Hi all,
We got
the earthworks at Roses Road completed and the water tanks in just before the
rain hit. The digger driver also excavated 75% of the cellar too, and got the
gravel down on the road. So now all is ready for a spring kick off on the building
site. And we got the bill for the earthworks and took a nice deep breath before
opening!
However,
we still need to get the fourth bay of the shed closed in, so we can move out
there. Jan & I are meeting with Dave Singer this weekend to build a plan
around that.
However,
Jan is still working lots of hours on the C Saw & Sander at work.
We had
Brad & Jacquie Jackson down here for a few days from 8-11 May, and had a
great time. What a neat couple of people they are. Jacquie is a lecturer in
Media Design with a strong interest in architecture, and was very interested to
see our plans and to talk to Jan about a new type of composite board that she
is interested in getting manufactured, whereas Brad & I spent all weekend
discussing business and leadership (I can hear heaps of you groaning now with
the boredom of it all!). Seriously, we had a wonderful time, and they have an
open invitation to come back & visit whenever they have free time. They
live in Wellington & Brad commutes to Auckland, and have also given us
return open invites (I think the waffles swung that!).
I have
had my interview with the Institute of Directors in Wellington, which seemed to
go very well. I am so glad that I put in the study beforehand though (I had to
skip the weekend in Chch for Tessa's birthday to fit some study in) as,
although they didn't ask any tricky questions, going through their 180 page
"pillars of governance" doc refreshed my memory about exciting things
like the solvency test, NZSX rules and dividends. Karen T picked me up from the
airport & ferried me around all day. We had a lovely time & drank far
too much coffee! I also caught up with Jeremy briefly (and we did a hand-over
of Nelson purchases in a café - for those of you who remember Cheech & Chong
- ! - it all felt a bit like "Let's do a dope deal").
And
speaking of Tessa, she had a good birthday celebration in Chch - even Mike D
& Kara came down from Auckland (which she wasn't expecting) - so it was a
good family catch up. Except me :-( She is planning some study next year -
either in Chch or in Auckland, depending on how quickly Helen gets into the
police force - on early childhood development.
We have
put in our requirements to the solar water supplier & now have our quote
back. It is easy to see why most people don't go through with any form of
alternative energy; the numbers simply do not stack up - even over a 25 year
payback period. But I guess we aren't 'most people' in that respect - which is
why we are doing it... and why the deposit has been sent and the contract
accepted.
I am also
gearing up to complete another minor bit of study - Diploma in Career
Counselling - in August, and ticking off another Certificate in Adult Teaching
module - CAT 19: Working with International Students.
I
mentioned in our last newsletter that Janet, Julie T, Murray, Jan and I went
out to dinner at Havana's Café; the week after our dinner, I heard on a local
news spot that the restaurant had closed. The owner had decided that the
economic forecast was too bad to continue, and decided to close before they
were forced to.
In a week
I take on the President's role for the 2009-10 year for my Rotary Club - the
Rotary Club of Whakatu. I have already been to my first local area 'President's
Meeting' and upset the apple cart by asking "But why?" 50% of the
time, and trying to find a nice way of pointing out smarter ways of doing
things the other 50%. Never mind, they only have to put up with me for a year.
I have an extremely able VP in Jo Gargiulo, who is great at sharing the work
around and kicking me in the backside if I try to do too much within the club.
She will be great as President the year after - she will be even more blunt
with the other clubs in the region, I suspect.
So, next
trips are in July 10-12 for the 20 year Canterbury Uni anniversary in Hanmer,
and then Wllg at the end of September for Otto's birthday.
Right,
that's all for now. Take care & alles liebe!
Sam & Jan
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