Plugging In....to Christchurch Central
In this seven-part election series, journalist Martin van Beynen is testing the mood of voters on the streets of Greater Christchurch-Ōtautahi ahead of the General Election. First up, Christchurch Central, a battleground electorate where Labour’s Duncan Webb battles it out with National’s Dale Stephens.
Murray Simmonds is deadheading his camelia as we steal soundlessly into his suburban Redwood street to check his voting pulse.
It’s a perfect day for plugging into the mood of Christchurch Central as we cruise around this diverse electorate in our 2019 Nissan Leaf with a grunty battery under the bonnet.
Trees are still in friendly blossom, the grass is spring green and it promises to be a warm sunny day for putting our election stethoscope to the multitudinous hearts of the electorate.
Simmonds, 75, a retired psychology lecturer, lives at the top of this strange-shaped electorate, bounded in the north by the Styx River and in the south by the Heathcote.
Calling All Puzzle Masters! Can You Solve This?
When John was six years old he hammered a nail into his favorite tree to mark his height.
Ten years later at age sixteen, John returned to see how much higher the nail was.
If the tree grew by five centimetres each year, how much higher would the nail be?
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What's your favourite recipe for courgettes?
Kia ora neighbours. If you've got a family recipe for courgettes, we'd love to see it and maybe publish it in our magazine. Send your recipe to mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz, and if we use it in the mag, you will receive a free copy of our January 2025 issue.