Mel / MJ (she/her)
@emjayenzed.bsky.social
I’m a queer, autistic, elder Millenial Pākehā from Aotearoa New Zealand. I read 200 (mostly fiction) books a year, play World of Warcraft, and spend way too much time solving genealogy mysteries.
“The Earth is our mother / we must take care of her.”
“The Earth is our mother / we must take care of her.”
Pinned
Surnames I’m researching for my own family tree:
Allen, Hipwell, Lima, Notlen/Nutland, Oakford, Raynor, Smart, Turner, Walker, Ward
Bevin, Downes, Dunbar, Ferguson, Flockhart, Lawrence, Marshall, May, Outram, Probert, Rutherford, Tansley, Tough
#newzealand #aotearoa #familyhistory #genealogy
Allen, Hipwell, Lima, Notlen/Nutland, Oakford, Raynor, Smart, Turner, Walker, Ward
Bevin, Downes, Dunbar, Ferguson, Flockhart, Lawrence, Marshall, May, Outram, Probert, Rutherford, Tansley, Tough
#newzealand #aotearoa #familyhistory #genealogy
Reposted by Mel / MJ (she/her)
In case it's in some way unclear, here's where I stand: Fuck ICE, save the planet, vaccines are good, all books/art is political, protect Trans people and celebrate all LGBTQIA people. Racism sucks and if you disagree with any of the above my books are not for you 🌈✨️🥰
February 1, 2026 at 7:08 AM
In case it's in some way unclear, here's where I stand: Fuck ICE, save the planet, vaccines are good, all books/art is political, protect Trans people and celebrate all LGBTQIA people. Racism sucks and if you disagree with any of the above my books are not for you 🌈✨️🥰
The Grey King by Susan Cooper 😍
💙📚
💙📚
What is "your" Newbery book? The one you read when you were little (or not so little), and took into your soul?
Mine's The Perilous Gard.
Mine's The Perilous Gard.
January 23, 2026 at 10:45 AM
The Grey King by Susan Cooper 😍
💙📚
💙📚
Reposted by Mel / MJ (she/her)
Super shocked by this scoop - the NZ police won't tell us whether or not the CSAM and non-consensual deepfake content generated on Grok might be illegal, or even provide advice on what to do if you (or your child!) is a target. Story here: www.emilywrites.co.nz/nz-police-do... #nzpol #kikorangi
NZ Police don't know what to do about Grok child sexual abuse images...
What should you do if you or your child is a victim of a Grok deepfake?
This question is simple, right?
Feel free to skip to the comments if you read this already in your email!
Skip t...
www.emilywrites.co.nz
January 14, 2026 at 5:01 AM
Super shocked by this scoop - the NZ police won't tell us whether or not the CSAM and non-consensual deepfake content generated on Grok might be illegal, or even provide advice on what to do if you (or your child!) is a target. Story here: www.emilywrites.co.nz/nz-police-do... #nzpol #kikorangi
You’d never know that I’ve been in my biggest reading slump of the last decade for 6 months now. Definitely found some amazing new faves this year, including @wiswell.bsky.social and @cayemarsh.bsky.social so 2025 wasn’t a complete wash!
January 1, 2026 at 10:06 AM
You’d never know that I’ve been in my biggest reading slump of the last decade for 6 months now. Definitely found some amazing new faves this year, including @wiswell.bsky.social and @cayemarsh.bsky.social so 2025 wasn’t a complete wash!
Reposted by Mel / MJ (she/her)
The kakapo is both one of my favorite birds and favorite conservation stories. They are the orange cats of the bird world: so beautiful, so ridiculous, so dumb
In the eternal struggle between kakapo and towel, the towel remain triumphant. Towels left in the wild by careless hitchhikers are a contributor to the kakapo's dwindling numbers. www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBnj...
Kakapo: Crazy Moss Chickens
YouTube video by Dunedin Wildlife Hospital
www.youtube.com
December 27, 2025 at 7:31 PM
The kakapo is both one of my favorite birds and favorite conservation stories. They are the orange cats of the bird world: so beautiful, so ridiculous, so dumb
Reposted by Mel / MJ (she/her)
I hope there is a hell, and the techbros who unleased this GenAI crap on all of us are stuck behind a counter where they have to deal with customer requests for books that don't exist for the rest of eternity. With a mediocre guitarist nearby, playing a loop of six Christmas carols.
#4 sounds like a lovely book but I didn't write it. Have had whānau up and down the country send me clippings lol
Whoever put together this list that has been circulated to regional papers, didn't fact check.
Whoever put together this list that has been circulated to regional papers, didn't fact check.
December 26, 2025 at 12:35 AM
I hope there is a hell, and the techbros who unleased this GenAI crap on all of us are stuck behind a counter where they have to deal with customer requests for books that don't exist for the rest of eternity. With a mediocre guitarist nearby, playing a loop of six Christmas carols.
Reposted by Mel / MJ (she/her)
Don't steal pies this Christmas.
December 16, 2025 at 1:03 PM
Don't steal pies this Christmas.
Reposted by Mel / MJ (she/her)
Here’s my Spotify Wrapped 🎵✨
December 3, 2025 at 4:51 PM
Here’s my Spotify Wrapped 🎵✨
Clues by Sam
A daily logic puzzle where you deduce who is a criminal!
cluesbysam.com
December 3, 2025 at 7:21 AM
Reposted by Mel / MJ (she/her)
Hey all, we have six more days to raise the funds we need. Just a few more donors could help us get over that line. Any support you could offer would be massively appreciated.
Auckland Queer Writers Anthology
Boosted is Aotearoa New Zealand’s only arts crowdfunding platform. We’re here to bring creatives and supporters together to grow creativity. With our mentored approach to crowdfunding, we have one of ...
www.thearts.co.nz
November 24, 2025 at 6:26 AM
Hey all, we have six more days to raise the funds we need. Just a few more donors could help us get over that line. Any support you could offer would be massively appreciated.
Reposted by Mel / MJ (she/her)
Reposted by Mel / MJ (she/her)
Does your giftee like cats? There's 15% off Kat's Nip and Fluffy Balls til the end of the month!
Home-grown, hand-made.
katsnip.nz
#nzpets
Home-grown, hand-made.
katsnip.nz
#nzpets
Kat's Nip: New Zealand's Dankest Catnip and Cat Toys
Kat's Nip is Aotearoa New Zealand's premium catnip. Grown fresh and harvested by hand, Kat's Nip is the dankest 'nip available for your feline pal.
katsnip.nz
November 20, 2025 at 6:26 AM
Does your giftee like cats? There's 15% off Kat's Nip and Fluffy Balls til the end of the month!
Home-grown, hand-made.
katsnip.nz
#nzpets
Home-grown, hand-made.
katsnip.nz
#nzpets
I’m so angry about this. It’s just stupid for so many reasons! Can’t wait to vote these CoC politicians out of power. In the meantime, my blood pressure is gonna continue to be high.
Article on NZH about ban on puberty blockers sounds neutral until you notice they've left out fact the pause on treatment until UK completes review w'd last until 2031. Six years w/o meds is too long. Permanent physical changes would have kicked in by then.
#NZpol
www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/...
#NZpol
www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/politics/...
Government pausing prescription of puberty blockers
The change applies to patients seeking treatment for gender dysphoria or incongruence.
www.nzherald.co.nz
November 19, 2025 at 9:23 PM
I’m so angry about this. It’s just stupid for so many reasons! Can’t wait to vote these CoC politicians out of power. In the meantime, my blood pressure is gonna continue to be high.
Reposted by Mel / MJ (she/her)
As Wicked season is upon us again, this is your reminder to read the book before you buy it for your 9 year old.
November 16, 2025 at 1:31 AM
As Wicked season is upon us again, this is your reminder to read the book before you buy it for your 9 year old.
Fun little logic puzzle!
November 11, 2025 at 7:10 AM
Fun little logic puzzle!
Reposted by Mel / MJ (she/her)
Ata mārie and happy Halloween to all who celebrate!
In recognition of the year's spookiest day I will be sharing some of the most "cursed" images from our digital repository, #CanterburyStories. #CursedImages
(Mute this thread if you are of a sensitive disposition! 😱) ^MT
In recognition of the year's spookiest day I will be sharing some of the most "cursed" images from our digital repository, #CanterburyStories. #CursedImages
(Mute this thread if you are of a sensitive disposition! 😱) ^MT
October 30, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Ata mārie and happy Halloween to all who celebrate!
In recognition of the year's spookiest day I will be sharing some of the most "cursed" images from our digital repository, #CanterburyStories. #CursedImages
(Mute this thread if you are of a sensitive disposition! 😱) ^MT
In recognition of the year's spookiest day I will be sharing some of the most "cursed" images from our digital repository, #CanterburyStories. #CursedImages
(Mute this thread if you are of a sensitive disposition! 😱) ^MT
Birthday book haul! My spouse organised with a bunch of my fam & friends to get me books and it made for the loveliest surprise to go collect them from our local indie bookstore today 😭🩷 and then we visit some Little Free Libraries & I picked up a few 2nd hand books there (and dropped off 20).
🇳🇿 📚
🇳🇿 📚
October 28, 2025 at 7:47 AM
Birthday book haul! My spouse organised with a bunch of my fam & friends to get me books and it made for the loveliest surprise to go collect them from our local indie bookstore today 😭🩷 and then we visit some Little Free Libraries & I picked up a few 2nd hand books there (and dropped off 20).
🇳🇿 📚
🇳🇿 📚
My first Jo Walton read, which instantly made her one of my forever faves. So clever & beautifully written.
#pukapuka
#pukapuka
My Real Children, my novel about a woman with dementia who remembers two different versions of her own life, is on sale for only $2.99 as an ebook right now www.amazon.com/My-Real-Chil...
My Real Children
My Real Children - Kindle edition by Walton, Jo. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading My Real Children.
www.amazon.com
October 27, 2025 at 8:26 PM
My first Jo Walton read, which instantly made her one of my forever faves. So clever & beautifully written.
#pukapuka
#pukapuka
Reposted by Mel / MJ (she/her)
We sometimes read of young people with life threatening health conditions whose parents manage to get treatment for them. The cost is so much tho! 😮
Amelia was treated 😊
www.rnz.co.nz/life/people/...
Forest's family is still fundraising. Please give if you can 🙏
givealittle.co.nz/cause/forest...
Amelia was treated 😊
www.rnz.co.nz/life/people/...
Forest's family is still fundraising. Please give if you can 🙏
givealittle.co.nz/cause/forest...
Crippling stomach pain was not in her head - teen has surgery in Germany
As her daughter got sicker and sicker, Maddy Turner’s quest for answers dragged on. Now she has them.
www.rnz.co.nz
October 20, 2025 at 10:10 PM
We sometimes read of young people with life threatening health conditions whose parents manage to get treatment for them. The cost is so much tho! 😮
Amelia was treated 😊
www.rnz.co.nz/life/people/...
Forest's family is still fundraising. Please give if you can 🙏
givealittle.co.nz/cause/forest...
Amelia was treated 😊
www.rnz.co.nz/life/people/...
Forest's family is still fundraising. Please give if you can 🙏
givealittle.co.nz/cause/forest...
Pain/depression has been too intense to let me focus/read so instead I’ve been rewatching Criminal Minds (my comfort watch). Currently playing s05e16 “Mosley Lane”, which is one of the absolute best & most heartbreaking episodes. Unforgettable.
October 15, 2025 at 3:41 AM
Pain/depression has been too intense to let me focus/read so instead I’ve been rewatching Criminal Minds (my comfort watch). Currently playing s05e16 “Mosley Lane”, which is one of the absolute best & most heartbreaking episodes. Unforgettable.
Reposted by Mel / MJ (she/her)
If Mario can dress as a frog and fight tyrants then so can you.
October 12, 2025 at 4:12 AM
If Mario can dress as a frog and fight tyrants then so can you.
RIP Nigel Latta, a Kiwi legend, and my third cousin once removed through the Rutherford line.
#kikorangi
#familyhistory
#genealogy
#kikorangi
#familyhistory
#genealogy
October 1, 2025 at 5:11 AM
RIP Nigel Latta, a Kiwi legend, and my third cousin once removed through the Rutherford line.
#kikorangi
#familyhistory
#genealogy
#kikorangi
#familyhistory
#genealogy
4 children have visited my house in the last 2 days; I sent 3 of them home with a book. Not a bad ratio! Shoulda been a librarian
September 27, 2025 at 7:34 AM
4 children have visited my house in the last 2 days; I sent 3 of them home with a book. Not a bad ratio! Shoulda been a librarian
I won a giveaway hosted by my fave bookstore in Auckland, Time Out, so went in today to pick up my prize: a copy of Katabasis by R.F. Kuang! Love any excuse to go to Mt Eden, but a free book is the best one yet. Beautiful cherry blossoms lining side streets & good coffee were an added bonus.
💙📚🇳🇿
💙📚🇳🇿
September 11, 2025 at 4:41 AM
I won a giveaway hosted by my fave bookstore in Auckland, Time Out, so went in today to pick up my prize: a copy of Katabasis by R.F. Kuang! Love any excuse to go to Mt Eden, but a free book is the best one yet. Beautiful cherry blossoms lining side streets & good coffee were an added bonus.
💙📚🇳🇿
💙📚🇳🇿
Reposted by Mel / MJ (she/her)
It’s things like this that persuade me the human race still has a future.
September 7, 2025 at 9:13 AM
It’s things like this that persuade me the human race still has a future.