So if you follow me on Facebook you'll know that I've been on holiday for the last 7 days in Wanaka in Central Otago. It was awesome. We had a bit of rain on the drive from Christchurch through the MacKenzie Country but then six straight days of blue skies. One degree in the morning. 18 by the afternoon. But still plenty of snow left over from the dump earlier this month.

It was gob smackingly, ridiculously beautiful. So I took some amazing photos and then I felt I should post them on the Facebook page so everyone could enjoy just how staggeringly beautiful this country is. Didn't go down well with everyone. In fact five people de-friended me. I don't blame them. While everyone in the North Island were drowned and wind blasted last week, here was the clown from the radio showing off with his picture perfect photos. I even made myself sick.

Now here's what I noticed about Wanaka. They didn't care it was wet in the North. Why should they? That's why they live in Wanaka.

The good people of Wanaka, the retired Southland farmers, the ski workers, the tourism operators, also didn't give a jot about the Auckland mayoral race. When I saw an item on the telly it seemed like a transmission from Mars.

The Wanakians, or whatever they're called? The Wanatians. Wanakers. Also didn't care about Colin Craig and the defamation case which is being breathlessly reported. As one the guy on the local radio said, “Who cares about the smutty allegations about a failed politician, a PR hack and an unknown lobbyist and loudmouth. They should grow up”. Can't argue with that mate.

The Wanakians worry a bit about house prices and accommodation for the seasonal workers but the good people of Central Otago don't have state houses and the homeless die quickly from hypothermia.

But what a lot of Wanakians worry about is scratching a living. It looks fabulous but it's still a small town. Contracts are 200 bucks here. 500 there. It's about service and contacts and working all the time. The tourist influxes for 2 months have to fund the next 10 and the empty cribs during the low season ain't buying groceries or meals out. So they're vulnerable.

So when an Australian bank who made a $445 million half year profit this year announces it's closing 19 rural banks including 3 near Wanaka; Ranfurly, Fairlie and Te Anau, the people of Wanaka get jumpy.

It's not because they're old timers. They've got phones and the internet. They're savvy. It's because it depowers a small economy on a knife edge that little bit more. You can't send 10 grand of cash takings on the internet and it won't be fun hiding that wad of cash under the mattress for a week while you wait for an armored van to arrive from Dunedin.

But what's even more important for these isolated rural businesses is going into town to spend some of that cash and see town and being part of community. Which you're not sitting at home on the web. It will drive some retail businesses in the hinterland under. The only people who will find this convenient are the banks and frankly it's our money and they work for us.

Banks like to talk about how community minded they are but this sort of move dispels that. Westpac are doing it. ANZ and ASB are rumoured to be following. I say think again. Work together. Make sure there's one outlet in each town. Because if you don't then you'll help kill small towns and prove once and for all you're only about the money and not community. Despite your fancy TV ads with moving music.