Tag: health

The Summer Sun in the South takes no prisoners

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summer sun and sunburn

Charred to a crisp

This is the second time I’m making reference to the scorching summer sun. That’s because it’s actually brutal.

U.V. in New Zealand reaches high levels (today it is predicted by NIWA to peak at 11 on the scale). NIWA UV Prediction New ZealandThese levels are reached thanks to proximity to the Antarctic ozone hole, earth’s elliptical orbit (which takes us closer to the sun in our summer than the North), and cleaner air (pollution acts as a buffer – what a twist).

You could have tip-top melanin production down here, and still come out crispy at the end of the day. Sunscreen, sunglasses, hats, and shade are essential for survival in our summer sun. Go without at your peril.

Running in Winter

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running in winter

Pick it all up on the way back

How do runners in snowy winter climates handle it? The cold is lovely, 10/10 would enjoy again, but you do have to rug up. And when you go running, of course you sweat. So either you wear minimal clothes and trust yourself to heat up on the way, or you start out all snuggly and later strip it off.

??

Don’t know. But good on you for getting out there in the snow.

When you’re pasty in summer but trying to stay fit

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Pasty summer sprints

Keep to the shadows, stay in the shade!

When you’re bone-pale and pasty, you have a love-hate relationship with summer. You either have to keep to the shade at all times, making strategic dashes from one dappled area to the next, or you have to dip yourself in a vat of sunscreen.

Going for a jog around the block also becomes an exercise in strategy: which area affords the most shade? Should you get up at 6am to avoid the sun? Or should you cover every inch of skin?

Nasty sun.

Let them eat cake

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Let them eat cake

To eat cake, or not to eat cake…

strawberry cake

From humble bready beginnings to towering monstrosities of confection, we love cake.

The word ‘cake’ comes from Scandinavia: in Swedish, ‘kaka’; in Danish, ‘kage’.

Back in the old days, cake used to mean a small round roll^. It was nothing like the delicious sugary treat we gobble down today. When refined sugar became mainstream, and icing was invented (in the 17th century), the modern-day cake was born.

Quotes about cake
  • “Let them eat cake!”– Marie Antoinette
  • Accused of uttering this callous exclamation, Marie Antoinette did not, in fact, say “Let them eat cake.” This quote first appeared in Jean-Jacques Rosseau’s ‘Confessions’, attributed to a ‘Great Princess’ who was actually fictional^. His book was written in 1762 when Marie Antoinette was 9 years old at the time.

  • “You can’t have your cake and eat it too.”
  • Ridiculous. Of course you can. This oft-misquoted line should read: “A man cannot have his cake and eat his cake.” first written in a letter from Thomas, Duke of Norfolk, to Thomas Cromwell in 1538^.