Rick, Nicky and Claire in NZ

At times this week it has really started to feel like summer is round the corner. I have broken out my shorts in response to the increasingly warm sunshine. It can still be a bit cool first thing in the morning, and the southerly wind still has a bite to it, but I am feeling optimistic. Nicky has had a busy and stressful week at work, as the preparations for Christmas really start to kick-in. She also had to attend an induction session at the prison on Wednesday evening, which made for a long day. I have had a reasonable week work wise, though mainly at the end of the week. I did an emergency job yesterday in a shop where they use a couple of Macs as "cash registers", as they used to be known in the olden days. I have also sold an old external drive on TradeMe (the local equivalent of eBay), which was good, as it was only my second proper trade. Thursday was a very busy day for both of us at work, and the sunshine was very inviting. I didn't have time to get

It has been a funny sort of a week dear reader. I have been busy but not done any work, the weather has not been able to decide what season it wants to be, and the sun and the moon had an alignment issue. The only paid work I have done this week was a modelling session on Monday night in Hellensville. There was just me a two very nice ladies, who wanted me to be both scrunched up and angular at the same time. I managed to do some poses which they were very pleased with so it ended up being a very good evening, if quiet. I have done a bit of email support and some work on the DIY notes which I post on my website, but that has been it on the Mac front. Much of my week has been taken up in getting things booked for our trip to the UK next year. If you would like to know further details, please drop one of us an email as I will not be posting them here. Laundry, shopping and cooking has of course punctuated my time. Claire popped in on Tuesday to deliver me a ream of paper an

Congratulations dear reader for making it this far!  This is the 300th post, and if you joined this adventure near the beginning you have done very well to hang on this long. How far there is to go now I have no idea, but if palmistry is to be believed, it's a long way yet. To mark this auspicious occasion, I can inform you that this week I have received a letter from Internal Affairs (which fortunately has nothing to with digestion) granting me New Zealand citizenship. Once I have been to an appropriate ceremony and been given my certificate, I can then apply for a NZ passport. I think this is the extent of the exiting news this week. Nicky has been busy at work, especially with the diwali celebrations. She worked some extra hours on Friday evening and Saturday morning with special events. We had another trip to Dillworth Hearing in Epsom on Monday for another adjustment to her hearing aids. On Tuesday Nicky and Claire had lunch together in the mall, then I collected

It has been a mixed week, in a number of ways.  The weather has been absolutely gorgeous and sunny, and also mild and wet. We have had winds from every direction it would seem.  Some of the wind has been almost warm, while at other times it has been a chilly southerly. Nicky has had a busy week in the library, particularly with the preparations for Diwali celebrations which started on Saturday. On Monday evening she was at a prison group prayer meeting while I watched the final episode of the "Story of England - Kibworth" series (which was as good as ever). She took Tuesday afternoon off work to attend Jan's mum's funeral (Jan is a friend from church). Afterwards she delivered a birthday cake to Ruth Duffus. On Friday afternoon we had a quick trip to Green Lane Clinical Centre so that she could have an x-ray for the osteoporosis study in which she is participating. I have had quite a busy work week, with on-site visits at the beginning of the week, and suppo