Friday, September 5, 2008
My extended family's adventures
Its been a long time since I blogged. I guess not much happening in the home life at present - yet. However we have been able to live vicariously through my nephew's and sister's blog as they have ventured to the other side of the world for at least 6months. They, with hubby and baby sister, have rented a Tuscan Villa for 6months before seeking their fortune in the UK for a year or so (or depending on the next plan). Check out their blogs - Mathew has a great writing style and is keeping a very memorable diary of his adventures.
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Storm Front
Well - it was deemed the storm of the decade with disastrous south easterly winds and torrential rain. We were told to prepare for a battering and to ensure that we had our survival kits ready. Civil Defense rolled into action, ready for what might eventuate.
Having said that Fiona went into town for a workshop - only to be evacuated and told to go home at lunch time. Being high tide, Fiona still ventured homeward past the narrow ridges next to the rising sea. Fortunately she made it home in one piece. through out the early afternoon we had raincoats and boots handy as we rushed outside and rescued items that flew off our decks. Then a lull. What better time to get into the car and go and see the storms destruction and fury. We drove to Ocean Beach (we didn't take your car Dad - just in case). Wow!! Actually it wasn't as bad as we had anticipated. The harbour appeared ominously calm. Drains had morphed into rivers and whirl pools as they approached drains. Only when we turned onto the Ocean Beach straight did the extent of the storm begin to show its impact with a couple of enormous trees partially blocking the road. We were unperturbed - we wanted to see the waves. Ocean Beach did not disappoint!
Having said all that - on a west facing property the storm did not deliver the excitement that perhaps others enjoyed!
Having said that Fiona went into town for a workshop - only to be evacuated and told to go home at lunch time. Being high tide, Fiona still ventured homeward past the narrow ridges next to the rising sea. Fortunately she made it home in one piece. through out the early afternoon we had raincoats and boots handy as we rushed outside and rescued items that flew off our decks. Then a lull. What better time to get into the car and go and see the storms destruction and fury. We drove to Ocean Beach (we didn't take your car Dad - just in case). Wow!! Actually it wasn't as bad as we had anticipated. The harbour appeared ominously calm. Drains had morphed into rivers and whirl pools as they approached drains. Only when we turned onto the Ocean Beach straight did the extent of the storm begin to show its impact with a couple of enormous trees partially blocking the road. We were unperturbed - we wanted to see the waves. Ocean Beach did not disappoint!
Having said all that - on a west facing property the storm did not deliver the excitement that perhaps others enjoyed!
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Pizza Making
Fiona, Tayla, Justin and I were inspired by my nephew's blog. Living in Italy for 6 months, Mathew is becoming an expert chef, making pizza's in a genuine pizza oven.. he is also creating other culinary delights which you can check out on his blog My Tuscany OE.
As a result of reading Mathew's Blog, we decided to give pizza making a go. We did not have a pizza oven but decided to make our pizza as authentic as possible.
We followed Jamie Oliver's Pizza Dough recipe. A granite kitchen bench definitely helped!
We sieved the flour onto the bench.
We mixed the other ingredients in a jug - water, oil, sugar and yeast. We then made a well in our flour and slowly poured in the water mixture. Justin and Tayla then began to mix the liquid into the flour - determined not to let the flour wall cave in - they had to work hard. 
Little by little the mixture became thicker and tackier - then we would add more of the water and mix mix mix. Eventually the wall had to cave and mix in with the rest of the mixture.
When the fork was not longer useful, Tayla and Justin rolled up their sleeves and began to knead. They practiced, added flour, kneaded, rolled and turned the dough. There was flour all over the bench and we decided to enjoy the mess and just stay at it until the dough was ready to roll into bowls.
The bowls were placed next to the fire to rise.
Unfortunately the whole process took longer than we had imagined so decided to eat it for brunch the next day instead of dinner that night.
The next morning the dough was twice its size and ready to knock back and roll into balls.
Another enjoyable time with flour and dough then rolling the dough into flat pizza shapes.
Most of the morning was spent chopping ingredients for the top of our pizza.
Keira joined in as well - an expert at chopping with a very sharp knife (only a little nick in her finger which she recovered from and continued to chop).
What awesome pizza's we had for dinner. Next time we felt we might need more cheese on our pizza's and more tomato base. Any advice welcome to make a pizza more moist. The base was great, the topping tasty, the experience - priceless!
As a result of reading Mathew's Blog, we decided to give pizza making a go. We did not have a pizza oven but decided to make our pizza as authentic as possible.
We followed Jamie Oliver's Pizza Dough recipe. A granite kitchen bench definitely helped!We sieved the flour onto the bench.
We mixed the other ingredients in a jug - water, oil, sugar and yeast. We then made a well in our flour and slowly poured in the water mixture. Justin and Tayla then began to mix the liquid into the flour - determined not to let the flour wall cave in - they had to work hard. 
Little by little the mixture became thicker and tackier - then we would add more of the water and mix mix mix. Eventually the wall had to cave and mix in with the rest of the mixture.
When the fork was not longer useful, Tayla and Justin rolled up their sleeves and began to knead. They practiced, added flour, kneaded, rolled and turned the dough. There was flour all over the bench and we decided to enjoy the mess and just stay at it until the dough was ready to roll into bowls.
The bowls were placed next to the fire to rise.Unfortunately the whole process took longer than we had imagined so decided to eat it for brunch the next day instead of dinner that night.
The next morning the dough was twice its size and ready to knock back and roll into balls.
Another enjoyable time with flour and dough then rolling the dough into flat pizza shapes.Most of the morning was spent chopping ingredients for the top of our pizza.
Keira joined in as well - an expert at chopping with a very sharp knife (only a little nick in her finger which she recovered from and continued to chop).
What awesome pizza's we had for dinner. Next time we felt we might need more cheese on our pizza's and more tomato base. Any advice welcome to make a pizza more moist. The base was great, the topping tasty, the experience - priceless!
Saturday, June 21, 2008
winter solstice
It is officially the middle of winter - and here I am sitting in the lounge this relaxing Sunday morning - in my summer pjs!
What a wonderfully warm winter this has been albeit a bit wet - but not enough to keep the hydro dams full. So all in all - a very pleasant winter.
The sad part of this year was the departure of Rachael, Ralph, Mathew and Ana to Italy for their year plus adventure. I miss them all heaps but technology today keeps us in contact with Skype chat and video discussions. Their blogs are also worth a read (see in right hand panel).
For those remaining in the southern hemisphere, this winter solstice brought a beautiful sunny saturday. Fiona and I took a wonderful walk along the coastal cliffs with my parents. The jackets were a precaution against the black clouds on the horizon - and ofcourse because we wore them the sun remained shining.
What a wonderfully warm winter this has been albeit a bit wet - but not enough to keep the hydro dams full. So all in all - a very pleasant winter.
The sad part of this year was the departure of Rachael, Ralph, Mathew and Ana to Italy for their year plus adventure. I miss them all heaps but technology today keeps us in contact with Skype chat and video discussions. Their blogs are also worth a read (see in right hand panel).
For those remaining in the southern hemisphere, this winter solstice brought a beautiful sunny saturday. Fiona and I took a wonderful walk along the coastal cliffs with my parents. The jackets were a precaution against the black clouds on the horizon - and ofcourse because we wore them the sun remained shining.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Tribute to Shelly
I can’t remember our first meeting – I feel like I have known her all my life. And yet after attending her funeral I realise I probably knew just a slice. We met online – which is where she seemed to live her life in the last few years. Here she could reach out to people, chat to them, encourage them, laugh with them. She wasn’t afraid to tell her story – she was proud of her story but never boasted. At her funeral they said she stole 46years of life - it wasn't an easy steal. Her mother had been told she wouldn’t reach her second birthday – but she fought for all 46 of them. She missed out on many opportunities offered to the children born today with congenital heart conditions such as hers. It is easy to say she was born with a hole in her heart – and yet it was so much more than that. Shelly was born with Tetralogy of Fallot with Pulmonary Atresia.
“Tetralogy of Fallot has four key features. A ventricular septal defect (a hole between the ventricles) and many levels of obstruction from the right ventricle to the lungs (pulmonary stenosis) are the most important.”
Despite all this Shelly’s life was not about her physical heart. Today I learnt that she had a passion for music – especially the old stuff. I think everyone knew about her passion for the All Blacks. In fact, in lieu of flowers I wondered if we should make a donation to Heart Children, or the All Blacks!!! I know which one Shelly would choose! And Shelly was an avid Labour Party supporter with a direct link to Helen Clark via her personal email. Shelly made an impact on, it seems, everyone she met. And even Helen emailed of her sadness on hearing of Shelly’s passing.
Shelly and I began a support group for Adults with Congenital Heart conditions (out of date website now). We worked on a website, provided information, and made ourselves available for people to email. We had a small response. But in the end our dedication to this site dwindled. We had found our support group in each other. We met for coffee on and off in the early days, visited each other in hospital when able to do so, and emailed about our down patches and our recoveries. We had wider support networks – both with loving families and friends – but we offered each other something different. We just had to say – “Well…. Yeah… you know!” and we did.
Shelly – I’m going to miss our support group. You fought hard and you fought long. I will keep you close and remember. I hope I will be able to take on a little of your strength - the strength you showed the world – the strength you showed me – and ….. well….. you know! RIP or even better without the restrictions go enjoy a marathon or a game of rugby!
“Tetralogy of Fallot has four key features. A ventricular septal defect (a hole between the ventricles) and many levels of obstruction from the right ventricle to the lungs (pulmonary stenosis) are the most important.”
Despite all this Shelly’s life was not about her physical heart. Today I learnt that she had a passion for music – especially the old stuff. I think everyone knew about her passion for the All Blacks. In fact, in lieu of flowers I wondered if we should make a donation to Heart Children, or the All Blacks!!! I know which one Shelly would choose! And Shelly was an avid Labour Party supporter with a direct link to Helen Clark via her personal email. Shelly made an impact on, it seems, everyone she met. And even Helen emailed of her sadness on hearing of Shelly’s passing.
Shelly and I began a support group for Adults with Congenital Heart conditions (out of date website now). We worked on a website, provided information, and made ourselves available for people to email. We had a small response. But in the end our dedication to this site dwindled. We had found our support group in each other. We met for coffee on and off in the early days, visited each other in hospital when able to do so, and emailed about our down patches and our recoveries. We had wider support networks – both with loving families and friends – but we offered each other something different. We just had to say – “Well…. Yeah… you know!” and we did.
Shelly – I’m going to miss our support group. You fought hard and you fought long. I will keep you close and remember. I hope I will be able to take on a little of your strength - the strength you showed the world – the strength you showed me – and ….. well….. you know! RIP or even better without the restrictions go enjoy a marathon or a game of rugby!
Sunday, April 20, 2008
41 Question - Personality test
As a result of a discussion on BlogCatalog, Fiona and I took a Myers-Briggs/Jung personality test. Interestingly (but not too surprisingly) we both came out as personality type 1 - but with slightly differing descriptions.
Beverly
Quiet, reflective and idealistic. Interested in serving humanity. Well-developed value system, which they strive to live in accordance with. Extremely loyal. Adaptable and laid-back unless a strongly-held value is threatened. Usually talented writers. Mentally quick and able to see possibilities. Interested in understanding and helping people.
Careers that could fit you include:
Writers, artists, counselors, social workers, English teachers, fine arts teachers, child care workers, clergy, missionaries, psychologists, psychiatrists, scientists, political activists, editors, education consultants, journalists, religious educators, social scientists.
Fiona
Serious and quiet, interested in security and peaceful living. Extremely thorough, responsible and dependable. Well-developed powers of concentration. Usually interested in supporting and promoting traditions and establishments. Well-organized and hard working, they work steadily towards identified goals. They can usually accomplish any task once they have set their mind to it.
Careers that could fit you include:
Business executives, administrators and managers, accountants, police, detectives, judges, lawyers, medical doctors, dentists, computer programmers, systems analysts, computer specialists, auditors, electricians, math teachers, mechanical engineers, steelworkers, technicians
Beverly
Quiet, reflective and idealistic. Interested in serving humanity. Well-developed value system, which they strive to live in accordance with. Extremely loyal. Adaptable and laid-back unless a strongly-held value is threatened. Usually talented writers. Mentally quick and able to see possibilities. Interested in understanding and helping people.
Careers that could fit you include:
Writers, artists, counselors, social workers, English teachers, fine arts teachers, child care workers, clergy, missionaries, psychologists, psychiatrists, scientists, political activists, editors, education consultants, journalists, religious educators, social scientists.
Fiona
Serious and quiet, interested in security and peaceful living. Extremely thorough, responsible and dependable. Well-developed powers of concentration. Usually interested in supporting and promoting traditions and establishments. Well-organized and hard working, they work steadily towards identified goals. They can usually accomplish any task once they have set their mind to it.
Careers that could fit you include:
Business executives, administrators and managers, accountants, police, detectives, judges, lawyers, medical doctors, dentists, computer programmers, systems analysts, computer specialists, auditors, electricians, math teachers, mechanical engineers, steelworkers, technicians
Monday, April 7, 2008
lion, buffalo, crocodile
We had a wonderful evening with my parents and aunt and uncle - the later who are here in NZ for a 10day holiday. We enjoyed champagne on the deck followed by a meal of fresh fish and salad compliments of Fiona's exquisite cooking. We enjoyed a Bailey's coffee in the evening along with entertainment from YouTube. It was great to share the different movies we have all explored on YouTube. We shared the Honda add and PaulPotts, while Janette and John shared the treadmill movie and the "lion, buffalo and crocodile" YouTube extravaganza - as seen below. This was not filmed by us - but found on YouTube - as one does - and well worth a watch.
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