FASHION 2017
These days, I'm a 40-something first-time mother and live in breastfeeding dresses and slippers. If I'm lucky I get to leave the house alone once a week; on these occasions I replace the slippers with jandals and dab some chapstick on my lips.
According to my high school teacher mates, the kids are into puffer jackets, jeans and sneakers. Apparently this dearth of style (norm core as it's known) is because of the death of "tribal" music-based youth culture. Kids are more interested in forging an identity on social media than via fashion.
Oh, and a friend who owns a vintage clothing store says "mom" jeans are also a go. And 40 per cent of millenials have tattoos. Not so much body piercing these days.
The winner is... 1997
MUSIC 1997
I was obsessed with OK Computer by Radiohead. I liked the earlier Radiohead albums but this one was sublime.
That Bittersweet Symphony song did my head in. It was so boring and pointless and a total Pachelbel's Canon rip off (which is also boring and pointless). And everyone loved it and felt all indie and cool 'cos they had an album by The Verve. I was annoyed that everyone had discovered them; I liked them when they didn't use the definite article in their name and they rocked the whole shoegaze thing.
That Notorious B.I.G. song Mo Money Mo Problems was huge. He was shot before it was released and this made it pretty poignant. Hip-hop was great in the '90s - the G-funk thing, Death Row Records, Tupac and Biggie.
And electronic/dance music was massive. Prodigy released The Fat of the Land and Chemical Brothers released Dig Your Own Hole. Block Rocking Beats did what the title suggested and reached the top spot around the world.
MUSIC 2017
Early this year Ed Sheeran had 16 songs in the UK top 20. This makes me feel sick. Galway Girl may be the worst song ever written.
The only other musician in 2017 is Kendrick Lamar. He's a "nice" rapper and has made his way out of the ghetto and everyone loves him.
His song Humble knocked Ed Sheeran's song Shape of You off the top spot of the Billboard Charts.
This is weird because Ed Sheeran is constantly being called "humble" and "a nice guy". When did nice guys become rock stars?
The winner is... 1997
POLITICS 1997
The UK elections were so exciting. Tony Blair seemed amazing - well-spoken, measured, handsome. New Labour were going to change everything and it was all Cool Britannia - until it wasn't.
Back in New Zealand, politics was a bit of a yawn fest. Jim Bolger, Jenny Shipley - hardly the stuff of political legend.
Helen Clark was a bright spot, a brainy woman, leader of the opposition and definitely on the up.
It was rather thrilling that both Labour and National had female leaders.
The perennial Winston Peters was the deputy prime minister because of a coalition with New Zealand First, but this marriage of convenience ended when Jenny Shipley sacked him in 1998, the first step in the precipitous decline of National and the rise of Helen Clark's Labour.
POLITICS 2017
The world is veering to the far right, Donald Trump is the President of USA, and Britain is leaving the EU.
This all makes our political environment seem rather tame. Bill English is rather lacklustre after mister nice guy John Key and his pink shirts and socialite DJ son.
Labour is talking up the woes of immigration, Auckland house prices are soaring to even greater heights of ridiculousness. Winston Peters has mounted a Lazarus-like return from political death and is more popular than ever.
Jacinda Ardern and Paula Bennett are the deputies of the two main parties, but women remain under-represented generally.
The most recent Statistics New Zealand data reveals only about a third of those in Parliament are female - there's still a long way to go when it comes to equal and fair gender representation.
The winner is... 1997
SPORT 1997
In 1997 Mike Tyson bit off some of Evander Holyfield's ear in the third round of a WBA fight in Las Vegas. He spat it out and was banned from boxing for a year.
The Auckland Warriors came eighth in the Super League, the All Blacks won the three Bledisloe Cup games against Australia and The Blues won the Super Rugby Championships. Beatrice Faumuina was the first New Zealand to win an event at the World Athletic Championships. Silver Ferns were world netball champs and Greg Turner won the New Zealand Open.
SPORT 2017
In 2017, the main occasion of sporting note is the Lions' tour.
They are set to bring tens of thousands of rabid rugby fans with them and it's going to be Little Britain here for a month or so.
ASB Classic promised much but delivered little. Tennis fan girls and boys were overwhelmed with excitement at the prospect of a Venus/Serena showcase, but they were both knocked out before the quarter finals.
Turns out Serena is pregnant, which may account for her lack of form. They didn't really earn their six-figure appearance fees and they ran up a $33,000 hotel bill.
The Black Caps did pretty well again this year -- played 10 games and won 7. We are third in the ICC ODI rankings, sixth in the test rankings and first in Twenty20s. Our women's team comes third overall - not a bad showing.
The winner is... 2017
