Nz herald

An addiction is defined as a chronic relapsing disorder characterised by the compulsive use of something despite adverse consequences. It's considered a brain ...

Sister of slain teen urges witnesses to dob in "gang-affiliated" killers.

Soft gentle rain. This reminds me of being in the bush. Camping. Waking in a tent, hut or bach wrapped in a sleeping bag, listening to the soft fall of rain on ...

Learning to live in the bush and on our rough coasts teaches kids self-reliance, risk assessment and versatility. Long days in the bush or on the coast exploring. One of the few safe, dry places at the festival. Daughter used the family tent at a music festival with her then-boyfriend, coming home proud as punch with herself. I also did a bit of tramping as a teenager and young adult in my policing days. Waking in a tent, hut or bach wrapped in a sleeping bag, listening to the soft fall of rain on the corrugated iron or canvas. Mum and dad sitting around the campfire with other adults talking quietly into the night over cocoa or something a wee bit stronger after a long day. Being used to the stinky long drop, really high in summer. Cooking dinner over an open fire, billy tea, using the thermette with slivers of dried totara kindling and a wee dose of methylated spirits to light it. Cooking brekkie out of the rain. Camping in the 70s, 80s and early 90s was a cheap family holiday option. Lying there not wanting to move, it’s cosy in the bag listening to the rain.

As you know, it's already been a busy start to the year, with extreme weather events, the change in leadership with our former Prime Minister stepping down, and ...

Northland wants to ensure that the local communities are supported by local government and enabled by central government through a strong partnership. Both local and central government need to work together with our local communities to build resilience. The Mayoral Forum wants government’s help to address housing needs in the region. We have a large rural population, and our access to markets remains a challenge. We need a quality transport system that is safe for our community and connects Northland to Auckland. The organisation and co-ordination involved in managing a regional state of emergency is intense - I can’t give enough praise to those involved in our response, and can only imagine what those involved in the Auckland response went through (and are still experiencing).

Finding a minibar in your hotel room is becoming rarer. Even if you do, it's often filled with just a few plastic cartons of long life milk which, ...

Add a product from elsewhere and $50 will be added to your bill, so says a sticker on the front of the fridge. Take a product out and the cost of it will be automatically added to your bill. But the extent to which this happens in Las Vegas is so riotous it might make you grasp for a bottle of water to bring yourself round. The slots and gaming tables for sure. But the minibar – well, it was one of the Strip’s wilder adventures. For days I assumed it was a sickly sweet can of some flavoured water – raspberry and guava perhaps. That’s if the 1L bottle of water wasn’t $31, which is enough to make you pass out. Why not rent a fridge from them for your extras? That wasn’t even the most expensive item. Las Vegas is a favourite for many Aussie and Kiwi tourists. There was vodka, gin, three rums, Jack Daniels and a cinnamon infused whiskey. Yes, there was water and Coke but also six – SIX – varieties of beer.