A way to keep in touch: Brrrrrrr

Dear friends,

Another month, another tardy update, and basically no excuse since I am, as Tim reminds me every so often, a lazy sod who's only working part time. Even less excuse - it's horrid weather outside right now. Tim's supervisor spends most of her time shaking her head and wailing, "it's not meant to be like this! This is the most rain Gisborne has ever had!"

It's making me just a little bit homesick for the UK.

Easterlies are indeed blowin' hard for Easter in Gizzy. It's been raining here 'solidly' for three weeks, if by 'solidly' one means 'in gusty showers and with plenty of fine spells in between', but everyone's been complaining bitterly about it and how it's basically 'ruined' the giant pumpkin festival.

They really are giant, aren't they? The biggest one in that group was 190kg.

And how much do you think this one weighed?

(PS - I guessed wrong.)

The pumpkin festival was a perfect Sunday activity of Gisborney joy, summing up all that's great about Gisborne - so much community, lots of farmers from the market setting up different stalls (snail races and pumpkin bobbing, for example - see above for some immense pumpkin bobbing), scarecrow making, pumpkin petanque, squash throwing.....it was just immensely enjoyable. And it made the front page of the Gisborne herald, because obviously this is front page news.

This, for example - the longest apple peel IN GISBORNE. Definitely newsworthy.

speaking of snail races....

Obviously we chose number 42 as it seemed the most lively and also, well, you know, 42. How could we not? I loved the idea that someone had been out to collect all those snails and paint those tiny numbers on the backs of each. It was just so wonderful.

Sadly, our snail came in pretty much last. It got into a big snail orgy in the middle and never quite recovered.

We also met up with a small friend of ours who was having a great time selecting some squashes for the squash throwing competition.

Otherwise, things are going much as usual in Gizzy. My most recent clinic highlight was a nice older chap who after the examination, came over and said, 'well you've been a lovely girl, so would you like some peppermints?' and before I could react had tipped a HUGE load of peppermints all over the table - I mean, all over the notes I was writing in, and the desk and everything.

'Good for the digestion,' he assured me as he toddled out.

I wasn't sure what to do with about 20 peppermints rolling for their tiny lives around the ophthalmology clinic so I wrapped them up carefully in a bit of tissue paper and I put them in my bag. I couldn't throw them away - I mean, really - but I'm just not that sure about eating them. How clean is the ophthalmology clinic? I mean - pretty clean - but clean enough to put in my mouth? But clearly this is ridiculous as I've been known to eat stuff that's fallen on the floor in my house and I know how dirty that is (very.)

Anyway, the peppermints remain in my bag to run away and fight another day while I ponder this conundrum.

***

I am really quite looking forward to going back to the UK, really. I've found out my first rotation, which is Windsor. I'm not sure how I feel about being so close to Maidenhead, for it reminds me of the poem. Still, Windsor looks very jolly and it's a nice eye department, so I hear. I'm looking forward to it all. And a cold Christmas! I'm definitely looking forward to a cold Christmas.

Still, we have 2 months and a bit left in Gizzy, and when the sun has been out, we've been making the most of it:

Ice creams on the beach.

These are wonderful 'real fruit'ice creams where they tip a load of fruit (blueberries, strawberries, whateverberries) in with a load of ice cream and blend it all up and then squirt it out into the biggest cone in the world.

Note to self: you've done this before, Connie. You tried to eat a whole one and made yourself sick So when Tim says, 'no, I think we can just share one', don't have a tantrum and demand a whole one to yourself. The words, 'it's fine, I'll finish it no problem' will come back to haunt you. And while doing that once is a bit silly, doing it twice is just ridiculous.

Snorkelling in the Marine Reserve.

What is it about snorkeling that makes you so tired? The water here was so warm (and this was only a couple of weeks ago) that it was like being in a spa. A lovely, lovely spa.

Well it's all buggered now of course. Bloody freezing out there. I had to wear a cardigan today. UNBELIEVABLE.

We also went for a walk up Kaiti Hill, which has a memorial to Captain Cook which does not resemble Captain Cook (a plaque at the bottom apparently reads, 'who was he? We just don't know.') We tried and failed to find this statue, perhaps hindered in our attempts by this helpful notice. Where exactly are we again?

This was a lovely sunset I have to share with you off our balcony. With the eye of faith you can just see the sea in the far distance.

This was an almost daily scene for us after work, before the clocks changed anyway - a bit of post work surfing down at Makorori, which in Maori roughly translates to, 'watch the idiot beginner surfers fall over for free.'

You can just see me in the car window...