Currently baking a Banana and Pecan Loaf, although I fear I may have overcooked the Banana quotient, it seems rather oily...... Stand by for photos.......
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Pulling a sickie
Oh my lord, how good to be an M.P. eh? 14 sick days away from Parliament without loss of pay and no notification to the speaker, and then they can stay away for much longer than that if they like, with a maximum loss of $10 a sitting day. Not bad in a climate where senior members of the new Auckland Council are being offer 5 days sick leave a year. Where is Rodney Hide on this one? Apparently he wants to save the ratepayer and tax payer money wherever he can? Is he keen to do it at his own expense as well???? Just saying.......
Watching the wheels
Watching The Wheels by Corin Haines
Download now or listen on posterous
Watching the wheels 1.mp3 (5067 KB) Download now or listen on posterous
Sunday, January 11, 2009
What's the buzz....
Well it has been a week since I blogged. It would be fair to say that the first week back at work was tiring, depressing and demotivating. I spent most of the week feeling very tired and then through circumstance was out Weds, Thurs and Friday night and did not get to bed till after midnight each night. Not a good look for a old bugger like me :-) Things of course were not helped by ridiculously hot temperatures with humidity through the roof!
Anyway so some musings.... I must say it has been hard coming back to work and I have felt a tad depressed at times. A lot of budget stress at the moment and I seem to be constantly worried I have mucked up somewhere Part of this probably stems from my dislike of finances and my tendency to want to ignore things and hope they will be alright. So anyway, I am going to try and put some things in place to make my life easier from now on and especially in the new financial year!
Guantanamo Bay... Well I am sure that will bring this blog to the attention of the U.S. security forces or something. I was reading a bit more about this this morning and it just gets more disturbing. What troubles me first is the fact that there was nothing anyone could have done to stop it. Who in the world could have stopped the Bush led administration from taking America down this path? And I am sure there are many in the U.S. who would feel it is a justifiable response to 9/11. But what does that say for any nation? What does that say for the people of GAZA? For the people of Israel? For the people of any nation that has an act of war or terrorism committed against it? And what damage has been done? Certainly any moral high ground that the U.S. had has been lost and those that remain, that in some way are going to have to be set free, how will they view the U.S. and the world? I am just not sure anything has been achieved and I suspect a great deal lost by the exercise. And I guess what I find really disturbing is that it has always just been easier to not think about it. To turn ones head and pretend it is not going on. I know I did and still do, because it is just to hard to think about.
On a lighter note, I see a a woman in the U.S. is auctioning her virginity. Apparently the bidding has hit $6.7 million. I suspect she might have trouble actually finding the person who bid that much but still I guess it says something interesting about the way virginity is viewed in these times. I mean, she is attractive enough, but I really don't think "deflowering a virgin" is worth that much money. In fact I know it is not!!! As for her? Well good on her I guess if she can get 10% of that figure she is probably doing well, as long as she can deal with it all after it is over.
Off to the physio this morning as my lower back has been giving me some grief. I have never been a person who suffered with their back, but my mother did and as I am now 38 figured I should nip it in the bud and get it sorted. I am sure some lower back strengthening will take care of it all!!!
Later!
Anyway so some musings.... I must say it has been hard coming back to work and I have felt a tad depressed at times. A lot of budget stress at the moment and I seem to be constantly worried I have mucked up somewhere Part of this probably stems from my dislike of finances and my tendency to want to ignore things and hope they will be alright. So anyway, I am going to try and put some things in place to make my life easier from now on and especially in the new financial year!
Guantanamo Bay... Well I am sure that will bring this blog to the attention of the U.S. security forces or something. I was reading a bit more about this this morning and it just gets more disturbing. What troubles me first is the fact that there was nothing anyone could have done to stop it. Who in the world could have stopped the Bush led administration from taking America down this path? And I am sure there are many in the U.S. who would feel it is a justifiable response to 9/11. But what does that say for any nation? What does that say for the people of GAZA? For the people of Israel? For the people of any nation that has an act of war or terrorism committed against it? And what damage has been done? Certainly any moral high ground that the U.S. had has been lost and those that remain, that in some way are going to have to be set free, how will they view the U.S. and the world? I am just not sure anything has been achieved and I suspect a great deal lost by the exercise. And I guess what I find really disturbing is that it has always just been easier to not think about it. To turn ones head and pretend it is not going on. I know I did and still do, because it is just to hard to think about.
On a lighter note, I see a a woman in the U.S. is auctioning her virginity. Apparently the bidding has hit $6.7 million. I suspect she might have trouble actually finding the person who bid that much but still I guess it says something interesting about the way virginity is viewed in these times. I mean, she is attractive enough, but I really don't think "deflowering a virgin" is worth that much money. In fact I know it is not!!! As for her? Well good on her I guess if she can get 10% of that figure she is probably doing well, as long as she can deal with it all after it is over.
Off to the physio this morning as my lower back has been giving me some grief. I have never been a person who suffered with their back, but my mother did and as I am now 38 figured I should nip it in the bud and get it sorted. I am sure some lower back strengthening will take care of it all!!!
Later!
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Last day of the holidays
Well here we are on the last day of the holidays. Back to work tomorrow, much to my horror :-) It has been a good holiday though with plenty achieved and lots done so I at least feel in a good space as we head in to 2009.
Yesterday morning we went to the Matakana Farmers Market. Matakana is only an hour North of Auckland, but it is so removed you feel in another world. The place has really taken on a life of its own and become very trendy, and has a brilliant Farmers Market which is just so pleasurable (if busy) to wander around. Good coffee is on hand and with that and the lovely produce and food available it was a great way to start the day. By 10am it was around 25 degrees C there. We were in and out by 10.30am and were back in Auckland by 11.00am. I bought a couple of loaves of bread to check other bakers work. The San Francisco Sourdough was ok, but I think my Sourdough is better!!!
I am listening to The Beatles, White Album as I type this. The White Album goes down as probably my favourite album of all time I think. I discovered at about 14 (when it was 17 years old) and it immediately made an impact on me. I bought an old vinyl copy which got plenty of play. Later I bought another later copy and by combining the two I now have both the lyric sheet and the photos which came with the album. For me it is the The Beatles at their creative best, which I guess is ironic considering the state of their relationships at the time. I can do without Revolution #9, but the rest of the album holds together very very well for me. I mean how can those guys have been so fucking creative!!! Man it makes me feel humble.
The garden is doing well. We have Cress and Radish which have just sprouted. The tomatoes are on the verge of ripening, and I planted some more Peas the other day. Also yesterday on the way back from Matakana, we stopped at Silverdale to go to the Bendon Outlet Store and came across this guy who makes wooden planters. So I have ordered one from him and he is making me one for $35. That is so cheap! It is 1500mm long. They are made out of wood from old pallets and will form the basis of a bean and pea planter :-)
Yesterday morning we went to the Matakana Farmers Market. Matakana is only an hour North of Auckland, but it is so removed you feel in another world. The place has really taken on a life of its own and become very trendy, and has a brilliant Farmers Market which is just so pleasurable (if busy) to wander around. Good coffee is on hand and with that and the lovely produce and food available it was a great way to start the day. By 10am it was around 25 degrees C there. We were in and out by 10.30am and were back in Auckland by 11.00am. I bought a couple of loaves of bread to check other bakers work. The San Francisco Sourdough was ok, but I think my Sourdough is better!!!
I am listening to The Beatles, White Album as I type this. The White Album goes down as probably my favourite album of all time I think. I discovered at about 14 (when it was 17 years old) and it immediately made an impact on me. I bought an old vinyl copy which got plenty of play. Later I bought another later copy and by combining the two I now have both the lyric sheet and the photos which came with the album. For me it is the The Beatles at their creative best, which I guess is ironic considering the state of their relationships at the time. I can do without Revolution #9, but the rest of the album holds together very very well for me. I mean how can those guys have been so fucking creative!!! Man it makes me feel humble.
The garden is doing well. We have Cress and Radish which have just sprouted. The tomatoes are on the verge of ripening, and I planted some more Peas the other day. Also yesterday on the way back from Matakana, we stopped at Silverdale to go to the Bendon Outlet Store and came across this guy who makes wooden planters. So I have ordered one from him and he is making me one for $35. That is so cheap! It is 1500mm long. They are made out of wood from old pallets and will form the basis of a bean and pea planter :-)
Friday, January 2, 2009
What next
So I am thinking this morning about projects for the coming year. This process of thought started just before Christmas when I realised that I need a new creative outlet for 2009, which I guess has been spurred on somewhat by the working through "The Artists Way" I had initially thought of writing a hand written letter a day for a year, each to a different person, but this seemed kind of a major ask. Also, I have in my mind possible publication and I am not sure that 365 letters would make a usable volume. I am still considering one a week, which would be less arduous and make a much more usable volume. I would like to see them in a book where you can open the envelope and read the letters pretty much as they were when they were sent. I am also thinking about doing another photographic project, just not sure quite what yet. Also, possibly a combined photographic and writing project.
Well we spent most of yesterday afternoon at the beach. It was very sunny and hot and a lovely lovely day. Hannah, Wayne and Iris and Beck where with us. I love it when summer fully arrives and you get the chance to spend long days at the beach in and out of the water and enjoying all that summer can offer. In theory we are supposed to be going today again, but as I look out the window it is raining, so that might not be happening. We are however, meeting Mirla and Rob for brunch/coffee at 10am.
I seeded some plants yesterday in my lovely new Greenhouse. I am very pleased we got, I can see a lot of very pleasant afternoons in there tending to my the garden. Speaking of which, the garden is looking great. The tomatos are on the verge of starting to come ripe. I picked another harvest of Butterbeans and also a harvest of Greenbeans. Last night I put some Sourdough on, made some bread rolls and made some Grape Jam. We then watched a Witness which is new out on DVD and stars Angelina Jolie and Morgan Freeman. Not bad, not great, but not bad at all. Kat also watched Hancock, which I had seen before. She didn't mention it after, so I am thinking she was so so on it.
Well we spent most of yesterday afternoon at the beach. It was very sunny and hot and a lovely lovely day. Hannah, Wayne and Iris and Beck where with us. I love it when summer fully arrives and you get the chance to spend long days at the beach in and out of the water and enjoying all that summer can offer. In theory we are supposed to be going today again, but as I look out the window it is raining, so that might not be happening. We are however, meeting Mirla and Rob for brunch/coffee at 10am.
I seeded some plants yesterday in my lovely new Greenhouse. I am very pleased we got, I can see a lot of very pleasant afternoons in there tending to my the garden. Speaking of which, the garden is looking great. The tomatos are on the verge of starting to come ripe. I picked another harvest of Butterbeans and also a harvest of Greenbeans. Last night I put some Sourdough on, made some bread rolls and made some Grape Jam. We then watched a Witness which is new out on DVD and stars Angelina Jolie and Morgan Freeman. Not bad, not great, but not bad at all. Kat also watched Hancock, which I had seen before. She didn't mention it after, so I am thinking she was so so on it.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Hello 09
Well here we are in another year. Feeling a bit low on writing inspiration and ruminations this morning so this may indeed be quite short. We bought a portable greenhouse yesterday and set it up down the side of the house in the dead unused space. I am so excited to have it so we can start growing veges all year round!!! We got a great bargain too. The greenhouse was price at $230 and the shelves to go in it at $50. But when I went to buy it, the woman who owns the garden centre, gave me 20% off the total price, which meant the whole thing cost $221. We go in there a lot and I do believe in shopping local, so I was pleased to have out loyalty rewarded.
See I told you this was going to be short, maybe more later.....
See I told you this was going to be short, maybe more later.....
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