The end of May. Three months since that fateful day.So hard to believe. Have made a lot of progress but still a long way to go.Great to have my silt mountains removed .The Lovely Jenny was great to deal with and is doing a great job coordinating the silt removal. Silt has to be the most disgusting material to deal with. It infiltrates every nook and cranny and even when you think it has been washed,wiped,swept,shovelled and removed it appears yet again. Same with the car.What an amazing job the mechanic did in getting the ute going again. Still a few issues but the silt still shows up in the carburettor.Just enough to cause faltering and loss of power.Hopefully it is nearly all gone. Stress levels still fluctuate.Little things flick a switch and the biggest frustration has been corporates and their accounts. If things don't suit their bill system they can only give you a nice phone reponse with trained responders who dance around the problem and don't forget your conversation may be recorded so all will be well in your life. Time for another day in the world of flood land.

Us Humans

We love our pets. They become part of our lives and part of the family. When the day comes to say goodbye the emotions ebb and flow,overcome at times and guide us through what can be a rough time. To my beloved dog ,mate, friend ,companion,I salute you and say goodbye. We went through so much and you helped me survive. You were calm when I was distraught.You cuddled and nuzzled me at times where emotions were most extreme ,judgement was waverig,changes were traumatic. Who could believe you were placed in danger this year when the flood swamped our home, invaded our space and floated your kennel away from its key placement. You woke me up and alerted me of the rising water.All action until we stood on the landing watching the choppers rescue our friends and neighbours. To leave you was devastatig and another part of the trauma. Well you made a new friend in Matt even though he was chocolate! You had some new hard case habits. Never bought you enough apples. I have missed you since the flood and will miss you even more now.I had hoped to bring you back home to once again chase the rats and sniff out the appples in winter. Always with me.

Called in to see some flood friends yesterday. Have to say I was quite shocked myself when I saw them and Mr friend was looking bewildered and stunned some two months down the track. Their house which was a beautiful old two storied house with many lead light windows had had water up to the second floor.The ceiling was plaster and had begun to sink after the soaking. The worst part was that the cowboys that came in to remove the gib linings ,had exceeded their brief.They had removed doors and windows unnecessarily and the bottom story was a nightmare for rebuilding. Silt had accumulated under decking and would be hard to remove. I believe these guys acted under the orders of an insurance company and it is an example of so many approaches from bodies that don't really know what to do.

February 2023. After passing go on the first and entering another year with hope and anticipation things started ,or continued, down the path of La Nina and the weather pattern gave us further cause for worry. We were not prepared for the significant event that hit us .Those living in my local area had never experienced this type of event in a lifetime although Cyclone Bola came close. Gabrielle was something else. It came with persistant rain. Easterlies often hit us with this continual rain but this was different.The rain was heavy and continied for hours. I actually had to go down stairs to sleep.The noise in my room was such that I couldn't lie there and relax or even try to sleep.I was wondering how my mate was getting on in his kennel.I knew he was sheltered from the East but this one had me worried. Maybe it had eased by daylight I can't remember .I had some breakfast about 7 am.Went back to my bed upstairs and went to sleep. About 9 am my mate started a strange bark.I went downstairs and looked outside. The blood started pumping. Water was flowing past Ollies kennel and he was wondering what on earth was happening.So was I. I rushed out and bought him inside.I was wide awake by now.

Eight Years

Can't believe 8 years have gone by since I last made a post. That eight years contained a mountain of happenings and here we are in a different time, a worrying time, a time that is dragging the country down in to an abyss. For me personally , a shift from an impossible postion to one of more stability .More stability at a time the country is in turmoil. It is going to be worth noting developments for historical purposes , at least from my perspective. I am grateful I can carry on working and feel sorry for those with small businesses who are feeling the full effects of being closed down. A cruel blow for many.

Paxies

Talking about Paxies , what a Napier icon. Many times the option for a great feed after an evening around town was fish and chips from Paxies Restaraunt. The other place that has disappeared was the dairy come ice cream sundae just along from Paxies .It always seemed to be a mile walking down to the back of this place and then slipping in to the cosy seats where you could squeeze six friends and share a straw to devour a devine ice cream sundae. Yummmmmmmmmm

Napier Looking Good

So much going on in Napier. The new buildings appearing around town are looking great and the parade continues to provide lots of action particularly for the kids. I was so sad to see the wonderful building on the corner of Hastings and Dickens St piled up in a mess of concrete rumble. Started work in the old Post Office building opposite and as with the PO building and Paxies restaurant all were part of the scene growing up in Napier .