Rick, Nicky and Claire in NZ

The Mortein fly killer is back on! I put it back on while getting diner ready on Saturday as the fly's have returned with the good weather. For those of you who don't recall, last year we bought a Mortein fly spray with an automatic dispenser. It is a container with a battery that you put the fly spray aerosol into and it presses the plunger every 13 seconds, and to me, it sounds like a farting asthmatic cat. We have had some lovely weather this week, even though some of the days have started very cloudy, by mid-morning we have had blazing sunshine. The roof temperature got up to 40°C yesterday and 43°C today. It was 28°C in the lounge at one point this afternoon, even though the ranch sliders had been open since breakfast. I have had some Mac work and some modeling work so it has been a better week for me. Nicky has been as busy as ever though things have been a bit quieter towards the end of the week. Claire hasn't done any extra hours at Whitcoulls this week but that won...

The major excitement this was Thursday - the release of the new Harry Potter film (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1). We had decided not to go to one of the midnight showings, so Nicky and Ryan both booked annual leave and I booked tickets for the 11am showing in Albany. We had decided to go up the the cinema in Albany as opposed to St Lukes because we prefer the venue, and because I had the idea of going out for a "Hogwarts breakfast" before the film. Googling for somewhere good for breakfast had revealed a café near Albany. However, in the end I decided to cook breakfast at home (bacon, sausage, hash browns, beans, poached eggs, tomatoes, mushrooms and toast, served with freshly squeezed orange and tangelo juice and tea and coffee). We ate at the gate leg table on the patio, which was breezy, not too sunny and very pleasant. Ryan drove us up to Albany as it seemed pointless going in two cars. We had a wander round the mall after collecting our pre-booked tickets;...

We have had a bit of a change of routine this week, now that Claire has finished at University for this year. She has started doing more hours at Whitcoulls, and did five consecutive days finishing last Monday. She also worked Friday in addition to her usual hours, so has been quite tired. However Francis, who she works with, came over on Wednesday and they made wonderful cookies for a birthday gift. These were given to the birthday girl at a diner on Friday evening. Nicky's week has been very busy. She stayed late on Monday to clear a backlog with books for the home-bound, and also Wednesday so the Chorus guy could upgrade the internet connection. By the end of the week things were finally under control. Much of the extra work load has been due to the SuperCity changes. Now that people can access all 55 libraries in Auckland, they have been making use of the additional resources which has also increased the staff's workload. My week, by contrast, has been quiet. I have only ha...

The weather has got its act together again this week, apart from Friday (more later). Most days have had good amounts of sunshine which has been very warm, but the breeze is still southerly so has quite a cool edge to it. So much so that yesterday I was getting goose bumps while sitting in the sun having my lunch, but today has been lovely because the wind has dropped. Nicky has had a very busy week at work. There are lots of new procedures to get used to now that the 55 libraries of the seven old regions are now a single operation in the new SuperCity, aside from the fact that there have been lots of borrowers using the library this week. Claire did her last exam this week, and it went better than she expected even though she felt two of her answers were not as good as her other two answers. I am not sure when she gets her results - 2 or 3 weeks I think. Anyway, that is her second year over so we celebrated with smoked salmon and penné followed by a bottle of dessert wine. Then on Thu...

We started the week with a public holiday as Monday was Labour Day. The weather was sunny and Nicky and I had a quiet day at home. The weather has been sunny most of the week, with some cloud cover on occasions and the breeze has still been a little cool. Mike Cox (who we met at the airport last week) and his two friends came over for dinner on Tuesday, along with Ryan. It was good to meet them and get some idea of Mike's plans. He is going to be here for 9 months, wants to work (seasonal stuff) and travel. Things have improved a little for Nicky at work, though the fundamental issues still need to be resolved. Thursday was fun as the library was having some Halloween themed events, so all the staff dressed up as witches, and Nicky made some Pumpkin Pasties which went down very well. On Friday evening she went to a fair well do for Waitakere City Council - the new SuperCity starts tomorrow. Claire sat two more exams this week which went OK. Her last one is next week. I have had a c...

The week started with a trip to the airport for Claire and I. Michael Cox, son of friends of Nicky and I from our Maidstone days, flew in from the UK via Hong Kong. His flight arrived at lunchtime so Claire and I popped down Auckland International to welcome him. He was with a group of people coming to NZ for a few months with BUNAC (http://www.bunac.org/uk/) and wasn't expecting us to be there, but we think it was a nice surprise. He is coming for diner with a couple of his friends on Tuesday so we will find out more about his plans then. Claire has been home all week (apart from working at Whitcoulls) revising for her exams. Much of her English Radicalism works seems to involve lying in the sun… I have had some Mac work during the week and on Saturday morning. Nicky has had a busy and difficult week at work. There is one member of staff who has some mental health issues and everybody finds him very difficult to get on with, both at Ranui and other libraries. He has been the cause...

I was forced to own up while at the bakers on Monday morning. The weather was cold, wet and windy. I explained to the two ladies at Bakers Delight that I had posted on my blog the night before that it looked like summer was on the way, so the change in the weather has to be entirely my responsibility. Fortunately this didn't prevent me from taking advantage of the "two large loaves and ten rolls for $6.50" offer so I came away happy. The weather has continued in a wintery theme through most of the week, though Thursday and Friday afternoons were warm and sunny, and most of yesterday was lovely. Nicky and I sat in the sun and had lunch and read on the patio, and then Nicky took to the shade of the lounge while I did my first sunbathing of the season. Today has been back to rain. Hey-ho. The rest of the week has been fairly routine. Nicky as busy as ever at Ranui; Claire has had her last week of lectures; and I have had a little Mac work. It has felt like quite a busy week ...