Store to have its last Christmas
It’s the most wonderful time of the year, but this Christmas comes with a bit of a bitter taste in the eggnog for Christmas Magic owner Shona Tippett.
Tippett hasn’t made it on to Santa’s naughty list, but this Christmas – the store’s 18th – will be its last.
Health problems, including an ankle replacement, and the passing of her husband two years ago have put things into perspective for Tippett, who has decided to close the store to focus on herself. ‘‘I need to stop,’’ she said. ‘‘I’m really sad, it’s been my life.’’
Though Tippett plans to close the store at the end of January, there is still a smidgen of Christmas hope – some people have called her and inquired about the future of the business, she said. ‘‘They might like to carry it on, that may happen,’’ she said.
One of her favourite aspects to the job had been seeing the faces of people, both young and old, light up when they came in for their Christmas decorations.
‘‘It’s the young ones and it’s the elderly ones – if you see their faces it’s just magic,’’ she said.
Christmas Magic’s coming of age initially wasn’t meant to be; Tippett and a friend set up the first store with the intention of it only running for a few Christmas seasons.
‘‘I was only going to do it for three years until the addiction crept in,’’ she said.
She started out on the corner of Dee and Spey Sts in Invercargill in 1999 before moving to a store on North Rd after three years, and then out to Wallacetown in 2008.
‘‘I’ve been one of the fortunate people in the world and I’ve got to live my dream,’’ she said.
Southland shearers aim big
Southland shearers Darin Forde and Nathan Stratford have scored a spot in the selection series for the upcoming World Shearing and Wool handling Championships. The pair will compete in Christchurch next month after both scored a spot at the Royal A & P Show Great Raihania Shears open final in Hastings. Forde managed to secure the last spot for selection by one point. A winner and a runner-up from the selection series in Christchurch will go through to the world championships, to be held in Invercargill in February. Other shearers who have qualified to compete in the selection finals are Rowland Smith, of Hastings, John Kirkpatrick, of Napier, David Buick of Pongaroa, and Aaron Haynes of Feilding. Competing in the selection finals for woolhandling will be Pagan Karauria, of Alexandra, Joel Henare, of Gisborne, Sheree Alabaster, of Taihape, Tia Potae, of Milton, Keryn Herbert, of Te Kuiti, and Maryanne Baty, of Gisborne.
Man arrested after dispute
An Invercargill man has been arrested for disorderly behaviour after allegedly wielding a baseball bat at a group dispute. A police media spokesperson said a member of the public alerted them to the man at 8.45pm on Friday. They said there was a dispute between a group of young people and the resident on Crawford St, in the suburb of Glengarry, the spokesperson said. ‘‘The resident presented the baseball bat and has been arrested for disorderly behaviour.’’ It was not known how many young people were involved in the dispute, but it was less than 10, the spokesperson said. The man was an Invercargill resident but it was not clear if they were a resident of Crawford St, she said. The spokesperson said there was not any suggestion that the person had used the baseball bat against the group of young people. It was not yet known what the resident’s reason was for wielding the baseball bat, the spokesperson said.