Now The Next Stage Begins

So the house sold on Thursday at tender.  Do you have tenders where you live?  I ask because my sister in London didn’t understand the tender process.

The process is a short, sharp, sweet marketing programme.  We had a two week tender, that is two open homes and then the tenders closed four days after the second.  The process calls for anybody interested to make their offer on a given date, tender closing date, and then all offers are opened at the same time giving everybody a fair chance.  The vendor has the option then to accept one of the offers or none.

As you can see from the photo, I chose to accept an offer and it was completely unconditional.  In today’s market this is often not the case as people require builders’ reports (particularly as it is an old house), finance to be arranged, etc etc.  So lucky lucky me!

Because it is winter here and subsequently no colour in the garden I went to the garden centre immediately before the first open home and purchased pots and pots of brightly coloured cyclamen.  As you can see Bella came too and caused a stir as she sat patiently in the trundler while I wandered around and chose the plants I wanted.  Unfortunately, very shortly after they were potted and placed strategically around the garden we had the storm to end all storms  and now they are looking very bedraggled.  But cyclamen will recover.

And now the real excitement begins.  I can make plans for my adventure.  First Bella has to be taken and introduced and left with her surrogate owner.  My friend in Ohakune loves poodles and I just know she will love Bella.  If you don’t know where Ohakune is, it’s the centre of skiing in the North Island of New Zealand.  I wrote a couple of blogs about a visit there 2 years ago, goodness is it really that long – Mirth and Mayhem and Mirth, Mayhem & Mischief.  It’s a magical place and I just know that Bella will love it.  And she will love being totally spoiled by her “other mother”.

Then the excitement of planning with each of my sisters when I will arrive to visit and even further, planning my next few months in Europe.

So I am now off to browse places to stay and that will keep me happily busy for the next few hours on this cold but bright Saturday afternoon.

“Why do you go away? So that you can come back. So that you can see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colors. And the people there see you differently, too. Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.”
Terry Pratchett (Sir Terence David John “Terry” Pratchett, OBE (born 28 April 1948) English author of fantasy novels.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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..Related articles

• Ohakune Mardi Gras organiser keen to quit while he’s well ahead (nzherald.co.nz)
• Why the North Island of NZ is worth a winter visit! (myclub.worldmarksp.com)

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Sunday Evening/Monday Morning

It has been a usual Sunday  open homes, walking Miss Bella and some rubber gloving around the house and now I am lying on the bed reading blogs on my tablet and listening to music from the 70s on the radio.  The music being played is the flipside of hits. These songs are as good as the A side in most cases.

Among the blogs I read tonight was this one that really touched a cord – raising5kidswithdisabilitiesandremainingsane.  I am amazed at how this woman deals with the challenges she faces each day and I wonder if I could do as well in the same situation.  Do go and visit her blog I am sure you will be glad you did.

And now the midnight news is on with the pending crisis in N Korea leading the news.  Many commentators around the world have agreed that this demi-god is threatening the peace not only in that region but possibly in the wider world.  Let’s hope that common sense prevails before the situation heads into war.

“The strongest of all warriors are these two — Time and Patience.”
― Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace

One Year On

Checking he is in the right place and looking for his friends

The highlight of the day as always on Thursday is the visit to the Hospice.  Are you all getting bored hearing about this?

This year is the 100th anniversary of the death of the Venerable Mary Potter and many celebrations of remembrance are proposed.

And looking back on last year’s blog I see that on this day Lotte and I were Looking for Andy.  Do you remember the armadillo and the adventures he had (we had) when he was visiting us?  I wonder where the little fellow is now and if he has arrived back home with Lenore Diane.

Well now on to today.  This is my lovely daughter’s birthday.  We don’t go overboard for birthdays in our family which is just as well because she had taken off today with the basketball team she coaches for a competition this weekend.  So there will be no riotous celebrations, she has to keep these young men in control.

Her own boys are spending the weekend with their father.  This all seems to be working out well for the family.  When they are with their father, apart from driving them to the various sports fixtures (they can’t get there easily from his house) he devises all sorts of interesting things for them to do together.

And lunchtime at the hospice today was rather a hectic affair.  Clients/patients choose what they want for lunch shortly after breakfast each morning,  Well today something went wrong and we had the wrong food for a couple of people.  No problem really; it just meant my going to the kitchen and reorganising the lunches.  This of course, takes time and throws the timing out.  So that by the time we got back to the first people with their desserts some had gone to sleep having become tired of waiting.

The lady from the SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) usually comes on Thursday with one or two dogs in tow.  These dogs are those available for adoption and most clients are pleased to see her each week.  Well, today she didn’t turn up and one elderly lady asked plaintively where the dogs were.  Obviously they derive a certain comfort and normalcy from the animals.  One man who has been there for several weeks has his wife bring in their dogs – two very large dogs from South Africa.  They could eat my Bella in one chomp but they are very quiet and placid.

Bella is settling down, barking less and accepting my friends and family when they come to visit.  She is still my shadow and doesn’t like me to leave her but today she slept in the car while I was in the hospice.  I do think she prefers that to being left at home, and as the weather is becoming cooler (by the day almost) it is not too hot for her to be left in the car.  She joins us on the terrace for lunch on sunny days and so doesn’t spend too long in the car alone.  Of course, her exuberance and delight when I return has to be seen to be believed.  She reminds me of the Energizer bunny jumping up with all four feet in the air.

And from my little book of dog wisdom* :-

“Life is a precious gift.
Treat it delicately and be grateful for it,
but most importantly celebrate and enjoy it”

* dog wisdom to lift your spirits and brighten your day.  Published by Blue Angel Gallery, Australia.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Thoughts on Thursday

Today being Thursday, Bella and I made our usual trip to the Hospice.  I have said so many times how impressed I am with the total dedication of all the staff, Doctors, Nurses, Therapists, Assistants and cleaners.  They all go out of their way to treat their clients with respect,  and do all they can to make the client’s life more comfortable.

And each Thursday I am joined in lunch duty by a retired bank manager.  He is one of those cheery little men who always has joke, pun or a story to share.  He has apparently been volunteering at the Hospice since his retirement some 15 years ago.  He not only does lunch duty on Thursday but serves on a couple of the committees as the volunteers’ representative.

Today was a Thursday much like any other.  Unfortunately there had been a death this morning so the atmosphere was rather subdued.  But none of the other clients would have been aware of the death.  This part of the operation is handled so well – dignified and respectful in all aspects.

Once again I was approached by a couple of visitors who commented on the great service being offered. Of course, I thought they meant the staff and quickly agreed that we were so lucky to have the free services of the hospice and that the staff was  fantastic.  They surprised me by saying that it was not the staff but the volunteers they were commenting on.  Isn’t it nice when you do something with no expectation of any reward and then receive compliments.

As you know, I always say that I get more out of the 2 hours I spend at the hospice each week than they get from me.  However, it is nice to be appreciated.

There were few clients today and so the lunch service took little over an hour and we were out of there earlier than usual.  So Miss Bella and I went for a walk before meeting my daughter for coffee.

Oh I really do like Thursday.

Lucky lucky me

As I have said before, I have lived a blessed life.  An easy childhood with loving, non abusive parents, two supportive sisters,a loving and caring husband and two decent children so the thought of physical and/or mental abuse is very strange to me.

I started on this rant months ago after  reading a post from Elizabeth at Mirth and Motivation entitled My Name is Luka.  I hadn’t heard the song she quotes but it certainly brought tears to my eyes when I listened to it.

Several months ago I wrote on this subject – Excess Baggage – and lamented on the plight of many children here in New Zealand.  We have one of the worst records of child abuse in the Western world and we are so tiny – 4.1 million at the last census.  Note the 2011 census wasn’t carried out because of the devastation caused in the February Christchurch earthquake.  The census has just been completed and it will be interesting to see how many more people have chosen to make their homes here.

It is estimated approximately 15 percent of children are born at risk of abuse, and over 80,000 children witness family violence each year, according to the Child Protection Services (CPS).  How many of those children as they grow up will say (as Luka says in Susan Vega’s song)

“And they only hit until you cry
After that, you don’t ask why
You just don’t argue anymore
You just don’t argue anymore
You just don’t argue anymore…“

It’s time for us all, wherever we live to stand up and say that this must not be allowed to continue.  While we read about the abuse we hear little or nothing from our law makers as to how we can curb this growing violence.  What can we as members of the general public do to stop these alarming figures from rising even higher?  We can be aware of what is happening around us and if we do suspect abuse in a family then we can and should report it to the Police.  We are assured that confidentiality will be maintained and perhaps, we could be instrumental in helping one small child get away from the regular, or even sporadic abuse.

End of today’s rant.  And an update on the Beautiful Miss Bella.  For the first time today she was left in the house alone for a couple of hours.  When I returned she was sitting on the living room window sill patiently for me.  And what a welcome I received.

Later in the afternoon we went for a short walk in the dog park where she encountered several new friends.  Well I hope they will become friends in time.  I am continuing to be entranced by this lively little clockwork toy that I have let into my life.

Dogs have given us their absolute all.
We are the centre of their universe.
We are the focus of their love and faith and trust.  They serve us in return for scraps.
It is without a doubt the best deal man has ever made.
Roger Caras, president emeritus of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
1928-2001

The time has come

via wikispaces

“The time has come” the Walrus said, “to talk of may things;
Of shoes and ships and sealing wax, of cabbages and kings
And why the sea is boiling hot and whether pigs have wings”
Lewis Carroll – From “Through the looking glass”.

Well the time has most certainly come for me to stop mooning around and get back to the discipline of writing my blog.  So what to write about?  How many times have I asked myself that question over the months and years that I have been writing my blog.

There is a big hole of course, where Lotte used to be and the hole I guess will always be there.  But it’s time to move on.  And now Miss Bella is making her presence felt and helping to close the hole.

I had one of my grandsons staying with me last week and what a joy that is.  He it was who arrived with his young brother the day after Lotte died complete with flowers and chocolates for Granma; they made my bed and kept me supplied with cups of coffee throughout the day.  He was  staying  here last week while his younger brother and their mother were at a rowing competition – the Maadi Cup, the premier rowing competition for schools in New Zealand.  The team did very well reaching the semi finals.

One of the things I really love about having time with my grandsons is the scope of topics we discuss.  Dinner on night was enlivened with talk of the war – that is World War 2 and what it was like to actually live during a war.  It then moved on to Vietnam, the Cuban crisis and the war in Iraq.  How knowledgeable these grandsons are.  We discussed what had caused the two World Wars – how well read this boy is – the futility of war, how really there are no winners, each side loses and what a waste of life all wars cause.

We then went on to discuss the favourite subject of all boys – technology and how far we have come and how much things have changed not only in my life time but also in his.  I just love talking with and listening to these lively young minds at work.  And I conclude that the world can be a better place if the leaders of the future are drawn from the likes of these young men.

And yesterday I picked up my eldest grandson from University.  He has just started and is doing a Network Engineering course.  We had a lovely hour driving in the car together while he told me about his course and his observations on the difference between school life and University life.   He has decided that one night a week he will come to stay.  It takes him about 1.15 hours to get to University and if he has a late session followed by an early morning one he thinks it makes sense for him to stay here.  And I must say I wholeheartedly encourage this.

And now it is almost Good Friday.  Once again we will have the shopping debacle/fiasco of which retailers may open on Good Friday and Easter Sunday and which must remain closed.    Every year there is a number of retailers who are fined for ignoring the trading hours rules.  But as we are definitely moving away from a totally Christian nation into one of many faiths, questions are being raised about the rules governing these holidays.  No doubt the controversy will rage for many more years.

So I wish you all a Happy Easter whether you celebrate in the traditional Christian way,  or in your own faith or however else you choose.  May it be all that you wish for.

I shall spend it getting to know more of my new friend.