Building consent approved and we start to move stuff

It's approved! Our building work will begin within weeks.

That means imminent demolition of the mudroom at the back and everything in there has to come out. My dickey shoulder is a nuisance so we've enlisted the nephews to lug big heavy things around.

Today, Alexander came and he and Mish walked around the house with her big pine cupboard, in the rain. Days of hot dry weather and today - of course.

That and a bookcase came into the living room (it's going to be a tad cramped for a few months) and then some big pots outside and then concrete posts. The posts came out of the old fence and we've kept them for a future artwork. They're now out of the way for the duration of the build.

The rain increased and here are two drowned rats tackling that final job for the morning.

We do need rain and we love it - but that was bad timing. We're getting the remnant of Cyclone Kirrily from Queensland for a day or two of good rain.

Sunday lunch

Family lunch at our place on a warm spring day. Some photos from the youngest who walked around with the point and shoot.

Arriving shot: Andrea, Greg, Carol, mum, Rowan.

Around the garden shots, she was having fun with the camera. Oranges and coriander.

On the deck, relaxing: Cliff, Mish behind the post, Mark, Ness, Carol, Rowan, Dave, Greg hogging the bean bag.

There's Mish.

Mum at the front door.

Ness talking to a kid over the fence - kid was stuck and couldn't figure out how to get back down the very steep slope to the park below. Part of the landscape works we're doing is relocating our driveway flax over the fence to block the paths kids have created to run along our fence line. That'll fix em. Maybe.

Mish and Cliff inspecting the rock collection that runs alongside the steps. Most of them have been carted up from South Island beaches and rivers.

Colton having a play in the little digger left onsite over the weekend. This one is going to trench across the yard to lay electricity to the new gate position.

The photographer has run out of steam.

Road trip Blenheim and Christchurch

Over to the South Island on the ferry again. Big swell leaving Wellington harbour  but it was an exciting ride to be outside with the waves and, below, nearer the South Island, albatross and petrels. Another ferry on the horizon, heading for Wellington. Those wrist pressure bands for sea sickness - they work!

Heading into Marlborough Sounds. These guys just came topside. 

Car looks little down there - with bikes on.

First stop, Blenheim. Lovely cycle along the river paths and a night at the theatre watching Dan sing in Les Miserables. Next day, a bit of work picking olives for oil pressing. The trees are around Sue and Phil's house. Beginning the stripping of branches and dropping olives onto sheets of plastic for Phil to collect. He kept just ahead of us laying out sheets. That's guide dog in training Lincoln sniffing runaway olives.

Harvest about 100kg; made about 19 litres of oil and we scored a jar on the way back through Blenheim.

On to Christchurch, down the coast through Kaikoura and obligatory stop to watch baby seals and collect circular white stones at mint imperial beach (Kekerengu).

Mish got us an airy light-filled air B&B for six nights just out of the city and we had a good look around the city and environs.

First up, an organic fruit and veg market where a guy told us about the panoramic view up on the Port Hills. Bought some veg and headed up into the hills. He was right.

The Port Hills are a large area between Christchurch and the port of Lyttleton (which sits on the edge of an old volcano). We did get a terrific view west to the Southern Alps.

And east over Lyttleton harbour which formed from the crater of that volcano many years ago. A beaut day, the hills full of walkers and bikers and one butterfly expert who showed us a rare one.

And then down narrow roads into Lyttleton for lunch.

Jase came down with a cold so Mish and I headed out without him and cycled around some of the residential red zones of the city. Red zones are areas where houses were so damaged in the 2011 quake that part of the rebuild process has been to demolish hundreds of them in big grids. They now look like parks and are acres of old gardens and roads and footpaths, with just walkers and cyclists allowed. There's a bit of foraging going on. All that remains to show that houses were here are the overgrown driveways.

Hardly anyone around. Eerie to stand in an intersection where no car will ever drive again.

Wrecked footbridge that used to be over the Avon, now left by the river, as is where is.

In the city, the rebuild goes on. There are lots of new buildings and street art, and still lots of broken buildings and work to do. The cathedral is being rebuilt in the same style - after 10 years of debate about that - and it has a wonderful banner on the square. Here it is, from across the road inside the new library, which is a great space.

Walked down the road one night to trivial pursuit at the local pub (we came 11th out of 14 teams, but dinner was nice). 

Cooled off in the Antarctic experience, including being shut in an ice room while they turned the wind chill up, and a ride in an all-terrain Hagglund vehicle.

Saw our old Newlands neighbours Robyn and Sean and went for a walk on their part of the coast, with oystercatchers. 

New Brighton pier is there too.

Drove out to the French settlement of Akaroa on Banks Peninsula for the day. Very quiet there, no cruise ships and hardly any tourists. It was just us when we got out of the car at about 10am so we walked up a hill to earn lunch.

So, we saw some of Christchurch and loads more to see. We'll be back before another 20 years have passed. Headed back to Blenheim after six days, with a lunch stop at Kaikoura. 

The view from the pub:

More cycling at Blenheim, going in a different direction this time. 

 

And home on the ferry. In Picton for a waterfront walk with Sue before the afternoon sail. We're looking for rays.

 That ferry ride was a cool but calm trip with albatross and orca and a rusty dog. Can you see it?

Jase arrives (put him to work)

 Jason flew in late May and Mish was very happy. He's our first visitor since Covid arrived.

One cool day at the Bus Cafe, Te Horo beach.

Admiring one of our fabulous sunsets. We've red taped the french doors for winter as the drafts move the curtains. That'll fix it.

Then we put him to work shovelling soil into the big planter box for the crab apple. And here it is.

That was before we headed south to Christchurch, and today Mish had him planting the last of the citrus trees in the mini orchard. Jase with lemon.

Grape works

 Sue and Phil cycled by so we used Phil's expertise to bring the grape vine under control while Sue cleaned paddock poo off the bikes. Discovered four plants under the mass of leaves.

And set up a simple wire espalier in anticipation of delicious table grapes, the old fashioned ones, next year.

Saturday morning went over to Paraparaumu and checked out the market, came home with local produce like mushrooms and olive oil and bread. Discovered one street over from the market is the bigger fruit and veg market, so we obviously need visitors to make us see beyond our noses. 

And down the beach for an afternoon walk.

Working bee at mum's little house

To take care of a bunch of little jobs the city council want done. Rained in the morning then cleared to a cool spring day.

Greg and I went under the house in about two feet of space, reasonably light and airy, to add Z nails to each pile.


Let me tell you THAT aint easy. Commando actions and cricked neck, holding the nails against the pile to figure out if left or right nail is needed, then hammering lying down.

Mark went into the ceiling to add a couple of bracing timbers; there was drilling and siliconing, and hammering and sawing etc.

And lunch!




Nearly every job done now; one to go.

Meri Kirihimete!

Christmas eve eve in Wellington. AKA December 23. 

Got home  from the movies (At Eternity's Gate) and a Malaysian snack in town, just as the sun was disappearing over our western hill, so we recorded this song.

Merry Christmas and a happy new year!

Mischa & Carol X

Putting on the bike rack

Thanks to brother Greg (with his usual goofy photo expression) and his tools and our pipe wrench, ebike rack is on.



Yay!

Lights work, licence plate is in the mail; 25kg bike rock solid on.  I'm wearing many layers, and am not a 'chunky custard'  Mishy, well, maybe a little chunky. It was cool!

The month of May - in Australia

And we had a lovely autumnal time in the month of May, staying with pals from Tasmania to northern NSW.

We flew to Hobart via Melbourne on May 1, and stayed a few nights with Dave. He ran us around and up the mountain. Ferried over to MONA and walked around for hours.





Did the markets too, and saw an interesting doco about an outback Aboriginal women's choir: The Songkeepers. That changed our minds about German  Lutheran missionaries - they  did good!

Hired a car and drove up to Windermere and Launceston and stayed  a few nights with Merran on her lovely estate - so like Robertson. Pulled a few weeds, enjoyed the fire, hung out at the cafe, did a circuit of the Tamar River. and caught up with Ruth and Bronson who now have kidlets.



Then flew to Ballina and spent a couple of nights with Nicola and Jane, walking the beach boardwalk and more cafe time. Awesome view from their living room - I could have just stayed there.



Picked up another car and drove down to Rita and Sandy at Grassy Head. Had  a lovely little fish on the beach - no fish - and walks on beach and headland.



Drove to Sydney and Castle Hill and spent about 10 days there with John, Mischa's dad, doing family stuff. And cafes! Autumn in full swing around town, and some weird stuff, like jacarandas in flower (should be November), and spring bulbs out (in autumn). It's too dry and too warm.



Caught up with lots of old friends and family and  buddies from schools past, and all the new babes.




With a bit of shopping too, and some city time walking around the Vivid light show and art galleries.

Sydney is a construction site; cranes everywhere. Even seen through the trees from the Reid house now.