This edition of puff, number 501, features an excerpt from the recently published Isis, the dancing tramp by Benjamin Drum, a video interview with Peter Cleave about his ten volume collection with a review by Paul Moon and Cream Puffs in Venice
Excerpt from Isis, the dancing tramp by Benjamin Drum published by puff books
1 Strange Punters
In Belfast a bear danced. His trainer played the accordion. The Ringmaster watched. The circus was coming to town.
On the Isis strange punters on the river stand out, especially to Esme and Bella the adolescents, curious as.
Esme and Bella are not watching a person on a punt though. They are looking at a man standing just off the path. He, in turn, is watching Edmond, the tramp. They climb trees so they can see the whole scene, the tramp, his observer and the breadth of the river from a distance.
The man watching the tramp does not seem to be hiding from anyone. He is simply watching Edmond and taking notes. At one stage Bella thought she saw him take a photograph of the tramp. He is a tall thin man of sallow complexion.
Edmond the tramp is still doing his dance. It is a kind of a shuffle which can take several forms. Sometimes he moves stiff limbed, sometimes jumping from side to side.
He is more, at least apparently, introspective than before. Staring at water for long periods. Occasionally sitting in College Park with his chin in his hands. He is like a man not knowing what to think about.
This is a dark tramp, trying to go back to find a lost place, a place now beyond his mind. He has lost a little weight, impossible as that might seem to those who knew him before. He seems gaunt, preoccupied and a little morbid.
A runner came down the path diverting them momentarily. He seemed to be talking to himself in a low voice, almost whispering. Something about Rome.
Paul the runner is thirty five. He is a Junior Fellow in Ancient History. He knows about Persia.
He rehearses his lectures and articles as he runs. He is constantly muttering about things like the fall of this empire or that while he runs. Paul runs in a world of his own.
He lives with his father. They play chess together at night. They are reclusive and make a habit of not talking to the neigbours. Paul mutters about Alexander at the incline before the boatshed.
As Paul runs around a bend Bella wished she had her mum's binoculars so that she could see the man watching the tramp in more detail. He is wearing a gray jacket. She can't tell what colour his eyes are but thinks they are blue.
Esme and Bella were very quiet and he did not seem to notice them. Hard to tell though. The man has a air of capability about him, not prepossessing but quite impressive just the same.
As they watch an angler with a jacket and a hamper with lots of fishing things in them casts a line. He is about fifty and has an impassive face. Esme thinks his face is like something carved into rock, deeply lined and always saying the same thing.
Esme and Bella run to the boathouse to tell Simon about the man they have seen watching the tramp. He and Sam are having a late breakfast. Simon gets a jacket and goes out with Bella and Esme.
In the meantime the watcher has begun to move away. Keeping his distance Simon follows this person to the Linton Lodge. He notices that the man is dressed for a surveillance task with warm clothes and comfortable shoes.
Once the man is inside the Lodge Simon asks the porter who he knows to keep him informed. He then hurries home and updates Sam. For years they have wondered who the tramp is and why he lives rough on the banks of the Isis. To see his privacy invaded though is something that gets to them both.
The porter calls Simon on his cellphone when the man is to leave. Simon jumps on his bike and races up the track. The porter holds up Walter Bradbury for this is the name listed for the man on the room docket, from leaving for a few minutes by saying that the staff need to check the room.
Simon arrives breathless. the porter flicks his chin in the direction of Walter's retreating back. Simon appears to fiddle with his bike at the side of Linton Road and copies down the registration plates of the man's car as it passes.
In Belfast the ringmaster tends to his animals. They are quiet in the rain. After feeding time he practices with his whips. This means pacing and taking stances as he uses the whip. He strolls casually and out of nowhere comes a loud crack of the long whip.
The ringmaster stands five ten in his socks. He likes tights and has to wear them as part of his job. Socks, leotards or whatever he is always well balanced and ready to spring.
He has dark hair and a swarthy complexion. He has clean even teeth without gold fillings. The ringmaster is conscious of the effect that he has on people which is to grab their attention and to make them watch and listen.
The ringmaster is a horseman. He has worked with horses since he was a small boy. He can ride any kind of horse and do tricks.
The ringmaster is forty years of age. He could pass for someone in his early thirties though. He has a very flat stomach.
It is now late in the evening and the circus is as quiet as it gets.
The bear dances or rather shuffles. The accordion is played gently.
Ten volumes, a collection
Ten Volumes, a Collection
by Peter Cleave
ISBN 978-1-877229-31-2
Content
1 Papers of Contest, Third Edition, Peter Cleave
ISBN 978-1-877229-28-2
2 Papers to Conference, Third Edition A collection of mostly old but some new work, Peter Cleave ISBN 978-1-877229-17-6
3 Papers on Social Work, Second Edition, Peter Cleave ISBN 978-1-877229-21-3
4 From the Depot-Takirua, Second Edition, Peter Cleave
ISBN 978-1-877229-29-9
5 Papers on Language, Peter Cleave
ISBN 978-1-877229-19-0
6 What do we know about the mark on the wall? Images, rules and prior knowledge, Peter Cleave
ISBN 978-1-877229-26-8
7 Culture in the work place, A book of group exercises, Peter Cleave
ISBN 978-1-877229-25-1
8 Rangahau pae iti kahurangi, Research in a small world of light and shade, Second Edition, Peter Cleave ISBN 978-1-877229-23-7
9 Iwi Station, a discussion of print, radio and television in Aotearoa/New Zealand, Peter Cleave
ISBN 978-1-877229-27-5
10 Maori Unpacked, Peter Cleave
ISBN 978-1-877229-30-5
Reviews include;
In the past ten years, Peter Cleave, in conjunction with Campus Press, has been at the forefront of research into a range of topics relating to Maori in the modern world. This, in itself, may not be remarkable, but what makes Cleave’s works stand out are three things: the breadth of disciplines he draws on for his analyses; the range of subjects he explores; and his persistence in ensuring that the material he publishes is relevant to a wide spectrum of readers. At a time when much academic research is dominated either by drilling into obtuse areas, or by studying topics for which funding is provided, the latest collection of Cleave’s works to be issued by Campus Press provide a fresh and engaging perspective on issues affecting Maori.
This corpus of works covers topics as diverse as social work, Maori media, language, culture in the workplace, as well as Cleave’s groundbreaking work – now in a revised edition – ‘Rangahau pae iti kahurangi: Research in a small world of light and shade’. This wide-angle approach allows the reader to build up an impression of some of the thinking that either applies or ought to apply to current developments in these fields.
Professor Paul Moon
Te Ara Poutama
AUT
March 2008
Cream Puffs in Venice The Thrill of the Tuile
Posted: 29 Jan 2009 02:01 AM CST
How many ways can you pronounce the word “tuile”? As it turns out, many ways. Fortunately, the pronunciation is about all I struggled with when it comes to the January 2009 Daring Bakers‘ challenge.
This month’s challenge is hosted by two long-standing members: Karen of Bake My Day! and Zorra of 1x umruehren bitte aka Kochtopf. The various recipes for tuiles that they chose come from Michel Roux and from The Chocolate Book by Angélique Schmeink.
Apparently, the word tuiles means tile in French and the cookies are named tuiles because after they’re shaped, they resemble a type of tile used in France.
I’d never made tuiles before but I have always found myself enchanted by both the shape of the cookie and the apparent lightness of the cookie. Karen and Zorra offered two sweet variations: one that makes a smooth cookie and one that makes a lacy cookie. They also provided a savoury variation.
I chose to make the sweet variation only and I flavoured mine with vanilla and lemon. The second part of the challenge was to shape the tuiles and combine them with something light and airy.
As I pulled my tuiles out of the oven, I rolled them around a spoon handle and then made a filling of whipped cream and dulce de leche. Some of my tuiles were a bit thick so as I rolled them, they cracked slightly. But once filled and stacked on a pretty plate, you couldn’t really notice any of the cracks.
These were delicious. I have to admit that I enjoyed them by sucking out the filling first and then munching the remaining tuile.
Thanks so much to Zorra and Karen for starting 2009 in such a light and pretty way!
Ciao!
To see a copy of the challenge recipes, please read Karen’s post and Zorra’s post.
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Puff 500 Hi all. In puff 500 there is a reviw by Peter Wheeler of a book about the Palmerston North City Council. There is an NZRL update which is great for all the new things that are happening. There is a review of a book on Rosa Luxembourg. There is an update on Goodnight Blue which is now being watched in Germany. There is an update on the Isis series by Benjamin Drum and published by puff books. And there is the January Update for Campus Press Finally there is a recent Cream Puff.
Wheeler’s Corner
Connecting Citizens Who Care
"Broadcast every Thursday at 11.45am on Access Manawatu 999AM"
Contact Peter at wheeler@inspire.net.nz or peter.wheeler@pncc.govt.nz
Wheeler’s Corner can now be read on www.accessmanawatu.co.nz Click on ‘shows’, then ‘current affairs. Lastly click on ‘more’ [Picture courtesy of Manawatu Standard.]
03 29th January 2009
This Week: 1. The Cobweb [A torpid of neglect] book review. 2. Clayton’s Sacrifice maybe:
1. Just before receiving the sad news of Marilyn Brown passing a dear friend had lent me a small book about a past PNCC councillor, Joyce Dunmore. Joyce is still living and is now almost ninety years of age. I checked on the PNCC Library web site and the book is available. I also contacted Joyce to seek her consent to review her book. That consent was given.
Book Review: The Cobweb [A torpid neglect] a small book [187 pages] published in 1992 by the Heritage Press in Waikanae just down the road south of Palmerston North. A PNCC councillor who existed through a period where sexist behaviour was extremely common amongst those elected to govern the city wrote it. Her open and honest exposure of the norms of her first and later terms in council have led directly to changes that have for the most part led to the partial disappearance of council being nothing more than an old boys drinking club. Some of the personalities of that period are still around today. One is a present elected representative of the Hokowhitu Ward. I’ll leave you the reader to discover the councillors’ identity.
Those of you who can remember back to the seventies may remember a hit tune by Helen Reddy titled ‘I Am Woman’, well that’s exactly who the author is…a woman…named ‘Joyce M. Dunmore. She is a fitting and worthy representative of that world wide popular hit.
Joyce’s opening quote is from George Bernard Shaw, ‘The greatest of evils and the worst of crimes is poverty’. Joyce’s inclusion of the powerful word ‘torpid’ in the sub-title is most suitable for it means, inactive, sluggish and indolent. For the book describes clearly neglect by inaction.
This need to improve the lot of those who were living in poverty became her main task. In particular the task of getting council to spend money improving and growing council housing. The council of that time had no ‘Housing Committee’ and was light years behind other councils in assisting those who found themselves forced into living in hovels. The connections between councillors’ key council staff and property owners or developers make for a mixture of strange and mystifying rule developments and a clear lack of implementation.
Joyce was different…she talked to the citizens, not down to them, but with them. In this book Joyce describes the unbelievable and undemocratic behaviour at council meetings. Being the only woman in council and ignored by all but one councillor [Dr Brian Booth] who being a city doctor had a great and active interest regarding people their health and welfare. Even today he attends council meetings offering sound advice but for the most part his efforts go without reward.
Reading this short but powerful book written in dialogue style which makes for easy reading sweeps away official versions of the times. It uses language that proves the sincerity and connection of the author with those she so powerfully represented. The poor, the voiceless and the poorly housed. Some of the major issues of that period [1968 – 1976] still exist today, the second bridge site, airport extensions to name but a couple. I will leave you to discover just what Joyce had to put up with but from my perspective her book has given me great encouragement to model myself on a councillor such as Joyce Dunmore. Thank you Joyce… Past behaviour and lessons learned can assist in future behaviour if one converts experience in to practice. If we fail to do so we simply repeat the same mistakes. and one last comment…
Helen Reddy also had a couple of other hits that could equally describe Joyce as a councillor. ‘You and me against the world’ [Joyce and Brian Booth]. Lastly ‘That’s no way to treat a lady’…I strongly recommend that you order the book through our wonderful library…oh and the library may well have a CD of Helen Reddy which you can borrow, listen to the CD and read the book…you will be moved.
2. Some weeks ago I wrote that the Higher Salaries Remuneration Authority be dumped. Well it would now appear that others agree. Firstly Bernadette Courtney the new editor of the Manawatu Standard who wrote, and I quote. "…The reality is that he [The PM] can't force the independent authority, which determines pay rises for MP’s, the judiciary and specified statutory officers and members of local authorities and community boards, to listen. Perhaps he should just get rid of them [Remuneration Authorities] altogether". The Editor pointed out that "Mr. Key is a self made millionaire who probably wouldn't notice if his pay packet was lighter one week - after all he earns $393,000 a year". So true and it is estimated by some that our PM has some tens of millions tucked away for a rainy day… Well it seems that the PM has got the message and is recommending that increases for MP’s be put on hold. Funny, is it not, that leaders around the world are now suggesting restraint after the new President of the US has stopped all increases for his higher level staff. The big difference between the US president and our PM is that he [the President] pointed out that this does not apply to those on low fixed incomes or benefits. I think our very wealthy PM has simply jumped on to the bandwagon without any real intent. We should never forget that our new PM made his nest egg by shifting money around and taking a cut of the profits of doing so. In the old days it was called ‘usury’ whereas today its called financial wizardry and those that use it called hero’s that was up until a year ago when they all collapsed in a big heap including the company the PM worked for. The MS Editor also wrote and I quote, "How the MP’s and judges ever got their inflated pay rises in the first place is what we should be asking. It was hardly new news before Christmas that we were heading into even tougher economic times". Hear-hear Bernadette! That of course is the major question that remains unanswered and will most likely remain unanswered if politicians both large and small follow their usual pattern. Bernadette wrote the following last sentence "Disbanding the authority will result in a deafening round of applause from the ordinary Kiwi". And I for one absolutely agree…and will be cheering wildly…
3. Last week my god comments copped some flank from a couple of readers. I respect their views but where we differ is that I believe murder is murder no matter who commits it. Be it Israel or Hamas, be it by the military, officially authorised by Israeli government degree or Hamas via rockets. Each death simply sets further in concrete the hate required to continue the murder of more and more innocent human beings.
3. My God is deeply saddened by the behaviour of the Israeli military-government and Hamas. But she is heartened by the election of the President of the United States and she hopes, as does a large chunk of the world, that action will match rhetoric…she said to me that there are signs that change is possible.
Looking at the local front she [my God that is], was amused by Mighty River Powers’ full page advertisement. The one saying what a caring company they are…but she told me to keep a close eye on them, after all she pointed out, they paid for that ad with the local citizens hard earned money. I promised I would do so…in fact I hope we all will.
Peter J Wheeler
Wheeler@inspire.net.nz
P Please consider the environment before printing this email
I would like to thank those who have donated to Wheeler’s Corner, while I don’t know whom you are your assistance is humbly accepted and highly valued. Thank you. If any one else would like to donate the address is Wheeler’s Corner Access Manawatu PO Box 4666 Palmerston North.
CAUTION: This message and any accompanying data is intended to be received only by the individual or entity identified and may contain information that is privileged, confidential and subject to copyright… If you are not the intended recipient you are notified that all content is to be treated as confidential unless otherwise specified, and is not to be used, copied or forwarded to third parties without the prior permission of the author. If you have received this e-mail message in error please delete it and notify me. Thank you.TO: NZRL Staff, Districts and Affiliates and Board FROM: Cushla Dawson DATE: 27 January 2009 RE: Media Summary Tuesday 20 January to Tuesday 27 January 2009 New Kiwis squad to be NRL-based: England-based Kiwi World Cup heroes Thomas Leuluai and Greg Eastwood are set to be overlooked for selection ahead of this year's Anzac test, super coach Stephen Kearney has revealed. Leuluai and Eastwood, who both ply their trade in the Super League, were part of the Kiwis squad that surprisingly trounced the Kangaroos to win last year's World Cup against all odds. Kiwis role left up to Bennett: Wayne Bennett is not being given a deadline to make up his mind about continuing as assistant coach of the Kiwis - and he is unlikely to attend next weekend's celebration gathering in Auckland of the entire World Cup-winning squad and staff. Hugh month of events coming up in Auckland: It's all on in February There's a huge month of events coming up in Auckland. The month kicks off with the world's best sailing crews, including our own Emirates Team New Zealand, taking to the Waitemata Harbour for the Louis Vuitton Pacific Series. There are plenty of great viewing spots along the bays, North Head and Bastion Point for people to catch the six daily races between Rangitoto Island and the city foreshore. Head to the Viaduct Harbour to farewell and welcome the boats each day, grab some autographs from the sailors and enjoy daily on-shore activities and entertainment. On Monday, 2 February there will be a special bonus in the race village, with the World Cup-winning New Zealand rugby league team signing autographs for fans, so head down and congratulate the new world champions. Kiwi shirt aim: JEREMY Smith insists that he is ‘hugely determined’ to shine for Salford and regain his place in the Test team of world champions New Zealand. The 27-year-old half back has joined the Reds on a twoyear deal from NRL club South Sydney. And he hopes that his Super League performances for Salford will make New Zealand coach Stephen Kearney sit up and take notice. Kiwis coming home to celebrate World Cup triumph: The Pirtek Kiwis will be back together for the first time since winning the Rugby League World Cup when they assemble in Auckland in two weeks for a two-day public celebration of their historic feat. New Zealand Rugby League chairman Ray Haffenden today confirmed the players, coaching staff and management will be reunited – and back in possession of the impressive World Cup trophy – to relive their 34-20 win over the Kangaroos at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane on November 22. World Cup referee Ashley Klein is poised to join the ranks of the NRL: Referee Ashley Klein, whose handling of the World Cup final so incensed Ricky Stuart he later resigned as the Kangaroos' coach, is heading home to his native Australia. Klein, 29, has quit his position as an official with England's Rugby Football League to rejoin his wife and two children in Australia where he is now set to referee National Rugby League matches. NZRL and civic ceremonies to honour Kiwis: The Kiwis World Cup win will be honoured at an NZRL awards ceremony and a civic ceremony in Auckland's Viaduct Harbour. New Zealand Rugby League chairman Ray Haffenden has delighted the World Cup winning Kiwis side can finally celebrate their win with the New Zealand public. Kiwis to finally be honoured: New Zealand Rugby League has finally confirmed a chance for the public to celebrate the Kiwis' World Cup win. The World Cup squad minus UK based players Thomas Leuluai and Greg Eastwood will spend two days in Auckland starting Sunday February 1st. The two days include the 2008 NZRL Awards as well as a civic reception at the Viaduct Harbour. Kiwis heroes gather in Auckland: The Sunday News-sponsored world cup-winning Kiwis have missed out on a ticker-tape parade. They will still officially celebrate their success in Auckland in a fortnight. For the first time since their amazing world cup win over the Kangaroos on November 22, most of the Kiwis squad will gather in Auckland. Greg Eastwood and Thomas Leuluai, who are both based in the UK, are the only players who won't be in Auckland. New Kiwis squad to be NRL-based England-based Kiwi World Cup heroes Thomas Leuluai and Greg Eastwood are set to be overlooked for selection ahead of this year's Anzac test, super coach Stephen Kearney has revealed. Leuluai and Eastwood, who both ply their trade in the Super League, were part of the Kiwis squad that surprisingly trounced the Kangaroos to win last year's World Cup against all odds. The Kiwis are scheduled to meet the Australians for the first time since the historic win on May 8 in Brisbane but Kearney yesterday hinted Kiwis on the other side of the world would probably miss out on selection. In the build-up to last year's Centenary test, the Kiwis found themselves caught in a tug-of-war with Super League clubs Leeds and Wigan for star fullback Brent Webb, who missed the World Cup with injury, and Leuluai. Both players were eventually released but their lack of preparation was highlighted by poor showings on the paddock. "I'll be sitting down with the rest of the staff in a couple of weeks and whether to pick Super League players for the Anzac test will certainly be something we discuss," Kearney told Sunday News yesterday. "We need to decide whether bringing Super League players back for a one-off test will be the best thing for the team. "The obvious example is the situation involving Thomas Leuluai last year. "He wasn't able to train with the side until two days before the test." Kearney, his management team and the World Cup-winning Kiwis bar Leuluai and Eastwood will meet in Auckland next week to reflect on last year's success. But while celebrations are on the cards, Kearney is also keen to press ahead with plans for the Anzac test. "This is a great chance for us to celebrate our achievement last year but it's also an opportunity for us to start planning for what is ahead of us this year," he said. "We think it's important for us to acknowledge the support we've had. "We will certainly be discussing some plans in relation to the Anzac test this year. "With regards to the Kiwis squad this year, it's always been my belief to pick the best possible side based on form. "I must say, there are no guarantees for any of the blokes who got picked for the world cup being in that squad. The boys recognise that form will be the deciding factor." One factor that is out of Kearney's control is whether legendary Aussie Wayne Bennett, who acted as an adviser to the Kiwis last year, will stay on board in 2009. Bennett has just taken control of the Dragons and Kearney says he's yet to discuss with the former Broncos boss whether he will remain involved with the Kiwis. "I'll be touching base with Wayne," Kearney said. "My position on that is that whatever's good for the team is what I want." (Source: Aaron Lawton, Sunday News, 25 January 2009) Kiwis role left up to Bennett Wayne Bennett is not being given a deadline to make up his mind about continuing as assistant coach of the Kiwis - and he is unlikely to attend next weekend's celebration gathering in Auckland of the entire World Cupwinning squad and staff. NZRL chairman Ray Haffenden is taking a softly-softly approach and hasn't spoken to Bennett since the night of November 22 when the Kiwis stunned the league world and won the World Cup. He left a message on Bennett's answer phone to wish him a merry Christmas. Haffenden is also not planning on discussing the matter with Bennett should he attend next weekend. It will be the first time the Kiwis will have assembled since their famous 34-20 win over Australia and two public celebrations are scheduled. "We will talk to Wayne when the time is right," Haffenden said. "We have been giving him time and space to get bedded in with the Dragons. "We don't feel there is too much urgency. Wayne will make his own mind up. You can hang as many carrots out in front of Wayne but if he is of a mind not to do something, then he's not going to do it." Bennett, who has taken over as Dragons coach this season after 21 years with the Broncos, turned down the Roosters in the final stages of negotiations. Haffenden said he would contact Bennett soon and that the subject would be a major discussion point at the next NZRL board meeting on February 12. There would be no deadline for the former Queensland and Kangaroos coach to make a decision. The Kiwis' next match is the annual Anzac test on May 8, which is likely to be in Brisbane. Kiwis manager and former Kiwis captain Dean Bell has said Warriors under-20 coach Tony Iro would be an ideal replacement if Bennett walked away from the Kiwis. Haffenden said no thought had been given to an alternative. "I'm totally confident in my own mind that Wayne would be interested [in continuing] but circumstances change," Haffenden said. Head coach Stephen Kearney said he didn't expect Bennett to attend next weekend's celebration because of his commitments with the Dragons but that he is keen for Bennett to continue. "I can't see any negatives to having Wayne continue," he said. "I would love to have him on board and I'm sure everyone involved would... but I understand he has a huge commitment in trying to establish himself at a new club." Kearney will take advantage of next weekend's gathering to re-emphasise to his players that no one is guaranteed a spot for the Anzac test. "We have scaled the Everest in winning the World Cup," he said. "It's now a matter of making sure there's no complacency involved in our game from administrators to players. "I will be picking the Anzac test team on who I think will do the best job for New Zealand and that will be based on eight rounds of footy. There will be no room for anyone who thinks their spot is guaranteed because of the World Cup." (Source: Michael Brown, Herald on Sunday, 25 January 2009) Hugh month of events coming up in Auckland It's all on in February There's a huge month of events coming up in Auckland. The month kicks off with the world's best sailing crews, including our own Emirates Team New Zealand, taking to the Waitemata Harbour for the Louis Vuitton Pacific Series. There are plenty of great viewing spots along the bays, North Head and Bastion Point for people to catch the six daily races between Rangitoto Island and the city foreshore. Head to the Viaduct Harbour to farewell and welcome the boats each day, grab some autographs from the sailors and enjoy daily on-shore activities and entertainment. On Monday, 2 February there will be a special bonus in the race village, with the World Cup-winning New Zealand rugby league team signing autographs for fans, so head down and congratulate the new world champions. Spend Waitangi Day at the beach with Waitangi Day Festival '09 (Okahu Bay, Friday, 6 February) - a free family event rich in tradition, culture, food, art and live entertainment including House of Shem, Opensouls, Tahuna Breaks, Herbs and Sons of Zion. Wild Bean Cafe ZooMusic will keep the animals awake with four great concerts beginning on 7 February - and the Auckland Lantern Festival will light up Albert Park over the same long weekend, from 6 to 9 February. One of Auckland's favourite and most widely attended cultural celebrations, the free festival captures the spirit of Chinese New Year celebrations with lanterns of all shapes and sizes, traditional and contemporary entertainment, and speciality food and craft stalls. For something a little different, head to Waiheke Island until 15 February for headland Sculpture on the Gulf. See more than 20 art works in the sea, and on the cliff-edge and headlands along the two-kilometre Matiatia to Church Bay walkway. Family favourite, the SKYCITY Starlight Symphony will provide a fantastic evening's entertainment at Auckland Domain on Saturday, 21 February. This year's feature headliner is New Zealand's own singer/songwriter Brooke Fraser - and the evening concludes with a fireworks and laser show. The council's Music in Parks series of free concerts continues, with weekly jazz at the Auckland Domain band rotunda, three huge Telecom Summer Sounds concerts at Nixon Park, Blockhouse Bay Beach Reserve and Waiheke Island, and a host of niche musical genres is some of our city's most spectacular open spaces. The free Movies in Parks programme also begins in February, with three great mid-week flicks at Mt Eden's Tahaki Reserve. Bike enthusiasts can take part in the free Go by Bike Breakfast at the Viaduct on 18 February - and the kids get their turn on the 19th with the Kids' Bike Ride at Western Springs Park. The BMW Auckland Regatta from 20 February features 15 sailing divisions over three days, racing at two of Auckland's popular eastern beaches. The last day of the month is a big one for jazz lovers, with the Mission Bay Jazz and Blues Streetfest beachside at Selwyn Reserve - and Telecom Derby Day, which marks the start of Auckland Cup Week, which glamorously continues into March. All of these great events are provided or sponsored by Auckland City Council. One thing's for sure - it's all on in Auckland this summer. Visit www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/events for more information about all of the events mentioned above. (Source: Auckland City Council, 23 January 2009) Kiwi shirt aim JEREMY Smith insists that he is ‘hugely determined’ to shine for Salford and regain his place in the Test team of world champions New Zealand. The 27-year-old half back has joined the Reds on a two-year deal from NRL club South Sydney. And he hopes that his Super League performances for Salford will make New Zealand coach Stephen Kearney sit up and take notice. Smith, who has impressed in Salford’s pre-season friendly fixtures with Leeds and Leigh, said: "Playing for my country is the thing that I’ve always wanted to do. I have played five games for New Zealand so far and it was a huge honour to play in those games. "It was great to see New Zealand get one over the Aussies and win the World Cup recently. But it was frustrating not being involved. I would love to get back into the Kiwi team and I certainly feel as though I can do that while playing for Salford. "Being part of a winning team that is moving forward would certainly help my chances. And, with the signings that Salford have made and from what I have seen in pre-season training so far, I am confident that 2009 is going to be a great year for Salford. "My main priority is playing good football for Salford. If I can do that then I’m sure everything else will fall into place." Smith is expected to be Salford’s first choice half back in 2009 with Kiwi legend Robbie Paul set to share the hooking role with skipper Malc Alker. Young guns Richard Myler, Stefan Ratchford and Lewis Palfrey are Salford’s other half back options. And Smith has vowed to do everything that he can to help the club get the best out of those talented youngsters. Smith, who chose moving to Salford over offers from ‘a few NRL clubs’, said: "There is clearly a lot of young talent here at half back. A lot of people have told me that Richard Myler is a star of the future and I have been impressed with all three of them in training. "They don’t have much experience behind them and if I can help them to develop their games that would be great. I would love to do that. "But there are lots of other players here that will help with the development of the young players, not least Malc Alker and Robbie Paul. "Malc is the best leader that I’ve ever worked with and Robbie was a real hero of mine when I was growing up. "There is a good blend of youth and experience at the club but it is important that we get off to a good start to the season and build from there. "The two main things that you need to work on when you are a team coming up from a lower division is your consistency and your defence. We are doing that in training and the players are all really excited about the new season. "Moving to Super League is a great chance for my teammates and I to see where we are at as players." So what can Salford’s fans expect from Smith, who has been playing rugby since the age of four, in the forthcoming campaign? "All I can say is that every time I run out on to the pitch I always give it everything I’ve got," Smith said. "I’m very competitive and I don’t like to lose. "I’m always fired up and ready to go whenever it’s time to take to the field. I always want to win. "If I’m honest, I’m just as competitive when I’m bowling or playing tennis. This is a tremendous challenge for me at Salford. I’m so keen to help the club and do well." That will be music to the ears of Salford’s supporters. (Source: Salford Advertiser, 22 January 2009) Kiwis coming home to celebrate World Cup triumph The Pirtek Kiwis will be back together for the first time since winning the Rugby League World Cup when they assemble in Auckland in two weeks for a two-day public celebration of their historic feat. New Zealand Rugby League chairman Ray Haffenden today confirmed the players, coaching staff and management will be reunited – and back in possession of the impressive World Cup trophy – to relive their 34- 20 win over the Kangaroos at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane on November 22. He said two public events formed the basis of the team’s programme. The first will be the launch of the NZRL’s Kids 2 Kiwis initiative at Henham Park in Otahuhu on Sunday, February 1. The Pirtek Kiwis will be heavily involved in this event, which will be televised live by Prime TV. The following day (Monday, February 2), the world champions will be feted by Auckland Mayor John Banks at a lunchtime civic reception at the Viaduct Harbour. Also staged on February 1 will be the 2008 NZRL Awards – televised by Sky Sport – with the Pirtek Kiwis all in attendance. “This has been a huge undertaking for us bringing the team back together, one that couldn’t have been achieved without the help of a lot of people,” said Haffenden. “We informed the NRL clubs concerned of our plans before Christmas and we’re very thankful for their support. It’s brilliant to have Prime TV and Sky Sport involved as well. “Everything has only just come together this week but now, with the launch of Kids 2 Kiwis and the civic reception at the Viaduct Harbour, the public will have the chance to celebrate the greatest success in New Zealand rugby league history. “It’s also a chance for the players to thank the public for their support in helping them reach our game’s pinnacle. “It’s not just about one World Cup win either. Also involved will be the Kiwi Ferns, who won the women’s Rugby League World Cup for the third straight time the same night the Pirtek Kiwis qualified for their final. “There is so much to enjoy about what has been achieved and we invite the fans to turn out in big numbers to honour these teams. These are exciting times for all of us.” The accolades have continued to roll in for the Pirtek Kiwis following New Zealand’s first World Cup win since the competition began in 1954. They’ve been voted one of the four finalists for the Team of the Year at the Halberg Awards and Kearney is also one of the four finalists in the Coach of the Year category. The winners will be announced at the annual Halberg Awards dinner in Auckland on February 3 with a strong contingent of players plus Kearney set to attend. Kearney was thrilled the victorious squad would be back to together in two weeks and able to mix with the fans. “Now we will have the chance to thank the public and to all enjoy the World Cup success again,” he said. “It’s ideal that today’s players, these world champions, can be involved in the launch of Kids 2 Kiwis, which is so vital to the sport’s future in New Zealand. It’s also humbling to know we’ll be given a civic reception. “At the same time, this weekend will be a good opportunity for us to put some plans in place for 2009 with the NRL season just a few weeks away. “In May we’re back in Brisbane for the Anzac Test against Australia and there’s also the Four Nations tournament in the northern hemisphere at the end of the season. “It’s important that we back up the World Cup win.” Kids 2 Kiwis has been hatched in a bid to increase registrations in the critical 6-12 year old age bracket. The Pirtek Kiwis and the Kiwi Ferns will both be involved in activity stations as they help to run coaching clinics for both selected club players and the general public at the launch (due to start at 10.00am). The players will also mingle with the crowd signing autographs and having photos taken while the public will also be able to have photos taken with the World Cup trophy. Later there will be exhibition games before the players break away to get dressed in their formal gear for the NZRL Awards show which will be staged in the Otahuhu Rugby League Club’s clubrooms. The audience of about 300 people will include the Pirtek Kiwis, the Kiwi Ferns, NZRL directors and officials plus sponsors. After the awards event, the players will rejoin the public on the field at Henham Park. “This is all about enjoying the success and trying to use it to give the game a much stronger base at grass roots level,” said Haffenden. “We need more kids playing rugby league in the 6-12 range.” To that end he said the Rugby League World Cup will go on tour to key areas in the country as a focal point of the Kids 2 Kiwis drive. “To encourage increased participation we will provide incentives for the kids to register in the mini and mod football grades in 2009,” he said. This will include free posters, Kids 2 Kiwis wrist bands, Kiwi tattoos and promotional mail-outs for those registered in the League Net database (like the Captain Cayless Christmas postcards which were sent out to thousands of registered young players around the country late last year). “During the February/March registration period, we’ll be sending the Rugby League World Cup trophy on tour to spend time in each district that has mini-mod football,” said Haffenden. The Pirtek Kiwis will attend another dinner with NZRL directors, staff and sponsors on Sunday night. Monday’s civic reception, due to start at noon, will be held in the area of the Viaduct Harbour (at the end of Halsey Street) which will be the public focal point for the Louis Vuitton Pacific yacht racing series starting in Auckland at the end of the month. (Source: League Unlimited, 21 January 2009) World Cup referee Ashley Klein is poised to join the ranks of the NRL Referee Ashley Klein, whose handling of the World Cup final so incensed Ricky Stuart he later resigned as the Kangaroos' coach, is heading home to his native Australia. Klein, 29, has quit his position as an official with England's Rugby Football League to rejoin his wife and two children in Australia where he is now set to referee National Rugby League matches. Hot favourites Australia suffered a shock 34-20 loss to New Zealand in the World Cup final in Brisbane on November 22. The morning afterwards Stuart verbally abused both Klein and RFL referees' chief Stuart Cummings in the foyer of the hotel where they were all staying. An inquiry into the incident found there had been some physical contact between Stuart and Cummings and that the abuse was littered with profanities. Stuart, widely condemned for his outburst, subsequently apologised quit his post in December. Cummings, paying tribute to Klein, said in a statement Tuesday: "Ashley has had a very difficult decision to make but has understandably decided to join his family in Australia. "Therefore, we have decided it is in the best interests of all parties concerned to accept his resignation with immediate affect. "We understand that following the announcement last week that his family wish to stay in Australia that the NRL has subsequently offered him a position in their competition." (Source: www.foxsports.com.au 21 January 2009) NZRL and civic ceremonies to honour Kiwis The Kiwis World Cup win will be honoured at an NZRL awards ceremony and a civic ceremony in Auckland's Viaduct Harbour. New Zealand Rugby League chairman Ray Haffenden has delighted the World Cup winning Kiwis side can finally celebrate their win with the New Zealand public. The team will come together for two days in Auckland at the start of next month. They will attend the NZRL awards ceremony and a civic reception with mayor John Banks at the Viaduct Harbour. Haffenden says he is pleased a plan has finally fallen in to place. He says everything has come together and now they can have the team attend a variety of functions in just two days. UK-based players Thomas Leuluai and Greg Eastwood are the only players unavailable for the celebrations. (Source: Radio Sport, 19 January 2009) Kiwis to finally be honoured New Zealand Rugby League has finally confirmed a chance for the public to celebrate the Kiwis' World Cup win. The World Cup squad minus UK based players Thomas Leuluai and Greg Eastwood will spend two days in Auckland starting Sunday February 1st. The two days include the 2008 NZRL Awards as well as a civic reception at the Viaduct Harbour. Due to the short space in time around Christmas, NZRL Chairman Ray Haffenden says it has only been possible to put a plan in place now. They didn't have support from sponsors and they needed permission from the Australian clubs to release some players. Haffenden says it's also an ideal opportunity for coach Steve Kearney to have the team together ahead of the ANZAC Test. (Source: Newstalk ZB, 19 January 2009) Kiwis heroes gather in Auckland The Sunday News-sponsored world cup-winning Kiwis have missed out on a ticker-tape parade. They will still officially celebrate their success in Auckland in a fortnight. For the first time since their amazing world cup win over the Kangaroos on November 22, most of the Kiwis squad will gather in Auckland. Greg Eastwood and Thomas Leuluai, who are both based in the UK, are the only players who won't be in Auckland. Included in their busy two-day schedule will be the launch of the NZRL's initiative Kids 2 Kiwis and also a lunchtime civic reception with Auckland mayor John Banks at the Viaduct Harbour, where some lucky fans might even be able to share a cup of tea with their favourite player. But pleas from fans to celebrate the cup success with a street parade have gone unanswered and last night NZRL general manager Peter Cordtz admitted there wasn't the money for it. "If we were to have a parade, we would have needed a partner to bankroll the event either a city council or a private sponsor," he told Sunday News. "The cost of putting something like that on it has been suggested would be up to six figures. Logistically, it was going to be very tough to organise the full-blown street parade and at the back-end of last year we tried to get the trophy out doing the rounds. "We've been under immense pressure since the world cup win to give the public an opportunity to acknowledge the team and see the trophy. There were talks of parades and there were any number of city councils falling over themselves to host a parade at the end of last year. "The difficulty for us was that up until now we haven't been able to assemble the squad and management together in one place." Although there will be no parade for Stephen Kearney and his Kiwis, fans at least in Auckland will still have the chance to rub shoulders with their heroes. In two weeks, the men in black will turn out at Henham Park in Otahuhu to help launch the new Kids 2 Kiwis programme, aimed at getting more youngsters involved in the game. "Even prior to the world cup win, one of the things we had identified is that in the last eight years or so there's been a declining number of kids coming into the game at an entry level," Cordtz said. "As you can imagine with a sport like rugby league which is perceived by a lot of people as a gladiatorial blood sport, a lot of people don't want their kids playing the game. "It's something that's been going on for some time now and I don't think many people realise that since the late `80s we've had modified, non-competitive versions of the game for six-year-olds right through to 12-year-olds. "Safety and fun are paramount for players in those younger grades. It's all about teaching them how to play football. We want to support our youngsters with coaches, resources and incentivise kids getting involved in league. The world cup win has given us the opportunity to bring some attention back to our grassroots footy. "Kids 2 Kiwis is the mantra and what we want is for kids to dream and aspire to pull on the black jersey and play for New Zealand." The 2008 NZRL Awards televised by Sky will also take place on February 1. Look out for your chance to win more Kiwis merchandise including footballs signed by the squad in next week's Sunday News. (Source: Aaron Lawton, Sunday News, 18 January 2009)
Some of the fans of BvB Borussia-Dortmund the German soccer team seem to have adopted Goodnight Blue for use when playing a team with blue strip! Goodnight Blue Are you going away? Goodnight Blue I'll say goodbye and I will pray Was there some game that you wanted to play? From 'Goodnight Blue' Composed and performed by Peter Cleave
A song for when Borussia- Dortmund beats a team with blue colours
Full Lyric for Goodnight Blue
Don't stare out your window Don't stare out your door Take care as you wander watch your back Don't stare at the floor
Goodnight Blue Are you going away? Goodnight Blue I'll say goodbye and I will pray Was there some game that you wanted to play?
I have your face across my memory I have your face in my mind Is there peace in the valley? Are they watching from the mountainsides?
Goodnight Blue Are you going away? Goodnight Blue I'll say goodbye and I will pray Was there some game that you wanted to play?
Can you see the distant lightning Can you hear the thunder roll Wash your hands in the river rub your face in the cold, cold wind
Goodnight Blue Are you going away? Goodnight Blue I'll say goodbye and I will pray Was there some game that you wanted to play?
Don't stare out your window Don't stare out your door Take care as you wander watch your back Don't stare at the floor
Goodnight Blue Are you going away? Goodnight Blue I'll say goodbye and I will pray Was there some game that you wanted to play?
Rosa by Jonathon Rabb reviewed by Peter Cleave
Isis Update Isis Update
Two books are out so far in the Isis series in puff books by Benjamin Drum. These are, in order of publication;
1 Isis, the days of the voles In which acrobats are taken from Oxford to Las Vegas. ISBN 978-0-9582939-9-0
2 Isis, the dancing tramp In which the Tramp is kidnapped and his background revealed ISBN 978-0-9582939-1-4
Coming up is; 3 Isis, Giselle plays croquet In which Giselle nearly loses her trust fund and gets to play croquet.
A set of ten books are planned. As imagined at this stage, the remaining seven are;
4 Isis, swimming with the Dons In which the Dons swim naked in the Isis and research contracts are abused.
5 Isis, Julio and the fire In which Julio leaves his private zoo in Bogata and chances the flames of the world outside.
6 Isis, fishing for spies In which there is a mix up over spies and we find out who the angler is.
7 Isis, paths of time In which Rob sketches something that Paul, the runner, finds in the Isis. 8 Isis, Juan runs and falls In which Juan stows away on a freighter and eludes Simon for a while.
9 Isis, dreams and spires In which a librarian finds a rare book and Simon traces the book's original owners to Piraeus.
10 Isis, High Wire at the May Ball In which someone wants to sabotage the May Ball and Simon finds the culprit in the Joiner's Arms.
From Chapter One of Isis, the days of the voles;
They say that if you sit by the river long enough you will see the bodies of your enemies float by. Is that an old Chinese saying? Was it meant to apply to the Isis? In flood with the punts awash and drifting. Or flat with the sculls hissing along. Down at the Joiner's Arms feeling the first cool of night as the sun set on it or just waiting quietly, hoping for a glimpse of a vole, the Isis was always a river to sit by.
Our man Simon Lodge was doing exactly that, staring at the river as though it had something to tell him. Oxford does that to you. North Oxford is otherworldly. The dreaming spires have nothing on what the landscape especially the riverbanks do to you.
Lewis Carrol drew all sorts of pictures on picnics by the river but our man was thinking about a crime. Something that bit rather more than a childrens fantasy, something that was clearly for adults, certainly something without the veil of childhood.
People were missing. There was a ripple of hurt from this that got to a lot of other people. Simon, sat, figuring and wondering as the early evening came slowly to the Isis.
The panther snatched the morsel of meat and gulped it down. It prowled from side to side in its cage.The panther always seemed to be too big for its cage.
In this small private zoo the panther always seemed big anyway.
The man who had thrown the meat, the owner of the zoo, walked up a path and sat by a fountain. His name was Julio. His heart settled down and he began to plan his day. Small birds hopped around on the ground. They were the only free creatures in the area.
He picked up the phone.
It was quiet except for a contented, low purring sound from the panther.
Looking ahead to another great year for Campus Press
January Update
The Second Edition of The Nurturing Shield will be available from the end of January. This book has been much requested over the years since it came out in 2000. All essays in the Second Edition are by Peter Cleave. The new edition includes many of the earlier essays and also work on literacy and broadcasting as well as writing on the 1863 Proclamation of War.
Looking ahead to February,The Changing Field, a Campus Press periodical from the late nineties will be back again with new essays.
Thanks for all of the good feedback on Maori Unpacked, Second Edition one of our strongest sellers in 2008. Thanks also to Lee of the Warehouse Stationery, Palmerston North, for some good work on covers.
A Happy New Year to all customers and everyone involved in libraries, printing and binding and the whole wide world as well from Campus Press!
Terms of Tradel All individual books are NZD 45.00 and the Ten Volume Collection is NZD 400 to Campus Press (plus tax in NZ-GST No 59729608) plus pack and postage. Pease order by email to puffmedia@yahoo.co.nz
or Campus Press,
26 Sycamore Crescent,
Palmerston North,
New Zealand
or telephone 0064 6 3537773
Payment by bank deposit (details supplied on order) or cheque.
Some Titles These may be purchased individually or as a set
Ten Volumes, a Collection
by Peter Cleave
ISBN 978-1-877229-31-2
Content
1 Papers of Contest, Third Edition, Peter Cleave
ISBN 978-1-877229-28-2 2 Papers to Conference, Third Edition A collection of mostly old but some new work, Peter Cleave ISBN 978-1-877229-17-6 3 Papers on Social Work, Second Edition, Peter Cleave ISBN 978-1-877229-21-3 4 From the Depot-Takirua, Second Edition, Peter Cleave
ISBN 978-1-877229-29-9
5 Papers on Language, Peter Cleave
ISBN 978-1-877229-19-0
6 What do we know about the mark on the wall? Images, rules and prior knowledge, Peter Cleave ISBN 978-1-877229-26-8
7 Culture in the work place, A book of group exercises, Peter Cleave
ISBN 978-1-877229-25-1
8 Rangahau pae iti kahurangi, Research in a small world of light and shade, Second Edition, Peter Cleave ISBN 978-1-877229-23-7
9 Iwi Station, a discussion of print, radio and television in Aotearoa/New Zealand , Peter Cleave ISBN 978-1-877229-27-5
10 Maori Unpacked, Second Edition, Peter Cleave
ISBN 978-1-877229-74-9
Books in the Collection;
Papers to Conference
Third Edition
A collection of mostly old but some new work
by Peter Cleave
ISBN
978-1-877229-17-6
Published in 2008
Excerpts from the book and a discussion of the book by the author on video are on;
The present collection starts with a paper on literacy in Aotearoa/New Zealand in the nineteenth century.This is the most recent paper. The collection finishes with a paper on literacy and there are one or two references to this subject throughout without literacy being a major theme.
In fact,the demand for this collection was largely to do with older work and this constitutes the rest of the collection. Some papers are so out of date as to be quaint. Others like the paper on Samoan and Maori may be old but they might have a current application.
One debate that may not be quaint or out of date may be the one discussed in the review of Francis Pound and Wystan Curnow from the early nineties about icons and symbols. We might well ask what happened to this discussion. We might well also ask what the conditions for a talk like this are in 2008.
The essay on the Pa Maori which is really just a review of Best's book may leave questions unanswered in the wider literature.
In the paper entitled Native Voice and in some of the journal work in Aotearoa, especially that found in Illusions in the nineties there is a discussion of new things happening in the arts in Aotearoa.
The discussion of o and a, the so-called case system in Maori is here through demand. It is also a discussion of commentators which is unusual in this area.
By contrast to the the work on literacy and the Pa Maori the social work papers won prizes and were published in international collections. In this sense the collection is a mix of the known and the obscure.
Iwi Station. A discussion of print, radio and television
in Aotearoa/New Zealand
by Peter Cleave
ISBN
978-1-877229-27-5
Published in 2008
Excerpts from the book and a discussion of the book by the author on video are on;
This book is about communication and power from a tribal point of view in Aotearoa/New Zealand and the world at large. The tribe concerned is the iwi as distinct from the hapu, the sub-tribe or the whanau, the extended family.
The iwi is considered in several historical periods. In each there is a consideration of the communications environment of the iwi be that oral, to do with reading or writing or literacy or to do with electronic media including radio, television and the internet.
There are also two, at least, intense periods of change, the 1850s when Maori was displaced by English as the language of the majority and the period from the early 1990s until the present day characterised by the development of iwi radio and Maori television and the advent of the internet.
The discussion of the internet is really a series of questions. Does the internet allow increased specialisation as well as a greater internationalisation? Are Maori better able to identify common ground and communicate over more space and time than ever before? Is it now possible to find new ground? Does the internet offer freedom from the shackles of a small nation state?
All chapters are about the way that tribes manage communication in the context of a mainstream. Choosing the ground for communication is itself important in this context and there are recurrent issues of control and power.
From the Depot-Takirua
Second Edition
by
Peter Cleave
ISBN
978-1-877229-29-9
Published in 2008
Excerpts from the book and a discussion of the book by the author on video are on;
There was something of a moment in the late eighties and early nineties in Wellington theatre and over the years From the Depot Takirua has been there as an attempt to grapple with what happened.
This Second Edition of the book begins with an older essay containing reviews of work done at the Depot Takirua. Some of the original essays have been retained and new work on Peter Jackson and Maori Television has been included.
The moment at the Depot Takirua, if such it was, quickly became overtaken by other things. Matters were complicated and, it must be said, enriched by film. The workshopping of the warrior proceeded to the film Once were Warriors and elsewhere. Peter Jackson happened from the early nineties and there was a shift of attention and resources to film. A connection between the work of Peter Jackson and the kind of work work done at the Depot-Takirua is found in the writing of Harry and Stephen Sinclair.
With the advent of Maori Television it is possible to see people who were involved in theatre in the early nineties moving to film and then to television.
But there was a period in the early nineties at the Depot Theatre when things came together. The question now, nearly twenty years later, is how they might line up again in a comparable blaze of creativity or whatever. It might involve the same people. Stephen Sinclair features in the Depot-Takirua story as a writer just as he does in the Peter Jackson story.
The papers on Suzie Cato and on Maori Television are offered on the grounds that television, especially Maori Television, may be the place where things come together in a creative step like that which was made at the Depot Takirua all those years ago. The paper on the grotesque which features the piano is offered as a route taken, as it were, out of the kind of thing happening at the Depot Takirua in the early nineties but so far at least not taken further. Something similar seems to have happened with the warrior project, if that it might be called. These sit in the corners of our minds now like dead ends or cul de sacs. Will we come back to them and will new media like Maori Television be used to do so?
Culture in the work place. A book of group exercises
by Peter Cleave
ISBN
978-1-877229-25-1
Published in 2008
Excerpts from the book and a discussion of the book by the author on video are on;
How do you work out how to work with other people?
This book is designed to help you do this. The first thing is to consider of culture in your workplace. Then to find better ways of working.
These are the things that matter no matter how removed they might seem from the job at hand. Religion, dress, diet, eye contact and body language. All of these things and more contribute to positive or negative work situations.
This book is not meant to be prescriptive or to tell people what to do in their own workspaces and with their own culture.
The exercises below are offered that they might allow readers to work out their own situations. The idea has been to keep it simple and to allow discussion to happen in a easy fashion.
Papers of Contest
Third Edition
by Peter Cleave
ISBN
978-1-877229-28-2
Published in 2007
Excerpts from the book and a discussion of the book by the author on video are on;
The theme of this collection of papers is contest. There is a challenge in each paper.
The first paper looks at literacy in the nineteenth century in Aotearoa/New Zealand.
In the next paper conventional research is challenged with an idea of indigenous modes of inquiry.
The following paper looks at confrontational theatre and film in the 1990s.
The discussion of Francis Pound and Wystan Curnow considers images, symbols and the art of a place, a country, I suppose.
The review of Martin Blythe's book involves several of the themes so far considered as well as others and tries to describe an exciting analysis.
The consideration of the native, the outlaw and the frontier widens the perspective of the collection.
The rest of the papers in the collection take the idea of contest into different areas.
The discussion of Suzie Cato takes the discussion into mainstream media in Aotearoa/New Zealand.
By contrast the next article looks at work with perhaps more limited but nonetheless highly critical audiences and the construction of or the playing with a notion of the Pakeha-Maori.
The final paper is a consideration of the grotesque. This raises a number of questions that are left hanging and that, perhaps, is what happens in a collection with the theme of contest.
What do we know about the mark on the wall?
Images, rules and prior knowledge
by
Peter Cleave
ISBN
978-1-877229-26-8
Published in 2007
Excerpts from the book and a discussion of the book by the author on video are on;
There is a sense in which the work here is dated referring as it does to work done in TESOL in the early nineties. That literature could be updated. There is a question though as to which direction to take from here and there is also the fact that whatever the argument is attached to it will eventually date. The advantage, I think, of the work referred to is that it is of a very high calibre.
Other applications for the argument might well be found. Work on memory from the early childhood area is one possibility but there are others such as developments in educational theory and practice over the last half century.
It may be though that no one major kind of example emerges. The book as it is or in any revision may just use examples from here and there. The theme may be a matter of constant return, going back again and again to questions of cognition and literacy.
Papers on Social Work Second Edition by Peter Cleave ISBN
978-1-877229-21-3
Published in 2007
Excerpts from the book and a discussion of the book by the author on video are on;
These papers venture into several areas of social work but there may be some features that set the collection aside.
The first is an emphasis throughout on social work education. This interest is set out in in the first chapter where there is a comparison between local and European traditions. Work by Carola Khulmann and Peter Cleave appears early in the collection and is then taken further in subsequent papers.
One emphasis or theme which keeps coming up is to do with a ethic. This is touched in the comparison of social work in Germany and Aotearoa/New Zealand, looked at in the article, An ethic of empathy, and touched on again in the article on iwi social services.
Another theme is to do with indigenous ways of research. The paper on rangahau is the most discursive in the collection and the intention here is to take the arguments as far as they might go without necessarily coming to fixed conclusions.
Yet another pertains to the dynamics of small group work in social work learning and teaching. This work is perhaps the most widely published while some of the other papers are offered to a broader readership for the first time.
The consideration of broadcasting and social work is different from the other papers in many respects and, along with the paper on iwi social services, a little tentative in its conclusions These are both new areas of work for me and it shows. In later editions the intention is to refine and develop the arguments involved.
Papers on Language
by
Peter Cleave
ISBN
978-1-877229-19-0
Published in 2007
Excerpts from the book and a discussion of the book by the author on video are on;
This collection of papers takes work from a variety of sources. The intention is to draw a fairly long bow.
There is some work on literacy which is nor about any language in particular. There is work on Maori grammar. And a paper on strategies for language retention. And there is recent work on literacy and oral communication in Aotearoa.
The transmission of an ethic through language and song is considered in another paper.
The Note on the two or three verb classes in Maori applies to the o an a categories and to the use of i and ki. They are short but hopefully important links which make sense, I think, of a range of questions that might come up.
There are also papers about voice and tone. There is even a paper about a song. These are offered in the hope that language might be considered in the broadest possible terms.
Rangahau pae iti kahurangi
Research in a small world of light and shade
Second Edition
Peter Cleave ISBN 978-1-877229-23-7
Published in 2008
Excerpts from the book and a discussion of the book by the author on video are on;
16 The indefinite article he. Unpacking into invisibility? The packing that you don't see...
17 Tense
18 The Passive
19 Let's go round the room again
20 Negatives
21 Not yet
22 Negative imperative
23 More manners for the imperative
24 The Negative tee
25 Kiihai
26 Ehara
27 Kei
28 What? Where? Who? How?
29 Yesterday
30 Tomorrow
31 Let's check the room again
32 Then, And then
33 Numerals
34 Tenses
35 The Perfect
36 Ways of marking tense
37 Because
38 Imperatives
39 Personals
40 Greetings
41 Causatives
42 Grids
43 Connecting nominal phrases, conjunctives
44 Personals and possessives
45 The personal article
46 Adjectives
47 For and By
48 Unpack the actor
49 Gerund
50 When and if
51 Comparisons
52 More comparisons
53 Possessives
54 Relative clauses
55 More relative clauses
56 Ai
57 Even more relatives
58 Manner particles
59 If
60 Therefore
61 Journeys
62 Switching Boxes
63 Unpacking the Agent
Appendix One
A Note on three kinds of verb
P65
Appendix Two
A note on teaching i and ki
P67
Appendix Three
On teaching o and a; Some theory and practice
P69
Bibliography
P79
Glossary
Maori Unpacked takes a word by word approach. The reader is shown what each word is, a noun, a verb, an adjective or whatever. The book may be a useful tool, a way in, so to speak, to the language. The Second Edition gives more examples and more exercises.
Maori Unpacked is also a primer for people wanting to learn the language in a systematic way.
Maori Unpacked has been written in a way that intends to make grammar interesting and fun to use.
There are several Appendices meant to throw light on what has gone before.
Ten Volumes, A Collection is available for NZS 400.00 plus tax (in NZ- GST 697296080) plus pack and post.
Ten Volumes, A Collection is an important addition to any library. Work from the late 1980s is included. There is a second collection planned which includes earlier writing by Dr Cleave.
Cream puffs in Venice
Thankfully, I’m back to blogging. While I don’t mind taking planned breaks from my little bloggy, forced breaks never go over very well. My PC decided to be very naughty last week and caused me some grief. Happily, that is over.
My PC decided to misbehave right after announcing the new Magazine Mondays logo. And wouldn’t you know it I got more MM submissions than ever but couldn’t post them last week so I’m posting them today. And before I get to my submission for this week’s MM, I thought I’d share all the submissions that I’ve received over the past 2 weeks:
MM’s biggest fan, Wandering Coyote of ReTorte gives us Fish in Tomato Sauce and Mexican Chocolate Pudding. Thanks, Wandering Coyote!
Di of Di’s Kitchen Notebook brings us a Blood Orange and Mango Sorbet that makes me want to run out and buy a crate of blood oranges and mangoes! Thanks, Di!
And from the department of best recipe names we have Fusilli alla Crazy Bastard (I love that …) from Natashya of Living in the Kitchen with Puppies. Thanks, Natashya!
And last but not least my sweet Jenny made Mustard-Garlic Flank Stank for her very first MM post! Thanks, Jenny!
Thanks to everyone who participated! And remember, if you post a recipe from a magazine, just let me know about it and I’ll link to it in my next MM post.
As for me, I come to you today with a failed recipe. Failed, not so much because of the recipe, but more because I was a hurried mess when I was making it and messed it up royally. I’d say 95% per cent of my MM entries have been winners but this one, not so much.
What you see pictured above are (supposed to be) Ham-and-Gruyere Thumbprints from Martha Stewart Living. The problem is that while making these, I forgot to add half the ingredients to the batter and was forced to frantically sprinkle the missing ingredients on after the thumbprints went into the oven.
Not good.
I made these for our New Year’s Eve party and while they didn’t turn out horribly, they weren’t that great either.
Ah, well! They can’t all be good!
See you for the next Magazine Mondays post … have a great week everyone!
Ciao!
Date: Jan. 26th 2009 Category: Antipasti, Magazine Mondays Email This | Add to del.icio.us
Tags: antipasti and Magazine Mondays We Are Experiencing Technical Difficulties… Computer woes have afflicted the Cream Puff!
Okay … it’s not that bad … but I am having some issues with my home PC so I won’t be blogging over the next week or so. Just wanted to send a note to all those that submitted Magazine Mondays entries: I have received them and thank you for them! They’ll all go up for the next edition of Magazine Mondays.
And now back to solving these pesky PC problems …
Ciao!
Date: Jan. 20th 2009 Category: Uncategorized Email This | Add to del.icio.us
Tags: No Tags I’m A Sucker for a Good Cookie …
I think I’ve written this many times before on my blog but whenever people ask me what I most enjoy baking, my answer is always cookies.
I love all baking, but cookies are my favourite because to me they offer a certain freedom that other baked goods don’t. You have to commit to a cake or a pie. A cookie, in my humble opinion, is innately free.
You can make them big or small.
You can sandwich them or not.
You can dip them in milk.
Last year, I had the chance to review Carole Walter’s Great Coffee Cakes, Sticky Buns, Muffins & More. Later in the year, I had the chance the review another Carole Walter’s book, Great Cookies: Secrets to Sensational Sweets.
I’m a huge fan of Carole Walter’s because to me, she is a baker’s baker. By that I mean that her books are perfect for helping the home baker produce truly worthy baked goods. While there are a lot of great baking books out there, some of them that claim to be geared to the home baker miss the mark.
Great Cookies won an IACP award in 2004 and rightly so. It’s a hardcore cookie book with recipes that cover every category from drop cookies to cut-out cookies.
Even though it was published in 2003, the recipes feature classics, some new cookies I’ve never seen before and lots of other cookies that are bound to please no matter how much time goes by.
While I was busy baking Christmas cookies, I was craving something old-fashioned and I found myself craving a good ol’ oatmeal chocolate chip cookie. In the days between Christmas and New Year’s, I cracked open Carole’s book and decided to try her recipe for Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies only to discover that I had exhausted my supply of chocolate chips. In fact, I had no chocolate whatsoever in the house.
Scary times.
Anyway, I did have a bag of butterscotch chips hiding in a cupboard corner so I improvised and threw those in. Next to the bag of butterscotch chips was a half empty bag of toffee bits so I threw those in as well. And I also had some praline left from the December Daring Bakers’ challenge so I figured, what the heck, why not throw that into the batter too!
The end result was surprisingly good. I was worried the cookies might be too sweet but they weren’t. And after the heavier and more complex foods and desserts that we enjoyed during the holidays, it was really nice to settle down with these cookies and a glass of milk!
Hope you get a chance to check out Carole’s book!
Ciao!
Everything-in-the-Cupboard Oatmeal Cookies Based on Carole Walter’s Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies from Great Cookies: Secrets to Sensational Sweets.
Note: You can of course use chocolate chips or whatever add-ins you like. I made about 3 dozen 3-inch cookies with this recipe.
3/4 cup brown sugar 2-1/2 cups rolled oats (large flake) 1/3 cup granulated sugar 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 tsp. salt 1/2 tsp. baking soda 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature 2 tbsp. light corn syrup 1 large egg 1 tbsp. vanilla extract 1 cup butterscotch chips 1 cup toffee bits 1/4 cup ground praline (optional)
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a food processor, process the brown sugar, 1/2 a cup of the oatmeal and the granulated sugar until it’s very fine; set aside.
In another bowl, sift together the flour, the salt and the baking soda. Add in the remaining oats and set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and the corn syrup. Mix with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes).
With the mixture on low speed, add the processed oatmeal mixture and mix until combined.
Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until just combined.
With the mixture on low speed, add the remaining dry ingredients and mix until just combined (don’t overmix).
With a wooden spoon, mix in the chips, toffee bits and praline (if you’re using it).
Spoon dollops of the cookie dough onto the cookie sheets, leaving about 2 inches between cookies. You can make these as large or small as you like.
Bake the cookies for 10 minutes (keeping an eye on them so they don’t burn if you’ve made small cookies). When they’re done they should be slightly golden around the edges.
Remove the cookie sheets from the oven and let rest on a rack for 10 minutes before transferring the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Let your cookie sheets cool and then repeat with the remaining batter.
Enjoy!
Date: Jan. 14th 2009 Category: Cookbooks, Cookies and Bars Email This | Add to del.icio.us
Tags: cookbooks and cookies New Year. New Magazine Mondays.
Welcome to the first edition of Magazine Mondays for 2009!
Before I start attacking my magazine pile in this newly minted year, I must tie up a few loose ends left over from 2008.
To begin with, I owe enourmous thanks to Wandering Coyote of the blog ReTorte. She has been a huge supporter of Magazine Mondays, so much so that she offered to host MM for the entire month of December when I mentioned that I’d be too busy to host the event.
She did a fabulous job so many thanks to her!
The final chapter of Magazine Mondays, 2008 ends with the image that opens this post. After MM turned a year old in October 2008, I decided it was time that the event had an image to go with it so I approached one of my very favourite artists: Julianna Smith.
Allow me to digress for one teeny moment.
I first learned about Julianna when I read about her on her sister’s blog (her sister just happens to be Alicia Paulson of Posie Gets Cozy … talk about a seriously talented family!) As I looked at Julianna’s site, I was so enchanted by her work and then completely blown away when I realized that I had recently bought a birthday greeting card that was designed by her!
If that isn’t a sign, I don’t know what is.
I contacted Julianna and asked her if she’d be interested in working with me on a few projects and she said yes! Considerable time passed (in other words … Cream Puff procrastinated), but I finally got my stuff together and approached Julianna with the Magazine Mondays idea. She agreed and a short while later, she produced this lovely image for me!
This will become the new symbol of Magazine Mondays. As soon as I figure how to do it (hee), I’ll be adding it to my sidebar (in other words … Cream Puff welcomes any advice on how to do that).
I want to extend my most heartfelt thanks to Julianna. I look forward to working with you in the future on other projects!
And so now we get back to our regularly scheduled MM post. I have a lot of candidates for MM posts but I decided to start this year off with a recipe that I actually made last year, but never posted. It’s from an issue of Martha Stewart Living (that I subsequently recycled so I’m not sure what issue it is) and it’s called Syrupy Blood Oranges. I thought it would be nice to start the year off with something that is both citrusy and crisp, but also sweet. Enjoy!
Ciao!
Here’s the recipe for Syrupy Blood Oranges.
Here are some other MM posts that you might want to check out:
Dan of Casual Kitchen made a mouth-watering mole sauce.
Wandering Coyote of ReTorte made a Lemon Artichoke chicken that I want right now!
Date: Jan. 12th 2009 Category: Antipasti, Magazine Mondays Email This | Add to del.icio.us
Tags: antipasti and Magazine Mondays Confessions of a Reformed Breakfast Skipper (Part 1)
So here’s my dirty little secret: For almost all of my 20s and part of my early 30s, I regularly skipped breakfast.
And by regularly I mean, almost all the time.
So there you have it. I don’t have a particularly good reason for being such a habitual offender beyond the most basic (and perhaps saddest), which is that I simply didn’t care enough to organize myself, to make time, to plan ahead and to prepare.
You see, they don’t call breakfast the most important meal of the day because they feel like it. It is the most important meal of the day. And any meal that’s the most important does require organization, time, planning and preparation.
My lack of all of the above led to the usual laundry list of ills associated with skipping meals: mid-morning hunger, low energy, snack attacks, weight gain and sluggishness.
In place of a fulfilling breafkast, I enjoyed a parade of mid-morning snacks purchased from the nearest coffee shop. These snacks involved coffee and some sort of sweet. I rationalized this terrible habit by telling myself that it was okay since I did manage to eat a lot of fruit and vegetables and I always had a decent dinner.
It is amazing to me that someone that prides herself on being a good cook and baker, someone that prides herself on her family’s culinary traditions and that someone that prides herself on having a responsible attitude towards food could possibly have been so stupid.
But I was.
I’m not exactly sure what initiated my breakfast awareness, but shortly after I turned 30, it began to sink in that breakfast was a necessity and that with a good breakfast I’d be arming myself to have a good day.
I am happy to say that now, in my mid-30s, I have breakfast almost every day. (I still have about a handful of days a year when time gets the best of me and I don’t eat anything. Never said I was perfect!)
From Monday to Friday, my breakfasts are simple, straightforward and delicious. I will eat everything from cereal with fruit, yogurt with granola, yogurt with fruit, hot cereal and toast with butter and jam. What I have really depends on how I’m feeling. There are, however, a few common denominators regardless of what I’m having:
I always have fruit in some form every morning. Whether it’s berries in my cereal or an apple after I’ve had a slice of toast, I eat fruit every morning.
I always have dairy in some form every morning. A glass of milk. A cup of yogurt. Whatever the case may be, dairy for breakfast is good.
I only eat things that I like for breakfast. No matter how “healthy” something is, if you don’t like it, trying to force yourself to eat it is usually not going to end successfully. Over the years, I have learned what foods I like to eat in the morning and those are the ones that I enjoy. I love toast with butter and jam. But rather than eat refined white bread, I enjoy a variety of wholesome breads made with grains, nuts and seeds. And yes I still put butter and jam on my bread because butter and jam are beautiful things and a life without them wouldn’t be much fun (for me).
What do I do on Saturday and Sunday, you ask? Like most people, I have more time for breakfast on Saturdays and Sundays, which means that I can be a bit more elaborate in my preparations. Also, as I believe that indulgence (in moderation) is good for the soul, Saturdays and Sundays are the days that I like to make pancakes, waffles, omelettes, breakfast pastries and french toast. I don’t have these all the time, mind you, but if I do have them it will be on the weekend.
Making time for breakfast on a daily basis has changed my life. For starters, the urge to fall asleep at 11:00 every morning has disappeared. I feel better. I don’t feel like I’m 110 years old. I’ve lost weight. I look better. I’m healthier.
So what prompted this confession? After all of the indulgences of the holidays, I found myself thinking about what I would be cooking and eating during the month of January and that of course led to much contemplation about what I would choose as my Flavour of the Month.
I found myself perusing The Overburdened Bookshelf and my eyes settled on a book called Morning Food: Breakfasts, Brunches & More for Savoring the Best Part of the Day by Margaret Fox and John Bear. Here’s a book that I’ve had for several years but never used.
I suddenly found myself imagining a month of delicious breakfasts so I knew I had to choose this book as the Flavour of the Month. For the first recipe that I tried, I chose one called Kaiserschmarren (The Empoeror’s Omelette). I’m not a huge omelette fan but I chose this one when I realized that it’s actually a cross between an omelette and a pancake that I enjoyed when I was in Austria in 2006.
During my trip, I had the chance to have dinner with Angelika of The Flying Apple and for our dessert, we tried a very traditional dish that was a pancake of sorts that’s then torn apart with forks and served with various accompaniments like stewed fruit. Angelika strongly recommended that I try it (even though I was stuffed) and I did and certainly didn’t regret it.
I was thrilled to have the opportunity to try this dish at home, but this time for breakfast.
If you’re a breakfast eater, I congratulate you. If you’re a breakfast skipper, I’m not going to lecture you. I know what it’s like and believe me, you have to come to accept breakfast on your own terms. But take it from this reformed Cream Puff, you’re missing the best meal of the day!
Ciao!
Here are some recipes for this dish (can be enjoyed for breakfast or for dessert) that you might like:
Date: Jan. 8th 2009 Category: Cookbooks, Flavour of the Month, Brunch Email This | Add to del.icio.us
Tags: brunch, cookbooks, flavour of the month and pancakes Epiphany
Today is the Epiphany. In the Christian holiday tradition, it’s the day that the three Magi visited the Baby Jesus. In other holiday traditions it’s also referred to as the Twelfth Night, the end of the Christmas season. In Italy, the eve of the Epiphany is the day that La Befana, a wizened old woman, travels throughout Italy rewarding well-behaved children with presents and punishing misbehaved children with lumps of coal.
As a child, I remember being horrified at my father’s stories about La Befana. I remember thinking how lucky I was to be growing up in Canada where we were visited by sweet and harmless Santa Claus. Of course now that I’m older and I understand more of the folklore behind La Befana, I sometimes wish that I could be in Italy to take part in so many of the traditions that continue through the holiday season, beyond Christmas and New Year’s.
As the years go by, I sometimes find myself dissatisfied with how we celebrate the “holiday season” because we tend to focus on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve and forget that in actual fact, the holiday season is a time that spans the period between Christmas and the Epiphany. It’s supposed to be a time of light and joy. Being of an Italian background, there are so many customs and traditions, now long abandoned, that mark each day of the holiday season. Sometimes I feel that in the desire to satisfy the commercial aspect of the holidays, we forget that really, we’re supposed to be having fun throughout this entire period.
So I wanted to commemorate the Epiphany and La Befana this year for two reasons.
First of all, as I get older, rather than constantly complain about how much this or that sucks, I’ve decided that I should shut up and actually do something to change what I don’t like. And since I don’t like how we seem to focus on the wrong things during the holidays, I’ve decided to not complain (for a change) and do something about it.
While I didn’t get a visit at all from La Befana (not sure what I would have done with a lump of coal anyway …), I did put out a little La Befana doll ornament that I have and I also ensured that all our Christmas decorations remained up. We have dutifully lit the Christmas tree and will enjoy its lights for one last time before the beginning of the Christmas season next December (never too early to start planning …).
But the other way that I’ve chosen to make a change is by actually baking for this special day. The cookies pictured above are called La Befana’s Stars and they’re from Gina DePalma’s amazing cookbook: Dolce Italiano. If you’re interested in baking and in Italian sweets, I strongly urge you to make this book yours.
These cookies also give me the opportunity to mention a very good cause associated with this book. In September 2008, Sara of Ms. Adventures in Italy, Jenn of The Leftover Queen and Michelle of Bleeding Espresso hosted an event called O Foods for Ovarian Cancer. I heard about the event through a post on the event by the Happy Cook on her blog My Kitchen Treasures.
The event highlighted the important battle against ovarian cancer and also highlighted Gina DePalma’s own battle with the disease. Gina has been bravely documenting her journey on her site.
While I was unable to take part in the event, it was never far from my mind and so I wanted to make these cookies as a way of showing my support for this tremendous effort on the part of food bloggers everywhere.
Epiphany is a word that doesn’t just refer to a religious holiday, it’s also a word that’s used to describe the sense of having a revelation or of discovering something new. It can mean that something finally makes sense or that you finally realize or truly get something.
I hope 2009 is a year of epiphanies for all of us!
Ciao!
Date: Jan. 6th 2009 Category: Cookies and Bars, Italian Sweets Email This | Add to del.icio.us
Tags: Christmas and cookies Hello, 2009!
Happy 2009, everyone! Thanks so much for all your well wishes over the holidays. December flew by and it’s hard to believe that we’re already a week into January 2009!
I’ve taken a bit of extra time off over the holidays but I have lots of posts and projects planned for the months ahead.
Starting next Monday, you will also see the return of Magazine Mondays (with a little surprise). I’d like to thank my dear friend Wandering Coyote of the blog ReTorte who stepped up and hosted Magazine Mondays throughout the month of December. I really appreciate it!
So here’s hoping you’ll join me next Monday. Remember, all you have to do to take part is send me a link to a recipe from a magazine that you’ve posted on your blog!
Ciao
Date: Jan. 5th 2009 Category: Magazine Mondays Email This | Add to del.icio.us
Tags: Magazine Mondays Happy New Year!!!
Wait. What?! 2009 … already … but where did 2008 go???
Okay … well … while I try to figure that question out I hope you’re all enjoying yourselves with much good food and drink.
I had a heck of a time trying to figure out what the official goodbye to 2008 dessert would be so I settled on something old-fashioned, yummy and comforting: butterscotch! It’s what all the cream puffs are eating this New Year’s Eve!
Pictured above are some awesome Butterscotch Tarts from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito.
I’m not sure what to say about 2008. It whizzed by. As always, the year brought some highs and lows but we made it through. My family is safe and healthy and with me and I have another year of good memories with friends.
Wherever you are for the New Year, please be safe. Take care and please know that the Cream Puff wishes all of you many blessings, much good health and lots of laughter in 2009.
Buona fine e buon principio!
Ciao!
Date: Dec. 31st 2008 Category: Pies and Tarts Email This | Add to del.icio.us
Tags: tarts Go Big or Go Home!
If I had to pick one thing to say to sum up the December 2008 Daring Bakers’ challenge, not to mention all the other challenges that we faced this year, it would be go big or go home!
Our lovely hostesses Hilda of Saffron & Blueberry and Marion of Il en Faut Peu Pour Etre Heureux threw down the gauntlet big time by challenging Daring Bakers everywhere to make a French Yule Log. Their inspiration for the challenge comes from Flore of the site Florilege Gourmand.
Not to be confused with the Yule Log that the Daring Bakers tried last December, a French Yule Log is very reminiscent of an ice cream cake. For this particular challenge, our log had to have six distinct components: a dacquoise layer, a mousse layer, a creme brulee layer, a praline crisp layer, a ganache layer and an icing layer. The layers are assembled and then the entire creation is frozen. Hilda and Marion very kindly provided us with numerous variations for each element and also gave us the freedom to create whatever shape we liked.
As you can imagine, trying to juggle the preparation of such a dessert in the midst of all the preparations for the holidays was challenging to say the least. While I did find the time to make the French Yule Log, I’ll be honest, I rushed it and didn’t put the amount of effort into it that I would have liked.
As a result, I chose the very basic versions of each of the component recipes. My dacquoise was the original almond version. I made the chocolate mousse and the dark chocolate ganache insert. I went with the basic creme brulee layer and I used Rice Krispies to make my praline crisp layer. For the icing, I used a mixture of chocolates that I had left over from other baking endeavours this month which means there were bits of dark chocolate and bits of milk chocolate in there.
One day I’d love to own a proper French Yule Log mold but I used an 8 x 4-inch loaf mold instead. Because I rushed everything, my layers (while they’re all there) were not nearly as defined as the layers that you’ll see in some of the other amazing logs out there.
Also, my icing layer just wouldn’t set for me. I ended up having to soften more gelatin, which I added to the icing to help it along. To further complicate the icing, my chocolate pieces didn’t melt very well so you can see some chocolate lumps in the finished product.
It’s a shame and certainly a poor reflection on me as far as this month goes because in the end, the log was truly delicious. Everyone loved it and when you slice into it, you can’t help but be impressed by the look of the layers. I walked away thinking that I really would like to try this one again when I have the time to take each step slowly and seriously.
Hilda and Marion are featuring the recipe on their respective blogs. I’d like to extend my thanks to both of these wonderful women who really came up with an exclamation mark for 2008 for the Daring Bakers.
I’d also like to extend my thanks to a few other members who are invaluable. First of all, Helene of Tartelette is a constant source of patience and knowledge. Whenever we’re stumped with a baking question, we know we can turn to her.
Without Natalie of Gluten a Go Go, I don’t know what our alternative bakers would do. Lis and I would probably end up in a corner somewhere crying. With infinite patience, Natalie just keeps coming through for us.
And then there’s Mary of Beans and Caviar (and her son) who have dramatically changed the way that this group operates with the blog-checking program. Mary has also been invaluable in sorting through any discrepancies.
I’d like to give a shout out to Courtney of Coco Cooks who is our “events coordinator”. She very generously posts any events that Daring Bakers’ might be interested in and keeps us all up-to-date.
And then there’s Lis. Where would I be without my co-founder and partner in this crazy and wondrous thing we call The Daring Bakers?! Thanks, Lis!
To all our DBers out there, we love you! We would be nothing without you! Keep up the daring spirit and let’s make 2009 our best year yet.
And finally, a thank you to all of you! Without the thousands of readers who show their appreciation each month for the bravery shown by Daring Bakers everywhere, it just wouldn’t be the same.
Here’s to a great year for the DB in 2009 (something tells me it’s going to be incredible … )!
Ciao!
Date: Dec. 28th 2008 Category: Dessert and Pastry, Daring Bakers Email This | Add to del.icio.us
Tags: Daring Bakers and dessert Thank You
Cookie-baking, for me, is the quintessential Christmas activity.
This year, I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to bake for a lot of people.
Today, I’d like to thank all of you that honoured me by letting me bake for you.
Without question, this was a tremendous learning experience. I learned how crucial it is to be organized and prepared if you want to be a successful baker. I learned that lists work. I learned that as much as I love delivering cookies, next time, I’ll probably hire a delivery service. But most importantly, I learned that I love doing this more than I even imagined.
So thank you so much for helping me to realize this little dream.
Stay tuned … Easter cookies and treats are being dreamed up as we speak …
Ciao!
The cookies pictured above are from Food & Wine courtesy of Fabio Trabocchi. They’re Almond Cookies with a Caramel Dipping Sauce.
Date: Dec. 27th 2008 Category: Cookies and Bars Email This | Add to del.icio.us
Tags: cookies « Previous Entries
extras January 2009
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