Saturday 2nd April

Another week of up and down stuff. I’ve got an ad running in the Golden Bay Weekly for lawnmowing/gardening/etc for the Aorere Valley, Collingwood – Bainham and hopefully will eventually pick up some work through that.

Kiwi fruit season is about a month away at least here, then there will be work all over the place, but only for a month or so, with maybe a few weeks afterwards pruning.

I’m undecided about where to put the tunnel houses now, where I want them has been used as a parking area, with a fair bit of gravel added to the ground and a smallish hump in the middle. I tried to dig through it, so I can level it out a bit, but the spade just bounced back up. Will try to get the farmer down the road to scrape it back with the tractor and bucket, when I can catch him.

I bought another toy on Tuesday, small Poulan Chainsaw, and got rid of the acacia that I just knew would fall once I put the poly tunnels up. It wasn’t too bad, I got about a cu. m of good firewood from it, and a lot more light coming through the gap now as well.

My P class licence is turning into a major exercise, going to cost $550.00, with written tests and an hour spent driving the licencing guy around in Motueka, then waiting 6 – 8 weeks for a Police clearance. Oh well, once I have it there are the school buses, tourist buses, and general bus service that I can get.

I’m still plastering upstairs, going over where the plaster hasn’t stuck to the walls, I’ve got mesh on it now, and hopefully it will decide to stay there.

If anyone remembers the fun I had in Honiara with the rats, here I’m now inundated with field mice from the paddocks all around me. Since they were cut for silage last week, it seems as though every field mouse in the neighbourhood moved in with me, I’ve got 2 traps set continuosly, the best score so far is 8 last night out of nearly 20 I’ve caught in the past 3 – 4 days. They have no fear of people, I had one get caught at 9am this morning, while I was having a coffee. Then 2 more this afternoon while I was outside cutting the lawn.

I’ve got some Talon bait down as well now along with the traps.

I had a bit of a clean up around the garden as well, trimmed a few overgrown bits and pieces back, stacked it up and let it dry out till Thursday

between times, I tried out the oven and got rid of some ripe bananas and made banana cake with lemon icing

In

The cows are spending a few days next door in the paddock,they all look
like they are due to calve soon, and are extremely curious. If they see me in the house or outside, they all cluster around the fenceline watching.

Just up the road from me, on top of the hill, is a typical farm paddock sculpture. I don't know how long it has been there, but everyone in the area knows it, and it makes a good reference point to describe where I am.

I've spent the day going over the plaster I put on yesterday, the grooves in the panel suck it in, so I'm trying to get away from what happened downstairs with some of the grooves still showing. Haven't got up the ladder yet,

Here's a few photos from the last few days, we've got a coldish westerly blowing the clouds over the hill tops, and into the valleys,

Saturday 26th March

Another week slipped away, with not a lot of progress. Well, some progress, things take a long time to happen here, a little like the Solomons, so I’m well used to slowing the pace down now.

I have to get a medical clearance and then get my Irish Passenger Transport licence swapped onto my NZ licence, then I go onto the list of drivers for Golden Bay Tours, taking tourists out to Farewell Spit Lighthouse and other places. Although they are slowing down now the main tourist season is nearly over. It’ll be a good part time job anyway, and fun.

Still waiting for the polytunnels to arrive, they were meant to be here Thursday, so I waited at Collingwood till 5.30 pm Thursday, then came back home. The carriers rang Friday morning and said how about Tuesday about 4.30, so I’ll be back at the garage again then. Waiting wasn’t too bad, the garage loaned me a couple of books to read while I was waiting, in between taking a few more photos around Collingwood.

I went to the monthly meeting of SeniorNet in Takaka on Monday, just to see what they do, and ended up getting put onto the committee. They run computer/internet classes for 55+ people, and despite the small population here in Golden Bay, all the courses they run get filled quickly. I’m down to run a course on internet scams, and identity theft on the net, so the years I’ve been involved with www.scamwarners.com is of some benefit. Especially now with a lot of the newer scams, and the Japanese Earthquake scams everywhere at the moment.

I picked up my trailer on Tuesday over in Motueka, it tows well, and is well set up for a lawnmowing round, with a lock box on the front, and detachable ramps at the back. And deep sides, better than the usual 300mm high ones. All I need now is the lawns and gardens to do and get payed for. It will take a month or so for any work to come in, I have an ad going in this week in the Golden Bay paper, but as I’ve been told by Shukita at the store, everyone will wait till the ad has been running for a month at least before responding, everyone here has seen the blowins arrive then vanish without achieving anything.

I’ve had another look and measured up everything again for getting stuff upstairs, and I think there is just room enough to get a queen bed base up there, it is tight and I’ll need someone else to help, but I think with a bit of awkward manoeuvering and some muttered words, it should work. So I’m upstairs this weekend plastering and masking off the edges. A coat of plaster today, then sand off tomorrow if it dries in time, then painting during the week. Getting right up into the ceiling at the ridge is going to be interesting, I have a 12’ ladder, and it is still a bit short, and given I don’t like working at heights anymore, I get vertigo something chronic now, I may have to borrow another ladder and some planks just to give me the sense of security.

Even getting up to plaster is fun, trowel full of plaster, climb up the ladder, watch half the plaster fall off onto the floor, mutter a few words, climb down the ladder, scoop it up, climb etc. still, it is getting done, and then I’ll paint the stairway while the plaster is drying, it is a dark dingy looking stairwell, with the fake wood panels, and spider webs like some Hammer Horror movie hanging from the ceiling.

Sunday 20th March

I had a disturbed sleep last night. Got woken about 2am by a family of wekas having a party outside, calling to each other, and playing in the shrubs against the house. Gave up trying to ignore them in the end, and finally got back to sleep about 4.30, after reading most of the night.

When I did finally wake up, about 8, it was looking to be a brilliant day, as always here, so loaded the fishing rods into the Pajero and spent most of the day at Collingwood beach.

Caught one slightly undersize Kahawai, had several what felt like snapper bites, but nothing to bring home. Still, it was peaceful, the tides are high this week, with the full moon, and if I get back there, I think early morning or evening will be better than a midday tide.

Here are a few photos anyway, the beach is still littered with driftwood from the flood back in January, the little harbour at Collingwood is more driftwood than harbour, and all the beaches along Golden Bay have varying amounts of driftwood scattered on them. I filled the boot of the Pajero with the smaller bits for the fire.

Saturday 18th March

Jeez, a whole week, either I’ve been too busy or there hasn’t been a lot happening. A bit of both at times I think

Pics of the Beach at Collingwood, with a flock of oystercatchers flying across to the river mouth

The polytunnels arrive next week, so there goes next weekend, setting them out, and levelling up the frames and bases. Chiquita and Wills down at the store have offered to come and help put the ploythene covers on, depending on how busy they are during the week. Even one person to help will be good, it is simple enough but a hell of a struggle on your own, and with 8 metres of the stuff to lift up and over metre high frames I can see myself using a bit of language.

I’m working my way through a list of phone numbers of people to contact for part time and seasonal work, from the kiwi fruit orchards, they start in a month or so, to part time at the Senior Nett Community Centre in Takaka with computer courses, as well as the TOPS Courses at the Golden Bay Work Centre Trust.

The other thing I have going is setting up a lawnmowing and garden Maintenance round here in the Aorere Valley, the closest other person comes from Parapara, the next is based in Takaka, so their prices reflect the distance to get to any work here in the valley. I pick up a trailer from Motueka on Tuesday, found it on Trademe, ex lawnmowing contractor, so it is fitted out with ramps for a ride on mower, and a secure lock box for fuel and those items that go missing, like chainsaws, hedge cutters etc.

I haven’t done anything further to the house, other than patch up a few places where some idiot brushed against the cream walls with black paint on his arm/shoulder/jeans, and finished the trim off. I’m starting a garden out the back door, a large square of grass, that I don’t need, and it gets sun most of the day, other than mornings, so it is going to be the veg garden.

I was outside cutting back the trees on the road edge earlier today, some of the calves in the paddocks at the top of the hill have just been separated from their mothers, and put into other paddocks. I put a few back in the paddock on Thursday when I went to Collingwood, they were outside the fence on the road trying to find mum. Anyway, went into Takaka this morning, and there were another 8 or so out, so stopped, chased them back up the road, put them through the gate, carried on to Takaka

Came back about 3 hours later, they were out again, so drove down to the store, told Chiquita, and she was going to ring around the neighbourhood to find the owners.

Where was I? Oh yes, cutting the trees outside. The calves decided to come down the hill to pay a visit, I suppose they had me down as an easy mark by now, when the guy from the farm down the road came past on the quad bike. So we stopped and chatted as you do in the middle of nowhere and the good side is they weren’t his calves, but he chased them back up anyway, and during our conv, he asked if I was doing anything yet. Said not yet, and he is going to see about getting me working in the dairy in a week or so when all the cows come into full milk production. 700 of them, 5am starts, and 4.30 afternoons. About 3 – 4 hours at a time, so I’m hoping it comes through. Asked me if I’ve milked cows before, said not for a long while, like 50 years, but if he was going to pay me, I’ll learn bloody fast.

Here are a few pics of the Aorere River and what is left of the James Road Bridge from the flood in January. They have a walkway over the river now, until Council can find the money to replace the road bridge.

There is gold still in the Aorere, a mile or so upstream are areas where panning is allowed, I may get a licence and have a go one day.

Quick *hi* to Mike, John, Pete and Katja, Libby, Hogan, Mary, Al, take care

Sunday 13th March

I ran out of oomph about Thursday, I think I’ve been running on adrenaline the last week or so trying to get everything done as fast or as much as possible.

Went into Takaka Friday, to get some black gloss paint for the window frames, and skirting boards, a couple more paint brushes, and to stock up the fridge and pantry. Food prices are a bit higher than in Auckland, having only the one supermarket doesn’t help, nor the trip over the hill to get things here. Although the local roadside stalls and the local shops in town with the organic and almost organic produce are a bit cheaper.

I’ve unpacked a lot more cartons, going to fold them up and find someone who wants them, I’m not intending to move again, although I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve said that in the past as well.

Summer has definitely passed, the mornings are decidedly brisk now, with early mist drifting up from the stream and the Aorere River across the paddock. I’ll attempt to get out before sunrise one morning and get some photos of it down James Road where the bridge was washed away in the floods at the start of the year. There is a rope bridge put in there now, 3 steel cables with rather flimsy looking V ropes to almost stop you falling through going over the river.

Went to the Saturday Market in Takaka as well, a few stalls, similar to Tokoroa, but with a more slightly alternative slant. Only one stall with plants, so I’m not going to be in strong competition with anyone else really, there is room for a bigger and more varied supply of veg and herb seedlings, and ornamentals. I’ll have to work on presentation, but with the type of tube and containers available, I should be able to get everything looking as though it wants a home.

My grapevine is overburdened with grapes, large bunches of very sweet black grapes, I’m not sure of the variety, it’s been a long time since we had grapes in the glasshouses, 1950’s almost, and I’ve not really kept up with the varieties. About the only ones I remember are Albany Surprise, which were the large almost black table grapes.

I’ve started digging over where my veg garden is going, to give me some time out from being inside painting and unpacking, it all looks so bloody confusing opening cartons and finding stuff that has then got to find a home in here somewhere. The kitchen cupboards are filling up quickly, I knew I had a lot of kitchen toys, but as they were collected piecemeal, until I see them all out at once, oh lord, I have stuff that I’d forgotten about. I’m out of bookshelf space already, and still 6 cartons of books to open, and 2 cartons of cds. As for clothes, blankets, drapes, curtains, a carton or two still of dinner plates, kitchen stuff……………..

Still the downstairs looks a lot better than it did a week ago.

I counted 19 rabbits on the road verge this morning, no wonder my lawn has scrapings in it every day. I’ll need an air rifle to start cutting down the numbers, and to fill the freezer with rabbit for stew.

The local community are having a Community Lunch at Rockville today, bring a plate style. I’ve made a pumpkin and kumara with pecan nut pie, and a bowl of potato salad with yoghurt/lemon/garlic and mustard dressing.

I’d like to get all the unpacking done in the next few days, just to know what I have got, and where it is going, or not so much where it is going, but just how much room I’ll have left.

Morriefield got back to me late Friday, with prices. They don’t do a large polytunnel, but they can supply a 2.35m x 8m polytunnel, so 2 of those will give me enough scope and room. One can be for seedlings and cuttings, the other for growing on till I get a shade area put up as well to harden the plants off in. The price isn’t too bad, $4,000 for both, plus delivery. Then I’ll have timber slatting to get for shelves and irrigation system, but that is the cheap part of it all. Plus weedmat. The list goes on.

Thursday 10th March

It’s been a long hard week. I lost track of what day things were done on, but in a nutshell, I plastered the walls downstairs, stripped and sanded the cupboard doors and put a first coat of red on, then sanded the walls, vacuumed up the dust, which wasn’t an easy task, the poor old Vax I have suffered severely with clogged bag and filters a few times during the process, then put a first coat on the walls. I put a second coat on the walls, a second coat on the cupboard doors, then re-hung them.

It took me a day to clean up the majority of the mess, wash the windows, wipe everything down the dust sheets didn’t cover, and now it is finally starting to feel as though I like it.

Here are some before and after pics, I’m still working on getting the table clear, at present is serves as a handy place to put cartons as I find and empty them. The kitchen has plenty of space thankfully, I have a huge amount of kitchen and baking toys.

My washing machine arrived this morning, so by 1pm I had a load through, and the second one starting. The wall oven needs to be replaced, it only works on fan grill/bake, and has a tendency to go to the top of the heat scale regardless of the setting, and the lower oven is the same, turn it on and wait for the smoke.

At this rate I’m going to have an entirely new house, did I mention the laundry is in a sad state of repair as well?, 5 sheets of Gib board and a day spent ripping out the sagging roof and walls should fix that though, and a new tub.

I mowed the lawns yesterday, 3 hours of pushing the new mower around, it struggled a bit in some places. I think it has been a little while since there was a good clean up done, and I know I’ve got a few days at least to spend clearing out the Tradescantia and Ivy that is rampant everywhere. The Azaleas and Rhododendrons look in good shape though, and I’d love to cut out a huge Ligustrum (privet) but as the fantails are nesting in it, I haven’t the heart.

Local news, there is a shared lunch at the Rockville Hall on Sunday, bring a plate and meet and greet, so I’m going to roll along. I haven’t a clue what I’m taking yet, the thought is pumpkin soup, or sushi, or tabouli salad. Something along those lines, or else a large bottle of whiskey and tell everyone it is what I usually have for lunch, is there a problem?

Back into Takaka tomorrow, to pick up some gloss black for the window and skirting trim, so I’ll have a white ceiling, cream walls, and black edging. I like it. some may not but tough. And my red, white and black kitchen.

Still haven’t worked out any way of getting a bed upstairs without cutting out the banister rail, so it will go this weekend. I’m thinking the same problem is going to happen at the top of the stairs, with not enough angle available to get a bed frame base through the doorway from the stair, so the door frame as well them.

Thank God I’ve picked up a few skills over the years, ok, it mighten’d be perfect, but it should look ok.

I’ve contacted Morriefield Polyhouses in Invercargill, for a price on a large tunnel house, and found a poultry breeder in Nelson who has Barred Rock hens and Roosters, so there is the next thing to start on. I have enough room at the back of the section for a long run, and about 12 hens.