Day two at the wheel and I've had my first minor incident - with a pedestrian, not a cyclist, writes Martin Johnston.

Two early morning fires deliberately lit at an Auckland school and church may have been started by the same people, police say.

Auckland tops a survey of 44 countries - but not in a good way. It costs $228 to buy items you'd pay $62 for in Bali.

Fist-shaking cyclists who aggressively shout "open your eyes" to apparently bike-blind drivers are sharing in a problem that also worries motorists.

A young Kiwi is to get a taste of what it's like to work for one of the coolest companies on the planet.

Mandy and Clair Cordo share the hard lessons they have learned on their journeys in this third story on love in the 21st century.

This week, Herald health reporter and commuter cyclist Martin Johnston will drive to work for a motorist's view - five of his colleagues who usually drive, will bike.

An official Auckland Transport survey reveals the horrifying number of red-light runners at some of the city's busiest intersections - and most were cyclists.

About 10,000 cyclists a year are stopped and fined by police for biking without a helmet.

Hackers are using Kiwis' email accounts to send out thousands of spam messages, and Telecom admits it still doesn't know the cause or scale of the problem.

A fundraising concert for opponents of a planned Waiheke Island marina has been lauded as "Woodstock without the nakedness" by organiser John Hawkesby.

A wave of new eateries means it's easier than ever to eat nutricious food, finds Alexia Santamaria.

John Key's right-hand man made a secret visit to former Act leader Rodney Hide in a desperate search to shore up a coalition partner for the National Party at this year's election.

Troubled supercook Nigella Lawson is still sweet with the Kiwi choc-maker that used her in its television advertising.

It's fair to say the lads are not traditionally keen birdwatchers, especially when enjoying their summer holiday break.

Words can hardly express the harm inflicted on a 9-year-old boy in Hamilton this week by someone who gave him enough alcohol to get very drunk.

Closed schools with rateable values of more than $42m have not been sold - amid concerns vandalism and neglect have turned boarded-up grounds into "rotting corpses".

2014 is less than a fortnight old and we've already been given two reasons to gnaw our fingernails over the future of civilisation as we know it, writes Paul Thomas.

A teen with severe chest pains died after an ambulance took an hour to get him to a hospital 10km away - and only after his father insisted he be taken there.

Of 8,001 beneficiaries sent for jobs requiring drug testing, only 22 tested positive or refused to take tests, a result that has been greeted as a victory by the Social Development Minister.

Whatever you do, never, ever attempt to feed a moa, warns Toby Manhire. The domesticated varieties might only bite you. The feral roadside moa, however, can be deadly.

Gruesome images of the mangled bike on which an Auckland man died under a truck will be followed by an advertising campaign designed to "humanise" cyclists.

When Dr Benjamin O'Brien invented technology that gave artificial muscle devices lifelike reflexes, he unlocked a world of endless possibilities.

"A hippopotamus would be faster." Auckland Transport is being accused of dragging the chain in its provision of facilities to make cycling safer.

Apartments could be the answer for financially strapped Aucklanders trying to get into the property market as the number of apartment building projects soars.

A $6 million Remuera penthouse could break records as the country's most expensive apartment sale.