News from Nelson - February 2014

Wow - where have the days gone?! I can't believe it is February already.

More sad news this year. My cousin Susan's husband Peter died recently. He has been battling cancer. Our thoughts are with her.

Susan & Peter on their wedding day

Jan has been very busy down in the gully putting in irrigation to the orchard, which is awesome. I have been busy pulling out pig fern again. I have also been waging battle on couch grass. Three months of daily attacks now, and I am finally starting to feel like I am making ground.

The tomatoes, courgettes and cucumbers are going ballistic in the garden. Once more it is that time of summer where you leave a courgette on the plant over night because it is just a tiny bit too tiny to eat, to find by the next day it has turned into a stonking great marrow. But at least we some great marrow recipes!

Speaking of marrow recipes, dice the volume of marrow/courgette with a half measure of diced mushrooms and a half measure of onions, liberally dose it with Maggi green herb stock and whirl it about on the barbecue. Delicious!

We have had Lara & Otto here to stay for a few days, just as Tina left to go to Germany. We had a great time, taking them to the Sarau Fair, Rabbit Island, shopping in town and to Founders. We had lunch with my folks at Founders Brewery (where Otto & Lara sampled the fruit juices, naturally, not the beer!).

We all took a trip on the train at Founders

Lara beside a sculpture at Founders

Otto & Lara outside the Horticulture exhibits, eating the old welcome to Nelson sign

Otto & Lara at Founders

Otto, Jan & Lara (distance) at Founders

Otto & Jan at Rabbit Island

Jan dragged out his old Märklin train set and he and Otto had lots of fun on the dining table. Maintenance was done. Switching was sorted. A very educational time was spent by both chaps. Lara did some baking, while I rode shotgun. She made a peppermint chocolate cake which was consumed very quickly - so can be considered a triumph. They also re-read all Jan's Tintin books, watched some movies and managed to get quite a few real fruit ice creams during their stay.

Otto with the train

While at the Sarau Fair they both got a henna design on their hands:

Lara's henna

Otto's henna

It was just a pleasure to have them here, and we are looking forward to them coming again. The dogs also loved the company and the extra attention. Perhaps in the winter term break... we will see what works out for Jeremy & Tina.

Otto & Bonnie, Lara & Coco

Tomorrow there is a family gathering in Germany to remember Oma Friedel, then Tina comes home on Sunday. Hopefully it is a healing time for everyone.

Jan has announced to the NSO Committee that he is stepping down as Chair at the next AGM, and stepping off the Committee. I was at the meeting, and there was lots of disappointment from the other committee members. They may persuade him to stay yet - it would make sense if he felt that he could do a 'Past-President' year. But we will wait & see.

The first two of our Niles speakers from the US have arrived, and Jan has installed them. They look fantastic. Only four more to go, and three sets of string lights, and the lounge is finished!

Two Niles speakers in the ceiling

We caught up with Sharon & Ian last weekend for a BBQ at their place and went home feeling like pâté geese. We were both so full we could hardly bend, and it was all our own fault. The food was just lovely. We had also had a fairly big night the night before at our place, as there are some German engineers visiting from Anthon in Flensburg. They came to dinner at our place along with Steve & his wife Linda. Jan barbecued, I made salads and bread, and we finished with a Cointreau chocolate mousse (Gerhard's recipe), shortbread and melon. We took the table outside and ate alongside our wilderness - and I guess tackling that lot will be our next job! A big weekend.

Eating al fresco at Roses Road

So, speaking of food (!) we have booked for the annual Suter Dinner which is a fundraiser for the Bishop Suter Art Gallery, and for the Kahurangi Long Lunch (where we will catch up with Alex & Caroline Peckham, as well as the other usual suspects).

I had a couple of days up in Auckland at the end of January, catching up with my AUT compadrés. It was a great couple of days. Learned and shared lots.

There will be a birthday party on May 24th at the Boathouse for my father. He turns 80, and we hope to make it a real trip down memory lane for him. There will be lots of people here (including our rediscovered cousin Kim and her family). If any of you can think of someone we should contact from here or overseas, please let me know.

Right, better get back to the thesis writing.

Jan & Sam

News from Nelson - February 2011

Hi everyone!

The weather has been hot & sunny, with an hour or so of light drizzle last week – just enough to wash the dust off the roof into the water tanks. We are doing well for water though; our tanks are still half full.

Waitangi weekend was the start of the Adam Chamber Music Festival, and we saw five concerts between us. The music was great, and the Hermitage String Trio from Russia was just fantastic. Last weekend Jan had a whole weekend of music as on the Sunday he also had a full day workshop for the NSO.

Despite having bought some wall-plugs, none of our heavier pictures have yet made it to the walls, nor have our bathroom mirrors. I am quite tempted to ask the builder if he can put them up, to take them off Jan’s list. We’ll see.

The Montrose Drive tenancy is going well so far. Fingers Xed for the long term.

My study stalled for a bit; I have got an extra paper to teach in Semester 1 this year, and have been getting it ready instead.

Jan has been going to Underwater Hockey, (twice this year now – the Adam Festival got it the way a bit). He is thinking about playing in the South Island Masters Games which will be held in Nelson in October this year, so is pretty keen to get to the pool every week.

He has also signed up for all the NSO concerts for the year, and I have signed up as a  “Friend” and booked my concert seat all the way through. My mother has done the same, and booked the seat next to mine, and Kathleen & Frits have also signed up.

The Sarau Fair was really nice; we bought an updated version of “The Road to Sarau”, a history of the area written by our architect’s wife. The fair started at 4, and carried on into the night, which is a great idea for high summer. It was very relaxed, and we found we knew a lot of people there.

Last Saturday night we had Gary Rae’s 50th birthday party at the Honest Lawyer, which was fun. It was a 60s fancy dress theme – Jan went as a hippie & I went in psychedelic gear (we raided a local fancy dress shop which had some great costumes). Nik was a Mary Quant dollybird and Gary was a mod! I think there was only one person there not in a costume, so everyone had really got into the spirit of the thing. Wendy & Wayne were there – and we had a good catch up with them – along with Hugh & Julie B. Jan had a long chat to Paul Dalzell from Nelson Pine – and only part of it was about work!

On Sunday while Jan was at the music workshop, Magda came out after church with some plums and cooking apples from Gea. We had a lovely afternoon having lunch and pottering about, and after she left, I got the Agee preserver out and spent three hours stoning and bottling the plums (only 5 jars for my trouble, and terribly stained fingers!). On Monday night Jan & I did 7 & 1/2 jars of apple puree from Gea’s cooking apple tree.

So this weekend we are swapping some Cox’ Orange seconds from our local friendly apple man for a bottle of wine, and we will be apple processing to the max. One day’s full on effort will keep us in bottled fruit for a year – and we know exactly where it came from and what it has in it. And very low air miles :-)

This Sunday Jan is off for a mbike ride with Derek Sherwood, which will be fun for both of them.

Fliss is at the vet today as she appears to have something stuck in her throat; Jan dropped her off this morning and we will hear through the day what the problem - and the solution - is. Coco, despite having Bonnie here, is quite lost. I took her for a walk this morning and she spent her whole time wanting to run down the road after the car (despite Jan having left half an hour before).

Happy birthdays in the next couple of weeks to Kathleen, Kenn B, Pat McL & Kent.

Right, I think that's it. All the very, very best for the next few weeks.

Until I write again - alles liebe!

Jan Kuwilsky & Sam Young