BLUE DAYS AND FINE SERVICE

We have been in Christchurch for 3 weeks now although it feels like 3 days - the time has gone so fast.

We managed to get across to Akaroa yesterday and spent the spectacularly wonderful clear blue day wandering in and out of what must be some of the loveliest shops in the country and then enjoying one of the best feeds of fish and chips we have had in a long time at the fish and chip shop on the waterfront.

We dined on elephant fish which is an odd looking sand shark. Its bloody good when its fresh and it was. the batter was very light and crispy and it was not pre cooked but battered and fried as you watched.

We bought a bottle of Olive oil from Little River for $9 that we would pay $20 for elsewhere. On our way home we bought some cheese from Barrys Bay that creates our favourite Barrys Bay peppered Havarti.

We left our wonderful accomodation today - the salubrious Centre Point on Colombo Motel owned by Jeff and Naomi Peters. Jeff is a prolific and skilled user of social media and can be found on twitter at @centrepntmotel

It is undoubtedly one of the nicest motels we have stayed at anywhere in New Zealand. Its one of the best appointed but its the service from Jeff and Naomi that sets it apart.

So we were surprised but delighted when we checked out today to get a " house warming " prezzy of some lovely cheese and crackers and pickles from Jeff and Naomi. The cheese is from the Cheesemongers which we are happy to report is less than 100 feet from the apartment thats to be our home till the end of October. We got to know Jeff purely through twitter on @centrepntmotel He is a good family man and an ardent supporter of Christchurch. It's people of his calibre that will see this city through its tough times.

We are looking forward to sharing our cheesy bounty with our workmates. However we might just keep the fact we have a slice of roquefort a secret.

HAGLEY PARK HOUND DOGS AND TANGATA

We have been working in Christchurch for two weeks - across a couple of government departments as we move to more co-ordination in the public sector - something we support whole heartedly.

We stayed at a motel a stones throw from the barriers around the cordoned off CBD. While houses and buildings around it shook apart during the big quakes, the motel and its next door twin stayed strong.

And that is the most perplexing thing to a quake virgin like us- that some buildings cannot withstand the shocks while others brace against the onslaught and shrug off the fiercest of the vibrations.

We were in Christchurch for work shortly after the September quake and that left us sad and numb but nothing can prepare you for the visual shock of the damage in the worst areas of the city -post February's big one.

We weathered a 5.5 bone jarring jolt on the first night we were there this time that bought us to our knees. It was a but a shimmy to the big shakes.

The thought of another quake hovers on the edge of your existence day in and day out.

The residents draw on a huge well of resilience to get through each day.

While some people think that the centre, the CBD, is the heart of the city- we dont think that way. We think it is Hagley Park. That great verdant centre of Christchurch with its lush magnificence that is the home to the Hagley hound dogs - the pooches that walk their owners around its paths every day. And the older couples who map out a route for a bracing stroll on a willy chilling frosty morning. And the lithe lycra clad young guns who jog at pace. And the mothers with children at heel and prams pushed out front with vigour. Thats where the heart of the city beats.Christchurch people look much fitter and healthier than their northern cousins and its because that great Green is their space, they are part of it and it is part of them.

Lots has been said about the stoic nature of southerners ands its a truism and we witnessed it as we watched older people looked out for each other. The problem is that stoicism is stopping them from asking for help when they need it. They just think that there will be someone in a worse situation than them and they dont want to trouble anyone.

And in the muck ridden pockets out east life is a groundhog hell. People have to cope with the most rudimentary of living conditions. There are even some in Christchurch who have no real understanding of how bad it is.

We had dinner with some residents who lived over by Merrivale who have considerable damage to their home but its repairable. They bundled their children up in the car after their off hand comments made the parents realise that they really didnt get the enormity of the situation for those out east. So they took them for a drive around the worst areas last weekend so they could get an understanding of what other people were living through. They cried.

Others, big strong men who have worked in the central city for 20 years, still haven't been in to see it - they told us bluntly, without shame that they aren't ready yet.

And there is no way to describe the effort that is going in to sorting out the mess other than to say it is a hugely complex event on every front made more so by that mental shadow of the possibility of another quake that you see in the eyes of almost everyone.

All those involved in the recovery effort are working long hours often in crappy conditions to get the place working again - that goes for the street cleaners to the people at Cera, the volunteers , the home bakers, the hospital workers, the mums and dads - everyone is getting on with the job of getting their city sorted again.

And each day is another step forward another bit fixed another problem solved and other person helped.

Christchurch residents enjoy the interraction with "out of towners," They are happy to share their experiences and for some there is a need to talk. So visits by others are appreciated and injecting your hard earned dollars into they economy is even more appreciated.

And so much of the city is unscathed so there is infrastructure to support visitors. Your journeys around the town might take a little longer but hey - whats a few more minutes here and there?

What will come out of Christchurch is an amazing city and a whole generation of young people who will be made better and stronger and more caring by their experience, that much we can see now.

But if you dont live in Christchurch and want to know what you can do - pick up the phone - ring the friends and family that you may not have talked to for a while.

Its a tough bleak winter for the good people of Canterbury and they will welcome the warmth of your voice .

Remember while the bricks and mortar and the rebuild is critical to the future of Christchurch what is most important right now? He Tangata He tangata - it is people it is people.

FIXATION ON WEE WILLY AND HIS ROYAL WILLLY

We thought we had heard it all  - but n there was a story on Radio Live this morning  about the fact that Prince Willyum  is to have his own bog when he visits Christchurch. Yip there is a shortage of them in Christchurch but Willy is getting his own royal bog. An articulated truck of bogs just for him..
We despise royalty - they are little more than rich celebrities these days.
But William is a soldier as well as a prince. And he is down to earth so why the hell are the authorities going overboard with the Royal Flush. ?

TOP TANE

Sometimes people just follow their gut instinct and take a risk and do something out of their comfort zone.

Derek Fox and some of his mates did just that - Last week , armed with a huge BBQ - Tunutunu from Flaxmere and promises of much food they drove from Hawkes Bay to Christchurch to feed those affected by the quake. They headed to the less well off parts of town like Aranui.

And they started cooking , and they flipped burgers and rolled sausages, thousands and thousands of them.

And there were mussels and kina and some beautiful smoked eel.

Derek says he reckons they put some warm kai into the pukus of a few thousand people, and there was also the korero that just happens when people join together at a common table.

Foxy will report on what he saw and experienced in a special Earthquake edition of Mana Magazine.

Derek says many of his mates supported their trip which came about after he visited Christchurch two days after the quake. He saw that the efforts were centred on the central city and decided that he could do a little bit to help those in the suburbs.

So he rounded up a posse and headed south. As Derek says it was a tiny attempt to live up to the proverb, "he aha te mea nui o te ao Maku e ki he tangata he tangata he tangata,"

So Derek and his band, joins the cast of thousands of people around the country who downed tools and headed to Christchurch to lend a hand, or those who stood in kitchens and baked till they emptied the pantry, or filled containers of food at Marae to be sent south, or the people with hammers and tools who went door to door to do the little things to make peoples lives a little more comfortable - kiwis all.

TO THE FUTURE

So lets look at what's happening in Christchurch rationally.

The PM 's right, about 10,000 houses are poked.

There are places that will not be good places to site leafy suburbs again.

There are buildings you would not want to rebuild again - even though they were symbols of good Christian ethics. They were only ever built in brick to appease the self agrandisement of the religious leaders of the past.

There is an infrastructure that needs to be rebuilt.

Some people will never return and smaller towns will gobble up those who are going in an effort to grow their centres.

But Christchurch like Darwin will be rebuilt. It may mean people stay away for a long time. But its a fantastic location and people will want to return.

So in the wake of the quake - can the future be certain?

Yes, is the simple answer and there is no better example than Darwin. A town not just brought to its knees but completely wiped out -

Of nearly 50,000 people, only 10,000 were allowed to stay.

Darwin was rebuilt. It changed lives. The city was a new city.

Many of those who had lived there never went back - but new people did - people who saw different opportunities and had not experienced the ferocious Cyclone. The same will happen in Christchurch.

Reconstruction and effects on Darwin

In February 1975, Prime Minister Gough Whitlam announced the creation of the Darwin Reconstruction Commission, which was given the task of rebuilding the city "within five years". The Commission was headed by Tony Powell.^[16] The damage to the city was so severe that some advocated moving the entire city. However, the government insisted that it be rebuilt in the same location. By May 1975, Darwin's population had recovered somewhat, with 30,000 residing in the city. Temporary housing, caravans, hotels and an ocean liner MV Patris, were used to house people, as reconstruction of permanent housing had not yet begun by September that year.

However, by the following April, and after receiving criticism for the slow speed of reconstruction, the Commission had built 3,000 new homes in the nearly destroyed northern suburbs, and completed repairs to those that had survived the storm. Several new building codes were drawn up, trying to achieve the competing goals of the speedy recovery of the area and ensuring that there would be no repeat of the damage that Darwin took in 1974. By 1978, much of the city had recovered and was able to house almost the same number of people as it had before the cyclone hit. However, as many as sixty percent of Darwin's 1974 population were no longer living in the city in the 1980s. In the years that followed, Darwin was almost entirely rebuilt and now shows almost no resemblance to the Darwin of December 1974

.

So there is going to be huge and radical upheaval of Christchurch - it will have a new face.

Key has been wise to signal the truths of the situation - like saying that 10,000 homes maybe demolished. Despite Civil Defences pedantic protestations and fiddling the figures.

The quicker that people have a chance to get their heads around the altered state of

Christchurch the better. What Key has been trying to do is give as much information to the people of Christchurch as he can when he thinks they are ready for it.

While Key has been superlative in starting to confront people with the realities of the future, what is now needed is for the Government to start making some concrete decisions for the rebuild of the city.

Big picture first and then fill in the details as they go.

The government wont always get it right, but it needs to do stuff and be honest about the expected impact of any decisions.

The resilience of the majority of Christchurch's citizens is amazing and its those same resilient people who will build a new city that will be the pride of the Mainland.

So this month should be all about grieving for those who have died and making the lives of those who are staying as comfortable as possible.

Then come next month - the plan for the Christchurch of the future should be mapped out for all Cantabrians to follow.

New will be different and it will be better. The tough brave proud people of Canterbury will ensure it is so.

REBOILED

We had a bit a of do with a few mates this week. We used to have reasonably regular catch ups - sometimes over lunch - sometimes later arvo drinks. They were for reasons known only to us - called the Boil Ups.

Sadly the Boil Up Queen is doing her bit to promote one of the extractive industries in some poncy lair in Europe. (bout time she came home for a visit!)

So the rest of the crew met in her absence. It was a poignant event. Each one of us in one way or another has been effected by, involved in, or working to help Christchurch.

Most had Christchurch family or friends who have been affected by the quake and all of us suffered from the feeling of not "being there doing something." No matter how much money you give or how many emails and phone calls you dispatch and stuff you send - its hard to not feel guilty about not being on the end of a shovel in Bexley or Aranui.

We listened to each others tales and to a person it was the elderly in Christchurch we worried about most. They are of a generation where they dont want to bother people and think everyone is worse off than themselves. They are so self contained that they are not used to asking for or getting help.

However, we also talked about the need for the rest of New Zealand to keep going as well.

For some of the gang - life has chucked a few curve balls - as happens from time to time. But we were there for each other - buddies all. We shed the odd tear and we laughed out loud. We argued and debated.

It was just a good time with good mates.

It also helped that our venue, Logan Brown - was stellar, the food and wine was outstanding as ever, the service impeccable - despite the fact we served the staff up a moving feast of characters.

It was great to see LB very well patronised as a restaurant of its international calibre should be.

While this crazy old world of ours has wobbled while spinning so fast - it was good to get off for such a short time and take a breath and listen to the lives of others and just let them know that no matter what - they have good people in their orbit they can rely on.

On a lighter note we were a bit flumoxed by the above vision of loveliness on the wall at Logan Brown. Someone fishy channelling Roarprawn and BustedBlonde perhaps?

A TIME FOR CARING , AND REBUILDING

Cactus has been seething for a few days over the blithering and hand ringing by a few lefties.

Now Cactus does have a heart - you can find it beating pretty strongly under her designer faux fur coat. And she has proved it again today with a stunning column on Welfare and what it is and what it means for Key to get the whole Christchurch rebuild solution right.

We agree with her on every damn point she makes. And she makes them with conviction. so far everything we have seen gives us confidence that this government is the right administration to get Christchurch and as Cactus says the rest of the economy sorted.

New Zealanders are a pretty hardy bunch - sure some of us have got a bit soft living in our mini McMansions sipping lattes or glugging pinot. but we can rise to this extreme challenge.

The left always think that those on the centre right and right of the political spectrum don't care - a repugnant and offensive notion.

In fact there isn't a person in this country who can stand up and say that the governments reaction to the Christchurch earthquake is anything but caring, considered and compassionate.

The speed of the government machine to react to this crisis has been a testament to good management and a desire to ensure that everyone in Christchurch is supported as much as possible.

Hardly the reactions of an "uncaring right wing administration."

The Left can claim no moral high ground if it has already been taken and to date the National Government has shown that it cares very very much for the people of Canterbury.

We will be relying on the government to do everything it can support the rebuild of the commercial hub of Christchurch. Supporting businesses to get back on their feet is the only way forward and already the Government has prioritised support to small and medium businesses.

To date their response is almost flawless. Unlike the dribbling on of the left - which is just plain flaky.

LEAN ON US

I am  like so  many New Zealanders who wasn't in  Christchurch when the big one hit last week.

 I was sitting  in front of my computer on the 5th Floor of the Wellington Railway station when we felt an odd sensation and then we switched to Twitter and the #eqnz feed. The first tweet we saw was one saying  - "Oh god - I think that was an 8."  In our bones we just knew that there was a huge tragedy about to unfold.

What has happened to the conservative heart of the South Island,  was so hard to comprehend, so hard to understand and so bloody frustrating -  as the sense of helplessness invaded every bone as we wanted to be there lifting the bricks from the broken bodies.

Im  not prone to tears but we have shed many for people we did not know - but were part of our country, our big New Zealand family.

The numbers of dead is staggering. The number of survival stories forever uplifting  and the reaction of the people of Christchurch and the rest of  New Zealand  to their plight of those affected  has been humbling.

The galvanizing of the effort to patch up the broken city has been in the main, well co-ordinated and organised. But it is going to be a long tough road to fix what needs fixing and to get Christchurch pulsing like it used to.

But like never before I am confident that  we can do it because everyone is doing their bit. Be it a scone for for neighbours, a bloke with a hammer and a trailer full of tarpaulins who has travelled from Hamilton to lend a hand  -  or a million bucks from Owen Glenn - everyone is giving and doing what they can.

And it also gives us time to reflect on our own lives. We have a wedding coming up. Mum and dad were looking forward to travelling to Wellington for it  but even more so now because -  as mum says, in the wake of Christchurch her family is more precious to her, so getting together is now so much more important to her and dad.

In this great time of sadness there is time to rejoice in the fact that we are a nation, a big family, brothers and sisters all,  who - when the chips are down, are there for each other.

SINGERS DISCORD MUSIC TO OUR EARS

The wee blond thing Ruth Carr who fronts for top Kiwi band Minuit should become a new urban hero.

While quietly biding her time with a coffee prior to the Band Together concert in Christchurch - she spied a group of skinheads complete with banner extolling their creed . Carr gave them some shit for being losers. And things got a bit nasty, as it would. Skinheads are the ultimate losers. They have no real purpose in life but to hate. They gorge on it.

So Carr was shaken up by the incident but not so much it seems by their reaction but more by the fact that people of their ilk could wander the street spreading their own brand of fear and loathing with impunity.

It seems they were followed by police. But there is no way that they should have been allowed into the concert.

Good on Carr. More people should follow her brave stance and voice their disgust at these low life.

Christchurch with its conservative backbone and mainland stoicism is a wonderful city but it has a putrid white underbelly and the skinheads are nothing but the fleas that suck on it.

GARDEN CITY STILL BLOOMS

We arrived in Christchurch today not really knowing what to expect. As you drive in from the airport, it takes a while before you realise that chimneys are in short supply. Our taxi has a problem finding our inner city apartment hotel and thats not because its hard to find, its on Cashel Street, one of the main throughfares, it's just that there are still streets blocked off as buildings are being removed or areas are still deemed unsafe for pedestrians and traffic. So our friendly taxi bloke has to take a fairly round about route to get us where we want to go.

We arrive. Its a cute place. Everything you want in miniature. We walk to our first meeting. It should take us 10 minutes but it takes us a bit longer simply because we have to detour around the central city road closures.

When we arrive back to our comfy wee hotel room we contemplate ringing reception as theTV is a bit blinky and TV1 is only screening in black and white. We watch a news item on a bunch of people in Christchurch who still dont have sewage systems and functioning water and with a rising lump in our throat we are mesmerised as a city official breaks down as he tells the distraught residents that the city officials are doing their best and going as fast as they can but they can only do so much. We feel a growing embarrassment that our big worry was having to watch the news in monochrome while residents in an enclave of this city are using buckets to shit in.

Soon an old and dear friend picks us up to take us out to dinner. We gather up another old mutual mate who shows us his lovely home with tell tale bulges that indicate possible hidden structural weaknesses.

We drive past a few churches - earthquakes don't like old churches. Few steeples are left.But the churches will live on.

We dine at a wonderful Merrivale restaurant called JDV . We sup on a great syrah from the Barrossa called the Protagonist. We talk of almost everything but the Big Event. That is the way my mates wanted it and despite being desperate to ask questions, we let them lead the table topics.

The food was very fine- the steak one of the best we have had for a while.

It was a good evening but on the conversation breeze, the word earthquake swirled like a dervish time and time again among the other diners.

Soon, too soon, we were back at the hotel room - 20 metres from a closed off street - within a few paces of places that may never open again.

Christchurch is badly wounded. But it is functioning. We had 15 minutes to spare at the end of the day and we bought some clothes. A practical and simple way to help the city. You can come here, you can sleep, you can get around and you can eat and drink and buy and you can listen to the earthquake tales of those who have lived through this extraordinary event.

The blossoms, like a flossy petticoat gird Hagley Park. The daffodils speckle the banks of the Avon. Some things just carry on like - well like always.

The people are doing the best they can to work together to get back to normal. Its going to take time. But the worst thing we can do is ignore this city. Come here, visit, eat, sleep, listen and where you can spend an extra dollar.

Just being here, being part of the fix is the best help you can give.

EPICENTRE QUAKE STORY

This is a tough read. We know Amy and she a good woman.

Nothing we can say or write can add anything to what she has written.

Selwyn

Date: 07 September 2010 12:00 AM Author/s: Amy Adams MP

The early hours of Saturday morning were without doubt some of the scariest of my life. Wrenched from deep sleep by violent tremors and a deafening roar, the mind can't even comprehend what is happening. Once I realised it was an earthquake the next thought was quite simply that we were going to die. There just didn't seem any way the house could withstand the forces throwing it around. In those moments your instinct is simply to reach out for your family. Grabbing my husband we both started screaming out to my daughter (my son was thankfully away in a safe area) and as soon as we could stand we pushed through debris in total blackness to my daughter's room. Later when the sun came up I would learn that the fish tank that flew across her room missed her head by mere inches before crashing on the bed post but at that moment the priority was getting everyone into the kitchen and under our very solid table. In the darkness the house felt totally unfamiliar and progress was slow picking our way through the remains of our once treasured possessions. In bare feet broken glass was the biggest challenge and once we reached the table it felt like a refuge. We huddled together there for a while before venturing out for blankets, shoes and our civil defence kit which luckily enough we had. Thoughts quickly turned to friends, family and neighbours. Where text contact could be made we were reassured but we couldn't get any response from my husband's family down the road. A heated debate ensued - we couldn't stand the thought they could be buried under rubble but we had no way of knowing if the roads were safe or even still there. In the end my husband headed out to check on his family while my daughter and I took turns comforting each other that no matter what else happened we were ok. I remember thinking if it feels this bad here imagine how bad the epicentre must be. When the radio told us we were the epicentre, it was oddly comforting. At least no where would be much worse than this and there was no risk of tsunami. There was little more we could do then but try to stay warm and wait for the sun to come up. When it did get light it was all a bit surreal. Total stillness & a sense of an ordinary morning until you looked at all the damage and then my brain seemed incapable of knowing how to process it all. I spent several hours just wandering around staring at things not even abe to formulate a plan of where to start. Power, water and landlines were gone and would be for the next 48 hours and cellphones and radios became invaluable. In the hours ahead it seemed everyone else in the world knew more about what was happening than us. By mid morning there was little more we could do at home and family members were there helping out so I left to survey damage to the local area. Needless to say it was significant in parts but other areas had largely escaped unscathed. Roads that had been flat and straight now had hills in them and tarmac had ripped apart, large pine hedges had moved metres from their original sites but it was the devastated houses that left me shell shocked. Time and again I heard stories of lucky escapes and the fact no-one died seemed more and more miraculous. The randomness of it all is bizarre. One township will be badly hurting, in the next barely a glass has been broken. Now as the days wear on the euphoria of being alive is waning and the scale of the disaster is weighing on us heavily. No-one is sleeping much as aftershocks rattle our frayed nerves and exhausted, hollowed eyed faces are everywhere. It will be some time yet before we know the full extent of what this has cost us financially & emotionally. On the positive side though something like this brings out the best in the vast bulk of people. Our communities are resilient and supportive and make me proud to be a Cantarbrian. Our people look out for each other and something like this certainly reminds you what is important. Together I have no doubt we will get through this.

WAIRARAPA TRAIN - COLD

There is no power on the Wairarapa Train this morning.. Its the third time in less that three weeks that we have had no generator on the train - that means no heating and only emergency lights and it always happens on really cold crap mornings.

However we reckon that being on a cold train is infinitely more bearable than living in a mangled Christchurch.. So we start our day grateful and thinking what we can best do for the stricken mainlanders.