day sixty-six - across the ditch

Pride of New Zealand Tartan - distinctly sans green

The grass is always greener, or so they say. In this case though, just across the ditch, lies New Zealand - A verdant country with rolling hills, incredible mountain ranges, stunning coastlines and pastures. Not only is it physically stunning, it is widely held up as a progressive nation, built with a shared, integrated culture and respect for the country’s First Nations people, with forward thinking policies, and an impressive, compassionate and eloquent leader who brings dignity to the world stage (They were also not the ones to bowl underarm).

Often, when there’s an Australian centric issue that disgusts, shames, embarrasses, or even mildly irks the nation, across (at least my) social media, there’s countless proposals of a mass exodus to New Zealand.

The problem with that scenario, is that it leaves Australia stagnating, It doesn’t fix or even address the causal issues.

From pavlova, to Phar Lap, Russell Crowe to Crowded House, Australia is really good at stealing things from New Zealand. Why though, do we stop there? Could we not at least borrow some of the things that are working so well for them?

For someone like me, who can’t stop his brain from thinking, is predisposed to anxiety (and subsequent depression), and is deeply affected by the lack of equity and compassion in the society around me, it all adds up to that grass over there looking pretty green indeed.

Perhaps though, rather than moving to avoid problems, maybe it’s time to sow seeds, tend the soil and do some weeding to green up our own lawns.

Kilt of the Day - Ross Modern Hunting Tartan

Tartan of the Day - Pride of New Zealand

https://www.tartanregister.gov.uk/tartanDetails?ref=3373

Soundtrack of the day that’s as Aussie as a Lamington - Into Temptation - Crowded House

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8U1gC2JilQ

Soundtrack of the day - Ernie - Fat Freddy’s Drop

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fz-UAA7u8cY

Link of the day - Moving to New Zealand from Australia - NZ Immigration

https://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/why-choose-nz/compare-new-zealand/australia

Beverage of the day - L&P

Shoutout of the day - Mark and Paul - The Blingling Brothers