Garden Parties

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Ok, so the title is going to be half accurate for this blog. The pictures you get to see are thanks to the photographic talents of Kate and the miracles of the interwebnet-thingy. Hence the pictures littered through the blog are of the many hilarious and important team building parties that the Hippo crew took part in over the last few weeks. Linked to gardening they are not, but the rest of my blog will be. Amoung the highlights of the pictures is the myself and the claire wrestling over the right to look most stupid, a harmonious balcony choir serenading (rather savagely) the fellow hippo lodge inhabitants and claires foray into the world of dreadlocks (this world is still a reality too).

Otherwise, life plods on. My time last week was taken up with as grand re-styling of the bits of the hippo lodge garden that nobody ever goes to see. The benefit of the work therefore could be questioned but was approached with good nature and lots of sweat which fast morphed into back pain (the same as when I was off at Homebase Mum - woops), such back pain. Anyway the results were 4 or 5 trees felled and chopped up and taken off to the recycling dump ($10/kg or something over here to dump garden waste - madness), lots of hedge and thorny bushes removed, and also a small patch of sun on the camp area which those trees had previously been shading...worth the effort? hmmm..Mind you this was a welcome change from my usual leaf sweeping duty (we have two huge trees in the garden whose leaves are just beggining to fall - paul (boss) delights in reminding me i'll get to sweep them all).

While i'm here also a quick word about The Da Vinci code which i've finally just read...awful. I really only feel it deserves that many words.

Finally news that as of today we should be in possession of a van, that hallowed commodity we always desired. Sadly for the girls Laurel and Kate, they were unsuccessful in selling before leaving NZ, so we picked ourselves up the van, with the idea of selling Frank, forwarding some of that money and then having the van - ace. So pictures of our new aquisition to appear soon.

Claire's the same as ever working the cleaning gig, and reception. Mostly hyperactive and bonkers as usual, and now normaly sporting stripy socks (see pictues) and Ugs (fleecy boots - as gift from the departing girls).

Hope all is well with you folks back home - a few comments wouldn't go amiss.

take care

marc
x

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Photos

The Hippo Choir
Delightful, i'm sure

Marc Off Chair
Overbalance disorder, and in no way alcohol related

Hip Hippos
We just little guys

WrestleMania
My-Gosh Marc -v- Crikey-Worthy Claire. Very English style wrestleing

Dreadly Claire
Attacked by ginger dreads - ahh. Don't worry they are hidden and come out easily - honest..No they are.

Comments

[Terry and Mick's bandwagon of joy]

Dan Brown's sweaty feet
Hi Man Just to add my agreement that the da vinci code is one of the worst books I've ever had the sheer bloody mindedness to read all the way through. I believe its devised from WWII japanese tortoure techniques. Read Faucout's pendulum by Umberto Eco, its like a good de vinci code. I like the singing picture, very 90s grunge band. Tell the ginga to get a hair cut, or die it, the humanity!

[hi fed]

theorem 50
oh, pictures of you sprawled, trying desperately to hold onto the ground sure do bring back memories dude. i hope you got up, slapped yourself about a bit and got on with the intake of more of the good stuff. at least da vinci code is a little more interesting airport book than miss D. Steel's offerings. but then there isn't as much roger bravoing in mr. Brown's pages. two sides to every coin i guess. tippety top, over and out.