A meat worker from Dargaville is gaining notoriety worldwide thanks to a slew of hilarious videos which have gone viral on the internet.
Tii Aloua, aka Aunty Tii, says she had no idea that when her husband started filming her comedic antics and posting them to Facebook two years ago that anything much would happen.
"But straight away they went viral, it was like bang, instant overnight success."
Aunty thought she would have a try.
Watch till the end!
Xoxo
Her Facebook page called Aunty Tii has more than 20,000 followers and she claims to have had offers to do stand-up comedy in the United States and Hawaii with all-expenses paid trips, however she turned them down.
"I can't stay away from my husband – I've never been apart from him and I'd miss home too much.
"The fans are so amazing, one fan wanted to help me get my own T-shirts printed and they also wanted to do aprons for me as well, but then I tell them, well no I don't really want to go that far. I didn't really want anything out of it – I just want to be happy and to make others happy.
"I reckon laughing is the best thing in the world.
Auntie Tii's not even joking in this one whanau, honest attempt at driving a manual car.
Hope you have a smile...
Aunty Tii
xoxo
"But I also know what it feels like to feel down, some people are depressed. One lady she was one of my fans – she was depressed to a point where she wanted to die. She said she had never laughed so much in all her life after watching my videos.
"So you know what, I'm helping these people by making them smile and laugh."
All of Tii's videos are filmed in her hometown Dargaville where she works as a meat packer at Silver Fern Farms.
Pregnant heifer slaughtered A pregnant heifer was slaughtered then stolen and now its owners are speaking out against such "barbaric" acts of theft.
Barbaric act: What remains of a pregnant heifer.
Aranga dairy farmers Greg and Claire Collins want the theft of livestock in the region to stop and warns those buying stolen meat or eating it, that it could be unsafe.
"When you are poaching other people's meat, you don't know when they were last drenched or if they are safe to eat. You don't know if they've had antibiotics recently. You could get very sick from it."
Mrs Collins decided to speak out because she was saddened by the slaughter of one of her hand-reared pregnant heifers.
"I was sick to my stomach, who would do something like that. These are animals we have raised since they were born. If her baby was a heifer we would have kept her baby.
"This heifer was one of our most friendly – she would come and search for things in your car, she would walk straight up to anyone, I mean she was a very easy target for someone."
The Collins family operates a small-scale dairy farm and so knows the history of every one of their animals.
"We've only got a really small herd, so every animal that we've had has a history. So it's really personal for us."
Mrs Collins posted her concerns to Facebook and was surprised to learn of several other locals in the area who had had livestock slaughtered and stolen in recent months.
Dargaville police Sergeant Garth Mackay confirmed the theft was not a one-off.
"There have been two previous reported incidents this year in the same area where cattle have been slaughtered for meat.
"Police have a number of suspects in mind however require further information from the public to further the investigation."
Crime prevention in rural areas is most effective when it involves a partnership between rural people, police, local authorities and local organisations.
Police provide the following tips for people living in rural communities:
1. Report all thefts or suspicious activity to police on 111
2. Get to know your neighbours and set up a phone tree. Watch out for each other's property and notify your neighbours if you are away
3. Note down and report suspicious vehicles or people to police. (registration numbers/vehicle descriptions/people descriptions)
4. Talk with unknown people in the area (if safe to do so) because this can discourage theft
5. If grazing cattle near the roadside, frequently check the cattle
6. Record all registration details of livestock held
Medal haul for Kaipara athlete Kirsten Mason has certainly represented the Kaipara well at the national masters athletics champs in Whangarei.
Medal haul: Kaipara athlete Kirsten Mason with her haul of medals.
The Arapohue resident and mother of four won two gold, two silver and four bronze medals.
"I'm really stoked, it was a well-run and enjoyable experience meeting other masters athletes from around the country.
"I've never won this many medals before and I felt a great sense of achievement. I've spent the past six months training, keeping fit and improving my times."
In the NZ Masters Track and Field Championships Kirsten won medals for pentathlon, long jump, javelin, 60m, 100m, 200m, 400m sprints and the 800m.
"My strongest events were the 800m and long jump where I also achieved personal bests."
Kirsten said family and friends including fellow club members have been really supportive, and overall Northland masters athletes achieved well and took home an impressive number of medals.
Last little GiveaLittle Push for Sportsville Sportsville is to become a centrally located multi-sport facility based in Dargaville that is available for the entire sporting community throughout the district, however it needs more funding.
Dargaville Sportsville chairman Chris Biddles said they are pushing to raise the final funds required to get the build going and have set up a GiveaLittle page.
"Through previous donations, council grants, fundraising and good old-fashioned community spirit we are almost there – however, we require lighting for the courts and also we are $100,000 short for the build."
The centrally located multi-sport facility has been mooted by a host of different organisations for several years now.
The need initially arose through a lack of facilities, especially in one common location in the town.
