Melbourne, we ♥ you

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…

on being made redundant

I called my sister today. She lives in the States and for those of you who don’t know I live in New Zealand. This is completely unimportant except for the fact that when I told her I had been made redundant she had no idea what I was talking about. So I had to explain that I had been laid off. “That sucks.” she said. Ummmm. Yes, it does…but then maybe it doesn’t suck so badly…

on being 40

I have been 40 for three days now. And since I’ve been 40 I have been struck with a cold so so far I’m not too thrilled. I have to say that the last days of being 39 were about as awesome as they get. For my birthday Seb surprised me with a trip to Rarotonga. Now considering the fact that we are freezing our bums off in Auckland this was a most welcome surprise. We spent four glorious days basking in the sun, refusing to complain about how hot and humid it was, and swimming in the crystal clear waters of the lagoon right outside of our cottage on the beach. The place was postcard perfect…like a movie set. It was perfect. Happy 40th to me!

I ♥ Maru

This cat on YouTube, his name is Maru, is quickly becoming my source of daily entertainment. He’s very smart but more than that he’s extremely playful and he has a wonderful personality. If you need a laugh or just want to lighten up your day watch one of his videos.

Maru loves boxes

The cup and Maru

on being a roadworks guy

There’s been construction going on outside of our house now for about a month. The reason for all the noise and breaking up the road and causing enormous traffic jams in an already congested area was to create a zebra striped path for school children to cross the road without fear of being yelled at, honked at, or run over (in NZ the pedestrian, unless at a crosswalk, has no rights it would seem…but I’ll save that rant for another post).

A lot of yummy goodness

I just received my new Cuisine magazine today and it is chock full of fabulous recipes and ideas. I’m only half way through it and it’s already becoming one of my favourite issues. I can’t wait to get started! What’s on the menu? Apple tart, Tamarind Fish & Potato Curry, Coq Au Riesling, Tagliatelle with Walnut Sauce, Ribollita, Chocolate Mousse, French Onion Soup, Chicken Leek Pot Pie…where to start? I think I might start with Coc Au Riesling…it has some of my favourite ingredients…Riesling and Tarragon. This is not going to be a month for diets.

two things

Two things I just need to post because I can’t stop looking at them. The first if from a photgrapher who has created images from scenes in NY to create a theme. I love these…they’re terribly interesting. The second is a group of photos of Saturn. Absolutely stunning. Take a look for yourself.

1. http://www.v1gallery.com/artist/show/3
2. http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/04/cassinis_continued_mission.html

Phew. Now maybe I can get some work done.

A house in Grey Lynn update

Three days after we canvassed Grey Lynn with cards expressing our interest in buying a villa we’ve had 5 responses. 5 out of 100 is pretty good in marketing terms so we’re thrilled. We’re even more thrilled that one of them has come back as a possibility. We’re putting all of our positive energy into this one hoping it comes through.

The villa is located near a house that we lost recently at an auction and the owner has been thinking about selling. He had his house evaluated two months ago so now we’re waiting to hear back from him to find out if his partner is keen. The suspense is nearly overwhelming!

House wanted in Grey Lynn

Over the weekend we stayed in the city and spent two wondrous days relaxing. By ‘relaxing’ I mean we expertly crafted and designed a little note to our neighbors in Grey Lynn to let them know we want to buy villa and distributed over 100 of them around the neighborhood by foot to any house that seemed to fit our wish list. So far we’ve had three responses so we’re pretty happy. One told us our price was too low (fair enough), another said he was renting from his daughter and he’d pass on our message, and the third said