Rick, Nicky and Claire in NZ

It isn’t really November, or if it is the November were have been getting this week has been more than a touch influenced by its cousin in the Northern hemisphere. It has been more cold and wet than warm and sunny. I have had to bring all my laundry skills to bear to get the washing dry outside, and not entirely succeeded. The ironing, being a completely  indoor activity, has been easier. Nicky did some water blasting at church on Monday and got thoroughly chilled to the bone. Mary came over in the afternoon and stayed and watched The Chase with us while Nicky warmed up with pots of tea. On Tuesday she had to quickly zip into town for a training course after arriving and work and discovering she was in the wrong place, but the rest of her working week has been much more normal. My working week has been very quiet, with no paid work at all, but a number of phone calls and emails to deal with. This has coincided with my cold (or what ever virus it is) lingering and I have felt q...

For the last few weeks Nicky has been knitting angels, and they are now residing on our willow branches along with our permanent fairy lights. They make a really nice display: Nicky’s week in the library has been uneventful, whereas my week has been shaped by jury service. I didn’t actually get drawn out of the ballot, but spent Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday mornings waiting to see if I was. I have also had a little on-site work, and upgraded Steve’s laptop OS. Apart from a predominately fine and sunny week, and Nicky attending Life Group on Wednesday, the highlight of our week was going to see the Crimes of Grindelwald on Thursday. Nicky finished work at 5pm so that we could get to the 6pm showing, and afterwards we ate dinner at Hansan, a Vietnamese restaurant in the Brickworks. It was the only establishment in the complex which we hadn’t tried so we gave it a go. It was OK, but not as good as the others. The film however, was very enjoyable, and I thought it was better ...

There are currently 18,277 white crosses arranged in neat rows in the grass of the Auckland Domain in front of the War Memorial Museum, one for each of the New Zealand service personnel who died during the First World War. I saw them for the first time time today and was moved to tears even before the 100 year Armistice Service began. The Service was was both moving and appropriate. “I vow to thee my country” had me in tears again, though more because of the tune (Jupiter), than the lyrics. A speech by a Year 13 girl was memorable not only because of what she said, but also the quality of her delivery. She spoke of hands, and told us that her father had told her that we all have hands, and that they are all the same, but what is unique is what we choose to do with them. What those before us did with their hands is why we are here today, and what we do with our hands will shape those who come after us. I was very mindful of those in our family who have served, not only the older genera...

The major excitement of the week has been the Harry Potter Event at the library on Wednesday evening, though I think some Royals might have been and gone as well. Nicky had Tuesday off in lieu of last Monday, so after she finished reading The Washington Decree she set to in the kitchen, roasting a pumpkin, making pumpkin juice and pumpkin and peanut cookies, and getting ready to produce some 250 pumpkin pasties (some sweet, some savoury) on Wednesday morning before going into work for 11am. The event was “ticket only” and ran after the library had closed. Many of the staff were involved with lots of different activities organised for the children and their careers, lots of dressing up, and lots of happy participants. Great alternative to trick or treat on Halloween. The rest of the week has been pretty tame by comparison. I have been a little busier with work than recently, and the changeable spring weather has meant rapid bursts of activity for the washing machine on the days...