Should I Get One? What the Evidence Actually Says Is a COVID booster worth it in 2026? A vaccinologist breaks down the latest evidence on vaccine effectiveness, long COVID risk, reinfection, and what New Zealand guidance actually says.

Helen Petousis-Harris with a fabulous update on the latest evidence on Covid 19 booster vaccination. I've been persuaded to get the latest. diplomaticimmunity.blog/covid-booste...

Make a plan Emergencies can be unpredictable, so having a plan in place is important. A well thought out plan helps you and your whānau know exactly what to do, where to go, and how to stay safe when emergencies ...

OK, for all who read along as I attended the Catastrophic Planning Conference, here's a useful starting point on your own journey of preparation: Make a plan.

Don't be scared, be prepared.

Design and Conjure on Steam Join Dalia, the Nature Witch, on a heartwarming journey to restore her hometown. Tidy spaces, design magical rooms, solve gentle puzzles, and soothe magical creatures affected by mysterious corruption...

Very proud to share that an Ōtautahi studio founded by some of my former students have just signed a global publishing deal. The demo of their cosy game ‘Design and Conjure’ is out now. Check it out and give feedback if this is your sort of thing.
store.steampowered.com/app/2390130/...

If this is a possibility, absolutely go for it!

Huge fan of Michael Singer’s The Untethered Soul. Highly recommend all his work, but especially that book.

How we make it through…

University of Auckland associate professor and vaccinologist Helen Petousis-Harris says there is not enough awareness of the impact of Covid-19 on overall health. "What many people don't realise is that getting Covid repeatedly is not like building immunity, it's more like accumulating damage," she says. "Each infection raises your risk of long Covid and serious complications."

A few quick thoughts on the updated booster advice for 2026 from the Immunisation Advisory Centre for New Zealand:
This entirely dismisses the impacts of Long Covid & health impacts due to repeat infection - see expert advice below.
We’re actively creating a pipeline of cumulative health impacts.
🧵

People in casual spring attire ride bicycles and mobility scooters along a continuous regional cycling highway in natural and built-up areas between Waalwijk and Tilburg in the Netherlands.

People in casual spring attire ride bicycles and mobility scooters along a continuous regional cycling highway in natural and built-up areas between Waalwijk and Tilburg in the Netherlands.

People in casual spring attire ride bicycles and mobility scooters along a continuous regional cycling highway in natural and built-up areas between Waalwijk and Tilburg in the Netherlands.

People in casual spring attire ride bicycles and mobility scooters along a continuous regional cycling highway in natural and built-up areas between Waalwijk and Tilburg in the Netherlands.

A doorfietsroute (high-quality cycling route) is designed to enable fast, safe, and comfortable cycling over longer distances. Per CROW, five essential characteristics define such routes. Together, these elements ensure cycling becomes a competitive alternative to the car, especially for commuting.🧵

So proud to be the @greens.org.nz candidate for the new electorate of Kapiti, stretching from Whitby and Paremata in the south through to Ōtaki in the north.

Really excited to help elect a new Government this year with not only a compassionate Green heart, but also a strong Green spine.

The second #kakapo chick of the #kakapo2026 breeding season hatched this morning: Hine Taumai-A1-2026 on Ako's nest on Te Kākahu. We transferred the egg from Anchor two nights ago. This is Ako's first-ever chick, which is just a few hours old in this video. #conservation #birds #parrots

Tiny Tokyo Home Built On Super Narrow Lot, 33sqm/355sqft YouTube video by NEVER TOO SMALL

Yo @ninjakitty.bsky.social Tokyo Urbanism at its absolutely finest here as every bit of land space and interior space is used as expected with Japanese Efficiency.

Ironic this tiny home would meet the requirements of the incoming Planning Act better than Anglosphere designs :P

Top 10 Tips to Make Your ED Trip a Breeze My recent ED experience inspired some thoughts

It’s not that having an unwell and/or disabled child places pressure on families, it’s the lack of resources that places pressure - insufficient income, inaccessible homes, and inadequate state support:

open.substack.com/pub/drbex/p/...

Very cool!

Same noted at our work Secret Santa!

Oh, and one more thing - survived the school assembly and work Christmas do, was randomly gifted a bouquet of flowers by a lovely stranger (felt like a bonus secret Santa gift!), and the holidays officially start now- yippee! 💐

kind people are my kinda people written in black on a green background Alt: kind people are my kinda people written in black on a green background

And a massive thank you to everyone who has played, my giftee for opening their pressie early this morning (I think they liked it!), and the team at @secretsanta.nz @ninjakitty.bsky.social @eloquentsonia.bsky.social @larissacomments.bsky.social & @witchnwords.bsky.social
So much joy today 🎅🙌

The organic produce bags will get used a lot. I'm intrigued by the map & will enjoy perusing this with a cup of fruity tea & a side of chocolate on Christmas day! And a vintage bead bookmark too, thoroughly spoiled! Thank you so much #SecretSantaAONZ for such a wonderful gift!! 💗
Merry Christmas!

Fabric wrapping, a Jones & Sawyers map of fictional London, organic produce bags, peanut and caramel brittle chocolate, Tea Total loose leaf Otago summer fruits Tea and a vintage bead book mark!

Part 2 - Opening! Such wonderful, thoughtful and generous gifts, thank you so much! I adore Furoshiki (風呂敷) wrapping, it's gorgeous & perfectly trimmed. 🥰

Christmas card with red and green stripes with a white koru on top and a painted Pūkeko with an orange bow tail, with a fabric wrapped Secret Santa gift, light blue with native birds and flowers.

So excited to open my #SecretSantaAONZ card and pressie, what beautiful writing and wrapping! And it's even the same fabric as my husband's Christmas shirt! 🐦

What a joyous use of space!

It's been a bit stressful, not so much in case I didn't get a present, but in case my Secret Santa missed having their present opened! Excited for opening day 🤗

My #SecretSantaAoNZ parcel is almost here. After being stuck for 5 days, then redirected, marked as delivered but no sign of it (uh oh 😟), it has magically arrived at initial destination in time for me to collect tomorrow, just in time for opening day! Whew!!!

And everything is flawed, if you want to look at it that way. The analogy that has helped me most is this: in Hurricane Katrina, hundreds of boat-owners rescued people—single moms, toddlers, grandfathers—stranded in attics, on roofs, in flooded housing projects, hospitals, and school buildings. None of them said, I can’t rescue everyone, therefore it’s futile; therefore my efforts are flawed and worthless, though that’s often what people say about more abstract issues in which, nevertheless, lives, places, cultures, species, rights are at stake. They went out there in fishing boats and rowboats and pirogues and all kinds of small craft, some driving from as far as Texas and eluding the au- thorities to get in, others refugees themselves working within the city. There was bumper-to-bumper boat-trailer traffic—the celebrated Cajun Navy—going toward the city the day after the levees broke. None of those people said, I can’t rescue them all. All of them said, I can rescue someone, and that’s work so meaningful and important I will risk my life and defy the authorities to do it. And they did.

My position on taking action. And on the important space between everything and nothing.

And audience participation! What a fascinating evening. Much to ponder!

"The difference between animals and fungi is simple: animals put food in their bodies, whereas fungi put their bodies in the food."
—Merlin Sheldrake, Entangled Life #fungi

cartoon of five yak types with names: black yak, imperial yak, trim yak, royal yak, golden yak

I engage in regular, intentional, and time-boxed yak shaving. Thinking of tasks as animals gives me a power up.

Yak Shaving: "Doing seemingly-unrelated tasks to get some real task done" @jessitron.bsky.social

1/🧵

Hip hip hooray,
my #SecretSantaAoNZ present is on its way! 📬🎅

Hornet invasion: How to make your own traps A former bee keeper is calling for a united Auckland front to eliminate the threat of yellow-legged hornets.

Here is how to make your own hornets’ trap. Wonder if there is a way to keep bees out? #nzpol

Hello Santa! Thanks for checking in. I have sensitive skin so avoid frangrances in products, am allergic to nickeI, avoid gluten and I also prefer plant based instead of meaty things 🌱

Schools TOW - Google My Maps Schools TOW

Great interactive resource here from Tania Waikato / Chris Abercrombie of schools that have publicly committed to giving effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
Locally, I'm disappointed Fairfield Intermediate, Fairfield Primary & Woodstock aren't listed yet.
www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/v...

The Shift #2: COP30 in a multipolar world These are my reflections on COP30, the first climate COP that I have attended. I would like to thank the Toha Network for supporting my travel, Brazil's Ministry of Finance for the invitation to pre-C...

I’ve written about #COP30 for The Transition(s) Lab.

When the gavel came down in Belém, there was no major diplomatic breakthrough, but that’s not all that COPs are about these days. In a multipolar world, that’s likely a good thing.

Read more here: the-transitions-lab.ghost.io/the-shift-2-...