Issuu

A New Zealand Herald Commercial Publication

Tuesday, November 28, 2017

HITTING YOUR STRIDE IN YOUR

50s

Lee-Anne Wann's

FITNESS TIPS

An A-Z of river cruising

INSIDE YATES AND SIMON GAULT GIVEAWAYS

nzherald.co.nz | The New Zealand Herald | Tuesday, November 28, 2017

g n i y o Enj every

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Hoko and Glenda exude happiness, and a closeness that only 37 years of marriage can bring. They felt it was time to make a change to a more secure and supportive environment. “When you’re out in the community you’re on your own,” says Hoko. Theyy began inve estig gating g retire ement villa ages and soon decided it would be a Ryman village for them. They picke ed Diana Isaac in Christchurch because of the personable staff approach, and the peace of mind from terms such as the ﬁxed weekly fees. With no close family nearby, what stood out was the full continuum of care. If anything happens they have the security of knowing that resthome, hospital and dementia care is available to them right there. “This is not just a village. It’s our home, and it’s felt like home since day one. I’ve never been so happy. This is what we have worked for all our life – it’s time to sit back and enjoy it,” Glenda says.

To see Hoko and Glenda’s story or for more information about the Ryman difference visit www.rymanhealthcare.co.nz or phone Josie on 0800 000 290

nzherald.co.nz | The New Zealand Herald | Tuesday, November 28, 2017

INSIDE +PLUS Hitting your stride in your 50s p4

A to Z of river crusing p6

Michael Meredith Clearing the Table p9

Staying fit in your 50s p5 Burns’ war a masterclass p7

GAULT GIVEAWAY Metlifecare has partnered with celebrity chef Simon Gault, in an initiative that aims to enhance the food experience for retirement village residents. The partnership has seen Gault create a range of signature dishes, and tour the villages to train and inspire kitchen teams, as well as excite village residents. +Plus has two Simon Gault gift hampers to giveaway to +Plus readers. Each hamper consists of Gault’s range of five stocks, four seasonings and a signed copy of his book Homemade, each prize valued at $120. To win send an email to plus@nzme.co.nz with Gault please in the subject line — please include your mailing address and phone number in the body of the email.

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gregory.fleming@nzme.co.nz

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+Plus Cover Story

nzherald.co.nz | The New Zealand Herald | Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Hitting your stride

in your 50s

If 30 looms large, and 40 is some kind of cosmic joke, 50 is a monolith — harsh, huge and unforgiving. By Joanna Mathers

urning 50 is the nexus between still-quite-young and bloody-hell-I’m-not; 50 is the tipping point, the start of the slippery slope. It’s the age you’ll never think you’ll be, until you are. But while it’s tempting to see it as some kind of way-station on the path to the rest home, there’s increasing evidence that contrary to popular belief, life begins at 50. Consider, if you will, Robin Wright. Thirty years ago, when in her 20s, Wright was cheesing her way through small-screen drama on Santa Barbara. Her biggest claim to fame was being (according to Wikipedia) “the favourite Kelly of the audience” — her character Kelly Capwell was played by three different actors while the soap was on air. Zap along to 2017 and she was the multi-award actor for Netflix show House of Cards and appeared in perhaps moviedom’s most eagerly awaited sequels, Blade Runner 2049. She’s 51. Kyle McLachlan, Bryan Cranston, Robert Downey Jr . . . there’s an impressive roll call of Hollywood types who’ve had a new lease on life once they knocked off the big five-oh. Kiwi director Niki Caro has also joined their ranks. The Whale Rider director turned 50 this year, and she’s hot property in LA. She directed this year’s hit The Zookeeper’s Wife (starring Jessica Chastain) and has just been shoulder tapped for the Disney live-action version of Mulan. Older musicians are also making waves — LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy (the world’s oldest hipster) resurrected his cooler-than-thou dance-rock act late last year when he was 47. And Sixto Rodriguez (aka Sugarman) only found international acclaim after the documentary Searching for Sugarman was released in 2012 when he was 70. For anyone staring down the barrel of 50, it’s all rather heartening. Happiness second time round But it’s not just stars that are shining brighter once they topple half a ton, it’s regular folk as well. Alice Shopland (52) is the founder of vegan food suppliers Angel Food, and her husband Colin Woods (55) is a musician. Both of them are rocking their 50s. “My business, which I started in my early 40s, is turning into something significant. My husband and I have a ridiculously loving, supportive and fun relationship. My sons have grown into excellent adults, and I’m Grandma Alice to a gorgeous little boy,” says Shopland. She says another amazing thing about being in her 50s is finally accepting herself. “Having been a painfully selfconscious child and teenager and young adult, I am now comfortable with who I am,” she says. Shopland and Woods married in 2014. Both had been married before, and have found true happiness the second time around. “I found someone who is a genuine soulmate,” says Woods.

Alice Shopland and husband Colin Woods are both rocking their 50s; Niki Caro (below). Pictures / Ted Baghurst; Supplied

“My life now is so much better with a person who understands and supports me in my weird sound art adventures — and I’m happy to say that I think I support and encourage her endeavours with equal enthusiasm.” Woods says that as well as finding love, he has also been able to pursue his lifelong passion in his 50s. “I worked as a medical scientist in hospital pathology labs for 30 years, and it was a factor in me developing mental health issues,” he says. “With the support of Alice I was able to pursue my real passion and go back to university to study music. Even though it meant a major cut to my income, I have no regrets.” In psychological terms, Shopland and Woods are doing everything right. Developmental psychologist Erik Erikson developed a theory of psychosocial stages through which mentally healthy individual pass from birth to adulthood. In this theory, happiness at the ages of 40-64 is achieved through generativity — a concern for the

Having been a painfully selfconscious child and teenager and young adult, I am now comfortable with who I am. Alice Shopland

future that is satisfied through meaningful work, caring for others, and creating a legacy. If this sense of meaning is developed, this period of adulthood can be a time of genuine happiness. Another key to happiness in your 50s (according to Erikson’s psychosocial analysis) is doing work that helps other people. Bill Gates began his philanthropic work in his mid-40s. The now 52-yearold said in a Reddit Ask Me Anything session that this, rather than the acquisition of wealth in earlier life, has been a key to happiness. “It is nice to feel like you made a difference,” he says.

Robin Wright. Picture / Getty Images

Embracing the years Penny Cassie is also living the dream at 50. The kindergarten teacher from Auckland spent her late 40s dreading the half-century mark, but is now living in Vietnam with a new husband and having the time of her life. “I turned 50 on a Tuesday this year, married the love of my life on the Saturday and the boom hasn’t stopped getting better,” she says. She and her husband left New Zealand for Saigon in June this year after she was offered a teaching job there, and feels like she’s 20 again. “My life is seriously amazing and

I wouldn’t change a thing. I am having the time of my life and I love every day. I have my wonderful friend and partner to share this with, which makes it even better.” Whether you’re running an ethical food company, travelling the world or finding love, it seems that many others share this 50’s joie de vivre. A recent Gallup poll of 340,000 Americans revealed that the happiness quotient started to rise significantly once folks turned 50. The happiest age, according to the poll, is 85. So rather than fearing age, maybe it’s time to embrace it? Woods embraced his 50s by writing a piece of music entitled 53 for University of Auckland’s Lilburn Composition competition. It won joint first place. “My advice to people heading into their 50s is to look forward to it. It’s a good time to reassess your life goals. Take stock, and don’t be afraid to change direction because hopefully you still have a good while left to follow your heart.” Cassie has similar words of wisdom for those on the brink of the half century. “Live life to the full, be positive and take changes!”

+Plus Fitness

nzherald.co.nz | The New Zealand Herald | Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Fighting fit as you age

SUPPLEMENTS

The mid-century milestone is a good time to consider fitness and nutrition, finds Donna McIntyre

ealth and fitness consultant Lee-Anne Wann is dismayed when people over 50 cut back on fitness activities, saying their bodies are ageing. “People attribute mental decline, weight on the stomach, saggy skin, looking older, more fine lines, joint problems, lack of energy, on getting older,” says Wann, 42, who has been working in the health and fitness industry for 15 years. “I disagree, I think it is more about the impact of what our lifestyle has on us. And the older we become, the more time we have had to experience that impact.” She believes exercise is essential as we age. “At 50-plus, exercise is going to prevent mental and physical deterioration, like mental health and bone health,” says Wann. “If you are 50-plus and already exercising, that is great. But you do need to look at your training habits. Are you recovering properly? Are you eating good foods to make sure that the exercise is beneficial and not just breaking down the body? “Do you have time to fit in all your exercise? Do you enjoy or hate it? Is it another chore? These things play massively on our mind sets, which can then exacerbate stress. “Look at the routine that meets

your needs in life. Don’t let other people tell you what you should do. Some people love yoga or paddleboarding, some don’t. If you love running don’t stop it, but maybe look at the speed, the type, the duration or the ground that you are running. That might minimise the impact of stress on the body and shorten recovery time. Could you go to interval training? “What are your goals at 50-plus, and why do you exercise? Is it to increase longevity? To maintain your weight? Or to reduce stress? “My opinion, for most people 50-plus, is looking at improving and maintaining strength and muscle. Strength training is probably top for longevity of life and anti-ageing, and for bone strength and bone density. “You need to lift heavy things — whether that is lifting your body or some weights or some milk containers with sand — it needs to be weight-bearing to stimulate the action of the muscle. If we are looking at exercise, I go: tone, target and relax.”

Wann’s top three supplements: High-quality fish oil It has a positive effect on every disease known to man. It turns on the genes required for fat burning. Magnesium It helps us sleep better, improves brain function and heart health, and decreases belly fat. It is one of the first minerals to be leeched through chronic exposure to stress. Magnesium-rich foods include dark leafy greens, nuts, seeds, fish, beans, whole grains, avocados, yoghurt, bananas, dried fruit, and dark chocolate. Multivitamins Essential for helping the body detoxify and getting rid of chemicals.

Fitness tips

● Tone — Make the muscles work ● Target — Target your heart and reduce stress. This is called high-

intensity work, and as we get older, a lot of us tend to skip this. Highintensity training could be running up a hill and walking back down, or going to a boxing class, not necessarily for muscle-building, but for movement. We want to sweat as well. High-intensity training is one of the best ways to promote fat loss and increase memory.

● Relax — It’s important to unwind the body, doing Pilates, yoga or

some stretches to counteract our posture all day, or getting some fresh air. Doing something to reduce the stress load on the body. Men, particularly as they get older, don’t tend to take the time out.

Key Points

● Keep moving ● Sometimes less is more. Prioritise your goals and time. ● Minimise risk of injury with good nutrition, adequate sleep and staying hydrated.

Wann says, ideally, exercise needs to be part of our daily lifestyle. “I would say 30 minutes to an hour. “This is where you look at programmes like 10,000 steps. It is a good benchmark to aim for; that is probably 45 minutes to an hour-long walk.” Good nutrition, sufficient sleep and staying hydrated are other important factors to staying well. “If you are exercising but you are fatigued and

carrying a bit of weight around your stomach and you are not recovering well, pull back on the duration. Go for quality and not quantity, and look at your sleep quality, your food choices and the amount of water you are drinking.” Wann says injuries are the leading cause people in this age group stopping exercising. “People get injured and it doesn’t heal and it niggles. Invariably they go ‘well that is age and I am going to stop

Go for quality and not quantity, and look at your sleep quality, your food choices and the amount of water you are drinking

Lee-Anne Wann (pictured, left)

doing what I am doing as it is not good for me’. “Minimising your risk of injury equates to improving general health, i.e. drinking water, eating good-quality protein to help the body recover, trying to improve your sleep where you can. All those things that are not directly related to your exercise but reduce your risk of injury while exercising. “Being dehydrated increases our risk of injury substantially. Tendons are not as flexible or as pliable. If you are stiff and sore in the morning, it may not be you are getting older, it may well be that you are dehydrated. Or you may have too much sugar or processed food in your diet and that is going to cause inflammation and make it harder to move.”

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+Plus Travel

nzherald.co.nz | The New Zealand Herald | Tuesday, November 28, 2017

A to Z of river cruising River cruises can seem expensive. But once you realise the cost includes five-star hotel accommodation, all tours, meals and transport, you realise you’re getting a great deal, says Donna McIntyre.

ou check in once for the length of your tour, and any border controls are taken care of by the crew. There’s no constant checking out, checking in and then wondering what to do with your luggage in between. No beds to make, bathrooms to clean or meals to prepare. And you get to meet similar-minded people, relaxed and enjoying the good life as they travel some of the most beautiful waterways in Europe. This A-Z is based on our experience during a 15-day tour of the Rhine and Moselle waterways with Scenic, one of many different companies offering river cruises in Europe and other parts of the world.

ll-inclusive: This is what makes Scenic exceptional. Tour cost includes all meals, drinks, transport and tours. That’s great news for knowing your total travel costs. Also, Aussie and Kiwi accents — you tend to hear a lot of these as Scenic is an Australian company owned by Glen Moroney. eds, bathrobes and blankets: The B bed in our cabin is comfortable and king size, and there are bathrobes and a snuggly blanket.

abins: Our balcony suite has an C en suite, is a good size and it’s great having the private covered “outdoor” space with slide-down window and two seats.

isco night: Not to be missed. A DJ D comes on board and plays the songs passengers have requested.

magical feeling to float past so much history. ear: The tailor-made commentH ary on portable guides. A GPS system allows you to learn about landmarks along the river, and in the villages and cities.

tinerary: Ours was Amsterdam to IatingBasel but Scenic has 13 ships operin Europe on the Seine, Garonne,

Dordogne, Rhone and Saone in France; the Douro in Portugal, Russia; and the Rhine, Main and Danube rivers.

ust ask: for room service if you Jcabin. prefer meals or drinks in your ing and queen: K You will be treated like royalty. aundry: L Complimentary 1kg of

washing once during the tour. Otherwise there’s a laundry service. For example, wash for jeans or trousers is 4.40 euros ($7.40) or wash and press 7.50 euros. Bed linen is changed twice a week but you can request it more often. You can wash smalls and T-shirts in the wash basin and dry them on the shower’s pull-out line.

-bikes: For guided biking tours oments: to remember, take lots E and so you can explore on your M of photos! own. If you’re a cyclist, you never ews: Printed NZ bulletin available need to ramp up the e-bike from zero but it’s handy to have the electric N (as well as Aussie, English, Canadian and US). assistance on hills if you don’t have seasoned cyclists’ legs.

riends and fun: Go as a small group or make some friends as you cruise the rivers. You already have travel as a common denominator for conversation. Most guests are in the age bracket of 55-75 and tend to be retired or semi-retired.

orge, as in Rhine Gorge rather than gorging yourself at the buffet table (which can be hard to resist, especially on the first few days). The Rhine Gorge is where you will marvel at the many medieval castles. It’s a

pera: The Scenic Enrich concert O night at the Rastatt Residential Palace in the upper Rhine Valley is, for me, the tour’s cultural highlight.

ack: Casual wear and comfortable walking shoes for daytime. Pack dresses or casual open-neck shirts and long pants for evening as shorts are not considered appropriate for dinner.

Clockwise: The Scenic Pearl; the Pearl floats in front of Rheinfels Castle, Rhine, Germany; Donna McIntyre and her Pictures / Supplied husband; a private concert at Rastatt Palace.

interspersed by a dance-off from two members of each team. Hilarious.

iews: Constantly changing night es please: Scenic’s most popular V Y and day, villages, cities, cruise for New Zealanders is the vineyards, castles, bridges . . . 15-day Jewels of Europe River

est and recreation: Sums up the R trip aistline: This will expand, and in three words. W the cruise is not the time or undeck, deck chairs and sitting on place to worry about that. Sto watch the top deck are wonderful places The food is delicious, the bar fully the scenery change as you glide along the river.

stocked. Worry about those extra kg when you get home.

uiz night: Another evening high- T X Q light. You form teams and try to mbrellas: Supplied, appreciated. guess the song after the pianist plays the first few bars. Ten questions U And they’re nice and big.

Retirement living, your way

ipping: Not on this cruise, which is a relief.

for eXercise. There’s a walking track on top of the boat, a small gym on board and you can walk or cycle when the boat is tied up.

Stanmore Bay 09 424 8228

Cruise, from Amsterdam to Budapest (or vice versa) through five countries and a mixture of cosmopolitan cities and European villages.

for siZe: The boats range in size Z from 48 cabins (96 guests) to 85 cabins (169 guests). ● Donna McIntyre was a guest of Scenic

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+Plus TV

nzherald.co.nz | The New Zealand Herald | Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Burns’ War a masterclass I

Paul Casserly

first experienced the world outside of 1970s Onehunga thanks to a 21-inch black-and-white PYE TV. It made me pee my pyjamas as Daleks harassed Doctor Who, clap as the All Blacks ran amok with the pre-video-ref abandon of Viking pillagers, and it was through this hazy portal that I saw a naked Vietnamese girl running from the flames of a napalm attack on her village; Phan Thi Kim Phuc, only 9 years old. In my memory she was still on fire as she ran, which of course she wasn’t, but watching it back in The Vietnam War, I learnt that she was in flames only minutes before the film and iconic photograph were taken. I was 7 years old as I watched this horror show from a place that may as well have been on the moon. Ken Burns and Lynn Novick’s epic series contains their back-stories and much more besides. Its scope is at once encyclopaedic, personal, macro and micro. It’s exhaustive and a little exhausting. Because of a scheduling snafu there were no participants available to be interviewed for Burns’ magnum opus, The Civil War. Letters, photographs and sound design told that tale. It’s rightly considered one of the greatest war narratives of all time, but this one hits closer to home and is all the more powerful for it. It also contains some of the most remarkable first-hand accounts recorded on film. I grew up familiar with the main players of WW2, via the English version of history served to us in the Antipodes. Churchill, Roosevelt, Hitler, Monty, Patton. There was a guy called Stalin but he got less screen time, as he was a dirty commie. The scale of the Russian involve-

it stop.” It’s a recurring theme; everyone knew it would end in tears but no one knew how to stop. The hubris of a superpower that has never lost a war, whose mainland has never been invaded, and who possesses a supersized arsenal, becomes the cloud that looms over this great tragedy. Burns and Novick are skilled at painting the myriad shades of grey that complete the

...everyone knew it would end in tears but no one knew how to stop.

An American soldier of the 1st Infantry Division and a refugee during a fire-fight with Viet Cong in 1966. Picture / Getty Images

ment in that war seemed like a footnote when it was anything but. I also thought I knew a bit about the Vietnam war until I sat down to start my slow binge through this 18-hour master class. The ‘things I didn’t know’ started to pile up like dead bodies. As the Vietnam War progressed, the metric of success employed by American propagandists was the difference between the number of North Vietnamese deaths to US ones, the socalled ‘kill ratio’. This vastly favoured the US and one would assume by counting those particular beans that the bottom line would be a Yankee

victory. Spoiler alert: It didn’t. Burns and Novick employ a ticking clock, starting with a handful of US dead in the early years, and jumping towards to final 50,000 towards the end. As the hours of the series tick by, the number grows, revealing a glacial shit-storm of politics and prevarication. Though we look back fondly on him now, it was John F. Kennedy who started this American disaster and it was Lyndon Johnson who made it grow. Thanks to audio recordings we hear how Johnson and defence secretary Robert McNamara, he of Fog Of War fame, saw the shape of things as

decidedly pear, right from the get go. The monkey on their back was the US voter who has no taste for the withdrawal technique. In later episodes, Nixon faces the same dilemma. His story is also told via audio recordings of phone calls, which is a compelling tool as it comes mostly unfiltered. Nothing captured in a formal interview can ever get us as close to hearing the cogs of power grinding sound loudly and so close to the source. “I feel like a jackrabbit in a Texas hailstorm,” Johnson laments down the phone. “There’s nowhere to shelter, I can’t outrun it and I can’t make

2018 EUROPE RIVER CRUISING

picture. We do get big servings of Vietnamese perspective and history, but like the kill tally, the ratio remains a little one-sided. The music cues are superb. Dylan, The Beatles, Hendrix etc. It’s hardly a silver lining but no other war has coincided with or been influenced by so many great tunes. Yes, Burns’ epics do tend to wear you down. I suspect many people will start but not finish this, but to me it’s a journey well worth the hike. This belongs on the top shelf of the genre, along with The World at War. The voice of Laurence Olivier was the adhesive in that 1980s landmark, while Sir Michael Redgrave boomed majestically over the original televisual war tome, The Great War (1964). Peter Coyote does the honours here. The dude is a master of tone, pace, and is in possession of a larynx that reverberates with spellbinding, causal gravitas. But it’s in the words of the soldiers and the civilians that you will find yourself in tears. Watch - The Vietnam War (TVNZ On Demand)

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nzherald.co.nz | The New Zealand Herald | Tuesday, November 28, 2017

HEN HER physiotherapist told retired British teacher and outdoor enthusiast, Mary Carlson that she must stop her long walks, she was devastated. She had spent much of her life walking in the Lake District and spent over 30 years running The Duke of Edinburgh Award for pupils at her school. She said “I was devastated to hear that I had to stop my hill walking, it has been my whole life. I was only 61 and had planned to spend a lot more time walking now that I had retired.” Mary told us how her knee problems started and how they had gradually affected her everyday life: “Considering how active I am, it was the simple act of getting out of the car in the supermarket car park that caused the initial problem. I was in a hurry, twisted awkwardly and fell. Apart from the sheer embarrassment, it left me with painful swollen knees, particularly my right knee. I assumed I would shake it off in time, however, the pain didn’t go away”. In fact her pain got steadily worse and reached the point where she struggled walking even short distances and had trouble getting up and down stairs. Simply getting out of a chair was difficult so, in the end, she had to make some changes to her lifestyle and sadly after advice from her physio, she stopped her long walks and playing golf. Even taking the grandchildren to the park was too painful. She tried all kinds of gels, supplements and knee supports, but nothing provided the relief or support she needed and over time,

My knees were killing me… untiil I discovered the ‘miracle’ ” knee support “

Mary ry y Carlson says the Active-3 Knee Support has transformed her life

Ex-teacher walks again without pain! By BRIAN WARD she lost her confidence. All her dreams and expectations of retirement had disappeared. Mary had pretty much given up hope of continuing with her active life, “I’m only 61 but felt like a little old lady struggling to get around” that was until four months ago when she discovered a knee support that promised to fix her knees. “I read an advert in a newspaper for the Active-3 Knee Support and it seemed to answer all of my problems. I admit that I was a bit sceptical at first, but the knee support came with a no-quibble, money-back guarantee and a 90 day home trial, I decided to give it a go, I had nothing to lose.” “I was hoping that just maybe my prayers would be answered this time.” Her knee problems had a major impact on her everyday life

and particularly the loss of her hill walking. She said “It was so frustrating not being able to get about so easily and feeling like I was getting old well before my time.” However, life has since completely turned around for her. “What a revelation! As soon as the knee support arrived I gave it a go,” she says. “It was a breeze to put on, easy to adjust and very comfortable to wear. I went straight out to pick up the grandchildren and took them to the park,

Mary is just one of thousands of customers who have tried the Active-3 Knee Support and have found soothing relief from their painful knees. The Active-3 Knee Support is available exclusively from Century Mail for $49.95 and you can order through their free phone number 0800 55 77 99. The 90 day home trial is still available and they guarantee a no

“Now I’ve got my life back again!” quibble, full refund if the knee support doesn’t work for you. So, you can use your support for a full 90 days, enjoy an active life, it doesn’t matter if it gets dirty or is well used. If you don’t get all the support and relief you want, simply send it back and the company will refund you in full.

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+Plus Food

nzherald.co.nz | The New Zealand Herald | Tuesday, November 28, 2017

As Michael Meredith turns off the ovens and his crew wash the last dishes, Ewan McDonald digests the chef's contribution to innovative dining

Clearing the table

um and Dad set strict rules for the dinner table. As the lowest links in the food chain, Stephen and I had to lay the table — the cutlery, the place mats, and fold the serviettes inside everyone's individual rings. Food was on the table at 6 and all five children were expected to be there, hands washed, no excuses, before Dad said grace. And before anyone asked permission to leave the table, Dad insisted we say thank you to the cook. And that's what I'm going to do today. Stumbling into the gig when we created Viva and eating out meant entrees, mains and desserts, I wrote about restaurants in Auckland and elsewhere for more than 12 years. When Michael Meredith opened his namesake establishment, I was the first to review it. As he closes it at Christmas, 10 years later, I may be among the last to eat there and write about it. Then, it was a bold, even brash, adventure. Those were the heady days of the celebrity chef, and as far as Auckland went in fine dining, Meredith was one of the few. The very few, and of them, only a couple had the audacity to name their restaurants after themselves. In Parnell even the master chef, Tony Astle, called his place Antoine's; at SkyCity, it was dine by Peter Gordon. Downtown, however, it had

been Gault on Quay and way out in Dominion Rd it would be Meredith's. It wasn't the first time the quietly spoken Samoan-born chef had helped break the mould. Michael Dearth had talent-spotted him to head the kitchen at his innercity fine-diner, The Grove. These days, that restaurant is part of the established order, with its platters of awards and string of double-barrelled chefs — Michael Meredith, Sid Sahrawat, Ben Bayley — but then it was an upstart, the irresistible force challenging the previously immovable objects of the O'Connell St Bistro, French Cafe, Gault's Euro, Kate Fay's Cibo. At the first height of its fame — it has gone on to others — Meredith left for parts unknown to serious gourmandising. He took over three rundown suburban shops, knocked out the walls, painted them black and frosted the glass, and installed a stateof-the-art kitchen. Then, he rolled up his sleeves and got to work. You went to Meredith's for his food and to experience a restaurant that was at once serious and sassy. It knew every one of the other boxes — service, wine, style, ambience — and ticked them all. It didn't take long for the awards to crowd the mantelpiece and the invitations to drop into the letterbox: would Mr Meredith care to grace the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival alongside Heston Blumenthal and

Chef Michael Meredith (above) photographed in his restaurant Meredith's Pictures / Babiche Martens; Supplied (top).

Thomas Keller? Meredith's simply expressed philosophy was, “The thing I want [my staff] to understand more than anything, is food and how to respect it.” Others saw something deeper: Dearth called him “the zen chef” and one of his senior staff told me, “Without Michael's way, there's no way”. Meredith's way meant that everything took time. It was and is refined cooking. You need patience to strive for perfection. The chef tried and

discarded, tweaked and refined. Searched for perfection. Relentlessly. It cost. Announcing the decision to close the restaurant, Meredith spoke of the sacrifices in his personal life, the cost to his relationship, and his three daughters. He is in a new relationship and expecting a child in the New Year. A break is needed: “When you own your own business you don't see your family. So this time around I want to enjoy that part.” There will be a new venture and

it is no surprise that it will have a huge social dimension. For Meredith, with business partner Lisa King, founded Eat My Lunch, which provides free lunches to hundreds of school kids who would otherwise go without. Lately, free dinners too. The restaurant also ran a weekly “dine by donation” scheme where every cent spent on food went to charities. Those contributions, as well as his expertise at his night job, have been recognised with the New Zealand Order of Merit. There were, and there are, hundreds of other charitable events and activities that few will know about. People asked, he said yes. I refuse to write, “For the last supper . . .” but three of us went to Meredith's because two of us share a birthday and we'd all been here before, separately, and it seemed an appropriate way to mark the occasion. I could deconstruct all the dishes in our degustation, from the canapes of chicken liver hidden in chocolate to the yoghurt sorbet, but somehow that's not the point. After the meal, Meredith and I chatted and shook hands across the pass. I remembered what I wrote in that first review: “I would eat anything that came out of this man's kitchen.” It didn't seem the right time to remind him. So I'll just do what Dad told me: Thank you, chef.

17 ds 20 en er er b ff m O ce e D

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D10

+Plus Gardening

nzherald.co.nz | The New Zealand Herald | Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Your garden can begin to suffer at this time of year, as festive activities creep in; Sarah O’Neil (below). Picture / Getty Images; Ted Baghurst

November is a waiting game November is a strange month in the garden, there’s not much to do but prepare and plan, writes Sarah O’Neil

p until now there have been months and months of activity and we find ourselves in late spring. Even in the cold of winter there is the anticipation for the conditions to become ideal for growing again, with much planning and dreaming going on. It is an exciting time, as the imagined garden is always perfect and there is the expectation that the conditions of the coming season will, of course, be ideal. Spring finally arrives, and it is all hands on deck, sowing seeds and clearing weeds. The work indoors with the seeds is miraculous as tiny plants emerge from what appears to be dead specks. But as with the demands of a newborn, they are constantly checked and have their needs met — warmth, moisture and plenty of light.

Nervous gardeners hover to ensure the plant grows healthily. Meanwhile in the garden, the work is more physical and demanding, digging and weeding in bracing conditions. The end of the day leaves you exhausted. But the reward comes from seeing a clean and clear earth emerge from a sea of unruly greenery that will soon be home to the tiny seedlings growing indoors. With each turn of the shovel you can almost taste that first tomato and it spurs you on. Finally, in mid-spring we get the allclear to plant out the garden as the risk of frost is no longer with us. Once again there is a flurry of activity as we create support structures to allow our plants to climb or sprawl across the garden in the ways that best suit

them. And then we lovingly set our plants into the well-prepared earth and stand back and admire all we have done as we shake the dirt from our hands. The garden has been planted and it looks just how we imagined it in the winter. And then we find ourselves in this strange month, November.

In this late-spring month there isn’t all that much to do. There are no seedlings to tend to — they are all in the garden and doing a marvellous job of growing on their own. There are barely any weeds, because the ground was cleared earlier. There is nothing to dig. Even going to the garden centre loses a little of its joy, as there is no spare ground left for exciting new purchases. The temptation and plantgathering frenzy of the past few months has all but died. The plants themselves are a long way from becoming harvestable, so there isn’t a lot to be eaten. This time of year can often be referred to as the ‘hungry months’, where the stores from the previous season have been eaten and the new crops are still a while off. This is often why produce at the store is so expensive right now, it is the wrong season for pumpkins and capsicums, and any left or grown come at a cost. It’s easy to lose interest in the garden at this time of year, especially as activities for the festive season

begin to creep in, and the garden can begin to suffer. But all is not lost. During this time, you can reach for your packets of seeds again as some crops are a onceonly deal and once eaten are gone. However, if you plant more every 3-4 weeks, you will have a continual supply. This is most common with salad crops, spring onions, beetroot and carrots. While the garden is currently in a weed-free state, it won’t stay like that for long as nature hates bare earth and they will soon turn up. Make a point of checking weekly, and remove any you see. It is much better to tackle them while they are small, so they won’t compete with your plants. Or you could apply a generous helping of mulch. ● Sarah O'Neil is an author, blogger and passionate gardener writing about the trials and tribulations of growing food for her family. Her books The Good Life and Play in the Garden and the recently released Growing Vegetables are available at all good bookstores. sarahthegardener.co.nz

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nzherald.co.nz | The New Zealand Herald | Tuesday, November 28, 2017

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D12

nzherald.co.nz | The New Zealand Herald | Tuesday, November 28, 2017