Wow, I have been terrible about blogging haven't I? A month since my last post. I was going to tell you all about my 4-day trip to Australia but I have been too busy. I'm in the Singapore airport right now waiting for my flight to Mumbai so I have a little time to kill. This airport is something else. I definitely haven't made the transition from West to East yet. There's a Burger King and a Seven-Eleven here! But there is also a beautiful orchid garden and koi pond. And even though it's 3am, some of the stores are open!
I went to Australia for 4 days a couple of weeks ago. I flew into Brisbane and met up with my friend Ross who had done the Noosa Triathon the weekend before. We went down to Surfer's Paradise for a night then went to Warwick (popn 12,000) for the rest of the time and stayed with a friend of Ross. There was 6.9 cm rain the first day - so much for drought-ridden Australia! But it was nice in Warwick. We did a 75k bike ride to Queen Mary Falls and saw a kangaroo on the side of the rode on the way up. I'll post a photo once I get back home. Then we had lunch at this beautiful restaurant at the top that had glorious views of the mountains. The only negative was that I used Ross' friend's bike and it definitely was not a fit! I could hardly move by the time we got back.
The most awesome thing I did was go for a hike in a park at Tambourine Mtn near the coast. There were gum trees, palm trees and old trees that looked like the rata-wrapped totara in NZ. The bird sounds were something else - like something from another world. One of them did a long sound followed by this big pop sound. I had no idea what it was. Someone told me it might have been a stormbird. I even saw a kookaburra on a gum tree!
On my bike ride I saw green grass parrots, birds with pinkish-orange bellies (a galah maybe?), and just like in NZ, got attacked by Australian magpies! There were also birds with tufts on their heads that reminded me a bit of California Quail. I think they were called topnotch pigeons.
It was quite a fun weekend and it was so warm compared with Chrischurch. And I didn't see any poisonous snakes or spiders either!
Monday, November 20, 2006
Friday, October 20, 2006
Wind!!
October 20, 2006
The wind is a major focus here in NZ, especially in the springtime. Everyone is always talking about the southerlies and the northwesterlies, not to mention the easterlies at the beach. So I thought this would be a good time to tell you a little about my wind experiences.
Last Friday, I was driving down to Timaru (2 hours south of Christchurch) for the South Island Masters Games. My friend, Ross, was doing the swimming and I signed up for the cycling road race (the swimming was closed). There was a northwesterly blowing and, even though we were in a truck, the wind was trying to push us off the road. At one point it blew up so much dust that you couldn't see the mountains to the east anymore. The northwesterly seems to be a very gusty wind. But it's warm because, remember, the equator is to the north here. In fact it's so warm that the snow-covered mountain tops we saw on the way down were half-melted when we drove back the next day. Good thing we already went skiing!
Saturday I did the road race and it was short and flat but challenging. It was 2 loops of a 12 km triangle of country roads. The first leg was an awesome tailwind followed by a strong crosswind on the second leg and then a full on head wind to complete the circuit. I managed to join up with a pack of 4 other women at the start but 2 of us were dropped after about 2/3 of the first loop. Fortunately the 2 of us managed to stay together and we took turns pulling in front. She was in the 45-49 age group so we didn't even have to worry about the finish line! I don't know how I placed (other than not in the top 3) but it was fun so maybe I'll try another one sometime.
On Sunday, back in ChCh, I met up with Bas, the leader of the 2 bike trips I've done in NZ in 2003 and 2005. We went up to the Port Hills (me a little fatigued from the race the day before) and, as luck would have it, the winds were horrendous. In fact, Bas said that he had never seen winds that bad up there. It was a northwesterly with huge gusts. Two of them blew me clear across to the other side of the road. And twice as I came around a curve into the wind, it just flipped my front wheel to the right. It got so bad that we had to get off our bikes (after noticing that no one else was on the road, including cars!). I laid my bike down flat and crouched as low as I could but I was still scared silly - certain that I was literally going to be blown off the hill. Eventually we could stand up and we walked for about half a mile to where it was a little less windy. By that time I was quite paranoid so I kept my feet out of the pedal clips and every time I heard a gust of wind I just put my foot down on the ground. I was one happy woman after I made it down to sea level - still blowing like crazy but at least I wasn't going to be blown over a precipice anymore!
My last wind story is a golf story. My friend Ross has been teaching my golf. (Yes Dad, after you made me pick up my ball at the Muskoka Beach Inn when I was about 9 because I was taking too long, someone has decided that I might be trainable after all!) The wind was howling plus there were machines just ahead of us fixing up the greens by taking plugs of turf out, spreading sand over and then sweeping it. Maybe it's good for the greens in the long run but I can tell you that it is a challenge to putt on a green covered with little holes partially covered with sand! At least the wind only did a number on our drives! It was interesting to see a ball go straight towards the hole from the tee and then suddenly veer off to the right! Forunately I never got much height so I didn't suffer as much as the good players.
I didn't play every hole or keep score but a few days later I played again and did all 18 holes. I was out in 60 on the first 9 and went down to 45 for the second 9! I even beat one of the people in our group in the last nine and got one par! Just think if Dad hadn't made me pick up that ball when I was 9 years old and I hadn't had a 45 year gap in my golfing career? But I guess I should tell you the whole truth now that you are all impressed with my golfing talent - it was a par 3 course ;o)
Well I guess that's it for my wind stories.
But I did do one more fun thing last week. I watched the New Zealand Silver Ferns play Australia in women's netball. For those of you who don't know, netball is kind of like basketball except you can't run with the ball and there's no backboard so you have to be accurate. The net looks smaller too. The women are unbelievable athletes, running constantly, catching the ball in mid-air and changing direction in an instant. It reminded me of going to a Stanford women's basketball game - lots of cheering women and girls in the stands and a game dominated by finesse and skill rather than raw power like the men's games tend to be.
The wind is a major focus here in NZ, especially in the springtime. Everyone is always talking about the southerlies and the northwesterlies, not to mention the easterlies at the beach. So I thought this would be a good time to tell you a little about my wind experiences.
Last Friday, I was driving down to Timaru (2 hours south of Christchurch) for the South Island Masters Games. My friend, Ross, was doing the swimming and I signed up for the cycling road race (the swimming was closed). There was a northwesterly blowing and, even though we were in a truck, the wind was trying to push us off the road. At one point it blew up so much dust that you couldn't see the mountains to the east anymore. The northwesterly seems to be a very gusty wind. But it's warm because, remember, the equator is to the north here. In fact it's so warm that the snow-covered mountain tops we saw on the way down were half-melted when we drove back the next day. Good thing we already went skiing!
Saturday I did the road race and it was short and flat but challenging. It was 2 loops of a 12 km triangle of country roads. The first leg was an awesome tailwind followed by a strong crosswind on the second leg and then a full on head wind to complete the circuit. I managed to join up with a pack of 4 other women at the start but 2 of us were dropped after about 2/3 of the first loop. Fortunately the 2 of us managed to stay together and we took turns pulling in front. She was in the 45-49 age group so we didn't even have to worry about the finish line! I don't know how I placed (other than not in the top 3) but it was fun so maybe I'll try another one sometime.
On Sunday, back in ChCh, I met up with Bas, the leader of the 2 bike trips I've done in NZ in 2003 and 2005. We went up to the Port Hills (me a little fatigued from the race the day before) and, as luck would have it, the winds were horrendous. In fact, Bas said that he had never seen winds that bad up there. It was a northwesterly with huge gusts. Two of them blew me clear across to the other side of the road. And twice as I came around a curve into the wind, it just flipped my front wheel to the right. It got so bad that we had to get off our bikes (after noticing that no one else was on the road, including cars!). I laid my bike down flat and crouched as low as I could but I was still scared silly - certain that I was literally going to be blown off the hill. Eventually we could stand up and we walked for about half a mile to where it was a little less windy. By that time I was quite paranoid so I kept my feet out of the pedal clips and every time I heard a gust of wind I just put my foot down on the ground. I was one happy woman after I made it down to sea level - still blowing like crazy but at least I wasn't going to be blown over a precipice anymore!
My last wind story is a golf story. My friend Ross has been teaching my golf. (Yes Dad, after you made me pick up my ball at the Muskoka Beach Inn when I was about 9 because I was taking too long, someone has decided that I might be trainable after all!) The wind was howling plus there were machines just ahead of us fixing up the greens by taking plugs of turf out, spreading sand over and then sweeping it. Maybe it's good for the greens in the long run but I can tell you that it is a challenge to putt on a green covered with little holes partially covered with sand! At least the wind only did a number on our drives! It was interesting to see a ball go straight towards the hole from the tee and then suddenly veer off to the right! Forunately I never got much height so I didn't suffer as much as the good players.
I didn't play every hole or keep score but a few days later I played again and did all 18 holes. I was out in 60 on the first 9 and went down to 45 for the second 9! I even beat one of the people in our group in the last nine and got one par! Just think if Dad hadn't made me pick up that ball when I was 9 years old and I hadn't had a 45 year gap in my golfing career? But I guess I should tell you the whole truth now that you are all impressed with my golfing talent - it was a par 3 course ;o)
Well I guess that's it for my wind stories.
But I did do one more fun thing last week. I watched the New Zealand Silver Ferns play Australia in women's netball. For those of you who don't know, netball is kind of like basketball except you can't run with the ball and there's no backboard so you have to be accurate. The net looks smaller too. The women are unbelievable athletes, running constantly, catching the ball in mid-air and changing direction in an instant. It reminded me of going to a Stanford women's basketball game - lots of cheering women and girls in the stands and a game dominated by finesse and skill rather than raw power like the men's games tend to be.
Monday, October 09, 2006
Spring skiing
October 9, 2006
Wow, I must be having fun here. I think it's been about 2 weeks since I wrote in my blog. It's not because there hasn't been anything to tell you about. Just too busy to write it down.
Since I last did an update, I've had my first ever game of golf, I've been skiing at Mt Hutt, biked around Lyttelton Harbour, plus all sorts of things I can't even remember. I'm still waiting for that first surfing lesson though. The conditions just haven't cooperated so far. The only real challenge is trying to get all my work done when there are so many distractions!
The bike ride around Lyttelton Harbour was beautiful and lots of fun, aside from getting bopped in the head by an attacking Magpie! At least I had my helmet on. The hills around the harbour don't even look real, they are so beautiful. Along the way there was a farmhouse owned by a Korean couple that was filled with Korean artwork and sculptures indoors and out, a farmer searching for his 5 escaped bulls (fortunately we didn't find them), a scrumptious seafood chowder eaten outside at the top of Diamond Harbour, a ferry ride back over to Lyttleton, a screaming downhill from the top of the Port Hills into Sumner and finally a relaxed cup of tea at Dot.com (the place to be for bikers after a ride).
It's been cold (5C in the mornings) lately with occasional rainy, very windy days. But in between there are some beautiful days. Yesterday I drove down to Timaru with a friend who was competing in a duathlon at the South Island Masters Games (see photo below). It was a beautiful day with views of the snow-covered mountains the whole drive down. I'm thinking I might see if I can sign up for the cycle road race this weekend as the swimming events are filled.
My first game of golf (preceded the week before by 50 balls at the driving range) was really fun. The last time I was on a golf course was at the Muskoka Sands Inn with my sister Judy and my Dad at about age 9. Dad got frustrated with us and made us pick up our balls and I hadn't tried anything more than mini-golf since. Fortunately I did a little better this time and got to play the full 18 holes of a 3-par course. I managed to make par on one hole (a fluke?!), my worst was 6 (or may be it was 7) and I only hit one airball! I think I might have to try it again!
Last Friday I went skiing at Mt Hutt (about 1.5h southwest of ChCh) and had an awesome day. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, no wind, and great spring skiing conditions. See below for views from the top and a picture of me "on top of the world". Or maybe I should say "on the bottom of the world" given how close we are to Antarctica.
Now that spring is here, the birds in the morning are fantastic. The last run I did from my house and up into the Port Hills was unbelievable. Here are the birds that I saw or heard that I know the names of: Bellbird, Kingfisher, Grey Warbler, Australian Magpie, Pukeko with 2 babies (check out the picture below as they don't look like anything in North America), Mallard with 6 babies and probably more that I just can't remember right now.
Well I better get to work so I can head off on my next adventure when the opportunity arises!
Wow, I must be having fun here. I think it's been about 2 weeks since I wrote in my blog. It's not because there hasn't been anything to tell you about. Just too busy to write it down.
Since I last did an update, I've had my first ever game of golf, I've been skiing at Mt Hutt, biked around Lyttelton Harbour, plus all sorts of things I can't even remember. I'm still waiting for that first surfing lesson though. The conditions just haven't cooperated so far. The only real challenge is trying to get all my work done when there are so many distractions!
The bike ride around Lyttelton Harbour was beautiful and lots of fun, aside from getting bopped in the head by an attacking Magpie! At least I had my helmet on. The hills around the harbour don't even look real, they are so beautiful. Along the way there was a farmhouse owned by a Korean couple that was filled with Korean artwork and sculptures indoors and out, a farmer searching for his 5 escaped bulls (fortunately we didn't find them), a scrumptious seafood chowder eaten outside at the top of Diamond Harbour, a ferry ride back over to Lyttleton, a screaming downhill from the top of the Port Hills into Sumner and finally a relaxed cup of tea at Dot.com (the place to be for bikers after a ride).
It's been cold (5C in the mornings) lately with occasional rainy, very windy days. But in between there are some beautiful days. Yesterday I drove down to Timaru with a friend who was competing in a duathlon at the South Island Masters Games (see photo below). It was a beautiful day with views of the snow-covered mountains the whole drive down. I'm thinking I might see if I can sign up for the cycle road race this weekend as the swimming events are filled.
My first game of golf (preceded the week before by 50 balls at the driving range) was really fun. The last time I was on a golf course was at the Muskoka Sands Inn with my sister Judy and my Dad at about age 9. Dad got frustrated with us and made us pick up our balls and I hadn't tried anything more than mini-golf since. Fortunately I did a little better this time and got to play the full 18 holes of a 3-par course. I managed to make par on one hole (a fluke?!), my worst was 6 (or may be it was 7) and I only hit one airball! I think I might have to try it again!
Last Friday I went skiing at Mt Hutt (about 1.5h southwest of ChCh) and had an awesome day. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, no wind, and great spring skiing conditions. See below for views from the top and a picture of me "on top of the world". Or maybe I should say "on the bottom of the world" given how close we are to Antarctica.
Now that spring is here, the birds in the morning are fantastic. The last run I did from my house and up into the Port Hills was unbelievable. Here are the birds that I saw or heard that I know the names of: Bellbird, Kingfisher, Grey Warbler, Australian Magpie, Pukeko with 2 babies (check out the picture below as they don't look like anything in North America), Mallard with 6 babies and probably more that I just can't remember right now.
Well I better get to work so I can head off on my next adventure when the opportunity arises!
Sunday, September 24, 2006
My own house!
September 24, 2006
I moved into my new place on Thursday. See the photos below of my house, garden and views from the house. You can even see a satellite photo of my street on Google Earth. It was so nice to sleep in a cozy bed with a warm comforter! No sleeping bag anymore. But I have to say that it seemed very quiet not being able to hear the surf.
I went for a run Friday morning and next time I'll take my camera. I ran up the hill near my street and the views were great - not to mention the bellbird that sang to me the whole time. There weren't any bellbirds on the seashore when I was living there. I do miss my morning magpies but everyone tells me I shouldn't as they are terrible pests and even attack people! But they're still fun to listen to.
I've had another wonderful week and met more great people. Work has been a little too busy, which is a drag when there are so many other distractions! I had a great bike ride yeaterday with 4 other people so I worked harder than usual and definitely couldn't stop and take photos. Then I went to a party last night where I met more Kiwis and we played this crazy homemade gambling game where you each had a toy racing car. You put chips down for your car and whoever won got all the chips. It was kind of like Milles Bornes if any of you have ever played that - minus the puncture-proof tires and Coup Fouree etc. I only lost $6! :o)
I moved into my new place on Thursday. See the photos below of my house, garden and views from the house. You can even see a satellite photo of my street on Google Earth. It was so nice to sleep in a cozy bed with a warm comforter! No sleeping bag anymore. But I have to say that it seemed very quiet not being able to hear the surf.
I went for a run Friday morning and next time I'll take my camera. I ran up the hill near my street and the views were great - not to mention the bellbird that sang to me the whole time. There weren't any bellbirds on the seashore when I was living there. I do miss my morning magpies but everyone tells me I shouldn't as they are terrible pests and even attack people! But they're still fun to listen to.
I've had another wonderful week and met more great people. Work has been a little too busy, which is a drag when there are so many other distractions! I had a great bike ride yeaterday with 4 other people so I worked harder than usual and definitely couldn't stop and take photos. Then I went to a party last night where I met more Kiwis and we played this crazy homemade gambling game where you each had a toy racing car. You put chips down for your car and whoever won got all the chips. It was kind of like Milles Bornes if any of you have ever played that - minus the puncture-proof tires and Coup Fouree etc. I only lost $6! :o)
Sunday, September 17, 2006
World's most efficient swim carnival (aka swim meet)
Ssptember 17, 2006
I went to a 4-team masters swim meet at Jelley Park today and these Kiwis really know how to run a swim meet. Each team had one lane. There was one person per ten-tear age group per event (male/female separate) so you just lined up in the right age group order and went when it was your turn. It was so efficient you wouldn't believe it. And no stopwatches - just 4 points for 1st, 3 for 2md, 2 for 3rd, 1 for 4th. I swam 3 events (50 free, 50 and 100 back) and it was so nice not having to think about what my times were! And then we ended it all with a 10-person 500m freestyle relay! Then we all had barbecued sausages and bacon outside and I was home before noon. How's that for fun?!
Last night I went to a party at my soon-to-be-landlords' house and met the neighbours and some of their friends. They were a lovely group of people and, guess what? Trevor had been out fishing whitebait that day and I had my first whitebait fritter. He mixed them up in an egg batter, fried them up and then you eat them like liitle pancakes on a piece of bread. They were quite yummy. And I couldn't even see their eyeballs! Check out the picture below to see why I've beed focusing on the eyeballs. I also had smoked salmon that had been caught and smoked by one of the people at the party. Quite a feast!
I went to a 4-team masters swim meet at Jelley Park today and these Kiwis really know how to run a swim meet. Each team had one lane. There was one person per ten-tear age group per event (male/female separate) so you just lined up in the right age group order and went when it was your turn. It was so efficient you wouldn't believe it. And no stopwatches - just 4 points for 1st, 3 for 2md, 2 for 3rd, 1 for 4th. I swam 3 events (50 free, 50 and 100 back) and it was so nice not having to think about what my times were! And then we ended it all with a 10-person 500m freestyle relay! Then we all had barbecued sausages and bacon outside and I was home before noon. How's that for fun?!
Last night I went to a party at my soon-to-be-landlords' house and met the neighbours and some of their friends. They were a lovely group of people and, guess what? Trevor had been out fishing whitebait that day and I had my first whitebait fritter. He mixed them up in an egg batter, fried them up and then you eat them like liitle pancakes on a piece of bread. They were quite yummy. And I couldn't even see their eyeballs! Check out the picture below to see why I've beed focusing on the eyeballs. I also had smoked salmon that had been caught and smoked by one of the people at the party. Quite a feast!
Saturday, September 16, 2006
Circuit of Christchurch
September 16, 2006
I did a 50-mile bike ride today that was half on city streets (most of which have bike lanes) and half out in the country. There was a huge (but warm) wind from the northwest, which meant that I had to work hard heading out but then I just sailed on the way home. I've put in a map of my route (who knows if you can read it!) and the X is where I'm moving to next week. Note the lack of streets just south of the X. It's farmland and the port hills. I took a few pictures today not far from there so you can see what the countryside is like (see bottom of page).
I did learn today that not every Kiwi is a lovely person. While I was biking along one of the roads with no other bikers in site and only an occasional car, someone decided to cut directly in front of me and turn left. Good thing I was biking into the wind and wasn't going very fast so I could stop without hitting the car. I'm sure he did it on purpose as there was no one else around. The other evidence from my ride that everyone here isn't perfect is that I passed the Christchurch Women's Prison. Hopefully I will never see the inside of that place! Although I bet it's nicer than most prisons.
When I was about 5 minutes from home, what sounded like an air raid siren went off. It was 12:40 so it wasn't the noon whistle from somewhere. Maybe it was the 12:40 whistle? But after the meteor last week, I'm a little suspicious of weird noises. Although I haven't figured out what that was, I have found out what everyone is fishing for in the Avon River (see post from about a week ago). And no, I'm afraid that it's not the rare giant bully. In fact, it's just the opposite. It's white bait - a little fish (maybe like smelt?) that I thought was only on the west coast but I guess not. It's so small that they don't gut them or anything. They just cook them whole and eat them up - body, tail, head and eyeballs!! Yummy! I wonder if I'll get to try them sometime?!
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Played hooky today
September 14, 2006
After working from my 6am telecon til 1pm, I decided to head off on a bike ride as it was a beautiful sunny day and about 55F out. First I biked over to Ferrymead by the Port Hills and then I biked past Cashmere where I will be living in a week. A ten minute bike ride from past my new place, I was riding alongside pastures and the Port Hills and in the distance to the west I could see the snow-covered Southern Alps! Can you imagine having views like that 10 minutes bike ride from your house and still live only a ten minute drive from downtown? I wish that I had brought my camera so I could show you all the views. But I promise to take it next time.
I ended up doing a 30-mile circuit around the city with one small detour into town when I took the wrong road. But it took me past a bike shop where I went in because I couldn't shift into my big chain ring, which of course is better than not being able to shift into the small chainring, but still a nuisance. I couldn't resist going in because the shop was called Chain Reaction and I bought my bike at a Chain Reaction in Redwood City, CA (just a coincidence, not a chain - no pun intended). They fixed it immediately and charged me nothing!
It's impressive how nice everyone is here and they aren't being nice with a purpose to get something from you, sell you something etc. They are just nice for the sake of being nice. When I was looking for a house, a couple picked me up from the bus stop, drove me to the house and showed me around and, even though I didn't take the house, they then drove me over to Turner's Auctions where I was going to look for a car!
Well, I got my IRD number and my GST number today so now I can be officially in business. An IRD number is like the US Social Security Number that everyone has to have to work here. The GST number is so I can collect GST (goods and services tax - 12.5%) from my clients and then give it to the NZ government. You Americans may not be familiar with it but all my Canadian friends and family certainly are.
Last night after swim practice, the team went to the local pub for a pint (or steamed milk and a cookie in my case so I could drive home!). They do it twice a month and they are a great bunch of people. So it's nice to be able to create a bit of a social life.
After working from my 6am telecon til 1pm, I decided to head off on a bike ride as it was a beautiful sunny day and about 55F out. First I biked over to Ferrymead by the Port Hills and then I biked past Cashmere where I will be living in a week. A ten minute bike ride from past my new place, I was riding alongside pastures and the Port Hills and in the distance to the west I could see the snow-covered Southern Alps! Can you imagine having views like that 10 minutes bike ride from your house and still live only a ten minute drive from downtown? I wish that I had brought my camera so I could show you all the views. But I promise to take it next time.
I ended up doing a 30-mile circuit around the city with one small detour into town when I took the wrong road. But it took me past a bike shop where I went in because I couldn't shift into my big chain ring, which of course is better than not being able to shift into the small chainring, but still a nuisance. I couldn't resist going in because the shop was called Chain Reaction and I bought my bike at a Chain Reaction in Redwood City, CA (just a coincidence, not a chain - no pun intended). They fixed it immediately and charged me nothing!
It's impressive how nice everyone is here and they aren't being nice with a purpose to get something from you, sell you something etc. They are just nice for the sake of being nice. When I was looking for a house, a couple picked me up from the bus stop, drove me to the house and showed me around and, even though I didn't take the house, they then drove me over to Turner's Auctions where I was going to look for a car!
Well, I got my IRD number and my GST number today so now I can be officially in business. An IRD number is like the US Social Security Number that everyone has to have to work here. The GST number is so I can collect GST (goods and services tax - 12.5%) from my clients and then give it to the NZ government. You Americans may not be familiar with it but all my Canadian friends and family certainly are.
Last night after swim practice, the team went to the local pub for a pint (or steamed milk and a cookie in my case so I could drive home!). They do it twice a month and they are a great bunch of people. So it's nice to be able to create a bit of a social life.
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Meteor Attack!!
September 12, 2006
I was sitting at my desk at about 2:55pm today when there was a very loud sound that shook the whole house and vibrated in my chest. It lasted quite a long time - maybe 20 seconds or more. I ran outside thinking that jets must be going along the shore breaking the sound barrier or something but couldn't see anything. Then I turned on the radio to see if there was some kind of alert going on. And I thought that I had put enough distance between me and George Bush and all his "fallout"!
Well it turns out that they think it was a meteor, probably not any bigger than a basketball. Hard to believe something that small could make such a racket! I haven't heard that they found any remains of it. So all I could find was a photo someone got of the vapor trail. Not very exciting but here it is. And here's a link to a previous NZ meteor that was thought to be the size of a car! I'm glad I didn't hear that one!
http://www.cnn.com/TECH/space/9907/08/new.zeland.meteor/ (the spelling is correct. I guess they can't spell at CNN.)
I just had tea with an interesting woman I met at the pool a couple of weeks ago who was actually at the Stanford World Masters Swimming Championships in August (didn't meet her then though - there were 7000 people there). She spent the first 20 years of her life as a sheep shearer and after having a back injury about 5-10 years ago, she went to law school. So now she's an attorney for the largest union in the country and does workmen's comp cases. How's that for a major career switch?
Sunday, September 10, 2006
Canterbury wins!
September 10, 2006
Post #2 for today!
Just got back from the rugby match at Jade Stadium and the Canterbury Crusaders defeated the Counties Manukau (from South Auckland, I think). A big group of us from move2nz went including a bunch of kids (check out their face paint in my photo). I passed on the face paint myself but I did wear red socks.
I still don't have much of a clue about the game but I am starting to learn enough to know where to look for the ball when they get into one of their pileups (scrums, mauls or rucks - don't ask me which is which!). They aren't supposed to hang onto the ball in that situation so it usually gets popped out the back and then they pass it (only allowed to pass backwards though!) or kick it (they can kick forwards) or run with it (forwards also). Another thing that is different from North American sports - when the half or the whole game is over on the clock, they keep playing until the ball goes out of bounds or they score a try (aka a goal).
This morning I had breakfast with the local masters swim team at the all-you-can-eat buffet at the Casino. What a feast! And for any of you with gluten intolerance, this is the place to eat breakfast. Everything is labeled as to whether it contains gluten. Maybe gamblers are susceptible to celiac disease?
After breakfast I went over some judder bars to get somewhere, used my eftpos while I was there and when I was done I had to stop at the trundler park. Can you guess what I did?
And the winner is...
September 10, 2006
Last night my team was the proud winner of the Green Party Quiz Night!! The people who own the house I'm staying in are members of the Green Party and I got a phone call inviting me to the Quiz Night. So I bravely went and clearly I chose the right team to join. I can't say that I contributed all that much to answering the quiz questions though: What was the score when the Silver Ferns beat Australia last year? I did know what sport it was though (bet you guys don't!). It's women's netball (see photo), which is something like basketball except that you can't move once you catch the ball - no dribbling allowed. I did know whose gingham dress sold for some huge amount of money though. I won a bar of Green and Black's Organic Bittersweet Dark Chocolate with Oranges and Spices! Yum!
I took another little tour of Christchurch bike ride again on Friday - this time to meet with my soon to be landlords to find out how to operate the washing machine etc (sorry, forgot to take a picture again). I then biked downtown (only 20 minutes by bike from my new place) and then biked along the Avon River all the way out to my current place on the coast - a nice winding road that most of the time wasn't too busy. There were a lot of people fishing with big nets along the river. I have no idea what they were fishing for though - maybe the giant bully! All along the river there were Canada Geese, of all things! And I came to NZ to enjoy the native birds. One non-native I am really enjoying though is a group of Australian Magpies that come by my house every morning. They are quite pretty and they are wonderful to listen to - like a bunch of women gabbing while they have their morning coffee.
It's -1C outside this morning but clear blue sky. There was no heat on in the house all night as usual so my fingers are starting to get numb! Plus I'm leaving in a few minutes for breakfast at the casino with the masters swim team followed this afternoon by a rugby match at Jade Stadium. Quite the social life I lead, eh?! So I think I'll sign off.
Last night my team was the proud winner of the Green Party Quiz Night!! The people who own the house I'm staying in are members of the Green Party and I got a phone call inviting me to the Quiz Night. So I bravely went and clearly I chose the right team to join. I can't say that I contributed all that much to answering the quiz questions though: What was the score when the Silver Ferns beat Australia last year? I did know what sport it was though (bet you guys don't!). It's women's netball (see photo), which is something like basketball except that you can't move once you catch the ball - no dribbling allowed. I did know whose gingham dress sold for some huge amount of money though. I won a bar of Green and Black's Organic Bittersweet Dark Chocolate with Oranges and Spices! Yum!
I took another little tour of Christchurch bike ride again on Friday - this time to meet with my soon to be landlords to find out how to operate the washing machine etc (sorry, forgot to take a picture again). I then biked downtown (only 20 minutes by bike from my new place) and then biked along the Avon River all the way out to my current place on the coast - a nice winding road that most of the time wasn't too busy. There were a lot of people fishing with big nets along the river. I have no idea what they were fishing for though - maybe the giant bully! All along the river there were Canada Geese, of all things! And I came to NZ to enjoy the native birds. One non-native I am really enjoying though is a group of Australian Magpies that come by my house every morning. They are quite pretty and they are wonderful to listen to - like a bunch of women gabbing while they have their morning coffee.
It's -1C outside this morning but clear blue sky. There was no heat on in the house all night as usual so my fingers are starting to get numb! Plus I'm leaving in a few minutes for breakfast at the casino with the masters swim team followed this afternoon by a rugby match at Jade Stadium. Quite the social life I lead, eh?! So I think I'll sign off.
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Knitters' Knook (sic)
September 5, 2006
I am now the proud owner of a Kiwi drivers licence! I started the day by going to the NZ Automobile Association and passing my drivers test. I only got one question wrong - in case you don't all already know, if you leave broken glass on the road after an accident, you don't have 24 hours to clean it up - you must sweep it up right away. So be sure to keep a whisk in your car if you ever come to NZ!
It's still Sept 4 (Labor Day) in North America so I decided to take the day off today in honour of all of you. I went to the local knit shop where a group of women get together to knit and gab for 2 hours every Tuesday and Thursday morning. It was really fun. The women ranged from about 30 to 65 years old and they were very outspoken and full of laughs. There was even a young man with Down's Syndrome who came and was working on knitting a blanket. And he brought us pancakes that he had made for our snack. Several of the women also brought homemade goodies so it was definitely not my usual triathlon-style workout!
After my knitting session, I went to Fed Ex to send some work documents to the US. This afternoon turned out to be a test of whether I have given up the frantic rat race of the USA and adapted to the more easy-going Kiwi environment. And I passed the test!
I walked to the bus terminal from the wool shop and missed the bus by 2 minutes. This bus comes every half hour so I sat down and waited for it and then managed to miss it again because I was on the wrong side of the street! So 1 hour after getting to the bus terminal, I did actually catch my bus. Half an hour later I arrived at the stop for Fed Ex (near the airport). It was about a half mile walk to Fed Ex so I decided to walk quickly in hopes that I could catch the same bus after its turnaround at the airport. I just about made it but a couple stopped me for directions to the Antarctica Center and as they drove off, so did the bus! So I waited another 30 minutes, rode the bus for 30 minutes back to the bus terminal, transferred to the bus that takes me home (but got off half way to go to the grocery store and so had to wait for the next bus ) and finally rode the last 30 minutes home. All in all I figured it took me nearly 5 hours to do my Fed Ex packet! It should only take a little over twice that long for the packet to fly to California! But I did get caught up on reading all my medical journals, which hasn't happened once in the last 3 years I'm sure! And even then I wasn't home yet so I listened to Brooke Fraser (sort of a Kiwi version of Norah Jones) on my IPod the rest of the way. And the whole thing was completely relaxing - much nice than driving in my car - plus I saw another whole section of Christchurch that I'd never gone through before.
I am now the proud owner of a Kiwi drivers licence! I started the day by going to the NZ Automobile Association and passing my drivers test. I only got one question wrong - in case you don't all already know, if you leave broken glass on the road after an accident, you don't have 24 hours to clean it up - you must sweep it up right away. So be sure to keep a whisk in your car if you ever come to NZ!
It's still Sept 4 (Labor Day) in North America so I decided to take the day off today in honour of all of you. I went to the local knit shop where a group of women get together to knit and gab for 2 hours every Tuesday and Thursday morning. It was really fun. The women ranged from about 30 to 65 years old and they were very outspoken and full of laughs. There was even a young man with Down's Syndrome who came and was working on knitting a blanket. And he brought us pancakes that he had made for our snack. Several of the women also brought homemade goodies so it was definitely not my usual triathlon-style workout!
After my knitting session, I went to Fed Ex to send some work documents to the US. This afternoon turned out to be a test of whether I have given up the frantic rat race of the USA and adapted to the more easy-going Kiwi environment. And I passed the test!
I walked to the bus terminal from the wool shop and missed the bus by 2 minutes. This bus comes every half hour so I sat down and waited for it and then managed to miss it again because I was on the wrong side of the street! So 1 hour after getting to the bus terminal, I did actually catch my bus. Half an hour later I arrived at the stop for Fed Ex (near the airport). It was about a half mile walk to Fed Ex so I decided to walk quickly in hopes that I could catch the same bus after its turnaround at the airport. I just about made it but a couple stopped me for directions to the Antarctica Center and as they drove off, so did the bus! So I waited another 30 minutes, rode the bus for 30 minutes back to the bus terminal, transferred to the bus that takes me home (but got off half way to go to the grocery store and so had to wait for the next bus ) and finally rode the last 30 minutes home. All in all I figured it took me nearly 5 hours to do my Fed Ex packet! It should only take a little over twice that long for the packet to fly to California! But I did get caught up on reading all my medical journals, which hasn't happened once in the last 3 years I'm sure! And even then I wasn't home yet so I listened to Brooke Fraser (sort of a Kiwi version of Norah Jones) on my IPod the rest of the way. And the whole thing was completely relaxing - much nice than driving in my car - plus I saw another whole section of Christchurch that I'd never gone through before.
Friday, September 01, 2006
Weird Kiwi Sports!
September 1, 2006
As I was leaving the pool yesterday I noticed some kayakers in the diving well. I thought - "Well that's a good spot to learn to paddle, roll etc before hitting the white water. But boy they sure crowd them in!" Turns out it was a water polo game with everyone in a kayak! The miracle was that they weren't all crashing into each other or whacking each other on the head with paddles!
Today I went for my first official bike ride with the guy who started Adventure South, the bike tour company I've used twice in the past. We biked up into the port hills (I am definitely out of biking shape!!) and the views were great (see photo from last year). There were a group of people paragliding up there (I've attached a picture of that too in case some of you don't know what that is). One of the guys was gliding fairly close to the ground and we actually managed to keep up a conversation with him as we rode and he glided along!
Then on my way back home I saw another person paragliding but he was doing it in the ocean on a surfboard or something - kind of like water skiing using the wind instead of a power boat!
So that's it for Kiwi sports today.
Forgot to mention that it has warmed up enough that I slept without any hot water bottles last night! It was up to 46F this morning when I biked to the pool - almost hot ;o)
House hunting
August 31, 2006
I've been spending a little time each day looking for that perfect place to live - which is hard to do when you don't really know the neighbourhoods. But I've decided that I don't want to live on the beach because it's too cold! I don't want to live downtown because it's less safe. The port hills are supposed to be great to live on because they are warmer but the only places I found looked like they would fall off their foundations in an earthquake - even a small earthquake, of which there are apparently many! Plus I wanted a furnished place so that eliminated about 90% of the rentals.
But good luck has struck! I found a place in Cashmere - a lovely neighbourhood near the port hills (even sounds warmer than North Beach where I'm living now!) - owned by a couple who are going to live in France for a year. So it isn't a typical rental property, it's on a little cul-de-sac and it has 2 bedrooms plus a little study (or a wee study I should say, seeing as I'm living in NZ). So start making your plane reservations to visit me! I move in September 21. And I've even been invited over to a party to meet the neighbours!
I went to the masters swimming workout last night instead of the triathlon team one and the coach put me in the fast lane! Fortunately it's a 50m pool so it took longer to get lapped. But it was sure a good workout. Short course nationals are in October in Wellington so if I get brave I can even do a swim meet!
Sorry, no good pictures today. I should have taken one of the house!
I've been spending a little time each day looking for that perfect place to live - which is hard to do when you don't really know the neighbourhoods. But I've decided that I don't want to live on the beach because it's too cold! I don't want to live downtown because it's less safe. The port hills are supposed to be great to live on because they are warmer but the only places I found looked like they would fall off their foundations in an earthquake - even a small earthquake, of which there are apparently many! Plus I wanted a furnished place so that eliminated about 90% of the rentals.
But good luck has struck! I found a place in Cashmere - a lovely neighbourhood near the port hills (even sounds warmer than North Beach where I'm living now!) - owned by a couple who are going to live in France for a year. So it isn't a typical rental property, it's on a little cul-de-sac and it has 2 bedrooms plus a little study (or a wee study I should say, seeing as I'm living in NZ). So start making your plane reservations to visit me! I move in September 21. And I've even been invited over to a party to meet the neighbours!
I went to the masters swimming workout last night instead of the triathlon team one and the coach put me in the fast lane! Fortunately it's a 50m pool so it took longer to get lapped. But it was sure a good workout. Short course nationals are in October in Wellington so if I get brave I can even do a swim meet!
Sorry, no good pictures today. I should have taken one of the house!
Monday, August 28, 2006
Hanmer Springs "girly weekend"
August 27, 2006
Just spent the weekend at Hanmer Springs with 8 other women from move2nz.com (a website I joined when I was planning my move to NZ). Although we didn't know each other at the start, we had a great time. We ranged in age from 30 to 50+ and came from the UK, the Netherlands, Australia, South Africa, the US and Canada. We spent Saturday afternoon in the hot springs (36-41C) and then hung out at a rental house eating fish and chips, drinking and playing the NZ version of Trivial Pursuit - boy I wish I knew the name of more NZ cricket players and then maybe our team could have won! Three of the women went to a pub from 1-3am to watch NZ play South Africa in rugby. I'm interested in learning about rugby but not that interested!
Looks like I'm going to have to knuckle down and do some solid work next week to get caught up on things. So I may not have anything interesting to post for a few days.
Friday, August 25, 2006
Went out to look at houses - came back with a car!
August 25, 2006
Today was a glorious spring-like day, hardly a cloud in the sky so the whole house warmed up!! I went out to look at a couple of furnished places but one was already let by the time I showed up and the second was nice but too close to downtown. So then I headed off to Turners Auctions where they auction used cars. It's a huge place and quite intimidating - definitely not your friendly neighbourhood shop! I looked at a few cars and then left.
But while walking back to the bus depot, I passed about a hundred other car dealers and one of them just sucked me in. Maybe it was the name that did it - Lifestyle Autos. It was a small place and there was a woman salesperson who was very helpful. So before I knew it, I was driving home in my 1997 (3 years newer than my car in CA!) blue Subaru Impreza - freshly arrived from Japan with only 59,000 km on it.
I managed to drive the whole way home on the left side of the road and I only turned on my windshield wipers once when trying to signal a turn. Not bad, eh?
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Pyromania conquers all!
August 24, 2006
No need to bore you with my day's activities but I had a breakthrough this evening!
I conjured up all my male pyromaniac genes that have been suppressed for 54 years and built an awesome fire in the stove. I shovelled all the old ashes out of the stove, got a bunch of fresh firewood and made a towering inferno. You should have seen it! The kitchen was actually so warm at dinnertime that I ate without a coat or gloves on! I opened the vent into my bedroom and turned on the fan (that's supposed to divert some heat to the bedroom) and I think it's actually warmer in my bedroom now too.
This back to nature stuff can actually be fun once you get the hang of it.
No need to bore you with my day's activities but I had a breakthrough this evening!
I conjured up all my male pyromaniac genes that have been suppressed for 54 years and built an awesome fire in the stove. I shovelled all the old ashes out of the stove, got a bunch of fresh firewood and made a towering inferno. You should have seen it! The kitchen was actually so warm at dinnertime that I ate without a coat or gloves on! I opened the vent into my bedroom and turned on the fan (that's supposed to divert some heat to the bedroom) and I think it's actually warmer in my bedroom now too.
This back to nature stuff can actually be fun once you get the hang of it.
Frozen solid
August 23, 2006
What a night! I must have woken up every hour because I was so cold. I forgot to mention it yesterday but it poured rain and hailed here and snowed in the port hills so they are very pretty all covered with snow.
I had a bunch of work to do today and I have internet access (finally got Lyneke's password!) so I spent the day sitting at the desk inside my down sleeping bag with a jacket and gloves on. I kept having to take off a glove because the mouse pad won't work without bare skin. Why is that anyway? Very inconvenient when it's 2C inside and out.
I tried to build a better fire tonight before dinner but the whole thing fell over and I spent hours blowing on it to no avail. But tonight I went to bed fully armed - 2 hot water bottles, down sleeping bag, comforter, fleece jacket - and I slept like a baby!
Winter returns!
August 22, 2002 (my birthday!)
I went to the local triathlon team swim practice this morning. The coach is Rolie and he was very welcoming. And I'm not too slow for the group so that was a relief.
I took the bus into town again and went to the immigratio office where they instantly gave me my permanent resident status!! So I'm officially legal here to work and to stay as long as I want to!
Oh my, that weekend weather was just a little trick to lull me into thinking it's not so bad to go from California August summer to Kiwi winter. First you have to know that this house has no furnace and probably no insulation. It does have a wood burning stove in the kitchen and a gas heater in the living room, neither of which are to be left going during the night.
It was 1C outside when I woke up this morning and probably about the same temperature in my bedroom - no wind chill though (that's the silver lining part I think). I managed to get out of bed and dressed without freezing solid and made some hot oatmeal - that was stone cold before I finished it. I turned on the gas heater and sat in front of it to try to get warm but it's pretty wimpy and quits if you try to put it on high.
I met this morning with Tony, the head of the CRO I'm going to be working for. Nice guy, married with 4 kids, 2 of whom are at a tennis tournament in LA right now. He's a mountain biker and races. While we were meeting at a coffee house, my parents and my brother Gavin called from Schade Island, Georgian Bay, Canada and they all sang happy birthday to me!
I built a little fire in the stove but it didn't seem to heat up the kitchen so I went to bed early. Forgot to open my birthday present from my sister! Well I can do that tomorrow, when it's my birthday in California!
I went to the local triathlon team swim practice this morning. The coach is Rolie and he was very welcoming. And I'm not too slow for the group so that was a relief.
I took the bus into town again and went to the immigratio office where they instantly gave me my permanent resident status!! So I'm officially legal here to work and to stay as long as I want to!
Oh my, that weekend weather was just a little trick to lull me into thinking it's not so bad to go from California August summer to Kiwi winter. First you have to know that this house has no furnace and probably no insulation. It does have a wood burning stove in the kitchen and a gas heater in the living room, neither of which are to be left going during the night.
It was 1C outside when I woke up this morning and probably about the same temperature in my bedroom - no wind chill though (that's the silver lining part I think). I managed to get out of bed and dressed without freezing solid and made some hot oatmeal - that was stone cold before I finished it. I turned on the gas heater and sat in front of it to try to get warm but it's pretty wimpy and quits if you try to put it on high.
I met this morning with Tony, the head of the CRO I'm going to be working for. Nice guy, married with 4 kids, 2 of whom are at a tennis tournament in LA right now. He's a mountain biker and races. While we were meeting at a coffee house, my parents and my brother Gavin called from Schade Island, Georgian Bay, Canada and they all sang happy birthday to me!
I built a little fire in the stove but it didn't seem to heat up the kitchen so I went to bed early. Forgot to open my birthday present from my sister! Well I can do that tomorrow, when it's my birthday in California!
Beautiful weekend but bigtime voltage trouble!
August 21, 2006
What an introduction to winter in NZ - sunny and up to about 16C this weekend. I had a great walk on the beach, watered the garden with the rain pails, drained the water off the wormbin (for those not fully informed about wormbins, you put food scraps in the top and drain "fertilizer water" off the bottom), biked around New Brighton and checked out the pool. You wouldn't believe this place - 50m indoor pool, diving pool with 1 and 3m boards and 5 and 10m platforms, wave pool with little "rivers" around the edges that kids were having a ball in.
But I have a little confession to make about my interactions with the 240V electricity here. I brought a wireless router/phone adaptor from Vonage plus a phone to plug into it all the way from home so I could talk for free to everyone in California. Well, I managed to fry the router and my phone by plugging them into the outlet with only a plug adaptor. Turns out you have to buy a $150 stepdown transformer to protect them from the 240V. So don't bother trying to phone me on my CA number for awhile! I'm waiting for my new router :o(
Arrival in New Zealand!!
August 18, 2006
After a somewhat sleepless night, I arrived in Auckland at 5:30 am. It took 2 hours to clear customs. After running the (half mile?) distance to the domestic terminal with all my bags on a cart and pulling my bike box behind me, my 7:50 flight to Christchurch had been cancelled because a bird was sucked into the engine. Well at least I got my morning workout!
I caught a flight 2 hours later and arrived in ChCh around 11. It was quite chilly - 5C. I am definitely not in the California summer anymore! I had a great taxi driver (in my experience all Kiwi taxi drivers are great) who took me to Bas and Lyneke's house (see photo), which is 100 yards from the ocean and 2 km from a 50m pool that was used for the Commonwealth Games once! Bas and Lyneke are biking in Australia until the end of September so I'm renting their house. Their friend Paul let me into the house and showed me how to turn on the gas heater (very important for survival!).
I had a second wind by then so I took the bus downtown (30 min ride) and opened my bank account, bought groceries etc. Then I came home, put my bike together, made dinner and went to bed.
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