VOCAB 101

at jennie's request.

tea = dinner
pudding = dessert
shout = spot (as in "i'll shout you a drink")
the boot = the trunk
chilly bin = cooler
fringe = bangs (as in hair)
dear = expensive
flash = nice/fancy
batch = vacation home
crib = vacation home (south islander's term)
stuffed = screwed/broken
lollies = candy
hen's night = bachelorette party
stag do = bachelor party
sweet-az = im from nz i can say this whenever i feel like it
____-az = almost anything (ex: I'm pale-az)

also: "heaps" instead of tons; "massive" instead of big, huge, large; "wee" instead of little, tiny, small; "i reckon" instead of i think, i bet, i suppose; "oy" instead of hey; and "how are you going?" instead of how are you, how are you doing?

weekend extraordinaire

me, kris, josey, alex @ world bar


moves


jager bomb pants


about to LUGE


skyline snooze


i kicked off friday with a 10am sleep in and no work til 2. my down time consisted of 3 major laundry sessions and cleaning cookie batter from every inch of the kitchen.
*background: jess and i attempted to make rice crispy treats for our fellow workers. turns out neither rice crispies nor marshmallows are anything like back home and the batch came out a pink gluey disaster. attempt number two was chocolate chip cookies and as you may have predicted, something went terribly terribly wrong. either i messed up the conversions or i wasn't paying attention (most likely the latter, possibly both) but i apparently shorted the flour by a LOT. i thought it was odd that once in the oven the balls of batter were melting like ice cubes, but opted to ignore the problem. next time i checked a soupy sheet of buttery chocolate chips was spread across the cookie tray and dripping alllll over the oven. remedying the meltdown meant dirtying dish towels, oven mits, stove top, counter top, sink, and self. the girls are skeptical about the crescent cookies i plan to bake for thanksgiving, yee of little faith.

onward with friday... i was scheduled to waitress a wedding at northburn, but they called and asked me to babysit the vineyard owner's kids instead. pretty much the best news ever. after polishing wine and champagne glasses for an hour (that's a fancy way of saying drying wet dishes while desperately trying not to break them) thora and i made our way up to the beautiful old farm house where olivia (10), nick (9), sammy (6), dog willie (15), and cats simba and krisy live. the land is incredible and the house is no eyesore either. a little fenced courtyard boarders the front of the house. inside everything is wood and cozy. the antique rug lining the main hallway is exquisite and i would give my right arm for that kitchen when i grow up. outside the kids are stacked with a trampoline, swing set, pool, and 5 baby lambs!! amazingly adorable. when olivia and i went to feed them she made a little sheep baah and they all came running and crying to fight over the milk. we pushed the big bullies out of the way so the 2 runts could get their share. next time i must remember my camera! the kids were great, some of the best i've babysat for. olivia is obsessed with animal planet and mature way beyond her years. she hardly takes notice of her brothers who fart and burp at any opportunity up until sammy politely inquires if it is yet his bedtime.

after a successful/needed night of animal and children company i met up with the others, fresh off a seafood dinner, and we headed to the gate. the vic and the gate are the two main bars in town. my loyalties lie with the vic for many reasons, one of which being that 70 dollars has never been stolen out of my wallet 15 minutes after arriving while dancing right in front of my bag as was the unfortunate case on halloween at the gate. sigh. maybe it was all the whiskey, but this night actually turned out well despite the location. it started with lots of dancing and drinks and ended with cory and johnny in the middle of the bar wrapped in tinsel singing 'o christmas tree' with their arms around one another not knowing all the words. when i got home i found cory still ornamented in tinsel and now lit christmas lights as well (recently purchased for our fake tree). that kid is never a bore.

saturday after an early wake up from our enormous sleepover gang we got organized and trucked it into queenstown. we took the skyline gondola up to the top of a mountain where they have a buffet lunch. i definitely did not eat my money's worth, but did enjoy 2 mimosas and a nap in the lounge until a woman approached the other girls: "is she sleeping? she can't sleep there. you need to tell her she really can't sleep there blah blah blah i'm really uptight" or something along those lines. hardly refreshed and a little offended, i brushed my shame off and we set out for the LUGE. for some reason before seeing it i thought it was an ice luge, maybe too many cool runnings viewings? it's wheels and concrete and awesome. if only we had known how good it would be. we paid for 2 rides option, but 5 would have been smarter.

sushi and a nap at the hostel followed. then the pub crawl. 6 girls, 6 bars, 5 dance floors, and so many jager bombs. in new zealand if you spill your beer on the table you have to do a "table suck" which is just as it sounds- sucking your spilt beer off the table. i made the silly mistake of being seated with my legs beneath 4 others while we threw back jager bombs and spilt them all over my lap. i remember hearing "lap suck" and next thing i knew the girls were sucking jager and red bull off my jeans. some idiot next to me decided he should do a lap suck too and BIT my leg. i slapped him.

sunday morning we checked out early and were customers 4 through 11 of the day at fergburger. i dropped my numbered ticket in the toilet, but they took pity and gave me my tofu burger anyways. when we got home it was so hot and sunny there was really only one thing to do, take a nap.

we capped the weekend with a bbq at chris and johnny's house in banockburn. the views and the food are always so good there. the company's not bad either, although my favorite house residents are tobey, the golden retriever, and colin, the baby possum. colin got nervous and tried to burrow in my messy mane, but other than that we got along great. pictures to come when johnny sends them my way. the only down part of the evening was when josey and alex took a spill on the dirt bike. alex's gorgeous behind broke the fall, but the fall broke her behind a little bit too. she's got a MASSIVE bruise and some scrapes. i offered to help clean her up (she declined) and then to document the wounds via camera (she readily agreed).

it's starting to feel like summer is on the way, finally. and i only have 4 days of work this week because friday is devoted to cooking our saturday thanksgiving feast for 20+.

speaking of my excellent roommate...

after posting the previous blog entry i fell into a deep comfortable slumber. but a few hours later i woke up clenching my jaw and fists in response to a most unpleasant nightmare. when i opened my eyes i hallucinated an ENORMOUS spider crawling on me and then more and more of them (brigid will recognize how reminiscent this is of my childhood hallucinations of spiderwebs surrounding me in the dark). i shot upright throwing off my duvet. when i looked again i thought i saw a dark figure standing at the foot of my bed. i knew i was imagining it, but there was no calming my freak out. without bothering to walk around to the empty side of her bed i spastically crawled over the top of poor sleeping josey, snuggled my scared face into her back and fell asleep. in the morning i woke up to her fresh out of the shower and wearing a big smile. i was worried she might be mad until she said "sleepover last night!" a good roommate indeed.

A Perfect Fit

compatible roommates

20 questions is up

1. won't let go.


2.


3.

saturday night reece informed us that it was half price bungy jumping weekend for locals/workers. the other girls were ecstatic with this news while i was quietly (or not so quietly?) freaking out. heights are not my thing. but a few drinks past the point of buzzed and i had nearly forgotten the looming threat of sunday. in fact, it wasn't until after sunrise, downing a substantial amount of water, rolling around on josey and kris at 9am, devouring 2 poached eggs on toast, and di making the call to book our jumps that the comfort of my denial began to fade.

fast forward 3 or 4 hours and im standing on kawarau bridge, the world's first ever bungy site, 43 meters/141 feet in the air. I'm praying a) i don't get blown away by the outrageous gusts of wind, and b) i don't pee my pants. when a man handed us our harnesses i told him we had mothers who love us and so he should take good care of us. he wasn't the least bit amused. maybe he had heard it before. i asked the next guy who strapped my legs in if anyone had ever peed themselves while jumping. he told me yes and reassured me that he was in fact peeing himself at that very moment. again, i could see i was not impressing the kiwis. finally when i got up to the ledge i asked a third man every stupid question i could possibly think of as to buy myself time ("so um, do i just like...jump?). he was patient but firm when i refused to let go of the handle bar behind me (see photo 1). he had me look first at one camera and then wave to another and without pause he counted 5-4-3-2-1-jump. but jump i did not and i remained standing beside him apologetically hyperventilating. i attempted to ask him yet another stupid question; to this he only said, "20 questions is up. 5-4-3-2-1..." or i assume he counted because i jumped, but i honestly don't remember.

it was amazing. i was only disappointed that i was supposed to touch the water and didn't. oh, and that my air position was less than cool (see photos 2 & 3). the first thing i said when my bouncing slowed was, "i didn't pee!" to which i heard someone say congratulations. i looked down to see a boat directly below me with 2 guys and a long pole. they hoisted me in and somewhere across the hemispheres brigid breathed a sigh of relief.

next bungy: Nevis (134 meters/440 feet)

TALLY HO

solo cups- not to be found in nz, every kiwi wants to touch one.


tim tams- greatest. cookie. ever.

here marks the start to my running tally of US vs NZ because people keep asking what i love here and what i miss from home.


US one ups:
real oreos
goldfish crackers (gotta specify or kiwis think you need a tank)
excessive and inexpensive wheat/multigrain breads
good tampons
abundant hassle free internet access
smooth move
affordable alcohol
solo cups
full NBA coverage
everything boston
huge humus containers
plain old salted tortilla chips
grapes under 10 dollars

NZ one ups:
sheep
neil finn/crowded house
nicest people on earth
rugby heartthrobs
mountains and water (fight it out with montana)
movie greats: eagle vs. shark and black sheep
adventure activities (x 1,000)
thai food to die for
seafood
the Vic
cory
reece
bryce
TIM TAMS/TIM TAM SLAMS (which count for 10 x infinity)

open wide

not more of an individual for it, but i do hate the dentist. and having skipped out for the last 3 years i decided to do the responsible thing and schedule an appointment before my departure from the US of A.

they scolded me for not flossing enough, gave me a filling, cleaned me up good, complimented my teeth as to ease the harshness of it all, and sent me on my merry way. since that time i have been unable to chew on the left side of my mouth due to a most uncomfortable pain (in both the new filling and a lower tooth) triggered only by pressure. if you've calculated correctly you will find that i have indeed been eating on just one side of my mouth for a solid month and a half. sore jaw? why, yes.

hopelessly under prepared and overly optimistic as always, i did not purchase travelers insurance. but the pain became too great so i took off a few hours of work to be seen. plagued by recent nightmares of jagged and damaged teeth- which dr. armstrong informed me indicates a fear of losing my sex appeal, although i maintain that it indicates only a fear of losing my teeth- my heart was racing, my palms were meg-style clammy, and i was starting to become rather dizzy. a little perplexed (and possibly embarrassed on my behalf) by the severity of my nerves, dr. armstrong gave me a tension apple to squeeze and asked me to be brave.
upper diagnosis: dr. USA had polished my filling toooo much and left my nerve exposed. outstanding.
lower diagnosis: orthodontist USA had my bite off and my teeth are wearing in certain areas. fantastic.

so dr. N zed did her thing and she successfully mended the upper, but i was right back in the next morning with the same problem persisting on the lower. more x-rays ruled out the possibility of needing a root canal as i fought off another near panic attack. now we're waiting to see if it's just a matter of the bruised areas healing... lots of thoughts of leefer and her tooth troubles this summer. she is braver than i.

missing the nest...

found in the vines of northburn

learn it, love it

friends and family, bookmark this website (look for auckland):

http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/

5 strong

im gonna start with the present and work my way back through the time missing...

it's p.o.e.t.s day (piss off early tomorrow's saturday) in new zealand- phew survived the week. jess and i enjoyed a beer after work, courtesy of our boss as seems to be the trend on fridays. i then came home to a mashed up box at my front door which turned out to be a halloween package from my magnificent mother! inside was a pumpkin adorned card that read: "halloween smiles across the miles". also included were wannabe cowgirl earrings, candy, fake tats, facepaint, and loads of smooth move. that woman knows me so well. with speights in hand i've been all smiles ever since.

yesterday was guy fawkes day and itty bitty cromwell celebrated with fireworks. it was like a drive in with all the cars parked around the lake- i didn't even know cromwell had that many cars. our most favorite kiwi friends set up a couch on the green and we stretched out to watch the display which was, in fact, lovely.

a bit earlier we took our tired behinds to "hot dance" at the gym. the teacher is this beautfil brazilian ball of energy and for 45 minutes we rolled our hips and shook our bootiess. the best part was there is no separate room for classes, just some transparent mesh hanging from the ceiling which serves to divide the weight area from the dance area. pretty sure we got laughed at a few times, but couldn't care less. after class she asked if i had taken dance before because, she said, it looked like i had a background in hip hop. haa, no formal training in hip hop persay. im fairly certain that she was only trying to ensure i come back next week but there was really no need to encourage me because i was already in love with her and her hot dance.

wednesday night josey and i had our second sailing class. the wind was pretty strong so it was a good time. i worked at my skills on the 420 the whole time, but josey made a gettaway to the big boat where she was, apparently, fed gin and tonics. no fair. the only dangers of collision or capsizing came when another boy, christopher, was at the helm. he's a sweet thing, but terribly cofused when it comes to sailing. also, i watched his sunglasses fall off his face and sink into the lake while he failed to notice entirely.

the other girls arrived safely and skipped right past their jetlag (very unlike josey and myself who were up and adam at 5am for the better part of a week) by joining in with our nightly drinking til all hours. those were the days... sadly work began for all of us last tuesday. with the exception of one day of planting jess and i have been shoot thinning (flicking out double shoots and that sort of thing) allllll day everyday. when the sun is out i really don't mind doing it for 8 hours. for one thing, the vineyard is gorgeous. for another, the old men we work with are hilarious.
example:
ewen commented that the thumb on his glove was ripping and my boss shane responded that he hardly uses his thumb at all. "oh well shane," ewen said, "you always have to use your thumb when you're goin' round the bottom." so good coming from old men. and lastly, vineyard work isn't so bad because im able to listen to my ipod all the livelong day. greg brown, ryan montbleau, bob dylan, the mountain goats, and crowded house have topped the charts recently. although, i've embarrassingly listened to saves the day (thought of matthew kilbane) and natasha bedningfield (thought of a.)the time val and i dance partied our hearts out to pocketfull of sunshine until she flying leaped into my face and forgot to ask if i was ok while i lay in a pile on the ground and she went into hysterics, and b.)this summer when mr. cataldo played pocketfull of sunshine 5 times in a 2 day period). today i could not stop listening to hot chip and when i wasn't looking the old men had a group laugh at my one woman dance party to 'ready for the floor'...eh woops. and when music doesn't cut it, books on tape make the hours fly!

the price of addiction?

northburn coffee, free and delicious


patagonia, queenstown

at long last we have internet! it's fussy, but it's internet. a series of semi major posts is in order but for now i have just a mini update:

my dear kind coworker, ewen, has loaned me his coffee maker since he learned of my struggle to find one and burning need for caffeine. this morning i set my no-leak mug filled to the tippy top with fresh brewed coffee on my bed while i whipped up my other sweet addiction- EGGS. i returned only to discover the entire mug had drained into my mattress. and what luck, the puddle was located just where i most like to lay my head.

sheets are washed, but the smell on the mattress is getting staler by the hour.

click it or ticket

5/11 kawakau court, home sweet home in cromwell. josey and i moved in 2 days ago and are still feeling the burn after swapping couches with the unit next door. our room is huge and starting to look like us- with limited selection at the warehouse we chose matching black sheets and complimentary duvet covers (mine green, josey's zebra). the walls are still bare, but we'll get around to that soon and in the meantime the mountain views out my window will hold me over. luckily vegetarians and vegans get on well in the kitchen and home cooking with a side of wine is becoming the routine around here. my favorite part of our new home is the path that runs the entire length of the lake to which we have access from our backyard. thankfully, the dirt path is easy on my knees and the mountains are easy on the eyes.

we befriended the 19 year olds next door yesterday and they invited us out to a local bar to watch the rugby game (during which i had no idea what the hell was happening. must learn the rules...). we met some more kiwis and quickly fell in love with speights, every south islander's favorite beer. and it's a good thing too because one guy hit it big on the slots and kept everyone's glass full til the bar closed down.

most things are falling in to place nicely, with some effort of course. we have, however, quickly learned to hate the cops of cromwell who obviously have even less to do than the cops in concord and carlisle. it was moving day and we were heading from the garden cafe around the corner to pick up the keys to our new abode when a road nazi pig pulled us over. first he made fun of our car (not the first) and then proceeded to give us $150 tickets EACH for not wearing our seatbelts! unbelievable. especially being that a) it was the first time since being in new zealand that i did not have my belt on, b) we were literally driving no more than 200 feet going no faster than 35 km/hr, and c) we had been in the country for about 5 days and hadn't the foggiest idea about the law. josey, who never wears a seatbelt, has had her hair tangled and ripped out by her belt 4 or 5 times since the ticket was issued.

internet is still nearly impossible to come by and conveniently seems to be incompatible with my ancient computer. hopefully within the next week we will have wireless up and running- i.e. skype dates and photos on the way.

new zealand in a nutshell

courtesy of my aussie mate, aiden

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdVHZwI8pcA

SHE'S BLUE!!

felton road


highway 6 lookout





queenstown beauty


practically a local

massive progress being made here in the southern hemisphere. a couple of days ago josey and i purchased a 1990 subaru legacy from a british bloke, tom. got wind of it from a bulletin at the local grocery store. tom had posted an informative index card with "SHE'S BLUE!" as the focal point. we were told her name is Thora and so we have adopted the appropriate name of Thora the Warrior. she's a beast. approximately 4 minutes after gaining ownership her engine cut out for no reason. something we experienced 3 more times later that same day. needless to say we were a tad nervous about our investment but were reassured by our knowledgeable boss that it's only a minor problem with an easy fix if we so desire. her brakes are solid and she handles well on the winding roads to our vineyards. thora...she's really a dream when her broken visors aren't slamming you in the face.

in other news, we have found ourselves a home. the hunt was, well, a pain in the ass to say the least. finding a furnished place big enough for 5 voluptuous women is no easy task. luckily josey saw a listing in the lakes weekly bulletin and tomorrow we will move in. the outdoor space is lacking a bit, but the view is killer. she's got a long narrow deck that runs the length of the unit, 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, massive kitchen and living room, tv, dvd, washer drier, and fully furnished. pictures to come once she has been beautified.

lastly, we locked down a couple of used bikes yesterday in the teeny tiny town of cromwell (soon to be home sweet home). apparently used bikes are hard to come by and being that we don't have 800 bucks laying around for new ones we were fairly pleased with our find. mine has a bell, sweet-as!

stomach aches and sinus pressure have plagued me since arriving. thankfully sudafed and sprinkle fiber have come to my rescue and yesterday marked the first day of feeling "normal". now to get over this jetlag...

Hat Diaries

http://www.hatdiariesnz.blogspot.com/

driving on the left

beautiful Queenstown, fresh off the plane


boarded


the biggest plane I have ever seen.


sam adams and a bud @ LAX





lazyboy swings


turtles for valgal





fig hunting


goodbye nest

Queenstown arrival: success. and so beautiful! stepping off the plane was incredible- worth every minute (1,380) of air travel. mountains and water are always just a few steps away. this left side of the road business bugs me out a little and i haven't even driven yet. trying to remember to look right then left before crossing the street. though our priorities are finding a car and a place to live, yesterday consisted of wandering, window shopping, falafel burger eating (at Fergburger, josey's fave), hot tubbing, and some channel surfing. so far the biggest issues have been locating reasonable internet access, coming to terms with the ungodly high cost of alcohol, and the cold I acquired in the midst of our travels.

touchdown

arrived in queenstown! limited internet available at the hotel soooo pictures to come later. also, look for Josey and Charlotte: The Hat Diaries, coming soon.

boarding in...

josey and I survived the first miserable leg of our trip. way too much luggage and long lines kicked things off and after tears from my mama and josey's papa dukes we were greeted only by tight assed flight attendants. thankfully i had a middle seat and a man to the right who was not willing to share the armrest. heavy headwinds tacked on extra flight time and we had to stop in vegas to refuel. BUT 2 hours later than scheduled we arrived in LA to jennie's open arms. simultaneously josey punched me in the face.
jennie fed us and bathed us and took us to some swings and sent us away with snacks and zinc.
we just shared our last american beers for a while. awaiting a 13 hour flight to auckland. then 2 hours to queenstown.
BOARDING.

HI BOBBY!!

oberlin and back

managed to successfully surprise all my oberlin favorites (minus holly) thanks to dan's sneaky assistance. a few minor setbacks included finding the wrong emma at the wrong cedar street house (second time's the charm), too much fog and rain, and a sleepover in the philly airport all by my lonesome thanks to "high winds". so unfortunately time was extremely limited...to about 24 hours- a magnificnet 24 hours.
luckily lack of sleep allowed for:

- joy ride in emma's new van (!)
- latin feast at paladar (garden fresh veggie sandwich = melted chihuahua cheese with grilled peppers, marinated mushrooms, caramelized onions, fresh spinach and smoky paprika aioli pressed on fresh multi-grain ciabatta bread AND coconut-mango rice on the side. amazinggg)
- super cheap clothes at gabriel bros
- 2 feve visits
- drunken pool victory along side sasha kurth
- sco dance party
- mario smash brothers
- and so many priceless faces


camped out in philly

amazing. and just as good was the surprise i returned home to...
kate invited us over for a dinner party with an undisclosed (obviously) surprise. i predicted a) sam was coming home; b) kate's mom was pregnant; or c) we were carving pumpkins.
we were retelling the story of tequila night disaster driving home from boulder last summer when val and i died. i was literally mid sentence and then behind me was VAL!! after a year of not seeing her and not expecting to for another year...i cried. best moment ever.