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From The Crowd
Remembering the late, great Lomu
IT has been over three years since rugby superstar Jonah Lomu passed away peacefully at the young age of just 40 years old in the city of Auckland close to the place of his birth. Lomu, despite living with his life threatening illness (nephrotic syndrome a serious kidney disorder) which was diagnosed when he was...
Clog-dancing cockroaches
EVERY so often, especially as a child, I would come across a reference in a book about black beetles. I wondered what they were, what they looked like if they were deadly. The (usually English or American) children in my books would scream and run away from them so they were obviously something bad and...
A little housekeeper is a dangerous thing
OUR household has been upturned and put into more turmoil than usual, even given the younger generation is finally back at school. (Hooray, whoo hoo, hoop de do and other such expressions of unconfined joy.) It has all been caused by a wee, delicate, softly spoken and extremely dangerous Japanese woman. She has popped up...
Lest we forget
WHAT may appear to be a tussle between church and State on the statements made by Archbishop Peter Loy Chong on Catholic education and the open merit system implemented by the Ministry of Education, is cause for great interest and indeed serious reflection. The archbishop’s statements have even been labelled as racist, subjective and contrary...
Happy 2019
TOMORROW midnight is what is referred to as Happy New Year, when December 31 turns into January 1. Some years I just call it December 32 and write it off, that’s how enthusiastic I feel about this particular holiday. The dogs hate it, for a start, because people use it as yet another moment to...
A merry Christmas to you
TODAY is a very special day for Christians around the world. Today is when Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. They will remember, and rejoice with the story of the little baby who was born in a manger in Bethlehem. It is a story that has been retold many times. It is as familiar...
A role model: Those who grab opportunities will succeed
LIFE is full of challenges and opportunities, only those who grab those opportunities and overcome struggles will succeed in life. This advice was given to Dr Amar Singh by his father, while growing up at their sugarcane farming settlement in Kabisi, Sigatoka, many years ago. And it happened that he took on this advice seriously...
Wet weather insect pests
Perspiration isn’t the only thing that comes popping out in the humid tropical weather. Just the other night I lay steaming under the ceiling fan in my room, trying to counter the humidity until the incipient storm broke and let loose a cooling downpour. The distant rumble of thunder was suddenly drowned out by a...
Walk down memory lane
WE journos love trading war stories, showing our scars (sometimes literally) from our close brushes with armed conflict, military coups and city-wide riots. But the other reporter’s pub story favourite is telling the tales of our encounters with princes, princesses and other tiara-ed folks. The 1970s were a big decade for British royal visits to...
Mental stigma of suicide
A MISSING button, a bruised arm, a torn uniform. There is a reason a child is silent and withdrawn. It’s the subtle signs that give it away; no school lunches or long absences from class. John (not his real name) knows all too well the experience. It was the rough childhood that haunted him growing...
Better relaying weather information
SEVERAL Pacific meteorological authorities are changing the way they communicate technical information in order to reach a wider cross section of the community. Fiji and Solomon Islands meteorologists attending a meeting of regional weather forecasters in Nadi last week presented evidence of concerted efforts they were making to reach more people. The weather services say...
‘Bula’ trademark saga
PROMINENT Fiji lawyer Richard Naidu today clears the air that the word bula can still be used by anyone and any other business. Mr Naidu was responding to media reports and a public outcry after a US based company trademarked the word Bula. “The legal effect of this trademark registration is minimal. It means —...
Myths and speculations
TROPICAL CYCLONES, also known as hurricanes or typhoons, are one of the most violent weather phenomena on the planet, posing significant threats to those living near or along coastlines where tropical cyclone–related impacts are most pronounced. About 80 tropical cyclones form annually, a rate that has been remarkably steady over the period of reliable historical...
Suicide isn’t the answer
By CHANTELLE VALENTINE READING the daily news, I am greatly saddened by the suicide cases. They would have been budding musicians, doctors, engineers, pilots etc. Lives that are young and vibrant snatched away in a mere blink of an eye. There are many causes of suicide and one in which is the lack of support...
Why fish matter
IN Fiji, fish are far more than just a meal, says former Miss Hibiscus and Miss South Pacific, Mere Nailatikau. “For me, what fish really means is togetherness, being able to sit around a table, however small or large and being able to talk to one another, to spend time together, to share stories,” said...
