W.T.F.!!! of the Week!

OK, so if you know me, you know Halloween is my favorite Holiday.  You will also know that Walt Disney World is my favorite place to be.  Combine the two and you have a very long conversation from me about trick or treating in the Magic Kingdom.  Yes I have done it, yes I love it, yes we are doing it again this year.  Stop laughing, we are moving on...

Now we are finalizing the details for our trip and I decide (as I do on a regular basis) that I should start looking at costumes.  Yes I dress up for the party, again...  stop laughing, we are moving on...

In my search for unique and interesting costumes I came across this little gem that rightfully deserves the WHAT THE FUCK award for most disturbing and expensive costume ever!

This Beast (from Disney's Beauty and the Beast) has got to be the most bizarre interpretation of a character I have ever seen.  It borders somewhere between the Creepy Old Man from Family Guy and a Stroke Victim.  What was the designer thinking?  Anyone with $1,000 is too dumb to know what ugly means???

Seriously, look at that thing!  It looks awful, uncomfortable and never mind the fact that is has 2 testicles hanging off its chin!

I just had to share it.  Enjoy!

Where the hell are my teeth???

Technically they are currently residing in a pill bottle in my bag after having 5 of them removed last night. Yep, after a few weeks of misery I finally went through with it and had teeth removed. Now this is my first time, so I can not compare the event to one in the US, however I am attempting to explain how it worked here in NZ. For the purpose of time and energy (I am a bit tired today) I will omit anything regarding insurance info, etc.

For this to work I have to start a few weeks back. I was having tooth pain and one of my teeth cracked (don't ask). Anyway it was a pretty annoying, throbbing kind of pain that got worse and worse. Finally I broke down over the weekend and called Dentist #1 at Symes Desilva. As it turns out there are a few Dental places that are open on weekends, but this was the one I could get an appointment with in an emergency and wasn't ridiculously priced. That day I was brought in and advised that 4 wisdom teeth and the broken tooth had to come out. I was then advised of the price, at which point I laughed (hard to do with a mouth full of cotton and tools), went home and decided to see if insurance would cover this. As a side note, Symes De Silva was very efficient, and very good. The bedside manner was a little lacking, but what do you expect for the price and timing? The final price was about $90. Not too bad in an emergency.

I had then decided I should seek out alternative options in the " knock me out and get this thing out of my head category", since Symes De Silva only does pills and locals(not enough for me), and I was still waiting on insurance.

I then headed to Dentist #2 - The Gentle Dental (no website just contact #'s) for a 2nd checkup and got my 2nd opinion verified plus full X-Rays and a referral for about $100; also not bad. If you do go here, don't let the building or front office fool you (it doesn't look that posh), they are very good, have a great chair-side manner and are very helpful. The dentist even went over all of the particulars with the digital X-Rays, so there were no guesses involved.

Afterwards, I found out that insurance does in fact cover at least some of the operation if:

a) it is NEEDED

b) it is performed by an oral surgeon

c) you are fully unconscious

OK that last one wasn't so much an insurance requirement as a Darren requirement.

Next Stop? Oral Surgeon. Wayne Gillingham of Wellington Oral Surgery Ltd was very good, very efficient (if not a little too fast) and knew what he was doing. Though he spoke and worked very quickly (I felt a little rushed) I was very comfortable and relaxed as he explained both the good and possible bad points of the operation. I was advised at this point that I could be FULLY UNCONSCIOUS. Woohooo! I walked away nervous but happy to have it finally on its way and for only $200 (which insurance will cover a large portion of, thankfully).

The final stop was yesterday afternoon's trip to Boulcott Hospital at 3:00pm for a 5 part tooth extraction. Big Fun! Was I nervous? Yes. Was I hungry/thirsty? yes (nothing to eat or drink after 7:30am), was I drugged? Hell yes! After going over the paperwork and telling Dawn I loved her I was taken to the operating room, where the best IV I have ever had ( I literally felt NOTHING and that was pre-drugs) was put in, we talked for a few minutes and then I was out cold.

I woke up with what was described to me as short term amnesia, having no idea where I was or how I got there for a few minutes. My brain began functioning in its semi-normal state and all was well. I was returned to my room and loving wife to pass out intermittently for a few hours.

They gave me my teeth, took out the IV, walked me through the plethora of drugs I could take to dull the pain and swelling and called for our friend Mike to come get us. (Thanks again bro!)

My teeth were given to me in a pill container (which I apparently, though, have know memory of doing), shook them at Dawn just to gross her out. Yep even drugged out I am a sick bastard.

So... now it is the next day not quite 24 hours since I went under the knife. I am a bit swollen and eating soft foods, but feeling much better. The slight pain I feel now I know will get a little worse but will still be better that then agonizing pain I was going through, so that's nice. Hoping all will be well for Tuesday when I go back to my students. Oh yes... I am teaching now, but that will be for my next post to explain. Check out the ice-pack/head gear I get to wear - very sexy.

In the end I learned not be afraid of Dentists, they are not all bad and do a shit job for a decent amount of money (like lawyers, only without the tails and horns ... hehehe). Thanks for reading and hope it helps some of you. Drop me a line if you have any questions or want referrals to anything.

[Editor's note: the surgery and surgeon consultation costs were covered under the general surgery clause of the private insurance I receive through my employer. We have not opted for dental insurance, and even private health insurance is relatively rare in New Zealand. -dawn]

Music you probably never knew existed.

... and maybe you will be happier for it, but what the hell, I like it.

Ok seriously, you ever decide to go to a concert and the headlining band is pretty good or even great, but one or two of the opening bands leaves you standing there with your mouth wide open? Well this one goes out to all of "those bands". The ones that you probably have never heard of and probably should because they are awesome.

Sure the music may not be to your usual taste, but give it a try, check out a few songs and yes (shameless plug) buy their stuff and keep them playing.  

Let me also say that it has taken me a long time to write this, so please excuse any punctuation and/or spelling errors.  This is music class people, not english.  That's next period!

First I will start of with my friends. What, come on you would too!

Sirsy has been around for quite a few years now. I met them at a gig in Upstate New York, in Albany during Artscape. While the number and range of the band has changed dramatically over the years, the sound that they produce has always managed to jump off the stage and wrap you up in amazingly tight rhythms, lyrics and general stage presence.
 Check out their media page and listen to some of their work. If you like pop/Rock and can't resist a female vocalist that can croon like Nina Simone as well as howl like Janis Joplin (yes really), you will really dig Sirsy.

So, anyone who knows me (and Dawn as well) knows I love Irish and Scottish Music. Give me bagpipes and a fiddle and I am a very happy listener (again, yes really).  Now say you want to throw in a banjo, an accordion, some drums, a bass and a few kick ass riffs on a guitar and what do you have!  Awesomeness!  Or on other words, the Dropkick Murphys!  Dropkick has been around for a long time and have evolved from low end punk band to amazing Irish roots band that moves between genres, from Dylan-esque rhythms to the sex pistols crunch and yells.   How good are they, well in the middle of poor health and the death of his wife (Deirdre), they managed to get Ronnie Drew (from The Dubliners), Spider Stacy (from The Pogues) and their whole band together to record their own amazing take on the tradition all Lannigans Ball (Flannigan's Ball).  This once in a lifetime compilation is loud and raucous and features both Ronnie and Spider's unique voices alongside Dropkicks' Al and Ken.  This band aside form being all very talented musicians are also class act, stand up guys and a lot of fun to hang out with.  We opened for the a few times and would never miss a show if they were close enough.  Thanks for the music guys!  

While we are on an Irish kick and talking about friends, if you like something rockin' but not so heavy as Dropkick, check out Flogging Molly.  This band mixes traditional instruments with guitars and the like to give a punk-lite show that merges from bluegrass to rock, all with a a very liberal/Irish flair.  They put on a great show and always aim to get their audience up and about.  In fact the last show we saw them at, lead singer Dave King had the flu and managed to hold it together for a couple of hours of playing.  What a professional!

Now those that really know Dawn and I know our often STRANGE tastes in music and this next band is NO exception.

Gogobordello is essentially a pirate circus put to music and run through amps till you have no choice but to walk the plank, the tight-rope or just scream at the top of your lungs.  The best part is that if you choose the later you may find your fitting right in with the rhythms of this amazing Gypsy punk band.  Seriously, this is one of the most amazing and most bizarre shows I have ever been to and if you know me you know I have seen some crazy sh*t!  Don't believe me that this is some amazing nutty stuff?  Check it out and listen for yourself!  Remember this is louder stuff and unique because of it's band and lead singer Eugene's Russo-Ukranijano-Romano heritage.  

Gypsy punk is a genre I had never heard of until they opened for Flogging Molly and Dawn and I went crazy for them after that.  Seriously people, even if the music doesn't really appeal to you, go see this show, you will be amazed!

OK, so that wraps up part 1 of Music you probably didn't know existed.  I am certain there will be a part 2 to this post, but since it has taken be the better part of 4 months to get off my butt and finish this post, it may be a while.  Let me know what you think of the bands and if you want any recommendations about sings or albums to check out, give us a shout.

Fringe Festival 2009

What is the Fringe Festival? From the website, the Festival is described as:

Incorporated in 1993, The Fringe Arts Trust will be presenting its 16th Fringe Festival in 2009. The festival has grown from small beginnings to over one hundred events in more than 50 venues all over the Wellington region.

Fringe Festival is recognised as a unique creative launch pad for the arts in New Zealand. Fringe is an open access festival, meaning anyone can produce a show or a creative project and be involved in this annual event.

Hundreds of volunteers and local members of the community donate their time to helping promote and produce the festival each year. We are a much loved part of the New Zealand arts calendar, with a strong brand that is recognised internationally for innovation in art and the creative spirit of Kiwi ingenuity.

The New Zealand Fringe Festival releases the most concentrated mix of new talent, in all arts mediums in the greater Wellington region – 3 exciting weeks of pure Fringe creative genius! Approximately 60,000 festival-goers are treated to the sharpest stand-up, theatre, visual arts, live music, basement productions and cutting-edge multi-media.

Our first Fringe was back in 2007, just a couple of months after moving here. We had no idea how extensive it was, or even which plays to choose from. We ended up going to one of the best plays we have ever seen (to date!) - Lovers of Central Park (I wrote about it in this post.) - which cemented our love for the Fringe.

Last year we were better prepared, and saw some fantastic plays and comedy acts. This year, the Festival covered the entire month of February with heaps more shows than years prior!

We have already seen 9 plays/comedy acts, and have one more to see this weekend. Some have been good, one was terrible, and another was easily the best show in the Festival. Since most of the shows we saw have ended their runs, I'm only going to review the best show in the Festival (and lucky for all you Wellington readers, the show is still running!).

The show I speak of is Adam Page Solo at the Downstage Theatre. The description on the Fringe website was enough to pique our interest, and admittedly, this was the one show that Darren looked forward to the most. Defying the odds, it surpassed all expectations!

Adam has had several good reviews, but the one on texture says it best:

As well as being a demonstration of a phenomenal musical talent, Adam Page Solo is side-splittingly funny. You're taken on a genre-spanning musical journey - one where you suspect neither performer or audience knows what will happen next. Indeed, a good portion of the show is clearly improvised; throughout his set you constantly feel as if Page is deciding on the fly which instrument (there are 15 of them) he'll play next. And one major set piece features him asking the audience for musical genre suggestions, then mashing them all together. On my night, this resulted in a genius combination of "nursery rhyme", "Bollywood", and "techno!"

As per the poster, Page also busts out a vegetable. Normally I understand he uses a carrot - for New Zealand audiences he's selected something different. A local favourite if you will.

I'll sum it up like this - if you love music, you must go and see this show. You might even find that your new favourite band is made up of just one guy: Adam Page.

During our show, he combined Swing, Broadway musical, Gregorian Chants AND Punk - all in one song! And it was fabulous. Adam has a great stage presence; he is very comfortable performing (it's almost like watching a big kid playing with his favorite toys), funny and quite nice too.

If you haven't seen him, book your ticket now! He has 6 more shows at the Downstage Theatre starting tonight. Just to give you a bit more incentive, here is a video (taken with his permission) of him playing a local vegetable.



Yes, that's right...as well as playing 15 other instruments, the man makes an instrument out of a frickin' vegetable and and plays a song with it. Convinced now?

New Year's Holiday: Picton

Part 2 of 2!  Most of our holiday was spent in Kaikoura, but we did stay over one night in Picton.  We arrived in the early afternoon, so I planned for us to go on a twilight kayaking tour.  This was a big deal for me, since (1) I can't swim, (2) the kayaking takes place in the sea, and (3) I don't like to be in water where things live.

We had a few hours to roam around after we checked into our (seemingly) lovely hotel, so we decided to go to the highly touted Aquarium.  EcoWorld Aquarium - what a great name, right?They had lots of cute signs outside of the building and cute advertisements in NZ travel brochures.  Since we had such a great experience at the Christchurch Aquarium last year, we were ok with the entry price of $17.  Besides, this aquarium had a preserved giant squid!  And Tuatara!

Once we walked through the doors, though, we knew we had made a mistake.  The aquarium can only be described as a very sad, very old, repurposed YMCA.  All of the fish and reptiles seemed to be begging us to kill them (or at least set them free).  We initially thought these turtles were confused about sex, but we decided the one climbed on the other to try to crush him to death as an act of mercy.

Look at those eyes pleading for freedom!

We didn't take a picture of the "giant squid" because we couldn't see it.  The (very, very dirty) glass case where it was encased could have contained anything - or nothing at all - there's no telling, really.

They did have a video called "In Search of the Giant Squid".  We caught it late, and watched for about 10 minutes or so until it ended....with no giant squid in sight.  A couple in front of us had watched the entire 30 minute video!  To be fair, the video wasn't called "Finding the Giant Squid", or "Hey Look, There's a Giant Squid"...

To get over the horror that was 'EcoWorld', we wandered around the lovely Picton waterfront until it was time for our kayaking tour.  Like Darren's horseback riding picture, my first-time kayaking picture is equally non-existent.  But here is Darren with the kayak after the 3 1/2 hour tour. 

During the tour, we kayaked out to the little island in the foreground.  It was a gorgeous evening!  Turns out I really like kayaking once I forget that I'm on the open sea where a shark could turn over the kayak and eat me. 

After a sleepless night in our lovely hotel that happened to be a block away from the railroad tracks and an (apparently) all-night skateboard park, we wandered around the beautiful waterfront of Picton before catching the Ferry -

On the way to the Ferry landing, we passed this old boat that is being restored (or has been restored..?).  We could have spent some money to get more information, but we didn't care that much.

On our way home, with one last look back to Picton...

New Year's Holiday: Kaikoura

Yes, our holiday was well over a month ago, and I even uploaded these pictures right after we got back from our trip. It's taken me all this time to think of some clever commentary to go along with them (hope you aren't expecting too much!)...

As some of you may remember, we were in Kaikoura for one night over New Year's last year. This year we stayed a few more days in hopes of going whale-watching. Well, not so much 'hope' as 'determined', but in the end the result was the same as last year: the water conditions were too harsh for the boat.

We loved our time in Kaikoura despite the choppy sea and the inefficient whale watching company. It's a lovely little town halfway between Picton (where the Ferry lands) and Christchurch (the place where people base themselves to see surrounding towns because it doesn't have much to offer).

Kaikoura, literally 'food'(kai)/'crayfish' has it all: snow-capped mountains, beaches, and an un-ending view of the ocean. Oh! And a Monteith's bar. :)

Like most towns in New Zealand, Kaikoura has a skate park for kids and adults alike. This one has a spectacular view:

A little ways down the beach is this awesome chair...

...with its own fantastic view.

We don't have a car - this isn't news, right? Our favorite hotel in Kaikoura is about a 40 minute (flat, straight) walk from town. Along the way are many other hotels/B&Bs, as well as private homes with front gardens. Check out these flowers!

One evening, we headed out to the afore-mentioned Monteith's bar, and discovered they had a beer tree! An entire tree of BEER! It included 6 of the Monteith's beers and one other beer they have on tap. I think I drank two, maybe 2 1/2. Darren graciously finished off the rest.

On the way back, we noticed a couple of people staring at a tree...only to find a few birds (Shags) were all lined up on the branches:

Darren had never been horseback riding before (called simply horse riding, or horse trekking here), and it had been on his list of 'things to do' for quite a while. I found the Fyffe ranch online - they offer treks into the woods/across rivers, as well as sunset rides into the mountains (when it's not too windy).

This is the only picture we took! The camera was stowed for safekeeping, and in our rush to get back to town for our whale watching cruise that was (later) canceled, we didn't snap a photo of Darren on a horse. You'll just have to believe us.

After the third and final failed attempt to go whale watching, we headed back to the hotel. The whale watching company is in the same building as the tiny railway station, which has a gigantic parking lot where people seem to just hang out.

And we came across this scene...and just imagined that the seagulls were waiting for the woman to drop the baby...!

Back at our hotel, we walked the few feet to the beach to capture the beauty of Kaikoura.

Pictured here: not a whale.

With the windows open at night, we could hear the crashing surf -

Night-night, Kaikoura!

Vast

When Darren and I decided to move to New Zealand, one of the big questions we had to answer was "do we bring all of our furniture, or sell everything and replace it in New Zealand?" I think many people moving across the world struggle with that question.

In our case, we did have some very nice furniture that we definitely wanted to bring with us - our bed suite, a chaise lounge and our coffee table/trunk. Other items were older (my 10+ year-old couches and dining room table) or too large/unstable to move (IKEA desk).

To get an idea of the kind of furniture in New Zealand, we did a basic search for furniture stores online. We found very few sites, as bandwidth in New Zealand is quite expensive. Since we were also looking at Real Estate listings for places to rent, we began to use those listings to get an idea of how people were furnishing their homes here.

We were frightened! We saw big fluffy flower-patterned couches, and cheap dining room tables. (And no, sadly I cannot find examples now. Guess you'll just have to trust me!).

Knowing there is no IKEA here in New Zealand (and there may never be...), we decided to go ahead and bring the old couches and the assembled entertainment centre. And they have served us well over the past two years, allowing us time to explore the furniture stores in Wellington. The one glaring exception has been what Darren has been using for a desk: an old dresser I bought for $50 when I was a poor university student. The drawers were quite useful for storing desk stuff and other random bits and pieces, and the top was spacious enough for his computer and peripherals. You can imagine, though, that it was in no way ergonomically pleasing for him to sit there.

Said dresser was kept in the dining/kitchen area, as it wouldn't fit anywhere else in the apartment. Yep, it looked a bit strange, but it was useful. More useful than a dining room table? No...we haven't actually eaten at a table (other than the aforementioned coffee table) in our own apartment since we moved here. We sold the one we had in the US because we didn't love it enough to ship it here, and most of the dining tables we've come across were cheaply made, very expensive or both. Not that one would fit in the dining area with the dresser, anyway.

Then Darren found Vast. It's not on our usual walking route through town - it's pretty far down a road that leads out of town. One that we only see from a bus window as we make our way North to the Hutt Valley. There are heaps of furniture stores on this road (Thorndon Quay, for you local readers), and Darren decided to check them out one day. Turns out most of them are quite expensive (read: Freedom)! But Vast was different.

Vast is an Australian chain, although each store is independently owned by franchisees who can buy from whichever suppliers suit them (which explains the less than robust website).


So, you're thinking we found a desk, right? No, but we did fall in love with a gorgeous solid mangowood table, and four matching leather chairs. The salesman was very friendly, and gave us very detailed answers to all of our questions. (Turns out he is the owner!)


Luckily, we have a Mac, and it looks great on the table/desk. And Darren finds it much more ergonomic!




The story doesn't end there, though. Once we had cleaned out the dresser and moved it to the garage (hey, anyone need a dresser?), we found we had some desk 'stuff' that we needed to store...somewhere close to the table/desk. Back to Vast we went! Mainly because they were having a one year anniversary sale.

And we found this beautiful side table sourced from India. It is solid wood, with old shutter doors that have been refurbished, then treated to look "old" again. It was more than we wanted to spend, but I stared at it until it said "take me home". I'm not about to argue with a cabinet.


Here it is!

The detail on the doors -

Even the inside of the door is beautiful!

The best part, is that the side cabinet works well with the table and holds desk stuff (for now). If we ever find "the" desk, the cabinet can easily be used for dining room 'stuff'.


Oh, and we can't have a vase without any flowers! Darren found this wild bouquet at the supermarket. For $4! I love this country.

Oh, and if you're wondering about prices, just send me a note through the blog. I don't mind spilling since I feel we got a great deal on both pieces, but thought it would be a bit brash to state the prices in the post. And if you are really interested in the store, make sure you pay them a visit during their sale, which is on through the rest of January.