The Feildays Trip
Posted by tylersdad | Filed under 1
Tyler and i have just spent a couple of days away with his grandparents at the Feildays near Hamilton. Despite having colds we had a good time.
We left home on Wednesday morning and slowly ambled North stopping at Otaki for a nosey at the outlet shops, and then at Bulls for a kebab. We arrived at Taupo mid afternoon and unloaded the car before shooting up to the storage unit with grandad to check the boat. After tea and a few quiet ales we hit the sack as we aimed to be out by 8am.
We had a good run up to Cambridge and while getting caught up in some traffic that backed up we got a good carpark at the southern end with a short walk down to the southern entrance. Grandad disappeared to talk to various suppliers about various farm implements and machinery, while we ambled around a few stalls until we met up at lunchtime.
After lunch Tyler found the digger competition and promptly had a go – you had to use a digger to pick up a tomato stake that sat atop 2 road cones, and place it atop two tomato stakes sitting inside 2 other road cones – needless to say task accomplished. I was most impressed.
Tyler then found the Hydraulink car and promptly paid his entry fee and did 3 laps of Pukekohe (it has an XBox rigged up to it). His fastest lap was 55sec. The top lap for the day was 47sec. Not bad for a 13 year old ehh!!!!!! Needless to say i did not have a go for fear of being shown up.
We continued looking around at the various stalls before heading off to the B&B for the night. note to self – don’t leave mother in charge of accomodation. It was warm and clean, but not quite what i was expecting though. That night we headed out for tea to GPO – one of the more upmarket joints in Cambridge. i reccomend it if you are in Cambridge and need an evening meal.
Friday – Day 2 say us enter the northern end, and after seeing a few more suppliers, we finished seeing the various stalls we missed the day before. I am sure we still missed a few though. I came away with a few goodies, mainly in relation to my chainsaw gear, however Tyler seems to have got the best bargain in terms of a winter 4 in 1 jacket that he had been searching for months for – $99 from $200.
Before we left Tyler had another go on the digger – mission accomplished – again. To get a 1″ stick to balance on 2 upright 1″ sticks, using only a digger’s bucket is pretty bloody impressive. We checked the Hydraulink stall again too as we went by – best time on day 2 was 49sec. Only 6 sec ahead of a 13year old !!!!!!!
So away we went, with our goodies, and back to Taupo for a night. heading home Saturday morning.
Just south of Mangaweka on Saturday we saw an Intercity bus being pulled out of a ditch. The driver must have been speeding down the hill and skidded when he braked, instead of turning to the right – side window smashed to get the passengers out, and a smashed windscreen – obviously from a body hitting it. 6 injured i read, 2 flown to Palmy Hospital, and 1 has a broken arm. Not a good look for Intercity – i have always thought those buses travel too fast.
So now we are home we are back into the usual routine. Milo has had a groom and now has short hair – she has eyes, and a nose, and long legs – and still has sharp teeth !!!! I measured her last night and estimated she has 4 or 5 cm still to go in height. At the next groom i think i’ll get the nose shaved so she does not look like a scottish terrier or schnauser.
Fundraising continues for Tylers Scout Jamboree. So far we have raised around $8k + compulsory deposit of $1,300. We have wine to sell soon, a movie night (for kids), 2 quiz nights, and chocolates etc. Tyler should enjoy his time at Jamboree. I know i did when i was his age. Anyone keen on buying Selini Wine let me know – it will be good pricing too – no minimum purchase either, you can buy 1 bottle if you wish.
The All Blacks seem to be playing well – i hope they don’t peak too early before the World Cup. And the All Whites too seem to be punching above their weight at the soccer world cup. In about 4 days when they are out of the competition soccer will again die in this country until early 2014 if the All Whites qualify again – who will they need to beat next time ? maybe Wolverhampton United’s local college 1st XI – ha ha.
Cycling has taken a back seat for a bit, but now its time to start training for Taupo 2010. After that i’ll look at a different ride – maybe riding around Ruapehu, or Taranaki ? Or concentrate on organising a cycle tour – who knows. Tylers scouting is taking preference over my hobbies, but thats OK – he’s only young once. I can ride anytime.
Thats all for now.
Auf Wediersen Pet.
Rain rain go away,,,,,,,,,,,
Posted by tylersdad | Filed under 1
Well, what a wet time we have been having of it lately.
As a result of all this wet weather after such a great fine spell, i have not managed to get outside. My bikes have remained dry and clean, as have i in the main. My only exercise has been delivering Tylers pamphlets (to sell bags of compost) for Scouts around the neighbourhood (between rain showers/storms). Apparently there are some 750 houses in my ‘run’. today we finished off the last 50 or so. I never realised our neighbourhood was so hilly. But it must have done me some good.
I have had various enquiries of Milo’s wellbeing- she is fine. As soon as i get my A into G i will get some pic’s up on Facebook, and maybe even on here. She is growing at a fast rate of knots, and is nearly 5m old. We have only a couple of bad traits to stop – being biting and jumping up. We feel we have housetrained her, and have had 1 accident in a week – my fault. She is very good at letting us know she needs to go outside, but sometimes the delay between notification and our reaction time is not conducive to the strength of her pelvic muscles.
We have also had some gains in regards sleeping-in which is a bonus, so mercifully 6am is no longer when i sling my feet into my slippers.
Getting back to the weather, we have now had 4 days of solid rain. This is following an earlier patch of 5 days that finally gave up to give us 4 days (when we were at work mind you) of no rain. The lawn is completely soaked, and the bank out the back has had enough. I went to check that the culvert was clear and discovered 2 small slips had occured. I think i had better alert the owner of the section as the creek is not really on this property. I also found the waterfall is putting on an impressive display. I must get a pic of it actually.
Tylers ‘medi-evil’ scout camp at Battle Hill was canned due to the inclement weather so they held an impromptu battle at the scout hall on Saturday. He seemed to have a ball. I am coming round to understanding that bad weather and scout camps are like beer and kebabs – they just go together.
Since i have been kept indoors i have sorted out my drawers and re-folded the clothes contained within, i have sorted my wardrobe and also the clothes within, as well as removed the junk (read study stuff) under the spare bed. I have cleaned and sorted the pantry too, and tidied up the garage (again). There is nothing left for me to clean/sort now as i did under the stairs 2 weekends ago, and the cars during the week. So now what ? supervise Vicki while she cleans out her drawers and her wardrobe ???? yeah right – they are immaculate.
Some simple stats for you ;
i own 14 cycling shirts, 4 tramping shirts, 4 poly-prop shirts, 3 fleece tops, 7 rugby jerseys, 30 t-shirts, 10 polo shirts, 2 mtb shorts, 4 lycra cycling shorts, 1 fluro cycling jacket, 2 cycling wind vests, 6 pairs of jeans, 6 suits, 21 business shirts, 20 ties, 11 casual shirts, 1 hawaiin shirt, 12 pairs of shorts, and numerous jackets. Maybe its time i did a cull.
So thanks for taking the time to read about nothing. And for that you can blame the rain. But at least we are clear of the junk under the bed.
And to all those tossers who are bombarding this blog with spam – don’t waste your time as they are deleted. You can keep your special pills and potions, i have no need for them according to the lady. And for those not promoting ‘enhancing’ products, stop double posting saying how wonderful my blog is and how you wish to emulate it, and speaka da Engrish man. your grammer is pathetic – we can tell you are stuck in the backwaters of Bratislavia. Sod off.
And that my friends brings this Queens Birthday long weekend to a close.
Adieu
Kapakapanui – scout tramp
Posted by tylersdad | Filed under 1
A few weeks back an email arrived for Tyler from his scout group advising of an upcoming tramp, and requesting expressions of interest. As usual parents are encouraged to come along. So we replied that the two of us would attend, although i would stand down if not enough room as i had been on other outings and wanted to allow other parents to attend. The reply came back – we’d love to have you along. yippee.
As the weekend drew closer i started paying closer attention to the weather, as most other events i had been on involved a combination of two Hydrogen atoms and one Oxygen atom joined at the hip. And what do you know, it was predicted to be wet. bugger.
At the last event i attended i discovered that my beloved sleeping bag of nearly 30 years had passed its use-by date. I undertook a search to find the best value bag suited for my purposes, including the number of nights i would be under the stars. I duly purchased a Marmot Trestles 15 sleeping bag (synthetic) – perfect. and the cost – $160 after receiving $40 in vouchers.
I also discovered that my walking shoes were not up to the task of hiking, so really needed some new boots. OMG the price you can pay for a pair of shoes – i have seen cars for sale for less. I ended up with some Mammut Sierra GTX boots. and the cost – $249 after a discount of $80.
The earlier events also highlighted my need for a decent waterproof jacket suitable for the bush. Again, the cost of these went through the roof – i had seen 10 person tents for less than some jackets. I did a lot of research on these and ended up with a Peak XV. and the cost – $279 after a discount of $70.
I am glad my pack was still in good condition, as i sure as hell didn;t want to fork out more $$$$. I can now say i need no more outdoor equipment (well at least at the moment !!!!)
Hey, at least i’m doing my bit to help the country out of the recession.
So with this wet weather looming, i knew i was all prepared to stay warm and dry. The tramp intention form clearly stated ‘this is an easy tramp’. I think i was over-done with all my gear but you can never be too prepared when going bush. but as it was easy i knew i could take some extra’s so in i slipped 1L of red wine, a travel Monopoly set, 750g of lollies, and 250g of marshmellows, as well as some fancy coffee. I also took a lantern, cooker, and my inflatable bedroll. Well it was an easy tramp they said, so i could afford to take the luxuries !!!! I also loaded my pack up with some group gear (we share out the utensils, food etc – there was 19 on the trip). Total pack weight – 22kg.
Saturday morning dawned a beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky. So off to the den we went, loaded up, and headed north to Waikanae, and parked up at the road-end. We then set off for this easy tramp. I had done some brief research on this track – well its all i can do – there is only about 3 websites with info. 1 of them stated there is a steep section of 500m before it flattens off. Nice i thought, thats like a big long driveway, not a problem. How wrong i was. I forgot,trampers measure in vertical distance.
We crosssed the river 8 times to arrive at the junction, and promptly turned left,,,,,,,,,,,,and up. I am glad to say my feet were as dry as an Arabs armpit. My waterproof boots worked !!!!
We climbed up, and up and up. It was relentless. We pulled ourselves up on tree roots. we scrambled for footholds. We ducked under supplejack. We skirted 100yr old fallen trees. There was no view of Kapiti Island until near the hut. All i saw were trees, moss, and roots, and dirt – lots of it. We climbed nearly 800m to the hut over about 3km. I have never been so relieved to see a hut in my life. I was sure we were about to arrive at the pearly gates we were so high as when we arrived so had the mist, so the supposed wonderful views (other than the hut) were not to be seen.
Unfortunately because we had such a large group, and several young first timers, coupled with the steep terrain, we spent longer than envisaged getting there, so reaching the summit today was cancelled.
We settled in, and had tea. The scounts setting up flys under the beech trees, with the adults in the 6bed hut.
I awoke at 3am, to relieve myself of some of the red wine, to discover it was raining. I jumped back into my sleeping bag, but could not get back to sleep due to some snoring – i tell ya – it was like a freakin freight train. so there i was – toss turn toss turn. i knew i should have got my earplugs out when we hit the hay – regrets – i had a few that night. I am happy to say i was also warm in my sleeping bag (yes we had a fire on,but it wasn’t much as we were in bog country and all the wood was wet).
When we all got up, at about 7.30am the rain was coming and going, so the scout leaders were in two minds about zipping up to the clearing some 20min away (probably 40 min at our pace). Then the rain started more earnestly, so we decided to head down once we cleaned the place up. Just prior to departure Tyler came to me to show me his glasses – the frames had broken. What was i supposed to do – here we were at 800m with a child who needs glasses and we have a very steep wet descent. Not much we could do really, tape wouldn’t work – at least he could see his feet and hence the track. We just had to do what we could.
I was glad it was raining as i could test my new jacket. so we headed on down and made good progress, stopping 2/3 of the way for lunch. The weather had cleared by now as we had lost altitude, but i kept my jacket on as i wanted to test its breathability, as well as its waterproofness. Eventually we made the bottom – Tyler did well, as he led the group down, at a good pace i might add given the visual difficulties, and the wet. I took my jacket off and checked the inside – excellent, it worked as well as the salesman said it would. Very good value for money.
I am very proud of Tyler. He did not moan once. He has earned the gaiters i promised him (once i pay for a new set of frames !!!).
Tonight, I got my book ‘Tararua’ (personally signed by the author Chris McLean by the way) out and looked up this tramp – there is a specific mention of this tramp by the Taraua Tramping Club in its very early days (1930’s) where it omits women from Strenuous Tramps. I suspect the scout group got this one wrong and omitted the word ‘not’ from their description.
So thats another track i can tick off, and another weekend spent with Tyler in the bush. It was hard, but it was enjoyable. I am enjoying getting back into tramping, and the other scout activities. I have planned a weekend tramp just with Tyler in the near future t show him its not all like this one, as well as some hopefully with Craig and Stu (and their boys).
We have such a great backyard here in Wellington, with everything on our doorstep that we sometimes take it for granted.
And I must remember to do some cycling too – those two bikes will forget who i am.
Thanks for reading.
Mothers Day – and stuff…….
Posted by tylersdad | Filed under 1
The 12th mothers day for Vicki has rolled around, and mumble mumble for my mum, and so as to be recorded on the interwebby for ever and ever, Happy Mothers Day to you both.
I know that life has been pretty quiet in this neck of the woods over the last while, and so taking a wild guess in that i have not heard from many others, then many others have been very busy.
I know Matt has been finishing off his book, and i now have a copy for proof-reading – thanks Matt, it’s an honour to be asked.
And i know Craig has been off on a Scout tramp up to Field Hut in the Western Tararua’s.
And most everyone else has been doing some sort of family thing (like me) – or probably hunkering down for winter like squirrels and finishing off all those last minute outside jobs.
As i have been standing outside of late while the dog sniffs around and digs holes i don’t want, i have noticed the distinct sound of Opposums in the trees/bush bordering the house, and have subsequently caught a few in the Dolphin spotlight munching away on the leaves of the natives. So i decided its time for the Timms trap to earn its keep once more. i baited it up with an apple on Friday night, placed it some 15m from the back door up on the bank, and Saturday morning gave me one rather large male. so i reset it, but placed it further down the bank (and closer to the back door). I was just clearing the table on Saturday night with the ranch-slider open when i heard an almighty commotion outside. I looked out and there was a flipping Oppossum writhing around in my trap – at 7.10pm – its barely dark for heavens sake. So i head on up to the trap, grabbing a stick on the way, but no need- it was dead by the time i got there. Another male – smaller this time. i’ve wedged them up in a tree on the Reserve until i can dispose of them. i don;t want them in my wheelie bin as they will fair honk – maybe Craig can take them away and dissect them with the boys ?????? I moved it and re-set it again but Sunday morning saw me Opposum-less. Lets see what Monday morning brings.
My walks with Milo have been getting longer and longer – shes quite good to walk now, and does not sniff every 1/2m. I have mastered the ’sit’ command except when she is excited soam quite pleased at that. And she is 90% house-trained -so thats good too.
Scout Fundraising has also started so Tyler can go to the Scout Jamboree this Xmas in Hamilton – so if you want Compost really cheap, let me know. We are also having a couple of quiz nights at the Khandallah Pub – teams of 6 $10 a head i believe – payment in advance to secure a spot – so let me know if you are keen on this too.
And if you have anything you want to donate that the scout group can sell on TradeMe – let me know too. not stuff you can’t sell though – needs to be semi-decent.
I have not been out on my bike, other than a quick commute so as to avoid using the bus – i think i might need to do some night-rides just to get some miles under my belt.
Thats about all for now – adieu.
The hum drum of life…….
Posted by tylersdad | Filed under 1
I can’t really say too much as nothing exciting has happened since i last hit the keyboard.
The usual routine of work and home time has continued as sure as grains of sand pass through the hourglass, or as tides move into and out of the harbour, or the Sun rises and sets, or indeed as the Moon rotates the Earth while the Earth rotates the Sun. It’s all sounding a bit ‘been there done that’ isn’t it.
We continually read blogs where exciting things have happened in the lofe of the blogger, but i can say with certainty that nothing exciting has happened.
What i can tell you is that Milo (the Ewok) is growing and falling into our humdrum routine life. We have made great progress in the great scheme of things – we seem to be cottoning on to the SIT command, and also to my whistle when out walking (away from the road).
For those who monitor Facebook you would of read this, however there are those who don’t, so let me tell it again, as i think it rather funny. Tyler and I were walking Milo at Seton Nossitor Park. Its a nice walk up a valley where dogs are allowed off-lead. A stream meanders through it and there are large grassy areas, and foot bridges to traverse the stream. Milo runs around and sniffs everywhere. At one point Tyler and i crossed a bridge while Milo was doing the usual sniffing in the log wet grass, so i called to her with a quick whistle. Her head came up, she looked at me, and bounded toward me -sort of – at the end of the bound there was no grass, no earth, and no bridge, just a 1/2 meter drop to the creek. While some of you may have a bit of concern at this, we didn’t as she was OK, no whimper, no nothing, just a look of pure shock on her face. I quickly crossed the bridge and got her out and came to the conclusion that she is no gundog. Looks like duckshooting is out for me.
She was quickly running about after a shake as though nothing had happened. Milo did enjoy her quick bath when we got home though,and then laying in front of the gas heater. Its a dogs life ehh!!!!
On Saturday morning (this is before the above mentioned walk with Milo), i arranged to go for a ride with my friend Matt. Facebook readers will already know this too. We met at Palmers Garden Centre at Plimmerton, and set off North up towards Whenua Tapu, hanging a left at Airlee Rd, climbing to the summit (i did a wheelspin on the wet white roadmarking paint – woohoo) before heading down into the settlement of Mana. We then followed the bays back round to SH1 before tackling the short but steepish Grays Rd and riding the inlet. At the head of the inlet we hung a left and headed past Battle Hill and on to the Paekakareki Hill Rd summit, where we had a quick break. We then flew down the other side into the village of Paekakareki and took the Ames Rd exit so as to firstly avoid the trafic over the rail bridge, and then follow the seawall (where we got rained upon despite it being a sunny morning) to Pukerua Bay. Here we climbed the hill and down the other side back to the cars. I had a bit of a heart stopping moment as i cut the lane at the roundabout (my hand was out indicating the turn), however my rear wheel slid out from under me. Thank heavens for having a few skills in this department from my enjoyment of MTB. I got the bike under control and proceeded to the exit,and the car, where Matt noticed the lack of pressure. Just before the roundabout i was drafting Matt and i hit a catseye – which caused me to get a snakebite puncture. I suppose thats punishment for drafting Matt down SH1 and not taking a turn at the front !!!! A few stat’s here for those who want to know these important things : 45km, 2:10 riding, and 400m climbing. And a bloody good ride it is too.
Matt and i then had coffee and cake at the cafe before heading to our respective families. An enjoyable morning with both the company and the weather.
I then had Tylers lunch to make, washing to hang out, lawns to mow, and a dog to walk.
Sunday saw us get up, have brekky, then head out to the shops. I scored myself a clothes steamer at KMart for $69 – bargain. As well we called in to see Stuart and Ellie, where i picked up a gate to stop Milo coming upstairs. Then it was back home to install the gate, and paint the letterbox.
So as you can see, there is nothing exciting to report – i didn’t stop any baddies, i didn’t save the world, or stop global friggin warming – except for the reduction in 1 sheep farting and belching CO2, which is now firmly esconsed in my tummy – you can’t beat roast lamb i say.
So i finished off the weekend with a bottle of wine (Jim Barry’s ’silly mid-off’ for you wino’s out there), watching the telly, with a ball of wool with legs cuddled up beside me.
Life is good.
…….and life continues……
Posted by tylersdad | Filed under 1
Not much has been happening of late, its been pretty much the usual hum drum and detrius of life. there is nothing special with which to regale you, and make you lie back and think of sweet nothings (or the motherland if you are so inclined).
The child.
Tyler has been away for the school holiday scout camp up Otaki Forks. This was a 4 night affair, of which i only attended the last night. He had a ball from what i can see. He is enjoying scouts pretty much the same way as i did, which is great. He is learning new stuff and coming quite independant which will set him up for later in life. Despite what many say (and those are the ones who have not been there/done that/at the coal face), scouts can be, and generally is, a bloody good organisation with leaders who are committed to the cause. sure there is the odd bad egg, but if you are committed to your child then you will become a part of what they do and can protect your child. If you are the type who just drops your child off and leaves them to fend for themselves, then become vunerable to external pressures and can fall off the rails. All i will say is ‘participate in your childs activities, and allow yourself to bond with your child, and help them grow – which is what a parent is for’.
Of all my friends, they ALL participate in their childs activities. But for those various activities to which i have been there as a coach, or parent help, i have seen many many parents who treat extra-mural activities as a day-care service, with those parents not providing any input whatsoever into the running of the activity, or the wellbeing of their child.
Crikey, i’m getting sentimental. must move on.
The dog.
i knew we (I) got the name wrong. Hairy McLairy is more apt.
Milo is growing faster (and fatter) than my Passionfruit. I am at my wits end with her biting though. I am sure this is as a result of her teething (shes now 12weeks). so this should subside if we keep on with the distraction attempts etc. The biting of clothing has subsided a bit, but the pinching of clothes from the washing basket has not.
We have taken her out on lots of walks (keeping clear of other dogs as she is not fully imunised yet). Today i let he off the leash twice and she stayed at my side as we walked along the path through the reserve. I am most impressed. We are also advancing on the Sit command too, which is great. Being only 12 weeks, and her breed, means she is quite excitable, so training may take a bit longer than say a Labrador. I have also noticed on these walks that a dog like this is a chick magnet – mind you, they are gooing and gaaaing over the puppy not me.
The bike.
I had a road ride (55km) last weekend with Matt. We went from his place in Paraparaumu, and rode the back roads to Otaki Forks (getting to within 4km of where Tyler was camping with scouts). It was a great ride with my friend Matt, at a nice pace, despite the cold. The coffee stop at Te Horo was a delight i must say, as was the stop at Matts mum’s for a coffee and bikkie. I am going to ride up there a bit more as it was very scenic. The only issue i found was from riding down SH1, and after the petrol tanker went by – removing the seat and seatpost from my rectum was not at all comfortable. Hint – stay off SH1.
I have no other news at this stage. Milo is asleep in her pen in the garage. Tyler is gearing up for school tomorrow. I am ready for work.
The world continues to turn.
ciao
The day we took Matt mountainbiking…
Posted by tylersdad | Filed under 1
It was the usual 8am start. Craig, Matt & I (Chris bailed on us) met at the bottom of Ngaraunga Gorge, before heading along to and up Ngaio Gorge. We then headed round to Crofton Downs and headed up to the Chartwell sub-station. (are you getting a sense of some word repeating here) This was followed by climbing up the chartwell Track to access the Skyline Track.
Our intention was to ride the Skyline Track to Karori, before heading down the Sanctuary Fenceline, then into town for a beer.
We reached the summit and were literally blown off our feet. The Nor-Wester was blowing like 40 bastards. I tried to ride along the track but was pushed off the bike by the wind. We made an executive decision to bail and head back down the hill. I have never been in such windy conditions before up there.
We reached the bottom and tried to decide what to do. we settled on heading for Karori via the road. Upon arrival at Marsden Village we found a cafe. so felt it right to have a coffee and cake. Finishing up we headed into Karori proper hanging a left at Campbell St to access the Sanctuary Fenceline. Craig suggested that we can’t take Matt out on the MTB and ride on the road for most of the time.
So we hit the main road and arrived smartly at Makara Peak MTB Park. ” http//:www.makarapeak.org ” We took Matt up Koru, Salley Alley, Ridgeline Extension, Swigg, and Starfish. Matt did really well considering his main bike is a Roadie, and his off-road excursions are groomed river trails. I’ve decided that we can convert him over to the dark side. Coming down Starfish Matt had an excellent ‘Endo’ thereby qualifying him into the world of mountainbiking. It was a great crash with a summersault by both rider and bike.
Back in Karori we decided to ditch the fenceline and head into town via Kelburn and the cable car. Destination – Leuvan.
A cold glass of Stella, and a thingy of Pommes Frites saw us well rewarded for all the climbing we did. We then headed back to the cars (into the wind) through town and Thordon Quay/Hutt Rd. It was some 700m climbing all up, in windy conditions. Total ride distance was 41.5km.
I think we nearly broke Matt, but hes got some resolve, so we will try harder next time. An excellent time was had by all (well we’ll see when Matts bruises come out !!!!!).
The end, and the beginning…..
Posted by tylersdad | Filed under 1
righto, i have survived the scout camp, despite it occuring with a horrendous storm on the Friday night, and have also come through the other side of a school camp (but needing some serious psychiatric help). Also cricket has finished on a high, and we have a new addition to the family.
Scout camp:
I gave my tent to scouts to transport over, which would save me some room in my car and allow me to take another scout after work.
The storm hit town about 4ish Friday, so i called up one of the scout leaders to see if they could errect my tent before it got to them. Unfortunately reception was bad so i did not know anything till i got there. Upon arriving the storm had passed by, but they had errected my tent – unfortunately just as the storm hit. my tent therefore being wet on the inside.
The storm caused Friday night/Saturday morning to be very cold, with the temperature dropping to 2deg in the tent that had a thermoeter,and the bbq outside having ice on it. My wet tent did not assist matters either and i think it was even colder in my tent – i have never been that cold before camping (and i have a bloody good sleeping bag).
The weather cleared Saturday and we all had a ball, except for the wasps that liked the food. i hate wasps.
Tyler enjoyed himself, probably because he was in a dry tent.
I shared my tent with another father which was quite good because we talked a lot and had many things in common to discuss.
I must say that i do enjoy being involved in scouts again after being away from it for some 25years.
School camp:
4 days of joy – who am i kidding, the noise got to me. It was a joy to find a spot that had no noise – being The Thirsty Ox in Levin.
The camp was held at Forest Lakes just north of Otaki. Forest Lakes is a christian camp with a lot of facilities such as flying fox (that i spent 2 days on clipping children onto), abseiling, mudslide, waterslide (I also spent a 1/2 day at the bottom of the waterslide in my wetsuit in case i had to jump into the lake to rescue any kid that could not swim) , confidence course, archery, horseriding, a nature trail, kayaking, as well as a pool.
Wednesday night was skit night – so the parent helpers also had to put on a show. The children did a fancy dress fashion parade on the Monday night using newspaper to design an outfit. I suggested to the parents that we show the kids how its really done for our skit. so we all chipped in a few $$$ and two mums went into town to the Op shop and got us dads some outfits. You guessed what we wore yet ????? The kids roared with laughter as 7 dads paraded in front of them wearing makeup and (not so fashonable) womens clothing. It was a real hoot. I have a picture of me that i’ll put on my facebook page.
The kids had a ball although i suspect they did long for their own beds by Thursday.
If you have a group that needs a venue i would reccomend it. They also provide trained people for some of the activities like Horseriding, abseiling, and kayaking.
Cricket:
The season is over. The team finished on a high by thrashing the other team. Tyler got run out due to a communication mix-up with the other batter. He gets a 1/2 season playing U14 in November/December, before continuing in February/March with his college team (yes i know, college – arrrggghhhh where has the time gone).
The coach and i both received a signed card each from the team, along with a bottle of wine. They were most appreciated. I gave a little speech to the boys thanking them for their positive attitude through the season.
Milo:
Yes, we have a puppy. A Bichon Frise X Toy Poodle. At the time of writing some 11 weeks old. She is black with a white tuft on her chin, and two bits on her back toes. she is relatively well behaved but does like chewing on things. I think she will grow out of this soon. She is very well behaved in regards toileting, although Vicki thinks i am paranoid as i take her outside all the time as i don’t want any ‘accidents’.
Milo sleeps in her doggy crate beside our bed for now, and spends any alone time (ie when we are at work) in the garage.
Her doggy crate is also placed in the garage and is hooked up to an animal pen we purchased. This gives her some comfort and security as you could imagine if she had the whole garage to roam in – it would seem like a massive cavern to her. The neighbours cannot hear her they said, so she must be ok.
When we get home she is generally sleeping. She will be alone from 8ish till 3.30ish 4 days a week, so not too bad. I know some people who have dogs and they are left at home alone from 7ish till 6ish 5 days a week.
As she is black it is hard to get good pictures of her. As soon as i get some good ones i’ll post on-line.
Thats about all for now. School holidays start in 4 days, so we will lose Tyler from Thursday of week one at scout camp, picking him up on the Sunday, where he then goes direct to his grandparents farm for about 6 days. The house will be a bit quieter i suppose, but i am sure Milo will spice it all up for us.
A positive note with cricket ending is that i’ll be able to get out and about on my bike on Saturday mornings now – excellent.
Ciao for now.
Much ado about nothing
Posted by tylersdad | Filed under 1
Its been quiet for some time now. Life has been meandering on with nothing special to report other than Tyler and his cricket.
I have not been out much on the bike (either of them) mainly due to the planets not lining up – that means when i wanted to ride the weather was crap, or if it was sunny i had something else booked.
Coming up we have a scout camp this weekend at Brookfield in Wainui. Then soon after Tyler is off to the senior school camp for a week at Forest Lakes in Otaki. I am going to both of these so i should be well relaxed after the first and stressed after the second.
Then we are at the end of term 1, whcih means Tyler is off on another scout camp for a week (that i am not attending), followed by a week at his grandparents farm. My mere contribution to these latter two is to provide transport.
Given cricket season is over shortly, and Tyler prefers a warm bed to playing sport on a wet winters morning i am primed to start training for Taupo 2010 on Saturday mornings. Once this starts i’ll also be watching the diet very closely with my aim to reduce my weight to two figures – watch this space.
Lastly, those of you in Wellington will have noticed that summer has offcially ended – and that since 1 March we have had nothing but blue sunny skys and warm weather. Why why why.
Cricket – what a day
Posted by tylersdad | Filed under 1
This week i had the honour of coaching Tylers team, and umpiring the whole game (rather than the usual 1/2 game i do each week). We were playing Mana at Elsdon – never played there before.
Today dawned a beautiful day with no breeze or cloud. We arrived at the park and traipsed from one side to the other, with me carrying the team gear bag, trying to find the pitch.
I had a good talk with the team and they seemed quite motivated today, despite being 2 players short. The game ended with a loss, but in all reality they deserved to win. U12 Falcons 6/179 off 30 overs and Mana all out for 190 off 27 overs.
Tyler got his highest score yet of 17, being run out on the last ball of the innings (so he nearly got 18). Then he had 3 overs, with one over giving him 2 wickets, but one of those wickets also being a caught and bowled. Tyler ended up with 2/22 from his bowling. This lets Tyler get onto the honours board at the club.
I’m quite proud of Tyler today (well i’m always proud of him really).
The rest of the day was spent doing domestic chores like the laundry, and mopping floors,and vaccuming, and cooking tea and the dishes.
Hopefully tomorrow dawns the same as today and i can sneak out for a ride quite early and have some quiet ‘me’ time.
