John Hornblow Giant Killer
Our friends John and Jenny Hornblow are paragons of civic virtue. John is the Deputy Mayor of Palmerston North, the fifth largest city in New Zealand. He will soon become an Anglican minister and helps business people resolve conflicts. Jenny is a music professor at Massey University and a church choir director. She also looks like Julie Andrews and is about the sweetest person I ever met. The Hornblows have seven adult children and live on a tree lined street (where we spent several nights and declared it our New Zealand home).
Our friends and their fellow Palmerston Northers managed to attract British comedian John Cleese, whose performance bored the discerning audience to near death. The local paper gave Mr. Cleese a devastating review and he retaliated by calling the city the "suicide capital of the world." This was reported in the international press to the chagrin of many a proud Palmerstonian.
Enter stage left "John the Giant Killer. John's method of warfare is to either love you so much you will concede or make you laugh until you cry stop. The Australians and fellow Kiwis who were polluted by Mr. Cleese's misadventure were his targets.
Palmerston North does not initially wow you like other New Zealand destinations, but the people won me over. They are smart, polite, and full of good energy. While there are no mountains and beaches, there are universities, gardens, rivers and smiles. It is a quiet wonderful college and service town with lots of character and a very big square. It is a place worth visiting especially if you know someone or have a child attending university. It is also a good place to stop on a hectic trip and meet some real Kiwis. The food is good, there are beautiful parks, festivals, and conference facilities.
So how was John to compete with the evil comedian and media? He decided to sponsor a contest to bring deserving winners to visit, enjoy and report on their wonderful visit to Palmerston North. Local businesses kicked in lodging and tickets from Australia. Native Kiwis also had the opportunity to get the royal treatment. John and Jenny agreed to host these folks.
It was now off to the media circus! John is featured on international programs from Brisbane to Auckland and over 1000 entries arrive. The message of why Palmerson North is a great place to visit, live and attend university is shared. All ink is good ink and prospective visitors learn more than expected.
John and Jenny are full of positive energy and know how to make lemonade from lemons. John also has an innate ability to acquire positive publicity. He has short term political goals which might be more readily met because of these antics. His fellow city councilors and the dodgey mayor will probably kick themselves for not thinking of such a great idea, others will say this is a self serving publicity stunt.
John, however, knows this is more than a game. It is important to share your home and city with others. Jenny will embrace their guest, give them a cup of tea and convince a few people that their home is a wonderful place to visit. Love, truth, smiles and a little humor will usually defeat the likes of small minded, vain British comedians on their mean spirited quest for bygone glory.
Our friends and their fellow Palmerston Northers managed to attract British comedian John Cleese, whose performance bored the discerning audience to near death. The local paper gave Mr. Cleese a devastating review and he retaliated by calling the city the "suicide capital of the world." This was reported in the international press to the chagrin of many a proud Palmerstonian.
Enter stage left "John the Giant Killer. John's method of warfare is to either love you so much you will concede or make you laugh until you cry stop. The Australians and fellow Kiwis who were polluted by Mr. Cleese's misadventure were his targets.
Palmerston North does not initially wow you like other New Zealand destinations, but the people won me over. They are smart, polite, and full of good energy. While there are no mountains and beaches, there are universities, gardens, rivers and smiles. It is a quiet wonderful college and service town with lots of character and a very big square. It is a place worth visiting especially if you know someone or have a child attending university. It is also a good place to stop on a hectic trip and meet some real Kiwis. The food is good, there are beautiful parks, festivals, and conference facilities.
So how was John to compete with the evil comedian and media? He decided to sponsor a contest to bring deserving winners to visit, enjoy and report on their wonderful visit to Palmerston North. Local businesses kicked in lodging and tickets from Australia. Native Kiwis also had the opportunity to get the royal treatment. John and Jenny agreed to host these folks.
It was now off to the media circus! John is featured on international programs from Brisbane to Auckland and over 1000 entries arrive. The message of why Palmerson North is a great place to visit, live and attend university is shared. All ink is good ink and prospective visitors learn more than expected.
John and Jenny are full of positive energy and know how to make lemonade from lemons. John also has an innate ability to acquire positive publicity. He has short term political goals which might be more readily met because of these antics. His fellow city councilors and the dodgey mayor will probably kick themselves for not thinking of such a great idea, others will say this is a self serving publicity stunt.
John, however, knows this is more than a game. It is important to share your home and city with others. Jenny will embrace their guest, give them a cup of tea and convince a few people that their home is a wonderful place to visit. Love, truth, smiles and a little humor will usually defeat the likes of small minded, vain British comedians on their mean spirited quest for bygone glory.
posted by Chuck and Gay Mitchell | 10:15 PM
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