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.

I'm contactable!

[Mon 12 Dec 05 1430]

This morning (Mon) I went to town and got my bank things sorted out (oh, how I love NZ and its efficiency). Then I walked down to the Vodafone shop and got a SIM card, before coming home to have lunch with Joy. Tonight we're having tea with Brad & Vic (that's where I'll be staying/sleeping while in Palmy). I don't quite know what I'll be doing for the rest of this week, but Geoff is coming up on Friday for a day which will be awesome. I've got to plan some time to see all my different groups of friends; and some of them don't even know I'm back yet, although I don't think it'll be long before they hear that I am or get a visit from me. Oh, my number is +64 21 023 13819.

It's nice to be back

[Mon 12 Dec 05 1400 (update until sunday night)]

When we got back from Hastings (with diversions on the way) on Saturday night, I wanted to get a phone (well, only the SIM card actually) and had heard that the Warehouse sold them. So off we went; Joy got me to drive and I was a bit rusty at first. As it turns out the Warehouse only sells Telecom phones (which don't have SIM cards) so we couldn't get one from there. It felt good to be driving again. Sunday morning I went over to Feilding to go to church where I grew up. It was strange to see all the familiar faces again; and sad to only not recognize a few people. I quickly got used to the standard questions, and formulated some standard responses. There was no-one from my group of friends there. I learnt (from talking to parents of my friends) that Lorelle was going to have a little talk about her year with Y One after a pot-luck tea at 5pm. So I decided that I'd come back for that. I then drove back to Palmy and had lunch with Joy and Anna. We went shopping for the week and food is expensive over here. There were more of my friends at the pot-luck tea, but still not everyone. I guess my hopes were too high. It was nice to catch up with those who were there all the same. Afterwards, as Relle and Matt were busy doing some other thing, I hijacked Hayden and we went visiting people. Ace wasn't home, nor was Jenna, but Little Jen's parents were and they told us she was at work (and where that was). So off we went. She got a _real_ big shock to see me as I don't think she knew I was coming back to NZ yet. When I got back to Palmy, Anna and Julz came over (to see Joy), and we went to a café. There I saw Rose (from MYO) and I didn't expect her to recognize or remember me, funnily enough nor did she although we both did. I asked some questions about Jenna and I think we both realised we knew each other. I got her number, but as I didn't have a phone yet (see above) I couldn't give her mine. Oh yeah, I also fixed the printer and other various computer stuff for Joy.

The weather has been very good

[Post written in Hastings on Fri 9 Dec 05 evening (2115)]

Yesterday (Thu) we went down to Taupo. It was a nice 18°C with a clear (apart from the occasional wisk of white) sky, which didn't feel too hot, supprisingly. Then this morning (Fri) we drove over to Hastings to see Grandma. We had lunch, then Eunice (my auntie) went to see her parents in Napier. Both Grandma and I had a rest in the afternoon as it was a classic Hawkes-Bay 32°C. During dinner it rained for a few minutes which dropped the temperature a few degrees. I haven't worn shoes all day - actually I've been bare-foot since I had my first shower in NZ yesterday morning. Matt, Matt and I went to De Bretts last night. It's been a while since I've done that. You can now park at the bottom of the hill if there are free parks, so you don't have to walk all the way back up at the end. I've been able to help Grandma with some computer stuff. I'm still a bit tires, but I think that's due to Jetlag and maybe the fact that I didn't have all that much sleep before I came over. Joy's coming to pick me up tomorro; so it'll be nice to see her again.

I made it

Now writing from New Zealand (please note, times shown on this blog are for the UK). I arrived this morning (Thu 8 Dec 05) at Auckland International (AKL) airport; the plane touched down around 5.25am local time. My parents and I left Canterbury at about 8am on Tue 6 Dec 05 and my plane left London Heathrow (LHR) at the expected 14.35 (well, actually 10 min later than expected). We then had a 10 hour flight to Los Angeles (LAX) where they made us go through USoA Customs and we had to sign a rights waiver saying that we won’t argue if they choose to deport us – even though we never left the airport, nor the international transit area. On arrival in AKL my carry-on bag was searched because a search dog thought there was something in there. I explained that there was an apple, but I’d eaten it during the flight. Then I got my bags (took ages) and went through to get them scanned. They wanted to look inside them because of the wax crystals and took a bag away to get it tested. Of course it came back clean, but the official who opened my bag refused to repack it for me – even after I asked him before he started and he said it’d be ok. I’m now near Auckland and will be heading down to Taupo for the night at about 4pm. Matt will be there so I’ll get to see him, which will be nice. We’re planning to arrive in time for tea. Well that’s all I know for the moment. We intend on going to Hawkes Bay the next day where I’ll stay a night with Grandma and Joy’ll come get me on Saturday.

Oh yeah, on another note: I haven’t got a SIM card yet. I went in to Vodafone and asked about them, then went to Telecom and apparently they don’t do SIM cards. The guy said “well you won’t find a SIM card in a Telecom shop since Telecom phones don’t use them.”

Well the adventure begins

That said, it's already begun quite a long time ago. I just said goodbye to some of my friends tonight. That felt strange because I know I won't see them for a while; and yet I know I'll see them in only a few months.
Tomorrow I fly to New Zealand. It's a long way and takes a long time, but it's worth it. I've been out of New Zealand for more than two years now. I don't quite know what I'll find when I get there. Last time I was in my home town was when I was back at school. Since then all my friends have moved on to university or are working or other things. Not too sure how many people I'll meet up with; though being Christmas [and summer holidays] there may be a few more around. But then again, they may be away with their families too. I guess I'll just have to wait and see.
I need to sleep now, so it's time to post this entry - I'm leaving at 8am, and I don't really love mornings.