Monday, 8 January 2007
10:45 pm
Today has been an at home day. The sunny warm day promised by met service (the weather folks), has turned out to be a lie, and we’ve had a grey chilly day. Lousy weather notwithstanding, I’ve had tea and scones with Trish, a Skype with Paul, and a lovely visit with one of our next door neighbours. The house next to us, the one that faces the sea, is owned as a retreat for the Sisters of Compassion, and introduced ourselves and been neighborly-- brought them baked goods and said we’d look after their house in the stretches when no one is there (as it’s a retreat house and they do their
work elsewhere, primarily Wellington). Today one of the nuns brought us a cabbage and stayed to have the most magical conversation that ranged all over-- about helping people, the soup kitchen (which she manages), compassion, and US politics, and NZ politics and teaching—a lovely mix that brightened my day. Then, when Michael got home, we all walked up the beach to Marianne and Gabriel’s, and had a lovely dinner in the finally-clear evening.
Yesterday the weather was more beautiful, especially in the afternoon, when it was hot enough to put on shorts. I took the major step of putting on my wetsuit and actually venturing into the sea. The water was shockingly cold—I’m not sure I’ve ever willingly put my body into water as cold as that (except briefly, and then only when I’m recovering from a burn). But Naomi and I went out in it anyway (wetsuits are a Very Good Thing) and we stayed for longer than I ever thought possible. I felt cold but not so uncomfortable, until I came back to shore and found myself with feet that started to itch and tingle—they had been numb with cold and I 
hadn’t much noticed. Ah, life in sunny
Here are pictures from the weekend. You'll see Naomi with horses (she spent all day Saturday and Sunday in an "own your own pony" program at the stables nearby), two crazy people in the freezing water, and one really lovely dinner at home, last night.
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