LoveNewZealand

Kayaking in Abel Tasman National Park

2010-04-12T21:08:00.056+12:00

Last January Karen read an article in the Otago Daily Times about Wilson's tours in Abel Tasman National Park. Here's a map that shows where it is at the top of the South Island. We've done a little kayaking on rivers, but neither of us had ever done any sea kayaking. Woo-hoo, what a feeling! After you get off the boat, you still feel like the land is heaving under your feet. When the swell comes in behind you, you almost feel like you could 'catch the wave' and surf on it... But I'm getting ahead of myself.

After we booked the trip, Jamie told us he would be in NZ during that time, so we invited him to go along. He jumped at the chance and arranged to meet us in Nelson at the Leisure Lodge--our pickup point for Wilson's Tours.

We had an hour's ride on a bus to Motueka and on to Kaiteriteri where we boarded Wilson's launch along with at least 40 other people. We made several stops on the trip up the coast, dropping people off in groups of 6 or 8 to hike or kayak. Finally we reached our destination, Totaranui.

We set out almost immediately on a walk through the lush rainforest on the Puketea Loop. Visiting with our fellow trampers, we discovered that one couple in our group lives just one block over from where we used to live in Sydney, Australia. Our guide, Holly, shed her shoes immediately upon our landing and never put them on again. She said that for awhile, the local Pukatea tree was used for tanning hides. The area is not very fertile, in spite of its greenness. Because of the granite base to the soil and the high rainfall, the trees have shallow roots, and once cleared, any soil is quickly eroded.

We had picked up sack lunches at Motukea before boarding the launch and had now built up a pretty good appetite. We ate in the campground back at Totaranui.
After lunch, we began a two hour walk through rainforest and salt marsh - up hills and across estuaries. (I need to mention at this point that Karen had planned to take her hiking poles, but I'd talked her out of it. Many of the other trampers had brought hiking poles, so Karen frequently reminded me that she wished she had hers.)
On the walk, we passed a couple of pukeko foraging in the bush. One was close enough for this picture.
No matter where we looked, the vista was arresting. We frequently fell behind, captivated by what we saw.
At times, we were high enough to look down on magical views of crystal clear water, rocks, sculpted beaches, and dense forests.

Finally, we arrived at our destination: the Meadowbank Homestead at Awaroa.
House Rules: wash your feet and rinse your sandals and don't wear your hiking shoes indoors.

After a caution that all the power was from solar and diesel generators, we were directed to our rooms, named after the family members who'd lived at Meadowbank. Our room was named Roy. The hot showers were a delight. Discovering the blisters on our feet was not. Still, it felt good to get into clean clothes and enjoy the sights from the grounds around the homestead. We were treated to a hot meal where we swapped stories with the others at our table and quickly formed new friendships. Our guides became wait staff and kitchen hands to efficiently feed all 22 of us.

The next day, we explored the enormous estuary at Awaroa Bay. When we arrived the previous day, we had been ferried across this area, but our guides were hurrying us along because the tide was quickly going out. Now, we were walking on what had been covered by almost 2 feet of water!

We walked up into the surrounding hills and saw this old steam engine. It had been used for various things before being abandoned here in the bush. That's one of our guides, barefoot Holly, giving the flywheel a push.

By the time we returned to the homestead, the tide was coming in. I took this 20-second video in an effort to capture just how fast it was rising. Watch the edge of the water.

It wasn't long before the entire estuary was again under water and sparkling in the sunlight.
It was time to switch from walking to kayaking. Some of our party were primarily walking, but everyone went kayaking over the estuary. That's Jamie at the back.
Our kayaking guide, KT, gave us these instructions:
If you tip over, don't panic, just stand up!

We'd been merrily walking through the tidal water to get into and out of the boats when KT told us that the dark spots in the water around us were sting rays. She's got a wicked sense of humor. It is difficult to see, but that dark area in the center of this photo is a sting ray. It was cruising along feeding for quite awhile near our boats.

The next morning it was low tide, so we once again hit the trail. This time we were going to Torrent Bay. Since much of the walk was over estuary, we chose to wear sandals. It was also easier on the blisters.

As before, the cameras were busy as we moved from one spectacular view to another during the hour and a half walk over the Tonga Saddle to Onetahuti. Here's a view looking back at Awaroa Bay where we'd spent the night.

One of the other trampers took pity on Karen (or maybe they just got tired hearing her berating me about leaving hers behind) and loaned her a hiking pole. Once we reached Onetahuti, we were trained in the essentials of sea kayaking and given safety guidelines. We first kayaked around Tonga Island where New Zealand fur seals breed. We saw several pups, and heard some of the old bulls roaring.

Rounding the island and heading toward the mainland, we had a scary experience. Either something Karen had eaten didn't set well or she was sea-sick. (Remember those rising swells I mentioned almost surfing on? Well, that slow upward and forward motion can also be ... not so exhilarating!) Imagine the feeling of wanting to get out of the boat and away from the motion (after losing most of your lunch over the side of the boat), but being 100 meters off shore in deep water. We were in the second group of kayakers with KT as our guide. She was full of Maori stories and the history of the area, but stopping for talks and to give the first group time to move on was putting Karen into a state of panic. I finally pushed on ahead and joined the first group for an early landing at Bark Bay. Karen was immediately better, but had second thoughts about continuing on the water.

Finally, after considering the state of her feet, she decided to give it another try and was glad she did. She had no more problems after that.
Our destination at Torrent Bay was this lodge.

Next morning, Karen was not-so-carefully stowing her dry-bag (with her foot) into our kayak in anticipation of another day on the water. On this trip we saw a seal with his meal. He'd caught a squid and was literally beating it to death on the surface of the water.
Our Australian friends, Kim and John, set the pace for us all, being both experienced and fit kayakers as well as very competitive on the water. They even raced (and beat) the ferry at Awaroa Bay!
This little beach was so beautiful that it was hard to believe it was natural. It looked like something specially built for a movie.

Turn your speakers up before you play this video. The picture is nothing to speak of, but I took it for the birdsong we heard on a short walk. It is mostly Bellbird and Tui song.

This was described as 'second growth forest'. The tall skinny trees are kanuka and the ferns are coming up under them.

Yet another breath-taking view.

Looking down on the shallow sea beneath what was once a Maori pa. They put their kids up here with stones to throw on any attackers.

Usually when I go tramping I don't wear a hat and am in my shirt sleeves, but before we started on this journey, I did a risk assessment and decided I didn't want to be miserable with sunburn or sandfly bites. So we covered up.

Jamie, on the other hand, didn't seem to have any of those worries.

We opted to walk back from the morning's outing. Karen went straight back to the lodge with 'Jo-burg', as she nicknamed Moira, who was from South Africa. I went with a group for a hike up the Torrent River, seen here.

At one point the light was just right to create this multi-green look to the boulders in this pool.

Further up, we crossed this bridge before continuing on to Cleopatra's pools.

By the time we returned to the lodge, it was getting dark and I spotted the colors around the little island just off-shore. We never went anywhere without our camera, so I was able to capture it before the light changed.

Here are our three guides after dinner that night. Left to right: Holly, KT, and Emma.

The evening meal was always jovial.

Next morning, the steam was rising off the bay, so again, I was quick to capture it.

One last photo of the kayakers before the final stretch across a large expanse of open water to our final destination.

On this leg of our journey, we kept all the kayaks together and once on the open water we 'rafted up'. We each grabbed the neighboring kayak, then the guides tied a large drop cloth onto two of the paddles and had us hold them up while others held the two remaining corners down. We were sailing! Woo-hoo! Karen dubbed us the Love boat because she and Jamie had two corners and I was holding one of the paddles. What a great finish to a fantastic adventure!!

The Fog

2010-01-20T09:36:00.006+13:00

After our abortive effort to take a walk on Otago Peninsula a couple days ago, we decided to walk a bit closer to home- Tomahawk Beach. The clouds were still shrouding the peninsula, but the beach was so warm that we pealed off our jackets and shirts and walked in our T-shirts.

Tomahawk Beach is a 15 minute drive from our house, near a suburb that hasn't really caught on for development. When we arrived we saw only a couple groups of people on the entire stretch of sand. However, as we walked its length and explored the caves at either end, we saw children playing, people walking dogs, a couple of kids with body boards in the surf, and several groups of teenagers.
By the time we reach the other end of the beach, the clouds had detected our presence and started to flow over the hills toward us. We climbed the steep sand dunes at the far end of the beech and made our way back to the car through the sleepy little backwater suburb of Ocean Grove.

By this morning, the fog had found us and engulfed us in the same lack of visibility we had experienced when we tried to hike on the peninsula. The lovely ocean view out our kitchen window was replaced by tendrils of wispy cloud drifting past.

The view down our drive which normally showed the peninsula across the valley was a complete white-out. Still, it is a lovely day and it isn't raining - yet.

Otago Peninsula

2010-01-19T09:47:00.005+13:00

We decided to expand our daily walk a bit and explore some of the many tracks on the Otago Peninsula. Here's a view of our house with the peninsula in the background. Beautiful sunny day with a few clouds over the peninsula. However, 15 minutes into the 30 minute drive to the Sandymount track, we had reached an elevation sufficient to make our ears pop and completely engulf us in the cloud cover.

I turned on my lights, slowed down, and Karen proceeded to become car sick as we made our way through the thick fog up the winding roads to the track. We passed only one car on the road there, but in true Kiwi tradition, once we reached our destination, we found a dozen cars in the parking lot.

The sign points to Lover's Leap, the Chasm, and the Lookout. The first two were down the gravel road and didn't look near as appealing as the track leading to the lookout. Karen, still nauseous from the drive, didn't hesitate to inform me of the fruitlessness of walking to a lookout point in the fog, but we started out anyway. The trail led up through a tangle of gorse, which is a thorny noxious weed introduced for hedges by the English, but which has taken over the countryside. Karen was in shorts, so we didn't go far before we'd gone far enough.

We turned around and made our way slowly back down. Karen was anxious about twisting one of her titanium knees and we lamented leaving our hiking poles in the boot of the car. Anyhow, we didn't get much of a walk, but on the way back passed one of nature's many testaments to the wind in the area. Sorry Kansas, I think we've got you beat in the wind department.

Arriving back home, I took a parting shot of the peninsula. It still looks like a nice day for a walk.

Time flies you can't they fly too fast

2009-12-27T08:04:00.020+13:00

I've always enjoyed that little punctuation puzzle. Time does move relentlessly onward, though, regardless of how slowly it seems to go when we are in the middle of something we don't particularly enjoy; or how rapidly it appears to go when we look back and see how long it has been since, say, our children were small. It has been awhile since I last posted anything here, so enough of this preamble, and on to the body of this little epistle.
We never tire of the view we have from our house - especially the one looking out to the ocean. There is something about the ocean that draws one to it.

Of course, the view across the valley of South Dunedin is impressive as well, even if it is filled with houses and businesses. It is especially pretty when the fog rolls in.

Karen didn't know anything about gall bladders until I took her to the urgent doctor and they sent us on to hospital. The next day she had surgery. Then the long recovery period and the after-effects of the surgery. She's discovered that eating some foods is no longer a good idea and that her nails and hair also take a while to recover.

Karen continues to be the center of my life. In addition to the great views from our house, we enjoy the closeness of the beach at St Clair. We can take a 30 - 40 minute walk that includes a round trip to the esplanade. There's usually a group of surfers busy catching the waves, even in the rain.
Looking through our photos, I find mostly pictures of our three grandkids, but for now I'll focus on our activities.

We took a trip to Wellington to visit the Mitchells in July. Talk about views! Here's one from their house. They've spent almost a year remodeling it and improving on it. It now has a lovely airy and modern feel. I think Karen got some ideas about remodeling from them, because she's started talking about changes we can make to our house (the one we were just going to move into and live in).

While in Wellington, we visited the Karorai Game Reserve. We had to have our bags checked for rodents before we could go in, because most of the wildlife in the reserve is birds. This was built on what used to be the water supply for Wellington. There are walking tracks in it that could take all day to traverse. They even had a little motor launch to take you from one end of the lake to the other and get up close to some of the birds in the process.

Wellington is the capital of New Zealand and the government is mostly consolidated in the building behind us, called the Beehive. It is very unusual and was voted one of the 10 ugliest buildings in the world last year, but I kind of like it. It is probably related to my sense of style. Karen takes me shopping with her as a sort of litmus paper - if I don't like it, it is probably stylish; if I do like it, she'd better not buy it.

One day in Wellington, while the Mitchells were busy with work and getting ready for their first grand baby, we took the train up the coast to Paraparaoumou and spent a couple of hours walking along the beach and dining at at a local cafe. After it started to rain pretty seriously, we took the train back. We nearly missed it, though, because we didn't realize that Paraparaoumou is the end of the line, so the train that pulled into the station from the south is the one to catch to go south as well.

One weekend when John, Sara, and Eli were visiting we decided to visit Larnauch castle. We didn't know they were having a wine tasting that day, but took advantage of the booths spread out on the lawn after we'd toured the castle and grounds. It was an idyllic sunny, warm Sunday afternoon. Talk about serendipity!

Even now we find ourselves thinking, "we live in a place that others visit on their holiday". This was a combined Saturday morning Farmer's Market and Global Warming Awareness event. Behind Karen (brown pants and white shirt) is the old train station - said to be one of the most photographed buildings in the country.

We've been enjoying gardening this year and are trying out a few different things.

The potatoes we had last year grew from compost we'd spread in the garden before leaving for a Northern hemisphere Christmas. They impressed us enough that this year we actually planted some. The plants are lush. I hope the potatoes are abundant as well.

Lettuce grows very well here, but pulling our the ornamentals on our raised planter beside our patio was the ticket to increased visibility and pleasure.
We planted a Thai chile plant that has peppers that range from purple to yellow to red as they ripen.

We've even tried some warm-weather plants like squash this year. This is generally not a good idea. We have to plant tomatoes in the green house to get them to bear.

Beyond Kiwiana

2009-06-27T12:38:00.004+12:00

After our discovery of the Thermette (way cool), I decided to search for other Kiwi inventions, icons or 'firsts'. Here's what I found:

Bungy jumping: well maybe he didn't invent it, but A J Hackett opened the world's first commercial bungy jumping site in 1988 after achieving notoriety for illegally bungy jumping from the Eiffel Tower in 1997.

Jet boats: in 1953 William Hamilton, a NZ farmer, developed the world's first properllerless jet boat, now known as the Hamilton jet boat. What's more, he also invented the hay lift, a device to smooth ice on skating ponds, and the water sprinkler.

Atom splitter: in 1919 Baron Ernest Rutherford, a NZ scientist, was the first person in the world to split the atom

Stop the game: in 1884 William Atack was the first person to use a whistle to stop a sports game

Eggbeaters: Ernest Godward invented eggbeaters, spiral hair pins, and burglar proof windows

Jogging: Arthur Lydiard invented jogging and used it to help two Kiwis win gold medals in the 1960 olympics

Stamp vending machine: R. J. Dickie - about 1900

First flight: We all though that the Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk were the first to fly [a heavier-than-air craft], but it is not true. The first flight was by a 25 year old New Zealander, Richard Pearse on March 31, 1902. How about that!

Ghost: the software used to copy computer installations and manage them from a central site

Fly-by-wire: I don't think this is the aviation control system, but I'm not sure. There's a Fly-by-wire ride in Queenstown that rivals Bungy jumping for thrills that is more likely to be a Kiwi invention.

Mountain Buggy: 1992 - an all-terrain pushchair for parents with a fitness-oriented lifestyle. John & Sara have one - it's neat

Pavlova: This is a bone of contention between NZ and Australia, with both claiming it as their own. However, being a Kiwi, I'm opting for their version: "This dessert was invented as a tribute to the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova, who toured New Zealand and Australia in 1926. Pavlova is made of meringue and cream and is usually topped with kiwifruit."

Buzzy Bee: designed and produced in 1948 by Hec and John Ramsey, it has become an iconic NZ symbol

Other things named in passing:
Frozen meat
Tranquilizer gun
Seismic 'base' isolators (rubber and lead blocks which minimize earthquake damage)
Electric fences
Freezer vacuum pumps
Wide-toothed shearing combs
Electronic petrol pumps

Oh, wow! I just found a site that has heaps of things. I've copied some of it here.
If you want to see the source, it is at www.thinkb16.com/KiwiInventionsAndDiscoveries.aspx
Here they are:

1884 Air Tight Tin Lid - John Eustace
An air tight tin lid with a lip. Although others copied the idea, he was making 100 tonnes of tin cans a year in the 1920s.

1982 Baeyertz Tape - Dr John Baeyertz
Use for accurately estimating birth dates, still used world-wide today.

1988 Bungy - AJ Hackett
The world's first commercial bungy site was opened in 1988. In June 1987 AJ bungy jumped illegally from the Eiffel Tower.

1956 Disposable Hypodermic Syringe - Colin Murdoch
A disposable, pre-filled syringe.

1900 Eggbeater - Ernest Godward
An egg-beater that could prepare eggs for a sponge cake in three and a half minutes, previously it took 15

1944 Jogging - Arthur Lydiard
A training technique that saw his two protégés Peter Snell and Murray Halberg win gold medals on the same day at the 1960 Rome Olympics.

1953 Propellerless Jet Boat - William Hamilton
The world's first propellerless jet boat

1901 Spiral Hair Pin - Ernest Godward
This was a predecessor of the hair clip.

1919 Split the Atom - Sir Ernest Rutherford
The first in the world to in 1919. He was awarded a Nobel Prize for his efforts in radioactivity.

1970s Spreadable Butter - New Zealand Dairy Research Institute
After years of development, the New Zealand Dairy Research Institute released the worlds first spreadable butter in 1991, which was then made by New Zealand dairy co-operatives and now by Fonterra.

1950s Tranquilliser Gun - Colin Murdoch
A tranquilliser gun, also called a capture gun or dart gun, is a non-lethal gun which shoots tranquilliser darts filled with tranquilliser that, when injected, make the target animal sleep.

1972 Tullen Snips - John Hough
Scissors which could cut items as tough as one cent coins and by the 1980s more than 20 million had been made.

1884 Whistle in Sport - William Atack
The world's first referee to use a whistle to stop a game of sport.

1994 Zorb - Dwayne van der Sluis and Andrew Akers
Created the world's first Zorb, a unique adventure activity involving a giant plastic ball, a slope and speeds of up to 50 kilometres per hour.

Other Kiwi icons include:

Edmonds Cookbook: More copies of this book, published by the makers of Edmonds ‘Sure to Rise’ Baking Powder, have been sold than any other book in New Zealand. Few New Zealand children would leave home without buying or borrowing their mother’s copy of this kiwi culinary bible.

No 8 Wire: Kiwis are famous for their ingenuity and self-sufficiency. It is said that Kiwis can create amazing things — all they need is ‘a piece of Number 8 wire’. No 8 wire is a certain gauge of wire that was incredibly popular for use as fencing wire around New Zealand’s many farms. Because No. 8 wire was widely available, it was used for a variety of tasks, and it has become a symbol of kiwi adaptability.

L & P: L & P stands for Lemon and Paeroa, New Zealand’s most famous soft drink. It was invented in 1904 after its maker tasted some mineral water near the town of Paeroa, and mixed it with lemon to make a particularly refreshing drink. L & P was originally called Paeroa and Lemon, though the name was later reversed, and then shorted to L & P. This drink is still popular throughout New Zealand today. I love their ads: "World famous in New Zealand"

Whew! I'm starting to feel like the Russians alway used to say: "We had it first!"

Kiwiana

2009-06-27T11:25:00.005+12:00

We discovered a bit of Kiwiana with our introduction to the Thermette. This is a wood-burning portable kettle that was invented in 1929 in New Zealand by John Hart. It was adopted by the NZ Army and issued to its soldiers during world war II. Many of them were stationed in North Africa where it was nicknamed the Benghazi Boiler. Since then, Kiwi families have taken it on road trips and picnics because it is so easy to "boil a brew" for tea, coffee, hot chocolate, or even just for hot water to clean up with.
Our colleague, Dale, couldn't believe we'd never hear of it, so she brought hers to work to show us.

Of course, nothing doing but what we had to try it out. Dale explained how it works while Hamish, another colleague, fired it up with just a few twigs we found lying around.

One of the reasons it works so well is that it is hollow! It is actually a water jacket around a chimney. You can feed the fuel down the chimney and the windier it is the better.

In just a few minutes we had flames shooting out the chimney, and a couple minutes later, we had hot water spewing out the spout.

We had our coffee cups ready with instant coffee and Dale proudly poured out the water If you look closely, you can see the ground behind her through the middle of the Thermette. How cool is that?

Click here to view these and other photos on Picasa.

Elinor Jumping

2009-03-22T22:07:00.002+13:00

Christmas in Kansas

2009-02-14T21:02:00.006+13:00

Out for a walk on a chilly day

I wonder how many family photos we have with a little one looking the other way?

What fun!

A quiet New Year's eve

Contemplating the mysteries of the new Dyson

The hat was a hit!

Urban cowboy and his steed

Technology helps the family share Christmas around the world

The boys, the cards, the fun

Family gathering at Christmas

Our week with snow in Vancouver just about made us captives. It began snowing the day we were to fly to Kansas for the rest of our holiday and by the time we got to the airport, flights were being delayed. We loaded about an hour late, then sat for almost three hours. At one point they pulled back up to the concourse to let anyone who wanted to depart get off. It was snowing so hard that they had to close the airport every 30 minutes to scrape the runways. The de-iced the planes as well during that time. Then they spent the next 20 minutes getting planes that were circling the airport down on the ground. The remaining 10 minutes was all that was left to get planes waiting to take off up in the air before they closed the airport and started the process all over. By the time we got to Denver, our connecting flight had already left. Denver airport was full of people in the same condition as we were. The hotels were full, the cars were all rented, flights for the next day were mostly full as well. Luckily, my cousin Sharon and her family live in Denver and she graciously invited us to stay with them. Not only that, she picked us up, fed us, and even got us to the museum the following day while we waited for the next flight we could get on - exactly 24 hours after the one we missed. We can't thank her enough.

A day late, but having had a bad experience converted into an adventure, we got to our destination in Newton. We swapped stories with our kids who had their own travel nightmares to relate, then got to one of the main goals of our trip - to hold and play with that new grandson. Although still a toddler, he's definitely all boy. He looks and acts a lot like his Uncle James.

Just seeing all the family was so good. Our children and their partners are a cohesive, fun group. We also got to see our brothers and their families and share stories of our kids, jobs, and activities. I'm glad to say that everyone seems to be doing well.

Visiting James and Ami in Vancouver

2008-12-30T06:09:00.020+13:00

We visited James and Ami way up north. We had the usual culture-shock, like the sun hanging low in the southern sky instead of the northern sky and driving on the right side of the road instead of the left. I even sat in the driver's seat of the taxi at the airport by mistake.
Here is the group on the steps to James and Ami's flat. They ordered a fresh snow, just for us.

Ami, photogenic as usual, welcomed us to their kitchen.

They are only a short walk from the beach, so as soon as we got settled, we went to see it.

What a great way to get over jet-lag!

Ocean, harbour, mountains, snow - almost as pretty as New Zealand - if only it wasn't so far away!

The next day Jamie took us to visit Gas Town, where we saw this steam clock. What a hoot, hearing it chime.

Around the corner from Gas Town was China Town with lots of open air shops and this delicate little Japanese garden where we spent quite awhile looking around.

Later, we went to the Festival of Lights at the botanic garden. After a fresh layer of snow, It was especially beautiful.

James and Ami had to show us how it is supposed to be done.

James gets distracted easily.

On another outing, we went to the Vancouver Aquarium where we saw these whales perform.

The Aquarium is located on the grounds of Stanley Park, a huge reserve of trees and trails. This is a lookout at the beginning of one of the trails.

Pete at the same lookout.

The trails were all the more interesting because of the recent snowfall.

Another day, we went snowshoeing. The first thing we noticed was the staff shoveling show off the roof of their buildings.

This is James, Karen, and a Ninja (aka Pete) getting the hang of snowshoeing

The break hut was a welcome site as was the chance to get out of the cold for a wee bit.

Back in Vancouver, we went to Granville Island for a bit of shopping and a meal.

We ate at a lovely restaurant called the Keg, where we had the nicest steak. Mine was at least two inches thick!

Sunset in Vancouver on a snowy day.

Elinor

2008-11-26T21:23:00.003+13:00

Eli performs to a background of babble

Grandparents - again!

2008-10-12T16:45:00.007+13:00

We spent some time helping the new parents in our family.
Eli's room is ready for her - filled with the clothes all the family and friends have given her.

She's even got a closet full of shoes! Eat your heart out, James.

It is good to have the family all home at last.

Eli is really putting on the weight, as you can see here.

If you can't beat them, join them.

A day at the office

2008-09-13T09:24:00.006+12:00

I took my camera to work with me recently and thought I'd share some shots of our haunts at Otago Polytechnic.

This first shot of 'D' block is where our offices are and where all our labs and some of our lectures are held. My office is on first floor and Karen's is on the third. There is a partial fourth floor that was originally fitted out as a ship's deck and was used for traning people to be ship's captains.

To the left of 'D' block is a favorite break area where staff and students often mingle. 'A' block is behind the covered walkway and houses the Design school. The covered walkway is a must-have with the number of rainy days we get.

Further left are 'F' block and 'H' block. 'F' block is the three story building that houses our IT services group, management, and most importantly, the faculty staff room. This is heavily used, which I think is a good sign of a healthy organization. 'H' block is the six story building where we have many of our lectures and some labs.

'G' block is mostly nursing, but has some special purpose lecture rooms that we sometimes use if we have a large class. I love the pattern they've done in the patio. At lunch time if the weather is nice, this is often filled with students sitting on the steps and grassy hillsides of the area.

The view out the frond door of 'D' block is across a series of playing fields that are frequently used for hocky games and rugby matches, to some of the hills that surround Dunedin.

Here's a shot of my work area, with the usual mess of work in progress. I salvaged an old iMac that is the same vintage as Ruby. I sometimes use it to access the server I manage.

I share my office with Mike - and sometimes William, who is just about Gabe's age and has been my surrogate grandson until I can see Gabe in person.

Karen was working away when I joined her for lunch, so I took this shot of her work area. It reminds me of the saying, "If a cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind, what's an empty desk the sign of?"

Disco Tech is sitting forgotten on top of a file cabinet at the end of a hallway, but I think it is a cool play on words and a neat sculpture.

Pete often rides one way with us and then bikes the other way. It is about a 20 minute bike ride from our house to school, but most of it is flat. He bikes at least three days a week, which helps keep him fit.

Trail heads

2008-07-13T09:54:00.007+12:00

I love tramping ("hiking" outside of New Zealand). I am always excited to arrive at a new trail head full of wonder about what new sites we will see, what new challenges we will face, what new experiences we will have on this trail. Each tramp is different, even when it is over a familiar trail. The birth of our new granddaughter, Elinor, at only 26 weeks has made me think once again about the wonder of life and how unique it is to each of us.

We often judge life by our own experiences. The way we perceive it is, of course, what is normal. We forget how very different each life is. Just look at the beginnings--Eli is leading us down a new trail, blazed by others before us, but a new and wondrous experience for us. We've not had to deal with the separation forced by life-saving technology in previous babies.

But, each baby has had its own trail--Gabe, our first grandson, was also premature, with the extra anxiety of not knowing if we going to be able to keep him. Plus, we've had half a world of distance between us and him. It has been like looking through the window of a candy store. So near, yet so far.

Thinking back to our own children, the trail heads have all been unique, some even scary. Libby, with an APGAR score of only 6, was born a yellowish, waxy thing with her cord around her neck--very much like a baby doll. At the time we didn't know that this wasn't perfectly normal. Fortunately, quick care in the delivery room overcame this rough start. Little did we know that hers would be our most 'normal' delivery.

Jamie was three weeks overdue and big. When inducing delivery, the doctor couldn't even find any amniotic fluid remaining. His head was the size of a bowling ball. Karen has never forgiven him for that! We were doing the natural delivery thing and so were being stoic. She had to have stitches to repair the damage he did. During his post natal testing he pee'd on the nurse. She kept in touch with us for a long time. I think they bonded.

John was also overdue and had to be induced. Karen was being super-mom and went home from hospital after only one day. "Got two kids at home to take care of." We had to take him back to the hospital for some of the tests they normally perform within the first three days. I recall them taking blood from his foot and him not even waking up. Talk about laid back! I also recall the surprise we had when he was born. I believe Karen's comment was, "What's that thing?" We had to take the pink outfit back and exchange it for a blue one.

Molly was born three days after we buried Karen's dad. She was a real blessing! Doctor Logan was an Aussie, so when Molly was born, he announced, "It's a sheila!" The nurses nicknamed her, "Mad Molly" because she was always hollering, raising her head, and hungry. The nickname has stuck. Feisty, you don't mess with Molly. She's a lot like her mother.

Peter was the only baby who wasn't induced since Libby was born. We didn't realize the drama we would have at his birth. He ended up being an emergency C-section because the placenta was detaching and he wasn't getting enough oxygen. The option for another natural birth was taken from us and we started down another new trail. Years of watching his development and comparing it to average scores led us to finally accept that those final few moments before birth had robbed him of some of the abilities we had taken for granted in all our other children.

And so each life has led us down its own unique, wonderful trail. I just love tramping.

For more information about our grand babies, follow the links to Water, Woods, and Wool and also Lightening Guns.

Celebrations

2008-06-07T20:46:00.004+12:00

What is more worth celebrating than a beautiful start to a day. We had a morning fog that added an extra touch to the landscape as it snaked in from the sea and between the hills.

Recently our middlest son, John, made his first Alyieh at the synagogue here in Dunedin. He has studied long and hard to reach this day and we were very proud of him. For his birthday and in celebration of this achievement we got him a kiddush cup.

Another celebration! 40 years of marriage - a good start!

John and Sara had a lot of fun putting together a basket of goodies for us. Since the 40th anniversary is the Ruby anniversary, they filled a basket with red things.

Of course I had to wind Karen up by calling this a hair brush.

Red meat - how appropriate.

Ruby rings.

Say what?

40 is red.

Bouncy toy - what fun!

Cafe Forte - and in a red package.

I love prezzies!

Graduation trip - Kings College Chapel

2007-09-30T17:05:00.000+13:00

Kings College Chapel sounds like it should be a little place, but it rivaled Ely Cathedral in size and grandeur.

The stone work, as you can see, is impressive.

As are the stained glass windows.

But the ceiling was the most awesome part of all.

Graduation trip - Punting on the Cam

2007-09-30T16:56:00.001+13:00

JF and Molly had boooked a Trinity College punt for us. Luckily the weather cooperated and we had a nice day for it. John was eager to try his hand at it and managed the boat like a pro.

The rest of us mostly went along for the ride.

I got my turn as well and was told I did all right. Karen doesn't look too sure, though.

Is it raining?

Graduation trip - Graduation Day

2007-09-30T16:39:00.000+13:00

Although both Molly and JF completed their Master's degrees, JF's graduation is not until November. However, we celebrated both as we attended Molly's ceremony. It was certainly different from any graduation we'd seen before.

The happy graduate.

Graduate with Mom and Pop.

Now add the siblings who were there, John and Pete. Pete dwarf's us all.

We can't leave out Sara!

We did it! (Can't wait to get home)

I like the color of her hood.

Graduation trip - unplanned events

2007-09-30T16:03:00.001+13:00

Cambridge had been having flooding the few weeks before our arrival, but this was the only rain we got while we were there. We passed these homes that were exploding with flowers and I couldn't resist taking a picture.

Well, maybe it did rain more than once after all. We went to The Orchard for a bite and it was too wet to sit outside. Lots of writers and poets used to gather here.

Harry Potter mania! Yes, we stood in line for a couple of hours to get some of the first books available. The big hoo-ha before the event was a big fizzle, but the size of the crowds was impressive. Each family bought a copy, so there was a bit of sharing around of the book. If you put a copy down, someone else was sure to pick it up. I was one of the last to finish (on the plane home) and Pete was one of the first (having read all night one night to beat John to the ending).

Karen dumped by an Ikia chair while trying to pick up the book from the floor. Those chairs were trecherous. The rounded front end was very slippery on the wood floors.

Karen's knees were increasingly painful, but she kept on going. Finally, however, they gave out when we were trying to get to the museum. JF and Molly set us up with this Cambridge version of a betchek. We didn't have very far to go, but the relief for Karen was immense.

Molly and JF in their favorite retreat in their flat - the bay window. I swear they are both part cat.

A very posh restaurant for a last family meal seemed to be the right thing to do.

Graduation trip - Ely Cathedral

2007-09-30T15:10:00.001+13:00

Ely Cathedral was a wet day trip from Cambridge, but well worth the effort. Its size and checkered history through the various kings and switches between Catholic and Protestant influences was fascinating.

It didn't look that big from the outside, but inside ... it was HUGE!

It is also known for its stained glass. Not only are there windows with some of the oldest stained glass in existance, there is a gallery showing the history and development of stained glass.

Graduation trip - Cambridge

2007-09-30T14:41:00.000+13:00

After Israel, England almost felt cool. Cambridge at last. We were nearing the purpose of our trip. Here are Pete, JF, and Molly on the main street leading from their flat into town.

Another street scene near there. Very picturesque.

Trinity College dining hall. They had to dress in robes for dinner here.

Churches and cathedrals everywhere we turned.

Peter's piece - which is what they call the parks. You probably can't see it without enlarging this picture, but there is a very long kite all across the sky.

The old and the new. Farmer's market near the centre of town.

Mostly our crew. John and Sara joined us the day after we arrived and we spent a good deal of time walking around town looking at the sights.

Graduation trip - Galilee

2007-09-30T13:21:00.000+13:00

As a special treat, John and Sara had arranged for us to dirve up to Galilee and spend the night at a very nice Moroccan style resort. The sea of Galilee is BIG! The land around the southern end is very lush. It was quite hazy when we were there, so this photo doesn't do the area justice.

We had lunch at a large fish restaurant, then took a stroll by the lake.

When we arrived at the resort, it didn't take us long to succumb to the atmosphere and head for the spa and sauna.

The resort had a lot of wrought iron, white stucco, red tiles, and lounge chairs. I could just picture it as a setting for a Hercule Poirot movie.

Next day, we went to Safed and visited the artists quarter. Behind us are just a few of the many artists shops with paintings and carvings to sell. We restrained ourselves to only one picture.

We backtracked to Capernium. Karen wanted to visit it for her Mother. It is not a living city, but a collection of ruins with a monistary at its entrance and a shrine over what is left of the home of Peter.

These mosaics are roman and pre-date Christ.

A view of the synagogue ruins and some of the remaining foundations of the homes that made up the town.

More foundations of homes. I was amazed at how small the homes were and how narrow the streets were. Some were barely wide enough for two people.

We polished off the afternoon with a little R & R in the Sea of Galilee. The water was chilly, but the outside temperature made it feel great.

Graduation trip - Out & about Jerusalem

2007-09-26T22:15:00.000+12:00

For our next few nights in Jerusalem, we moved into a youth hostel that John and Sara had gotten for us. Her family was having a bit of a reunion, so her Mom's house was overflowing with people. The rooms were nice and private, but I felt like I was back at the dormitory at Phillips University.

Our room was on the top floor and in a wing away from most of the kids. The view from the balcony outside our room was impressive, as you can see. Most of the kids were between 16 and 20 and were there for the Birthright program. They come from all over the world to visit Israel and learn about their homeland and history. It was sort of like summer camp with many of them carrying musical instruments. The only difference was that some of them were also carrying rifles.

Here we are waiting outside the hostel for John and Sara to pick us up for dinner at her Mom's.

We were fortunate to be invited to participate in the family celebration of Shabbat. Everyone had fun and the little girls competed with each other to see who could be the cutest, while the adults competed with their cameras. Sara's mother, Simcha, is a very gracious woman and together with her family were lovely hosts.

We took some time the next morning to do some retail therapy in Old Jerusalem with John and Sara. This being Saturday, only the Moslem shops were open, but there were still plenty of places to shop.

On our way out of Jerusalem to visit the Dead Sea, we passed several places where Bedouins were living. They are nomads, so their homes are temporary, but apparently, they may stay in the same place for years. More like squatters, really.

Notice the caves up the side of the hill. The place was full of them. This was Qumran, where they found the Dead Sea scrolls.

The Dead Sea was pretty desolate, except for this resort-like area that was a swimming beach. It was HOT. We were far enough below sea level that even the whitest person would not get sunburned. The water felt oily and several people were covered in mud, which is supposed to be good for you.

We skipped the mud treatment and settled for just getting our feet wet.

Luckily, there was a local oasis near there where we stopped for something cool on our way back to Jerusalem, where the climate was much more pleasant

Graduation trip - Tour of Old Jerusalem

2007-09-16T14:55:00.001+12:00

Jerusalem! This is a view from new Jerusalem to old Jerusalem.

Lots of places use blue to keep away the evil eye.

Israeli cemetery. It was very hot and dusty here and Leah told us of the belief that those buried here would be amongst the first to enter the Kingdom of Heaven at the time of the resurrection because the Messiah would enter through the gate near here.

Everything is so close to each other here. The gold dome in the distance is the Dome of the Rock where God first touched the earth, where Abraham almost sacrificed Isaac and near where David was crowned king.

Garden of Gethsemane. Some of these olive trees are over 2000 years old!

As in most places in Jerusalem, next to the garden is a church. You can get an idea of the massive proportions from this photo.

Inside was equally impressive

Looking back at Old Jerusalem and the cemetery where we were earlier. Notice the city gate is walled up, courtesy of the Moslems, with the idea that if the Messiah can't enter through that gate, there can't be a resurrection!

Here we're entering the Old City after finding a gate that wasn't walled up.

Old defenses - that was once a moat down there. We sat and visited while a troop of soldiers gathered and disbursed there - all with guns. Maybe the defenses aren't that old.

Leah took us through the city off the tourist path, so we got to see the real beauty of it. We went into people's back yards and through a nunnery, where the gatekeeper asked us to leave. Maybe we really weren't supposed to be all the places we went, but it was interesting. Here are some of the sites we saw:

A Roman mosaic map of Jerusalem as it was then.

Roman arches laid out on a true North-South line found under the city.

On the other side of the city is the West Wall. (Not called the Wailing Wall, according to Lea)

There's the Dome of the Rock again. We're still in the West Wall area.

Back on the beaten path, the shopkeepers were eager to sell their wares.

The way of the cross is a major shopping venue now. Where the people are, the vendors will be also.

Church of the Holy Sepulchre - Greek Orthodox style

Church of the Holy Sepulchre - Roman style

The dome over the Tomb of Jesus

People waiting to enter the Tomb of Jesus. This was the Greek Orthodox side, as you can tell by the opulence. Around back was another Tomb of Jesus site set up by the Egyptian Coptic church. It was quite simple and not crowded, but you had to remove your shoes and lie down to see it.

Graduation trip - Visiting Buchbinders

2007-09-16T13:22:00.001+12:00

While Karen was busy with the ETAI conference, Pete and I went with Sara to do a little shopping and visit her family.
Culture shock!! Not only could we not speak or read the language, we couldn't even make out the letters to try to figure it out. The language difference was a lot of fun, though. Here's Pete with a bottle of ketchup. It doesn't take much to entertain us, does it?

After the conference we all returned to the Buchbinders' house where I relaxed in their gracious hospitality.

Next morning, Karen visited with their gardner, who had just picked some lemons from a tree in their yard.

Anita had arranged for Lea to give us a tour of Old Jerusalem. I'll leave most of those shots for a later post, but here are a couple of pics of us during the tour.(Pete, Lea, Anita, and Karen)

Then Lea took a picture so I could be in it. She is a professional guide and really knew her stuff. Not only did we see all the important things, but we got an interesting and sometimes funny account of the history surrounding them.

Here's our little group taking a much needed sit-down in the shade beside the Garden of Gethsemane.

After a long day as tourists, it was good to relax at Anita's again.

After a rest, Anita and her husband took us to the markets. What an adventure! Lots of open-air stalls selling everything you could need to run a household.

Beans, nuts, vegetables, and melons

Spices galore!

And mouth-watering pastries

Then on to a little restaurant with an interesting selection of foods. I took a photo of the menu to give you an idea. If you zoom in you can see such things as: Chicken Hearts, Lamb Fat, Tonsils, and Goose Liver.

Here we are waiting for our dinner. Part of the decor included currencies from around the world. You can see some of them above us.

Graduation trip - ETAI Conference

2007-09-11T22:14:00.001+12:00

After spending a couple of days in London, we headed for Israel. John and Sara met us at the airport at Tel Aviv very early (like 5 in the morning) and drove us to Jerusalem. We were so early we got Anita Bookbinder out of bed when we arrived. Anita is a former classmate of Karen's from their Ph.D. days at Indiana University. We'd written to let her know we would be visiting with John and Sara. When she learned we would be there during their English Teachers Association of Israel Conference, she asked Karen to be a keynote speaker. Karen was estatic with the opportunity. I don't know which she loves more: performing/speaking before a group of people or a good argument. She got both at the conference. Here are a few shots of Karen in action at the conference.

The four women in the foreground were classmates at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. From left to right, they are Karen, Brenda, Anita, and Susan. They had a mini reunion.

Graduation trip - London Eye

2007-09-09T21:49:00.000+12:00

The London Eye is impressive - even from the ground!

The panoramic views of the city are worth the wait in line to get on the ride.

There's Westminster Cathedral and the Tower of Big Ben.

Finally, we're back near the ground.

And as we're exiting, there's the (new) Globe Theatre, just across the way. Karen really wanted to go there, but we were too late.

Graduation trip - the Tower of London

2007-09-09T21:37:00.001+12:00

Only Karen had seen the tower before, and she gave it rave reports. Unfortunately, we arrived only one hour before closing, so we could not give it the time required. The lines to see some of the more interesting parts would have taken all our time just to get through. I was surprised to learn that it wasn't just a tower, but a whole complex of buildings built like a castle, complete with open courtyard.

The age of the building and carvings were impressive, as were the crown jewels. Not photos allowed in there, though.

Now here's the rarest sight of all - a street with no people! Actually, this was taken just after closing time and the crooked little street appealed to me.

Graduation trip - Scouting

2007-09-09T21:27:00.001+12:00

One thing Peter was keen to do was to visit the Baden Powell House in London. Lord Baden Powell was the founder of Scouting and 2007 marks its 100th anniversary. Powell was quite a character, being not only a very popular war hero, but an artist and entertainer as well. A lot of his personality is stamped on the ideals of scouting.

Pete has his achievements and experiences in scouting as something to look back on and be proud of. It has meant a lot to him.

Graduation trip - Museum of Natural History

2007-09-09T21:07:00.000+12:00

After a walk of more than the three blocks I estimated from Kings Cross, we arrived at the Museum of Natural History. However, the damage to Karen's knee was done and it would plague her for the rest of our trip. I don't know which was more impressive about the museum - the exhibits or the architecture of the place. This view is of the main hall and is what greets you as you first enter.

From the opposite end, looking back, the view is even more impressive.

Unfortunately, this dinosaur structure picture is a bit dark, as was most of the exhibit in this area. They did have some impressive bones.

Even the outside of the building was ornately carved.

Graduation trip - London

2007-08-12T18:35:00.000+12:00

The quality of our flight from Tokyo to London couldn't match that of our previous day. The flight was packed, making the tight seating even more cramped. The movies were not as good. Pete's video died, so I traded seats with him. We did have metal eating utensils, the first I've seen on a flight for six years.

While waiting in the massive lines for customs at Heathrow, Karen struck up a conversation with a couple from Auckland. He was British and she was Maori and they visited England every 5-6 years. There were several middle-eastern women pushing their way through the lines. Little did I know what a forecast of the future that would be.

There were piles of luggage off to the side, but we had no problem with ours. We had nothing to declare, so we sailed through customs. It cost us 4 pounds for a 10-minute bus ride to Jurys Inn, where we had rooms. Another omen. London is expensive. We called Molly in Cambridge to let her know we'd arrived and make plans for the next day. Then supper and bed. It was 4:00am NZ time and we were exhausted.

We had a wee learning curve getting onto the the train into London, but managed to get to King's Cross after a 45 minute ride. We thought we knew where Molly would come in, but were wrong.

We tried to figure out what terminal the Cambridge train would be on, but the signs kept changing - so we kept changing platforms as well. At least we had her mobile number, so after the time passed when she was supposed to be there, we found a pay phone and called her. She was about 20 feet away from the phone. During the course of searching for her, we discovered platform 9 3/4, so of course, we had to get a photo.

We took the train to see the changing of the guard.

Mostly, what we saw were the throngs of tourists.

I foolishly thought we could walk from the palace to our next item of interest.

Graduation trip - starting out

2007-08-12T12:41:00.000+12:00

Our planned trip to see Molly graduate from Cambridge, like Topsy, just 'growed' and 'growed'. After almost a year of planning, we finally had all our tickets, bags, passports, and connections. We discovered we could include a trip to Israel to join John and Sara at her family's reunion and Karen's keynote presentation at the ETAI conference in Jerusalem in our plans. Karen found the cheapest tickets available, but they involved some compromises. Our plans were to take the shuttle to the Dunedin airport, fly to Auckland, spend the night, fly from Auckland to Tokyo, spend the night, fly to London, spend two nights, then fly to Tel Aviv where John and Sara would pick us up. After a week there, we would fly back to London, catch the bus to Cambridge, take a taxi to JF and Molly's. There we hoped to spend a couple of weeks sight-seeing and seeing the Cambridge graduation. John and Sara planned to join us there. Finally, we had a bus trip back to Heathrow, flight to Tokyo, brief delay at the airport, then a flight directly to Christchurch, and a connecting flight to Dunedin. Finish it off with a shuttle back home and we'd be done.

We were keen to avoid stress, so we booked the shuttle to pick us up at 6:50pm to give us more than an hour before our 8:50 flight to Auckland. However, we weren't quite keen enough to get on the 6:50am shuttle when they called and said they were at our house. They'd gotten the times mixed up. Twelve hours later, I was home from work and we had our bags packed and ready to go. I took this picture because they reminded me of the three bears. Mama bear, papa bear, and baby bear each have distinctive bags, don't you think so?

After a cold wait at the top of our driveway, we shared the shuttle with several other travelers and arrived as planned with time to spare. This was our first time to fly out of the Dunedin airport, where we had a snack and discovered a new smaller size in Coke bottles. The huge size of Pete's sandwich more than made up for it, though. Our time for departure came and went along with announcements of the delay. Finally, an hour late, we boarded our flight to Auckland. I'd swear they are making the seats smaller on airplanes now. Upon our arrival at 11:00, Pete grabbed our bags, which were first off the plane. However, construction and the late hour made contacting the hotel shuttle very difficult. Eventually, we got through and were picked up by a minivan. It was 1:00 before we checked in and another 30 minutes before we were in bed. The rooms could have been built from the same plan as the hotel in Invercargill where we had our kids stay last year.
See The Visit

A short 4 hours later we were getting around to go back to the airport - much too early for the complementary breakfast that came with the room. Even though we were there by 6:30, there were six switchbacks in the queue to checkin. It took us an hour just to reach the desk. Our 8:30 flight to Tokyo was delayed until 8:50, so we took the opportunity to grab a quick breakfast. It is not very comforting to hear the plane is being delayed due to engineering checks - makes you wonder what is wrong. The flight wasn't full, so I moved up a row to give Karen and Pete more room. arrived ahead of schedule about 11 hours later. We'd been delighted to discover the new style of head rests that wrap around your head giving you support if you want to sleep. We didn't take long to doze after our short night. Breakfast was served about noon, complete with heavy-duty plastic silverware and hand towels before the meal. Also, the movies/TV on demand were great as were the viewing choices. We had to wait 30 minutes on the tarmac, though, for a place to park. The shuttle to the Narita Nakita hotel was a model of efficiency and precision.

We had planned to try to go into Tokyo, since our arrival time was only 5:30 local time; however, it was 8:30 our time, so we settled for a little R & R in our room. Pete found the kimonos and slippers, so he and I tried them out. Finding differences from what you consider 'normal' is always a treat. The long skinny towels, drain channel around the tub, electronic toilet, and TV in the shower, which had enough pressure to take off a layer of skin, all fit nicely into that category.

A 12:00 flight the next day gave us plenty of time for a leisurely buffet breakfast and a stroll around the hotel. There we found this giant can of Kirin beer. Needless to say, I had to do the tourist thing and put my face in it.

Pete found a stage and posed on it. The area was set up with lots of tables and chairs, so I expect they have outdoor dining and entertainment.

The hotel had a checkin for JAL in its lobby, so it gave us more time to browse the Narita airport before boarding our flight. Pete managed to get a couple of T-shirts. We were impressed with the huge displays of plastic food outside the eating establishments. They looked real.

You've got to read this warning sign. It says "Be Aware of Snake".

Walks with a view

2007-03-25T20:13:00.000+12:00

Here are a series of shots of the views we have when we walk the 20 minutes to the beach and the esplanade. First, we're quite high on the hills above south Dunedin.

These are similar to the views we get from our property.

Walking down the hill doesn't take long, but we get some good looks at the homes along the way. It looks like a long way to the beach, but it is really only about four blocks.

Here's the esplanade. It was high tide, so the walk was wet with spray. The local kids were trying to outguess which wave would splash them.

Further up the beach, the esplanade changes to a path shared by walkers, swimmers, and surfers.

Of course, the esplanade has a few coffee shops and cafes. Always a good way to pass the time.

Not all surfing is done in the water.

Karen liked the look of this garden and wanted to perhaps do something like it, so I took this picture.

This is the little market just down the hill from us. Karen often walks down both for the exercise and to get milk or pop.

And this is the alternate to walking back up the road to our house--steps--218 of them, according to Pete. They get you about two-thirds of the way back up the hill, then a path winds up to a street that goes up the rest of the way to our drive. We're just past the crest in the road.

New Lodgings - in Dunedin

2007-03-17T20:24:00.000+13:00

A new day dawning--and rather colorful at that! I go up the drive daily to get the paper. This morning was so beautiful that I rushed back in the house and grabbed the camera to capture it. Even the picture doesn't do justice to the twinkling city lights contrasted with the bright colors of the dawn. Double click on the photo to get a better view of it.

Karen has put her certain touch on the kitchen. Look at the top of the cabinets!

The view out the kitchen window is awesome.

Here's a better look.

Let's walk down the hall into our living room, or lounge as it is usually called here.

We love the art-deco etched glass doors. They also help keep the heat in the living room.

Here's looking across the living room toward the dining area and the sliding patio doors.

Out on the patio, Karen has just painted a new planter and is spending her time watching paint dry.

Another shot of the patio showing some of the flowers along one side of it.

On the terrace above the patio we have a wee grassy area and lots of plants. Karen wanted a pohutakawa tree, so there it is. After living with it for a week, though, we think it needs to be further from the fence. They get fairly large.

Our bedroom--or at least one wall of it. Finding places for all our pictures has been a real challenge.

Pete had his bedroom decorated before we knew it.

Switching places

2007-03-16T20:48:00.000+13:00

I started a new job in Dunedin, but the family stayed in Invercargill for a few weeks. That meant weekly bus trips for me, but I coped, as you can see.

The first trip was the hardest and everyone turned out to see me off. The bus driver even took our picture.

Bon voyage. Big bus for only 3 people!

Peek-a-boo

Hello goodbye hello goodbye over and over

Hellooooo

My sweet Invercargill girls

A trip to the park

2007-03-16T20:27:00.000+13:00

Sara showed us the new animal additions to the park, like this pig

The chickens were interesting

Especially these chicks that climbed on their mom's back

John showed us an aereo he'd gotten

And Sara showed us her handiwork in the winter gardens--pretty impressive!

Painting 46 Venus Street

2007-03-15T20:20:00.000+13:00

It was a team effort

And a creative effort

Lattice is a real pain to paint

But it really adds to the look

Voila!

Le piece de resistance

Kapiti Coast

2007-03-15T19:34:00.000+13:00

James took us up the coast for a bit of a trip. It was really pretty.

Unfortunately, Karen often had her back to the camera

See what I mean?

Turning around, the architecture of the place wasn't bad either.

There was a path,

so we took it.

A natural arch in the rocks was an inspiration for photos

Mom & Pop

James through the arch

Wetta

2007-03-14T20:27:00.000+13:00

We broke open a rotting log and found these wettas in Jamie's back yard

Big, aren't they?

Vineyard Visit

2007-03-14T20:09:00.000+13:00

One afternoon during Christmas, we took a drive over the mountains to the vineyard area of Martinborough

and what should we find but a street named Kansas!

We had a snack at one of the vineyards

Nice scenery -- and not bad looking blokes either

A little wine and cheese sampler finished the day

Christmas around James and Ami's

2007-03-14T19:52:00.000+13:00

On Christmas, we spent the evening with the Mitchel family, then saw this sunset on the drive back to Porirua

Scenes walking around the bay

James at the home place

John demonstrating his skills

Christmas in Wellington

2007-03-14T19:34:00.000+13:00

James managed to find a real wine with his name on it! Pretty cool!

We decided to experience the train into town. Waiting at the station with bated breath:

I've always liked the glass ball downtown.

Fun times walking around Wellington

Nibbles in a bar near the museum, Te Papa

Christmas Presents

2007-03-11T10:07:00.000+13:00

Our main NZ present was being together, so additional presents to each other were of the stocking stuffer variety. Libby & Pat and Molly & JF sent some lovely things, though, like this Swiss Army knife with a USB memory attachment.

The 'I'm overworked' glasses were a hit.

I'm not too sure how good Pete looks with a nose ring

John got creative with a straw and the bubbles.

Libby's shawl was awesome!

Christmas in Porirua

2007-03-11T09:41:00.000+13:00

This year for Christmas, the NZ contingent of the Love family joined James and Ami in Porirua. They hosted the five of us from Invercargill for a week.

Pete could hardly wait and was Santa for us. Check out the cool 'stocking-cups' designed by James and Ami.

James and Ami kept us in coffee. John and Sara couldn't get to Porirua until the 26th, so Christmas was a day late for us this year.

Santa in action

Pete turns 21

2007-03-11T08:59:00.000+13:00

21 is a big birthday here, usually associated with lots of boozing, but Pete is his own man. That kind of thing leaves him cold. He much prefers family and friends. Here are a few shots I took of that momentous day: December 15.

Karen with Pete's boss, Mustafa, and his daughter-in-law, Shireem and new baby son, Jon.

Karen with Jo, Pete's other boss and Mustafa's wife, their daughter, Sonay, and Sara.

John and Sara putting together Pete's new Air-zooka.

Pete and John playing with the Air-zooka.

Time flies you can't they fly too fast

2007-03-11T08:40:00.000+13:00

That's a favorite quote of mine from a puzzle book. The trick is in the lack of punctuation. In retrospect, time flies when looking back on it.
I'm sending a couple of pictures of the day we officially became Kiwis. We now hold dual citizenship in US and NZ. I'm not sure what the real benefits are, but when in Rome ...

The Visit part 3

2007-01-16T18:39:00.000+13:00

Following is an eclectic mix of photos from our New Zealand Love family reunion which I've called The Visit, with the occasional comment. After touring from Christchurch to Invercargill, we had a lot of family time just to be together and laugh and play.

Some things never change when you put the kids in the car

The first meeting with Pete in five years

First family meeting in Invercargill

JF and Molly - what did you bring me?

Sara - presents

Pat - presents?

Molly - yes, presents

Pete - presents!

Molly & JF - more presents?

Pete & Libby - yes, presents

Pete - presents!

One of the big hits of the visit was my new iMac with Photo Booth. The family got quite creative with the special effects lenses.

iMac fun

iMac fun

iMac fun - results (more results at the end of this post)

Molly was never very far from her yarn

The kitchen was often the center for family activities

Family dinner at Abbot street, Invercargill

Kitchen center activities

JF & Peter were the Magic masters, but Pat caught on very fast.

Molly introduced us to a great card came called Werewolf. Everyone really got into it and we laughed so hard...

Darrell's 60th birthday celebration at Mevlana Kebabs

On a trip to the Catlins, we saw this seal on the beach

Watching the seal on the beach at Waipapa Point

Libby getting ready to shear her first sheep

The family at Louise & Robin's getting ready for our Swanidri family photos

Pat, Molly, JF, & Libby at John & Sara's house

Land's end, Bluff

Queen's park, Invercargill

Our visit to Queen's park took us through the hot house, where Sara works. James seems to be studying the existential qualities of the plants--or perhaps he is wondering how he would feel if he dried and smoked them.

Molly & Sara at Queen's park. That thing was on bearings and hard to stay on.

Queens park fun. Ami was pretty good at staying on it.

Invercargill airport waiting for James and Ami's flight back to Wellington

Queenstown airport, waiting for JF and Molly's flight to Australia

Killing time in Queenstown before Pat & Libby's flight home

Killing time in Queenstown before Pat & Libby's flight home

Killing time in Queenstown before Pat & Libby's flight home

I finally realized there is a faster way to put photos out here. Click on the photo to see yet more pictures. Try the slideshow option.

The Visit August 2006

Updates from the not-quite-as-wet-as-New-Zealand uh.. Island.

2006-11-06T12:07:00.000+13:00

Hey all,

Happy Guy Fawkes’ Night!! I hope you all lit something on fire. Last night JF & I went out to see the “region’s largest firework display” which was quite nice. More interestingly, apparently some 25,000 people turn out for these.. in a town of only 100,000 permanent citizens! It was quite touching to see everyone so excited about the fireworks. It was, again, disconcerting to see everyone drinking in the streets, which is apparently legal. I’ve even seen undergrads walking the streets with the pint (glass) of beer that they took from the previous bar, still sipping away. Odd!

As promised earlier, here are some “scenic shots” of Cambridge… and they’re only about a month and a half old! ☺

Those are all the kind of "prerequisite" Cambridge shots, so, there you go. But here are some more:

Our house, Herrick House. Trust me, it's better with the tree in front. Trust us to get stuck in one of the only ugly buildings in this town!!

Trinity Hall!! That's the library, which is actually very new ('99.. uhm, 1999, since the college was founded in 1350)

Really neat-o and non-Cambridge-looking new maths complex

King's College, from the back.

Tonight I got a craving for cinnamon rolls (really, anything to avoid the homework that looms for tomorrow morning!!) … I didn’t have much time or yeast or frozen bread dough, which is what every recipe I found online required. And then, after cleverly googling “no yeast cinnamon rolls” I found this one… ( http://gilly.ca/?p=9 ) and gloriously prevailed!!! Huzzah. Now, I command you all to go forth and bake quick & dirty cinnamon rolls!

Huh, in uploading the photo of the "glory rolls" from my camera, I found some other ones on there you might enjoy seeing...

The English idea of an "EXTRA-large pizza"

Grad Hall, which is a formalish dinner held every Wednesday night, and to which "smart dress" and gowns are required. JF and I both managed to blink, because we were so embarrassed about being the dorks taking pictures at grad hall like tourists. All in all, though, very fun. (But the food mostly sucks.)

Apologies for any crazy formatting, I've been struggling with this thing for too long!!! Now I'm off to eat cinnamon rolls and draw syntactic trees. Woo hoo!

Halloween

2006-11-01T15:15:00.001+13:00

So far we have only has two little kids come to the house for treats...poo.

Anyway, (this is Lib), thought I'd share some pictures of the party last Saturday with y'all. I made my costume years ago when I was doing some reenactment stuff at the Nature Center. I made about 20% of Pat's costume and the rest he bought on ebay or at Party City. He adored his cod-piece.

Eventually he stuck a squeek plastic rat decoration in the pocket in his cod-piece so that he could make noise whenever he grabbed himself. I was most impressed.
Well, I'll get on later and post some more...maybe...too pooped to stay up any longer.

Halloween

2006-11-01T15:15:00.000+13:00

Buried treasure

2006-10-16T06:47:00.000+13:00

Hey, guess what they have in England?

Yep, Aldi! And it's just a few blocks away from me. Hurrah! They still have that "Load your own bags... over there" thing going on, but I didn't spy any Sweet Valley pop. Still, a pretty cool surprise. All in all, am doing well.

Will send more updates soon, I promise. I got some decently nice photos of the town a while back, but really, nothing you probably couldn't find on google. The advantage is that, knowing these were taken by me and with my camera, you can marvel at just how lovely stuff still looks! It's still pretty warm and pretty here, most of the leaves still green and on the trees. I hear they're getting snow in Canada. Ha! Talk to you all soon. :)

Lemons

2006-10-05T18:14:00.000+13:00

Sometimes life pushes us in directions we hadn't planned to go. It is our job to make the most of it.

The Visit part 2

2006-09-09T15:15:00.000+12:00

Next morning we were all feeling rested as we had breakfast at the hotel:

It was overcast in Christchurch, but that didn't dampen our spirits. We spent a couple of hours at the Antarctic Centre near the hotel. (Fantastic! Everyone should see it!)

On the drive back to Queenstown, the scenery was typical South Island beautiful. We made frequent stops for Pat (see his blog: PeeNewZealand for more photos and his unique perspective on the visit), so they got to see a bit of most of the towns along the way--at least the toilets anyway. We arrived just after dark in Queenstown and went straight to our hotel. Their office closes at 5:00, but we had picked up our room key on the way out of town the day before. We still managed to get a pretty swank meal in town and had a lovely view of the town after dark:

The next day was a whirlwind of activity: going up the skyline gondola to view lake Wakatipo,

(Ok, so here's a better picture of the lake)

riding the luge,

touring a vineyard,

jetboating,

and driving to Te Anau to visit the glow-worm caves. Our poor travelers weren't getting much rest--but then, they didn't come here to rest.

The following day we had booked a day trip on Doubtful sound. The rain that had started to fall on Te Anau stayed mostly on the west side of the mountains. We got a bit of rain on the boat ride across Lake Manipouri to the bus that would take us over the pass and down to Doubtful Sound:

It made the islands and shore appear and disappear in a misty fog.

The view at the top of the pass overlooking the sound was a bit foggy, but still pretty.

Fiordland is a temperate rain forest. I think visitors were surprised at just how chilly it was. Jackets, especially waterproof ones, were a must!

At Doubtful Sound we borded another boat:

The shore and islands come straight down into the water with no beach.

On the way back over the pass, the fog had cleared and we had a pretty view of Doubtful Sound.

Next day we drove back to Invercargill. New Zealand hedges are mostly trimmed--English style.

The Visit

2006-09-02T11:16:00.000+12:00

On Friday, August 4, 2006 we drove to Queenstown to pick up our daughters Libby and Molly and their husbands, Pat and Jean-Francois, who were visiting New Zealand for the first time. We left Invercargill about 7 a.m. so we could meet their scheduled 9:30 arrival. Karen chided me, saying the flight would probably be delayed, but I wanted to be there when they got off the plane. We were treated to some lovely views as the sun came up:

We arrived with five minutes to spare and rushed into the terminal hoping they hadn't arrived early. When their flight arrived, they were not on it. We wandered around the airport for awhile, until I finally approached the Quantas check-in counter to see if they could tell me where our children were. We learned that they were not on the passenger list, but would probably be on the next flight, due to arrive in a couple of hours. We took the opportunity to buzz into town to check out the location of our hotel and re-acquaint ourselves with where things were. This is the wharf in Queenstown:

When the next flight also arrived without our family, we were not sure what to do. We were milling around outside the airport about 11:30 when Molly called to say they'd just arrived in Auckland. They had been diverted to Nadi because of fog at the Auckland airport.

There were no more direct flights from Auckland to Queenstown that day, so they were faced with either spending the night in Auckland or getting a flight to Christchurch, where they would have to spend the night. They had been traveling for somewhere in the neighborhood of 40 hours and were desperate to finish their flights. She asked me if we could just drive over and pick them up in Christchurch... (It doesn't look that far on a map.)

I've driven much of that road a few times with our scout group, so I knew what it involved. I offered alternatives, but could hear the desperation in her voice... One bonus was that Karen got to see Mt Cook for the first time: (Its the big one in the middle)

On the trip, we decided there was no way we were driving back that night. Karen called the Christchurch airport and left a message for the kids to call us when they arrived. (Mobile phones are wonderful things.) We were driving through pretty remote areas, but had stopped for gas and luckily had a signal when they called. We told them to find a hotel and call us so we could meet them. We arrived in Christchurch about 7:30 that night. Even in the dark, I could see the clouds begin to roll in.

Finito!

2006-06-06T14:24:00.000+12:00

That's it! Today I graduated with a BA in Honours Linguistics, Concentration English, summa cum laude and I even won the "faculty plaque" for the highest overall GPA in my program. : D I'm a bit shiny in this photo, but it was pretty warm in there. While he doesn't have the snazzy photo (as being in Tunisia prevented his attending convocation), Jean-Francois also graduates this week, with a BA in Economics, summa cum laude, faculty plaque for highest GPA in his program, AND the silver medal for the second highest GPA in the entire faculty of Social Sciences. We sure likes us our As, huh? The flowers are from my friend Melanie, whose boyfriend also graduated today (after something like 8 years off and on, working full-time and studying part-time. His parents threatened to shout "It's about time!!!" when his name was called.). I spent the day with them, went out to eat, and had a really nice time. Fear not, Mama, I was feted and cooed over enough to satisfy even your standards today. It's a pretty weird feeling, especially the fact that I'm basically never going to see again all the things and people I have become so used to. No time to be too sentimental, though - slap that plaque on the wall, 'cause there's a whole hell of a lot of new crap coming my way!
PS the only flaw in the day was being annouced on stage as "Maria Theresa"... seriously? WHY is it so hard for people to deal with "Mary"?? My name gets messed up ALL THE TIME. bizarre.

Talking the Talk

2006-06-05T04:42:00.001+12:00

I have spent most of the last month preparing a talk for the annual conference of the Canadian Linguistics Association. This conference was last week, May 27-30, at York University in Toronto. My talk was on if/how/why second-language learners of English learn to "introduce" quotations, as in "I said, 'blah blah'", "I was like, 'blah blah'", "I 'blah blah'", etc. It might look weird to see them written, but as I am studying spoken language, just about anything can happen. Basically, no foreign language teacher is going to tell you to say "I was like, 'Wow!'" So, do any second language learners say that? If they do, do they do it in an 'english-like way' or in a 'non-english-like way" and what are some ways they could have learnt it. Really, that's my talk and my research in a nutshell! The short answers are: yes, yes, and the evidence is pretty weak (i.e. is it from talking to people, watching TV, what?) My "exciting" finding was that learners who DO watch TV, movies, etc in English use be like and everything thing else right, while those who don't hardly use any verbs, and use no verb in a "non-english-way". The implications of this, though, are pretty circular. Since this was just a class project that I beefed up a bit, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. And I'm certainly glad it's over!! Now I've got my first real presentation under my belt. (I "co-authored" a presentation back in 2004, but my involvement was mostly behind the scenes with that one) One of my collegues took some photos of the talk. A warning - it is accepted to read from a text, and given the time constraints, preferred by many. However, this means almost all the shots are of me looking down. And since I was using a power point, I didn't have a nice podium to hold my papers to make it easier to look up. argh! Sorry for the lack of wittiness - my brain is fried. Some of the more "interesting" aspects of the trip include, but are not limited to: a surprise heat wave (31 C, with humidex of 41), a transit strike, massively blistered feet, my host's boyfriend suffering a fractured skull after getting kneed in the head playing soccer, and a barbeque serenaded by an a capella choir singing "I wanna dance with somebody"

It was, all in all, a memorable time. And now I can say I've been to Toronto!

The Patio Project

2006-05-07T17:16:00.000+12:00

We've debated for some time what to do with the back yard. We toyed with the idea of a deck and had several contractors out to give us a bid for a patio. We finally decided on the patio made of pavers about 18" on a side. First we had 50 metres of pavers delivered. The man who did the delivery could sure make the equipment do what he wanted it to. He didn't have much room, but managed to put 5 pallets of pavers in a little space beside our driveway. This is an aerial view taken from our bedroom window.

Here's another view, this time from my office. The driver got a little nervous if we got too close. I don't blame him.

This is a bit closer, but I'm still on the other side of the fence that goes around our yard. You can see he had a little trouble with the trees, but managed to get the pallets unloaded.

That thing looks awkward, but works on the principle of center of gravity. When the pressure is on, it stays put and lifts the load. When the pressure is off, the center of gravity shifts to the closed end and the whole mechanism slips out of the pallet.

Aru is a student of Karen's who used to do this kind of work before coming to SIT. He's quite a worker. He dug out the back yard and together we hauled the dirt to the tip. Dirt is heavy, so they charged us quite a bit to dump it.

Here are some views as he started to get the pavers in place.

He did quite a job leveling the area. We opted to raise the patio above ground level, so now Karen is calling it a terrace.

I got the brick trim on this side of the terrace in place on Saturday. Here, it is Sunday morning about 11:00 and Karen is enjoying the morning sun while she talks to her mom. Note the angle of the shadows. I'm standing to the north of her and all the shadows from the rafters are pointing south. By the time of the winter solstice, the sun will only be about 40 degrees above the horizon at noon.

Later in the afternoon, the angle of the sun's rays is about the same. I'm hauling dirt out that I dug out to place the brick border around the terrace. Would you believe I moved four wheel-barrow loads of dirt?

On the last bit--the edge along the fence. Hard on knees and harder on hands. Unfortunately, one section went right under a beech tree with a huge root right where I wanted to put bricks. After trying to chop it out with a shovel and saw it out with a tree saw, Karen suggested a hammer and chisel. That eventually worked, but it was tedious.

The finished product (almost). We've still got to put pave-lock in the spaces between the pavers to lock them into place.

I think it looks pretty good. It certainly looks bigger than I thought it would.

The Finish of the Kitchen Remodeling Project

2006-05-06T15:25:00.000+12:00

We received the 30 tiles we'd commissioned from Splashy and assembled them on a board to see how they were going to look. Luckily, they'd numered them on the back, so it wasn't exactly like a jigsaw puzzle.

Next, dear old Dad got to play with the tile adhesive and make the mosaic permanent. We opted to put them on a removable panel. They're just to beautiful to make them a permanent part of the house.

We put the board up with a poster adhesive--that didn't stick worth a darn! I added a little mastic adhesive to one side of the poster adhesive and figured the other side would pull away if we want to remove the mosaic. Here's the board up, but no grout yet.

Back away from the pukeko.

Further ...

Further ...

Grout in place, job done. Thanks Splashy, for a fantastic mosaic!

2006-03-28T19:21:00.000+12:00

Before and After

I used to have a full head of hair. Well, a full head and a couple of other peoples' heads full too.

NO MORE!!!

2006-03-28T17:46:00.000+12:00

Warning: The pictures that follow are not for the weak hearted. Or the weak kneed. Or cockneyed. Or Lou Reed. Or Daniel Day-Lewis. Or the Queen. Of Monaco.

The pictures contained in this blog show a very 'weak-stomached' attempt at chicken genocide.
the Deceased, Poxy, God Rest his ass on her obnoxious chicken face, was killed, plucked and (not pictured) bar-b-qued and served with cesar salad.

For the record, I never got a clean swipe with the axe and had to decapitate her using the 'drawn and quartered' method so popular in the eighties. 1380's. Also, she wasn't very tasty. She was a bit chewy and tasted a bit like spite and bittersweet revenge.

As you can see, we took the make-a-noose-with-old-string and tie-it-to-a-brick cause no-one-is-available to-hold-the-other-end method. It worked alright, except Poxy got loose of the noose and I missed on the first swipe. The second swipe amounting to little more than a paper cut and final beheading came with a firm tug of the old string.

Oh well, at least I had a laugh.

At the expense of something else. And their life.

So in the grand tally of Love-Albers versus nature, I have scored us a mighty point.

(Notice the stylish wool pull-over and gumboots)

Week 5 of the Kitchen Remodeling project

2006-03-26T22:10:00.000+12:00

Another week, but now we're mostly on our own. The lights are hung and the panels are all back on the counters. We've painted the back door and papered the kitchen with anaglypta.

Then on to the painting. The worst thing about painting is the preparation. We went through a lot of plastic drop cloths in the process. Note the lovely blue masking tape all along the ceiling trim.

We had to do it in two stages. First we did the area to the side of the cabinets as you can see above, then we put two coats on the area above the cabinets.

We had to shift all the plastic to cover just the lower cabinets while we painted the area between them and the upper cabinets.

And of course that area had to get two coats as well.

Finally, Karen got to do the decorator thing and start putting her touch on it.

Some of it was a matter of trial and error. We shifted baskets and paintings several times before it looked right.

But it all came together very nicely.

The only thing left is the mosaic we plan to put over the stove. That's the big brown space in this picture.

This is looking from the kitchen through the dining room to the doorway leading to the rest of the house.

Week 4 of the Kitchen Remodeling Project

2006-03-19T20:43:00.000+12:00

Monday we had our dining room and kitchen floors sanded and refinished. We had two more coats of varnish applied on Tuesday and the result is pretty spectacular as you can see in the next two photos.

Of course, the inconvenience of being totally banned from all things in the kitchen was pretty drastic. We had the fridge and the old microwave in the sun room, but forgot to get out such basic things as cereal before we were unable to get to them. The fumes were pretty potent as well.

Friday evening the builder came by to bring in our new fridge. Unfortunately, it is hinged on the wrong side and not reversible. The vendor said they would swap it out next Monday, but in the meantime we couldn't use it. Still, it looks pretty and is a bit bigger than our old one.

It seemed a shame to hide that beautiful Southern beech floor with a rug, but that's part of the decor. By Saturday the floor had cured enough to start putting things back.

Saturday we put a fresh coat of paint on the sideboard, washed all the dishes that were covered with sanding and construction dust and put everything back in place.

We also painted the new back door and door trim. They call door trim architrave here.

Sunday was very busy. We put up all the new anaglypta paper on the walls and it was a bear. (It's a textured wall covering--damned hard to deal with! Every piece was a "cut and fit.") We're not looking forward to painting it. I've been trying to convince Karen that white looks nice. We also finished moving everything out of the sun room, put two coats of polish on the floor in there and moved all the furniture that goes in the sun room back from the garage. Things are shaping up, but still not done yet (note the wires hanging from the ceiling, the wrong fridge and the white walls.)

Karen has already gone to bed. We are both pooped! But her new knee is amazing! It's not the knee that gave out--it was everything else!!

Week 3 of the kitchen remodeling project

2006-03-12T22:06:00.000+13:00

We've been waiting for plaster to dry as the jib stopper has completed the kitchen ceiling. Wouldn't you know it would be cold and rainy? We finally had to turn on the furnace and put a fan on it to speed it along. We also had to postpone the floor refinishing until next week. So, since there is not much progress to show, other than a beautiful ceiling, here are a few photos of some of the features in our kitchen. This first is showing the double silverware drawer.

The rug we have in the dining room has been rolled up in the hallway since the project started.

Plates, glasses, bowls all go in drawers.

Speaking of drawers. Here's a shot of our double dish drawer. This is a kiwi version of a dishwasher.

The dining room table and fridge have migrated to our multi-purpose sun room ready for the floor to be sanded and refinished. The sun room has been a lounge, Jamie's bedroom, my office, and now a makeshift dining room.

Ah, the toaster drawer. The electrician wasn't too sure about this, but it works. The power is shut off when the drawer is closed. That toaster is a gem. You should see it do bagels!

Looking back over our new counter at the dining room, all cleared and ready to be sanded.

How about this for a cook surface? This gas hob has 5 burners! Karen loves the big center one.

What we've been waiting on--the ceiling. It is certainly a much better job than I could have done. No signs of a seam anywhere.

One last look at the kitchen to date. We're gradually working out the best location for things. I put the microwave in myself. Then I couldn't figure out how to turn it on until I read the manual!

2006-03-05T10:20:00.000+13:00

Week 2 of the kitchen remodelling saw a lot of invisible work being done: wires pulled, ceiling/roof reinforced, leveling and fitting done. These are all necessary, but not nearly as impressive as the big changes we saw in week 1. The plumber came in Saturday and hooked up that funky faucet. You may have to click on the picture and blow it up to appreciate it. And yes, that is a box of Finish sitting on the counter. We've got a dishwasher! (actually, two dish drawers). You can see the double oven in the background with a red tea towel hanging on it.

We've had to learn a whole new vocabulary re: building in New Zealand. We don't have faucets, we have tapware; we don't have cabinets or cupboards, we have joinery; we don' t have sheetrock, we have jib board; we don't hire a seam taper, we hire a jib stopper; the applicance cupboard is an "appliance garage (pronounced "garridge"), and we don't have countertops, we have benches. All measurements are metric instead of imperial--we're never sure how big something really is! However, there are some odd holdovers from "the old days"--two-by-fours are still called that, except they are called "four-by-twos"--anyway, it's been, shall we say, "interesting."

Here's a closer shot of the doorway to the garage and I took the tea towel off the oven to show it off better. This is so exciting!

Back around to the right for another view of the sink and a look at those lovely dish drawers. Zoom in for another look at that faucet Karen picked out. I wasn't so sure about it when she picked it out, but now I really like it.

End of the week and we've moved into the new joinery. I took the gas hob out of its box and set it in place, ready for the gas fitter to hook it up next Monday. Since we don't have natural gas here, this will be driven by bottled gas, the same as our furnaces.

More shots of our first attempt to utilize our new storage. It is going to take awhile to get it right. The microwave that will go in the space above the ovens is still in the garage.

The fridge will go in the big hole in the middle there, but is waiting for the foor to be refinished before being moved in from the garage. That is a pantry with pull-out drawers on the left. Amazing what you find when you can see what you've got, like 5 cans of beets. Karen says were going to have beets with every meal now. On the right is our appliance cupboard with the roll-top door.

2006-02-24T21:45:00.000+13:00

In the time-honored tradition of remodelling, we've got some 'before' shots to show how things were before we started. The pictures look pretty good, thanks to Karen's abilities as a decorator, but the cabinetry was old, the doors wouldn't stay shut, they constantly 'leaked' sawdust, and the sink area leaked water.

The stove had one burner on its last leg and the cabinets on either side of it were just inserts, not attached to anything, with counters that didn't match.

Our house has an art-deco flavor and the kitchen continued this theme with rounded corners on the cabinets. That was the one thing we hated to lose.

And where do you put all the things that were in the cabinets while they are being replaced? Anywhere you can! We shifted some things in the cabinets along the dining room wall opposite the kitchen and made room for the food and dishes. Most of the pots and pans went in boxes to the storage shed.

Decorations down, cabinets empty, all ready for the builders. What a change from our Do It Yourself days.

Unattached cabinets moved out, stove pulled out and cleaned up around (yuck, what a mess--Karen had lost a whole plate of spaghetti down between the cabinet and the stove several months ago. You know, it was still there!)

Let the chaos begin! Out go the walls, down comes the ceiling.

But not for long. New ceiling supports go up quickly and the door to the garage is moved out from the wall before we know it.

Electricians, plumbers, and builders team up in their areas of expertise to move things along rapidly. In the next two photos you can see some of the electrical moved out of the old wall into an existing wall.

And then the corner is built out and the new cabinetry starts to arrive. The corner stove is an echo of our stove in Wichita. We saw our kitchen at the joinery, Quality Kitchens, on Monday for the first time. Karen almost cried because it looked so beautiful.

Microwave and double oven will go in the tall cabinet on the left. To the right of the doorway is a pantry with pull-out shelves and to the right of that will be our fridge.

Here you can see the upper cabinets are hung and the range hood is in place.

Thats a roller-door appliance cabinet. The top drawer just below the counter top will house our toaster and various related supplies.

Another view from the dining room of the new counter and sink and upper cabinetry. The main thing we're lacking at the moment is power. We've gone the last three days with no lights in the kitchen/dining room. I finally moved my desk lamp in because the days are already getting shorter and it is barely light when we need to have breakfast. We're looking forward to next week when it will all come together and we can start using it.

You can see my house from here

2006-01-29T17:19:00.000+13:00

Here are some STUNNING (in my opinion) pictures of our back yard. These were taken by Chris Mikesell and the dude knows how to take a snapshot.

New York

2006-01-13T16:15:00.000+13:00

Hey all. In the whirlwind holiday season, we somehow wound up on a 3-day trip to New York with the Economics Student Association. I thought I'd share some of my pictures - I'm warning you all, though. I'm a spectacularly bad picture-taker. I get panicked and try to snap a photo as inconspicuously as possible, and then hurry away in case anyone saw me. I only wound up with 23 pictures total. Thank goodness a friend came along and got some decent shots. Here's the highlights from my collection:
This mosaic is in the UN. The UN was our first stop, we had a guided tour with alotted time for picture-taking. As such, it is tied with the Rockefeller Center for greatest number of pictures (3). Speaking of Rockefeller Center (which I could do all day, just 'cause it's such a fun word to say) here's the famous tree, sans top (don't know how that happened....)
Next we have JF at Saks Fifth Avenue . The name is on the window, but it's hard to read. There was a pretty ground-breaking sociolinguistic study done at Saks Fifth Avenue (and Macy's. See Friend for that photo.) We went in, but not being in the market for a Louis Vuitton bag, didn't hang around long. Here's the Statue of Liberty, at a distance, at dusk. We didn't have time to go to the Statue and Ellis Island, and wouldn't even have been allowed to go inside the *base* of the structure 'cause we didn't get there in time (Note to anyone going to New York: be prepared to be really pissed about the Statue of Liberty. They have many ways of getting to you.) Ellis Island was REALLY cool; alas, no photos. Finally, one from Times Square for John and a shot of the city from the ferry to Ellis Island. :) Lack of pictures and all, we still had a really awesome time.

Christmas in Invercargill

2005-12-30T08:50:00.000+13:00

Christmas day began with the stockings, like in the good ol' days. Peter had organized a $3 limit, so there were lots of mood rings, plastic weapons, pocket tissues, and travel toothbrushes gleaned from airline packets. The hit was the back scratcher that had a noisemaker in it that Karen got.

Although, the canned string was a close second, especially after James and Peter got through with John.

John & Sara with fire starters and helicopter guns. These later evolved into a contest outdoors to see who could get it to fly the farthest. With a tail wind, they managed to get it to fly across the street.

James & Ami enjoying Pete's demonstration of the proper use of the weapon (in his case, a plastic ork ax). They spent most of the morning sitting in the same chair. Karen & I tried it later when we were watching TV -- until my leg went to sleep. Ah, young love (or is it just young skinny bodies?)

Scarves all around were a treat. We were amazed at the variety of patterns, styles, materials and overall sophisticated restults that Libby & Molly were able to achieve.

Karen's scarf was light as a feather and so soft. Mine was very rugged and masculine. Was it made out of hemp?

Christmas crackers were new to us when we got here, but have become a holiday favorite. The little prizes and paper crowns in them are as much fun as popping them.

Although I think Libby has us beat with her Christmas Quackers.

During lunch, I stuck my head out the window to try to capture a photo of the rain peppering down, without much success. The back yard just seems a little hazy here. In 10 minutes it was all over and the sun was shining again. Merry Christmas everyone!

Christmas Preparations

2005-12-22T19:19:00.000+13:00

Christmas brings memories of snowy days and chilly nights in Kansas.

In Invercargill, Christmas follows shortly after the longest day of the year and is early summer with relatively balmy temperatures. We've had rain and a cold southerly wind, so it is not what you'd call hot, but it is a time for Christmas lillies and hydrangas like this one growing right outside our front door.

Three years ago we bought a live Christmas tree (see photo left)and planted it afterwards. It is now about 9 feet tall as you can see in the next photo. Trees have two growing seasons here, so they grow twice as fast. Last year we didn't have a tree, but this year we bought an imitation tree and even some stockings to hang by the chimney. Our youngest, Peter, insisted on it.

Here are a few photos of the festival preparations.

Karen tries to keep some of the Christmas traditions, such as pumpkin pie. Unfortunately, in New Zealand, there is no canned pumpkin in the stores. Pumpkins are large green gourds that are as hard as a rock. Making a pie from them is a two day process, involving cooking, scraping, pressing, and finally cooking again. Not many people eat pumpkin pie here, but pumpkin soup is popular (and tasty!)

Turkeys are much smaller here also. This year we had the opportunity to try a free-range turkey from one of Karen's students. No, I'm not carving the turkey in this photo. I'm pulling pin feathers with a pair of needle nosed pliers! Call us city folk, but next year we're going back to the commercially prepared turkeys.

Patience is a virtue not often found in the young.

Fresh hot pecan rolls for a Christmas morning snack.

Kepler capers

2005-12-22T11:08:00.000+13:00

Darrell, John, and James at the Kepler trailhead. Little did we know just how tough it was going to be!
A veiw at the top--the Luxmore Hut, which sleeps about 50. It was a very nice for a tramping hut with gas and cold water on tap. It even had solar powered lights!
Looking back down 1000 meters to Lake Te Anau. The view was worth the climb.
Near the Luxmore Hut are some limestone caves that we explored. I'm smiling, but you have to look close to see it. The others are all grinning because I had recently high-centered climbing over a rock and got stuck with a stalagmite sticking me in the butt and had to be rescued by John.
James, John, and Chris pausing by a huge granite cliff on the trail back down to Te Anau. On this trail, going down was definitely much easier than coming up.
A view from Pearl Harbour just off Lake Manapouri. We were taking the Southern Scenic Route from Te Anau to Invercargill and paused here for a break.
Chris Mikesell on Monkey Island just off the Southern Scenic Route. Luckily the tide was out, so we were only ankle deep in water to get out to it. On the way back we found several tiny hermit crabs in the shallows.
Another monkey on Monkey Island, thoroughly enjoying the outing.

At last.

2005-12-14T16:30:00.000+13:00

Here it is - my last paper. (and the tape recorded interviews it is based on) My final project (counts for 2 different classes, one at the graduate level). The culmination of a semester's worth of work. The exams are taken, the literature essays are written, and finally, the project is packed up and ready to be turned in. I am so, so done. I can say quite assuredly that this was the hardest, most draining semester so far. This picture was taken Monday morning, right before I left to go turn the paper in. It is now Tuesday night and I'm still tired. Boo hoo. But.... aside from catching up all the hours I've missed at work, and washing (I kid you not) at least 2 week's worth of dishes, (there was a film on the water in the sink, and I had to fight the gagging long enough to tie up the trash and shove it at JF. He still has 3 exams to write.) I've been doing this! (In case you're looking carefully, Libby, yes - all the ends are now woven in. Sigh!) On the left, we have one six-months-in-the-making sweater for JF. On the left, legwarmers (ok, only one so far) for his sister. And finally, my new best friend. The Slipper Pillow!! Picked this up at Ikea mostly due to its oddity, but am now in love. It's a pillow.. that you can put your feet in!!! And if you're wondering, yes, both JF and I have been caught doing the bunny-hop when we were too lazy (or afraid of the cold) to take our feet out to walk to the kitchen.

Darrell & James

2005-11-22T21:14:00.000+13:00

Well, Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore!

Le Halloween

2005-11-07T03:58:00.000+13:00

Well, since Libby covered Halloween, I thought I'd throw in some of our pictures too. We didn't plan very well. I was a sailor (note to self: Hornpipe costume no longer fits.) JF was a Pirate. I don't know if you can tell from the photos, but his eye patch was a piece of fabric (actually a remnant from when Sarah needed to shorten some black pants.. which expains the hem running through the middle) tied on with a piece of (blue) yarn. We were in a hurry. Patate is posing as a parrot in the second picture. We only had two groups of kids come to our door, so we got to eat most of our candy!

Halloween

2005-11-06T14:01:00.000+13:00

He, he, he. Well, I guess Molly and I have little to do since we keep updating the blog. We had out annual Halloween party last weekend. Whew! That's over. Since Kris and Jes are buying a house (ref. "Knit Wit and Wedded Bliss" posting), this will be the last one we have at our place. Yea! No more crazy drunken antics except for 4th of July.

This year, I came as a Pumpkin and Pat was a "pumpkin eater." Get those minds out of the gutter!

Besides the "Big Stew" and the fire outside, some of the guys decided that it would be a good idea to (hmmmmm) to go canoeing at 12:20 a.m. I really didn't care. What did bother me was that they wanted to use one of my shovels and a push broom for the paddles. Hello...those are my gardening tools...I don't think so. They also thought it would be a good idea (see a pattern here?) to ride the canoe down the concrete steps into the creek. No way! (do you know how long it took me to get those steps put in???)

After we got them into the creek and sent them off with a lantern, all was quiet until the phone rang. None of us answered it. It was Kris (who was on the canoe) saying "Day 14. We have reached the crossing of the Adirondack and the Saskatchewan. We are proceeding with caution. We've no food or drink for four days. This may be the last you hear from us. Jon is taking his shirt off, aparently...even though it is below freezing. He has lost his mind with river madness."

Ahhh.....parties.

Idiot #1

2005-11-06T12:40:00.000+13:00

This is cheating, I know, but I wrote Mom & Dad something and they seemed amused, so I'm ripping off my own email and posting it here.

"We (and I believe most of our street, which is much more commercial than residential) lost power for about three hours today - really not that much fun. I lit a couple of candles because I was reading articles for school, and the cat came sniffing around. I figured animals have, you know, instincts and that she wouldn't hurt herself so close to the flame. I now have a cat whose whiskers look a bit melted and whose tail caught on fire. And she is completely oblivious. Lessons learned today: 1. Don't let cats near candles. 2. My cat is an idiot."

Here is the idiot on a less melted day:

Knit Wit & Wedded Bliss

2005-11-06T11:38:00.000+13:00

Well, Pat and I will be posting under the same name "Parkcow," but y'all are smart enough to figure out when its me (Libs) posting and when Paddy does it. By now you have all heard about Molly and I's addiction--Pat say we need an intervention--but how dangerous can knitting be? Our friend Kris took some pictures of my projects awile back for a project for his graphics design class. Thought you might enjoy. Yes, this is actually one of the Christmas scarves...I'm just not saying whose. You can see the gardens in the background. They are rather photogenic.

So let's see...other stuff...speaking of Kris, he and Jessica Evans were married about three weeks ago. FINALLY! Kris is 32 and Jess is 29. You can see how thrilled we are! The wedding was held at Eberly Farms in the log-cabin-like lodge. Its was the perfect fall venue. I'll attach a couple of pictures for everyone's enjoyment. Pat was best man (as usual) and I did the guest book. The wedding was short and sweet with a costume party themed reception.

They made an offer on a house here in Newton last week and move in on the 18th of November. We are really excited to have them closer.

Fiordland Waterfalls

2005-11-05T16:23:00.000+13:00

When it rains in Fiordland, the waterfalls come out to play. When it is sunny, Fiordland is beautiful. But when it rains--it is magic!

Put yourself in the picture

2005-11-02T22:33:00.000+13:00

Once upon a time, about seven years ago, I downloaded a screen saver that showed a group of people hiking in a setting like this in New Zealand. I looked at that photo every day for almost a year, and each time, the yearning to put myself in that picture grew to the extent that it hurt. Finally, I decided to stop dreaming and do something about it. This is a photo of us tramping with a group of Venturer Scouts. That is native red tussock grass in a highland meadow near Green Lake by the Borland Saddle--in New Zealand, of course.

Doubtful Sound

2005-11-01T19:24:00.000+13:00

Doubtful Sound is deep in the heart of Fiordland, a lush wilderness of mountains and waterways that are as difficult to live in as they are beautiful to see. Early Maori who had been banished for some offense would hide out here because it is so impenetrable. Whilst on a cruise here, we saw rare crested penquins, dolphins, and a colony of fur seals. This ain't Disneyland, folks. This is real!

Takahe

2005-10-28T19:22:00.000+13:00

Once thought to be extinct, this colorful bird was discovered near TeAnau in 1948 by an Invercargill doctor. They had not been seen for about 60 years and had been declared extinct. There are now about 200 known to exist.

In New Zealand, most towns have a giant cement statue of some bird, fish, or animal. In TeAnau, it is the Takahe, as you can see.