Sailing on Yamana and meeting 'cruising' friends of Pete and Alice's, met along their paths through the Islands and countries between America and New Zealand, has been an extra treat this summer and a great way to start the new year!
So far, 2009 has been hot and dry and glorious....not just at the Tangle!
After a month of less than an inch of rain - a perfect summer for tourists and beach goers, a drought for gardeners and farmers - we are having torrential rains so that I may sit at my computer and begin again telling of the wonderful happenings in and around the Glorious Tangle.
The rains have come from New South Wales in Australia where they caused flooding, but unfortunately did not go to the fire area near Melbourne to put out fires. On the other hand, this kind of rain there now could also cause more devastation. Life is so complicated.
Since writing last I've been to California and Baja, spent wonderful time there with family and my gorgeous wee niece and nephew. My pal Kimberly and I took the children and her son to "The Baja House" in Ensenada where we had a few days of Mexican summer, food and beaches. we loved the time away together, even though I lost my voice! The owner of the house, in a 'gated community' is Mike Wilken, the leading expert anthropologist on the indigenous people of that region. Check out the house and go visit him http://www.thebajahouse.com/Since my return to New Zealand, I've put out another Fire Service newsletter (Region Wise), grown zucchini, chiles, pepino, eggplant, wonderfult heritage tomatoes and am now harvesting figs, well except for the torrential rains of course. 
Here's a picture of one day's harvest... come and visit and help me eat it!
Summer was perfect with B&B guests from Germany and the States and loads of friends camped on the property in tents and caravans (known as trailers in America).
Jessie and Murray, film making friends from the Hokianga came down and we've begun a documentary on New Zealand's rarest bird, the fairy tern. This year's and last year's Conservation wardens in charge of the fairy terns on the Waipu Wildlife refuge (the sand spit in front of my place) were all living on the property so it was an intense time regarding cats being trapped, bird eggs being moved for protection and other rare species stragegies being put in place.
I think it was five chicks successfully fledged this season, none from Waipu.
Mangawhai was far more successful this season. This picture shows you how well camouflaged the chicks are and one was trampled by uncaring people who walked inside the areas roped off by the wardens. When the chicks are scared, they stay perfectly still.
And one of the happier parts of my life at present is the arrival of Pete and Alice, Olive and Ruben on Yamana, as indicated above by moi sitting at the helm...wait there is a bunny and seven or so quail chicks plus three adults in front of my window. Another happy thing about living here! These are California quail, by the way. I love it here.
And one of the happier parts of my life at present is the arrival of Pete and Alice, Olive and Ruben on Yamana, as indicated above by moi sitting at the helm...wait there is a bunny and seven or so quail chicks plus three adults in front of my window. Another happy thing about living here! These are California quail, by the way. I love it here.
The racket outside, made by the cicadas and the sea, is another joy this time of year.
Peter and Alice Grant, my out-laws, and their two children sailed in to the Bay of Islands last November after three years cruising the world from South Carolina through th
e Caribbean and Panama Canal to the Galapagos, Marquises and Polynesia. They are settling now in Ngunguru and it is very cool to have them in Northland and to meet their friends. The children, Olive and Ruben, are wonderfully confident and well read after three years on the boat and it is great to have them on board, well on land here. Sailing with them from Russell to Tutukaka was fun, really wish I'd met them in Tonga now, but it was too soon after California.
e Caribbean and Panama Canal to the Galapagos, Marquises and Polynesia. They are settling now in Ngunguru and it is very cool to have them in Northland and to meet their friends. The children, Olive and Ruben, are wonderfully confident and well read after three years on the boat and it is great to have them on board, well on land here. Sailing with them from Russell to Tutukaka was fun, really wish I'd met them in Tonga now, but it was too soon after California.Scarily, other cruising friends, Tom and Thecla Bouter, are lost at sea. Hurricane Klaus crossed their path on Jan 24 off the Netherlands and in spite of extensive searching by several governments, they are not yet located. We all hope they will float to shore somewhere and we find that their boat was disabled but not sunk.
So enjoy every day - live your life fully, whatever that is for you - and stay in touch, there's a break in the rain so I'm going to walk my ancient dog (Mally made it through vestibular disease just after turning 14 in November) and then practice my uke before I get back to real work. Check out the Flaming Ukuleles of Waipu on You Tube if you haven't already. Go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9T0jT9JnrY for Tequila with our teacher Bob and his friends or http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zktZvDe8XCs Five Foot Two for just us.
Keep on sailing, dancing or doing whatever you do!
