The Kaitoke Rivendell trail video blog

Episode 1:


Episode2:

Got Milk?

Ah those crazy little ads from the American Dairy Association.  I'm not sure what they are running today, but I do recall the milk industry doing a little marketing to keep us all consumers.  America is the number 2 milk producer in the world with you know 300 million people and all.  But did you know that New Zealand is the 9th largest dairy producer? Ninth... 3.5 million people.  That's a lotta milk per person.

Dairy is king here like corn is king in Nebraska.  New Zealand is still a very agricultural nation where milk export prices are tracked as closely as petrol.  Kiwis give their dairy a fair go too.  The standard cheese increment is the 1 kg block.  That's right, a normal Kiwi is picking up 2.2 pounds of cheese at a time and usually in a couple of flavours.  That's a lotta cheese.  We have a whole isle devoted to milk.  Each brand has different categories which I can only break down by cap colour.  They have names, but different brands use different names.  However, they all use the same cap colours.  You got your standard blue cap for whole milk.  Then you have green for light or what we would call 2%.  Then yellow for "enriched" milk in some way--like vitamin D or calcium added.  Then light blue which I think really skim milk.  We also have cream, but curiously no half and half.  Now what I have recently just discovered may explain this hole in the milk market.  It is "silver" cap milk and it is somewhat difficult to find.  It goes back to some "old school" days when milk was still delivered to your house.  Not so long ago in New Zealand.  I can't really define silver cap, but it is damn close to half and half.  It sorta looks like milk that may have only been homogenized and not separated.  But I couldn't really tell ya.  It has a thick coating of cream on the inside you have to shake up.  I worry it will turn to butter.

Dairy is entirely different here.  And great milk makes some pretty fine ice cream.  Just saying.

Mid 2011 in NZ

Folks always arrange the stones in the tidal flats to say different things. So far all of them have been pretty good messages.

Including short holiday with the boys to Abel Tasman / Nelson

Student Visa: Denied

Well, I've run out of any school options in New Zealand for Chandler.  What I find particularly maddening about it all is everyone acknowledges that if the paperwork was filed correctly, and all the fees paid, then he would be allowed access to any public school in New Zealand.  The only catch is that filing all those forms will cost $3000 and 6 months of processing.  By which time, my visitation is over and he'll be on his way home.

Recall that I started filing, calling, and writing to Immigration in about June 2010 and it has taken until March 2011 to finally get clear instructions about what is required for Chandler to attend a public school.  Had I filed for a full Residency application for Chandler, I still would have run afoul of the time it takes to process.  We ran in to this problem with our own application where the time it takes immigration to respond exceeds the limit they place on the data.. For example a medical check is only good for 3 months and it takes 6 months for them to process it... forcing you to get a second set of health checks and resubmitting your application.  Medical checks are not covered by any sort of insurance as they are totally voluntary.

Here's another annoying factoid... If I were an *illegal* immigrant, the Ministry of Education would allow my children to enroll without a Student Visa.  But because I have paid all my immigration fees and taxes (a Resident), I can't enroll Chandler without a Student Visa.  If I was here on a 30-month work visa... Chandler would be allowed a Student Visa... But again, because I'm actually a Resident, I can't do this.  I was told a few times this was to prevent the NZ tax payers from being burdened with paying for this education.  Well I'm one of those tax payers and I have been for 3 years.  Meanwhile illegal immigrants (not paying taxes) and Work Visa holders (protentially not paying taxes either) get the full benefit of public schools.  Additional insanity results when you consider my youngest son (who was part of my original Residency application) is going to public school and has been since our arrival in 2008.

One other gripe.  Legislation in NZ prevents the schools from reducing the International Student fees in any way.  There are no exception cases, no flexibility for the system to handle students in any sort of special circumstance or even temporarily.  This is really the key flaw of the system.  I understand the need to have solid requirements for Residency and Visas... but to use a system without any flexibility just serves to dramatically limit anyone willing to put up with it.

So NZ Immigration has successfully protected NZ tax payers from allowing a student from culturally participating New Zealand schools.  He won't take that experience back with him to the US.  He won't get to participate in NZ school sports.  He won't get the chance to meet other NZ students to make friends or plan future Overseas Experiences... I'm sure that protection will have a pay back.

In the meantime, we'll come up with some good home-study for Chandler.  But I can't do anything to make up for the friends he won't make.  I'll try to get him in to some other activies and we'll make do.  I'm just disappointed that we've allowed forms and policies to make our lives poorer.

Immigration: Student Visa

So last year we all talked for a long time and looked at options.  We decided my oldest son (13) living in the US could come live with us for a few months, attend school, and generally spend some time with us. 

About October 2010, I filed an application to get a Student Visa.  It was immediately rejected because Chandler was in the US, Immigration in NZ said the NZ Embassy in Washington DC had to process the application.  Okay... ship paperwork, FedEx to DC.  Again, almost immediately rejected.  They said we had to have proof of paying tuition at the school.  This was odd, because the school doesn't charge a tuition.  So we tried to explain that.  Immigration then said they needed an "offer of place" from the school.  By the time we got here, schools were out of session and no one could provide a letter of place.  A week before schools resume, we went physically to the intermediate school.  Again the office people refused to "do anything without a visa" but eventually we got them to look at the documentation we had from Immigration and they agreed.

It was then they noticed Chandler was too old to attend Intermediate... So we had to go to another school.  They knew more about foreign students and supplied a letter of place immediately.  By this time, after a year of planning, Chandler was already here.  We immediately re-file the application (3rd time) from Wellington.  Two and half weeks later (last weekend), Immigration refused to accept the letter of place as they now say Chandler must pay International Student tuition (over $13,000) to attend 6 months of pubic school.

I am a Resident of New Zealand.  100% of the time I have been here I have paid taxes, school fees, and extra support.  I shudder to think how much NZ has spent trying to decide if my 13 year old kid can attend public school for 6 months.  I'm not even sure what condition they are trying to control by placing such a restriction on a student visa.

While Chandler is here, he won't be covered by General Practioners (Doctors), just emergency care.  I (would) still have to pay school fees, uniform fees, school supply fees, event fees, etc.  But instead the NZ Immigration office is spending thousands of adminstrative tax dollars on preventing this.  I bet we could do better here. 

Thanksgiving 2010

Hey, today is Thanksgiving in the US and Friday after in New Zealand.

For the first couple of years we tried to do a little celebration here in Wellington.  But it was, of course, nothing like home.  A family holiday just isn't a family holiday with no family and when no one else is celebrating. 

NZ has a number of good substitutions so we certainly don't suffer from lack of great food or days off.  For me, I only miss the chance to get together with everyone, to putter around my parent's house, and get to hang out with my brother(s) and sister.  I haven't seen my nieces and nephew in years.  And of course I miss Chandler and Sabrina most of all.  **Hugs** for you all.

Today is beautiful.  A stunning warm day by the sea in New Zealand.  The other night the full spread of the southern stars were out.  The moon over the water is as stunning as the sun.  Life still has its complexities, but it is good.  I am thankful for all these things I have seen and done.  I am always hopeful for the chance to visit and see more family more often.  I take full advantage of each day by the beach.  I climb mountains and ride along coasts.  I tramp through cool woods and look out from wild high places.

Life is never perfect.  Life is always perfect.

Happy Thanksgiving one and all.  Looking forward to seeing you on the horizon very soon!

The Lakota

A long while ago I wrote this blog about Maori history.  I touch on the feeling that, for me, Maori history was so miraculous to read about because of the history in my own country.  I think most Americans know what has happened to our own indigenous population, but we don't dwell on it.  You couldn't... it is too much.  But I found this video last night and I thought I would re-post it.  It is not a happy TED video.  But I think it shows in stark contrast how the Lakota are treated compared to how the Maori have been treated.

Wellington has no Pay-At-Pump

Disclaimer: Author has not visited all petrol stations in Wellington region.  There are at least 2 completely un-manned pay-at-pump stations--1 of these just opened last week.

I pondered this the other day and felt this mild difference between Wellington an the US was note-worthy.  None of the petrol stations I visit have any facility to pay at the pump.  Many stations require that you pre-pay--especially at odd hours or for pumps that are in the ideal jet-away-illegally position.  But they just don't do pay at the pump.

To me, this is particularly odd since Kiwi's live and die by their EFTPOS (debit card) for virtually everything.  The coffee cart in the parking lot will take one.  Even the gas station will take it at the register... just not at the pump.  I don't know if the system to set this up is just seen as added expense or what.  Certainly adding the feature now would be a cost sink and probably couldn't be made up with petrol sales so the pump owners would have to just absorb it.

In some ways this is quintessential Kiwi.  Folks here are very stingy about value.  Few things are done merely for convenience, it has to have real meaningful value.  Paying at the cashier only takes a few more minutes.  As the crime rate rises, they might drive toward it as a safer option for midnight cashiers, but just to save a few minutes for the average punter? yeah nah, bro (means No).  The attitude is something like "Go inside like everyone else.  Talk to real human. Buy some coffee."

There are 2 fully automated stations with no attendants, but these appear to really only be used commercially.  I tried using it once and eventually had to give up.  They are not like the dummy-proof devices in the US.  There is one pay station and you have to select which pump you're paying for and know how much you're going to pump in advance, etc.  Even then I couldn't get the damn thing to work.  So for purposes of this discussion, I can still say there isn't really a pay-at-pump option.

One could also say that New Zealand is just behind the times a bit.  This is often repeated.  I think the Beatles are even quoted as saying New Zealand was just like the UK... in the 1800's.  So I suppose it isn't surprising that this modern frivolity is absent.  And that's really the point of this post.  NZ is not striving to be at the cutting edge of modern.  NZ typically does not attempt to deliver every convenience.  The very idea is distasteful to Kiwis.

PopPop Tour 2010

Well over the last couple of months we had my Father-in-Law staying with us.  Our winter has been particularly cold and wet this year so the visit didn't have quite as much outdoor action as last year.  But we did get several great Wellington days.  There are a few things that living in paradise allows one to do.  You can, when opportunity strikes, sit down for the sort of moment you only see in travel posters.  Families come together over food so a lot of these stories do have to do with eating.  Of course this isn't the only thing we did!

We took PopPop to the Waterfront Kitchen over in Raumati.  You'd miss this little turn off if you managed to look right instead of left for about half a second.  When you drive in to this parking lot you wouldn't think much of it either.  But this humble "bar" sits on the shore of the Kapiti Coast in full breath-taking view of Kapiti Island.  Facing the west, the sunsets here are spectacular.  So it has the view, the beach, and a bar... so you have to sacrifice good food right? Wrong.  The food here is the best I've had in any "fine" restaurant--and surely blows the doors off any chain restaurant.  Gabe loves the chocolate cake here more than about anything.  Another bonus to the Waterfront Kitchen is that the drive to it is probably the most amazing coastal drive I've ever seen.  It was very good to share this with PopPop!

One of the other standout moments was a simple pizza in Day's Bay.  There is a little pizza shop on the east side of the harbour.  This also provides a wonderful view of the sunset behind the Wellington hills.  It is winter here so sunsets come early.  On this particular day we rushed off to dinner right after work.  It was a warm day.  Amy was busy so it was just the 3 of us guys.  It was a fantastic day to sit on the shore with a delicious freshly made pizza and a cold coke.  The evening was calm and we watched the lights of Wellington flicker on over dinner.

These things are just little things.  But they are so perfect and I never have to go very far.  It was a great visit with Don.  I think next year I will be trying very hard to find motorcycle gear for him so we can do a few of the very short/easy rides around Wellington.  They are not the power-road-trips of the USA, but they certainly are full of perfect moments.

All things Work and Home

It's been a while since I posted here.  As I've commented before, the "micro" blogging tools like Facebook and Twitter seem to reduce the need to write--probably artificially.  No excuses--just saying.

So what's been up?  Too much work.  I have a large project that just hit it's busy stride in May/June/July.  I think it should calm down a bit, but the project wounds are still fresh so much smaller annoyances seem to derail me with greater effect.  It's hard to put so much energy and time in on a thing only watch it flounder.  This difficult enough by itself, but there was about a 30 day stretch where it appeared I was being held personally responsible for a degree of the failures.  I suppose in the Royal We way I am part of the project so I am part of the team.  But this was particularly hard to take as it seemed the customer was quite happy with what was happening.  My own management team was not.  Of course, in business you have to keep your bosses happy and I suppose that was my mistake.  I still find this de-motivating.  But that's business when you work for someone else.

Aside from work we've been shivering our way through a cold winter in Wellington.  I've seen frost on several days this year.  It was even so cold that my motorcycle wouldn't start for a week.

My father-in-law flew in for his usual trip in July/Aug to see us, the grandson, and participate in the grandson's birthday.  I feel a bit sorry for the old guy this year as the weather has been awful! But even bad weather in Wellington is pretty mild.

We took a few days to drive up the west coast to Hawera again.  We visited the museum there with my folks a year ago, but Don (father-in-law) had not seen it yet.  On the way we stopped in Wanganui and Patea.  I can't tell for sure, but I think a hear an unspoken "aw yuck" in front of Wanganui whenever I mention it.  LOL.  I get the impression that most Kiwi's aren't impressed with the city.  While it doesn't offer a ton, it is nice stopping point and does have a pretty fun kid park with great, dare I say, vintage playground equipment and a whizbang flying fox.  On this trip we did make time to see the local museums which were interesting if not huge.

Patea isn't far north of Wanganui, but is barely a spec on the map... and let me tell you, the specs on NZ maps are specs indeed.  I think Patea is all of 6 blocks long.  Its primary feature is the road to its beach.  There is a river mouth here which was one of the first sea ports used in New Zealand, but this port was completely abandoned in 1956.  Patea certainly hasn't thrived since.  What remans is a partially protected swimming beach with massive waves.  Outside the sea walls you have some of the rawest ocean I've experienced in New Zealand.  Waves larger than a man or 2 men.  This stretch is one of my favourites.  The sand here is deep black with sparkling flecks of mica.  The shore stretches north to high vertical cliffs.  The view is even complete with a ship wreck of some ridiculously old vessel containing a boiler.  Another interesting bit was we found heaps of rock with deep "pock" marks in them.  The kind of thing you'd expect to see in a cave that dripped on soft stone over a million years.  Looking at the cliffs I'm guessing there are a few sea caves there and these rocks probably started in them.  Each place we go has so much to discover.

The Tawhiti Museum continues to be excellent.  They even added something completely new this year.  A Whalers & Traders "river" ride.  They built a huge shed and dug a channel through it for a river.  Then they filled it with life sized scenes of NZ whaling themed events.  There was a ship trading muskets to Moari, gun/cannon fight in the bush, and a Maori village trading with white settlers.  The detail was amazing.  Hawera is barely more than a spec itself--maybe 6 specs collectively.  But this is still one of the best museums covering NZ history that I've found.  Of course, I have not tried to fully explore Auckland yet.  I would expect the countries largest city to have something pretty grand.

On the way home we drove through Palmerston and again I was struck by what nice towns NZ has.  Palmerston had quite a bit of stuff to do for being a "small" city.  This really is small in New Zealand.  But they did have a Harley shop and a Steam Museum which we'll have to check out again later.

Amy and I have managed to get out to a couple movies.  I seem to have no lack of pizza in my life so all is good.

We are waiting for the last bit of immigration paperwork and then I think we're clear.  We're talking tentatively about having Chandler come stay with us in 2011 to go to school here and then swap to have Sabrina for a year too.  I really hope that works out, but it all still discussions for now.

That's the update from the South! Talk at y'all later.

Two and Half Years in New Zealand

This June our original 30 month Work to Residence application is up.  We arrived in Jan 2008 from Overland Park, KS.  We sold our house, gave away about a third of everything we owned and attempted to sell our 2 cars.  At the time of our decision the exchange rate was in the 80's and even with all things considered it was an income cut to move.  We had 6 weeks of a Serviced Apartment booked in Wellington, our 6 suitcases, and the 3 of us.

We found a home to rent in about 3 weeks.  We had a car leased in 4 weeks.  We used the small bit of cash we had to pay for a few new appliances in our home.  A co-worker generously let us borrow a trailer load of "camping" gear to live with until our container arrived.  The rest of our stuff appeared in record time about 6 weeks after we arrived.  No one I've talked to got their stuff faster.  Our son enrolled in Waterloo Primary School and started in Feb with the rest of the class.  Within about 2 months we were, more or less, fully established in Lower Hutt just on the east side of the Wellington harbour.

The first 6 months was a constant exercise in "What is different?" Everything from ketchup, to banking, to eating out, to politics were all different in small to significant ways.  It took a good year before I stopped noticing the differences in everything.  Change is stressful, even when desired and good.  We all struggled at some point.  We missed family.  We missed Mexican food.  We missed the ease we had from familiarity.  It took a while to get used to.

Financially the story gets alarming.  The costs were higher than we expected and we expected high costs.  But we did adjust.  We've not really suffered, but we certainly have prioritized.  The exchange rate dropped from 80 to 60 to 70 then to 50 before making a slow recovery to 70 again; recently it is dropping again below 70.  Dramatic shifts made paying bills difficult and then impossible.  We had to rework a lot of things and even cashed out retirement funds to make settlement payments to the bank.  The worst part was our 2 cars never sold and all we could do was let the finance companies re-claim them.  After 2 and half years, I think we're mostly stable.  We are not losing money, but we are not saving effectively either.  We still rent the same place.  We ended the lease on the NZ car after about year.  It was cheaper to buy one with cash.  Our biggest bills are US debt, Rent, Gas/Electric, and groceries (in that order).

Our story started with a job offer from Telecom NZ so I had employment immediately.  Amy struggled for over a year to find a job.  It proved difficult to get interviews as an immigrant.  However, once you did get hired, work history helped smooth the way for other employment.  In general, the work here has an easier pace compared to the US.  All the employers I've talked to seem to understand a more natural rhythm to families and work.  Holidays are bunched up at the end of the year being summer school vacation, Christmas, New Year's, and Waitangi Day (sort of the NZ founding day).  This makes the work load from November to February pretty light.

New Zealand today (and historically) seems to be shaped by two major themes; small population and geographic remoteness.  Everything seems like a small town.  Truly remote areas are so sparsely populated you might not see another human for miles.  But even a short 45 minute trip out of Wellington can get you to an empty coast line or scenic rolling hills.  Small populations mean small economies.  Folks don't move to NZ to get rich.  It might be comparable to moving to Montana or South Dakota; mostly rural with only a few focal points of wealth.  Being a remote country and really not even "on the way" to anywhere means that, unless you're really trying to get to New Zealand, you won't end up there.  Without the same profit motivations as say, Australia, growth in NZ is slower.  Markets are mostly saturated and there are not going to be "new" markets.  What you see is what you get in New Zealand.

We have watched the politics of NZ unfold around us and we are certainly affected by the changes, but we haven't really participated much.  The long established Labour party was voted out and replaced by the National party.  I don't know that either of them have great platforms... so about the same as the US.

One big change for me is that I can barely read US news sources any more.  The stories are horrific by comparison.  The details of torture, murder, and gruesome death have become just too shocking to read.  The scandals of top politicians, hate mongering, and religious zealotry are hard for me to acknowledge.  I struggle to comprehend that I am from that place.  NZ has its share of social issues, but seems to completely lack carnage, seedy scandal, or extremism.  Violent crimes occur.  Horrible things still happen in bad circumstances.  But there still is plenty of room for other news.

So what now?  Well, we've applied to become Residents.  We have to make all the same immigration hurdles we made the first time.  This is quite expensive to pay for again (well over $3000 total), but should be the last "serious" round of checks.  My job offer with Telecom is indefinite.  I do good work and while Telecom has plenty of problems, I feel like I can make it better.  I don't know how much longer we'll stay.  Perhaps another couple of years.  I would like to take the stability we've had and turn it back in to a retirements savings and investments.  That could take another 5 years.  If that plan worked out, then I think we would all be just fine with it.  Sometimes I wish New Zealand wasn't quite so far away or quite so under populated... but then I remember that New Zealand would be none of the things I love if it was.

Wellington Station

I felt like posting a brief bit about my train station today.  You know in Kansas City we had Union Station which was essentually a museum.  Of course you couldn't move the train yards (or the station) so it still looked like it had trains, but the station itself had long been abandoned as anything related to passengers or rails.  It is a magnificient building and the city has put it to good use.  We enjoyed going there even though it was still painfully clear that Union Station struggled (even as an entertainment locale).  But I did like just imagining what it was like in its own days of use.

Now I live in Wellington and we have a real rail service.  I ride the trains several times a week.  Wellington Station was built in 1934 and is a smaller cousin to Union Station.  It share the same styles and construction.  Its open entry square had massive tall ceilings and great high arched windows.  Windows that, in their day, would have been the only climate control for the building.  I'm sure Wellington Station suffers as a modern business office, but it is still a train station.  10's of thousands of people come in to Wellington Station every day.  You don't have to imagine the hustle and bustle, just show up at 8:00 AM.  People of all means cross the tiles and go out the steps.  Musicians will often set up and play.  Volunteers flock to the doors looking for spare change for charities.  There are no less than 5 coffee shops.  A dry cleaner is stationed at Platform 9 and 3/4ths.  There is a also a well stocked medium-sized grocery store which is quite convenient for an odd item or two on the way home.

Yes, the trains are unreliable at times.  Yes, TranzMetro struggles to make a profit.  Yes, tax payers do subsidize the trains.  But they still work amazingly well.  I hope we see more of them around the world.

My kiddo the published artist!

Gabe's art was selected for a Worm Farm company in New Zealand.

Country Music in NZ

omg... i just found a website of NZ County music clubs
and i'm all like yay!
and there is this...
Club Day:
3rd Sunday or the month at 1pm (their typo, not mine)
Rotorua RSA, Haupapa Street, Rotorua (behind the Police Station)

*clunk*
one sunday a month in Rotorua is country music day... after 1

For what it's worth...

http://www.nzcountrymusic.org.nz
http://www.nzcountrymusic.net
http://www.countrymusic.net.nz

*sigh*

Suzuki DL650 V-Strom

My head was turned by this tourer style bike on Hutt highway the other day.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suzuki_DL650_V-Strom

I love how wiki has everything...

Anyway, I liked the upright yet still slightly forward position, I was envious of the windscreen, and I thought the whole setup looked versatile.  It is only in hindsight that I see the VStrom is in the same niche as the Multi-Strada although heaps cheaper and probably not as techno as a Ducati. (I looked at these last year).

I hopped down to Welly Motorcycles and checked one out.  I can't ride one until I get a Full Licence of course, but I was just looking anyway.  I am far too broke to even think about $15,000 motorbikes, but I still like to look.  At first glance it was too big to me.  The ferring is wider than I'm used to (by "used to" I mean none) and it seemed too tall.  I wasn't sure how well I'd be able to stand up with it.  But once all the shop mooks were out of view (so they couldn't mock me), I got up on it.  I was very surprised to feel how what looked like such a big bike from the side turned in to "no big deal" when I was on it.  I had no problem with the height and I could instantly see the appeal of the riding position and instruments.  So I guess I have to officially add "tourer" bikes to my "must check out" list when I think about the next one.

I still go back and forth deciding if I ever need a bike bigger than 250cc.  I know I would like such a bike for special roadtrips, but those opportunities are so rare that it seems silly to go for a "road bike" when 99% of my use will be commuting.  The DL650 would be a luxury commuter, but still a good commuter.  Something more "harley" like a V-Star or Boulevard would sure look cool, but not sure they would be "better" commuter bikes. 

But then I have nothing but time.  My L licence is due in March.  Then I'm on Restricted for at least 3 more months (probably 6 unless I pay extra).

Hope all is well in the great white north.  I keep hearing about the snow, but I just can't seem to care! 

A Real Pickle

Okay this may seem weird, but I can't find a dill pickle in all Wellington.  NZ seems to have 25 kinds of sweet pickle in all the sliced and whole varieties, but they are all very distinctly sweet pickles.  I would say in general every sauce or familiar dish in NZ is sweeter than the American equivalents.  Don't mention this to Kiwi's as they universally deny having a "sweet tooth".  Strangely although every meal might be sweeter than the norm, the don't indulge in many purely sweet deserts.  Their pasteries are often just a shade or two from bland.

But back to pickles... Can't find them.  I've decided to experiment with the least sweet pickles I can find and adding my own dill to them and see how they turn out.  Any fellow expats and/or Kiwis know of these things called Dill Pickles?

The year 2009

     2009, where did it go?  It feels like I rolled over in bed and discovered it was 2010.  "Damn, slept in late!"  Yet, when I think back I can recall a full year of events.
     For me the year started with an amazing hope.  The election in the US rolled across the whole world with a wave of optimism.  At the time, I had not realized how important that election was.  When it happened, I was not prepare for my own feelings of it.  It was good.  Of course, reality being what it is, the world has still struggled in 2009.  I am not envious of Obama's place in history.  I hope he does well.
     We had many fantastic visitors this year.  My folks came down in January, then my Mom again with my kids in June.  My father-in-law, Don, was down in July--as he had the year before.  His sister, Maurine, joined us for a couple of those weeks.  Lastly, and not the least, Amy's step-mom, Cindy, who many thought could never make the trip, flew down for a week to pick up Gabe in December.  He is with all his grandparents now on holiday and will be back in Feb.  If we were to count days, we spent about 3 and half months with visitors in New Zealand.  I spent a week in Kansas in October for the kids' birthdays.  There is something entirely different about visiting with family for many days or weeks.  I remember seeing folks for a single occasion or just a dinner.  We'd chat and have a good time, but it doesn't compare with sharing a home with them for days.  It is a good thing.  I look forward to it.
     Of course we lost many people in 2009.  Two of my good friends lost their fathers.  My dad died in November.  Another dear friend lost her 19 year old son.  Always we are left with more questions than answers.  The world lost many... some good, some bad, and some that were hard to tell.  Humans were terrible to each other in some places and kind in other places with less media attention.  I have no scale to measure this year against other years.  Life remains a perfect balance between tragedy and miracle that is unevenly meted.  May we all find strength when we need it and share joy when we find it.
     My family is doing well.  I found my brother, Nathan, who I had lost for some 20 years.  Not only did I find Nathan, but he had a daughter in October.  My other brother, Justin, added to his family the easy way and adopted Kingsley just this year.  Many family members on my Dad's side have found me and we have talked.  I now have seven children in the generation after me.  Strange to think about.
     I have seen glittering black sand beaches with crashing turquoise and white waves.  I have seen volcanoes in the distance.  In Kiakoura we saw seals and perhaps the most beautiful vistas on Earth.  At the Abel Tasman park I witnessed the most beautiful sunsets of my life.  Each and every day, I have admired the Wellington harbour.  Many days I have sat at a cafe with a view to the water with a cappuccino and marvelled at how good life can be.
     Each year will have its struggles.  2009 was not easy, but I lived.  2010 looks to be a year of greater promise and perhaps greater challenges.  Whatever comes, I will be happy to live it.  When I find joy, I will share it.  When I need strength, I will ask for it.  To all who have made my life wonderful, I give a deeply felt and humble, thank you.

The Trouble with Twitters

I've discovered a problem with Twitter and Facebook.  While they are great communication tools they have limited or no archive.  One of the most valuable things I thought would result from blogging was the lasting archive of what I wrote.  Much like a diary, I could go back and re-live the things I wrote about.  So while FB and Twitter are awesome for sharing brief moments of my day, they suck at the archive.  There is nothing to be done about though other than just try to write and post more often.

These last 3 months of the year have been crazy.  I have a very active project at work and so many other real-life things that it has nearly squeezed out time for extra things like blogging.  Still I see vast area for improvement.  My time management skills at home could be improved quite a bit.  It is a struggle to keep up with calls and correspondance.  But it is all part of the trade-off of moving to an island.  If i were still in Kansas right now, I'd be freezing inside and probably complaining about all the time needed to go visiting every weekend.  Lives are full no matter what you do *grin*.

Gabe finished a school project.  It is due today.  We did an experiment on evaporation.  While not the most scientific of topics, it did go over the basics of how to do a project.  In case anyone wondered... water does not evaporate all that quickly during a rainy cool week in Wellington by the sea.  Like really not at all.

I have spent a lot of time on personal reflection.  My Dad died which I suppose makes anyone think about things.  But even more than this I have just been thinking about life.  I have not come to any profound conclusion and I am not seeking any specific answers.  I guess it is just good to review things now and then and see if anything needs to be re-filed.

I do want to get back to writing much more.  I know some new tricks.  I know music greatly enhances my muse.  I know I need to chart out when I feel like writing and see what I can do to make myself available for writing in those times.  I suppose it is all steady progress toward a goal.  I find that living each day is just so enjoyable I am not driven to improve things greatly.  I hope this is a good thing and not a sign of complacency or laziness.  I am looking forward to Christmas and a long holiday after.  There are certainly some great advantages to kiwi life :-) .

Micro-Blog

I have so much I want to write about that I am paralyzed with it.  So in an effort to dislodge I'm going to blast out micro-blogs on each topic.  Hopefully I can expand again later...

My Dad:
Dying, but looking pretty good.  Chemo was stopped so that makes you feel better.  Visit was emotionally complex, but ultimately good.

My Kids:
Totally awesome to see them. Great to spend so much time just following them around from school to home and such.  Good to talk with their teachers.  Field trip with Sabrina was one of the best times I've had.  I put 2000 miles on the car I borrowed from my in-laws (Thanks Judith and Cindy!)

Vegas:
Still the same.  The Bellagio may be my favorite hotel of all time.

The US:
It was actually hard going back.  Vegas didn't help as it is an exaggerated version of all things excess in America.  I was battered by it somewhat.  Everyone I visited with was working harder than before, more stressed, and generally stretched.  It was an incredible favor to be able to stay with Carey and Graham while I was there (thanks!).

Wall Street:
I read an article about how fundamentally illegal market manipulation may have collapsed 3 of the 5 big banks in America.  The article was posted in Rolling Stone which I found odd.  But despite the most glaring and flagrant manipulation no official investigation was underway.  Most concerning is that if you looked at who had the most to gain such an act you would see the other 2 banks.  There were many suspicious dealing by these 2 leading up to the collapse.  I am appalled to now think these crooks will never be held accountable and the money they stole from Americans will never be given back.

NZ History:
I have been reading "The Penguin History of New Zealand" (Penguin is a book publisher here) by Michael King.  It is insightful and well written.  I am delighted to read about the amazing journey NZ has taken.  I am surprised to discover that for at least a generation, NZ did not teach this history which is rich in culture and identity.

NZ Stock Exchange:
I have begun to write letters to the NZX to ask if the scheme above could happen in NZ.  I would push them to make sure it is not.

NaNoWrMo:
Yes, it is coming up.  But I again don't think it is something I can push for.  But I am sure to write some.  I will likely work more on Threshold--the projected I started last NaNoWrMo.

The Ex:
While in the US I also had to work on a new agreement with my ex.  Such things are always stressful, but we worked really well together.  As a result of the compressed schedule we had to spent more time together than we have in probably 10 years.  It was weird, but it was also good to demonstrate how much we had both changed and moved on.

Motorbikes, Trains and Automobiles:
We bought a small cheap car to replace our leased car.  This will give us more cash back per month.  With the motorbike option I can actually commute cheaper than the the train.  But NZ weather can be unpredictable so I keep a 10-trip pass handy for the worst of days.  Overall though, the new set up looks good.  Amy drives the car to work and I take the bike/train.  Gabe goes to good kiwi gal's house after school 3 days a week.

US Shopping:
I did take advantage of US shopping to get a few goods.  Mostly bulk Ibuprofen and Asprin.  But I did stop at a western outfitter and pick up stuff you truly can not get in NZ... I got new boots with silver tips, several western shirts, and new jeans.

Work:
Busy as, but doing well.

Kiwi Spring:
Cold as, bro.

Party I want to have:
I want to host a Battlestar Galactica party featuring a few episodes, a BBQ, and some play of the BSG board game.  Not sure I will... but I think of it fondly.

The Wellington Zoo

The sign that inspired it all.

Zebras will crush your head. Aren't they cute?

A story in warning signs.