Hi everyone. I'm not sure about you, but the crash in Timaru over the weekend has hit me hard. I'm 37, and this story could have been mine when I was 15. I wanted to share it here because I suspect a number of us may have had near misses at the same time of our lives.
My story happened near Christchurch in 1999.
I have a clear memory of sitting in the back seat of an old Toyota Corolla to go paddock bashing with some of the kids from another youth group down the road. It was me, my mate from school, and one of the youth leaders who was a couple of years older.
They'd picked up the Corolla from a wreckers a couple of hundred dollars and we were going to thrash in a paddock near the Waimak until it died. My mate sat in the front and I was perched in the back. There were no seatbelts in that late 70's model car, and the bottom half of the backseat was literally coming off, tattered vinyl reealing the boot behind. We headed north on Main North Road until we hit state highway one. At this stage, the driver accelerated - floored it, to see how fast we could go. I remember looking over at the speedometer as we hit 180km/h, flying along as we crossed the Waimak bridge, bouncing on unsteady suspension. We were all chuckling with laughter, going so fast the unsecured back seat had literally fallen off and I was clinging on to the side window and passenger seat in front.
It would have taken just the slightest thing at that point for us to crash. A movement, a flinch, a bit of unexpected sun to the eyes - and all of us would have died, myself being the most likely candidate for an early departure through the front windshield.
When we arrived at the paddock we thrashed the car until the clutch gave out, and I was home safe for tea.
Now, 20+ years on I get sweatly palms thinking about it. I can see the river flying by, hear my mate's chuckle, see the seat on a weird angle. It could have been me and I know many of us here have done these things without thinking, and certainly without regard for the safety of anyone. In fact, one of our mates died eight years later in a single car crash involving speed and alcohol.
My oldest son is 15. I can't even begin to fathom this situation or what it would be like to get that call. This is a tragedy, but for anyone w
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Hello Timaru! My name is Lady_Aya and I am the Heartland NZ leader. Although the South Island is long neglected by those parties in Wellington, I decided to start here. Because that is what Heartland is about, speaking a voice to those in power for those who are left unheard.
I saw myself, growing up in a rural community as I did, how those in Wellington used our vote and then never did an iota for work for us. Promises after promises after promises for change and never anything happened. We are deemed as all rural backwaters who don't need to be listened to and don't know what's better for us. Those in Wellington who have never stepped a foot off the North Island think that they know better about the needs of our own communities which we have grown up with. It is quite laughable on its face.
That is part of the reason I thought to launch the Heartland campaign here in South Island. I have heard myself the derision by those in Wellington for the South Island. Some will of course claim that its all in jest but we all know what's behind those jests. Heartland is about saying "no more". It is about saying "enough is enough". We will not take this anymore. The Heartland has long been silenced. But no more. It is high time that we stop relying on parties that claim to speak for us but will just simply enable the same systemic issues and neglect facing the Heartland. It is time for a new voice. A voice that speaks to the Heartland of New Zealand, not ignores it.
It is time for a voice that stands against the Alliance Government. We saw last term how little they care for our communities. All that talk last election for what they want to do for us and for what? For an iota of aid and a heaping of derision? I know I am not the only one who is disgusted by the state of Wellington. That is precisely why I came out of retirement myself.
After my time in Country Party, prior to them being hijacked by the radical left wing in Alliance, I decided to take time for myself and retire from politics. But I cannot stay silent anymore. The Heartland needs a loud voice and we plan to speak for it. It needs a voice that speaks for all the Heartland. Not only the farmers which those in Wellington think all rural communities amount to. But also the teachers, the nurses, the waitresses, the mechanics, the fishers, the clerks, and many more. It is time for a politics that says no to neglect and derision. A politics that speaks out for the Heartland, damned be the consequences
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If you had to buy a property in Timaru with unlimited housing budget, where would you live and where would you avoid? A breakdown by suburb would be really helpful. Thanks
