Merrin
merrrrin.bsky.social
Merrin
@merrrrin.bsky.social
Serious professional
It’s an amazing, lively, sunny day in Cuba St. Christmas in the Quarters in Glover Park, Palestine market on Left Bank, and the street closed off between Ghuznee and Vivian with a delightful craft market on Swan Lane. So good
November 29, 2025 at 1:25 AM
Reposted by Merrin
BusinessDesk has a fantastic (and rare) for a data journalist in New Zealand. The Herald and BusinessDesk are separate publications, but whoever is in this role will work with me on projects like Budget day visualisations 1/2

careers.nzme.co.nz/jobs/6697721...
Data Journalist - BusinessDesk - NZME
Join BusinessDesk as a Data Journalist—break market-moving stories, visualise insights, and set the global benchmark for data-driven reporting.
careers.nzme.co.nz
November 5, 2025 at 8:41 PM
Finding simple recipes online is so dire now. Search results are full of websites that are unusable because they’re so full of ads, and the content often looks AI generated. I can see why it’s appealing to use an AI agent directly for things like this even knowing that it’s what poisoned the well
October 23, 2025 at 4:52 AM
I saw a Blunt umbrella in a bin on Molesworth St, as a measure of wind strength in Wellington today
October 21, 2025 at 5:02 AM
I feel like the impact of AI on the information ecosystem is kind of like when you drink too much of a particular liquor, have a horrible time throwing up all night, and then for the rest of your life you can no longer drink it without being viscerally reminded of vomit
October 12, 2025 at 10:23 PM
Reposted by Merrin
The NZCCL is looking for people to join our exec committee at our AGM in November.

While we're particularly looking for people with policy or legal experience, we're interested in anyone who is keen and willing to learn.

Contact thomas@nzccl.org.nz to get started.
October 6, 2025 at 8:42 AM
There are too many road-centred children’s toys and decorations and not enough playmats with decent pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure
October 12, 2025 at 8:37 AM
Nothing reminds me of time’s ceaseless march onwards like looking at the best-before dates in my spice drawer
September 18, 2025 at 12:50 AM
🟦🟩🟦🟦‼️
September 5, 2025 at 1:08 AM
Reposted by Merrin
Even if you've never filed a freedom of information request, this is why you should care about the government's planned changes to FOI laws.
Labor’s FOI backslide will kill public interest stories like these
www.crikey.com.au
September 4, 2025 at 1:25 AM
Reposted by Merrin
If you joined InternetNZ to help stop the takeover by rhe FSU and Hobson's Pledge, you've done some great work tonight

Consider bringing that energy to other civil society organisations, groups like Voices for Freedom are also trying to take advantage of low participation to push their agenda
July 31, 2025 at 9:07 AM
Only just realised the whole of Bluesky was the Internet NZ AGM back channel
July 31, 2025 at 9:02 AM
Six or seven tsunamis on their way I see
July 30, 2025 at 7:42 PM
Reposted by Merrin
toxic beef wellington more like nzpol bluesky amirite
July 7, 2025 at 7:51 AM
I spent a lot more of my summer than I would have liked as a patient in this ward, first in the antenatal pod then an extended stay in the postnatal pod www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...

I can back up what staff are saying as a patient - you really can’t just squish these together
Staff beg Health NZ not to swap Wellington Hospital maternity, gynecology beds for ED patients
The agency wants to trial re-allocating 12 beds as a medical ward for emergency department patients.
www.rnz.co.nz
July 8, 2025 at 12:36 AM
Reposted by Merrin
Here in an unrelated thread, I'll quietly mention you can make a tax-deductible donation to FYI.org.nz at opencollective.com/fyi thanks to Gift Collective. But only if it's no burden! Production server costs are already covered, but I cover a few other costs personally including development.
July 5, 2025 at 8:55 AM
The baby can now make music requests but it’s always for ABBA? She’s a big fan I guess
July 5, 2025 at 4:30 AM
I had seen A Guide To Rocks in the window and was looking forward to checking out a children’s geology reference book. Disappointed to find out it’s about feelings, not rocks. I’m sure it’s great, I just like rocks thespinoff.co.nz/books/02-07-...
The Unity Books children’s book review roundup for winter
The extended worlds of Philip Pullman, cat flaps, and dastardly fish.
thespinoff.co.nz
July 2, 2025 at 4:11 AM
The baby is now approximately the height of a small Blåhåj
June 27, 2025 at 3:03 AM
Reposted by Merrin
Now consider that most New Zealand government and business email is also hosted by Microsoft.
May 15, 2025 at 11:36 AM
Reposted by Merrin
Analysis: Z Energy has sold its electricity retail arm and its customers to Meridian, in a $70m deal that will further consolidate the market dominance of the big gentailers. Flick Electric is expected to be shut down.
Gentailers increase dominance with $70m Flick Electric takeover
newsroom.co.nz
May 12, 2025 at 10:30 PM
Reposted by Merrin
This is awfully unfair, and should be easily fixed in a member's bill.

Plenty of MPs have no bill in the ballot (this is wild to me - those MPs have nothing they'd like to improve in the law?)
Mum denied paid parental leave after extremely premature birth
A new mum says she’s struggling to make ends meet after her paid parental leave was declined because she couldn’t meet work eligibility criteria due to a premature delivery.
www.stuff.co.nz
May 11, 2025 at 4:15 AM
Reposted by Merrin
This, the TPB, the current government really is running the risk here of removing the expectation the public absolutely should have - and could fairly have had up until 2025 - that if they make a submission *it will be read*. Corrosive to democracy to undermine that expectation.
May 7, 2025 at 2:55 AM
We’re now in the spreadsheets and collating how-to-vote cards stage of election watching
May 4, 2025 at 5:40 AM