Update 9

Hi everyone - some additions to the update list as some honorary family
have been added to the update - we heard from our friend Tina in the UK -
she's gone and done it and got engaged (to a nice Waipukarau boy - kia ora
Adam); our visit to Nelson and the Sivak's produced contact again (I'm Uncle Warren so that's pretty much family huh) and I need to update the Marbecks on our comings and goings (I've known Roger
and Deirdre for nearly 30 years!).

Nature watch - autumn has arrived in Stratford with a wallop of wet
weather for the second week of my school holidays. Nevermind - the first
week was spent putting up the sheep race (three pens, a drenching race and
a draughting race no less). The maples have now gone deep red and the top
leaves are falling - the fig tree is less attractive - leaves just do a
slow yellow shrivel and die on the tree before falling. Winter covers have
gone on the horses and the magpies aren't as noisy as usual; the two
roosters have taken up the challenge and begun welcoming the day at about
6am which is okay. The pukekos (poo-kek-oh) have gone nuts in the
procreation business - they are a protected species (and Jade wouldn't let
us kill them anyway) but they are everywhere - eating the chicken pellets
and nesting around the lake and river sides in the toi toi - hard to get
rid off in other words.

It's been great being on holiday but Jacky still has her rotator cuff
problem and we've all had a dose of colds. I managed to finish the sheep
pens on the day before ANZAC day with the beginnings of a sore throat -
then the dawn parade in Stratford finished me off. I was really proud of
our students though - our head girl did a great speech at the civic
reception. In all I attended 4 different services (4 different last posts)
and also was in the annual ANZAC parade with the old soldiers. This week
I'm gearing back up for school and watching old movies on DVD.

The attached photo is from Keegan's graduation - Samantha couldn't make it
up from Wellington unfortunately so we'll need to photoshop her in at some
stage - it's really hard getting all 6 of us together in the one spot.

Currently grooving to: I dug out some old vinyl - Grover Washington Jnr,
Earl Klugh, Bob James and instantly was transported back to working at
Marbecks on Friday nights - eating Chinese food with Hayden in the top of
the classical shop surrounded by tall racks of vinyl LPs. Laughing at his
jokes and feeling a sense of belonging. Funny how music can do that time
and time again. Samantha told me off for putting in so much about music to
these updates but all my music contains all of these great memories. I
played a coldplay CD the other day and I'd left the sticker on it to
remind me that I'd bought it in Bangkok at Tower Records in the World
Trade Centre when Jacky and I were going to Scotland; suddenly I was back
in that funny little shop with the assistant trying to sell me all of
these Thai music groups. He played it really loud and I did buy a lot of
it for Adam and Keegan and myself. But it's the memory that lingers and
adds a layer to the Coldplay CD that wouldn't be there otherwise. I'm sure
you can relate!

Okay; enough - I hope you're all fit and well and until next week -

Love - W