Breaker Bay
Princess Bay
Island Bay
Not sure what this bay is called.
In other news, there was a quick rain yesterday and a gorgeous rainbow manifested itself right outside our door:
The Pohutukawa tree. Known as New Zealand Christmas Tree because its large red flowers shower the country in festiveness this time of year. 
View out the train window.
We arrive!
A lion?
Dog doing a backflip?
Cute little pod critters spreading their wispy arms. Doing a choreographied dance?
Wonder what Santa will bring?
Our neighbor's cat, lounging on our balcony.
Sorry about the non-fastidious blogging, but we've been very busy!
Two weeks ago, we were job hunting. It didn't take long for us to score work, in fact both of us had job offers in hand after our first interviews.
So now I work at Inland Revenue, which is the NZ equivalent of the IRS. I do computer work there of course and everyone is friendly, laid-back, and good at what they do. J is working at a job very similar to his last one, and he is really digging it.
We were eating bread and ramen noodles for a while, until our first paycheck. PAY DAY! Like water in the desert. Now we can actually EAT at some of those restaurants we walk by and longingly stare at menus...
So yeah, everything is going really well here. We are having such a fantastic time!
But it's not all sunshine, lollipops, and rainbows.
I have to admit, there are a few things here that are less than fantastic.
For one, most sinks have both hot and cold water, HOWEVER, there is a faucet for each and they are separated – cold water on one side of the sink and hot water on the other. VERY hot water. The plumbers must have had a seperatist movement, and the result is there is no such thing as WARM water. Either hot, or cold, or else be fast and switch between freezing and scolding your hands to trick yourself into thinking that it's warm water. It's not. You've just got frostbite and burns at the same time is all.
And since we're on the topic of temperature, surely you have already read elsewhere that New Zealand homes don't have insulation. Well, it's true. Very true. Yes, nights can get down to 50F and sometimes even 45F. But this is not a huge issue, because while the kiwis think that is cold, it's barely cooler than the climate of a cave. Which would be pretty sweet to live in. But unfortunately for now we live in what many would consider a “hole”... and no, that's not close enough!
Another quirk is that they use the British pronunciation of “aluminum” which comes out of the kiwi mouth as a completely non-phonetic “al loo minnie um”. That's a whole extra syllable!
They call a stroller a “pram”... never heard that one until just the other day. The elevator is of course a “lift” and if you are on a computer you are probably going to surf the “weeb.” They often say "cheers" instead of "thanks" and "mate" instead of "friend". "Realise" is not spelled with a "z"but don't call it a "zee" because it's a "zed." The grammar police probably have me on their terrorist watch list already. Or maybe that's just an American thing.
Or perhaps I should ask "maybe that's just an American thing?" because nearly every sentence ends in a higher intonation, sounding much like a question. So it can be hard to tell when someone is just stating a point and when they are asking you a question. Imagine the difficulty in translating "I like you" - is it "I like you." or is it "I like you???" Clearly quite the conundrum.
Life's not a beach, or is it? This picture is foreshadowing so you decide.
One of the things that keeps me going in these trying times of extra syllables is the local fashion scene. The scene is not so much a scene, as it is a map. A map larger than just the tiny country of New Zealand. Which is to say that the fashion is really all over the place. But three themes tend to emerge time after time, at least in this city: boots, 80's, and wool coats. I suppose that is the jet-stream that weaves the diverse clothing climate together. Everything else is, well, just everything. Which is like fashion candyland. And luckily that means that the fabric stores are like the most wonderful candy shops in all the land.
Beautiful, soft, colorful candy - the cravings for which induced my first Thimblescratch NZ purchase: a $5 sewing machine. I can't seem to get it to work quite properly yet though, but as soon as I do I will be in “beesness” (do you suppose we got the term “bee's knees” from the kee wees?)... I bought an entire bolt of fabric from Salvation Army for $30, so I'll be making dresses and shirts as soon as my stitcher is tensioning again. But for now it's just a toilet paper holder.
Maybe it does work and I'm just not threading it properly.
And speaking of Thimblescratch... is it just me or are starving artists not able to afford to buy books they are published in? Because as I was browsing the local library's display (the theme for it was GREEN, as in, my favorite theme, and also as in what my dad would call “GREENAGE!”)... in the center of the display, between "Guerrilla Gardening" and “A Slice of Organic Life” was...
Cool Hunting Green
It's an Australian book also published in the states. I was thrilled beyond belief to see it. I was shocked to see it sitting the middle of the display. For this book, I have heard about, and I have been wanting to see it...
Because my Plasticoat is in it!!
I was, as they say in kiwiland, “positively chuffed”!
Into Kilbernie of course.
It looks like I photoshopped this photo but I didn't!
