Day OneHundredAndFifteen of being Aflickionless...

So the blog has been a bit slack this week with the inpending doom that was Style Pasifika. But now that is over and done with things will be pretty much back to normal, besides the moving part. YES, Maz is moving house this week.
Maz is also deciding if to road trip to Wellington for this years Body Art Rocks competition, interested? It's on Sunday 25th October at Basin Reserve. Let us know! Need to come up with an idea for the theme "Magic & Mystery", can also provide your own music for this one, so thats a bonus.

Today was a pretty non-event day. Last night Maz & Russell went to Ginger Minx after having dinner at a Chinese place on Dominion Road. Suppose rolling in the door at 3.30am had something to do with the whole non-event Sunday thing.

On Friday Ginger Minx has a partay happening. If your not too jetlagged you should come along, let us know if you want to come, we are more than happen to pick you up on our way if you want.

SJ & Maz have been organising Willkommen Zurück (Welcome Back). So let us know if you would like to be picked up for this one as well. Just because your back in the country doesn't mean the hangovers have to stop...haha.

FACEBOOK FUNNY

posted by one of Russell's friends

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 16°C
Min: 4°C (overnight)
Humidity: 79%
Fine. Light winds. (Translation: NO RAIN...YAY!)

Looks like winter is on it's way out!!! Although at the moment they say it is meant to rain on Thursday so don't get your hopes up for returning to good weather.

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
Matt & Tina have moved most of their stuff, so it is just Maz & Russell at the house now

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Your back in 4 days and we don't know what time you get back...FAIL!

Day OneHundredAndTen of being Aflickionless...

First she destroyed disco balls, now she has destroyed a peacock pelt. Yes Maz has been working hard on her Style Pasifika stuff. Only a few more days to go now, two more rehearsals before Friday and then it's time to sparkle and dazzle. SPARKLE & DAZZLE!!!

Jim Bolger is the biggest spender on domestic travel perks available to former prime ministers and governors-general, racking up $36,000 in expenses in 2008. An Official Information Act request from NZPA has revealed that five former prime ministers and four former governors-general had taxpayer funded domestic travel. Former National prime minister Jim Bolger spent $27,191 on chauffeur-driven cars, $5562 on self-driven cars and $3400 on domestic airfares. Mr Bolger has a number of high profile roles including chairing New Zealand Post. Sir Paul Reeves was the most expensive former governor-general with $28,100 in expenses - $22,794 in chauffeur-driven cars and $5306 on domestic flights The second most expensive governor-general was Dame Cath Tizard with $14,083 on chauffeur-driven cars and $2707 on airfares. Sir Michael Hardie Boys spent just $1404 on air travel and $4646 on chauffeur-driven cars. The second highest former prime minister was Sir Geoffrey Palmer with $26,055 made up of $14,187 on chauffeur-driven cars, $10,078 on domestic airfares and $1791 on self-drive cars.Police have been called in after a group of youths armed with a baseball bat allegedly barged into an Auckland high school and beat a student while he was in class, TVNZ news is reporting. The assault happened yesterday at Lynfield College. The report claims a 14-year-old boy was attacked in front of his classmates and their teacher, possibly over a dispute about comments on social networking website Bebo. The report went on to say the victim of the attack, who was not seriously injured, did not turn up for school today.

A quake measuring six on the Richter scale has struck off the Bay of Plenty coast. The quake struck just after mid-day, 60km north of White Island. It had a focal depth of 250km and, according to the GNS website, was felt around the lower half of the North Island and upper South Island. Computer users as far south as Nelson and as far north as Napier reported feeling the quake.

Auckland City Council is planning a $23 million upgrade of Fort St which will turn the street into a shared space where vehicles and pedestrians will share the road. Details revealed yesterday show Fort St 's history as part of Auckland's former foreshore will be incorporated with markers to show where the sea was before reclamation began in 1859. Artworks and trees will be added to the area, as well as lighting features to make it safer for pedestrians at night. Stone paving will be laid over the street, kerbs and private vehicle parking removed and vehicle loading times will be limited. The council said shared spaces combined the functions of a street so there would be more space for pedestrians, creating an attractive space for people to spend time without the need to ban vehicles.

Auckland's new laboratory company is blaming an administrative error after a GP was kept waiting 16 days for the results of tests he ordered for a cancer patient.

Police officers will get a 2 per cent pay rise this year. Police Association president Greg O'Connor said he was happy with the result of the arbitration, which was announced yesterday. The 2 per cent pay rise for the association's 8500 members, or about 98 per cent of sworn officers, would meet or exceed most members' expectations, Mr O'Connor said. The starting salary for a constable will rise to $51,000.

It's not global warming, it's just good weather - last month was the warmest August New Zealand has seen since temperatures were first recorded 155 years ago. New Zealanders could thank strong westerly winds coming off Australia for an average temperature almost 2degC warmer than usual, said Auckland climate scientist Jim Salinger. The average temperature for New Zealand last month was 10.4degC, which gave the normally wintery month the kind of temperatures usually seen in spring. Regions that registered the highest temperatures above average were areas such as Central Otago and inland Canterbury, where the Australian air kept both days and nights relatively warm. Auckland and Tauranga shared the title of the warmest main centre for August, while Wellington was both the sunniest and wettest, Dunedin the driest, and Christchurch the coolest. Niwa's outlook for spring said New Zealanders c ould continue to expect warmer weather than usual throughout September, although there was likely to be a change mid-spring. (FUCK ME it was still cold though)

QUESTION OF THE DAY??
New Zealand's biggest secondary school has banned school balls after parents helped students to organise a boozy after-ball function. Rangitoto College principal David Hodge said the school had been deceived when about 150 Year 12 students were taken by bus from the North Shore to a disused Onehunga warehouse for the August 13 bash. The college, in Mairangi Bay, had heard about plans for the party, but parents and students, when confronted, had assured staff it would be cancelled. "We were deceived, we were lied to," Mr Hodge said. Should high school after-ball parties be banned?

SIDESWIPPING IT...
A reader writes: "I was taken aside for a random security check at Auckland Airport - to my shock, my handbag (which goes everywhere with me) tested positive for explosives or fertiliser residue. My bag was tested again but the machine refused to give any result at all ... Still, a sniffer dog was brought out to investigate my bag (he was more interested in the carpet), and the contents were searched, all to no avail. My main concern, though, is that before I was let go to board my flight, I was asked to write down my name, occupation, home address and phone number ... then I was free to leave. If I had been a terrorist working with explosives, I'm glad they knew how to reach me when I got home again!"

An underwhelming number of worms included in this Bay of Plenty Times classified ad.

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 17°C
Min: 8°C (overnight)
Humidity: 93%
Cloudy spells, chance shower in the west.Northwesterly. (Translation: Cloudy and a little chilly)

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
Today is Random Acts of Kindness Day...BE NICE!!!

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Maz was woken up at 3am by a Facebook status update (wonder who that could of been). Lucky she could get back to sleep, but still...FAIL!

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!!!

Day OneHundred of being Aflickionless...

DAY 100 BABY!!!
Only 19 days to go, ENJOY IT!

Maz has been feeling pretty seedy all day after last night. Although she got home at about 6.30am it would of been somewhere between 7.30am - 8.30am by time she got to sleep, and then she was up at about 1pm, so not much sleep at all.

Maz did a spot of shopping today. She went out to find strippy black & white socks but ended up getting a few other things as well. Two t-shirt for Russell...one reads "It's all fun and games till somebody looses a nut" and the other t-shirt reads "I Have Plenty of Talent and Wisdom. I JUST DON'T GIVE A SHIT". Maz also got two t-shirts...one reads "I'm not short, I'm fun sized" and the other has some cute picture on it.
Also brought some pillows as well...like that is exciting. Haha!

Anywho this has to be cut short, need to get read for Space (get dressed, make-up etc). Hope you are having an awesome weekend. Enjoy your flight to Berlin. Photos of tonights adventures at Space will be on the blog tomorrow (hopefully).

MAZ's LATEST PAINTING

Opps, I Threw Up Custard!
Acrylic on Canvas

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 15°C
Min: 9°C (overnight)
Humidity: 89%
Fine breaks increasing. Light winds. (Translation: that light wind has picked up just in time for Maz to go out and freeze her balls off.)

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
Space is closing...hmmmm...

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Tina lost Maz's strippy socks that she got while in Sydney, so Maz had to go out and buy a new pair for the Space Bar closing. Fail!!!

Day NintyEight of being Aflickionless...

Maz has been gluing and planning the rest of the disco ball mirror pattern. Creating, Style Pasifika, Moving AND to top it off Maz's dad is coming up to Auckland at the end of September and is going to visit/meet up with her. They haven't seen each other in about 4 years.
Maz is also loving the latest La Roux track..."I'm Not Your Toy".

JayJay gets really pissed off when people drive through red lights and make the people that are crossing on a green walking man have to dodge their cars. Yesterday someone did it and got snapped by a cop and then today someone did it and came extremely close to hitting JayJay and another chick - the green walking man had been going for at least 5 secs so he couldnt claim that the light had only just changed. They nearly got hit and it pissed JayJay off, so she kicked his car in the passengers side rear door as hard as she could as he went by them and left a big massive dent for the dick head.
The other chick who was also crossing the road turned and looking at JayJay who said "you didn't just see that". The other female was like "ok, but nice kick".
ALSO the lights at the base of parnell rise were out at like 5:30pm so it was utter chaos and there was 1 cop directing traffic (and its a massive set of lights)! It was really funny when he let the people cross because he started screaming "CROSS NOW", and trying to point at the people while not leting any cars go so they could get safely to the other side.

THANK YOU the closing party for Space is on this weekend. Looks like Maz is going along at this stage. No idea what it will be like, but cheap drinks on the night so they will help make it better. Haha!

The public should continue to keep children and dogs away from beaches in Auckland's Hauraki Gulf while the source of a mystery toxic poison is investigated. Five dogs have died and 14 fallen ill after visiting the beaches. Auckland Regional Public Health Service (ARPHS) said tetrododoxin, a potentially fatal and extremely poisonous neurotoxin found in puffer fish, has been found in dead sea slugs and the vomit of one dead dog. The latest dog died after exercising at Stanmore Bay during the weekend. Government scientists were investigating the death.

Auction website Trade Me has entered the online wine market but sellers will have to hold an off-licence certificate. The company said it had been given the go-ahead to sell wine by the Liquor Licensing Authority. Trade Me spokesman Michael Gregg said it had debated wine sales for a long time.

A piece of playground equipment which resides at Auckland Zoo is turning 50. The dragon will undergo a birthday makeover and will be off display from August 31 until its unveiling and birthday celebration on October 3. The zoo is encouraging people to send in historic photos of the 15 metre icon to mark its half century. All photos will be displayed and a prize draw will be held.

Former Prime Minister Helen Clark has been named as one of the most powerful women in the world by Forbes magazine. Topping the 100 Most Powerful Women list is German Chancellor Angela Merkel followed by leaders of major international companies. Miss Clark, who is now head of the United Nations development programme in New York, has been named at 60 in the list. (awww good old Uncle Helen)

Auckland's harbour bridge clip-ons could be candidates for "orthopaedic surgery" which would enable walking and cycling paths to be added and could improve their longevity. The Transport Agency has been given a proposal by engineering consultants working with the Getacross campaign to find ways of adding walking and cycling links without shortening the life of the 40-year-old clip-ons.

Australian Robert Chester-Master has skydived over a Brisbane beach at the age of 84 to remember the young New Zealand pilot who saved his life in World War II. John Lawrie lived on his father's Taranaki dairy farm before joining the Royal NZ Air Force. He died on August 13, 1944, after a German night fighter attacked and crippled his Lancaster bomber over the River Meuse in Belgium. The big aircraft, homebound from a raid on a German engine plant near Frankfurt, began losing height and one by one the engines failed. Lawrie, the captain, held the plane aloft long enough for the other six men in his crew, Chester-Master among them, to take to their parachutes.

SIDESWIPPING IT...
Clayton Pinkney came across this terrifying scene at work. Terrifying because that's his car on the left! "The driver thought I was over-reacting when I told her that her parking sucked," he says. Remarkably there was no damage.

The lowest grade in the American education system has always been an F, but Simon Fraser University in British Columbia is introducing a grade of FD - meaning failure with dishonesty. Dr Rob Gordon, chairman of the senate committee on academic integrity, says the new grading is intended to curtail cheating using the internet.

Advertising outside Phoenix Takeaways in Manurewa.

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 14°C
Min: 9°C (overnight)
Humidity: 81%
Fine breaks increasing. Southeast breeze. Friday (Translation: southeast breeze...cold. but that's why somebody created the heater...not that I've had mine on)

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
JayJay hasn't read the blog in about a month...SLACKER!

DAILY FOF MOMENT
thinking, thinking...there isn't one that I know of, but more than likely Maz is going to fail and cut herself on the disco ball mirrors again. Fail!!!

Day NintySeven of being Aflickionless...

Maz is kicked back listening to this evenings Criminal Cuts and distroying DISCO BALLS! Yes, she got more and is starting to live by "you can never have too many disco balls".

And if you didn't know...THERE IS A GOD! Orange M&M's...FUCK YEAH! They are orange (funny that) and white.

The streets of the Waikato town of Huntly are piled with rubbish after residents found themselves victims of a hoax.

The householders received a letter telling them to leave any junk kerbside for a mid-winter inorganic rubbish collection from August 15, with collection starting August 25.

The flier, bearing a letterhead which the hoaxers apparently took from the Waikato District Council website, said that the collection presented "a good chance to clean up around the house".

"All inorganic forms of rubbish will be collected, old fridges, stoves, car parts, corrugated iron, timber, carpet etc," it said.

However, the council said this week it was unaware of the lleter and has ordered the residents to take their trash back into their houses. Huntly resident Olivia Jones was not amused by the caper. "Our family spent all day clearing out our junk," she told the Waikato Times. "What a stupid prank." Council general manager for water and facilities Richard Banks told Radio New Zealand two theories for the duplicitous dumping were being "bandied about". "One is that it's being done as a hoax. The other is someone is being entrepreneurial - trying to get people to put out material they could get some value from, before the normal collection service is provided."

Motorists are being warned of snow falling on the Desert Rd. MetService has issued a snowfall warning near the summit of the Desert Rd which will continue through-out this afternoon. Up to 10cm of snow could accumulate on the higher parts of the road.

Children who are not immunised against measles risk being sent home from school, the Ministry of Health warned today. The warning comes amid growing concerns about a potential epidemic, with the number of notified measles cases this year already seven times higher than the total number of cases last year. The ministry said in a statement that infected students and teachers would be excluded from school for seven days from the appearance of the rash. Those who were not immunised and were exposed to infected people would be excluded from school for 14 days from their last contact, the ministry said.

The Bay of Plenty has been rattled by a 5.4 magnitude earthquake. It struck 10 kilometres south-west of Tauranga at a depth of 300 kilometres at 7.16am. GNS Science says it was strong enough to have been felt in parts of Wellington and Levin. (I think I need a new label "Earthquake"...we've had a few)

Police have laid further charges against an Auckland actor who police shot after he allegedly threatened them when he made a false domestic violence complaint.

Rob Mokaraka, 36, was shot in the chest after allegedly lunging at police with what they said appeared to be knives and a meat cleaver outside a house in Pt Chevalier on July 27. He was due to appear at Auckland District Court this morning to face one count of possession of an offensive weapon and another of assault with a weapon. But Judge Nicola Mathers said Mokaraka was still in hospital and a medical certificate excused him from appearing. Two new charges were laid today by police: threatening to kill and using a firearm to resist arrest.

Concerns have been raised that icecream in a cone from the local dairy could contain a nasty surprise. Kim Schultz, 12, a student at Columba College in Dunedin, has found a disturbing statistic in a humble school science project: that five out of 17 vanilla icecreams bought from Dunedin dairies had E. coli bacteria at levels far in excess of the New Zealand Food Safety Authority (NZFSA) guidelines. Some of the samples had an E. coli count in the millions, when it should have been only 100 per gram, Kim said. E. coli infection can result in severe stomach cramps, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea. One icecream sample also contained staphylococcus aureus bacteria, which can lead to serious illness.

ACT leader Rodney Hide has set himself firmly against having any Maori seats on the new Auckland 'super city' council but denies he is holding the Government to ransom over the controversial issue.

SIDESWIPPING IT...
Looks like MP Paula Bennett and Kath and Kim's Gina Riley may have been separated at birth ... now that would make a "noiyce", different and "unewesual" episode!

At Ngatea Water Gardens, Estelle Seaman of Torbay was mortified to see live fish being fed to the turtles. "Fish are placed in a small pond to be attacked and eaten, from the tail end, while they try desperately to get away. One fish was seen still alive, with its tail and about two centimetres of its body missing! A slow and agonising death, not a sight for the kids. Reason for this needless suffering? Apparently this is what happens in the wild, according to the manager." (OH FUCK ME...what is with these PC people. Surprise, surprise she is from the shore)

Peta's latest campaign to encourage a vegetarian lifestyle targets overweight women. The "Save the Whales" billboard campaign in Jackson, Florida shows the back of a large woman in a bikini, and the slogan: "Lose the Blubber, Go Vegetarian." (If you are as big as a whale and wearing a bikini you should be SHOT! with an elephant gun)

Catherine was stopped in her tracks after seeing this male/female icon painted on the car parks at Albany Mall. Aside from two parks, all the others are marked for parents with babies. "Not sure what these are meant to be for ... people who really need a toilet? People that don't know if they're male or female? Anyone who is either male or female? Maybe it's a hidden portal to Narnia?"

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 15°C
Min: 9°C (overnight)
Humidity: 86%
Cloudy periods. Southerlies. (Translation: OMG there was no rain or showers...)

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
How many disco balls Maz has distroyed...

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Maz needed a measure of JayJay's back for the Style Pasifika creation, however JayJay couldnt text her the measurement because all she had at home to measure with was a 15cm hard ruler. And then she forgot to grab a tape measure from work. Fail!!!

Day NintyFive of being Aflickionless...

Lets see...disco ball mirrors, glue and glitter. That pretty much sums up Maz's day, but unlike the last few days, there was no burning of fingers and no cuts recieved. This may be because Maz is gluing to the floor and hasn't peeled off todays work yet. Hmmmm...

Nikki brought a pair of shoes of Maz today for her little niece. She got the Outta Space kids low tops. Awesome...she is so going to have the coolest shoes ever!

This Saturday is the closing of Space. Yes the day has finally come for us to say "see you later". Maz will possibly be going to it...just to see if it was all worth it.

PHOTO MANIPULATION SNEAK PEEK...
Thought we would let you have a look that something else that Maz is working on. It is only it the very beginning stages, so who knows where it will end up.

Now...NORMALLY I would put the news up here...and I could possibly still do that, but right now I think it is time for some...

RANDOM PICTURES MAZ FOUND ONLINE

And now on with the news...well what little there is.

It must have been a fur-raising ride for Poppy the cat. The four-year-old was believed to have secretly hitched a ride in a car from her Levin home to Hunterville, 100km away, where her collar meant she avoided being shot by bird-loving farmer. Levin couple Kevin and Sandra Stent noticed Poppy was missing after a visit from some friends 3-1/2 weeks ago, but were assured no felines were stashed away in their car. Mrs Stent thought Poppy must have climbed up under the car and held on as it travelled through northern Manawatu and either fell off or jumped off somewhere near Hunterville. For the next three weeks she foraged for food and nursed her injuries until Waituna farmer David Guylee noticed her lurking around his neighbour's property. Mr Guylee said it was lucky Poppy was wearing a tag.

Cadbury has bowed to consumer pressure and agreed to stop using palm oil in its chocolate. The confectionery giant received hundreds of letters and emails of complaint after it revealed a new recipe substituted cocoa butter with vegetable fat, including palm oil. Palm oil has been linked with the clearing of native habitats in third world countries. Cadbury New Zealand Managing Director Matthew Oldham says recipes will now only use cocoa butter. He says Cadbury is "really sorry" and the change is a direct response to consumer feedback.

Experts have added a grim warning to the poison beach scare in Auckland, saying the toxin that killed dogs is deadly enough to paralyse humans in seconds and kill them within an hour. Test results have shown that tetrodotoxin, a poison found in puffer fish, is responsible for the deaths of two dogs, birds and sealife on Auckland beaches. The poison was found in the dead dogs' vomit and in a sea slug sample taken from Narrow Neck Beach on the North Shore. Further tests are being carried out to find out how the sea slug came to contain the poison. Touching a dead animal on the beach could be enough to endanger human life, said Cawthron Institute algae specialist Paul McNabb.

TRAILER TO WATCH...
Dorian Gray...HOW AWESOME!!! Personally I think that Dorian Gray is the hawtest character ever...


AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
N/A because it's 2am...oops. But guess what, there were showers today.

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
How fully dedicated Maz is to doing well at Style Pasifika this year. Talk about a lot of glue.

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Getting to the Flying Horse Takeaway's to find out they are closed, look at the clock and see it's almost 10pm. Wonder why they aren't open? Maz blames Russell. Fail!!!

Day NintyThree of being Aflickionless...

So this is the first time and possibly the last time that I am going to write this blog THIS fucked up (tipsy...we must remember Maz has control, almost ALL the time). So sorry for any typo's and anything else that may not make sense...and also for the fact that this is probably going to be very short lived.

Pretty laid back day really. Maz & Russell have a new DVD-Rom...YAY. After picking it up off a friend they decided to get a snack from Mc Donalds, and they are pretty sure that the patties are now "seasoned" (eg. contain pepper), so JayJay has been informed. It would be pretty bad if she died from McD's, ya know.

Russell worked at Ginger Minx this evening. It went off there tonight, nice and busy. Maz had no idea how many drinks and thinks that maybe she shouldn't of had that tiny bit of beer at the end of the night (Maz can't really do beer on a good night, so why lord why?). She is surprised your not online, but figures that you are on your way to Berlin...good times, good times!

CUPPA TEA? Sounds good. Sorts out the stomach after drinking...

TRAILER TO WATCH...
The Warrior Way. Filmed here in Auckland...Dee & Sam (Wheeler) were both extra's on it. YEAH1 KUNG-FU



AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
N/A
We had showers this evening though...

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
Why did Maz subject herself to beer? She has the whole funny feeling cheek thing going on...not cool.

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Don't think there was one. Fail!!!

Day NintyTwo of being Aflickionless...

Maz has been gluing and has so far been more successful than yesterday at not gluing her fingers to the dress. Touch wood it shall continue.

DVD-rom is well not much of a DVD-rom, which really sucks when it comes to being able to play games. BUT fear not, OGRE TO THE RESCUE (you will meet Ogre one day no doubt). 15 dolla dpd-rom...love you long time...no wait that's wrong. Anywho new DVD-rom which means...BRING ON THE GAMING!

WOW IT'S AFTER MIDNIGHT...and I didn't even notice.

A man was crushed to death in an elevator shaft at a Fonterra plant in Southland today. Ambulance staff found the man dead from a "crushing injury" in the shaft at the Edendale plant, 37km north-east of Invercargill, after they were told he was missing at 11.08am, the Southland Times reported. (that must of been crushing news for his family to hear. I know, I know, I'm going to hell...but you know you were thinking it too)

New Zealand rugby legend Colin Meads may now be a knight, but he doesn't want to be called sir. "I'm still Colin Meads and I will be till I die," he said today at a ceremony in Wellington's Old St Paul's church for those who have chosen to be redesignated as Knights or Dames. "It's a great honour, and I'm pleased for the people of Te Kuiti and for rugby too," Sir Colin said. (is it just me or is it funny that the paper called him "sir" when he said he just wanted to be Colin?)

Drivers will be banned from using cellphones in their vehicles from November under new rules that will also require motorcyclists to use their headlights during the day. Transport Minister Steven Joyce announced yesterday that also from November, drivers talking or texting while at the wheel would face fines of $80 and would receive 20 demerit points. Motorcyclists could be fined $100 for driving without headlights on during the day.
The tough new cellphone laws surprised AA spokesman Mike Noon, whose organisation had supported a ban, but suggested a more modest $50 fine and 10 demerit points.
DRIVING PENALTIES
* Using a phone, $80 fine and 20 demerit points
* Speeding (starts at) $80, 10 demerit points
* Riding a motorcycle without a headlight, $100.
* Not wearing a seatbelt, $150
* Not carrying a driver's licence, $55
* Not holding a current driver's licence, $400

SIDESWIPPING IT...
A reader shares her expensive romantic weekend away in Christchurch: "Plane tickets - $300, hotel room - $240, room service breakfast - $60 ... Having sex at the foot of the bed, losing balance and falling back into the TV at the Crowne Plaza Hotel (who for some unknown reason don't have insurance and force you to pay on the spot or they'll call the police) - $1500. Sharing the story - Priceless!"

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 17°C
Min: 10°C (overnight)
Humidity: 95%
Showers easing, chance early thunder. Northerly dying. (Translation: WHERES MY THUNDER?!?!)

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
SILENCE...NO BABIES IN THE HOUSE! They have FINALLY gone home...not only that but we've lost 2 kids as well. PARTY ON!!!

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Sharts are only funny when they happen to other people. But we aren't going to say who. Fail!!!

Day EightyEight of being Aflickionless...

Russell and Maz went over to Casa de Adam & Nikki, to fix their car...well that was the plan, but ahem, daiquiris got in the way. First it was a round of banana daiquiris, then Nikki & Maz had kiwifruit daiquiris while Adam & Russell had mint juleps. SO the plan is to fix it another day...I wonder if it will get done next time?!?!

Maz recieved her letter this evening (via email) informing her that she has (yet again) made it through the Style Pasifika pre-judging. Are you surprised? I'm not! Suck thing, it's on the week before you get back.

Rangitikei District Council is not keen on building a public loo shaped like a strapping bull's backside. The $226,000 proposal, put forward by Bulls and District co-ordinator Bronwyn Meads, was a vulgar concept that was not worth the money, according to Bulls ward councillor Jill Strugnell. Visitors would walk up a bull's tail and through his backside to find male toilets in one buttock and female toilets in the other, the Manawatu Standard reported.

Dancers and television personalities celebrated the end of TV3's 23-hour Big Night In. The first telethon in 15 years raised $1,944,225 for the KidsCan charitable trust, which supports children living in poverty. The live entertainment extravaganza ran from 7pm on Saturday until 6 last night.

Four New Zealand students scooped the first and second places in the FedEx Junior Achievement award at the International Trade Challenge in Singapore last week. Paul Minors of Rangitoto College and Charles Slogrove of Macleans College, both 18, won $4000 for their unique interpretation of this year's challenge: to come up with a market entry strategy for exporting carpets to Egypt. Talman Madsen of Long Bay College and Aimee Gordon of Taradale College, Napier, took second place. This was the first year New Zealand had competed at the event, which involved 42 contestants from seven Asian-Pacific countries.

FIRST SIGNS OF SPRING

From The NZ Herald

AUCKLAND FORECAST TODAY
Max: 15°C
Min: 12°C (overnight)
Humidity: 71%
Cloudy, few drizzly showers. Gusty northeasterlies. (Translation: when the wind blows it blows...and 12°C is pretty chilly tonight)

CURRENT WEIRDNESS
Although it has been colder than 15°C in the past few months, today the cold felt cold

DAILY FOF MOMENT
Russell was meant to fix Adam & Nikki's car but good hospitality got in the way. Fail!!!