News from Nelson - February 2016

Hi everyone!
This month we went with Tracey and Erica to Westport to spectate at the Buller half marathon, because Gary, Karen, Karin and Ian all came up from Christchurch to compete (or, in the case of Karin and Ian, back from Austria). Jan and I rendezvoused with everyone else at Berlin's for dinner on the way down. We hadn't been to Westport quite a while, and it was a great trip. 

Erica at Berlin's

'Our team' completing the half marathon

While Gary, Karen, Karin and Ian all worked hard, Tracy, Erica, Jan and I did a bit of sightseeing, had some great cafe meals, and stayed overnight at the University of Canterbury field-station (thank you Jenny).

We also celebrated Frits's birthday at a new Italian restaurant in Nelson. Note the scintillating converstationalists at work below...

Frits, Neil, Amy & Kathleen

Jan & Frits making conversation on their smart phones

We caught up with Tracey and Erica at the Sarau Fair for some local beverages, produce, food, music and conversation, to celebrate the end of the blackberry harvest. It is always a fun afternoon and evening, kicking off at 4pm and going until 9-ish. Mellow.

Tracey at the Sarau Fair

Also this month, my PhD supervisor pulled out on my PhD project, for reasons of work overload on the very day I was about to upload the last piece of documentation to become a pre-candidate - my pre-proposal. Gulp. I asked if we could push my project back a year, but she said that this would not change the situation. Worse, as my secondary supervisor was now living in Australia and supervising remotely, and Uni statute said that a lead supervisor had to be on campus, my secondary supervisor could not become my lead supervisor. Even worse, my third 'advisor' who was at the Uni in NZ hadn't finished her PhD yet, so was unable to fill the role of lead supervisor. Combined, this essentially stopped my project dead in the water :-( 

I stewed on this for a couple of weeks, and tried to digest this news, having invested six months in working up my idea (August to February). Planning was done. The pre-proposal was done. I was ready to start. The University was going to fund my research (the deal has always been that I could do my PhD when our mortgage was gone - and we still have NZD$100k to go... so if I could get a "PhD for free" I could start early. AUT had been going to give me a "PhD for free" plus $1500 in expenses each year).

Then I spoke to a friend who had done her PhD at no cost through an Australian University... and thought about that idea for a while. After a while I decided to revert to my original idea of looking at emergent career leadership in New Zealand, and to work that embryonic project up into a pre-proposal, and apply to somewhere like the University of Queensland (we are there are a couple of prestigious career field professors) once my idea was reasonably well-formed.

I would imagine this will take quite a while to work up due to - once more - a very heavy workload this coming semester.


Sam (& Jan)

News from Nelson: January 2015

Hi everyone,
We have had a busy month or more since I last sent a report. To see much of it in video, watch here:


We have had Lara and Otto to stay, had our New Year's barbecue, been to the Mudcastle Christmas Party and had the Rose Road Christmas Party at Daniel & Diana's. We went up to Wellington for Christmas, and John dog-sat during his tour (very well organised!). We stayed with Brigitte and John in Wellington, and had Weinachten and Christmas lunch at Tina and Jeremy's.

Hartmut & Uta are with us at the moment, visiting us and attending the Adam Chamber Music Festival. They have been on a tour of the West Coast, and have filled their hearts with lovely places, and now that the concerts have started, get to add a musical score to remember their trip by. It is the first time that Uta has visited our house, so has been quite special.

 We have the Sarau fair from mid-afternoon, which is more or less our local harvest festival. It celebrates the blackcurrant harvest. Although it is raining very, very lightly - what a blessing after a month of no rain! - I think the event will go ahead as planned. We will all go later in the day and wander around the grounds enjoying the local sights and sounds and catching up with our neighbours from further afield.

Jan, Warren and Mark (an NMIT colleague of mine) did a big day on the chainsaws and felled, split and stacked enough wood for three families for winter. Warren and his brother have, between them, a wood splitter which we were able to use. Fantastic. Otto & Lara were here at the time and helped for the day. It was a BIG workday for everyone. Mark has since been out for another session with Jan. I forgot to take any video - and some of those trees coming down sounded pretty dramatic!

When Otto & Lara were with us they went sailing with Craig and Katherine and Craig's two children, went to Tahuna beach for the day, went to Warren & Trace & Erica's, Lara made a charm bracelet with Erica - her Christmas present from us - at the Bead Gallery (while Otto helped Tracey weed the tunnel houses).

We had Magda and David to visit.We caught up with KT, KB, Bootie, Megan and Will.

We have booked our tickets for Brazil and leave NZ for Sao Paulo on 2 April, returning to Nelson on 20 April. Yay!

A busy month, having lots of fun. Talk soon!

Jan & Sam