The Kiwi Bull Run - gotta get away from this big black bull...

English: Big, black bull, Haroldswick (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Kiwi Bull Run - gotta get a way from this big black bull...

Jellen's Writing Challenge - my childhood memory: All Rights Reserved

After writing my recent post about flatulence from cows and sheep creating most of New Zealand's methane and greenhouse gas, the rest coming from the Beehive, the nickname for the round government building in Wellington, NZ; I suddenly remembered an incident from my childhood:
The Kiwi Bull Run - gotta get away from this big black bull...
I used to spend many holidays on the farm of my foster mother's brother (I came from a broken home, but that is another story for another time) 20-30 miles out of Christchurch City in north Canterbury. It was a mixed farm, sheep, dairy cows, a few pigs, some poultry and crops. Typical of the 1950's farms in the area, I reckon, going by my memory.
I used to wander around the farm at times, typical of a 10-11 year old Kiwi lad. But during these particular holidays the farmer had bought and brought a new Aberdeen Angus bull to the farm - a big black devil!
Being young, naive and a bit clueless in some respects, I starting making noises at the big fellow. He started to paw the ground and roar a little. This just excited me more, and I started to make louder noises and the big black devil began pawing even more, and roaring like a bull should roar!
I began to get scared and started running, running, and running. And so did he! The fence was six foot high, but to me it may have been only a couple of feet. This skinny sandy haired youngster who could run a bit, began to prove it. Around the bull paddock fence, across the main paddock towards the milking shed yards I went at the speed of sound, not looking back. The big wooden posts of the milking yard fence immediately came into view, and I scaled that fence as good and as capable as any olypmpic hurdler or high jumper...!
Over that fence into about two feet of sloppy, black and greenish cow manure I went, feet one way, and body another. After hosing myself down in the cow yard, I had to face the farmer. The fact he was furious was the understatement of the year. I knew the big fellow wanted to give me a giant kick up the backside and a few across the ear - quite common in those years of yore. But he cooled down quickly, and realising I was scared witless, he asked me how I felt? "Scared," I mumbled almost incoherently.
"And so you should. That fence just stopped that big black devil. I'll have to repair it, but I'm sure you won't do a stupid damn thing like that again, will you?" he asked demandingly. "Go inside and see the wife to get you some dry clothes." he added further.
I came to that farm many times in the future and remembered the day that big black bull chased me, with only a six foot barbed wire fence stopping him.
Kiwi Bull Run

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Have the Gods got something in for New Zealand's South Island?

Worcester Street  CBD

 

 

Have the Gods got something in forNew Zealand'sSouth Island?






OPINION: First published at Fortitude



by peter petterson



Many, if not all, readers would have heard or read about the extremely destructive 7.1 earthquake that struckChristchurch and the surrounding Canterbury district nearly three weeks ago. Actually there are many people around the globe who think New Zealand is part of Australia anyway. Well, this is not designed as a geographical guide but more as a factual newspiece expanding on what you may or may not know about this mind-numbing earthquake that has been repeated by a total of  1200 aftershocks which occur  everyday and night since. Yes, I did say 1200 aftershocks! I've never heard of so many after an earthquake, have you?



At 7.1 on theRichter Scale this earthquake was identical in destructive force to the one in Haiti mamy months ago that killed tens of thousands, injured scores of thousands and probably made a million homeless for some period of time. What was the difference?



New Zealand is a first world country with extremely high standards of building, has a small spread out population — Christchurch, which is New Zealand's second largest city, has only 400,000 at the most, including its environs. But the saving grace of Christchurch during this shocking earthquake was the time — 4-35am. A few hours earlier and thousands would have been caught in restaurants, cafes, bars and on the streets; and a few hours later the early shoppers would have been caught in malls, shops, cafes and also on the streets.



The authorities, both local and centralgovernment agencies moved extremely quickly to support the victims of the earthquake. The prime minister, John Key and some of his ministers were down in Christchurch by the Sunday morning to see at first hand the results of this shocking earthquake and what should be done initially to help the local council's support of the victims. Nobody was killed, though there have been some fatal heart attacks which could be attributed to the earthquake, and only a few were seriously injured. One middle aged man was hit by a collapsing chimney that came through his bedroom ceiling and was seriously injured; and remains in a critical condition nearly three weeks later.



Finacial support has been given to help residents in the first few weeks, and companies with less than twenty employees were given wage subsidies later in the first week, for the first month to get their business operational and to help the local economy get back into gear.



Experts moved into action on the Monday morning examining damaged buildings in the city's CBD and then out into the residential areas both within the central city, suburbs and the outlying areas. Welfare centres were set up in schools, an indoor stadium and at Addington Raceway for homeless and those unable to go back to their homes for a variety of reasons, including the lack of sewerage, running water, and for psychological reasons caused by the repetitive aftershocks which were like minor earthquakes on their own.



Christchurch looked like a bombsight initially with the wreckage of buildings scattered throughout the streets of the city, making them extremely difficult to travel through. Within days it soon became obvious just how much damage had been caused, roughly how many buildings would be condemned and need to be destroyed for safety reasons. Red stickers were placed on condemned buildings and homes, and green stickers for those that could be saved and repaired. Insurance assessors were quickly involved in doing their particular tasks within the first few days. In New Zealand the state Earthquake Commission pays for the first $100,000 of individual damage caused by earthquakes.



Cleaning up the streets, repairing sewerage andwater mains and ensuring the homeless were taken care of in the welfare centres was the first priority in the days after the earthquake. And the aftershocks continued day and night creating psychological torture for the residents of Christchurch and out in the rural districts. While many streets showed evidence of the destructive force of this huge earthquake, out in the countryside the faultline looked as though bulldozers had carved up the earth for miles and miles lifting flat and even paddocks into untidy piles of earth in some places. The faultline had been there for 16,000 years and nobody had been aware of its existence.



The early estimates of two billion dollars in damage and estimated reconstruction, had doubled to four billion within a week — about three billion in American dollars. This is undoubtably New Zealand's worst civil disaster in monetary terms. The lack of fatalities and serious injuries are in fact incredible. Slowly but surely life has resumed, most children are back to school, and people are going back to work as their employers get their businesses back into operation. Life is not normal, of course, but the city is breathing some life again, and hopes are rising and the people are becoming positive once again. There are still many people who are homeless in the city, and a few hundred in the eastern suburbs who still do not have sewerage and running water — they are still using chemical toilets and have to wash at the local mall.



But they often say things go in threes. The day following the earthquake, at Fox Glacier a few hundred miles southwest of Christchurch, a small plane crashed on takeoff killing all nine onboard.



Just last weekend New Zealand was hit by a polar-like storm with snowstorms in the deep south being the worst in decades. In Invercargill city the local indoor stadium and some other buildings, were totally destroyed by the heavy snow, and out in the rural area farmers have lost a million newborn lambs. Throughout the rest of the country galeforce winds and rain caused considerable damage to homes and property. One would have to seriously consider that the South Island was on the receiving end of some retributive Karma force. Or perhaps somebody forgot to pay their bills?



As I close, quite safe and remote here in Wellington some 220 miles north of Christchurch, incidently my home town, I hear that the aftershocks are continuing, albeit less frequent and a little milder. My extended family members have been quite safe down south, and don't appear to have much damge caused to their homes, and have not suffered any personal injuries, apart from those psychologically.



Christchurchites are anticipating some better nights' sleep in coming weeks. And nobody will begrudge these hearty souls!


Published at Fortitude September 27 2010

Copyright 2010 Peter Petterson

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Christchurch earthquake is New Zealand's Hurricane Katrina...

Image via Wikipedia

Christchurch earthquake is New Zealand's Hurricane Katrina...





ANALYSIS: First published at Fortitude



by peter petterson



You might say that the Christchurch, New Zealand, earthquake, of 7.1 on the Richter Scale, that occurred at 4-35am last Sunday morning, Pacific time, is the Kiwi Hurricane Katrina. Why do I say that, you might ask? It is not the devastation, because the Christchurch earthquake is confined to an area within the city and its environs, and obviously does not compare to the widespread and intensive damage caused by the American hurricane.



Christchurch City could be a bombsite because of the comparative damage to homes, buildings and infastructure. Probably 80% of these have been affected to some degree. The earthquake is not yet over because of the continuing after-shocks; they total close to 200 already and could continue for days or even weeks. A number have been recorded in the range of up to 5.4 on the Richter Scale Christchurch residents are stressed out and becoming traumatised, especially the young and elderly.



Residents cannot assess the real damage to their propertiess because of the continuing after-shocks which are still affecting the damage. But neighbours, families and friemds have assisted each other, especially the elderly and those living alone.



It is the comparative damage within the confines of this city of 400,000 and its surrounding districts, that draws my comparison. Over a hundred unstable buildings are believed to be in danger of being condemned; two protected buildings were condemned today and will be demolished — one traces its origins back to about 1877. A majority of homes in the suburb of Bexley, for instance, are in danger of being condemned because of the nature of the ground they are built on. The suburb is a drained swamp and perhaps its origins have come back to haunt the burghers of Christchurch.



Many brick chimneys and concrete facades have already been knocked down in many parts of the city. Buiding inspections have been carried out, as have inspections of schools in area. Schools will not reopen this week. Power has been restored to about 80% of residents. Water and sewerage has progressively been restored as well.



The northern township of Kaiapoi, about twenty minutes by road, was particularly devastated with broken sewer mains and water pipes. Many expensive homes in this area will have to be demolished. Many streets and roads in Christchurch City and the Canterbury region have also been severley damaged. Other infastructure has been severly damaged as well.



There have been no deaths caused by injury, though two middle aged men in their fifties are in hospital because of injuries received in the initial earthquake — one being hit on the head by a falling chimney and still on the critical list in ICU, the other severely cut by glass is in a comfortable condition. One person died of a heart attack during the earthquake. There are many minor injuries that have not yet been collated.



The government moved very quickly on Sunday supporting the Civil Defence, Christchurch City Council and the police on Sunday — the prime minister and some of his ministers arrived very early to assess the situation. Welfare centres were set up for the homeless and those who didn't wish to return to their homes. Police secured the CBD on Sunday and were relieved by eighty soldiers from the nearby Burnham Army camp on Monday morning.



As there are so many damaged business premises, many people are unable to go to work this week and earn a living — the Government will pay a subsidy of NZ$350.00 per worker in immediate assistance for the first four weeks to businesses employing less than twenty employees.



Damage to historic buildings, including the historic and iconic Christchurch Cathedral, are of great concern. Christchurch may never be the same again.



As I wrote above, the after shocks continue and more damage is expected in coming days. Some of that damage may be hard to bear and accept. Que sera sera!



The faultline that was responsible for this earthquake had lain idle for 16,000 years and nobody knew about it. At least the cause is now known.



Earthquake Christchurch is indeed the kiwi equivalent of Hurricane Katrina, but there is a lot more to write about in coming days, months and years as New Zealand's second largest city is repaired and rebuilt. This is but an early chapter in the book of Christchurch's future. Cantabrians are like the rest of New Zealanders, tough, resilient and caring to a fault at times.



That indomitable spirit so evident in Canterbury sporting teams over many decades is so very evident in city and country township communities right now. The future looks bright amid the gloom of the present.







































Published on Fortitude September 08, 2010

Copyright 2010 peter petterson

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Peter Jackson from New Zealand - the world's highest paid director for King Kong

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Peter Jackson from New Zealand - the world's highest paid director for King Kong...




Originally published at Blog.co.uk







Peter Jackson from New Zealand - the world's highest paid director for King Kong.The Guiness world record for the biggest paid fee paid to a director. That's a lot of money for some great writing.It was also the biggest film budget too - US$207 million for King Kong.







If Peter Jackson doesn't like what studios offer him, which includes 20th Century Fox and Universal Pictures profit share offer for the yet unmade HALO - he backs off and looks elsewhere.He can afford to - THE LORD OF THE RINGS made US$2.7 billion at the box office alone -with 20 Oscars from his films he can do what he likes.There are more movies, a partnership with Microsoft for new kinds of video games, and even ideas for a television mini- series.







Don't get the idea that Peter Jackson is some sort of big- head - he isn't! He's lost a lot of weight and has replaced those horn rim glasses with contact lenses, but at heart he is still that big overweight young man who started his professional life making a low budget gory comic zombie movie BAD TASTE, on weekends around the Wellington region for three years or so.







He was self- taught and was involved in just about everything in that film - the $10,000 cost coming from his weekly wage as an engraver for the local paper.Twenty years ago this very month, the New Zealand Film Commission finally relented and agreed to financially back an unknown young film maker from Pukerua Bay just a few miles outside of Wellington City.







He said he used to save up and buy four or five rolls of film, shoot them all up in a day, store them in the fridge until his next pay cheque and get them processed.When he had to pay the lab bill he couldn't afford film until the following week.







He was living at home with his parents at the time, and when he got his first $5,000 from the film commission he resigned his job as an engraver the very next day.







Today Peter doesn't have to store film in his fridges in his homes, offices or jet. He can afford as many rolls of film he wants, whenever he wants, in a jiffy,and get the film processed in a multi- million dollar facility that he owns in Wellington. He no longer has to go cap in hand to anybody to get money for his films. Now the world's biggest studios come to him. he is Mr Peter Jackson and the world is his his oyster!



This story was originally posted on 28 October 2006. Since then he has become knighted and is now known as Sir Peter Jackson., for his services to New Zealand's motion picture industry. His coming project is the two film The Hobbitt series, which he may well have to direct as well as produce. It is a long time since the Lord of the Rings and King Kong.

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Facing the schizophrenic demons as a family...

Facing the schizophrenic demons as a family...





ARTICLE: First published at Fortitude.



by peter petterson



To follow the ongoing story of my grandson's journey with schizophrenia in the latter months of 2009, I would suggest you read my earlier article, "The demons of schizophrenia unleashed"(link below). To help you identify with my grandson it would be easier to know his name. So for the next little while, lets just call him 'Billie'.



You will have read in the previous article that his nurse took some poetic licence in ensuring Billie could be admitted into the psychiatric system. Her comments caused some reaction from the law who descended on our home in force convinced that Billie was determined to do himself some physical harm; actually in fact he had no intention to inflict more than a breath on his person. But the invading posse which included a sergeant armed with a holstered Glock were determined that this young eighteen year old would not be allowed to self mutilate himself. There were at least six policemen that day who entered or were immediately outside his bedroom.



He was taken into custody meekly and quietly, despite his deterioating psychiatric state of affairs. Billie had never resisted police on any occasion he was involved with them. He was met there by his psychiatrist who accompanied him to the mental health unit at Hutt Hospital in central Lower Hutt city. With the necessary paperwork completed Billie was admitted into hospital, something we had been attempting for a number of months. Previously the 'Arm' of the Mental Health Act: Was he a danger to himself or anybody else — had prevented him being admitted. But despite the fact he didn't fit that category, the poor young man badly needed psychiatric treatment regardless.



Now that he had been admitted and would be examined by one of the resident psychiatrists in the unit, we, his grandparents and caregivers, could get some badly needed rest and leave our grandson in the care of the health professionals for a few days. It is the family members and caregivers who are often ignored and disregarded, despite the fact they care for their relations and charges, 24/7, and know by instinct just what is necessary.



Over the next few days he was observed by doctors and nurses, and had his basic medication changed...this time to Clozapine, the gold standard medication which was once the basis of a Time magazine leading article. Clozapine was reserved for patients who resisted all other anti-psychotic medication. But there were strings attached to using this medication — because of the danger of deterioation of his white cells,and also potential dangers of getting infections through colds, flu, cuts and abrasions etc, he would have to have weekly blood tests to monitor his white cells, firstly for eighteen weeks, and then monthly for the rest of the time he would be treated by Clozapine — perhaps for the rest of his life! Clozapine was not actually a new medication, but the earlier dangers of the medication had not been known at the time, and a number of patients had died. As a consequence the drug had been banned by the American FDA for many years. In recent years safety precautions had been developed to monitor the drug, as previously explained, and the drug was now administered widely around the western world. It was now the gold standard of anti-psychotic medications.



After a few days Billie was allowed some home leave for a a few hours at a time. We were then able to take him home on extended leave. But we had not been warned of the potential side affects of this new drug which, along with his existing medication, caused him to become deeply sedated and lose control of his bladder for some considerable time. We would continue to have problems with his medication, for a number of weeks to come, but that is another story for our grandson Billie and we as a family.

























Published on Fortitude August 25, 2010

Copyright 2010 peter petterson

All Rights Reserved

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Those with rheumatoid arthritis have a built-in defence against alzheimers disease...





First published at Qondio:



By Peter Petterson











The latest from the newsroom is that those suffering with rheumatoid arthritis, itself a painful condition, appear to have a built-in protection against the effects of the mind-crippling alzheimers disease.

The memory loss associated with alzheimers could actually be reversed in many cases; scientists discovered that rheumatoid arthritis produced a chemical in the body that works on the condition.



Researchers found a protein triggered by rheumatoid arthritis could undo the 'tangles' in the brain that are believed to cause alzheimers disease.



Memory loss associated with alheimers disease was partially reversed by the protein GM-CSF, which also lowered the risk of getting the condition. Scientists at the University of South florida even found in some cases the memory impairment was completely reversed after treatment.



The fantastic news is the protein known as 'Leukine' is commercially available. The treatment completely reversed cognitive impairment in only 20 days!



It has to be remembered that these tests were with mice; this has to be transfered to the field of human health.



The swollen joints of rheumatoid arhtritis sufferers produce the protein that stimulates scavenger cells in the body. In the tests on laboratory mice, the cells removed deposits left by alzheimers disease.



The study can be read in the 'Journal of Alzheimers Disease'.



Acknowledgements: Telegraph Group


All rights reserved.

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All over bar the shouting - heading down the hill to schizophrenia without realising it...

Image via Wikipedia


All over bar the shouting - heading down the hill to schizophrenia without really knowing it..




ARTICLE: First published at Fortitude



by peter petterson



My previous article concerning mental health was really a historical account concerning my grandson's problematical life in childhood, adolescence and his mental breakdown at the age of fifteen years.



Here we will hit the keys and see where we end up tonight. Do you ever get like that: Just freewheeling your way through some writing, letting you brain and fingers do the walking? Just like an advert for Yellow Pages — let your fingers do the walking!



So what do I remember about his mental breakdown? Not a lot really. In such situations I don't think you really know a lot. Who knows what goes on in a person's brain? They can quiely deterioate without anybody realising it. In point of fact the youngster cracked up, after his session of drugging, drinking and not sleeping. It was all over bar the shouting when he told his grandmother he was a 'pussy' and didn't want to fight with one of the boys anymore.I didn't even know that was what he had been doing to try and prove himself with the 'normal' teens he was associating with there in the neighbourhood. Trying to be just one of the boys in the 'Hood.



Well it happened. He went all quiet; quite a change from the hyperactive kid he had been most of his life. He was taken into the local hospital, admitted into a ward for the night from Accident and Emergency, and the next day was taken to the regional youth mental health unit, about 20 miles away. He was on his way, on a journey he will be on for the rest of his life. The controversial little pain in the backside he could often be, to the frightened little rabbit he was before he went into hospital.



He would not return as the youngster we knew, but he would return and continue developing into the schizophrenic young man he is today. All that in less than a month! He was prescribed and regularly given Risperadol, an anti-psychotic medication he would be on for a couple of years or so. And it had side-affects like other medication he was on and others he would be on in the future. Like the mood stabiliser called Lithium. He had to have blood tests every three months because it could have detrimental effects on his renal functions in time. I can't remember when he started talking to himself — was it when he came back from the mental health unit? I'm not really sure about that. But he certainly became different and difficult. He was obviously hearing the voices pretty early in the piece; but we aren't sure when he obviously began to respond to them.



But we became concerned with the side-effects of his medication in future months. We found it difficult to get our points of view through to his health professionals — doctor and social worker. We did not have a good relationship with his social worker because he did not respond adequately to our questions and concerns for our grandson's well-being. The doctor was nice enough and tried to cooperate with us when we thought he was on too much medication — but we were ignorant and inexperienced with mental health problems. The dosage of his Risperadol was a bit like a yo-yo for a few weeks as the doctor tried to find a balance in his medication.



Finding a balance in the dosage of psychotic medication is something we would learn about in future years. Side-effects are something we would also discover too. It wasn't too long before he had a relapse and ended back in hospital again. He was now well on the road to being a confirmed schizophrenic. We knew also that alcohol was good for him in only small quantities, and marijuana was a poison for him in any quantities. The latter would be confimed by other mental health patients we knew on later occasions. We would also learn that you never recover from serious mental disorders — doctors can only manage the illness through the correct dosage of the right medication. Medication had now become as important to our grandson as food and drink. Yes, he was well on the road, alright!















































Published on Fortitude July 10, 2010

Copyright 2010 peter petterson

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