Saturday, June 16, 2012
Laughing at the sunrise like he's been up all night
In case you missed it, the family and I are spending the Summer in the States. Yes, the whole Summer. We're trying to Avoid winter this year...yes, it's winter in the Southern Hemisphere right now (at least it is in New Zealand, other countries might start winter at some other time).
So far, this has not felt like a vacation. We've been here one week, and fortunately have found a place to live (it's tiny, but it's across the street from the beach); a car (it's old, and not terribly attractive, and I'm hoping it will last the Summer); and a job (for me, Nicole gets to baby sit--sadly, there is not currently a huge demand for pharmacists). I'm starting work on Monday, so it will probably feel even less like a vacation after that.
Here are a couple photos of the sun going down across the street.
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
The Blue Mountains
A 90 minute train ride from Sydney will get you to Katoomba, an art deco town in the Blue Mountains. It is not as well preserved as Napier, but a short walk from town will get you to the Three Sisters.
Here's Jancie in a very good mood in a hut at the bottom of the rainforest. The good mood was a welcome change from the night before when she cried for two hours...we got scared (and didn't want to get thrown out of our beautiful B&B, so we decided to take her to the hospital. She immediately calmed down in the cab, and was unbelievably happy/healthy looking in the hospital; we got asked at least 10 times if this was our first child. [Read: Why are you Kiwis clogging up our emergency room with your non-problems?]
Saturday, May 19, 2012
World Traveller
It is easier to get from Auckland to Sydney (or really anywhere in Australia) than it is to get from Napier to Auckland. Which makes one wonder why we've been to Auckland 20 times in the last couple of years but never to Sydney.
I took about a thousand photos, so I'm not quite sure where to start. The Opera House is probably as good a place as any. It is the most spectacular building I have ever seen [from the outside...it is very unimpressive inside, except for the concert hall--don't bother with a tour, and put the money towards a concert].
View of Sydney from Taronga Zoo (perhaps the best place to photograph the city).
Here are me and Jancie behind the Opera House. Nico was supposed to be with us, but she was afraid to ask anyone from the group of Asian tourists (with very expensive cameras) to take a picture
View of Sydney from Taronga Zoo (perhaps the best place to photograph the city).
Northland II
I was supposed to be posting something about the birthplace of the nation. I'm so far behind on updates, that I'll make this very brief. First off, it would be a waste of a very long drive to not get out on the water when you're visiting the Bay of Islands. Fortunately, a short ferry ride will take you from the "Mainland" to Russell (the first permanent European Settlement and former Hellhole of the Pacific).
Back on the Mainland, the Waitangi Treaty Grounds are worth a visit. I don't think I took any pictures of the Treaty House, but here's one I snapped of the Marae. Marae look orange when I photograph them...they are always dark inside, so I am never sure if the colours are accurate.
I am fairly certain that Waitangi sits on the best piece of coastal property in New Zealand. Here's a view across the bay to Kerikeri.
Speaking of Kerikeri: Here are New Zealand's oldest wooden structure, oldest stone structure, and a rainbow I tried to photograph from our glamp site.
Monday, April 09, 2012
You must cut down the mightiest tree in the forest with a herring
If there was ever a tree that was designed to live on an uninhabited island, it is most definitely the Kauri. A thousand years ago, they covered the top part of the country; but their wood was so well suited for building (and the land underneath so well suited for farming) that less than 5% of the original forest remains. Furthermore, Kauri roots are so sensitive that if you walk near one, the tree will die; and if they get exposed to Phytophthora taxon Agathis, a fungus that only likes Kauri trees, they die. (Here's a photo of Nico and Janice standing at a safe distance from Tane Mahuta.)
A couple of nights in a luxury tent in Kerikeri is a great way to enjoy the Bay of Island. A luxury tent is like a regular tent, except it has furniture and a refrigerator.
And there's a (rain proof) deck and a view.
Even Jancie didn't seem to mind roughing it.
When I have time, this post will continue with Waitangi and the Hellhole of the Pacific.
If there was ever a tree that was designed to live on an uninhabited island, it is most definitely the Kauri. A thousand years ago, they covered the top part of the country; but their wood was so well suited for building (and the land underneath so well suited for farming) that less than 5% of the original forest remains. Furthermore, Kauri roots are so sensitive that if you walk near one, the tree will die; and if they get exposed to Phytophthora taxon Agathis, a fungus that only likes Kauri trees, they die. (Here's a photo of Nico and Janice standing at a safe distance from Tane Mahuta.)A couple of nights in a luxury tent in Kerikeri is a great way to enjoy the Bay of Island. A luxury tent is like a regular tent, except it has furniture and a refrigerator.
And there's a (rain proof) deck and a view.
Even Jancie didn't seem to mind roughing it.
When I have time, this post will continue with Waitangi and the Hellhole of the Pacific.
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Dear Friends, Family and Colleagues,
It is with some sadness and much excitement that I tender my resignation, effective immediately. I have enjoyed living and working in New Zealand immensely, but have slowly realized:
1) Summers in Hawke’s Bay are too hot
2) Winters are not cold enough
3) There are just too many people here
With these three points in mind, and a strong desire to work in an underserved area, I have purchased the McMurdo Station Pharmacy. I have big plans for the business, and am hopeful that the favourable climate will allow me to fulfil my life long dream of running a pharmacy/ice cream parlour…the cost savings on refrigeration alone make this venture a no-brainer.
Michael B. Lasko, a Real Southern Man
It is with some sadness and much excitement that I tender my resignation, effective immediately. I have enjoyed living and working in New Zealand immensely, but have slowly realized:
1) Summers in Hawke’s Bay are too hot
2) Winters are not cold enough
3) There are just too many people here
With these three points in mind, and a strong desire to work in an underserved area, I have purchased the McMurdo Station Pharmacy. I have big plans for the business, and am hopeful that the favourable climate will allow me to fulfil my life long dream of running a pharmacy/ice cream parlour…the cost savings on refrigeration alone make this venture a no-brainer.
Michael B. Lasko, a Real Southern Man
Friday, March 30, 2012
[Letter to Wells Fargo]
RE Account: xxxxxxxxxx
Dear Sir or Madame,
I have been attempting to resolve this issue over the phone, but the return call I was supposed to be getting from a customer service supervisor has not yet arrived.
Briefly: please credit $58.33 to the above listed account and then close it. The account in question was set up to collect and distribute the assets from my late mother's estate. I suspect that due to the rather large sum of money contained in it at one time, your company changed it to a Portfolio Managed Account...once the money had been disbursed, it began accruing a $30 a month fee.
I would appreciate it if your company would stop calling to ask my deceased mother for $58.33. And my father would probably also appreciate it if you would stop calling him and asking for $58.33, as they have been divorced for over 20 years.
Thank you,
Michael B. Lasko
RE Account: xxxxxxxxxx
Dear Sir or Madame,
I have been attempting to resolve this issue over the phone, but the return call I was supposed to be getting from a customer service supervisor has not yet arrived.
Briefly: please credit $58.33 to the above listed account and then close it. The account in question was set up to collect and distribute the assets from my late mother's estate. I suspect that due to the rather large sum of money contained in it at one time, your company changed it to a Portfolio Managed Account...once the money had been disbursed, it began accruing a $30 a month fee.
I would appreciate it if your company would stop calling to ask my deceased mother for $58.33. And my father would probably also appreciate it if you would stop calling him and asking for $58.33, as they have been divorced for over 20 years.
Thank you,
Michael B. Lasko
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Interrogation at the US Consulate
Consulate Guy: Which one of you is the American?
Nicole: I am.
CG: Where did you go to high school in (looking at passport) San Bernadino?
Nicole: I didn't. My father was in the Air Force. I went to high school in Garden Grove.
CG: (Getting suspicious): What?
Nicole: Garden Grove High.
CG: (Now discovers my passport...wondering why the broad said she was the American) Michael, where did you go to college?
Michael: I went twice. UC Riverside, and Butler University, Indianapolis.
CG: We beat you. (Mutters some reference to having gone to UConn.)
Consulate Guy: Which one of you is the American?
Nicole: I am.
CG: Where did you go to high school in (looking at passport) San Bernadino?
Nicole: I didn't. My father was in the Air Force. I went to high school in Garden Grove.
CG: (Getting suspicious): What?
Nicole: Garden Grove High.
CG: (Now discovers my passport...wondering why the broad said she was the American) Michael, where did you go to college?
Michael: I went twice. UC Riverside, and Butler University, Indianapolis.
CG: We beat you. (Mutters some reference to having gone to UConn.)
Glaciers
When I was a child (or teenagerish), we took a trip to Canada and walked on a glacier. More correctly, we took a giant glacier bus to (and onto) a glacier, then we got out and walked on said glacier. It looked something like this:
New Zealand has a lot of glaciers. I don't know how many...and most of them are only accessible by helicopter or four day hike. But if you don't mind driving (a whole lot of driving), Fox Glacier and Franz Josef Glacier are both easy to get to. Remarkably, there are no giant glacier buses in New Zealand. I say remarkably because this country seems to love highly specialized automotive machinery (and we have the Antarctic Research HQ). [Aside: this country also loves using farm equipment for less specialized automotive uses.
But I digress. After your long drive, you can walk to within a couple hundred metres of either glacier. If you want to walk on the ice, it is required (or maybe not required, but there are several warnings that you will die) to go with a guided tour (around $100 a person for a half day). If you have a little more cash, you can take a helicopter that will land on the ice and let you walk around. And if you are insane, you can jump out of a plane from above either glacier.
This is Fox Glacier from near the sky diving pick up site:
This is about as close as you can get to Fox Glacier without paying for a guide:
It was dark and stormy when we visited Franz Josef Glacier:
When I was a child (or teenagerish), we took a trip to Canada and walked on a glacier. More correctly, we took a giant glacier bus to (and onto) a glacier, then we got out and walked on said glacier. It looked something like this:
New Zealand has a lot of glaciers. I don't know how many...and most of them are only accessible by helicopter or four day hike. But if you don't mind driving (a whole lot of driving), Fox Glacier and Franz Josef Glacier are both easy to get to. Remarkably, there are no giant glacier buses in New Zealand. I say remarkably because this country seems to love highly specialized automotive machinery (and we have the Antarctic Research HQ). [Aside: this country also loves using farm equipment for less specialized automotive uses.
But I digress. After your long drive, you can walk to within a couple hundred metres of either glacier. If you want to walk on the ice, it is required (or maybe not required, but there are several warnings that you will die) to go with a guided tour (around $100 a person for a half day). If you have a little more cash, you can take a helicopter that will land on the ice and let you walk around. And if you are insane, you can jump out of a plane from above either glacier.
This is Fox Glacier from near the sky diving pick up site:
This is about as close as you can get to Fox Glacier without paying for a guide:
It was dark and stormy when we visited Franz Josef Glacier:
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