The Government giveth, and life taketh away.

You’re in for a long read this week Dear Reader, so sit down comfortably with a mug/glass/carafe of your preferred beverage, and I will begin.

I was going to start this week’s post by saying that it had been a momentous week, but in reality it was just two days: Thursday and Friday, where “everything” happened. I will report in chronological order as far as possible.

Thursday was Nicky’s birthday. I had wished her happy birthday around 1.30am as we both took advantage of the facilities, and repeated the greeting with our first pot of tea of the day while sitting up in bed some hours later. As the world woke up, texts, WhatsApp messages, emails and even the odd phone call flooded in. Late morning we piled into the car and collected Stella on our way to Montrose in Mairangi Bay for lunch. 

Now, I’m a bit hazy on one detail here, and the evidential trail is at odds with my memory, but ultimately it doesn’t matter. On Wednesday evening I had received a text from Agent Felicity (we all remember her, don’t we Dear Reader?) to say that tomorrow Title should be issued on the section we are wanting to buy. At some point on Thursday morning, we received confirmation of this by email. It was the last condition that had to be met on our conditional contact of purchase. As Stella, Nicky and I sat down at our table in the al fresco area of the Montrose café, I picked up two more emails. These confirmed that our individual applications for the government Home Start Grant had been successful, and that we would both be getting the full amount. With Nicky I was not surprised because her documentation of contribution to her KiwiSaver (the primary criteria for the grant) was straight forward with her having been an employee. Due to my self-employment, my documentation had proved more complex and tortuous to acquire, so I was not at sure that I would qualify or how much would be awarded if I was successful. So, the receipt of these two emails was quite emotional and brought a tear to my eye. I was very relieved.

The reason why Nicky had chosen Montrose for lunch was due to our previous (and first) very enjoyable visit with my nephew John back in September. We had really enjoyed their street food and wanted to sample more. Maybe because of the occasion, or the sunny weather, or the uplifting news about the Home Start Grant, or all three, we possibly over-ordered a little on the food. We ordered six dishes and they all seemed a little larger than I recalled the portion sizes from our previous visit. The first to arrive were the Turkish Cigars (spinach and feta in gorgeous filo pastry), salmon hash (smoked salmon steak and avocado on hash brown) and scallops wrapped in bacon (for Stella and I). All came with dips and salads that enhanced the tastes and textures of the dishes. As we worked our way to clear these plates, the trio of salmon (cooked three different ways) and crispy pork belly on mash (huge rich flavours) arrived. To conclude the ensemble, Vietnamese Summer Rolls (chicken and avocado wrapped in lettuce and rice paper) were cool, light and refreshing. Our tongues and tastebuds had been taken on a world tour of exceptional quality. We had to request a doggie bag for the remains pork and summer rolls. It was a truely memorable meal which all three of us enjoyed.

We drove home, not so much TTT but tummy straining against seat belt, to a pot of tea and lemon curd birthday cheesecake. Our return coincided with Mary dropping in to wish Nicky many happy returns so she stayed for goodies too. 

While I was taking Stella home, Steve and Ros arrived and also partook. Early in the evening we received email confirmation that our contract to buy the section had gone Unconditional. For those not familiar with all things Kiwi, this means that all the conditions of sale and purchase agreement have now been met, so the vendors have to sell to us at the agreed price, and we have to buy. We are 99% of the way there.

On Friday morning we had the first appointment of the day with our lawyer to sign the Home Start Grant documentation. We also discussed our Settlement date - the date at which we actually take ownership of the section. When buying a house this can be anything from 4 weeks to 3 months after going unconditional. We are aiming for a week - next Friday! This isn’t as mad as you may think, because at the close of business next Friday, New Zealand goes on holiday for quite awhile. The other significant fact about settlement is that it’s the day when we have to pay for the section. I had received an email request for the deposit on Friday morning which is duly paid, but $38,000 of our fund to buy the land comes from the Home Start Grant and my KiwiSaver. These funds go directly to our lawyer. He was hopeful that the Home Start Grant money would arrive in time from the government, but less sure about the fund from my KiwiSaver. I was therefore very pleased to be able to phone him later in the morning to say that my provider had just called me, was processing the application today, and that he should have the money in three working days. Everything was coming together, and next Friday may actually be an achievable settlement date.

I was out doing grocery shopping while receiving and making the above phone calls. I returned home for lunch and then set off to Whangaparoa where I was installing a new Mac, and decommissioning the one it was replacing. This was quite an involved job as things didn’t go as smoothly as they should. As I was getting towards the end my phone rang, indicting that my sister was calling me. This was unusual as we normally pre-arrange times to chat, so I knew it wasn’t a social call. Gill was calling to let me know that our mother had died in the small hours of the morning (it was a little after 4am UK when she called me). Mum had experienced a poor quality of life and a significant amount of pain for a long time, so even though her passing is very sad, it is also a relief that she is no longer suffering. On my return home I relayed the news to Nicky, and phoned Claire and Gill’s daughter Rachel who also lives here in NZ. All were understandably upset.

The rest of the week prior to Nicky’s birthday had also been busy, but with more expected events. Nicky had a good time at the BHB Seniors Christmas gathering on Monday morning, which stretched into early afternoon. On Tuesday we contracted Dawn’s grass cutting man to also do ours as it is the cheapest solution for the time that we will remain here. On Wednesday morning another trip to Dilworth Hearing revealed that Nicky’s hearing has not changed, her problem is being caused by one the hearing aid receivers (already replaced this year) failing again. It is to be replaced FoC. In amongst all this, Nicky had been delivering church Christmas cards every day, I have had my second busiest work week of the year, and Claire also had a birthday, so additional phone chatting was added to the mix. We finished Wednesday with Nicky’s Life Group Christmas social at Lai Thai in New Lynn, and as on previous occasions enjoyed the food and the company.

As a result of all this, it was a relief to have a quiet and gentle day yesterday, pottering, reading and enjoying the sunshine, and knowing that we don’t have The Boris as PM. I am still getting my head round Rother Valley going blue. Scrabble at Stella’s was a high scoring game, probably due to the finishing off of the birthday cheesecake!

Today we were up at 4am, consuming our first pot of tea of the day before going off to the airport to meet David, Zoé and the Milnettes off their 4.50am flight. It was late arriving and that seemed to contribute to them hitting a lot of traffic in immigration, baggage collection, customs, and biosecurity. It took them the best part of 2 hours to get through, longer than we have experienced before. They were happy but jaded and possibly slightly overwhelmed by most of the adult members of the family, and Tai, turning up the meet them. Paul and Jenny took them to their home for ablutions, sleep, and a base for the next few days. They will probably feed them too.

I think our coming week is going to be another busy one, in different ways, and we may even end up being landowners. Keep you fingers crossed for us.

Take care, Rick