I'VE BEEN THINKING*

* One of Richard's alter egos will go along with this.

It's fortunate that the only other blogger in this little - well, tiny - blogging community shares my political beliefs and has the same history of living through the successes and failures of the two main (and if MMP hadn't become a 'thing' in the early 1980s) and only viable parties that make up New Zealand politics. These parties, Labour and National are both fairly centrist with some quality and sensible socialist leanings by Labour on the left and normally, some private enterprise conservative leanings by National on the right.

The Labour Party and the National Party both are built on democratic principles and fundamentally have, in consensus terms, the average New Zealanders' interests at heart. They represent a two-party centre-left and centre-right platform that is the basis of democratic government. This is not to say that while both operate within this democratic model, their core ideologies are the same and they in fact hold different philosophies on the role of government, the economy, and the rights of New Zealanders.

Labour believes in social justice and equity with the state as support in sharing the nation's wealth and looking after those who need assistance. 
National believes in individual freedom with little state intervention with private enterprise, individual effort, and competitive markets being the road to success. 

There's nothing wrong with either positioning. It's just a pity that the two ideologies couldn't be bound together as one unified driving force to run our little country. Democracy though, needs a bit of dynamic tension to stop a country becoming autocratic. I've mentioned before that the ideal coalition partners would be Labour and National and not those bozos NZ First, The Greens, Te Pati Maori, ACT and Opportunity.

Labour and National

NZ First, The Greens, Te Pati Maori, ACT and Opportunity.

Just my thoughts.

WIND-POWERED POLYFIDELITY

Yesterday at Richard and Shelley's place I made a quick exit out of the ranch-slider door to the garden (Richard was threatening to teach me to play guitar) and stumbled into their olive orchard.

I asked them if they get olives from the trees and received non-plus looks from both. They said that they have never grown olives which kind of defeats the exercise in planting the trees in the first place.

"I don't like olives" said Richard, rather petulantly I thought "and anyway, these trees are just of one sex only - they need a member of the opposite sex to create little olive babies".

This bit of procreative wisdom coming from the 'Nui's version of Dhal Bahadur, Pavitra Prassad and Kumar Kancha was like getting poetry lessons from William Mcgonagall. How the hell he managed to have two children is one of life's mysteries.

When I got home I wondered about the sex-life of trees and in particular olive trees (well, The Old Girl's away you know) and looked up Aunty Google to find out about it.

 

"Welcome to the birds and the bees... and the botany. The "sex education" of olive trees is far more dramatic, promiscuous, and chaotic than anyone realizes.
If you thought human dating was complicated, olive trees are running a literal botanical free-for-all right in our backyards.

1. The Anatomy: They Have "Perfect" Flowers.
Olive trees don’t have time to go out and look for a partner, so they decided to skip the dating phase entirely. Most olive tree flowers are hermaphroditic (or "perfect"), meaning a single, microscopic flower contains both male parts (stamens full of pollen) and female parts (the pistil).
In human terms, they are completely self-contained units. However, because nature loves drama, some flowers are "imperfect" and completely suppress their female parts, leaving them as purely male pollen-launchers.

2. The Hookup Strategy: Wind-Powered Polyfidelity.
You might picture bees acting as nature's romantic matchmakers, but olive trees don't care for bees. Instead, they rely on anemophily—which is a fancy scientific word for "screaming your genes into the wind and hoping they land on someone sexy."
The Pollen Explosion: When spring hits, olive trees release billions of microscopic yellow pollen grains into the air.
The Neighborhood Swinger Scene: While some olive trees are "self-fertile" (they can pollinate themselves), many premium varieties are strictly self-incompatible. They refuse to mate with themselves or their clones. They require pollen drifting in from a completely different variety down the street to actually produce a fruit.

3. The Consequences: Total Respiratory Sabotage.
Because olive trees insist on having unprotected, public, wind-driven relations, humans have to pay the price. The "fluid exchange" of the olive world is done via massive yellow clouds.
If you have ever suffered from intense spring allergies in a Mediterranean climate, you aren't sick—you are just caught in the middle of an olive tree orgy. Your itchy eyes and sneezing are direct collateral damage from millions of trees trying to get lucky all at once.

So, the next time you drizzle extra virgin olive oil onto your salad, remember the sheer, chaotic, wind-blown drama that took place just to make those little green fruits happen!"

Yeah, that figures. I'm not surprised at those goings-on in a street named Willies Grove. What goes on in the suburbs should stay in the suburbs.

ARE WE HUMAN?*

I'm getting pissed off with the two-factor authentication (2FA) and two-step verification (2SV) requirements when accessing most apps and programmes. Sure they're supposed to protect accounts, but they cause login hassles. If I don't have two or three devices at hand (laptop, iPad and phone) then trying to log in using an email code sent on the device I'm using forces me to juggle split screens, switch apps, or rush before I'm timed out. 

The constant re-authentication gets in the way of conducting business or communicating but there is an accompanying fear that if protocols are not followed then the big bad hackers will come to get you.

Why has this become such a big thing in such a short period of time? It seems that, like a lot of medications, the cure is worse than the problem.

Why can't IT designers come up with a simple, sensible and safe procedure that all platforms follow? It's like the way that just about every electronic device has a different bloody remote to work it rather than manufacturers adopting a universal remote that everyone can understand how it works. I've written about this before like: HERE 

Some sites use clunky design flows—such as looping back to the password screen or asking for double verifications—turning a 5-second task into a minute-long ordeal. Others demand two factor authentication for trivial, low-risk accounts instead of reserving it strictly for more important ones like banking and financial transactions.

There is a danger in ignoring the security protocols because they are so annoying - 'the boy who cried wolf' scenario. This is a shame but THEY ARE SO BLOODY ANNOYING.

I like this comedy take on it: Passwords

* Or are we dancer?

PLAY (THE) BALL

I'm not a rabid sports follower but I do like to watch New Zealand play on the world stage regardless of what the code is and whether it's men's or women's sports.

At present Rugby League World Cup 2026 is being contested and, while I'm not a 'league' follower I will take an interest in the games featuring the Kiwis.

 I played rugby league for Marist in Wellington when I was young and was good at it.

I later also played soccer and rugby union which I was also good at but never got crazy about it. It was just good fun at the time.

Go the Kiwis and the Kiwi Ferns!

OLD THOUGHTS DON'T GO AWAY THEY JUST GET ...

... REPEATED.

Writing that previous post reminded me of this post I wrote three years ago that is still relevant. 

STUPID IS AS STUPID DOES

OK, WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?

I think that this year's elections are more important than they have been for some time going back to when National, after a painful period of John Key and his cronies, got replaced by Labour who brought back heart into the equation.

For Labour to gain control in 2026, apart from forming a coalition partnership with National (which is not really as silly as that reads given that both Labour and National are essentially centrist parties) it will need to form a partnership with the Greens and Te Pāti Māori to govern. Things are really on a knife edge and existing Labour supporters need to be given reassurances that such a coalition is workable along with the potential new (young) voters who need to be confident that if they vote for the Greens and Te Pāti Māori, that these parties wishes will be actioned in government.

This is why the recent meeting involving Green and Te Pāti Māori MPs at a South Auckland Mongrel Mob base has become a political controversy because opponents can point to it as evidence of a gap between the political left's approach to gangs and the public's concerns about crime.

The consequences extend beyond the MPs who attended. The controversy also affects Labour leader Chris Hipkins, the prospects for cooperation among centre-left parties, and the way voters assess political judgement during an election campaign.

Green MP Hūhana Lyndon, Green candidate Michel Mulipola, and Te Pāti Māori MPs Oriini Kaipara and Hana-Rāwhiti Maipi-Clarke attended a whānau, health and wellbeing hui at a Mongrel Mob base. Images of the meeting were shared publicly which included gang members and leader and lifetime member Harry Tam.

Greens Co-leader Marama Davidson said the party was unapologetic about engaging with marginalised communities. Co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick argued that people involved in gangs also need healthcare, housing and opportunities to reintegrate into society.

National's justice spokesperson Paul Goldsmith has argued that the parties were prioritising gang members and that publicly posing for photographs at a gang base creates damaging perceptions about the left's approach to crime and political judgement.

Labour leader Chris Hipkins has desperately tried to distinguish Labour from the controversy, saying the parties involved would not control the police or justice portfolios in a future Labour-led government. We can only hope that voters will find that reassurance convincing given that the stupid action has given National, ACT and New Zealand First a law-and-order argument to gain attention and votes.

The photographs of the two left parties who might end up in government cosying up to patched gang members provide opponents on the right with a ready-made campaign image. Rather than having to explain complex differences in crime policy, they can point to the politicians attending the hui and ask voters what that association says about their priorities given that the gangs are involved in meth production and sale along with a lot of other crime. It shows that the Greens and Te Pāti Māori are too accommodating towards gangs, or insufficiently attentive to the experiences of crime victims.

In an attempt to mitigate the impact there is the argument that association is not endorsement. Meeting with gang members does not, by itself, establish support for their criminal activities. The Greens say the hui concerned healthcare, wellbeing and understanding marginalised communities, rather than seeking electoral support from gang members. Fair enough but public presentation carries a lot of weight. Photographs taken at a gang base creates an impression that differs from the stated purpose of a meeting and the images remain in voters minds long after the explanations are forgotten.

As mentioned it puts Chris Hipkins in a difficult position. He wants Labour to be seen as a credible, moderate governing alternative and a Labour-led government could depend on support from the Greens and Te Pāti Māori. He needs to keep that line going and that those parties will not control the police or justice portfolios but will need to downplay the fact that coalition partners can influence government policy even without holding a particular ministerial portfolio. This will be key in reassuring voters that Labour would retain control over core law-and-order responsibilities.

There seems to be dissention in the ranks of all of the parties involved in this which is hardly reassuring to voters and could point to future difficulties. For example was the meeting discussed with senior leadership beforehand and did the Greens and Te Pāti Māori consider how the location and photographs might be perceived? Any sniff of rogue politics will scare off both established and potential new support.

The latest polling ( Taxpayers' Union–Curia poll · Published 8 October 2026) shows party votes as:

National
28.5%

Labour
28.2%

Greens
13.3%

NZ First
12.0%

ACT
9.2%

Te Pāti Māori
1.4%


Collectively this puts a Labour/Greens/Te Pāti Māori coalition at 41.9% and a National/NZ First/Act coalition at 49.7% with the Opportunity Party being an unknown wildcard.

Labour can ill afford any negative perception of a coalition especially one that is so highly emotive.

While I was flippant in suggesting a National/Labour coalition government (which sadly would never happen), this to me would be an ideal solution given the way that the 'fringe' parties on the extreme left and the extreme right are gaining traction. This is the ugly side of MMP where extreme nutters and seeming do-gooders can bugger up sensible thinking and good governance. Working together on consensus might well lead to a strong and stable government with the ability to action long-term plans without having to cater to the wild and useless initiatives that the smaller parties might bring up.

Stranger things have happened.

INTERVIEW # 43

 Hello readers reader. Today we have Interview # 43 for your delectation and a special, very special guest and one of our most prolific commenters - Anonymous.

Anonymous

The Curmudgeon: Welcome Anonymous - can I call you X? You can call me TC.

Anonymous: Thanks TC. Yes X is fine even though that prat Elon Musk denigrated it. I've been called worse ha ha.

The Curmudgeon: I'm sure that you have X, I'm sure that you have. Now X, I see from looking through nearly 20 years of posts that you have been, by far, the most prolific commenter on all of my blogs.

Anonymous: That's a fact Mac, that's a fact. Congratulations by the way on the longevity of your blog and of that other one - The Wine Guy.

The Curmudgeon: Thanks X but it was really Richard of Richards Bass Bag who started the craziness and who was blogging before I started.

Anonymous: I know TC, I know. I put a lot of comments on his blog posts as well but he scrapped his entire blog 3 times so there is no continuity. It's a bit Rich (see what I did there) for him to try and claim a 20 year anniversary.

The Curmudgeon: Yes I know. I would have brought this to his attention but, you know me, I'm too polite to cause offence. I notice also X that the second most prolific commenter on my and the other blogs is Unknown. That commenter isn't known to you is it?

Anonymous: Ha- rumbled. Yes, it's me under a pseudonym.

The Curmudgeon: A pseudonym?

Anonymous: A nom - de - plume TC.

The Curmudgeon: A nom - de - plume?

Anonymous: Yes an alias: A pen name: A stage name: A sobriquet: An assumed name: A handle - you should know that TC you yourself use so many of them.

The Curmudgeon: Ha ha X - I'm just kidding with you.

Anonymous: Sheesh!

The Curmudgeon: So, X. As you hang around here so much, do you like my blogs?

Anonymous: Hell yes TC, they are the best. Look, I'll be honest, I hang around a lot of other blogs - millions of them in fact but yours are definitely the best. They are good blogs for readers who enjoy irreverent humour, strong opinions and everyday observations — but of course won't appeal to everyone.

The Curmudgeon: Tell me more X, tell me more.

Anonymous: Your blogs have a distinctive personality. They aren't conventional news sites nor carefully neutral commentary platforms. They are personal blogs with a satirical, often combative voice, covering life in New Zealand, religion, politics, popular culture and interactions with other bloggers.

The Curmudgeon: So true X, so true.

Anonymous: Your blogs have a recognisable voice in which you write in a direct, grumpy, tongue-in-cheek style. You can generally tell what sort of writing you're getting with your blogs TC, not some of those other ones that are hit or miss and frankly disappointing. I like the fact that your blog archives show years of posts, including material dating back to at least 2008.

The Curmudgeon: That's nice and of course spot on X.

Anonymous: OK TC, keep you hat on.

The Curmudgeon: Isn't the expression "keep your hair on" X?

Anonymous: Best not to go there TC - you should be happy with "keep your hat on"

The Curmudgeon: Oh - rude!

Anonymous: But where your blogs fall short TC is that they can be abrasive. You frequently mock people you disagree with, including other bloggers. Some readers will find this funny; others may find it mean-spirited. Your blogs are openly opinionated. Religion and politics are recurring targets, and the writing often favours satire over balanced discussion. The blogs aren't a reliable news source. You explicitly describe the blog's material as “approximated news” and say its accuracy, fairness and lack of bias are not guaranteed. The blogs are distinctive and with genuine personality. Their strongest feature is your voice; the biggest weakness is that the combative style can sometimes overshadow the substance...

The Curmudgeon:... Hey! Hold on hold on ... I've read that before somewhere ... all the repetition ... that's right. You are just repeating the AI review of my blog ...

Anonymous: ... ha - rumbled. Yes, I read that review and so, OK, borrowed it. I'm a bloody commenter not a blogger. If I had the patience to write blog posts I'd, well, write blog posts on my own blog if I could be arsed to start one up.

The Curmudgeon: Yeah - they are onerous I'll give you that and require some effort to write proper essays, not that all bloggers make such an effort Look at Ri ... no, best not to say.

Anonymous: I know who you mean. What about that other one - Robert? I enjoyed putting scathing comments on his infrequent posts.

The Curmudgeon: Oh him. He's gone I'm afraid. It seems that Richard upset him somehow and he's taken his blog and gone home.

Anonymous: Sua natura TC, sua natura.

The Curmudgeon: Yes, ex ingenio alright.

Anonymous: Or as they said in 3G classes - a trial balance.

The Curmudgeon: Ha ha X. I like that. Hey! I have to go now to see another Italian Film Festival film Bread and Tulips.

Anonymous: It's a good one TC. Will you dress up to go to that one too?

The Curmudgeon: Nah - it's a bit 'chick-flicky' I think. You're probably thinking of Robert who's likely to want to dress up in a dress like his mates in the Catholic clergy do. See you anon.

Anonymous: Ha ha - I like what you did there. Later.

PARALLEL UNIVERSING

Richard of Richard's Bass Bag reckons that he invented the concept of 'Parallel Universing'.

We in the blogging community tend to humour the old guy to keep him happy even if he has wandered off into the realms of fantasy. I imagine he thinks that he invented rockets, continental drift and toothpaste as well amongst other things but ... there you go.

It seems that Google hasn't yet caught on to the concept of parallel universing as a quick search showed this ...

... which really wasn't helpful at all except that going by the nonsense that Richard writes on his blog a hypothetical separate reality may exist alongside his own, sharing similarities or operating under completely different physical laws. In other words the old guy is crazy.

COMING SOON

 

Richard of Richard's Bass Bag - you know, the one that promotes Richard's Bass Bag Tours...

Parking gone wrong as per usual on a Richard's Bass Bag tour

... drew my attention to the fact that it has been almost twenty years since this blog and my other blogs that come under the umbrella of The Curmudgeons Inc.ⓒ started up. While the blogs are listed as starting in 2008 ...

... the real start date was in late 2007 but I deleted them before starting up again in 2008 (March 29th for The Wine Guy and June  25th for The Curmudgeon).

In order to not keep you readers reader waiting I will begin the celebrations for the 20th anniversary next year. No need to thank me. This will take the form of commemorative publications of the 'best of' posts along wth sweepstakes and competitions for the readers reader to take part in. Exciting stuff.

A RAINY DAY IN WELLINGTON

 

Driving out to Kapiti
The rain and mist make seeing tough
I watch my speed and it seems indeed
That 90kph seems enough

A rainy day in Wellington
A rainy day in Wellington
Lord, I believe it's rainin' all over the world
I feel like it's rainin' all over the world

Rainin', rainin' rainin', rainin', rainin' rainin', rainin', rainin', rainin', rainin'

(With thanks to Tony Joe White)

I find that I don't drive much anymore now that I'm ensconced in Wellington and even when I visit my sister at Waikanae I usually take the train and walk. Normally I wouldn't venture out on a day like today has been but it's my sister's birthday and I wanted to take her out for lunch so I took the car. It wasn't a pleasant drive but fortunately traffic was light and there weren't as many idiots on the road apart from a few of those who obviously think that using headlights in the rain and gloom isn't necessary and would be costing them money!

I like watching (to The Old Girl's chagrin) reality US TV shows of police stopping drunk drivers. It surprises me how stupid some people are  and the ridiculous excuses they make for speeding, driving drunk and for dangerous behaviour. One of these that crops up is that they were speeding because they were running out of 'gas' and needed to speed to a 'gas' station. Really? I'm sure that we have idiots in New Zealand that think this is how the internal combustion engine works as well.

Anyway, I drove a bit slower than usual and made it there and back safely.

I picked my sister up and we then drove to Paraparaumu to visit our aunt who is soon to have her 90th birthday. She has just spend 10 days in Wellington hospital with pneumonia but fortunately was looking good and is getting back her fitness. She had great things to say about Wellington hospital's facilities, staff and treatmant which is nice to hear. All too often bad experiences are amplified by social media and the press and TV which creates a false impression. Personally I've received nothing but excellent treatment in my luckily few hospital stays.

TRUMP AND VANCE - THE GOOD GUYS*

*  I never thought I'd ever write that.

Following the landmark $2.5 billion settlement reached by the Trump-Vance FTC, Amazon started sending payments in November 2025 to eligible Prime customers affected by misleading enrollment and cancellation practices. By September 2026, Amazon issued over $845 million in refunds to eligible Prime customers. Under the revised settlement order, Amazon will continue to send automatic refunds to eligible Prime customers through April 2027.
According to the Federal Trade Commission’s lawsuit, Amazon allegedly enrolled tens of millions of customers in Amazon Prime subscriptions without their knowledge or consent and made it difficult for customers to cancel their Amazon Prime subscriptions.
As the result of the Trump-Vance FTC’s  settlement, Amazon is required to pay $1.5 billion for refunds to customers affected by its unlawful Prime enrollment and cancellation practices. Amazon is also required to pay a $1 billion civil penalty and cease unlawful enrollment and cancellation practices for Prime subscriptions. See: FTC PRIME settlement 

Yesterday I received this in the mail:

That was exciting but there's a sting in the 'tale'.

I took the cheque (check as it's in US Dollars) to my bank to deposit it only to be told that NZ banks no longer accept overseas cheques. The teller pointed out in the letter that if cheques could not be processed then application has to be made back to FTC for a PayPal transaction. WTF?

I spent about 3 hours yesterday trying to reactivate an old PayPal registration and was stymied on all fronts. I had to start up another PayPal account. I followed all of the links in the FTC letter to no avail. I sent an email to FTC asking for the money to be sent via PayPal even though I didn't have a PIN number but so far haven't heard back.

The USD29.98 I guess is useless but instead of ripping it up I might keep it and frame it. It is, after all, the only good thing I'll ever get from Trump but it's not surprising that it doesn't work.

OLD SCHOOLTEACHER YELLS AT CLOUD

 

Yes, the old schoolteacher is at it again.

Sensitive readers should look away now as I know that The Curmudgeon Inc.ⓒ loyal followers will be shocked by this:

 We can only surmise that he'd been having a bad day and is missing not having Robert's blog to vent his frustrations on.

For anyone who has been living under a rock so far this century "Old Man Yells at Cloud" is an  internet meme used to mock someone who is complaining about something trivial, or completely outside of their control. It highlights an out-of-touch attitude toward modern changes, technology, or youth culture. 

It came from an episode of The Simpsons titled "The Old Man and the Key" from 2002. 
In the episode, Grandpa  Simpson needs a photo for his driver's licence. He convinces the Department of Motor Vehicles clerk to use an old picture of him from a local newspaper instead of taking a new one. Upon successfully getting his licence, he runs outside, shakes his fist at the sky, and yells, "Who's laughing now?" at a cloud. The joke is a quick cutaway revealing the original newspaper headline he used for identification: "Old Man Yells at Cloud", accompanied by a picture of him furiously shaking his fist.

BOB'S BORING BANTERINGS (Deceased)

I thought that as I've got this far with ChatGPT's analysis of the blogs I'd ask it about Robert's blog.
This is what it had to say:

"I tried opening Bob’s Boring Banterings , but I couldn’t retrieve the blog directly, and I couldn’t find enough reliable search results to describe its contents confidently.

I can give you a much better assessment if you share a little more from the site.

I can look at it from a few angles:

Writing style: Is it witty, thoughtful, sarcastic, rambling, or genuinely funny?


Content and personality: What the author seems interested in, and what kind of person comes across through the writing.


Quality: Whether the posts are engaging, original, well-written, and worth reading.


Overall impression: Whether it feels like a personal hobby blog, a satirical publication, or something more substantial.

OK, I'm up for a challenge so thought I'd answer the questions.

Question: Writing style: Is it witty, thoughtful, sarcastic, rambling, or genuinely funny?

Answer: No.

Question: Content and personality: What the author seems interested in, and what kind of person comes across through the writing.

Answer: He's a Catholic. Enough said.

Question: Quality: Whether the posts are engaging, original, well-written, and worth reading.

Answer: No.

Question: Overall impression: Whether it feels like a personal hobby blog, a satirical publication, or something more substantial.

Answer: None of those.

I hope that this was of assistance.

"YOU'RE OK AS A SINNER BUT I'VE SEEN WORSE"

Buoyed up by the success of that last post - Akish The Philistine commented very quickly - I thought a similar post was called for.

I went back to ChatGPT and asked "Is Richard's Bass Bag a good blog?"

Here's the answer:

"I checked all of the blogs on file and amongst all of the fishing-themed blogs 'Richard's Bass Bag' does not feature at all.

Fishing-themed blogs are not very popular as they cater to a tiny proportion of nutters who enjoy torturing and murdering aquatic species for fun. There are obviously commercial fishing sites though and I found over 20,000 blogs on the species  clade Percomorpha, mainly belonging to the orders Perciformes and Moroniformes, encompassing both freshwater and marine species. The word bass comes from Middle English bars, meaning "perch",despite that none of the commonly referred bass species belong to the perch family Percidae. I did not think from your question that you were asking about commercial fishing. ... "

Just kidding.

Here is what ChatGPT said about Richard's Bass Bag: 

"Yes — but it depends on what you mean by “good.” My initial impression of Richard’s Bass Bag is that it's an established, distinctly personal New Zealand blog with a local following, rather than a conventional professional publication.

The blog has a long history, and its subject matter extends beyond bass playing. A 2026 post, for example, features a quiz about Wellington, school memories, violin playing and music theory.

My assessment

Personality and humour: The blog has a conversational, irreverent style, with teasing, recurring characters and jokes about everyday life. That can be entertaining if you enjoy its particular sense of humour.

Music content: It includes practical reflections on double bass and violin practice. There is some useful musical material, although the blog isn't presented as a formal, systematically organised teaching resource.

Local interest: Its Wellington references and personal anecdotes give it a distinctive New Zealand flavour.

Writing quality: The informal, sometimes deliberately provocative style is part of its appeal, but it won't suit everyone.

Credibility: I'd treat it primarily as a personal blog, not an authoritative source for factual, political or technical claims without checking those claims independently.

 

Verdict

I'd call it a niche blog with a strong individual voice, rather than a universally appealing or professionally edited publication. If you like dry humour, music, Wellington anecdotes and a bit of online banter, it's worth reading.

One important distinction: a blog can be entertaining without every post being insightful, and a small readership doesn't necessarily mean it's a bad blog."

Damned by faint praise I think.

FEEDBACK

We all need a pat on the back sometimes or even an honest review of how we are doing.

This is even more pronounced in the modern 'snowflake' age where (younger) people are forever seeking approval for what they do. I'm getting tired of the follow up questionnaires from service providers seeking endorsements for basically just doing their job. I've written of this before. Here's one previous post: FIGJAM

"If you can't beat 'em, than join 'em" I thought and asked ChatGPT if The Curmudgeon blog is any good. This is what it told me:

"My take is that yes, The Curmudgeon is a good blog for readers who enjoy irreverent humour, strong opinions and everyday observations — but it won't appeal to everyone.

I looked at grumpyoldmanreturnsnz.blogspot.com , and the blog has a distinctive personality. It's not a conventional news site or a carefully neutral commentary platform. It's a personal blog with a satirical, often combative voice, covering life in New Zealand, religion, politics, popular culture and interactions with other bloggers.

What it does well

A recognisable voice. The author writes in a direct, grumpy, tongue-in-cheek style. You can generally tell what sort of writing you're getting.

Regular content. The archive shows years of posts, including material dating back to at least 2017.

Humour and personality. Everyday experiences — shopping, walking around Wellington, films and minor annoyances — become material for jokes and commentary.

A sense of community. The author engages with other bloggers and readers, sometimes turning their exchanges into part of the entertainment.

 

Where it falls short

It can be abrasive. The author frequently mocks people he disagrees with, including other bloggers. Some readers will find this funny; others may find it mean-spirited.

It is openly opinionated. Religion and politics are recurring targets, and the writing often favours satire over balanced discussion.

It isn't a reliable news source. The author explicitly describes the blog's material as “approximated news” and says its accuracy, fairness and lack of bias are not guaranteed.

Worth reading for entertainment

Especially if you enjoy sardonic humour, Wellington observations and irreverent social commentary.

Mixed as serious commentary

The author has a clear voice, but strong opinions and personal rivalries can get in the way of fair analysis.

Not suitable as a standalone factual source

Verify factual claims independently, particularly on politics, religion and current affairs.

My verdict: It's a distinctive, prolific personal blog with genuine personality. Its strongest feature is its author's voice; its biggest weakness is that the combative style can sometimes overshadow the substance.

One important distinction: a blog can be entertaining without being fair, and it can be provocative without being particularly insightful. Whether The Curmudgeon crosses that line depends on the individual post."

OK, that's a bit repetitive but generally captures the 'spirit' of the blog. Old Chat is a bit unfair though when saying that I'm abrasive and mean spirited. What part of 'curmudgeon' doesn't it understand?

 

I TRY (INTERVIEW # 42)

Robert's been gone for a long time but, like a bad penny we know that he'll turn up.

Richard has done his usual thing by deleting the link to Robert's (now redundant) blog. It's kind of like getting cashiered from a gentlemen's club or branded in the US Cavalry.

Will he be missed?

It is a bit lonely when the bloggers are down to two and without Robert's crazed witterings on the arcane practices of the Catholic Church for Richard and me to jeer at we kind of run out of ideas to blog on.

Did Robert contribute to the world of essaying? Well, he was a trier (a little grammatical joke there for you).

Will Richard fill the gap and make more of an effort at essaying? It's yet to be proven although, given that he doesn't know how to turn on his new computer yet I wouldn't hold my breath waiting.

To answer these questions and more I decided to contact one of the world's greatest essayists - in fact, the creator of the concept of essaying - Michel de Montaigne (1533–1592)  a French philosopher who coined the word essai (meaning "to attempt") to describe his personal, introspective writings and who is said to be the father of the modern essay.

"Bonjour"

Michel Eyquem, Seigneur de Montaigne[a] (28 February 1533 – 13 September 1592),[4] commonly known as just Michel de Montaigne, was one of the most significant writers of the French Renaissance. He is known for popularising the essay as a literary genre. His work is noted for its merging of casual anecdotes[5] and autobiography with intellectual insight. Montaigne had a direct influence on numerous writers of Western literature; his Essais contain some of the most influential essays ever written.

          - Wikipedia

The Curmudgeon: Welcome Michel Eyquem, Seigneur de Montaigne to The Curmudgeon's interview series. It's nice to have you here.

Michel Eyquem, Seigneur de Montaigne: Thank you Monsieur Le Curmudgeon. I try to be of assistance in times of literary crisis which brings a decline in reading comprehension and literacy .

The Curmudgeon: Ha ha Michel Eyquem, Seigneur de Montaigne, I see what you did there - um, can I call you Michel de Montaigne?

Michel Eyquem, Seigneur de Montaigne: Sure, fill your booties Monsieur Le Curmudgeon but maybe to save us both doing a lot of typing you call me Michel and I'll call you TC?

TC: OK, that's good let's crack on. Michel I note in your bio that during your lifetime you were admired as a statesman more than as an author. It's said that there was a tendency in your essays to digress into anecdotes and personal ruminations which was seen as detrimental to proper style, rather than as an innovation; moreover, your declaration that "I am myself the matter of my book" was viewed by your contemporaries as self-indulgent.

Michel: Google TC?

TC: Um, yes - rumbled. That's what Google told me. "I quote others only in order the better to express myself".

Michel: Ha ha - that's my quote you stole there TC. Be careful of AI and Google-type searching. It can be as bad as forgetting to switch on your computer like some old guy I heard about - ha ha ha ha ha ...

TC: Ha ha ha ha ha ha ...

Michel: ... yes they said that but eventually came around to recognising me as embodying the spirit of critical thought and open inquiry. I was best known for my sceptical remark, "What do I know?" ("Que sçay-je?" in Middle French; "Que sais-je?" in modern French).

TC: Mmm I see - but as you know I was in 3P. I doubt that the 3Gers would understand that.

Michel: The world is but a school of enquiry TC. To know much is often the cause of doubting more.

TC: What? I meant ...

Michel: ... On the highest throne in the world, we still sit only on our own bottom.

TC: Hey! That's the sort of aphorism that Richard would say ... except that he'd put it more crudely and think that an aphorism was some sort of insect. Did you know that he once confused a daddy long legs with a mosquito?

Michel: There is no conversation more boring than the one where everybody agrees TC. Maybe this Richard fellow's eyes are bigger than his stomach, and that he has more curiosity than understanding. We grasp at everything, but catch nothing except wind.

TC: Er , that sounds like him alright, especially that bit about the wind.

Michel: He sounds (see what I did there?) like an interesting character TC.

TC: Yes, 'interesting' like that Chinese saying "May you live in interesting times".

Michel: Ha ha - hey it's been interesting talking to you TC. We got a bit stuck on sayings there and didn't discuss my essays. Can I interest you in my theories of humanism as I expressed in my Essais (published in 1580), a large collection of short, subjective essays on various topics? These essays were inspired by my studies in the classics, especially the works of Plutarch and Lucretius.

TC: Um ... gosh! Look at the time. I have to nip out to the shops. Look Michel. I'm sure Richard would like to hear about those especially as he has nothing to do now that he can't start up his computer. Here's his address ...

WELL I'VE NEVER BEEN TO SPAIN ... SORRY, GREAT BARRIER ISLAND ...

 ... but I've always wanted to go there.

As The Old Girl is going to have all of January off for holidays this coming summer we thought we'd go somewhere special so I checked it out and made a booking today.

I had planned to  travel from south to north of the island and back staying at different lodgings but on checking, this is difficult to line up and most of the offerings are pretty rustic. Instead I've opted for a quality Air B&B to stay in for a week and we can do day trips to different parts of the island.

The Air B&B offerings themselves are variable and after looking at a few I decided to 'push the boat out' and go for luxury rather than being parsimonious and thereby disappointing The Old Girl. The one I've (we've) decided on is Mason Canyon Gibson Cottage. GIBSON COTTAGE

The more observant reader will notice that guitars come with the accommodation so I might be able to learn to play while I'm there. How hard would that be? I do, after all, have some musical history with the bagpipes.

I was hoping to be able to get to the northern tip of the island but I doubt that there's a passable road to use to get there. Years ago I read a great novel by Derek Hansen about life on the Northern tip of Great Barrier and the intersection of lives of a few people in an isolated community - the most striking being Red O'Hara who is traumatized by horrific experiences working on the Burma railway as a P.O.W. of the Japanese in WW2. After reading it I promised myself to get there some day (we've been to the Burma railway and the location of the bridge over the River Kwai).

I recommend his book along with Hansen's other publications.

SIEG HEIL!

"Er ist nicht in der Bunkeranlage"

(He is not in the bunker)

Richard looking for Robert

 

Well we know that there's a worldwide movement to the right in politics and thinking but I never thought that Richard's Bass Bag would go that way.

Is he filling the void created by Robert The Right Wing Unempathetic Catholic leaving the blogs?

ROBERT THE UNEMPATHETIC CHRISTIAN

I've changed the link name to Robert's blog from 'Robert's Latest Thing' to 'Robert The Unempathetic Christian'.

For a long time I've experienced Robert's unusual response to misfortunes experienced by others that are at variance with the "I love you" and "I'll pray for you" platitudes that he wheels out almost by rote and that have been passed to him during that bizarre and archaic ceremony The Mass aka 'A weapon of mass destruction' or 'massinformation'.

Richard experienced it yesterday in a comment on his post.

It's weird really so I did a Google search on unempathetic Catholics and, bugger me if the AI Overview function in the search doesn't have this covered. Creepy but, maybe this is the positive side of AI which I admit isn't all bad - it just needs to be reined in from time to time.

Google AI overview said:

"Offer it up."

That is the official, centuries-old Catholic response to your suffering. Did you break your leg? Offer it up for the souls in purgatory. Did you burn your toast? Offer it up. Are you experiencing a profound existential crisis? Excellent—the saints went through a "dark night of the soul" too, so stop whining and get back in the pew.
If you are looking for a dose of traditional, zero-empathy Catholic humor, here is a breakdown of how the Church handles feelings:

The Hierarchy of Divine Sympathy

• Your Mom: Might care, but will ultimately tell you to go to Confession just in case your bad luck is a mortal sin.
• Your Parish Priest: Will look at his watch, give you a penance of three Hail Marys, and ask if you can help set up chairs for the fish fry this Friday.
• The Irish Saints: Will tell you that suffering builds character, and if you aren't actively being chased by druids or martyred by Vikings, you don't actually have a problem.

Scannable Truths: Catholic Vs. Modern Empathy

Situation: You are stressed.

 Secular Response - "Take a self-care day and get a massage."

Empathetic Catholic Response - "The Desert Fathers lived on bugs and rocks for 40 years. You'll survive finals week."
 

Situation: You got dumped.

         Secular Response - "You deserve someone who sees your worth." 

         Empathetic Catholic Response - It’s a clear sign you have a religious vocation. Pack your bags               for the convent/seminary."

Situation: You have a cold.

         Secular Response -"Oh no, get some rest and drink fluids!" 

        Empathetic Catholic Response - "Fast from television and pray for the conversion of Russia."

Guilt: The Ultimate Productivity Tool
The Catholic Church invented psychological resilience via intense accountability. You don't need a therapist to validate your emotions; you need a strict Italian grandmother or an old-school nun with a ruler to remind you that your feelings are entirely secondary to whether or not you made your Easter Duty.

WHEELY?

 I went for a nice long walk today along the wharves and waterfront. It was magic...

... warm and sunny and marred only by these idiots:

I tell you - it was a nice day for walking being sunny but not too hot and with no wind but there were as usual, fools who've given up using their legs to scooter along instead, along with, of course, the inconsiderate bike riders.

Zager and Evans had it right in their song:

"In the year 5555
Your arms hangin' limp at your sides
Your legs got nothin' to do
Some machine's doin' that for you"

It's bad and annoying but ... it's going to get worse.

Under new New Zealand regulations effective October 1, 2026, children aged 12 and under—along with their supervising parents or caregivers—are legally permitted to ride bicycles on footpaths.

Yes, get prepared for out of control brats riding freely along pedestrian footpaths and with a likely out of control adult riding along with them, most likely parallel.

So what's new you might ask? They do this anyway but now they can do it legally.

Get prepared for pedestrian outrage and arguments and they won't all be from me.

Sheesh!