The band has reformed after eight years out of the music scene. Prior to the show, some people were describing the Mighty Mighty gig as a warm-up to their performance at Homegrown (the following day), but lead singer Nigel Beazley said all their gigs get “pretty crazy”.

And crazy it got, with a small but enthusiastic mosh pit ensuring mayhem, and anyone near the front covered in sweat by the end of the show (see slideshow).

Head Like a Hole were hugely popular in the late 1990s with songs such as Comfortably Shagged, Hootenanny, and a cover of Bruce Springsteen’s I’m on Fire.

The band has not announced any more dates and it is not known whether they will now disband or stay together.

Asperger Syndrome is a mild form of autism that affects one in 300 people, but what is it and what is it like to live with? REESH LYON put these questions and more to a local Asperger and found insights into living, working and dealing with the syndrome.

ALAN GEORGE (pictured)  struggled for years to work out why everybody else seemed so different from himself.

He says people often assumed he was “stupid or perverse”, when in fact it had never made sense for him to do what everybody else did.

After dealings with mental health services got him nowhere, Alan, 52, started researching his symptoms and figured he might have Asperger Syndrome.

Typified by social awkwardness and behaviour that might seem odd to others, Asperger Syndrome is a form of autism. But there are significant differences - in particular, some people on the Asperger spectrum don’t exhibit learning difficulties and are highly intelligent. This characteristic is certainly evident in Alan’s conversation.

Diagnosed two years ago by a private clinical psychologist, he says the diagnosis itself gives him an understanding of what he can do and who he can relate to as he copes with what he calls an “invisible disability”.

Before the diagnosis Alan was “exceedingly isolated” as he didn’t know how to relate to others. He spent most of his time at home, had a long beard and long hair, and didn’t wash often.

“It wasn’t armpit smell, I suspect it was book dust,” he says, referring to his obsession with collecting books.

Pre-diagnosis he used to climb over piles of books to get to bed, and then have to kick books out of the bed once he got there. Before he could wash, he would have to throw books out of the bath tub.

Close friend Peter Stjernfelt, who has been helping Alan get to grips with the small things in life, observes that the book collection is now an “organised chaos”, with banana boxes full of books piled everywhere rather than piles of books: “He’s making things work for himself… there are no longer books in the sink.”

The diagnosis – for which Alan paid $1400 from his own pocket – allowed him to be treated accordingly and he now benefits from anti-depressants and anti-anxiety drugs.

He says his social skills started to improve soon after he got a job to pay his clinical psychologist’s bill.

Working as a dishwasher at a local restaurant, he found other employees would ask him how he was doing. This helped him learn to be more social, as he realised other people were interested in him and his progress with Asperger Syndrome.

He likens his social learning curve to a snowball rolling down a hill: The more he socialised, the easier it got. This was a positive step for someone who used to be so anxious he would rarely leave the house

“You get more and more comfortable with people,” says Alan.

In contrast to his previous hermit-like existence, he now socialises at pub quiz nights (pictured), walks dogs for his neighbours, and enjoys get-togethers with other adults with autistic tendencies.

A member of Autism Wellington, Alan attends its adult support group once a month in Johnsonville. He says it is much easier for him and others in the group to relate to people on the autistic spectrum.

The meetings give members a feeling of safety, as they are not “under pressure to be social in a regular type of way”, says Alan. “We accept each other.”

But he points out that within the group, some sub-groups and individuals are harder to deal with than others.

Knowing his diagnosis, and taking his medications, means Alan can live much more socially. He says while he is still progressing, people feel more comfortable with him now than they did previously.

Alan was first prescribed Prozac in 2002 and he soon found that his obsessive-compulsive tendencies began to diminish. He cites being able to leave the house without having to worry about leaving things behind, as he knew he could always go back and get them, “except the keys”.

This is in stark contrast to the countless times his ex-wife had to remind him “keys, puffer, purse” every time they left the house.

The couple met in the 1980s and Alan recalls they were married for “about five years” although she assures him it was “much longer than that”. At first they found that his condition was matched by her bi-polar disorder but eventually they divorced, and now remain good friends.

Born in Levin in June 1956, in his teens Alan attended Horowhenua College – a school he “thoroughly hated” except for history and English classes.

He says back then psychological disabilities were regarded as a personal or moral failure and people like him were seen as psychiatrically unwell. Autism was deemed a learning disability and those with the condition were therefore “retarded”.

Jen Birch, author of Congratulations!  It’s Asperger Syndrome, was also diagnosed with the syndrome as an adult. She says: “Asperger individuals being assumed to be ‘mentally retarded’ is a fairly common reaction from other, ‘normal’ people.”

Even brilliant people with Asperger Syndrome or autism can get this reaction, she says.

“This can still happen. Fortunately, there is now somewhat more societal awareness of autism spectrum disorders, but ordinary people who are not familiar with the characteristics of these disorders are still quite likely to feel that Asperger individuals are strange, weird, mentally retarded or learning disabled.”

Although the concept of Asperger Syndrome was originally developed by Austrian paediatrician Hans Asperger in the 1940s, it was not until the work of Lorna Wing in the ’80s that it began to get widespread attention.  But even then, the syndrome was normally attributed only to children and adolescents, with little emphasis on adults with autism.

For a long time, Alan was treated in the mental health and psychiatric system, but he believes that along with a lack of time and staff, psychiatric authorities were reluctant to diagnose patients.

He says a fundamental flaw was that staff were focused “not on self-help, but them helping you”, which often simply meant prescribing medication.

People with Asperger Syndrome were often given jobs of little or no responsibility, and in many respects he didn’t mind that. He says one of his favourite jobs was working on a poultry farm soon after leaving school.

While people like Alan can learn to live more social lives, he says it is “still near-on impossible to find meaningful work”.

Many people with the syndrome have a good memory, are patient and diligent in their work. Mechanical jobs that require memory, repetitive action and focus on detail are ideal, Alan says.

 But job interviews can prove to be a major hurdle.

Alan finds it hard to relate his skills to prospective employers and feels that he and others with autistic tendencies are wasted because job interviews are “socially mediated, not by facts”.

“We don’t even get close to the jobs. If you don’t have social skills and experience, you don’t get in the door.”

This is another area to which Jen Birch can relate: “Unfortunately, what Alan says about getting jobs and even getting interviews is more or less true for many Asperger individuals.”  

She too had many workplace difficulties during her adult life, until her own diagnosis at the age of 43.   The diagnosis helped her get into the workforce as she could apply for supported employment services – agencies which help people with disabilities get good jobs.

This, she says, is preferable to “sheltered workshops or any other demeaning sort of work for people with disabilities”.

Currently on the invalid’s benefit, Alan gives back to the autistic community by doing volunteer work for Autism Wellington. He helps five-to-nine year olds learn social skills – work he finds both enjoyable and rewarding.

“Their social skills and my social skills are pretty much equivalent.”

Although Alan is in his early 50s he can occasionally slip into behaviour of someone in their mid-teens – “and the next minute start acting like a six-year-old”, he says.

For example, he can be immediately enthusiastic about something small and it can overwhelm him. He cites once standing in the middle of a quiet library laughing hysterically about something minor.

He has a sharp sense of humour and, although his jokes sometimes fall flat, there are occasional moments of comic brilliance. The jokes he tells are often the result of his ability to make unusual connections between things – another quirk he puts down to Asperger Syndrome.

While many other adults with the syndrome live with family and are dependent on them, Alan lives by himself in the Wellington suburb of Brooklyn. He is learning to cook proper meals with the help of his friend Peter, who taught him skills such as shaving that seem natural to most people.

Whereas Alan’s diet used to be strictly potatoes three times a day (he does have an Irish heritage), he is now likely to eat a more wholesome dinner such as pork and rice with cream sauce – followed by watching one of his two favourite TV shows: Spongebob Squarepants or Fox News.

Peter, who holds a psychology degree, believes having friends to support Alan is very important. He notes that children on the Asperger spectrum have much more support than adults and speculates this is because “kids are cute, adults are not”.

Having toured North America twice, Alan doesn’t rule out travelling again as it helps him get perspective on life back home.

“[Travel] gave me a sense that social behaviour is different in different places,” he says. “You got the feeling that because you were from outside the area, people could accept you were different.”

Still collecting and trading books, Alan would love to run his own bookstore one day, although he doesn’t have a long-term plan and lives day to day.

One thing he is keen to pursue is tertiary education: He is looking into university history courses. As someone who comes across like a walking encyclopaedia, Alan may well find he feels at home steeped in historical information and analysis.

WHEN travelling around Transylvania, the last thing a Wellingtonian would expect to find is lost taonga from Aotearoa.

But that’s exactly what happened to Miriama Ketu and her partner when they stumbled across a moa egg (pictured right) while visiting a Romanian museum.

Located in Cluj-Napoca, roughly 320km northwest of the capital Bucharest, the museum holds a number of curios from around the world.

Miss Ketu, a psychology masters student and professional actor, was astounded by the find, as she had never seen a moa egg in New Zealand, let alone on the other side of the world.

It happened when she was travelling through Romania showcasing a piece of New Zealand theatre with three others. On a day off, she and her partner consulted the Lonely Planet Guide to see what there was to do. It led them to a Zoological Museum.

The museum is a 1950s science laboratory attached to the city’s university that has been preserved in its original condition and is now open to the public.

“It was full of strange stuffed creatures and foetuses in jars. We were very surprised to find that it also contained a moa egg from New Zealand. Given that I had never even seen one in New Zealand and didn’t think any still existed, I was intrigued and took photos.”

Arapata Hakiwai (pictured), a taonga expert from Te Papa Museum, says moa eggs are treasured because they are quite rare.

In 2005, an exhibition was held by the Rangitäne tribe at Millennium gallery in Blenheim. Included in this exhibition was a moa egg that had great value and significance to the iwi of Rangitäne.
 
Mr Hakiwai, who has been involved with the return of toanga from overseas museums, is unsure how the Romanian egg would have ended up there as the “trajectories of taonga have many paths.

“Taonga were collected, bought, traded and stolen since the time of first contact, and many of the taonga we have at Te Papa are a result of acquiring them from a number of collectors.”

In the 1800s and early 1900s, there was great activity in the field of science and Mr Hakiwai suspects this moa egg may have been collected as part of this research fervour.

More than 150 overseas museums hold Maori taonga and he says that sadly most Maori will never be able to see them, experience them, and reconnect with them.

“The reconnection process is vitally important as these taonga represent identity markers and important treasures that speak about our history and identity.”

Getting the moa egg returned to New Zealand would be “very tricky”, as most museums would “shut their doors”.
 
The discovery comes as a surprise to Dr Brian Gill, a moa egg expert from Auckland Museum’s ornithology department.

He has compiled a list of 36 moa eggs held at museums around the world, but did not know of the 37th until he was contacted for the purposes of this article. “I’m not aware of a moa egg in Romania and I would be very interested to have more details.”

However, he was sceptical about the egg’s authenticity:  “Although it may be stated to be a moa egg it is quite possible, even likely, that it is not.  It could be a misidentified elephant bird egg from Madagascar or it could be a plaster cast rather than a real egg.”

Miss Ketu (pictured right), who admits her knowledge of the subject is not extensive, remains adamant that what she saw is the real thing: “It looked authentic, with nicks in the shell and a faded brown colour. I have no idea how it would have arrived in Romania though.”

Dr Gill has catalogued moa eggs in two museums in London and one in the US. Another eight museums in New Zealand hold moa eggs.

The eggs in London went there in the 1800s before New Zealand had museums of its own.  The American egg possibly arrived there by sale through a dealer in the 1930s, after the finder took it out of New Zealand.

The Romanian egg appears in good condition, compared with many catalogued by Dr Gill, as it is almost completely intact.

Whole moa eggs are rare and always of scientific interest because speculation then begins on which species of moa they belonged to.

This year a new DNA technique employed by a team at Massey University in Albany has been able to extract DNA from moa eggshells. The DNA can then be used to identify the species.

Dr Gill is curious about the egg in Cluj-Napoca and says it ”warrants further investigation”.

There are always people joining, says president Lillian Mackey, but membership stalled for some time and is only now starting to pick up again.

Now, many “young boys and girls” in their 20s are helping bolster the numbers.

Having had its 70th anniversary two weeks ago, the society has more than 150 members, describes itself as a “family club”, and is secular and non-political.

St Patrick’s Day celebrations will take place around Wellington on March 17, but festivities at the Irish Society clubrooms will be the most enthusiastic.

Ms Mackey says they will be opening early and have plenty of live traditional music and dancing.

“We’re very proud of our heritage,” she says, adding: “Everybody seems to celebrate it now. It’s good.”

Ms Mackey says some local Irish take the following day off as well, as that is when their compatriots are celebrating St Patrick’s Day in Ireland. “We all celebrate Patrick’s Day. We like to enjoy ourselves”

The current clubrooms at 10 Fifeshire Ave, off Cambridge Tce, have been the society’s home for more than 30 years.

Various traditional activities organised through the club include music, dance and even Gaelic football. “It’s important to keep the sport and music and dance alive.”

Having immigrated here 40 years ago, Ms Mackey has been involved with the society ever since, as secretary for more than two decades and president on and off for more than seven years.

Following an education in Dublin, she paid her own way to New Zealand after hearing from friends here that it was a “very good country”.

At the time of immigration there was a lot violence in her homeland, but she doesn’t like to talk about it and says she is non-political.

“My grandmother always said if you don’t talk about politics and religion you’ll always keep your friends.”

She has been in Wellington the whole time and has always been in employment, as she believes in a strong work ethic: “It is important to pay you own way and work for your money,” she says.

Some of the jobs she has held over the years include as a postie, caterer, and tea lady.

Ms Mackey, a senior citizen, always has to be busy. Along with the role as president she works in a casual capacity at the Wellington Convention Centre ushering and supervising ushers.

A bubbly person, she says she likes meeting people and is “quite a PR person”. She is the only one of her six siblings to live in New Zealand.

Having been back to Ireland “a few times,” the last was 3½ years ago when she said it would be her last time. Asked if she planned to return again she chuckles: “Will you send me back? If I win Lotto I’ll definitely go back!”

However, she says she loves Wellington: “the wind as well” and “wouldn’t go anywhere else”.

Anyone is welcome to join the local Irish contingent at the clubrooms from 3pm onwards to celebrate Saint Patricks Day.

WELLINGTON’S motorcyclists have mobilised, urging the council to do more to protect their bikes.

Amisha Patel has organised an online petition in the hopes of the council erecting barriers around motorcycle parks.

She says it is the council’s responsibility to manage on-street parking in a smarter and more effective manner.

Councillor Andy Foster says it is an “interesting” idea and if it is something that is warranted by widespread support “It’s certainly something we’ll look into,” although he had “No idea what [the barriers] would look like.”

The details of the petition – which has over 130 signatures – states that: “Currently the designated zones with their road painted barriers don’t address the issue of drivers inadvertently backing into parked motorcycles and causing damage.”

However, the petition is not endorsed by all motorcyclists. Sam Brown of Brooklyn says he has never had a problem with city bike parks, and he believes the barriers would prove to be an annoyance more than anything.

“This will just mean we’ll have to negotiate around barriers when we’re already in a rush. I won’t be signing the petition.”

Any inconvenience caused to bikies is countered by Ms Patel’s worries about falling motorcycles’ potential to injure pedestrians.

The e-petition, which closes this week, is to be presented at the next council meeting on March 5.

On a quick walkabout of the central city to view motorcycle parks, NewsWire found several examples vulnerable bikes (view slideshow below).

The only motorcycle park with protective barriers was outside Wellington Police station.

REESH LYON asks ABN AMRO Craigs’ stock exchange advisor Anne Hare (left) about the best ways people could invest their money – and gets vastly different answers from those given to him late last year by Interest.co.nz managing editor Bernard Hickey.

Property, gold and art aren’t a complete waste of time, but investing in conventional assets is a better option, says Ms Hare.

The best approach as an alternative to finance companies is to invest in low risk, low return bonds or deposits in combination with developing a “balanced portfolio”.

A balanced portfolio is where an investor spreads an investment across various investment types – for example, cash, bonds and shares.

Ms Hare says putting money in material investments certainly isn’t an unpopular idea: “Some investors like a mix of assets including gold and other commodities and collectibles such as art.”

Having a diverse range of investments “reduces overweighting any particular asset class”, meaning any risks associated with taking a gamble on just one type of asset is eliminated.

Gold can be a reasonable investment – if  you invest in a gold mining company rather than buying the actual commodity.

Ms Hare says the trouble with buying the commodity itself (for example, gold bars) is that it does not produce an income and it can only go up or down in price. “Whereas a mining company can expand and produce a dividend yield if the company is well managed and is able to grow its business.”

So while investing in the commodity of gold itself is problematic, at least when you own shares you receive an income and there is some security.

When it comes to collectible investments such as art, the main problems posed are that they could be stolen, and possible difficulties finding a buyer.

However, Ms Hare says  even though art may not give a monetary return, one advantage is you can enjoy it while it hangs on your wall .

She describes property investment as a “specialty area” with a number of management issues such as tenanting, maintenance and falling prices. “Property ownership as an investor can be rewarding, but there is a time commitment to maintaining it and attending to those issues landlords need to deal with.”

She says that like art, property can be difficult to sell and the current environment is an illustration of what can happen in “illiquid” property markets. Another problem is that unlike cash, bonds and shares, investors are unable to sell a portion of a house when they need some extra money.

For people thinking of stashing their money under the bed, think again, as inflation can make it lose value. However, leaving money in the bank leaves investors exposed to movements in interest rates and can result in no increase in its value , “unless the interest payments are reinvested”.

And for anyone with a spare $100,000 and looking to invest – where should they put their money?

Ms Hare says every investor is unique and her advice would depend on “what your goals are with this money, whether or not you owned your own home, are already a KiwiSaver, and your attitude towards risk”.

With finance companies tumbling and the share market in a state of disarray, where should investors be putting their money? REESH LYON spoke to financial journalist Bernard Hickey to find out:

IN THE current financial climate, there’s only one sure bet when it comes to a safe place to put your money – in the bank.

That’s according to Bernard Hickey (pictured), former business editor of Fairfax and now managing editor of Interest.co.nz.

The global economic crisis has hit New Zealand’s investors a harsh blow, with as many as 177, 000 finance accounts currently frozen.

Mr Hickey says many of those accounts are held by about half a million mums, dads and families and are worth $6 billion.

He predicts half of that money will be lost – leading to the possibility of dire situations for the account holders.

“There’s been a lot of sleepless nights and tears.”
 
He says for anyone with a bit of spare cash, the only safe place to put it is in the bank.

And for anyone with a distrust of banks, stashing the money under the bed for safe keeping is definitely a bad option.

“It’s dangerous because you could get robbed or your house could be flooded or burnt…put the money in the bank if you don’t want to lose it.”

As for material investments such as gold, art, or property, he says there is not much point bothering with them at this point in time.

He says gold is good if the monetary system collapses completely – which is unlikely – otherwise it is a waste of money: “Unless you are a jeweller or building complex electronic circuitry”.

Likewise, he says art is equally pointless in terms of investment.

“Unless you are lucky or see some consumption value in looking at it.”

Property is only worthwhile if you are planning on living in it. Otherwise, Mr Hickey says, it is overvalued and a bad investment.

And for anyone with a spare $100,000 and looking to invest – where should they put their money?
“With me…No. In the bank. Now.”

EIGHTEEN young people from different backgrounds shook the Governor-General’s hand when they graduated from a 21-week mentoring programme at the weekend.

Anand Satyanand and his wife Susan were at the Wellington Town Hall to award the children certificates and present them with Challenge for Change t-shirts.

Challenge for Change is a Wellington-based mentoring course run by the Boys and Girls Institute, which is celebrating its 125th anniversary this year.

The children (“mentees”) are paired with mentors after being nominated by schools, CYFS, police youth aid and other agencies.

The programme attracts children aged 9 to 13 who have various needs, such as ADHD, depression, poor social skills and low academic results.

This year’s intake was particularly special as it was by far the largest.

“When I began the first programme we had nine partnerships,” says co-ordinator Jacinta Krefft, who has run it for six years. “This time we had 18 and all 18 partnerships concluded the programme with varying levels of success.

“I would say, at the very least, all of the young people are happier and more confident.”

The mentors and mentees met in pairs twice a week to work on a journal, talked about problems and just hung out.

Over the 21 weeks there were also events everyone attended, such as sailing on Wellington Harbour, visiting Somes Island, camping up the coast and tackling a confidence course.

At the graduation ceremony the pairs presented three-minute pieces describing their favourite time together.

Experiences ranged from travelling to Picton on the ferry to spending several hours at the hairdresser to visiting Wellington police station (voluntarily).

After the presentation of certificates, the mentors gathered on stage (right) to sing a version of the song I’m a believer, with lyrics appropriated for the occasion and dedicated to their mentees.

Mrs Krefft says she is always inspired by the generosity, skill, creativity and wisdom of mentors and finds the changes made by the mentees particularly satisfying.

“I know that they will change, as it is so significant for them to have a mentor in their lives. It is an honour to participate with them on their journey.”

The next Challenge for Change is early next year.

PICTURE, Top: Governor General Anand Satyanand presents a certificate to Challenge for Change graduate Fahim Azizi, while  programme director Ross Davies watches on.

Two Wellington politicians are butting heads over what has and hasn’t been said regarding a proposal to sell shares in the city’s airport.

Green MP Sue Kedgley is rejecting a claim by Wellington Mayor Kerry Prendergast that she has misquoted and misconstrued recent comments about selling Wellington Airport.

Last week Ms Prendergast told The Dominion Post she did not believe council ownership of the airport was important and there was little to lose if it sold its stakes in it.

“I don’t think we need to own the airport,” she said, adding the city made enough money from people staying in hotels and shopping.

In reaction to the Mayor’s comments, Ms Kedgley issued a press release entitled: “Mayor wrong on airport’s importance.”

In it she said she was startled that Ms Prendergast believed there was little to lose if the council sold all of its 34% shareholding.

Ms Prendergast soon hit back in an effort to clarify her position.

She said she had not proposed selling the entire 34% share in the airport and never would.

“It’s rather disappointing and unhelpful for people like Green Party MP Sue Kedgley to misconstrue and misrepresent my statements and my intentions,” she said.

Ms Kedgley told NewsWire she stood by her comments.

“I haven’t misquoted Ms Prendergast at all. I have just responded to comments she made to the Dom Post.”

Both Ms Kedgley and The Dominion Post noted Ms Prendergast has historically lobbied for the council to sell all its airport shares.

Photos - Top left: Kerry Prendergast; Top right – Sue Kedgeley

Below: Wellington Airport

PICTURE: Victoria University sports teams fundraising with a sausage sizzle.

WELLINGTON’S sports clubs are feeling the pinch of the economic crisis as corporate sponsorships begin to dry up.

As sponsorship contracts come up for renewal, many businesses are not re-signing due to economic pressures, says Kevin Wilson of Sport Wellington.

“With reduced funding from these traditional sources, it is high time to think of other ways in which to generate the income.”

Sport Wellington, the region’s sports co-ordinator, will run workshops with the aim of helping organisers find alternative ways of raising money.

Mr Wilson says there are about 50 ideas being floated for alternative sources of revenue, such as support from the gambling-funded Gaming Trust.

However, groups are receiving less money from the Gaming Trust than five years ago because of a huge increase in the number of funding requests.

Because of this, teams are encouraged to use traditional methods of fundraising, such as raffles and pot luck dinners.

Those attending the workshops will be asked to contribute their own ideas, with the aim of boosting co-operation between sporting codes.

There are two evening workshops to be held, one at Sport Wellington HQ tonight and the other next Monday at Pelorus Trust Sports House.