Moving on...

Announcing- changes in my locale... I’ve accepted a term maternity leave cover position in Nelson, starting in just over a month!

When I moved to Blenheim I thought it was going to be my new home, like Nelson had been, however in my one year here it never came to feel that way. There are things I do like about Blenheim- it is sunny most of the time, rivalling Nelson for the most sunshine hours. There is the yummy kebab shop- Akbabas. There is the fact that traffic is not crazy most of the time- unless you’re waiting at one of the roundabouts after work. There is also the close proximity to Picton, and the sounds. I’ve appreciated my opportunity to live and work here, but I’m very eager to make the move back over the hill to Nelson- and rediscover it again. I’ve lived here longer than I lived there- and I wonder what it will be like when I return. I have a sneaking suspicion it will have changed more than Blenheim has in the past year.

I’ve been busy working on my correspondence law. I’ve submitted the first assignment, and there is one more to go before the exam in June.

I was hoping to do a camping trip in the South Island, but the coming change in work means I won’t be able to take time off. We did visit Whites Bay near Rarangi on the weekend. It has a cool looking hole in the rock and I’d be keen to visit again when the tide was lower. The surf and save club was out when we were there, practising their manoeuvres.

The NZ housing market appears to have slowed, which is good. There was a big news article a week or two ago saying that people would need to save a minimum of about $120K for a house deposit on even the most basic house, for a house purchase to be affordable. Milk, and dairy related products seem to be up. I just paid $1.779 / L of petrol today.

My march so far...

I thought the change of seasons had happened, but it's been really warm for the past couple of days. On the weekend a few friends and I attended the Havelock Mussel festival, where I did not eat any mussels. I did however manage to find a cheeseburger that tasted yum- like a good Canadian fair cheeseburger. Last time I tried that here at a festival I got a 2 pieces of bread with no sauce, and a thin burned burger. This one was good! :) We watched the mussel opening- those guys are fast, and the team event, and listened to the bands. It was a beautiful day to be outside, although the nasty sandflies managed to connect with my ankles. In som ways, they are worse than mosquitos.

Time changes here on 6 April, so its still a while. Its quite dark in the mornings.

I haven't progressed at all in the half training, having taken since my oral surgery off. Now I am finding it hard to be motivated, to go for a run in the am in the dark. Not sure how to change this, unless I get a gym membership. Maybe I'm only a fair weather runner.

I was up in Wellington last weekend for the weekend and took a "white knuckle" flight on Sounds Air. Its a tiny plane, it must fit about 12 passengers. We sat right behind the pilot- a quite young-ish looking fellow, which made me a tad nervous! Anyhow, the views of the sounds and the Straight as we flew over were beautiful- and it was a smooth ride save the normal bumps landing in windy Welly. The way back was on the Ferry- my first trip back across the straight on the water. Also a lovely day weather wise, (other than the wind) so it was nice to sit outside.

The fresh produce is out right now so its a great time to cook with veggies which are in season and cheap. Hurray! :) No paying heaps right now for my favourite peppers and tomatoes.

I tried out my inherited slow cooker a couple of weeks ago. It made a nice lasagna, although I must admit I got terribly tired of eating it before it was all gone. Living where I do means I don't have an oven, and so its nice to be able to get some nice warm oven-y type food.

My first assignment for law is due soon. Perhaps I'll work on it over the weekend, as I don't have anything exciting teed up for the easter holiday.