Monday Message 25th March 2024

“Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Comes into us at midnight very clean. It’s perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands. It hopes we’ve learned something from yesterday.”

– Epitaph of Marion Robert Morrison (1907-1979), better known as John Wayne, on his tombstone at Pacific View Memorial Park, Newport Beach California

Monday Message 18th March 2024

Strange but true. Apparently today is “Awkward Moments Day”. How to observe?
– keep in mind that no one is perfect, ever
– wear humility like a cloak and laugh at yourself

Have a great day and travel well, enjoying your moments….

Monday Message 11th March 2024

“The thing I loved about athletics was it was all on you and you had to go out and do the work. You had to go out and train. It was only you on the start line that you could rely on”

– Star rugby player from Kaikohe, Portia Woodman-Wickliffe said it all a while back, worth restating following a fabulous week for NZ athletes at the World Indoor Athletics Championships in Glasgow..well done Kiwis: Beamish, Kerr, McCartney and Walsh

Monday Message 8th January 2024

Welcome to 2024! Trust you had a good break and are returning refreshed and enthusiastic, as I am.
By far the best book I read over the break was “The End of the World is just the Beginning” by Peter Zeihan (thanks AKF for the tip). This author combines my favourite subjects of geography, history, people and business strategy to reflect on the world order since 1945 (in particular) and how globalisation is going to play out (not very well). I’d read Zeihan’s geopolitical work previously, but not realised that he was in part educated at Otago University (postgraduate diploma in Asian studies 1997). So there are some interesting NZ perspectives (good and bad).

The book text was finalised in February 2022 and subsequent events play out uncomfortably close to his predictions:

“Too much of the Australian debate on supporting the Red Sea effort has had a parochial focus on our fealty to the US alliance, not on the fundamental economic principles. Freedom of navigation is a foundation of the modern global economy.” (Australian Financial Review last week). Ironically the Red Sea situation should see USA and China working together – while logical, a highly moot point.