We are becoming quite the chefs! A couple of days ago my dad, my brother, and I got some mussels at the market. To cook them we first had to make sure they were alive by tapping thier shells to see if they would close, because dead ones don't work. We would then scrub them and pull off their beard which is some plant connected to the mussel. We boiled them until they opened and then I pulled off the upper part of the shell. We put them in a pan and sprinkled some cheese and salt and spices on them, and then we put them in the oven to cook. In the end I didn't really like them, but it was cool that we made them.

Wow, look at that big waterwall! How big do you think that is? At least 30 meters. Large.











We went on this hike to a waterfall. It really was scary when we were crossing the board to get to the other side to get a good view of the waterfall. At first I thought the board was going to be slippery. Me and Dean had flip-flops so we had to take them off. I thought I was going to fall in. It would be really scary if I was falling in because I saw lots of little falls as we were walking up to this one. It was worth the hike. Andrew

More on Easter break. I have been enjoying all the trees. First of all, there are a lot of different kinds of trees that I am not used to seeing. The eucalyptus is common and a quite beautiful tree.


One of my favorites, perhaps because of the name, is the monkey puzzle tree. In Christchurch we saw a tree that looked similar to the monkey puzzle and I now have learned that it is the "false" monkey puzzle.

Both in Nelson and again in Hagley park in central Christchurch we have come across some of the most beautiful specimens, planted in the 1850-1900 time frame. I enjoy seeing a California redwood so far from home. There are also Giant sequoia which are in the same family but quite different up close. Huge Monterrey cypress round out my favorites, along with the totara, and the deodar, which is a cedar. Here are a few pics:

Have we mentioned that New Zealand is absolutely gorgeous? You can't take a road, turn a corner without being awestruck.

We had a five day Easter break, so we hit the road. Day 1 we drove along the Pacific Coast to Kaikoura. It's a windy, heart stopping drive where I clutch the door handle and pray.

As the road becomes enshrouded in mist, you can stop at any point and see tons of seals. At Kaikoura we walked along a cliff trail. Below we saw more seal, boats and divers harvesting crayfish (that's lobsters to you). It's a great little hike and I recommend it to anyone.

At the end of the day we stopped at an open barbeque where we ate mussels, scallops and who-could-resist-them lobbies!

Last night I dreamed Dean was weeding the yard at our old house. Danny Foelber rode by on his bike without even stopping. When I ran him down to ask why, he told me he was heading over to his new friend’s house. Well, it doesn’t take a psychologist to read much into that dream…….out with the old, in with the new. And so it goes.

For the last ten years, we’ve been the comfortable insiders. Through Poe-co Dean befriended the best group of kids anyone could hope for….and Duane and I an unforgettable group of parents. Erin never let me forget when I said, “I bet everyone at this park wishes they were with us” as we laughed and talked with the remarkable group of women and children that made up our playgroup. Forgive my smugness, but I meant it; I felt blessed to be a part of so many lives.

I can’t say I took these friendships for granted, what I can say is that I had little empathy for the outsider. Our lives were full, I didn’t open it up for more – I didn’t want to give up the space. Sure I was friendly to a new person, but I never said, “Hey come on over for dinner.” I had no idea how difficult it might be to infiltrate a circle of friends. How something as little as making a phone call could make one feel so vulnerable. But, now I am the outsider and I have gained much empathy.

Really, I am okay with my solitude; I was ready for the quiet. As a mother, I worry a bit about Dean. I wouldn’t say he is unhappy and as I said before, school is fantastic. Within that context, he is doing great. He plays soccer everyday, chats with mates. It's all good.

We just haven’t mastered that next hurdle, the having friends over - playdates and such. In Houston, all those systems were readily in place, and much of it was handled by me. So I ask myself, should I make the call and invite someone over? What are the “rules” in NZ? And, as I contemplate inviting a new friend over, I labor over the when, the how. Finally, what if this person doesn’t have room for new lives…..WHAT IF WE’RE REJECTED! Yikes!!!

Isn’t that a lot of what it comes down into life? In happiness? We humans seek validation and friendship. We want to love and, perhaps even more so, we want to be loved. And, we are scared to death of rejection. Here in our new world I find myself outside the comfort zone. Everyday I am beckoned to leave my safety net. I seek what we had in spades before and I am primed for failure. It scares me.

Oh, what the heck, I’ll just make the call

Barbara. Volunteer crossing Guard.


Picture one will serve to illustrate the flow of traffic.

The primary school is right next to the junior high, so when the bell rings, the flow of children is like hot lava. It is Barbara's job - on Fridays - to get the kids across the street safely.

She scans the traffic with steely eyes. Picks her spot. Then she blows the whistle loud and clear. Two youngsters swivel their stop barriers and cast themselves out into the flow of traffic.



"Check!" They call.


"All Clear!"


Let the party begin. You will notice that Barbara stays free and clear on the shoulder the whole time. There's even time to chat with a passing parent...

Now, given that Barbara could still find herself wondering, is it look right or look left? A bystander could be excused for some skepticism, no?


Not to mention that the crossing guard herself has been known to require a crisp glass of white after discharging her duties. "The pressure," she reports.

But this young crossing guard has stepped up her game, and we've had another day of flawless execution.

Anyone with Joan Armatrading in their collection is alright by me. When Duane and I first met and I learned that not only did he know of Joan, but he LIKED her music, I was smitten. In fact, one of our earliest dates took us to her concert at the old Tower Theater on Westheimer. Magical. When she sang “Willow” and we flicked our lighters and swayed to the song, the theater overflowed with love. And, I swear it wasn’t one of those self-conscious clap your hands with the band scenarios. It was pure and true.

So, here I sit in our new digs in Nelson, NZ listening to Joan Armatrading and once again I’m feeling the love.

Whenever I visit a new friend’s house, I like to snoop. No, it’s not the drawers or the diaries, it’s the books and the music and the walls. What are they reading? listening to? hanging up? From this inventory I see how we relate. Is it all Tom Clancy and pictures of bluebonnets? If so, we may not go far. Do I spy Barbara Kingsolver’s Poisonwood Bible? maybe a little Catpower playing in the background? Have wild flowers been plucked into a little glass vase…..ah, in that case, I see a blossoming friendship.

And, so it is with our new home. This house, this space enchants us. I feel a connection with Kathleen. Her shelves are lined with books I’ve cherished. And, who can deny the wisdom of Dylan, Van, REM……..and Joan? The garden is beautiful…. not too manicured, brimming with alyssum, impatiens, agapanthus, lobelia, and, well, too many to name. We even have strawberries, figs, lemons and tomatoes – can we be self-sustaining? Not quite.

I guess you might say we’re happy with our space for the year. Honestly, it’s all we could have hoped for from an internet search and some jpegs. There’s plenty of space for the kids to explore, a sweet kitty named Smudge and lots of nooks for Duane and I to sip a glass of wine and look across the bay to the mountains. We hope you come join us.

This is not the best recording, but here's some Joan http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kl3i1GMuyeU

Lemonade.

We have been blessed with two highly fertile lemon trees, and right now is the season. So, the drill goes like this: Send Andrew out to collect (and go help once he's gotten the low ones). Return to kitchen and wash lemons. Don't they look luscious?

Juice of 4 lemons. Andrew is adding that to the pitcher. Melt 1/2 c. honey or 1/2 cup raw sugar in hot water. That's the darkish liquid in the measuring cup. Add to juice. Add 3 c. cold water, ice, and stir.

Yum yum yum.

Our kids like Mondays – even Dean who would scheme to miss school any chance he could. Now, it is his only social outlet, but truth is, school’s fun. I affectionately liken it to summer camp. Dean says it’s “brilliant.”

Days are short – about 6 hours. Dean’s in intermediate school - Years 7 and 8. Ages range from 11 – 14. Dean’s in a mixed 7/8 class though some are exclusively one year. His schedule includes a twenty minute “tea time” in the morning and 70 minutes for lunch and recess….lots of time for soccer, leaving 4 ½ hours class time.

Most of the day is spent with Mr. Wood who does an incredible variety of activity. Beyond the academic, he regularly takes the kids out for a mile run. Or, he may devote an entire day to bike maintenance, or teaching the kids cricket. Next Wednesday the Fifeshire Team (think Harry Potter) will bike to Tahuna Beach for a team building day. And, Friday’s are always sport day. They have Maori in the morning and then do sport the rest of the day with a closing assembly.

This is not to say it is ALL fun and games. They have MATHS Monday – Thursday and have been divided into separate classes according to ability. The expectations are high, with a bit of competitive element in the class. Mr. Wood demands excellence and integrity from his students whether they are building origami mobiles or writing personal essays. They also do woodshop. Way fun.

Duane and I are relieved that school has been so positive. The forthcoming field trips are awesome – caving, tramping above the tree line to develop cold weather skills, biking to the beach…. That it is not academically rigorous is just fine with us. If “Maths” and writing skills are honed, that’s enough. I applaud our assistant principal who said kids only get thirty minutes of homework a night, because they need to “have a life.” Amen

There’s probably a lot more I could tell you. And, I know we are still in the honeymoon stage. Six months from now we may have a laundry list of gripes. For now, it’s all good

Yesterday I and my family went to this hotel.

And, the hotel rooms looked like boots.....they kind of were boots - ginormous boots. (Before that we went to the wild food festival.)

Here we are feeding eels. The tiny eels stole ours sticks. Our food was raw hamburger meat. Some of the eels were gigantic, but not so aggressive. The little eels were so aggressive. It was really awesome.

It was a good week in Nelson. We got a bit more social and, today, Andrew's invited his new friend David over.

I think the highlight was Thursday. I volunteered for Andrew's interschool swim meet. As in Harry Potter, the school has four "houses" and throughout the year they schedule competitions (kind of like Quiddicht). This was the first one of the year. My job was to determine who came in third in each of the swim events - a VERY intense job. I've got to tell you, it's easier to determine first than it is third. Fortunately, you work as a team and my partner Lee and I would concur before we'd award the token.

Andrew has been swimming every day since school started (that's his practice pool above). Physical activity is a major part of the curriculum; we love it. Nonetheless, I was a wee bit worried about his swimming skills. He was up for three events - a "mad dash", freestyle and backstroke - all across the width of the pool. While watching him do the backstroke, I was beside myself with excitement....... I didn't even know he could do that stroke!! Lost in my enthusiasm, I totally missed who came in third because Andrew came in second, what a surprise! Must have been all that swimming at Ryder's house. (we miss you)

Anyway, it's all fun and WAY laid back. The kids are smiling and nobody gets caught up in the placing. And, it was such a nice opportunity to meet some parents. I met Bronwyn from the North Island, Jill from Australia and another woman from South Africa. Everyone is from somewhere around here; it makes me feel less of an outsider. Anyway, we're coming a bit out of our shells and it feels nice.

Keys are symbolic of so much. Ownership. One's place is society. Status. Possessions. Here is my/our keychain, as of today. It is very much "our" keychain. We only have one car, so whomever takes the car takes the keys. The other key is to our PO Box in town. Our key collection may appear slim, but really this signifies a re-accumulation of keys from our low count of zero.

It was an interesting process leaving town, and I was thinking about keys at that time, too. I had the typical keyring for a two-car-owning, home-owning, working individual. Keys to both cars, with a key to a club antitheft device thrown in. Keys to multiple different locks around the house. Keys to the office. Keys to the mailbox. Probably a few more I am forgetting. And I pretty much didn't leave home without them. How could you? Maybe if you were walking to the corner store and someone else was home to let you in when you got back. So, without even realizing it you have this keychain that goes around with you for most of your waking hours.

You don't notice it until you don't have it anymore.

First one car went. The keys themselves are the most physical aspect to the passing of title. You have to line up each key into the slot in the metal ring and torque them out one by one and hand them over. Next to go were keys to the office. Then the keys to the house. Then at the very last minute the keys to the second car. Friend Tom drove us to the airport and that was it, no more keys. This lasted for a period of weeks, absolutely no keys to anything, until we bought Ruben the car. That's right we have decided on Ruben, which came from someone's suggestion of Ruby and the idea that the car is in fact a boy car. It also happens to be the name of the protagonist of a book I am reading right now called Peace Like a River. Highly recommended.

Back to the keys. I'd have to say handing over the keys to the house was the hardest. And yet there is another element to this process of becoming untethered, and it is the entrance of chance and circumstance into one's life. Objects will be replaced. Why that particular car? Because the lot was next to the grocery store and we were right there. Why that house? The barber told me about it. Such chance is not always welcome.

And sometimes it is.

I am a homebody by nature. I like piddling in the garden, eating a home cooked meal and sleeping in my own bed. I’ve always enjoyed coming home after a vacation and getting back in my routine. I can only stand so much eating out and idle pleasure; it depresses me. And, yet, here I find myself, after 6 weeks, still living out of a suitcase and at lodging number 5…. I am ready to get to Maire Street.

This begs the question, why did we do it? Uproot our family, the routine, the house. Everything was so cool and easy. I had a great house, great friends and work that I loved.
Truth is, were it not for Duane, I probably wouldn’t have moved to New Zealand. Of course, were it not for Duane, I might not be an artist. We might never have bought that old crack house…… I might not have done a lot of things.

Duane has always taken calculated risks and debunked societal expectations of what one is “supposed” to do. He’s done things his way and along the way taught me to be suspicious of popular culture and what is and what is not important. I can draw pleasure from simple things and not from cars and clothes and stuff. A good day involves sweat and accomplishment…..weeding a bed, painting a room, pulling an edition of prints. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy eating out and buying things (especially art and music), but all with temperance.

So, there are a multitude of reasons for leaving. Reason number one is kind of that nebulous “because it was there and we could.” We did it for the challenge of it and to give our kids a taste of nature and broaden their experiences. It thrills me to see them riding bikes to school, exploring tidal pools (with Andrew exclaiming "I love this place!") and buying nickel candies at the corner store. I am happy to spend this quality time with them now, rather than travel when I am older.

Six weeks into it, has it all been fun and games? No. We’ve spent an ENORMOUS amount of time together in small quarters. Having nothing but Hallmark moments with your family is pie-in-the-sky romanticism. The weekends can be quite long as we’ve yet to make friends and have only each other. Nonetheless we feel like we’ve gotten our kids back after their nonstop social lives in Houston (especially Dean) and it’s been good. Am I ready to move into a bigger house and get working? You bet. Do I miss Houston? Yes. Am I excited about what lies ahead? Totally.

WEEEEEE!.........I got another cut by falling off my bike while biking up a hill trying to stratch my ear......OWWWW!

Here is the new one.

Here are pictures of the old ones.

I'd never really shifted gears until we moved to Nelson. Through garage sales and buy/trade NZ, we've each managed to get bikes.........and around here, you need (REALLY WANT) them . Everyone rides. I swear three year olds are biking. (Thank goodness Andrew's riding now lest they send us back to the States. )

The riding is fantastic. They've converted old rail lines to hike and bike trails. The small towns around Nelson are connected and they have coastal routes. Dean rides to school everyday. I get him down the hill and across the "big" street and then he's off on his own. We fly down the hill and it's FANTASTIC, the bear is getting back up. I've yet to make it all the way , one day I'll slay that beast.

Saturday Duane and I rode around Monaco Peninsula. It's a charming point and an easy 8k- 10k loop - mostly coastal riding with just a few hills. Best part, The Honest Lawyer Pub.... a fine midway point where we enjoyed a Mac's brew and some wedgies! If you come, we'll be sure and take you there!!

WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!

Yay!!! I'm going down the BMX Track on my new bike!!!

WEEEEEEEE!!!WEEE-"CRASH"!!!

OWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!

Today I fell off my BMX bike while going through a turn and I scraped myself..... It hurt.

I'm OK now though. Here's how it happened, I'm just riding along when I get to a turn. On these turns you can go up the side, so I was trying to do that. I tried to go up, but my pedal hit the ground, then my bike, then me. I didn't let that stop me though, I went aroud the track 4 more times.

The End!!!

I actually learned to rock climb yesterday. My dad says I figured out a pathway on the rock climbing wall.



Even more exciting, I LEARNED HOW TO RIDE A BIKE!!!!!!! Now that I know how to ride a bike, it is SO fun.


Andrew

I looked at the calendar this morning. I can't believe we've only been here a little over three weeks......it seems longer. It's so nice hearing from everyone, keeps me connected, thanks. I know, I know, I need to make connections here, too. That's something I'll ease into. I want to choose my commitments carefully. I was invited to join a beach bum group yesterday. They have a certain spot at the beach where they meet from November - May. Now, that's something I think I can do. .....can you believe I rode my bike to the beach yesterday....10 minutes.

I've started on some new artwork. Got a book on lowbrow artists - way cool. So many of them draw their inspiration from old comics, illustrations, tin toys and carnivals. Lots of the stuff that I really dig. I so much more love Outsider, Folk and, now, Lowbrow work than I do "High Brow" art, they don't seem to take themselves so seriously. Just the same, the work is extremely creative and out there. I'll never be edgy enough to be an Outsider or Lowbrow, but I'm certainy going to let it inspire me.

I love listening to music while I work. A lot of time I think of my friends in Houston. Thanks for turning me on to Death Cab for Cutie, Michelle. I think of Rick when I listen to the Duhks. Marty is Wilco. Return of the Grievous Angel... Sue. Any Joni is John George. Jeff Buckley, Tom Hagemann. Motorcade of Generosity, Stephen. Elliott Smith (I love him), Paul Cobb. The Hudsons, my home girls. Of course, then there's Willie. He's John and Jacqueline, but mostly he's Texas. The list goes on and on. I only wish I'd packed more music. What are you listening to now???

It pays to travel with a sharp knife!

This is the knife that friend Joanie gave us the night before we left for NZ. We had one last burrito at Freebirds and this went straight into our bags. Well, as fate would have it, we have been in a series of accomodations prior to moving into the long rental, and the knife has come in extremely handy.

Here'a a partial list of what we've cut so far: bananas, pineapple, apples, dates, grapes, potatoes, celery, carrots, tomatoes, lettuce, onions, avocado, zuchini, pickles, pork chops, chicken, cheese, cake, brownies, aspirin, numerous bags and containers, who knows what else.

Just don't pack it in the carry-on.

By the way that's Herr Salz and Frau Pfeffer who made the journey, too.