WORk OUT

YVONNE TODD Dream Girls Collective, Toxic 2021

Farewell the summer that wasn’t and hello the autumn that might be.

Choosing who makes the cover is always a big deal in the magazine world. There's a lot that goes on behind the scenes to pull it all together. Our cover stars usually have busy schedules and often spend much of the year travelling, so planning and timing is crucial.

Fortunately for UNO, Mike Dawson had returned from the edge of the earth and was enjoying some time back home at Okere Falls, just outside of Rotorua, when we approached him to be on the Autumn 2023 cover. The former Olympic kayaker and Antarctic adventurer talks about how times have changed since his early days kayaking on the Wairoa River and shares what it was like to spend 50 days trekking through the coldest place on earth.

In this issue we talk with three local business owners about paying it forward and their shared philosophies on doing good for the communities they work with, including our own.

This ethos is mirrored by a very special group of volunteers aboard the YWAM medical ship, berthed beside the Harbour Bridge, whose mission it is to provide much-needed dental and basic health care to remote and underserved communities.

A similar theme continues in our interview with Anna Rolleston, founder and director of Centre for Health. There's no shortage of “good sorts” in our little slice of paradise, it seems.

Financial columnist Owen Cooney offers advice and talks sense amid the fear of rising inflation and recession. He recommends “taking a step back and looking at the bigger picture”.

Sound advice that can be applied to most aspects of life, we think.

Our fashion editor, Nicky Adams, shines a light on three hidden gems in the jewellery industry, and talks us through the latest fashion styles to take us through autumn. And, starting this issue, gadget guru Karl Puschmann tries out the latest and greatest in our new tech column “Tech testing corner”.

The bottom of the North Island features in two separate travel stories to Wellington. Both offer first-hand experience and a personal perspective on two very different weekends away.

And, of course, there's our usual mouth-watering recipes, homes, design and colours to inspire, Sunday markets to discover and even some cute furry friends to “awwww” over.

We reckon UNO’s first issue for 2023 is a cracker. There's something for everyone, and is sure to set the tone for the rest of the year.

Michele and Rebecca , publishers

EDITOR’S NOTE

Chatting to adventurer – and now UNO cover star – Mike Dawson at our cover shoot, I got thinking about my own sense of adventure, or lack thereof.

Our cover photographer, Graeme Murray, who is most well-known for snapping sports stars and action sport, is coincidentally good friends with Mike. Graeme chimed in to our conversation, noting he’s always been amazed anyone would find his adventurous friends’ lives interesting. Having lived inside a bubble of adventure himself for years, he often forgets there are many of us out there living humdrum lives (my words, not his), the occasional hike marked on the calendar at the weekends.

Admittedly, us homebodies aren’t very motivated to reach the edge of the earth, or push our heart rates to near-fatal levels, but it does make you wonder what we’re missing out on.

Later Graeme joked that his friends would all be drug addicts if it wasn’t for attempting deathdefying feats at least once per week. That made me feel better about my caffeine addiction, and snapped me back to reality.

After reading about the ups and downs of the epic 50-day Antarctic adventure, it made me realise I’m perfectly happy living vicariously through the likes of Mike doing extraordinary things. I’m sure it’s life-changing but I think I’ll stick to my yearly hikes and leave the extreme adventuring to the professionals.

Hayley, editor