Venetia

Wellington = home. Arts consumer. NZ music lover. All the vaccinations. Compulsively useful. Often has trouble being concise. Film Society member. Karori Sanctuary (Zealandia) supporter. Very intermittent Wikipedia editor. Former No Lights No Lycra organiser. Forest & Bird member. SJW fan. Worrier. Pākehā. Own opinions expressed here (public servant).
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npub1dg5akqsytn05v6m82nc0cq0fc465fuhd5jd2zck9wvr0mfn23neqnudglv

NIP-05 Address

v_for_verbosity@mastodon-nz.mostr.pub

Profile Code

nprofile1qqsx52wmqgz9eh6xddn4fu8uq85u2a2y7tk6fx4pvtzhxpha5e4geuspz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0dsuxwsy6

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Author Public Key

npub1dg5akqsytn05v6m82nc0cq0fc465fuhd5jd2zck9wvr0mfn23neqnudglv

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Last Notes

2026-05-18 08:13:27 UTC

Fantastic piece from Mike Smith laying out some of the risks our democracy is facing.
https://e-tangata.co.nz/comment-and-analysis/mike-smith-this-is-corrosive-to-democracy/
#NZPol

2026-05-12 00:18:29 UTC

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@nprofile…yzxf @nprofile…pp76 Brash's performance at the same debate appears to have been widely publicised by him and his followers at the time, but not as far as I can tell by the actual media. (I don't recommend reading or watching it, it's somewhat rage inducing.)

2026-05-11 12:23:27 UTC

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@nprofile…yzxf I meant to say thanks for sharing this. Got very distracted trying to find when it happened, turns out it was six months ago! Not sure why they didn't mention that. (There's a post on FB from the New Zealand Society that mentioned it.)
@nprofile…pp76

2026-04-22 00:07:53 UTC

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@nprofile…wj33 well done gathering spoons to do it again. I've learnt the hard way to always copy my words before I hit submit...
@nprofile…xpw3 @nprofile…txmc

2026-04-21 20:12:12 UTC

@nprofile…txmc published an excellent and very forthright submission on the dangerous Policing Amendment Bill yesterday (linked here: https://mastodon.social/@civillibertynz/116441856895183834). I wrote a short one in support of theirs last night - submissions close at 1:59pm today!
https://www3.parliament.nz/en/pb/sc/make-a-submission/document/54SCJUST_SCF_C7815558-E010-47D9-A8AD-08DE84625BC2/policing-amendment-bill

2026-04-09 19:50:14 UTC

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@nprofile…dr33 "Now" by Fur Patrol (single released 1999)
https://youtu.be/IlRDfhyKiSg

2026-04-09 19:49:52 UTC

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@nprofile…dr33
"Not Your Girl" by Fur Patrol (1998)
https://furpatrol.bandcamp.com/track/not-your-girl-2

2026-04-09 09:55:36 UTC

In Auckland, helping with more of the clearing out of the family home. The place seems riddled with plague skinks! We used to get the native ones when I was a kid 😕
https://o.mastodon.nz/media_attachments/files/116/374/094/881/925/262/original/8527865bfb70d017.jpg

2026-03-29 01:02:26 UTC

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@nprofile…xvcz thank you for this reminder, it inspired me to get some more shelf stable supplies in, which led me to the discovery there'd been an improperly sealed can of pears at the back of the cupboard for... quite a while 😬

2026-02-28 21:36:30 UTC

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@nprofile…wj33 @nprofile…vhwu @nprofile…xpw3 my first thought when I heard the story yesterday was "and will the people using this tool have time to check it for accuracy?" Probably not 100% of the time, given the pressure on them, which is clearly dangerous. I wish they would just staff the system adequately.

2026-02-26 02:22:27 UTC

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@nprofile…fh5u back in 2018 I wrote to a city councillor to oppose online voting when a trial was being considered, and I feel like everything I said then applies today...
"I hope that everyone with any say in changes to the electoral process does the research to find out how impossible it would be to make an online system meet all the standards required to maintain electoral integrity and voter trust in the system.
[This article gives] some well reasoned arguments against the myths in favour of online voting.
https://thespinoff.co.nz/featured/15-09-2015/politics-the-myths-of-online-voting/
[People replying to] this Twitter thread also make some excellent points.
https://twitter.com/lgnz/status/1042944724997365761
I understand that there are difficulties with the cost and reliability of postal ballots, but there must be other ways to mitigate those problems without undermining the system.
I also disagree with the theory that it would increase voter participation. The low turnout for local body elections is about lack of engagement, not difficulty in making our votes. I don't have an answer for how to increase engagement, but I'm very sure online voting is not it. [Less engagement, more like.] Look at the 2018 census - the first one done online, with a lower turnout than expected.
Some may think that nobody would bother to rig local body elections. But for the "right" people it could be worth doing. Here's a scenario: a group with extremely deep pockets get themselves or their friends elected by interfering with the voting system, and while they are on the council they vote for policies that result in consents being granted to clear-fell the town belt and sell all the land to developers dirt-cheap. (That may not be possible within current regulatory framework; I'm just trying to make a point that local body elections could be considered worth rigging by villains.)
Whatever voting system is trialled at the local level, if deemed successful, would be likely to be adopted at a national level. And that's where things get very scary indeed."

2026-02-01 06:01:46 UTC

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@nprofile…86c8 maybe one of these?
https://inaturalist.nz/taxa/128824-Lucilia-sericata/browse_photos

2026-01-22 04:22:38 UTC

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@nprofile…7760 very waterlily colouring!

2026-01-11 02:49:10 UTC

Is mastodon.nz flaky for everyone right now, or just me? Is @nprofile…cqqu updating something?

2025-12-30 22:25:15 UTC

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@nprofile…8p4p if your friend is interested in feedback, I'd recommend making the guess history easier to screenshot 🙂

2025-12-30 21:56:23 UTC

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@nprofile…8p4p I played Globle (https://globle-game.com/game) & Worldle (https://worldle.teuteuf.fr) for quite a long time, which improved my geography a lot. Gave up a while ago as I seemed to have plateaued (and 9 guessing games a day was too many!)

2025-12-30 21:25:19 UTC

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@nprofile…8p4p hadn't seen that one before, fun! I got it in 5 due to handily starting with a country that has the same first letter.

2025-11-22 02:09:52 UTC

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@nprofile…etrn 😍 pretties!

2025-11-21 23:35:33 UTC

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@nprofile…etrn many happy returns! What colour/style of Docs did you get?

2025-11-19 04:06:44 UTC

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@nprofile…nnyy how very aptly you chose your handle. Thank you for your mahi 💐

2025-11-13 04:33:46 UTC

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@nprofile…8c65 fair 🙂

2025-11-13 04:24:43 UTC

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@nprofile…8c65 may I ask which bank and which function? I noticed last night ASB has made some changes but haven't noticed anything missing (yet?).

2025-11-11 11:33:26 UTC

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@nprofile…fwwf @nprofile…59ss the first and second (lifetime) doses of the vaccine seem to be free for everyone now due to the outbreak, I was given it at a pharmacy last week when I told them my plunket book proved I'd only had one dose. Maybe the pharmacy would say something different from the GP?

2025-11-06 10:53:39 UTC

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@nprofile…8c65 fingers crossed no real damage. Thanks for sharing these lovely photos, such spectacular scenery on a gorgeous day.

2025-10-08 02:47:45 UTC

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@nprofile…s06p that's so sad. What a wonderfully caring gesture that was from his brother to let his audience know.

2025-07-31 23:01:09 UTC

Check your electoral roll registration, folks. Seeing a lot of reports of people* finding they're not on the roll even if they've been registered for years, and today's the last day to enrol or change your address to make sure you'll get your local election voting papers in the mail.
https://vote.nz/enrolling/enrol-or-update/enrol-or-update-online/
*mostly tangata whenua

2025-07-29 21:58:43 UTC

Submissions due just before midnight tonight on the government's inquiry into the harm young New Zealanders encounter online. I've told them I support the New Zealand Council for Civil Liberties' submission which is an excellent piece of work.
https://nzccl.org.nz/submission-harm-to-young-people-online-inquiry/
https://www.parliament.nz/en/pb/sc/make-a-submission/document/54SCEDUW_SCF_8611CB90-F850-4B63-6BF5-08DDA3E61931/inquiry-into-the-harm-young-new-zealanders-encounter-online

2025-07-27 10:25:57 UTC

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@nprofile…5wev I had no idea the riroriro had a fan tail like that - very cool, thank you for sharing 😊
(What fun riroriro is to swipey-type on a phone keyboard!)

2025-07-21 08:17:55 UTC

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@nprofile…hmg2 my thoughts exactly when I saw the email

2025-07-21 03:16:34 UTC

The endless parade of legislative proposals trying to make things worse for Aotearoa and better for multinational corporations and billionaires is exhausting!
I found out today -thanks to a newsletter from #MelanieNelson - that submissions on a bill to water down protections around overseas investments are closing at the end of Wednesday. So have just whipped off a quick opposition to it.
https://substack.com/home/post/p-168819956
https://theconversation.com/why-has-a-bill-to-relax-foreign-investment-rules-had-so-little-scrutiny-261370
#NZPol

2025-07-08 19:53:40 UTC

Sometimes it is worth getting up early. Ata mārie 😊
#TeWhanganuiATara #WhyWellington
https://o.mastodon.nz/media_attachments/files/114/819/301/692/258/741/original/5e160b3493683026.jpg

2025-06-22 03:27:27 UTC

Super chuffed as my not-so-politically-engaged sister has submitted against the Regulatory Standards Bill at my behest.
I've posted on FB to encourage others, not sure how much good that will do.
Submissions close 1pm tomorrow, there's great info here if you want to help but could do with some guidance.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XxP4NnxLwHitgBBPCBxWF0go14Uy5oUHdeOlWJ_ZQFE/
#NZPol

2025-06-18 11:46:03 UTC

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@nprofile…gyq6 is it possible your mail provider is seeing too many messages from water.co.nz (or billing01.water.co.nz) on invoicing day and rejecting them outright rather than spam-filtering them?

2025-06-14 03:53:30 UTC

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@nprofile…hmg2 nice work! I had a phew.

2025-05-07 02:20:23 UTC

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@nprofile…jc9n finally got more detail:
"We would like to inform you that one of the Madison sheet set came in faulty batch for that instance we have advise you to dispose the product and we have informed the get in touch with the Shore city store for the refund. We advise you to show store this email and they will be able to help you."
I can't do that as I'm in Wellington & they're not allowed to email customers, but I've just had a chat with them & they will look into it for me 🤞🏻
@nprofile…junu

2025-05-07 01:58:17 UTC

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@nprofile…jc9n they asked for the product ID and my transaction details, and have fobbed me off with advice to go back to the specific store for a refund. I've replied to press for their official advice on how to get rid of the smell, but I suspect they have no idea.

2025-05-06 22:57:34 UTC

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@nprofile…jc9n I suspect the link you meant to share was https://www.productreview.com.au/listings/morgan-finch-flannelette-sheets - I saw both those last night, probably should've mentioned!
I'm putting the sheets through another wash now and if that doesn't help will try spraying with De-Solv-It and washing again, while I wait for BB&T to get back to me.

2025-05-06 21:53:43 UTC

Bought these lovely looking flannelette sheets a few months ago: https://www.bedbathntable.co.nz/madison-brick-tan-check-010101 - only just got round to washing them yesterday & have been horrified by the stench once they got wet. The sheets and my washing machine reek like petrol!! A second wash didn't help at all. Wondering if I should try putting baking soda in the machine but not sure that's a good idea, so have written to their website asking advice & warning I'll be looking for a refund if I can't get rid of the stink 🙁

2025-02-15 01:44:27 UTC

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@nprofile…hmg2 oh no, commiserations! I just scraped through today but it was 50/50 on the last try.

2025-02-08 23:55:26 UTC

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@nprofile…5plc interesting! Thank you for sharing. Is Gabor Hellyer related to you?

2023-12-15 10:06:04 UTC

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@npub17nc…9dam 😍

2023-08-31 03:23:10 UTC

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@npub1zg9…nh26 ah, I misinterpreted your post about growing flax. In that case perhaps I should extol the virtues of a flatbed microwave! I've had mine for a few years, it's great.

2023-08-31 02:14:24 UTC

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@npub1zg9…nh26 did I see you're in Wellington? There's a repair shop on Tory St you could go to if face to face (or mask to mask) works better for you than a phone call. LT Campbell.