Aging not so bad as once thought

Underfloor insulation installation not for the sane

Living in a small country you’re reminded frequently that there just isn’t enough competition here. Mobile phone companies are the first example that springs to mind but our most recent experience was with heating suppliers. We want to have ducted gas heating (central heating) installed in our house before winter because it will be colder than the inside of our fridge in July. After hours of searching online for companies that could

Colour me green…no gray..no sage

Renovations at Sandringham Palace are moving steadily along. The grand office has finally been completed and we’re putting the final touches on the newly renovated schizophrenic front bedroom before we move in…just in time to enjoy the fire in the evening reading in bed. I’m personally looking forward to that!

When did May get here?

I meant to write this a month ago before I was ensconced in a sweater and a scarf but as usual time passes far too quickly. It’s hard to believe we’re already well into May and I’ll be turning 4o fricking one in nine days! I remember thinking when I was young that twenty was old. Those were the good ole days!

Hello 2010

Ok so yes, it’s already mid-Feb. Welcome to my world where things move so fast and the days are so packed full of things to do that we don’t even have time to watch TV…which is why we don’t have one. How do all you people with TV’s find time to watch them??? Honestly our neighbor (who has a giant wall-sized tv screen in his living room which lights up our bedroom with its glow..seriously it’s so large that if we could read lips we’d be able to sit on our bed and watch in silence and still understand what the hell is going on) has his TV on ALL DAY. Morning to night. 7 days a week. Including holidays.

Let the renovations begin!

I have just added a jumbled compilation of photos from the end of September to the end of October somewhat sort of documenting the renovations with a party thrown in the middle just for fun (of course!).

Back home!

Having a holiday in September in France certainly has its advantages.

The weather is practically perfect. The wine is super cheap and doesn’t give you a headache. The cheese is pretty damn good. The architecture is top notch. The chocolate is divine. The people are lovely (mostly) and there’s no lack of things to do and see. Did I mention the cheese?

Citrus overload

Our house, in the middle of our street…
If we were on the grapefruit diet we’d be in heaven.

It seems there is only so much grapefruit two people can consume. So be warned, if you come to our house you are not permitted to leave without a bag of grapefruits.

Seb spent Sunday night juicing a sink full of grapefruits and ended up with three bottles full of the golden juice. Not bad for an hour of hand juicing.

Happy House!

So we finally moved into our new house in Kingsland on the 14th. It was a day of mixed emotions and rain so we weren’t really off to a good start. We were thrilled to get the keys but once we opened the doors we were horrified by the state of the house.

We bought a house!

So this is a long delayed announcement…we finally bought a house! We’ve been looking for a house for seven increasingly exhausting months so it’s with pleasure and pure sense of relief that we found our little slice of Auckland.

Our search started with a long list of wants and needs, some more important than others though the priority changed frequently. Our budget grew progressively as we realized that there was no crisis in the Grey Lynn area. And then our desired location expanded. So the result of our searching checks off all of the boxes on our wants and needs list but is in Kingsland (which neighbors Grey Lynn) and is a good $80,000 more than our original budget. Isn’t house buying fun?

We move in on the 15th and we’re so excited and so pressed for time we don’t know which emotion to deal with first. My web design business has gone through the roof and my previous worries of not being able to get enough work have been long forgotten. Somewhere between working with my clients I’ll have to pack some boxes and get movin’.

Curried Zucchini Soup

I made the most delicious soup the other day and it far exceeded my expectations. It’s super simple and quick. I discovered the recipe in a book I bought on my last trip to the US. It’s called Soup Bowl (ISBN: 978-1-4075-3140-3) and so far I haven’t had a bad soup out of it. I modified the original recipe by using yogurt instead of sour cream. As usual I didn’t photograph it so you’ll just have to imagine how beautifully green this soup is. Here’s what you’ll need…