Some daily life stuff

This image requires a bit of backstory...suffice to to say a HUGE thanks to both Moms, and Dad Ian, for the care packages they have sent us. They just don't have some things in NZ, including Bounce

It occurs to me that I have not really done a substantive post lately that reveals much about life in New Zealand, so it's time for one. The truth is that since I have started working, things have normalised a bit for me and I've fallen into something of a routine. This could almost be considered normal life, except for the fact that I moved halfway across the world to live it. That is still the weird part.

I spotted this boat with a peculiar name down
on Queen's Wharf in Wellington a few weeks ago.

Right now, I am working at the head office of the Department of Conservation, in the Heritage Awareness Unit of the RD&I Division. My title, officially, is "Technical Support Officer, Interpretation". I won't bore you too much with the details, but basically my work involves supporting our field staff across the country in delivering interpretation at our parks, marine reserves and historic sites. I really love my job. It's a challenge because while it's similar to museum work, it's also very different. Parks interpretation is an area that I was already looking at back in the U.S., and in fact there were many jobs at the National Parks Service that I had come very close to applying for just a few years ago in places like the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone. So, this has been a terrific learning opportunity for me in addition to being a godsend in terms of much needed finances. My future with DOC is somewhat murky, however, as this is only a 6-month term contract. While I like my employer a lot, and I think they like me, the ultimate decision about whether I can stay on longer may boil down to budgets. Just like in the U.S., parks receive only a fraction of what it actually takes to do their job. Money is tight.

The balcony of our office building (Conservation House).
This is where I often eat lunch, if the weather cooperates.

Like I said, I work in the DOC head office which is called Conservation House. What a neat building! In an effort to set a new standard, DOC chose to design their new headquarters using green principles. They recycle just about everything, starting with the building itself which was a gutted office tower. Things like wood paneling, flooring and carpet were made using renewable resources and / or low emission products. Lights are controlled by motion sensors and timers. The air system channels natural air currents through special conduits and funnels to keep the building warm, or cool, as needed. The entire top floor, which includes an outdoor seating area, is powered by a wind turbine. There are rainwater capture cisterns on the top floor that are used in the toilet system. I am actually really proud to go in this building every day. And, it's only 3 blocks from our apartment.

Maranui Cafe, one of our favorite places to recharge.

That said, I walk to work. We walk pretty much everywhere if it's in town. This is a good city for pedestrians. We do own a car, a cute little red corolla. It mostly sits in the garage. But, I am still really glad we own the car since it allows us to escape the city at a moment's notice. Sometimes we just need to get away for the day for a short road trip over to Lyall Bay. A trip to the Maranui surf club cafe can be a great shot-in-the arm to boost your day. It's also been really important for Stacey in her work (and networking) which often takes her over to Miramar, about a 10-15 minute drive from the Wellington CBD (central business district)

The St. James Theatre in Wellington

Until recently, Stacey has had the harder task of holding two jobs (three if you count her networking initiatives). First, she works part-time at the Jimmy Cafe, which is in the St. James Theatre, a historic building that features a really audacious gilding and ornamentation. We saw Fiddler on the Roof with Topol at the St. James the other night, thanks to some free tickets that Stacey received from work. (We think after his 10,000th performance of this show he kinda phones it in, but hey it was still pretty fun)

A Flat White...these are GOOD

Anyhow, she has been working at the cafe and recently was given an opportunity to get training as a Barista. This is a big deal in the cafe scene, as good Baristas are quite in demand. She had taken one short course when we first got here, but had not had a chance to try again since then. Our home machine just isn't the same. Since finishing that course, she now gets to operate the espresso machine at the cafe and has been working hard to achieve perfection on her coffee drinks, most notably the Kiwi fav (and mine), the Flat White. She is having some trouble with the milk frothing but each day brings a new trick and she's getting the hang of it. Although she's been enjoying the experience, cafes are hard work and it can wear her out.

The cast of a short film that Stacey worked on recently, all decked out in strange costumes and neat sets.

Her other job has been working on a short film. I am not at liberty to say anything about it, really, as my understanding is that the Director of the film wants everything kept top secret. Apparently in Wellington, the film community is filled with all sorts of nefarious concept / plot-thieves who steal ideas. So, can't tell you the title or much about it, other than to say it's a short film and looks like it's going to be very surrealistic and full of style. The photos hint at the strangeness of the film pretty well. If you want to know more, you will have to pester Stacey to tell you verbally or write more on here herself. I can tell you that it was actually pretty full-on work for a bit there, and I think it was valuable experience. The film production community here is pretty small and tight-knit. It's all about meeting people, getting your name out there and doing a lot of hustling. She's doing all the right things, but it can take some time to see the efforts pay off.

There are stormtroopers in New Zealand!

I attended my first science fiction convention this past weekend: Armageddon. It was a fairly standard "media" con, but surprisingly large, at least over 1,000 people. Probably more. There were a few decent costumes around, mostly Star Wars. That was fun to see. There was even a pretty good Darth Vader. Other geek activities in my life include playing Dungeons & Dragons (yes) with a group of guys I met through NZRAG. OK, I know it's on the lower tier of nerdiness but at least I am not into Anime, right? There are a lot of people who think Anime is cool, you know. Right. If they can delude themselves into believing that, then I can sure as heck play D&D. Anyhow, having a good time of it despite Stacey making fun of me. Truth be told she is actually very supportive and even lets us have gaming sessions at our place--isn't that sweet? She even made ANZAC biscuits for the guys last week!

Editor's note: I have since learned that Armageddon brought in over 10,000 people. I am really terrible at judging numbers, apparently. That is an amazing number for a NZ SF Con.

Other socialising includes meetups and get-togethers with various friends we have met since our arrival. Often this is through migrant forums and web sites, and we have met some really great people as a result. It is nice to share experiences, and compare and contrast with others. Depending on where they come from, and how long they have been here, their views can often be starkly different from ours. The Wellington meet-in group, organised by friends Dawn and Darren, has been great for getting out more and gotten us to try some activities that we might not have explored on our own. A notable upcoming event is the Cinco de Mayo party which should be a lot of fun and suitably strange since the hispanic community here is virtually non-existent. (OK, there are a latinos around...but I'm from the United States of Mexico, remember? No comparison!) We do miss good Mexican food. Fortunately, we're pretty good at making our own when push comes to shove. Thank goodness they sell black beans and tortillas here.

There I am, fooling unsuspecting immigrants
into thinking I know what I am talking about.

Several weeks back, we attended a meetup put on by Welly Rocks at the Otari Wilton's Bush Reserve. Our friend Anita convinced me to lead small tours into the bush where my limited knowledge was put to the test! It was actually a lot of fun, and a good opportunity for me to try my hand at some personal interpretation (something we train our DOC park rangers to do...). The questions were not too tough, and everyone was pretty forgiving when I had to say "hmmm...I don't actually know the name of that plant." and then look it up in the book. Since then, we attended a Welly Rocks event where we learned the rules of Rugby (useful knowledge in New Zealand, I can tell you) and then went to watch a game over at a local sports bar. Those who know me know that I don't give a flip about sports, but frankly you cannot live in NZ and be completely clueless about Rugby. Your ignorance will catch up with you.

What else...hmmm....well, winter is creeping in steadily. The Southern winds have started blowing, bringing that cold Antarctic air. I have noticed it the most this week, and we have started using our home heaters and wearing heavier clothes. Resisted as long as I could, though.

We keep up reasonably well with news from back home. Mostly I watch for weather incidents, as both Atlanta and St. Louis are prone to tornadoes. We hear other kinds of bad news (such as the recent shootings at VT) that comes out of the U.S., often in triplicate thanks to the BBC, Australia, and NZ news services. People often ask us what the hell is going on back there to make things like that happen, and honestly we have no good answer. Other than to remind Kiwis that there are millions upon millions upon millions more people in the U.S. than in N.Z., and frankly some % of any population is almost always psychotic. Things are going to happen. When they do, it would be nice if the psychos were not armed with semi-automatic weapons, but I suppose that would be too much to ask.

But, the truth is that while events like these are horrible, I would not list them as one of the reasons I left the U.S. The chances of me crossing paths with a psycho on the day they decide to go ballistic is comparatively small. It can happen, to be sure, but it's far more likely that my identity will be stolen and my bank account drained by a different kind of degenerate. So, when we came to New Zealand, we bought a paper shredder. Again, the Kiwis are perplexed..."No one owns one of those in their home" To this we explain how rampant identity theft is back home, and how you have to shred everything to keep the thieves at bay. It is a habit we have, and we have not broken it even though the problem is apparently not so evident (yet) in NZ. It is the dozens upon dozens of these minor irritations that really made me look elsewhere to live, not a single fear-factor event like mass murder (though the War helped a lot).

And to this, the standard Kiwi retort is that they hope we have not brought those same irritations over with us, as they quite liked things the way they were. On this, we are in total agreement.

Now, since I am in danger of closing on a down note, I offer you yet another pretty photo of the New Zealand countryside to help warm your spirits and generate some interest in a visit. Enjoy!