https://i.redd.it/lh7csgxj9inc1.jpeg

Also this as well

https://i.redd.it/yxzvkuvrijnc1.jpeg

Underwent knee joint replacement on Thursday. All seems to have gone well and I was home in my own bed by Friday night. First night's sleep was drug assisted but not great but feeling much more comfortable now.

Self regulated physio for the coming weeks and hopefully reasonable mobility by the end of April. Viewing Youtube clips of what is involved in my procedure is not recommended for the squeamish, or if you're waiting for the operation yourself.

This doco that was just aired on Maori TV is a great approach to identify where we're currently going wrong environmentally and possible solutions in a very digestible and relatable format.

Our health system needs fixing. This family have had to set up a give a little page.



https://www.stuff.co.nz/society/35020323...knock-head
'
In Nykala GarrettÔÇÖs world, itÔÇÖs when she wakes up that the nightmare begins.
A few months ago she was a busy mum of a blended family of five, working as a nurse and enjoying life with her partner Rikki Tako.
Then Tako, 32, was hit on the head with the hook end of a crane in a workplace accident.

They thought he had concussion. It was tough, but manageable.
Except two weeks before Christmas everything changed and life would never be the same.
Tests showed Tako had a fast growing and aggressive cancer known as a brain stem glioblastoma. It was likely the young father had only a few months left to live.
Glioblastoma can cause headaches, a loss of balance, weakness on one side of the face and difficulty walking. It grows quickly, destroying healthy tissue as it does. It can be treated but it cannot be cured.


Heartbreakingly, the tumour was always there but probably wouldnÔÇÖt have become a problem until he was in his 50s or 60s. It was the workplace accident that caused the cell dysfunction that led to its rapid growth.

Because Garrett is ÔÇ£able bodiedÔÇØ, she says the family isnÔÇÖt eligible for a carer to look after Tako.
ÔÇ£They want me to be RikkiÔÇÖs 24/7 carer and look after the five kids, do the housework, and everything on my own. I said to them the math isnÔÇÖt mathing.ÔÇØ
Not only does she not have enough hours in the day, the family is now under massive financial strain having lost both TakoÔÇÖs and GarrettÔÇÖs incomes.
She has tried every avenue to get help for the family, but there isnÔÇÖt anything available, she says.
ÔÇ£We had an assessment from community support services at the hospital. They offered me 15 days funding.ÔÇØ

But Garrett hasnÔÇÖt seen any of that funding and itÔÇÖs less than the minimum wage anyway.

She currently gets a supported living payment and an accommodation allowance from WINZ, which she is grateful for.
But after theyÔÇÖve paid their weekly rent of $700, done the groceries and paid the household bills thereÔÇÖs almost nothing left for the family to be able to enjoy their last days with Tako without stress.
The financial stress just adds to what is already a difficult situation, Garrett says. They wished there was more financial help that was easily accessible for people in their situation.
As for Tako, he says heÔÇÖs ÔÇ£all goodÔÇØ. HeÔÇÖs just taking it one day at a time.
ÔÇ£But I didnÔÇÖt realise you had to be rich to have cancer.ÔÇØ

I'm sure this will provide some more fodder for the haters out there...

Quote:NZ Film Commission approves $800,000 public funding for new Jacinda Ardern documentary

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/nz-f...COUESZ3HY/

Had a couple of calls so far about this people wondering what.s going on. They received emails last night /today.

Wonder how many will tell Spark to shove it and move to Gmail, Outlook etc  

Spark New Charges

The only programme which can help people get fair treatment, & sometimes the final chance of being recompensed, & which has been used to get businesses to do the right thing by their customers is to be axed, despite being NZ's longest running programme.

And the only current affairs programme now running here, Sunday is also for the chop. It had been known to sometimes criticise politicians...


https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/5111...estructure



"During a 2021 interview with RNZ's Afternoons programme, original host and creator Brian Edwards said he was inspired by a BBC programme called That's Life.
"One particular segment was on consumers and I think that was the germ of the idea, that we could do a programme in New Zealand where we could look at protecting people right there in their normal daily lives from rip offs and scams by various people and it it just soared from the beginning. I mean, it was tremendous," Edwards said.
Well-known presenter Kevin Milne hosted the show for almost three decades, from 1983 to 2010.
"It was beautifully set up, really, and it didn't require any change as much and still hasn't, you know, 44 years later," he told Afternoons during the same interview.
"I remember that there was a good deal of cynicism in the early days from the newsroom journalists who thought that the because there was an element of entertainment on the show that you couldn't call it real journalism, which was nonsense because it ended up leading the way in terms of investigative journalism."
The show broke new ground, Milne said.
"It's hard to believe now that back then, at the time when Brian set up those programmes, most broadcasters never named names. I can remember now hearing news stories which could say a well-known department store in Lambton Quay appeared in court this morning. No mention [of name], and when Fair Go started up, it was decided it would name names."
Edwards said that was an "absolutely critical" aspect of the show."






https://www.1news.co.nz/2024/03/08/staff...y-fair-go/

"Up to 68 roles are on the line as part of wider cuts at TVNZ.
Half of the job losses were believed to be in the newsroom. Job losses were also being proposed with TVNZ's youth news service Re: and news video content producers.
Daily news bulletins, aside from 1News at Six, would be shelved under the plan.
TVNZ chief executive Jodi O'Donnell said the proposal to cut the programmes came from a need for the commercially-funded company to remain sustainable.
She told 1News she understood staff at the organisation were "angry". O'Donnell also addressed ongoing leaks to other media about the broadcaster's proposals.
TVNZ executive editor Phil O'Sullivan told 1News the shows being proposed for cancellation have been a "really important part of the fabric of New Zealand".
Fair Go executive producer Nicola Russell said her team was "devastated to learn today of the plan to axe the show".

Sounds like they had a hazmat team there on site, possible meth lab?
https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/35020618...t-building

https://twitter.com/RonFilipkowski/statu...anguage%2F

For two  night over xmas, Luxon stayed in Premier house.


https://www.msn.com/en-nz/news/national/...5e3a&ei=12

Newshub's Jenna Lynch says the Prime Minister is facing a "massive perception problem" after it emerged he stayed two nights in Premier House over Christmas. 
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has been very vocal about the fact he can't live in Premier House because it needs tens of millions of dollars of repairs. 
Heritage NZ has backed up the Prime Minister's claims saying the building is in a dishevelled state partly as a result of the multiple purposes it serves. 
But on Thursday morning Stuff revealed Luxon spent two nights at Premier House over Christmas last year. It was previously reported that he hosted his extended family for festive celebrations. 


This has led to questions about whether Premier House is really unlivable. 

The last Prime Minister to live there full time was Dame Jacinda Ardern and she brought up her baby daughter Neve there. 
Newshub Political Editor Jenna Lynch joined AM on Thursday morning and told the show Luxon's reasoning behind not living there doesn't add up. 

"The Prime Minister has been telling us that he doesn't want to live in this place because it is uninhabitable, because it is under construction, because it needs significant repair. However, it seems it was good enough to host his family Christmas there," Lynch told AM co-host Lloyd Burr. 


Luxon has also faced scrutiny for originally deciding to claim a $52,000-a-year allowance to live in his own mortgage-free apartment. 
Last Friday, he fiercely defended it, saying he was entitled to it as an MP who didn't usually live in Wellington. But the public backlash was so swift and strong that he climbed down within a couple of hours, acknowledging it was "becoming a distraction". 

Lynch told AM this whole saga has left the Prime Minister with a lot of questions to answer. 

"Christopher Luxon has a massive perception problem around this thing," she said. "

"If it's good enough for Jacinda Ardern and her toddler to live in, it was good enough for John Key to live in, it is not good enough for Christopher Luxon to live in and the question is why?" 
Newshub has previously asked to film inside Premier House to see how a proposed renovation budgeted at tens of millions of dollars was justified. 
But the Prime Minister refused to allow cameras inside, citing security concerns. "