SECTIONS

thinking allowed

The MixJanuary 17

Little boxes, little boxes

There’s a stretch of road leaving Wanaka where if you look to the left you see small square boxes floating on the lake, and to the right you see THIS IS A WORK SAFE WORK SITE FOR SALE, writes Liz Breslin.
Little boxes, little boxes
Little boxes, little boxes
The MixDecember 13

Pain’s many faces

The thing about this is that I’m thinking in bursts. I need to not think about it but there’s nothing else I can think about, writes Liz Breslin.
Pain’s many faces
Pain’s many faces
The MixNovember 29

Old friends on new adventures

Have e-bikes, will travel. Liz Breslin takes a dream trip on the rail trail.
Old friends on new adventures
Old friends on new adventures
The MixNovember 1

Breathing through the verbing

I’ve started my column at least five times this week, writes Liz Breslin.
Breathing through the verbing
Breathing through the verbing
The MixOctober 18

Facing the facts

It’s time to face up to it. Face the facts. The fact is there are too many headshots by far in the world, writes Liz Breslin.
Facing the facts
Facing the facts
The MixOctober 4

Season of the slam

Sometimes I’m not sure what my favourite season is because finishing a swim in the lake is like being born, rainbow leaves on the track are a joy, snow is a miracle and lambs are cute, but this year I’m really clear, writes Liz Breslin.
Season of the slam
Season of the slam
The MixSeptember 20

This week in cultural vandalism . . .

Fun fact, or not so fun, depending on which side of the destruction you’re on, writes columnist Liz Breslin.
This week in cultural vandalism . . .
This week in cultural vandalism . . .
The MixSeptember 6

Rehearsing for bad situations

We met in the summer of 1999 in Perth. We partied like it was, too. And we talked. Kat had The Book of Questions, which she gifted to me when one of us left, and through it we, and the rest of the flat, rehearsed some of life’s dilemmas. writes columnist Liz Breslin.
Rehearsing for bad situations
Rehearsing for bad situations
The MixAugust 23

An ordinary word in your ear

A lockdown habit I’ve kept, as I walk along the lake track each day, is to take a camera snap of the expanse of beach and send it to extraordinary friends in exotic places - Luggate, Wellington, Melbourne, writes Liz Breslin.
An ordinary word in your ear
An ordinary word in your ear
The MixAugust 9

Accounting for a life

Being a child of maths teachers, I have been known to find solace and surety in numbers, writes Liz Breslin.
Accounting for a life
Accounting for a life
The MixJuly 26

When the cheese is full of holes

"The chi inside is the same as the chi outside. There is only this chi, and we are a part of this chi."
When the cheese is full of holes
When the cheese is full of holes
The MixJuly 12

What a tangled web

This week the postie brought me a yellow-beige book-shaped packet. And I was excited, because surely, surely it was my long-awaited copy of The Tree and the Vine, writes Liz Breslin.
What a tangled web
What a tangled web
The MixJune 28

We need to talk about racism

Hello, I’m a nice regular white person from a white town and I’m not a racist, but I’m getting a bit worried about all these racists on the news. What should I do? writes columnist Liz Breslin.
We need to talk about racism
We need to talk about racism
The MixMay 31

A spoonful of know-how

This week I had that flat-tyre feeling. I’m not talking in metaphors here - but in the actual factuals of trying to get through the day by getting on a bike, writes Liz Breslin.
A spoonful of know-how
A spoonful of know-how
The MixMay 17

It’s all a bit ... peoply

You haven’t hugged a friend in weeks. You’re starting to feel like one of those experimental monkeys from the ’60s who would choose a fluffy cuddle over a bottle of milk, writes Liz Breslin.
It’s all a bit ... peoply
It’s all a bit ... peoply
The MixMay 3

If you see what I meme

Liz Breslin has been overcoming her emoji-anxiety in the past couple of weeks.
If you see what I meme
If you see what I meme
The MixApril 19

I prefer Connect Four

Poems are an excellent source of social cohesion and symbolic coping, writs Liz Breslin.
I prefer Connect Four
I prefer Connect Four
The MixApril 5

How hard can it be . . .

OK, so I peaked too soon. Day one and I was already vacuuming little pockets of home-hacked hair from my carpet, writes Liz Breslin.
How hard can it be . . .
How hard can it be . . .
The MixMarch 15

Tailoring a wardrobe to fit

If I had my way, every day would be a dress-up day, writes Liz Breslin.
Tailoring a wardrobe to fit
Tailoring a wardrobe to fit
The MixMarch 1

A very useful and meaningful survey

Thank you for your time in filling out this survey. This survey may look like other surveys you have filled out in the past but this is only in your imagination, writes Liz Breslin.
A very useful and meaningful survey
A very useful and meaningful survey
The MixFebruary 16

Things to do

Liz Breslin.on what to do in a screwed up world.
Things to do
Things to do
The MixFebruary 2

What (not) to wear

You pick out your outfit the night before, to save time and also to quell the questions running around your mind, writes Liz Breslin.
What (not) to wear
What (not) to wear
The MixJanuary 19

Stewing over resilience

When in doubt, drink tea, writes columnist Liz Breslin.
Stewing over resilience
Stewing over resilience
The MixDecember 8

Nothing you can buy

Nothing you can buy will ever make you more whole. It’s always a good time of year to remember that gem of truth from Kate Tempest’s Hold Your Own, writes Liz Breslin.
Nothing you can buy
Nothing you can buy