YOU December 2011

It’s all about balance

JO GOODHEW

youmagazine

DECEMBER 2011

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GOOD SORTP7

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An Ashburton Guardian publication

2 YOU social scene

youWhat’s in

magazineP3 who’s out and about

P4-5 COVER STORY: Jo Goodhew

P6 QR codes

P7 unsung hero

P8-9 couch potato

P10-11 do-it-yourself

P12-13 great gardens

P14 travel – Mongolia

P15 single dad’s life

P20-21 motoring

P22 new to town

P23 foodies: Christmas

Editorial contactLisa Fenwick • [email protected]

Advertising contactNancye Pitt • [email protected]

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Cover photo

Christmas at the races proved to be a perfect opportunity for people to dress up and celebrate at the Ashburton Racecourse, including (from left) Dean Harrison, Jo Harrison, Eliza-Jane Waszczak, Kris Waszczak, Charlotte Harris and Marilyn Gilchrist.

Above – Steve Carr.

Above – Jenny Kirwan, John Haugh and Sue Houston.Right – Paige Lloyd.Below – Paul Houston (left) and Brent Middleton.

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Christmas at the races

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shburton G

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ritten permission of the publishers

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The Rangitata MP few of us see: Jo Good-hew says that keeping fit helps her keep on top of a big workload and a life divided be-tween Wellington, Ashburton and Timaru.

YOU social scene 3

Above – The annual end-of-year New Zealand Education Institute dinner was held at the beginning of December. Celebrating the success of newly registered teachers (from left) Mary Williams, Wendy Langley, Larry Langley, Cathy Langley and Melvena McDonald.

The Netherby School contingent (from left) Andrew Leverton, Linda Bullock, Cheryl Bodie, Nicky McKenzie and Melanie Cruickshank.

Above – Allenton School deputy princi-pal Noel Batty with wife Marie (centre) and Gail Benseman.Right – Hampstead School principal Peter Melrose and teacher Bryony Digby.

Above left – Just the girls (from left) Hayley Doody, Camilla Harris and Christine Moore.Above right – Enjoying the end-of-year dinner are (from left) Suzie Grieve, Phil Grieve and Julie Cunneen.

Above – Enjoying the night out (from left) Sue Wood, Jacqui Bonnington and Janine Barker.

Representing Ashburton Intermediate School (from left) Fran Brown, Karin Farrell, Judy Jemmett.

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YOU cover story 54

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‘For me it will be time to leave when I don’t enjoy it. You’re not doing a good job for your constituents if you’re not enjoying it – Jo Goodhew

YOU cover story 54

By Sue Newman

When Jo Goodhew is out pounding the streets early morning, there’s nothing to indicate the trim blonde

in running gear is anyone other than just another young woman knocking off her before-work exercise.

But this early-morning runner is not just any woman. She’s a daughter, wife and mother, but she’s also a politician who’s about to enter her seventh year as one of the country’s power punchers. National’s big win on November 26 guaranteed Jo another three-year stint in the Beehive and that re-signing of her “job” contract now sees her as one of the party’s more experienced politicians.

And she’s delighted to be back. Not just for the job factor, but for the people she works with and the people she serves. And she’s delighted to able to again push the cause for people in her home patch.

This time round she’s back quite literally, fighting fit. Over the past year Jo has gone from a regular fast walker to a serious runner. Her past running experiences were more about pain than achievement, but this time round, by throwing weights work into the mix, she built up her early morning runs from pole to pole, street corner to street corner to a solid workout.

“I keep running shoes in Wellington and if I’m here overnight I bring gear. I don’t want anything to stop me going out and the only thing that does now is if I’m on a plane.”

By upping her exercise and paying closer attention to her diet, Jo said she’s managed to survive the politician’s hazard, regular smorgasbords of food that’s not exactly a dietician’s delight. She’s not paranoid, but she dodges the odd sausage roll and opts for water as often as wine.

Over the past two terms as an MP, Jo has moved from raw novice to junior whip and a member of the education and science sub-committees. She won’t be drawn on what she hopes might come her way this time in the portfolio divvy up, saying Prime Minister John Key will assign portfolios to the people he believes are best suited for the job. But, now in term three, there’s little doubt she’ll be hoping one of those comes her way.

Jo is quite open about her aspirations. She has enjoyed her work as junior whip and wants to continue to work within caucus on health and social services committees. And while a clash of times in the last term meant she couldn’t be on the law and order caucus committee, it’s an area she’s clearly inter-ested in.

“I’m not holding out on a portfolio; we’ll deal with it if it comes along.”

Who gets what is as much about personal skills as it is about background knowledge. That means a new minister begins with a clean sheet rather than being influenced by their career and personal interests, she said.

“It just means you have to recognise the areas you’re not strong in and know who to go to, who the caucus go-to people are.”

Hers is a life divided – Timaru, Ashburton and Wellington. And getting the balance right has everything to do with being super organised, she said.

“I plan well ahead. My diary has an Ash-burton day and a Timaru day. My electorate secretaries hold the fort and negotiate if I need to split a day and the sitting programme in the House is confirmed at the start of the year.”

It’s a pretty simple formula – 35 per cent of her life in Wellington, 30 weeks of the year.

Keeping life in balance, also means ensur-ing that husband Mark and their three daughters, also have their share of Jo time.

This year that balance has included Jo’s

50th birthday, her grandmother’s 95th, her mother’s 75th, her twin daughters’ 21st and Mark and Jo’s 25th wedding anniversary. With the election looming, that anniversary celebration was shelved, but a trip to the US is planned next year.

With three teenagers and a mum who is often not home, it could have been a recipe for disaster, but by planning and making the most of her time at home, everyone survived, Jo says.

“The only thing that has limited how much I’ve kept in touch with my kids has been how much time they’ve had to talk to me. Yes, I have missed out on some stuff, but I’m only away two nights of the week. I do wonder if I’ve talked to my kids more since I’ve been an MP because I’ve been so focused on making sure I kept up the communication.”

As a woman who’s successfully balanced motherhood and politics, Jo is now finding herself in something of a mentoring role with new MPs.

“I’ve been able to play a part in inducting them and sharing the things that I think are important and for me that has been making sure you look after your family and keeping in touch with your family.”

She’s still new enough to the job that she recalls the heady excitement of her early days as an MP.

“It was all exciting and there was so much to do. It wasn’t hard but there was a lot to learn, but that excitement carries you through.”

She might have won her seat by a healthy majority, but that doesn’t mean she takes winning for granted.

When election time rolls around, regard-less of how much your majority in the last election, every MP has moments of doubt about how well they’ll poll next time around, Jo said.

“It happens when you’re getting tired and

you start wondering if you’ve done enough. If you don’t do the work from day one, then doing it in the last three months is a waste of time.”

As the new crop of MPs are bedded in before taking a summer break, Jo said she’s coming into term three looking ahead, not only continuing the work of the past three years, but dealing with a new raft of chal-lenges.

And some of those challenges will come in the form of MPs who were not re-elected.

“The ones you miss are the characters and the ones with huge capabilities, but I’ll miss them all for one reason or another. At some time I’ve asked all of them for advice.”

In the House there will be plenty of chal-lenges this term, not the least of those will be the return of Winston Peters

Looking ahead, Jo believes the next three years will be tough ones for New Zealand.

“The last three years were much tougher than we anticipated, and we all thought we were coming out of the recession, but the international situation will put a lot of pres-sure on us.”

In political terms, she’s still a baby at 50, with two terms in office behind her, but as long as you’re doing your job there’s no reason why you can’t continue as an MP for years, she says.

“There are some people who’ve been there for 27 years and they keep getting re-elected and there are plenty who’ve had 20-plus years.”

As with any job, the key to a successful career is in knowing when it’s time to go, she says.

“For me it will be time to leave when I don’t enjoy it. You’re not doing a good job for your constituents if you’re not enjoying it. We all have bad days, but I’ve never wanted to leave. I love this job, but it could mean one term or two terms more.”

Our fit MPkeeps the balance

6 YOU and technology

If you own a smartphone capable of installing a QR reader, you can take part in the YOU magazine QR code challenge! Here’s how:

The competition is like a treasure hunt. There are 5 QR codes • scattered throughout this month’s YOU magazine and each code has a separate code word. The five code words are clues that, when put together, complete the • sentence you need to enter the competition. Download a QR reader from your phone’s app store or market.1. Open the QR reader and hold your phone over the QR code as if you 2. are taking a photo. Make sure the entire code is inside the viewing frame. If the QR reader doesn’t automatically scan the code, you may need to press a button to snap the code (depending on application).Once scanned, your phone will bring up the reading from the code 3. (like a barcode at a store checkout) - take note of the code word and collect the sentence.Follow the instructions in the final QR code to enter the draw to win 4. a FREE hot air balloon ride with Aoraki Balloon Safaris!All correct entries will go into a lucky draw. The winner will be • announced in the Ashburton Guardian on Wednesday December 21. Good luck!

YOU magazine QR code challenge

What are they?QR codes are quick response codes and you may have

seen them lately in newspapers and magazines.They look like bar codes but they don’t have lines –

just lots of patterned squares.They were invented by a subsidiary of Toyota in 1994 to

keep track of vehicles during the manufacturing process and can hold a wealth of information.

They needed big scanners to read them back then, but that technology is now available in smartphones, with many

mobile platforms supporting them with software and applica-tions available for download.

A user downloads an “app” and holds up their smart-phone’s scanner to the QR code. It decodes it and gives you the information within, which could be anything from text to graphics, or links to websites.

They’re becoming an increasingly valuable advertising tool. People can use them on business cards to link clients to websites. Car yards can put a vehicle’s information on one so

a shopper can scan it and store it in their phone while they shop around.

The possibilities are endless.And now the Guardian and the team at YOU are keen for

their readers to use QR reader.To get you started, we have come up with a fun competi-

tion for you to try out your QR reader app.Simply follow the instructions below and you could win a

hot-air balloon ride with Aoraki Balloon Safaris.

QR codes:

“You could be flying high with QR codes”

WIN WIN WIN

YOU unsung hero 7

love my familyWhat really makes my family happy?A Selections Dinner Box

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Ashburton

By Amanda Durry

Moyra Whiting doesn’t believe what she does is special.She hates talking about herself and is much happier doing

things for others.For her, it’s not about the recognition – she just does what she can to

help out.She’s had a passion for helping people for as long as she can remem-

ber and she loves children.Teaching was naturally a great starting point for that and she has now

been teaching for 31 years, as well as voluntary work.At Allenton School, she had been teaching new entrants for around

five years but felt it was time to step aside to give a beginning teacher a go. She did just that but still takes the class for one day a week for teacher release.

It was also through the school that she got into another of her ven-tures – a choir.

Last year, the teacher in charge of the music festival choir wanted a year off. Moyra stepped up to help out and when it was over, a small group of children asked when the next practice was to be and expressed disappointment when told there were no more to be had.

“I came home and thought about it for a while and decided to start my own little choir. I wanted no more than 12 but we’re up to 20 and they’re so happy because we’ve just been given sponsored t-shirts to wear,” she said.

They practise at the St David’s Church, where Moyra plays piano for a men’s choir – just another of her projects.

She also teaches piano, is a member of the Ashburton County Lions, is on the Life Education Trust, is involved with the Ashburton Travel Club, Neighbourhood Support, the St David’s Youth Group, is a budding recreational cyclist and does some after-school tutoring.

She is also part of a “foodie group” which started when she and a friend saw a need for involving women from other cultures and making them feel welcome in the community.

“I just like doing little things for people and if someone needs help with something, I don’t think twice about it. Everybody is busy though and I don’t think I’m that special, I’ve always been a giver and not a taker.

“I’ve always been that way, my mother always told me I was too soft but I’m no different to everyone else,” she said.

She enjoys encouraging people to get involved and after a cancer scare about four years ago, she believes there isn’t a moment to waste in life.

“Everybody should have a bucket list and you have to do the things you want to do. In life, you have to treat other people the way you want to be treated and just enjoy life,” she said.

Photo kirsty graham 021211-kg-122

Moyra Whiting is only content when helping others, whether it’s teaching them music, helping them with after-school tutoring or helping in the community.

Just doing what she can to help out

8 YOU couch potato challenge

Couch potatoesstand up

by Amanda Niblett

Walking can be boring exercise. One foot after the other, pounding the same bit of pavement you did the day before, cursing the cold rain or sweating through the hot sun. But walking remains a fundamental activ-ity in getting fit.

Whether we enjoy it or not, walking is the platform from where we build up our strength and endur-ance, and we use walking more in our everyday lives than any other form of exercise. It’s great to ease you toward achieving a higher fitness level, it’s a form of exercise that is accessible to every person who is able bodied, it’s free and doesn’t require a lot of practise

to perform. Our couch potatoes have completed two months of their six-month challenge, and have all ex-perienced the benefit from a regular walking routine.

Some of them struggled to walk continuously for 10 minutes at the beginning of the challenge, but recently the group got together at the Ashburton Domain to walk continuously for one hour, and all of them man-aged to achieve this.

The grand challenge facing our contestants at the end of six months will be for them to complete 10km, hopefully jogging by that stage depending on how much their fitness has progressed.

From couch potato to 10km in six months, for some it may seem impossible, but our contestants have made a fantastic start toward achieving this.

If our contestants have motivated you to get off the couch and out the front door for a walk, remember that it doesn’t matter how you start, the important thing is that you do start.

You may only be able to walk for five or 10 min-utes on your first attempt, but every little bit counts towards improving your health and fitness.

Make sure you invest in a pair of comfortable and supportive shoes, and take your first steps towards a healthier, happier you.

This month our couch potatoes increase the distance and pace that they will be walking, aiming towards seven kilometres by the first week of January.

What a fantastic way to burn off the extra Christmas calories consumed over the festive season!

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We are now seven weeks into the Couch Potato Challenge and the team is doing exceptionally

well! With a continuous 60-minute walk completed (some starting to jog and others having done a 90-minute walk!) the benefits of improved cardio fitness are starting to show. Congratulations must be said! But now comes two toughies – phase two of training and Christmas!

Traditionally Christmas and New Year are the time for relaxation and letting exercise routines take a back seat. However, this year I challenge you to try and do it differently! Following are four festive fitness tips that can help keep you active during the silly season:

1) Join a gym – Many people argue that now is not the time of year to join the gym

… too many things to do, but hang on, if your Christmas shopping is not done by December 24 then you’ve missed the boat and many people have time off until the middle of Janu-ary, so actually you are about to have more time to get to the gym and start a new rou-tine. Get a trainer to ensure you get quality advice and support and by the time January rolls around you’ll be throwing around the kettle bells, a whizz on the cross-trainer and you may have even mastered a group fitness class! (This has got to be a better alternative than sitting at home and eating the leftovers.)

2) Interactive video games – While you might be against spending time indoors during the summer break, interactive video games are another viable option for main-taining your fitness. You’ll be on your feet and

moving (and you might even beat the kids!) All three of the major consoles now have a wide range of interactive fit-ness games such as PS3 Move Fitness, Nintendo Wii Fit and Xbox 360. Pick your style of exercise, boxing, dancing, bal-ance, tennis and challenge a friend or family member.

3) Get Outdoors – Sum-mer weather makes cycling and jogging a dream, parks are beautiful, walking tracks are accessible, and long days make it possible to get outdoors from 6am till 9pm. Consider some of the local walking tracks, check out www.doc.govt.nz to find out more about the Mid Canter-bury walking tracks that are right on our doorstep. Or how about a bike ride out to Lake Hood or a jog down the riverbed? With lots of places to explore, pack a picnic and get moving!

4) Workout whenever you can – Up to Christmas Day, time is always at a premium and you may not have the luxury of doing your regular workout at the same time each day. You might not even have a full hour available. To counteract this try and make use of the small slots of time you do have during

the day. If you have a social commitment in the evening which means you cannot get to your workout, try and fit in a 20- or 30-minute session during the day. Consistency is the key with exercise, better to reduce the workout time but do something rather than skip a day and wait for “to-morrow”. After Christmas you may have some more time to get back into your routine, or mix it up with something new.

You may not be able to keep up with your full fitness routine over the festive pe-riod, however, try to find time here and there and embrace incidental exercise that comes your way … eg, a hit of Swing-ball, 10 laps of the pool or a bike ride to the shops.

As for our Couch Pota-toes, it’s phase two and we are shifting from time-based workouts to distance goals. The programme involves four workouts per week of which two to three are cardio and one to two are strength/conditioning.

I am really excited watching the group progress, we’ve had injuries, and other com-mitments have challenged the team already. But so far those challenges have all been matched with steely resolve.

Keep it up!

Staying motivated over Christmas

Racheal will be helping contestants

with their fitness needs on the

six-month Couch Potato challenge

RACHEAL RICKARD

YOU couch potato challenge 9

Geoff Laird

Wow. Two months gone already!Last Friday we had our one-hour continuous walk

challenge which everyone completed.Considering I used to struggle to walk 10 minutes

at the start of the challenge, this is great progress.It was good to catch up with the others in the

group to see the progress they have also achieved.People still ask me how the “diet” is going, and

are surprised when I tell them I eat just as much as I did before.

It’s just the quantities of the various food groups that I have changed, less meat and spuds and more vegetables.

Thanks to Sally Rossiter for her support and ad-vice, it has really made a huge difference.

My clothes are getting looser, and the fitness is definitely improving, so I’m still motivated to con-tinue this challenge for the next four months.

Rachel Robertson

Well this month had its share of ups and downs, including two car rallies and two motorbike rallies.

The lows for me were my son in hospital after a car accident (car-racing related), so we spent five hours in Timaru hospital.

Then the hard questions I need to plan in advance for:1: What to take to car rallies.

Answer: Take your own food then you know what you have. 2: What do you eat at a bike rally?

Answer: A hot dog or go to the pub for a meal.

Well I am looking forward to Christ-mas and the New Year.

Here’s to losing weight and staying healthy in 2012.

Until the next diary in the new year.

Cathie Withington

This has been a month of varying success. I made a good start, with a longer bike ride than I’d man-aged in about 40 years. But then we had our four and two-year-old grandchildren for a week or so. This meant that getting exercise, for me, became nonexistent very quickly. How do mothers with children actually get the time to work out?

To make matters worse, the day before the children were due to return, one of them came out in chicken pox and we had to keep the children for an extra week. By that time I was so tired even the thought of exercise was exhausting. So I’m afraid things went from not doing anything to not even thinking about it.

But then there was the planned, one-hour walk. I complained all the way to the start. Poor Jeff just kept telling me “You can do this”. And you know what? He was right. I didn’t move fast – the others were out of sight very soon – but even though I’d done very little exercise for about a month I man-aged to keep walking for an hour. Just. The whole idea of one foot in front of the other, over and over, actually works!

I’ve also been enjoying the circuits at the Gym Company, thanks to Frank and the team who have made us so welcome – and I look forward to actu-ally developing the muscles that Frank assures me are there … somewhere. I’ve come to the conclu-sion that fitness is a journey, not a destination. And I’ve just started that journey.

Jeff Withington

Wow!!! We are nearly halfway through this challenge already. Where did the time go? Since the last ‘installment’ I have begun work-ing out at the Gym Company. A big thanks to them, from me, for their support. The happy banter among the staff there, makes for re-warding prime time viewing.

This past month was rather quiet, with grandkids staying longer than we had hoped for, owing to a bout of chicken pox. So exercise sort of went on the backburner for a couple of weeks, which was a huge chunk taken out of the month. So to do the one-hour walk around the block that encompasses the domain, and then some more on top of that to fill in the hour, was surprising for me, that I actually felt quite good at the end of it. More so than I had imagined before the start of the walk, with so much of the preparation programme not com-pleted. It felt good that I thought I could have done more walking. Notice I didn’t say “... easily done more!”

So compared to where I was a couple of months ago I was quite impressed. Sadly people still approach me about “the diet”, so once again can I announce to all and sundry thank you for your support, however, this is a fitness challenge not a weight-loss challenge, although suffice to say the weight is coming down, and that’s got to be good.

Rachael assures me that we will revisit the 1km time trial again, that we undertook for the first month’s challenge. I look forward to comparing my time to the first attempt.

Photos kirsty graham

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10 YOU do it yourself

How’s it hanging?Wallpaper has come a long way since the

bold patterns of the 1970s. Today there is a colour, pattern and texture to suit

every taste. And the good news is that it’s now relatively easy to put up. Where once wallpaper and paste were separate, today’s wallpapers are easy to handle and most come pre-pasted.

Wallpaper has a long history. It is thought it was first used in about 200BC in China, but it was tem-porary. In about 105AD rag paper was invented and a product was churned out that was similar to the paper we use today.

After World War Two wallpaper benefited from the “plastic” revolution which increased washability, durability and strength. New pastes and pre-pasted wallpaper made it even more accessible and hang-ing wallpaper became no more difficult than paint-ing – perfect for the do-it-yourselfer.

These days, there are many different types of wallpaper, so you need to choose the one that best suits your needs.

Vinyl wallpaper is a good all-purpose choice and can also be used in bathrooms and kitchens, as some are made with mildew resistant compounds. This type of paper is fairly easy to handle as it typi-cally does not stick to itself. It is durable and can stand up to some scrubbing and moisture. Foil wall-paper is made from metal foils in various patterns.

This type of paper is not always easy to work with and can be unforgiving if it wrinkles.

Flock wallpaper is great for decorative highlights and more formal areas. It has raised “velvet” pat-terns.

Once you have chosen the type of wallpaper you will use, it is important to make sure the rolls you buy are from the same batch. Wallpaper from different batches may have small differences in the colours which make it difficult to match.

As with any decorating, preparation is the key to a good result.

Your walls must be stripped of any old wallpaper, remembering to remove light-switch covers and outlet covers. Some wallpapers will come off in long strips, but older paper will require a wallpaper steamer, which are available for hire.

• CONTINUED OVER PAGE

Ordinary Kiwi bloke Shane ‘Woodsy’ Woods is handy

around the house with a ham-mer. Each month we’ll check in on what his latest DIY project

has been.

Shane Woods

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YOU do it yourself 11

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Or you can use a bucket of warm water and a sponge to wet the paper and scrape it off with a scraper or putty knife.

Raw surfaces, including old gib-board and surfaces painted with latex paint, should be sealed with an oil based pigmented sealer before sanding.

You can hang wallpaper directly over painted surfaces, but you will need to sand to a matt surface. Glossy surfaces will not hold the adhesive very well, so you will need to sand and wash down with sugar soap.

To ensure that the wallpaper will stick prop-erly on unprimed walls, use wallpaper size or some type of resin sealer.

Papering over old wallpaper is not a good idea. Seams of the old paper will show through and dampness of the new paper may cause bubbling of the old paper before the adhesive can dry.

Nowadays most wallpaper comes pre-past-ed, which makes hanging a lot easier.

To start, measure the width of one roll in from the corner.

Subtract 15mm and mark that point (high on the wall close to the ceiling away from the corner) and hang the first drop, followed by the second. This will allow for a 15mm return to cover inside the corner. Allow at least 5cm for trimming top and bottom over and above the longest wall measurements. Cut your first drop to this size using a utility knife, then use it as a template for the others.

Identify your mark and place a small nail on it. Attach your plumb line then draw a line in pencil down the line to the floor.

Re-roll your pre-cut length loosely with the pattern inside.

Fill a water trough with warm water and place at the base of wall. Immerse the roll for up to 20 seconds and draw the top up slowly through the wire.

Place the paper loosely against the wall for two to three minutes before placing into its final position.

Smooth out from the middle to the edges, removing all air bubbles and wrinkles, then trim off excess paper top and bottom. Using a sponge, remove any excess water.

Most wallpaper will be hung using the “butted seam” for which most papers are designed. To do this, hang the second paper so that the two papers meet and there is a slight buckle outward. The paper will shrink slightly as it dries and this buckle will allow for that. Wallpaper can also be overlapped, however, they are not recommended for vinyl papers as it will not stick to itself without a special adhesive.

When the adhesive and paper has begun to dry (about 15 minutes) firm up the seam by pressing it down. On delicate papers use a sponge, but for most a roller is ideal.

Sooner or later you will run into a corner. As walls are seldom exactly square you do not want to wrap the paper around the corner as it will cause your next piece not to be precisely vertical.

To deal with this on an inside corner, mea-sure the distance from the edge of your paper at the top to the corner of the wall. Do the same for the bottom and middle.

There will likely be a variation so add 30mm to the largest of these numbers and make a mark at the top of your paper and at the bot-tom with the longer of the two lengths.

Cut a straight line connecting both marks. Now when you paste this piece of paper to the wall it should wrap around the corner by 30mm at the narrowest point and more everywhere else.

Measure the width of the other half of the paper you cut and measure out this distance from the corner and drop a new plumb line. Put the piece in place using the new line as a guide – the new strip will overlap the previous one.

Outside corners should be handled in the same manner but allow for double the wrap-around on to the adjacent wall.

Left – You don’t have to wallpaper every wall in a room – feature walls are a popular choice.

Below – New pastes and pre-pastes have made hanging wallpaper no more difficult than painting – perfect for the do-it-yourselfer.

12 YOU great gardens

Lawn-cycle those grass clippingsThe sun is shining the grass is growing, the

spring growth is abundant, and the silage operators are out in force. That takes care

of paddock grass, but what about domestic grass, the lawn clippings homeowners have to dispose of every week?

Like most things in Sheryl’s life, lawn clip-pings most definitely have another use.

Often she mows her lawn without a catcher. The mulched grass feeds the lawn, helps prevent the growth of moss and plants like hierachiam which take over when the grass is cut too low and it helps keep your lawn lush with less water, she says.

“However, because lawn clippings are a great mulch for the vegetable garden I do use the catcher from time to time. We’re enthu-siastic recyclers – lawncyclers – and having a good supply of lawn clippings makes vegetable growing easy.”

Her broccoli, cauliflowers, cabbages and on-ions planted out a few weeks ago, are leaping ahead with a lawn clipping mulch about 30mm deep sprinkled around them.

Corn, beans, zucchini and pumpkins and any of the larger seeds can be sown straight in the ground where you want them to grow at about 30mm deep, then covered with about 50mm fresh lawn clippings.

“This keeps in the moisture, creates a habitat for earthworms who keep building the

soil for you and suppresses any weeds. When conditions are just right the seeds pop their heads up through the lawn clipping mulch. What could be easier. I tend to think the mulch also deters caterpillars and slugs as they don’t like to crawl across the lawn clippings.”

Lawn clippings are also good for potatoes, Sheryl says.

“I remember reading a study carried out at the Henry Doubleday Research Institute with potatoes grown under several different mulches and guess what – lawn clippings came up tops.”

She has a simple method of growing pota-toes that shows lawn clippings off at their best.

Start with a thick layer of newspaper on the ground over top of grass or weeds or bare ground. Place your sprouted seed potatoes

on top of this about 300mm apart and then sprinkle a pile of good compost or worm castings from your worm farm onto each seed potato. Cover the whole lot with thick lawn clippings about 200mm thick.

If you’re going for a less random and slightly tidier version, you can put a frame around the potato patch to make a boxed garden or use a tractor tyre.

“If you use a big tyre it’s good to put some manure in the bottom under the newspaper so it will attract earthworms and continue to feed the soil which feeds the plants which eventually feed us.

“What could be simpler?”When the potatoes pop through continue

to mulch them up deeper with more lawn clip-pings making sure the fresh green ones are not

too close to the green shoots of the plant, she says. “You will be rewarded with a tasty crop of potatoes that you don’t need to mould up or weed and need very little watering. The lawn clippings also keep the soil warm so plants grow quicker and crops are edible sooner and you can keep building more and more of these potato beds throughout the coming months to give you a continuous supply of tasty new potatoes.”

With even a modest-sized lawn home gardeners are likely to find they have more clippings than they can handle and if that’s the case, put a good layer in your compost bin over any food scraps and weeds about 200mm thick, Sheryl says.

Another option is to make a wire mesh circle and put the lawnclippings into this so they can be put around young seedlings when needed. The wire mesh means good air circulation will enable the clippings to cool down so they don’t burn young plants.

The only time lawn clippings shouldn’t be used around vegetable plants is if your lawn has been sprayed, she said.

“Lawnclippings are a resource, give them back to the earth with a mulching mower or through mulching your garden or making com-post. They will reward you by enriching your soil and making vegetable gardening easier and less time-consuming.”

When it comes to recycling, there’s not a lot Sheryl Stivens doesn’t know. She has an encyclopaedic knowledge when it comes to re-using things that

others would throw out. And that reusing extends to a product we all have too much of – summer lawn clippings. Her message is simple, don’t toss

them, lawn-cycle them.

YOU great gardens 13

Margaret Wilson Selling homes just like yours

Margaret was recently awarded a Salesperson of the month in New Zealand Award for First National Real Estate Group for most exclusive listings!When you are buying or selling your property, talk to Margaret about how she can give you top service and results!

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Licensed Sales Person (REAA 2008)

What puts Margaret on top in Real Estate?

M: 021 221 2544 P: 03 307 8317 W: www.margaretwilson.co.nz

Photo tetsuro mitomo 231111-tm-021

Recycler Sheryl Stivens believes grass clippings are a great resource for our gardens.Raised garden bed mulched with lawn clippings requires little weeding or watering.

Easy-care onion crop lawn-cycled several months ago.

14 YOU and your travels

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It’s certainly guaranteed to raise a few eyebrows in casual conversation when you shyly announce that last August you

spent some time in Mongolia.As it happened Mongolia wasn’t the

destination but a stop on the Trans-Sibe-rian/Transmongolian railway between Moscow and Beijing. People possibly as-sume with that challenging rail trip across the vast flatness of central and Eastern Russia that one gets on a train and stays on it, but the trip involves many trains and as many stops as one chooses.

Our group decided that we would spend a little time in Ulan Bator (Ulaan-bataar – meaning ‘Red Hero’). One could hardly travel all that distance and just pass through. The capital of this isolated country is dense with dust and traffic. Boasting nearly a million people it seems half-finished with modern skyscrapers adjacent to much less glitzy areas and treacherous pavements. Much of the old city was destroyed by previous commu-nist rulers and what is left looks faded and slightly down-at-heel.

Appearances can be deceptive, though. The Winter Palace of the Bogd Khan may not have the smartly painted exteriors of post-Olympic Beijing but within these faded exteriors were fascinating and culturally distinctive shrines and carvings. The Gandan Monastery, situated among dusty, pigeon-infested spaces, may not

compare with some of the more colourful temples of Thailand but has its own less gaudy charms.

Downtown the 31,000 square metre Sukhbaatar Square, the centre of the city, is dominated by the impressive Mongo-lian Parliament building with the seated Genghis Khan flanked by Kubla Khan and other notable and fearsome Khans, intimidating the near-empty space. The equestrian statue of the eponymous Sukhbataar, hero of combined Mongolian and Communist Russian forces that took the city in 1921, takes centre stage in the piazza.

The Russian legacy is there for all to see despite the move to democracy in 1990; everything is written in Cyrillic rather than indigenous Mongolian characters. Near the square are signs of a different revolu-tion, one towards a more international style of architecture. There are sculptures nearby, however, expressing more typi-cally Mongolian themes such as horse-riding and wrestling.

Outside the capital, gently undulating plains with distant mountains, not unlike the McKenzie country. Horses, yurts, tree-less villages and the Gobi Desert. As the train snakes towards the more varied topography of northern China and the teeming millions, it’s good to enjoy the space and sparseness of this far-distant country.

Mongolia

Roderick Lonsdale is a traveller. The former Ashburton College teacher now lives in England,

but travels to far corners of the world when he can. Here, he reports on one of his latest

expeditions, to Mongolia.

in all its faded glory

Photos roderick lonsdale

Above – A monument of Genghis Kahn.

Left – Roderick Lonsdale.

Below – The incredible detailing at the winter palace.

A statue of wrestling boys.

YOU and your family 15

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Let your child

A dad and his girlsBy Susan Sandys

Dad Jason Alexander parents his two daughters alone in a humble home in Hampstead. Life is not easy. Whereas he once worked 12-hour meatworker shifts, and could then

go and do weekend stints as a doorman and barman at the Devon Tavern, today he relies on the domestic purposes benefit.

But the 35-year-old would not have it any other way.Tayla and Sunmara are aged nine and seven respectively.

Tayla is accomplishing much in her school work, while Sunmara is sportiness personified. She loves gymnastics and athletics, and most of all swimming with her big sister.

“It’s great, we spend a lot of time together, me and the girls. I have the best moments with them,” Jason said.

While he had been happy having a 50/50 care arrange-ment for the two girls after a custody battle with their mother, he ended up with sole custody four years ago after he and their mother went through a parent as-sessment at Cholmondely children’s home.

“They wouldn’t release the children to anyone else’s care but mine.”

It was the end of a long road, one where he had

often seen his children upset when they had to return home again after just a day or two at his place.

“I promised Tayla I would never give up.”Parenting two girls was something he had to get his head

around to start with. He said he had worried about people’s per-ceptions; it had felt strange waiting outside ladies’ bathrooms, and when his girls would have friends for sleepovers.

But he has found perception is not everything, and fellow par-ents and others have been supportive.

Jason plans to study early childhood and parenting, and will begin this at Aoraki Polytech in Ashburton next year.

It is an area he wants to be involved in especially after his experi-ences at Cholmondely.

“There are kids out there that come from broken homes, it’s pretty sad for some of them and they are really good kids.”

One nine-year-old boy was known to be a bit of a troublemaker, but had taken to Jason and bought him a teddy bear out of his own pocket money.

Now that it’s coming up to Christmas, Jason is secretly stacking a wardrobe at his parents’ house with gifts.

He admits to not being able to take it easy and relax around this time, as he is determined to make Christmas a special time for his girls.

“Relax man, don’t rush,” says Nigel Latta.The parenting guru gave these pre-

Christmas words of wisdom leading up to a recent talk in Methven on raising boys and

girls.He didn’t want the media to attend the

talk itself, saying sometimes his politically incorrect style gets taken out of context.

Mr Latta said as Christmas put the squeeze on families, both in the time and money department, it was im-portant parents realised their best was good enough.

“The best is all you have got.”Parents who could not afford the presents

they wanted to get their children should not feel they have to get them.

“It’s a bit hard explaining why Santa only brings the real good toys to rich kids. But you can say Santa brings you the toys you are going to enjoy the most.”

Parents could find some fun activi-ties to do with their children. It was not

all about toys, but was about people spending time together. It was the activities children did with their parents they remembered more so

than the gifts. “It’s about hanging out with your family and doing stuff with your friends.”

And when it came to raising boys and girls, Mr Latta’s premise was that there was a lot of “manky science” and myths relating to this area.

Basically, boys and girls had the same brains and abilities as each other, and were “pretty similar” despite all the parenting advice to the contrary.

One of the myths was that boys needed good male role models in their lives.

“There are lots of mums who feel bad because they don’t have a male role model in their life, but boys get their modelling all the time,” Mr Latta said.

“If all you have got is a good mum or all you have got is a good dad, that’s fine,” Mr Latta said.

Dads raising girls, whether alone or in partnership with their wives, needed to not worry if they felt they could not understand their daughters.

“That’s fine, because no-one can,” he said.Modern science, parenting guides and advice cre-

ated a culture for parents worrying they would get it wrong. Children were not as fragile as many would believe, and would not be “forever scarred” by a raised voice.

“It’s just simply common-sense stuff that gets you through.”

‘YOUR BEST IS GOOD ENOUGH’

Nigel Latta

16 YOU wedding

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Outdoor SplendourSpring and Summer is the perfect

time for an outdoor wedding to take advantage of the great weather and spectacular surrounds of your favourite location.

A marquee provides the opportunity to have your reception wherever you like, at home on the farm, beside your favourite garden or higher up overlooking the ocean.

The great thing about a marquee is that it is a blank canvas, allowing you to decorate to perfectly match your colour scheme, or theme.

Here are some tips on how to create your own wedding wonderland.

Use big bold decorations A marquee is generally a large space to

decorate, so big and bold is the way to go. Small and delicate arrangements or embellishments can sometimes be lost amongst the grandeur, so depending on your theme, don’t be afraid to include large chandeliers, plants, statues and a lot of draping material for a dramatic impact.

Don’t forget the ceiling A marquee ceiling is often a great

expanse of white, and no matter how colourful your decorations at eye level, a bare ceiling can make the venue seem empty. You can hang almost anything from a marquee ceiling; consider paper

lanterns, chandeliers, balloons, or garlands.

Hire a projector The latest trend in marquee decoration

is to project a coloured pattern onto the plain interior walls of the marquee to look a little like wallpaper. The colour and design of the projected wallpaper can change throughout the day to reflect the changing mood of the party. You can also use the marquee walls as a screen to project photos from your engagement party and the ceremony.

Look for cosy lighting Candles may not be the best idea due

to the risk of fire, so if you want a cosy romantic atmosphere you may need to look for alternatives. Cordless table lamps and fairy lights can be very effective, and you can also use LED lights incorporated into your flower arrangements. There are also a number of flicker lights on the market, which give the impression of candles but with no flame.

Consider the temperatureEven on the coolest Mid-Canterbury

summers’ evening, your guests will feel the heat on the dance floor after a couple of drinks. If air-conditioning is unavailable, give fans as favours! They will make a stunning effect in photos and your guests will be relieved to have a gentle wafting breeze at hand.

A Moment

YOU wedding 17

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Most brides will already know what music they would like to walk down the aisle to. It might be a powerful ballad by Mariah Carey which was your favourite song as a teenager, in fact you played it so much you wore out the tape on your ghetto blaster, or it might be that special song, the one where you were driving down the coast after a magical weekend with the man you love, and during the song he looked at you with that look that said “I love you forever”. Whatever song you choose, it will be special to you and your man, heartfelt and

appropriate to you as a couple. After all the seriousness of the wedding ceremony, you might like to have a bit of fun with your music and bring the bridal party into the reception with a bang. If you’re one of those brides who loves to have a great time and wants to pump your guests up for the night with your grand entrance, then you’re probably looking for a great song to make the most of the moment. Here is a list of suggestions, some old and some new, that will energise your guests, but won’t leave granny wondering what on earth.

1. Party Rock Anthem – LMFAO 2. Raise Your Glass - Pink 3. Welcome to the Jungle - Guns N’ Roses 4. WWF – Let’s get ready to rumble! 5. Let’s Get Loud - Jennifer Lopez 6. Old Time Rock & Roll - Bob Seger 7. Time of My Life - Black Eyed Peas 8. Thunderstruck – ACDC 9. Walk – Pantera 10. Rocky Theme Song 11. Marry You - Bruno Mars

Put your best face forward

Our top 11 “pump-up the party entrance songs”

As a bride, one of the most important features of your wedding day is you! While a lot of the focus will be on your dress, one feature that you want looking its very best is your beautiful face. If you have decided that doing your own make-up is something you would like to attempt yourself, the following tips will help you to put your best face forward. And remember the golden rule, practice, practice, practice!

Use a primerTo ensure that your foundation lasts

the whole day, using a primer as a base is essential. It prepares the skin for make-up and creates a protective base that foundation can grab onto.

Choose foundation to match your skin tone

The key to finding the perfect foundation to match your skin tone is to check the colour in natural daylight. After all, on your wedding day you are most likely to spend a large amount of time in natural light. Remember to always check a foundation along the jaw line to guarantee you don’t leave a tide-mark and extend it towards the neck.

Don’t forget concealerAlthough foundation will definitely give

you the coverage you need to even out any blotchiness, concealer is still a bridal beauty must to get rid of any unwanted

shadows that might persist after foundation application.

Use powder to set foundationIt may seem like more make-up than

you are used to, but remember that for photographs and all-day longevity, powder is essential to set the foundation and concealer.

Apply blusherTo avoid looking washed out for

photographs, make sure you apply a subtle blusher to the apples of your cheeks.

Use light eyeshadow as baseBegin on your eyes by applying a light

eyeshadow all over the eyelid. This is the best way to open up the eye and make them stand out more in photographs. Then you can apply the colour of your choice from the upper lash line to the crease of your eye.

Go for two coats of mascaraFollow the eye shading by curling your

lashes for a glamorous look and then apply two generous coats of waterproof black mascara.

Use lipliner that matches your lipstick shade

There are no hard and fast rules over whether to opt for a lipstick or a gloss on your wedding day. Some simply prefer one to the other. Whichever you veer towards, be sure to use a lipliner similar to the colour of your choice.

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20 YOU car mania

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by Jonathan Leask

It all started with a 1957 Ford Custom and has grown into something possibly border-ing on obsession.“Some people collect stamps or pens. I just

really like cars,” Robert Tonks says.“I used to have 12 but they were outside

and I realised that was no good for them and obviously too many to deal with so now it’s just seven.”

He has owned many a car over the years but only the ones he likes the most stick around.

The 1957 Ford Custom was the first.“It is the one I’ve had the longest, 12 years

I’ve owned that.”“It’s a car with a colourful history. It has

been in the country for quite some time and has been through a lot of different owners.

“The previous owner only had it to do burn-outs so it came totally buggered. I rescued it really.”

The green machine with purple flames is a mean-looking machine, but in Robert’s eyes it is a dream machine.

“It’s the most reliable car I’ve ever had.“It’s just like a modern car. Put the keys in

and it goes. You put the petrol in one end and point in the direction you want to go and you are away.

“It keeps up with the best of them.”Next up was the freshly completed 1934

Ford Coupe, another mean-looking machine in a chic deep purple but its image is equally matched by its sound when Robert fires it up.

“It used to be purple and pink, a shock-ing pink, but it’s just recently finished being repainted and upholstered.”

The Coupe was especially imported to New Zealand by Robert from Canada five years

ago and he has worked on it ever since. Now it is deemed to be complete.

So Robert moved on to the work in prog-ress section of his custom-built garage.

A 1937 Ford Coupe, a 1948 Ford Truck ... there was a theme developing, Ford. “I used to be a Ford man. I guess I still am, but I have a few old Dodges tucked away now.”

He likes a certain type of car, but more obvious is that Tonks has a specific colour palette.

Purple flames on the 57 Custom, a full purple 34 Ford Coupe and the beginnings of a purple Dodge Challenger.

“I have a thing for the colour purple. People give me heaps about it but it does look good.”

His 1973 Dodge Challenger is the next project with work already under way.

“It’s the next on the list so will get the most attention for awhile.”

The newest addition, the 1960 Desoto, is also quite a step away from the other major-ity members of his garage.

Also in the garage is a 1965 Ford Galaxie that is on the way out; sold to make room for two more Fords on their way to the Tonks motor-stable.

“I’ve got one in a container that I’m waiting to arrive, a 1959 Dodge, and another on the water making its way here from America, an F150 truck.”

An engineer by day, his cars are his hobby, and his down time.

“Saturday is play day in the shed. I try to get in there every Saturday and tinker away on something.”

So a stable of cars currently numbering seven, give or take, makes Robert clearly a car collector, but there is an obvious hint of obsession.

His ride-on lawnmower is even imported from America.

Robert’smean

machines

Photos tetsuro mitomo 0512111-tm-113

Car collector Robert Tonks with one of his finished pride and joys, a 1934 Ford Coupe.

0512111-tm-107Above – Robert’s flam-ing beauty, the 1957 Ford Custom.

Left – 1960 Desoto Adventurer.

0512111-tm-123

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In ancient Greek, Aurion means “tomorrow”, and after a test drive in this grunty yet graceful car, it’s easy to see why Aurion owners drive like there’s no tomorrow. Advertising Manager for the Ashburton Guardian Nancye Pitt purchased her Toyota Aurion in 2008, and has been continually delighted with the purchase. Feature writer Amanda Niblett explored the Aurion to discover what makes this car so impressive.

Q: When you began looking for a new car, what features were important for you? Nancye: I wanted a “big boys boy” built for a lady.

Q: Were you specifically looking for an Aurion, or was it love at first sight? Nancye: I spotted one in the Riccarton Mall carpark one Saturday and walked into

Ashburton Toyota on the Monday and said “that’s exactly the one I want and it must be gold”.

Q: What inspired the decision to go with the golden colour? Nancye: I think it makes it more special. My kids call it “Goldmember” or the

“Goldmobile”.

Q: What have you enjoyed most about the car since you purchased it?Nancye: The colour and cruising on the open road.

Q: Have there been any features that have delighted you that you weren’t expecting?

Nancye: The gauge that tells me what the temperature is outside.

Q: What is your favourite feature within the interior of the car? Nancye: The mirrors (just kidding).

Q: Most importantly, what is it like to drive? Nancye: I love it and it’s fast – without being too heavy to manage.

The interior is pleasant, spacious and quiet while on the move. The driver feels at home and comfortable in the fully electric seat with various posture settings, the informative dash that provides a number of statistics on fuel consumption, trip averages and outside temperature, the multi-function steering wheel to control the powerful sound system and cruise control, and sliding arm rest for the long journeys.

“The rear passengers are given plenty of leg room, and the huge boot has enough space for what seems like unlimited shopping bags or holiday suitcases,” Nancye said.

The 205kW 3.5L V6 powerplant has plenty of grunt on tap for any situation, and overtaking is almost too easy. With an electrifying roar at high RPM and silent operation around town and cruising on the open road, thanks in part to the quick-witted six-speed tiptronic gearbox, it is one of the features that really sets the Aurion apart from its predecessors.

Nancye commented that on many trips between Ashburton and Christchurch the fuel consumption has very nearly dropped below seven litres per 100km – astounding economy for a car its size with such an engine.

Despite being front-wheel-drive, contrary to its rear-drive rivals, it handles exceptionally well. Aggressive cornering won’t persuade this big hulk to understeer – it follows the driver’s command no matter how vigorous. Through the steering wheel alone the driver can feel exactly what the front wheels are doing at all times – a pleasing relief from the usual sort of large car, which demands a lot of guesswork as to how long you need to keep turning the wheel until you’re pointing in the right direction.

All things considered, the Aurion is an excellent example of a refined yet affordable sports sedan that is built to last.

Drive itlike there’s no tomorrow

By Amanda Niblett

21 motoring advertising feature

Cnr East Street and Walnut Avenue, Ashburton. Phone 307-5830 anytime.www.ashburton.toyota.co.nz OPEN SATURDAY 9AM - 1PM

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In ancient Greek, Aurion means “tomorrow”, and after a test drive in this grunty yet graceful car, it’s easy to see why Aurion owners drive like there’s no tomorrow. Advertising Manager for the Ashburton Guardian Nancye Pitt purchased her Toyota Aurion in 2008, and has been continually delighted with the purchase. Feature writer Amanda Niblett explored the Aurion to discover what makes this car so impressive.

Q: When you began looking for a new car, what features were important for you? Nancye: I wanted a “big boys boy” built for a lady.

Q: Were you specifically looking for an Aurion, or was it love at first sight? Nancye: I spotted one in the Riccarton Mall carpark one Saturday and walked into

Ashburton Toyota on the Monday and said “that’s exactly the one I want and it must be gold”.

Q: What inspired the decision to go with the golden colour? Nancye: I think it makes it more special. My kids call it “Goldmember” or the

“Goldmobile”.

Q: What have you enjoyed most about the car since you purchased it?Nancye: The colour and cruising on the open road.

Q: Have there been any features that have delighted you that you weren’t expecting?

Nancye: The gauge that tells me what the temperature is outside.

Q: What is your favourite feature within the interior of the car? Nancye: The mirrors (just kidding).

Q: Most importantly, what is it like to drive? Nancye: I love it and it’s fast – without being too heavy to manage.

The interior is pleasant, spacious and quiet while on the move. The driver feels at home and comfortable in the fully electric seat with various posture settings, the informative dash that provides a number of statistics on fuel consumption, trip averages and outside temperature, the multi-function steering wheel to control the powerful sound system and cruise control, and sliding arm rest for the long journeys.

“The rear passengers are given plenty of leg room, and the huge boot has enough space for what seems like unlimited shopping bags or holiday suitcases,” Nancye said.

The 205kW 3.5L V6 powerplant has plenty of grunt on tap for any situation, and overtaking is almost too easy. With an electrifying roar at high RPM and silent operation around town and cruising on the open road, thanks in part to the quick-witted six-speed tiptronic gearbox, it is one of the features that really sets the Aurion apart from its predecessors.

Nancye commented that on many trips between Ashburton and Christchurch the fuel consumption has very nearly dropped below seven litres per 100km – astounding economy for a car its size with such an engine.

Despite being front-wheel-drive, contrary to its rear-drive rivals, it handles exceptionally well. Aggressive cornering won’t persuade this big hulk to understeer – it follows the driver’s command no matter how vigorous. Through the steering wheel alone the driver can feel exactly what the front wheels are doing at all times – a pleasing relief from the usual sort of large car, which demands a lot of guesswork as to how long you need to keep turning the wheel until you’re pointing in the right direction.

All things considered, the Aurion is an excellent example of a refined yet affordable sports sedan that is built to last.

Drive itlike there’s no tomorrow

By Amanda Niblett

21 motoring advertising feature

22 YOU new to town

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By Sue Newman

When Christmas rolls around this year, it will be the first 25-year-old Scot Annika Jardine will be spend-

ing away from her family.Being away from home and family defi-

nitely takes away the festive feel. Add to that the recent spell of hot weather and it really doesn’t feel much like Christmas, she says.

But Annika is not complaining. She headed away from home about four months ago, planning to travel, pick up casual work and continue travelling. What she hadn’t counted on was finding a job in Ashburton.

It was down to the toss of a coin and a pref-erence for avoiding poisonous animals that prompted Annika and friend Darren Tait to choose New Zealand over Australia. Decision made, they spent a week in Asia then landed in Auckland, picking up a van and intending to spend unlimited time travelling and working when their funds ran low.

“I worked in Christchurch for a month in a bar and then I saw this job. I didn’t intend to get into a permanent job but this was a good opportunity to do work that used the same level of skills I used at home. And New Zea-land was a bit more expensive than I thought it would be,” she said.

She works in an area that’s largely the domain of men, in roading. She’s a roading technician at home in the Scottish city of Dumfries. Maybe it’s an odd job for a woman, but undertaking road safety inspections, road design work and roading project man-agement is all in a day’s work for Annika.

She’s something of an accidental roading technician, working in another area of the council’s roading division when the job came up. As a joke she said she’d apply. She did and won the job.

That meant a four-year university course, balanced against work and while her job at the Ashburton District Council is different to her job in Dumfries, the skill set needed and the basics are the same. There are also plenty of similarities between the two councils, she said.

Committing to a job on the opposite side of the world means accepting that she won’t be heading back to Scotland any time soon. And with her brother and his partner due to have a baby shortly, she’s feeling more than a bit glum about missing the excitement.

“We’re a close family and I know it will be odd for them, they’ll be missing me this Christmas. Of course I’m missing my friends and I miss my dog too.”

With cash in the bank, Annika intends to spend all of her spare time exploring New Zealand.

“I’ll just be going with the flow really. I didn’t expect to end up in a job, but it all seems to be falling into place.

“I love New Zealand; it seems to go from one extreme to the next. You have hot weather and people are friendly and part of the reason I came here was because it is so similar to Scotland.”

Annika is here on a one-year working visa, but said she can already feel her roots grow-ing in Kiwi soil. She’s exploring the residency option and hopes her council job will be the catalyst that will kick-start her application.

Scotswoman feels at

home in NZ

Journey interrupted – new to Ashburton, Scot Annika Jardine found a jobin Ashburton curbed her wanderlust.

Photo tetsuro mitomo 301111-tm-005

YOU foodies 23

Ice Cream

Christmas Pudding

Method

• Put almonds, peel, sultanas, raisins, currants, prunes and cherries in a bowl with the alcohol; leave over-night.

• Place a 2-litre capacity pudding basin into the freezer to chill; line with glad

wrap. • Soften the vanilla icecream slightly

and mix in the soaked dried fruit; spoon into chilled pudding basin and freeze for at least 12 hours.

• Just before serving, turn out onto a plate and decorate with berries.

Serves 12

Ingredients2 litre tub of low fat vanilla ice cream1/3 cup chopped toasted almonds¼ cup mixed peel1/3 cup raisins1/3 cup sultanas1/3 cup currants1/3 cup prunes1/3 cup quartered glace cherries1/3 cup sherry, rum or brandy.

Ashburton Hos-pital dietician Megan Copland is gearing up for Christmas like ev-erybody else but shares some tips on avoiding the food hangover this year.

Photo

tetsuro m

itom

o 061211-tm

-007

Four Peaks Plaza Talbot Street, Geraldine

Open 7 Days 9.00am to 5.30pmPhone/Fax: 03 693 9727

Email: [email protected]

www.barkers.co.nz

TALBOT ST

TO TEKAPO

TO CHRISTCHURCH

TO TIMARU

Recipe of the monthCongratulations to last months winner

Jennifer DonaldAshburton

Barker’s High Tea Gift BoxPost your self addressed envelope to: Barkers Giveaway, Amanda Niblett, PO Box 77, Ashburton 7700. E-mail: [email protected], subject header: Barkers Giveaway.

Please include your name, address and phone number. Only complete entries will be included in the draw.

Ingredients:

softened

yoghurt

& Passionfruit Patisserie

Method:

Beat cream cheese and yoghurt until smooth.

Measure out 1 cup Barker’s Lemon & Passionfruit Patisserie filling and fold through the cream cheese mixture. Set aside remaining filling to decorate.

Fold through crumbled meringues and spoon into 8 glasses.

Top each with a swirl of remaining Barker’s filling and garnish with a thin slice of lemon.

Chill for 30 minutes before serving.

Passionfruit Meringue Cheesecake

WIN

For Megan Copland Christmas is all about spending time with family, not about counting calories.

She has been a dietician for more than five years and knows that people worry about their eating habits at Christmas.

Above all, people should remember that Christmas is just one day and they should not feel guilty about having treats – you can always make up for it later, she said.

Below she shares some tips to keep your Christmas menu healthy and delicious from the Healthy Food Guide magazine.

Keep it simple – there’s no need to have a turkey and a ham. One type of meat or fish with a few flavoursome, interest-ing side dishes will make a simpler, more enjoyable – and less stressful – meal. Enjoy seasonal fruit and vegetables – use them to bulk out desserts, salads and

nibbles platters. Salads with bread and leftover cold meats make ideal lunches or evening meals. Have a small quantity of meat and then fill your plate with veg-etables and salads. Cook your roast vegetables separately from the meat – a light brush with oil or an oil spray is all they need to become crisp and delicious. Garlic and rosemary tossed through before cooking boosts flavour and appeal. Buy lean meats and trim off any fat before cooking and eating. Remove skin from chicken and turkey. Have ice cream OR cream, not both. Sor-bets, Greek yoghurt and frozen yoghurt are good alternatives. Stock up on healthier food items and treats. Shortbread, for example, is laden with fat, while biscotti have very little. Make Christmas mince pies with filo pastry instead of traditional high-fat short-crust, flaky or puff pastry.

Preparation time: Overnight soaking of fruit + 20 minutes. Freezing time: At least 12 hours

A light and delicious alternative to traditional plum pudding.(Recipe from the Appetite for Life Programme)

Healthy Christmas tips

YOU December 2011

Documents

Transcript of YOU December 2011