Dawn is a weekend and opinion writer for the Bay of Plenty Times
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Dawn Picken: Hard choices on and off the court
OPINION: If tennis legend Serena Williams can reimagine parenting, maybe we can, too.
Opinion: We don't need another trial or study. Re-open the road - now
OPINION: Studying the closure of road will not provide relief for commuters.
Comment: Learning to evolve when nestlings take off
OPINION: When you think you have a plan, the people you love most change the game
Dawn Picken: Is working from home working for us?
Opinion: Despite calls for workers to return to the office, remote work is here to stay.
Opinion: Consent education important for students
OPINION: Consent education in schools is one vital tool to help keep our children safe.
'I'm smitten': An affair to remember in dark times
Sunrise is a reminder of beauty in our broken world.
Dawn Picken: Conversion therapy ban 'about time'
Opinion: Accepting different gender identities and sexual orientations is a win for all.
Dawn Picken: A message for singles before V-day
OPINION: Some of us are giving Cupid a break this Valentine's Day.
Dawn Picken: Let's get together again - reconnection at last?
The hope of mass reunion is here at last.
Dawn Picken: The long road of parenting
My eldest turned 18 this week, but the parenting trip continues.
Dawn Picken: Thoughts from a Quaran-queen in MIQ
Thoughts for surviving isolation - let's try this at home.
Dawn Picken: Free-dumb isn't free - living with liberty in the US
OPINION: If you hate Covid restrictions, you'll love America.
Dawn Picken: Rethinking what it means to turn the page on another year
Opinion: Let's take the pressure off 2022 and ourselves to make the next year wonderful.
Dawn Picken: Celebrate the season while acknowledging loss
Opinion: Covid and life's usual calamities have forced us to make sacrifices.
Dawn Picken: 'I see each meal as a memory'
OPINION: Who we are eating with matters more than what we're eating this holiday season.
Dawn Picken: This is weird - leaving NZ in the Covid age
I flip out before any trip, but pandemic travel has multiplied my freak factor.
Dawn Picken: Keep your friends close and conspiracy theory fans closer
OPINION: Talking to science deniers requires technique and patience.
Dawn Picken: We're missing the mark in debate about sexual harassment
Opinion: Sexual harassment - and the way we've failed to curb it- transcends politics.
Dawn Picken: Thanks to the silent majority
We need to recognise people who are trying to do the right thing each day.
Dawn Picken: Reflection, deflection and the best cheese toastie ever
OPINION: Hard conversations are especially wrenching for the conflict-averse.
Dawn Picken: Tell me a story
Listeners in Tauranga recently gave storytellers a rare gift: undivided attention.
Dawn Picken: So many reasons to be angry, so little time
OPINION: Vaccines are not on my list of reasons to be angry.
Dawn Picken: An insider's guide to the ICU for the vaccine hesitant
ICU a reality for more people amid Covid-19. You don't want to go there, says Dawn Picken.
Dawn Picken: It's a crazy time to turn 16 - advice for my teenaged son
Opinion: What a crazy time to turn 16 - or any age.
Dawn Picken: The uphill slog of convincing young people to get vaccinated for Covid-19
OPINION: No jab, no fun? Parents of teenagers are navigating vaccine hesitancy.
Dawn Picken: Running legend backs vaccinations
Opinion: Running legend Anne Audain urges Kiwis to get vaccinated against Covid-19.
Dawn Picken: Getting vaccinated is our best shot
We've seen what happens when Covid-19 vaccination rates are low. Aotearoa can do better.
Dawn Picken: 20 years after 9/11: How do we honour the victims?
OPINION: Twenty years on, what do we owe the victims of 9/11?
Dawn Picken: Lockdown 2.0 parenting - carpe diem can wait
Lockdown parenting is no piece of cake - especially when you can't find flour.
Dawn Picken: Embrace science fact over science fiction when it comes to Covid-19 vaccines
Opinion: Getting vaccinated is more than a personal choice - it affects everyone.
Dawn Picken's Delta diary: Life in lockdown 2.0
The latest Covid-19 lockdown has forced us to pause.
Dawn Picken: Apologies are the first step, not the last word
Saying sorry is just a first step.
Dawn Picken: Owners need to pick up after their dogs
Opinion: Picking up poo is a lot like justice - when it's delayed, it's denied.
Dawn Picken: Once upon a time, I could venture with my kids
Opinion: The anti-staycation: where you wish you had left home but stayed to work instead.
Dawn Picken: Where will we house the next wave of Kiwis?
There's no easy answer for housing the next wave of Kiwi returnees and migrants.
Hoping for a win on the rubbish front
Questions remain about the new rubbish collection system that only time can answer.
Dawn Picken: Saddened but not surprised by sexual assault report
Opinion: It's hard to deal with despicable behaviour happening under our noses.
Dawn Picken: Airport, racecourse should be on the table for housing
OPINION: All options should be considered for shifting people out of emergency housing
Dawn Picken: How studying the Māori language benefits us all
Opinion: If you want to better understand someone's culture, study their language.
Dawn Picken: Bracing myself for an empty nest
OPINION: You know you've raised an independent soul if they flee the nest.
Dawn Picken: Listen up, I've got something to say
OPINION: We know when someone's focusing on our words and when they're not.
Dawn Picken: Support the Aotearoa renaissance when it comes to buying local
Opinion: We need to support Aotearoa artists if we want to keep enjoying their gifts.
Dawn Picken: Refuse the jab, lose the job
Opinion: Some employees need to be vaccinated against Covid-19 to protect public health.
Dawn Picken: Good fences, good neighbours? I don't think so
Opinion: Fences can be useful, but are we building too many?
Dawn Picken: Mother's Day in the Zone
OPINION: Plenty of parents are flying solo this Mother's Day.
Dawn Picken: Justice for George - a sad, small victory
OPINION: Are we inching closer to a world where Black Lives Matter?
Dawn Picken: Why we should think about the environment when we think about death
We need a death plan as much, or more than we need a life plan.
The upside of social media
OPINION: Social media is a cesspool. It's also a repository for good memories.
Dawn Picken: Is time running out for daylight saving?
Opinion: We can add joy to our country by making daylight saving time permanent.
Dawn Picken: Government's fluoridation decision the right call
OPINION: Too many people choose to do nothing when it comes to public health
Dawn Picken: Better campaign needed against vaccine disinformation
Opinion: We can't afford to let the lords of lies win the battle for arms and minds.
Dawn Picken: It's time to think about reopening the border
OPINION: Why should only godwits get to fly?
Dawn Picken: It's not cancel culture, it's progress
OPINION: It's only cancel culture when you don't like the change, Dawn Picken writes.
Paging Dr Google - what happened to expertise?
OPINION: Dr Google will not have the last word.
Dawn Picken: Will you be my Galentine?
Opinion: It's a time to celebrate all female friends, whether they're single, or not.
Dawn Picken: Inequity hurts everyone - it's time to fix the whare
Opinion: We are still living in the house colonialism built and it's time to fix it.
Dawn Picken: Advice for a 17-year-old in a new world
Opinion: For a teenager, postponement looks permanent. But this pause is not forever.
Dawn Picken: Relief the word of the day as Biden takes reins
OPINION: America is on the path to rejoining the world.
Dawn Picken: A new chapter opens for America
"You don't have to be American to have felt the pain and betrayal."
Dawn Picken: Is Martin Luther King jnr's dream still alive?
OPINION: King's dream is not dead, but it does appear to be on life support.
Dawn Picken: Trump's legacy a shameful one
OPINION: Can America once again govern on reason and facts rather than fear and lies?
Dawn Picken: The wisdom of the Stoics - give yourself a break this Christmas
Opinion: Realising what we could lose can help us appreciate what we have.
Many Kiwis scrambling for keys to the castle
OPINION: Investment in shares may be the way to grow a deposit for a home.
Dawn Picken: Big Brother is watching
OPINION: Facial images may be collected at a distance, without consent or knowledge.
Dawn Picken: A lot to be thankful for in this weird year
OPINION: For all its weirdness and sadness, 2020 has produced moments of gratitude.
Dawn Picken: He'll be right: non-conformity is the new norm
OPINION: Why would we say hurtful things about people who don't conform to gender norms?
Opinion: How Kamala Harris has singularly defied conventions
OPINION: The vice-president-elect can be a role model to many.
Dawn Picken: Sad reflection of a fearful country
OPINION: The mood in our house was grim on Wednesday night.
Thirteen things that terrify me this Halloween
Halloween is just a temporary bubble where being scared is fun.
Dawn Picken: Happy birthday, I voted for you
OPINION: I voted for candidates who've demonstrated they're smart, strategic and sane.
Opinion: Politicians talk 'family values' but what about the singletons
OPINION: Politicians would be wise to speak in a way that makes all voters feel valued.
Dawn Picken: Council has one shot at getting rubbish right
OPINION: The city's track record when it comes to big projects has been less than stellar.
Dawn Picken: Decluttering can improve mental health
COMMENT: The case for decluttering: disposing of junk can improve your mental health.
Dawn Picken: How the pandemic is worsening the wealth divide
Covid-19 is shining a spotlight on wealth inequality
Dawn Picken: Is New Zealand a fascist state?
COMMENT: People troubled by government policies during the pandemic have options.