Camping by the river

[Thu 26 Jan 06 1400]

Well, I haven't really been home much this past week. On (last) Thursday, while playing board games with some of my friend's Auckland mates, I decided to go camping. So I txt lots of people and said to meet me in town the next day to go camping. As it turned out most of the people said that they couldn't. Some had good excuses, and others said that they would come visit, but it was going to be just Hayds & me, which was fine, but we would have been a bit bored, so we went and tried to steal Elliot. He was busy recording Dick's music video, so we got Sarah (who was originally unable to come, but we convinced her otherwise). We also tried to get Anna, but she wasn't home. So off we drove to Vinegar Hill and stayed the night there. It was dark by the time we arrived so we set up in the dark - suprisingly easy. We lay out under the stars for ages before going into our own seperate tents. Then people came to visit us on Saturday and we had a few swims before being scared away by some very dark clouds that started to spit on us. It turned out that they blew over just after we packed up camp. On our way back into town we got a txt from Kimmy who had just flown back from Aussie. So we turned up at her place, just to hang out and decided that we would go camping again, but with her instead. When her parents got home they wouldn't let her go using some excuse about needing to be in Wellington the next day. I quickly decided that we could go camping and still get Kim to Welly the next day by camping in or near Wellington. That worked out well because we have a (well actually several, but only one for this story) friend that's living there now. Aparently he doesn't have a lawn that we could put a tent up on so we unpacked most of our camping gear and headed down. Turned out that it was X-Air that weekend (Welly anniversary) so we went along to that and saw some stuff. We ended up staying in Wellington for three nights - a lot more than we were all intending. It was fun just hanging out down there. Their house is real close to town so we were in walking distance to almost everything. On Monday we went for a drive around the Heads and then over to the Botanical Gardens where we saw Roger Fox and a jazz band doing a sound check. Tuesday night we came back and saw a movie in town which was a lot funnier than we thought. Yesterday (Wed) I helped Joy pack up her room and start moving stuff from her current to new flat. During the afternoon I got a txt saying that Jordan was in town (he went to america when I came to NZ so we missed each other) so I went and hung out with them lot. That was fun, and later that evening I had tea with Hayds' family before crashing Derek's party. It turned out that it was a leaving party for two girls who are going back to England next week. That wasn't all that a great party so we left and watched a dvd at Hayden's place. This morning I haven't really done much - packing up my stuff and things. Tonight I've a farewell party for me so that will be fun.

Time really does fly

[Wed 18 Jan 06 1140]

Well, I'm not so good at this keeping up to date thing. It's been almost three weeks since my last entry. So much has happened, I'm not sure if I'll remember it all! Luckily I wrote much of it in my diary, so I'll be using that a lot for the next few minutes. Ok, here we go: Saturday New Year's Eve we (Joy & I) met up with Jonny our cousin in the square shortly after they finished their sound check for the evening gig. I also saw Jonas & Hayden there and I hung out with them for the rest of the afternoon. When Jonas left to go play his cowbells, Hayds & I hung out and went to a friends place for a barbeque tea. We went back to the square & saw Jonny play, then decided it was crap after they finished their slot so left. Again we went back to the square for the final countdown (which is a story in itself). After, we went over to Hayden's and had a spa under the stars. It was great. By the time we'd had enough of the spa, it was about 3am, so I slept there because I wasn't safe to drive home. We ended hanging out all day and Jenna joined us in the evening to watch a movie on (sky) TV. That night I stayed at the Muir's with Mum & Dad because we were leaving early in the morning to go to Christchurch. It was a very windy morning, but as we drove further south, it dropped quite a lot. NZ is so beautiful. When we arrived we headed for the Broughton's (Emma's parents) and had tea there. It was nice to meet them and they seem like good people. Tuesday we cleaned out Geoff & Emma's new flat because it was filthy. It had grease everywhere and it was so bad that we decided to re-paint it. So we finished cleaning that day and started to prepare for painting the next. Mum & Dad did all the painting themselves as we all were busy doing other wedding things. It took them two days to paint the whole flat and the result was good. Meanwhile, on Wednesday I had a suit fitting and hung out with Geoff in the morning. That night I went to where Geoff was living at the time and helped him sort out some of his stuff and put it in (banana) boxes. We also started to clean the room. Thurday morning I again hung out with Geoff and then went shopping with Mum before having tea with the Broughton's and Grandma D who arrived earlier during the day. On Friday I hung out with Geoff in the afternoon and helped him clean his room, the car, finish some table decorations. We also went and got a friend of his (one of the groomsmen) from the airport before having our final suit fitting and going shopping for glasses for me. By that stage it was time to eat and we had tea with all the cousins who had arrived during the day. It was nice to see them all again so soon after Christmas in NP. Saturday was getting closer to the 'big day'. We had a rehersal for the ceremony in the afternoon and got lots of little things sorted out (before, during & after). We decided to have dinner with the bridal party (that's the name for all the peoples who stand up front). I stayed the night at Geoff's because that would be easier on the day. Sunday morning we had a nice fried breakfast before going and playing 9 holes of golf. The wedding was at 2.30 pm and all went to plan. They got married and cut the cake and all that stuff. They looked real good (and I'm not just saying that because I was one of them). We left the reception and had photos. That was fun. We went to some alley way and had lots of there before going to a warf over the hills for some more there. We did have a place sorted out up the Port hills, but because of the wind we thought it best not to go there. We did manage to find a slightly sheltered spot on top of the hill on the way back from the warf. Some photos are available on the photographer's website. At the reception we had speaches and food and more speaches and because I didn't want to do a speach they made me read a 'telegram' (email). Nathan was a good MC and kept everything rolling, he even added a bit of humor. On Monday I went into town with Janice & Rosie (my aunty & cousin) and then met up with Anna V and her family. It was nice to see them again and we all went to the Antarctic Centre. After saying goodbye to Anna & family, we went into town and had tea at McDonalds. That was the first time in years that I'd eaten at McDonalds. To be honest their deli choices menu was quite nice. Tuesday morning we cleaned out the house where we were staying and then visited the Broughton's before travelling back to Feilding. My week since then hasn't been too exciting. I stayed the night at Anna's and then they went away to Taupo (& Napier) for about a week all up, so I've been living in Joy's house since then. We've seen a few movies, gone bowling, I've seen people for the first time since I've been away too. Oh, on (this) Monday (been) I did the Gorge walk. It really does take 3-4 hours. I did it twice as I was by myself and didn't get anyone to pick me up at the other end. Although it was long it was worth the effort. Last night I went to see "Just like Heaven" at the movies after having tea with some friends, it was good and the others enjoyed the night too. It was nice catching up with Matt & Relle before they headed off to Taupo for the weekend. Ok, I've now run out of things to say and I need to go (food) shopping.

Crashing isn't fun

[Fri 30 Dec 05 1130]
Ok, I'm slightly annoyed that yesterday I wrote a week's worth of a
blog entry and the computer crashed before I could finish.
Unfortunately, I don't know enough about AppleWorks 6 on Mac OS 9 to
recover what I had written. So here I am again writing a big update.
Last Thursday Hayden & Jonas did find my house. They visited quite a
few houses before getting to mine; they were pleased they didn't just
walk in to the first house they thought it was. I must say it's hard
finding a place you don't have the address for - not that RD5 would
have helped them much. I don't quite remember what I did on Thursday
night, nor Friday, but I do know that on Saturday I drove Joy & I to
New Plymouth. We stopped off at Patea beach because it was taking a
lot less time than we thought. There wasn't as much traffic as we
thought there would be. After the sea air and visit to the beach, we
felt like Fish & Chips (kiwi style, no mushy peas!) so we stopped in
Hawera and found a place that was open and went and ate it in a local
park. When we arrived we saw all the family again and caught up with
them. It's strange how it's been so long and so much has changed, yet
we're all still the same. Later that night we watched Napoleon
Dynamite. It wasn't very good at all (imho). Geoff & Emma arrived just
before I went to bed so I got to meet her. She's cool. Christmas
morning we had our extended family present giving thing. Then we went
to church; they had a family-focused service which was cool. We had
ham (that's pig) for lunch. It was good. There was a nice mix of hot
and cold food. We had the kiwi classic pavlova for pudding which was
great. I think everyone had a nap that afternoon. Because we ate quite
late in the afternoon we didn't need all that much for tea. In the
evening Shawshank Redemption was on TV so some of us watched that.
Later on our (immediate) family did our present thing. Boxing day was
Mum's 50th birthday. In the afternoon we went to the river for a swim.
My feet got sunburnt. My fault really; I should have put sunscreen on
them as I did the rest of my body. As it was my mother's birthday, the
women went out to have some coffee, leaving the men to prepare tea. We
made a very nice meal with things we found in the fridges. We even had
berry pancakes for desert. That night we climbed Mt Parituku just as
the sun was setting. We came back and had a look at some photos of
various things including some of the ones taken over the weekend.
About half of the people left during the course of the day. The next
day (Tues) everyone else who was left left. We (Geoff, Emma & I as Joy
had left the day before) packed up and headed off just before lunch.
Before we actually left NP we went into town and had a look around. We
bought some stuff in the sales. Then we headed off taking the scenic
route around Mt Taranaki, stopping for lunch at a surf beach, then an
ice cream later on. We also stopped in Wanganui for a short while.
When we got to Feilding we had tea with Mum & Dad at Ken's
Cook because Mum felt like Chinese takeaways. On Wednesday we all went
to our Warwick St house to collect and return stuff from our storage
there. It was strange seeing other people's stuff in our house. It's
such a nice house and I look forward to it being ours again one day. I
also miss having a spa, maybe I'll have to convince one (or more) of
my friends in the UK to get one. Geoff & Emma headed down to Chch
shortly after lunch and a visit from one of their friends who was
pasing through. That night I decided to go see the glow worms up by
Highland Home. So I rounded up a few people and headed off. Due to the
(maybe not so) recent flooding, the river we walk up had lots of
debris in the way, but we mannaged to get through all the same. The
glow worms were just as amazing as I remembered them to be. When we
got back to the car we (Ace, Hayden, Jenna & I) lay on the road
looking at the stars and talking for about an hour and a half (or
maybe two). By the time we got back it was too late for a movie so we
just headed to our respective homes. Thursday was reletively
uneventful. I took Mum & Dad into Palmy and dropped them at the
hospital and PFL respectively, before coming out to our place (where
we're house sitting) for lunch and the afternoon. No-one txted me back
about doing anything in the evening except Mike who is down in
Waikanae and couldn't make it. Today we arranged to meet Jonny (our
cousin) for lunch and hang out in the afternoon tomorrow which sounds
like fun.

Sunburn hurts

[Thu 22 Dec 05 1430]
Well I thought my last post was on Tuesday, but looks like the most recent
one showing if from Sunday. So here I am writing a big catch-up. Sunday
afternoon (I think after my last post) I called Lincoln R and had a big chat
with him about lots of stuff. On Monday my parents were here and they took
me out for lunch. In the evening I called Simon M and caught up with him,
then I got a txt from Anna V saying she�d like to catch up so I called her
too. She got a surprise to speak with me. Tuesday I was going to go to the
beach, but the weather forecast wasn�t too great so I decided not to. We
ended up just watching a movie. Then I was feeling bored again so I called
Hayden and we decided to go for a random drive. When I got to his place we
decided to go visit Jonas S. I had to do a few things in town first, like go
visit Rachel S (who wasn�t at work) and post some letters. We ended up
seeing Lisa (some Aussie who came over after I left), Derek E, Holly S,
Renee R, Sarah C, Jo R, and a few others. Then we finally drove out to Apiti
where Jonas lives. We got there in the end, after half getting lost - which
adds to the fun. Aparently we were the first of Jonas� friends to come to
his house. He has a road all to himself. On the way back we stopped in at
the Chelsy Pub and had a (very nice) meal. I�d recommend it. When we got
back to Feilding we called Sarah as she hadn�t called us and then went over
to her place. While we were there I said I was going to the beach the next
day (Wed) and they said they were up for that. So Wednesday morning I went
into town and saw Anna V at her work (when I finally found it), did a bit of
Christmas shopping and then headed home for lunch. When I got to Feilding to
pick up Sarah and Hayden, Ace said he was coming too, so the four of us went
to Himatangi beach (by recommendation of Rose that morning). We made a big
sand castle with man-sized buckets and real shovels and spades. It had a
moat and all. On the way back we stopped in at Lincoln R�s house and saw
Lidia (his wife) while waiting for him to come home. We left Ace there and
headed back to Feilding to have tea, get a movie and go to Hayden�s. On the
way we stopped and picked up Kelvin. (Almost without him knowing, but he was
too quick for us.) When we got to Hayden�s we had a spa, then before
watching Dodgeball (the DVD we got earlier) we went and got some supplies
(chocolate, ice cream, drink, sauces, et cetra) to eat. After the movie we
had another spa before going home. I slept most of this morning as I didn�t
get home till well into it, then I watched The Power of One with Joy. I
think Hayden and Jonas are trying to find where I am right now. I gave them
directions, but who knows with those two.

Time goes quickly

[Sun 18 Dec 05 1600]
Well I don't quite know what I wrote last time I posted, but I do
think that it was on Friday. Not too sure, so here goes. Friday
afternoon was a quiet one. I just hung out with Geoff at Brad & Vic's
for the afternoon. Then in the evening we went over to Mike & Sarah's
(where Geoff was sleeping that night) and hung out with the boys. We
ate pizza and chips and watched 'The Anchor Man'. Then the girls came
back and we played Rumikub. (Spelling is bad, but that's how it
sounds. It's a game with tiles and numbers and stuff.) Then Saturday
morning I got up far too early and took Geoff to the airport. Said
goodbye and went back home to bed. I then slept for the rest of the
morning until about 11am with various inturruptions from my phone
ringing and getting messages. One of which said that I didn't have to
drive to Hastings that night - great news as the weather wasn't all
that nice. So I had the rest of the day free. (I don't know if I've
already said, but Matt & Rel bailed on me and only came back from
Auckland on Saturday, not Friday as planned so they couldn't hang with
me.) I was quite very bored for the majority of the day; but you get
that. I saw Amanda F again at the supermarket (where I was) getting
some supplies. Had a(nother catch up) chat with her and stuff. Then
this morning (Sunday) I went to church in Feilding and we had a lunch
thing afterwards which was nice. Met Mum & Dad there and bought them
back here (where I'm living for the moment - house sitting) for
afternoon tea and to catch up with Joy and I. I'm just about to take
them back into Feilding to see some friends of theirs. Then I'm off to
the Christmas Carols by Candle-light at the Civic Centre, then I think
I'm having some mates over for a spa. They're all going to New Life
church in Palmy so they might find a better offer; oh well. Ok, I'd
better be off.

Oh, the joys of shopping!

[Fri 16 Dec 05 1330]

Well, since my last post here I've been to visit another couple of people. Wednesday was a deservedly quiet day. Thursday I went shopping. I don't really like shopping, but it wasn't too bad. Possibly because I was by myself and I had a fairly good idea of what I was buying before I left home. I got Christmas presents for most of the people I have to buy for. Then I had lunch with Joy and dropped her at work so I could steal (aka borrow) the car for the afternoon (which turned into evening and night). The plan was to hang out with Jen M in the afternoon. She needed (aka wanted) some new shoes from Hannahs so we went over to Palmy and hung out there and did some shopping. I helped her get stuff for herself and her family so that was cool. While we were at the Plaza we saw Mike H (Slippery Dick's brother) with Jamie M and Fran W. Mike got a supprise to see me and it was nice to catch up with him. Oh yeah, we wanted to go see Slippery Dick but he didn't txt us back; we think he was out of credit, and so forgive him. Also on our travels we saw Lucy C who lives in Christchurch now. She's doing well at uni and is really enjoying Chch life. After dropping Jenna home in Filly I went to New World (that's a supermarket - yes, we do have supermarkets) to see Mike H (another Mike H; it's hard not using last names sometimes). Unfortunately he wasn't there as he finished at 4pm not 6pm like I thought. I txt him and went to his place to hang out anyway. I had tea there and then we went to music practise for church Sunday morning. After that we went to Palmy to see some friends of his from Waikani (I think). We were going to go to the old abandonned meat works (aka slaughter house) and have some fun, but after some other events decided it'd be best not to. (Those other events aren't suitable for this blog. I may put them in my personal blog, but no promises.) I'm still in love with NZ skys. This morning I picked Geoff (my brother) up from the airport. (I was a bit late (as usual), but he said he didn't mind too much.) We've been hanging out this morning, buying each other stuff, and generally catching up, and now he and Joy are at [a thing I can't really talk about here; but nothing dodgy]. I'll be picking them/him up soonish; well when he calls or txts me acutally. Oh yeah, we saw some other people this morning too: Hannah B and Sam R. Sam's going to do Y One next year which will be awesome and Hannah is still Hannah. It was nice to catch up with all their family happenings. Anyway, I best be off. I've emails to write and then I expect to go get my sibling(s) in a short while.

Meeting people is fun

[Wed 14 Dec 05 1330]
Looks like my previous posts (see below) are now showing. (I was having a problem with posting via email, but looks like that's all fine now.) Yesterday was interesting. After breakfast I went round to Joy's and picked up her form and some other errands that she wanted me to do in Feilding. Then I went to Jenna W's and hung out at hers for a while before going to Palmy to meet up with Rose and Miranda. While we were there we also saw Selina and Jamie, so it was nice to catch up with all of them. We had lunch at Subway and hung out in the Square for a while. Then I dropped her back home and did Joy's errands. (I should have done them before seeing her, but forgot.) Before I left her place I got her to call Ace to see if he was home, so she did and he was: next stop, Ace's house. He got a surprise to see me. It was nice to hang out there and catch up with all the happenings. Before leaving Ace's I called Anna P and hung up on her so she wouldn't know it was me. I then turned up at her house a few minutes later. She got a real big surprise; but in a good way. I ended up having tea with her and her parents and then going out to Palmy and hanging out with her all night. We talked about loads of stuff and it was great to catch up. On our way back into Feilding I got breathalyzed and had to say my name and address. As I don't really have an address, they asked me a few questions and I had to show my licence. All was fine as I was completely under the limit and have a valid drivers licence. Anyway, I dropped her off and picked up my car then went back to Brad & Vic's. Evie barked at me which woke Vic who came to see what Evie was barking about. It was late so when I saw them today when they came home for lunch I appoligised and we arranged a way to avoid the situation in future. I've been hanging out with Joy and Anna T (who left only a few minutes ago) and that's about as far as the plan for today goes. I have to do some shopping at some point and also plan tomorrow, but I'll do that eventually.
Oh, there is an Atom feed available for this blog if you're that interested. Hopefully I'll keep it up to date.