1196 days ago

New Zealander or Aotearoan?

Michael from Trentham

So far 35,000 people have signed a petition to have NZ change its name to Aotearoa. It might be popular in some areas of NZ but I don't think the Hutt Valley would buy into it.
The National Party (or is that really just Judith Collins and a few others) are calling for a referendum on a name change.
Let's say it happens. What would become of ANZAC Day? Would it become AAAC Day?
What would become of Australasian - would it become Austroan?
Would the letters ANZ become AA which might or might not be appropriate because AA has other meanings and not just Automobile Association.
There are those who say we should double our name to New Zealand-Aotearoa but that really takes up a page in a book and a sentence in a short speech. And would we still be called New Zealanders?
If we do shift to Aotearoa in all fairness we drop the colloquial term for a New Zealander: Kiwi (which is Maori) and replace it with an English name of Paradise Duck or just Paradiser for short. That would be terrific as most of us and the world believe we live in paradise. And those ducks are noisy and slightly bossy.
Another good thing in becoming Aotearoa, in the Olympic Games or Commonwealth Games opening ceremonies not only are we among the first to emerge into the stadium instead of waiting and waiting and waiting, but we are ahead of Australia alphabetically. Why not just take a wee small step and spell our new name Aaotearoa and we will be first at any Games -unless they do the dirty and start in reverse. Hello Zambia.

More messages from your neighbours
15 days ago

⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️

The Team from SPCA New Zealand

It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:

👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️

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7 days ago

Poll: Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

Just a bit of a fun poll to get you thinking.

If you had to live out your Christmas days, would you prefer it was a summer Christmas or a winter Christmas?

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Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?
  • 61.9% Summer
    61.9% Complete
  • 36.6% Winter
    36.6% Complete
  • 1.5% Other - I'll share below
    1.5% Complete
1458 votes
3 days ago

Worst Xmas ever?

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

There's a a lot of planning that goes into Christmas day and sometimes things just don't go to plan. But it can be a good thing - a family mishap or hilarious memory that you can laugh about in Christmases to come.

Whether you burnt the dinner or were stranded at an airport...

Share your Christmas mishaps below!

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