Monday 27th December

Well, I survived Christmas. We had more than enough food, the Ham wasn’t all that small, the turkey was the right size thankfully, so there wasn’t a great deal of it left. Alex liked my Blintz, they are known as Topfen Golatsche in Austria, and he appreciated them very much.






Now it’s just a matter of waiting till the 17 January for the lawyers to get back to work, and find out where we are with the house. I’ve got all the organising done I need to, I know who to deal with in Takaka and Motueka for everything I want, from the poly tunnels, to irrigation supplies, pumps etc. All I need is to be down there.

I’ll probably be sleeping on airbeds for a while, till I work out what I’m doing with the house. There’s a lot of finishing work to be done inside, and some changes to make it feel and look more like somewhere I’d live. Once I get a few rooms back to finished I’ll start looking for furniture.

The weather is going from sunshine and blue skies, to grey overcast, windy, rain promised, but the temp still manages to stay warmish. I can see winters down in Golden Bay getting colder for the next few years, but I’ll deal with that in a few months once I have the tunnel houses set up, and start looking for cheap heaters to go in them. I’d like a few of the old kerosene heaters we had in the glasshouses, but as they went back in the mid 60’s when we put electric fan heating in, I haven’t seen anything like them since, which is amazing considering the thousands that were in use then. Everyone I knew at school on the market gardens around Otahuhu and Papatoetoe all had the same heaters. You knew which were the market garden kids in winter, we were the ones half asleep from being up at 1am refilling the kerosene heaters in the glasshouses. I think we had 120 or 140 of them in the two houses, I know it took an hour to an hour and a half to refill them all, then back to bed and up a few hours later for school.

Still, being outside on a crisp winter night, seeing the halo around the moon, feeling the grass crunch under your feet, I actually enjoyed it.

Not a lot happening at the moment, I’ll keep this updated.

Friday 24th December

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, Happy Hogmany.

We’re having a small Christmas here this year, Rose, myself, Kelly, Alex, and the twins. I’ve got a small turkey, small ham on the bone, Kelly is bringing Pavlova, I’m making blintzes with blackberry sauce and cream meringues, all the usual salads and bits and pieces.

Tomorrow is forecast to be in the high 25*C + range, so hot food is not going to be a priority. Thankfully the beach is just down the road to go for a swim to cool down.
The house progresses slowly, the LIM Report showed up a few discrepancies, mainly with building permits and compliance certificates. I’m not answering the phone lately, till I hear whoever it is reply to the answerphone. The land agent has been pushing to get me to sign and worry afterwards, like that is going happen. No compliance Certificates for the extensions or bathrooms makes it difficult to get insurance, or approval for anything else, so we’ve given the vendors till the 17th January to get everything bought up to date and compliance certificates approved.

Damian and family are in Melbourne for a few weeks with Tarshas' parents, Hayden is back in Wellington, so we’ve got Roses side of the family to feed instead.

Merry Christmas to Pete and Katja, hope to see you soon when I move, Happy Hogmany to Marianne, snowed under in Edinburgh, Merry Christmas to Libby, Hogan, Al, Mary, Marye and Tim and TJ, Mary-Anne, Gatto, Chris, Mike, Rhonda (Corona), John and Sylvia, everyone else I’ve missed my apologies.

Take care, Happy New Year,

Warren

Monday 20th December

I’m slowly getting somewhere, but all that means is I’m slightly faster than a snail over short distances.

The LIM Report (Land Information Memorandum) came back from Tasman District on Friday. An awful lot of stuff missing, like drainage and plumbing permits and compliance certificates, building compliance certificates. So back to the vendors to either make right and obtain certificates, or we start negotiating the price again. I could buy it as is, but if I, or anyone decides to sell at some later stage, we’d have to go through the whole thing again and obtain all the compliance certificates. We’re talking about $3,000 and maybe a bit more.

The weather has turned from sunshine to wet, cold and miserable, good for the farmers in the Waikato and Northland, it has been almost drought conditions there lately. Hopefully Christmas will be fine.

Damian, Tarsha and Jesse and Kahu are in Melbourne for a couple of weeks with Tarshas whanau. Damian needs the break, and Tarsha deserves a holiday after finally getting her Pharma Degree. Plus a new job when she gets back.

Moving date is meant to be the first week in February once we get all the minor stuff cleared up. That should give me a few months of good weather to get the tunnel houses up, and cuttings started for next spring/summer.

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year if I haven’t posted before the end of the week.

Take care

Saturday 11th December

It’s been family day today. Jesse had her end of year graduation, she’s off to a new school next year, and she has done really well for the last few years.




Kahu turned 4 as well today, so he was doing his usual energiser bunny on super charge all day.



All the papers have been signed for the house at Golden bay, settlement is in about 8 weeks, Christmas here plus summer holidays mean there aren’t any lawyers around till near the end of January now to get everything signed.

I’m not sure what to do with the house, it needs a lot of finishing work in one half, the “finished” half is not what I like, and despite being advertised as set up for B&B or long rental, it really isn’t. Well, not in my view, but will look at it a bit longer when I get there.





Good things, there is more than enough land to set up two poly-tunnels, and still have room for outdoor growing on. Nursery # 3 this time. I’m a bit late for a good start with growing, but still have a few months to get things set up, and make a start on cuttings for next spring/summer.

I’m still waiting for my cartons to make their way back from Honiara, from Steves last email, the person who was handling the shipment, had to go away on wantok matters, so everything in the office stopped till he gets back. There are really somethings I don’t miss about Honiara.

I’ll have to start sorting stuff out here, I have cartons stored at one of Roses houses, I have cartons in the garage here, some stuff unpacked that I needed back out, clothes, cd’s books, which are going to have to be packed again. Plus some of the furniture from Mums place to take with me. Given the cost of getting stuff down to the South Island makes buying most of it again there a lot easier and cheaper, tables, chairs etc. Beds.

Thursday 9th December

Ok, I’ve done it, bought a house in Golden Bay, at Banhaim. NZD $262,500 for a 4 bedroom, 2 kitchen, 2 bathroom, plus spa bath and a 0.2 hectare section in the valley

It has been sort of set up as a B&B, but the people who own it are really a bit stuck in some other time zone. There is a lot of finishing work that needs to be done, and a lot that needs to be ripped out and redone. But as my sister has been on at me about for the last week, it means an income, that pays the main bills, and I have enough land free to do what I want as well

Good things about it, it is close, about 1 mile, from The Naked Possum and the start of the Kaituna Track, and about a ½ hour drive to the start of the Heaphy Track, so there will be the passing trade from the people walking both of those.

It’s in Golden Bay, which means the highest sunshine hours in NZ, ok, it also means that when it is winter, you see snow on the hills, the valleys and the ground. Which is also a plus as you get the winter people down there as well.

Next thing to do, is learn how to run a B&B, put up a good website advertising it, and find people able to do the stuff I don’t do all that well, like make beds, clean and have a good colour sense when it comes to decorations.

I may have to contact my ex-sister in law who runs Irelands best B&B for advice.

As anyone who knows me will know, I’m a moving target for doing things, never the same thing twice.

I’m taking a deep breath here, it’s like climbing all the way up to top of the tallest diving tower, walking out to the edge of the board, and looking down

Since Mum died, I have no back up, what I do from now on, is all my responsibility, no one to suggest other ideas. I came back from the Solomons, that was my way of clearing out all the crap that happened to me in Ireland, so now, this is me doing what I want to on my own and spending the next whenever doing what I want.

I used to have a wall hanging, a quote from Jewels in the Heart

“He took them to the ocean

and they fled in fright

He took them to the desert

And they returned to the city

He took them to the mountains

And threw them over

And they flew”

That is how I feel now, or the Fool in the Tarot, stepping off the precipice, into the unknown.

So I have 2 new things to do now, well, in 8 weeks when settlement date is, well, one new thing, run a B&B, the other is set up a nursery on the land available, which won’t take long, it’s the 3rd? 4th time now? 2 Morriefield Poly Tunnels, 8m by 2.35m for $4,000, a bit extra for propagation stuff, tubes, bags, irrigation, which I’ve not long done for the same thing in Honiara, ok, income from both.

Plus any other work available there, with the training courses, engineering shops needing qualified welders, nurseries.

Wednesday 8th December

I’ve really got out of practise with this, too many distractions here I think.

The big house I’ve been after in Golden Bay, ok, the owner isn’t going to move on the price, he is stuck at $300,000, I got to $287,500, allowing for $25,000 that upgrading the sewage system to Council compliance would cost, let alone the $8,000 needed for repairs to the house where it is showing signs of neglect. Oh well.

I’ve got an offer on another one at Banhaim, 4 bedroom, 2 bathrooms, spa bath, bigger section as well, 2,023 sqm, 0.2 Hectares. It’s been built or extended to be a B&B, but not quite finished, so I should be able to get it and finish the rest of it over a few months. Plus it is just down the road from The Naked Possum. Not that I’m interested in running a B&B, but it is income.

Tarsha graduated the other weekend, so we went to the Grad ceremony at Auckland Uni, fully qualified Pharmacist at last.



I’m still at a loose end here, it’s coming up to Christmas, and not a lot of places hiring staff just before the summer holidays, and not wanting to pay holiday pay to new people. Plus trying to get the house in Golden Bay.

New Year soon, new start again somewhere else I hope.

Saturday 20th November

It’s been a busy week. Flew down to Nelson Monday morning, picked up a rental and drove over the hill to Takaka. It was a bit overcast, so things did look a bit gloomy at times driving over, still some snow on the peaks and thick fog from Canaan Downs till near Upper Takaka.

Met up with the Real estate agent at Harcourts, and with my list of places we drove off to Pakawau, Collingwood, Banhaim and a few places on the outskirts of Collingwood and Takaka

The one I am really interested in is this one, at Pakawau, well, about another 15 minutes from Pakawau, about half way to Puponga. I’ve put an offer in, there are some things that need doing, the septic tank has to be relocated, a few window sills need replacing, some of the exterior timber siding will need to be replaced, but overall, for a 100+ year old house it is in surprisingly good condition.






There is enough room at the back of the house for a good sized tunnel house, probably one of the bigger Morriefield ones, http://www.morrifield.com/tunnel-house-models.php, I’d like a wider one than 2.350m, have asked if they can make one to suit.

Some of the other houses were really good, some were totally so far away from what I like. This one has been on the market for over a year now, and only had one offer made so far in that time. Inside it is still close to original, all Matai flooring, Rimu architraves and trim. The kitchen needs a bit of a tidy up, hopefully the wood fired range still works, and the fireplaces.


Takaka is still fairly much the same as it has been for a long while now, the shops still smell of incense and patchouli oil, a lot of really good restaurants, organic and other food shops, clothing. Just in walking around asking about the costs involved in repair work got me 3 work offers, also went to The Naked Possum http://www.nakedpossum.com/ for a look. It’s tucked back off the main road a bit, at the start of the Kaituna Track http://www.doc.govt.nz/parks-and-recreation/tracks-and-walks/nelson-marlborough/golden-bay/kaituna-track/


Grant had a major stroke last year, and is slowly recovering, and the tannery and nursery have fallen behind a little. So I left my contact details, had a long talk with Jocelyn, and once I move down there I’ll go back and start to learn how to bark tan possum skins.






Got into Wellington Tuesday afternoon, it was 27*C when I left Golden Bay, it was overcast, windy and 17*C 30 minutes later in Wellington.






Met up with everyone at VSA on Wednesday, had a couple of pleasant surprises with some of the comments. I feel that I didn’t actually achieve very much in Honiara, but VSA seemed to feel I got more done than they expected. And I lasted longer than anyone thought as well, given the conditions, attitudes and general difficulties involved with living there.

I got offered 3 counselling sessions, like? Counselling??? For what?

Anyway, I agreed to go back to VSA a couple of times each year for orientation meetings with new volunteers, and go through the pitfalls and high points of volunteering. I don’t regret anything about going to the Solomons, I’m more annoyed and angry that things got to the stage where nothing was going to happen or change. Good experience in all ways.