Rain!

 After 30+ hot and dry days, a misty rain swept Kapiti Island is a welcome sight. View from the front door across the park to the island three kilometres away. Plus random sunflower, self seeded from last year's show.

Still raining tonight - yay!

Kitchen felt works on a rainy Sunday

Thunderstorm this morning, not usual for this part of the world. Drizzling now so we're staying in for a bit. Mish using the run of the stainless steel bench to make frame bands to go around triptych frames in her August exhibition.

Took a run up to Whanganui yesterday, about 400km round trip in drizzle and sun. Pleasant drive through green paddocks past lamb-loaded sheep. Picked up framed works and dropping them into the city later.

The latest works here, something Mish has been wanting to do for years - replacing the original and rotten wood front entry with the PVC system we've used on all the windows.

Ta dah!





Looking out, no barriers now and no gaps for rats to come in and hang about overnight. Bet our regular turned up the next night and went - doh!

And looking in.
Cohesive. Next, paint the concrete and lay lino or something inside. That's the wee space that Mish has always (optimistically) called 'the airlock'. And now it is an airlock.

Southerly blast in spring

Surf rolling in at Houghton Bay four days ago, with flax flowers getting ready to pop.

We had a few cold days there and the air is still brrr morning and evening, but the midday sun is warm.

Sparks on the western hills

We're in the middle of a wintry blast. Winds gusting to 120kph up here, rain, cold - blasts coming up from the snowy South Island shaking our little wooden house. Brrr. Hope some blossoms are left when calm descends later this week.

This afternoon we saw a phenomena over at the wind turbines. They were catching some sun and as they spun they looked like they were sparking. Cool bananas!

Mish flying out, again

A more civilised time than the 6.30 flight anyway.
Flying over Evans Bay, taking off to the north. Wellington sign in the background and one of our many slips beside it. That's a few months old now and has shrubbery growing in it already.

Went for a beach wander before Mish left and caught a bit of a rainbow.

 Lovely day today, warm and windless. 

Watched some of the marine rescue team practising in a zodiac, a guy snorkling for his dinner, lots of gulls, and seaweed wafting in gentle waves.

Mystery shot.

Winter solstice

The shortest day was a couple of days ago, June 22. Nice to watch the sun  tracking back across the western hills.

We had planned to go to an ice hockey game this weekend, USA vs Canada. But, one of the ice making pipes broke yesterday (a beautiful sunny winter day), so it was postponed until the evening, and again just as we got to the ticket gate. So we had a nice walk along the waterfront instead and then trained back home.

 Mish at the station, in  'I'm so hungry, have to eat NOW' mode.

Then today (a damp, colder, blowy day) we set off again for the rescheduled game at 12. 

Got into our seats this time and then the wind blew over the rather flimsy wind protectors around the ice rink, and it was all off. Bummer. We do have an indoor arena, why the hell they didn't put the game there, who knows.

Anyways, will go to Canada sometime and see an ice hockey game.

So we went to Lower Hutt and drove a couple of Subaru Foresters (trading in the van for something a bit more 21st century). Still thinking about that.

The rain has eased - it's been raining for weeks. We have had a few days of no rain - amazing. Not consecutive though, oh no. Ground is sodden.

Long February days

Cyclone Gita swung by after smacking Tonga, and we had some weird weather. This is an eastern sunset which is a bit rare. Muted colour in an unusual place.

It was a typical storm at our place, wind and rain, but just north and south of Wellington got hammered with gale force winds and floods. Trees down, roads out, roofs off, beach washed away.

It's been so warm the cloud can't get away. The sea is balmy and most swimmable.
An afternoon view from the living room, looking west to Mt Kaukau.

The week before, Mish and I had a paddle at Plimmerton watching a solid cloud bank on the sea. Thick as. That's the South Island on the obscured horizon, Mana Island on the right.

And we walked by some interesting brick mosaics by the water. They copped very big waves at high tide. Hope they are still there!

Mid summer swims and butterflies

Beach weather.

At Worser Bay last weekend. Even Mish got in.

Snorkled around the rocks - some lovely green lipped mussels hanging out.

At Lyall Bay today. Didn't even need the wetsuit. Baby waves but nice for an actual swim. Large pod of dolphins smashing fish across the bay for hours, leaping out of the water and chasing them around. Most engaging.

Looking into Cook Strait from my comfortable and uncrowded spot on the sand -  interislander ferry heading to Picton in the distance. This is like being on holiday!

Meanwhile in Newlands, they're baaaaaaaaaaaack!!

Monarch caterpillars munching away on last year's swan plants. Plenty of leaf action here so bro Cliff and kids brought some of their caterpillars over when they ran out of leaves. Hope we have better luck than last year: total flutter byes from lots of caterpillars and cocoons = zero.

Happy new year, friends!

We've had some great summer weather over the Christmas new year break.  So nice as we got ripped off last summer (what summer?). Two weeks off work in warm/hot days with a cool afternoon breeze. 

Had a delightful snorkle at Island Bay marine reserve a few days ago and shot away with the Olympus Tough. Water still pretty cold though, about 15 degrees, so despite my brilliant 4/3 wetsuit  stayed in only about 20 minutes. Hands and feet went numb. Goggles fogged too so didn't see much except the coast's luscious seaweed garden. But loved it. There's a dive shop close by and they hire  #7 wetsuits so have talked Mish into coming out soon for a snorkle. 

And some dude going by without a  wetsuit on, too tough.

Mish on another day at Island Bay (with island). Great place for evening fish and chips.

On the other side of the harbour,  we had a paddle at Eastbourne. 

Looking to the east over to the city.

  Such a warm day; getting a free hot rock treatment. Aaaah.

And later, a coffee at a new container cafe at the Seaview Marina. Bright idea, right on the water, with boats pulling up outside.

Mish has also been working on the bottom of the yard building a long planter box with scavenged materials and left over roofing bits. This is looking up the yard; new house site on the left. Mish sweet talked the digger guy to give us a few buckets of topsoil, and he gave us enough to fill the planter box - excellent! New owners happy, they had to pay to dump truckloads of soil to clear the site.

We've started to shovel the soil in, SO much easier on  middle aged woman than bringing it down our steps in wheelbarrows from the driveway.

In the next photo, two gates are in place, wired to concreted posts. Long gate to come, on their right. The plan is to grow jasmine climbers all over the gates so we have a fragrant green wall between us and our two adjacent neighbours at the bottom.

Mish doing her usual 'stare and think' design process - this can go on for some time, but the results are usually good.

All we wanted was some rain to make the summer break perfect and the ground less cracked, and good rain has arrived. It's been very dry over the whole country. Ripper of a storm has blown over from Queensland and hit the north and south of us so sea has been raging with whitecaps in the harbour and a king tide today.

Makara Beach walk

Makara is due west of here, about 20km of winding road through paddocks by a creek. Last weekend we got a one day break in the weather (wind, cold, sleet, rain, etc. the usual) and went for a walk up to WW11 gun emplacements at Makara.

Beautiful day.

This is the beginning of the walk up the hill. Makara Beach around the corner on the right and wind turbines not moving on the ridge. Bit of a scramble in parts, right on the edge.





Looking south, bottom of the North Island and top of the South Island. No orca today...well, we didn't see any. Great view from here: snow on the Kaikoura range top of the South Island, and snow on the Tararua range lower North Island.

Winter sunset

The sun's setting about 5:15 now.

We've got an improved view to the west as the neighbours on our top side took down a pine tree we've been eyeing off. More sun for us!

Wind turbines going slowly, not much wind lately but icy air every now and then. 

Last day of the working week for Carol, and good riddance she says with Amaretto in one hand and sherry in the other mmm. We both had a shocker of a night last night so happy to be home with heater on and feet up, watching sunset and looking forward to three days off. Some nice colour tonight, and a sun shower as well mid photo.

Mish just made parsnip chips for a snack - scoffed.

Next?

Day off Friday

Taputeranga Island in Island Bay, Wellington, looking into Cook Strait.



Headed round to a bay further south. The southerly blew up suddenly and the bay filled with white caps and lifted sea spray about way in the air, so it looked like smoke on the water.



Picked up seven or eight hungry monarch butterfly larvae (caterpillars) from Arlene's place today and relocated them to our luscious swan plants this morning. Chomp chomp.
Standing by for cocoons and flutter byes.

A bit of summery weekend

 Went for a cycle today, drove north about 30 minutes and then cycled along a flax pathway along the coast, up the highway to Pukerua Bay hill, and down to the bay for  picnic and a swim. Very nice in. Even Mish went in. We didn't take togs so went in with underwear.

Yesterday was summer foggy. It rolls in and lays over the airport for a bit on a regular summery basis. This is looking south east from our place, to the bottom of the island. Ferry coming in, fog just sitting there for a few hours.

 

Today was pretty warm, and I think we both copped a bit too much sun (yes, had sunblock on). Bit of drizzle this evening and we had a rainbow erupt from the chimney just before sunset.

Red sunset

Just the last of the setting sun over Mt Kaukau tonight - a cracker of a sunset.

Still no summer...

...and autumn is nearly upon us.
Oh well.

Doesn't stop us going to the beach! And the water was reasonably warm too. This was Waitangi Day, our national public holiday commemorating the day the Waitangi Treaty was signed between the Brits and Maori February 6, 1840. And then the Brits broke it straight away, and we didn't get back to it until the 1980s.



Mish at driftwood beach, Te Horo.

Black backed gull at Te Horo.

We collected a bit of arty driftwood for projects, had a pleasant walk on a fairly deserted beach, then fish and chips at Waikanae Beach, and moseyed home in the afternoon.

Christmas New Year and into 2017

We were in Sydney for Christmas / New Year, staying at the resort (aka the Reid family home).  Marina and Olaf came from Germany and we had lots of food and presents and twitching. Took a few forays out into the heat: up the northern beaches one day and into the city on another.

Mona Vale sea pool - fabulous. Waves breaking into the pool - about 21 degrees in the water and a lovely warm day, not blazingly hot. Even the Reid sisters went in. Sort of.



Walked from Janey's place down to Kirribilli and Mish and her dad met us at the Royal Yacht Squadron for lunch. Mmmm, always good, sitting outside and right on the harbour. John drove home after lunch and the rest of us walked across the bridge, around Circular Quay, past the Opera House and into the botanic gardens.

Luna Park, the  bridge, Opera House and city

Yacht sailing under Sydney Harbour Bridge

On Ewan's seat in the gardens.



Walked into the city and caught a train back to Janey's place. Good day!

Another day we drove up to the central coast and had lunch (a feast) with Tom.

Putty Beach from Tom and Kate's place

Did a bit of shopping in Castle Towers - calm inside, crazy in the car park - and a lot of reading and swimming in the Reid pool. Mish and Marina had their own Abbotsleigh reunion at the resort.



So we saw a few friends and that is always good. We're too far away to drop in for arvo tea, but you are all never far from our thoughts. And, PS to that, it's always good to get visits!

So, back at work. Summer hasn't kicked in here - today we're having gale force winds and rain. Gusts at 140 kph. Not that cold but a tad miserable. It's a long weekend too: Wellington Anniversary day (the province). Glad we're not camping at the beach.

But a couple of days ago we had a summery day so took mum out to lunch, up the coast at Paekakariki.