Familyofmonkeys
18th May 2008, 10:56 PM
OH here - three glasses of wine and it's stream of consciousness time. I don't normally post, leaving that to my better half. I'm not much into social networking, as I prefer face to face interaction. Still, its a year, and that bears some comment in the footnotes of history...
Am I happy we are here? - Yes. Undoubtably. I never came here for the career prospects, but I've been pleasantly surprised at how well that side of life has treated me since arriving. NZ is a country where you have to make things happen, but things do happen. The fustrations of the motherland haven't followed me here, and I feel I can make a difference, even if it is supporting a socio-economic construct that I feel certain is doomed to failure within my lifetime (capitalism). Hmmm...Nearly went off on one then. This stream of consiousness thing can be a wild beast to rein in. Focus...
What's best? Hmm...Tough one. Everything I like to do is still pretty much free. The great outdoors is accessible and not covered in shops trying to sell me plastic tatt, or car parks trying to extort the cost of a good meal in fees. There is an optimism here still - a feeling that you can make things happen for yourself with talent and hard work. The land is close to you still, in all its glorious briliance. When we bought out patch of land down near Christchurch I bought it because it was the first time in my life I have ever stood on a piece of soil and felt home - like I belonged. Like I never needed to be anywhere else. I can feel something here that I never felt back 'home' What is it? Hope? Optimism? Somewhere there is a word for it but I feel alive again here. I feel possibilities. I see my children and I don't worry about what they are going to do to earn a living. I think about what they are going to do to be happy. What we can do together.
What is worst? - There are several things. The worst is that New Zealand is still slightly sexist and racist. Not the nasty, abusive kind of bigotry, but the thoughtless isloated kind. the kind my dad has back home. A hardworking family man who's barely ever spoken to people outside his immediate circle, and has no concept of the hurt some of his words can cause, it isn't even worth the conversation. Its the kind of bigotry you can't hold against people, but its irritating non the less. The lack of investment in infrastruture here is appalling, and the standard of housing is, quite frankly, atrocious. These things are changing, however, and they won't impact me directly. I'll make sure they don't.
What do I miss? - Very little. Friends and family, of course, but the world is a much smaller place than it used to be. Even my mum is on Skype, and email makes it easy to keep in touch with old friends. I certainly don't miss tescos. I certainly don't miss the traffic.
What am I looking forward to? - Moving to my land and building my house. Watching my children grow up between the mountains and the sea. Growing old with my wife, working our land, keeping alive the traditions we value where we can. Embracing change. Feeling inspired.
That's enough for now. This wine has gone to my head.
Am I happy we are here? - Yes. Undoubtably. I never came here for the career prospects, but I've been pleasantly surprised at how well that side of life has treated me since arriving. NZ is a country where you have to make things happen, but things do happen. The fustrations of the motherland haven't followed me here, and I feel I can make a difference, even if it is supporting a socio-economic construct that I feel certain is doomed to failure within my lifetime (capitalism). Hmmm...Nearly went off on one then. This stream of consiousness thing can be a wild beast to rein in. Focus...
What's best? Hmm...Tough one. Everything I like to do is still pretty much free. The great outdoors is accessible and not covered in shops trying to sell me plastic tatt, or car parks trying to extort the cost of a good meal in fees. There is an optimism here still - a feeling that you can make things happen for yourself with talent and hard work. The land is close to you still, in all its glorious briliance. When we bought out patch of land down near Christchurch I bought it because it was the first time in my life I have ever stood on a piece of soil and felt home - like I belonged. Like I never needed to be anywhere else. I can feel something here that I never felt back 'home' What is it? Hope? Optimism? Somewhere there is a word for it but I feel alive again here. I feel possibilities. I see my children and I don't worry about what they are going to do to earn a living. I think about what they are going to do to be happy. What we can do together.
What is worst? - There are several things. The worst is that New Zealand is still slightly sexist and racist. Not the nasty, abusive kind of bigotry, but the thoughtless isloated kind. the kind my dad has back home. A hardworking family man who's barely ever spoken to people outside his immediate circle, and has no concept of the hurt some of his words can cause, it isn't even worth the conversation. Its the kind of bigotry you can't hold against people, but its irritating non the less. The lack of investment in infrastruture here is appalling, and the standard of housing is, quite frankly, atrocious. These things are changing, however, and they won't impact me directly. I'll make sure they don't.
What do I miss? - Very little. Friends and family, of course, but the world is a much smaller place than it used to be. Even my mum is on Skype, and email makes it easy to keep in touch with old friends. I certainly don't miss tescos. I certainly don't miss the traffic.
What am I looking forward to? - Moving to my land and building my house. Watching my children grow up between the mountains and the sea. Growing old with my wife, working our land, keeping alive the traditions we value where we can. Embracing change. Feeling inspired.
That's enough for now. This wine has gone to my head.