Weather Eye with John Maunder Rainfalls for the month of July have been recorded in Tauranga since 1898, except for 1904, 1907, 1908, and 1909. The graph for the period 1898-2020 shows the range of rainfalls from an extreme high...... Read More

Winston Watusi Music Plus I used to assume that when days start getting longer, they also get warmer.  Sadly that’s not true. And with the arrival of August imminent, a bit of warmth would be very welcome. Even as I...... Read More

Rosalie's Writings with Rosalie Liddle Crawford We’re halfway through the year and I was wondering what’s happened with everybody’s New Year resolutions? Did they fly out the window on January 2? What we really...... Read More

Words from the Western Bay Mayor by Garry Webber This week, Western Bay of Plenty District Council voted in support of consulting with the public about a proposed return of ownership of the eastern end of Matakana Island, known...... Read More

Straight from city council A personal view, by Councillor Steve Morris Remember the old tv ad: ‘don’t leave town till you’ve seen the country’? I don’t – I’m too young – but the...... Read More

Sideline Sid Sports correspondent & historian www.sunlive.co.nz The recent passing of Mitch Grafas closed another chapter on the thoroughbred racing exploits of the Grafas family from Te Puke, which stretched back to the 1920’s. Mitch...... Read More

Weather Eye with John Maunder The ‘Maunder Minimum' is the name given to the period from 1645 to 1715 when the number of sunspots – ‘storms' on the sun – became almost zero. The period is named after...... Read More

Rosalie's Writings with Rosalie Liddle Crawford Our future phones need to be smarter and have unique user settings. For example, if we were able to set our phones to ‘politician’ mode, there would be a common warning...... Read More

Straight from city council A personal view, by Councillor Steve Morris Nearly half a billion dollars in operating and capital spending next year was debated in the Council chamber last week. After hearing and considering your...... Read More

Five Minutes with the Mayor A monthly column by Tauranga Mayor Tenby Powell Last week’s Tauranga City Council 2020/21 annual plan deliberations showed just how much can be achieved when everyone is working together for...... Read More

Winston Watusi Music Plus If you thought things in the world were weird before now then just hang on for what's next. This is not the best time to be making predictions but it does strike me that the more we in New Zealand...... Read More

Sideline Sid Sports correspondent & historian www.sunlive.co.nz Many New Zealand sports fans are familiar with the deeds of boxers 'Torpedo' Billy Murphy and Bob Fitzsimmons, who brought early sporting glory to the country...... Read More

Weather Eye with John Maunder The chart below shows that since 1979, when reliable satellite observations became available, there has been little overall trend in the average tropospheric temperatures, apart from milder/warmer temperatures...... Read More

Sideline Sid Sports correspondent & historian www.sunlive.co.nz While New Zealand is a tiny nation tucked away at the bottom of the world, three of the most recognisable faces in world sport stopped off in New Zealand to showcase...... Read More

Winston Watusi Music Plus The floodgates have opened, the damn has broken, the cows are coming home to roost. Yes, it is again all on in the live music scene. Bands are frantically booking gigs, venues are filling up, and once...... Read More

Daniel Hutchinson From The Hutch So, clearly the deputy prime minister of the Cook Islands jumped the gun announcing travel will shortly be possible for  New Zealanders seeking to  escape the winter blues. I had no sooner...... Read More

Weather Eye with John Maunder Temperatures have been recorded in the Tauranga area at several sites during the last 108 years, including at the current Tauranga Airport site from June 1990. The graph shows details of the average...... Read More

Rosalie's Writings with Rosalie Liddle Crawford I was climbing up a ladder to see if I had an attic the other day, mainly to check if there was insulation. Immediately I realised I had a problem. There was no attic. So, then,...... Read More

Winston Watusi Music Plus One more week and one more small sign that we're returning to normal. Concerts in the Gallery at the Te Puna Quarry Park are kicking off again this Sunday (July 12). This show, like many others there,...... Read More