The Iconic Australian Lamington sponge cake

 Hi there

Aussies and kiwis have a wee bit of a rivalry (okay, maybe more than 'a wee bit') over some (lots?) of things, people, and objects.  For instance, Aussies like to lay claim over that mighty racehorse Phar Lap, whereas we, here in NZ, definitely know that he's ours.  

And how about the pavlova? - we invented that recipe a few years before the Aussies jumped on the band-wagon. The groups Split Enz and Flight of the Conchords are New Zealanders, not Australians.  So, too, is actor Sam Neill.  Oh, yes, and we were the first country in the world to come up with the flat  white (Sorry, Australia, but it was us, not you).  Granted, our claim over actor Russell Crowe is tenuous, but we do like to think of him as ours. 

And then, there is the lamington.  Darn, but the lamington cake is definitely Australian.  Traditionally, it's a sponge cake, cut into cubes, each cube coated in chocolate, and then in coconut.  I really like the lamington.

However, when I had the Sunday lunch buffet at the Grand Hyatt in Melbourne last week, the lamington had been updated.  Gasp - 

It was way more than delicious. 

Aussie, I'd like to swap Phar Lap's remains for an outright kiwi claim to this new version of the lamington.  How about it, mate?

Background Music

Hi there

I never really used to pay attention to music that played in the background of movies and television.   It was just there, you know?

Little lambs gambolling in a paddock to happy accompanying music?  Who cared?  The murderer tippy-toeing up the back stairs to the heroine's bedroom, with creepy music making its way up there with him?  I didn't give a fig.  A menacing shark bearing down on a boat?  Well, okay, the music for "Jaws" is iconic;  it works.

And as for those documentaries where background music accompanies the likes of Griff Rhys-Jones as he hikes Britain, or Charley Boorman biking around the world?    Nope, nada,  I didn't even think about the themes, I was too busy watching the programmes.

There was one time....  A few years ago, I was driving from KeriKeri, at the top of the North Island to Waitangi.

I was listening to a cassette of television theme tunes.  I got to the theme for the British television drama series "Reilly, Ace of Spies".  It starred New Zealand's very own Sam Neill.

And suddenly I noticed that the music was matching the scenery that I was passing.   I drove up a hill and the music swelled higher ... and higher until it hit a crescendo as I reached the top.  I cruised down the hill, and the music lowered.  When I turned a corner, the music got excited.  On a straight road, the music levelled out.  A fresh vista suddenly appeared and the music amped up a notch.  Craggy rocks, rolling hills, a bird lazily flyng overhead ...   I'm telling you that tune, written by Shostakovich, seamlessly matched all the scenery I was passing.

I now try to make a point of registering the background music I hear on my television.  Those composers sure work hard.

We managed it! - 6 swims at Hataitai Beach for May 2014

Hi there

Well, the title says it all:  J and I have got in 6 swims for this month but, oh-my-goodness, there were so many obstacles for us to hurdle.  Everything seemed to band together to stop us getting in our very, very, very minimum of four swims for the month (as I write this it is 30th May NZ time)

***

I was just thinking about NZ actors.  Years ago, I remember growling to my friends that whilst Aussie and English actors got to Hollywood, kiwis never seemed to make it.  But now, there are a few I can mention.  Russell Crowe is New Zealand-born, but was an Aussie growing up.  The same goes for Manu Bennett who is now an actor on the series "Arrow".

Anna Paquin from "True Blood" was the other way around.  I believe she was born Canadian but, of course, she grew up as a Kiwi.

Lucy Lawless (Xena, Warrior Princiess;  Battlestar Galatica, Spartacus) is a true New Zealander and still lives here most of the time.  Melanie Lynskey who plays Rose in "Two and a Half Men" was a Peter Jackson discovery from way back.  Sam Neill pops up in lots of films - he has a vineyard and winery (Two Paddocks) out of tourist spot Queenstown and is often seen striding around that area.  And not to forget The Flight of the Conchords who both come from Wellington (Brett wrote the oscar-winning song from the Muppet movie, a couple of years back).

Karl Urban plays Dr McCoy (Bones) in the new rebooted "Star Trek" movies, and Phil Keogh is the host of "The Amazing Race.

Martin Henderson (ex "Shortland Street") plays in a Sundance series that hasn't reached NZ yet, but it's called "The Red Road", and Antony Starr from our popular-popular-popular NZ series "Outrageous Fortune" (he played twins Jethro and Van) is starring in the American tv series "Banshee", another programme I have yet to see.   Here's Starr.....