Party, Party, Party!

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Many may wonder what happened to the Robbins since their South Island adventure. Well, we have been fitting in a lot of routine stuff in the months of January through March. The South Island Trip ended mid January. Since that time, summer came into full swing, and when not working or schooling we have tried to enjoy the local outdoor life. For me, that occurred mostly on the week ends. Because there is no free lunch, I had to pay for my NZ raising. I have covered 15 call days in a short period of time and managed to squeeze in 15-20 CME hours. Sarah and the kids have been equally as busy. School has started back. Grace has been attacking homework tenaciously. Ben’s curriculum includes Photography and Oceanography. Sometimes he wears shoes to school and sometimes not. If I am reincarnated, I hope I get a chance to go to one of these schools. Actually, I am. Every day is a school day at work. I have had the good fortune to be regular crew on the race boat Extreme during the first and second summer series. We finished 3rd overall. My Wednesday nights will never be the same.

(Sarah - The day we came home from the South Island was Ben’s 16th birthday. Needless to say it was uneventful. We rode the ferry and then had a 7 ½ hour road trip back to Tauranga. His birthday dinner consisted of chicken nuggets on the ferry and a McDonalds stop just outside of Wellington. We promised to make it up to him when we got home. It was decided that we would celebrate with Keenan and Alisa at their house in Mt. Maunganui. After dinner, Kennan, Alisa and Ben entertained with some Aussie folk songs. They tried to get Grace to sing but instead she chose to be Alisa’s official page turner. They also presented Ben with a 3 volume CD downloaded with some of their favorite Aussie music. One of our favorite songs is ‘Wobbly Boot’. It is sure to become a classic on Z dock. The next night, we celebrated again with our friend Mary at one of Ben’s favorite restaurants in the Mount.)

In February, we attended a sunrise ceremony of the Anniversary of the signing of a treaty between the Maoris and the British, known as Waitangi Day. The history of the Maori somewhat parallels the history of the American Indian. Therefore, this anniversary is not always a collegial celebration. Various religious and community dignitaries spoke. The Maori political leaders seemed more genuine to me and spoke of healing. Some of the others seemed to be pandering to the occasion and were using it to mine for votes in their next election. I was reminded of a quote by Confucius, “Artful speech and an ingratiating demeanor are rarely accompanied by virtue.” Actually, I think of that quote every time I am subjected to a political speech. The ceremony ended with an always impressive Haka (Maori War Dance). (Sarah - The Maori who took part in the ceremony RAN up the mountain. They are in fantastic shape even though some look pretty big. At this particular performance, there were several young boys who were clearly learning. They are very serious about the Haka and it was meaningful to watch the youngs ones learn from their elders.)

During the same week, we celebrated the birthday of our friend Keenan. We had a good barbeque on the beech. Keenan is a fearlessly proud Australian, and I think part of his mission in life is to educate neophytes like us. Either that or he likes Sarah’s cooking. He coaches Ben some, on surfing. On that day, we played a little cricket. (Sarah - Cooking out at the beach has become one of our favorite things to do here. However, it has become a standing joke that I always leave part of my food at home. This day was no exception and I managed to get over to the beach with only one of the three dishes I made. Thanks to Alisa and her salads, we had just enough to eat. At least I didn’t forget Keenan’s birthday cake! The after dinner cricket match was fun, although I still don’t understand the game. I do like the fact that if you manage to hit it across a certain line on the field, you are not required to run. You just get to keep batting! Grace became very good at finding that line. I think she had a dozen ‘at bats’. Ben gave Keenan a collection of his favorite songs on CD. Later, they told us one that they enjoyed was ‘Goodbye Earl’ by the Dixie Chicks.)

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