Steve Hansen has a cherubic grin. This would be a pleasant discovery in the All Blacks' head coach at any time.

Coming out of the locker room for his US Open tennis semifinal last week, Novak Djokovic was asked about the stunning loss the crowd had just witnessed, of fellow champion Serena Williams.

This Prime Minister is completing the first year of his third term more popular than any at the same stage in our lifetime.

Wellington is looking shabby. Somebody should tell it to embrace its fate, not try to be anything other than the capital.

We read today that the average age at which our young people can buy their first home has risen by almost 10 years over the past 50 years.

Editorial: Richie McCaw, we are reminded by one of the tributes published today, turned down a knighthood after leading the All Blacks to the 2011 RWC.

NCEA results suggest boys are beginning to catch up with girls in their senior school years.

Teachers' unions always insist they are professional bodies serving the interests of education, not just their members.

Although as many as half the drivers in NZ have stated their willingness to donate organs, we have one of the lowest rates of actual organ donation in the developed world.

Your generosity is warmly appreciated, and warmly is the operative word. Thousands of children are going to bed warmer this winter thanks to your response to our "Jammies in June" appeal.

Icy conditions throughout the country and floods in some districts have made it hard to worry about the rising temperature of the planet.

Editorial: Children coming into Auckland primary schools are carrying an undiscovered treasure - the ability to speak more than one language.

What is it about Jerry Collins' death that has affected so many people so deeply, both here and overseas?

Editorial: As winter's cold and damp begins to bite, Auckland's renters have far more reason than most to feel disgruntled.

Child poverty figures can be hard to believe. The very word poverty hardly seems appropriate for a country with New Zealand's welfare net.

Few problems in life are more common or stressful than a baby crying several times a night.

The special relationship is the bond encapsulated in the word "Anzac", the union of the soldiers of this country with those of Australia during the ill-fated Turkish campaign.

This has had an obvious impact on public trust and put pressure on police to amend their ways.

When teenagers complain they are not understood, they are struggling to understand their own impulses and obsessions. They may find some answers in neuroscience.

Editorial: Immunisation rates for HPV are markedly lower for Pakeha girls than for other ethnicities in New Zealand.

None of us needs convincing that to answer a phone while driving is highly dangerous.

A sense of goodwill is around, extending even to those we find irritating and avoid at other times. Christmas is particularly suited to the Southern Hemisphere.

The Government took a long time to be convinced it should reduce the alcohol limit for driving.

We have a nervous relationship with the wonders we have made. Digital technology is so wondrous that even when it is helpful we worry that it could do us harm.

When the PM left Judith Collins off a list of departing ministers who can wear the title Honourable for life, he may have made trouble for himself this term.

When reading today of the enormous sums that can be raised for deserving people through a website, many may have mixed feelings.