Another brick in the wall.

Huzzah!

At some point last night we went past 10,000 page views. That means that we, dear readers, have spent 10,000 moments together. Poor you! Poor, poor you...

Post 100! (actually this time...)

Following on from our last disastrous attempt at a celebration, the Board of Directors™ is not too keen on funding another all out birthday extravaganza. We do however have a very special announcement[!] here for you and, whats more, we are totally sure that this time it is our 100th post!

And, well, if that's not enough for you, just go back and read From Dinosaurs to Dandelions: The ten year struggle that turned into a Broadway hit.

So now, without any further ado, what we've all been waiting for; a very special announcement! In the tradition of agony aunts everywhere, we present to you Ask Allan. 

That's right! Allan will be available to answer all your non-Allan related questions once a month. So send in your best queries now! Get in touch using facebook, twitter or email us at dinosaursanddandelions@hotmail.com. And, in case you need any further encouragement, all questions sent in before the 30th of June will go in the draw to win this delicious Bacon flavoured lollipop.*

*Artificial flavouring; not actually Bacon. Best Before 30 December 2012.

Lisa it's your birthday! Happy birthday Lisa!

It may or may not be Lisa Simpson's birthday today, but one thing is for sure - it IS Dinosaurs and Dandelions' birthday. That's right, your favourite blog is turning three years and three days today!!!

Our first post was on 15 April 2010 with The Ankylosaurus, a post about a dinosaur. How fitting then that today we are still waiting for the E post in that same series.

For those of you who missed it, the blog launched with a bang in 2010. Favourite topics back then were the A-Z of dinosaurs, Pez' Top 10, the Music Box and Cooking with Matthew.

From the highs of the early days we quickly moved onto the lows of "the wilderness years", as all records of activity between 2010 and 2012 have long since been destroyed. Happily, 2012 saw our return with a few little posts here and there.

Finally the great relaunch came in 2013, and with it came the return of all your favourite shows.* New favourites also came about, such as News in a Minute and Metal taking over the Box during March.

But enough about us, lets make this all about you and crack open the mailbag!

Mailbag

Dear Dandelions and Dinosaurs,
I WRITE AGAIN.
Since our last correspondence my favourite author, Pez, has still not launched any of his projects that are apparently on the go. I am beginning to believe Pez is merely a figment of my imagination. Tell me it's not so?

Regards,

MJ Matthew
Massey, Auckland

Dear MJ,
Do not fear, for I also know of the Pez of which you speak. So that means, unless we happen to be the same person writing letters to each other, he must exist. Surely Dinosaurs and Dandelions would not allow such tomfoolery!

Write soon, Matthew.

Sirs of the Western News Dinosaurs and Dandelions,

I have been reading the articles about the fire departments suing the county, and what the heck are they thinking?
The taxpayer gets screwed for the bills all around, and if they don’t like the way it is run, then get the heck out and go sue somebody other than the taxpayer.
I have never in my life heard of anything as stupid as this.
Grow up and stop acting like children or you also act like the environmental groups who sue everybody in sight.

Peter Sampson
Eureka

Dear Pat,
Mind your own damn business!

Love from Pez.

A Letter To The Editor

As a long-time reader I am mildly enraged and more so disappointed that my 4th favorite blog is not living up to its name.

I tune in to "Dinosaurs and Dandelions" , week in week out, hoping to get answers to my throbbing questions. Similar to how a 5 year old child longs for the answer as to why boys and girls have different looking front-bottoms.... No? Just me? Anyway...the point is, you continue to leave my questions unanswered.

These questions are proper and plentiful. Like, what on earth do Dinosaurs have to do with Dandelions? And, what Dinosaurs are you actually referring to... do you have their permission to reference them in your popular blog? And most importantly, what is a Dandelion? Is it just a term to describe Mufasa (from the Lion King) in a pleasant mood?

I demand you address these issues and questions in an upcoming blog. If you don't, I will have no other option than to continue reading your blogs with enjoyment! Where is the fun in that?!?!

I eagerly await your reply.

A. Bean
Banker, Part-time Chandelier Cleaner, Lover

Wow, A. Bean, we asked for letters, not novels!
Allow us to give you some free life advice. First of all do not, EVER, use the word "throbbing" and the phrase "5 year old children" in the same paragraph. Secondly, stop asking proper and plentiful questions, otherwise we will have to answer them.

Thanks! Matthew.

Dear Matthew,

Why do I always have to write you letters just so we have enough letters to reply to in the mail bag? I feel like maybe we should just not write letters to everyone else and see how THEY like it. How was your day anyway?

Your Friend
Pez.

Pez,
I too wish our loyal readers wrote to us more. They are obviously too busy being selfish jerks to write more often. Sigh. My day was good, thank you for asking. I like oranges.

Thanks Friend
Matthew.

What's on the Web

Before we leave you, here's some stuff that we aren't responsible for:

• First of all, I'll just let this one speak for itself. Knobfeel: Reviews based purely on feel.

• Last time we gave the New Zealander a wrap as a purveyor of fine satire. I hope you also found your way to The Civilian, which is equally reliable. The Civilian has already provoked an ACT press release and gets 15,000 hits a day so don't miss out, get in now before they're all gone!

• If you like small stuff then smalleststuff.com is the place to go!

• Do you like beards? Then you may be a Beardest!  

• Finally, I could not stop. Will you be able to stop?

Folks, sadly that is all the blog we have time for. But be sure to tune back in in another three years and three days time when we launch Elvin the Dinosaur, the kid friendly Plateosaur.

Post 69.

From Dinosaurs to Dandelions: The ten year struggle that turned into a Broadway hit

Welcome to our very special 100th post, a joint Matthew-Pez production.

Yes, 100 already. And you, dear reader, have been here for all of them (poor you). To celebrate, we have a few things planned. To start, lets have a walk down memory lane and look at two of our favourite posts from the last three years.

Matthew's fave

When I think about my favourite post on this humble blog, Top10 with Pez is an obvious choice. In this series our favourite Pez runs through Top10's of just about everything, enriching our daily lives by giving us some sort of order and hierarchy.

While there are many stand outs in the Top10, the TV Shows of the 90's is a clear number one. Not only is it this blogs most viewed post, with an amazing 1122 views, it is informative, funny and, like any list, contains rankings that I strongly disagree with.

The best bit about this list, is its god damn nostalgia value. Who doesn't love to be reminded of what made their childhood great, 90's Television? Especially when this is combined with Pez' witty, and sometimes snide, comments. While a Top10 this good will be hard to top, I'm sure the next runaway hit is just around the corner.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer came in at number 4 in the Top10.

Pez' fave

My favourite posts of all have to be from the Cooking with Matthew series. Not only have I learnt some great dishes to impress my friends and family with, but it has also inspired me to get in the kitchen and try some of my own recipes.

I remember when I read the first Cooking with Matthew - it was such a new concept for me – the idea of me cooking a Mediterranean dish in my own home! The first couple of attempts didn’t go so well, but it turned out I’d just missed the second step and with a few adjustments, I soon had a hot piece of toast on my plate. It was slightly blacker than his picture showed, but I am no Matthew and for a first attempt I was rather impressed with my efforts.

My favourite edition was probably where he showed us how to make noodles. I’d seen noodles on television before, but to actually learn how to make them, and in such a short amount of time, was one of the most rewarding days of my life. I still often eat noodles, and I am thankful to Matthew for giving me the confidence to take on such an exotic dish!

I look forward to many more Cooking with Matthew posts in the future, and am especially interested to see what recipe he has in mind for the delicious broth he has had me saving from my noodles for the last three years.

Mailbag

Feedback time! Lets get straight into your comments:

Dear Dandelions and Dinosaurs,
I notice that my favourite author, Pez, has not written a whole lot lately. While I love the Music Box series and check the blog frequently for more, I pine for more Pez related blogs. When will my favourite author begin to write again?

Regards,

MJ Matthew
Massey, Auckland

Dear MJ.
Thankyou for your support and kind words. As my articles require far more work and research than Matthews do, I am unable to output as many posts as he does - for the Music Box alone I listen to hundreds of hours of music a month - and for a single Top10 list I could be required to watch dozens of films or hours and hours of television! Do not worry though, I currently have several projects on the go, so expect to see some of them soon.

Love, Pez.

Dear T-Rex and Taraxacum,
I'm a huge fan of your blog! I really love Matthews posts as they cover such a wide range of topics and are really funny but also really informative. I was hoping Matthew would consider writing a dating advice column as I really like this girl but don't really know what I should do. How do I know if she really likes me back? I really hope you can help.

Petey Gee.
West Auckland.

Thanks Petey!
Matthew isn't here right now but we know he appreciates your kind words. Matthew will consider your idea about a dating advice column, however he will probably then decide it is a bad idea. Keep reading the blog!

Matthew.

Dearest Dinosaurs and Dandelions,

I would like to say thank you. Thank you for your whimsical articles which have helped me through many a tedious afternoon at work.
You have also simplified the pizza 'making' process for me again! Never will I have to deal with unmelted mozzarella or slave away making my own sauce.

Kind regards
KT

Hi Katie,
Without readers like you, we'd be nowhere. That's why we focus on attention to detail and care a great deal about our audience. So Katy, Thank You.
Our popular Cooking with Matthew series provides a great service as we find that the youth of today are completely hopeless in the kitchen. It sounds like you may be one of them. Didn't you ever listen to anything your mother taught you?

Love, Matthew.

Dear editors of Dinosaurs and Dandelions,
I want to congratulate you on your relaunch in 2013, it fills me with utter joy to once again read the incredibly high-brow entertainment this nation has been lacking. However I must point out your misleading tagline of discussing which celebrity had cornflakes for breakfast as I have never read about this - not that I wanted to either as that'd be mighty low-brow. Thank you very much and where do I send the cheque (that'd likely be lost in the mail) to to support this publication?

Yours reader-in-waiting,
Lil

Hi Lil,
It filled us with utter joy to hear your praise, however this joy soon turned to sorrow when the complaining started. Our readers are like family to us and when we find out something we have or haven’t done has upset one of you, we take this very seriously – thus I have ordered a full and thorough investigation into whatever it was you were moaning about. You’re welcome, and keep your money, this one’s on the house!

Love, Pez.
 

What's good on the web

Finally, we are going to leave you with some other stuff that's going on out there that we think is quite good:

• First off, do you ever get to the top of a mountain, pause to take in the view and then get a sudden urge to flip the scenery off? No? Oh, well this guy does.
• Following in the fine satire tradition of The Onion by bringing you Today's News: Today. The New Zealander is quickly becoming a must read. And, as a bonus, their facebook page is now Lillian endorsed!
• Finally, a special Pez endorsed recommendation. If you like education, random facts and the news of the day, well then you can't go past this small blog. We are loving the Did you know section - I wonder where they got that idea from?

Unfortunately, that brings us to the end of our special 100th episode. We hope you've enjoyed a look back at two of our favourite blog posts combined with some viewer interaction and some links to the outside world to keep you busy. I can't wait for the next 100.

That's all folks, thanks for tuning in!