Mayor Bob Harvey

What I've been thinking

It's election season again. The faces of candidates are grinning out of signs on roadsides and street corners around the city. I'm an old hand with a hammer. In the many hours I've spent battering in those hoardings in the last 18 years, I've always made an effort to take note of the signs put up by my fellow hopefuls. They've given me a good idea of whether there's going to be a good crop of people leading the city.

This year's Council candidates look good. There seems to be a mix of contenders with experience, energy and creativity. Many of them are new to local government. Others are respected, hard working veterans with a vision for the future of Auckland. They have a good chance of navigating the political minefield that is likely to be the first term of the Auckland Council.

It's a different story when it comes to those standing for local board. Our great new community representatives are looking like the same tired, recycled faces that have for so long acted as a roadblock to any hint of change. They're easy to spot. Most were unable to muster a smile, even a decade ago when their election photo was shot. Their slogans are short and angry. And they are mainly known for stopping things happening rather than making them happen. These candidates are potential kryptonite to democracy and vision in the new Council.

What these local boards need is vitality and enthusiasm. That's why I've come up with my own list of signs you shouldn't be standing for a local board. There's going to be exceptions, but here are some rules of thumb:

1. You're over 70. If there's one thing we need more than people that are excited about the future of Auckland, it's people who are going to live to see it.
2. You find yourself pining for the good old days. Auckland's future is going to be radically different from the past whether we like it or not. Being involved in the new council means committing to making it work, not bringing it down.
3. You just want to oppose things. One of the great problems of politics is that you can fill a rugby field with people wanting to oppose an idea, but only a phone booth with those wanting to cheer something on. Let's vote for people who are about we can do for this city, rather than what we can't.
4. You're a technophobe. If you can't use email, text or even master a hands free car phone, don't think about standing for what will be a very modern and community focussed role.
5. You can't work with what you've got. Hide, Key, Twyford and Banks/Brown are names you'd better get used to, because they sure aren't going away soon.
6. You're an aging Che Guevara. You're not going to be leading a revolt against the Auckland Council. No-ones going to follow you on your march to Wellington to complain about decisions.

What I've been reading

The Invention of New Zealand Art and National Identity 1930-1970

Francis Pound
Pub : Auckland University Press

Here is a masterpiece. Author Dr Francis Pound, formally of Auckland University and now an independent curator, took 25 years to research and write this momentous and comprehensive work on the development of art and literature in New Zealand. It is an account of how our national identity grew from the ideas of our artists and creative thinkers.

The book pays homage to McCahon, Fairburn, Angus and the erudite Holcroft. Many more join the cast of those who have defined our creative psyche. Brilliant and original in its thinking and rich in depth, it is as much a national treasure as the art it pays tribute to. It gives us a reason to exist. That's good enough for me.

Longing and Belonging

Edwina Pio
Pub : Dunmore Publishing

Pio writes and edits a tapestry of tales from the diverse migrants who have travelled to these shores seeking better lives. She reminds us that we are becoming a "polyeurasian" country. Her stories are rich and emotional. They are also of today. Many of these new Kiwis do not pay much attention to the legacy of their forefathers who were treated so appallingly by this country. Instead they forge new beginnings and new thinking, shattering stereotypes and generalisations.

At once a social history and a conversation about neighbourhoods, Longing and Belonging is a conversation about the other half lives. It is an account of what it means to be a migrant in today's New Zealand.

New Zealand Birth Certificates: 50 of New Zealand's Founding Documents

Paul Moon
Pub: AUT Media

I'm always impressed by a new work by Moon, Professor of History at AUT University. Prolific and knowledgeable, in this book he adds a fresh and insightful take on the documents that shaped much of New Zealand's history. Using letters and notes on everything from the design of the New Zealand Flag, the Treaty and Land Purchases to executions and war declarations, Moon gives a bold and courageous analysis of a nation's past. The book evokes and inspires more study. It challenges your assumptions. It is also aesthetically pleasing. The handwriting of our ancestors was simply beautiful.

Into the West: 1836-1936

Jan Barnes
Pub: Protect Piha Heritage Society Inc

Probably one of the few good things to come out of the Piha Café battle was the Protect Piha Heritage Society's desire to publish more books on the West. This one was an absolute gem for those interested in the land transactions and the settlements on the West Coast.

Barnes is a descendent of the Brabazon and Ussher families who farmed on the coast in the 1860s. She combines her passion for the environment and research in this concise and easy-to-access new history. New maps and settler grants are discovered for the first time. Land holdings are fully and accurately documented.

For sale at Gone West Titirangi.

What I've been viewing

Woodstock

Michael Wadleigh
Running time: 185 minutes

Go see what we looked like 40 years ago before KFC and McDonalds wrecked our lives. Didn't we look young, brown and skinny? We were free and in love. It was the age of flower power. Vietnam raged outside, but for three days on that dairy farm near New York, peace reigned. Joan Baez, Crosby, Stills and Nash and Jimi Hendrix provided the music. It was the sound of a generation staking its claim in history.

Strength of water

Armagan Ballantyne
Running time: 86 minutes

Ten-year-old twins Kimi and Melody live on the shores of the Hokianga. A tragedy changes everything and everybody. Beautifully shot and acted, this is clearly the best New Zealand film of the year. A fine piece of work.

Rain of the Children

Vincent Ward
Running Time: 130 minutes

I spent many years on the Film Commission, and one of the sadnesses and also one of the joys was dealing with the hopes and ambitions of Vincent Ward as he would pitch his new films to the commission. I consider Ward to be one of our truly great creative artists in film; multi talented and totally and absolutely committed to his craft.

Rain of the Children is a masterpiece. It takes a timeline from his early short film, In Spring One Plants Alone, probably the best short film ever made in this country. Ward made this film aged 21, fresh out of film school, and the subject of the film, Puhi, is revisited in The Rain of Children. This new feature answers some of the mysteries that the original work held. Returning to the Ureweras and the site of the original film, Ward now enlarges the scope, vision and cast; flashing backwards and forwards as we begin to understand the mysteries and the deep emotional tragedies that were held sacred to Tuhoe and the Urewera community of Maungapohatu in the time of Maori prophet, Rua Kenana. Be prepared for an emotional heart rending epic.

Totally amazing, absorbing. Unforgettable.

What I've been listening to

Soldiers

Soldiers - Great North

The Warrior in Me - Lori Crandall

Sister Moon - Luke Hurley

Artist: Great North

In a crowded music industry, where anyone with a guitar or a set of drums can make a CD, it's hard to spot a new sound. Well, Great North is just that.

Hayden Donnell is the voice and writing brains behind this extraordinarily powerful CD. Lyrics make the difference - always have. It's the songs that matter. Black River is an outstanding track in a stunning line up.

Go buy it soon for you and your best friend. Ten stars.

The Warrior in Me

Artist: Lori Crandall

Born in cowboy country but now a Westie, Lori is a woman on a mission. What a voice and what a message.

At a time when New Zealand is being told "It's not OK" Lori tells about the hell and heartbreak of violence and its destructive path. She sings with a pure rich poignancy. Track 2 is astounding - the back up sound rich. Lori is a natural treasure. A singing hero of a massive battle against domestic violence. Every home should have one.

Sister Moon

Artist: Luke Hurley

Hurley is one of New Zealand's finest artists. An insider whose talent is undeniable. His question on the Erebus tragedy is a milestone in New Zealand music. Sister Moon is a brilliant return to his pure essence. Only Love and Nothing in Return are simply brilliant.

A street and concert performer as well as a city busker Hurley is a man who understands the way we work and who we are. Great cover art is by Russian artist Elena.

What I've been saying

Mayor Bob Harvey's Memorable Quotes

• Often the people who slip on banana skins are the ones who peeled the bananas in the first place.
• It's not hard for roosters to quickly become feather dusters.
• You can fill a hall with people who are against something and only a phone box with people trying to cheer something on.
• Westies will do anything if you ask them and nothing if you tell them.
• In politics it's wrong to be right too soon.
• Never mark the spot where you have buried the hatchet.
• My Councillors do all the heavy lifting, I just do leadership.
• The Council propose and the voters dispose.
• If you get a lemon, make lemonade.

Top picks for 2009

I've never been more grateful for great culture, entertainment and eating than in 2009. They provided a welcome break from the gloom of economic recession and super city reform.

Let's hope for more of the same in 2010.

See the full list of awards below:

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Full list of awards (Size 54K)