Tena Koutou:

Jaye-Anne I blame you! :) Greetings all...My good, dear, insane friend of 30 years, Mrs.Jaye-Anne Greene, has started a blog to keep people up to date on her doings and I thought "what a good idea" as I, like Jaye, have friends scattered all over from one corner of the globe to the other.

For those of you who have been out of touch with me for a bit, I finished the PhD and promptly up and moved myself from Adelaide, South Australia, to Wellington, New Zealand in December of 2005. Why? Because John Howard and his new-Right politics give me a pain in the ass. I have ethical problems paying tax to a government that does not one thing I agree with! I miss Australia, Adelaide and my friends very much, but I do NOT miss being unable to watch the news because it makes me so angry. I also don't miss the absolute crap, rightwing, news media in Oz either. Does this make a new-wave political refugee? Can I claim ethical and intellectual persecution? :)

I work for the NZ government as a policy analyst in education. I love my job, you can see why you do what you do and the positive effects it has in a very real way. Having Cabinet sign off on a policy that came out of your head is pretty cool as well. The 'politics' of the public service are interesting and I'm learning.

New Zealand is a beautiful country, I know everyone says that but it is so true. In the 6 months I've been here I have trained up through the North Island and trained down through the South Island to Christchurch. I also took the ferry trip to Picton which is amazing. It is a lot like British Columbia and I feel very at home here. Its A LOT colder than Australia though, and that has taken some getting used too. I get teased alot for being 'Canadian' and complaining about the cold.

New Zealanders are a really great bunch of people. I find it to be a very tolerant, friendly, openminded country. Very different from Australia in that way. There are social and cultural issues here as there are everywhere but they are muted by a government and populace that genuinely wants their neighbors and whanau to do well and to be treated in an equitable, just manner. Maori and Maori culture is very very much in evidence in New Zealand. Unlike Australia where your interactions with Aboriginal people are often confined to what you see in the public parks and on the news, Maori have a huge influence and prescence in the everyday life of New Zealand. It is truly heartening and my life is enriched by my Maori co-workers and friends.

I live in a suburb of Wellington about 12 minutes (by train) from the city centre. I love my house, its huge and cosy and very comfortable (see pictures). Currently I live with my friend Liese and her son Matthew, but that will probably be changing in the near future. Like you Jaye I am about to become part of a blended family :) More on that later...I'll pop up some pictures and return to post more later today...OH and last but not least....


HAPPY CANADA DAY!!!