Casey's Spot

sings They say it's your Birthday!

2008-05-10T12:57:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday to ME! Dundundundundun!

I got the best present ever!! My sister decided to show up in Hawaii!!! Apparently this has been planned for quite sometime and I want to thank everyone involved or that kept the secret. It was a fantastic surprise. 25 is gonna be GREAT!
Things have been going great here. My tanlines have reemerged from a 10month hibernation, my hair has its ever present flower pinned in it (just the way I like it), and my body has taken a type of relaxation only Maui can give me. Tonight we are going to my favorite restaurant tonight, Mama's Fish House. Mmmm....Mahi Mahi stuffed with lobster rolled in a macadamia nut crust! Can't wait!

My Dearest Love....

2008-05-04T23:40:00.000-07:00

...oh, how I have missed you, mexican food.

:)!

Ahhhhhhh....

2008-05-04T13:13:00.000-07:00

It's been so nice to be in Hawaii. I'm really glad Dad suggested that we come here because it's familiar without being bombarded. I know that I can go home and do what I need to do without having to "adjust" as well.
Hawaii has been great. We don't have to live out of a suitcase and we can eat homemade food (like pineapple!! Jk). Yesterday rained most of the day, but honestly it was still great. It smelled wonderful and it gave me an excuse to curl up on our balcony and dig into one of my 10 books I'm going to read while I'm here

My favorite things so far:
Getting to talk on my 714 cell phone to anyone I want, when I want. I don't have to dial 30+ numbers of a phone card and then a number to reach someone only to hang up before the voicemail answers so I don't get charged a connection fee.
Also, I'm totally stoked to be watching BASEBALL!! Cricket was just not doing it for me. Can you really call cricket a sport when they take tea breaks in the middle of the game? GO ANGELS!

Some things I've noticed since being in the US:
-We went to Costco right after we got the rental car. No wonder we are so fat!!! Have you seen the crap we eat?
-I feel very small in our vehicle, and if it was in NZ I would feel like King of the Road. Trucks have really gotten out of control in size. I know, I'm an owner of a truck but its a SMALL truck. No raised suspension. No huge tires.
-We, as a whole community, talk really loud. I couldn't believe the noise level the other night at Kimo's.

Bondi makes me homesick...

2008-05-01T01:47:00.000-07:00

Dad and I arrived in Bondi on Wednesday after 11 hours of driving, two McDonalds pit stops, and 45 minutes of being lost in the city. Immediately, Bondi reminded me of Huntington Beach. The coast is dotted with surf shops, bikini stores (I found myself a $20 steal of a bikini), and hole-in-the-wall cafés and breakfast joints. The surf is awesome with HUGE 8+ surf.
Dad and I have spent the last 2 days just mellowing out, eating, and going shopping. The highlight of Bondi came tonight. One of the local surf shops hosted a “meet and greet” with my all-time favourite surfer, Robert “Wingnut” Weaver, the star of Endless Summer II. I couldn’t believe it! I have been trying to meet him for YEARS! Dad and I walked in and instantly Wingnut came over to us and said “CA locals!” (I guess wearing my CSUF sweatshirt helped). We then proceed to have a beer and talk for about 20 minutes. He signed my DVD, told me a few things about filming the movie, and even told me to look up a few people in the biz once I get home for future job prospects. We talked about my time in Wellington, how cool my Dad was for taking me on this amazing trip, and told us to “piss off” when we told him we were heading to Hawaii for two weeks. It was AMAZING!!
Tomorrow, May 2nd, will be the longest day of my life….literally. Dad and I have a 6pm flight out of Sydney arriving 7am in Honolulu, where it will be May 2nd again. Dad and I are both sick of eating out every single meal and living out of a suitcase. I guess that the price to pay for being a nomad. We can’t wait to actually sit out on the balcony, not drive for days on end, and actually use a hanger!

A stands for AWESOME!

2008-04-27T21:44:00.000-07:00

LINK TO PICTURES: http://cfinnegan.shutterfly.com/action

On Friday, Dad and I boarded an early morning flight out of Sydney (almost made late by our insane shuttle driver) to Brisbane. We jumped in our rental car and away we went. Six hours of beautiful country side, mountains, farmland later we arrived at St. Agnes Waters and the Town of 1770. Our hotel looked like it had jumped out of 1950’s Palm Springs but with a lot more BUGS! It was a 5-minute walk to the beach so neither Dad or I were complaining.

Saturday, we woke up bright and early and with 100 other people boarded Captain Cook Great Barrier Reef Cruises and hit the open sea. I fell asleep (what is it about the rocking of a boat?!?) and woke up to CRYSTAL clear water with Lady Musgave Island at a distance. I cannot describe how clear the water is on the reef. It is cleaner and clearer then the pool I spent the last year working at. Dad and I were the first people to jump in the water for a snorkel (“Yes, we know how a snorkel is suppose to fit. Yes, we know how to spit in the mask. Can we just go?”) Overall, the coral was amazing but due to our years spent snorkel in Hawaii we were slightly disappointed by the types of fish and the amount. When we took the tour of the island, we did see some small rays and a 4 foot reef shark.
The best part about the tour was getting back to the dock. The tide had gone out so the crew had to take the tourists off the boat onto a platoon in groups of 40. Dad and I were one of the last people to go so we got to really talk to the crew and enjoy the AMAZING view of the stars. Everything from the Southern Cross to the Milky Way to the Big Dipper…you could see EVERYTHING!! I kept saying “So, that’s what stars look like!” and wondering what they must look like in the middle of the ocean. It was awesome.

Sunday, Dad and I got back in the rental car and drove the 7 hours south to Surfers Paradise, the “Vegas of Australia”. The coastline is covered in huge skyscraper hotels, shops, restaurants, pubs, clubs, and cheap gift stores. (“This is PARADISE?”) The beach, however, is stunning. Perfectly white sand (the softest, fine sand I’ve ever felt) and the water is a crystal blue. You can’t tell were water ends and sky begins. The weather is really warm, around 80 and the water is a nice 74.

Today (Monday), we headed off to a Wildlife Sanctuary just outside Surfers Paradise. It was AWESOME!! We were the first ones to walk into the park and into a feeding frenzy. The Sanctuary is known for its wild Lorikeet parrots and you can hold a plate of food and hundreds of them fly around landing on any available surface to feed. It was hysterical. At one point I looked at Dad and he had 4 on his head, 2 on each shoulder, 4 hanging from his shirt on his chest, and about 20 lined down each arm. The birds hurt though. They fight on your arms for space, all the while screaming and singing in your ear. We spent about 30minutes feeding them and my arms look like I got into a fight with a cat. I should also have enough luck stored up for the rest of my life because I got pooped on about ten times. It was worth it though!
We then headed off to the Kangaroo area where 80 are free to roam. This was one of the things I wanted to do while I was here. Dad and I were the only ones in the area and we purchased some food and they came up to us to cuddle, nuzzle, and be fed. It was a highlight of the trip. Kangaroos are so friendly and sweet. Even after we ran out of food they would stay at our feet wanting a scratch behind the ears or a pet on the nose. The bound around effortlessly and they are truly beautiful animals. We wondered around the sanctuary for another 3 hours, getting familiar with Australian flora, Koalas, Crocodiles, Dingos, Wombats, and a large assortment of birds.

We are currently relaxing in the room, just hanging out because tomorrow is a LONG 10 hour drive back to Sydney, where we will be staying at the infamous Bondi Beach.

G'day Mate!

2008-04-24T01:28:00.001-07:00

LINK TO PICTURES: http://cfinnegan.shutterfly.com/action

Sydney is so awesome!! I keep looking at my Dad and jumping up down, screaming “WE’RE IN AUSSIE!!” or quoting Finding Nemo. I just can’t take in that I’m staring at all the sights I’ve only been able to dream about.

Day One:
The day started with a REALLY early flight out of Wellington but landing in Sydney Airport around 8am. It was POURING rain. Not something you really want to deal with when in a new city. We took a cab ride to our hotel in Old Sydney, “The Rocks”. Our room has a view of the Sydney Harbor Bridge and The Rocks is really cool. This area was the first settlement of Australia. 14 ships dropped off 800 criminals and that started the settlement. The buildings are very cool and the streets are lined with cobblestone.
Dad and I literally dropped our bags off at the hotel and away we went. We walked out to the closest point of water and into the harbor, with our first sighting of the Opera House (SOH). We then walked the water front for about 2 miles to the base of the SOH. It is truly an amazing piece of art.
It was pouring rain so Dad decided it was a good time to take the SOH tour and I’m so glad we did. The story of its birth is full of twists and drama. It was really interesting to see how they made each of the sails and the way the building was built so far ahead of his time. I took pictures at every turn and I was actually surprised to find out the outer part of the sails are made of individual cream and white tiles, over 1.2 billion to be exact.
Dad and I then walked back to the hotel where I took an accidental nap for 2 hours and then it was off to do the Sydney Harbor Bridge Climb (SHB).
By far this was one of the highlights of my LIFE!! We got all geared up in our climb suits, microphones, lights, fleece jackets, and beanies and set off on a 3 hour adventure. The weather broke about 20 minutes before we took off, the clouds cleared and we had blue sky. It was such an amazing view (SOH, the skyline, Darling Harbor, South Sydney, Bondi Beach, Blue Mountains) that Dad and I just kept looking at each other and smiling. Our tour guide, Vic, was awesome. He told us great stories, jokes, and interesting facts. Our group was pretty cool too. 7 out of 9 of us were from California. I’m so glad we did the Climb and I recommend it for anyone even remotely close to Sydney. DO IT!! (By the way, the weather closed out just as we stepped out the building. God was definitely controlling the weather for us tonight).
Dad then I went to a local pub where we shared a Crocodile meat pizza and a local brew.

Day Two:
We walked through the heart of the city to get to the Famous Darling Harbor. It was pretty cool. One side of Darling has the Zoo and Aquarium and the other side is surrounded by cafes, shops, and restaurants. It started to rain again so Dad and I caught “Whales and Dolphins” at the IMAX 3-D theater. After the flick, we went SHOPPING!! Ohhhh, it felt so good. We pretty much got all the souvenirs a tourist could want and then some. Dad and I then randomly decide to hop on a Harbor boat cruise, propped ourselves on the back of the boat away from the Japanese, photo happy tourists and just enjoyed the surroundings. I got some GREAT pictures myself and we saw parts of the Harbor you can only see from a boat.
After the boat trip Dad and I went for some food but before that we did a walking marathon through the city in the pouring rain (quite the accomplishment in sandles!) We got dinner and then came back to the room to relax, re-pack, and update my blog.
Tomorrow we leave at 5:25am for the airport to fly up to the warm and toasty (80+ degrees) city of Brisbane and drive 6 hours north up to Agnes Waters for our Barrier Reef trip on Saturday.

The probability of having an internet connection over the next week is very slim but I will continue to write daily and update when I can.

The time...

2008-04-22T05:04:00.001-07:00

....has come to say goodbye.

I seriously can't believe that 10 months has gone by since I left American soil. Tonight was amazing. I was surrounded by everyone that mattered to me in this experience (Former flatmates Haydn, Katrin, Frazer. Current flatmates Tia, Courtney, Cathy, and Bailey. Friends Seka, Simon, Jo, Ali, Henry). We ate, laughed, and told stories. It was really mellow but a great way to say goodbye to everyone.

I'm so grateful for this experience. I have grown so much as an adult. I am now stronger then I have ever been in my life. I came to NZ only knowing one person and I left with lifelong friendships. I have lived on my own, seven thousand miles away from anyone that loved me. I did this! I am so proud of myself for the fact that I simply survived, let alone did it so well. I now know I can do anything I put my mind, soul, and drive too. 10 months ago I had no idea. How many people pick up and move a world away? Not a whole lot. 40 years from now I get to tell my grandkids of the amazing adventure I had when "Grandma was a cool chick that taught swimming lessons in a great country." I have no regrets and will be eternally grateful to my family for being so supportive and pushing me to have this experience (I can't believe I had doubts).

I'm walking away with so many great memories, photos, and friends. I would do this all over again in a heartbeat. Good and Bad!

Time for bed. A wake up call from my cell phones alarm at 3:30am is NOT fun. I'll update when I can when we are in Aussie.

Drum roll please!

2008-04-20T23:35:00.000-07:00

Now announcing your guest writer for the evening.....Daddy!
Freezing my a$$ off!! But we are having a great time. I met alot of Casey's friend. We had a great dinner and a few drinks on Saturday night. We went to a rugby game on Saturday afternoon, where it was so windy I thought I would be blown home. It was the coldest I've been in a really long time. Yesterday we drove up to Lake Taupo and this morning we did the jetboat ride. It was one of the most amazingly fun things I've ever done. (as you can tell by the pictures). We shot up the river at 65 mph and we pulled some great 180 turns! It was so cold though that Casey kept saying "I can't feel my face because I'm smiling so big or because its so cold!!" It was such a great drive. New Zealand is such an amazing country. There are just endless amounts of vast green hills and space, with thousands of sheep dotting the horizon. One of the first things I said to Casey was "And you want to leave....WHY?!?!" Overall, its great. Being in the city and being able to walk, the people are so nice, and the beer is great.
Tomorrow is a mellow day. Casey wants to go to the pool to say goodbye and hopefully get a good letter of recommendation from her boss and then she has to go to the bank. At night all her friends and flatmates are coming over for what they call a "Feed." All I know is I get fed.

So long for now!
-Jimmy

Brrr....

2008-04-18T16:13:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was an amazing day! Yes, Dad and I both got teary at the gate when I picked him up. (Here in NZ you can actually greet arrivals at the gate!) It was a stunning day and we walked the entire city. I took him to the beach we go to, walked along the water front, purchased him a beer at one of our brewery's, walked the Central Business District, took the cable car to the top of the botanical gardens, and then walked back to the Monsoon Poon near my house to have a celebration birthday lunch.
Today the weather is CRAP!! Its about 50 degrees and raining! But I'm just stoked to have had ONE great day of weather....

....and my dad said it himself....

"WOW!! You really can't beat Wellington on a great day!"

Joining the ranks!

2008-04-17T03:22:00.000-07:00

I'm officially unemployed. EEK! I am nomad. A world traveler. A proud pilot of an improvised life.

Today was my last day at work. I will never have to wear neon orange again! It was a great start. I wandered in around noon to teach 2 hours of really cool kids then about 5 instructors and I went over to play in the bubble machine for one final time. It was great! The bubble machine never ceases to amaze me. This time I sat on the vent where the bubbles come out, Buddha style, and the massive air flipped me around under water 4 times.

It was really weird saying goodbye to some people. I'm stoked that my dad will be here in exactly 10 hours (now....if only I could get to sleep) but at the same time I was really bummed out to teach my last class. Teaching has been apart of my life for so long its weird to think I'm done. It hasn't really set in yet. I got some tearful goodbyes from my parents and an assortment of chocolate, pictures, and even a hand-made stunning necklace! My kids cried. My parents cried. It was a bummer. At least I know I can always come back!

Tomorrow, Dad arrives. Wellington Airport at 8am. We are going to get him home to nap and shower, get some breakfast, and then off to the pool to show him off. We will then probably walk around town and then I'll take him out to dinner for his 61st birthday! Saturday I'm taking him to a local rugby game a couple of my friends are playing in and then I'm having a friend dinner with alot of my buddies and co-workers. Sunday, we leave for Taupo (a town 5 hours north of here) to go jet-boating on Monday. Monday night we are having dinner with Jim and his wife and Tuesday is a mellow day, concluding with a Final Feed with current and former flatmates and a really close assortment of friends. Wednesday we jet set off to AUSSIEEEEE!!

Whew.....confused yet? Me too!

Oh well! At least I'll be with POPS!!'

Okay time for bed. The sooner I fall asleep the sooner I wake up and get on the bus to the airport!

Down to the wire...

2008-04-12T17:38:00.000-07:00

So I'm officially into my last days here in NZ. The weather has been amazing and like I've said 100 times before... you CAN'T beat Wellington on a good day! Its been really warm, with that amazing blue sky, slight off shore breeze, and those big puffy white clouds. It's almost like that the city is saying "Casey! Don't GO!!" (I just hope the weather is half as good as today when Pops is here, so then at least one person will believe me about Wellington)

Work will be easy this week. It's the final week and the instructors basically just play with the kids. I also don't start till noon 3 out of the 4 days that I'm working. I know I will be a hunted woman too. Due to the fact that I'm leaving I have to watch my back because its tradition to get pushed in the pool. One of the managers got me in last week (while I was in my DRY uniform) because I chucked a water polo ball at his head. I can't help it if he catches like a girl. So I ended up wet on my "dry" day.

Friday night was my last night out on the town (I don't think Dad wants to stay out till the wee hours of the morning, dancing the night away). A bunch of my friends and co-workers came out to play and we had an amazing time at our favorite place to hang out, Hope Bros. We laughed, we danced, we acted silly. It was a great way to remember the city social scene.

That's about all for now. I'll keep you updated on the tears and goodbyes and the Hello and Airport greetings!!

Humph.....

2008-04-04T16:38:00.001-07:00

2 weeks to go....

Now that it is almost here, I don't want to leave. I've met so many amazing people and had so much fun. 10 months feels like 10 minutes. Don't get me wrong. I'm so excited to come home and see all the people that I have missed so much but that also means reality has to set back in. Which means a *gasp* a real JOB....like one of those things people call a CAREER.....EEK! I don't know what I want to have for dinner, let alone what I want to do with the rest of my life.

Let's see how long I can be a traveling swim instructor....I wonder if Hawaii needs swim teachers? And no, I'm not joking.

Shake, Rattle, and Roll....

2008-04-03T13:05:00.000-07:00

We had an earthquake this morning. Enough for me to wake up but not enough for me to care! "Just a little wobble" Tia says. I don't know what the size was but it was a decent jolt. Reminded me of HOME! Haha. Just wanted to let you know everything cool just in case I got a bombardment of emails "ARE YOU OKAY?!?!" (Not that I don't appreciate them)

I'm a slacker...

2008-04-02T23:03:00.000-07:00

I would write more if there is more to write about but honestly, time is going by. I'm working but its been great. They've hired a TON of new people and its been great getting to know them, swimming with them, training them. Work has mellowed out alot since we've figured out when and where and what lane we need to be in ("New pool? Old pool? Big pool? Little Pool? Just give me a puddle to teach in!!") and my parents are slowly starting to realize I'm not going to be teaching next term.
The weather has literally turned from Summer to Winter in 3.2 seconds. This morning on my 15 minute walk to work, I had to wear a beanie and a thick sweatshirt and my hands and face were bright red. Talk about BRISK!! It was bright and sunny today. Just crisp. It's suppose to rain this weekend....go figure. Second weekend in a row that its been GREAT during the week but raining on the weekend. Boo! No fun!
So in the mean time I'm just hanging out with all my friend. They get all teary eyed when I even mention my leaving. Next week we are having a Red, White, and Blue outing into town because Katie (the other American instructor) is also leaving in 2 weeks. Should be good times.

Stay Classy, States!

Happy Easter...

2008-03-22T20:31:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't posted much over the last week. Hearing the news that we had to put our family dog down was pretty devastating and really put a damper on the week.

Wednesday night, my work had "team training" at our favorite pub, Hope Brothers, to celebrate our mid-term survival and to kick off Easter Break. We had about 15 instructors turn out and it was alot of fun to bond with them and to see everyone with dry hair and out of our orange vests.

Thursday, I went to Te Papa, the National Museum. It was really cool but I had some guy treat me like I was an idiot. Him: "Ohhh you aren't from here. Have you been to a museum before?" Me: "Ever heard of the Getty?" Him: "Why, yes, I have." Me: "Well, it's pretty much been in my backyard."
I really enjoyed the exhibits, especially a special one they have going on all about whales. It was interesting and not to mention free!

Friday, my flatmates and I literally had a movie and pajama day. We watched 6 movies over the course of the day and I stayed in my sock monkey pjs. We ate homemade soup and fresh baked bread (along with an assortment of cookies and soda) over the course of the day. By the end of the night, Cathy and I were the lone survivors and she introduced me to the tradition of hot-cross buns on Good Friday and MMMMMMMMMM.....they were delicious.

Saturday, the gang headed up to Hayden's house up the coast to Paraparaumu, where we indulged in a Easter dinner feast, watched Batman Begins on his Plasma flat screen, and had a slumber party on the floor of his living room. Sunday morning we woke up after a visit from the Easter Bunny and went on an egg hunt. After working up an appetite, Hayden made a "proper" English breakfast of potatoes, mushrooms, bacon, eggs, toast, tomatoes, and beans.

So, I have been trying to stay busy. Currently, I'm conquering 3 weeks worth of laundry and cleaning my room. No work till Tuesday at 3:30.

Goodbye....

2008-03-21T01:34:00.000-07:00

She had the thickest, reddish mane that would rival any sunset. People would admire her when ever they came near. The blue of her eyes sparkled as a reflection of a mountain lake. That’s how she got her name.

Over a decade ago, my family saved Tahoe from the Orange County Animal Shelter. When my sister saw her, she knew she was going to be our dog. She sat at the gate of her kennel for hours and while Tahoe licked her fingers threw the bars, my mom worked out the details. She hopped into the back of our red Jeep Cherokee like she’d been doing it for years and we took her home. What we didn’t know is she would save us as much as we saved her.

Tahoe was the greatest dog the Finnegan clan has ever had. She’s known me longer then most of the people in my life. I laughed at her as she shoved me out of my bean bag chair to make her claim on her spot in the house, purchased her a cheeseburger squeak toy on Buffett Day that ended up being her favorite, and cried into her mane many nights through my parents divorce.

Tahoe- you have been my greatest friend and companion a girl could ask for. I’m so sorry I couldn’t be there for you, but at least you knew I loved you with my whole heart. I’ve missed you like you wouldn’t believe over the last 10 months and will continue to miss you for the rest of my life. Thank you for always hogging the pillow at night and leaving your hair all over my clothes, especially when I wore black. Thank you for always chasing me around the house when I was in one of my “Casey Moments” and for always being my partner in crime. Thank you for always knowing when to cheer me up and for being the best cuddle partner on the face of the planet. Thank you for being you.

May your dog cookies be plentiful, your tennis balls tossed far, and your toys squeak loud.
I love you and will miss you now and forever.

Really Disappointed.....

2008-03-15T13:02:00.000-07:00

I have tried to stay up on current affairs of California while I've been here and all I have been hearing about is "soaring gas prices" and the hardcore whining that follows a headline like this.
I'm really disappointed in my fellow Californians. Being in NZ has made me realize that we have it EASY when it comes to gas prices. When I first arrived here I was paying $3.75 a liter (roughly $14.00 a GALLON). I couldn't afford it after about 5 months and I learned how to take public transportation, ride a bike, and walk to work.

Its simple business practice: Use LESS fuel and they will LOWER the prices.

Do other countries have it worse then us? Yes.
Do they like it? No.
Are they whining about it? No.
Do they change the way they live? YES!

They car-pool when they need to drive somewhere. They don't drive around and cruise for the sake of looking cool. They don't have SUVs (I can't even tell you the last time I saw a Ford F-150....a common sight on the streets of OC). And they WALK to the the 7-11, ice cream store, grocery store, Blockbuster, etc.

Sure, we can whine/demand/throw a hissy fit all we want but it's not going to change anything. We have control over what WE do, and that my friends can make a DIFFERENCE!!!

WOW!

2008-03-14T21:43:00.000-07:00

First off, ONLY 5 WEEKS TO GO TILL PAPA IS HERE!! 9 WEEKS TILL I'M HOME!!

Good News:
I went 5 days out of 5 where I didn't have to cover for anyone. I finally got to take my OWN classes with breaks. YAY! This week I only have to work Monday, Tuesday, and part of Wednesday. Next week I only have to work Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. So that means almost an ENTIRE week off! WEEEEEEEEE!!!

I have been having shoulder issues lately, I think from lugging out the platforms we have been using to teach deep water. I'm not going to strain it this weekend and I'm going to start getting on people's cases if they don't clean up their stations after their shift. Who cares if they think I'm bossy? I'm not picking up after you!

The weather has been really great the last couple of days. There was a bright blue cloudless sky today and it was in the 80s! Can you say "Indian Summer"?

Today, randomly, Seka and I decided to head to the Wellington Zoo....and I have to admit, it was REALLY cool! Being raised going to the San Diego Zoo I was really impressed with the size and the amount of animals they had the park (I was expecting a more pathetic version of the Santa Ana Zoo). Outside of the typical birds and reptiles, they have 4 different monkey sections, lions, cheetahs, tigers, elephants, giraffes, kangaroos, and bears. The best part about it is that my NZ friend from the pool works at the zoo so I gave her a ring to let her know we were coming and she gave us a private tour of the zoo. We got to know the animals names and personalities and we even got to go behind the scenes to see the Kiwi Bird and where he lives. It was amazing.

I'm excited to a have a few days off to refuel before the home stretch....... :)

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change.....

2008-03-05T03:24:00.000-08:00

I'm going to be really blunt and honest in this entry. I'm completely SICK of working at WRAC. There's this mini mutiny going on and we had 4 instructors call in "sick" today. Granted, one is extremely ill due to a recent development of diabetes but the other three I want to knock on the head and say "GROW UP!!" Their reasons for being stubborn...one doesn't want to teach in deep water (even though if she actually did it she would know the kids listen and swim BETTER!), the other one doesn't want to come in because our bosses don't supply towels, and third because she doesn't think she should be in the water all day and doesn't want to get wet.

*jaw drop* ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?! WE ARE SWIM INSTRUCTORS!! KIDS SWIM IN A POOL, NOT A PUDDLE. SUPPLY YOUR OWN TOWEL. AND I'M NOT EVEN GOING TO ADDRESS THE WANTING TO STAY DRY ISSUE!

The last week myself and another American girl (Katie) have had to work solid 5-6 hours straight to make sure all the classes are covered. We've pretty much had it. Katie ended up going home early today after her skin broke out into a really bad chemical rash/burn and I've been threw about an entire bottle of lotion in the past week.
The fact that these "rebels" are getting away with this is surely a New Zealand thing. This would never happen in the States.....EVER! I was really curious as to what it would take to get fired from WRAC, so I asked Ali and she replied with "Seriously injuring someone or threatening the Head Manager of the pool. That's the only thing I've seen get immediate termination" My jaw about hit the floor.
On an upside, we did hire 3 new employees that I'm training and should be lightening up the load pretty soon.

*breath in. breath out. repeat 30 times*
*think to self* 6 weeks left. 6 weeks left. 6 weeks left.

Hey You!

2008-02-27T21:13:00.001-08:00

I'm stoked. My first two schools tomorrow got cancelled so that means....SLEEP IN TOMORROW!! YAY!
It has been a crazy week. I took the weekend to lay around and be sick, drowning my exhaustion in cough syrup and sleeping till the wee hours of the afternoon. I was feeling much better Monday morning and I'm feeling 100% today. WRAC opened the new play area/pool and its really AWESOME! A few of the other teachers and I went in there after our shift yesterday to play with all the kids and they just attacked us. The area has water guns and cannons, waterfalls, shower heads, water from the ceiling, even a HUGE fish tank. It is pretty amazing for a pool.
Because WRAC opened the new pool they also increased the depth in our teaching pool (from 2 feet to about 4 feet). I have to admit, even though I learned how to originally teach in deeper water, I was really nervous. However, my kids did great!! They swam better then they had in weeks and I was really impressed.
I'm really thrown off with my seasons. It's still really warm here but on my walk home today and took a big breath of fresh air and got excited for Spring! OPPS! I then remembered that autumn is just around the corner. 2008 is going to be a really screwy year for me. Summer in January, Autumn in April, Spring in May, and then Summer again in June!!! AAAHHH!!!
At the moment I'm just antsy to get home and move on with my life. I realized I've been doing the swim teaching thing for almost 10 years and I can't wait for the day where I don't need to say "Blow Bubbles", "Straight legs, point toe kickers", "Nice, big arms" 692 times a day and to actually have a job where I talk to adults, my skin doesn't smell like pool chemicals, and my hair isn't fried! I have 7 weeks till my Dad arrives and 11 weeks till I'm home. YAY!

It's only Wednesday?!?!

2008-02-19T21:18:00.000-08:00

Basically I've been going non-stop for the last three days. Just today I taught for 6 hours in the water. This on top of a cough that I'm still fighting is EXHAUSTING. I'm seeing about 500+ kids a week and next week the water level rises from 2 feet 7 inches to almost 4 feet. It's going to be real interesting to teach in deep water. (Especially for with our Schools program, which is about 9 kids per class)
It's also been pretty nuts at home, with Cathy's daughter and grand-daughter now living here (I actually share my room with Tia, the daughter, now). It's going to take some getting use to considering I really like a quiet home life and its pretty crazy when I get home at 6pm. However, we all take turns cooking one night a week and there's also a really cute kitten involved. That's right! I'm having my first experience living with a cat. His name is Jack and he's actually really cute. Total trouble....but adorable. Currently he's chasing a fly around the livingroom.

But I'm off to bed. I really need it!

Happy V-day!

2008-02-13T22:58:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to send out a HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY to all my loved ones out in the world. I'm really NOT into this holiday and I was more excited that it was $PAY DAY$ when I woke up this morning, but I realized...it's a holiday for anyone you love. Cathy and I are vegging out in front of the TV, drinking tea. Great Valentine's day!
The pool has been nuts this past week. We've had about 28 schools come in this week and just getting all those kids swim tested and in classes has been mind draining. This is on top of my teaching in the afternoon. I have been going NON-stopped every day from 9am-6pm. I even forgot to eat lunch today (I know what you are thinking "Casey?!?! Miss a MEAL?!?!"). It also doesn't help that I'm feeling like crude (sore throat/headache). Don't worry, Mum...I've upped my vitamins, pumping in the liquids, and trying to get as much sleep as I can. At least it's almost the weekend.
The weather is also cooling down. It's been cloudy and windy the last week (which make it so bad to be stuck indoors all day) and I'm really hoping that an Indian Summer is on the verge of emerging!

*HUGS*

We're jammin'! And I hope you like jammin' too!

2008-02-05T21:08:00.000-08:00

Happy Whatangi Day!! (aka New Zealand Independence Day)
I just got back from the "One Love" reggae festival and it was really cool. We had about 8 people in our group and we all brought snacks and just jammed all day. The music was really good, really mellow. The weather was amazing. Sunny, slight breeze...especially compaired to yesterday of cold, windy, rainy.
It was held at a stadium right across the street from my house so it was an easy walk when it started this morning at 11am. They had clothing, food, and Jamanican vendors and had a new band play every hour. I splurged on a ivory knit, rasta-looking beanie. (It's not like I need a new t-shirt!)
I start work on Monday at 9am. I work every day now, M-F from about 9-6pm. (reminder: no more Raumati. I'm strictly a WRAC employee now) I'm teaching preschool, school age, flippaball, water polo, refereeing polo games, swim squad, and training about 3 new instructors...so I will be one busy girl for 10 weeks straight.

Better then Buffett?!?

2008-02-02T12:41:00.001-08:00

Even the fact that I utter those words, you know it was a good time!

I went out last night to celebrate New Zealands win of the Sevens tournament and a costume was a must! Being that I wasn't thinking "which costume should I take with me?" when I was packing, I threw on my famous sock monkey pajamas with matching slippers, drawn on freckles, and hair in pigtails....instant sleepy, little girl! (Which was a smart idea because I had people telling me all night I looked really comfortable...Go me.)
The officals closed down our main street, Courtney Place, and set up a stage at one end that had a cover band playing all night. The street was packed with costumed kiwi's!!! It was INSANE! I've never seen anything like this my life.
In October I stated that New Zealand doesnt really celebrate Halloween....well, this is as close as they get and it blows it out of the water!!! It isn't just one day of dress-up. It's 48 hours!

"Seven? Seven of what???"

2008-02-01T00:26:00.000-08:00

There is a HUGE international tournament this weekend going on at the stadium. It's called "Sevens" and the games consist of two 7 minute halves and its just continuous rugby. But that is not the strange part. The city has gone CRAZY!! People dress up for the games in weird costumes (Spartans, cat woman, angels, Speedos, farmers and animals, etc) and they just dance and party for the whole weekend. I am avoiding town tonight because it's suppose to be NUTS!! It sounds like something I would have totally been into if I only had known what SEVENS was 3 weeks ago! I would have gone in a parrot costume. At least it would have been my dedication to Jimmy Buffett. (It's also really weird having Rugby teams come in. I met the Hong Kong team today....and they were all Caucasian. Go figure!)

The Elvis Impersonation concert last night was a total blast and not as cheesy as one might seem. There were 3 backup singers and 11 piece band to back up the kiwi-pelvis shaker! The weather has been in the high 70s/low 80's during the day and really clear and warm at night so it was nice to lay on a blanket, laughing with my friends, and listen to all the hits of "Elvis". The humorous part of the whole evening was "Elvis" pawning off his tribute album to the audience. I couldn’t help but giggle as I stated "....or you could just go to the Borders bookstore up the street and get the real one!" It was truly a great evening!

Cathy and I are also trying to walk at night and she has taken me to some amazing views over looking the city. It's a really good work out and at least there is a reward at the end!

Last, I am officially done with the Holiday Program. I am no longer a babysitter!!! WEEEE!! I start my last term here in NZ on February 11th and will end on April 17th (I'm taking the 18th off to pick my dad up from the airport and celebrate his BIRTHDAY!!! Cool!)

Now I must depart and go explain baseball to my roomies so they can understand the movie "Fever Pitch" and why this movie was so awesome and the whole curse of the Red Soxs. BYE!

Talk about EYE CANDY!

2008-01-28T19:22:00.000-08:00

What do you call 20 men, with their shirts off, swimming in the pool? THE BEST EYE CANDY....EVER!! The Men's US Rugby team stopped by the pool yesterday to get in a work out. I, of course, went of to wish them luck in the international tournament this weekend and to drool!

I also made a rescue today (which I shouldn't have needed to do but the lifeguard on duty was too busy fixing her hair). I was teaching and I hear this mom from the side of the pool "My SON! MY SON!" and I look to my left and there was a kid clinging to the middle lane rope, under water. I reached over the rope and grabbed the boy by his trunks and handed him back to his mom. The lifeguard had NO idea what happened. But just call me Casey Hasselhoff!

By the way, I've been trying to upload a ton of pictures from the last couple of weeks (jumping off the wharf, Saturday going out, the city, and the waterfront) but for some reason the website is taking forever to upload the shots and never actually puts them up. I'll keep trying but in the mean time, stay classy America.

Walking in a cyclone is REALLY good exercise!

2008-01-21T19:23:00.000-08:00

Yes, that's right! We are currently in the middle of a cyclone! (Tropical Cyclone Funa) I walked home in 100+mph gust of winds. I have NEVER been held upright by wind before. I didn't have to walk home in the cyclone but I left my change for the bus at home this morning because it was about 80 degrees and bright blue sky! I never expected a CYCLONE! Last night was ridiculously muggy. I'm talking humidity I have never experienced before. The humidity plus the wind equals the worst "I feel gross" feeling because we can't leave the windows open, mainly because the wind would blow the windows off its hinges!
I started teaching this morning and I couldn't have asked for a better group of kids this week. No freak-outs and all the kids seemed willing to participate, which is quite the accomplishment considering they are 3! The games were run smoothly considering we had another big group to occupy.

But I'm going to go hunker down now....try not to blow away!

P.S. *Dances around the room* I just booked the Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb. On April 23, Dad and I will be watching the sunset over Sydney!! How cool is that!

UPDATE: Cathy just went outside to get her laundry and, well, her laundry was there....along with someone elses. Funny thing is we are the only two story building in a 100 yard radius. Hahah! FREE CLOTHES!

sings It's a beautiful day. Not a cloud in sight...

2008-01-19T21:56:00.000-08:00

....so I guess I'm doing alright!

Today was an amazing day! When people say "Nothing beats a great day in Wellington" they MEAN IT! I shot out of bed at 8am and looked outside....bright blue sky, no wind, and no clouds! I immediately texted Seka and we were off on our beach day, my first being in New Zealand. We went to Oriental Bay, just on the outside of the city and you can see the skyline from the beach. It was really crowded but the beach was a definitely place to be today. Seka and I even went in the water (no sharks here!).
We stayed at the beach till around 4pm and then we made the slow walk along the Waterfront wharf back to Seka's place in the city. Along the way we saw a group of guys jumping off the wharf and I stated "OOOH! Cool! I wanna do that!" and Seka looks at me and goes "Why don't you?" So I stripped down to my suit and took a flying leap off the wharf. It was so awesome!
(This is what I love about this city! They promote doing fun stuff like this. Can you imagine people jumping off Huntington Beach pier? You'd get arrest! Here they have barges and ladders to help jumpers out of the water.)

I'm so excited to be here during summer. The citizens of Wellington actually celebrate the nice weather outside. They bike, skate, Rollerblade up and down the water front for hours. I really wish Orange County can be more like this.

Not sure what I'm up too tomorrow. But hopefully it will be FUN!

Pictures!

2008-01-17T22:26:00.000-08:00

The other night Seka invited me along with her flatmates to go to a concert in the Botanical Garden. It was amazing! The weather was freakishly warm that day and into the night. The band was okay. They played a few mellow songs but then got into the more upbeat stuff and got the crowd moving. The Gardens are beautiful this time of year, decorated with different lights and even bubbles. Wellington definitely knows how to celebrate its summer months! I'm really enjoying "FREE" things and even when I have some extra cash to spend I think I'll still enjoy going to the cash-free events. I'm off work until Tuesday because Monday is Wellington Anniversary. Can you imagine Santa Ana having a day off work to celebrate its establishment? Just another reason why I love this country. So, tomorrow there is a break dancing competition in the City Centre and then there is an Ultimate Frisbee show down at the beach. Good times! Seka and I enjoying the warm summer day!
Packed in like sardines! You should have seen the place once the concert started.
Cathy, my new flatmate, with the biggest crayfish I've ever seen. (Greg, the other flatmate, brings these guys home on a regular bases!)
The Professional Volleyball Tournament from last weekend.
This is not an unusual sight after a Friday night in Wellington. (A grocery cart on a street sign...)

Glorifed Babysitting!

2008-01-14T18:53:00.000-08:00

I am seriously exhausted!! Today was raining so the pool had about 200 kids running around. The lifeguards set up an inflatable obstacle course and a 20 foot slide....so the kids were going bonkers. I, on the other hand, had to contain the craziness into games for the kids to enjoy. (Bucket Fishing and Treasure Dive) The hard part was I had to do this on my own and the worst part about it was the fact that parents treat my service as a daycare ("Okay kids, mommy is going shopping and I'm going to leave you here at the pool for 6 hours..."). So we end up with groups of tween-agers (ages 10-13) that are rude, crude, and everything in between. The little kids are polite and sweet with "please" and "thank you".

So I'm going to take a nap now. ZZZZZzzzzzzZZZZ.

The weekend of Free!

2008-01-12T16:38:00.000-08:00

Due to my financially issue, "You've got to earn money to spend money" and the fact I haven't worked since December 15th, I decided this was the weekend of FREEdom! I spent the weekdays pretty much just hanging out the flat and reading, watching tv, playing on the computer (I'm becoming a Hearts master!), and walking to Nicky's to hang out.
Friday night I went to a BBQ of a friend of Nicky's were we ate veggie kebabs, corn patties, and sausages. I then was going to call it a night and on my way home I realized there was a lifeguard party around the corner from my house so I headed off to that to say so long to Karl, one of the lifeguards at WRAC.
Saturday, Nicky and I walked along the waterfront into the city where there was an International professional volleyball tournament. The weather really got nice as we sat there and watched the USA men's team kick some NZ butt! We caught a few games and then walked around the city. Saturday night we decided to have a girls dance party in town. We headed off to Electric Avenue (where they were playing Magnum PI on the big screen....and I knew what episode it was too. Shout out to Dad!) and then went to another place called "The Establishment". It was a great night of silly dancing.

I do have a few pictures from this weekend but for some reason the blog website isn't uploading them all the way so I will get those up in the next couple of days!

I start work tomorrow (YAY!!). My schedule is teaching from 9-12 and organizing games and face painting for the kids that are still on holiday from 1230-4.

EVERYONE LISTEN UP!!

2008-01-06T16:50:00.000-08:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DUFFI!!!

I'm sorry I didn't shout out to her in my blog yesterday but I want to wish her a very, merry 29th Birthday! I miss you and love you very much! Save some cake for me!! :)

Can't beat a Sunny Day in Wellington...

2008-01-05T18:10:00.000-08:00

I apologize profusely for my lack of writing and updating, but honestly, I have nothing much to write about.

The past week I've spent time bonding with my new flatmates and having dinners together. I felt bad the first week that I was there because I was never home. Cathy and Greg took me in and I thanked them by running in, changing clothes, and running back out the door. So this week I emailed my mom for a old family recipe for California Casserole. Yes, that's right. I'm becoming domesticated in my cooking abilities and I didn't poison everyone!! We polished off an entire casserole in one evening, so I ended up making a second one for leftovers.

Today, Jo and I met up at the pool to swim and then we met up for lunch with Nicky and her flatmate, Polly. It ended up being such an amazing day. It was 75 degrees, cloudless sky, and a lite off shore breeze. We ended up walking around Downtown Wellington, along the water front and eating ice cream. It's hard to admit that a city can be so stunning, but Wellington is an amazing city, especially on a day like today.

I'm really looking forward to working again, especially since it's only a 15min walk to the pool from my front door and the sooner I start working the sooner my dad will be here and the sooner we will be on our crazy Pacific Ocean adventure and the sooner I'll be home!!

Is that interesting enough for ya?

Mellow time.

2007-12-31T15:16:00.001-08:00

So that last few days have just been random. Friday night, Jo, has two friends visiting from England (Kat and Jenna), so we had a girls night on the town. The City is DEAD this time of year because everyone goes out of town. We were the only people in our bar. Pretty pathetic.
Saturday through Monday, Nicky was house sitting in Waikeni (about 20 minutes north of Jim), so I tagged along because the weather has been awesome, there was a hot tub, and it's a beach house. It was an AWESOME house! I basically caught up on my television shows from home, read, and layed out on the beach.

I don't have much to post about because I really haven't had much to do since I don't start work for another 2 weeks. I'm so bored and I'm looking forward to going back to work and my regular schedule.

Happy 2008 everyone!

Moved IN!

2007-12-27T21:17:00.000-08:00

I'm an offical resident of 1 Moxham Ave in Haitaitai. Yesterday Greg and Cathy came over to help move my bed and shove it up a flight of stairs. After I settled in, Cathy spoiled me with my first homecooked meal in a REALLY long time. MMM! Fried chicken, peas, potatos, bread. So NICE! The place is great. It's on a second story above a mini-mart and across the street from my favorite burger chain AND my favorite pizza joint! The flat is "L" shaped and you walk in through the front door and on the left is Cathy's room followed by Greg's sleeping chambers. On the corner of the "L" is our living room with balcony and then my room comes next. The kitchen and toilet is on the end. My room is huge. I have a fireplace, a wall of windows, and a wardrobe chest. My bed is in the corner and looks slightly ridiculous with the extra space. I'm calling this spare space "my workout area".

The one down side to this new paradise is that Internet is REALLY slow (Dial-up, anyone? So vintage!) and isn't wireless. So I won't be checking my email every 5 minutes like at the old place but I will be checking it regularly. The best way to reach me is by investing in a phone card and calling me on my cell. Ohhhh....it's not that bad!! I always love phone calls. (0640211312082)

But anyways, just enjoying my time off at the moment.

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-25T02:36:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas to all my readers out in Blog land! What a Christmas it was! Christmas Eve was spent hanging around in a stubborn state of mind. I was determined to not change out of my pajamas for 2 whole days. I wasn't going to do anything but eat chocolate and watch horrible Christmas movies on tv. But after my pushy flatmate, Haydn, convinced me that is no way to spend a holiday we went and got Chinese and watched one of my favorite movies, Love Actually.
Christmas morning I woke up to the sound of POURING RAIN and opened an assortment of Christmas cards and presents that have been stashed under the miniature tree my mom sent, complete with mini-ornaments. My mom sent a mini bottle of perfume, a necklace, bookmark, and bracelet, my grandma sent me a gift card, and my Aunt and Uncle sent the HUGE Mickey! (How I will get that thing home, I will NEVER know!) Thank to everyone that sent gifts, including Grandma and Grandpa Triplett and my Dad (which I opened early...hey, I need something to hold me over!)
Haydn and I then made a huge breakfast of eggs, bacon, bagels, juice and hot chocolate. Then I made brownies and cookies for a BBQ Haydn convinced me to go to. I'll admit. I was apprehensive..."great....a holiday with strangers" but I had an AMAZING time! Cathy and her family showed up and the host, Allen, has two boys (ages 5 and 7). We ate till we were going to burst, played ping pong and Foosball, and then had quite the game of PlayStation going on. I spent a majority of the time chasing and wrestling the boys around the house and yard. Jake, the youngest son, cuddled up in my lap towards the end of the night and said "I like you...even if you do sound funny. Can you stay over tonight?" and I said "Sorry, but I have my own room I have to stay in." He then asked "Well, can you come out and play tomorrow?" Haha! I guess I finally met a Kiwi boy and Allen and his wife are stoked they found a new babysitter.

Anyways, it was a surprise of a day and I'm really glad I enjoyed myself. I was a bit worried. I want to wish a Merry Christmas to my family that I miss so much, especially on days like today. (By the way, we aren't the only family that gets ridiculously loud....today felt like the Watts household before we've all stuffed ourselves into a coma!). Merry Christmas to all my friends too. Next year, you know it's ON!

Love you all!

Rockin' and Rollin'

2007-12-21T02:10:00.001-08:00

Due to the large amount of concern my loved ones showed today by an earthquake that rocked New Zealand last night....this is my blog to let everyone know I'm okay. Haha, this California girl didn't even feel it!
The quake was centered about 30 miles off the eastern coast about 5 hours north of Wellington in a town called Gisbane. It registered at a 6.8

Tonight I went upstairs and noticed my flatmates bedside table was knocked over and some books they had on the edge of the desk were on the floor. How I didn't feel this thing I will never know.....and all I was doing was sitting on the couch watching TV.

Thank you for all the text messages, IMs, and emails. I knew you all loved me. :)

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles...oh yea, and Ferries! (The South Island)

2007-12-20T01:34:00.000-08:00

I can officially say that the South Island of New Zealand is by far one of the most stunningly beautiful countries I've ever seen. In a matter of 6 days I saw white sandy beaches, barren dry deserts, snow caped mountains, and rain forests. The Clark Family (Mr. and Mrs. Clark, Will, and Nicky) and I covered so much in a few days so I will do my best to break it down.

SATURDAY:We started with an 8am ferry ride from Wellington to the northern most town of the South Island, Picton. The trip took about 3 hours to cross the Cook Strait. Apparently the ferry ride can go either really good OR really bad depending on the weather. Well, we lucked out! The weather was stunning and the ride was smooth and warm. Nicky and I spent a majority of the ride standing outside, watching the world go by. The water here is a blue I have never seen before and so is the sky. From the Interisland Ferry.

After a quick lunch, we boarded the train from Picton to Christchurch. The train ride took about 6 hours and follows through rocky coastline where dolphins, whales, sea birds, and seals can be spotted on a regular bases. The locals here would often wave to the train as we flew by, which I thought was amazing. You wouldn't see that in California, that is for sure! We then passed through some pretty dry areas which blew my mind considering how much rain New Zealand gets. The weather was the warmest at this point, around 90 degrees.

We arrived in Christchurch and after getting settled in our hotel headed off to dinner just as the sun was setting, a little after 9:00pm. We didn't really get to see much in the twilight but it is a cute little town with some amazing buildings. (The Starbucks is in an old train station!) From the train.

A sculpture from the heart of Christchurch
A really cool church.

SUNDAY: We boarded the next train that would take us from Christchurch to Greymouth. It was pretty uneventful. We arrived to Greymouth with the pouring rain and let me tell you, if you ever decide to go to New Zealand, you can avoid Greymouth. It was pretty boring. We mainly just layed around watching movies and went in the spa.

MONDAY: We were pretty stoked to get away from Greymouth so after a quick breakfast of McDonald's we hit the road in our rental car. The drive would have pretty cool if it hadn't been POURING rain for the entire 3 hours to Franz Josef. We arrived in "Glacier Country" with flying colors. Franz Josef has the Fox Glacier which you can climb (with proper tour guides and equipment). Well, we got to Franz Josef and you couldn't even see the mountain due to the fog and rain. The Clark's glacier hike was cancel due the MAJOR flooding in the area. (I wasn't going to go due the fact that I can barely walk on the sidewalk without making a mockery of myself...image me on ice. Scene from Bambi, anyone?) So out of sheer boredom we headed to the hotel bar for a few drinks. Well, as we were finishing our beverages we look out the window and the clouds had burned off and the rain had stopped. We immediately got in the car and headed for the Glacier. We took a quick 20min hike to the observation deck and WHAT A SIGHT!!! The glacier was right there, between two huge mountains with water falls dotting each side. It was amazing. I wanted to hike that beast right then and there but the tours were still cancelled the next morning.

New Zealand is known for it's sheep!

Catching rain....it actually tasted really yummy! Fox Glacier

TUESDAY: Well, we hit the road pretty early on the way to Queenstown because the drive is suppose to be one of the best in the world. 5 hours of nothing but beauty. The people that say that are definitely 100% correct. It was AMAZING! We stopped at Lake Mathewson, which is on the other side of Fox Glacier, and we took a hour and half hike/walk through a rain forest (a rain forest at the base of a glacier?!?! How does that work?) and came out to "Reflections Lookout" and in a lot of my pictures you can't tell which is the reflection and which is the scenery. We stopped at so many waterfalls and lakes, I have NEVER seen this much water in my life. To pass the time of the drive we started to play the "Celebrity Name Game" (Take the first inital of the last name to start the first name. EX: Brad Pitt, Pam Anderson, Allen Thicke, Tom Cruise...etc). 4 hours later we were STILL playing, but every 20 minutes someone in the car would just stop the game to say "Wow." It was literally a speechless kind of beauty. Cramming 3 grown adult into the backseat of a Nissan was definitely worth it!
A typical view from the car.Lake Mathewson, Reflection Look out. Just another great water fall! (Yes, my feet are going numb...this is water from a GLACIER!)

WEDNESDAY: Well, we arrived in Queenstown which was, by far, my favorite part and place of the trip! This town is on a the 3rd largest lake in New Zealand and really reminds me of Santa Cruz. It is named the "Adrenaline Capital of the World" for its invention of the Budgy Jump, Bridge Swing, and the Jet Boat. Due to the Adrenaline events and activities, the average age of the 7,000 people that populate Queenstown is early 20's. We checked out the gondola (I didn't go up) in the morning, did a little shopping, and then proceeded to do my FAVORITE thing of did the WHOLE trip! We went sailing....but just not any kind of sailing. We booked a 2 hour sailing trip on the America's Cup Yacht! (This boat was retired after its win in 1995) Jealous yet, Uncle Jim? It was SO much fun! We got to rig the sails up and down and I even got to steer for a little while. That boat can haul some speed too! I can't even imagine what it must be like during competition, which 17 crew members working together. (I also had the BEST burger of my life that night for dinner....Fregburger. Check it out if you ever go!)

The Queenstown Gondola. "I think I just dislocated my shoulder...."
"Where can I get me one of these things?"

THURSDAY: We, unfortunately, left Queenstown around 10am to head to the college town of Dunedin. 4 hours later of watching mountains covered in wild flowers (and sleeping for 2 hours) we arrived in Dunedin with about 2 hours to hang out before our flight back to Wellington. This will probably be the furthest south I will ever be in my life. There is a 3 hour drive to the tip of the island and a quick boat ride to Antarctica. We checked out the town center and the historic train station. Occasionally you would catch the awesome scent of chocolate. Come to find out the Cadbury Chocolate Factory is right across the street from the train station. No wonder it's a college town!! We grabbed a quick bite to eat and boarded the plane back to Welly.

Dunedin Town Centre

The Historic Train Station

It was an amazing trip and I'm so stoked I had a chance to see the island. FINALLY! Thank you so much to the Clark family for inviting me on their family vacation. I will never forget this and the beautiful country we saw. Oh yea, thanks for putting up with my 6 foot frame in the backseat! (And anytime you want me to beat you at Hearts, I'm IN!)

Well, back to normal life. I will basically hanging out for the next week till I have to move. I do have a diving lesson on Saturday and I head back to work on January 14th. I also came hope to numerous Christmas cards and a few boxes, which I will save for Christmas morning. So expect a few emails.

WoooWhooo!

2007-12-13T23:36:00.000-08:00

I drove my final commute to Raumati tonight and I officially don't have to work for the next month! (Don't worry. I'm already bored!)

The kids were really funny tonight. They hijacked my coaching whiteboard and wrote good-bye wishes all over it. We had practice and I then received about 20 wet hugs. I will miss those kids.

Group shot!

Awww!

My final sunset from Raumati Beach.

The Texas bus (shout out to Aly!) It is parked in front of the pool every night. In my opinion they have the best view on the island!

Tomorrow morning I'll be boarding the interisland ferry and spending the next 5 days crusin' the South Island. I'm really excited! I will definitely post pictures.

Also my new address (as of the 27th of December) is:

1 Moxham Ave., Flat #1,

Hataitai, Wellington,

New Zealand, 6021

I won't be living on the streets of Welly!

2007-12-09T01:37:00.000-08:00

....And Haydn pulls another fantastic save tonight! What I would do without this guy!?!....

After spending the day looking at 5 flats, I felt extremely defeated. Nothing felt like "home". Each had their pros and cons, like one room had its own private entrance and a view but no Internet. Another room had cool flatmates but the room was the size of a shoebox. The Beach House I was excited about wanted me to move in right away and a $600 safety deposit. (also each of the places were FILTHY!) So, I come home, feeling like a deflated balloon and Haydn mentions he has a friend that has a room. He called her up right away and we went and checked out the place....and it was AWESOME!! The room is HUGE (bigger then I technically need), there is cable television, and the flat is extremely large! It is a little more then I wanted to spent per week but since I won't have a car cost it is worth the splurge. The flat is located above a dairy in a suburb called Haitaitai. It's a 15min walk from the pool and my flatmates are Gary and Cathy. Gary is a male in his mid-30's and works in the fishing industry so he leaves for work early and gets home late. Cathy is in her early-60's and works at WRAC also and she is hysterically funny, extremely active, and one of the best swim coaches in New Zealand. I had met her a few times before tonight so when I walked in the door, I had a tour, and she sat down and handed me some keys. It was GREAT! I move in December 27th (but I can take stuff over this week while I have the rental car). I will post my address as soon as possible. (also pictures!)

The Christmas party was really fun. Basically just me and about 80 co-workers standing around drinking, chatting, eating. It was neat to see everyone dressed up and not in our typical orange and black gear. We went to a place called The Establishment afterwards, but to be completely honest, I'm not really into the whole bar seen. I spent 2 hours getting pushed and shoved by drunken dancers and then what really made me end my night was this girl bumped into me and her ENTIRE drink ended up down the back of my new dress. I look like my water just broke. I called it a night after that. But then that it was a blast. I have Raumati's Christmas party on Tuesday and then my last day there is Friday!

My New Hawaiian inspired dress...now it just needs to be in HAWAII!

Myself, Ali, and Jo. They really make me love my job!

On Saturday, I checked a flat, which I didn't like but to make my day a little more worth while I went out to lunch with Seka. Then she took me up to the Botanical Gardens, think Central Park but WAY cooler! It has a cable car that takes you to the top of a mountain and over looks the entire city! There are streams, fountains, hiking, status, a Jewish cemetery, ducks, and the rose garden. All plunked down in the middle of Wellington. I had no idea it was even there! It was so cool!! Over looking Mount Victoria and part of Wellington Harbor!
The Rose Garden. (The smell was phenomenal!)

Other then that I'm just looking forward to seeing the south island. We leave Saturday morning and we take the ferry to Picton. We then take the train to Christchurch and then a train to Greymouth. In Greymouth we'll rent a car and drive half the length of the island in 3 days and then fly home on Thursday from Dunedin. Apparently, the island is AMAZING! I really can't wait. Then it will be Christmas. Not sure what I'm doing yet. I have a few invitations, including one with Haydn and Cathy (My new flatmate). I guess they are doing a BBQ at the beach which seems really cool! But I'll let you know!

RIP Dorothy!

2007-12-06T01:09:00.000-08:00

The week has been VERY eventful. I spent a very relaxing weekend at Jim's pad while he was in the states. My friend, Jo, came up to spend the night with me and we layed out and did some shopping (I purchased a really cute black and white hawaiian print dress!) and just vegged in front of the tellie. Well, Tuesday night my car started to make really bad TICK sound and it stalled a few times on the way home. I got it started and took it to the closest mechanic to my house. The car is dead. Major engine damage. Poor Dorothy just couldn't deal with 120 kilometers a day anymore. I ended up having to rent a car, a gold Toyota Corolla, and I love it! The thing has a radio/cd player and it gets great gas mileage! Sure, I'll only have it for 2 weeks and it's a cost me, but at least I can enjoy driving again.
I'm also looking into a new flat, since the lease is up in January in the house I'm currently living in and all the flatmates are going their separate ways. Basically there is a website just for New Zealand that is kinda like our Ebay. People can put up listings for anything they want to sell or rooms they want to rent. It's really easy and that is how 90% of people find their current places of resident over here. So far, I've found 3 places within walking distance of WRAC, two are actually a 2 minute walk, the other is RIGHT on the beach about a 15 minute walk away (think: my bedroom...then the street...then the beach with ocean. VERY much "me"). I'm set up to check out the "beach house" on Sunday and it looks like a good prospect considering I've already talked about surfing with one of the flatmates. All the flats I'm looking into are cheaper then what I'm paying for currently and will be within walking distance. That means...no car, gas, and public transportation costs!
I also told Ali, my boss, that I will officially go full-time at WRAC for the next term....Monday through Friday 9am-5pm. I usually have Mondays off to do laundry, errands, clean house, and talk to an assortment of family and friends by phone, skype, aim, or carrier pigeon. I want the money. I'm greedy and cheap. Hey, can't blame a girl for being honest!
Tomorrow night is the WRAC Christmas party. I plan on wearing my new dress (by the way it is really cool to be wearing SUMMER clothes during Christmas!!). The company rented out a steak house in the city and we basically get to eat and drink what we want for about 2 hours. Then we will head out to a dance club (I'm hoping for the 80's club, Electric Avenue. I LOVE THAT PLACE!) But it should be a great time and it usually is when you get two or more swim instructors in the same place.

Anyways, that's about it for now. I'll keep ya updated...as always!

Beckham Fever!

2007-12-01T02:23:00.000-08:00

Since I have arrived in Wellington 5 months ago, I have seen promotional posters of "LA GALAXY starring DAVID BECKHAM!" scattered on bus stops, billboards, and even fliers. It has been insane since the team arrived at the airport on Thursday. On Friday, one of the main reasons the staff was so bored was because the stadium was holding an open practice so that the public could watch Mr. Posh Spice himself kick a football around. Out of 3 hours, I literally only taught ten kids. It's insane! People have been asking me all week the dreaded question...

"Wellington Phoenix or LA Galaxy?"

Heck if I even CARE! But I have to openly admit I did watch the game with Jo today. LA Galaxy creamed the Welly team (4-1) and the crowd of Phoenix fans would go bonkers if the ball even came close to Becks. I ended up cheering the Phoenix because when does anyone in LA actually care about soccer? I'm never been one to cheer for hype.

Let's hope I don't have to stare at those posters anymore!

We're all going Crazy!

2007-11-30T02:26:00.000-08:00

So, what happens on a Friday with 8 weeks of work and chlorinated water being absorbed through the pores of your skin for hours each day? The staff gets silly! Ma, one of my dearly loved co-workers, got drafted to an Australian rugby team (he was named Player of the Year Under 21 in New Zealand) and today was his last day. While half the staff distracted him by taking him to someones house to hang out, Ali, Jo, and I ran to get the cheapest toilet paper possible and took the next hour writing on his car with whiteboard marker and toilet papering his car. Me...and my TWO bosses....toilet papering! This would have never have taken flight in the states. Can you imagine? I spent the whole time giggling to myself as Ali and I crawled on the ground to rolled rolls back and forth to each other. Ma bursted out in giggles when he saw his car and then it took six of us to push him in the pool (which is a normal tradition at WRAC). On roll 8 out of twelve....we weren't even close to being done yet!

Currently, I'm laying in Jim's master bedroom with the windows open and listening to the sound of rolling waves, overlooking the ocean and stars. Both dogs are laying at my feet, snoring away and I have happily channel surfed through 100+ and smiled as I agreed there was nothing on television! I love house sitting! I grabbed a large pizza for dinner (and to last me through the rest of the weekend) and came to the house and took the dogs on an hour long sunset walk. During this walk I literally only saw one living soul and I couldn't believe it! Don't these people know they have a stunning beach and it's SUNSET at their door step!?! I am going to primp myself this weekend....facial, pedicure, movies, junk food. WEE!

Off to bed!

Don't cry for me California!

2007-11-27T00:11:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving was existent this year, even in Kiwi-land! I spent my Friday/your Thursday talking to family and a few friends, which I am truly thankful for, and Saturday was spent cooking and heading over to Nicky's, where we did a full Thanksgiving feast! We had about 10 people there, Yanks, Poms, and Kiwis and it was really nice. Sure, it wasn't home, but it was cool. Nicky's First Turkey and all the fixings!
Can't beat a Thanksgiving meal at 6pm and having it still be light out!

We are getting into full-swing of summer. It is stunningly gorgeous EVERY day and the sun is shinning till about 8:30pm. It is sooo nice. After Thanksgiving dinner a few of us headed out into town for some drinks and for the first time since I've been here I didn't have to wear my jacket! It was great!

This weekend I'm housing sitting for Jim while he goes to the States to spend some time with his wife. I am really looking forward to it. A beach house to myself for a WHOLE 4 days! Internet, cable tv, walks on the beach, dogs, and junk food! I'm so excited. Work is going to suck with him being gone. I have to coach his kids as well as mine. That's going to get interesting since we have about 3 different levels going at once.

There are only 2.5 weeks till the end of term! YES!! Then I head to the south island for 5 days with Nicky and her family, and I'm super stoked about that. So, keep checking back for pictures.

Gobble! Gobble!

2007-11-22T01:25:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving has come and gone, for me at least. Today, I wished everyone I knew a "Happy Thanksgiving" and their reply was "What's Thanksgiving?!?" I then had to explain the Santa Maria, Pilgrims and Indians, and then ended with "...and then we took their land! Let's EAT!" I didn't really do anything special today, but tomorrow I am webcaming with my family which I have been excited about all week! (I will try not to bawl this time, but no promises) Saturday, Nicky is throwing a Thanksgiving dinner with a turkey and everything, so don't feel to sad for me.

Since I don't get to say what I'm thankful for at the table this year, I will say it in my blog.

....I am thankful for....

....all the words of wisdom, emails, calls, letters that I receive on a daily bases from my family and friends. Sometimes I don't feel like I'm 7,000 miles away from home due to all the great things I get from people. The world doesn't feel like such a big place and I don't feel so alone and small in it.

.....the support I receive from everyone. Without it, I probably wouldn't have lasted 5 minutes here, let alone 5 months! Everyone has been really understanding in the meaning of this adventure and what it meant to me as a developing human being and the molding of my character as an adult. (AHHH! Being an ADULT!!)

....my family. I knew how thankful I was before I left but being here realized how much of a backbone you are all for me. You are my oxygen and without the love from you I would die. I love you.

Everyone have a Fantastic Thanksgiving. Eat lots of turkey, have a piece of pie for me (Grandma's Tollhouse!), and go play some American football!

Just a quick update:

2007-11-16T23:27:00.001-08:00

Just spending a Saturday night at home. It was a really busy two weeks at work due to a school coming in everyday between 12-1, so that meant no break. (This makes eating lunch really interesting. "I got 3 minutes to eat an entire PB&J sandwich. I need MILK, STAT!") But it's money, right?

Bekki, the other American on staff and one of my bosses, resigned due to travel expenses. (She lives up near Raumati) A bunch of the staff went out for drinks last night to our favorite place, Hope Brothers. I was on call today and actually had to go in and teach Preschool this morning. I really didn't mind because it ended up being alot of my kids from last term ("Miss Casey!") and I get payed 7 hours for 3 hours of work. (2 for being on call and 5 to actually work).

The Latest News is I'm quitting Raumati in December and I'm going to go full time at WRAC. I'm going to try and find a place within walking distance of the pool so that means NO gas expenses and NO car expenses. It will be the first time I've ever had a job that ends before 5pm! I'm bummed that I have to quit at Raumati but I'm spending about $450 on gas each month which is more then one of my paychecks. The kids are great and I'll be sad to see them go.

Anyways, here are a few more pictures from the Napier roadtrip. Have a great weekend!

Just trying to hitchhike on a back country road in the middle of New Zealand.

Really stopping to smell the roses.

ROADTRIP!

2007-11-12T01:55:00.000-08:00

My American friend, James, told me a few weeks ago "Casey, I'm taking you to Napier because you need to see New Zealand. You are going to go home and tell everyone how great it is and truly, you're only seeing places that involve chlorinated water!" So, this weekend we headed off for the four hour drive to the east coast of the island to a town called Napier on Hawke's Bay.

James has to be one of the best road trip buddies I've ever had. We took the off-beaten path on the way to Napier and found great little roads with FANTASTIC views. We basically looked at the map and said "Lets take this road!" New Zealand is so green it is hard to capture in a photo. It looks like God just layed out a green blanket. And I now understand when people say "New Zealand has more sheep then people" they REALLY mean it! We saw white sheep, black sheep, brown cows, black cows, lambs, pigs, and roadkill....lots of animals here in NZ.
The random road where I learned how to throw a rugby ball on.
The view from the other side of the world.
Hahaha. I thought this was pretty funny considering the turmoil of our government in the US.

Now before you look at the pictures of Napier, I have to give you a little background info. Napier was destroyed in 1931 by a 7.9 earthquake that lasted over 2.5 minutes (oh, and 525 aftershocks in the two weeks after). Fires then broke out and burned for over 3 days. The town was wiped out. So, during the rebuilding process the buildings took on a "new", modern look and Napier is now OFFICIALLY known as "The Art Deco Capital of the World". Not having any idea what Art Deco was, I have to admit it was REALLY cool! It feels like you're dropped into the 1930's (think Downtown Orange....but a WHOLE town!). There are old fashion vintage stores and the town lays right on the water. The weather was great ALL weekend. YAY! I finally wore shorts!

I thought this was a cool shot of the fountain at night James and I went to the museum and learned all about the earthquake and alot about Maori history, walked the beach, ate ice cream, and walked around the town. We looked for really cool views, went exploring in the art deco suburbs, and checked out art gallery's. We also went to a "Pa", which is a Maori battle ground and fort. It was really neat looking at these pieces of wood that have been standing for hundreds of years.
"Mom and Dad, the Maori people caught me. Please send Del Taco and magazines."

On the way home on Sunday, we just drove. We headed over to Te Mata Peak to check out the view and what a view it was.

From the base of Te Mata Peak (over 100 Meters).
The View off Te Mata

Then on the way home, we took a 2 hour detour and discovered this beach that was just beautiful. It reminded me of Maui....long white sandy beach with green cliffs on the side. Now, if only I could be that warm!

Overall, it was an amazing trip and I want to thank James for taking me and showing me apart of New Zealand. I have a TON of other pictures, which I will make a part of my album when I get home. But in the meantime it is time for bed and work (*groan*) tomorrow. Sorry I'm not writing as so much. I thought I would spare you the yucky details of my job....you know, getting booger snot on me, being bitten, and simply exhausted all the time. NIGHT!

P.S. My ipod got wet last week. Just another electronic that hates me. It is now dead. Great. No music. May it Rest in Peace.

4th of July in November?

2007-11-04T17:13:00.000-08:00

Happy Guy Fawkes Day! It is the New Zealand version of the 4th of July. Everyone shoots fireworks in their street and the city of Wellington has a huge firework show over the water. I guess it's pretty cool but I still have to work at Raumati tonight and I won't end up even close to Wellington by 8pm.

I had a pretty interesting weekend. I was feeling really homesick this weekend, mainly because my whole family has gathered in Orange County to celebrate my grandparents 60th wedding anniversary. I webcamed with my mom for the first time on Friday night and then on Saturday I got to webcam with the whole family all at once. My little cousins are getting really big and it was cute for them to wave and say "Hi Casey!" I pretty much cried through the whole 30 minutes of web chatting because I didn't realize how much I do miss my family. Being so far away from home it doesn't do any good to think about how much you miss them so you stick the homesickness to the back of your brain. It was a real blessing to be able to see them and I hope with the holiday season around the corner I'll get to do it again.

I found out one of my closest friends from back home is going to be in Auckland at the end of November/early December and I couldn't be more ecstatic. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy the friends I've made here. We laugh together and hang out, but it's different. We don't have a history, they don't really know the REAL me. So a few days with Erin will be really reassuring and comforting.

The next two weeks will be crazy. We have a school coming in for two weeks so I'll be working pretty much 9-3 in the water, straight through, with no breaks. I actually like working that way...makes the day go by faster, even if I do crash out asleep at 8pm.

Time to go play with some fire!

BOO!!

2007-10-29T02:26:00.000-07:00

The number one question I've been asked lately "Is how do Kiwi's celebrate Halloween?" Well, hate to break it to ya, is they really don't. I asked a co-worker why there is no pumpkin carving, trick or treating, and "fun sized" candy! And he just replied with "Americans need an excuse to drink, where Kiwi's just drink". I about fell out of my chair I laughed so hard, but it's really true!

However, on Saturday night, Simon (Seka's boyfriend) had some friends that were throwing a costume party so that afternoon Seka, Simon, Nicky, and I hit up the $2 store for some costume props. I decided against the Secert Spy and decided White Trash was alot more fun. But "White Trash" ended up being "Gangsta Girl". I donned black converse, jeans with the wife beater and black bra underneath, red bandanna tied around my leg, fake tattoos, a bling-bling necklace, a trucker hat to the side, and really heavy makeup with black nail polish. Oh, I also had a pair of handcuffs around on wrist. The party was alot of fun and I met some really cool people, but due to having to work the next day after one beer I called it a early night and was in bed by midnight. The Devil (Simon) went down to Georgia!
You shoot ONE ex-boyfriend in the leg and the Feds (Nicky) are all over ya!
I'm so ready for Mo-vember!

(By the way, November is prostate awareness month and males are suppose to show support by growing mustaches. (hence the name "MO-vember) You start clean shaven on the 1st of November and on the last day of the month you shave your hair into something ridiculous. All the lifeguards at the pool are having a contest...it is a huge event here in New Zealand.)

On Sunday, Nicky and I ended up siting on her balcony sunning ourselves and talking all day. Seka came over and we ended up watching girlie movies and eating pizza and having a Girls Day. The weather has been beautiful lately and I'm really excited to be having ACTUAL weather!

At least my feet will be tan!

So that is about it for now. Work is going really well now that I've gotten into the groove. I coach the Haitaitai water polo team on Friday mornings (co-ed 11-13 year olds) and their games are on Monday nights but I can't go because I'm at Raumati, but I got an email from the teacher that hired me to coach (she coaches them during the games) and she says that they have grown leaps and bounds over the last few weeks and are even winning their games on Mondays! Yay! Go me! I actually DO know what I'm doing!

What a beautiful day....

2007-10-25T01:15:00.000-07:00

....not a cloud in sight. So, I guess I'm doin' alright!

After spending an entire day in bed, drinking tea and juice and watching 80's movies (what is it about Sixteen Candles and Jake Ryan that turns a cold around?), I'm feeling ALOT better. It was a great day here in New Zealand. Jo and I even took our lunches out to the park behind WRAC and layed out in our suits. It was so great! Blue Sky! No Clouds! NO WIND! YAY!!

Work was awesome, too. I'm coaching more Flippaball classes and my Thursday kids are great. I'm still a wee bit congested with a cough but I'm feeling better. Thank goodness I brought DayQuil and NyQuil with me.

I don't really have plans for the weekend. I'm on call for Saturday morning and I'm working for 2 hours on Sunday. I was invited to a Halloween party on Saturday night but depending on how I'm feeling, I might not go. Plus, I really don't have a costume. I could go as a spy (black pants, black shirt, trench coat, and sunglasses).....or is that more Jackie O? Haha.

I want to wish a Happy Birthday to my cousin Aly! I was so out of it on Monday (her Sunday) that I forgot to include it in my last blog. I love you so much Aly! I hope you have a fantastic day, filled with all sort of Texas things to do. I miss you and you deserve the best Birthday ever!! HUGS!

Ohh, the insanity!

2007-10-23T02:26:00.000-07:00

Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click.

After spending the entire day sick and working, I come home to the stove broken and a cell phone message from Frazer, my flatmate, that said "Ya, we broke the stove. The guy is coming to fix it tomorrow. In the mean time you are more then welcome to come to my parents house with Katrin and I for the night." The starter on the stove that ignites the fire is broken so its emits really loud, obnoxious CLICK noise. I have to decline the invitation to stay at Frazer's parents house due to the fact that I'm really sick.

The good thing about being sick is that I actually don't know what my fever is. I know I have a fever because all the swim instructors that are moms kept feeling my forehead today at work and telling me how hot and clammy I was and how my eyes had this glazed over look that only they can see and tell if a kid is really sick. Wow, the gifts you get when you shoot a human being out of your womb. Basically, I spent the day going through the motions and the kiddy pool at WRAC felt like a sauna and the pool at Raumati just made my throat wrecked. I'm officially taking my first SICK day tomorrow. (but it might end up being a INSANITY day with the click, click, click, click of the stove!) It is times like this that I really miss my own bed with my own pottery barn sheets with my own pillow and my own CABLE tv! At least I have my own sock monkey flannel pajamas. *sigh*

Also, the top story on New Zealand's ten o'clock news was "Firestorm takes California". I yelled out "HOME!" when I heard the story. The information is pretty vague but I'm doing my best to stay on top of the news with abc7.com. The news showed a satellite picture of all the fires and the smoke and I can't believe it. It's so sad, sadly though, I have to admit I'm glad to be missing it. The ash, the smoke smell, the air....glad I'm not there to have to take a constant shower to feel clean. Please, everyone stay safe and don't inhale.

Anyways, off to bed with two doors shut and a pillow over my head the "clicking" isn't too bad.

Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click.

AAARRGGHHH!

Are you on fire, again?!?

2007-10-21T19:25:00.000-07:00

The Malibu fires made our top news story here this morning. I then had to explain to my flatmates why it was such a big deal, where Malibu was, and what Santa Ana winds are.

Today is Labour Day so no work for me. Instead I'm being lazy and sick (sick being cough, headache, sore throat). This is our fourth AWESOME day in a row...Sunny, puffy white clouds, little wind, and it's even in the high 60's and low 70's.

This weekend was pretty fun. On Friday night, a bunch of the coaches (Nicky, Adrian from Barbados, Eamon from New Zealand, and Seka and her boyfriend) all went out to our new favorite pub, Hope Brothers. It was a great time. I have to admit, the pubs here play the best music. Its good old classic rock!

On Saturday, James and I went out to dinner and then he took me around to a few cool places around Wellington. We watched the sunset from across the harbor and then headed to this beach called Red Rock, where all the kiwi's go to motocross, ATV, camp, etc. Then we headed off to the movies.

One of the many Maori Statues in the city. I just like how cool the sun looked behind it.Watching the sunset behind the city.

Part of Wellington. Reminds me of San Fran, big city on the water.The view over looking Red Rock, with the South Island in the distance. (VERY rare to see!)

Sunday was a BBQ at Jim's house. We did steak, chicken, sausages and watch a new episode of CSI! (WHOO!!) We then walked his two greyhounds on the beach. It was really warm and was a great day for a BBQ.

I have a few travel plans coming up. In December, Nicky's family is going to come over and they have pleasantly invited me to come along on a week long adventure of the South Island with them. So I will be gone in mid-December.

My Dad and I have also worked out a trip for when he comes in April! We are going to spend a week in Wellington, 10 days in Sydney, and then head to Maui for two weeks!! I can't wait! I know it's still 6 months off, but I'm so excited (and for my Dad to take a month off work is HUGE!! Thanks, TOM!) I also found some great priced airfare....about $1,100 for the entire thing.

So heading back to work tomorrow, but at least it's a short week. But wait, I already get Mondays off. Haha.

Be careful over there and remember, only you can prevent forest fires!

Do'h!

2007-10-17T02:32:00.000-07:00

Today I was suppose to drive the Raumati water polo kids from Raumati Pool down to WRAC for a water polo game using their High School's van. So, I leave practice, head over to their school, get the keys for the van, get in the van and....

.....its a stick shift! OPPS! I don't know how to drive a manual. My parents don't even know this story: The one time someone decided to teach me, was a boyfriend when I was 16 (when I didn't even have a license) in the El Modena parking lot. Well, I ended up running his car into a pole. OPPS! The car and the pole were fine but I've never had access to a stick shift (and if you think I'm going to learn on my dad's VW bus, then you are kidding yourself!) and both cars I've owned have been automatics. I guess I need to learn, eventually. (By the way, the other assistant coach took the kids and I ended up feeling like a doofus for the rest of my evening.)

The swim instructors at WRAC will do anything to keep themselves entertained, or on the verge of sane and insane. We started a game called "PEGGED" today in our mist of boredom waiting for a school to show up. Basically, you take a clothes pin (or a "peg" as kiwi's call them) and you have to get it on someones clothing without them noticing. The lifeguards, swim instructors, and even reception people were covered in pegs today. It was pretty hysterical. I came home and found them in my shoes, jeans, and purse. I think we've been inhaling to much pool chemicals.... (Next on the list is a game called "Assassin". We are just trying to see how many people we can get to play before we start that one. Plastic dart guns are involved!)

So far, so good in the work department. Even though I'm in the water ALOT, the kids are really cool, which makes the job easier. *knocks on wood* I don't want to jinx it.

The weather was great today. It had to be at least 62/63 degress with a bright blue sky, white puffy clouds, and green rolling hills (with sheep). It was great....no rain! (at least for today).

Anyways, going out on Friday night to celebrate Labour Day Weekend (NO LABOURING!) and there is a BBQ at Jim's on Sunday. Wanna go?

What a GREAT day!

2007-10-14T14:47:00.000-07:00

So after a week of nothing but testing kids ("So...can you blow bubbles?" "I don't wanna!!" "Okay...Level 1 for you." Multiply that by about 500!) and arranging classes, I needed a DAY off. (I also had a swim meet on Saturday and covered a shift at WRAC on Sunday morning) So yesterday, Nicky, Seka, and I decided to call it a GIRLS DAY and Mother Nature wanted to come out and play too!
We ended up driving around the coast to a cafe in Miramar called "The Chocolate Fish", this is where the Lord of the Rings cast hung out for a majority of their three years in New Zealand. They filmed a TON in his area. I had the vanilla risotto, which was DELICIOUS!! The cafe is right on the water and you can watch the inter-island ferries come in and out of the harbor.

The Chocolate Fish. At the Cafe, they have this HUGE wall design made up of sea shells. So, here I am being silly with King Titan!
Miramar Bay. (and yes we played in the water, but only up to our knees!)

Standing on a rock in the middle of New Zealand!

On the way back, the three of us stopped at the studios where Lord of the Rings was created. It doesn't look like much, and honestly, it isn't. Sorry to disappoint ya, Brian!

So then we headed back into the city and looked around and decided to "Culture-ize" ourselves and see a French film about the famous singer, Edith Paif. It was really interesting and she had quite the life.

It was an AMAZING day, probably one of the best since I've been here. I'm so relieved the weather was nice. Yea, it rains alot here, but nothing beats a sunny day in Wellington.

Coming up this week: work, work, and more work! But this weekend is Labour Day! So...NO WORK! I plan on hitting up the town on Friday and Saturday night with my co-workers and then maybe a BBQ at Jim's house on Sunday or Monday. Should be pretty cool!

P.S. I used the public restroom (or TOILET!) at Miramar Bay and I can offically say they are cleaner/better then the US. I felt like I was using the ones in Nordstrom they were so nice! HAHA!

Make Money Money!

2007-10-11T00:54:00.000-07:00

Back to the grind.

My work schedule is pretty much as follows:
Monday- 5-7
Tuesday through Friday 9-8 (I have an hour commute to Raumati)

It is looking like alot of water instruction. Blech! And ALOT of younger kids (ages 4-6). I do have 2 water polo classes and I am coaching the Haitaitai Water Polo team on Friday mornings.

After about 3 days solid of rain, it finally cleared up on my way home from Raumati and due to the time change last week, I now get to drive home at SUNSET! YAY! On my drive home tonight I was literally looking at the pink sky with the ocean on one side and green rolling hills...and I thought "MAN! I'm in New Zealand!"

So thats it for now. I have a swim meet for Raumati on Saturday and I sub-teaching on Sunday.

Night. Night.

Anything bigger then a few inches is a SNAKE!

2007-10-06T16:59:00.000-07:00

Firstly, I want to apologize for screaming in my sisters ear yesterday why we were webcaming. Duffi and I were chatting about the meaning of life (i.e. chocolate) and I hear a knock on my door and Frazer asking me if I wanted some gummy worm candies. Of course I said "Yea! Come in" and he opens the door and shoves a 12 inch+ earth worm in my face. I freaked out because anything longer then a few inches isn't an earthworm....it's a snake! Gosh...living with male gender sure gets interesting. I wouldn't have been surprised if I wasn't home and the "snake" ended up in my bed.

Friday night ended up being ladies night! Nicky, Jo, Seka, two of Seka's friends, and myself met up at a pub called "Hope Bros" because I get a discount due to my status working with the City. So after a few drinks we headed over to this great 80's dance bar called "Electric Avenue" and we danced to Bon Jovi, Cindy Lauper, Madonna, Kenny Loggins, and New Kids On the Block. It was a blast! Nicky and I both decided we were tired and looked at our clocks and it was 2am. How convenient since that is the "last call" in the states. We are wussies!

I spent the night at Nicky's new place which just happens to be up the street from WRAC and we woke up to a windless, cloudless, blue sky the next morning. We could not let this day get away! So we headed out to breakfast and ended up making the 5 minute walk to Lyall Bay (Wellington's surf spot) to enjoy the "70" degree weather we were having (it was really only 62!) Being reflective at Lyall Bay....don't you love my Pirate cuff? I got that at Electric Avenue the night before.

The next night Jim, Ivana, Adrian (the new coach from Barbados), Nicky, Jess (one of Jim's friends), and I headed out for dinner at Monsoon and then to the Gold Lounge to see the "new" Jamie Fox movie "The Kingdom" (and I say "new" because we get movies about two months later then then the States). The movie was alright, typical guy movie, and kinda left me tired so after a beer at this bar called the "Lotus Lounge" I headed home. I have my own take-away (aka to-go) place!

I woke up this morning to pouring wind and rain (where's the weather????), went grocery shopping, and now I'm just hanging out before 10 weeks of chaos start all over again. The All Blacks rugby team lost to France this morning in the World Cup so all the kiwi's were really angry at the grocery store this morning....reminded me of shopping in the states ;-)

Oh, and I totally have conquered public transportation! Yes, I have taken the bus. It's easier to take the bus from Nicky's house into town for $2.50 then trying to find parking then having to pay 10 bucks for it!

So that's about it....my holiday break in a few words and pictures. It was a nice relaxing holiday but I'm looking forward to teaching again...with WEEKENDS OFF!!

$40 for Mexican food....

2007-10-03T21:51:00.000-07:00

...is TOTALLY WORTH IT!! Thanks to the observant finding of Nicky while riding on the bus she texted me yesterday and asked "You want Mexican?" and the next thing I know I have a delicious plate of beef enchiladas, rice, and beans in front me. As Nicky said "It was a good attempt at Mexican." But when you haven't had it in 3 months anything will do. We even had chips and dip and I had flan for dessert. YAY! I was so excited. FINALLY!!

The last three days at WRAC have been training, a water polo clinic that I ran on Wednesday, a butterfly/breaststroke clinic I ran today and tomorrow is Kayaking, which I am NOT running. We also had 5meter pool training today, which basically translates into play time for the instructors. We got to jump off the diving boards and the platforms...oh, and the BUBBLE machine. I have learned to contort my body into amazing forms so the massive air bubble launches me into the air. I even got fulling airborne on one. It was alot of fun to not be the only person over the age of 12 that enjoys the Bubble Machine.
Ohhhh.....BIG Bubbles!! (You can't see me because I'm underwater...to the left of the pic)This is a giant slide the lifeguards set up during holiday break. Yes, I played on it and yes, I recieved a HUGE wedgie!

The weather has been total, excuse my language but it's the only way to describe it, CRAP! We've been having 80-100mph gusts of constant wind, which I discovered if you can time it between rain burst, gets your laundry dry in about 5.8 seconds. I can't wait till the sunshine comes because 65 degrees will feel like summer and it also means the country side will be stunning shades of green.

This weekend looks like Girls Night tomorrow with Alexia, Jo, Seka, and Nicky and then on Saturday night I might be going to a reggae concert with Jo and Alexia.

I want to send out my prayers to my Grandpa Morrison who is having surgery this Friday. Grandpa, I LOVE YOU soooo much and I'm thinking about you always. I pray for the doctors and a speedy recovery. MISS YOU!

Rain. Rain. Go away. Come again....NEVER!

2007-10-02T16:32:00.001-07:00

Arg! I hate rain! We've had about three southerly storms come through New Zealand from Antarctica over the last week and we still have at least one more coming though. Another 3 days of 45 degrees and rain. I guess this is normal because this is the cold, unstable time of year for Antarctica. I need to do laundry in a BAD way! I'm so glad I packed 3 pairs of jeans. In the meantime, Jimmy Buffett and a space heater is going to have to bring me back to summer time.

Over the past week I basically have mellowed out, enjoying watching the Ellen show on TV and wearing my pj's all day. I do have training in the afternoons and today I'm running a water polo workshop.

Friday night, Jo's birthday party, was nuts! Kiwi's have a leg up on the social scene over here. About 20 people showed up from WRAC and we basically danced and bar hopped into the wee hours of the morning. It was a BLAST! But I'm getting to old to do it every night of every weekend. So here are some pictures from Friday:

Cheers from NEW ZEALAND!!

Even my boss, Ali, likes to hang out with us.

We call ourselves the International Tripod....The Yank, The Pom, and The Kiwi.

Smile! (Aaron and Drew in the back)

Two American Girls trying to make it in the South Pacific (Nicky).

Smiles with American James.

I'm a Star 24 hours a day.

This saying is at every intersection on Courtney and Cuba street. It cracks me up everytime. There is one in the Central Business District that says "Stop. LOOK RIGHT. Live"....tourists are idiots.

So that's about it. We get our Bubble Machine training on Thursday and I was going to borrow Jim's underwater camera for that but I won't have a chance to see him before that, so pictures are just going to have to do. YES!! BUBBLE MACHINE!! WHOOO! Time to go swim now.

Buffett words to get ya by!

2007-09-26T19:48:00.001-07:00

In honor of the Jimmy Buffett concert that will take place this Saturday at Irvine Meadows (BOO!! This will be the first one I've missed since I was 16....major Bummer!), I wanted to post some lyrics from the great man himself. These bits of songs have helped me through some bad days here in New Zealand and I have them written on a post-it in my room.

Far Side of the World
Back at home, it's afternoon
Six thousand miles away.
I will still be there when I get through
Attending this soiree
There are jobs and chores and questions
And plates I need to twirl,
But tonight I'll take my chances,
On the Far Side of the World.
That's the way it happens
On the Far Side of the World.

Love the Now
It's the reason for livin'
That's what I'm givin'
I don't need a history lesson
To tell my why

I mean I'm in no hurry
To hustle and scurry
There's so much to see
And life ain't gonna
Pass me by

Tomorrow's right around the corner
I'll get there somehow
But I'm stuck in meantime
And I Love The Now

I Love The Now(All the faces and places)
I Love The Now(All the rats and the races)
It's the only place I've ever been
It's the only way that I know how

It's true we've got problems
How do we solve them
Better break out your thinkin' cap
And your old dunce cone

The whole damn world's gone crazy
The moon is jumping over the cow
How can you help
But not love the now

I Love The Now(All the ranting and raving)
I Love The Now(All the cussin' and cravin')
It's the only mess I've ever seen
It's the only place where I know how

I Love The Now(All the pain and the pleasure)
I love the now(All the blood and the treasure)
It's the only circus that I know
It's the only ring where I'm allowed

Talk about a standing ovation
Everybody take a bow
But don't talk about tomorrow tonight
I Love The Now

Awww....

2007-09-26T03:17:00.000-07:00

....so nice! I've spent the last two days not getting out of my pajamas until 2pm! Break time! Tomorrow will be my first official FULL day off! I have spent my mornings laying around watching the Australian Today show, eating, and catching up with people back home.

Saturday, Jo and I went to another BBQ at Jim's house. The weather was STUNNING all weekend long. We even hit 70! The minute we hit Jim's deck we took off our shoes, rolled up our jeans, and layed out in our tank tops. My pasty white skin finally got some color (my Hawaii/Mexico/2 month CA summer tan did last long due to the pool chemicals. I actually LOOK Irish white!)

This BBQ was really great, mainly because Ivana, Jim's wife, was able to join us. She loves the house...YAY!! I did good. I can't wait till they get their furniture and their dogs will be around. I miss having an animal around. (*hugs for Tahoe*) The sunset from in front of Jim's house.
SMILE!

Sunday- After jumping up and down in the pool for 10 minutes due to my excitement for not having to work weekends anymore, I went home and took a long nap. James (my American buddy) and I then hit up a Texas Hold Em poker tournament in the City. I was so nervous because it's been a good 2 years since I've played and I've never played with strangers before. Out of 75 people (and 8 girls), I placed 13th. I was quite impressed with myself.

Monday- I had to take my eight hour First Aid course for WRAC (This was my second first aid course in 3 months. I was originally told that I needed to be certified before I left. Well, come to find out I needed to be New Zealand certified, even though it's all the same!) It helps that it was all instructors from the pool, so we still had a fun time. (Doesn't hurt that our instructor was a HOT lifeguard! "Can he practice CPR on me?!?!")

Alexia being silly with our mannequins removable faces so we don't spread cooties. (Please note the guy in black. That is Tim, our 28-year-old, incredibly good-looking, buff, and flirty instructor!)
Cute....yet Creepy!

My plans for the next few days are as follows:
Thursday- Flatmate dinner. I'm going to have my first piece of lamb ever! I'm going to make brownie sundaes and we'll all hang out and watch movies. Friday- Jo's birthday party. The instructors and lifeguards from WRAC are gonna hit up the town. This will be my first REAL night seeing Wellington's social scene! Saturday- shopping with Seka and maybe some plans in the evening. (I know it's alot but I can't spend 2 weeks in my pj's....or can I?)

The weather has turned for the worst over the last three days. I have been FREEZING! Today it didn't get over 45 degrees and it has been really rainy and windy. I jinxed myself with my celebration of Spring coming. Darn.

I want to send out my thoughts and prayers to my friend, Pat, who is having major spinal surgery on Thursday. Pat, I love you so much and I'm so glad we stayed close over the last 3 years. My prayers are always with you especially right now. I will continue to pray for your health and a speedy recovery. *hugs*

More to come later!

Forever Young.

2007-09-24T16:49:00.001-07:00

http://youtube.com/watch?v=9sEZ-wdFegU

Here's a really cool video on YouTube.com from the New Zealand Tourism Department. It's really beautiful and I know that you will enjoy it!

(just hanging out today, watching tv!)

Pictures Galore!

2007-09-21T01:38:00.001-07:00

I finally put my new Sony Power-Shot camera to good use! Here are a few pictures from my day, my daily drive to Raumati, and Fun Friday at the pool. ENJOY!

Alexia and I being silly on the last day of Term!

An hour long commute isn't so bad when you get to see this!

(Pacific Coast Highway 1, New Zealand)

.....or this!

....or even this!! (SHEEP!)

My flamingo dashboard buddy. We sing in the car together!

Marco! Polo!!

Handstand Contest.

The Old Swimmer in a Cap Trick....but I have to admit I've never seen two swimmers in a cap!

sings We're having a heat wave....

2007-09-20T18:43:00.000-07:00

...a New Zealand heat wave!!

It hit 20 degrees yesterday and currently it is 21....that converts to 70!!! And its really hot for 70. I feel pathetic for saying that, the California Girl. (But considering its RAINY and in the 60's at home...maybe I am in the right place at the right time!)

I officially wrapped up my last class about an hour ago. The instructors spent the majority of the morning pushing each other in, and that included Bekki and Ali. It was alot of fun....why can't the whole term be like this? Now I just have to get through weekend lessons, Monday's First Aid class, and two days of Flippaball at Raumati and I will have some days to myself.

Tonight at Raumati is FUN night ending with a Sausage Sizzle. Mmmm...meat.

WEEEEE! Can it be like this ALL THE TIME?

Can you feel it??

2007-09-19T17:23:00.000-07:00

SPRING IS COMING!! But of course you can't feel it because it's becoming Autumn back in the States. SO HAHA!! Y'all laughed at me..."Haha, Casey. You're going to the land of Winter"...well, look who gets to laugh now! It was stunningly beautiful yesterday. Everyone was excited because you can feel that the weather is turning. It was a whole 18 degrees Celsius. I was excited for that...thinking to myself "YA! That's gotta be at least 70! It feels like 70!" I made my drive to Raumati with all the windows rolled down and in a tank top and jeans and then I layed on the beach to read. When I got home and I typed "18" into my trusty temperature converter, it only resulted in being 64 degrees Fahrenheit. I was slightly disappointed but then I realized I'm becoming acclimated to the temp.

Laying on the beach in front of the pool....awwww....so nice!

Just a kiwi kid playin' in the surf at Raumati Beach.

Yesterday also resulted in my first New Zealand "going to the Doctor" experience. Tuesday night my eye was itching like crazy and I knew I was getting an eye infection, which happens alot when you work with kids as much as I do. Wednesday morning I called the closest Medical Centre to the pool, which happens to be a 5 minute walk, and scheduled an appointment on my lunch break. So at 11am I walked over and the Doctor took me right away (no wait) and looked at my eye and said I was right about it being infected and prescribed me some drops. I payed my $50 and walked over to the pharmacy and the drops were filled right away for $10 and I was back at the pool by 11:45. This would have NEVER happened back home. It was really easy and completely painless (except for my itchy, red, swollen eye...that does kinda hurt).

Sunday night, Katrin invited me to join her and her school friends to a steak dinner to celebrate her birthday. We went to this a restaurant called "Lone Star" in the city and it was FANTASTIC! I had the Sirloin (medium) with mash potatoes and a apple pie for desert. Meat is DEFINITELY better here. Fresh, grass-fed animal........mmmm, can't beat it!

After dinner, Frazer took a detour up to Mount Victoria (a mountain in the middle of the city) and I took this shot of the east side of Wellington Harbor. You can see the inter-island ferry in the bottom right-hand corner. It was really cool to see the city at night.

Finally, last night Seka and I met up to see "Hairspray". It was cute but the original with Ricki Lake is so much better. Work is also pretty easy this week. We basically get to play with the kids because it is the last week of term. No one here knows "Marco! Polo!" so I've been teaching about every class how to play it (and the other instructors) and I also taught them "Rainbow" which my cousins and I use to play in my grandparents pool. ("Red! Purple! RAINBOW!!....GOT YOU!")

So that's about it. Congrats to Aly and Rob on their big move to Texas and being proud owners of their own home and business. I know it will work out perfectly!

I'm a photo takin' machine!

2007-09-15T22:00:00.000-07:00

YAY! Some new pictures! My care package from my Dad (with my camera) arrived last Monday but because it was a mixture of gifts and things that already belonged to me, customs had to hold it hostage for a few days. So, after an entire day on the phone with customs on Monday, filling out 12 pages of paperwork, faxing over a copy of my passport/visa, and assuring them Airborne was not some new form of crack....FedEx delivered the box on Friday and I couldn't have been more excited!

I'm in the home stretch of 10 straight weeks of work. I have one more week left and it is going to be an EASY week. (Monday/Thursday mornings off and 2 hours on Friday) Many of my kids are going on holiday. That's another thing, Kiwi's take their time-off VERY seriously and they become avid world travelers at a very young age. Alot of the families are going to Fiji and Australia....take me please?

On Friday I didn't have to make the drive to Raumati and instead I got to referee flippaball (water polo where the kids can touch the bottom) with Nicky at Keith Spry Pool. It was alot of fun but one thing I've noticed is parents SUCK in every country. They yell. They scream. They take it way too seriously. They are rude. Don't get me wrong, I have alot of really cool parents but some people don't understand that their kid is 8-years-old and it's okay if they drop the ball or miss a goal.

Saturday after work Nicky, Jo, and I loaded up in my car and drove to Jim's new house to BBQ and help unpack some things. It's so beautiful up there. I'm thinking about if the time comes for me to move out of Newlands, I will get a room somewhere up there. It's more quiet and the weather is always SO much better (about 5-10 degrees warmer, sunny, and no wind!)

Tonight the flatmates are heading out to Lone Star, one of the best steakhouses in Wellington, to celebrate Katrin's birthday. YAY! COW!! MOO! I've been dying for a hunk of meat since I've been here and now I have an excuse too.

LOOK! I can drive on the "wrong" side of the car and the road! I know you're impressed.

Jo and I coming up with an evil plan to take over New Zealand.

I hope all is well at home. I want to welcome Mom back from Hawaii....awww POOR BABY! Life's rough right now.

*hugs*

The Accidental Day-OFF!

2007-09-14T03:04:00.001-07:00

It is official! I had my first day off in 9 weeks! YAY! It was purely accidental. I have Thursday mornings off at WRAC and when I walked up the driveway at Raumati there was the most beautiful sign known to man, a piece of art….words spelt out in “Pool Closure due to Fecal Accident”. I don’t think anyone has ever been more excited over poop then I was at that moment! So, Jim and I headed out to his NEW home about five minutes from the pool, which he officially received today, to have a meal.

The house is truly beautiful. It would be something I want eventually in my life. There are 2 bedrooms and full bathroom downstairs, a kitchen with granite counter tops, hardwood floors, a huge patio and big front year. Upstairs there is the master bedroom and bath and a sitting area…..oh yea, they also have a perfect view of the ocean. Jim also purchased two plasma flat screens to go in this house and a new BBQ which is going into use on Saturday when everyone is going over there for an “unofficial” Housewarming BBQ. I hope Ivana, Jim’s wife, likes the house as much as everyone else does. She comes in next Wednesday with the dogs! (Two Irish greyhound mixes)

Also, yesterday morning I walk into our kitchen only to see a Tupperware container on the counter top. Inside the container was the BIGGEST, HAIRIEST spider I have EVER seen in my life! It is the size of an American half-dollar…and I am not kidding. If I had my camera I would take a picture of it. You can see its eyes and fangs. It looks like a mini-tarantula. So I write an email to Frazer and Haydn asking “Why is there a monster staring at me while I eat my oats?” Haydn replied with “It is a present for you. I found it on our bathroom mat this morning.” WHAT?!?!?! THAT THING WAS IN OUR HOUSE!?! AAAHHH!! So in all seriousness, I tell the boys not to torture me with the spider (which I named “Harry”) because since I was small I can always remember my Dad (The Official Spider Killer of 20th Street) killing a spider with a tissue and then thinking it was hysterically funny to put the tissue with the spider corpse in either my bed or my sisters bed. So NOT funny! The boys thought this was hysterical and have since threatened me with Harry as a nightly cuddle buddy. I told them if they get near me they will be short one American flatmate. Harry is currently still in his Tupperware container in the kitchen.

Tomorrow is Katrin’s birthday so I went and purchased her earrings and some decorations to put in the kitchen so she’ll be surprised when she wakes up in the morning. Then on Sunday we are going to one of the best steak houses in Wellington called Lone Star to celebrate. (YAY! MEAT!)

ONE WEEK OF WORK LEFT!

An International Perspective on September 11th.

2007-09-12T02:06:00.000-07:00

As an American, 9/11 will live on forever. Everyone know where they were, what they were doing, what was said. We all have our story. The haunting television footage, how united we felt in the days that followed, and the fear that we still have when we hear a plane over head...these things will never be forgotten.

I was a freshman in college, playing water polo, and living the 18-year-old dream. When those towers fell, it changed everything. It wasn't just the day I told Coach Don to go "F$&@" himself and his three hour afternoon practice...it was the day that changed the way I viewed our safety and opened my eyes in realizing America isn't liked by every country.

In the past few days my flatmates, co-workers and friends have discussed what happened on 9/11 in New Zealand and in Great Britain. It was evening when live television feeds broke scheduled broadcasting. They sat and watched the second tower get hit, as the Pentagon burst into flames, and as thousands of Americans died. They stayed up all night. They watched television for days. They cried for us. They thought of us. They prayed for us. Peter Jennings was right...it was the "day that the world stopped turning" and for the past six years I thought otherwise.

For the past two days, I have thought of that retched day. The day that will live on for years. The day I will tell my grandchildren about, as our grandparents tell us about Pearl Harbor. But when I tell them that "it was the day that world stopped turning"...I will know it was true.

My thoughts and prayers to all my fellow Americans at home and around the world. May we always remember what sacrifice was made and we continue to remember and pray for the families that were effect by September 11, 2001. We will never be the same, and neither will the world.

"TOUCHDOWN!!" "No, he tried" "He tried for what?"

2007-09-08T18:43:00.000-07:00

Rugby season is in full swing with the World Cup currently happening in France (they only have a World Cup every four years, so it's pretty cool I'm in NZ during this time). The matches come on around midnight-4am here in NZ and the pubs are PACKED with fans and they just don't watch the All Blacks play but EVERY GAME! Last night Haydn stayed up to watch Great Britain VS USA (the US lost...but I'm not surprised) and was up till about 2 in the morning. (BTW they call a "touchdown" a "try" here....the title of this blog is from the first time someone tried to explain rugby to me)

I'm feeling a little better then what I was earlier in the week. I have Monday morning off and I have to take my car to the shop to get service, I don't start till 1:30pm on Wednesday, and I have Thursday morning off, and I don't have to go to Raumati on Friday night. So, it is going to be an easier week. I'm hoping to attempt to have a social life this week, even if it is just going to get a cup of coffee with someone.

There is another American here, Nicky. She is really good friends with Jim and his wife. I went to High School with her (she was two years behind me). She is working for Haydn at Keith Spry Pool in Johnsonville and we hung out and got some pizza last night and watched "Step into Liquid" and "Saved".

I was really excited to have my preschoolers this morning since it's been 2 weekends since I last taught them. They are really funny. I had one kid start crying for no reason today and I asked him "Samuel, what's wrong?" and he looks up at me with crocodile tears in his eyes and goes "I have bubbles in my shorts...." I couldn't help but laugh. I've never had a kid freak out about bubbles in his suit before. Then I have 3-year-old Harry who is a talker and very adorable. Well, I guess he is figuring out the difference between boys and girls. He points to himself this morning and goes "I'm a boy!" and then he points to the other girl in the class and goes "She's a GIRL!" and I laughed and asked him what I was. He replies with "You're the Swimming Teacher." I cracked up and then I asked him if I was a girl or a boy and he looked confused and said "You're the swimming teacher." It was pretty cute.

Well, I have another swim meet at Raumati tonight. We had a girl last week at Wellington Short Course break a New Zealand breaststroke record and there was an article in the Kapiti newspaper with a picture of the swimmer, Jim, and myself. It was pretty neat. I'm nervous about tonight since a majority of the swimmers are my kids from the Bronze, Silver, Gold, Elite 3, and Elite 5 groups. Please NO D.Q.s!!

Lastly, I want to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Aunt Judy. I hope you have a great day with the grandkids and the rest of the family. *Hugs* Miss you! Love you!

Nap time!

So....tired....Must...Zzzz!

2007-09-06T03:52:00.000-07:00

I've been exhausted. I realized yesterday that I haven't had a FULL day off in over 7 weeks. I am constantly going and the frustrating part is I'm not even going for myself. I have to be somewhere at a specific time ALL the time for other people.

I cracked yesterday. I just broke down into tears from sheer exhaustion. I had to teach in the water for 6 hours on Monday and Tuesday and 5 hours on Wednesday...and that was just at WRAC. My skin felt like it was on fire and I realized when I changed on Wednesday night I had a rash that looked like chemical burn down my back and this morning before I took a shower my skin was literally peeling off.

The second I got in the car to drive from WRAC to Raumati I just burst into tears. (thank goodness for sunglasses). Poor Seka called me about 30 minutes into the drive and talked me down for a few. It's nice to relate to someone that has been here. A funny thing she said was "The Honeymoon period is over. You've realized it's not a vacation anymore and it is reality" and I just replied with "What vacation period? I've been working since the second day I was here."

I felt better after 13 hours of sleep, a really long shower, and laying in my toasty room in my MYSTERY jammies from Grandma Morrison before having to go to Raumati. Oh, and a chocolate bar and tea always helps.

I know I'm not WonderCoach but that doesn't stop me from trying to be 100% to everyone 100% the time. This is why I'm here. This is what I do. Shouldn't I be 100% at it?

3 weeks till holiday break. I can do this. 21 days. Light at the end of the tunnel.

Must....keep....going........

Father's Day....in September?

2007-09-01T18:38:00.000-07:00

Happy New Zealand Father's Day! Yes, I called my dad and left a message. Hopefully, before I have to go back to the second part of the swim meet I can Skype with him. I also wished my boss, Jim, a happy pseudo-Father's day, because he's the closest thing to a dad that I have here.

The Wellington Short Course swim meet is going really well. Alot of our kids are getting Personal Best times (PB, for short). My kids are dropping times like they are hot. It's alot easier to enjoy the swim meet without a migraine. It is also a really great bonding experience between the coaches and athletes, we share music, food, stories between events. The kids have a really unique sense of humor and they are teaching me how to say words properly...."Casey, it's not BAA-NA-nas. It's Bun-anas." (bananas)

I FINALLY got Mexican food. My American buddy (Shout out to JAMES! HONK!) met up at Courtney place yesterday between sessions and went to Sweet Mother's Kitchen. I had a Feta Cheese and Spinach Quesadilla (or as my sister would say "Case-a-dilla") and chips and guacamole, which tasted like it came out of the can. In all honestly, you could have given me a cold gas station burrito and I would have been ecstatic! Hey Carly, I really think there's an open market for a Del Taco here.

McDonald's is so yummy here. After 6 weeks in New Zealand, I finally caved and got some today because who am I kidding....when did I have time to grocery shop in the past 2 weeks? (I'm going tomorrow between WRAC and Raumatic) I ordered the Big Mac combo. First off, it tasted really fresh and their medium size is the US size small. Second, it was really strange going the OTHER way through the drive-thru. Overall, I was really impressed. It doesn't mean I'll be getting Mickey D's every week, but maybe once every months.

I also weighed myself on Friday for the first time since July 7th (right before I left the states)... 170 pounds! I was 182 when I left. I probably weigh less then that too because I got on the scale after lunch and with jeans and a sweatshirt on. I haven't been under 170 since high school. YAY! Go ME! Too bad my skinny going out jeans look like guy pants on me. I lost what little booty I had.

About five of my co-workers were also really impressed with the way I swim 3-4 times a week. So, I started the "Instructor Swim" and we swim M,W,F for a half hour. I give the sets and the times and it is actually alot of fun. We laugh and make-up strokes. Jo, one of my co-workers/friend, has never had experience swimming so I've been working on her stroke and breathing with her. We only do about 1200 meters but some of them are just starting out. I'm hoping we can get to 2000 meters sometime in the next few weeks.

I want to wish Grandma Triplett a HAPPY BIRTHDAY! I hope you have a fantastic day and that it isn't to hot so you can get a birthday round of golf in. I miss you and love you! *hug*

Cheers,
Casey

Make your CLAIM!

2007-08-31T03:44:00.001-07:00

I walked in the door this evening and Haydn said there was a package for me on the couch. It was some really cute plaid pj's from Eddie Bauer. However, there was no gift note or name from who it was from. So, please tell me who sent them so I can thank them properly! I really appreciate it.

Frustration sucks. I was sitting on the couch tonight, watching a movie with the flatmates and I get a text message from my boss at WRAC saying that my sub for tomorrow cancelled. ARG! So now I have to try and be in two places at once....teaching for WRAC and coaching for Raumati at WRAC. (By the way, who calls in sick at 10pm on a Friday night???)

So that is what my weekend is looking like.

Stupid Casey Moments

2007-08-29T04:18:00.000-07:00

Most of you know that a day doesn't go by that I don't do something to make myself, and those around me, laugh at something stupid I've done. I have told the following stories to my family and with much laughter, they have convinced me to post the following. So, here it is.

Stupid Casey Moment #1
(Background info: Kiwi's call Lifeguards here "Life Savers.") A few days before our staff meeting last week, my boss announces that there is going to be someone from Kiwi Saver to address us. Everyone told me I didn't have to be there since I wasn't a resident, but I just shrugged and said I'd go anyways. I thought the meeting would be important because it was going to be about life saving.
So, meeting day rolls around and about 15 staff members (including my two bosses, Ali and Bekki) are sitting around a conference table when a guy from Kiwi Saver comes in to start the meeting. He slides a pamphlet across the table and the second I read the cover I started to laugh. The pamphlet was from the New Zealand International Revenue Service. Kiwi Saver is NZ form of social security!!! OPPS! I turn to Alexia to whisper to her why I'm laughing at myself. She starts cracking up and she turns to Jo, who starts giggling. Jo then turns to Sandra, Sandra turns to Aaron, Aaron turns to Ma and by the time it gets around to Bekki and Ali the whole table is cracking up at me. Bekki then proceeds to stop the meeting and says "Casey, you obviously now know that Kiwi Saver has nothing to do with saving lives." It was a good laugh.

Stupid Casey Moment #2
In my frenzy of cleaning house, doing dishes, vacuuming, and doing laundry last week, I threw our white toilet rug into the washing machine to run after the dishwasher was done and after I took a shower. About 3 hours later, I realized I needed to run a red load, so I grab all my red laundry and our red shower rug. When I went to hang the red load out on the line, out comes our "white" toilet rug....which is now bright pink. OPPS! (Yes, I know you are suppose to separate your loads. I just forgot the white rug was in the washing machine.) I wrote a note to the flatmates apologizing and stating I would purchase a replacement rug. Later that night, when I came home I run up stairs to see the mates, and all 3 at the same time duck and cover and yell "Watch out! She'll turn you PINK!" It is now a long running joke. (BTW Katrin was much more pleased with our pink rug.)

Okay. Did you get a good laugh out of that? I hope you did because I know it brought joy to those around me. I'm glad I was born with the gift of not being embarrassed easily.

Off to fall asleep to 85mph winds. Night!

Some odds and ends!

2007-08-28T04:02:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling much better today then the past couple of days. Still fighting a headache but I'm just giddy to not be uncomfortable and annoyed at every light and sound.

I had a chance to watched the Lunar Eclipse tonight. It was really neat. It started as I was leaving Raumati and the moon was completely covered by the time I pulled into my driveway. Kiwi's really enjoy nature and things of this sort. The eclipse was on the front page of all the papers this morning, the evening news, and all the kids learned about it in class (so they were all excited at practice). I can't even remember the last time I watched one and I'll be excited when the next one rolls around because then I can say "The last lunar eclipse I watch I was in another country!"

There is a new billboard on my commute to work to the city stating "Congrats, Welly! You were named the 5th best capital in the WORLD!" WHOO! I can't find the article to back this information up (I'm sure it is in the fine print, but when you're going 70mph it's hard to catch) but as soon as I do I'll be sure to post it.

I was also evaluated at work....final score: 49.5 out of 50 (I was docked .5 points because I didn't have my lesson plan out. Am I suppose to have a plan?) Overall, I was hoping for a little constructive criticism, some new ideas, and maybe even a "Hey, you aren't doing this right." Bekki, the assistant manager said I'm a great instructor. I'm gonna have to pull some teeth to get some new teaching techniques because even I'm getting bored!

My dad, sister, and bro-in-law finally purchased me a new camera, so I should be getting that soon and with the upcoming two week holiday off (September 24-October 6) I should be able to get out and about to get some pictures taken of some views, sights, and outings. YAY! I know I want to go to the Wellington Zoo, Mount Victoria cable car, and take some pictures of some beaches.

Outside of those random things, the weather is getting really nice and I can feel the buzz of spring :) around the corner....and then it will be summer! YAY!!

Love you all!

I feel like I should be an Aleve commerical.

2007-08-26T15:59:00.000-07:00

Monday morning and I'm laying in bed with a migraine. Well, actually I slept off the migraine and now I just have a really annoying headache. (Don't worry. I'm only missing an hour of "training" at WRAC. I pick great times to be sick. I will head up to Raumati at 4)

I've been swamped with work all weekend. It is the Wellington Short Course Championships at WRAC. It is about 20 teams from the Wellington area (Raumati is currently placed 4th!) It runs over two weekends, with two sessions on each day. The first session starts at 7:00am and ends at 12pm and the second session starts at 4pm and goes till 9-10pm.

Saturday, on the break, Jim took me to a pizza joint called "One Red Dog" on Courtney Place in Wellington. (Wellington's social scene is on two streets that cross each other, Courtney Place and Cuba Street) Then we walked around the city and into a few shops. We then drove over to Lyall Bay which has really good surf and Jim took a nap while I sat on the beach and watched the surfers. The waves were huge, about 10+. It was relaxing to sit there doing something I would do at home.

Sunday, I spent the morning rubbing my head/eyes and telling the kids to stop screaming in my ear. I went home on the break and fell asleep, still clothed and face first into my pillow, for the whole 3.5 hours I had off. I then went back to WRAC to work the evening session, came home, took some sleeping drugs, and feel asleep at 9pm and woke up around 10:30am. I'm feeling alot better and might attempt to eat something soon. Maybe take another nap since I'm still really groggy.

I did have a date on Thursday evening. Not a big deal. I met the guy at the pub last Saturday night when I went out with some friends. His name is Paul and he actually played polo for Jim about ten years ago. It was a nice date, nothing made of fairy tales and butterflies, but nice. We had good conversation over a game of pool and then had a cup of coffee at a place called Espresso-aholic on Courtney.

That's it for now. Sorry I'm not more exciting.

Answered Prayers!

2007-08-19T03:43:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to give you all an update:

I found a church! I'm really excited about it because it is seriously a blessing and God smacking me in the face saying "Wake up! I'm here!"

Many of you know that searching for a church was something I wanted to do but due to work constraints and not really knowing where to start has made it more of a burden then an adventurous journey.

Well, last week I mentioned in passing to my friend/co-worker, Alexia, that I was looking for a church. Nothing else was said so I let the topic die. Last night on our way to dinner, Alexia said "Hey. Are you still looking for a church? Want to go with me tomorrow?" I said "I don't think I can because I work in the morning" and she replied with "Not a problem. It meets at 6pm" (which was attraction #1...it meets at night)

I was wary about going because I didn't want to get roped into anything I shouldn't be in or not have it be the right fit for me. However, the church is perfect. It is a non-denominational Christian church called "Destiny" in the heart of Wellington. The sermon was perfect (a testimonial) and the music was really good (I even knew a song!). The congregation of about 200 people is a hugely diverse mix of European, Maori, Asian, etc and they were really welcoming and made me feel at home the minute I walked in the door.

At the end of the service I met the pastors and put into a small group with Alexia. This was an answer to prayers because I know my family and alot of friends have been asking God that I find my "home" here in NZ. The fact that it was right under my nose with someone I work with and became friends with right away, didn't have to go on the scary search, and have it be the first church I attended isn't just luck. It is God. Amen.

The Pringles War Continues!

2007-08-18T20:52:00.000-07:00

Frazer FINALLY ate the tainted BBQ Pringles with chili powder and the 3 of us just happened to be around when he did it. Here is how it went down:
I came home from work around 1pm today and the flatmates were all in a really good mood because they all have the day off. Well, we were standing around in the kitchen and I was eating a can of Sour Creme and Onion Pringles. Frazer said he was hungry and wanted some and I said "There is a can of BBQ that needs to be finished" and toss him the can of tainted chips. He didn't just take one...he ate all 5 that were at the bottom. Hayden was behind him doing the silent laugh, Katrin and I were standing there with a mouthful of food trying not to gag from impending laughter. Next thing, Frazer is spitting in the sink and saying "THOSE ARE BLOODY HOT!" We cracked up! It was was hysterical. We taught the Pringles Monster a lesson. Now I'm just waiting for "Prank War 2007" to start. (anyone have any really funny pranks I can pull out if it starts soon?)

Friday night, Raumati had a Fish n' Chips dinner to celebrate the kids that qualified for the Wellington Short Course meet next weekend. I was formally introduced as one of the new coaches and received my new coaches jacket and uniform. I am finally getting to know all the kids and know their names without looking at the attendance sheet. A group of 10-year-old girls bombarded me with questions: What's your favorite Disneyland ride? What's your favorite color? Do you have a boyfriend? Why aren't you married? Then they proceeded to fight over the seats next to me and I held two in my lap. I have to admit, it felt really special to finally get to know the kids.

Last night was a blast. Jo, Alexia, Seka, Seka's Boyfriend, and I went for some Asian food (after trying to get Mexican at the ONE place in the entire city....there was a 2 hour wait. I wanted to wait, but I was outvoted.) After dinner, we walked over to a pub called "The Bristol" (think Yardhouse) and had a few drinks, some great conversation, shot some pool, and laughed a ton.

And yes, I am the girl with the accent. I have never had an accent before and it's really cool. All night at the pub, people were walking up to Seka and I (Seka is from Washington) saying "Are you Canadian?" (Kiwi's always ask if you are Canadian first because they get offended if you call them American, where Americans don't care if we are called Canadian). They would ask us all sort of questions and I even had one guy tell me "American accents are so sexy". That is a NEW one in describing my accent, most people just make fun of it.

Now, I'm just waiting for Alexia to pick me up. She invited me to her church (which meets on Sunday nights) and I am super excited to finally get an opportunity to go to a New Zealand Christian church, especially with someone I already know. From the way she described her church they do a lot of praise and worship with a full band and do alot of hip/youthful sermons. I will be wary of it and hope this is a church God wants me to attend. (Thanks for all your prayers on that topic, by the way. I know a lot of you have been praying that I find a place of worship here and I really appreciate it.)

Lastly, I want to send a out a Birthday message to two Special guys! I already sent them B-day wishes but I want to make sure that all my millions of readers know it too!
Uncle Jim: I'm so glad I got to talk to you over the phone. I hope you have a fantastic day and celebration next week with the family. I love you and miss you! Happy Birthday!
Brandon: Sorry I couldn't get ahold of you today. I will try again soon. I hope you have a great day and that Kindra has something special for you two to do. Tell her to give you a hug from me. (And yes, the sheep are doing great and my mud hut is still freezing.) Happy B-dizzle!

Anyways, off to get dressed and have a quick bite to eat. Let's hope none of my food is lace with a strange substance.

Del Taco...STAT!

2007-08-17T19:57:00.000-07:00

I'm having the worst Mexican food cravings. It doesn't even have to be the GOOD kind of Mexican food. Del Taco bean and cheese red burrito would do. Just ONE! I had a laugh with Jim once I figured out why they don't have Mexican food in New Zealand. There is no one to make it!! (They do have great Chinese and Thai.)

I'm double-booked for work the next two weekends in a row. It is the biggest swim meet of the season (Wellington Short Course Championships) and it is Aug 25 and 26 and Sept 1 and 2. About 25 of my kids made the meet (and from what I hear from past results, that's REALLY good). Well, warm-up starts at 7am and goes till 9pm. I have to teach lessons for WRAC from 9-1. Opps. I'm going to have to take teaching off for both weekends. I told ya I was working....ALOT!

I'm heading out for the night with Alexia and Jo, co-workers from WRAC. We are going to grab some dinner and then a cocktail after. Not a late night since I have to be up at 7am to teach. I will update tomorrow with a funny moment I had at the staff meeting on Tuesday.

P.S. Jimmy Buffett announced dates for Irvine. Tickets go on sale Monday. Are you going? You better! He is going to be announcing an Australian date for December some time soon. I'm going to plan on going. So, you can all laugh at me about not going to Irvine....but I'll laugh back when I see him in Aussie-land!

A new level of hatred for cold toilet seats!

2007-08-15T02:45:00.000-07:00

It was so clear and warm today! Not a CLOUD in the sky and it was toasty as summer. Okay, so I'm exaggerating that last part but it was still really nice. However, do you know what a cloudless, warm day means? A clear, cold night. And it just isn't cold...."It's bloody cold!" says Haydn. I even experienced my first frozen windshield this morning. Who knew my to-go mug of scolding hot tea could also work as an ice melter! Haha!

I have been working. What a surprise! Something different for Casey and her new New Zealand life. (I did get to pick my hours for next term for WRAC. *crosses fingers* Saturday, Sunday, Monday OFF!)

So, I'm going to write about some other things I've noticed since my arrival. Everyone really like the last post that I did for that, so here is another one:

Stars:
The other night I bundled up, grabbed a steaming cup of tea, and stood on our back patio to look at the stars. I could see the milky way, the southern cross, and even a couple of meteors. It's very relaxing to know that even in a city/suburb somewhere in the world, a person can still see stars....at least until your flatmate locks you out, then it's just cold and stupid to be outside.

Gas:
Please repeat after me..."I, insert name, will not whine or complain about gas prices ever again!" The US has it pretty easy when it comes to gas. It is our monster version of cars that is the problem. I'm currently paying $1.53 a liter and 3.78 liters equals one gallon. That is $5.78 per gallon. I get about 425k to the tank (265 miles), and that is considered a "gas guzzler". (Filled up my tank tonight for $60.00)
The government keeps all gas prices the same at every gas station. It is really nice not to have to worry about Mobile being $0.10 more then the Arco across the street. Certain grocery store chains work with some gas companies, for example, for every $50 I spend at Woolworths on food I save $0.04 per liter on my next gas purchase at Shell.

Mail:
I want to thank everyone that has sent snail mail letters and care packages (Mom, Grandma and Grandpa Morrison, Erin, April, the Winklers). I really appreciate it. It is really nice after a long twelve hour day of not really knowing anyone, to walk through the door of a house that doesn't really feel like home, and a flatmate says I have something on the counter. In a world of emails, text messages, and instant communication it's nice to know someone sat down to write. I know it sounds strange, but it makes the world feel even smaller, even with the Internet. Thank you. (Also, thanks for all the AIM conversations, Skype chats, and emails....keep 'em coming! I answer them all at night before I go to bed so that I think about everyone back home while I fall asleep.)

One last, special message:
I want to wish Graham a fantastic HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! I'm so sorry this wish is late, bud. I miss you and I'm so sorry I couldn't be there to give you a big boy birthday hug. (I'm sure your mom and dad will do it for me) I love you! I can't wait to see you. You are going to be so big when I get back. Be good!

That's about it for now. I have plans to go out to dinner with some co-workers on Saturday night and a big group of us is going to see Bourne Ultimatum at the Gold Lounge opening weekend (Aug 30). Also, next to WRAC is the Kilbirine Recreational Centre and they are doing a 70's Roller Disco on the 8th of September. I'm trying to slowly jump start my social life.

Cheers!

Quote of the Night

2007-08-12T04:17:00.000-07:00

So, Skyping with my Dad tonight talking about the wind we had and he asks "So, what do they call Wind there?" My reply: "Ummm, Wind...."

HAHA! Once he realized what he asked we both had a great laugh. He really wanted to know if Kiwi's had a name for it like what we call Santa Ana Winds.

No. It is just really strong wind.
Thanks for the laugh, Daddy. :)

The WAR!

2007-08-11T03:09:00.001-07:00

Around the flat, there is only one thing that is more important then money itself. This one thing causes anger when we don't have it. It inflicts pains in your stomach as you urge for the goodness. It makes all bad days good again. Smiles will spread across faces that in moments previous were creased in a frown.

This is thing is a tube of crunchy, salty, goodness.

It is Pringles.

Yes, Pringles. The chips that once you POP you can't stop.

It all started with my first grocery shopping adventure. I purchased three tubes and were met with a chorus of "OH YES! Pringles" when I arrived home. Well, it has taken on a mind of its own. (By the way, they are NOT cheap. About $3.00 a can)

The Pringles fairy magically delivers new Pringles every 3-4 days (the fairy being myself or Haydn) and we all have our favorites, but in a matter of a day they are GONE (Frazer being the main culprit).
I opened what I thought was a new can last week only to be met with crumbs and a chicken bollix cube. Haha. NOT FUNNY! I happened to come across the missing Pringles in a ziplock bag at the bottom of a pan in our cookware drawer. (Frazer is a prankster) I returned the missing chips to the can and hid them in the towel closet in the hall and left a note in their place that said "You messed with the WRONG Pringles fairy!"

So, last night after a long day at work I went to grab a handful of Sour Cream and Onion....empty can. Salt and Vinegar....crumbs. Check the BBQ flavor....about 5 left. Haydn had just purchased these about 2 days ago. So here is the plan.

Frazer is currently out shooting deer for the weekend. When he comes home he will be starving. He WILL go for what is left of the BBQ Pringles when he gets home Sunday night. What Haydn and I have planned is to cover the chips in red chili pepper (the same color as the chips). HAHAHA! It is going to be great. I'll let you know what happens.

Just the day in the life of a flatmate living at 13a Kingsbridge Place.

P.S. I always keep a can in my car, so I really don't get upset when they disappear. :)

And I thought Santa Ana winds were bad!!

2007-08-10T03:52:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to drop a quick note and let you know Windy Wellington is releasing all its fury on the city tonight.
Currently, the winds are clocking in at 140kmp (87 mph) and is only going to get worse (at least 160kmp....100mph). It is seriously crazy. It also isn't the occasional gust of wind. It is a constant GUST. On my way to work this morning, I saw a grown man pushed back about 5 feet and then thrown from his bike in what my flatmates called "a light breeze" today.

The entire house shakes and every time it does I stop and go into "earthquake" mode and my flatmates just laugh at me because I guess this type of wind is NORMAL!

It is really cool, though, to see the big, white, puffy clouds whiz by at abnormally fast speed against the royal blue sky. I sat in my car today in the WRAC parking lot, fascinated by this phenomenon for a good 20 minutes. Really relaxing, too!

Different isn't bad. It's just...Different!

2007-08-08T02:51:00.000-07:00

I've been in New Zealand long enough to notice some strange things. Outside of the things I've mentioned already (sun power drying, driving, etc), there is some things I've mentioned in passing conversation to some, but not to others. So, here they are:

Driving:

It is quite the adventure to be driving on the "opposite" side of the road (kiwi's get angry when you say the "wrong side"). It is practically impossible to get lost in Wellington. Their sign system is SO much better then the US. There are two main motorways: PCH1 and the Lower Hutt 2. One takes you up the west side of the island. The other takes you to the east. I try to explain our freeway system in California ("Well, we have the 5 south and north, the 405 south and north, the 22 east and west, the 57, the 91....oh and don't forget the toll road 241") and the conversation often ends up with a Kiwi gone cross-eyed.

They also have sidewalks on their motorways. Yes, SIDEWALKS. With people running, walking, biking, sitting during rush hour. Can you imagine bikers on the 405 at 5pm on a Tuesday evening? They would get ARRESTED!

Teeth:
First of all, I want to thank my mum and dad for the 5 years of braces and congrats to myself for suffering through headgear and rubber bands. My smile and teeth have never been more noticed then here in New Zealand. I get compliments all the time on their whiteness, gap-free, and the overall appearance. The compliments usually ends with "....well, you are American." I guess us Yanks, are known for being crazy about our teeth. Well, I don't think that's a bad thing, considering some of the mouths I've seen over here (Dane Cook- "I'm a buck tooth. I like to hang out pass the lips." "Well, I'm a yellow tooth. I look like corn. Don't brush me. Don't brush me!").

Service:

Since tipping isn't common here (YES! No fighting over how much to tip!), service kinda sucks. Sure, you get the occasional Wendy the Waitress with service with a smile but usually they just ask, bring your food, and leave. One thing the US could pick up is when you are seated at your table the host/hostess brings a HUGE pitcher of water. Its really nice not to have to wait around for water. They do, however, go skimpy on the ice (unless, of course, it's a $22.00 long island iced tea....more ice then Antarctica!).

Medical Care:

New Zealand has this great thing called "Accidental Coverage" and it covers every resident, visitor, or immigrant. Basically, if I slip and hurt myself at work the government pays for my doctors visits and bills, my replacement at work, and 100% of the time I miss at work. This happens with any accident: car, road, home, etc. Pretty neat!

Sports:

It is really neat to see a country unified over one sport: rugby (specifically, the All Blacks). In the US, I have been in more then one conversation on why I hate football/basketball, why baseball is amazing, or why California really needs a hockey team. This is a country that doesn't care what sport you are playing, as long as its a sport (they consider underwater hockey a sport *tries to hide giggles*). When Saturday night at 7:30pm rolls around (that's when the All Blacks play), everything stops. Everyone goes to the closest pub, house, or tellie to watch. The local television station also plays the game 3 more times during the week, just in case you might have been in a coma and missed it.

Television:

To say this simply: It SUCKS! It is so horrific. I'm so glad that I have my laptop to stay up to date with my shows (Heroes, Grey's, House, etc.) come September. For example: they have America's Got Talent....but it's the last season (whenever this is on my flatmates look at me and ask "What's your talent, Yank?" I usually reply with a "To annoy you"). They just wrapped up last season of Grey's and Desperate Housewives, they are just starting the first season of Ugly Betty and Brothers and Sisters, and they are just starting season 4 of 24. Also, my flatmates love Dog the Bounty Hunter and the first night we watched it they asked me to explain "white trash" and our bounty system.

Also, it is perfectly acceptable to say the "F-word" on prime time television. This, I have to admit, throws me off. I have been better about not dropping my jaw every time I hear it because it sent the boys in the house into a fit of 12-year-old like laughter just at the sight at my astonished face.

Other:

-I payed for a $2.20 Snickers bar out of a vending machine the other day. Ridiculous. I bring my own chocolate now. (By the way, their chocolate is amazing here. So YUMMY!)

- Everyone carries water bottles here. No paying $1 for a bottle of Aquafina every time you get thirsty. I purchased a bottle of water over a week ago and have been using that since.

-They recycle like CRAZY over here. In our house, we have three rubbish bins: recycle, compost, and other. They have recycle bins next to every public trash can. We could really learn alot from the kiwis.

- They have no idea what "High Fructose Corn Syrup" is here. Their food is all natural. I can actually understand what every ingredient is on the label without going into a fit of pronunciation frustration.

-Kiwis LOVE their ice cream. Don't they know it's winter? And rainy? And windy? Nope. They don't care. They will line up 10 people deep to get to the ice cream man. I have to admit, it's pretty darn good. However, not good enough for the CA girl to eat it (and go numb from temperature) on a daily bases.

- I should have payed attention more in sophomore math class. More specifically, the part about the metric system. I'm horrible at conversions. Celsius, kilos, kilometers, meters, liters....ARG! Makes me go cross-eyed!

-I have to get into the habit of writing the date DD/MM/YYYY. It's really annoying when you see something written as 06/08/2007 and you think "June 8th" and it is really the 6th of August. You should see my time sheets at work. Scribbles everywhere. Opps!

Lastly, I want to say "Congrats" to my grandparents and welcome to the 21st century. They just received their first computer and learned how to send email. The following picture was taken by my sister, while I was webcaming with my g'rents. It was quite entertaining.

I also want to send my love and congrats to my next door neighbors on 20th street: Emily and Gary Frye. Baby Quinn William was born Saturday, August 4th at 1:38pm. He weighed in at 7lbs and 3oz, and measures at 20.5 inches (He is adorable from the pictures I've seen). YAY! Congrats! Hey, whenever you want some sleep and he's crying at 3 in the morning just go knock on our door. I'm sure my dad will be happy to help. :)

Well, thats all for now. I get tomorrow morning off. YAY! Sleeping in!

Cheers!

I admit it!

2007-08-07T03:28:00.000-07:00

Whew! Long day! I taught for a straight six hours (in the water) at WRAC today and then headed off to Raumati for coaching and then a swim meet. I'm exhausted. But I did get to coach water polo at WRAC and it made me smile (and made my bosses happy..."You are a really good at coaching polo." Ummm, duh!)

I had another ISSUE on Monday. On my way to work, someone honked at me to tell me I had a flat tire. ARG!! Something else to give out on me. I made it to WRAC in one piece where I had to call Jim because I had no idea what to do, let alone the time to do it. He showed up and took my car to get new tires (all four) and I was stressed out about how I was going to pay for it. I've had the car for a week and now it needs new tires?!? I was really missing home and called my Dad, crying, at work. (Sorry, Dad) It was a moment of realization that I know all of one person in an entire country, I'm 7,000 miles away from everyone I love in the world, and I haven't been hugged in over a month. I was just feeling really helpless, vulnerable, and alone....and I cracked.

When I went to pick up the car, I found out Jim payed for the tires since I'm renting the car from him it wasn't my responsibility. It was still a big stress a majority of the day. First my camera, then my tires...what NEXT?!? (By the way, I still don't know what I'm going to do with my camera issue. I'm still trying to figure that one out.)

My flatmates were really awesome about my "Crazy" moment. I used Frazer's office at WRAC to call my Dad, so I could get a little privacy and since I haven't been payed from WRAC (I needed to get my tax information filed with the government which takes awhile), I'm a little low on funds, they offered to wave this weeks rent. I'm not in any danger financially (I don't want to dip into my emergency fund...but it is there), but it was a really nice gesture and it helps to that these people I've known for barely a month have accepted me and my pit-falls. (FYI: I get a nice, fatty check from WRAC next week. My tax info went through and I get all my hours on one check. WHOOO!)

So, I openly admit that I am homesick. I'm feeling alot better today...back to my old self. But it has hit, just like I knew it would. I'm thinking off you all and I love and miss you.

Oh, and I'm sick of being COLD! And my laundry is currently on day four of trying to dry.

The Most Expensive Disposable Camera EVER!

2007-08-04T18:23:00.000-07:00

So, I'm angry and bitter. Last night at dinner I pulled out my trusty Canon Powershot SD500, which I received as a great Christmas present a year and half ago, and it stopped working. The lens would retract and then beep at me a couple time and then shut down with E-18 error across the screen. I LOVE my camera. I have NEVER dropped it and I keep it in a padded case and in its own special pocket of my purse.

I come home to do some internet research and find out this is a common occurrence in Canon cameras!!! I spent the whole night trying to fix the thing. Doing what all the forums said to do: turn the lens clockwise/counter clockwise till it snaps back into place, run a toothpick around the lens, use an air compressor to get out all the dust, charge the battery, push on the lens, and whack it on a hard surface at the padded AV port. The thing just wouldn't work. I called tech support here in NZ (thanks for the info, Duff) and after an hour they said they could fix it......for around 200$ and they can't guarantee the work. So it could happen again. I went to a local camera store a town over (they also work with Canon) and they quoted the same.

THIS IS SO FRUSTRATING!!! I'm on a trip of a lifetime and my camera dies.

So here are the last pics from my not-so-trusty camera:

Some of the Swim School kids being silly copying the aqua aerobics instructor.

It was really funny.

Jo and I (She's one of my co-workers from WRAC. She makes the job alot more humorous).

My fantastic uniform (in the water). Please note the bike shorts.

I deemed them the "Lance Pants"

So that's all for now. I'm really grumpy but that won't stop me from trying to figure out a solution for my now Amish camera ways.
Cheers.

I now re-name you!

2007-08-02T03:47:00.000-07:00

The shortest blog yet!

Just wanted to let everyone know Jim renamed my car today.

She is no longer named "Putt-Putt", despite its appropriate fitting.

Jim: "So how's Dorothy?"
Casey: "Dorothy?!?"
Jim: "Yea, your car."
Casey: "Its name is Putt-Putt"
Jim: "No. I own the car and you aren't in Kansas anymore."
Casey: "Hahaha! Dorothy it is."

Bubbles! Bubbles! Bubbles! Bubbles!

2007-08-01T02:51:00.000-07:00

Do you remember Caddy Shack and the scene with the Baby Ruth? We had that happen last night at Raumati. But it wasn't a candy bar of chocolate goodness. It was a gift left by a 2-year-old. A magical gift that equaled my long day (Tuesdays are usually 7am-10pm) resulting in standing in the rain to tell parents that were dropping their children off that the pool was closed and going up stairs to the Waterfront for a nice long dinner at a NORMAL time and then coming home and being in my pajamas by 7pm. Thank you bowel movement gods! THANK YOU!

Today was remotely uneventful in the teaching area, but I did get my first kayaking lesson from one of my co-workers, Aaron. It was amazingly fun trying to get my 6-foot frame into a tiny, plastic boat and even more entertaining for those around me why I tried to keep my balance.

WRAC has this SPECIAL machine in the 5meter pool (16.5 feet deep) called the "Bubble Maker." You hit a button on the deck and from the bottom of the pool raises a HUGE mushroom shaped bubble that's about 8 feet across and 6 feet deep. (It changes size and strength depending how long the button is pushed....2 second push is the norm). THIS THING RULES! It throws the kayaks around like toothpicks in the ocean. It teaches the kids not to freak out when they flip and how to get in and out of the kayak. So after the class, my boss and a few others came over to watch me play in the Bubble. I took my life vest off (we have to set "good examples for the kids") and dove down toward the bottom of the pool just as Aaron hit the button. The thing launched me (6 foot tall, 175 pound, strong swimmer) head over heels about three times and tossed me like a rag doll to the surface. I haven't laughed that hard since I've been here. It was really funny. I dove down again (feet first) and the button was pushed (this time by my boss, Ali) and the Bubble launched me a good 2 feet into the air and then flipped me backwards as Ali hit the button sending another Bubble my way which pushed me, like a slide, across 15 feet of water. It was quite hysterical and it's a good thing I was in the pool because I peed my speedo from laughing so hard. (And yes, we did get into trouble for hitting the button too long....OPPS. I guess a 5 second push swamps the gutter system and backs up the filters). Next time the Bubble Machine is on I will take pictures and try to get video. We are going to have a "training session" in a month or so, basically it's an excuse to play with this awesome toy!

On more personal stuff, for some reason my Ipod on shuffle likes playing songs that remind me of home, memories, and people. For example: Mexico by James Taylor=Mom, Dukes on Sunday by Buffett= Dad, My Humps= Duffi (strange but it makes me laugh thinking about dancing on her couch), Country music reminds me of all those nights at Incahoots, etc. Also, the rain still sucks, but I'm dealing. It's annoying because I need to do laundry but how does it dry if it's always RAINING?!?

Tomorrow morning I have off. Everyone together now.....aaaaaahhhhhhhhh, FINALLY! I plan on sleeping in, having a leisure breakfast with tea, and laying around in my jammies till I have to go to Raumati.

Night Night. Time to go dream of giant bubbles :)

Rainy Days and Mondays always get me down!

2007-07-30T02:58:00.000-07:00

I had an "ARGH!!" kinda of day. I'm actually surprised it didn't come sooner.

It first started with my flatmate, Frazer, waking me up at 8am (my classes cancelled today...SCORE!!). I could hear my phone buzzing in my sleep and had to drag myself from a beach in Maui with Paul Walker to wake up and groggily answer (I don't wake up very nicely in the morning and I'm surprised I didn't scare the poor guy). I was afraid that WRAC needed me or my classes ended up showing, which I've been having nightmares about. Ends up that he forgot to take out the trash last night so he asked me to do it. Not a problem. I gather all the trash in the house and throw on my Uggs. Well, it is POURING rain outside and I just don't have to drop it off at our curb. I have to walk two blocks to a collection area. I should have stayed on the beach with Paul..... I'm sure my neighbors got a good laugh at the California girl running up the street in her Hawaiian print pajamas, looking like a wet cat. (I had the face to prove it)

I then proceeded to spend the rest of the morning/early afternoon in bed with a cup of tea, calling people back home. I'm so glad everyone is enjoying their summer. :-P But I was relieved to talk to alot of my friends (and their voicemail).

I then headed off to Raumati. Jim picked me up to meet my constant need to carpool to save on gas. I'm losing my voice from the constant teaching and coaching, mainly because I have not used my "teaching preschoolers/teenagers" voice in a really long time. I told the kids today "Hey, losing my voice. I need you all to listen, not talk when I talk, and do what your told." They, obviously, decided that today was the day that they didn't understand the English language and proceeded to be pains in my bum. They couldn't do the simplest drills (like 4X100's free on the 2:00min), leave on their intervals, and talk about the hot boy in lane 6 while I was explaining proper flip turns. It also doesn't help that the parents sit about 4 feet away from the pool, watching every movement I make. Jim had to come to my rescue, which I hate but it had to be done. I'm trying to be WONDERCOACH and the coaching perfectionist. I just ended up frustrated and had to go stand outside in the rain so that I could just breath. Jim and I had a nice long talk on the drive home. He gave me a few tips to try on Wednesday and told me "Casey, you wouldn't be here if I didn't think you could handle this. You don't have to be perfect. These are the days that make you want to go home and that's okay. You'll have more of them. But I brought you here because you are good at what you do...but you still have alot to learn." *sigh* I know. Jim is a great mentor and I'm lucky to be able to vent to someone.

I came home, ate some leftover pizza, took a REALLY long shower, watched Criminal Intent, ate some ice cream, and am now heading to bed. I feel better. :)

So, that was a downer day in my life. I'm still in another country and not stuck behind a cubicle, so life is still good (any day and any place where I can wear my Rainbow flip-flops is thumbs up in my book!).

Tomorrow is another day and a new attitude. Cheers!

sigh An evening off....FINALLY!

2007-07-29T02:07:00.000-07:00

I'm alive and still doing well....even if it does take me a week to update my blog. I apologize. Forgive me?

A humorous picture to start off this blog....
....ever seen sock monkey flannel pjs drying on a line?
(My neighbors must have had a good chuckle.)
*Please note there are NO undergarments on the line. Those dry in my room.*

Mainly, the week consisted of work, work, ohhhhh and some more work. I am exhausted. I haven't worked this much.....since NEVER! Even my flatmates can't believe how much I'm working. I don't have an days off (basically my time off consists Thursday mornings, Saturday and Sunday after 1pm). However, if I were at home I would probably be stuck in a cubicle, in 2 inch dress shoes, receiving joke e-mails from coworkers I really don't like. So, I'm definitely counting my blessings.

"Putt-Putt" My Subaru Legacy. (In desprate need of being Hawaii-fied!)

My co-workers are great. We spend whatever moments we can hanging out in the swim office, laughing, giving teaching advice, or getting coffee in the cafe (I have yet to use the spa or saunas that WRAC offers). I have taking a likely to Jo, a 22-year-old fun-loving British girl. We have the same since of humor and it's not rare to see one of us singing to the other or thinking up silly dances around the pool deck trying to get the other to laugh. There is also 20-year-old Alexia from New Zealand. We like to gossip about the boy lifeguards and share food. (I'll put pics up as soon as I can). Ali and Bekki, my bosses, are fantastic. I think it helps that I'm willing to put in extra work, didn't need an training, and am a perfectionist about paperwork.

The highlight of my day is after the 55-minute drive from WRAC to Raumati, is as soon as I get to Raumati I grab a book, my lunch, and a towel and park my bum on the beach in front of the pool and read till it is time to go coach again. It is so relaxing and the beach reminds me of home. The seagulls are KILLERS here! They are not afraid of anything and I have had more then one occasion where they dive bomb for my ham sandwich in my hand. (And yes, here they actually do sound like they are saying "MINE! MINE! MINE!")

Friday night, Jim took me to the Maranui Water Polo Alumni dinner (that was the club team he coached 10 years ago when he was 24 and in NZ for the first time). I didn't know a soul except for flatmates Frazer and Katrin (Frazer played for Jim back in the day). It was alot of fun just hanging out with them and bonding. Myself, Katrin, and Frazer at the dinner

Saturday night, Raumati had a swim meet at WRAC (I told ya it was my home away from home!). We did okay. The kids improved on their times but we didn't win alot of the races.

Then after work today....it was a lazy day! It was cold and rainy so Katrin and I layed around and watched chick flicks, eating Pringles, and watching the tellie. Frazer came home from work and we ordered some pizza and we vegged out in front of a movie. It was really nice just to hang out with them.

Now it's going on 9:20 and we are all off to bed and I'm looking forward to curling up and sleeping!

It's 9:44pm...do you know where your Casey is?

2007-07-22T02:44:00.001-07:00

Yea, she's in bed! I haven't gone to bed before 10 o'clock since I was 13 and I had a bedtime. I'm exhausted. We had a Southerly come through last night and I, seriously, haven't been this cold since.....EVER! It poured rain and wind all night and into the early afternoon. I woke up this morning and looked out my window and I just happened to reach out to touch the glass and it was raining, on the INSIDE of my window. The condensation was so bad. This is actually a common occurrence in NZ. The locals call it "Crying Glass." (My Room. Sweet Room.)

Over the past few months, Jim’s advance swimmers have taken on the adventure of learning water polo. Wednesday night is game night for them in the Lower Hutt region of Wellington. I tagged along, because who are we kidding, Jim was my only ride. We grabbed some dinner (Hell Pizzeria…”When you want pizza, Go to Hell”) and coached the game. It was really entertaining to watch being as these High Schoolers have never even seen water polo three months ago. It was not great polo but at least they were the best swimmers in the pool! Over all it was a lot of fun. The kids found out I was from CA and they bombarded me with questions: “Are you rich?” “What kind of car do you drive?” “What are the boys like?” “Do you have nude beaches?” (I’ll let you figure out which gender asked the last question).
(Jim's Kids. The blond one in the front row, third from the back is Jenny. She's my assistant coach)

Thursday was just coaching at Raumati. We then had a coaches meeting with the president of the club to go over our contracts and to commit to ten swim meets over the next 12 months. Boring. Boring. Boring. Jim and I headed up stairs to the Waterfront for dinner where I had the most delicious creme of mushroom soup! MMM!
(This is my Silver Group. They come on Tuesday and Thursday)

(These are my Elite 3 and Elite 5 groups. There should be about 10 more but it was a Friday. This group comes M-F)

Friday was another day of assessment at WRAC then off to look at a houses with Jim at Pukarua Bay and another in Paraparamu. The first house was on a cliff over looking the Bay and was a great house on a decent size piece of land. It had a great little sun porch but was REALLY windy. It didn’t really fit what Jim was looking for (By the way, I love going with him because I can see what other peoples houses look like and Jim likes taking me because I take pictures to send to his wife and give a woman’s perspective on things). The second house was LITERALLY right on the beach about 5 minutes north of Raumati. It’s a decent sized 3 bedroom/2 bath with a big yard (for his dogs). He instantly fell in love with it and I took a walk on the beach so he could call his wife in private. He made a deal on the house and now it is just a waiting game. I’m really excited for them! (The beach in front of Jim's *hopeful* house)

(The walk from Jim's *hopeful* house)

Friday night, my flatmate, Frazer invited us to a goodbye BBQ for him at his job at Freyberg pool (he is 20minutes away, transferring over to WRAC). I thought Californians could BBQ. Was I wrong! It was the middle of winter and that could not stop these kiwis. The guys propped open the emergency exit doors and just BBQed in the doorway! Chicken wings, hot dogs, bratwursts, steak, chicken….they did it all. It was a lot of fun and now I can say I have BBQed indoors (now, don’t freak out. The pool is HUGE. Olympic size so we were in NO danger of killing ourselves). (The indoor BBQ. Haydn in the front, Jim on the left, and Frazer grilling up the food)

Saturday, I taught my first round of classes at WRAC. Even though my boss, Ali, said I did great, I felt really rusty!! As instructors we have no timeline or drills we have to follow. We have goals the kids have to hit but it doesn’t matter what we do to reach them. It is really difficult to be trained in a strict matter to have so much freedom. I spent half the classes trying to think of age/level appropriate drills. It was exhausting. Plus, at Australian Swim School the kids had a step to stand on and kids knew they had to stay on the step or disappear in the abyss (basically 3 feet of water). At WRAC, the kids can walk all over the learner’s pool, so I spent most of the day saying “Luke! I’m over here” or “Matthew, come play with us”. It was super frustrating. I try to teach at kid-level with results in my knees are raw. No fun. It is great to be teaching again.

Saturday night, Jim and I had a committee dinner for the Raumati club. I was dreading it because I assumed it was a chance for me, the new coach, to get drilled with questions. But it was so much fun! The All Blacks (rugby) were playing Australia, so all the men were in the living room watching and all the females were chatting in the sitting room. I was in with the men because I wanted to watch my first game (and honestly, I know more about sports then gossip and knitting). After dinner (and the game), about 20 of us sat in the sitting room laughing, poking fun of each other, and telling stories. It was a good time.

I taught this morning (Sunday) and it was another interesting day. I taught in the morning and was told once again, that I have nothing to worry about, that I’m a great instructor and I don’t need any training. Jim picked me up and drove me around Miramar, where they have the sound and film studios, where King Kong was filmed, and a few places where the cast of Lord of the Rings hung out (Sorry Brian, he didn’t stop to get pictures. But I plan on going back). He then pulled up in front of this grubby warehouse building and we walked in and it was all wool products! Jim knew I wanted to get an actual pair of Uggs while I was here and he took me to the Mother Ship of wool! I got some stylish sand, knee high boots for about $90 American dollars. (Sorry Mom, they didn’t have the Hawaiian print ones. Those are only made in Australia.)

What do you call 5 white guys with a ball? New Zealand basketball. HAHA! Jim forgot that he said he would go to the NZ vs. Venezuela men’s basketball game with some friends so I tagged along and boy…..did it suck!!! They were horrible! However, there was an attendance record set that night for the arena….3,819. It made for a great story though. We were basically killing time till I had to get my….CAR!! Yes, I have a set of wheels. It’s a 90’s silver Subaru. I call it “Putt-Putt” because that’s exactly what it does. It has issues going 65mph, so no one has to worry about me doing mach 3 on the motorway. There is no heating and no radio. But 1) it is free and 2) it will get me from WRAC to Raumati. It does make me miss my truck at home. Awww…..my truck.
(The NBL Game)

I came home exhausted, only to discover Katrin had made an entire Sunday dinner or pot roast, potatoes, carrots, and vegetables. It ended up being Flatmate Night. We watched the season final of CSI and we all headed to bed.

WHEW! That was a lot to catch up. I’m lucky enough to have tomorrow off from WRAC because my first two schools cancelled. SCORE! So I only have Raumati tomorrow. Now if the weather could just get warmer!

Do I really sound FUNNY?

2007-07-17T03:45:00.000-07:00

First off, I want to say "Congratulations" to Kindra and Brandon on their ENGAGEMENT! I'm so ecstatic for you both and I'm so proud of you B! You pulled it off. I love you both and I'm so giddy that when I read the message I jumped off the coach and started jumping around my flat. I definitely scared the flatmates...but it was WORTH IT! WEEE!!

Work has been fantastic. At WRAC, the instructors have been testing the school children to see what level they can go in for next week. You basically walk up to five kids and say "Come with me." Then the conversation goes as follows:
ME: Hi. My name is Casey. I'm going to be testing you today.
KID: *in Kiwi accent* You sound funny. *giggles*
ME: Well, I guess I do. Where do you think I'm from?
ALL THE KIDS: AMERICA!!
ME: That's right. So I guess I sound funny.
KIDS: NO. We like you. You are cool.
(now multiple this conversation by about 10 times today.)

So I guess an American accent= Sounds funny but cool. The other instructors say I have a one-up on them because the kids will focus on me better because "I sound funny." My co-workers are great. They spent the first 10minutes in the office asking me to say words, explain CA slang, ogling at my bright blue pedicure, my tan, and then my tattoo on my ankle. They are all good natured and we spent a good amount of time between testings telling stories, making each other laugh, and being silly. The lifeguards, I guess, have been admiring me from afar and asking about "the new California girl." Haha....It is kinda strange to be known for a PLACE you are from, but I gotta admit, if it helps people remember who I am and what my name is, I'm all for it! (oh, and they are PAYING us to swim. I was planning on swimming a couple times a week anyways and then today at the staff meeting the boss, Ali, told us they will give us $15 an hour to swim. HAHA, DUFFI!)

The coaching at Raumati is pretty much like swim team but for 10-13 year olds. I'm in-charge of about 100 kids throughout the week. (Some come for 30mins MWF or TTH, others come for 90mins MWF or TTH, and even others come 90mins M-F....it is hard to explain in detail but I do have my hands FULL!) Then on Tuesday nights, Raumati offers a one hour community swim with 6 different levels all coached by volunteers. I am a deck supervisor during this time and basically just go around helping the instructors if they need it. Then Jim opens up the pool to anyone that wants to play water polo till 9. WHEW! It is a LONG day! (I went from 8am-10pm today)

So my schedule is pretty much
WRAC: 9am-3pm M-SUN (Thursday OFF)
Raumati: 5-7 M-F (Tuesdays 5-9)

I also had my first driving lesson with Jim tonight. The forty minute drive from Raumati back to my house in Newlands. IT WAS SO STRANGE!! I kept reaching to the left side to hit the blinkers (they are on the right). Jim thanked me repeatedly for cleaning his windows with the windshield wipers. It was also quite interesting to hug the middle of the road on your right...not left. Oh, and then there is round-abouts. WHEW! Jim kept telling me "Casey, it's 100kph here...not 70mph. That old lady just passed you." But all joking aside I did a good job. I will be driving more before I get my car maybe Sunday.

That's about it. I'm exhausted. So I'm heading to bed, with a big grin on my face.

Pictures to come:
Co-workers
My room
My car (when I get it)
My ugly bright orange uniform!

CHEERS!

You're jealous. Just admit it!

2007-07-15T03:51:00.000-07:00

Here we go! Another Marathon blog from your favorite world traveler! So its been another few exciting days. Saturday morning and afternoon was spent mostly talking to Dad, Duffi & Brian, Kristin, and my Grandparents. I felt sort of anti-social in the flat because all my flatmates were home, but it was nice to spend a couple hours talking to family.

So Jim called me (Oh yea, I have a cell phone now! Don't you wish you had the number?!?) and asked if I wanted to attend a swim meet at WRAC. The swim meets are not what I thought. At ELMO, the coaches spend 4+ hours running around taking times, babysitting kids so they don't miss races, changing the schedule, and being harassed by 60+ children (and parents) wanting times and critique. At NZ swim meets, the parents play team manager and the coaches get to sit there, enjoying organized sanity, and watch the kids swim! The meet ran so smoothly. IT WAS GREAT!

*The Wellington Regional Aquatics Centre (WRAC), a.k.a My Home for the next 10+ weeks*

After the meet Jim and I headed over to the mall in Wellington to grab a prime rib dinner at this place called "The Hogs Breath" and we happened to catch the All Blacks rugby match against the South African Springboks. I finally got to see "the Haka," a traditional Maori dance that the All Blacks do to basically say "We respect you as our opponents. Now we are going to kick your butt". It is a beautiful thing to see and worth a trip over to youtube.com to check out a few videos.
Next, we headed over to the "Gold Lounge," the theater I mentioned in the previous post. WHY CAN'T WE GET THESE IN THE STATES?!?! We ended up seeing Ocean's Thirteen in the biggest, most comfortable chairs I've ever sat my bum in. My feet couldn't even touch the floor. Before the movie we ordered cocoa and Oreo cheesecake to be delivered to our seats after the previews were over, and sure enough, they were there at the end of the previews (Side note: It was really hard not to nod off because it was so relaxing.)

*At the Gold Lounge (Looks comfy, doesn't it?)*

Sunday was spent as a "pseudo-family" day with Jim offering to take me to brunch, show me some sights, and help me run errands. So he picked me up around 10:30 and we headed straight over to the other side of the Wellington Harbor to a little town called Eastbourne. It was such a cute town. We had brunch at the "Colbort" and it had an amazing view. We then walked around the little town, which reminds me of Carmel. It has little wooden piers every 200 yards or so and there were about 100 sailboats off the coastline. * The view from our brunch table in Eastbourne*

*HI! (You can see the city behind me)*

*A view from the drive from Eastbourne back to Wellington* (Hey Dad, I got ALOT of boats in this picture. I win!)

After a few errands (WEE! An electric blanket and a corner unit for all my stuff!!), we headed to the OTHER side of Wellington, up a mountain (on a very narrow road, think Road to Hana), to see an Air Turbine. Kiwi's are very proud of this dutch invention. It was too windy and cold to read the information on why they only have one and why they are testing it (I can tell them it works in Palm Springs!). The view was spectacular!! You could see all of Wellington on one side and the Cook Straight on the other.
*The Wellington Air Turbine and the view* (I'm so proud of this shot! It almost matches up perfectly. Welcome to Wellington!) "Hurry up, Casey!! Take your picture!!" "BUT IT'S SO COOL!"

Jim then dropped me back at my house were Haydn and I proceed to make a HUGE pot of soup (enough to get through the week). It was alot of fun, cutting vegetables and bonding. I got to hear his life story (marriage, divorce, cancer, back surgery) and we then watched Dodgeball when Frazer and Katrin came home. It was a typical, relaxing evening at home.
Tomorrow....I start work *gasp*! Just kidding. Jim is going to drive me around for another week so I get use to the road and get my barrings with where I'm going (but I'm actually telling him..."Ummm, Jim....Colchester Road was back there."). I work from 1-3 at WRAC then 5-7 at Raumati. My schedule will get more and more packed as a few weeks go on. Eventually, I'll be working 9am-3pm MTWF at WRAC, 5-8 at Raumati, and 9am-12pm Saturday and Sunday at WRAC.

*13a Kingsbridge Place, Newlands, Wellington, New Zealand* (My House. My room is the long window on the the left side. I get great sun pretty much all day long. Please note: the clothes hanging on the line in the backyard. They don't use dryers here. EEK!)

I apologize for the long blogs but the more I write now, the less questions I have to answer later. :) I'm smart, I know.

Well, that's all for now! Cheers!

PICTURES!

2007-07-13T19:35:00.001-07:00

Well....STOP HARASSING ME! Here are all the pictures I've taken so far. It is hard to take pics because I want to take pictures of everything and the people I'm usually with don't want to stop. I'll try and get better.

Seeing a rainbow really calms the spirit. This was just coming into Wellington and the picture can't show that it was the brightest and biggest rainbow I've ever seen.

A little sitting area and patio (with BBQ). The stairway to upstairs is on the right.

Our living room downstairs and Kitchen. There's a tv in front of the coach and just to the left (next to the cricket paddle) is a little wood burning stove. If you turn around, there is a long hallway with the toilet, bathing area, laundry room, Haydn's room, Haydn's office, and my room. (The picture of my room didn't turn out very well so I'll try to get those up soon and pictures of the actual house.)

This is our living room upstairs. It gets the warmest. Behind me are some windows and to my left is Frazer and Katrin's room. (didn't want to impede in their privacy).

I told you the sunset was amazing! This is the view from the pool/restaurant upstairs. It is about a 50 yard walk across a small parking lot to step into the sand. I told ya it was Pretty!

Looking up the coast at Raumati Beach. It reminds me alot of Newport. White sand and calm water. I plan on definitely taking this walk a few times.

Looking down the coast at Raumati Beach.

The Pool @ Raumati Beach. The 1st floor holds the pool and upstairs is a restaurant called the "Waterfront". I think it will be a favorite place of mine!

Inside the pool at Raumati. There is a toddler pool and a baby pool at the other end that you can't see.

Jim, Seka, and I being silly at the pub, Kitty O'Shea.

So that's it! Sorry I couldn't produce more. I promise to get better. :) Cheers!

It's a beatiful day. Not a cloud in sight. I think I'm gonna be alright!

2007-07-13T05:41:00.000-07:00

Today, after two days of wind and rain (wind strong enough to knock our Internet out), I woke up to the first blue NZ sky I've seen. IT WAS SO STUNNING!! This country is truly amazing. I was walking around in jeans and a long-sleeve shirt (which I got teased for "Awww CALIGIRL! A t-shirt would have done just fine!"). It was about 53 degrees but a total cloudless sky. It felt like a perfect Northern California winter day. :)

Last night, Haydn took me to this Mongolian BBQ (All-You-Can Eat! I was stuffed after 3 bowls...mmm!) place in the heart of Wellington city. He extended an invitation with some of his work buddies from the pool I'm training at. It was hysterical. Kiwis are very humorous, love to laugh, and LOVE to tease. They had no problem with me joining, as their attitude is very much the more the merrier. By the way, Kiwis tease you when they like you. THE LIKE ME ALOT! Jim, my boss from EL MO, showed up from the airport (he was coming from the south island) towards the end of dinner. It was so nice to see a familiar face and a familiar voice (one where I don't have to guess what they are saying because the accent is so thick.) Haydn, Jim, and I then proceeded to a local pub called Mortheith's to enjoy my first NZ brew and to watch Women's NetBall on the tellie! (Netball...think WNBA). I then came home and slept through the whole night.

This morning I woke up at around 8am and proceeded to Haydn's pool to get in the water for some on-hands training. It was ALOT of fun. I forgot how much I miss being in the water with the kids. Actually, I sorta ended up training my trainer (they don't nearly have the training the Australian Swim School gave me....They are usually in the pool after a quick CPR class and a couple hours of hands-on instruction). Haydn wants me to give a workshop on better technique and reason why certain drills are used. He also said I'll probably be the best instructor at WRAC (the main pool I'll be teaching at). It was really nice to pass their expectations and to know I'll do okay in the teaching department.

The kids are ADORABLE! They are extremely polite and quiet but once I made them laugh they open up. I had one girl in the first class I assisted in ask me (in her NZ accent) "Are you going to be my teacher during term?" It broke my heart to tell her "No. That I have to help other kids" and she gave me hug a hug goodbye. So CUTE! The kids also have alot more freedom in the pool and the instructors are really relaxed in their teaching methods. Not all the drills have to be perfect. I know I'm going to struggle with this aspect because the Australian Swim School was all about 100% perfection....to the point that was it was annoying! (Duff- you would LOVE teaching here. Every time I had a class today, I thought of you and how much you would enjoy this.)

So after training, Haydn took me to get my bank account so I can start getting paid (WEE!) for training. All banking is done electronic here. Its really nice, actually. No paper statements. Just one card and website does the trick. After that, we walked around Johnsonville (the town with the pool I'm training in and just south of where I'm living). It is really cute, and because it was a STUNNING day, it was nice and a ton of people were out biking and walking. Haydn then went to the bakery to get some "pies" (I'll explain later) for his instructors because it's their last day of Holiday break.

So, we headed back to the pool and the instructors (all girls, ages 16-20) sat around eating "pies" (Think chicken pot pies BUT BETTER!! They have steak and cheese in them and served warm!) They were asking me questions about the States and freaked out when they found out I lived in "THE OC" *rolls eyes*. I then disappointed them in telling them they didn't even film the show in Orange County, and Laguna Beach (the MTV show) accounts for about .1% of the population of Orange County. (By the way, the LOVED my Tropical Twist Gum...haha. Please send more!!) The girls really like me and asked me to stay at the Johnsonville pool. Maybe, if I don't like the size and impersonal ways of WRAC, I might transfer.)

Haydn is by far been my greatest allie. He has driven me around, answered my questions, given me driving tips, helped me grocery shop, gone with me to the bank, and just made me laugh. He is a great guy from Winchester, England. He understands what it's like to be in a new place, not knowing anyone. He has really helped me adjust to being here. I am blessed to have him around and willing to help.

So, after training, Haydn dropped me off at home where I quickly changed before Jim came to pick me up to look at a house for him and his wife (their house sold in less then 2 weeks. I KNOW! I couldn't believe it either!) and to head up to the pool at Raumati. The house was really nice with not one, but two great views of the a bay and the Pacific Ocean. View in the back and the front. I would have purchased it in a heartbeat just for that alone, but it wasn't what Jim is looking for.

After that, Jim and I made the 30 minute drive up Pacific Coast Highway 1 (yes....just like CA) to Raumati and it had to be one of the most beautiful drives I've ever seen. It made me want a video camera so I could show everyone. It was crystal blue sky and water, rocky coast line, and a couple of islands doting the coast. The sun was so bright that I had to cover my eyes, even with sunglasses. The view was so clear you could see the South Island (which Jim says is really rare). I finally saw sheep!! Coastline on your left. Hilly farmland on your right. Jim kept laughing at me because I was excited "AAH! SHEEP!" "MORE SHEEP!" "WOW! I'm IN NEW ZEALAND!!" Anyways, I get to make this drive everyday so this will definitely be "ME TIME." Relax. Enjoy the view. Listen to some music (Buffett will be PERFECT!).

We arrived at the pool in Raumati and it is right on the coast (it is a 50 yard walk from the pool front door to the beach). Jim took me upstairs where a restaurant called the "Waterfront' sits above the pool. I then proceeded to meet the President of the club team which I will be working for. It was really intimating because I had no idea what my job title was or what I'll be doing. I'm considered a Head Coach for the pool and I even have a few high school kids under me as my Assistant Coaches. I'm still Jim's Assistant Coach but basically I have about 40-60 kids a night from 5-7pm and I administer drills and keep the kids moving. (After the meeting I ran down to the beach and snapped a few pictures of the sunset. Some of the brightest colors I've ever seen. The pictures don't express how amazing it truly was. I will post the pictures as soon as I collect more on my camera.)

After practice, where I met a few of the kids, Jim took myself, Chris (another coach from CA), his cousin (Seko, female and same age as me), and Seko's boyfriend, to an Asian fusion restaurant called "The Monsoon". The food was FANTASTIC!! I had buttered chicken (think curry). We then walked a few blocks to a pub called Molly Moldones for a drink and to tell funny stories and have great conversation. Chris and Seko's Boyfriend then had to leave so Jim, Seko, and I walk to another pub called Kitty O'Shea to check out a really great 90's cover band. It was fun to see what the city looks like on a Friday night. I'm working so much so I know I won't even get near the city anytime soon, so it was really nice to enjoy an evening out and to make some new friends.
(By the way, at the right everyone is feeding me I'm going to be a fatso when I get home. The food is increditable here, and I haven't even had lamb and Kiwi pie yet!)

I'm now sitting here, answering some emails. I get to sleep in tomorrow (GOODIE!) and play around the house in the morning. Jim is picking me up for a swim meet so I can keep him company and then he is taking me to go see Harry Potter (even though I haven't seen the other ones) at this theater called the Golden Lounge. This place is amazing, from what I heard. It has lazy boy chairs and you can order WHATEVER you want, when you want it. You want chocolate cheesecake? Done! You want a glass of wine every hour? Done! It is about 30$ a ticket but it is all you can eat, drink, and enjoy. (WHY DON'T WE HAVE THESE IN THE STATES?!?)

Thank you for reading this LONG blog. I've done alot the past couple of days and its hard to pop on the Internet for 5 or 10mins like I did at home. I actually have to make time to sit down for a few hours. I start work on Monday so it will even be harder but I will have the evenings off (but a whole lot that will do being it will be 1am your time). Anyways, LOVE YOU ALL!!

BRRR!!

2007-07-11T18:42:00.000-07:00

Okay, I've never in my life seen my breath INSIDE a house! That is, by far, one of the biggest things I will have to adjust to.

I slept through the whole night last night. WEE! No Jetlag! And awoke to Haydn and Katrin in the kitchen at 8am. It was strange having to be bright and sunny, because we all know that I am NOT a morning person. We all had some tea and Haydn and I went on our marry way to a community pool about 5mins from here.

I observed a few of the Learn To Swim (ages 5+) and Preschool groups. The pool, by the way, is quite chilly, the instructors even have to wear spring wetsuits. I'm not looking forward to getting in tomorrow. (This is NOT my permanent pool. Just my training pool because Haydn works there and it is close to the flat).

After 4 hours of observation (BTW Duffi: their uniforms are worse then Australian Swim Schools...BRIGHT NEON Orange rash guards and polo shirts!) Haydn took me to the market to get some basic food (sandwich makings, cereal, milk, juice, apples, yogurt, etc.) and dropped me off at home (can I call it "home"?). So I have the place to myself and it is really quiet. Made a couple of calls (with calling cards....LOVING THEM! Thanks, DAD!), unpacked, and now I'm sitting here with a cup of blackberry tea (my 4th cup of the day).

Tonight, Haydn is taking me to a Mongolian BBQ (all-you-can-eat) to meet a few of the coaches and Jim. Tomorrow, I get in some more training, head up to Raumati for MORE training and meet MORE coaches, get my cell phone (I'm not going to be using mine here at all...so don't leave any text or voice messages), and set-up a bank account. I'm hoping that Saturday and Sunday I can see some of the sites that Wellington has to offer.

CHEERS!

By the way, I will try and get pictures up as soon as I get my computer working.

Cheers!

2007-07-11T02:19:00.000-07:00

Well, after a really LONG day of traveling (approx 26 hours), I am finally sitting on the couch with my flatmates watching tv. (CSI Miami, to be exact).

The flight really wasn't that bad. Yes, the food was HORRIBLE (roast beef for dinner, dry sandwich for snack, and burnt pancakes for breakfast), but the initial flight was quick and painless. I slept about 7 hours and my seatmates were really entertaining (We watched a few episodes of season 3 of 24 together on their laptop). Their names were Joe and Josh and they were on their way to Sydney to look for film schools. I also meet a kid named Cade who was on his way to study aboard. It was also his first time out of the country and we were both nervous wrecks. I hope, eventually I can meet up with all 3 guys down the line. We all kept each other company on a 15 hour flight.

I had a 3 hour layover in Sydney and I sat in the terminal and watched the sunrise. It was really amazing. I kept saying to myself "I'M IN SYDNEY!". I had this family from Auckland join me in waiting for our flights. They had four kids and they were a great family. Gave me a fantastic first impression of the Kiwis. They invited me up to their dairy ranch if I ever make it up north.

I flew into Wellington at around 3:00. As we were landing I looked out the window and there was the brightest, biggest, full rainbow I've ever seen in my LIFE! (Which was very calming because the flight was insane. I'm never nervous flying and even had a to white knuckle the armrests as the plane move and shook with the wind) The city actually really looks like San Fran...ex: Big building on water, houses small and close together. Haydn, one of my flatmates, picked my up at the airport and we headed right over to the Wellington Regional Aquatics Centre to meet my boss, Ali Hill, and a few of my co-workers. I had a fantastic welcome to a chorus of "Hey. CASEY!!!" and that made me feel really special. The pool is HUGE! I start training tomorrow....bright at early at 9:00am.

Haydn and I then went to the market, which yes looks like our markets, to pick up groceries for dinner and to get me some shampoo, conditioner, etc. We then proceeded to our place in Newlands, where I met my other flatmates, Frazer and Katrin. The area looks very much like Orange. Its VERY quiet. As I'm typing this the only thing I can hear is the wind. Haydn made chili and bread for dinner and it was the best meal I've had in awhile. Could be because I haven't had a decent meal in 25 hours AND that its freezing cold and chili and tea hit the spot.

My flatmates are really nice. I think Katrin is happy to have another girl around. Frazer is head of the lifeguards at the pool I'll be working at in Wellington, Haydn works as instructor at another community pool, and Katrin is a lifeguard at the same pool Frazer and I will be working at (she is also in nursing school). They are all very mellow and I hope I didn't scare them off with my nervous chit-chatter.

The house is two stories. There is two bedrooms one the first floor (one of which is mine, the other is Haydn's), a office, and a sitting area attached to the kitchen. Upstairs is a loft area to watch TV and Katrin and Frazers room (they have been dating for 2+ years). The place is VERY cold, as 99% of the houses in NZ don't have central heating/AC. My room is small but not horrible. Jim, my other boss/boss from ELMO, got a bed to my roomies about 2 days ago because he felt bad about me sleeping on the floor. I have a closet, a mirror, and it has 3 windows. I need a dresser and hangers, and Katrin said we can go look at a IKEA-esque place called the "Warehouse" (think the Target of NZ) on Saturday.

Currently, I'm waiting for Haydn to come back from a meeting because I left a bag with my flannel sock monkey pjs in it. Tomorrow I take on the adventure of grocery shopping and seeing Jim.

I miss everyone lots. Saying goodbye to my family had to be the hardest thing I've ever had to do. But I know this trip is the best thing for me and myself and my future.

Just so you all know, my computer is having issues connecting to the wireless (something about the IP address.....BRIAN?!?!? jk) so I'll be using Haydn's computer till I can (or someone else) can get it up and running.

CHEERS!

PS I hoping that it clears up in the next few days so I can 1) get some sunshine and 2) see some stars and the southern cross.

PSS It is SOOO Green! The water is a blue I've never seen before, even in Hawaii. And the Sky is so clean and clear. It really is amazing. Now...if it could only be 75 degrees, I'd be SET!

This is it..... tear

2007-07-08T17:27:00.000-07:00

Before

After

Well, here it is! 24 hours till my departure. It has been a crazy week full of errands, luncheons, dinners, bonfires, beach days, and going out (oh, and one strange day of fighting off the stomach flu). It feels like just six months ago I was telling everyone "Hey, I'm going to New Zealand" and now the goodbyes are final as well as the hugs.

Packing was quite the adventure. My friend, Kristin, came over to be my "Yes. No. EWW" girl and declared I wear way to many boy's clothes. Four hours later, I did got a majority of my clothes into one suitcase (I am still taking two). Thank the Lord for vacuum seal bags :)

Everything has really fallin' into place with my trip. I do have a station wagon to drive around in and after a big scare about a roof over my head, I now have a place to live in a county just 15 minutes from the city called Newland. It's a little house on a cul-de-sac and I'm rooming with a few other coaches that I'm going to be working with (I'll definitely get pictures up as soon as I can).

So, tomorrow Dad and I are heading off to the beach for one last goodbye to warm weather, then I'm going to grab some In-and-Out and then off to LAX to get all boo-boo faced while saying good-bye to my dad.

I want to thank everyone for the well wishes, the cards, and the prayers. I greatly appreciate it and it definitely calms my nerves. It has been an amazing "summer/post-college retirement" and I'm so glad I have such great family and friends. LOVE YOU ALL!

So, here it goes (some last minute info):

Address:

Casey Finnegan

#13a Kingsbridge Pl

Newlands, Wellington

6037 New Zealand

Email: cbfinnegan@hotmail.com

AIM: SunsetWonder1

Skype: cbfinnegan

(Skype is a video web chat that is totally FREE!

You just need a webcam and a mic and we can chat for hours)

Well, that's it. Next time I write I'll be in my room, in my house, in Wellington, in New Zealand, in the Southern Hemisphere.

ALOHA!

Oooo!

2007-06-21T14:56:00.000-07:00

Happy First Day Of WINTER! Opps....wrong hemisphere. I gotta get in the right mind-set, ya know.

So Happy First Day of Summer.

Forget the Butterflies! I have a dinosaur with wings in my tummy!

2007-06-17T11:46:00.000-07:00

First of all, MEXICO WAS AWESOME! My mom, step-dad, and I had an absolute blast in Rocky Point. I was pleasantly surprised in the stunning beauty of the beach and you could even shop without leaving your towel! Thanks Mom and Dave for such an amazing trip. Love you, both!

With 21 days left of Summer ("AHH!!"), I'm really getting into the home stretch for my trip. The good-byes are starting. I hugged my mommy goodbye at a Phoenix airport, trying not to be boo-boo faced. My planner is filled with last ditch efforts to hang out with friends. Surf outings, BBQ beach parties, movie nights, time with family and country line-dancing are being crammed into a few short days. My friends are starting sentences with "Oh, we need to do this before you leave!" or "Oh, you'll be gone before then."

I'm in a slight nesting period. I feel like if I don't do something right the VERY second I think about it, it will slip my mind to be lost. I've already been to Target three times this week. I have a notebook of reminders and to do lists. I'm driving myself bananas! I just wish the huge-o Tyrannosaurus Rex with wings, that lives in my stomach, would go away.

Life in a Suitcase

2007-06-03T15:24:00.000-07:00

I'm getting into the home stretch with 5 weeks left until my departure (technically, it's less then a month with my week-long trip to Mexico with my mom and step-dad).
I've started to kinda, sorta pack. Instead of doing the typical "switching closets" (aka winter clothes to spring clothes), I'm throwing everything I want to take to NZ on our spare bed. Now, I repeat, everything I WANT to take....not everything I'm going to need. How do you pack your life into two large suitcases (that need to weigh under 50 lbs.)? So far, just my shoes fill a large suitcase.

My friend, Kristin, is an avid world traveler, including a extended time spent in Europe. She's offered (or did I recruit?) her services as my "official packer-helper". She's already looked at me and offered the tip of "Do you honestly need four pink sweaters?" My thoughts are: YES, because they are all different and special...and I know somewhere during my trip I will think to myself "I wish I had pink sweater #3 for tonight!" But that's sacrifice.

So, my question to you is: Any packing tips? I already have the vacuum seal bags that you squeeze all the air out. I know to wear my heaviest stuff on the plane (sweat pants, uggs, sweatshirt, black ski jacket....it's going to be a warm drive to LAX in July, but at least I'll be toasty in NZ!). I want to know the BEST tips and tricks. For example, my dad's co-worker offered the advice of FedEx-ing my undergarments and speedos ahead of time...it would $ but save alot of space.

So, whatca got?

Welcome!

2007-05-25T15:09:00.000-07:00

Hi! Welcome to Casey's Spot! I started this blog so while I'm 6,000 miles away, I can stay in touch with family and friends.

My trip is OFFICIAL! I will be aboard United Flight#839 on July 9th, 2007. I purchased my airfare today for a steal of $660 bucks! I couldn't believe it. AAA helped, too. I decided a one-way ticket was my best option, encase I wanted to come home/stay longer/emergencies/wanting to head to Australia or Fiji.

So, you are probably asking, "How is Miss OC Bubble child making a trip of a lifetime to New Zealand?" Well, my boss at El Modena recently move to New Zealand in January to be closer to family. He ended up receiving a job as the Wellington Aquatics Developmental Officer and within a week he was sending me emails asking me to jump the Pacific and come over. Being a recent college grad (WEE!), I thought to myself "Hey, why not? I don't want a *real* job anyways" and the trip was on!

It looks like I will be living in Kilbirine, a county of Wellington (Wellington is at the southern tip of the North Island). My job is pretty much what I have been doing for almost 10 years. I will be teaching swimming lessons and incorporating water polo into these lessons. The set up is exactly the way Australian Swim School was, so the format should be pretty familiar. I do have to be re-trained to understand their teaching style, which I'll be doing till the 16th of July, when classes start.

I have to admit...I'm really nervous. I've always wanted to travel (Semester at Sea, Study Abroad) but I never had the opportunity. I've never left the county and outside of a few 3-day trips with friends, have never been away from my parentals (I didn't even have a passport until a few weeks ago). I'm excited, too. To meet new people, be in a whole new place, and to even be working again.

I'm sure you have a ton of questions so I have included some links to some very informational websites:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wellington
http://www.wellington.govt.nz/
http://youtube.com/watch?v=L9AckrrC7Wo (great YouTube video that tours Wellington)

Please continue to check back on a regular bases, especially while I'm in New Zealand. I will post as many pictures as I can of my place of work, my flat, the city, and new friends. You can also drop me an email at cbfinnegan@hotmail.com and prayers are always accepted. :)

LOVE YOU ALL!

Casey's Spot

*sings* They say it's your Birthday!

My Dearest Love....

Ahhhhhhh....

Bondi makes me homesick...

A stands for AWESOME!

G'day Mate!

The time...

*Drum roll please!*

Brrr....

Joining the ranks!

Down to the wire...

Humph.....

Shake, Rattle, and Roll....

I'm a slacker...

Happy Easter...

Goodbye....

Really Disappointed.....

WOW!

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change.....

Hey You!

It's only Wednesday?!?!

Happy V-day!

We're jammin'! And I hope you like jammin' too!

Better then Buffett?!?

"Seven? Seven of what???"

Talk about EYE CANDY!

Walking in a cyclone is REALLY good exercise!

*sings* It's a beautiful day. Not a cloud in sight...

Pictures!

Glorifed Babysitting!

The weekend of Free!

EVERYONE LISTEN UP!!

Can't beat a Sunny Day in Wellington...

Mellow time.

Moved IN!

Merry Christmas!

Rockin' and Rollin'

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles...oh yea, and Ferries! (The South Island)

WoooWhooo!

I won't be living on the streets of Welly!

RIP Dorothy!

Beckham Fever!

We're all going Crazy!

Don't cry for me California!

Gobble! Gobble!

Just a quick update:

ROADTRIP!

4th of July in November?

BOO!!

What a beautiful day....

Ohh, the insanity!

Are you on fire, again?!?

Do'h!

What a GREAT day!

Make Money Money!

Anything bigger then a few inches is a SNAKE!

$40 for Mexican food....

Rain. Rain. Go away. Come again....NEVER!

Buffett words to get ya by!

Awww....

Forever Young.

Pictures Galore!

*sings* We're having a heat wave....

Can you feel it??

I'm a photo takin' machine!

The Accidental Day-OFF!

An International Perspective on September 11th.

"TOUCHDOWN!!" "No, he tried" "He tried for what?"

So....tired....Must...Zzzz!

Father's Day....in September?

Make your CLAIM!

Stupid Casey Moments

Some odds and ends!

I feel like I should be an Aleve commerical.

Answered Prayers!

The Pringles War Continues!

Del Taco...STAT!

A new level of hatred for cold toilet seats!

Quote of the Night

sings They say it's your Birthday!

Drum roll please!

sings It's a beautiful day. Not a cloud in sight...

sings We're having a heat wave....

sigh An evening off....FINALLY!

This is it..... tear