Skin cancer is the most common cancer in NZ — statistics here — and it’s the most preventable.

Sun screen at this time of year is essential, and remember you can still get sunburn on cloudy days by the uv rays which go through clouds.  When you’re on or near water the problems caused by reflected rays increase the risk of sunburn even more.

When weeding in the garden we wear hats.

A reader sent us this with the comment, “Being election year, will we see a series of photos like this of Michael Scott on the Destination Waikanae facebook page?”

Well, there is a slight difference between being President of Russia and being ward councilor for Waikanae 🙂

This one is for the artistically inclined over Waitangi weekend.  The brochure above is online here, although you will probably need to increase your screen resolution to read the pages.

This beach carnival is being held next month on Sunday, 21 February.  For us it conflicts with the Art Deco Weekend in Napier, but if you’re in Waikanae this should be a good way of spending some time that day.

On the KIN website today there is comment about the closure of the Raumati Post Shop, which has made things very inconvenient for those who live there, to say nothing about how the franchisees were treated by the State Owned Enterprise.

But it has just been announced that Australians are now paying a lot more for postal services than NZers do — and managerial remuneration packages are a lot more bloated.

Today we had afternoon tea with Chris, who lives by the beach and who like us has been involved in book publishing for many years.  Some readers will have a copy of his lavish big history of Waikanae co-authored with Joan Maclean in 1988, of which he published a second edition in 2010 (pictured).  It is still available, but you need to get a copy from Coastlands Paper Plus in Paraparaumu: quite strangely, The Bookshelf in Waikanae isn’t interested in stocking it.

Like NZ book publishers generally, Chris has seen the steady decline of book sales as a result of competition for people’s attention from small screens; particularly the laptop, tablet computer and now the pocket devices which are part of nearly everyone’s daily lives.

On Waikanae now, he sees Mahara Place and the present State Highway 1 shops becoming moribund when the Expressway opens — the history of Waikanae has been for commerce to be based around the main mode of transport — first the beach, then the railway and then the Highway.  When the State Highway moves west, so will the hub of economic activity.  Kapiti lost the opportunity for SH1 to stay where it is because of the two-year dithering over the Western Link Road plan by former Mayor Rowan.  The central government moved in and usurped it.

He agrees with the need for an underpass beneath the railway line for those who live east of it as an infrastructure priority.

He sees new housing subdivisions, particularly those planned near the beach, and more, as inevitable, regardless of the concerns people have about their impact.

one of our photos

photo of Mik on his website

The Waikanae Estuary Scientific Reserve is home to over 66 species of birds (at some time during the year), many of these can be seen in their natural and native habitats during a bird tour with Mik Peryer

Mik offers his services as a Tour Guide around the Estuary; and he also presents very interesting and informative talks about the Waikanae Estuary Birdlife for a range of audiences.

www.kapitibirdtours.co.nz

To listen to an Access Radio recording (4 minutes 40 seconds)  from last October, click here

It is the icon of the Kapiti Coast, visible from all parts of the shore, so why not visit it?  The island has long been established as a conservationists paradise with lots of native birds.

One commercial operator is Kapiti Explorer, their website with info

We mentioned this in a post last April — and it looks as bad or even worse now.

It is KiwiRail property and they have shown no interest in cleaning it themselves.  So why doesn’t the Waikanae Community Board offer to arrange a contractor to steam-clean it?  It would only take an hour or two and there are plenty of times when there are no trains because of track maintenance. The  cost is unlikely to be more than $200.

We noticed this book recommendation on the Kapiti Independent News website so got a copy — and agree with their recommendation.

Despite the crafted appearance, it is not a book for young children, rather a satire for adults of ‘artworks’ that galleries are prone to exhibiting which leave most viewers perplexed, bemused and annoyed.

Some will remember in 2009 an ‘artwork’ which consisted of the binned wrappings of other entries tipped on the floor — and not even by the so-called artist — was the winner of Waikato Museum’s national contemporary art award, worth $15,000.