Monday, July 28, 2008

A busy weekend despite the weather

So as everyone has seen from view out their windows the weather is an absolute shocker at the moment - the cold I can almost handle - but when you combine the cold with the rain and your main mode of transport is putting one foot in front of the other it can lead to some rather unpleasant times.

But despite this, Rich and I still managed to get out and about a bit over the weekend. On Friday night we managed to see the first play we have seen in months and months - it was at BATS and it was called "The Mall" and it was really amazing. It was about all the characters that exist in the Mall - the post ladies that work at trade aid, the geek at the war hammer store and the dodgy kids that hang about shoplifting. But it was mainly focused on one character called "Dean" who has been working in the cinema for about eight years and has had enough of the Mall and his @#$% of a boss and everything else. He meets a slightly Crazy Chinese girl in the food court of the Mall and they plan a Mall Massacre. It was a really awesome play - glad we went to see it.

On Saturday we went to meet Nankz for a coffee at Te Papa and then went to see our second film festival film "Donkey in Lahore" which was the amazing story of a kind of "outcast" Australian Puppeteer who meets a girl in Pakistan and decides that she is the one for him. It's a documentary from when he converts to Muslim through to their marriage which appeared to be a rather long and draw out process - full of Visa's and cultural differences, but it had some pretty hilarious moments. I would say it's one of the best films I've seen in a long time so if you can rent it!

The night I went over to Kat's for another "Clothes Swap" party and managed to get rid of a few things and gain a few things. I did manage to gain to floaty summer dresses but suspect that people were getting rid of them as they feel as if they will never feel the sunshine again!

Later on Saturday night Ross and Shelly came over for dinner, so Rich cooked the mains - Burritos and I cooked a "Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding" for the first time in years in years. Took me back to uni days when Ross, Craig and I were flatting together and we would make chocolate self saucing puddings on a pretty much weekly basis - usually at about 11pm or so in the evening (oh for the days when having to be at class by 9:00am was REALLY early!).

Sunday it rained and rained and rained so it was such an "inside day" but I did make my first ever set of juggling balls on the "vintage" sewing machine my mum bought me. It's a pretty cool machine but it does weigh a tonne and it is slightly weird as it has no foot pedal, instead you use your knee to work it. If you can sew you may be thinking "weird" if you don't sew you most likely have no idea what I am talking about!

We rounded off the weekend with another film festival film - this time it was a Spanish film called "Timecrimes" heading is kind of lame but the film was really awesome. But I won't even attempt to explain it as it involved a LOT of time travel and was very confusing at some points.

So that was my weekend - nasty weather shall not prevent me from taking in the culture of the city OR obtaining free clothes.

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

My Birthday Partay!

For my birthday I decided that I wanted to have a "Gothic Tea Party" this year - basically I wanted to have a tea party with a Gothic/horror theme.

When you entered the house for the party you encountered in the hall way Rich's master piece of installation art which included my zombie doll and the TV with strange inverted images when you walked past - oh and a tree with lots of cobwebs and a spider...creepy;)








The food at the party was also creepy as you can see from the photos - Rich and I made some zombie cookies and cupcakes. But mum also helped out with ALL sorts of food! I also had help from Fiona who made some cupcakes and Ange who made an awesome vampire cake.
Strangely enough with all these sweets around sandwiches were the winners on the day, people couldn't get enough of them.







Now for the photo's of the guests - admittedly some people made more of an effort with their costumes than others but I guess it is a big ask to get grown adults to dress up in horror theme in the middle of the day!





















Later on when the guests had all left - Rich and I taking crazy spooky photo's with the inverted images on the TV.




Lastly a look at Rich's zombie brains - which are a combination of icing and rolled oats - so completely edible!

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Trip to Matiu Somes Island

So my birthday this year was on a Tuesday - so Rich and I decided to both take the day off work and head over to Matiu Somes Island which I had wanted to visit for AGES!

Anyway for the first time in ages, my birthday was a nice clear summer day, as you can see from these photo's of the waterfront.



Here's a photo taken from the ferry - sky was a bit dark - but it didn't rain!
When you first arrive at Island you are met by a DOC worker who asks you to go to the "Whare Kaiore" to check your shoes for seeds and you back packs for seeds and any other creatures that may be with you. Matiu Somes Island is a bit of a sanctuary for wildlife so obviously they don't want any nasty creatures or plants getting in!
You also get a brief history of the Island - which includes unwell immigrants being kept on the Island in the early days of settlement and "illegal aliens" being kept on the Island during the second world war.
The also used to quarantine stock out on the island at some point in it's history.


There are a few DOC workers that live on site at Matiu Somes Island - so I guess this is their firewood..

Heading up to the highest point of the island to see the view.



The old bunkers on the Island that were built to protect Wellington from a Japanese invasion - apparently after the war the government sold the actual guns to the Japanese for scrap metal. The irony!


Me looking at the DOC map of the Island - totally not posed at all....


Historic Tramway near the light house - the DOC worker didn't actually tell us anything about this when we first arrived on the Island so I have no clue what it was actually used for!


View of the light house - which really could use a new coat of paint...