The end of another glorious Kiwi summer

Photo c/o blogs.shu.edu

Today is February 28, the last day of the month and also officially the end of summer in Aotearoa New Zealand.  How time flies, so they say, before you know it, it's already gone!  Two months of 2018 are nearly over, have you met your goals yet?  Are you on-target?  Your plans are still doable?  And so many other questions needing answers.

One thing though about this latest Kiwi summer, it was a weird mixture of hot weather with storms (very strong winds) and rain.  And because I am recuperating from an illness, we didn't get to the beach as much as we wanted too.  I think the closest we got was Mission Bay on New Year's Eve.  Hopefully, there will still be some more glorious Kiwi summer weather for us to go to the beach.

Cats and dogs in NZ politics

Photo c/o parliament.nz

Once upon a time, I emailed several members of Parliament, to ask them to share a little bit about themselves that not many people know about.  Here are the ones who took time from their busy schedule to answer whether they're a cat or dog person.  Jacinda Ardern wasn't yet the Prime Minister when she emailed her answers.  We all know how she loved her cat Paddles, the First Cat of New Zealand and a social media star.  Phil Goff was still a Member of Parliament and not yet Mayor of Auckland City.

Jacinda Ardern (Labour Party)
A: I have always loved dogs but was never allowed one, so I grew up with cats and love them too.  Can I be both?  Right now, I would be a better cat owner than a dog owner.  I am never home!

David Bennett (National Party)
A: Definitely a cat person ... Just like small pets that are pretty much self sufficient.

Phil Goff (Labour Party)
A: A dog person.  I have two---a Jack Russell and a Huntaway.  They are good companions, loyal, you can take them for walks, use them to help round up farm animals and they have a lot of character.

Tim Macindoe (National Party)
A: Dog---because I grew up with them and always enjoyed having them around.  (But we had a lovely cat a few years ago and I still miss her).

Nikki Kaye (National Party)
A: Cat person - it's in the genes.  My mum and grandmother love cats too.

Denise Roche (Green Party)
A: Dog person. My partner is allergic to cat hair.

Sue Moroney (Labour Party)
A: I am one of those rare people who love both cats and dogs.  I was brought up with both and Rusty, Mooshey, Tilly, Monty and Scully have been loyal companions to me throughout my life.

Krispy Kreme comes to NZ

Photo by RMO

The last time I had a sugar-glazed Krispy Kreme doughnut was 9 years ago in the Philippines.  I'm not really much of a doughnut lover, just having them only on special occasions.  There were other doughnut chains like Dunkin' Donuts, Mister Donut, Go Nuts Donuts, and J. Co Doughnuts and Coffee.  There was one named Cello's Doughnuts which was very near the school were I was teaching, and was often patronized by me, more for proximity than anything else.

When word came that Krispy Kreme was coming to Aotearoa New Zealand, my Filipino friends where the more vocal ones in showing their appreciation of it's impending arrival.  Prior to that, a group of Filipino entrepreneurs in Hamilton started a coffee and doughnut shop called Epiphany Cafe.  Their doughnut seemed to address the taste of the Filipino, who has been longing for something similar.  They even came out with an ensaymada flavor that was quite a hit to the Filipino community.

But going back to Krispy Kreme because of it's presence in the Philippines, Filipinos will be drawn to it like bees and honey.  Management is already anticipating long lines of people when they open on Wednesday, February 28.  Good luck and all the best!

Migrant entrepreneurs

Photo c/o Myla Bides

There are people who come to New Zealand to specifically engage in business.  They are already established entrepreneurs in their home countries but because of certain circumstances they opt to move to another country.  However, although they've travelled thousands of kilometres and have uprooted themselves and their families, they still would like to continue to be engaged in business instead of working as an employee.  Some of them come here on an entrepreneur's visa while the others go for gainful employment and then after a couple of years and using the money they've brought with them plus the amount they have saved, start their own businesses.

The normal entry-level businesses they engage in are the various food takeaways, dairy stores, bakeries, laundromats, fruit and vegetable shops, food retail shops, petrol stations, and many more.  Now this is not a scientific analysis but I've noticed a sort of pattern with the various businesses and their ethnicity: takeaways (Chinese, normally, although I've seen Indians and other ethnic groups engaged in this business), dairy stores and laundromats (Indian), bakeries (Cambodian), fruit and vegetable shops (Indian, Chinese), petrol stations (Indians), food retail shops (Filipino, Chinese, Indian, Korean, Thai).

Inside the shopping malls, I've seen massage parlours operated by Chinese, cleaning and lawn mowing (Polynesian, Indian), taxicab operations (Somalian).  The founders of these businesses have travelled thousands of kilometres and endured heaps of challenges, stress and pressure just to reach NZ and start their entrepreneurial journey.  This then is the mission of this blog to highlight the joys and the sorrows of these entrepreneurs.

Stay tuned for our new website

Photo c/o RMO

We are finalizing our very own website, www.kiwinoy.nz, one that will house all our content and promos.  Once we're live, it will still be a work-in-progress.  There is something about having your own private home, that tells the world, that you mean business.  However, we will still maintain this blog site, not just for sentimental reasons but more of as an important component to our branding and history.  This can also be a back-up plan for us.

Merriest Christmas and Happiest New Year

Merriest Christmas and Happiest New Year

Now online

Image c/o RMO

We're now online in our new site at www.barangaynz.com wherein all our blog posts will be found.  We'll try to endeavor to transfer our content to the new site. Many thanks for your support.