kiwius

Santa's little helper sacks out

2008-07-31T14:11:00.000-07:00

E is sleeping with his blanket wrapped around his head like a santa hat...if Santa wore a beige and navy hat that is.
He looks like a little elf...perhaps one of Santa's grubbier, more poopy and sweaty elves.

I can see clearly now the grime has gone

2008-07-30T12:28:00.000-07:00

holy moly...we have just had the windows cleaned courtesy of a lovely man called "Jose". It's startling just how grubby they were.
Tempted to leave the screens down as I can see so much clearer now.
Must clean windows more often...lazy housewife that I am. At least I can feel virtuous about hoovering the screen and not outsourcing that job today.

The learning curve

2007-10-21T19:45:00.000-07:00

This weekend LittleE has learnt to:

Find the hidden scissors
Cut his clothing with scissors
Open the locked cupboard under the sink to investigate the sprays, dish wash powder etc
Grab a knife off the bench
Wave a knife in the air
Stand on his little table in the family room and turn the fan and light switches on and off
Stick his hand in the neighbours dogs mouth
Climb onto the fireplace
Unlatch the screen door so he can wander outside

its a wonder we haven't had to go to A&E at all this weekend! On the plus side he can now string "Good Bye" and "Daddy" together so technically that might be his first sentence...if we can make it to his 16 month birthday on the 23rd we might just be OK!

Friday Feast

2007-04-13T06:13:00.000-07:00

Appetizer
When you were a child, which crayon color was your favorite?
Blue - not sure why though my parents thought they were adopting a boy and bought clothes accordingly, so I spent the first 3 months of my life in blue.
It came in handy with 3 other siblings as we all had our favourite colours so if Mum bought 4 things (plastic combs etc) she could get them in "our" colours so there would be less arguing.

Soup
On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 10 being highest), how likely would you be to change jobs if it required you to move?
In a flash...unless it was somewhere really scary like back to my very very small (school and nothing more) hometown. We quite fancy moving to the Krakow office at the moment, the weather can't be any worse.

Salad
Take all the numbers in your birthday and your phone number and add them up, one by one. What’s the total?
82...embrassed to say I used the calculator...mental arithmatic is NOT my strong point

Main Course
Have you ever “re-gifted” anything? If so, what was it and who did you pass it on to?
Of course, if you don't love something set it free I say! In case family members are reading this...I won this large ceramic basket with fruit (so NOT me or my orange/purple/red kitchen) and regifted it to a secret santa session at mummygroup. The recipiant did not like it either, but someone else thought it was faboulous so it ended up in a happy home again....aaaaaaahhhhhh.

Dessert
Name something you need from the store.
Dishwasher soap, or we will be forced to do dishes by hand and that's probabley grounds for divorce.

Different styles of parenting...

2007-04-09T14:46:00.000-07:00

M: "LittleE's feet are cold, do you have some socks for him?"
Me: pointedly looks toward the mountain of laundry about to cascade of the sofa behind him
M: ignores me and cuddles our 'freezing' child dressed in overalls, sweatshirt and drool, completely engrossed in Elmo
Me: extracts the first two socks (a grey one and a white one) before the laundry avalanches and throws them to M
M "they don't match"

Friday Feast

2007-03-30T08:02:00.000-07:00

Appetizer
What are you proud of?
I've changed enough to manage to find someone who loves me as much as I love them.

Soup
What is the best thing you’ve ever won as a prize?
When I was living in the UK I won an all expenses paid trip for two to Milan and 1000 quid spending money...I put my 5 closest girlfriends in the jar and drew out Linda, who loves fashion the most anyway, and we had a BALL...bought a wonderful pair of Italian sandals I'm never going to give away even if I now have post pregnancy feet

Salad
Name something you do that is a waste of time.
Surf www.cuteoverload.com every day and look at the pictures...I'm addicted

Main Course
In what year of your life did you change the most?
1999 - went overseas, went to Findhorn, travelled to the places I wanted to and started a new life with only selected past baggage that I chose.

Dessert
Where is a place you consider to be very tranquil?
Looking out on the river in Merrill (or any body of water for that matter)

Rhino head

2007-03-30T07:44:00.000-07:00

Yesterday LittleE took a dramatic tumble out of his high chair just as I went to pick him up and crash landed on his head and shoulder. I don't know who was more shocked, but he started howling first, and all I could think was "I've broken the baby"
I scooped him up and we both howled together while I checked him for broken limbs and head injuries. I think he might have been crying cos I didn't catch his spectacular leap, but I know I was crying from guilt for not catching the acrobat.
I decided I didn't want to test the rapid response of the linc ambulance (though I know they always need something to do) and rang the doctors, who wanted to see him even though he had no serious fall signs other than the bruise.
Lorraine came along for the ride to make sure he stayed awake...and to talk me off the very tall tower known as "Worse Mummy in the World" and after he howled at the DRs he was passed all clear.
I spent the rest of the day alternatively cuddling him and checking for dilated pupils, vomiting and changes in behavior...somewhat consoled by the fact that MIL told me M had also survived a tumble down the stairs not much older.
So today LittleE has a big round bruise, a new name "rhinohead" and we have a reminder from the garage door guys that skateboards will be much worse...so much to look forward to

Just write

2007-03-16T07:01:00.000-07:00

Still finding it hard to get back to bloggin, even when I have posts buzzing around in my head...I blame Dooce, Mr Angry, Jonny B and some chick from Belgium with a twattish boyfriend, I'm completely intimidated by their writing. get to the end of their daily posts and find myself tongue tied...or is that fingertied?
Maybe I should challenge myself to a week of not reading and writing with the reward of reading at the end of it. But first I have to put the washing on and check out small fluffy creatures...sigh...

Can you spell stupid?

2007-02-23T07:10:00.000-08:00

It's spelt "M-E"..and I blame it on my husband for making me tidier.
This week I managed to recycle an entire unopened box of clothes ordered from Lands End. Got the box and did not have time to open it as I was feeding LittleE (see previous posts, you stick to anything you touch during that process, especially as I'm teaching him "high five" at the same time) and left it in the hallway next to the large cardboard boxes from the new toilet. Come Tues night I'm rushing around getting the rubbish out and neatly stowed all the boxes and put them out for recyling. Thursday morning finds me running around the house going "LittleE...where did mummy put the box?...did you eat it?..."which might be possible though I had seen no sign of jeans and shorts in his poo...and I get very up close and personal to poo these days.
I finally figured out I had just recyled $180.00 worth of clothing and rang waste management. The very helpful operator told me the local guy would call me back. The very helpful local guy gave me the number of the recyling plant. The very helpful lady at MURF (the recyling plant...no idea...maybe recyling was invented by the irish) checked with the operators on the line. And at the end of all that I found out that it would have all gone to the landfill as rubbish-sigh-and that a lot of people lose cell phones in their recyling as well.
After all the helpfulness I feel a bit mean...but I'm sure that there is someone's relative from MURF walking around in my size 14 Jeans from Lands End going "SCORE"
On the bright side, today I figured out that if you crush a few cheerios and roll squishy banana pieces in them, your baby can pick up the squishy banana better... and you have to spend less time extracting said suishy banana from the seat of the highchair..."SCORE"

bit messy though

2007-02-22T06:19:00.000-08:00

bit messy though, originally uploaded by zela.

LittleE has gone to sleep at 8am...after not having more that 10 teaspoons of food. Sometimes I long for the days when I'm worried about him eating too much, or junk food or borrowing the car.
Its the second morning that he has woken at 5am, the little horror so figuring out how the day rescedules is such a juggling act, must have got it wrong this morning as he fell asleep the moment his little head hit the pillow...oh well, that's 45 minutes of cleanup and checking email and showering I now have.
It will all be worth it when he smiles up at me when he wakes up.

12 2006 eating toes 008

2006-12-16T11:23:00.000-08:00

12 2006 eating toes 008, originally uploaded by zela.

Oh how I wish I was this flexible again...must start yoga...must start yoga...must start yoga

Flickr

2006-12-16T11:21:00.000-08:00

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

am I a bad housewife if I

2006-12-16T11:08:00.000-08:00

sweep the bits I can't get into the dustpan down the heating vents???

Oooooohhhh...special and unique

2006-11-06T14:54:00.000-08:00

HowManyOfMe.com

There are:
128
people with my name
in the U.S.A.

How many have your name?

my current favourite picture of littleE at the moment

2006-10-28T02:41:00.000-07:00

as you can tell from the post time, I'm having trouble sleeping at the moment, I think this is the worse jet lag I've ever suffered (apart from the time I got a lung infection and collasped on the plane to wake up to an oxygen mask and the cabin crew trying to undo my bra...better than smelling salts to bring you around that is...)
It might have something to do with getting littleE back to his usual sleeping through the night routine.
Like him, I seem to have hunger pains at 3pm...I think I ate an entire packet of Jaffa cakes in the first night mmmnnn chocolate mmmmnnn orange...and now that I've got him off night feedings my boobs are going to explode again.
I now have this theory that WonderWoman must have been breastfeeding to get those cone hard breasts...though the teeny tiny waist blows that out of the water!
Anyho...off to make a nice hot drink of milo and surf youtube for entertainment.

3 things I have discovered today

2006-09-08T10:09:00.000-07:00

1: the whole top of the diaper champ comes of and can be washed...you don't want to know why I needed to know this...trust me
2: the sponge headed paint brushes are good for getting into the bits you need to clean in the diaper champ
3: overtired babies are hard to get to sleep

Its going to be a long day today I think!

2006-07-22T18:17:00.000-07:00

Life Experiences Meme

Bold the ones you've done..

01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said 'I love you' and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby's diaper (Yes, I have! Really!! LMAO.)
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne.
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse (Too bad I didn't actually PLACE that bet!)
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day (A few hours. Never an entire day.)
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 50 states
41. Taken care of someone who was shit faced
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched wild whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer then you were actually in love (THAN! It's "THAN", you idiot who wrote this, not "THEN". Sheesh.)
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger's table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow (Though I've often expressed my own milk, and felt very much like a cow at the time...)
56. Alphabetized your cds
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Posed nude in front of strangers
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an "expert"
83. Got flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark...disguised as 'lemon fish', with chips...mmmnnn
88. Had a one-night stand
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one/both of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror.
96. Raised children.
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
98. Created and named your own constellation of stars
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn't stop when you knew someone was looking (Only ALL. THE. TIME. I love to sing. :-) )
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn't have survived.
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Petted a stingray
110. Broken someone's heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school
131. Parasailed
132. Petted a cockroach (Nope. Only squashed them.)
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey
135. Selected one "important" author who you missed in school, and read (Way more than one!)
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating...fish count right...
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146: Dyed your hair
147: Been a DJ
148: Shaved your head
149: Caused a car accident
150: Saved someone's life

Its easy to live in the Midwest

2006-07-05T15:18:00.000-07:00

Frances and I were talking as we went to the 4th of July fireworks at spring lake last night...which BTW were themed 'Red White and Boom' like the whole of the celebration this year, and booming they were, they must have spent extra money on the noisy ones this year as the ground shook when they did the big finale...anyway I digress.
She said that's it easy living in the Midwest,no hurricanes like Florida, no scary snakes like Texas (not sure where that came from) and even no real threat of tornadoes where we live. We decided that any city would live in fear of someone blowing up the inner city, ie the Sears tower, but that now just seems like an everyday danger, along with being hit by a car (much more likely).
I think that makes me grateful, the safety factor, somehow its good that boring is also safe, but I confess to a certain ambivalence about the lack of exotic dangers (ie alligators), something I'm sure will change when our small baby finally gets onto a bike or starts to toddle in the land of no fences.
In the meantime, life is easy in the Midwest, the sun is shining, the baby is sleeping and I'm about to go out and get some fresh air...in hearing distance of sudden infant noises of course!

4th of July baby

2006-07-04T17:23:00.000-07:00

4th of July baby
Originally uploaded by zela.

So when I lost baby number two, i lost the will to blog and promised myself that I would return when I had my own baby in my arms...well here he is, Eilot Alexander Weaver, having a wee patriotic moment under both his flags on the fourth of July.
I stil can't beleive he is ours, he's so cute when he sleeps.
We are going through new parent purgatory at the moment and struggling to get through a night without tears from at least two family members. He seems to want to stay awake for 6 hour stretches anytime after 9:30pm and screams unless he is being fed, naps for 10-15 minutes then starts the cycle again.
I cling to anyone who tells me that he wil sleep through the night eventually, I think we are most tormented by not knowing what is wrong and why we can't soothe him...we have taken to calling him mr crankypants at night.
How can anyone that looks this cute turn into a howler monkey so easily -sigh-

Testing to check

2006-07-04T17:18:00.000-07:00

testing testing 123

Flickr

2006-07-04T17:17:00.000-07:00

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

Merrill July 05 019

2005-08-10T18:54:00.000-07:00

Merrill July 05 019
Originally uploaded by zela.

This is Sharon, the MIL and FIL's next door neighbour at the river...she's been married to Joe for 50 years and they were one of the first people to welcome MIL to the river when she had just married FIL...by rustling up a group of friends, grabbing their pots and pans and clanging them together as they walked over the meet the new bride and groom...being a sweet Georgia peach and not used to the wild ways of Wisconsin..I think the MIL freaked out a bit, but became freinds and now counts Sharon as one of her nearest and dearest.
Sharon and Joe didn't want to have a fancy dinner so Dawn (the daughter) and Judi and Jerry (she's the pretty redhead in the pictures) and others cooked up a surprise.
At 3pm on Saturday we all met at the top of the drive, turned on the siren on someones golf cart and walked down the hill banging all the muffin tins and saucepans we could find.
The extended family had managed to make excuses to be there already, we loaded the 3 pontoon boats with booze and food and carefully (with generally comedic results) tied all 3 boats together and sailed on down the river enmasse. Sharon and Joe had a great time (she was pretty shickered by 9pm) and we eventually moored for a bbq to finish things off.
Just the perfect way to celebrate 50 and a fun way to introduce my sister to life on the river.
Try not to look to hard at how much the cake is leaning...she insisted on 4 layer banana cake with whipped cream and choc icing on top.
Click on the photo if you want to see more of the party.

Parking...what parking?

2005-08-09T06:34:00.000-07:00

I think Americans might be a bit 'afeared' of parking...maybe it;s the big ass cars, maybe its easier to park in first gear (instead of trying to figure out what the automatic gears might do), maybe it a genetic lack of a parking gene, but I for one, am grateful. When I pull into the underground car part a little late (like this morning), spaces near pillars and beams....oooooooh...scaaary pillars and beams...are usually free...and closer to the building - yay for that.
However, I have learnt that it not a good idea to park in the spaces next to the trolley returns (where there is usually a gap at the supermarket). Maybe it has something to do with winter and a desperate need to get into the car before you turn into an icicle, or possibly the overwhelming influence of Nascar, but I've seen a lot of trolleys shoved in the general direction of the returns section by people looking the other way, and once one go careering past (not downhill...there are no hills in Illinois) with no one watching but me...and yes, i did stop it crashing into a car. Not sure why they don't push them neatly into the lines every time....maybe some people just can't park!

so it's back to work

2005-08-08T05:43:00.001-07:00

Can't beleive that I only have one more week of my sister staying with me...it's been fun (I think our relationship has gotten much better since we've gotten older) and she seems to be having a good time. I was really liking this working part-time thing last week...wonder if I can keep doing that and still get the same pay!

Been on blogging holiday....

2005-08-06T04:42:00.000-07:00

once you are out of your normal routine, normally routine things become much harder to fit in. I've got photo's to post, but they have to wait a day or two (though I'm about to figure out how to send them to Walmart to print out via the internet), but in the meantime, here's the FRIDAY FEAST (on Saturday or Sunday if you read in NZ!)

Appetizer
Briefly describe your living room.
It's a wonderful large 1.5 height room with an enormous stone fireplace in the middle and one of the main reasons why we bought the house. At the moment it contains a boob height pile of unpacked packing paper, a matching pile of flattened boxes, all our pictures stacked on one wall and all our 'good' china neatly lined up on the floor around the walls like a car boot sale thanks to the unpacking skills of my little sister...maybe we should just open the door and see what we can sell...the papers all there to wrap it up!

Soup
List 3 things you'd like to accomplish before the end of 2005.
Find a home for everything in the house
Start the garden
Go to Patagonia
I figure the last one might be the most feasible!

Salad
When you're online, what do you spend the most time reading/playing/doing? Suggest a site for us to visit.
Writing my blog and reading others...and shopping for blinds or travel deals! If Strayed into this blog the other day...very funny and quite an interesting perspective to

Main Course
What would the title of your autobiography be?
Kiwi's can fly!

Dessert
What time do you usually go to bed?
Going to bed and going to sleep are two different things...heheheheheh...somewhere between 9:30 (bad day!) to 10:30 usually...the sleeping thing can occur 15 to 4 hours later...depending on the book I'm reading (minds out of the gutter children!)

George Carlin said it best about MARTHA STEWART.

2005-08-02T06:59:00.000-07:00

"Boy, I feel a lot safer now that she's behind bars. O.J. Simpson and Kobe Bryant are still walking around; Osama Bin Laden too, but they take the one woman in America willing to cook, clean, and work in the yard, and haul her ass off to jail."

Thanks for sending this Lorraine.

Sisters take on San Fran

2005-07-27T06:15:00.000-07:00

San Fran July 05 034
Originally uploaded by zela.

I've just about reached my upload limit for the month so will probably have to subscribe to a bit more...in the meantime, here are some of my best shots of picking F up in San Fran and just generally hanging out and having a great time. I spent Saturday pottering around getting the lay of the land, and Sunday, popped down to the farmers market at the ferry terminal (after getting in a quick ride on the cable car before the hordes of other tourists got there). Frances and I went out when she got back on the 'go-cars' as we wanted to get around and see the city, without hoofing it or from a bus. Best money ever spent on a tour. They are built from motorcycles and sound like lawn mowers but you can drive them on the road and the tour bit comes courtesy of the sat nav guidance. We had a hoot, featured in many tourist photo's along the way and were laughed at by big men in trucks...and got to see all over the town, to the bridge (not allowed to go over), down the windiest street and made it back just in time for closing (despite being stopped by the cops for running a light - didn't mean to officer) along the way.
On Monday we rented bikes and rode over the bridge and down to Sulsalito, took the ferry back and handed over the bikes and hiked our way home, to our rather grotty hotel.
Seemed to spend most of yesterday getting to the plane, on the plane and then stuck in traffic on the way home.
Still, she's here and I've still got the rest of the week off...hooray.
More photo's can be found here.
We're off to town to get hair and nails done (playing ladies) and then to see 'Wicked'
Catch you all later...and Jeff, if you are reading this...the 2 packets of Tim Tams with your name on made it through customs OK

this post is brought to you by the letter 'S'

2005-07-23T00:54:00.000-07:00

S is for for snoring.
Yup, combination of too much garlic on the lamb from the 'taste' (as the locals call it) and the 'snorisaurous' sleeping in our bed have rendered me yawning but awake. I'll be trying some milo, usually my cure-all and put-to-sleep potion soon, but in the meantime, perhaps some net activity whilst the jug is boiling is might help.
Its 3:01, have to be up at 5:30 to leave at 6 to go to the airport...might have to be an extra-large M-I-L-O, milo.
and G & L, the taste is small but tasty!

it seems like all I've done this week is answer questions...

2005-07-22T09:52:00.000-07:00

but anyway it's Friday feast time so here goes:
Appetizer
What kind of car do you drive? If you could make an even trade for any other car, what would you want to drive?
It's a highlander and I love it...big enough to play with the big boys on the road, fast enough to not get sneered at by the sports cars. My only regret is that I had to buy it before the hybrids came out...oh well, next time.
Wouldn't trade it for anything else equivalent

Soup
Take your phone number and add each number together separately (example: 8+6+7+5+3+0+9=38) - what's the total?
41...which comes back with Island Records when you google the number

Salad
When were you last outside, and what were you doing?
This morning, reluctantly making my way to the car at 6:20am...last day at work for a week as my sister comes over from NZ on Sunday...YIPPEE

Main Course
What is your favorite restaurant, and what do you usually order there?
At the moment it's Bob Chins Crabhouse (number 4 in the whole of the US apparently), just down Milwaukee Ave. The 'tacky Tiki' decor complete with 'I caught my crabs at Bob Chins' always amuses me and they really do have FRESH seafood (not bad for an inland city) including NZ Green Lipped mussel's (which I never have cos I know they taste better in NZ)
I usually have giant crab legs and try not to think about the poor septaplegic crustacean toodling around in it's wheelchair wondering who ate it's legs.
Took MIL and FIL there on Monday night (reward for waterblasting the patio and many other jobs) and MIL thought the crab was even better than the stuff they had in Alaska.

Dessert
Name 3 things in which you occasionally indulge.
Dessert
Cigars (in the company of male cigar smoking friends, much to my husbands horror)
New handbags

and interviewed again...blimey

2005-07-21T10:57:00.000-07:00

I read Ellisson every day at work, and he's taught me heaps on how to blog. I save him 'til lunchtime as he's always entertaining (funny or thought provoking or both) and occasionally posts about food, which kinda makes whatever I've concocted from the salad bar in the cafeteria much more tasty...oh and he has cute cats to boot.
Anyway, at risk of being thought of as a 'meme-slut', I asked him to interview me as well...Rules once again down the bottom of the post

1) Where have you lived? Of the places where you’ve lived, which one did you like the most, and why?
Richmond Downs, Omokoroa, Katikati, Hamilton, Auckland, London, Epsom, Stoneleigh, Sutton, St Albans, Buffalo Grove, Lincolnshire...and I'll let you figure out which ones are NZ, UK or USA!
Since I've moved so much pretty much where I happen to be at the moment is my favourite...I have a sneaking fondness (as do Mands and Annie) for Stoneleigh as that was a 'proper' home in the UK and we had such good times(and parties) together, despite not being as tidy as Mands.

Who are your three favorite music artists? Name a single work that you feel captures the essence of each one.
J S Bach - Cantata & Fugue in D minor...once heard, never forgotten and when you hear it in a cathedral, his true glory comes out.
Lemonheads - Into your arms...perfect indie pop, we couldn't work it into the wedding...but I got it onto the wedding video!
Crowded House - 4 Seasons in one day...I've heard this in the strangest places all over the world (Mongolian restaurant, UK truckstop at 2am) and it always makes me homesick in a way nothing else ever does

Imagine that you are condemned to be executed, presumably for a crime you did not commit. What would you select for your last meal?
hmmmmnnnnn, very tough question...there would definitely be roasties (Roast potatoes) made by my brother...roast kumara and roast pumpkin (imported from NZ where they grow pumpkins to taste yummy, and not to be wasted as pie)...since we seem to be having a roast...roast pork with the crackling on, yorkshire puds(made by my aunt), proper English gravy (the MIL can make it cos I taught her how), yellow butter beans, crunchy raw turnip(laugh if you want but it's MY last supper) and then to top it all off...Auntie Y's mince pies as no one else in the world can make them like that.
And for my release party we're having smoked Marlin...

If you could be a character from TV/Book/Film who would you be, and why?
Granny Weatherwax or Nanny Ogg...all the knowledge or all the sex power....hmmmmmn, failing that, Yoda would work for me, I've always thought a light sabre would come handy, especially if the power goes out!

What is your hometown, and what is special or unique about it?
Lincolnshire (as of 13 days ago)...pop 48,000 by day and 6,000 by night when all the workers in the offices go home...you get great facilities due to the taxes and minimal people to enjoy it with...and the tree's ROCK (though I might be telling a different story in autumn when the leaves fall off)

I'm being interviewed

2005-07-21T07:06:00.000-07:00

So was checking in on Gordys blog (congrats on the new golf handicap by the way) and decide to let him interview me via the meme going around at the moment... I will answer the questions shortly, but first, I am contractually obligated to explain the rules to this inquisitive round-robin.

1. If you want to participate, leave a comment below saying "Interview me." "Blow me" or "Eat me" are not acceptable substitutes.
2. I will respond by asking you five questions - each person's will be different. I'll post the questions in the comments section of this post.
3. You will update your blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

So Gordy says...OK Zela, here you go.

Q1. You moved home recently, what is the one thing that you would have missed most had it been left behind?
Apart from my husband (and there was a good chance he might have got packed if he stayed still long enough around the packers) I think probabley dairies that I have written in since I went to Uni. I'm a fairly infrequent writer (much better at blogging) but still write when i need to think something through, and I have lots of memories of trips I have done that I wouldn't want to lose.

Q2. You have been a while here in the US now, what is the thing that still surprises you to this day?
No roundabouts! Whenever I stop/start at a stop sign, I sigh and think to myself how much easier roundabouts are!

Q3. What is your favorite quote or one liner from a book, play or movie?
"Men!...can't live with'em, can't shoot 'em"...St Elmos fire (I think)...and I always like to subvert the glass half empty thing by saying...'it's half filled with champagne and someone is coming towards me to top it up!'

Q4. Finish this sentence. I wish....
I could lose wait by eating fried/roasted/boiled/mashed potatoes...

Q5. Tell me 3 things you really don't like.
1) being very cold (and wet)
2) being told I have a funny accent
3) being mistaken for an Aussie

The cleaner arrived this morning

2005-07-20T06:04:00.000-07:00

and I was expecting Toni (who's from Yugoslavia) and we got Gatunda, also from the eastern bloc. I always have mixed feelings about having a cleaner...on one hand the ghost of my mother scrubbing the floors whilst raising 4 kids on a farm seems to reproach me for 'outsourcing' the work. On the other hand, I hate cleaning, we'd much rather be doing other things and in the grand scheme of things, it seems we can afford this money for marital harmony. I rationalize it by knowing I was grateful for the work when I cleaned, my sister is when she does and paying someone to work is better than saving the money for charity(which I confess we probably wouldn't).
She looked a bit relieved when I indicated that she could hoover around the large piles of cardboard and paper still in the living room, and bit more gloomy contemplating the rather old and grubby looking bathtubs.
I just hope she's as good as Toni, who is definitely channeling the spirit of my mother when she scrubs the floor on her hands and knees!

How do you clean patio door runners?

2005-07-19T05:04:00.000-07:00

with a toothbrush of course!
so the weavers had a very busy weekend doing the first steps of what will prob be a 100step plan for 'tidying up the house', aided and abetted by MIL, FIL, SIL and BIL...still so knackered I can hardly move.
Won't bore you with the details, but once again they involved lots of trips to Home Depot, and we now have a kitchen semi painted in stripes, doors that actually move on their runners, clean siding and all our stuff out of storage...and into the garage...sigh...now just got to find somewhere in the house to put it all...I can feel a garage sale coming on :>)
and the toothbrush thing?
So there I was, on my hands and knees having vacuumed 3 years worth of grime and debri from the runners and looking at the gunge still stuck there, and the array of brushes that were just too big. A momentary flash of inspiration (or perhaps a rush of the mold I'd just brushed off) and I raced off to get a toothbrush, from the trusty 'stuff stolen from airlines' drawer. I did contemplate using my electric one...to cut down on the scrubbing you know! but managed to stop myself in time. The toothbrush (and a lot of elbow grease) worked a treat, a quick coat of silicone spray later and now we can open the doors with one hand, instead of the two hand, full body, 'shove the door with you hip or bum' method favored before.
I might not have saved the world this weekend, but I now know there is a certain amount of satisfaction to be gained from doors that work!

so it's 7:23am on a saturday..

2005-07-16T05:23:00.000-07:00

and FIL has been up for an hour already sorting out the garage...that man is a machine, and shall be rewarded with scrambled eggs (his favourite).
Me, I've tried to sneak very quietly through the kitchen as MIL is still sleeping in the family room. It worked and the breakfast stuff is now 'good to go'...I think its going to be a long day today :>)
Still, it's 7:30 and 18 degrees and I'm wearing shorts already...can't beat that really!

Friday Feast time

2005-07-15T05:13:00.000-07:00

Appetizer
What is your middle name? Would you change any of your names if you could? If so, what would you like to be called?
Jean...after a favorite aunt of my fathers apparently. When I was growing up it seemed very plain so I wanted to change it to Jean-Louise. Grew out of that. Liked having an X in my maiden name, with a Z in my first name and it started with A which meant I was always at the top of a list...good for prizegiving, bad for class presentations. Now I start with W so I've gone to the bottom of the list - sigh - but the world is running out of Weavers, so I'm happy to do my bit to adding to their numbers as they are pretty nice so far.
We have a family tradition on my mothers side of having the first born son take the mothers maiden name, so my brother is Mark Scott and my cousin is Paul Scott. Given I've left the whole baby thing a wee bit late, it might have to be the first born...or possibly the first pet that takes the glorious name of Alexander.

Soup
If you were a fashion designer, which fabrics, colors, and styles would you probably use the most?
Hmmmmmmn, what an odd question. fabrics that cover you, colors that flatter you and styles that make you look skinny I think!

Salad
What is your least favorite chore, and why?
I really really REALLY hate cleaning the fridge, stove is OK but the fridge is just awkward, cold, smelly and full of foods you had no idea you bought!

Main Course
What is something that really frightens you, and can you trace it back to an event in your life?
What a bizarre list of questions so far...losing people I love...perhaps a wee bit scarred by losing both parents by 18.
I'm hoping that since I'm older I'll pop off before they do, but they keep flying frequently, living in places where bombs go off, visiting places when tidal waves occur and getting sick...so the odds aren't good

Dessert
Where are you sitting right now? Name 3 things you can see at this moment.
At work...must get back to the emails.
Pictures of my wedding, family, friends, postcards of Prague and Ocean Beach - Tairua and a cool NZ card Dave and Becs gave us
A rainbow colored slinky to play with when phone conference calls get dull
Lavender handcream
thats the good stuff...everyhing else is work - sigh - and speaking of work....

and the first email in my inbox this morning was...

2005-07-14T05:41:00.000-07:00

Your Harry Potter Order Is on Schedule..from Amazon

HOOOOOORAAAAY

We're happy to let you know that we've begun preparing your order for
"Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" for delivery.

You should have the book(s) in your hands no later than 7:00 p.m. in
your time zone on Saturday, July 16. Most books will be delivered by
U.S. Mail, either with your regular mail delivery or in a separate,
special mail delivery. Some orders may be delivered by UPS.

Because our carriers are delivering hundreds of thousands of books on
that day, we do ask that you wait until 7:00 p.m. before contacting
customer service if you haven't received your order.

Although we're not requiring a signature, we still recommend that
someone be home to accept the package, as the driver may not leave it on
your doorstep if they don't feel it's safe to do so.

You'll receive our usual shipment confirmation e-mail after your package
leaves our fulfillment center.

Thanks for shopping at Amazon.com, and happy reading!

Just as well we are all home on saturday, woouldn't want any of the bad neighbours nicking off with my copy. Perhaps I should have told them to deliver it next door, they have big (but lovable)guard dogs...it might be safer.
Oh Hazel, get a grip...it's only a book!

I am a glamorous Hollywood movie star...

2005-07-13T07:09:00.000-07:00

you know how you'd see pictures of Hollywood film stars resting during the day with their eye shades on...well except for the fur trimmed slippers and the fact that I sleep scrunched up on my side...that could be me...really it could.
And all because we have no curtains in the bedroom. I knew there was a reason we'd collected those free eyeshades they hand out on the plane, they're for when people like us move into houses with no blinds.
The master bedroom has unusual windows with a long skinny window on top and two square ones underneath. I'm not sure what the previous owners did, perhaps they didn't care, but I can't find any evidence that there were ever curtains/blinds or even a sheet with drawing pins up there. We suspect that the fact they didn't;t wash the windows or screens for the past 2 years...so you look out through a grey haze might have acted as blinds.
So what are we going to do...start by having a long debate about what sort of curtains/blinds/sheetwithdrawingpins we might want...trek around the stores and prob end up buying on line when we've exhausted both the feet and heated discussions.
M has tested the 'can you see my boobies from the neighbor's' by standing in the driveway' and the answer is no...though my part of the test involved continuing my ironing in the bedroom...not standing nekkid waving my bodacious ta-ta's for the world to see!
Still, might go with the temporary sheet and drawing pins solution for fear of scaring the neighbor's too early on in the day!

so I think we might have unpacked

2005-07-11T10:59:00.000-07:00

at least 30 of the 87 boxes...but I'm too afraid to count in case its less than I think it is!
White packing paper anyone!

ahhhh...salsa lizano

2005-07-11T10:53:00.000-07:00

ever since tebear introduced me to salsa lizano i've been finding new and interesting ways to use it. It tastes hot but not burny hot and tangy but not sour. The latest includes putting a squirt in the mayonaise for potato salad dressy (mnnnn tangy) and mixing it with frozen green beans and microwaving it for a couple of minutes then letting it marinate for a quick bean salad (mnnn yummy).
I'm not sure what I'm going to do when the bottle runs out, as unlike tebear I didn't buy 6 bottles to bring home...guess I'm just going to have to go back to Costa Rica!

The house in the trees

2005-07-09T04:57:00.000-07:00

The house in the trees
Originally uploaded by zela.

I've finally got all the house pictures up on Flickr, so click on the picture link and you can see all the work awaiting us.
All 87 boxes and assorted furniture are in...so its just a wee bit of unpacking (ohmygod) and we'll be ready.

so at 5:30 this morning

2005-07-07T04:53:00.000-07:00

we get a call from my sister to say Ross has manage to ring through and he was at work (thank goodness he was on earlies) this morning when the explosions happened.
I just spoke to him (it's 6:55am now our time) and he's not sure how he's going to get home, but I'm just glad he's ok:>)
All other London freinds have been accounted for at this time...knowing that some others family members won't make it home from a normal workday is not a good day.

This week we are...

2005-07-06T04:43:00.000-07:00

working
packing
moving

by friday we shall be in the new house proper...and I'm beginning to think I live in Wisteria Lane
Posts shall be a bit scanty this week...but happy 4th of July to you all.

you gotta love that spam

2005-07-01T14:37:00.000-07:00

that sometimes sneaks through the system.
This is what I got today...I've bolded the interesting bits
Hello,

For job seekers allover the world, here is an opportunity for

you to make a wealthy living for yourself and to all those that look up to you. A new founded Zebra adverting company is connected to companies to give works to job seekers all over the world.We will get a job for you .A capable and experienced personality to manage the following below.

Account Officer (Junior Class)

P.R.O

Secretary to the Director=
(Female)

Business Admin Officer

Clark to the Director

Account Officer (Senior Class)

Marketing Officer

Customer care officer

Asistant to the Customer care officer

Acounting(OND/HND) EXP.2yrs

News brocaster(EXP. 3yrs )

Sales Executive

Manager of an Oil company.

If the job you want is not listed, fill free to mail us,we will get a company with good weekly wage.We are looking forward to hearing from you.
N B

Applicants must be ready to relocate

If intrested reply to us and youn are sure to have a Job

hmmmmn let me think about this...while it would be nice to be a manager of an oil company with a good weekly wage so that all who look up to me would be happy...I'm not sure my personality is experienced enough for that!

Friday's Feast - a buffet for your brain

2005-07-01T07:39:00.000-07:00

Friday's Feast - a buffet for your brain

Appetizer
Where do you plan to go on vacation this year, or where would you want to go?
Not sure what whether we are going to fit much more in...though Frances and I will do lots of exploring when she gets over here
My current dream destination is Galapagos Islands...bring on the big turtles

Soup
What color is your bedroom? If you could redecorated it, what would you change?
The new one is a horrible fake flesh color, the sort they use for artificial limbs...think it might be changing this weekend...we're both thinking celedon green...though M might not have actually used the word celedon and thinks I'm making it up!

Salad
Do you have a bumper sticker on your vehicle? What does it say?
Oh yes...it's a little NZ flag with the word New Zealand...just in case people think I'm from OZ...which would be a terrible mistake to make!
It's partly a reaction to the intense (and must be respected for being proud really) patriotism the US shows, and partly to make it easy to find my beige SUV in the car park amongst all the other beige SUV's

Main CourseWhat's the worst pain you've ever been in?
Waiting the the Spanish ER with a broken arm, nose and 11 stitches in my eyebrow for the orthopedic doctor, who was operating on some poor women who had just gotten of the plane, slipped on the marble in the airport and broken both hips...there is ALWAYS someone else worse off than you.
And Carron and Linda...will always be grateful you were there too!

Dessert
Who is your favorite celebrity? What do they do that inspires you?
Hmnnnn...this is surprisingly tough. Like Green Tuna at TunaNews, I can always think of uninspiring celebrities. I've always had a soft spot for the incredibly hairy Peter Jackson for following his dream and making the Hollywood machine work for him rather than the other way around.
And despite your politics...you've got to take your hat off to Helen Clark for 'getting stuck in' and doing for women in politics what Hillary Clinton can only dream of

I think they're having a laugh...

2005-06-29T08:37:00.000-07:00

I got the following warning today on the PC
Multilingual MIME warning

I realise that MIME must be some sort of techinical term...but I'd be worried if I saw a multilingual one of these!

Hooray for the internet

2005-06-29T05:14:00.000-07:00

The lions are touring NZ...to the uninitiated this might sound like a safari gone wildly wrong (don't we go tour lions?)but to anyone else that cares about Rugby, it's a big deal. To the Kiwi's who lost in the world cup, its a chance to banish that ugly memory...and for me in the US, it's a nightmare trying to find some way of watching the tests.
God bless the internet and video streaming...hopefully if we can get it working tonight I'll be able to see the second match on saturday morning...so don't you all go and tell me what the result is please...
and the other big news is that today we got our house. We were at the real estate office at 8:00am this morning for the closing (as they call it here)with our lawyer, their lawyer, their agents and someone scurrying around providing documents to sign called...the closer...so 2 hours of reading and signing papers and 5 minutes to hand over a large cheque and get a key in return and it's all ours...M is taking some 'before' pictures today and we'll be emailing the new address soon.
Lots of home renovation ahead...why would anyone paint the smallest room in the house maroon!

View from hotel

2005-06-28T03:31:00.000-07:00

View from hotel
Originally uploaded by zela.