The lady wanted piccies....

…piccies you get!

Rust and Feral are friends – really!!




Stand on the top of the paddock behind the house and look south.


Working on some of the felled trees.



Burning some of the debris.


Fencing (can you see the post rammer responsible for the accident?)


A new neighbour:


A walk from the Karangahake Gorge:





Another of Eric’s culinary masterpieces!

Well it's still the weekend in my books!

We’re back! It’s Sunday morning, no it isn’t!! It just feels like it. It’s Tuesday morning but a public holiday and I was off yesterday so it feels like Sunday. It’s Anzac Day, NZ’s day of remembrance. I am afraid that for us 11th November still holds more significance. You can’t do that date for 40 odd years then suddenly change. I probably would attend the services here if they didn’t hold them at dawn, just doesn’t feel right. Remembrance Sunday is not widely marked here but Cambridge (about 15mins drive away) does a large event with all the services represented and activities all weekend. NZ is experiencing a resurgence in interest in their war fallen, similar to that in the UK over our last few years there and this morning the news reports are of much larger remembrance gatherings this year, despite appalling weather. Long may that continue.

As to the weather, NIWA, our met office, predicted a long, wet warm autumn and for once they seem to have got it right. We are still dealing with fly strike as a result (maggots on sheep prevalent in wet warm weather, I know enough…) and everything in the garden is still growing – including the weeds – rampantly. It has rained ALL night, HEAVILY. As a result, rather than leaping up and continuing my assault on the veg plot, I am sitting in bed writing this while Eric is studying next to me. Harriette is on a computer ban so she was not up MSN-ing at 6am and has only just got up (it’s 9am) and Alice is still asleep.

So why have I not blogged. Basically I have been feeling pretty low over the finances. I am very depressed at the lack of pay rise from IMAC that we expected in December and they have made it clear that when the new contract comes (we are still on contract roll overs) there will be no increase. This will last until April 2007. As a result I am job-hunting, which in itself is depressing because I don’t want to leave this job. Working from home is a huge advantage and I am initially trying for jobs that would accommodate at least some home working. Otherwise it will mean about a 40-minute drive to get to a job, with the financial and time implications of that. Anyway enough of that!

The above seems to have dominated the last 4 – 6 weeks and not a lot else has happened. A few weekends ago the Hamilton Parent and Child Show was on and IMAC did a stand there so most of the weekend was taken up manning that. This year is the 50 anniversary of the introduction of the polio vaccine into NZ and we had an iron lung on the stand to highlight this. I love doing these shows as they are a rare opportunity for us to speak directly to parents and dispel their concerns about immunisation. In my day-to-day role I talk to, and teach, the nurses who vaccinate but have little to do with the parents themselves. I was busy the weeks both sides of this weekend so by Easter weekend I was pooped. We were busy, in the nicest of ways, over the Easter and for the first time in ages didn’t get to church. I didn’t have to cook at all over the weekend, which was great. We were out every day except Saturday when Harriette made pizzas. The girls are on Easter hols and we arranged for them to stay with Mom and Daddy overnight on Tuesday night as I was going to be in Auckland for 2 days. We ended up going to Mom and Daddy Easter Monday for lunch and so we left the girls there for 2 nights. They had trips on the train from Karangahake to Waihi (a bit disappointing by all accounts, including Mom and Dad’s) and went to the water gardens at Ngatea, which the girls really enjoyed. Unfortunately Harriette remained true to her ‘Kevin’ teenage form and made it clear she didn’t want to be there (Mom and Dad’s). I was totally embarrassed and had serious words with her when we got home on the Wednesday. I truly believe (hope) she realised the error of her ways. Harriette objects to being anywhere other than home on most occasions but she has got to learn that at least once in a while she can’t always have what she wants.

After the weekend, as I mentioned, I had Tuesday and Wednesday in Auckland. As a team we had written to formally mark our grievances over the handling of our contracts, lack of pay rise etc and had been called up to Auckland so that UniServices, our employer, could address these. As it was ‘the letter’ they referred to when convening the meeting, was not ‘our’ one and we went to the meeting under a misconception. Our fault entirely - we didn’t read the email properly. Anyway, we went to a meeting to be told exactly the same thing I had been told in a telephone conversation I had had the previous week with UniServices, then had a day of training on report writing in which I learnt absolutely nothing. In effect the 2 days were a complete waste of time. On the Thursday and Friday I was running a vaccinator training course in Hamilton which meant leaving home at 7am and getting back around 6pm. The days being full on teaching and totally exhausting so having this trip up to Auckland immediately prior to this, and in the middle of school holidays added to my discontent even further!! I staggered into Friday on my knees with exhaustion and relished Saturday in a way that only a hectic week can allow you to. It was made all the better knowing that I had my second 4 day weekend in 2 weeks! I can assure you that this is the last time I intend to exhaust myself for this employer!

Eric has been very anxious about some recent assignments he put in. The usual “no but this one I really think I did badly in” but has passed them all, some scraped and an outstandingly good mark in one. He has managed to take a little time off these last 2 weekends and has even read a (non law) book. 2 actually, both Dan Brown’s that Richard and Robyn lent him. I think I may be reading them before they are returned, Eric found them unputdownable. Less than a month until he finishes and neither of us can wait. The ‘To Do’ list that has grown over these last 18 months of full on studying, is by now pages long and he is going to enjoy finishing work at 1pm and being able to think about something other than studying when he gets home. Hopefully that won’t last for too long, as he would like to be working full time in a law office. It will be very depressing if he still has free afternoons come the spring! He was not short listed for the council legal position as they had several applicants with 2 and 3 years experience. He was disappointed but you can’t argue with that can you. He is applying for the odd job that comes up and will knuckle down to cold calling and letter writing seriously when the course is finished and he has the time. Cold calling is apparently the way it is done here, something you’d almost never do in the UK I think.

Now writing this Tuesday pm, the battery died. Richard and Robyn came for a late lunch and we all ate far too much. Eric BBQ’d (I know it was raining, he put the braai in the carport) steak, lamb borewors and sausages, and I did jacket pots, mixed roasted vegetable, whole butternut pumpkin with a green curry and coconut sauce and courgettes from the garden. Robyn also bought a lovely vegetable quiche. For pudding we had a pear and almond pudding (Hugh’s recipe and very scrummy), rice pudding and a sweet slice of Robyn’s. We were all so full we couldn’t even fit in coffee!! Sarah has stayed on and the girls are now watching the latest HP movie on DVD. Poor Alice and Katherine have to go back to school tomorrow whereas H and S don’t have to go back until next Monday!

What else has been going on? The changes next door have been completed with a few accidents on the way. One of the contractors came flying up to the house late one afternoon saying that another guy had lost his thumb. They were using a post rammer, a contraption on the back of a tractor that rams posts into the ground from a height of about 2-3 metres using a 50kg weight. They are scary to watch as it only takes a few whacks to sink a full round a metre plus into the ground. Well someone leaned over to do something and inadvertently pushed the drop lever whist the post was being positioned. The thumb caught in the way disintegrated. The poor guy was in shock, cursing and swearing. The middle aged, female paramedic seemed more concerned with his bad language rather than getting some pain relief into him! A few days later the guy whose had caused this accident was knocked out in another accident!! I think that’s called justice! Anyway I think Ian was relieved when the job was finished and they all left. We have since used their yards to drench our cows and they are seriously impressive! Thank you Ian!

We have had a few meals out of late. Eric’s line manager invited everyone who reports directly to him, for a meal at his place. There were about 8 couples and, although I was unsure as to how the evening would pan out we actually had a good time. We met a very interesting couple from South Africa and hope to see them again. She was an industrial psychologist and I spent much of the evening talking to her. We have promised them a sample of Eric’s borewors and biltong. Another meal was at our GP’s. Andy and Elaine have been in NZ for 11 years I think and have heaps of children, well 4 at least, the eldest Alice’s age. Connie and Alice do Guides together. Such a nice, laid back family. I wish I could be that relaxed with my children.

So, I think that brings blog up to date. We are thrilled that Briggsy and Milky are planning to spend December in NZ, with Mark, Donna, Angus and Jonty here also for a part of that time. I love having a houseful for Christmas. Maybe our lives will be a bit more settled by then, I do hope so!

Signing off now with promises that it will definitely NOT be 6 weeks before I blog again.

PS Carol haven't forgotten about a photo of Nelson

No blog

I know, I know. No blog for WEEKS. Promise to redress at the weekend.

Just a quickie.

It's all change here, well next door anyway. There is a shelter belt (row of trees) between our front paddock and the neighbours, on the boundary. Ian and Shirley have taken out a few (huge) trees and the place is in a state of organised chaos. Some trees have fallen into our paddock and Eric is frantically trying to get some logs salvaged before the diggers come and push everything into the 20'x10'x10' deep fire pit they have dug in the woolshed paddock. The yards they have built are serious yards and the work must be costing them a, not so small, fortune. It is all quite impressive, and difficult to imagine that in a month or two it should all be returned to order. What Eric finds very depressing is the tractor and digger sitting idle in the paddock over the weekend. If they would just leave the keys in, there are a thousand and one jobs we could do in such a short time with such bits of kit. As it is we are hoping they will dig out the stream and take out the huge tree stump by the pig pen.

We have a Japanese student at the moment, a boy for a change. He lived in the States for 8 years so his English is very good. He is rather shy and hardly speaks, which is a bit difficult. He is also spending a bit too much time in his room for my liking. I hope he doesn't go the same way as the last student who was a nightmare. He is here for 11 days.

Saturday was an awful morning. I was already depressed over money, or lack of it, and was getting very fed up with the lack of help I was getting from the girls. Alice's room was a tip (she had 'tidied' it the night before but I had gone in on Sat and pulled everything out from under the bed and bottom of the wardrobe....) and was making no progress. I was torn between needing to get it done and clean for the student (due at 12md), and, on principle, not doing it for her. The house was also a tip in general and no-one was helping. I was getting irate when at 8.45am I had a phone call from someone to 'remind' me I was due to man the Guides stand at the flea market from 9-11am. I have to confess, that after spluttering down the phone that I could not get there before 9.30, I put the phone down and burst into tears!! I had totally forgotten. As it was, Eric came in and laid the law down to the girls, the lady phoned back and said she had found a replacement and all was sorted in the end. But boy it felt like the end of the world at the time!

Sunday we went to Juliet and Kev's. The girls are now schooled in Hamilton and Emma's school had Japanese students from the same group as ours so they 2 knew each other and we didn't have to worry about them so much. The Targa rally was going past their house so it was us and both sets of parents plus a couple from the UK all gathered for lunch, drinks and the boys to look at fast, and not so fast, cars. Alice didn't come as she had rehearsals and so stayed with R+R. Alice and Katherine are in this years school production and have rehearsals on Tuesday evenings and Sunday afternoons. Miss a rehearsal and you're out the play! Thank heavens Kath and Alice's rehearsals co-incided on this occasion.

Eric and utilised Mom and Daddy as baby sitters last Wednesday and took ourselves off to the movies. We saw The Constant Gardener and thoroughly enjoyed it. The photography took a little while getting used to, and the plot had been bought up to current times (I seem remember it being set several decades ago when I read the book). It was also nice to see Ralph Fiennes playing a role in which he was not disfigured (Lord Voldemort, The English Patient). We also saw it at the 'picture house' in Te Awamutu, an oldy worldy style movie house that takes you back to your childhood and beyond.

Harri has had a rare day off school today with a head cold. Poor girl is so bunged up and living on Sinutab. We keep impersonating Malcolm but she has no idea what we are talking about. I remember when Sinex first came out. Who was his mother? I seem to recall Thora Hurd? Does anyone know? She (Harriette not Thora)has been asked to babysit for a neighbour and it has taken awhile to get through to her that she cannot. 14 is the legal age here for such activities. It's not like she would be in the next semi along the road, she'd be on a farm, 3/4 km from anyone. No, not risking that. She is keen to earn the money so I have suggested she offer to muck out their horses instead (anyone who knows H will know she is allergic to anything more strenuous than washing up!)

Eric is up to, and past, his eyeballs in study. He is also applying (as I type) for the councils legal advisor position as the guy currently doing it is leaving. It would be so handy if he got this job.

All else is well here. Hope the same it true of you, wherever you may be reading this.

Carol, for you.

This is sitting in the wool shed paddock (unfortunately this belongs to Ian and Shirley next door).

They have contractors in rebuiling the woolshed, knocking down trees, building holding yards and a race. There is also a big bulldozer there as well. If they have time they will take that big tree stump out by our pig pens and dig the stream out in our back paddocks.

This was a complete shelterbelt at the edge of our front paddock.

The gap is caused by the felling of one tree!! We then went out and returned in the dark. Will be interested to see what it looks like in the morning! Ian and Shir;ey have to clear a few particular trees which are toxic to their stock. They are also planning to make some alterations to the house so it is all change around here. They seem to be a very nice couple and have been keeping us in the loop all the way with the changes they are making.

Went to Mom and Daddy's housewarming BBQ today. Very pleasant afternoon but it was too cool to eat out, which was a shame. Eric made some fabulous pork satay from a wild boar he 'acquired'. Kev has a new job. Mom and Daddy are very happy, especially as they have now purchased a gold buggy and trailer to transport it!

Bits and Pieces

Big news from the UK is that Eric's sister Alex has married Dave in Mauritius. We have a lovely photo take on the beach and look forward to hearing all about it. (I'll put piccie on when I get their permission). Many congratulations guys. Eric and I always planned an exotic wedding, in bermuda shorts and outrageous shirts (well Eric and Stan anyway) at Victoria Falls. The earlier than planned arrival of H put paid to that and we finally got there with me 7 months pregnant and a 10 month old baby in tow!!

The human neighbours have moved in so we will be seeing lots of changes across the paddocks in the coming months. Ian popped round today to say the contractor will be in tomorrow and did we need anything doing? We will possibly get the stream dug out between 2 of the back paddocks, it has needed doing for ages, along with a heap of other things around here.

Hamilton gardends at the weekend again. The sustainable living talks were not very interesting, aimed more at getting city folk to think about the stuff we are already doing to the nth degree, composting, gowing veg, recycling etc. The Art Festival was very good with lots of stalls. The girls also wanted to go to a childrens pantomine performed in the English garden. It was aimed at very young kids but the jokes and acting were so bad it was actually very funny! We then had a picnic whilst listening to a fantastic blues duo on the lakeside. H and I loved it, Eric didn't (he has very little soul when it comes to music) and Alice thought it was OK. Actually I am quite impressed with the range of music H likes. She is really a child of the 70's I think liking Mike Oldfield, The Carpenters (whom we all love to hate and I defy any of you not to admit to singing along with the dearly departed Karen!!), Kate Bush etc and she is very into Westside Story at the moment. Mom and Daddy bought her the dvd and script for Xmas. Needless to say she knows all the parts now. She was delighted to find out that this will be the first movie they are going to study at school in moving imagery. I don't envy her teacher!!

I am only doing a few hours work today. I have ongoing problems with my back this year and this morning it was an enormous struggle to get up. I then had to hang onto the walls to walk, and had a gait similar to someone who had had a stroke. And the pain was terrible. I have been putting off going to the physio but have got quite a fright now and made an appointment for tomorrow. Thank heavens for brufen which has made it possible for me to at least move around. Without it I would have had to stay in bed all day.

Well I must go and stretch.

Oh I took these photos after seeing Mrs Tiggy ambling up the drive outside the dining room.

Homework and Hamilton

Harriette had a piece of homework today. Read The Chimney Sweep by William Blake and answer 3 questions.
Q.2. Explain, using specific examples, how the tone of the poem changes (Hint.....it changes from a sombre, sad tone to one that is much more hopeful.)!!!!! I have 2 questions. If that was a hint, what was an answer? And, does the English teacher have a different definition of the word 'hint' to me?!?!?!?!? Oh well, it gave Eric and I a laugh.

I have been a very poor blogger of late. No. I am not going to apologise, or make excuses.

I have just returned from Auckland after a couple of good days training. I usually return very stressed, and desparate for some peace and quiet, but for some reason this time has been more relaxed. I also did a teaching session, teaching new (and old) facilitators how to teach a particular topic. It went even better than I thought and I had brilliantly positive feedback on the evaluations, and, 5 people came up to me and said how much they enjoyed the session. One even said I was a natural in front of a class, had I always been that way, or did I learn it. I just said I am good a talking! It might sound like I'm blowing my own trumpet but what the hell. It does a girl good to have her self esteem given a lift once in awhile.

We have been going into Hamilton for a few events at the Hamilton Gardens Summer Festival. I get the programme each year, list want I want to attend, then actually go to nothing! I was determined it would be different this year, and chivvied along by Harriette, we have managed a few events. The first evening they had a Mardi Gras with heaps of activites on different stages dotted around the place. There was also a dance performance on that I was keen to see. It was not what I expected, being performed with almost no music, but I enjoyed it none the less. Alice was impressed, H was bored! The following day, we went through to see Mom and Daddy in Paeroa then into Hamilton to see 'Much Ado About Nothing' performed on the lakeside. It was excellent but we could not see, or hear very well! Thinking it was being performed on the stage we parked ourselves with an excellent view, but.. it was performed at 2 o'clock to the stage and between them and us were a row of people seated on chairs (we were on rugs!). I would definately go again but arrive earlier, and be more careful about where we sat! The performance, when we could see, was very good, and so funny. This weekend, we plan to go in for the Right Bank Arts Day and the sustainable living talks.

Some Piccies, and New Neighbours

Random early morning piccies. Well not quite, I took them 'cos it was such a gorgeous morning!





And last week I took this from a viewing platform between Taumaranui and Turangi. I actually went round 360 degrees with the camera but getting that onto blog is way past my capabilities! The volcano looking mountain is Ngaruhoe, or it may be Tongariro, not sure about that (!) and the snow topped one Ruapehu.



And these are our new neighbours!









The humans move in next week but these handsome creatures arrived last weekend. Far more interesting than sheep to look out on wouldn't you say.

First Day At New Schools

Holidays Recap

The heat and humidity have been unbearable this last week. Today it is less hot and less humid - Thank heavens. I am still sitting in front of a fan as I type listening to CD number 21 of Order of the Phoenix!

The children have been on holiday since before Xmas and go back on Tuesday (Monday is another holiday - Waitangei Day). This week has been getting uniforms for both sorted out. I have been at work this last week but off for the 2 weeks before. As Eric is attending his course during his annual leave a holiday away this summer is a no goer. My A/L plan therefore was to take the girls out every other day and spend the alternate days gardening. Well a few days before my leave I stuffed my back. That was over 3 weeks ago now and it is still not right. I really ought to go and see a physio but I keep telling myself it will get better. Consequently the gardening did not happen and I had to wait for Eric to finish work at 1pm before we could go out as driving was a struggle. Our first trip was to the beach at Papamoa. It was still hot there at 6pm! A rainy day meant a promised trip to the movies to see the Narnia movie. I had heard mixed reports about it but I enjoyed it. An OK movie I thought but the girls loved it. On Friday our friends Beth and Graham called in on their way to Rotorua where they were camping with their son and Grahams Mom Gloria, newly arrived from South Africa. When we found out where they were camping it was about 500m from the boat ramp Eric was planning to use on a fishing trip on Lake Rotorua the following day. Our plan was that H and Eric were to leave early with the boat and fish and A and I would join them later for a picnic. So we stuck to the plan except that Mom and Daddy came too and we joined Beth and clan for a picnic lunch by the trout stream in the lovely, very small campsite. The 3 children took the kayaks on the stream and Eric had a go at fishing. There were loads of trout in the stream but you could see them all lying on the bottom and it no mood to go looking for flies. Wrong time of day really. They also didn't catch any fish on the lake either! I have to say nobody else did! One day he will have some success!

When Alice tried to disembark from her kayak she was having some difficulty so I went to help. Unfortunately she fell in and I did not let go! Alice then had hysterics, mainly because a) she got a fright and the water was cold, and b) because she is a woos. I called for Eric to help as my back was suffering seriously at this point. He did, but only after taking photo's!!

Back recovery put back 2 weeks! It was only afterwards that I realised I should have just let her. She is a good swimmer AND had a life jacket on!!!

(Just turned on to watch the Rugby 7's England vs Argentenia)

The following week saw Mom and Daddy's house move on the Monday. That went very well. The movers unpacked the furniture and put beds, tables etc together, which was a heck of a lot more than ours did when we moved in. I spent 2 days helping unpack boxes. Thank heavens they moved on Monday as we had an incredible storm on Tuesday, trees down all over the place. On Thursday I took the girls to Kelly Tarltons in Auckland (Such a stupid name for an Antartic/sealife Centre - the originators name obviously). I enjoyed it and LOVED the snow-cat trip through the penguin enclosure. Afterwards I took the girls to Mission Bay where we had lunch on the pavement outside a Turkish cafe on the waterfront. That evening Robyn and I swapped children, Alice going to stay with Katherine, and Sarah coming here. Sarah and Harriette spent 18hrs sleeping and lounging around watching DVD's!! On to be a teenager on school hols!

Yesterday we went up to Juliet and Kev's for the day. It seemed ages since we last went up there - probably because it was! On the way back H,A and I went to see Hayley Westenra in Hamilton. This was one of the girls Xmas presents. She certainly has a fabulous voice but I'm afraid she lacks personality and her dress sense.....well the less said the better. The saving grace of the evening was the most amazing violinist called Fiona Pears who performed 4 'tunes' as she called them, 3 of her own composition. She did the whole night without once looking at any music. I am not a great fan of the violin but this was fantastic. Luckily the girls absolutely LOVED HW. We are now trying to get the girls body clocks shifted a bit for the last week of the long summer holidays. Bed at 11pm and getting up anytime after 10am is a habit to be broken me thinks!