have to wait until outside of school hours for a feed - unless they a have a pass. The Southland Times reported that the town's two secondary schools - Gore High School and St Peters College - had asked that pupils in uniform not be served during school hours. Franchisee Simon Rhind said he and partner Cherie Edwards had previously have a McDonald's in Matamata and ran a similar policy, at the request of schools. Pupils soon got the message and he believed that would happen in Gore.

A harbour bridge designed to ease congestion was packed end to end at its opening yesterday as more than 15,000 locals marked its completion with a bridge walk. Tauranga and Mt Maunganui residents took advantage of spring sunshine to cross the second harbour bridge, which was opened for foot traffic for the day by the Transport Agency. A temporary on-ramp was to be installed overnight, allowing drivers to begin using the bridge this morning.

Unruly late-night scenes at downtown Auckland taxi stands have sparked plans for a permit scheme to restore some semblance of order before the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Auckland City's transport committee has endorsed in principle - subject to consulting the taxi industry - a regime designed to exert peer pressure on rogue drivers. "We have an important time ahead of us in terms of demonstrating what kind of city we are," parking services acting group manager Rick Bidgood told the committee. The scheme, backed by a parking advisory board including transport industry representatives, will target inner-city trouble spots before possibly being rolled out to areas such as Ponsonby Rd and Eden Park. Violations by individual drivers such as double-parking at council-owned stands will bring down demerit points on their companies or cooperatives, which will have permits suspended if they accrue too many black marks. That means all of their drivers will be banned from using the stands until their permits are restored, a system which has been pioneered at Auckland Airport.

Brave children have been dared. New Zealand's largest - and arguably scariest-looking - insect is taking up residence in the Auckland Airport precinct. The giant wetapunga normally lives and breeds only on Little Barrier Island. However, 16 of the endangered creatures have been moved to Butterfly Creek in Mangere as part of a captive breeding programme. The spiny insects will be on display to visitors with tarantulas, giant centipedes, mantids, native and introduced cockroaches and other creepy-crawlies.

MAZ'S KITTY...

You thought it was the jackpot edition when you read "Kitty" huh? Hahaha...no! Just some photos that Maz took of Florida this afternoon.

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 16°C
Min: 4°C (overnight)
Humidity: 99%
Fine. Light winds. (Translation: It was another nice day...OMG! Thursday & Friday looks like rain though)

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
Maz is meant to have work tomorrow and doesn't have a call time yet...hmmmm

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Your not back till Saturday now...FAIL!

Day OneHundredAndFourteen of being Aflickionless...

Well where to start. After all the disco balls, hot glue and feathers Style Pasifika finally arrived yesterday.

This year Maz had both Russell & SJ helpping her out, and of course as you know JayJay was the model. Maz was overly calm throughout the whole day, so she isn't sure if it was a good day or not. She spent a total of 11hours painting, it took about 7 layers of blue to create the final blue tone of the piece and 3 different glitters.

Maz never placed, which was disappointing, although she recieved a lot of comments about the tail and the head piece she made. Maz believes that the piece that got second should of won, rather than the one that did. But that's how competitions go.

Corey stopped in after work and took photos of the piece, Maz is glad she could get some photos taken of the piece, although she hasn't seen them yet.

At the after party JayJay & Maz were photographed by Express and also met a person from Pasific Blue (they were a sponsor) and could possibly have some work for them at some point doing body art.

STYLE PASIFIKA 2009 PHOTOS

First & Second place


JayJay's buns

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
N/A

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
How calm Maz was yesterday during Style Pasifika...it was scary.

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Second place in the body art section of Style Pasifika should of recieved first place...FAIL!

Day OneHundredAndNine of being Aflickionless...

Maz & Russell went and signed the papers for their new place today. And thought while they were at it they might as well also visit Russell's mum.

"10 more days till Haydn gets back, 10 more days till he returns, wake up one day and fuck around, 9 days till Haydn gets back"

Wanganui District Council banned gang patches from the city at its council meeting today. The bylaw, which comes into force on tomorrow, will give police powers to fine patchwearers $2000 and to take their gang insignia from them. "This bylaw is intended to deal with.... gangs, but will not affect clubs and groups who are law-abiding and non-confrontational generally," a report on the gang bylaw submissions hearing, tabled at today's meeting by senior councillor Randhir Dahya, said. (bylaw goes into effect at midnight)

An Auckland man is taking on soft drink giant Coca-Cola Amatil after he was struck in the eye by an exploding fruit juice bottle. Chinese immi grant Ming Fu Hu, who runs a drink bar in Northcote, was injured in the eye by an exploding bottle of Keri orange juice, which had fermented, on May 21. Mr Hu told NZPA still could not see very well and would probably not recover his full vision. The injury had cost him about $5000 and the Accident Compensation Corporation had only covered part of the cost of treatment. Coca-Cola confirmed to him the 2.4 litre bottle of Keri juice was fermented. As a gesture of goodwill it offered him a case of Keri orange juice and grocery vouchers to the value of $200.

Police cordoned off part of Swanson St in central Auckland this afternoon due to fears that a window could fall. A police spokesman said the window had come loose and could have come down "like a piece of paper". The loose window was on the eleventh floor. The building is on the corner of Swanson and Mills Lane and the road has now re-opened.

The Hospitality Association says two controversial pub promotions are pushing the boundaries. A bar in Whangarei is offering a refillable cup for only ten dollars while a Hamilton establishment has all you can drink for only $39. Association spokesman Bruce Robertson is confident the relevant agencies will be making sure there are terms and conditions which keep the promotions within the law. Mr Robertson says such conditions could be a limit on how many drinks people can have per hour and cheap meal deals.

Thousands of small children - many clutching tiny bouquets, cuddly toys and glittery cards - filed into the Auckland Zoo to say goodbye to their biggest friend, Kashin the elephant. About 17,000 people - most of them children - were at the zoo yesterday to pay their final respects to Kashin, who died last week. Colourful drawings, fruit, cards and tiny flowers tied with string adorned Kashin's grave, as children and their parents gathered to say goodbye. Youngsters were invited to write messages on a day all about Kashin - with large elephant bouncy castles, elephant face painting and a special video and photo display of Kashin.

SIDESWIPPING IT...
According to Anthony Smith, the electronic sign outside Takapuna Normal Intermediate School in Northcote Rd has this message displayed: "Teahcers only day 24 August."

For more than 200 years, when anyone in Marlborough, Wiltshire, fell ill it was easy to know whom to turn to: Dr Maurice. Members of the Maurice family have served at the local medical practice since 1792. But after six generations of Dr Maurices, the last of the line, Dr David Maurice, 59, is preparing to retire. His son, James, has just qualified in the profession but is planning to spend his career as a hospital doctor.

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 16°C
Min: 9°C (overnight)
Humidity: 78%
Fine spells, chance of a shower. Westerlies easing. (Translation: sun...showers...average day really)

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
Is it just us, or do those motorway lights encourage drag racing?

DAILY FOF MOMENT
SJ went past a police car that had pulled over a van. The van had "Catch me if you can" written on it. FAIL!

Day OneHundredAndSix of being Aflickionless...

JayJay has a custom pair of bunny ear. If they are custom then that must mean they are JadedSphnix, and you would be right in thinking that. They have been made for Chemistry. So photos of them will go up tomorrow night. Maz is also going to make custom bunny ears & other animal ears to go with all the other custom stuff.

This afternoon Maz & Russell had to go look at a place on Rosebank Road, was nice but right at the intersection by Avondale Racetrack, so heaps of road noise. STINK! After that it was time to go to the first Style Pasifika rehearsal...one week to go. JayJay is lined up to be 4th on stage on the night. Exciting! oOo and one of the artists in the competition is one of Maz's former tutors.
After the Style Pasifika run through it was off to Ginger Minx for A drink...but hmmmm it turned into two for Maz. SJ also popped in to Minx, but missed Maz by that much...which isn't much. She walked in, as Maz, Russell & JayJay drove off. Very quite night at Minx...well it was at about 8.30pm.

A large earthquake in Wellington early this morning shook locals out of bed but there were no immediate reports of damage. The tremor, measuring 5.2 in magnitude, hit at 2.10am, GNS Science reported. It was centred 20km south of Wellington and was 30km deep. It was followed by a 4.3 aftershock at 3.52am.

Health authorities have lifted their warning on people going to beaches in the Hauraki Gulf. The Auckland Regional Public Health Service (ARPHS) lifted the warning today but recommended people take extra care. The warning was put in place last month after marine life and dogs were found dead at Narrowneck and Cheltenham beaches. Approximately 15 dogs from a wide geographic area within the Hauraki Gulf became unwell with symptoms consistent with tetrodotoxin (ttx) poisoning. Five of the dogs died.

QUESTION OF THE DAY...
Diagnostic Medlab has hired a film crew to interview patients emerging from the rooms of its rival, Labtests, and has threatened to release the footage if it finds undisclosed problems. A public health chief last night slammed the move as "desperate". Is switching from Diagnostic Medlab to Labtests Auckland a good idea?

SIDESWIPPING IT...
The Vegetarian Star reports that executive producer for The Simpsons, David Mirkin, says Paul McCartney agreed to appear on the cartoon only with certain conditions. "When I asked him to do the vegetarian episode, he agreed but made me promise to keep Lisa as a vegetarian - and I was happy to comply with that because I'm a vegetarian too. Every time I see him, he always checks - and he's always surrounded by nine or 10 lawyers, so it's quite frightening!

Sharon writes: "A colleague came into work a couple of weeks ago as mad as hell. She and her 16-year-old had a heated discussion on the way to dropping daughter off at school. Mother angrily declared 'you're grounded!' Daughter's comeback was great. 'You can't ground me! I've got a ranch slider and a bus pass!' ... daughter 1, mum 0."

TRAILER, TRAILER, TRAILER...
Interesting fact. All movies that come out have a website, pure and simple a .com, but Wolfman also has a .co.nz...how cool is that?



AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 18°C
Min: 9°C (overnight)
Humidity: 89%
Fine, a few cloudy periods. Northwest winds. (Translation: Fairly nice day...bit chilly this evening though)

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
Style Pasifika is only a week away now...

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Dave was about to walk out the door to dj at Degree and realised that Gabbie's g-string was hanging out of the back of his shoe. FAIL! Haha Imagine if he got all the way to Degree and didn't notice.

Day OneHundredAndFive of being Aflickionless...

Maz forgot about the guy that SJ saw last night standing on K Road. No, she wasn't looking for a good time, rolling the streets of dirty old K'Road. He caught her attention because he stood holding a sign that read: "New Escourts. 021 creamit" or something along those lines, but that was def the number. What a dodgy number!

So your in LA now, gearing up for burning man...well okay not quite there, your flying around up in the sky somewhere...I think.
Speaking of Burning Man, here is something of interest that I found while jumping around the web.
"As I prepare for my seventh trip to Burning Man this weekend, I came across a fascinating discussion about restrictions on the use of photography from the event. Electronic Freedom Foundation fired the first shot, criticizing Burning Man for controlling the use of images from the event, and BM’s Andie Grace responded with a long defense of their reasons for doing so, and lively discussions ensued on other blogs. " - Pixel Vision

You might want to have a look into it, since you are Mr Photographer :)

Prime Minister John Key is going to sell New Zealand to the worldwide tourism market when he appears on a top US television show next month. Mr Key is booked for the Late Show with David Letterman while he is in New York to speak at the United Nations.

Outrageous Fortune star Tammy Davis, who plays Munter in the New Zealand TV comedy, has been found guilty of drink driving. Davis, who plays Munter on the hit TV show, was found to have been driving at nearly twice the legal limit in March this year. He was caught at the Newton on-ramp going onto the Northwestern Motorway. At a defended hearing at the Auckland District Court, Judge Hole said Davis had tried to defend the charge when he had no defence for it. Davis's reading was 798 micrograms of alcohol per litre of breath. The legal limit is 400. He's been suspended from driving for a year and given a $1600 fine.

A tense hostage situation involving convicted murderer George Charlie Baker continues to play out at Auckland Prison at Paremoremo this evening. Corrections have confirmed Baker, who is serving at least 18 years for murder, has a hostage, thought to be an 83-year-old sex offender. Baker is serving time for the murder of Liam Ashley, whom he bashed to death in the back of a Chubb prison van in 2006.

A Hollywood superstar has spent 24 hours in the country. Tom Cruise flew into New Zealand yesterday and flew out today. Newstalk ZB reported the actor was met at Wellington Airport by filmmaker Peter Jackson. Wingnut Films spokesman Matt Dravitski said Cruise knew Jackson and wanted to visit his studios. Mr Dravitski said Cruise was not discussing any future projects with Jackson. Wellingtonians reported seeing the Hollywood superstar arriving in Wellington and some say they saw him by the Weta Workshop studios in Miramar. Jackson is producing The Dam Busters and The Hobbit. Clothing retailer Cotton On has withdrawn a line of controversial baby clothes after public outcry, several protest groups say. The Cotton On T-shirts and suits, which featured slogans including "The condom broke" and "They shake me", went on sale in New Zealand last month. Last week, the T-shirts were removed from Australian shelves and the company said it "recognised that certain references are not appropriate, and will sincerely endeavour to not cross these lines again".

The severe thunderstorms which cut power and demolished property in parts of the North Island will give way to warm, fine weather this weekend. MetService warned of intermittent thundery weather until Saturday and gale-force winds on Sunday. But in between stormy spells it expected clearer conditions. A warm, dry wind from Australia would lift temperatures to nearly 20C in much of the North Island. The vicious storm early yesterday morning cut power to 8500 homes in the Bay of Plenty, as well as breaking windows and damaging property. A bolt of lightning destroyed a concrete wall and steps at a house in Tauranga, throwing debris into the air.

Drivers may be getting the message about cellphones but their attempts at playing it safe are turning Auckland motorways into "a bit of a parking lot". They are adding to safety risks already caused by breakdowns, police warn. The ban on hand-held cellphones in cars, to become law in November, has apparently prompted more motorists to stop to take calls. But police say pulling over on a motorway is dangerous as well as an offence that carries a $150 instant fine, and should not be attempted.

SIDESWIPPING IT...
A reader writes: "A lady working for the Australian branch of our company went to sit on a chair, missed and fell on her tail bone, which was bruised, resulting in a lost-time injury. After investigation, corrective measures were put in place to minimise it happening again. All New Zealand and Aussie employees had chair-sitting instructions and practice added on to their health and safety training."

The picture about was spotted in the Weekend Sun (Tauranga). "I'm not sure how well 'unforseen circumstances' reflects on a clairboyant's skills."

A BIT ARTY FARTY

"Bones" by merzlak - view here


"Burning Man Sunset" by BPinzonPhotography - view here


"Burning Man - Capital Dome" by NVMark - view here


"The Man 08" NVMark - view here

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 16°C
Min: 11°C (overnight)
Humidity: 78%
Cloudy periods, odd shower possible. Strong westerlies. (Translation: Well the lighting & thunder is gone...other than that didn't pay attention.)

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
The way these other projects are popping up so Maz isn't working on her Style Pasifika stuff...

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Dee's car (he got it while we were on Spartacus) is well not good. As you know there were car problems after Body Art Awards and there have been more since. The latest one, is that he has long not only reverse, but also second and fourth. And they have only had the car a few months. Fail!!!

Day OneHundredAndFour of being Aflickionless...

RUSSELL VACCUMED and took the washing to the laundry mat...you didn't pass out did you?

WARNING
THIS IS THE LONGEST BLOG YET!!!

Maz was looking through Tina's entertainment booklet this evening and saw a voucher for salsa classes and below it was ceroc classes. She has wanted to take up a latin dance for a while, and eventually wants to learn the tango. She suggested salsa to Russell, and he pointed out the ceroc classes as he thinks that salsa is a bit too hardcore for his liking. So currently Maz is tossing up which to do, but also realises that she may get peeved with Russell doing these classes (which ever one we decide), because "must be better" and everything is a competition. We will see what happens.

JayJay is attempting a no sugar...well to cut it down...in the lead up to Style Pasifika. It's just over a week away now. AHHH!

Last night Maz decided that since she has been paying for rent & food for the past week, Russell was going to take her to Denny's for dinner tonight and he was going to pay.
Maz told SJ about this brilliant plan and she (SJ) asked if she could join, which Maz thought was a brilliant idea.
So this evening Maz, Russell & SJ went to Denny's North Shore for dinner.

NOW where to start...the funnys started flying as soon as we were all seated. While deciding on what we were going to have, Maz was waiting (she had decided last night) and she flicked to the back of the menu and said to Russell "Hey look on your birthday we can bring you here" and pointed to the menu, followed by "We could bring both you & Haydn here for your birthdays".

Thought you might want a photo so you can start deciding now

It was then decided that we have to take you both into Denny's between Monday & Wednesday because kids eat free and well if you & Russell are seniors than we must be kids...

Free Food FTW...oOo FFFTW...haha

Maz ordered a magarita at Denny's (she couldn't help herself)...and yeah there was a shot in it and yeah it tasted like a magarita, but it didn't look like one. She should know better the only place she should be getting drinks is Ginger Minx.

Does this look like a margarita to you?

Dinner must of been about 2 or more hours long, but it was so worth it. Laughing, talking, poking fun. It was brilliant. We also need to have a funky shoe party, where people have to wear their funkiest (looking not smelling) shoes...we know you have plenty of new shoes to fit this.

Since we didn't know if you would believe it unless you saw the bill. We spent $100 at Denny's tonight between three of us. The bill is all colour key so you can see who got what...hehe (GEEK)

We left Denny's just after 11pm so we can say it was def. a really good night!

Any replacement for Auckland Zoo favourite Kashin will come from established Asian elephant breeding programmes under way in Europe. But a new addition to the zoo's elephant colony - which since Kashin's death on Monday stands at one - is likely to be at least two years away. Zoo director Jonathan Wilcken yesterday said regulations did not allow for the importing of new elephants, and the zoo would have to wait for Biosecurity New Zealand to approve new quarantine standards. He said a female would be the ideal partner for Burma in the short term, with more breeding stock imported in the next four to five years.

The spring storm currently passing over the South Island has the potential to cause another avalanche. MetService has a severe weather warning in place, with heavy rain forecast for the Southern Alps and and severe gales forecast for Canterbury. Most of the South Island's ski fields were closed yesterday due to the strong winds. Mountain Safety Council spokesman Ray Goldring says the heavy rain has the potential to disrupt the mountains as it filters down through the snow.

A man with a samurai sword and ammunition belt who broke into a Christchurch home sparked an armed offenders squad (AOS) callout, before police discovered he was locked out of his house after a fancy dress party. A neighbour called police around 12.45am on Sunday after hearing a window breaking at the suburban Avondale house. When police responded, they saw the sword and belt in a vehicle. They placed a cordon around the property and called the AOS. When the AOS contacted the house's occupants, the man appeared at the door and explained his partner had locked him out of the house, so he had to break a window to get in. On closer inspection, the sword and belt were found to be props, police said.

Eating too much or too little during pregnancy has been linked in an Auckland University paper to the early onset of puberty. Studies at the university's Liggins Institute have shown a mother's diet before conception and during pregnancy and lactation affects her offspring's growth, age of puberty and later reproductive capacity in subtly differing ways. The studies were done in rats, but one of the researchers, Dr Deborah Sloboda, said there were striking parallels with some human studies and observations.

Kiwi actress and True Blood vamp Anna Paquin has a very important message she'd like to share with us all: Despite fevered gum-flapping to the contrary, she's not pregnant; although her uterus thanks us for all the attention.

SIDESWIPPING IT...
A text came through to my phone yesterday offering a deal with Christmas Hamper company Hampsta. Join to get $65 of "free stuff" it said. I rang the 0800 number provided to find the free stuff quickly became a $10 Mad Butcher voucher. The remaining $55 - a $20 joining fee and a $35 "account maintenance fee" - would be paid for you. Voila! $65 worth of free stuff. Er, not really. (Reply with STOP to make them leave you alone)

The 10 most costly wedding singers
1. Rolling Stones (up to $12 million)
2. Sir Elton John (up to $4.8 million)
3. Kylie Minogue (up to $4.8 million)
4. Christina Aguilera (up to $3.6 million)
5. George Michael ($3.1 million million)
6. Amy Winehouse ($2.4 million)
7. Sir Paul McCartney ($2.4 million)
8. Leona Lewis ($2.4 million)
9. Jennifer Lopez ($2.4 million)
10. Barry Manilow (pictured) ($1.8 million)

STUPID PEOPLE ARE FUNNY



SO NOT PC...
What do you call a Tongan dog wagging its tail?

A Happy Meal

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 18°C
Min: 12°C (overnight)
Humidity: 93%
Rain developing, some thunder. Northeasterlies. (Translation: SOME thunder...how about shit loads of sheet lighting & thunder? It was nice during the day though. Sun even!!!)

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
Maz is going to be wearing a bridesmaids dress next year...it may look like the picture below *gasp*

So girly...but HAWT

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Maz & Russell went to Mc Donalds to get a snack this afternoon. Maz got two hamburgers and Russell got one double cheese burger and one standard cheese burger. Normally you get pattie in your cheese burger aye? Somebody really needs to let Mc Donalds Glenfield know aye, cause Russell's cheese burger had the cheese but ummmm something was missing. Oh that's what was missing...THE MEAT PATTIE! Fail!!!

And then this evening while at dinner with Russell & SJ we order dessert. Maz the oreo sundae, Russell the fudge cake and SJ the PIE & CAKE. The guy asked what kind of pie SJ wanted, went off and got it...hmmm something is missing from this plate. WHERE IS THE CAKE? SJ may of ordered Pie & Cake but was only served cake. FAIL!!!
So when paying SJ said about the whole Pie & Cake thing and only getting the pie. And we find out that it means one or the other not both. But did it say Pie OR Cake...NO...it said Pie AND Cake. DOUBLE FAIL!!!

To top it off when leaving Denny's Russell went to push the door (it said push) but it didn't move, so he tried to pull and that didn't work. And SJ walked to the other door, pushed it and walk right out. Bwahahaha MUNTER! That must make today a PHAIL!!!

Day OneHundredAndThree of being Aflickionless...

Maz & Russell went to look at another place today, this time out in Mt Roskil (near May Road). Maz really likes the place, plenty of room for all of the stuff and then some. 1 double bedroom, 2 single bedrooms, 1 living room, 1 dining room, separate toilet and bathroom, good size kitchen, laundry and carport. So tomorrow she is handing in the form for the house. The biggest mission is going to be finding a flatmate, but the rent will be fairly alright for whoever ends up being the flattie (Maz made sure of that when working on the costs).

This evening while getting dinner (Wendy's...Maz & Russell even ate in), Maz clicked that she has also been paying for food over the last week. So while eating dinner she told Russell that she was temped to text facebook status with "Maz Smutley...is going to hold a wee poll. She thinks that Russell should be paying for food considering that she is paying the rent. Who agrees?".
Russell didn't like this very much (Maz was really going to do it too) and after a sigh he said "You'll drag my name through the dirt and make me look bad". To which Maz responded with "You drag my head through the pillows every night and you don't see me complaining". Haha touche as SJ's mum would say. Wonder if he got the point?

Maz needs Skype...wait...Maz needs a mic.

Southbound motorists trying to get into Auckland city were reduced to a crawl after a cement mixer rolled on an inner-city road just before peak-hour traffic this evening. The Golden Bay Cement truck was lodged at the side of Sam Wrigley St in the inner city, just off the Cook St motorway off-ramp. The truck was eventually moved after nearly three hours. The off-ramp, the second exit into the city south of Auckland Harbour Bridge, was closed for over an hour before reopening after 6pm. Inspector Barry Smalley of the police northern communications centre said the truck didn't cause as many problems as might have been anticipated.

The Warehouse is recalling a batch of convection heaters after potential safety concerns were identified. The recall applies to Evantair CH-2000A basic and turbo model convection heaters purchased by customers between January 2005 and December 2007. The two recalled models have the following barcode product descriptions: 9417648400979 Heater Convection Basic 2000W (CH-2000A BAS), and 9417648400962 Heater Convection Turbo 2000W (CH-2000A TUR). The recall follows a customer complaint about a heater which was fire-damaged when left switched on overnight.

The final results of the smacking referendum have been released, showing the "yes" vote was slightly higher and the "no" vote slightly lower than preliminary figures issued on Friday. The "yes" vote was 201,541, or 11.98 per cent of those cast. Preliminary figures were 191,495, or 11.81 per cent of those cast. The "no" vote was 1,470,755, or 87.4 per cent of those cast. Preliminary figures were 1,420,959, or 87.6 per cent of those cast. The total number of valid votes cast was 1,682,717 compared with the preliminary figure of 1,622,150. The number of invalid votes cast was 1685, or 0.1 per cent of the total.

Auction website Trade Me crashed for several hours last night following "significant hardware problems". The website's disaster recovery procedures had to be implemented after "some issues...that affected our database clustering software at one of our data centres", the "tired" Trade Me technical team announced on the site at 12.45am today. The site experienced an outage at 6.55pm which lasted 15 minutes, but was down again between 9.05pm and 11.50pm. All auctions affected by the outage would be extended by 24 hours, the company said.

Shoppers buying sausage meat could have got more than they bargained for - small metal flakes. The discovery has prompted Goulds Fine Foods to recall the 500g tubes of The Valley Sausage Company sausage meat. Goulds said that the sausage meat had been sold in supermarkets in the lower North Island and Wellington region. All stores had been notified and all the remaining product had been destroyed. Goulds said there had been no reports of illness.

Scientists at the police's electronic crime laboratory have created a computerised system to help detectives examine seized computers and other items containing microchips. Other government agencies such as the Customs service are trialling the technology, and the scientists say there has been strong interest from other enforcement agencies around the world.

Drivers trying to squeeze the last kilometre from an empty fuel tank now face the prospect of a hefty fine if they run out of petrol on Auckland's motorways. Acting on a request from the police, the Transport Agency is proposing a bylaw that would make it an offence to run out of fuel anywhere on the 72.7km network. Police want the deterrent because of the number of stranded vehicles blocking lanes and endangering other motorists. During a three-week period in July last year, 148 vehicles - including three trucks - ran out of fuel on Auckland motorways.

And some entertainment news as well today...The price for spending eternity above Marilyn Monroe is more than $4.6 million. That's how much the crypt directly above the actress went for in an online auction that ended on Monday. The eBay.com listing says the space at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery above Monroe is being vacated, making room for someone else. The listing also offers the detail that the current occupant is "looking face down on" Monroe, who was laid to rest at the cemetery in 1962. Bidding for the auction started at $500,000 on August 14. The final bid was $4,602,100.

The Rolling Stones charge £5 million (NZ$12m) to perform at weddings. The ageing rockers – made up of frontman Sir Mick Jagger, guitarist Keith Richards, drummer Charlie Watts and guitarist Ronnie Wood - have been named the world's most expensive wedding act, ahead of Sir Elton John and Kylie Minogue who only demand £2 million to play at nuptials.

Jessica Biel is the most dangerous celebrity on the web. Security technology company McAfee has reported that searches for the 27-year-old actress are more likely to lead to online threats such as spyware and viruses than searches for any other celebrity. McAfee said fans searching for the actress have a one-in-five chance of ending up at a website designed to damage one's computer. Its the third annual report on the subject from McAfee, which last year found that Brad Pitt was the "most dangerous" celeb online. (now everybody say..."mmmmm Jessica Biel")

SIDESWIPPING IT...
A reader realises a valuable life lesson: "I recently signed up with the IRD online to check my student loan balance. Imagine my excitement to see I had an $800 refund due from the year 2000! Then imagine my disappointment to be told I cannot get the money as too much time has passed. Sigh. Life is so unfair."

Rules are made to be broken

QUOTE OF THE DAY
"Don't put your big hunk of meat on my table" - Dee to Hez about putting the dog meat on the outside table

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 17°C
Min: 12°C (overnight)
Humidity: 92%
Rain and fresh northerlies. (Translation: don't you love that word "FRESH"...current wind chill is hmmmm FRESH)

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
What is it with Sports Tonight playing background music during the articles???

DAILY FOF MOMENT
That Maz never noticed that she had been paying for dinner for the pass week, plus she does 100% of the rent. WTF? Fail!!!

Day OneHundredAndTwo of being Aflickionless...

DAY 102

Maz & SJ are feeling neglected now and can't wait for Haydn cuddles!

Last night SJ & Maz decided that they would plan you a party for your return. So you better be here on September 12th for...

Willkommen zurück

Does the image look familiar?

Chemistry is on this weekend. Who's going?
Maz has decided not to go as the Townhall reminds her of Style Pasifika. The first Style Pasifika that Maz entered was held there and seeings as it is only a week away on Friday, she believes she may be a wee stress ball by then. So she will either be at home working OR at Ginger Minx.

Maz can now also update her Facebook status via text. It's taken her long enough, we know, BUT the downside is that Good Old Faithful doesn't have internet access, so there for she can't read the full response when somebody comments.

Auckland Zoo will be closed tomorrow as staff grieve the loss of 40-year-old elephant, Kashin, who died today. The female elephant, who has been at the zoo for 36 years, was euthanased after losing her battle with chronic health conditions. "Zoo staff are devastated, grieving the loss of their incredibly spirited and gentle matriarch," zoo chairman Graeme Mulholland said. "Kashin touched the lives, not just of the zoo family, but thousands of New Zealanders and international visitors who came to know and love her... she will be greatly missed by all." He said the decision to put the elephant down followed years of chronic arthritis and foot abscesses. More recently she had developed skin infections over her body that were not healing. Kashin's death was expected to have an impact on the zoo's remaining elephant - 26-year-old Burma - who would be closely monitored as another elephant was sought. In March, the Auckland City Council approved a succession plan for the zoo, quelling fears that Kashin and Burma would be the last elephants to live there. The zoo plans to build a herd of three males and two females between 2011 and 2015. The zoo will re-open on Wednesday.

Now we normally only cover New Zealand news, but I couldn't pass this up...CAIRNS - Authorities in far north Queensland are outraged after a "sick joke" forced the humiliating rescue of a man who became stuck to the seat of a shopping centre toilet. Police and community leaders have appealed for public help to find the prankster or pranksters responsible for the incident, which resulted in the 58-year-old man being taken to hospital. Ambulance officers were called about 10.30am (AEST) on Saturday to rescue the man after he sat on toilet seat which had been smeared with a fast-acting adhesive. He was forced to undergo the humiliation of leaving the Cairns Central shopping centre with the seat still attached to his behind, in full view of a busy crowd of Saturday morning shoppers. Police say he was then taken to hospital where staff removed the fixture using industrial strength solvents. The man is said to be extremely embarrassed by the ordeal.

A dramatic rise in violent crime committed by young women over the past two months has Wanganui police and social workers concerned. Senior Sergeant Dave Kirby said of the eight people locked up in Wanganui police cells over the past week, seven were teenage girls. Two teen girls wearing balaclavas and scarves over their faces allegedly held a dairy owner at knife-point and stole cash and cigarettes on July 22. A 13-year-old and a 16-year-old were charged over the incident. Four teenage girls allegedly attacked two girls in Queens Park beside the Wanganui Public Library on August 18, stealing their cell phones and other items. Two girls, aged 14 and 15, appeared in Youth Court this week in relation to the incident. Mr Kirby told the Wanganui Chronicle it was sad to see such behaviour by young girls.

Up to 900 Telecom lines engineers are going on strike, coinciding with the company's first redundancies in Auckland and Northland. It also follows a series of strikes and work-bans that have seen at least one broadband supplier advise customers of significant disruption. EPMU spokesman Joe Gallagher says Telecom's contracting model is putting the future of New Zealand's network at risk. He says the dispute is not just about members' employment, but about an industry that has been run-down and squeezed for profit until it is dry. He points out that a lot of our telecommunications infrastructure dates back to the 1930s.

Everyone from schoolchildren to world-acclaimed architects can submit ideas from today to redevelop Queens Wharf for the 2011 Rugby World Cup. The first stage of the competition is aimed at creative and innovative ideas before up to eight teams are chosen to submit detailed designs. The challenge of transforming the historic wharf as a magnet for the cup and beyond has been costed at up to $76 million, $20 million more than the budget set by Auckland City Council. Read More...

SIDESWIPPING IT...
After half-dying from what must have been swine flu, a reader rang a Government-funded health line. "Late at night, no answer. Rang again at 6am, no answer. Same at 7am. At 8am someone picks up ... 15 minutes of her telling me how amazing their treatment plan was going to be once we completed the triage questions ... the second of which was, 'Do you think you are pregnant?' Being male, I didn't think that was too likely. After a further 15 minutes the answer came in ... 'it says, go to the doctor'. "

This smokers' ash receptacle, spotted on a wall in Nuffield St in Newmarket, is either crying out for some punctuation, or is stating that we need smokers on every street corner to make the area beautiful, says Jeremy.

THE WEIRDO OF THE BUNCH

Taken at Toto's on Saturday night

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 16°C
Min: 12°C (overnight)
Humidity: 88%
Mostly cloudy, chance shower. Northeasterlies. (Translation: it was a tad bit nipply tonight)

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
How cold it is today, compared to other days recently...

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Maz emailed about the price of a house this afternoon. Was listed to be $470 per week, but in the description it said $490 per week (natural wtf). So the guy calls and he says that it's $490 per week, not $470.
So Maz was like "okay, that's all I wanted to know". And he presses to ask "why did you want to know?" (he sounded offended that Maz asked about the price thing)...he hung up/got cut off before Maz could say "it was a budget thing". Seriously do retards not realise how much of a different $470 and $490 is when looking for a place to live, especially when said house is across the road from BK at Mt Roskil shops. Fail!!!