Action is Character

This past weekend, I went WWOOFing. I travelled to Harmony Farms once again and met some new friends: a Swedish couple, a Canadian, a Frenchman, and a couple from the States/Canada. Hollin WWOOFed alongside me. I am really glad she had a good first experience with WWOOFing. We started planning where we each want to go WWOOFing the month before we return home. We were able to turn compost, cook, start a potato patch, prune olive trees and make mulch, and we created a recreational area for WWOOFers (which meant taking out 8 trees).

It was really nice being outside again, especially after being on the road so recently with the road trip. My favorite part of the weekend was learning about different wild weeds and flowers. We ate a weed salad with almost every meal! I enjoyed it more than romaine lettus! I also really enjoyed going through Otaki. We took a mini car tour through the trees, the river, the ocean (which had WILD WINDS that spit ocean foam around in the air!) and waterfalls.

I came home and enjoyed having another room mate for 2 days. Lyra, the Canadian, stayed with me while she explored Wellington. She is from Winnipeg, and shared her love of folk music with me. She told me stories about small local bars that play music every night and hosts many a music festival...sounds like my kind of place! We took a trip to the Embassy theater (where the LOTR was premiered) and saw Inception. I sat right behind where Sean Astin sat! Ahh. It was a really neat theater. May be one of my favorite places in Wellington!

That day, I also went on a field trip with my Asian Religions class. We went to a Buddhist meditation temple. We were able to sit and talk with a monk for 40 minutes! The place was made mostly of wood and had flowers around the temple. It was peaceful and serene. One could not deny this. It was really interesting listening to the monk (who came from Canada and wanted to become an engineer at one point in his life). I was surprised to find the Monk so warm, kind, and FUNNY. He had a wonderful laugh. He was the type of person who really valued what you had to say. I felt more like an equal towards this man. It was a really neat experience.

The rest of the week is pretty busy. I have a lot of paperwork to fill out regarding options for when I return to Wisco. That is where the "Action is Character" fits in. I am in the in between place where I am calm but want to be proud of what I accomplish with myself. Maybe its because my philosophy class has hit the Death portion of the trimester. If I died tomorrow, I would want to be satisfied with what I have done. Doesn't it feel good to like yourself? I also will be inking myself yet again on Friday. I am a bit nervous. I don't want to cry but I know this particular ink job is going to be a painful one (Hey Zach, no worries. This tat is another hidden one). Andrea and a few others also want to hit the town and find our costumes for Halloween. We are going as the Clue Crew. I love the group creativity projects! Go Teamwork!

Let me introduce myself

I just had the most fabulous evening and I decided I had to share. I just finished a dinner( I must point out that dinner consisted of a re-used jam jar filled with New Zealand Riesling, a radish and butter sandwich on whole grain bread, a sweet and sour grapefruit and an avocado that I dusted with salt- All were eaten with zero utensils), alone, eating slowly, sitting cross-legged, barefooted, listening to a whole album straight through and watching through my large window Wellington become lit with lights.

I thought to myself that I never had time for this back home. I was always rushing, doing a thousand things and trying to be there for 20 people. My me time, was when I slept, or when I drove to one of the 100 places I needed to drive to. I couldn't relax and just enjoy myself, fore even when I planned me time, a few hours later I would make up for it. I couldn't remember the last time I spent the whole afternoon reading and watching the sky. This is what I came to New Zealand for. To let me have my ME time. To let myself remember what it was like to let me be me.

I started making a list of things that were most definitely ME. It was fun! And I think most of you would agree with my life. If I met a new person tomorrow, this list would give them a sense of who I AM.

-I love wine, especially Riesling (Merlot can stay in my fathers cabinet)
- I love to dance (and not grinding the whole time!). I may get wild and look like I am intoxicated, but I am not.
-I prefer salty foods over sweet
-I prefer tea (the juicer the better) over coffee. Coffee after 2:00pm is dangerous. More than 1 cup and I will be awake the entire evening. Once I drank NyQuil in order to sleep, as it was 7am.
-Pictionary is my board game of choice
-I would pick a local small pub over a crowded large bar any day.
-My pet peeve is not being a team player.
-I could sit and read novels all day
-Must two people talk all day? I enjoy the silence 2 friends may share together.
-Everything in moderation! If you cant have fun being sober too, then do you fear reality?
-I love being barefooted and in jeans. BUT, I also love socks!
-Screw nail polish
-Take me to see an independent movie at a small theater, or a band playing at a tiny pub, and I am yours.
-My children will go to a Waldorf school
-We can learn from everyone, especially our enemies.
- I don't believe in violence, except on a pitch.
-I love showing affection to my friends
-I WILL eat with my hands. Silverware optional
-Let me sing...I realize I don't know the lyrics well.
-I enjoy cooking WITH people.
-I have no control with it comes to chips, potatoes, fries and sour patches. Eat until empty.
-Be sensitive when criticising Harry Potter or Lost.
-I cross my fingers when I don't want to forget a point. This way, the thought is on my fingers, but I may still ACTIVELY listen to you, and not just wait for my turn to speak.
-I like to ask you questions, and yes, I am interested in what you have to say, but do not forget to ask me questions too. Everyone likes to share.
-If I talk to you, and seem interested in what you have to say, I probably am interested. This does not mean that I want to sleep with you. I just like to understand and get to know people.
-My fingers can withstand the cold and ice longer than most people.
-I love baths.
-Life is shades of grey to me...unless it regards attractiveness. Then its black and white.

I could go on, but I made my point to myself. Its good that I am taking care of myself. Its good that I made time for ME. This list is important. I need to remember many of these things, especially when I am working within Social Work. It can be a depressing job where I can easily lose myself. This list is important so I can find myself quicker.

Flatmate for a week

This past week I had a flatmate! Claire's partner in crime while she was here in New Zealand was Jules. Claire wanted us to meet so Jules came and stayed with me.

The first night I took him to Enigma, my favorite cafe! We shared some carrot cake and drank some coffee. That night, we made blueberry American pancakes. I tried to make them really fluffy and thought I was doing well. Then I made him try it out and he made better pancakes then me! The next day, I came home after class and he had made me dutch pancakes! It was a lovely surprise.

Courtney asked Jules if he wanted to play an ultimate frizbee game with her league so he was able to run around that day too! He told me he played poorly but Courtney told me otherwise.

That night we watched Harry Potter. We made a drinking game out of it. He was Ron, I was Harry, my friend Max was Hermione and my friend Sam was Dobby. We each had to drink when our character did something specific. For example, whenever Harry spoke to snakes, I had to drink. We had a bunch of other rules that applied to all of us. Some were when Hagrid cried, when ever someone mentioned the Wesley's were poor, when the full name 'Harry Potter' was spoken, etc. It was a fun night.

Friday we made our way to the Film Archive. We were able to see a really interesting movie about the Springbox and the All Blacks in the 70s. The film was called Try Revolution. There was a game in NZ and people began to protest South Africa due to their racially separated team. I was excited to see that after the movie, when the lights came up, almost the whole theater was filled with white collar business folk on their lunch break! I dont know how many people back in the states would use their lunch break to see a documentary. I loved it!

That afternoon, Jules and I went to a park and began filming an amature Parkour video. It was hilarious and we had a good time. on our way home, we picked up some items so we could create Butterbeer. It was amazing. Jules skyped Claire for a hour or so while I drank a bit on a tree trunk with Andrea and Courtney. We spent some time listening to a cover band in the local Uni pub too. I loved the fact that I knew every song they played. Gotta love a good cover band!

That night we took along our butter beer and went to a party. I drank and ate too many sweet things. Because of that, I didnt have the stomach to go out dancing. Or maybe I was already danced out from the party? We came home and watch the Lion King instead. I forgot how much that movie STILL ROCKS.

The next day, we went to a art fair by the bay. It was neat but I was glad I had no reason to buy anything. I did manage to find the Waldorf Education Table! I was really excited and talked to two teachers about the similarities, and hardships that NZ faced within Waldorf Education. Jules spent a bit of time there, looking over information. We had a nice little discussion about education that night.

The rest of the afternoon, Andrea and Courtney joined us for more Parkour video making. We had a lot of fun running around and thinking of different scenes for the video. That night, the girls came over and we looked at some of our videos and made a magnificent dinner for us all. We ended up watching Almost Famous too.

The next morning we all woke up and went to the farmers market, my favorite place in Wellington. The rest of the day it rained. I started reading a book, and Jules finished his own book. He played some tunes on his guitar and showed me a bunch of bands that I had not heard of before! I have a list going now...I was able to show him some of my own favorite bands too. That night we made a good dinner, had some delicious fruit for dessert and watch the 6th Harry Potter Movie!

The next day, we woke up, had some breakfast and then made our way to the train station. It was so nice having a flat mate for a week! I really liked just hanging out listening to music, chatting about unimportant or important issues, and taking someone along to explore outside or hang with friends! I had a really nice time with him.

Time of my life

Cheesy, but true; my 15 day road trip around the south island of New Zealand was the "time of my life". I dont use that phrase lightly. Myself and 3 lovely ladies, Andrea, Courtney and Hollin, flew into Christchurch and rented a Corona. We named our car Dumbledore's beard, DB for short.

We first made our way through Arthur's pass. We stopped at a magnificent boulder field! Finishing that day, we saw a Kea (Bird), which are only seen in parts of the South island, and slept under neath a mountain in the south apls! The next morning, I explored the river that ran beside us and plunged my head into it. It was a refreshing wake-up. The water was so clear, I could see through to the bottom. It was delicious as well and took advantage of the mountain water and filled up my water bottles.

We then made our way along the coast, checking out ocean and mountain views. We drove through Franz Joseph and stopped along at the Fox glacier. I was expecting a large hole in the ground to show how there was once a glacier, like back home. Nope, we hiked along a path and saw a monstrous pile of ice in between two mountains. It was magical!

We were heading out when I asked my geology gal, Courtney, if we should go to the access point. After all, it was her thing, and if we were somehow in a place with a Harry Potter museum, I knew Courtney would ask me if we should make a stop! She said no...but then 22 seconds later turned around. I am glad she did! We thought we would just get a close look at the glacier- We tramped around mountains, amazed by the glacier pools and then almost peed our pants when we saw the glacier close up! It was incredible but sad. We were able to see how large it used to be, and how over the years, especially the last 100 years, how quickly the glacier has melted away.

Next we drove through Mt.Aspiring, and again camped beneath another mountain. The next morning we drove through more gorgeous lands and made our way to Queenstown. We were pretty exhausted but still looked around town, saw a neat sunset, ate some gelato, and did a bit of shopping. (I finished my Christmas Shopping for the entire family).

The next day, Andrea, Hollin and I ventured away to a near mountain range called the Remarkables. There, we sky dived. To be blunt, it was the most fantastic thing I have ever done. I am not one who likes rollercoasters or who normally enjoys putting myself in extreme situations. The entire time of the experience, I was not nervous or felt unsafe. My skymaster was named Scott. He was 38, scruffy, and also had the same hiking shoes as me. With this knowledge, you may understand how I didnt complain and welcomed him as he strapped me close to his hiker body, for protection. We got into a small little plane and made our way up 12,000 ft. It was an incredible ride! I had the one window seat so I was able to see the beautiful mountains around us!

So yes, the actually falling. He set me outside the plane and he held on, so virtually i was hanging out of the plane. I concentrated on my "banana" position and swore to myself that I would keep my eyes open. Scott didnt delay and we somersaulted out of the plane! The feeling in my stomach wasn't as bad as a rollercoaster and lasted only moments. It was incredible as I fell to the ground. I wasn't even thinking I was falling...I just kept looking around at the amazing views that I had. I saw pools of water, lakes, beneath me. Suddenly, the air stopped rushing and I realized my shoot had been pulled. I looked around me and saw that I was parallel to a mountain beside me. "I always wanted to fly" I told my skymaster. (I know, I am ridiculously lame). We para sailed down. The scariest part was landing, as I realized how fast we were coming to the ground.

Apart from feeling hungover and not being able to hear anything for 2 days, the whole experience was wonderful. As Andrea and I sipped on our free coffee and waiting for the rest of the skydivers to finish, I had to hold back some tears! I confessed how up in the sky, jumping out, I felt like I could conquer all of my demons; that all the unfortunate things that occurred in my life, which at times hold me back, I could grasp and become stronger, while they still exist inside me.

SO- We then made our way to the Fiordland National Park. It was the beginning of Avalanche season so many of the treks we were unable to go on. We chose the Greenstone trek, which was supposed to be on an easier level and less hilly. We decided to hike right before the sun was setting, to make it to the first hut which was only a couple hours away. We had a magical moment as we came into a clearing and saw the mountains lit by the moonlight. In the dark, with the help of our head torch, we found our hut. We had a welcoming party of 4 boys from the Christchurch Uni. We later found out that they thought we were rangers and they didn't have a hut pass so were nervous. We played Asshole with them the rest of the night and had a good time.

The next day we awoke to some rain. Hollin was not keen on treking but I wanted to at least try. We hiked for a few hours. Courtney and I got REALLY creative for about 45 minutes, finding ways to cross a marsh/river. We were literally 15 ft away from being clear of river crossings when Courtney fell in. She was a trooper and still keen to tramp but then fell in again. We had around 5 hours a head of us still, so we decided to take the short cut and go to a closer hut, about 2 or 3 hours away. We were welcomed by a group of hunters, on their way out. They had a dear attached to their helicopter, hanging from a rope. It fell, but they came back for their prize later that night. We were exhausted and took a nap, trying to dry out our clothes. We were awakened to a couple who made it to the hut right before dark. They were pretty shy and kept to themselves.

The next day we made our 6/7 hour trek to the next hut. We went through landslides, forests, Meadows, wetlands, wire bridges, hopping along rocks, and anything else you may think of. The trek was covered with green and purple stones! It didn't look real. At one point, I slipped on a rock. I am pretty good at reclaiming my balance but with a heavy pack, there was no hope. I fell (but gracefully) down and could not get back up. I needed at least two of the girls to help me up. That night, we celebrated with splitting two carrots with jam for desert. We were pretty tight with our food, so at that point in time, a half carrot each was heaven. It made up for the detergent flavored oatmeal packs we ate for 2 days.

Two days later, we made it out to civilization. We looked rough. We stripped in the parking lot and found clothes that didn't smell. Through those 4 days, we grew accustomed and desensitized to waterfalls, as well as farting and scratching ourselves. The latter portion became troublesome later that day. We were walking around Milford sound and Andrea laughed. She said she had just itched her crotch for 20 seconds, forgetting about the group of boys passing by. We needed to readjust.

So, a bit crabby, we blasted the heat and took the Milford highway to Milford sound. It was beautiful. We drove higher and higher, and were in areas where it was snowing. We drove through a mountain and then when we existed, we bombarded with the most beautiful sights.

We drove on down to Milford and checked out the views. On the way back, Courtney and I stopped at the Chasm. We were not sure if we wanted to take the 15 minute hike (remember we were just in the woods for 4 days) and Andrea and Hollin were not about to budge from the car. A random man said it was worth it so we made our way.

SO, apart from skydiving, this may have been my favorite thing in the whole trip. I FREAKED out when I saw the chasm, the rushing water and how the rocks looked. Courtney and I were like little girls who are seeing their teeniebopper idol, Aaron Carter..We even took the dodgy unmarked trail down and hung off a tree to getting a better look at the chasm. It was hard not to cry! But Courtney blamed that on my hormones.

Back in the car, we made the trip back to a hostel, washed our clothes and played board games. In the morning we made our way across the coast. We stopped at the Southern most extreme point, a beach with petrified wood, and another beach that had cool kelp and boulders. I was off exploring by myself and scared myself to death when I almost fell on top of a sea lion. He/She was just as scared as I was and we both booked it in opposite directions. I failed to capture the creature and later saw a beware of sea lions sign. Ops.

We finished the day with nugget point, a lighthouse with seals, penguins, beaches, and really neat rocks. We voted, and I lost, so as a team we drove to Dunedin and got a hostel instead of camping out.

Dunedin was a neat town. We woke up and checked out the Uni and ate at the Velvet Burger. The place rocked. We were not used to such large portions! After we then went on a Cadbury Chocolate Factory tour. I ate my included bag of candy all in one day. We then finished off with a Spaights Brewery Tour. That was a GREAT tour and I was able to take advantage of the 30 minute open bar, serve yourself. I was reminded how small the world is when I met a gal my age, who was visiting a friend of mine. She happened to also be from WI and I found out she was in my Dads first class at Whitefish Bay. Pretty crazy.

The next day we were ready to make our way to Mt.Cook, but made a stop on the edge of Dunedin. We climbed the steepest street in the world! Honestly, I expected it to be more steep, but then I remembered that cars actually had to ride up and down this street. I wouldn't want to be the driver of that car! (I actually drove to this street, but refused to drive up it).

We also stopped at a beach with boulders that looked like the top of turtle shells. It was fun seeing some of them split open, and others intact. The boulders reminded me of giant geodes.

We finally made it to Mt.Cook, which was Mt.Doom in LOTR. We took some pictures and set up camp in the middle of the mountains. There was a blanket of moss on the ground which was great padding for our backs. We joked around, told stories and then drifted off to sleep for a few hours. We were then awakened by a huge rain/wind storm. It seriously looked like a hurricane and part of our tent collapsed. We had to stay inside the tent for hours, trying to hold it together. It was hilarious, even though the girls were furious. In the morning we made a run for it and took down the tent with frozen hands. I discovered that my hands can withstand the cold longer than others. Add that to my talents. Well, the rain did not stop so we made our way to a hick diner. After some breakfast, we travelled up the coast, through wine country, rolling hills, and beach coasts. We stopped at one beach and walked around a bit. We spent the night in the car on the ocean towards the top of the south Island. That night we went to a small bar called the strawberry tree. There they had a special on Guinness and also a coin toss for an hour giving away free drinks. I had my Guinness but also won a free drink. It was a good ol time. Our night in the car was interesting. We were near the train tracks. 3 trains passed through that night. 1 was extra loud and I really thought the Hogwarts express was coming for me, and would ram into our car.

We drove on through more rolling hills and made our way to Hamner Springs. We stopped in the little town and played a game of Frisbee. We found a nice little bakery too! I was able to get a 90cent roll with sprinkled cheese on top. I was in heaven! We then continued on down to Christchurch. We stopped at the store and bought some wine and found our way to a museum before finding our host family.

I was as tired as a 5 year old, waiting up Christmas Eve for Santa. I did not want to try to keep my eyes open in a museum. I was surprised and it happened to be the most interesting art museum I have ever encountered. There was 1 exhibit about America, and all the small places and organizations that we like to keep quiet. There was also another exhibit of small paintings related to societal norms. That one was my favorite. I was pleased to find even a kids exhibit that was informative, interactive and intelligent. I really enjoyed myself.

Instead of staying in a hostel in the middle of the CBD of Christchurch, we stay a 20 minute walk away at Courtney's ultimate Frisbee friend's parents house. Her friend wasn't even there, but his family welcomed us warmly! The father was the vice chancellor of the Canterbury Uni, there in Christchurch. He was very interesting to talk to. The mother was a hoot, making us laugh and telling us stories. That night we had a wonderful dinner and talked about society, traditions, and earthquakes. Their niece was living with them and she took us to a inprov that night. It was called scared scriptless. It was like whose line is it anyway. It was really funny. The whole audience got into the programme, offering ideas. It was great fun. That night we all went to sleep.

4:30am that morning I woke up to a sudden shaking. Immediately my thoughts remembered our previous night's talks about earthquakes. Hollin and I were sharing a bed. We grabbed one another and I noticed the huge bookcase beside me. Our conversation between us was short and to the point. me:bookcase (Maneuver out of bed, tripping over things) hollin:doorway (Maneuver again, huddle together and hollin putting a pillow over our heads). A minute later it ended. We later found out that Andrea and Courtney just laid in bed quiet. Afterward Courtney, thinking of our Mt.Cook experience, said to Andrea something about the wind..Andrea had to tell her it was an earthquake! Then Courtney snapped out of it and said that if it happened again, they should probably get out of bed.

I was so lucky to be at the Carr's home. Mr.Carr found all of us and reassured us. The niece brought her laptop in and we started looking at news results. They even found a battery radio so we could listen to what was happening (We had no heat, electricity, or water from then on). In the morning, Mrs. Carr, Jenn, had breakfast ready. We talked, went on a walk through town to see the damage (My group witnessed the mayor state the city was in a state of emergency), we played ultimate frizbee with family friends, they made us lunch, gave us snacks, and we even had a lovely dinner party filled with boardgames and HUGE amounts of candy! I almost vomitted with the amount of food.

It was so incredible having a family, especially in a state of emergency. They were so lovely and gracious. Mr.Carr was in touch with many people, due to the fact he was vice chancellor. That was really helpful. He helped us get in contact with our families too! (Our cell phones didnt work either). Courtney's parents had had our itinerary and knew we were in Christchurch. They were nervous and had called the embassy searching for us!

Everyone was really lucky. If we hadnt stayed with the Carrs, we would have been in the worst damaged areas of Christchurch. We would have been stranded in that city for 2 days. If the earthquake didnt strike at the early hour which it did, we would have been with the thousands, within the CBD of christchurch.

We awoke early, ready to depart for the airport. Jenn, such a kind person, had woken up even earlier so we would have breakfest! We arrived with plenty of time. The airport was more crowded then ususal due to the fact that flights had been canceled from the earthquake. Tremors continued to shake the city, even ten minutes before we got onto our plane. The weather was WINDY. It was so windy that the stewardess couldnt serve us coffee and tea. I literally almost vomitted for more than half the trip. I later found out that our flight was the "test" flight, to see if it was too windy or not.

It was nice to be back in Wellington. I called it home for the first time at the airport. The first thing I did was wash my sleeping bag. I had been sleeping in it since I arrived in Wellington. Now it smelt like mold and sweat. I was not excited about school begining the next day. I felt like I had been gone for longer than 15 days. I had no motivation. I wanted to go on another adventure!