Saturday Morning With Jack Tame

Nomadland  A woman in her sixties who, after losing everything in the Great Recession, embarks on a journey through the American West, living as a van-dwelling modern-day nomad.  Gaza (documentary) A portrait of a people attempting to lead meaningful lives against the rubble of perennial conflict and going beyond the reach of television news reports to reveal a world rich with eloquent and resilient characters.  Judas and The Black Messiah  Offered a plea deal by the FBI, William O'Neal infiltrates the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party to gather intelligence on Chairman Fred Hampton. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kevin Milne has discovered an old menu he kept from the legendary Wellington cafe, the Green Parrot, which he assumes is from the 1970s. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

House prices in New Zealand increased last month by more than any other month in the last 25 years. More than any other month since March, 1996.Just think about that. We’ve had a residential housing crisis for years. House prices have been rising and rising and rising. We have our borders closed, our single-biggest export industry has been turned off and shutdown overnight. And yet... with inflation pouring into asset prices, median house prices increased more last month than in any other month since Braveheart won best picture at the Oscars.According to the Real Estate Institute, the median house prices in Wellington and Auckland increased by about $100 thousand dollars in February. The median price in Porirua – Porirua! – increased more than $270 thousand. Ten thousand dollars a day.When I hear those kind of numbers, I have a couple of reactions. Selfishly, I feel grateful that I have the security of already owning my own place. Secondly, I feel for people who don’t, and who’ve just seen their deposit requi

Estelle Clifford has been listening to the new Kings of Leon album, When You See Yourself. LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Book reviewer Catherine Raynes has been reading The Wrong Family by Tarryn Fisher and The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot by Marianne Cronin.LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Relationships expert Steven Dromgool has been explaining the three love lessons to learn by 25. LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s been a long time since Crowded House did a full tour, so what’s a few more days?  The band was due to reform for a tour starting this week, but the first few dates have been postponed (cheers COVID).   Devising a tour during a pandemic isn’t the only thing they’ve been working on, the band is also about to release its first album in over a decade ‘Dreamers are Waiting’.  Neil Finn has been talking to Jack Tame. Click here for tour datesLISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our resident traveller Mike Yardley has been on a city break in Palmerston North. LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bob Campbell's Best Buy for the weekend is the Torea 2018 Pinot Noir, Martinborough $18.99.LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Composting I have a new compost bin, designed and made in NZ by the Carbon Cycle people. Their idea is to make good-looking bins that are so elegant that you don’t need to “hide” your bin, somewhere in a dark corner of the garden. And that means you use it more and make it your pride and joy. I also reckon that if you have a good system and good set of bins, you can create enough carbon “credits” to allow you to fly the odd sectors on your favourite airline. Hedge stems and branches = Carbon        Hedge leaves/foliage = Nitrogen Lawns/grass blades = Nitrogen Firewood and wood chips = Carbon Weed rough stems and hard roots = Carbon/foliage mostly  Nitrogen Sawdust from the odd DIY job = Carbon Twigs and branches = Carbon  Carbon to Nitrogen ratio is crucial for good composting. Carbon to nitrogen should be about 30:1 in mass.If you have far too much lawn clippings, your compost will get wet, dark green and slimy. Too much Carbon (and no Nitrogen), the woodchips/branches/twigs/stems will not break down  I love

Twitter’s rolling out “Super Followers” Imagine getting exclusive Jack Tame content via Twitter for $4.99 a month. A Jack Tame supporter badge could be added to your profile, with exclusive content, super follower only newsletters, special deals and access to the Jack Tame community. It’s a way to give back to creators you enjoy and keep those creators on the Twitter platform.  Twitter has also announced “communities” which you can join and follow, like Facebook Groups.   Both features are still to launch, but last time Twitter talked about subscription products and pro features their stock price jumped. It seems this is where the analysts want Twitter to go.  Zoom meetings get accessible Captions are coming to all accounts - including free accounts. You’ll be able to enable live ai generated closed captions. It’s a feature their pro accounts have had for a while and brings them up to parity with Google’s Hangouts. It’s a great feature for folks who are hard of hearing, but also for those who multi-task. If y

National Treasures: Scotty and Stacey Morrison are joined by a panel of experts as they search for objects and taonga significant to New Zealand’s history (TVNZ 1, Sunday 8.30pm)  Zero Zero Zero: an Italian crime drama television series that follows the journey of a cocaine shipment, from the moment a powerful cartel of Italian criminals decides to buy it until the cargo is delivered and paid for, passing through its packaging in Mexico and shipment across the Atlantic Ocean (Neon).  Back: A British sitcom starring David Mitchell and Robert Webb about a man set to take over the reins of the family business after his father’s death, until his plans are threatened by the arrival of a foster brother he has completely forgotten about (S1 TVNZ OnDemand, S2 Comedy Central, Tuesdays 9.40).LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nici’s Amazing Tomato Sauce  Hot chips and homemade tomato sauce. Does it get any better? This rich tomato sauce is absolutely fabulous and I make a batch every year, some for my pantry, some for gifts.  Makes about 2 litres  2kg fresh tomatoes, chopped roughly 400g can crushed tomatoes  2 large apples, chopped roughly 2 large onions, chopped roughly  1 cup brown sugar  1 cup white or raw sugar  1 cup malt vinegar  1 cup apple cider vinegar  1 cup red wine vinegar  2 tablespoons salt  1 teaspoon black pepper 1 teaspoon ground all spice  ½ teaspoon ground cloves  Bring all the ingredients to the boil in a large pot and simmer it vigorously for about 2 hours until it is completely pulpy and it ought to have thickened a bit by then too.  In batches, put it through a blender until smooth. Try not to over blend as it will lighten the colour to an orange hue.  Sterilise bottles or jars by heating in an oven set at 100 C for 15 minutes.  Pour hot sauce into hot bottles and jars and seal with lids. Wipe clean and coo

Movie reviewer Francesca Rudkin has been watching Kiwi film Cousins, and new animated movie Raya and the Last Dragon. LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kevin Milne's had a win at the dry cleaner this week. LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The estate for Doctor SeussHas made a public call It’ll keep publishing his booksBut it won’t publish them all.  Six different titles  Will no longer be dispersed.  But is it a reasonable reaction? Or cancel culture at its worst?In case you missed it between the raging pandemic and urgent warnings over potential tsunamis, the second highest-earning dead celebrity has caused a few ructions this week.  The company that manages the catelogue for Dr Seuss has announced it will no longer continue to publish six of his titles because they contain racist or insensitive imagery.  Of the books that will no longer be published, the only ones I recognised were To Think I Saw it on Mulberry Street, and If I ran the Zoo. All the other real Dr Seuss classics – Greens Eggs and Ham etc – will continue to be published.Of course, those on the frontlines of the Twitter culture wars haven’t wasted time seizing upon the decision and working themselves into a state. Some politicians in the U.S say Dr Seuss is being cancelled. Othe

Hayley Williams is the lead singer of American band Paramore, and she’s just released her second solo album, Flowers for Vases.Music reviewer Estelle Clifford has been taking a listen.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Land, Simon WinchesterIn 1889, thousands of hopeful people raced southward from the Kansas state line and westward from the Arkansas boundary to stake claims on the thousands of acres of unclaimed pastures and meadows. Across the twentieth century, water was dammed and drained in Holland so that a new province, Flevoland, rose up, unchartered and requiring new thinking. In 1850, California legislated the theft of land from Native Americans. An apology came in 2019 from the governor, but what of the call for reparations or return? What of government confiscation of land in India, or questions of fairness when it comes to New Zealand's Maori population and the legacy of settlers?The ownership of land has always been complicated, opaque, and more than a little anarchic when viewed from the outside. In this book, Simon Winchester explores the the stewardship of land, the ways it is delineated and changes hands, the great disputes, and the questions of restoration – particularly in the light of climate change and

It’s a feathered frenzy of preening birds, theatrical mating rituals and rampant adultery. Pinned to the ocean edge of Cape Kidnappers, it’s the largest and most accessible mainland gannet colony in the world. Its very name is steeped in historic drama, stemming back to Captain Cook’s visit in 1769 and the young Tahitian he had on board the Endeavour, employed as his translator. As the young Polynesian interpreter tried to negotiate with local Maori for fresh provisions and water, they wrongly assumed that he’d been imprisoned. Tragically the misunderstanding forced Cook to fire his cannon, killing two Maori warriors, as they tried to kidnap him. The young Tahitian managed to escape, making his way back on the ship, prompting Cook to name it Cape Kidnappers. I explored the cape with Gannet Safaris, the award-winning sightseeing company.LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Once you pull the plug and the water disappears you are using your grey water system. This goes into the council system, and often to a treatment plant to take out chemical cleaners and other contaminants. It’s then discharged into the rivers or sea.For example, the chemicals that are put into products just to make them foam more are a pollution that has to be taken out. All of this process costs us as ratepayers, and we’re flushing away water you could use again: laundry, bath, shower and basin water. Don’t worry, we’re not walking about toilet (black water) or even kitchen sink and dishwasher, where there could be contaminants from food, e.g. old chicken germs. Why should we use grey water? Grey water use reduces the need for and reliance on the mains water supply system.Reduces the wastewater peak flows discharging to council’s wastewater system.Allows gardens to be watered during drought periods.How do you use grey water?The main uses are in the garden. Unless you are an extreme eco warrior I don’t recomm