Week 11

Monday 11^th July

The week starts with a run along the coastline. Lisa and I then go down to the Wharfside, where she practices making coffees and I drink them !

We then go out for a cycle. We go around the course which is being used for this saturday’s club race.

Later, I start getting an application prepared for a youth coach job with a local education trust. Such trusts and jobs do not exist in the UK, but are seen as vital in helping young people connect with qualifications and employment. In keeping with N Ire tradition on the 11th night, Lisa lets me light the fire this evening.

Tuesday 12^th July

We go for a swim in the morning.

Lisa went to work for the lunch-time ‘rush’ (poor weather today, so no rush materialised).

In the afternoon we went to a meeting with a planner at the local council and our planning consultant. The outcome of which would help us decide if we should put an offer on a house. It was a long, technical meeting.

We then go to the library to think over the meeting.

Wednesday 13^th

A cold and wet day. Lisa gets a call to go down to meet the coffee rep. We go down, Lisa talks and makes coffee for an hour and I drink some. We then go up to Motueka to leave in my job application. We stop in Mot so Lisa can get a chance to have a coffee!!

In the afternoon, we go to town to meet the estate agent. We formalise an offer for the house. When our lawyer checks the title of the property, then if everything is OK, the offer will be given to the vendor. If they accept our offer the agreement is binding, unless a building report show up something nasty.

All we can do is wait and see what happens.

In the evening Lisa goes to her class.

Thursday 14^th

^{Another cold sunny day. Lots of snow on the mountain tops on the distant horizon}

 Lisa went to work mid morning and I went to Sport Tasman.

We were both back home by mid afternoon when the estate agent phoned to say our offer on the house had been.....rejected. Oh well so be it, nothing more we can do.

We go out on the bikes for a hilly ride.

Friday 15th

I go to school for a teachers only day. It starts with faculty meeting (involving coffee and cakes). Then some handover stuff with the teacher I am covering for, an IT update session for the whole staff and then the faculty heads off for lunch. A very sociable bunch ! After lunch i get passwords to get onto various systems. Before we leave I arrange to meet with the head of faculty during the holiday (The next 2 weeks) to go over the social studies stuff.

saturday 16th

We view a house in the morning.

This weeks race is only 10 minutes away. It is a circuit course which we have 6 laps to do. Lisa is leading the group until, with one lap to go, cramp strikes and she ends up on the ground at the side of the road. Meanwhile someway back I am doing battle with a couple of young ones, until with one lap to go......I, or should I say my tyre gets a puncture, so my race is also over. 

We head home without any prizes this week (this week was sponsored by a winery )

Lisa heads off to work in the evening.

Sunday 17th

A very harsh frost, but by mid morning it is a pleasant sunny day. Lisa heads off to work. I clean the car and then head off on the mountain bike. I follow an unsealed road along a ridge with great views of the local area. The roads are used by cars, but not many as they are more suited to  4x4s.

Lisa has had a very busy work shift as the weather was so nice lots of people come to the picturesque wharf for lunch.

 This week in the papers Northern Ireland is getting a mention (again)

A national newspaper described the twelfth celebrations in Ulster as a" one -sided celebration of a 17^th century victory of protestants defeating catholics, which usually results in rioting."

 I read it and thought it was one of the most succinct description of the Twelfth I had ever read or heard. NIreland has been on the news quite a lot since we left. From this distance, the future of the province seems precarious.