The closing panel in The Listening Lounge at February's Splore festival was a fairly ambitious one, I wasn't sure whether it was going to work and I knew I was going to depend on my panelists – a psychologist, a brilliant young Zimbabwean New Zealander, an evangelical pastor and a campaign expert – to make it work.
I'm never really sure after these discussions what's actually happened – I've spent the whole time in the moment. But re-reading the transcript (thank you to Emma Hart for that), I felt good about it.
I also felt that the subtitle: "How do we all move…

For obvious reasons, there has been a lot of attention paid to work going into developing vaccines that could prevent Covid-19 infection, and drugs that could treat it. In particular, there has been some excitement about new animal trial data for remdesivir, a drug developed by Gilead Sciences. Gilead's share price rose nearly 10% on the day the trial data were announced.
It will be some time yet before the safety and efficacy of remdesvir is established, if ever (it's worth noting that it was tried, unsuccessfully, as a treatment for Ebola). And since I started work on this post…

During the plague, I’ve been amusing myself by watching a show about immortality. In the world of Ad Vitam, a French series on Netflix, Covid-19 wouldn’t exist; disease apparently doesn’t and death hardly at all.
The reason for this is “regeneration”, a process finagled from jellyfish that allows humans to renew themselves. As the series begins, billions of people have just celebrated the birth of the world’s oldest woman, who is 169, but doesn’t look a day over 45.
The lead character, detective Darius Asram (Yvan Attal) is 119, his wife, who is newly pregnant, is 84.
Ah, but imagine…

Regular readers will know that I've been hanging out for the "market allocation" parts of the proposed Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill, which will be the subject of a referendum this year.
While most media outlets ran inane stories last year on how many joints 14 grams added up to, it was clear to anyone who took the subject seriously that the questions of who would get to produce and sell cannabis and how licences would be awarded were vastly more important. And we've had to wait for answers to those.
Well, they're here. And it's very good news. From…

Like most people, I've been staying at home, doing a bit in the garden, cooking a lot and managing occasional bouts of anxiety. I've also written more here than I have done for a while. At a time when every Friday night has me missing my mates, it's been nice to see you all again.
But in the midst of it all – and after everything else disappeared – I got a new gig. It's with my friends from Spark Lab, it's called The Pivot Reports and it's a series of live-streamed shows over the next six weeks talking to business owners…

Like everyone, the film and television industry is facing unprecedented impacts from the pandemic, with hundreds of productions suspended and thousands of workers unemployed. But I wonder if, for some of the big names, it’s a sneaky holiday, a time away from the relentless publicity hustle. 
Over the years doing entertainment interviews for the NZ Listener, time allowed with subjects became shorter and there was, invariably, a PR person policing the conversation. You might be one of 10 journos in a queue or required to take part in a shared interview; I was once on the line with David Attenborough…

Today I said goodbye to the most amazing, resilient, loving cat in the world. After fighting a myriad of diseases like a champ, her body finally tired

I got my sweet Jess for my birthday 14 years ago. Little did I know at the time that she would become my everything, the love of my life. She died 5 weeks

Our Beloved Denver (Big Guy), Thank you for teaching us the true meaning of what love was always meant to be. You were a beautiful dog with a beautiful

My dear, beloved friend, whom I loved more than life itself, is gone. My darling Reggie, the Plymouth Rock rooster, was snatched from my arms by a sudden

Maggie, it has been five days since you've passed from this life to the next. I miss you so terribly much! My heart aches every day. I listen for your

Turner, Our boy always loving, playful. We will miss you but, we know it's time. We have held you, given you a thousand kisses, and told you how much

I had to say goodbye to my happy waggy boy Baron May 1st. Before me he had a hard life, he'd been a research dog, heavily hw infested, resulting in CHF,

I've been reading these stories about beloved pets who died at such young ages, so I feel very blessed to have had you for 14 years. Thank you very much

My brother owned a Chinese Crested named Phantom for almost 15 years. Their relationship was far beyond owner and pet, it was 100% family. Old age left

Our beautiful 23 year old long haired tabby Sophie died peacefully in my husband's arms this week on 19 June 2013 - my birthday. The pain is unbearable

Hi my angel Day 283 : Damn Each day is worse than the day before. “Time does not heal anything, it just teaches us how to deal with the pain . . .”

Oh what has happened, my darling little friend? I knew that it would happen, but I longed for us to never end. What shall I do without you? What shall

We got Storm when he was 13 weeks old as a companion for our Border Collie, Shadow. We decided on a Labrador because they were the opposite of BC's. Storm

Death is in air The death of an old white horse His name; Donny His death was tragic to me How loved could he be How much I loved my Donny With his

I had a Himalayan Chocolate Point named Mooshie. I had her since she was 6 months old. We grew very close in the coming years. When she was a kitten she

You were the perfect companion. We did not share your life on earth for very long, just 6 short years. I feel privileged to have been part of your life

Our Beloved Denver, Thank you for teaching us the true meaning of what love was always meant to be. You were a beautiful dog with a beautiful soul that

I remember you were sick, And yet I had to go. I wasn't there to watch you die, That pain, I hope, I'll never know. So I never got to say goodbye, I

It's so hard to believe it has now been a year since you went to Rainbow Bridge. I miss you just as much now as I did the day you passed. You will

Since I was little we had a lovely golden working Cocker Spaniel. She was a lovely little dog and everyone in my family loved her. I grew up with her,

On Friday my vet and I took the decision to put my beloved Springer, Max to sleep. He was my constant companion, loyal friend for 12 years. Because he

Yesterday I lost my best friend. Nine years ago you saved my life and brought me happiness every day since. Selfishly I wanted to keep you around forever

Dude you were the best dog ever and I feel sad that we didn't tell you this every day. Yes, you drove us nuts by stealing the cats food and sleeping on

Sage Today I sit alone and cry, Without you by my side. Of all the times I've said goodbye, This one made me cry. If there was anything I could have done,

Jason: It's been one month now since you have gone to Rainbow Bridge. Jason your love was unconditional. You have left my life, but you will never leave

Pixie, you came to us beaten, starved, scared and lonely. No one wanted to take on a rescue Staffordshire Bull Terrier, but we did as company for our

I lost my beloved cat Gemma, seven months ago and when I think about her, I can smile a little. I can now think of the happy times and not that dreadful

The first time we saw Buddy he was walking across the grave of one of our beloved cats, Harley, who had just passed away while we were on vacation. This

Saffron, you were the most perfect being that I could ever envision. You were my sunshine. I miss you beyond words, my little Spoopa Roopa. How can we

She passed away just not too long ago, 6-12-13. It was very hard for me to put her down. I had her for 21 years, going on 22 years. I know I feel her presence

Hey Jason! Just checking to see how you are doing at Rainbow Bridge? Hope you are making friends and being a good boy! I missed you so much my baby,

I find it hard to express my feelings, And say how much you meant to us, This poem is just another poor attempt, I’m being such a wuss! I can’t remember

Jess came to me in June 1999 as a birthday gift. She was beautiful white with some brown and black. She was the best birthday present that I ever got or

Now, before I start this, I want to reassure you all that this is a true story. I'm not making this up. This really happened, and I thank God every night

My Sweet Toby. You were only with us for a short time and was just 15 days shy of 5 months. Why the door had to open when it did, why you ran into the

13 years ago I found out that I had breast cancer. I asked my husband if I could get a dog for comfort. No he said. I started praying for comfort.

Dear Shim Shim, I hate this month, it's so miserable and even more so cos you passed on Halloween eve. I remember it all so vividly, your loss and Zeusy's

Ivy came into my life on December 22, 2012. She was the most beautiful little creature I had ever seen and I knew instantly that she was supposed to be

I lost my Taz April 20th. He was my best friend and companion. He looked at me with so much love. My children and grandchildren live so far away. He

Khan-li my darling boy you were and always will be the Apple of my Eye, The Love Of My Life My Heart and all that is wonderful. The memories I have of

Pepper was not my dog at first, she was given to me when she was a year old. She suffered horrible abuse for the first year of her life, when I got her

2 days ago I lost my best friend. Nine years ago you saved my life and stole my heart. You brought me happiness at my lowest point and gave me reason to

My 19 year old cat had to be euthanized a couple of days before Christmas. I must admit the guilt was horrible and all I could do is wonder where my dear

My darling, all of Mama's love. You have gone leaving a void in my life. I still hear you sigh, and the patter of your feet up the steps, and the sound