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A.J. Ponder

@ponderbooks.com
2.3K followers 1.8K following 6.8K posts

Author at ponderbooks.com Poet. Builder of worlds. Player of games. He, she, they.

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Reposted by A.J. Ponder
ardrigh @ardrigh.bsky.social · 12h
"Fixing the basics" says National. Like having functional fire trucks that don't break down at a major fire? Oh no, not *those* basics.... #nzpol
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A.J. Ponder @ponderbooks.com · 14h
Dragonsday! Can a dragon be funny? Lots of dragons are very serious, or very dangerous. But have you come across a funny dragon? Mossoadey is hilarious, but I still think he needs more dragon jokes and puns to put in his autobiography Mossoadey on Mossoadey: My Life in Flames. What have you got?
Mossoadey: Dragons in the Garden

Picture of a geeky yellow and green dragon. 

Some dragons like to fly all day and do athletic things. Others, are more into holidaying at home, pottering around the garden smelling the flowers and cracking jokes.
And that's Mossoadey. Deadpan. Hilarious. And worth watching out for if you enjoy comedians on panel shows. 
And like all comics he works to his strengths with his googly eyes. 
NB Mossoadey was named as a youngling after his mossy yellow and green colouring.
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CindyBax @cindybax.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
NZ: pure shitfuckery. Great new content by @thejuicemedia.com Thanks legends #nzpol
youtube.com
NZ Election 2026 | 100% Pure S*itF@^kery
YouTube video by thejuicemedia
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tristam @tristam.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Chlöe Swarbrick gives an almighty summation of the current governing coalition’s record. Her speech, given as parliament closes for the election, also outlines why the @greens.org.nz need to lead the next government… the video is well worth your time. #nzpol
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A.J. Ponder @ponderbooks.com · 26/09/2026
What type of magic do you prefer in your books? Bonus Round: The world might not be ending, but you're in a bit of a bind, and evil forces have you in their grip. What sort of magic is going to get out of trouble and back home in time for tea?
This or that 
Powerful magic: Image has a mage holding something scary and emitting light with a black draogn behind them
or 
Cosy magic: Image has an open red-ribboned book floating over a round table. a stained glass window, pastel books and nick nacks are in the background. And a scroll and candles are on the table. 

Everything is on a white and yellow clouded background with a red dragon at the bottom left and a brown dragon in flight between the options. 
 AJ Ponder Blue logo with a red dragon behind.
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Newsroom NZ @newsroom.co.nz · 27/09/2026
Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick and candidate Julie Anne Genter rally Wellington Bays voters with promises of bold ideas, like taxing the super-rich.
newsroom.co.nz
Greens say change won’t come from reheating the political nachos
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Andrew @openpolicy.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
“Citizens Advice Bureau wants an independent anti-slavery commissioner, saying volunteers were "genuinely horrified and shocked" when they discovered there was no support or protection for people in exploitative situations.” #nzpol
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Talaria.FYI @talaria-fyi.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
@patbrittenden.bsky.social @paulbarlownz.bsky.social The whole #housingCrisis is caused by "our" government PAYING #landlords to buy more houses (giving them tax breaks), instead of using that same money to help homeowners buy OUR own homes (taxing US in full). Is that clear now? #nzpol
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Talaria.FYI @talaria-fyi.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Collusion. Costing taxpayers $360m - a tiny fraction I believe. Tell the Commerce Commission if you see it. Breach of the Fair Trading Act. www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cCB... #nzpol
youtube.com
Commerce Commission boss reveals $360 million bid-rigging problem
YouTube video by Q+A with Jack Tame
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A.J. Ponder @ponderbooks.com · 26/09/2026
What type of magic do you prefer in your books? Bonus Round: The world might not be ending, but you're in a bit of a bind, and evil forces have you in their grip. What sort of magic is going to get out of trouble and back home in time for tea?
This or that 
Powerful magic: Image has a mage holding something scary and emitting light with a black draogn behind them
or 
Cosy magic: Image has an open red-ribboned book floating over a round table. a stained glass window, pastel books and nick nacks are in the background. And a scroll and candles are on the table. 

Everything is on a white and yellow clouded background with a red dragon at the bottom left and a brown dragon in flight between the options. 
 AJ Ponder Blue logo with a red dragon behind.
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Huia Sue @huiasue.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
There’s a good reason why an egalitarian & equal society is better for everyone, including the #rich - doubling down on the #poor & middle class & pushing them into #poverty isn’t a good strategy! #AtlasNetwork #Project2025 #Trump www.politico.com/magazine/sto...
politico.com
The Pitchforks Are Coming… For Us Plutocrats
A memo for my fellow filthy rich who live in our gated bubble worlds: Wake up, people. It won’t last.
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Rich @friendlykiwi.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
What an excellent project. #NewZealand needs more of this. #nzpol www.rnz.co.nz/news/te-ao-m...
rnz.co.nz
Profits from iwi-led solar project tagged for families experiencing energy hardship
A floating solar project has transformed a Dannevirke wastewater treatment pond into a source of clean energy, with profit from the electricity generated going to whānau the Tararua community experien...
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Huia Sue @huiasue.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Minister Erica Stanford refuses to divulge #curriculum feedback amid #OIA secrecy claims, despite it being her job & her responsibility. She should be sacked. #nzpol #education #AtlasNetwork www.rnz.co.nz/news/politic...
rnz.co.nz
Minister refuses to divulge curriculum feedback amid OIA secrecy claims
The Education Minister says information about the feedback she personally gave on curriculum changes "does not exist", amid accusations of a culture of secrecy.
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Lan Pham @lanpham.greens.org.nz · 25/09/2026
In the bleakness of Government's final week of parliament, where polluters and profiteers who benefit from destroying or exploiting te taiao write the rules - there was a shining light in the form of the Takaka community petition to expand Kahurangi national park to protect Te Waikoropupu Springs 🌏✊️
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Workers First Union @workersfirstunion.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Save the date: October 17 ✊✊✊
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GreenLeft Network 🍉 @nzgreenleft.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Will never forget TPU's Wealth Tax Facebook poll and them having to delete it, because taxing wealth is more popular than taxing work #nzpol
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Anneleise @anneleise.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Starting to get a bit more depth with the Dirty Works and TPU analysis. Interesting piece with Chelsea Daniels and David Fisher. #NZPol www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/what-nick...
nzherald.co.nz
What Nicky Hager’s Dirty Work alleges about the Taxpayers’ Union
David Fisher joins The Front Page to break down the allegations made in Nicky Hager's Dirty Work.
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Mark @maetl.bsky.social · 19/10/2025
The NZ political reporting culture has been so focused for so long on masterful gambits, they are unable to contextualise blatant lying and deception as bad and dangerous qualities in leadership situations.
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NinjaKitty 忍者キティ🥷🐈‍⬛ @ninjakitty.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
If Potton & Burton want to consider republishing Nicky Hagar’s book that are now out of print, I’m fairly confident there’s still a market for them
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A.J. Ponder @ponderbooks.com · 23/09/2026
Dragonsday! Who doesn't love a cute little fire dragon? But they can be dangerous! How do you stop a baby fire dragon from burning the house down?
Baby Red,
Dragons out and about caption with image of red dragon haching from egg in a bed of fiery lava. 

Text on yellow background: Seeing this little dragon reminded me of the dragon hatching in The Dragon Transport and Pacification Society, where the dragons blow flames on the eggs to hatch them, and when Mandy's brothers, Binky and Bunky bond with their very own dragons. I think this might be a model of Binky's one! Such a cutie.
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Terry Bellamak @tbellamak.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
As Stephen Colbert said, “Reality has a well known liberal bias.” #nzpol
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Andrew @openpolicy.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
There were cheers in the room when Nicky Hager said this. The appetite for cleaning up politics in Aotearoa is strong, and politicians on the left need to act on this as soon as possible.
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Shifty Cow @supergoofnz.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
#NZpol
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Alicia Warne @aliciawarne.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
It's SOON!!! So excited to see all the great #cozyfantasy #books we're going to have on sale! (Still time to sign up as an author, too!) cozyfantasysale.promisepress.org #cozythedayaway 📚🌍 🪐📚🌈🚀💫 🖤✏️
cozyfantasysale.promisepress.org
Home - Cozy Fantasy Sale
This is the home page for the Cozy the Day Away Sale series, where the first-ever cozy fantasy group sale happens! Sales in 2026 will…
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New Zealand Professional Firefighters' Union @nzpfu.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Sound on 🔊 Thorndon’s aerial appliance towed away after catching fire—leaving the capital city relying on just a single working high-reach truck. #NZPol
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Whakamataku - Toitū Te Tiriti 🍉 @whakamataku.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
This is BY FAR, the best metaphor for our fire service’s current cluster fuck. Fire truck… catches fucking fire!!! #nzpol
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Mike Bartley @anothermike100.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
After last week's episode in which David Seymour said he would use a magic wand to take away the will to fight, Chloë Swarbrick would have everyone's basic needs met. #nzpol ’I was a massive nerd’: A road trip with Chloe Swarbrick www.rnz.co.nz/life/people/...
rnz.co.nz
'I was a massive nerd': A road trip with Chloe Swarbrick
The Green Party leader opens up about her childhood, her latent desire to be a tradie and why tamari almonds are her go-to road snack in the latest episode of Power Steering.
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A.J. Ponder @ponderbooks.com · 19/09/2026
What sort of dragons do you want to meet in your next adventure?
This or That
Friendly dragon: With image - a light blue dragon dripping water, and sheltering a child underneath. 
Raging dragon: with image of red dragon wrapped around a tower and spurting fire. 

Images are on yellow and white clouded background with a red dragon below and a draogn in flight between the two images. 
AJ Ponder's logo is top right - Yellow lettering with a sword through it and a red dragon on a blue background.
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Drew(bacca) @cybogoblin.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Are Tui still using their classic billboard format? If they aren't, it's easily repurposed... #nzpol
Tui 'yeah right' billboard, but it's Luxon saying 'cry me a river' (a phrase he actually said in response to a question from Chris Hipkins) in response to 'Unemployment at a 14-year high, with 40,000 more people out of work than 2023'
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Daniel @danentropy.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Nothing like a British Prime Minister to make you hate politicians Approves more fossil fuel extraction + Here's 30P for a light bulb Sod right the heck off Burnham What's the El Niño bringing us this Christmas... #UKpol www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
theguardian.com
British people understand the climate crisis threat. Today I’m empowering them to tackle it | Andy Burnham
With nearly £30m of funding, I’m giving communities power over local energy. They know the gravity of global heating, and they want to be part of the solution, says UK prime minister Andy Burnham
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Daniel @danentropy.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Atlas Network is to destroy western democracies ACT and National have MP's involved with & connected to this network They should be classified as a terrorist network #ACT #NZNational #NZpol
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Karryn Nagel @karrynnagel.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Only 14 days away from #cozyfantasy book sale, Cozy the Day Away! #Audiobooks, #paperbacks, bundles, #ebooks and more! 9 categories, #NOAI, indie and hybrid authors! Over a hundred books and counting. Don't miss the last #booksale of the year. 😍📚💯🎉
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Epona Author Solutions @eponaauthorsolutions.com · 17/09/2026
🧀 DEADLINE EXTENDED TO 10/31 It's about to get cozy & cheesy at Epona Muse Publishing. We're looking for #cozy #fantasy stories which have cheese as a main plot point. More details at publishing.eponaauthorsolutions.com 📚💙🪐
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AL - Outlining dhampir novella @alswrites.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
My short story for Short Story September dropped: Cookies for a Dragon Lacei Brewfist, a dwarven baker, has to take up her sick nephew's quest and deliver cookies to nearby ruins. During her (short) journey, she encounters traps, undead, and a new friend. 🐉Cozy Fantasy 🍪Recipes Download via link
alswrites.itch.io
Cookies for a Dragon by Al Stover
A dwarven baker makes a delivery to a dragon in a dungeon
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Russell Brown @publicaddress.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Wrote a Listener column about climate change after derailing my days countless times to stop what I was doing and fact-bomb people who were Wrong on the Internet. Contains data. www.nzherald.co.nz/the-listener...
nzherald.co.nz
Russell Brown: We are surrendering to stupidity
The rage against science that fermented in the pandemic is spilling everywhere.
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Whakamataku - Toitū Te Tiriti 🍉 @whakamataku.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
This is a TRAVESTY! #nzpol
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Mountain Tui @mountaintui.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
1 kid died in Nationa/ACT's Boot Camp trial. ALL re-offended & went back to the justice system. Decades of research show boot camps don't work & makes crime worse. John Key's govt agreed. Yet this one continues to abuse urgency & ignore evidence, passing the law under urgency last night #nzpol
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Julie Anne Genter @julieannegenter.greens.org.nz · 17/09/2026
Just leaving this here.
Screen shot of post article with headline “Poll: Chlöe Swarbrick beats Nicola Willis in Economy as voters sceptical of growth plan”. Image photo of Chlöe Swarbrick, Barbara Edmonds and Nicola Willis on a panel.
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A.J. Ponder @ponderbooks.com · 17/09/2026
Living under a RW government is like having the whole country's living conditions and environmental protections stolen to put into their donors' pockets.
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Allison @handle.invalid · 17/09/2026
Nobody wants to admit the Greens are setting the agenda for this election from solar funding, to supermarkets to price gouging.
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Kay in the End Times 🏳️‍🌈 💗💜💙📚 @jennykaynz.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Damning report into FENZ Fire and Emergency Management NZ preparedness, management, governance and ability to answer questions. Q: How many of 30 Type 3 fire appliances purchased in 2019 are operational? A's: most operational; then none; then 14, 17, or 16; then 0. www.nzpfu.org.nz/media/websit...
nzpfu.org.nz
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Char Of AotearoaNZ @kiwichar.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
So weird how everyone is just now CAMPAIGNING on breaking up the supermarket duopoly 💭 I mean, when have they ever been wrong? ✅✅🕊️(check the date) #nzpol #OneTermGovernment #NZ #KiwiMart #Aotearoa #ForAllOfUs
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A.J. Ponder @ponderbooks.com · 16/09/2026
Dragons Day! If you had to choose, would you go visit a dragon, or Hobbiton? I guess it's kind of lucky you can do both! So if you could visit your favourite dragon of all time, which one would it be? You never know, the Wayward Dragon might even know the way. ;)
A metal dragon carrying a lantern, photo taken from Hobbiton set in a large frame with text "The Wayward Dragon" and "Dragons out and about" 

"The Wayward Dragon is a very proud dragon with a long tradition of not only lighting the way to Hobbiton, but also being an ambassador for all dragons.

Because he’s always worried about Smaug and fireworks dragons frightening  people, let’s all let him know our favourite dragons of all time! 🙂 

A.J. Ponder red and blue dragon logo
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kyle @kyledchurch.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
fantastic catch by @henrycooke.bsky.social shows that more aggressive policy against foodstuffs should be the *baseline* - any political party refusing to act is directly ensuring worse conditions for NZ consumers Greens are WELL out in front on this
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Portsmouth Greens @pompeygreens.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
You pay tax on your income, and on consumption (e.g. VAT). But the wealthier you are, and the more you own, more of your income comes from owning (assets), rather than earning (having a job). Right now, the owners usually pay a lower tax rate than the earners. greenparty.org.uk/2026/09/14/t...
greenparty.org.uk
The Wealth Tax: Creating a Fairer, Greener Economy  - Green Party
In recent years, the conversation around the UK economy has shifted. As the gap between stagnant wages and soaring asset values continues to grow, economists and policymakers are looking at ways to ma...
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David Mohring @nzheretic.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
NZFirst, ACT "Be they removed!" #nzpol
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KidOf60sTeens; The right wing is not your ally. @kidof60steens.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Has anything changed? Yes. It's even worse now. Thousands and thousands of business failures. Highest homelessness. Ever. Highest unemployment in 11 years. If we are going to have ANY CHANCE of turning this destruction around, we **MUST TAX WEALTH.** Party vote @greens.org.nz #NZPol
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Mountain Tui @mountaintui.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
I've felt for some time now that Labour is not doing as well as it could. Have privately lamented that without a strong Labour, the left block loses. Period. There's a lot of reasons for why what is happening, and I could parse it all, but the bottom line is if Labour loses, so does the left. #nzpol
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Musical Chairs @musicalchairs.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
I think that's enough, but I will add three more things. First, we are creating ever larger piles of privately owned financial assets - overwhelmingly held by the richest few. The people holding those assets expect a return - and that return comes from the real economy. We all pay for it. [11/n]
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Ryan Marino, MD @ryanmarino.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
The rule they are overturning was predicted to give $120 billion in public health benefits by 2047, with projections that by 2035, it would would prevent up to 1,200 premature deaths, 870 hospital and emergency room visits, 360K asthma attacks, 48K school absence days and 57K lost workdays each year
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