I try not to blog too much about about NZ-this or USA-that. It's just not productive to be measuring one country against the other, ya know? Be where you're at. But I filed my NZ taxes today and because taxes have been such an annual ordeal in my life, this year was a revelation.

My first introduction was talking to an employee at the bank/post office about how I probably needed to sort this out (the tax year ended March 31) and I asked him what he did each year. He gave me a funny look. I don't have to file anything, he said. It's already calculated and there's no reason to file anything.

Not file taxes?!? Not sweat over the freaking schedule ABCDE, SE, and myriad other forms that made my 1040 into a small book?




I hit the IRD New Zealand website and there it is, that beautiful statement: "Most people who earn salary or wages pay the correct amount of tax and don't need to do anything at the end of the tax year."


Can you imagine such a thing? I used to start preparing my US taxes in early March, because I knew it would take several weekend sessions to get the thing done. The idea that you might not even need to send in a form struck me initially as fantasy-land stuff.


But you know when you look over the personal tax form, called the IR3, it is so simple - 3 tax brackets, few deductions and special cases, that it begins to make sense. Here it is, if you want to have a look.

http://www.ird.govt.nz/resources/c/2/c26b87004dbf7347bf6abf90ad5f3a80/ir3-2009.pdf

I guess what happened to me during this process, is I moved beyond the sorts of statements often made under and about US taxes, e.g. "The tax system is broken," to actually seeing what it could be like, and how it could function. So much of that stuff - from capital gains and losses to the byzantine way self-employment taxes are calculated, simply doesn't have to be done that way, or done at all.






Nonetheless, as I decided whether I needed to file at all, I had a question... about interest on a bank account. So I called the 800 number for the IRD and I was placed into a hold queue. Usually this would be cause for despair, but here's the way the system works, I got a message telling me how long the wait would be (within a 10 min window) and would I like a callback? Yes, I would, I decided. I entered my phone number, and after that amount of time, I received the help call.


The person walked me through what I needed to do and - are you ready for another shocker? - took down my interest information and entered it into the system right at that time. As it turned out, I had over-withheld taxes via the bank, and I would in fact be due a refund. They also took my bank details and it will be transferred to my account within a few days. All that on the first phone call! I have now effectively filed my taxes, along with submitting one revision handled by phone.

Now I understand the tax system has been called largely voluntary, meaning much of the information will never be checked by anyone, and it is in some doubt exactly what numbers the goverment possesses anyhow, but to take the interest paid and amounts withheld off me in a phone call, imagine that! It begins to feel like I am actually trusted to report the right thing, and that feels pretty good. And I hadn't thought about it till now, but I reckon that means that the IRD places some trust and responsibility with the person on the other end of that phone call, too.

I will close by saying that when thinking about systems, such as tax in NZ, I can find myself making arguments for the USA (or NZ) because of relative size. Oh no that only works in NZ because it's so small. That kind of thing. But I'm not going to accept that. In fact, a huge country with a huge base of taxpayers could arguably have many more resources and wherewithal to craft solutions for a problem. Isn't it the same sort of reasoning - the whole economies of scale thing - that makes us imagine Home Depot is more "efficient" than a small corner hardware store? And just so, couldn't the US run the exact same call handling software that enables polite, scheduled callbacks at an agreed upon number and future time? Couldn't we find a way to get the job done without TurboTax, a personal tax accountant, or a month of weekends stolen away to get intimate with the tax code?

Me and Andrew were messing around and taking pictures of ourselves jumping. Here are the best ones.




My biggest jump.

Andrew while jumping.

I thought I would chronicle my Wednesday bike ride to pick up Andrew. So, I'm taking the camera along in my pocket and we'll see what we see along the way.

First off, helmets are required, so I've got my trusty Sorelli one from the Warehouse. Also my magnificent reflective pants cuff holders. Don't leave home without 'em. And, a backpack, because we need cream and spaghetti sauce. I'll take a stop by the grocery before school lets out.






Guaranteed to get you heart beating is the hill right out of the driveway. Yes, I ride the brakes down, and I usually walk up unless I am feel like some kind of iron man.






The stretch you see below is the only time I am on the main road. I have a pretty good shoulder to the left of the white stripe, but it's still exciting when a logging truck comes by. That's a traffic circle up ahead. Not much fun for bikes but fear not I will take you up and over the bike bridge that skirts around the circle. That brown sign pointing into the bushes is where the bikes bail out.





There go the cars into the circle, but we are safely up and away on bridge #1. You can see the cycleway as it wraps around the other side of the circle.





Down the series of bridges and onto the railway reserve path, which I guess used to be a railway. It is nice and straight and on most streets bikes have the right of way. It helps to know which streets you don't.





I have figured out that if the cars have a bump, I have priority. If no bump, bikes stop. As I tell the boys, ("it's best to slow down and have a look regardless").

The railway reserve runs me all the way into the town square. This is not Nelson but an outlying village named Stoke. It's a small shopping square, but if you consider what is there, it pretty much covers all the essentials of what people want. There is a library and a fire station. A grocery. A veggie stand. A barber. Eyeglasses. Video rental. Bank. Drugstore. Hair salon. A couple of small eateries featuring hamburgers, pizza, turkish kebabs, and chinese. And most importantly there is a pub. Also a bike shop, as you will see on the sidewalk.

Here is the view from the New World, the older grocery in town. A new one has sprung up nearby that is more "big box." We go to both. Today I will be quick in and out at the New World. The school bell is ringing about now.

Riding back I cut up a side street to get onto the railway reserve and there is Andrew and Cameron. I will share with them some gummy worms.

It is getting into winter now. Temps are going into the single digits at night, but during the day it is the teens, which is the 60's, and when the sun is out it's really quite nice. Today it's a nice day. Here's a look off the path to a bike ramp and the mountains beyond.

Below is the hill where we lived for a few weeks right after we moved here.

Here is the entrance to the bike ramp up over the main road on the return trip. I think about the biking infrastructure here as I am cruising along. They have made it so easy. I know it would be hard to go back and retrofit a city like Houston, but shouldn't we be thinking about this kind of planning going forward? When the Katy Freeway was being expanded, couldn't we find room for ten feet off to the side as a dedicated cycleway? Or how about as rail expands around the city? Couldn't part of rail down Richmond include a cycle/pedestrian track? I know it is a big ask.

These bike rides are one of the small quality of life things I know I will miss just about anywhere else.

There goes Andrew down into the bush. He is scootering today.

And here comes Barbara home from the studio. She is the most consistent biker of us all, and looks keen in her fluorescent jacket. And she also brings in firewood!

We have a tree in our backyard that grows feijoas. Me and daddy-o went down to that tree and we picked approximately 8 or so.

At Nayland Primary I'm the compost person with 2 other kids. We go around asking for peoples' compost and somebody I saw had a massive feijoa skin and was eating it. I did not know you could eat the skin. But lots of kids had them and I thought they were crazy freaks. They eat the whole thing but not the bottom or bum as we call it.

But now I tried the skin and I think it's bitter and dreadful tasting but the feijoa itself is pretty good. hhhhhho!

Dad says look here for more info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feijoa
They're supposed to be in Georgia and Louisiana, but we never saw them.

- Andrew

It's fall in New Zealand. The weather is crisp and we've lit our fire several times. We've discovered a walnut tree on our property and have been delighting in them ....almost as good as our pecan tree at 816 West Main. The feajoas are ripening and Duane swears they are delicious. Maybe I'll develop a taste for them. We laso found an apple tree hidden among the bush. It only bore about 8 fruit, but they were very tasty.


We went to a friends orchard in early April and got to pick bushels of apples. There are so many (4 million says Brenda) that if they are not perfect, Brenda will just take a bite and chuck 'em. It was interesting learning the ins and outs of orchard life. Theirs is a "boutique" orchard and they can only sell the finest. They talked about how difficult it is to launch a new variety....most don't take. But, they have some "Eves" (is that a GREAT name or what) and they seem to be catching on.

Finally, we were invited to our third party this weekend. Of the three we've been invited to, two have been costume parties. Our little town of Nelson has three costume rental shops all within 1k of each other. It's bizarre - maybe it's because they don't celebrate Halloween. Anyway, the Independent Theatre also has a costume rental. So, against my normal inclinations, I rented some clothes, dressed up for the Ab Fab party and danced the night away!

It's Good Friday in NZ. What are the Franklets up to? First of all, everything is closed and I mean everything. Went to the grocery to pick up a few items - nope. Fortunately we already have our eggs. That's Andrew on egg stuffing duty and that giant can of jelly beans is the one he won in a coloring competition. We've got some of his young friends coming over later along with some even younger siblings, and we will hunt.... should be great fun and a perfect day sunny in the 60's.

Andrew regarding his job this morning: "They are delicious and hard to resist but somehow we managed to get it all done."

Meanwhile Dean-o is outside with - what is that thing - a cricket bat? Hmmm... from his expression I don't think he hit anything.

Barbara is doing some last minute framing. Of course you can't see anything because they are all fish-face down. Here I will upload another pic so you can see what she's up to.

Leaving the Comfort Zone

The best thing I did all summer was swim in the blue pools. The water was bitter – 50 at best, possibly mid 40s. Slowly, I lowered my body into the icy pool. I thought myself crazy, I should just get dressed and stay where it’s warm and sunny. But, I persevered. And then, for fifteen fabulous minutes, I kicked my feet and felt the arctic fingers sting my body. My heart pumped, I laughed and played. It was truly exhilarating; I didn’t want to get out.

Isn’t it so? It’s not the sumptuous meal we hold dear, nor the squandered afternoon in the sun. It’s those times we have felt challenged, when we have confronted fear or failure or harsh elements that we remember and cherish. It’s when we have left our comfort zone that we feel most alive.

I recently saw “Man on Wire” - loved it. And, while I have no desire to tightrope across anything, let alone thousands of feet above the ground without a net, I completely get Phillipe Petits. I can’t remember his exact quote. But, at one point he expresses a profound need to cross the Towers. He saw it as beauty, art and a measure of true living. One fall and it’s over, yet for forty minutes, he dances on the wire in a state of euphoria.

I suspect, but don’t know for sure, that Phillipe lived comfortably. I understand if one is hungry, cold, lonely – then the very act of existence is a quest for a comfort zone. To leave a comfort zone, one’s basic needs must be met. But, if one has reached some level of security, then I highly recommend taking a step outside of it. Make a speech, swim in arctic waters, bungee jump, walk four days in the rain, sweat. Make your heart race and choose to feel uncomfortable.

I used to think astronauts were crazy. Why would anyone dare to do something so dangerous? What motivates the person climbing Mt. Everest, collecting venom from sea snakes, throwing oneself unnecessarily into life threatening situations? Those folks aren’t content to put a toe outside the comfort zone, they throw their bodies out into the stratosphere. These days I understand them a bit more.

Me, I’ll never seek that level of adventure. Never touch a venomous snake nor blaze a trail in an unfamiliar and inhospitable environment. I’ll never sell all my possessions, burn my life savings. I’ll never leave the comfort zone completely. I’m not that brave. At best, I may skydive next.

“Everyone needs a quest as an excuse for living,” Bruce Chatwin (author, adventurer)

This year I did the Weetbix Triathlon. It is one of the largest kids' triathlons in the world. When I first got there I was not afraid. I saw all the other kids and I thought this is going to be so fun. There might be bad parts, but usually when I do something like this I have a whole lot of fun.

When I put my bike in there I thought I might never find it. We put a purple towel over my bike to help me find it, but I thought other people might have a purple towel also. There were a lot of bikes.

After I had finished swimming, I ran right to my bike and found it right away. I had to take off my swim cap, I had to put on my shirt and shoes and stuff like that. And then I started biking. I was quite fast. I passed like 5 people at the beginning, but once we went around one of the corners a kid smacked into me and I fell off my bike. I got right back on and started biking again. And I passed some more people. When I got back to the bike area I put my bike back in its spot and right away I started running.

At the beginning I passed a few kids and then at the end Dean was telling me to use my last burst of energy. I used it wisely when I passed a couple at the end, one of which I knew. That's Rylee in the picture, and me. I had a whole lot of fun I got a shiny gold medal and I want to do it again next year. P.S. I didn't win anything. Except the medal. And a shirt. And a swimcap. But everybody got that. By Andrew.

Hi is a me Andrew look at me flying this wonderful kite.i'm famous for flying kites i'm kidding.

at this amazing nelson kite festival there were cobras,fish,dragons all sorts of animals

Over the holidays we went to a lot of places. One of these places was Wanaka. In Wanaka, was THE MOST INCREDIBLY AMAZING PUZZLE CENTER THING IN THE WORLD. It was called Puzzling World. It was quite cool. When you look at it from the outside you can tell it will be awesome. There is a giant walk through maze to your left, and to your right is this,There is even an optical illusion ground when

you are walking in. When you walk in there is a big room with lots of tables and people and on the tables are puzzles. You don't even have to pay to do the puzzles and you can stay as long as you want. When you look up it is a kaleidoscope ceiling. When you pay there are two things to do, the illusion rooms and the labyrinth. We did the illusion rooms first and they were so cool.

It started out with a room with a bunch of 3D holograms. After was the following faces room.When you moved the faces appeared to follow you.

After that was this crazy tilted room.

And the last room was the Amos room.There are no trick cameras or anything, it is just the viewing point.

After the rooms we did the labyrinth it was nearly impossible. It was made of wood and you had to go to each of the four towers once and then go back to the entrance. I went alone and mum and Andrew stayed together. We found all the towers(After an hour and 4-5k of walking) but we had to use the emergency exit(used a lot) because we could not get back to the start. You came to a little cafe area and they even made their toilets illusions.It was a good place.

$^$^$-Dean

Hike at Milford Sound

We recently returned from our summer holiday down south. We spent three days at Milford Sound. We took this fabulous hike one day .

Typical of the Kiwis, this hike was not for lightweights. It was steep, rocky and loads of fun.

The very fact that it was more of an adventure, made this hike much more appealing to the boys.

Grandma was an amazing sport and hiked this treacherous trail to the bitter end.

This is no Rocky Mountain National Park. Described as moderate, I can't imagine what a difficult hike is like.



After this exciting climb, Duane ripped off his clothes and plunged into the icy, alpine lake.