Graham Bathgate of Kerikeri with some of the titles he has published through his company, Fine Line Press
Prolific Kerikeri publisher increases portfolio
Publisher and author Graham Bathgate has recently launched a couple of books to add to the growing portfolio of books he has written and those he has published.
Called Gushers: People and Imagined Talking, he says it is more like a ranting because those who are doing the gushing are real-life talkers. Topic examples include "The Hypochondriac", "The Joker", "Grumpy Old Bugger?" and "Old Rock Songs". It was published in October last year.
Next on the list he published What Keeps Me Going, a book of short pieces by various writers of a certain age.
"Actually, some are of an uncertain younger age too, everyone has to keep going," he says.
Then there is CatSpeak which is the working title of a book that contains photos of cats he has had over the years and with the cats commenting on their life.
He established Fine Line Press in 2009 and is based in Kerikeri. He was a high school teacher in Masterton and a communication skills tutor at Wellington Polytechnic before going to Tokyo to teach English communication and presentation skills at the English Language Education Council in central Tokyo.
Back in New Zealand he now sells online from his website and through word-of-mouth. His books are in Unity Books Wellington, Paper Plus and the Old Packhouse Market in Kerikeri. They are also listed with various review sites such as Online Book Club.
His next project, which he has high hopes for, is a fictionalised prison diary based on real life experience called Music Behind Bars.
finelinepress.co.nz
New Zealand's first flat pack furniture
Ingvar Kamprad founded Ikea in 1942 but New Zealand had flat pack furniture long before that.
There are some mahogany chairs dismantled and brought into the country and reassembled by Francis Hall who served as the first storekeeper at the Kerikeri Mission around 1820.
He worked alongside Rev John Butler who was the mission's first ordained minister and superintendent of both the missions at Hōhi and at Kerikeri. Hall appears to have had a somewhat fraught relationship with him. According to Liz Bigwood, property lead of the Kerikeri Mission Stations, what made things worse was that Butler fell out with Rev Samuel Marsden who oversaw the mission station initiatives from New South Wales.
"The fallout was felt far and wide and it's possible Francis Hall was caught in the middle of a toxic climate that was far from pleasant," she said.
Hall resigned as storekeeper in June 1822 although he didn't leave the mission until December. The timing was likely determined by the next available ship. The relative speed of his departure, or possibly more his determination to get out of there, may be reflected in the fact he left behind four mahogany dining chairs, items of furniture that would have been quite valuable at the time.
"The chairs are actually an early example of flat pack furniture which goes to show Ikea didn't invent the idea," said Liz Bigwood.
"We think Francis Hall bought them in Sydney, or Port Jackson as it was known, and put them together here. He obviously followed the instructions because they have literally lasted 200 years!"
The chairs can be seen today in the parlour of Kemp House.
Rahui placed on bays area
A rāhui has been placed on the Pomare Bay area near Russell because of a sewerage leak from the Matauwhi Bay pump station. The sewage may have been spouting overnight from January 29, if not longer.
It's a recurring problem caused, on this occasion, by wet wipes being put down the toilet. However, according to Bob Drey, chairman of Russell Protection Society, there is a general lack of continued monitoring of the pumping station which serves Russell township, Matauwhi Bay and Tapeka Point.
"There is a clear protocol as part of the Resource Consent for the Russell Sewerage Scheme but unfortunately some of the contractors are not entirely familiar with this protocol," he said.
"Contractors are not specifically trained to remediate sewage spills and there seems to be some confusion as to who is actually responsible. The Far North District Council acknowledged it is ultimately responsible but has no one clearly tasked with this role other than contractors."
He said the other issue is the lack of preventative maintenance and what is required is regular inspections of all components of the sewerage infrastructure to help prevent such problems.
"This does not appear to be occurring, as evidenced by a recent blockage and overflow at Tapeka point."
A contractor for the Far North District Council said he notified the Northland Regional Council who were intending to send contractors to clean up the spill.
In the meantime, a rāhui is in place for 14 days from January 30 until at least February 12 with the advisory not to gather shellfish from Matauwhi Bay and bays south, Uruti Bay, Orongo Bay and Pomare Bay.
New water sources for Kaitāia and Kaikohe
CEO of Far North District Council, Shaun Clarke, said it has been fortunate that this year Council has not had to restrict the use of water so far this summer.
"But this is the exception rather than the norm," he said. "And improving the drought resilience of our water supplies therefore remains a priority for council."
A resource consent application for a new, deep aquifer bore at Tokareireia (Monument Hill) in Kaikohe is being prepared. It will include extra monitoring conditions agreed to with the Waikotihe Trust. Council is also reviewing the design for the infrastructure at the new bore.
Further north, contractors have installed almost 80 per cent of the 14-kilometre pipeline that will link aquifer bores at Sweetwater near Awanui to the council's treatment plant in Okahu Rd. This new water source is expected to be commissioned in the middle of the year.
The long-awaited infrastructure will reduce Kaitāia's reliance on the Awanui River making the town more drought-resilient in dry weather.
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'At what point do we say enough is enough?'