1st of March is the official start of autumn. The early mornings certainly have an autumnal
look and feel about them, but by 8.30am, normal service has resumed and summer
continues. The day temps are still in the mid 20s and it has been declared the
sunniest summer on record for the whole country. We have had about 2 days of
rain in 3 months, and today we ordered a delivery of water. This became
inevitable when Lisa’s mum and dad arrived and the washing machine got a lot
more use then it normally does. We have one of the newest washing machines on
the market, with a 5 star rating for water economy, but even the shortest wash,
uses over 60 litres of water.
The good weather is great for our business as the sunny days
encourage people to go for a bike ride.
I have parted company with job number 11 (tutor in Alt Ed)
and gone back to full-time wheelie work. This has proved to be a good move so
far. I have also been booked by the geography department of Garin College to go
on a fieldtrip to Wellington in early April. I hope to pick up more relief work
in the winter, when our bike business goes quiet. We have a few groups doing
cycling holidays in March, so I hope the good weather continues.
Lisa and I decided we needed something to make us focus and
do some structured bike training. We have had a summer of snatching an hour or
so here or there, to do some exercise. We have entered a local event called the
Graperide. It starts and finishes at a winery near Blenheim and follows a 101km
route, taking in Queen Charlotte drive
(scenic but very hilly). It has done the trick, as each ride now has a purpose.
We only have 4 weeks before the event so we won’t be setting any speed records;
just completing the course will be an achievement.
At home, the chooks and llamas seem happy enough. Our supply
of grass in the padocks had come to an end due to the dry and hot weather, so
our neighbours kindly opened the fence between their paddocks and ours, so the
llamas now graze their paddocks also. This also helps them as they don’t have
animals to graze their fields, since one of their alpacas tragically died and
they decided not to keep any more livestock.
Bonnie continues to enjoy life, roaming around in her little
piece of heaven………….just the same as her owners!
