Well, week one at work seems to have gone okay. Hopefully I will remember all I have learnt in training and be able to contribute to my new team when I start for real on Monday.
It was a short week because of a public holiday on Friday for Show Day. It has been a busy sporting week in Christchurch with the NZ Trotting Cup on Tuesday, the A&P show and cricket and more racing to come on Saturday. The weather has been a bit odd for this time of year, cold wind and hail - even snow on the alps. In November.
So, we planned to go for a drive since we both had the day off as part of our weekend. People thought I was mad when I said at work we might go to Greymouth and back. Pfft, they don't know how far we drove when we were on the other side of the world !
I haven't been to the West Coast since we were about this big...
...and Lauren had had one fleeting visit to go to a funeral which doesn't really count.
The drive there was more interesting than what we found once there. But we will probably go back with some better plans sometime in the future. Great scenery, and some really cheeky wildlife.
Where to next ?
Well, it seems it is time for me to return to the workforce. My chopped up finger is almost recovered and looking fine too.
I took advantage of the rainy day last week and contacted agencies and made an appointment with one to go in and register. Next morning I got a call to go along to an interview...and I start Monday. It is a temp role - technical admin - part of the rebuild and sounds interesting. The pay isn't as great as I would generally want, but it all helps. Plus it will be something slightly different to add on to my CV for the next role. This week is training, and it is a short week too with Canterbury Anniversary Day/Cup Day on Friday. Perfect to help ease back into the routine.
We've been discovering all sorts in our garden, peonies, strawberries, currants, rhubarb, silverbeet, apples, feijoas, potatoes, raspberries, lily of the valley, alstromeria - love it !!
Mum and Dad came for a visit at the end of last week and bought the things we hadn't been able to fit in the car when we left Blenheim. Now we have to decide where we are going to put it all here. While they were here we went out for lunch in Prebbleton - Thyme Cafe, go there if you are down this way.
After they set off home, we went for a drive to Akaroa, New Zealand's own little piece of France. It is a nice drive, and filled in the afternoon nicely. The pain au chocolat helped too.
So, now it is the night before I have to get up early and wear clothes that have been hiding in drawers, the bottom of my suitcase or storage for the last wee while and make a contribution to society and the tax man. Kind of mixed feelings about that, especially since the winning Lotto ticket was sold at our supermarket, and we didn't even buy one ! Missed opportunity.
Well, we loaded the car up and set off from Blenheim last weekend to make camp for a night in our new home. Our furniture and belongings arrived on Tuesday so only one night of roughing it was required.
What was an empty, quiet house on Monday night has since transformed into one filled with life - and many piles of unpacked, stacked up boxes and packing paper. We're still looking for a pillow and have discovered that we may have "donated" some things we thought we had kept. Like coat hangers particularly. a quick trip to the Warewhare has resolved that though. Slowly things are finding their new homes.
We are also finding our way around the city and even had a "peak hour" trip to the Emergency After Hours Clinic the other night when my fingers happened to get in the way of the knife when chopping pumpkin for dinner. OUCH.
We have plans (or I do) to get some veges planted in our amazing garden and to sort out the extra belongings that have also come out of storage. if you are in Christchurch and looking to buy some secondhand furniture - I may have what you are looking for watch this space. It will have to wait 'til my hand is working a bit better than it is now though.
Next task is to get registered with some agencies and get a job.
