Not a whole lot has gone on since my last post. After a crazy weekend like that it is hard to write about every day things. Sure, I have done some fun things since then (I am in NEW ZEALAND), but I don’t know how many of them are story worthy. Let’s see what I come up with.
After the weekend Aaron and I got engaged, I spent A LOT of time on the phone. I talked for hours to several different people. By the end, I was worn out. Even though there were plenty more people I would have loved to talk to, I just decided to put everything on facebook because talking to everyone simply couldn’t happen. I also happened to use a lot of the data usage available for the internet this month and couldn’t use the internet for a while. Oops.
Like before I’ll start with the big things that I have done and then go into more day-by-day details:
I have started babysitting for a family. The couple, Tim and Kelly, have a 4 year old daughter named Ahlia (ahh-leah). Tim is a full time student (trying to fit 3 years of study into 1 year) and works part time at the daycare I work at. Kelly is 37 weeks pregnant and for the past 5 or so weeks has been in and out of the hospital over 7 times often times staying for a few days. Because of all this craziness, they haven’t got to spend a lot of time playing with Ahlia. So, I volunteered to play with Ahlia and watch her when they need a rest, or to study, or Kelly is in the hospital. On Kelly’s last hospital visit (which was just a couple of day ago) they were told that if she doesn’t have the baby by next Thursday, then they will induce her. So, the next time I come babysit there could be a tiny baby around. Ahlia is cute, little, blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl that loves mermaids, Dora, and fairies. She is very sweet and fairly well-behaved, but like all children she’s had to test how much I will let her get away with. Once she realized it wasn’t much, we have had a lot of fun playing and being goofy. The family has a LARGE supply of craft supplies AND that happens to be one of her favorite activities- something I am, of course, all about. Time and Kelly are both SUPER nice and we often have pretty awesome conversations. They also have turned out to be Christians with interesting life stories to share. In the past two weeks I have babysat Ahlia four different times (once for a whole day). I am not getting paid, but I am helping them out. It is also one of those things that I feel like God put me in the right place at the right time to help them out. Only in God’s planning could a girl from America be around them with nothing to do at the time they could really use help. Really, what else do I have to do anyways?
I also have worked on the farm with Aaron some. One day I stomped wool down so that it could be compacted into bales. With my unimaginable abilities for falling, it was interesting trying to walk around on it. I was often grabbing onto a rope above my head for dear life. I have decided that this is an awesome resume builder though- especially if I want to stomp grapes for wine. Selena, do your parents have any openings? I have also helped Aaron fix up and prepare lambing hotels. They are basically little stalls that you put sheep in that won’t take in their lamb at first (so they have no choice). I was in charge of the hammering- a job that I really enjoyed. I did, however, hammer so much my hand was killing me and I often couldn’t move it from the position it was in when it was wrapped around the hammer. I think it also didn’t help that the temperature was right above freezing and there was a steady rain the whole time we were working… Despite the weather and hand cramps, I really enjoyed preparing the lambing hotels with Aaron. It is fun to see Aaron doing the things he is really good at. I am not HORRIBLE at doing those sort of things, but I am certainly not good. It is funny to see how matter-of-fact Aaron is about it all. He tends to think everyone has those abilities (though he is wrong).
I have also had a clumsy streak the past couple of weeks (more than normal… scary I know). I have burned my right hand not once, or even twice, but three different times. All of the burns left nice marks, but one is quite prominent. I have rammed my foot into the fireplace hearth (although it doesn’t have any corners and really doesn’t stick out in the way at all…) making my foot hurt for a couple of days. I hit my head hard on the top of a playhouse when playing with kids at the daycare (and had to sit down and rub my head for a while). I have run into a coffee table at the house I am babysitting at and ran into a wall when trying to find the bathroom early one morning. My favorite of all of these, though, is the fact that I accidentally hit myself in the face with a wooden cutting board (I held it up to smell it… I don’t know why) and bit into an apple slice to have apple juice come out of my nose. All the rest are things that probably have happened to everyone once (probably not in such a short time period though…), but the last two I think really take talent. How many people do you know that have done those?
I think I am done with the big things- now on to specifics:
Tuesday & Wednesday- Called people to tell them about getting engaged. Became worn out LOVED talking to people, though. :D
The beginning of Thursday was spent making things “facebook official” and struggling with technology and then I went to meet a family that I have been babysitting for. Later that night, Aaron and I went to dinner with the Kays, the friends of the family Aaron is working for.
Friday I went to Tim (Aaron’s boss) and Julie’s house. Both of their girls were there along with one of their boyfriends, so we had fun doing random things. I made a self-portrait with pastels that is now proudly displayed on their refrigerator next to Rachel’s. I then attempted to strip flax (a native plant here) down to the fibers. Flax fibers make a strong rope, something that natives often use when making something. Although I wasn’t very good, I did manage to get some and hope to make a bracelet out of it. Later that night Aaron and I drove into Christchurch to go to impromptu comedy show called Scared Scriptless. One of our friends from the church here played the music for the show, so it was fun to see him.
Saturday was our day of rugby. We went to a league game that another one of our friends from church was playing in. A lot of the youth was there to watch Jack and it was nice to visit with everyone while watching the game. We then ate fish and chips and made Oreo balls (slightly altered because of their lack of Oreos…) for that night. That night we watched the All Blacks (the New Zealand rugby team) play the Springboks (team from South Africa) and beat them once again. We went to the Kay’s house (same people from Thursday night) and watched it with them, Tim, Julie, and Rachel. I actually got a chance to ask a lot of questions and feel as though I half way understand the game now…
Sunday was a day of rest. We went to church and then Aaron and I watched TV and hung out. He hasn’t really rested since he got here, so he enjoyed just being able to chill out.
Monday I worked at the daycare and then babysat Ahlia.
Tuesday I worked at the daycare and then went to the farm with Aaron.
Wednesday I slept in and spent time at the place I am staying. I had some really good God moments and started writing a poem (we’ll see how it turns out) and then Aaron picked me up and I helped compact the wool.
Thursday I babysat all day. I went to playcentre with her which is a New Zealand-only organization where parents come in and kind of have play dates with other kids. It is parent run and organized and the idea is that kids learn through play. Parents often stay and play with their kid(s) the other around so they can use those times to teach their children.
Friday I babysat the first half of the day and then helped Aaron work on lambing hotels.
Saturday (today!)- I have done a lot of things online because the internet for the month has finally restarted.
Tomorrow Aaron and I plan on leaving for the southern part of the island in the afternoon. We plan to be back either Wednesday or Thursday with lots of adventures to tell about. I probably could/ should type more, but I am TIRED of typing.
I love you all.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Our Engagement Weekend
Well, I think the title says it all- AARON AND I GOT ENGAGED! Needless to say, I might be a little excited… We had a pretty close to perfect weekend and I am REALLY not the type to use the word perfect willy-nilly. As most of you know, I am definitely a brutally honest person that doesn’t like to pretend everything is wonderful when it isn’t, but really this weekend was pretty close to perfect. The only way it could have been PERFECT is if 1) I would have felt better and 2) Aaron would have sang the male vocal part of A Whole New World (cue Aaron rolling his eyes). Because of that, it is also hard to separate the whole weekend from the proposal, so you will get it all. Here are the details you guys have been asking for (and probably more):
Aaron and I took a 3 day weekend for the west coast. We left on Saturday and returned back on Monday. So we started off around 9 in the morning on Saturday. After stopping by the grocery store to pick up some apples and what we would call Nutrigrain bars, we headed towards Arthur’s Pass. To understand Arthur’s Pass, the west and east coast are separated by a range of mountains. There are only 3 or 4 (I am not sure on the number…) passes through the mountains. Arthur’s Pass is one of the passes. It is actually a national park and is quite beautiful scenery through the mountains. One of my favorite parts of driving on Saturday was that Aaron wanted to stop whenever I said to. If I thought something would make a pretty picture, I would say so and we would stop. If we saw something that looked fun, we would stop. We were really in no hurry and had time to enjoy the ride.
For lunch on Saturday we stopped in Arthur’s Pass and ate at a little café. While we were there, we had our first encounter with a Kea, a bird Aaron came to hate. Keas are green birds with long curved beaks. All around the café were signs warning us not to feed the Keas and that they were not responsible for Keas stealing people’s food or any damage or injuries they might cause. At that point, we still thought the signs and these birds were funny. About a half an hour later, Aaron and I went up to the viaduct lookout to see the viaduct we would soon be driving on. While Aaron was taking a picture with me, the Keas got on top of the car we were driving. Luckily, we got to them fairly soon, but they did manage to tear a hole in the tire cover. We actually got off pretty easy. We have been told by some of the Kiwis that Keas will tear off windshield wipers, poke holes in canvas tops, and basically tear up anything they can get to. Although they are such pests, they are protected wild life so the most you can do is shoo them away. Aaron now harbors a hatred of these birds and has decided if he lived here he might end up going to jail for hurting one of them. Ha ha.
After our Kea adventures and more driving, I saw a jade shop and told Aaron to stop. The Jade Shop was huge and I simply thought it would be fun to look at. When we turned to go to the Jade Shop, we actually realized that we were in a decent sized town called Hokitika. We then spent a couple of hours walking around the shops. Apparently, the part of the west coast we were in has a lot of jade. There were jade shops everywhere and they all boasted that their jade was genuine Kiwi jade. In Hokitika I ended up getting a hat made by a local artist (the one I had before wasn’t mine and didn’t cover my ears), which you can see in a lot of the pictures of Aaron and I. We also walked down to the beach for a while. Hokitika was a nice place to walk around and take a break from driving.
After we finally arrived in Franz Josef, we looked at the 6 person cabin we would be staying in and then decided we were starving. We ate at the restaurant owned by the Rainforest hostel that we stayed at and later that night we went to the bar to watch the rugby game. Rugby is DEFINITELY the national sport of New Zealand and it was funny to see everyone get so worked up about playing one of their rivals, South Africa. Although I didn’t really understand the rules, I thought rugby was pretty awesome and it made the realization that when I get home football season will be starting that much more exciting.
The next morning (the day of Aaron proposing), I woke up and felt HORRIBLE. Well, first, I actually woke up at 4AM and could not convince my body to go back to sleep. I heard everyone in our cabin (except for Aaron) get up, get ready, and leave while I was trying to fall back asleep. My stomach didn’t feel good, my whole head was congested and I couldn’t breathe well, I was sore from skiing on Friday (I have a tendency to fall… I am sure this shocks you all), and I had already started getting a migraine because I had not been able to sleep the past couple of days (Which is REALLY strange; anyone that has been on a road trip with me and seen how much I can sleep could testify to the fact that I can ALWAYS sleep.). Despite all of those reasons for feeling horrible, I decided there was no reason for me to be moody (Aaron might have said something to same effect as well…). Aaron and I went to the store to choose from their meager selection of medicine so that I could find something that would make me breathe and the medicine helped a fair amount. Other than the fact that I didn’t have much energy, not feeling well really didn’t affect the weekend much.
Then Aaron and I went to check in for the helicopter ride we would be taking. Neither of us had ever been on a helicopter and we had decided that it would be an awesome experience. The helicopter flew us over Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers, which are huge glaciers that happen to be placed in a rainforest. Seeing the glaciers from above was BEAUTIFUL. Part of the helicopter ride was a glacier landing. As soon as we stepped onto the glacier the pilot asked if I wanted our picture taken and took my camera. After the pilot was done lining us up with the helicopter and mountains in the background he took what was actually a horrible picture (I didn’t have sunglasses on and the sun was directly in my eyes). Then Aaron asked him if he could take on more picture. Although I knew Aaron was going to propose to me on the helicopter ride (he is SO obvious to me), when Aaron actually proposed I still was in shock. He came in front of me and asked me if I would marry him. For some reason, it seemed like he was saying it playfully and was going to say something goofy afterwards so I responded with “Uhhh… WHAT?” Then when I saw him get down on his knee, although it still didn’t feel real, I knew that he was serious. I, of course, answered with a yes. Then Aaron pulled out the ring and I leaned over him to say “ohhh” and then looked over towards the pilot to realize that the other couple that was on the ride with us was also taking pictures. I then came to the realization that I wasn’t even really acting excited about Aaron proposing and became super embarrassed. For those of you that might not know, I am RARELY embarrassed except PDA always embarrasses me. When I see other couples being all over each other it grosses me out and I don’t ever want to do that to someone else so I am uber embarrassed by PDA. AND I am really horrible with receiving gifts. I can genuinely love something, but I will rarely act like it when I receive the present. Because of these two reasons, I had prepared myself to not be embarrassed when Aaron proposed and show how excited I was. I, however, felt horrible and did not have the energy to act as excited as I was and was really embarrassed by that. So when Aaron stood up, I gave him a giant hug and hid my face in his coat for a while trying to get over being embarrassed. Aaron, knowing me, had already prepared himself for me to not react very well and told me it was OK every time I apologized.
After the proposal and talking to the other people on the helicopter some, we got back on the helicopter. When Aaron had talked to the pilot on the glacier, he had told the pilot he thought it was cool when we went over the glaciers and dropped down quickly. So as soon as we got in the helicopter that is exactly what the pilot had done. I didn’t know it at the time, but the whole way before the glacier landing Aaron hadn’t felt well and had continually told himself he couldn’t get sick. When the pilot had dropped down quickly when we got on, Aaron had put his hand up to his mouth. The pilot quickly gave him a bag and Aaron puked in it. At the time, I had considered taking pictures (it was quite a memorable moment after all!) but decided that would be mean and didn’t. Although some girls would hate that their fiancé (whoa- that’s weird) had just puked after proposing, it is my favorite part of the story. I didn’t like that Aaron didn’t feel well, but after I knew he felt better it became SO funny. It’s an extra little bonus to the story. The best part of it all is that after we got off the helicopter we ended up walking through town with a bag of puke for a while because we could not find a trash can anywhere. I really enjoy the humor to the proposal and it gives me more reason to tell Aaron that New Zealand is making him soft (he now gets motion sick when we ride on a boat, in a helicopter, or even drive through the mountains and he is now allergic to cats- none of which he had problems with before coming).
After the helicopter ride, Aaron and I had a lot to catch up on. We both agreed that the worst part of us not being engaged was not being able to talk about certain things to each other. I got to tell him about the nightmare I had of Aaron proposing and giving me a princess ring and talk to him about the purple tree (both of which are CLASSIC and if you haven’t heard these stories you should ask about them). He got to tell me about all of the time him and his sister, Leslie, had spent looking at rings and designing the one on my hand. He told me about asking my dad’s permission and how excited his family was about it all. It was SO good to be able to talk openly about everything again.
Aaron and I then took a 20 minute drive to the beach. We were on the coast of the Tasman Sea and, like every other beach I have been to in New Zealand, there was no one there. We saw MAYBE 8 people the whole time we were there. I took lots of pictures and we really enjoyed ourselves watching the sunset. Aaron likes to refer to this beach as the place we were engaged (the glacier is where he proposed). Later that night, I then got dressed up and Aaron took me out to a nice restaurant where we had a VERY good roast (with potatoes and carrots) and apple crumble with ice cream (while eating it the dessert I said, “Megan Jenkins would love this”).
The next day, Aaron and I checked out of “our first home” (this name came from a funny conversation we had) and drove up the coast to a city called Greymouth. Greymouth is a tourist destination, but there were only two things that Aaron and I really enjoyed there: 1) We went to Maggie’s Café and had what was called tea for two. When they brought it out they brought a pot of tea, a pitcher of milk, a pitcher of hot water, two teaspoons, two cups, and two saucers. Basically, Aaron and I had an official tea party. 2) There was an awesome art gallery that featured a photographer’s work. It summarized how I would love to decorate my house and it was fun to see his amazing work. Because we were tired of Greymouth (the really cold weather had a lot to do with it I am sure), we then drove up to what is referred to as the Pancake Rocks. We walked through a path surrounded by rainforest vegetation to look at rocks that had been formed by the sea to look like a stack of pancakes. The rocks and vegetation we saw there were very pretty and I took a lot of pictures (shocking). From there, Aaron and I drove back to Arthur’s Pass and our homes here. Along the way we saw some beautiful scenery and stopped to take some photos along with a miniature photo shoot on the beach.
So, now Aaron and I are engaged. Although it is definitely what we have wanted for a while, it is still often weird to think. Sometimes Aaron will see the ring on my hand and freak out or we will refer to each other as our fiancé and freak out. One of the hardest but coolest things about Aaron proposing in New Zealand where we didn’t have internet access was that for a while we couldn’t tell anyone. Aaron had told his mom the day we left that he would do it that weekend, but otherwise it was really our little secret for a while. It was hard because I wanted to tell my family and freak out with my friends, but then it ended up cool because it really made the engagement about us and not everyone else. Even having that time to really talk through it with each other, it is still very unreal and seems right but strange.
Aaron and I took a 3 day weekend for the west coast. We left on Saturday and returned back on Monday. So we started off around 9 in the morning on Saturday. After stopping by the grocery store to pick up some apples and what we would call Nutrigrain bars, we headed towards Arthur’s Pass. To understand Arthur’s Pass, the west and east coast are separated by a range of mountains. There are only 3 or 4 (I am not sure on the number…) passes through the mountains. Arthur’s Pass is one of the passes. It is actually a national park and is quite beautiful scenery through the mountains. One of my favorite parts of driving on Saturday was that Aaron wanted to stop whenever I said to. If I thought something would make a pretty picture, I would say so and we would stop. If we saw something that looked fun, we would stop. We were really in no hurry and had time to enjoy the ride.
For lunch on Saturday we stopped in Arthur’s Pass and ate at a little café. While we were there, we had our first encounter with a Kea, a bird Aaron came to hate. Keas are green birds with long curved beaks. All around the café were signs warning us not to feed the Keas and that they were not responsible for Keas stealing people’s food or any damage or injuries they might cause. At that point, we still thought the signs and these birds were funny. About a half an hour later, Aaron and I went up to the viaduct lookout to see the viaduct we would soon be driving on. While Aaron was taking a picture with me, the Keas got on top of the car we were driving. Luckily, we got to them fairly soon, but they did manage to tear a hole in the tire cover. We actually got off pretty easy. We have been told by some of the Kiwis that Keas will tear off windshield wipers, poke holes in canvas tops, and basically tear up anything they can get to. Although they are such pests, they are protected wild life so the most you can do is shoo them away. Aaron now harbors a hatred of these birds and has decided if he lived here he might end up going to jail for hurting one of them. Ha ha.
After our Kea adventures and more driving, I saw a jade shop and told Aaron to stop. The Jade Shop was huge and I simply thought it would be fun to look at. When we turned to go to the Jade Shop, we actually realized that we were in a decent sized town called Hokitika. We then spent a couple of hours walking around the shops. Apparently, the part of the west coast we were in has a lot of jade. There were jade shops everywhere and they all boasted that their jade was genuine Kiwi jade. In Hokitika I ended up getting a hat made by a local artist (the one I had before wasn’t mine and didn’t cover my ears), which you can see in a lot of the pictures of Aaron and I. We also walked down to the beach for a while. Hokitika was a nice place to walk around and take a break from driving.
After we finally arrived in Franz Josef, we looked at the 6 person cabin we would be staying in and then decided we were starving. We ate at the restaurant owned by the Rainforest hostel that we stayed at and later that night we went to the bar to watch the rugby game. Rugby is DEFINITELY the national sport of New Zealand and it was funny to see everyone get so worked up about playing one of their rivals, South Africa. Although I didn’t really understand the rules, I thought rugby was pretty awesome and it made the realization that when I get home football season will be starting that much more exciting.
The next morning (the day of Aaron proposing), I woke up and felt HORRIBLE. Well, first, I actually woke up at 4AM and could not convince my body to go back to sleep. I heard everyone in our cabin (except for Aaron) get up, get ready, and leave while I was trying to fall back asleep. My stomach didn’t feel good, my whole head was congested and I couldn’t breathe well, I was sore from skiing on Friday (I have a tendency to fall… I am sure this shocks you all), and I had already started getting a migraine because I had not been able to sleep the past couple of days (Which is REALLY strange; anyone that has been on a road trip with me and seen how much I can sleep could testify to the fact that I can ALWAYS sleep.). Despite all of those reasons for feeling horrible, I decided there was no reason for me to be moody (Aaron might have said something to same effect as well…). Aaron and I went to the store to choose from their meager selection of medicine so that I could find something that would make me breathe and the medicine helped a fair amount. Other than the fact that I didn’t have much energy, not feeling well really didn’t affect the weekend much.
Then Aaron and I went to check in for the helicopter ride we would be taking. Neither of us had ever been on a helicopter and we had decided that it would be an awesome experience. The helicopter flew us over Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers, which are huge glaciers that happen to be placed in a rainforest. Seeing the glaciers from above was BEAUTIFUL. Part of the helicopter ride was a glacier landing. As soon as we stepped onto the glacier the pilot asked if I wanted our picture taken and took my camera. After the pilot was done lining us up with the helicopter and mountains in the background he took what was actually a horrible picture (I didn’t have sunglasses on and the sun was directly in my eyes). Then Aaron asked him if he could take on more picture. Although I knew Aaron was going to propose to me on the helicopter ride (he is SO obvious to me), when Aaron actually proposed I still was in shock. He came in front of me and asked me if I would marry him. For some reason, it seemed like he was saying it playfully and was going to say something goofy afterwards so I responded with “Uhhh… WHAT?” Then when I saw him get down on his knee, although it still didn’t feel real, I knew that he was serious. I, of course, answered with a yes. Then Aaron pulled out the ring and I leaned over him to say “ohhh” and then looked over towards the pilot to realize that the other couple that was on the ride with us was also taking pictures. I then came to the realization that I wasn’t even really acting excited about Aaron proposing and became super embarrassed. For those of you that might not know, I am RARELY embarrassed except PDA always embarrasses me. When I see other couples being all over each other it grosses me out and I don’t ever want to do that to someone else so I am uber embarrassed by PDA. AND I am really horrible with receiving gifts. I can genuinely love something, but I will rarely act like it when I receive the present. Because of these two reasons, I had prepared myself to not be embarrassed when Aaron proposed and show how excited I was. I, however, felt horrible and did not have the energy to act as excited as I was and was really embarrassed by that. So when Aaron stood up, I gave him a giant hug and hid my face in his coat for a while trying to get over being embarrassed. Aaron, knowing me, had already prepared himself for me to not react very well and told me it was OK every time I apologized.
After the proposal and talking to the other people on the helicopter some, we got back on the helicopter. When Aaron had talked to the pilot on the glacier, he had told the pilot he thought it was cool when we went over the glaciers and dropped down quickly. So as soon as we got in the helicopter that is exactly what the pilot had done. I didn’t know it at the time, but the whole way before the glacier landing Aaron hadn’t felt well and had continually told himself he couldn’t get sick. When the pilot had dropped down quickly when we got on, Aaron had put his hand up to his mouth. The pilot quickly gave him a bag and Aaron puked in it. At the time, I had considered taking pictures (it was quite a memorable moment after all!) but decided that would be mean and didn’t. Although some girls would hate that their fiancé (whoa- that’s weird) had just puked after proposing, it is my favorite part of the story. I didn’t like that Aaron didn’t feel well, but after I knew he felt better it became SO funny. It’s an extra little bonus to the story. The best part of it all is that after we got off the helicopter we ended up walking through town with a bag of puke for a while because we could not find a trash can anywhere. I really enjoy the humor to the proposal and it gives me more reason to tell Aaron that New Zealand is making him soft (he now gets motion sick when we ride on a boat, in a helicopter, or even drive through the mountains and he is now allergic to cats- none of which he had problems with before coming).
After the helicopter ride, Aaron and I had a lot to catch up on. We both agreed that the worst part of us not being engaged was not being able to talk about certain things to each other. I got to tell him about the nightmare I had of Aaron proposing and giving me a princess ring and talk to him about the purple tree (both of which are CLASSIC and if you haven’t heard these stories you should ask about them). He got to tell me about all of the time him and his sister, Leslie, had spent looking at rings and designing the one on my hand. He told me about asking my dad’s permission and how excited his family was about it all. It was SO good to be able to talk openly about everything again.
Aaron and I then took a 20 minute drive to the beach. We were on the coast of the Tasman Sea and, like every other beach I have been to in New Zealand, there was no one there. We saw MAYBE 8 people the whole time we were there. I took lots of pictures and we really enjoyed ourselves watching the sunset. Aaron likes to refer to this beach as the place we were engaged (the glacier is where he proposed). Later that night, I then got dressed up and Aaron took me out to a nice restaurant where we had a VERY good roast (with potatoes and carrots) and apple crumble with ice cream (while eating it the dessert I said, “Megan Jenkins would love this”).
The next day, Aaron and I checked out of “our first home” (this name came from a funny conversation we had) and drove up the coast to a city called Greymouth. Greymouth is a tourist destination, but there were only two things that Aaron and I really enjoyed there: 1) We went to Maggie’s Café and had what was called tea for two. When they brought it out they brought a pot of tea, a pitcher of milk, a pitcher of hot water, two teaspoons, two cups, and two saucers. Basically, Aaron and I had an official tea party. 2) There was an awesome art gallery that featured a photographer’s work. It summarized how I would love to decorate my house and it was fun to see his amazing work. Because we were tired of Greymouth (the really cold weather had a lot to do with it I am sure), we then drove up to what is referred to as the Pancake Rocks. We walked through a path surrounded by rainforest vegetation to look at rocks that had been formed by the sea to look like a stack of pancakes. The rocks and vegetation we saw there were very pretty and I took a lot of pictures (shocking). From there, Aaron and I drove back to Arthur’s Pass and our homes here. Along the way we saw some beautiful scenery and stopped to take some photos along with a miniature photo shoot on the beach.
So, now Aaron and I are engaged. Although it is definitely what we have wanted for a while, it is still often weird to think. Sometimes Aaron will see the ring on my hand and freak out or we will refer to each other as our fiancé and freak out. One of the hardest but coolest things about Aaron proposing in New Zealand where we didn’t have internet access was that for a while we couldn’t tell anyone. Aaron had told his mom the day we left that he would do it that weekend, but otherwise it was really our little secret for a while. It was hard because I wanted to tell my family and freak out with my friends, but then it ended up cool because it really made the engagement about us and not everyone else. Even having that time to really talk through it with each other, it is still very unreal and seems right but strange.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Living a Life of Spontaneity
Here are the big things that are going on:
I have moved! On Sunday, July 27th I finally met Karen, the lady that I had been told might be able to hook me up with working at the kindergarten and a place to live. Aaron’s boss’s mother-in-law had talked to Karen about me possibly working and living with her, but soon afterwards Karen left for a two week mission trip. After going to her house and looking around, I decided to live with her and moved in Monday night. She has a four bedroom house and lives in it by herself (her husband left her a while back and her two daughters have left home) and has been quite excited for me to live with her. She also is letting me live there for next to nothing (I am only paying for food). Her house is in the next city over called Southbridge. It is about a 10 minute drive from Leeston, where Aaron lives. The main reason I haven’t written on here in a while is that she has dialup internet that is EXTREMELY slow and she only has 30 hours a month. I could demolish those hours in no time. I am sad to not get to see Aaron all of the time, but I know I am doing God’s will and so take comfort in that.
Now I am working at the kindergarten a few days a week. I don’t really have a set schedule. I am a volunteer and simply just show up whenever I want. Their kindergarten is not like ours and really the place I am working is much like a daycare. On one half of the building is the under 3 year olds and the other side is the 3 and 4 year olds. I decided I prefer the 3 and 4 year old side. They will talk to me and draw me alien shrinkers, fire engine, and maps to find ninjas. Plus, the really little kids generally take longer to warm up. The 3 and 4 year olds took a couple of hours, but now just accept me as someone to play with all the time. Although it would be nice to get paid, I really enjoy the perks of being a volunteer. I come in when I want, can avoid doing the things I don’t want to do, and can take breaks whenever I want.
When I am not working at the kindergarten, I am either tagging along with Aaron on the farm or doing something random that came up. Generally I try to figure out what I am going to do a couple of days or so in advance and my plans almost always get changed. My life in New Zealand is very much a life of spontaneity. I figure out what I am going to do as I do it.
I actually have been enjoying working on the farm with Aaron. Don’t get me wrong, I am definitely not interested in working on the farm more than I do, but I do enjoy it while I am there. I like learning new things so as long as we are doing something different I am pretty entertained. If Aaron is doing something I have already done with him, I just sit in the car and read. And I always have my camera with me ready to take lots of pictures if something pretty comes up. So, really, I stay entertained either way. My favorite is when Tim isn’t around because Aaron isn’t always so serious and will be goofy with me. The other day when Tim was gone I drove the tractor and helped Aaron pick up some giant steel beams, helped move sheep and cattle, helped him put boards up for the cattle yards, and had my own private dance party while Aaron was busy trying to fix something I couldn’t help with. Even without Tim around, Aaron is too serious to join in on a dance party during work. Ha ha.
Now, here are the things that have went on a daily basis (for those of you that like detail… the rest of you just skip to the big parts they will probably have something interesting):
Sunday, July 27th- church, lunch with Karen
Monday 28th- I called some of my wonderful friends. They were very encouraging and challenged me to do what I knew was right (moving in with Karen) instead of doing what I wanted to do (continue living at Barry’s). I LOVED talking to them. People say that you are who you hang out with, and I can only wish that is true. Later that night I moved in with Karen.
Tuesday 29th- I worked at the daycare (on the 3 and 4 year old side) and then on the farm with Aaron that afternoon
Wednesday 30th- I worked until 1 at the daycare on the younger kids’ side, took a nap, went to the Bible study for young adults (YABS), and then Aaron took me to the MIDNIGHT PREMIERE of Eclipse. For those of you that don’t know, one of my favorite things in the world are midnight premieres. You can ask me to go to a midnight premiere for almost any movie and I will be excited to go. The reason: the crazies come out for midnight premieres. People at midnight premieres are excited to be there and scream and go crazy throughout the movie. They are awesome. I went to the Twilight (the first movie of the series) premiere without ever reading the book and actually thinking I would hate it. I went to the next one in the series with a bunch of my girlfriends and wanted to experience a midnight premiere in New Zealand. They are actually pretty different (people aren’t as crazy), but I am glad I went. Aaron was actually really awesome about going too. I continued apologizing, but he truly was excited because I was. Even if he did only get three hours of sleep before work…
Thursday 1st- I slept in (I had a late night) and then helped Tim’s mother-in-law prepare for catering (roasted some seeds, made some apple crumble, etc.) I also made an impromptu pasta with hamburger meal. I had a recipe, but didn’t really follow it (all my housemates are laughing because they know that is how I ALWAYS cook). It actually turned out pretty good. I haven’t figured out how that works for me yet.
Friday 2nd- Aaron and I were SUPPOSED to go on a trip, but he had a trip to go tahr hunting and I was excited for him to do that. So I spent pretty much the whole day going through traveling books and planning out all of our trips.
Saturday 3rd- Walked around Southbridge, read a whole book, watched a few movies, basically did nothing. :D
Sunday 4th- Went to church, called my dad to tell him happy birthday (because it was still the 3rd there) and had a good time talking to a lot of my family including my older brother Bob and his wife DD, my niece Becca, both of my younger brothers, a couple of my cousins, my aunt and uncle, and my parents. It was a good time. Later that night Aaron and I went to the house of two of the guys from New Life, Jack and Harry, and hung out.
Monday 5th- Slept in, went to work with Aaron (where him and Tim talked most of the day away so I started and finished a book)
Tuesday 6th- Went to the kindergarten until lunch where Aaron picked me up to work with him. I was REALLY hyper so we had a lot of good times. That is the day I described above where I had a private dance party, drove the tractor, etc.
Wednesday 7th- I helped Biddy (Tim’s daughter) babysit two little kids that have their holiday right now. We went to the beach and had a campfire. We roasted marshmallow, made dampers (“a campfire scone”), made a hut. It was kind of cold, but not really bad. A rainbow also appeared which made everything that much more picturesque. Then we took home rocks from the beach and painted them. There was a crazy game of soccer that took place with Tess, one of the sheep dogs, as one of the main players, and then we watched one of the many Land Before Time movies.
Thursday 8th- Worked at the kindergarten until 11 and then have been on the internet (at Barry’s house) messaging people, posting pictures, planning Aaron and I’s weekend, and typing up all of this. :D
I have moved! On Sunday, July 27th I finally met Karen, the lady that I had been told might be able to hook me up with working at the kindergarten and a place to live. Aaron’s boss’s mother-in-law had talked to Karen about me possibly working and living with her, but soon afterwards Karen left for a two week mission trip. After going to her house and looking around, I decided to live with her and moved in Monday night. She has a four bedroom house and lives in it by herself (her husband left her a while back and her two daughters have left home) and has been quite excited for me to live with her. She also is letting me live there for next to nothing (I am only paying for food). Her house is in the next city over called Southbridge. It is about a 10 minute drive from Leeston, where Aaron lives. The main reason I haven’t written on here in a while is that she has dialup internet that is EXTREMELY slow and she only has 30 hours a month. I could demolish those hours in no time. I am sad to not get to see Aaron all of the time, but I know I am doing God’s will and so take comfort in that.
Now I am working at the kindergarten a few days a week. I don’t really have a set schedule. I am a volunteer and simply just show up whenever I want. Their kindergarten is not like ours and really the place I am working is much like a daycare. On one half of the building is the under 3 year olds and the other side is the 3 and 4 year olds. I decided I prefer the 3 and 4 year old side. They will talk to me and draw me alien shrinkers, fire engine, and maps to find ninjas. Plus, the really little kids generally take longer to warm up. The 3 and 4 year olds took a couple of hours, but now just accept me as someone to play with all the time. Although it would be nice to get paid, I really enjoy the perks of being a volunteer. I come in when I want, can avoid doing the things I don’t want to do, and can take breaks whenever I want.
When I am not working at the kindergarten, I am either tagging along with Aaron on the farm or doing something random that came up. Generally I try to figure out what I am going to do a couple of days or so in advance and my plans almost always get changed. My life in New Zealand is very much a life of spontaneity. I figure out what I am going to do as I do it.
I actually have been enjoying working on the farm with Aaron. Don’t get me wrong, I am definitely not interested in working on the farm more than I do, but I do enjoy it while I am there. I like learning new things so as long as we are doing something different I am pretty entertained. If Aaron is doing something I have already done with him, I just sit in the car and read. And I always have my camera with me ready to take lots of pictures if something pretty comes up. So, really, I stay entertained either way. My favorite is when Tim isn’t around because Aaron isn’t always so serious and will be goofy with me. The other day when Tim was gone I drove the tractor and helped Aaron pick up some giant steel beams, helped move sheep and cattle, helped him put boards up for the cattle yards, and had my own private dance party while Aaron was busy trying to fix something I couldn’t help with. Even without Tim around, Aaron is too serious to join in on a dance party during work. Ha ha.
Now, here are the things that have went on a daily basis (for those of you that like detail… the rest of you just skip to the big parts they will probably have something interesting):
Sunday, July 27th- church, lunch with Karen
Monday 28th- I called some of my wonderful friends. They were very encouraging and challenged me to do what I knew was right (moving in with Karen) instead of doing what I wanted to do (continue living at Barry’s). I LOVED talking to them. People say that you are who you hang out with, and I can only wish that is true. Later that night I moved in with Karen.
Tuesday 29th- I worked at the daycare (on the 3 and 4 year old side) and then on the farm with Aaron that afternoon
Wednesday 30th- I worked until 1 at the daycare on the younger kids’ side, took a nap, went to the Bible study for young adults (YABS), and then Aaron took me to the MIDNIGHT PREMIERE of Eclipse. For those of you that don’t know, one of my favorite things in the world are midnight premieres. You can ask me to go to a midnight premiere for almost any movie and I will be excited to go. The reason: the crazies come out for midnight premieres. People at midnight premieres are excited to be there and scream and go crazy throughout the movie. They are awesome. I went to the Twilight (the first movie of the series) premiere without ever reading the book and actually thinking I would hate it. I went to the next one in the series with a bunch of my girlfriends and wanted to experience a midnight premiere in New Zealand. They are actually pretty different (people aren’t as crazy), but I am glad I went. Aaron was actually really awesome about going too. I continued apologizing, but he truly was excited because I was. Even if he did only get three hours of sleep before work…
Thursday 1st- I slept in (I had a late night) and then helped Tim’s mother-in-law prepare for catering (roasted some seeds, made some apple crumble, etc.) I also made an impromptu pasta with hamburger meal. I had a recipe, but didn’t really follow it (all my housemates are laughing because they know that is how I ALWAYS cook). It actually turned out pretty good. I haven’t figured out how that works for me yet.
Friday 2nd- Aaron and I were SUPPOSED to go on a trip, but he had a trip to go tahr hunting and I was excited for him to do that. So I spent pretty much the whole day going through traveling books and planning out all of our trips.
Saturday 3rd- Walked around Southbridge, read a whole book, watched a few movies, basically did nothing. :D
Sunday 4th- Went to church, called my dad to tell him happy birthday (because it was still the 3rd there) and had a good time talking to a lot of my family including my older brother Bob and his wife DD, my niece Becca, both of my younger brothers, a couple of my cousins, my aunt and uncle, and my parents. It was a good time. Later that night Aaron and I went to the house of two of the guys from New Life, Jack and Harry, and hung out.
Monday 5th- Slept in, went to work with Aaron (where him and Tim talked most of the day away so I started and finished a book)
Tuesday 6th- Went to the kindergarten until lunch where Aaron picked me up to work with him. I was REALLY hyper so we had a lot of good times. That is the day I described above where I had a private dance party, drove the tractor, etc.
Wednesday 7th- I helped Biddy (Tim’s daughter) babysit two little kids that have their holiday right now. We went to the beach and had a campfire. We roasted marshmallow, made dampers (“a campfire scone”), made a hut. It was kind of cold, but not really bad. A rainbow also appeared which made everything that much more picturesque. Then we took home rocks from the beach and painted them. There was a crazy game of soccer that took place with Tess, one of the sheep dogs, as one of the main players, and then we watched one of the many Land Before Time movies.
Thursday 8th- Worked at the kindergarten until 11 and then have been on the internet (at Barry’s house) messaging people, posting pictures, planning Aaron and I’s weekend, and typing up all of this. :D
Thursday, June 24, 2010
My life and one more amusing Kiwi saying
For my schedule and detail oriented friends that want to know EVERYTHING I am doing (Suzanne and Sarah), here is my life the past couple of days:
Tuesday (after my last post about what I am doing)- I went and worked on the farm with Aaron all afternoon which was surprisingly entertaining because I was learning lots of new things (though I doubt I could do it many more times and be entertained). That night Harry, a guy in the youth group at New Life, asked Aaron and I if we wanted to go to a seminar on "global technology." Although it didn't sound like something we would generally do in the States, we were in New Zealand and asked to do something so we said sure. It ended up being a sales pitch for ASN (a video phone company). We were wearing nice shirts and jeans and walked in late to find everyone in suits. AND I'm pretty sure we were supposed to sign up and pay to get in on the meeting but walked right past the lady on accident. Oops. Oh well. If I had to pay I would have sat outside anyways. Then we went to a coffee shop across from the mall in Christchurch and got some tasty drinks (Aaron and I shared an AMAZING vanilla chai tea). After the whole ASN sales pitch we had a good time at the coffee shop and goofing around in the closed mall.
Wednesday- For some reason my stomach decided it hated me this day. I had plans to bike around town and get out and do something, but my stomach decided I should just stay inside and do nothing all day. So I obeyed it and did just that. I started reading Wicked, posted my blog about Kiwi language, and did random things. That night Aaron and I went to a bible study with the New Life uni students. It was good to be back in a community of believers. We talked about backsliding in your faith and making sure to shine your light. I am sure this will surprise most of you (especially those that were in my community group), but I had a lot of troubles not being the leader of the conversation. I'm just SO used to being the leader in those situations. It also quite made me miss all the girls that I had a Wednesday night bible study with last year. :( They didn't laugh and make fun of each other quite as much as we did. :D Really, though, it was awesome to be a part of that.
Thursday- I spent all day over at Tim and Julie's (the owners of the sheep farm). I was supposed to help Julie's mom prepare things for some catering she had to do this weekend, but there was a breach in communication somewhere and we ended up not even seeing or talking to her. When we went to the place she works, however, they told us she wasn't catering until next weekend. So we don't know if schedules just got messed up or what... Instead I hung out and talked with Biddie, their daughter. We had funny conversations about the Kiwi and American differences. She asked a few times if we really did something in America that she had seen on TV shows. One of my favorite parts is when she asked if we can buy cookie dough in the store and I explained to her that many of my friends and I just keep it in the fridge for those occasions that we need it. She thought it was awesome we could buy it and keep it for that long- they have to make it each time they want some cookie dough. It made me feel bad for Kiwi girls' nights. I guess lawyers here also don't get their first degree and then go to law school. They start law school right after high school. That explains why so many of the uni students at New Life were confused when I told them I just graduated university and will now be going to law school. We also went to the beach to walk their three house dogs. Last night Barry and I also had a fun conversation. He asked what a fraternity was and then we had a LONG explanation about them all. Yet another thing Kiwis have really only heard about because of TV and are often confused about.
Also, it occurred to me on Wednesday night (when listening to some of the uni students talk) that I forgot to include some of my FAVORITE Kiwi sayings that is really quite confusing when you are first here. First, let me explain my first encounter with these sayings.
One day, I was talking to someone here about the fact that I had just graduated from Purdue with a double major and would be going to law school soon. We then got on the conversation of Indiana and why I would choose them despite the fact that they were Purdue's rivals. After I had explained that they are actually ranked pretty high, they have in state tuition, and they offered me a scholarship they looked at me and said, "Far out! You must be smart az." When they said this I didn't know what to say. Were they making fun of me or trying to compliment me?
For a while I continued to hear Kiwis says "cool az" or "bored az" or many other sayings that ended with what sounded like another word for a donkey. For a long time I thought they simply all had an obsession with the word and it must not be profane for them. Later on, however, I finally realized that they say similes without finishing the sentence all the time. They were really saying "cool as (a cucumber)" or "smart as (Einstein)." They simply just shorten the similes so they don't have to come up with something clever at the end. Really, it makes talking to someone so much quicker. It's just confusing to us Americans that don't always know what they are saying. ha ha
That's it for today.
I hope things are going well for all of you.
Tuesday (after my last post about what I am doing)- I went and worked on the farm with Aaron all afternoon which was surprisingly entertaining because I was learning lots of new things (though I doubt I could do it many more times and be entertained). That night Harry, a guy in the youth group at New Life, asked Aaron and I if we wanted to go to a seminar on "global technology." Although it didn't sound like something we would generally do in the States, we were in New Zealand and asked to do something so we said sure. It ended up being a sales pitch for ASN (a video phone company). We were wearing nice shirts and jeans and walked in late to find everyone in suits. AND I'm pretty sure we were supposed to sign up and pay to get in on the meeting but walked right past the lady on accident. Oops. Oh well. If I had to pay I would have sat outside anyways. Then we went to a coffee shop across from the mall in Christchurch and got some tasty drinks (Aaron and I shared an AMAZING vanilla chai tea). After the whole ASN sales pitch we had a good time at the coffee shop and goofing around in the closed mall.
Wednesday- For some reason my stomach decided it hated me this day. I had plans to bike around town and get out and do something, but my stomach decided I should just stay inside and do nothing all day. So I obeyed it and did just that. I started reading Wicked, posted my blog about Kiwi language, and did random things. That night Aaron and I went to a bible study with the New Life uni students. It was good to be back in a community of believers. We talked about backsliding in your faith and making sure to shine your light. I am sure this will surprise most of you (especially those that were in my community group), but I had a lot of troubles not being the leader of the conversation. I'm just SO used to being the leader in those situations. It also quite made me miss all the girls that I had a Wednesday night bible study with last year. :( They didn't laugh and make fun of each other quite as much as we did. :D Really, though, it was awesome to be a part of that.
Thursday- I spent all day over at Tim and Julie's (the owners of the sheep farm). I was supposed to help Julie's mom prepare things for some catering she had to do this weekend, but there was a breach in communication somewhere and we ended up not even seeing or talking to her. When we went to the place she works, however, they told us she wasn't catering until next weekend. So we don't know if schedules just got messed up or what... Instead I hung out and talked with Biddie, their daughter. We had funny conversations about the Kiwi and American differences. She asked a few times if we really did something in America that she had seen on TV shows. One of my favorite parts is when she asked if we can buy cookie dough in the store and I explained to her that many of my friends and I just keep it in the fridge for those occasions that we need it. She thought it was awesome we could buy it and keep it for that long- they have to make it each time they want some cookie dough. It made me feel bad for Kiwi girls' nights. I guess lawyers here also don't get their first degree and then go to law school. They start law school right after high school. That explains why so many of the uni students at New Life were confused when I told them I just graduated university and will now be going to law school. We also went to the beach to walk their three house dogs. Last night Barry and I also had a fun conversation. He asked what a fraternity was and then we had a LONG explanation about them all. Yet another thing Kiwis have really only heard about because of TV and are often confused about.
Also, it occurred to me on Wednesday night (when listening to some of the uni students talk) that I forgot to include some of my FAVORITE Kiwi sayings that is really quite confusing when you are first here. First, let me explain my first encounter with these sayings.
One day, I was talking to someone here about the fact that I had just graduated from Purdue with a double major and would be going to law school soon. We then got on the conversation of Indiana and why I would choose them despite the fact that they were Purdue's rivals. After I had explained that they are actually ranked pretty high, they have in state tuition, and they offered me a scholarship they looked at me and said, "Far out! You must be smart az." When they said this I didn't know what to say. Were they making fun of me or trying to compliment me?
For a while I continued to hear Kiwis says "cool az" or "bored az" or many other sayings that ended with what sounded like another word for a donkey. For a long time I thought they simply all had an obsession with the word and it must not be profane for them. Later on, however, I finally realized that they say similes without finishing the sentence all the time. They were really saying "cool as (a cucumber)" or "smart as (Einstein)." They simply just shorten the similes so they don't have to come up with something clever at the end. Really, it makes talking to someone so much quicker. It's just confusing to us Americans that don't always know what they are saying. ha ha
That's it for today.
I hope things are going well for all of you.
Monday, June 21, 2010
What was that again?
When I spoke with my family the other day, one of the first things my brother Matt asked was, "Do the people there sound like the gecko off of the Geico commercials?" For simplicity, my answer was "yes" but in reality the gecko is MUCH easier to understand than the Kiwi's here. This thought inspired me to make an entry about the Kiwi language.
It is true that Kiwis speak English, but it is not true that they are always easy to understand. A New Zealand accent sounds much like a Australian accent to those that have not heard both at the same time (I am still inclined to think they sound similiar but have been told by many Kiwis they DO NOT). They don't pronounce their 'r's, cut words off, switch there 'i's with 'u's, and then mumble them all together. The key for speaking like a Kiwi is to say 5 words in about the time we might say 2.
They also are very good at cutting off half of the word and adding 'ie' or 'y' to the end. Words like breakfast, cardigan, and sunglasses will be said as brekkie, cardy, and sunnies. Sometimes I catch myself thinking it's a game to make everything they say sound cutesy, but as soon as I hear a grown man say it I am thrown off. It's not cutesy for them, it is really what they call it.
In addition to these differences, they also have a different vocabulary. Here are some that I have picked up on so far:
(States- New Zealand)
field- paddock
trash- rubbish
swimsuit-togs (this one REALLY confused me when someone said to bring our togs)
rain boots- gummies
cookie- biscuit (this always makes me think of dog biscuits...)
car trunk- boot
french fries- chips
carbonation- fizzy
apartment- flat
hiking- tramping
flip flop- jandal
push-up- press-up
gravel- shingles
middle of nowhere- wop wops
dinner- tea
night snacks- supper
snack between morning and lunch- morning tea
snack between lunch and dinner- afternoon tea
(In summary of these last few: morning tea and afternoon tea are snacks, whereas tea is dinner and supper is a night snack... this confused me for quite some time)
In order to sound like a Kiwi, here are some other tips:
When saying yes in response say "ya" preferably 4 or 5 times.
Use "heaps" and "wee bit" to replace "a lot" or "a little."
Call everyone bro or mate. Also, end most sentences with bro.
End all other sentences with "eh."
Refer to girls as "sheilas."
When you are excited or think something is cool say "far out."
End sentences with a question mark?
To say goodbye use "cheers."
Finally, the last bit of differences in the Kiwi language cannot be heard but is noticed when reading newspapers or magazines (I naturally notice these because I like checking for spelling errors and grammatical errors when I am reading things). Sometimes you know the word is immediately different (like tyre for tire) while others can make you question if that is not how we spell it in the States. Here are some general Kiwi spelling rules:
Most things that end with -er are changed to -re like: metre and centre
Replace 'z's in the middle of words with an 's' like: realisation and organise
Randomly add 'u's to words like: colour and flavour
Another less consistent rule is to remove double consonants. This would be like the word enrolment.
The last wee bit of info for today is that "kiwi" refers to 3 things:
1. New Zealand people
2. The bird
3. The fruit
Cheers!
(To hear some of these for yourself click here)
It is true that Kiwis speak English, but it is not true that they are always easy to understand. A New Zealand accent sounds much like a Australian accent to those that have not heard both at the same time (I am still inclined to think they sound similiar but have been told by many Kiwis they DO NOT). They don't pronounce their 'r's, cut words off, switch there 'i's with 'u's, and then mumble them all together. The key for speaking like a Kiwi is to say 5 words in about the time we might say 2.
They also are very good at cutting off half of the word and adding 'ie' or 'y' to the end. Words like breakfast, cardigan, and sunglasses will be said as brekkie, cardy, and sunnies. Sometimes I catch myself thinking it's a game to make everything they say sound cutesy, but as soon as I hear a grown man say it I am thrown off. It's not cutesy for them, it is really what they call it.
In addition to these differences, they also have a different vocabulary. Here are some that I have picked up on so far:
(States- New Zealand)
field- paddock
trash- rubbish
swimsuit-togs (this one REALLY confused me when someone said to bring our togs)
rain boots- gummies
cookie- biscuit (this always makes me think of dog biscuits...)
car trunk- boot
french fries- chips
carbonation- fizzy
apartment- flat
hiking- tramping
flip flop- jandal
push-up- press-up
gravel- shingles
middle of nowhere- wop wops
dinner- tea
night snacks- supper
snack between morning and lunch- morning tea
snack between lunch and dinner- afternoon tea
(In summary of these last few: morning tea and afternoon tea are snacks, whereas tea is dinner and supper is a night snack... this confused me for quite some time)
In order to sound like a Kiwi, here are some other tips:
When saying yes in response say "ya" preferably 4 or 5 times.
Use "heaps" and "wee bit" to replace "a lot" or "a little."
Call everyone bro or mate. Also, end most sentences with bro.
End all other sentences with "eh."
Refer to girls as "sheilas."
When you are excited or think something is cool say "far out."
End sentences with a question mark?
To say goodbye use "cheers."
Finally, the last bit of differences in the Kiwi language cannot be heard but is noticed when reading newspapers or magazines (I naturally notice these because I like checking for spelling errors and grammatical errors when I am reading things). Sometimes you know the word is immediately different (like tyre for tire) while others can make you question if that is not how we spell it in the States. Here are some general Kiwi spelling rules:
Most things that end with -er are changed to -re like: metre and centre
Replace 'z's in the middle of words with an 's' like: realisation and organise
Randomly add 'u's to words like: colour and flavour
Another less consistent rule is to remove double consonants. This would be like the word enrolment.
The last wee bit of info for today is that "kiwi" refers to 3 things:
1. New Zealand people
2. The bird
3. The fruit
Cheers!
(To hear some of these for yourself click here)
How I Spend My Time
By the end of today, I will have been in New Zealand for 6 days. Crazy. Here is a brief summary on my life here so far:
Where I am living: I am still living in the room next to Aaron's at the ex-honey farmer Barry's house. For breakfast I choose from his 12 (I think it is 12...) different types of honey. (Laur, I know you would LOVE that) He makes us both dinner each night. It isn't bad food, but it isn't really good either. Generally it involves some kind of meat, potato, and vegetable. So far I have two offers of some where else to stay. The first one is with a girl named Dani, a university student that goes to the church Aaron has been attending. Her flatmates are on holiday. The second is with James', Dani's boyfriend's, grandparents. Dani lives further away from town which would mean I would have to find rides constantly, whereas James' grandparents live in town. Living with Dani does sound more exciting though. We will see.
What I am doing: Well, that really does depend on the day.
Day 1- Aaron and I got something to eat at the takeaway here in Leeston (a burger with chips- as a side note, they put beets on their burgers), walked through the small town of Leeston some, went to the sheep farm he works at, and then Tim (the sheep farmer) took us on a scenic tour. We hiked some around a lake and went to their very rocky beach.
Day 2- I was VERY tired and so slept in; Aaron picked me up at lunch and took me to the sheep farm; I ran errands with Julie, Tim's wife, throughout Leeston and the surrounding small towns; I visited the library (and was super excited about it!) with Julie; had an afternoon T (I am not sure if it is a T or tea or tee... I will ask about that) with a little chocolate piece of goodness; and made up a list of places Aaron and I should visit in New Zealand.
Day 3- I decided to go to the farm with Aaron bright and early. We went to tend to the cattle (they have beef cows along with the sheep) where I at first helped Aaron and then got rather bored and read the Wildlife in New Zealand book that I got at the library (I figured I should get some New Zealand reading material while I was there). I then went back to Tim and Julie's house where I embarked on the mission of making a Coconut Feijoa Cake (Feijoa's are a little green fruit that kind of remind me of kiwis, but they are more tart). This took quite some time- a couple of hours just to make the batter. The recipe told me to beat the egg whites until stiff, something I had never done before. Unfortunately, they only had one of the antique hand mixers that you cannot plug in (like one that we played with and wondered who would use it at the kitchen supplies store Laur) and it took AGES to make the egg whites stiff. I know it took me over forty-five minutes. Ridiculous. After that, Julie and I took a bike ride (to get my butt used to riding on a bike so Aaron I can do one of the Kiwis favorite things- mountain bike). After burning off enough calories, we then ate some cake (which was quite tasty) and I spent the last hour Aaron was working reading a book by a Kiwi author (which really isn't that good...). That night we attended a quiz night that was held as a fundraiser for two girls that will be working at an orphanage in Africa during their holiday. We were on a team with four of the guys from the church Aaron has been attending and were named "Team America." Although some of the questions I had no idea about (there were many about the All Blacks their rugby team), New Zealand trivia is similiar to American trivia because they often watch the same movies and things we do.
Day 4- Aaron and I went to the church that he has been attending while he was here. It's a small church, with lots of youth. It's weird being known as "Aaron's girlfriend" not because I am not used to being associated with him (4 and 1/2 years makes that easy...), but because I am not used to people knowing Aaron before me. Pretty much everyone knew who I was and my name before I talked to them. The sermon was very good, and then the youth (including the University, or Uni, students) went to the warehouse across the street that the church just purchased to hang out. After getting lunch at the grocery store, we then went to the warehouse that is full of game tables and hung out. Later on that night, we went to one of the girls house and watched a news special (which everyone was quite into) and then played a game that I have played before with lots of Texas people... I think we called it fish bowl? Overall, it was fun hanging out with everyone, but it was VERY weird to be the outsider.
Day 5- I didn't want to continue impeding upon Tim and Julie's hospitality so decided to stay at Barry's house while Aaron went to work. I slept in; checked my facebook and e-mail; talked to my family; thought about taking a walk outside, but changed my mind when I stepped out the door and it was freezing; read; decided to make a blog; and basically sat around and did nothing.
Day 6- Today! Well, the beginning of the day has started off much like yesterday, but I am hoping Aaron will be picking me up soon and taking me to the farm. There I don't know what adventures will be awaiting me...
As for a job update, there is a lead with a kindergarten that I might be able to volunteer at. Unfortunately, the lady that said I could work there is gone on vacation right now so I am playing a waiting game on that one. I have also recently been debating on seeing if people around me could use somebody to help them around the house for a couple of days. We will see what happens with all of that. I am praying for direction.
Where I am living: I am still living in the room next to Aaron's at the ex-honey farmer Barry's house. For breakfast I choose from his 12 (I think it is 12...) different types of honey. (Laur, I know you would LOVE that) He makes us both dinner each night. It isn't bad food, but it isn't really good either. Generally it involves some kind of meat, potato, and vegetable. So far I have two offers of some where else to stay. The first one is with a girl named Dani, a university student that goes to the church Aaron has been attending. Her flatmates are on holiday. The second is with James', Dani's boyfriend's, grandparents. Dani lives further away from town which would mean I would have to find rides constantly, whereas James' grandparents live in town. Living with Dani does sound more exciting though. We will see.
What I am doing: Well, that really does depend on the day.
Day 1- Aaron and I got something to eat at the takeaway here in Leeston (a burger with chips- as a side note, they put beets on their burgers), walked through the small town of Leeston some, went to the sheep farm he works at, and then Tim (the sheep farmer) took us on a scenic tour. We hiked some around a lake and went to their very rocky beach.
Day 2- I was VERY tired and so slept in; Aaron picked me up at lunch and took me to the sheep farm; I ran errands with Julie, Tim's wife, throughout Leeston and the surrounding small towns; I visited the library (and was super excited about it!) with Julie; had an afternoon T (I am not sure if it is a T or tea or tee... I will ask about that) with a little chocolate piece of goodness; and made up a list of places Aaron and I should visit in New Zealand.
Day 3- I decided to go to the farm with Aaron bright and early. We went to tend to the cattle (they have beef cows along with the sheep) where I at first helped Aaron and then got rather bored and read the Wildlife in New Zealand book that I got at the library (I figured I should get some New Zealand reading material while I was there). I then went back to Tim and Julie's house where I embarked on the mission of making a Coconut Feijoa Cake (Feijoa's are a little green fruit that kind of remind me of kiwis, but they are more tart). This took quite some time- a couple of hours just to make the batter. The recipe told me to beat the egg whites until stiff, something I had never done before. Unfortunately, they only had one of the antique hand mixers that you cannot plug in (like one that we played with and wondered who would use it at the kitchen supplies store Laur) and it took AGES to make the egg whites stiff. I know it took me over forty-five minutes. Ridiculous. After that, Julie and I took a bike ride (to get my butt used to riding on a bike so Aaron I can do one of the Kiwis favorite things- mountain bike). After burning off enough calories, we then ate some cake (which was quite tasty) and I spent the last hour Aaron was working reading a book by a Kiwi author (which really isn't that good...). That night we attended a quiz night that was held as a fundraiser for two girls that will be working at an orphanage in Africa during their holiday. We were on a team with four of the guys from the church Aaron has been attending and were named "Team America." Although some of the questions I had no idea about (there were many about the All Blacks their rugby team), New Zealand trivia is similiar to American trivia because they often watch the same movies and things we do.
Day 4- Aaron and I went to the church that he has been attending while he was here. It's a small church, with lots of youth. It's weird being known as "Aaron's girlfriend" not because I am not used to being associated with him (4 and 1/2 years makes that easy...), but because I am not used to people knowing Aaron before me. Pretty much everyone knew who I was and my name before I talked to them. The sermon was very good, and then the youth (including the University, or Uni, students) went to the warehouse across the street that the church just purchased to hang out. After getting lunch at the grocery store, we then went to the warehouse that is full of game tables and hung out. Later on that night, we went to one of the girls house and watched a news special (which everyone was quite into) and then played a game that I have played before with lots of Texas people... I think we called it fish bowl? Overall, it was fun hanging out with everyone, but it was VERY weird to be the outsider.
Day 5- I didn't want to continue impeding upon Tim and Julie's hospitality so decided to stay at Barry's house while Aaron went to work. I slept in; checked my facebook and e-mail; talked to my family; thought about taking a walk outside, but changed my mind when I stepped out the door and it was freezing; read; decided to make a blog; and basically sat around and did nothing.
Day 6- Today! Well, the beginning of the day has started off much like yesterday, but I am hoping Aaron will be picking me up soon and taking me to the farm. There I don't know what adventures will be awaiting me...
As for a job update, there is a lead with a kindergarten that I might be able to volunteer at. Unfortunately, the lady that said I could work there is gone on vacation right now so I am playing a waiting game on that one. I have also recently been debating on seeing if people around me could use somebody to help them around the house for a couple of days. We will see what happens with all of that. I am praying for direction.
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Leading up to New Zealand
Last summer I made a decision to do something awesome with my "last summer of freedom" (aka the last summer where I don't have to participate in a grown-up job). Although there were many contenders, my main aspiration was to live abroad. This was for multiple reasons, the main ones being: 1) I love learning new cultures, 2) I feel like living abroad is the ultimate way to step out of your comfort zone and see new ways God can work through you, 3) when else will I be able to live abroad without any good reason?. When I shared this dream with Aaron, he surprised me by saying he would love to do the same thing.
After making a few big decision to step out in faith (thanks to a good friend Matt Stine's last minute calls), Aaron decided he would follow through with this idea. This began the craziness of deciding where I wanted to go (there is, after all, a whole world out there to explore!) and if it could be the same place as Aaron. Because of obligations I had at the beginning of the summer I knew that I wouldn't be able to live in a different country quite as long as Aaron. This also meant that finding a job online was virtually impossible for me. Because of that, we decided it would be best for Aaron to find a job and I would try to follow him where ever he went.
Although this seemed reasonable, it wasn't always easy to follow through with waiting for Aaron to figure out where he was going. Aaron did not find out where he would be until about a month before leaving (Aprilish). It seemed like my whole future was up in the air at the time (I was still trying to figure out law school things) and it would have been nice to know what I would be doing during the summer. Even though I much more welcoming to adventures and change than Aaron, I too had a few steps in faith to make before coming.
My main concern about living abroad was getting the money. God quickly alleviated that worry, however. Soon after telling people I wanted to live abroad people began offering to let me borrow money until I can take out a loan (without interest) for law school. I needed enough money for $1400 plane tickets and living expenses and through many awesome people that money was provided. God made it obvious that He would take care of me in New Zealand.
After figuring out the money and knowing God wants me in New Zealand, the main two things to figure out were what I would be doing and where I would be staying. For a while, I spent a lot of time finding jobs in New Zealand online, but none of them were close enough to where Aaron would be (they were like 8 or more hours away). Although I wanted to live abroad anyways, the reason I chose New Zealand was to be close to Aaron. A job that far away would nullify my efforts to go to New Zealand in the first place. Because of that and Aaron insisting that he had many job offers, I decided that I did not need to find a job before leaving. Finding a place to stay kind of went the same way. I started looking things up, but in the end Aaron said he could find some place for me to stay. We came to the agreement that I could stay in the house Aaron was staying in for a limited amount of time (Aaron rented the four bedrooms of the upstairs of a house), but thought it would be best to soon find somewhere else to stay.
On June 15th I left for the airport with two suitcases full of warm, winter clothes and without a real knowledge of what I would be doing while I was in New Zealand. The only things that I really did know is that I had a long 27 hours ahead of me and would be picked up by Aaron on June 17th (there is an 16 hour time difference from Indiana) in Christchurch, New Zealand.
After making a few big decision to step out in faith (thanks to a good friend Matt Stine's last minute calls), Aaron decided he would follow through with this idea. This began the craziness of deciding where I wanted to go (there is, after all, a whole world out there to explore!) and if it could be the same place as Aaron. Because of obligations I had at the beginning of the summer I knew that I wouldn't be able to live in a different country quite as long as Aaron. This also meant that finding a job online was virtually impossible for me. Because of that, we decided it would be best for Aaron to find a job and I would try to follow him where ever he went.
Although this seemed reasonable, it wasn't always easy to follow through with waiting for Aaron to figure out where he was going. Aaron did not find out where he would be until about a month before leaving (Aprilish). It seemed like my whole future was up in the air at the time (I was still trying to figure out law school things) and it would have been nice to know what I would be doing during the summer. Even though I much more welcoming to adventures and change than Aaron, I too had a few steps in faith to make before coming.
My main concern about living abroad was getting the money. God quickly alleviated that worry, however. Soon after telling people I wanted to live abroad people began offering to let me borrow money until I can take out a loan (without interest) for law school. I needed enough money for $1400 plane tickets and living expenses and through many awesome people that money was provided. God made it obvious that He would take care of me in New Zealand.
After figuring out the money and knowing God wants me in New Zealand, the main two things to figure out were what I would be doing and where I would be staying. For a while, I spent a lot of time finding jobs in New Zealand online, but none of them were close enough to where Aaron would be (they were like 8 or more hours away). Although I wanted to live abroad anyways, the reason I chose New Zealand was to be close to Aaron. A job that far away would nullify my efforts to go to New Zealand in the first place. Because of that and Aaron insisting that he had many job offers, I decided that I did not need to find a job before leaving. Finding a place to stay kind of went the same way. I started looking things up, but in the end Aaron said he could find some place for me to stay. We came to the agreement that I could stay in the house Aaron was staying in for a limited amount of time (Aaron rented the four bedrooms of the upstairs of a house), but thought it would be best to soon find somewhere else to stay.
On June 15th I left for the airport with two suitcases full of warm, winter clothes and without a real knowledge of what I would be doing while I was in New Zealand. The only things that I really did know is that I had a long 27 hours ahead of me and would be picked up by Aaron on June 17th (there is an 16 hour time difference from Indiana) in Christchurch, New Zealand.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)