First I have to tell you I'm having a terrible day. In fact at 2pm I've given up hope of doing any work and decided to catch up with blog! My 'job' computer has been on the blink, well on and off, for several weeks now. IMAC took it back this week after I threatened to drop it from the rooftop. In fairness they had offered to take it before I threatened them but I am in the middle of this big 6 monthly report we have to do and could not imagine 2-3 days computerless. Anyway after realising that
I was 'out' most of Tuesday and Wednesday I overnight couriered it up on condition they sent it back Wednesday ready for me today (Thursday). I had a call today to say it was sent back yesterday so I waited patiently for Dave the postie to bring it up to me. I can see the neighbours mailbox across the paddocks from where I sit in the office and got very excited when at lunchtime he pulled up there. I got up to look out the other window and watch him come up the drive when he stopped at our mailbox. Damn! that meant he didn't have it!!!!!!!!I was not impressed. I have been trying to do work on this ie our own, laptop all morning but constantly needed to refer back to documents,addresses etc on the job one so gave it up as a bad deal and resorted to paper paperwork (as opposed to 'computer' paperwork). With that out the way I came back to the laptop and the mouse stuck!!!!!!!!!! Now the wiggly integral mouse packed up long ago and we use an external one and that just locked up. I dismantled it, blew on it, cleaned it (several times), threw it across the room and it STILL would not work. So now I couldn't do any work so decided to go and collect the post and commune with the cows. Cows made it clear they were not impressed with the lack of grass in the paddock and considered they were on short rations of silage. I didn't tell them that in 2 weeks they'd be at the meat factory and would look back on this as heaven, I'm not that cruel! Anyway, I then walked through to the veg plot to pull up a few weeds. I was then reminded that Eric had told me a few days ago that Saddle had been in the veg plot during the night and eaten all my lettuce.. and some leeks.... and all the silverbeet... and all the beetroot...and ALL of my millions of self seeded kohl rabi that were just getting to the stage that I could start harvesting them. My depression deepened. On the plus side he obviously doesn't like broad beans or parsley and seems to have avoided most of my seedlings. And to think that Saddle is the only cow to get a reprieve as the stock agent said he was worth fattening over the next 6 months. We are keeping the calfs born last year. Chilli will go in our freezer (that will be hard) and the other 2 will go off with Saddle in the spring.
Anyway you get the gist as to how my day is going?
So I am blogging (Eric fixed the mouse when he came home for lunch). I have to pick the girls up from school as Alice needs to buy her friend Sam a birthday present and Harri wants to go to the library. So I won't be getting much done this afternoon anyway.
Traffic chaos? Yes. Well at the end of Toataoroa Road is State Highway 29 and they've closed it between that junction and State Highway 1 (NZ equivalent of the M1, single lane, 65mph speed limit and a few passing lanes. That's what I said the NZ equivalent!). Anyway, as the road closed sign is at the end of Taotaoroa Rd and the diversion takes you south, all north bound traffic that knows the area, is coming up 'our' road. Now Taotaoroa Rd is very windy, very beautiful and 14 km long. It takes (me) 10min to get to the other end. I came back from Te Kuiti yesterday and passed, can you belive this?, 26 cars! That's about 25 - 26 more than I usually pass driving from one end to the other. And sitting here looking out on to the road there must be at least 6 cars/minute going by. Absolute chaos. How can a girl work with all that noise - OK so I've told you I can't do any work but that's not the point. And I know the road is 300m away from the house but.... It all just adds to the stress.
Had an email from Carol this morning. Great we thought, as she has been computerless for 2 weeks and we have been concerned about how she is adjusting back to the UK. However the email was all gobbledygook and although full of news it was very confusing and we are non the wiser. Should I have taken this as a sign as to how the day would progress?
Must go and pick up the girls. Will pop into the Post Shop and see, if by any chance the computer arrived late.
Back again. And no, no computer!!!! So I'll continue to blog. Our weather remains gorgeous. A little cloudy today but generally; cool, heaps of sunshine and fabulous blue skies. Yesterday, as I mentioned, I drove to Te Kuiti ie across Karapiro Dam to Leamington and down the 3 through Te Awamutu and Otrohanga. Takes about 1 and 1/4 hours, and of course no traffic to talk of and the usual gorgeous scenery. I went to do my usual work and do some immunisations. I gave polio injections (yes the drops on the sugar lump have long gone) to about 45 11 year olds with the Public Health Nurses (what in the UK would be called school nurses). It was really just to keep my hand in as in this job you are supposed to be an expert on immunisations but don't actually give them very often! I thought I was going to be in for a long day but actually got sorted quite quickly and was home by 4pm. I was shattered though and spent a blissful evening on the sofa reading. I reckon I'll finish it tonight (Jodi Picoult's Salem Falls), it is gripping and I had to be very disciplined to put it down last evening.
I must just talk about this school we immunised at. It is a very low decile school, ie bottom of the pile deprivation-wise. I was amazed when they told me this, many of the buildings were re-furbished, in fact nowhere did it look the slightest bit grotty, the library has a bank of computers and looked very well equipped. There were tennis courts, games fields and 2 big areas with climbing frames and playground equipment. I couldn't help but do a mental comparison with schools in poor areas in the UK!
Well I am going to breathe down the children's necks to ensure the homework gets done. After giving Alice a huge rollicking last Thursday evening as she had not been doing her spellings all week it occurred to me this morning that she hasn't done them this week either!!! Harriette learned to play Yellow Submarine on the sax today and is playing as I type (have you any idea how deafening a tenor sax is when you are in the same room as it) - OK (I was able to recognise the song) but definitely more practice required, once I have left the room! The Verapamil the doctor put me on for headache prevention is being tested to the full today.
Am off to rustle up supper. Big hugs, and please comment so I know who reads this! Love to all.
Michelle
PS Could anybody, other than Stan, and apparently Bridget (aka Darsha, Milky, the naughty milkmaid etc) understand a thing that Eric wrote yesterday? I couldn't and I live with him (though apparently on a different planet!).
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