Mayor Bob Harvey
What I've been thinking
June 2009
Who will lay the wreaths?
As I stood on the dais at the Dawn Service of ANZAC Day
and looked out on the lighted crowds, as dawn was breaking,
the ode had been read and the Last Post played, I wondered
who will do this when the City doesn't exist? I am sure they
will find someone, but in the last year, myself and the
Deputy Mayor did more than lay wreaths and read oaths at
ANZAC Day. The role of the Mayor, which is often difficult
to define in local communities, does have a link with people
far beyond the statute.
We answer calls to do many things, some small, but I believe
that they do mean a lot to people, whether they be
schoolchildren or at the hundreds of events where the Mayor
represents something that matters in the community.
It's the same right throughout New Zealand and the western
world, and it's been that way for hundreds of years whether
they be elected at large or appointed by the Council. This
City and the Office will cease to exist in 16 months time.
Mayors wherever they are say that this is the best job in
the world. You can make a great deal of difference to
people's lives and with the Council, you can make things
happen. No politician says that in national government,
because they can't. But Mayors and Councils can show
leadership and deliver: libraries, swimming pools, stadiums
- things that make communities work.
When I went through my 2008 diary it was clear what we will
miss in the West from the mayor. No matter how super the
super-mayor will be, he or she will find it hard to get to
Massey High School for the prizegiving, ever. I can't see
that mayor up the Whau Creek as I did with Hayden Smith
pulling shopping trolleys and twenty bags of rubbish from
the mangroves. I don't know what will happen to the Sister
Cities, and many will say trying to pull business from the
rest of the world? Well it does. There certainly won't be
any Mayoral Forum or a Local Government Group Zone 1. And
here's a little list that will be missing in the years
ahead:
- Having your name in the phonebook, so anyone
can talk to you. And they do.
- Takes the call at home 3am on a Saturday from
the guy who has called Noise Control three times and the
party next door is still raging - and he holds the phone
out the window so I can hear it.
- Lays the wreaths at five different RSA's on
ANZAC Day from 5.30am to 4.30pm, when I finally get home
from Piha.
- Cuts ribbons - or hands the scissors over - at
rest-homes, factories, building openings.
- Gets up in the morning at dawn to bless
buildings, childcare centres, school classrooms, hoping
that they will be safe forever. In a way I will miss
that.
- Argues in the end fruitlessly about a new set
of public toilets in a park because you knew the
residents wanted sustainability features and not the
usual concrete block.
- Opens a small bronze plaque for 12 people on
Sunday morning for the late lamented and much missed Ian
Henderson, at 9am on a Sunday, while it's raining like
it's winter because it is.
- Writes six letters of support a week for
funding applications for women's groups, for refuges,
for apprenticeship training, for everything that keeps a
community together but they just need that little bit
extra money.
- Leads the protection of the Waitakere Ranges
as if they were something that was globally unique
rather than something to simply be subdivided and
chopped up.
- Provides $100 from the Mayoral Fund for the
girl who wants to go to the National Roller Skating
Championships.
- Reads the Western Leader letters to the editor
and mutters.
- Works with numerous curmudgeonly
penny-pinching old duffers better known as the Council
(present company excluded of course).
- Works to develop
Chinatown only to see it
sin-binned, takes it to another City and a developer,
where it is instantly seized and turned a hot commercial
property development.
There are certainly disappointments in this job, but also
much success. The loss of a Mayor will be not so much
personal to the individual, but it will take from the
community and the people of the west an individual that can
for a short space of time make a difference through
encouragement, for a better community and in a small way for
a better country.
What
I've been reading
Roadhouse Days
 Drew
Harre and Dave Harre
Pub: Little Island Press
140 pages
This piece of Westie folklore manages to capture the heart
of a family and the raw essence of a restaurant. You can
almost smell the food as it is rushed from kitchen to table
in Oratia’s former Town and Country Roadhouse. The bustle of
the kitchen is set against the dynamic of the Harre family
as they revolve around the central figure of matriarch Marge
Harre.
Though in its essence a piece of family history, the book
succeeds in its ability to immerse you within the Harre
world. Reading it feels like having a conversation in the
kitchen of the Roadhouse of old. Stories, from the
scandalous to the ordinary, echo through its pages. They are
accentuated by recipes which give flavour and smell to this
excellent account of a family, a house and a restaurant.
Healthy Kids, Happy Kids
 Lynda
Finn
Pub: Random House
255 pages
Lynda Finn is a self described "happy fat lady". But the
Waitakere author used to look in the mirror and hate what
she saw so much she wished she was dead. In Healthy Kids,
Happy Kids she launches a stinging attack on the culture
that made her feel worthless as a large Kiwi child. She
rails against society’s body size obsession and the dieting
industry, claiming dieting doesn’t work and being healthy is
more about lifestyle and food quality than size. Her plea to
parents is to adopt a holistic approach to their children’s
health, based on exercise, nutritious meals and good self
esteem.
This is an inspirational, if at times controversial, read.
For parents of big children it will bring peace of mind. For
those struggling with their body image it will make it much
easier to look in the mirror.
The Politics of Climate Change
 Anthony
Giddens
Pub:
Polity Press
264 pages
Why would anyone drive an SUV?
So begins Giddens' radical and refreshing investigation into
our struggle to contain climate change. The question is of
course a metaphor. We are all, in effect, SUV drivers. We
all display an inability to make Earth's greatest
environmental concern a reality in our day to day lives.
There is a chasm between our everyday preoccupations and the
distant threat of "climate chaos".
The problem, as Giddens says, is that we are being offered
the wrong vision. Too often we are bombarded with omens of a
frightening, but ultimately intangible, future. Too little
we are given a vision of how we are going to avoid that
future. As he says in the Guardian, "We need more of a
utopia, less of a dystopia." It's on that basis he
constructs his politics of climate change, abandoning
orthodox policies and divisions and calling for co-operation
between left and right wing, community and country.
This is an inspiring and challenging book from the mind of a
skilled sociologist. It is rooted in real humanity, offering
a vision of a radical revolution spanning the political
spectrum. Not a book of science, but most definitely a book
of solutions.
Piha: Guardians of the Iron Sands
 Sandra Coney
Pub: Piha Surf Lifesaving Club Inc
140 pages
This fine book celebrates the first 75 years of this fine
club. It's a great story of change and tradition. This is a
tough beach, beautiful but often treacherous to the unwary.
Coney, no stranger to the Club (her father was one of the
founders) is at best a fine historian. From a small
clubhouse on the sand in 1934 it is now the most well known
club in New Zealand. Highly recommended if you love the surf
and the Wild West Coast.
Where I've been eating
Eastern Restaurant
Westgate - next to the tenpin bowling alley
Where East meets West - gate !
Eastern is a great place to eat whether you are making a
night of it or want something a bit more substantial than
popcorn before or after a movie.
Eastern specialises in Asian fusion gourmet delights and has
a great selection of vegetarian and even kids meals. It's
also fully licensed so you can enjoy a range of wine or beer
with your meals.
The Nasi Goreng and Chicken Teriyaki are must tries as are
the chicken wings and pork dumplings. And if you are in a
big group and can't decide on any of the temptations why not
just order a whole lot of starters and go from there - there
is something for everyone.
The surroundings are modern and funky and the service is
very attentive. Don't forget to check out the old favourites
on the sound system too; an old Charley Pride track was
playing when I was there!
What I've been viewing
Earth Whisperers Papatuanuku
Kathleen Gallagher
Running time: 73 minutes
An Inconvenient Truth gets a Kiwi No. 8 wire makeover. Earth
Whisperers Papatuanuku distils the grand theme of saving the
world from climate change into a tale of 10 visionary Kiwis.
Their efforts to live sustainably are deeply moving in their
simplicity. They show people living in the centre of the
city can still make a huge difference to their environment.
A beautifully crafted and sensitive documentary made more
inspiring by its exchange of flashy production for stunning
New Zealand scenery. This is a film that everyone needs to
see.
Rain of the Children
Vincent Ward
Running Time: 130 minutes
I spent many years on the Film Commission, and one of the
sadnesses and also one of the joys was dealing with the
hopes and ambitions of Vincent Ward as he would pitch his
new films to the commission. I consider Ward to be one of our truly great
creative artists in film; multi talented and totally and
absolutely committed to his craft.
Rain of the Children is a masterpiece. It takes a timeline
from his early short film, In Spring One Plants Alone,
probably the best short film ever made in this country. Ward
made this film aged 21, fresh out of film school, and the
subject of the film, Puhi, is revisited in The Rain of
Children. This new feature answers some of the mysteries
that the original work held. Returning to the Ureweras and
the site of the original film, Ward now enlarges the scope,
vision and cast; flashing backwards and forwards as we begin
to understand the mysteries and the deep emotional tragedies
that were held sacred to Tuhoe and the Urewera community of
Maungapohatu in the time of Maori prophet, Rua Kenana. Be
prepared for an emotional heart rending epic . Totally
amazing, absorbing. Unforgettable.
A film with me in it
Ian Fitzgibbon
Running time: 89 minutes
A black comedy cum farce starring Mark Doherty and Dylan
Moran as an out-of-work actor and talentless screenwriter
who by an astronomically unlikely series of events end up
with three human corpses (and a dead dog) littering their
apartment. The story follows their comical efforts to deal
with the rapidly decomposing situation.
I went in with high expectations as I loved Morans’ turn in
TV series Black Books, but ultimately came out disappointed.
Though its tinges of self deprecation and Moran’s world
weary humour keep the laughs coming, this was a little too
farcical for its own good.
What I've been listening to
 Raising Sand
Robert Plant and Alison Krause
Produced by T Bone Burnett
Recording and Mixed by Mike Piersante
The problem with reviewing popular works is that every one
knows what you are talking about and this is no exception.
These are two real pros, surrounded by beloved and skilful
musicians. They are simply amazing and they know it. The
work of song after song is simply delivered by two musicians
who are at the top and peak of their game. They come with
unfailing technique and talent, and the songs, well the
songs are brilliant! I thought Fortune Teller and Killing
the Blues in particular were truly great in their own right,
but its hard to differentiate between any of the tracks,
they are just so damn good. Produced by a team of experts
from the music industry, the feel of Raising Sand is great
music, lyrics and harmony in one stunning CD. And the
dedication says it all: "Gratitude to T Bone and the Blue
Glow who steered an old dog to new tricks".
 Toumani Diabate
The Mande Variations
World Circuit Productions
Produced by Nick Gold
Recorded and Mixed by Jerry Boyes
When I was buying Rising Sands, at Marbecks ( isn't it time
the west had a good music store?) I heard Toumani Diabate on
the sound system. He plays an instrument I had never heard
of, the kora. It sounded simply unreal and unearthly and I
was right on both counts. The instrument is almost a total
orchestra; one of the most beautiful and fascinating of
African instruments; a cross between a sitar, guitar and a
drum. The sound is of course a West African harp, one of the
world's great solo musical instruments, and here is a player
who understands the classic music of the west, of India, of
flamenco and the blues. This is his heritage and this
beautiful sixty minutes is pure heaven. Its transformative
sounds and the richness of his playing just transcends
space, time and the dimensions of where sound can go. This
was all new to me, but it is not now. I can't stop playing
it and nor will you. Every track is a wonder.
What I've been saying
Mayor Bob Harvey's Memorable Quotes
- Often the people who slip on banana skins are the
ones who peeled the bananas in the first place.
- It's not hard for roosters to quickly become feather
dusters.
- You can fill a hall with people who are against
something and only a phone box with people trying to
cheer something on.
- Westies will do anything if you ask them and nothing
if you tell them.
- In politics it's wrong to be right too soon.
- Never mark the spot where you have buried the hatchet.
- My Councillors do all the heavy lifting, I just do
leadership.
- The Council propose and the voters dispose.
- If you get a lemon, make lemonade.
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