Moisture, Real Country Darkness, More Pancakes

Oh, hello there.
Today is x-mas eve and I am spending it here in blenheim with two friends, Eddie and Kris. Eddie and Kris purchased a house here in blenheim and plan on staying long-term, so they offered to put me up on my way back through blenheim. Incredibly nice people. This morning I made them german pancakes with an array of optional toppings.
Mark and lachie, my two friends from Australia, are arriving tomorrow, so I have been planning and preparing like a mad man. This morning I went grocery shopping and spent damn near $160..My heart shattered when I saw the total, but I imagine the amount of food I purchased will last a good deal of time, and it's better to be prepared then to be stuck in arthur's pass (the place we are going hiking) without grocery facilities.
I just got back yesterday from a four night trip in Abel Tasman National Park. I went with two german friends of mine, Yvonne and Leila. They were a great crew to travel along with and we had some pretty hardy laughs. The first day of the trip could have been disastrous. It started raining midway through the trek and didn't let up until morning the next day, Heavy Hard Rain. We sought out shelter in a kitchen shelter and ended up spending the night in there. My tent, which I inherited from some friends, would have disintegrated in the rain, that's for sure. Other than that the trek was nearly flawless. The beaches were incredibly scenic and I indulged in more than my share of dipping. Blue waters with sort of borderline lush tropical surroundings. It couldn't have been a better area.
Last night I met with my old friend Chris from Chico State University. He's a native kiwi and by chance his grandparents live here in blenheim, so he was swinging through for x-mas. Here's a story- On the vineyards I worked with an 84 year old man. He did the same job as I. Bending and picking at plants over and over. Anyway, after speaking with Chris for awhile we figured out that the man I worked with was actually his grandfather. Small world indeed.
Well, I hope this festive season is treating you well. Bye.

P.S. The car is driving like a dream. A 1982 light brown dream.

German Pancakes

Good Gravey.
Yesterday was my last day working in the vineyards. I was in an awfully good mood and no amount of work set before me could make me frown. Today I set up little brownie with car insurance and registration. She's street legal boys! I'll be leaving here this coming sunday to head to abel tasman for a much anticipated bout of tramping. Three nights camping out along the coast is just what the doctor ordered. I'm going to have to get a bunch of pics of this spot. From what I've heard Abel Tasman is fairly spectacular.
I'm somewhat sad to be leaving blenheim, but at the same time most of my close friends have left and I feel like their isn't too much more this spot can offer. I'm glad I stayed here a month and saved up some cash, it's been a memorable experience for sure. I'll actually be back here on the 23rd and 24th to meet up some folks for some x-mas pre-partying. One of the people I am going to meet up with is an x-room mate of mine from university in california. His name is Chris and he is genuine real live Kiwi that resides most of the time on the north island. Fortunately his grandparents live here in blenheim, so I'll be able to meet up for a wee bit.
I've found a place in town that sells cd's for fairly cheap. I splurged and bought two bob dylan albums that were previously unheard by myself. 1. The times they are a'changin. 2. Desire. Both are phenomenal and have been on heavy rotation in my compact disc player.
I scored a whole bunch of good gear today. Some friends gave me a tent that they didn't want anymore and it seems to be in top working order.I also found a good pair of boots in a closet here at the hostel. the closet is full of stuff that people have left behind over the years. SCORE!
I also bought the book, "catch 22" by joseph heller. I tried reading this long ago, but was never dedicated enough to finish it. This time I am determined. SOYONARA!

Acquiring Little Brownie

Today Little Brownie rolled into town. A 1982 Mitsubishi Hatch-back, Brown. I drove her today on the highway for about 40 minutes and she purred away perfectly. I'm paying 350 dollars for the car + 50 for warrant of fitness + 120 for registration + 225 for third party insurance. All total I will pay about 740 dollars NZ for the car, or around 500 dollars US. I'm fairly psyched about the whole deal and everyone I speak to about it seems to think it a good deal. Little Brownie is so ugly that she is almost beautiful.
Work has been slowing down a bit in the vineyard lately, so last week I had two days where they my services weren't needed. Oh well, I guess it's only a couple extra bucks and I really have been able to save up some good cash well staying here in blenheim. I'm going to work one more week and then on saturday I will head to the northern coast to do a 3 day backpacking trip with two german girls I met here in blenheim. After that I am going to pick up some australian friends and get down to some serious backpacking. It'll be a nice way to round out december and kick off the new year.
Well, I better get going. I've got to give Little Brownie a full body wax job.

Anthony Hopkins = Pure Solid Gold

Hi-
I went out to the pub last night with damn near every nationality of world represented. It was a huge crew and it became a little overwhelming at times. There were 4 or 5 Germans that would not stop screaming the lyrics to "with or without you" by U2, and nearly every kiwi in the place was staring over in our direction without a smile on their face. I shook my head and said, "damn germans, will they never calm down?". I went and saw "the world's fastest indian", a movie about a kiwi that heads to america with his motorcycle to break the world's speed record. It was pure genius. An oscar contender if I've ever seen one. Anythony Hopkins gave new meaning to the word "acting". Mesmerizing. Is that enough praise for ya? I'm not sure when it is going to cross the seas to america, it being a new zealand made film, but do make sure to swing by the theater when it does come there. Well, a few of my good friends that live with me and work with me have decided to move on to another place. It's kind of sad. I've surely settled in with my lifestyle here in blenheim and it is going to give me a jolt when a few of my compadres wander on. Better get used to it I suppose, that is the life of the wandering new zealand migrant farm worker. My two australian buddies, lachie and mark, have chosen some dates after christmas to come visit new zealand. It's going to be ridiculous to see them. A damn hoot, I should say. Anyway, I need to get on the planning band wagon so we can do some sweet backpacking while they are here. Time is going faster than ever these days. I've already been in new zealand a month and I have yet to unpack my bag....Oh, you should have seen my japanese friend Yoshi dancing last night. I've never seen someone so uncoordinated. It was stunning. I was in Awe.