The why's and what's and wherefore's

So RWC is almost over and I’m no longer rambling with a Welsh flag in my backpack.

Their participation is now over, courtesy of the OTHER team I support, 

who’s participation is ALSO over, courtesy of the ABs.

The Flightless Fowls seem pretty invincible.

My backpack looks lonesome with no flag in it.

I haven’t watched many of the matches as I don’t have a TV and they’re on at a rather anti-social time of the day for those of us living at the ass end of the world.  

I DID choose to watch the Wales/SA match though, 

and the SA/AB’s semi-final and watched them both with the SO.

Yes.  Watching rugby “together”

... figuratively speaking ... 

IS possible if you have a mobile phone, a laptop and unlimited data.

Roll on this next weekend and the end of early morning rising to watch matches.

My rambles of late have been thought provoking.

A zillion and one thoughts trundling around  in my head.

The why’s and what’s and wherefores of life want answers.

I don’t have them.

The essence of every day remains the same.

I live here.

The SO lives there.

Albeit his “there” is now many miles removed from my “here”.

Communication is more instant and easy ... as our watching of RWC  attests.

Answers to issues beyond my ken are now at the end of a text

or phone call

or facetime.

I even have a tax refund that I didn’t realise I was eligible for!

They’re little things but they make the bigger things more manageable.

They make LIFE more manageable.

I still have moments when everything feels too hard.

When I want to give up.

Courage though is contagious, and the braver I’ve become, 

the less impact those moments have on my psyche.

None of us have the perfect life but ALL of us can have perfect moments.

Those are the moments I revel in.

“The more light you allow within you, the brighter the world you live in will be.” 

~ Shakti Gawain

The stairs and platform at Pt. England have been burnt down by vandals.

.... mud .. guts ... and glory!

Obi and soccer ball ... and my hound and rugby ball!

And so .... one week to go till the end of RWC 2011.  The majority of my Kiwi friends are delighted that their Flightless Fowls are through to the final ... and yes, maybe they deserve to be there ... but France certainly don’t ... and nothing anyone can say will ever make me think any differently.  The players at RWC have given their all ... it’s sad that the same can’t be said of the match referees and the IRB in general.  Sadly, the calibre of refereeing has not been up to scratch and leaves a blot on the copybook of RWC 2011.  New Zealand itself has been a tremendous host.  The country and the people have opened their hearts and their homes and welcomed visitors and players alike with huge enthusiasm and warmth ... the vibe has been awesome and I’m SO proud of my adopted country!

On my ramble this morning, so many people commiserated with me over Wales’ loss on Saturday night ... the general consensus was that they had been robbed of a place in the final.  They were all delighted that I’m still proudly flying my flag ... and that I will continue to do so till the end of the tournament despite my disappointment in Saturday’s result.  I love the way my flag has bought people out of their shells ... they chat to me so enthusiastically about rugby and life in general ... so many want to know where ‘home’ is seeing as I fly a Welsh flag ... AND what I think of living in NZ.

I was told this morning that I kick my hound’s ball incorrectly .... I kick it with my toe instead of my foot .... no wonder I have such a HUGE hole in my takkie!!!  A gentleman walking on the beach had been watching all the dogs at play .. and my hound had pinched someone’s soccer ball and was having a great time dribbling ... yes, dribbling it ... along the beach with her paws.  He’d been watching me kick it for her ... and he’d seen the Welsh flag .... so he came over to chat and show me the correct way to kick her ball .... which I’m still unable to do .... it’s hard unlearning a bad habit!!

See the soccer ball .... and she's carrying the rugby ball
.... not for long though!

Rugby ball forgotten about .... we only want the soccer ball now!!

If she could have done, she’d have bought the soccer ball home with her today instead of our rugby ball ... she was having so much fun with it!  The owner of the dog who’s ball it was, kicked it out to sea and she struggled to get a grip on it to bring it back to shore.  I could see her head bobbing further and further away as the elusive ball headed off to Rangitoto .... hound in hot pursuit!

I wondered if her disinclination to bring the rugby ball home was her way of telling me how disappointed she is with RWC ...... nah .... she’s only a dog .... what does she know about the glorious game of rugby and all its ridiculous rules.  Would that rugby could be played as it used to be played ..... mud, guts and glory .....

Pete at the coffee shop had an interesting analogy for a good referee ..... he likened a ref to a flight to South Africa ... you’re not aware of whether or not the flight was good .. you can’t remember what the cabin crew were like .. you just know you’ve arrived at your destination.  A good ref should be unobtrusive .... allowing the game to flow ... but not directing it .... you should be unaware of his existence until the final whistle blows ... something maybe the IRB needs to bear in mind in the future ....

In the meantime I have it on good authority that my Sharks are performing delightfully well back in good old SA .... a home semi-final ‘nogal’ ..... methinks I need to sort out some live-streaming to be able to watch the semi’s and the final over the next two weeks!  My Bokke and my Dragons weren’t able to lift my Yayness levels ... maybe my Sharkies will!!

I have POWER ... in abundance!!

How can you not LOVE mornings like this!!

St. Heliers Bay .... MY bay!!

Grrrrrrr ..... my morning didn’t get off to as good a start as what it normally does ... despite the glorious blue skies and sunshine!!!  My system crashed ..... YIKES ...... not a good thing for one who is addicted to .... yes ... addicted to .....  her connection to the big wide world out there!!  That’s what happens when you live at the arse end of the world .... you need this funky little collection of gizmos and gadgets to keep you CONNECTED!

I moped off for my ramble having left it trying to recover itself .... not knowing what I was going to come back to ......

Kohi Beach ... the next bay along

.... but miracles do happen ... it had recovered whatever it had apparently lost and was ready and raring to go.

I'm chatting to the ladies in the picture below and she's wanting her
ball thrown!!

I did wonder if it crashed in sympathy with Steve Jobs death this morning ... he was still so young .... and has left an amazing mark on our world.  He was once quoted as saying “I want to put a ding in the universe” ..... wow ... he sure has done that .... there can’t be many people who don’t own or haven’t owned an Apple product ... and I’ve added the “haven’t owned” especially for my oldest lemming as he is very anti-Apple but HAS owned an iPod ... hmmmm!   RIP Steve Jobs .... your visionary outlook will be sorely missed.  I, for one, love Apple products and I wouldn’t be without my iPhone!

Rosemary, Carol and Vi

My ramble took longer than expected today ... I got delayed chatting on the beach to some of my other dog walking buddies ..... they sit on the bench most days and catch up with the news of the world .... and of course, rugby is a hot topic at the moment!!  There’s so much excitement with the build-up to the Quarter Finals this weekend ... everyone has their own opinion of who’s going to win ... and why!  Flags are out in abundance and I’ve been so impressed at the number of Welsh flags I’ve seen ... which brings me to an interesting thought ......

How come if RWC is happening right here in NZ and all of the flags of all 20 countries are being displayed here, there and everywhere .... are people still unsure of which flag belongs to which country?  A mother in my coffee haunt today informed her friend that I had an Irish flag in my backpack .... IRISH .... with a Welsh DRAGON on it!

Contrary to the popular belief of SOME of my Kiwi friends .... and a CERTAIN South African friend, the only teams heading home after the matches in Wellington this weekend will be Ireland and Aus!!  My Bokke will be taking on the Flightless Fowls in the Semi-Final .... and then the nation .... the New Zealand one that is ..... will be in mourning ...

SHUCKS .... I hope that doesn’t mean I won’t be able to get my daily fix .....

Life has MAGIC ..... I have POWER .... in abundance  ... and OH YES, dreams DO come TRUE!!

Back to the beach for lunch today  .... it was just too beautiful to resist!

I'm sure it's a male phenomena ....

My WORLD!

Wake up World .... I’ve got places to go ... people to see ... and smiles to share!!!  Time .. she waits for no-one .... and especially when the sun’s shining and spring is in the air!

Heading towards my favourite view of my world!

Gorgeous BLUE skies!

I wake up every day CHOOSING to be happy .... each day is a new start .... an opportunity to begin afresh ... to put aside the stresses and failures of yesterday and focus on TODAY ... AND .... more importantly THIS moment in time.  I need to channel my energies into what I'm doing right now, not what I've got to do when I get back home home .... housework - blah .... washing - even bigger blah .... what to make for dinner - blah blah blah!!!

More Cherry Blossoms blooming!

I love the creativity of what I do  so I could focus on that but there’ll be time later in the day for that!  Right now I just want to be IN the moment ... I want to FEEL the sun on my face .... and SHARE in my hound’s enjoyment of our ramble.. These moments are what I see through the lens of my camera everyday and
I LIKE what I see!

I could write a book about
moments in time ... there are so many priceless memories that touch my heart and make me feel so positive about this world we live in. This Chinese proverb came to mind today when I was chatting to Sebastion’s human, Carol, on the beach.

 “The person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the person doing it”

Sebastion, Carol’s Labrador,  is all of 14 years old and, in his advancing years, is struggling with stairs.  He still thinks he’s a puppy .... I’m sure it’s a male phenomena .... oops .. left out the word ‘dog’ there  .... and leaps down 3 or 4 stairs at a time only to end up unable to walk after he lands at the bottom.  Carol thought her only option was to sell-up and move to a house without stairs ... a bit of a scarcity in NZ as most houses are on several levels.

SO ... she’s having a STAIR-LIFT installed .... with a platform for Sebastion to stand on .... she’s doing what “cannot be done”!! I’m eagerly awaiting the job to be started so I can take pics of Sebastion using his stair-lift.  I asked her if the company doing the installation where surprised when she told them it was for a dog .. but they weren’t ... apparently they’ve done a few stair-lifts for dogs before.  I love that there are people out there who love their dogs so much that even in their advancing years, nothing is too much trouble .... lucky Sebastion ... he is dearly loved!

Molly and Lilly ... the beach hoovers!

Not only is Carol a dog-lover but she’s as nutty about rugby as I am .... possibly even more so!!  She doesn’t like Graham Henry one little bit so isn’t going to be supporting the FF’s.  She believes, like I do,  that SA will be in the final .... and we’re both hoping it’ll be against Wales
.... tall order I know but stranger things have happened.  My loyalties would be so torn if both my teams ended up in the final .... who would I support!!!

Just for today though I’m visualising the FF’s winning RWC ... it’s a fleeting thought and it’s only happening today .... tomorrow I’ll be back on track visualising my Bokke lifting that Webb-Ellis Cup!!!

What an insane thought! I need to shut my eyes in order to see.

Yes .... we got wet!!!

Ever heard of a black labrador that doesn’t like water .... a retriever that doesn’t know how to retrieve .... I met a black one on the beach yesterday.  His human had been watching la Chocolat retrieve yet ANOTHER log from the waves  ... yes, there are plenty on the beach at the moment - the rugby ball is superflous to requirement.  He was shaking his head in bewilderment at his hound’s lack of interest in anything wet or needing to be fetched.  My hound was in a hurry ... we were late getting to the beach and she wasn’t in the mood for idle chit-chat with some other human ... just fling the log please ... and do it yesterday!!!

Spring is definitely coming ... lots of wildflowers in the grass!

I love her enthusiasm for our daily rambles and the anticipation that builds as we get closer and closer to the beach ... her pace quickens .... her rear end waddles as only a labrador’s can and I get these looks ...... what is taking you so long!! She’s supposed to sit on the kerb at every
intersection we cross .. but when the beach is beckoning, putting her bum on the ground is the furthest thing from her mind.  It’s almost like a peck on the cheek .. her rear end pecks the ground before hurtling across the road when I give the all-clear!

Would that we could all have her zest for life ... she’s so easy to please ... her needs are few and simple.  We humans, supposedly top of the pecking order, complicate our lives so much.  I need to shut my eyes in order to see more clearly .... YES .... what an insane thought but it makes so much sense .... shut out the extraneous noise, colour, chaos in order to focus on the inner soul.  I need to see the humour in this imperfect, insane world we live in ... life is illogical and irrational at times and sometimes the only way to deal with it, is to laugh.

Chocolate box cute!!

Like this morning .... Saturday morning so Gav walked with me ... and we got drenched!!  The heavens opened and he didn’t have windscreen wipers for his glasses and wasn’t wearing a cap .... mutter .. mutter ... mutter ...... a giggle from me .... it’s so invigorating getting caught in the rain .... and yes ..... you get wet too!!

There was a gorgeous 5 month old bull mastiff on the beach ... Jojo .... her first time on the sand and seeing the waves ... she was nervous of us at first but once she realised we didn’t bite she waddled all around us .. yes .. she waddles like my hound .. and she’s going to be HUGE!!  I love puppies ... just love their smell!!  Another black labrador, Jesse, took a liking to the hound’s ball ... amazingly agile for a labrador .... they’re not known for their ability to manoeuver at speed ..... but she managed to snatch the ball out of Gav’s hand as he was about to kick it!  The look of wicked delight in her eyes at what she’d done was magical!  Would that I could bottle the laughter I get from all these doggie antics on the beach .... I’d make a fortune!

Just like my kids ... fed up of having her photo taken!

I’d make a fortune too from the humour the RWC is generating ... there were several suggestions on the beach today about which team the hound should be playing for .... Tonga got a mention .. as well as the Flightless Fowls ..... little do they know that her heart is with my Bokke ...... she just doesn’t know it yet!!

LAUGH-A-BULL ..... and no, I don't mean the rugby this weekend!!

The "All Black" car supporting SA and Wales!

YES ... we did drive to Welly town this weekend to watch SA take on Wales ... and YES, it was a hugely exciting game ... and YES .... Welly town didn’t disappoint in being wet and windy - I’ll leave off the woeful this time... and a last YES ... I am hugely disappointed that Wales didn’t win!!!  The atmosphere was electric though .... and the last 10 minutes was particularly nail-biting .. especially for my family and all those other Bokke supporting peoples!  Watching the angst of the spectators when 2 of the most fanatical rugby-playing nations in the world play against one another is so entertaining ... and this game was no exception!!!

Panoramic shot of the Cake Tin

The Public Loos

My story though is about a town we drove through on our trip this weekend ... a town called Bulls and I commented on why anyone would want to call a town Bulls ... I since found out it was named after a James Bull .. but that’s beside the point.  The town has marketed itself by making a play on the word Bulls ...... the humour in it all is contagious!!

Want to use the Public Loos???   Look for a sign that says RELIEV-A-BULL!  Need somewhere to stay .... give RENT-A-BULL a call.  In New Zealand they move houses so if you’ve got a house you want moved, get hold of  MOOVE-A-BULL !  In an emergency you can call the fire services at EXTINGUISH-A-BULL or find the CONST-A-BULL at the Police Station.

The local deli prides itself on being DELECT-A-BULL and the supermarket is ... wait for it .... RESTOCK-A-BULL !!  There are 2 antique shops in Bulls .... yep, you got it .... COLLECT-A-BULL and AFFORD-A-BULL.  The dress shops are FASHION-A-BULL and WEAR-A-BULL .... so appropriate.  A local gift shop reckons it’s gifts are IRRESIST-A-BULL and if you want to sell your property, contact the estate agent at LIST-A-BULL.  For a history of the town visit the museum, it’s MEMOR-A-BULL !!

I just love it!!!  I love word play at the best of times and someone in Bulls has been incredibly creative ... the list is endless!

The Public Library is READ-A-BULL, the Town Hall SOCIAL-A-BULL, the local pharmacy is  INDISPENS-A-BULL and the Information centre is INFORM-A-BULL.  It's at the Info centre that you'll find out that Bulls sister city in the UK is Cowes .... how hilarious is that!!  The church, most appropriately, is called FORGIVE-A-BULL and the local Medical Centre had to be CURE-A-BULL!!

Last, but not least, the garbage bins, in the shape of milk urns,  have signs on them saying RESPONS-I-BULL.    Oh yes ... I nearly forgot ... I love this one ... the local Plunket (for my friends elsewhere in the world, Plunket provides support services for the well-being of children) has a sign up reminding people that once they become parents their children are
NON-RETURN-A-BULL !!

I was grinning from ear-to-ear when we eventually bade farewell to Bulls... an UNFORGETT-A-BULL town .... hahaha!!