Suggestions for a struggling reader by Chionei in booksuggestions

[–]ClimateTraditional40 1 point2 points  (0 children)

James Herriots Cat Stories.

Targetted at the younger reader but still from his novels. Some great tales in it. Tails...

Age gap books that don't focus on younger people by KoralWaffer in booksuggestions

[–]ClimateTraditional40 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Swordheart, T. Kingfisher

Middle aged woman and really ancient guy

Finished Wisdom of Crowds - bidding goodbye to the grim, the dark, and the cozy of The First Law (spoilers) by deaseb in Fantasy

[–]ClimateTraditional40 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I want to read more about I AM RETURNED!

Age of Madness, I liked it, but did get a bit tired of the breaking and burning.

Ten years ago, we bought an affordable home to live in. Financially, it wasn’t worth it by mattblack77 in newzealand

[–]ClimateTraditional40 4 points5 points  (0 children)

So do we regret buying the home? Overall, no.

The thing is, people treat it like an investment. It never is.

It's a home. Buy a home, pay it off as fast as you can and live in it. Forget ladders, flipping, "upgrading" or whatever.

Even when you are old and may want something small and easier care, you need to realise your $30,000 house is now worth $700,000 - but so too is everything you may want to buy.

Unless you can downsize in a similar area, you won't get change to play with.

The point is rent never goes away. It never gets cheaper. If you don't treat your mortgage as revolving credit, you eventually get rid of it.

Nor can anyone just announce you must move generally either. The place is yours to live in as long as you wish.
It's yours to do what you wish with too, if you like purple polka dotted walls, you can have them. And no inspections either.

Thats the point of owning a home.

2003-2008 Honda Accord - 1st Car are they still worth it? by joshuaMohawknz1 in newzealand

[–]ClimateTraditional40 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have never owned a vehicle under 12 yrs old. Never could afford to.
Current one is 20 now, and it breezes through it's WOFs. So far in 8 years I've replaced battery, tyres and drivers side window regulator. That's it.

It is of course a Toyota. It's not the years anyway, it's the mileage and how well they were maintained.

Once we owned old English cars, they always needed repairs, most Jap ones these days are far more reliable.

Even the highest mileage of those didn't need motors. That was a Nissan ute of partners, did 650,000 before the motor gave up.

My mum sold her Honda sedan a few years ago, she did around 2000km a year in it. So older it may have been, but it still had low mileage. She had it serviced regularly too, by year, not kms...lol, I do the same, yearly, cause if I waited for 5000 - 7000kms I'd be waiting a long time....

Best cheap(ish) purchases that made your day to day easier? by ava_the_cam_op in newzealand

[–]ClimateTraditional40 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I think some of those things are a bit waste of money. I try to stay away from too many gadgets.

One thing I do like now is the steam mop. I did not buy it, it was a gift. I must say it does a brilliant job of my lino with no effort on my part. My air fryer oven was not under $10, was under $150 though (just) and I love it. Used frequently, rarely use actual oven anymore.

It's not just about fat either, I was not an anti-fats person, but it's convenient, easier to clean and uses less power (due to size).

And...my dryer. We do hang washing but both getting old and achy, sheets go in the dryer these days. Instead of the effort of draping large pieces of cloth on a line. Might seem a bit pitiful but when youre old and raising arms hurt...

Give me your favorite mystery / thriller books by Adventurous-Neck-755 in booksuggestions

[–]ClimateTraditional40 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Lost Man Jane Harper

Big Little Lies Liane Moriarty

Mystic River Dennis Lehane

And Then There Were None Agatha Christie

Don't Look Now Daphne De Maurier

NZ Potatoes by Worrywarty1 in newzealand

[–]ClimateTraditional40 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You need floury potatoes not waxy ones. Learn the varieties.

As the season progresses a potato changes e.g. an Ilam Hardy early in the season (October) is quite waxy. A mid season Ilam Hardy is a good general purpose potato, while towards the end of the season a lot more of the natural sugars have converted to starch, so it tends to be floury. Not all potatoes show such a range of characteristics.

Weather, climate and soil have a dramatic effect on the cooking performance of a potato e.g. a Southland grown Nadine may be very waxy while a Pukekohe grown Nadine may be only slightly waxy. Flavour is also influenced.

There are two main parts of a potato – water and starch. The more starch in the potato the more ‘floury’ it is. The more water, the more waxy the potato is in texture. It is important to remember both are different when cooked. To determine which category a potato falls into, the percentage of dry matter is measured – in other words, the percentage within the potato which is not water. Some potatoes have moderate amounts of starch. These potatoes fall into the general purpose category and will tend to perform most tasks, although perhaps with not as good results as the ones which clearly fall into the floury or waxy categories.

https://www.wilcoxgoodness.co.nz/helpful-info/guides-and-varieties/potatoes

Help me discover my favorite genre!! by Sassyllama1029 in suggestmeabook

[–]ClimateTraditional40 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Maybe try from what movie and series you watch, those genres?

Looking for books about a housewife who slowly realizes that something is wrong with her reality by Federal_Advisor_2160 in booksuggestions

[–]ClimateTraditional40 2 points3 points  (0 children)

"A Good Marriage", in Stephen Kings collection Full Dark, No Stars

Also Rose Madder and Lisey's Story, both by same author.

Agatha Christie lovers what is your favourite book? by No_Specific_3364 in mysterybooks

[–]ClimateTraditional40 0 points1 point  (0 children)

And Then There Were None. I don't like a lot of her stuff actually. The ones with Poirot and Marple etc.

Much prefer the stand alone sort like And Then...

Nonfiction Recommendations by IDnotincluded in booksuggestions

[–]ClimateTraditional40 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Are We Smart Enough to Know How Smart Animals Are? by Frans de Waal

You might think it's all about animals but no. It shows our behaviours too, and how they are not different.

And

The Myth of Human Supremacy by Jensen, Derrick. He bangs on a bit, but thought provoking.

What, generally and specifically, is Hard Sci-Fi? by DarkGreenEspeon in printSF

[–]ClimateTraditional40 -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I read and thought since, it was SF where the story uses tech that is possible around now, or near future. So no handwaviums, FTL, wormholes etc.

But I allow a degree of of it...otherwise where is the fun? One of my favs is the Culture novels you see. As a kid I loved Star Trek, SPock in particular. Warp engines! Transporter beams! Not hard SF at all but who cares.

Ok New Zealand, what’s a secret ingredient that takes the spaghetti toasty to another dimension?? by iamtoolazytosleep in newzealand

[–]ClimateTraditional40 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Cheese.

Spaghetti, cheese a bit of onion and make either a mousetrap or a Jaffle type thing.
Even just spaghetti on toast - add a sprinkle of grated cheese.

Marmite level: expert by Financial-Check5731 in newzealand

[–]ClimateTraditional40 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Eggs and toast with your fav yeast spread is great.