Author: telboy2

Christmas

So today is Boxing Day. The intense festivities are over and today is more a relaxing day, winding down after the consumption of food and drink.

We went to Midnight Mass at the cathedral in Wellington. It worked very well. We arrived after the beginning of the carols when the church was nearly full. So we sat in the front row; the one that everyone leaves. The carols were good, the service was good led by Cardinal John( who will be involved in the choosing of the next Pope-himself? You read it here first). There were musicians and a choir to provide a good atmosphere. Such an improvement on the St. Ben’s experience from a few years ago.

The only problem with Midnight Mass is the lateness of going to bed particularly when you cannot sleep. Excited? Or too much coffee late in the evening?

Christmas Day was organised as ever with Sara doing lots of cooking to provide the traditional feast with roast turkey and ham. Sven was around to enjoy the offerings. Of course there were the multitudes of presents to be opened.

I even spoke to Michael. All good.

 

Boxing commenced with a decent lie-in. Much needed after the day before and followed by a family run from Kilbirnie to Oriental Parade. An easy stretch of the legs or Sven, though less so for the older participants. Joe did well.

Change at the top

New Zealand hits the headlines overseas as the PM changes. John Key resigned unexpectedly last week despite his high approval rating.

Apparently he wanted to go out at the top at a time of his making and there were family considerations.

Bill is well known in the St Pat’s Town circle – a regular at the Big Boy’s Breakfast and parents’ evening!

So it makes new in the Telegraph:

Bill English elected to replace New Zealand prime minister John Key

 
Bill English, right, will replace John Key, left
Bill English, right, will replace John Key, left CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES

New Zealand’s ruling National Party appointed Bill English as the country’s new prime minister on Monday following last week’s shock resignation of his predecessor John Key.

The centre-right National Party caucus met to confirm the decision on Monday morning with Mr English to be officially sworn in at Government House in Wellington later in the day.

Mr English, 54, was Mr Key’s preferred candidate to succeed him after serving as finance minister and returning New Zealand’s budget to surplus. But critics say the 54-year-old lacks the charisma needed for the top job. Mr English has previously led his party, taking them to a big defeat in the 2002 election.

A farmer with degrees in commerce and literature, he has been in parliament since 1990 and was previously leader of the National Party in 2002 when it suffered its worst election defeat.

Festive season

It is December and the season is well under way.

Today in town was the Santa  Parade and street activities. Or  was yesterday the parade? Anyway there was lots of activity along Lambton Quay as we were trying to do a bit of shopping after our run along the waterfront.

More importantly is was the Messiah yesterday evening at the Michael Fowler centre performed by the NZSO with the Tudor Consort choir. It was intended to be a family trip but in the end Isaac went off to Melbourne this week to visit a friend and Eleanor went to see Swen in Auckland. Dave and Michelle took their places.

As ever I enjoyed the performance but there were  few differences from other times. The choir seems relatively small in numbers and were positioned at the same level as the orchestra. I think this made their impact less than usual and reduced the power effect. The arrangement was perhaps different- no ‘ to you a child is born’ and new sections in the third section that I and not heard before. At one point two of the principals were singing together! Not seen that before.

It is now 10+ times we have see the Messiah. We will certainly keep going. We have seen a variety of performances in a variety of venues. Yesterday’s was not the best but certainly not the worst.

We will need to find somewhere very different one year to give it all a boost.

One method to learn

Trying to learn  German with a  variety of inputs. As well as a class in recent weeks I have been used in various applications for the last year. Duolingo is highly rated. I find it very good too with the range of strategies used. However I do think that my current rating is overstating things a little! 

Quake

So last night’s quake was the biggest for us since we have lived here.

We were awoken as the house was shaking big time. We were all up as Sara was ordering us to stand under the doorways for our safety. The quake was long and forceful. It certainly made me think and  be somewhat nervous. After that… back to bed. Apparently the rest of the world stayed up all night being nervous and feeling every after-shock.

There was plenty of activity during the day we ongoing rumbles and I came across a few people through work who were somewhat anxious.

So the rumbles go on and we will have to wait and see how they affect us.

Big Quake in NZ as reported by the Daily Telegraph

New Zealand earthquake: Powerful aftershocks keep rocking the country after 7.8 magnitude quake kills two in South Island

A powerful 7.8-magnitude earthquake killed two people and caused massive infrastructure damage in New Zealand on Monday, as forecasters warned wild weather could hamper rescue efforts.

The tremor, one of the most powerful ever recorded in the quake-prone South Pacific nation, hit just after midnight near the South Island seaside tourist town of Kaikoura.

It triggered a tsunami alert that sent thousands of people fleeing for higher ground across large parts of the country’s rugged coastline before the threat abated.

Rescuers were left scrambling to reach Kaikoura in the South Island, which had no telecommunications and was isolated by landslips, making it accessible only by helicopter.

Civil defence minister Gerry Brownlee said a clearer picture of the scale of the damage was slowly emerging.

Trump

Living in New Zealand, for a change, helped with following the unfolding news story. I followed the news on the net during the afternoon. On the bus home I tuned into Radio 4 for the updates. Very traditional. And then at home we watched the final stages of the results and the winning speech of Donald.

images-duckduckgo-comIt currently feels unreal but the repercussions could be huge. Time will will tell how much. The politics in the world are truly disruptured.