Saturday Morning With Jack Tame

Resident traveller Mike Yardley gave Jack Tame the rundown on what's hot and what's not in Tarawera.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In Nature there is no waste, one’s systems waste is another systems food. Humans’ diets are so varied we have all the minerals and elements needed in farming. But this combination of wonderful elements usually becomes pollution, and we have to set up expensive industrial plants to try and mitigate any damage.   The answer? Composting toilets. I first came across a simple system when I visited the artist Hundertwasser in the early eighties at his home in the Bay of Islands. He just had a simple bucket that he added a handful sawdust to it at each use. There was no smell!   If any organic matter is left submerged in water it makes for anaerobic decomposition. It's smelly – you’ll know what I mean if you’ve ever left even grass clippings in a wheel barrow of water by mistake. If you keep the water out and you have aerobic decomposition, there is very low smell, especially if the composting loo is well ventilated.  We have been using this system since we moved into the eco village in 1986. I still remember the ki

A few weeks ago we dealt to the clothes moths and their caterpillars;The conclusion was that their ecosystem service is to recycle keratin: hair, fur, wool, nails and skin. This is part of the decomposition job that many invertebrates do when an animal dies,Keratin is really hard to digest; Mammals and Birds can’t do that (cat’s fur-balls; owls ejected pellets, etc); these moths are therefore valued members of the RECYCLING SQUAD.This appears to be the most common carpet destroyer in Aotearoa; probably because our houses are a lot more “open” than – for instance – in Europe.Less insulation (especially in older homes), more moisture inside, not well sealed, wooden structures and draughty windowsWe also have this habit of living outside a lot: leaving windows and doors open in summer time, so that there is an unlimited indoor-outdoor flow.Carpet beetles are quite different from the clothes moths – different family of insects.Also a different life-cycle and different tactic of chewing on carpet.The adult beetles

Giesen 0% Rosé, Marlborough $17.99 Why I chose it:  Growth in low or zero alcohol wines and spirits80% less calories than full strength wineBest of the three 0% alc. Wines on offerFull strength Rose with alcohol removed (less than 0.5% alc) spinning cone.Nice to have a glass of wine at lunch without feeling drowsy afterwards.What does it taste like? Subtle strawberry flavours. Dry, fresh and clean. A bit simple but has good purity and a good acid/sweetness balance.Why it’s a bargain: Not so much of a bargain as a niche wine for certain occasions.Where you can buy it?  Online from Giesen.co.nz/wineNewly released so not widely available yet. Food match?  Smoked salmon. Fairly versatile food matchWill it keep?   Drink it within a year. Having said that, I opened a Giesen 0% Sauvignon Blanc released a year ago recently and it was still drinking well. Check out Bob's website www.therealreview.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jeff Bezos goes to space This Blue Origin launch was so much more impressive than the Virgin Galactic launch. The take off was dramatic, the landing of the booster rocket was flawless, and the return of the capsule was uneventful - exactly what you want! The tech behind this unmanned launch is unreal. Plus Wally Funk got her dream to come true. A large chunk of the internet went down Again we're shown just how centralized the internet has become. Akamai - an internet infrastructure company - tried to update a configuration, but it didn't go to plan. Instead, it took the DNS service offline which broke services for some of the biggest brands and internet services in the world. Everything from airline check-in kiosks, banking systems, 911 call centers and more went down until it was reverted.  There are a handful of companies which, over time, have come to provide critical services everyone relies on.  The Olympics go 4K Every drip of sweat will be able to be seen this time around as 4K feeds of the Olympic act

Dr Death: Starring Joshua Jackson, Alec Baldwin and Christian Slater, this drama is based on the terrifying true story of Dr Christopher Duntsch, a charismatic neurosurgeon whose patients ended up permanently maimed or dead after routine surgeries. As victims piled up, two doctors and a prosecutor set out to stop him (TVNZ OnDemand)  Girls5Eva: When a one-hit-wonder girl group from the 90’s gets sampled by a young rapper, its members reunite to give their pop star dreams one more shot. They may be grown women balancing spouses, kids, jobs, debt, aging parents, and shoulder pain, but surely they can also be Girls5eva?  (TVNZ OnDemand)  Sexy Beasts: The latest “I can’t believe this is actually a thing” reality show. Hoping to say goodbye to superficial dating, real-life singles sport elaborate makeup and prosthetics to put true blind-date chemistry to the test (Netflix).LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sweet and spicy, this is the perfect accompaniment to roast pork or to have with cheese and crackers.  Makes 2 small jars  10 medium tamarillos, skinned and roughly chopped 1 red pepper, sliced thinly 2 red chillies, deseeded and chopped or ¼ tsp chilli flakes  2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed 2 cups sugar  ½ cup apple cider vinegar  2 tbsps balsamic vinegar Squeeze lemon juice  ½ tsp salt  Bring all ingredients to a boil and stir until sugar is dissolved. Reduce heat and simmer for 40-60 minutes or until mixture thickens and becomes syrupy. Test a cooled teaspoonful for heat and add more chilli if you want it hotter.  Spoon into warmed, sterilized jars and place lids on. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Girls Cant Surf  It's the 1980s and the world of professional surfing is a circus of fluro colours, peroxide hair and radical male egos. GIRLS CAN'T SURF follows the journey of a band of renegade surfers who took on the male-dominated professional surfing world to achieve equality and change the sport forever. Featuring surfing greats Jodie Cooper, Frieda Zamba, Pauline Menczer, Lisa Andersen, Pam Burridge, Wendy Botha, Layne Beachley and more, GIRLS CAN'T SURF is a wild ride of clashing personalities, sexism, adventure and heartbreak, with each woman fighting against the odds to make their dreams of competing a reality. Waiting for Anya   During the harrows of WWII, Jo, a young shepherd along with the help of the widow Horcada, helps to smuggle Jewish children across the border from southern France into Spain. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Andrew Saville joined Jack Tame to discuss the comings and goings at Tokyo Olympics 2020 and the pause of quarantine free travel with Australia, and what that means for the scheduled Bledisloe Cup and Rugby Championship.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The last member of Kevin's family turned 20 this week. What is there to celebrate about a daughter's teenage years? Isn't it all bad? LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For all our species’ achievements and all our billionaires blasting off to space, a few events this week have reminded me of one our fundamental shortcomings. Human beings are not very good at listening to Mother Nature.  Take the Olympics. It’s very obvious to anyone with a scintila of intelligence the Olympic Games should not be going ahead. I love sport. I love the idea of the Olympics in theory. But for goodness’ sake, could there be a less-appropriate time than in the middle of a global pandemic to have people from all corners of the Earth travelling to gather together in one place? (Anyone would think there are billions of dollars on the line, and that concerns over that money might have outweighed every other concern). Infection numbers are surging once again in Japan. Mother Nature is telling us something but the organisers of the games blunder on with their eyes squeezed shut and fingers in their ears.  My second point is this: I feel sad for Toa, Wellington’s orca calf, and I really sad for those wh

John Mayer’s got a new album out, and he seems to be making fun of it before the rest of us get the chance  It’s got an 80’s soft rock vibe so what’s he called the album? Sob Rock.  Estelle Clifford’s been taking a listen. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our book reviewer Catherine Raynes has been reading The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave and When The Stars Go Dark by Paula McLain.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's school holidays, and you might have teenagers around more than usual. Relationships expert Steven Dromgool has some tips for what to do when teenagers are driving you crazy.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Improving Your soil   Mid-winter isn’t a great time to start digging in your sodden soil. It can be quite fragile, yet it provides us with organic materials that can:  1) Sequester carbon 2) Store moisture   3) Retain fertility   4) Grow trees that provide us with oxygen   5) Be a home to an amazing biodiversity   6) Feed us (vegie gardens!!)    Mulching and adding is the thing to do in winter.  Pea straw is a fab cover that suppresses weeds and keeps things “warm” in winter. It slowly breaks down it becomes humus and dark organic matter which is perfect! Pea straw should ideally be 20 cm thick.   Chipped branches and sawdust-like material do that too, but they often “steal” some Nitrogen from the soil to help it break down. A handful of Urea (50% Nitrogen) will speed that up and keep your soil fertile.  Old leaf-mold or dried, compressed leaves from last autumn are excellent cover too - like pea-straw.   Compost from your carbon-cycle compost bin is a step-up from just “mulch”. It contains a variety of nutri

A scary virus has been spreading through New Zealand, filling our EDs, and it's particularly bad for children.Our resident GP Dr Bryan Betty has been giving Jack Tame all your need to know about Respiratory syncytial virus aka RSV. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Joe Biden wants you to be able to fix your iPhone  He signed an Executive Order directing the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to prevent manufacturers from imposing restrictions on independent repair shops and do-it-yourself repairs. Basically, devices we buy are having their lives cut short because the hassle to repair them makes it easier to just buy a new one. Take it somewhere that isn't authorized and you'll void the warranty. But it's not just cellphones or laptops - it's also farm equipment, hospital devices, cars and more.  Biden says this is anti-competitive and the "right to repair" movement wants to see more competition in the repair space, devices designed to be easier to maintain and more information from manufacturers about how to fix them yourself.  Google Calendar is designing for a hybrid workforce Google is now allowing folks to rsvp to invitations with more details about how they plan to attend. The new dropdown allows attendees to indicate if they’ll be in person, or virtually. That’s going

Michael Palin: Travels of a Lifetime: Beloved actor and TV traveller Michael Palin revisits some of his popular travel documentaries. Through intimate conversation and his own personal archive, Palin reflects on how he got addicted to travel and the challenges he faced making the shows (Neon). Ted Lasso: It scored 20 Emmy nominations this week, and the second season drops of this charming series about an American football coach who is hired to manage and English soccer team - despite knowing nothing about the sport - lands on Apple TV+ this week.  Heist: Millions in stolen cash. Missing luxury bourbon. Watch ordinary people almost get away with these extraordinary heists in this lively true crime documentary series (Netflix).  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bill Edgar has a job you’ve almost certainly not heard of before - he’s a ‘coffin confessor’. For $10,000, he will spill your secrets at your funeral.  Bill actually has a laundry list of other descriptions too, all of them worth of an interview in their own right. He's a former street kid, a prisoner, a sexual abuse survivor and an inventor. That’s when he’s not being one of Australia’s leading private detectives.  He’s written a new book about his unusual life, and occupation, titled “Coffin Confessor”, and a movie’s being made about him too. Bill Edgar has been speaking with Jack Tame. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chicken & leek family pie  The pie is all about minimum fuss and maximum deliciousness! The flavour and creaminess of this pie belies the simplicity of making it and it’s a fabulous pie for the whole family.  Serves 4-6  1 free-range ready roast chicken 2 tablespoons butter or olive oil  2 leeks, sliced thinly  200g crème fraiche ½ cup vegetable or chicken stock ¼ teaspoon black pepper   300g flaky pastry (or 2 sheets ready rolled)  1 egg, lightly beaten for egg wash  Parsley to garnish  Heat oven to 190 C. Line a baking tray with baking paper.  Strip chicken meat from cooked chicken and cut up any larger pieces, like the breasts, and crumble stuffing if it comes stuffed. Set aside.  Heat butter or oil in a large pan and gently fry leeks for 10 minutes. Add crème fraiche, stock and black pepper and bring to a simmer, stirring until you have a creamy sauce. Turn off heat and add chicken, stir to combine and cool.  Roll out to a large rectangle about 30x40cm. Transfer it to the lined tray.  Pile cooled fill