Been a little while since I’ve updated the blog … trying to get used to this work thing again! Job is going well … now into the swing of it again. Role is more of an infrastructure PM than my old job in Convergys so it’s quite interesting to get involved in the Operations side of telecoms (network performance etc) along with the hardware and infrastructure design around it. Must admit though, I’ve had to come home a couple of times and ask Bobby for explanation of what this LAN or that LAN is …. just as well he’s here really! I’m sure I’ll get used to it all eventually. The technical guys at VF are happy to stop and explain when I start to look a bit confused … they just appreciate the fact that they don’t have to explain the basics of mobile phones/switches etc to me.I have four projects at the moment (although my boss did come up and ask me if I needed anymore today …) so just trying to figure out where they all are as I didn’t get a handover when I started as the last PM had left in a bit of a hurry when she’d gone into labour 9 weeks early in the middle of the office!! Anyway, I’m enjoying the work, the people are really nice and as is the norm with VF, the offices are lovely.
Bobby is due to start his job next week … I think he’s looking forward to it as he’s a bit fed up being a house husband! As those of you who are closest to us know, Bobby and house husband type duties don’t really go …. Although to be fair, he’s managed to unpack all of the boxes from Pickfords and put most of it away. Looks like there has only been one breakage … which isn’t bad considering how far it came …. so we’ll have to try to claim it back from Pickfords. It’s great having all our stuff around us again - makes it feel more like home rather than a holiday.
We’ve spent the last couple of weekends car hunting for me … after having done the commute for the last couple of weeks, we both agreed that an automatic was the way to go as we wouldn’t be able to afford to replace the number of clutches we’d go through with a manual. Manual cars are a bit of a rarity over here and it’s not surprising once you’ve driven into the CBD a couple of times …. Anyway, we test drove an Evo Automatic which was surprisingly very quick but (as Pamela used to say) it’s just wrong! Looked at Skylines, Preludes but settled on the Toyota Altezza so we started looking about for one that ticked all the boxes. Found an RS200 (2 litre saloon) at the other side of the CBD and went to test drive … wasn’t a pleasant experience as it kept cutting out and you can’t bump start an automatic! Took it back to the garage and the guy suggested that we look at the Altezza Gita which is a kind of estate (but much sleaker than a normal estate … looks more like a long hatchback). Took a 3 litre, 4WD out for a test drive and loved it … car was really easy to drive and was quick enough due to the 3 litre. So I am now the proud owner of a white Altezza Gita.
Been driving into town on my own since I got the car and am getting used to the different driving style down here … it’s legal to undertake so you can move about lanes as you like. Took a bit of getting used to but it’s actually much better as you can get passed the middle laners although because everyone drives automatics, there isn’t much space between cars when it’s busy so you have to be a bit cheeky sometimes! We’ve got to get a NZ driving licence before the first year is out so now need to sit my driving theory test so that I can get it … have the book … just need to read it! Should really do it anyway as they have some weird rules around turning right when the person coming towards you is going the same way and I’m still not very sure what I’m supposed to be doing.
There is a bend in the motorway just before the Harbour Bridge and as you come around it, you get a perfect picture of the CBD with the Sky Tower and the Harbour Bridge surrounded by the water and boats and every morning as I come round the bend, I think wow … do I really live here?? It’s a lovely city and it’s great to be here!!
Kyle and Regan are still doing great … Regan has learned to giggle and giggles non stop at everything. She is enjoying her new cot and having furniture in her room at last! Kyle loves having all his toys around him again … downstairs is covered in toys as he just keeps finding things and pulling them out … They learn a new letter in pre-school each week and then have a show and tell on the Friday for things beginning with that letter. He had a lot of fun on Thursday night searching his toys for something beginning with S … in the end he took in Sally, Sherriff, Sarge and Snotrod!
This weekend holds the next traumatic event in my NZ life …. I have to find a new hairdresser!!! I’ve been going to Fiona for so long and she knows me/my troublesome hair so well that the thought of letting someone new loose on my hair is a bit scary! Need to find someone who will put up with a screaming four year old too …. Kyle desperately needs a haircut … not looking forward to that one!
Weather has turned colder … snowing in the South Island …. just a bit colder and wetter here. We had to go out and buy some more radiators for nighttime …. getting a bit worried about the next electricity bill. I think it’s maybe a good thing that we came in the winter to be honest as we now know that we need to find a house with some form of heating when we buy in a few months. Had we come in summer we might have ended up buying something with no form of heating and regretted it.
