Hi Ho, Hi Ho it is off to work I go

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Hello there folks,
We are settled in Wellington for the next three weeks (specifically until the 13th of February). Abby will be doing a contemporary dance workshop and I will be picking up temporary work as a labourer. I have my first assignement tomorrow (Saturday) at 7am. I will be moving furniture for the outstanding wage of NZ$10.50/hr. When I do the math I think that is about as much as I made at Light & Motion. No no just kidding that is a whole lot less money. I realize I will not be making my next fortune here in New Zealand but at least I will have something to do. If my luck is good I will get an assignment on a constuction site at which time I will have to buy steel toed boots and the company I work for will give me a hard hat and an orange vest, cool huh!

Now for something completely different:
Arachnocampus Luminosa is not actually a worm though it does most definitely glow. In all actuality the famed glow worm of New Zealand is the larval stage of a very short lived fly (females 24 hours, males 2 to 3 days). That makes it in all senses a glow maggot!

Now for something completely different:
Wellington is a truly cool city. Kind of like San Francisco if you zapped it with a shrinking ray. No the buildings and people are not smaller the whole foot print is just smaller. The people even have that same trendiness that SFers have simply be being not trendy. I know that doesn't make sense but if you have been to or live in SF you now what I mean. Last night Abby and I walked to teh botanical gardens which are very close to our flat for one of the nightly summer music concerts. As we approached the ampitheater at the bottom of the park (there are a lot of hills in Wellington) we were welcomed to a sweet view of hundreds of people chillin' out grooving on some funky emo surf rock music. We had no idea that was what we would find and we were thrilled at the spectacle. It was right then that we realized (or rembered) why one travels.

The whole goal of traveling is to engage the unexpected and smile at the surprises both good and bad.

On our way home from the concert we stopped by the observatory for a chance to glimpse the cosmos through a telescope. Alas the sky had filled with clouds and there was not a very good show up there. We will certainly return on a clearer night or maybe a cloudy one as they also have a planetorium show.

Now for something completely different:
If anyone is truly interested in opening a Mexican restauran or chain of restaurants I think we could do great here. Three locations, Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch. We would model it on Burrito Real in Mountain view and we would keep the prices down. I think we could spark a Mexican food revolution in this country. If that doesn't appeal to anyone I am also interested in setting up a Wings to Go franchise...Mmmm Buffalo Wings. Any takers?

Now for something completely different:
I did have the stomach flu a few days ago. I am better now. I lost a significant amount of weight, however, my appetitie is now back and stronger than ever. This one seemed to miss Abby entirely so she was able to take great care of me.

And now to farewell you (that's what the signs say when you leave a town in New Zealand):
Wellington is by far one of the best branded cities I have been to. Everything that is city related from meter maids and their tickets to public works vehicles to bill boards have written in a font a cannot reproduce here, " Absolutely Positively Wellington". I don't know why, but I get a kick out of it every time I see it.

Well that's all for now from Absolutely Positively Abby and Benji

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Comments

[Josh]

Ummm...buffalo wings. You must be feeling better.