One of this city’s finest citizens has called for poems about Auckland’s Mayor race. Naturally I obliged with more than 140 characters.

O Auckland my Auckland! Our fearful trip is done,

John Banks has weathered every rack, the prize he sought is won,

The port is (not) near, the bells I hear, the people all revolting,

While follow eyes the steady dollar, the World Cup grim and boring;

But O heart! heart! heart!

O the bleeding drops of red,

Where on the deck public transport lies,

Fallen cold and dead.

At the time of writing, Wikipedia defined a social network as “A social structure made of individuals (or organizations) called “nodes,” which are tied (connected) by one or more specific types of interdependency, such as friendship, kinship, common interest, financial exchange, dislike, sexual relationships, or relationships of beliefs, knowledge or prestige.”

Also, it would seem, Gelato.

Giapo sells Gelato. And, if I may say so, it’s epically good Gelato. They have a range of flavours which cannot be said to be exotic, but are definitely wide ranging, and are all delicious. But the tastiness of the flavours are not why I’m thinking about social networking while writing about frozen dairy desserts. That’s because Giapo is amazingly engaged with various social networking systems, and internet stuff in general. They have a Facebook Page. They’re on Twitter. They have a blog and no less than two different youtube channels. They have a Google Apps form for daily flavours. (Note: My favourite flavour is ‘Just For Girls”. Read into this what you will.) Holy shit. They may actually be leveraging this stuff more than any other company in New Zealand. Certainly more than any national or local government body, so far.

The net result of all this social networking is that you start to think of them less as a faceless corporate purveyor of frozen snacks, and more like a friend. A friend you might drop into when you’re in town, and then twitter about how utterly delicious their gelato is.

And you will.

Giapo is at 279 Queen Street, just up the road from the Civic.

Image from www.jewelleryshow.co.nz

I have definite magpie-like tendencies. By which I don’t mean that I swoop down from trees to viciously peck unsuspecting pedestrians on the head. Rather, I’m irresistably drawn to pretty shiny things. So the New Zealand Jewellery Show is right up my alley.

Held at SkyCity from 2-4 July, the show will feature over 100 contemporary and fine jewellery designers from throughout New Zealand along with an exhibition featuring work from Fingers and Masterworks, the Regal Castings Jewellery Design Awards and the Designers’ Choice selection which this year will focus on rings.

More information, including opening times and ticket prices, can be found on the official website. So go along, browse, and buy something pretty for me because I’ll be on a plane winging my way to England for a three week family holiday. (Yeah, I know. It sucks to be me.)

Being new to Auckland, I want to soak up all the new restaurant and cafe goodness.

So when a friend asked if I wanted to hit Coco’s Cantina for a mid-week dinner, I was stoked. But when we arrived there was an hour long wait. On a freaking Tuesday. Is it really that good? And is it just a cool restaurant with Mexican food, a la Sweet Mothers Kitchen, just more expensive?

And so the influx of bands from the ’80s continues, this time with the band whose lead singer may be single-handedly responsible for keeping the hair conditioner industry in profit.

I saw The Cult perform in Wellington in 1993. I was four months pregnant at the time and spent the whole concert trying not to breathe in order to avoid brain damage to my unborn baby from the *ahem* herbal cigarette smoke that wreathed the venue; and the very drunk guy standing next to us took exception to the way my (now ex) husband looked at him and threatened violence.

I didn’t enjoy the concert much at all. Not because of herbal smoke or dickhead drunks, but because it was, quite frankly, lacklustre. Some musicians make their audience feel a part of something. Even if lines like “wow, this is the best audience we’ve played to” are hackneyed and trite, with the right delivery and some genuine emotion behind it the audience will believe. Other bands give off an “if it’s Wednesday then this must be New Zealand” vibe that leaves the audience with the impression that the band would rather be anywhere doing anything else than playing this particular song for the 157th time, and The Cult was one of those.

But hey, I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. I still love their music and wouldn’t mind seeing them again, so I’m quite tempted to book myself tickets for their concert at Trusts Stadium on Monday 3 May. The Love World Tour follows a different format from your standard concert, with The Cult performing in its entirety their seminal 1985 album “Love”, followed by a “best of” finale showcasing their biggest hits.

So, what do you think? Should I give them another chance? Tickets are available from Ticket Direct.