Back to School

I am sometimes shocked at some of the things that I have to deal with as an adult - things that I thought I said goodbye to when I left highschool. For example... I received an invite to an exclusive "back to school social gathering". "Exclusive" in the sense that only a select number of people were invited - an important detail that was stated on the very first line of the invitation. I felt very awkward and uncomfortable receiving this. I didn't know what to do. Since I generally believe the expression "the more the merrier", I don't fare well with situations like this. I never like being left out of things so I do my best to be as inclusive as I can. (side-note: I will admit that I still struggle with this one, but have come a long way since my childhood antics)

So anyways... after humming and hawing about what to do, I decided not to go. Maybe not the best idea "politically" but I decided to be a bit selfish and do something for myself - do what I wanted to do this weekend - go camping and relax, and stay away from the awkward politics of who was invited and who wasn't invited to this party.

A spontaneous conversation with Kelly evolved into a plan to meet up for an evening of camping in the Sounds. And what a lovely time it was! We met in Anakiwa and hiked a short 30 minute hike into Davies Bay. It wasn't until after we arrived and were setting up the tent that I discovered this was Kelly's first official "tramping/camping" experience. She did very well - especially considering her bag weighed nearly twice what mine did (something I didn't realize until afterward) and she didn't complain once! lol...



We spent the afternoon chilling out in the quiet of the bay catching up on some reading and some sun. Dinner took a wee while to prepare since we were borrowing Nisrene's camp stove which only has one tiny little pot to go with it. The pasta was well-worth the wait and was made particularly delicious from the Chop Chop Chicken (canned chicken) that Kelly had brought along. Definitely a yummy addition to the camping menu!




The next morning I woke early to a beautiful view out the tent with just a small whisper of clouds hanging low in the Sounds.



After a yummy bowl of oatmeal I set off to do my long-run for the week. I started off running the 3km back to my car to switch into my trail runners and grab my running pack. On the return, I met up with a girl named Stef who was out for a run. Stef is just finishing up a 3.5 year contract with Outward Bound which is based out of Anakiwa, and she is taking the next few weeks to relax and do the things that she enjoys like running, kayaking and biking before starting a new job with Horizons which is based out of Christchurch. She was super nice and it was great to have someone to run with for a few kms and make some conversation with.


When Stef turned around to head home, I had the next 16km out to Mistletoe Bay and back to run all by myself. At first it was ok, and then it got horrible. All I could think about was when I would be finished. But after a while, I settled into my pace and really started to enjoy it. It's funny how that happens. Often times it takes a good many kms before you hit this point, but once you reach it, you feel like you are in some sort of meditative state and you could run for hours on end. It's amazing how much thought processing can take place while in this state and how much mental planning one can accomplish!



I can't remember everything that my brain managed to cover throughout the 25km, 2hr 50 min total that I was out for, but I do remember thinking about how I could blog about it. And thinking about blogging made me start to think about how it's time for me to rename my blog. If I recall correctly, the last time I renamed it was when I graduated university and it was given the title "A New Beginning"... Oh wait... maybe that was after Andrew and I broke up? Well, either way, it has been through a few different name changes over the years and I figure this "New Adventure" that I embarked upon last year when moving to NZ is no longer "new". I had a whole slew of ideas at the time that I was thinking about it, and now I can't remember any of them. But regardless, I didn't like any of the ones I could come up with. If anyone has any suggestions for me, I'd be happy to hear from you!

Blog to Book

Oooooh!!! I am so super stoked! Last night I discovered this totally awesome program that will help me to convert my blog to a book (something I've been thinking about doing for quite some time and amplified by the fact that I wanted some way to summarize and preserve the past year of my life in a sort of photo-album type thing).

I was originally planning to use a web-based program (the same one that I used to make mom and dad's calendar) - called Shutterfly. However, I found that it was very limited in terms of how much text I could input since it's more catered to photo-books so it didn't seem like it was going to suit my needs. Plus, the idea of having to cut and paste a year's worth of blog entries seemed a wee bit daunting, to say the least.

So after a few quick google searches, my solution was found. It's called Blurb Booksmart and is a truly intelligent program! After downloading and installing it on your computer it's simply a matter of clicking through the steps, selecting your blog publisher from a list, entering your username and password, and waiting 20 or 30 minutes while it downloads every single entry and every single photo into the program.

Now, I still need to spend a bit of time tailoring it and tweaking it to my liking, but so far I REALLY like what I see.

I am amazed at what programs exist out there today. You can find just about anything on the internet when you look for it!

Embarassing Moment

I almost forgot to post about this one!

I had, what I would call one of the most embarassing experiences I have had in a REALLY long time, happen to me today.

When I went for my run this morning I took my hostel keys with me. I left the rest of my keys behind since they are far too big and bulky to carry with me. When I got back, I jumped in the shower, and when I returned back to my room to get dressed, I discovered that I had locked myself out. I had forgotten that my room keys were separate from the rest of my keys and they were now locked inside my room.

No problem! I'll just knock on Carolyn's door and get her to let me in. Oh wait... she left early this morning to babysit.... Oh... crap!... I'm locked out! And there's no way for me to get in. AND I'M STANDING HERE IN MY TOWEL!

My only hope was finding someone in the office that could help me out. But when I walked across to the main wing I was greeted by a locked door which meant no one was here yet. The only other option was for me to find John, another supervisor, and hope he had a key to get in. Since John's room is inside the locked wing that I was trying to get into, I had to walk OUTSIDE (in my towel) and around to the other side where I could knock on his door directly.

Oh man... what an embarssing situation to be in.

Lucky for me, John had not left for work yet and was still there. Even luckier for me was the fact that the locks in the hostel are so simple that a key he had on his key-ring actually worked in my door.

Phew!

But oh man... how embarassing!!!

Back to School

Today was my "first official" day back to school. It was a "Teacher Only" day so it was pretty cruizy. I must say, I was not pleased having to set my alarm and be woken up so early (whine whine... I know!!), and ended up hitting snooze an embarassing number of times. However, I still managed to haul my butt out of bed by 7am and got out for a quick 5km run to start my day.

The day was fairly uneventful. When I contrast it with the equivalent first day last year, I feel like I'm in an entirely different headspace. I feel like I'm a seasoned veteran. Like I know all the ropes. Today was not a case of brain overload. What a nice feeling! It still looks like it's gonna be another busy year, but I'm ready to take it on.

A couple of days ago I was trying pretty hard to switch my 102 class for another one that I taught last year to make less prep work for me. However, after looking at my rolls I discovered that this class has a number of my "favourite" Year 10 students from last year. And by "favourite" I mean "troubled pain-in-the-butts". However, I do believe that the pain/stress/anxiety/frustration that I suffered from these students, eventually translated to a bond that showed them that I cared. As a result, I think that things might go a whole lot differently with these girls this year. Oooooh! And the skateboarding student that I blogged about in December is also in this class! It's like I was MEANT to be their teacher! (lol...) After mulling over this one, I've decided that I can't give this class up and will just have to deal with having to do the extra planning.

One other note-worthy thing to talk about is the fact that one of my DPs was diagnosed with breast cancer at the end of last year and had a masectomy over the holidays. This woman is soooo remarkably strong that she was back at school this week, looking as glamorous as always, and is ready to take things on. I chatted with her for a bit yesterday when I was at the school and we yarned about the cliche statement "things that don't kill you only make you stronger". Today she gave a really great intro in our staff meeting and eloquently stated that this is what she calls her "year to beat the bastard". What a remarkable woman!

Yet Again...

On a side-note: I got my hair cut today - this one makes 4 for 4 bad hair cuts.

I went in for a trim - to tidy up some of the crazy layers and to thin my hair out as I try to grow it again. I came out with, yet again, another bad hair cut.

I'll leave it at that. No tears today at least. I think I'll resort back to wearing my hat for the next few days. Too bad I can't wear it when I start back to work.

Oh well...

A Chance Encounter? Likely Not...

I didn't write about this experience when it happened, but a couple of weeks ago I showed up to the evening church service and sat myself down beside a girl that was sitting on her own. That girl looks close to me in age... and she's sitting by herself... why would I sit in a pew all by myself??? "Is it ok if I join you here?" I asked. She shifted over slightly to make room.

We didn't say much to one another that evening until the end of the service when Peter, in true Peter style, decided to mix things up a bit and get us to move closer to those around us to pray about some issues that he had just talked about. My God! What is he doing??!! I don't know how to pray out loud WITH someone! Thinking that he had just forced me into an extremely uncomfortable situation, I reacted by stating "Well... I'm not in the practice of praying out loud in front of people, so I'll let you lead this one." "No problem", she responded, "no pressure at all", which she followed up with a reassuring laugh.

Anywho... this girl's name is Donna-Marie and it turns out that she's also a teacher. Just moved to Blenheim from Greymouth and will be starting to teach at a small rural school in Koromiko which is just outside of town. Apparently she already knew quite a bit about me when I sat down beside her since she had met with Susan earlier in the week and learned that there was another young female teacher that was new to the church.

So yeah... needless to say, I was very excited to meet her!

Tonight I attended another small group session at Susan's place and Donna-Marie came along too. The featured topic was based upon a video by Rob Bell (part of his Nooma series) called "Rain". Interestingly enough, I had already seen this video online after Rob (Thomson) had sent me the link while we were working through some of our "Christianity Crisis" thoughts through email. I didn't mind having to watch it again though.

It's amazing to hear this guy speak about the love he has for his son. Inspiring really. Touching also. Makes me ponder what it feels like to experience the unconditional love that parents feel for their children. Pretty awesome!

In this video he talks about a time when he was out for a walk with his infant son on his back. He described it as one of those moments you just want to freeze in time since it was so beautiful. Just the two of them, in the natural beauty that surrounded them. But then, it started to rain, and the rain came pouring down, and his son began to cry. All he could think about doing was protecting his son and making sure that his son felt safe and loved. He had the situation in control. He WAS protecting his son and he WAS assuring him that he was loved and that all would be ok. A wonderful analogy to us and the "protection and love" that we are offered through our "father", God.

Afterwards I got a lift home from Donna-Marie and we got talking about good books. I told her about a book by Rob Bell that I had just read called Velvet Elvis and how I really really liked it. Since she's a huge reader, she was keen to borrow it from me. Conversation continued, and more than a half-hour later I was finally saying goodnight to her.

I think it's pretty cool how certain people are introduced into our lives at various times. I truly believe that these encounters are more than just "chance meetings"...

Sort of Settling Into Things

I pulled another "Dean Karnazes" move today - I ran some errands while out for my morning run. Although my body is nowhere near as sore as I thought it would be after Sunday's ginormous run (read: not sore at all), my legs still feel kind of heavy. So needless to say, I wasn't super keen on getting going this morning. However, following my new rule of at least putting my shoes on and stepping outside, I decided to give it a "go". Throwing my pack on my back, and throwing in a few essentials like my wallet, camera, and water bottles, I was off.

First stop: Mitchell Sports. Checked out their discount clothing rack. No luck though... No deals to be found.

Second stop: The Blue Door. Picked up a fruit bowl for the bargain price of $4. Managed to squeeze it into my pack for the run home.

What a satisfying feeling. Will have to see what other errands I can "run" while out running...

This afternoon I went to the school and spent some time sorting through some school stuff. I can't believe it's almost time to go back. I must say, I'm looking forward to the routine. It's been a really bizarre feeling having summer holidays here. I feel like I don't know what to do with my time or where to go next. Although I have made lots of friends here, it's not the same as at home where I can simply call up one of my girlfriends and plan a trip to someone's cottage or organize a random girlie gathering.

So yeah... I guess you can say that I've been feeling a bit "lost".

The other day I spent a few hours visiting with Gemma in the afternoon. We walked her dog, Holly, along the river and engaged in some interesting conversation. It turns out that Gemma has been experiencing very similar feelings and we both took comfort in knowing that we weren't alone in feeling "lost".

After more reflection on this I'm realizing that a big part of it has to do with my career. You see, as a teacher (and a beginning one at that) my life is consumed by my job. I spend many of my waking hours thinking about, worrying about, stressing about, talking about, laughing about, getting excited about (etc... etc...) my students. I feel as if I am somewhat defined by my title of "teacher". The intense workload that is associated with it helps me to determine how I spend my days. But... when summer holidays pop up, I am all of a sudden hit with this crazy feeling of uncertainty - what to do next? What to focus my attention on? After a full year of going at Mach 3, it's like getting hit with this extremely squishy "wall" of freedom - something I'm totally not used to.

So anyways... Yes. I am *actually* looking forward to going back to work to get some sort of normalcy back into my days. To help me to feel as if I am serving a purpose in life. I am also excited about the fact that the students that will be moving into the hostel this weekend. I'm not anticipating it to be an overly glamorous experience, but I do feel excited about the fact that there are some really displaced students that need some love and support and that I might actually be able to offer that in my role as a hostel supervisor.

This evening I spent some more time organizing things in my room. I feel like I've travelled back in time to my university days - having to figure out how to fit all of my belongings in one single room. I've managed to acquire a few extra pieces of furniture after scavenging some empty supervisors rooms in the boys wing which has helped. It's amazing how much a set of drawers and an extra table can help. I think I'm finally starting to feel like I'm settling in here... I will have to take some pictures and post them, but that will have to wait for another night.

Lost Generation

I got this link forwarded to me from Art, my previous landlord in Orangeville.

This video started off causing this uneasy discomfort in the pit of my stomach as I processed the discouraging statements the narrator was making about "today's generation". However, once I hit the half-way point I was overwhelmed with this tingly sensation from positive emotions that completely erased the previous discomfort in the pit of my stomach.

Wow... what a great video!

Nelson Lakes Training Run

Since my training schedule is calling for longer and longer distances these days, I'm running out of places to explore. Although I dearly love the Wither Hills, I'm keen to go exploring elsewhere when I need to go for a 20+km run.

So today I decided to hit up Nelson Lakes National Park for my run. I convinced Mary and Richard to join and they brought along their friend Nicola. Although they had just competed in a multi-sport triathlon the day before, they were still keen to tag along as part of their Coast-to-Coast training.

The run was really fabulous. There is a loop that essentially wraps the entire way around Lake Rotoiti inside the park. The terrain was a bit rough to start, with lots of rocks and ankle-twisting potential, but smoothed out only a few kms later. Since it was a smoking hot day, it was a great relief to run most of the way under the protective shelter and shade from the trees above.

Somewhere along the way (at the first hut that we encountered to be exact) Richard decided we should cut off the main track to add on some extra kms before joining back up with the circle loop. Thinking it would take the journey from 17km to 25 kms it actually ended up taking us from what would have been a 25km loop to a total distance of 32km.

We ran the first 22km but ended up speed walking the last 10km to accomodate sore muscles and prevent injury from the previous day's exertion. In total, I think it took us nearly 6 hours to complete with a total running time of 4hrs 45 mins. All-in-all a great training day. Certainly beats covering that sort of distance on roads that's for sure! We met some Israeli tourists along the way who were doing a 2-day tramp in the area. They thought we were nuts. I thought it was a fantastic way to spend a beautiful Sunday during summer holidays!

Congratulations Claire!

A huge congratulations goes out to Claire who completed her very first half-marathon this weekend. Claire ran the 21.1km race, part of the Sarah Ulmer SUB Series in Christchurch, in a time of 2hr 15mins.

What a fantastic job! She even finished feeling pretty good afterwards! Negative time-splits were Claire's best friend today! Way to go girl!!! Super impressive!

Day With Sandra

I spent the entire day today with my "big sister" Sandra. What a wonderful day it was!

Sandra is currently travelling NZ on a cruise with her mom that set off earlier in the week from Auckland. It just so happened that her cruise ship was conveniently scheduled to port in Picton for the day which provided the perfect opportunity for us to meet up.

We met at 8:45am and after a few tears on my part (it's hard to describe how nice it feels to have a visitor from home!) we set off to hike the Snout track. Throughout the hike Sandra reminisced about how it reminded her of the Queen Charlotte Islands in Vancouver. Note to self: will have to go and explore those at some point in my life!




After our hot and sweaty hike (just the way we both like it!) we returned back to Sandra's ship, the Volendam, where I was allowed on as a visitor for lunch. (side note: the security on cruise ships is nearly as stringent as you would find at an airport!!) Fun fun for me! It was my first time on a cruise ship and it was pretty cool to see what it's all about. Pretty glamourous! Sounds like there is lots to entertain yourself with even if you stayed on the ship the entire trip (heaven forbid anyone would actually do that though given the exciting stuff that exists OUTSIDE the walls of the ship!). The food was fantastic - particularly the dessert bar!





After lunch we went back to Sandra's room where I got to experience a "second Christmas" since she was kind enough to play Santa Claus and bring me a few gifts from home.




From there, we set off for Blenheim and ended up at the Wither Hills winery where we chilled out on some bean-bag chairs in the sun. What an awesome way to pass the afternoon away!






Before leaving Blenheim I made sure that Sandra had the opportunity to drive my car - to experience driving on the "wrong side" of the road. I think she had a lot of fun with it!



It was sad to say goodbye, but I was truly grateful for the time that we were able to share together.


Afterwards I met up with Peter Yarrell since we had arranged a meeting to set me up with some medical insurance. Peter had forgotten about our appointment so I ended up meeting him at the Picton foreshore where he was chilling out with his wife soaking up the summer festivities that were taking place there. While I was there I was able to watch Sandra's huge ship set sail for Christchurch.



So yes, mom, I actually have some medical insurance now. Since the stuff I came with expired sometime back in June or July I feel much better now knowing that I am actually protected in the event of a serious medical complication. Nothing like risking the odds while going uncovered for over six months!

It's Hot!

It's certainly starting to feel like summer here! Today I went for a run and found myself modifying my route so that I could actually run in the shelter and protection of the shade. I ran in Polard Park for a bit, but since it's only a short 2-3km route, I ended up on the Taylor River path which is slightly less protected. In the end I covered about 10km, but I was WARM when I was done.

I can't help but think of the conversation I just shared with my brother, Mark, on the phone the other day when he described how horribly difficult he is finding it to train for his upcoming Boston Marathon. "It's freakin' cold here!" he said. When complaining about the fact that it's been -20, I called him a wuss and told him to suck it up and throw some layers on. (I actually really enjoy running in the cold - much more than the heat - because it's easier to control the temperature of your body.) But when Mark also mentioned the snow that kept falling and how difficult it makes it to go out and run a decent distance while battling the uneven and slippery terrain, I had a bit more sympathy.

It's certainly crazy to think about the contrasts we are experiencing right now with our running!

Arthur's Pass

Back-posted

I just got back from a four day excursion to Christchurch and Arthur's Pass with Nic and Merrill.

Arthur's Pass is a region in the South Island that I had not yet visited. Not surprisingly, I was blown away by the jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring scenery that it had to offer! It was, yet again, another completely different geography from the many other parts of the country that I have been to see.

The drive started off with a stop-off at the famous Donut in Springfield, and then took us into jaw-dropping scenery as we started to gain elevation in the car.






After leaving our car at the DOC centre parking lot, we headed down the highway to being our nearly vertical climb up to the top of Avalanche Peak. Along the way we some some interesting foliage, a beautiful waterfall and the panoramic views were stunning.













From there, it was a bit off the beaten track following the cairns along a ridge to a steep downhill section of scree. The scree was a lot of fun to start with (think "downhill skiing on loose gravel), but ended up becoming a very long and ardous physical challenge as it turned to a mix-n-match of big and small rocks that took a toll on your ankles. According to the time-stamps on my digital photos, it took us about 40 mins to get down the hill. It actually felt like well over an hour.




Once we hit the bottom, we followed the river bed along to the hut. At some points I was certain we had lost the trail, but we managed to find our way in the end.





The highlight of the trip ended up being the conversation in the hut that night. Earlier that day I was telling Nic that I wanted to learn more about the history of religion so that I could better understand the politics and reasons for all the fighting (years and years and years of it) that has been taking place in Gaza (especially because the tension has been all over the news lately). Well, as it turned out, there was a group of Israeli travelers spending the night in the hut with us and I was able to pick their brains for a couple of hours on this subject. Now granted, I'm certain that I got a slightly biased version of the story, but it was still very fascinating to hear their first-hand personal thoughts and opinions.

After sorting out the geography and names of the countries and regions in the Middle-East (complete with a map sketched on a piece of scrap paper), we then turned to the politics and history of it all. Although I couldn't possibly recall all that we talked about, I will say that I learned lots, including the following:
- Israel is a primarily Jewish country... it became this way after WWII when it was offered as a safe spot for Jewish refugees to gather and rebuild their lives
- Gaza is not a country (although it might be one day) but rather a political "region" on the coast of Israel with a small portion bordering Egypt and houses mostly Muslims
- Palestine is another region within Israel but not a separate country which also houses primarily Muslims
No wonder there is so much turmoil in that area! And according to the three gentleman that I spoke with that night, they don’t see any way for there to be peace brought to the region without war. Talk about scary!

Later that night I joined up with a few others who were having a campfire outside. And luckily for all of us, I had brought along some Canadian marshmallows that we took turns roasting over the fire. It was only afterwards that Nic happened to mention that it’s actually illegal to have a campfire in a NZ National Park. Ooops!



Much later that night I was awoken by two lone trampers who arrived in the dead of the night and had to resort to sleeping on the floor, underneath the table since there were no more bunks left. A conversation with them the next morning explained that they were actually hiking down the glacier and took much longer than anticipated. I also discovered that the guy was Canadian, and after mentioning that I was from Owen Sound, he pieced together that we both knew Katherine Lambie (a girl that I went to highschool with). Small world indeed, but totally didn’t surprise me.


The hike back to the car that day started off quite chilly in the glacier valley, but turned into a beautifully, warm and sunny one once the sun made it over top of the mountain peaks. Along the way I was excited to discover even more new terrain. I was also very happy to have Merrill with us who took charge in the navigation area. Who knew that navigating a braided river could be so complicated!



A cold river crossing!...

A trail marker that Merrill miraculously saw from the other side of the river...

Nic discovers the rock that we so kindly slipped into her pack (one of my newest favourite "kiwi" games to play!)...

Lushcious green grass...

Making our way down the enormously wide braided river...

Getting cornered on a cliff while trying to navigate the braided river...

Hitching a ride back to the car which was 5-10km down the road...

Saying goodbye to Arthur's Pass...