Birds @ the Beach

First day at the beach we were joined by this Sandpiper who was obviously on a leave of absence from the Sandpiper Inn in Union Pier, Michigan. We tied a message to his leg sending our greetings to all of our friends on the Great Lake.

Pelicans are really amazing creatures and smart enough to perch next to the bait shop in case any fishermen get careless. Across the water is a glimpse of another house that I wish I owned, viewed from my favorite table at my favorite restaurant, while eating a seared tuna sandwich with a glass of chardonnay. The wine was nothing great, but the sandwich sure was. Had to come back the next day just to make sure. Still was.

This pelican is the best-looking mailbox on our street. Still not too far from the beach, and a flock of his friends flies over every day. Who knows? Maybe one day he'll join them.

O Christmas Tree

Merry Christmas to all of our friends from Ann Arbor to New Zealand.

We're Not in New Zealand Anymore, Toto

Ya know everything is bigger and better in Texas............. I could tell you that this is our beach house, but..........it's not. However, it is just down the beach from us next to a very popular fishing access.

You might notice that I am wearing fewer clothes .......85 degrees here in Galveston....on the beach, and yes! I have been in the water - up to my ankles. The surfer dudes are wearing wet suits. Pansies! Observe the tire tracks on the sand......don't wanna go no place in the Lone Star State without that uber pickup truck.

Yep! The sun still sets in Texas. Unfortunately, it reminds us how far we are from NZ and the world's cutest grand sun.

Hei Kona ra Aotearoa

What is greater than a day at the beach? Sun and sand and shovels and pails and the world's busiest tot to keep one distracted. What seemed like a long sojourn looking ahead in May is more like a mere day trip, looking back. There's still too much to see......too much to do. And can you believe ...........no one even mentions how courageous I am to wear the M out in public.

Just when you think that sunsets couldn't possibly be more spectacular..... they are. And after several days of lively winds, the sea was very calm today with people taking advantage of the fine weather and splashing around in the water during low tide. Really hot and muggy for the first time. I know. I know. You're enjoying the ice and snow. Did I mention that we had an earth quake at 1am?

So we bid farewell to New Zealand and its beauty and head for LA and the U S of A.

1-2.......Buckle My Shoe

One - two.......buckle my shoe, Nenah.
Three - four, close the door.
Five -six, pick up sticks.
Seven - eight, lay them straight.
Nine - ten, start again.

Yep. We're doing it all, and now I know the real meaning of that nursery rhyme. Moi and the world's most spoiled grandchild (note the shirt) are very busy in the garden. He's very happy bouncing around in his new sandals. I'm just happy I can still get down that close to the ground.

A windy, grey day......but look - we're not wearing jackets! I'm sure that you are bundled up in Ann Arbor. Thank goodness for the Waterfront bistro with its fish & chips and great view of Kapiti Island. Gurnard was the fish of the day, but there weren't any fishing boats going out today. Too windy.......even the seagulls were hunkered down into the sand. Notice my new shoes - silver (trendy here). Unfortunately, my ones from my favorite shop in AA couldn't survive the sand and sea.

And these are the shoes I wish I had bought. This pair was purchased on Cuba Street in Wellington, but they're actually from Chicago...........doing what they can to help the trade deficit.

Coincidentally, I'm reading Snow Flower and the Secret Fan which includes details about the custom of binding young girls' feet in China. Talk about shoes that pinch your toes......what about bindings that break your toes? I'd rather be barefoot on the beach.

December Too Soon

The bird of paradise plants are in bloom.

24 days untilChristmas.

10 until departure.

Fairest Flower

The roses are along the fence enclosing an olive grove. Everywhere you look there are roses in bloom - cascades and waterfalls and oceans of them.
The blooming shrub (left) is in our neighbor's garden. I don't know its name, but it has the most heavenly aroma - honeysuckle and lilacs. It is everywhere also, including the beaches (can you blame it?), and is probably some invasive transplant brought over from the UK. Not so bad as some of the other imported pests. (Not talking about us from the US.)

And these last two beautiful blossoms arrived clenched in the little fist of the world's cutest charmer. "For you, Nenah."

Mirror , mirror, on the wall,
Who's the fairest flower of them all?

Do you have to ask?
Easy peasy.

Turkey Time

Are you kidding? Of course, we would rather be in the kitchen stuffing a pumpkin and baking a turkey pie, but someone has to be over here keeping an eye on these Kiwis.

We feel truly blessed - thankful to be in NZ and thankful to have such great friends (and family) in AA and many other cities in between. So.......we'll be thinking of you. And, in case you're wondering, the water is warm. After all, it is the south Pacific.

THe Artist @ Work

Now I'm trying to capture some of the beauty of New Zealand with paints and pastels. Alas! It's going to be impossible to bring all this home with us. Words, photos, sketches just can't do it justice. However, there's a lot of fun in the effort. How old was Grandma Moses when she started painting?

Ain't No Sunshine

And the sun goes down on another season of Michigan football. Hey! Don't blame us - we were out of town. In fact, we were on the other side of the world........nowhere near the Big House. Heard it was a wet and miserable day. Don't know whether to boo hoo or just boo. Oh, Blue.

OSU-Michigan

It's the big game, but no one here knows or cares. In fact, we'll have to listen to the play by play.......on the radio......on the internet......on our deck......watching the Pacific. Go Blue. OH-IO.

http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=305767

Birds of a Feather

Pukekos and black swans (the latter with the world's cutest non-bird) at the Nga Manu Nature Reserve. We also saw some kiwis here, but they were enclosed in the nocturnal house so it was difficult to see them let alone get a picture. They are scampering creatures...... definite type-A personalities, but because they are creatures of the night, few people have actually seen them in the wild.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiwi

My Garden

Lavender blooms all year and needs no tending......how easy is that? Who needs splashy blossoms when one has a view of the sea? I don't. It's the leaves that put forth the aroma, and at one point I thought I would harvest them and make sachets for everyone. Fortunately that urge passed rather quickly.

The patch of green with the swing is the lawn, and it gets cut with a weed eater - usually in the midst of a driving rain. It seems as though the lawn-care guys wait for bad weather before they rev up their motors. Often they wear rain gear and shorts - always shorts - even on the most blustery days. I don't think it's a macho statement as much as a sexual display. Many men here have great legs and are nice enough to let us admire them - kind of like women and mini skirts. You know, the got it and flaunt it thing. However, I digress. Because the terrain is so steep, weed eaters are much more common than mowers. You even see highway crews trimming along the roadsides with them......an endless job out there in the garden.

Our Neighbor's Garden

This garden has almost everything you can think of..........roses, iris, lemon trees, native New Zealand plants............and the ocean on the other side. How good can life be? Makes you want to dig in the dirt!

My Daughter's Garden

Gardens flower all year long on the Kapiti Coast, but now that we're coasting into summer the blooms are just a riot of color and refuse to observe any boundaries or limits. These shots are along the footpath surrounding daughter dearest's cozy castle. On the other side of the palisade I noticed some courgette seedlings (probably at least partially planted by you-know-who) in the veggie plot, and there are my favorite daisies here, there, and everywhere. The world's smallest gardener picked one for his nenah yesterday. Sometimes he doesn't let me go into the garden myself because "it's too grubby." He, of course, is the brightest blossom in all the gardens.......even when he's "grubby."

I Wanna Hold Your Hand

So many places to go........so many things to see.........so many hands to hold. The WCG can be a handful. (is that a pun?) Remember when reaching up and holding onto a hand made us feel totally safe? Life was so much simpler then. Of course, I am reaching an age when people are insisting on holding my hand again. A lot of times the world's most active grandchild grabs your hand to lead you where he wants to go - or where he wants you to go.

Middle photo is yesterday splashing in a stream which empties into the sea. The future Jacques Cousteau's mother had just put a shirt on the world's cutest explorer who had been celebrating the arrival of summer immersed in the sand and water wearing only his birthday suit and his sun hat (gotta remember that hole in the ozone). Auntie R insisted that her feet were frozen, but no way was she letting go of that little hand.

Maybe we should all hold hands more often. Couldn't hurt.

@ the Beach

Every day's a new day....isn't that the name of a song? Well, so true at the beach - some days are two or three new days. Things can change that quickly. These photos show the glories of early summer...........abundant shells, gorgeous flowers, and having your boat helped over the surf by the tow tractor. Nevertheless, the captain still had to get into the water and push his baby into deeper water. Should have checked the tidal charts.

I'm still wearing my jacket, but we did see a few people lying on the sand with their bare limbs exposed to the sun's rays. Never can get that temperature thing right - it's too hot when the sun's shining and there's no wind, too cool when the sun is shining and the wind is blowing, and almost cold when there's no sun and lots of wind. And here the winds come from all directions. Well, we are on an island in the middle of the ocean.

Guy Who?

It's Guy Fawkes Day (or Bonfire Day) in NZ. Not quite so spectacular as July 4, but what is?
Who is (was) he? Why are we celebrating? Who knows??!

http://www.novareinna.com/festive/guy.html

http://www.irish-cream.com/guyfawkes.html

At any rate, people go out and buy boxes of fireworks at the local discount store and set them off in their gardens. Our favorite daughter and her family treated us to a lamb BBQ and a pyrotechnic display out above our beach. A few strays sent us scrambling to the safety of the house, and the WCG insisted that was "enough fireworks" although he was delighted to stay up waaaaay past his bedtime.

USA - USA

I sometimes feel that we are goodwill ambassadors here in NZ and are representing all of you in the US of A. (Note the American and New Zealand flags on my lapel pin.) And how many of you know who our ambassador to New Zealand actually is?

http://wellington.usembassy.gov/

Or where New Zealand is located?

Did you know that it is part of Australasia?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australasia

http://www.bugbog.com/maps/australasia/australasia_map.html

http://www.wall-maps.com/Continents/Australasia_Map.htm

I have discovered, after extensive research, that many people in NZ think that Americans spend their leisure time with Britney and her cohorts. They believe that all Americans are excessively wealthy. They hate our government (who doesn't?), but not us (or so they say). Obviously they don't have to study American History because most of them don't know that we were once part of the British Empire too. Some have told me that we should elect a female president and catch up with the rest of the world.

So, my fellow Americans, that's how we appear to the Kiwis (and many others around the world)...........a society of crazy celebrities and consummate consumers.

To know us is to love us.

Halloween

Not such a big holiday here. In fact, not a single ghost or goblin risked descending the treacherous steps past the Japanese garden to shout "trick or treat" at our front door. Of course, it would have been difficult to hear them over the roar of the sea.......... But on the other side of the village there were big doings at the home of the world's cutest little devil. They welcomed visitors at their gate with a sign proclaiming enter if you dare. How scary is that?

Mum was disguised as a witch ( loves Halloween. I think it's the thespian trying to get out), and Mother Nature tried to get into the act with an eerie setting of both the sun and the moon. Do I need to point out which is which?