An urban N.Z. baby-boomer and a Jack Russell terrier
  • BLOG / COLUMNS
  • CONTACT

IN THE MIDST OF DEATH WE ARE IN LIFE

24/9/2013

0 Comments

 
Nothing makes you feel quite so alive as wandering with a dog in a cemetery on a clear spring day. 
You are alive and vertical in a place where everyone else is dead and horizontal, covered in earth and lying on their backs in what remains of the boxes they were buried in. You are aware of the miracle of being alive: your heart working tirelessly in your chest, your breath, your ability to propel yourself on two strong legs, to see, to hear and to smell.
Picture
I've taken to walking from The Wood, where I now live up into the Whakapuaka Cemetery which sits on a bluff above Atawhai Drive overlooking the city, the Boulder Bank and the sea. Some of the graves are more than a century and a half old - a veteran of the Crimean war is buried here - and many of them are half caved-in, with leaning headstones.

The few marble angels and doves in the cemetery have wings blunted by decades of wind and rain. Some graves are plain slabs of concrete or are covered in a riot of weeds. Some are tall obelisks. Some have headstones which are locked into cramped cages of chicken wire. Some graves are decorated with porcelain wreaths of pink roses and purple pansies, some with fake flowers and plastic windmills. Baptists, Anglicans, Presbyterians, Roman Catholics and Jews are buried in separate neighbourhoods in this city of the dead.


Read More
0 Comments

SPEED DATING

10/9/2013

0 Comments

 
I've just staggered in from an afternoon at a speed dating event, exhausted but exhilarated. 
I made a last minute decision to attend and went in my usual Sunday Market attire: unwashed hair, an elderly pair of jeans, a merino and red clogs. Thankfully, some shred of sartorial instinct had prompted me to throw a beaded cardigan on at the last minute. I’m hoping that my suitors only noticed the sparkly bits. 

Picture
Speed dating is an organised way of bringing unattached men and women into contact with potential mates rapidly and efficiently. Usually, the women sit at tables and the men move between tables at set intervals enjoying (or not) a brief “date” with each of the women. A bell rings at 5 minute intervals to signal when they must move on the next woman. 

Ticktock Dating is one company that manages speed dating in New Zealand.  Their website describes how their events work. “On your arrival you will be met by two of our charming and entertaining hosts” it explains and “you’ll enjoy free champagne and gourmet canapés in a private area at one of our exclusive venues. Our hosts guide you through the night making sure you are having a great time”. The speed dating event I went to wasn't quite as glamorous as a Ticktock do which was just as well ... 


Read More
0 Comments

    RSS Feed

    Picture
    THE GREY URBANIST
    Ro Cambridge, is a freelance writer, 
    arts worker & columnist Here she reports on the oddities & serendipities of  urban life.  She roams Nelson city , NZ 
    with a tan & white Jack Russell. (Her original canine side-kick, Pete, who features in many of these posts died in 2015.

    BLOG TOPICS

    All
    Aging
    Anti Xmas
    Auckland
    Books Mags & Other Media
    Christchurch
    Death Grief Depression
    Dogs & Other Animals
    Flights Of Fancy
    Food
    Grandparenting
    Gratitude & Celebration
    Living In A Small Space
    On Being Human
    Paleo Diet
    Social Comment/Politics
    Special Places & Events
    Street Life & Art
    Technology
    Travel
    Weather
    Work
    Writing

    ARCHIVE

    June 2023
    November 2019
    October 2019
    July 2019
    March 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    August 2017
    April 2017
    November 2016
    October 2016
    May 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    September 2015
    July 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    June 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    December 2011
    June 2010

    Enter your email address below 
    to receive postings from the 
    Grey Urbanist by email 

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.