I think Erola was rather upset when I accepted an invitation from Ali & Adam to spend Mothers’ Day with them at Hilary’s. Erola had assumed that we would be doing stuff together, but of course I would rather be with my family, after all it is the reason I’m over here at all! I hope her son Ginner does contact her from Sydney, but not sure the date is the same in Oz, so she may be disappointed.
Obviously I stayed over Saturday night, & in fact stayed Sunday night too, because I had a few glasses of wine and was not legal to drive home. Adam cooked Cottage Pie for the main course, Ali & Junior did a prawn with chilli salsa starter & a scrumptious (should that be yummy?) chocolate mousse for dessert. We were very spoilt, and it was lovely to be part of the celebration. Ali wrote me a lovely card, and gave me flowers and a photo picture under glass of Wellington, which was very generous. It was interesting after dinner to learn what Adam remembered of his life in UK before emigrating here, he remembers quite a lot, though he was 14 when they came out so I suppose that’s understandable. I hope David will be able to come over with me or at some time early next year so they can renew their friendship. Although Adam has mild Asperger’s syndrome, a mild form of autism, he manages to hold down a job and look after himself in his own flat. They always got on very well as children, Hilary used to have David every holiday for a week or so because she was a stay-at-home Mum & I was working, so they do know each other pretty well. Of course he’s now an adult (well almost, for a man!) so things will not be quite the same.
Wednesday night has become ‘my evening with Hilary’. We were watching ‘Five Days’ on TV, an English drama which I didn’t see when it was on there, though it has now finished. NZ TV is generally speaking dire, I am resolved to record any and every decent programme on to DVD once I’m back & then bring them here to watch at my leisure next year. I have even become a fan of Coronation St, which I didn’t watch at all back home. We are now watching Tracy Barlow’s trial, some way back from the English timeline I believe, so don’t anybody spoil it! ‘Bleak House’ aired recently, very late on a Sunday evening for some reason, I would’ve watched it again and Erola would’ve enjoyed it too, but much too late when she gets up at 5.30 on a Monday!!!!
Saturday Erola & I went to the Wellington Food Show in the Westpac Stadium (nicknamed the Cake Tin, because it looks just like a giant one). It was very good, we both spent too much on stuff we don’t really need! Last year apparently there were loads of free samples, so I was looking forward to the free chocolate, but this year there wasn’t much at all, signs of the times of course. Things seem to be getting worse here, lots of jobs being lost, hope is that interest rates will be cut, I hope so since I have tied up the funds for the house in short term deposits which pay a high rate of interest by UK standards, and once it’s gone on the house I won’t care. Also, anything which will help improve the exchange rate of the £ to the NZD will be very welcome, it’s been appalling since I got here.
Obviously I stayed over Saturday night, & in fact stayed Sunday night too, because I had a few glasses of wine and was not legal to drive home. Adam cooked Cottage Pie for the main course, Ali & Junior did a prawn with chilli salsa starter & a scrumptious (should that be yummy?) chocolate mousse for dessert. We were very spoilt, and it was lovely to be part of the celebration. Ali wrote me a lovely card, and gave me flowers and a photo picture under glass of Wellington, which was very generous. It was interesting after dinner to learn what Adam remembered of his life in UK before emigrating here, he remembers quite a lot, though he was 14 when they came out so I suppose that’s understandable. I hope David will be able to come over with me or at some time early next year so they can renew their friendship. Although Adam has mild Asperger’s syndrome, a mild form of autism, he manages to hold down a job and look after himself in his own flat. They always got on very well as children, Hilary used to have David every holiday for a week or so because she was a stay-at-home Mum & I was working, so they do know each other pretty well. Of course he’s now an adult (well almost, for a man!) so things will not be quite the same.
Wednesday night has become ‘my evening with Hilary’. We were watching ‘Five Days’ on TV, an English drama which I didn’t see when it was on there, though it has now finished. NZ TV is generally speaking dire, I am resolved to record any and every decent programme on to DVD once I’m back & then bring them here to watch at my leisure next year. I have even become a fan of Coronation St, which I didn’t watch at all back home. We are now watching Tracy Barlow’s trial, some way back from the English timeline I believe, so don’t anybody spoil it! ‘Bleak House’ aired recently, very late on a Sunday evening for some reason, I would’ve watched it again and Erola would’ve enjoyed it too, but much too late when she gets up at 5.30 on a Monday!!!!
Saturday Erola & I went to the Wellington Food Show in the Westpac Stadium (nicknamed the Cake Tin, because it looks just like a giant one). It was very good, we both spent too much on stuff we don’t really need! Last year apparently there were loads of free samples, so I was looking forward to the free chocolate, but this year there wasn’t much at all, signs of the times of course. Things seem to be getting worse here, lots of jobs being lost, hope is that interest rates will be cut, I hope so since I have tied up the funds for the house in short term deposits which pay a high rate of interest by UK standards, and once it’s gone on the house I won’t care. Also, anything which will help improve the exchange rate of the £ to the NZD will be very welcome, it’s been appalling since I got here.
The weather has been fantastic again a couple of days this week, cold at night but warm during the day, see the kids playing on the beach in T-shirts above, remarkable for 'mid-November'. I know South island will be colder, though I think we have have gone OTT with our thermal undies and boots, but there was snow there a week ago so you can't be too careful!
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