Eleanor Catton is on her way to pop superstardom and Lorde wrote an amazing book - or is it the other way around? Which ever way, they should have been in the running for NZ-er of the Year - except the cut-off date for nominations was ridiculously September, before either had hit the heights of success.
They won't mind too much - Catton has the Man Booker prize; Lorde may bag a Grammy and they are both doing fine bouncing some reflected glory back to Aotearoa from their international acclaim.
And the competition will now be renamed New Zealander of the First Nine Months.
In the new year honours, there were well-deserved awards for Wanganui heritage campaigner Wendy Pettigrew and former Ruapehu mayor Sue Morris. Neither are glory-seekers and their grass-roots efforts fully merit the honours bestowed.
But I did baulk somewhat at the news that frock-makers Trelise Cooper and Karen Walker had bagged top gongs - dame companion of the NZ Order of Merit and companion of same, respectively.
Something's amiss when you can be so vaunted by the establishment for making a heap of money out of dodgy clothing.
